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>>48792498
You are Brianna la Croix, increasingly professional adventurer, and you are in Lora's waiting room, the night (day? /Camp/, damnit, why is this still fucking with you?) before you're to begin your assault on the Cornucopia.

"I have good news and bad news," the angel says, once you've arrived.

"Hit me," you invite.

"The good news is, the Master needs more and more of my attention. The Lush is unlikely to field me as a weapon or agent, though he /has/ planned with this in mind," Lora tells you. "The bad news is that the Master is also actively attempting to prevent me from bringing you back. It's only a matter of time before I'll be constrained against doing such a thing."

You wince, but then nod. "I haven't relied on your power," you point out. "Living like I only get to die once has been good practice for that."

"Indeed," the angel agrees. "Also, you should know this ahead of time - if the Wyrm kills you, you're staying dead. It is in his nature."

"To destroy?" you ask, tilting your head.

"To change, with a powerful will," Lora corrects. "The Wyrm is very old, and has had a lot of time to hone that will. If he changes you from a living thing to a dead one, you'll stay changed."

"Thanks for the warning," you tell her, gratefully. "I'm guessing you can't really talk about the Lush or his defenses directly?"

"Not even a little," your friend agrees.

> ...So how about that Riley guy, huh?
> How are things with you and Brigette?
> Do you really /want/ to turn the Dungeon over to me, after all of this is done?
> Write-in?

>>48792569
> ...So how about that Riley guy, huh?

>>48792569
> ...So how about that Riley guy, huh?
I wonder if the Lush thinks that he is going to die and be remembered why not play up to it? Lush and Brianna, 1v1, Final Destination.

>>48792569
>River was thinking of turning her shadow into a minion. Do you happen to actually know if shadows are sentient and separate from the necromancer? They're dead... or death... I thought you might have some insight.

>>48792569
> How are things with you and Brigette?

we promised to talk to Lora about this for Brigette, remember

>>48792569
>> How are things with you and Brigette?

>>48792569
>How are things with you and Brigette?

>>48792569
>How are things with you and Brigette?

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/welcome-to-the-countryside-1/
anything that could make this better
Rogues passage?
Swiftfoot boots in the sideboard?

>>48792569
>> How are things with you and Brigette?

>>48792651
mention this when it fits

>>48793075
wrong thread

>>48792569
>What are your plans after this is over? Feel up to making more friends?
I forget if the first part was ever covered. Second part is more to tease Lora because she needs more of it in her life.
>>48793075
I'd help if I could, but I know nothing about that game.

Called, writing.

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>>48792569
You get out your pipe and start cleaning it, without much hurry or rush. "How are things with you and Brigette?" you ask, casually.

"...In what sense?" Lora hedges.

"Lora."

"We...talked," the angel admits, her wings slumping slightly. One is bound and healing; it's still broken. "And we've been talking, off and on. About how I feel, and how she feels. She let me gently."

"Yeah?" you ask, looking up.

Lora gives you a wan grin. "She brought it up. Asked me how I felt straight-out, interrupted her lessons for it, so I...you know, I told her how I felt. And she said that she knows how I feel but that I wasn't being fair to myself, pining for her."

"And you said...?"

"Well, I mean, we talked. And she's right, I'm not being fair. She was kind to me when no one else was, but that's not...that's not a good reason," Lora admits. "Riley reminds me of her that way too, and he and I may have to talk, and we may not. I mostly...I mostly wanted him to know that I've no grudge against him. And he felt safe." The angel gets out a cigarette and lights it while you pack your bowl; she closes her eyes as she takes a drag and lets it out. "...She told me to check back in with her in a century or so, if we can still stand each other, and see if I'm still feeling the same way."

You snort. "...Yeah, maybe not a bad idea," you agree. "Have you honestly never...y'know, had anyone?"

Lora shakes her head. "I've always kept to myself," she admits. "My Choir is subservient to me, so that's wholly inappropriate. The gods, my creators, are my parents so that's out right there. I never really spoke to anyone else. I...I don't know. I always told myself that it was pointless. That they'd leave me, as everything leaves me."

> What made you change your mind?
> That's kinda depressing, Lora
> Change the subject (to what?)

>>48794167
>> That's kinda depressing, Lora

How do you even spend an eternity like this?

>>48794167
>> That's kinda depressing, Lora

>>48794167
>What made you change your mind?
>If it's not too rude to ask.

I gotta go be Gainfully Employed until about midnight or so, folks. Votes remain open; I'll call and write once I reasonably can. I won't be able to post much from work.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms are welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>Change the subject what will you do WHEN you're free, Lora?

>>48794260
Desperation, anon. The same thing that changes everyone's mind when they're trapped in living hell.

So whatever happened to that really mean forge boss?

Also bri is gonna ask about letting Brigette move around the dungeon instead of just the athenaeum right?

>>48795493
Maybe once Dick is dealt with and the world is safe.

http://pastebin.com/GHWBJ6rM

YOU WANT AUTISM? ELVES? A RICH MAN RECOUNTING A RAMBLING ADVENTURE FROM HIS YOUTH? SHITTY EXPLANATIONS AND GROPINGS ABOUT EXISTENCE AND DEFINING OBJECTS?

Fuck you guys. Look what happened with Pastebin and no breaks.

>>48796330
... 50 000 characters

>>48794167
> That's kinda depressing, Lora
> Write-in suggestion
Maybe she should talk to the la Croix family more when she gets out.The individuals may come and go, but the family remains.

Even if she doesn't grow attached to anyone, the mere fact that she's speaking with people over a period of time will probably make her more receptive to relationships that could come along. As it stands, she's beating herself too much to risk chasing happiness.

>>48795670
She's too useful to leave locked up right now

>>48795493
He's still working. When New Hell and the Roost were liberated he lost his line to his clients and dropped them rather than pick a fight.

>>48796330
What even inspired this?

>>48796407
Yeah, about 200 pages. The beginning part is pretty wonky, and erratic, but I really hit my stride when I decided to do a flavor text thing about a dude quoting his perception of elves.

Then it turned into a rambling story of when he met an elf dude, they swore to be bros and it was a running politeness competition of one upmanship, There's a shit ton of the purplest fucking prose I could force myself to put together, and the ending is super anticlimatic but I say that's how it goes several times.

But yeah. Look, some people write every day if they want to or not. Some people only write when they want to, and go until they run out of words or read what they wrote and hate it more than anything for not being as good as they planned, or thought it was while writing, as good to read as it felt to write and imagine this setting and the characters. The fun turns of phrase and little references and in-jokes that they hope others get, seem forced or clumsy or are missing that perception they had while writing it and were unable to recreate on the page.

So yeah. It's rambly, and proabably cliched, and filled with purple prose because that's what the Fae in it are all about.

But hey, I tried to make sure nobody accidentally offended someone in the dialogue without it being purposeful.

And I tried REALLY hard to be consistent about people only complimenting the others achievements, or possession, or if they are complimenting a skill or a talent it's framed as an apologetic request and not a direct compliment.

But yeah. I spent like, 11 hours writing 200 pages for my own enjoyment, and I'm putting it out there for people to read if they want, and enjoy or criticize or hate or whatever man.

I'm going to fucking bed now. Done.

>>48797012
Drugs, boredom, and a twisted sense of obligation, as far as I can tell. Dude's off his nut.

>>48797012
Well, previous thread someone mentioned Flitter claiming Brianna was biased against the Fae because she was uncomfortable with using Silences corpse to make a singing sword or talking mirror.

So I tried to write out some ideas about how Fae consciousness works to create a "self", a sapient identity, without a soul like people. Flirted with the idea that instead of a magical source or metphysical source, it's possible that that have a mechanical effect caused by their physical body that generates a state similar enough to what we recognize as "consciousness" that any difference is academic and based on it's creation, and not it's unique characteristics that define it as a discrete state which performs the functions of "consciousness" well enough without having qualities that would let us come up with an alternate definition that it can't be defined as anything else.

Anyways, since the "consciousness" if the Fae is a phenomenon caused by an action or intrinsic property of their physical body, when they die and the simulated consciousness state ends, you can reforge it so that the mechanical process starts again an generate a "consciousness" state again. Because it's using the same hardware you are likely to get a similar consciousness as the previous one, but it doesn't share continuity or the recorded states of existence/Memory of the first one, so you can only get a unique identity that's varying degrees of similar to the previous one.

>>48797179
Go to bed Marcus

>>48797077
Broken leg, too much time alone, and why the fuck not.

Shit, at least I did SOMETHING, as well as I could, and I enjoyed it.

>>48797012
AAAAAANYWAYS.

That was a fun theory, so I started to wonder just how the Fae could have a similar consciousness that we could recognize and relate to, but at the same time be unable to change their identity barring deliberate action or extreme trauma. They don't compromise, they have abnormal values, and quite frankly even if you do manage to change them, they don't manage to learn how to change.

Or so it seems, going into general fae lore, no real consensus and you never went into it in your quest.

So I tried to see if a could come up with an internally consistent viewpoint of their sense of self and how they experience events to explain that. The TL;DR is that the Fae have not only perfectly record events as they happen and store them as memory, but the emotional and mental state they're in and perceive the events through is stored at the time as well. No disconnect between self and existence, it's all on the hardware directly exposed to the moment of recorded. ROM only.

So every moment they've lived, they are able to not remember but actually experience again with just as much intensity and accuracy as the present moment. As well, the remember what happened as they were at that time.

So if a Fae has a misconception of an event that happened, and later learns that what they thought was real isn't, then they don't change their memories. They can remember them, and know that they aren't correct, but for the that existence was and still is a real existence that happened. They can't change their perception of the past, so essentially to them it's like the world changed instead,

The hopped from a world where (a) happened to a world where (b) happened instead, but they still are and always will be the "self" that existed in world (a) and now lives in world (b)

>>48797374
Okay but why the hell did you keep talking about elves? They aren't fey.

>>48798368
awwww fuck. Fucking fuck. Well time to go wordsearch "elf" and change that shit.

I dunno man, when I was young Elves were part of the Fae, I always forget that's not actually common in most modern Fiction so I interchange the words.

>>48798368
Fixed, at least it was just in the metaphysical ramble. Once I started with dialogue and characters I got a bit more consistent.

Okay, so I'm now mostly available until 11 PM or so, for questions or discussion.

>>48799396
Suuuure, question time.

How much significance do people place on angels as far as worship is concerned? Are there shrines or altars dedicated to the choirs like there are to the gods? Do angels sometimes make enough of an impact on human life to be worshiped individually, separate from the rest of their choir?

>>48799483
Angelic cults do exist, generally dedicated to Sorrows angels, but they tend to quickly degenerate into something more like revering a saint. One notable exception is the worship of Ma'at (Truth), who is known as the Angel of Justice and paid honor to in courts the world over - though they, too, are Sorrows.

Angels themselves are seen, rightly or not, as executing missions from the gods themselves. Most mortals treat them with respect and awe, tempered by the grim and seductive knowledge that they may be slain. Angels are sometimes referred to in religious texts as the Cousins.

>>48799396
What are the paths between levels of the dungeon? Tunnels or staircases or what?

>>48800352
Depends on the level. Steep or spiral stairs are common. New Hell uses ramps for shipping, where the Roost has doors into border tunnels into more doors. The entrance from the Athenaeum to the Mine is the Shaft, whereas the Broken Jaw has a tunnel following the river, which opens up into the cliffs above the Sunless Sea. The passage from the Sea into the Mire is the Drowning Stair. Anything after is unknown.

>>48800594
have there been any settling of accounts in liberated levels of the dungeons between those who worked against the chain holders and those who worked as collaborators?

>>48800720
Not as such. The Basement just considered it business as usual. The mercs are gone from the Lichyard, while the Caretaker vouched for Brigette to the Athenaeum. The Mine knows how the Baron was operating. Most of the renegade Forges in New Hell were put to the sword, the Lush's men from the Warehouse are mostly imprisoned, and the Broken Jaw was massacred.

Two hours and change to call.

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So, question: Who's 'best' Chainbearer?

>>48803539
Proposition: Brigette is best Chainholder.

Prove me wrong.

>>48803539
Best is Lora
"Best" is at the moment Lush

>>48804046
1: Brigette does not hold chains any more.
2: Chainholders hold chains by definition.

Therefore:
Brigette is not a chainholder and as such cannot be best chainholder.

>>48804379
Counterpoint:
1. Brigette was previously a Chainbearer
2. "Best" Chainbearer in no way necessitates a state of currently holding a chain. (By that logic, only the current Presidents (those who currently preside) of countries around the world can be in consideration for "Best" President.)

>>48804474
Concession:
1: Brigette is a chainholder.
----------
1: Chainholders hold chains.
2: Ability to hold chain determines chainholding competence.
3: Brigette failed to hold chain.
4: There are currently chainholders which still hold chains.

Therefore:
1: Brigette failed as a chainholder.
2: The Pallbearer is the worst chainholder since it lacks hands to hold chains with.
3: Chainholders that both hold chains still and are not the Pallbearer are all the best chainholders.

>>48804662
I'm fucking dying.

Called, writing.

>>48804662
>2: The Pallbearer is the worst chainholder since it lacks hands to hold chains with.

Nonsense, it uses the chain as an anchor! Now an anchor is a solid thing, and the other end is probably tied to a rig of some kind, so Pallbearer's chain-holding competence is very good indeed.

Plus, since it's a ship with its own crew, it has a lot of hands on deck; hands that help him hold on the chain. Therefore, more hands = more competence in chain-holding = Pallbearer best chain-holder!

>>48804934
1: The crew's hands are not the Pallbearer's hands.
2: Having something attached to you is not the same as holding; if the chain were tied onto someone, they would not be considered to be holding it.

Therefore:
1: Pallbearer worst chainholder.
2: Crew part-time chainholders.

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>>48792569
>"Also, you should know this ahead of time - if the Wyrm kills you, you're staying dead. It is in his nature."
>"To destroy?" you ask, tilting your head.
>"To change, with a powerful will," Lora corrects. "The Wyrm is very old, and has had a lot of time to hone that will. If he changes you from a living thing to a dead one, you'll stay changed."

Hah, the Mire is going to be /fun/. Dark Souls anyone?

>>48805937
No, instead we're going to do a Minmei Offense!

Everyone dresses as a sailor scout, even Nate. We do a song, we do a dance, and when he is bemusedly going "Okay, didn't expect that" we make an impassioned plea for him to choose to change himself and join us with the power of friendship!

But yeah, that dude sounds intriguing. On a serious note, I would kind of like to try to negotiate with him as well. Overall, talking things out has worked okay for dealing with the Chainbearars.

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>>48794167
You sigh and give Lora a long look. "That's more than a little depressing," you point out.

"I know it is," she agrees. "...I knew, /know/, that my peers handle it somehow. It's not like I'm any more or less mortal than Jord or Matariel. I suppose...hell, I suppose I was scared to have to say goodbye. The journey into the Sunless Lands is a one-way trip even for me. I couldn't handle the idea of saying goodbye forever. It was easier to not care."

"...Lora, I've been sitting on this for awhile, but...when we talked, the Lady said she thought they'd wronged you, when they made you. She sounded...sorry."

"She shouldn't be," the angel murmurs, flicking her good wing. "I've been a spoiled brat."

"I wouldn't go /that/ far," you tell her.

Lora shrugs. "Maybe. I just...I dunno. I was so scared to lose things that I didn't have them in the first place. Even the Dungeon I retreated from and essentially abandoned once I had it to my liking. What's the point of living like that? I gotta learn to live with myself some - and now you're hugging me."

You are. You laugh, and squeeze your friend. "Dumbass," you chide, fondly. "...Y'know, there's worse things you could do than keep up on that whole 'Chosen' thing, and maybe catch up with my family. Gods know there's enough of us that you can get a bit of diversity out of it."

"Are any of them not bitter, sarcastic assholes?" Lora asks.

"We work for the public good, Lora. That's a job requirement."

"You've got me there," the angel agrees, fondly. "One thing, before you go."

"Yeah?"

"That taster? Don't let it go back to Hell. Burn it with balefire if you have to, but...the Lush has three rakshasa and the taster, and they know the secret of his Drink. If any of them escape, they will take that secret with them, and his evil will survive him. They need to die, truly die, to ensure that does not happen. If you free me before you fight them, I can attend to that detail, but I doubt you'll have that luxury."

>>48806022
Keep in mind; the Librarian, and the Gauntlet Below, lay /past/ the Mire.

In other words, we can't avenge Jack's killer and give peace to his ghost before we kill a fucking ancient dragon.

FUCK.

>>48806168
> "That taster? Don't let it go back to Hell. Burn it with balefire if you have to, but...the Lush has three rakshasa and the taster, and they know the secret of his Drink. If any of them escape, they will take that secret with them, and his evil will survive him. They need to die, truly die, to ensure that does not happen. If you free me before you fight them, I can attend to that detail, but I doubt you'll have that luxury."

DOUBLE FUCK. At least River has a good handle on the balefire.

>>48806256
have we talked to cooke yet about what to expect when fighting a taster?

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>>48806168
"I'll keep it in mind," you agree. "We'll probably talk again, during this whole thing."

"We will," Lora agrees. "...You never lit your pipe."

You wake up, your reply on your lips, and sigh. You hate how that happens.

Nathan and Amy are already up, so you dress and armor up before throwing on your winged coat and top hat. You traded your pack for a slung satchel that won't rest between your coat's wings a little while ago, though your coat contains everything you'd want for an actual /fight/.

The entrance from New Hell to the Cornucopia is as loud and busy as the rest of the place. Ordo the Orc runs a busy Forge, and you can see his smiths and their assistants toiling away at the tools and supplies that will be needed for the Roost's dig project.

Hatchet is talking to Nate. You see him press a trio of spikes into your lover's hands. "This'll hold anything slippery," the older human says. "That taster, things like your lover's shadow, ghosts. Nail 'em down, then kill 'em."

"Yessir," Nathan agrees.

Amy is currently engaged in a rapid-fire conversation with her mother in bird speak, both of them with the look of people trying to make the most of limited time. River -

Hold up. Her shadow has a broad-brimmed hat on. And a walking stick that River herself definitely is not holding.

"Bri!" your sister calls, jogging up. "Whisper, this is my sister."

"Charmed," the shadow says from the floor. She peels herself up in that peculiar folded-paper way that shadows have and offers you a hand. "River's been talking about you."

You shake her hand, a little bewildered. "Your familiar?" you ask River.

"Yep. And she's an explorer, evidently."

Whisper beams. Or, rather, part of her blank face peels away in the vague shape of a smile. That's. That's not unsettling at all. "I am indeed," she agrees, her voice bright and eager and not even a little spectral. "I'm told this new place we'll be experiencing is infested with villains and rogues?"

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>>48806395
"She just...talks like this," River says, a little bewildered.

"So did Fetch," you agree.

"Sir Fetch!" Whisper says brightly. "Where is he? I've been told so much about him as well."

Fetch bawks from your shin height. Whisper makes an excited noise, only to be arrested by River clicking her tongue.

"Babble over there," River tells her familiar. "I need to talk to my sister."

"Aye-aye," Whisper agrees, stepping away before sinking back onto the floor.

"...Went with the shadow, huh?" you ask.

"Yeah. It felt right. She can put the stick away, just so you know. I'm not sure where it /goes/, but..."

"Familiars are always a little odd," you say with a shrug. "The Lush is fielding four demons in particular - his taster and three rakshasa - that need to die for real. Think you can handle it?"

"Taster might be tricky," River admits. "...But I believe so, yes. How are you planning on replenishing the shade form talismans?"

> Personal life force
> Attempt to blitz the objectives
> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock

>>48806485
> Attempt to blitz the objectives
> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock

Blitz first, but if needed, sap some lieutenant's life force. Who knows, maybe if the talismans' need for life force counts as hunger, they could be subject to the laws of Cornucopia?

>>48806485
>Assassinating the Lush's officers (not the common soldiers) and/or quickly butchered livestock.
The assholes are already marked for death, and we can use the livestock as materials for quick repairs or flash reanimations.

Whisper is definitely interesting. I bet she and Sir Fetch will get along swimmingly.

Now, GO THE FUCK TO BED YOU MADMAN.

Weren't we planning to sneak in and kill the Lush? He'll probably notice his soldiers going missing.

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>>48806485
>>48806485
>> Attempt to blitz the objectives
>> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock

Speed and replenishment on the go. Waste not, want not. Also, getting a brief from an expert on just what the heck Tasters are and the usual means to combat them would be good. This one apparently can gobble up entire houses.

If we were going full frontal, I'd look into some kind of bait to pull it into a trap near New Hell and slam it with siege weapons or something from there to pin it down for the balefire.

Also...

>The bad news is that the Master is also actively attempting to prevent me from bringing you back. It's only a matter of time before I'll be constrained against doing such a thing

Dick continues to be a Dick, but I'm going to tentatively mark this one down as a win? If he's spending time not working on his research that will end the word, the gives us more time to get to him. And, ultimately, we weren't really planning on dying anyway.

... Actually, isn't this a net bad for him?

I mean, every time Bri dies, the connections she made outside the dungeon go up in smoke since Lora's resetting bits of the world to do it. And people know about him now, and what he's planning. If Bri doesn't resurrect, the world doesn't reset, and more people take a deeper and more intense interest in the Dungeon since the person handling it was killed.

Of course, even if Dick swings this and tries to push Lora for some sort of reset /anyway/, it could soak up more time for the rest of the Dungeon to come crashing down on him.

We're at 8 of 13 Chainholders, and the breakdown of order on the Daughter's level probably isn't helping. Add to that, the Warehouse is being secured so supply lines going down are getting tight. And without the Diviner to lock down the Broken Jaw, it's much more hazardous to traverse.

Bri's a lynchpin of the operations against him though, and the direct line to Lora, which is all kinds of cheaty.

>Death Bottle
>Assassinating the Lush's officers and/or killing livestock

>>48806628
Dick is requiring more and more of Lora's services and time. she said so. That means he's getting closer to being done.

That's not good.

>>48806628
>>48806729
We /are/ on something of a clock (I highly doubt it's one of those 'You only have two weeks left before the end of the world' though). Every floor retaken by us is simply a delaying action on Dick's part. If he reaches his goal of creating a 'glorious new world', we lose.

I'm more interested in finding out whether Brianna, by being the Heritor, can order Lora to perform some kind of work that would keep her out of Dick's hands (helping the Broken Jaw heal seems like a good idea, or maybe ask her to go say hi to the parents/siblings for an extended occasion).

Also, the Death Bottle /could/ work, but if we get into a fight, we risk loosing it before we can actually use the damn thing.

>>48806544
FINE THEN I WILL. VOTES REMAIN OPEN!

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>48806485
>>> Attempt to blitz the objectives
>>> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock

>>48806729

I'm not contesting the fact that time is our enemy on this one. I am however saying that the time Dick spends attempting to make sure we die a permanent death when we aren't dead yet is time he's not spending bringing forth the end of all life as we know it.

I said it before, but Vox is a pretty cool GM. An invisible clock where he's tracking the amount of time Dick needs to go Full Armageddon isn't quite his style. Big choices where we have the option to very slowly unfuck things to safely handle a situation versus risky and quick solutions later on? Especially when we get to the Mire, I expect that to come up more. Just crossing the Mire could take awhile, to say nothing of the Gauntlet Below and the Redoubt.

The Mire was probably Lora's passive defense to keep people out of her Sanctum. A big swampy area that was also dangerous. I bet you there's only so many solid roads through that, and all of them are under Chainholder control. The Gauntlet's the more active defense. A big, trapped maze with lots of dangerous critters. The Redoubt? An actual fortress, guarding the only way to the Sanctum.

Probably, anyway.

Also...

>You are bound in chains of blackened silver and rusty iron

This was one of the lines from the Lush's... 'party'. Now, I know it's probably something the Lush added on for the hell of it rather than anything else, but... We also know that he's gone out of his way get a lot out of Lora. Vox said there was a price to using the Chains, so I can't help but wonder if we're starting to see it. Maybe with the 'load' spread across multiple chains it wasn't so bad, but with more than half of them gone... is the Lush's chain starting to show some wear?

>>48806485
> Attempt to blitz the objectives
> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock
I don't mind draining life from them. Also can we drain life from the farmlands and crops?
Plus we can distract the Lush from our entrance say by getting our guys to storm another entrance, kill all the soldiers, have harpies drop oil on the farmlands and burn them down, and immediately fortify, our army might hold the Lush's attention. Combining this with getting Riley and his forces to at least leave, we might have a better chance than we thought.

>>48807038
Harpies won't use fire, more than likely.

Feathers, you know, and smoke rising into a trapped location. I don't think they suffer the same sensitivity to airborne particulates and poisons as mine canaries do, but I'd rather not have them find out the hard way, yeah?

>>48807062
Nah, harpies drop oil, our ground troops can light them up. Fire arrows, thrown torches, magic, there surely is a way for htem to handle it.

>>48807038
>>48807062
>>48807129

... Wouldn't using flame risk killing lots of people who are just slaves being forced to work the fields, while destroying valuable cover?

Plus, let's be real. If we start a fire big enough to do what you're suggesting, we're not going to be able to control it. It will careen wildly out of control killing lots and lots of people. Which, let me tell you, will probably have lots and lots of people in terrible fucking misery above the norm, making the Drink more potent then before.

>>48807257
>>48807062
I think fire anon just wants to see how Vox will cope with the idea.

I would be terrified that Vox would cope with the idea relatively realistically, and we'd screw ourselves far more than we would screw them.

Nothing good comes of using fire as a weapon.

Fighting in fire is bad, m'kay?

>>48807257
The problem is that the baseline level of misery is so high that I don't think that a wild fire will add that much misery. These people already can't eat or drink more than a mouthful due to the Lush.

Also, we have been using the carrot so much. This is the stick. We can say to the harpies in the Lush's service: or not, this.

>>48807562
Fire obscures vision, causes damage at range by heat, dehydrates the air, and cannot be controlled. It would be a disaster for us to try and fight in those conditions, especially with enemies and potential allies alike struggling to survive and entirely dangerous to everyone they encounter. The demons, of course, won't give a flying fuck, and I have my doubts it would trouble the Lush as much as it would the humans.

And you really, really don't want to deal with the aftermath of injuries to innocents where fire is concerned. Potions would inflict agony as intense as the wounds do, when they can help, and infection will claim almost everyone injured badly by the fire.

It's not just stupid, it's evil.

>>48807562
>worried about adding misery
That's really not what you should be worried about.

I bet your the same type of person who voted Jack into being a specter. "Oh there won't be any consequences!"

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>Learn to fire death imbued lightning from our hands.
>Consume the in-setting equivalent to PCP.
>?????
>PROFIT!

>>48806485
>> Assassinating the Lush's officers & forces and/or killing livestock

This is one place where I /really/ think we don't need to feel too guilty about killing the forces arrayed against us.

>>48808544
Especially if Riley got the the none rape soldiers away from the engagement.

Up. Will call and write soon.

>>48806485
>> Attempt to blitz the objectives

Real life kinda delaying me.

>>48810685
When did you decide to make Whisper a trailblazer?

>>48810913
Better question: what is it that River wants or needs that a trailblazer is representing?

Called, writing.

>>48811413
Obviously, she wants and needs adventure.

>>48811413
A need for guidance, it looking like Bri is not a coincidence.

>>48811679
Ah, someone to follow. She's getting further and further away from taking responsibility and making her own decisions?

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>>48806485
"We work as fast as humanly possible," you answer, frankly. "If we need to top off, we'll use our list of targets and possibly available livestock. Lora said she'd try to mark the fuckers of the group, which'll be a help."

"I can get behind that plan." River gives the ramp down a glance; some of Ordo's workers are oiling the hinges of the great door that will permit you into the Cornucopia. "We should get everyone together and talk over the taster."

"Good thinking."

The two of you beckon for your familiars and go to join Nate and Amy. Nathan shakes hands with Hatchet, and the older human gives his student an approving nod. Diving Shadow and Amy share a brief, tight hug before Shadow leaves with Hatchet, sparing only one worried glance back for her daughter.

"We need to discuss the taster," River says simply, but with a confidence that's nice to hear. "Obviously the big question is 'how do I kill it?' but equally important is 'how will it kill me?' and we're doing to cover that second part first."

"Good thinking," Nate agrees. All eyes are on your sister as she sets her pack at her feet and digs out a book. She peels through the pages until she finds the one she's looking for and shows it to the group; in the center of the two pages is a stunningly detailed drawing of a wraith-like form with burning eyes, its smoky body sprinkled with sparks and currents of heat. Elvish writing - River's - crowds the margins around it, with plenty of tiny additions and crossed-out passages.

"Tasters are thought to be related to gorgers," River begins. "Unlike gorgers, tasters are barely corporeal. Iron will ward them off but not precisely harm them as such; they have fluid forms and significant control over their own bodies, which makes them hard to cut, bash, or otherwise physically injure. Strong winds can scatter them, and I suspect that the spikes Hatchet gave us will hold the thing down, but the first obstacle is simply /hurting/ the damn thing."

>>48811480 is closer to the reason than >>48811679 or >>48811783 are. Familiars are subservient; River /cannot/, by definition, follow Whisper in any sense but the purely literal.

>>48811910
Well it WAS wanderlust that led her here to begin with, I suppose it's simply in her blood to go to new places, meet interesting people, and then kill them for coin or cause.

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>>48811891
River hands the book to Amy so she can get a closer look at the illustration. "Tasters use demonfire pretty intuitively and as their body suggests they're fairly hot themselves. When they feel the urge to kill they burn and choke their victims, smothering them inside the smoke that composes their form. This isn't their worst aspect, though. Like my blade, tasters drain the feelings from people and animals around them. Unlike Sleep, Tasters take /everything/. Your hopes, your fury, your sorrow, they drain it all until what's left is a barely-conscious husk. In most cases they then torture their prey, looking to wring the last few bits of feeling you can give them, before finally letting their victims die."

Amy passes the book to Nathan with a horrified expression on her face.

"The wildcard here is the Drink," River admits. "I don't know what it's done to this taster. They don't normally grow bigger when fed or, really, grow bigger at /all/. Summoners often hide a retained taster in their own shadows. Whatever the Lush discovered or invented, this demon isn't like its kin."

"Which is where we get into a new objective," you cut in smoothly. "Three rakshasa and that taster know the secret of the Drink. We can't let them make it back to Hell with that secret. If we can't kill them for real before we free Lora, we need to capture them."

"Understood," Nathan murmurs, distantly. "...Gods, that's /sick/. Who would create something like that?"

"Answer's in your sentence," you say with a shrug. "The gods. They don't talk a lot about why." You get the book, take a good, hard look at it, and then hand it back to River. She places it carefully back in her backpack and slings the pack over her shoulders.

"Alright," you announce. "We're going after..."

>>48812215
> Border Farm; you want a secure place to rest & an exit on hand
> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army
> The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support
> Prisoners; find the people the Lush has captive and get them out before everything goes to hell

>>48812242
>> The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support

We need scouting intel more than anything, I'd wager. But harpies are vicious, murderous monsters in their natural state, how the hell do you convince them? I honestly don't believe that a sob story about how the Librarian killed hatchlings is going to bother them. It wasn't THEIR hatchlings, so who gives a shit?

And now, Gainful Employment. I'll be back just after midnight. Again.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>48812215
>> The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support

>>48812242
> Border Farm; you want a secure place to rest & an exit on hand

>>48812242
>> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army

A Vox-sanctioned undead army? I'm sold.

> Prisoners; find the people the Lush has captive and get them out before everything goes to hell

If nothing else, this allows us to use .... more indiscriminate tactics.

>>48813273
'to rest'. If we have to rest; we're taking too long and time is working against us.

>>48814427
I was thinking of an escape route and a place where escaped prisoners and such could go.

>>48812242
>The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army

Just had a thought, what if Lora can use the divine tongue to draw all the horrible shit the Lush put her through from her mind, leaving the stuff like Riley, the twins and the old man? She'd remember that she was treated badly but the finer detail would be impossible to remember, like the Lush's face and everything that he thought would make him immortal.

If she could do that while he's alive to witness all his work go up in smoke I think that would go a long way.

Six and a half hours and change to call; it's been a busy fucking day.

>>48814743
Brain surgery on yourself, using a power that requires your brain to guide it.

Brilliant idea.

>>48812242
>Border Farm; you want a secure place to rest & an exit on hand
Intel never goes awry.

>>48815816
Better idea, drill Brigette in the necessary words for about three or four decades and let her attempt it.

>>48812242
>The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support.
Just like before; Amy can tell them about what's happened in the Roost (not just Geargrinder attack, but how we've opened things with the surface and other floors to make things better). It's likely to involve more 'harpy debate', but that's still a better alternative.

Also, they can assist in fast assassinations and tracking the Taster. Because we do NOT want to get caught by surprise by that thing.

Strange idea too; if a psychopath, who feels nothing emotionally (not a sociopath, that's emotional extremes, people switch them A LOT) had protection from fire and asphyxiation, would he/she be immune to the Taster?
>That ghost breath is going to be /super/ helpful when we go to kill the damn thing. Just watch out for burns.

>>48814743
So, just to recap, the Archangels are this;
>Jord, Archangel of Fangs
Snarky wolf-bitch, and apparently mother of quite a few nephilim like Seraphina.
>Sif, Archangel of Leaves
Very, very pretty, and the closest looking to 'traditional' angels.
>Matariel, Archangel of the Rains
This fucker. We ALL know who this guy is.
>Duma, Archangel of Mysteries
He was pretty vague, almost like, even when physically present, he's incorporeal.
>Domiel, Archangel of Sorrows
Reminescent of the Lord of Painted Glass. Tall and sharp, but pretty chill.
>Erebus, Archangel of the Deeps
We didn't see or hear anything from her, though I guess that's because she didn't really have anything to add to the situation.
>Azreal, Archangel of Death
Lora, obviously.

Now, which one would be better suited to helping their sister deal with her shitty memories? I'm thinking it'll be Domiel, since he already seemed like a bro when we met him. Otherwise, it might be best for her to just work through things with /mortals/. I mean, shit, how many women have gone through this kind of awful experience and still managed to have a happy, loving relationship with a man and raise families?

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Found it.

>>48816230
YES. Stephen Sejic is awesome.

>>48812242
> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army
For once, I'm actually all for the 'necromancer army' thing. We never use it, so it may be something he didn't plan for as thoroughly. It'd also sidestep the food/water issues associated with assaulting the level.

Making them less mobile is a decent side benefit.

>>48812242
> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army

You know, it occurs to me that saying "No skeleton army, ever, no matter what" even when you actually need them is just as bad as making them when you don't need them.

>>48816230
>>48816242
Tell me more?

Two and a half hours and change to call.

>>48817710
Nothign to tell really, except the drawign of a tale concernign a cruel plantation owner who subjects her slaves to obscene and cruel medical experiments, and the hougan who taught her the harshest lesson of all.

Stephan Sejic drew the illustration, but it isn't based on anything specific. It is unusual in that the genders of both the protagonist and antagonist are inverse of the usual stories.

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>>48817710
Stephen Sejic is the artist behind Top Cow's Witchblade series (pic for example), as well as his own comics of Ravine (his own little magical realm), Switch (which is like an alternative universe Witchblade, and possibly even cooler), and Death Vigil (relevant to DLQ, in a way).

Here's a link to his DeviantArt page;
http://nebezial.deviantart.com/

He's also responsible for the lovely, heartwarming, positively arousing Sunstone, which is based around two women, relationships, and BDSM. It's sooo good, even when their's not tits involved.

>>48819564
I thought that style looked familiar!

Waiting for Sunstone updates is suffering.

>>48819747
I had thought it was obvious. It'd be /really/ hard to confuse his work for anyone else. Though, I am biased. I'd buy his comics in a heartbeat if I had the money to throw at him. Same for you as well.

Sunstone was my introduction to bondage, and the same can probably be said for many of his fans. Seriously, I had no idea being tied up was as much about release as control.

>>48819878
It's the only bit of his work I'm familiar with. I kinda often forget to follow up on artists and musicians and end up ignorant of their wider body of work as a result.

>>48819967
It's forgivable. Life is life, and there's often not enough time in the day or the week to do the things you want to do.

I have a big set of watercolor and pastel paints and canvas' that I got for Chistmas /three fucking years ago/ that I still have not opened. Life is suffering.

>>48811891
>>48812215
Huh. I had thought that Gorgers were like big, fat, angry beasts. Essentially just mouths with arms and legs.

And I had thought that Tasters were like their adult forms. So, if the Gorgers are ravenous but stupid grubs, Tasters are the whip-thin beetles or moths they turn into? Dunno.

It's going to be hell and back to kill this thing, that's for sure.

>>48812242
>> The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support
If we can convict them to help they would be great double agents, nobody would suspect the harpies they see everyday to give us airborne intel

Home. Will call and write Soon(tm).

> The Harpies; track where they're nesting and try to get some damn air support

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Don't mind me, just bumping with a side of Quest appropriate art.

>>48812242
> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army

>>48812242
> The Lizard Pens; deny the Lush his mounts, and maybe arrange a skeleton army

We can negotiate with the Harpies when we meet them, let's make our first strike into the Cornucopia to reduce the Lush's ability to stop us from doing the other things.

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>>48817353
Skeleton armies haven't really been necessary. I mean, that's what we've been making allies for. Well, that and the whole 'reluctant Hero' thing.

Now, elite undead minions? That's something we should have more of. I say we fill up /all/ of our minion slots with stronger and smarter critters. Maybe we can slap a human torse onto a horse and make an undead centaur, or even a Nucklevee?

>>48823671
Or a Headless Horseman, for a more classical option.

Called, writing.

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>>48823708
That too. Also, can we do some undead wolves or lions? I just found this pic of a Khymera (fear-beast from Warhammer 40k), and now I totally want one.

Maybe we can do a vote on what /kind/ of minions we want. Not now, obviously, it's 4 in the morning. Later though.

>>48823708
What about a horse-headed horseless horseman?

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>>48823708
We could definitely get Whisper a skeletal horse! Would it be possible to raise a horse's shadow, rather than the body?

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>>48812242
"We're going after the Lush's lizards first," you tell your compatriots. "We're going to need muscle sooner rather than later, and I don't feel like dealing with more cavalry than I absolutely need to - especially with their bites being as filthy as Jack said they are."

"Muscle?" Nathan asks.

"You know the whole 'does this course of action end in zombie armies?' thing?" you ask your lover. "That's more metaphorical than literal, mainly because of the sorts of problems you solve with armies. We've got the sort of problem you solve with an army, so I'm going to work with River and raise some lizard skeletons for backup and fights."

River rubs her chin. "...We /could/ use that," she admits. "And it's not like it's much different in principle from the chickens."

"Pretty much," you agree. "And it's also not like we won't peel through the things. I don't expect enough to survive these proceedings for me to get mad with power later. Or you, for that matter. No offense."

"None taken, I definitely don't need any armies."

"This has to be the most necromancer conversation I've ever heard you have," Amy comments, distantly. "...It's kinda hot."

"/Ames/," Nathan says in frustration.

"What! I like watching you lose yourself in a fight, I'm allowed to imagine Bri laughing manically at the back of a shambling army of - okay you're right now I feel bad."

You pat Amy on the shoulder. "It's alright, pretty bird. I feel you."

You mount your boar, adjust your hat, and nod to the men attending to the door into the Cornucopia.

The massive doors swing open, and you advance into the Cornucopia, the breadbasket of the Dungeon, called the Summerlands by the residents of the Dungeon.

Home of the Lush, and the giant's Drink.

>>48823995
I mean. Getting some real "Enders Game" vibes here from your description.

>>48823671
We're raising more minions right now because we are facing an army, and I'd rather spend our stored death than other people's deaths from fighting.

As for getting more elite minions, without upgrades their crap and the only reason I am agreeing is because I feel Vim and Vigor's roles don't really need much more upgrading, the Boar is GOAT right now, and that just leaves Kat and Sir Fetch.

I would like to point out we still can use material to arm and armour our lovers and extended allies who fight with us, so while I could see getting a couple of wolves or something I have to ask if the resources upgrading them to be suitable for combat might not be better used to ensure the people we care about can survive it instead.

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>>48823995
Your first feeling of the Cornucopia is a pleasant warmth. The border lands here between the end of the farmland and New Hell are full of tall grasses that grow more than eighteen feet high. They sway in a warm breeze that tastes of summer and the sharp sting of misery, layered against the background feelings of life and death like a clinging grime. It feels like the Moneychanger's torture chambers had, only washed in the pleasant warmth of the bright witchlights that hang from the ceiling.

The lights are safely contained within massive lanterns chained to the roof of the Floor, which creak and rattle in the breeze.

Emerging from the tall grasses puts you on the edge of a rice field, currently being worked by slaves whose heads are bowed to their task. At the center of the rice fields is the Border Farm, and as far as the eye can see are more and different fields and /rivers/. The omnipresent river that stretches through the Dungeon from the Basement on down is joined by more that flood in from the edges of the Cornucopia or ponds that well up from the stone and spill tributaries into it. Near the center of the Floor you catch the towering Seedhouse, where the farmers here keep seeds and cuttings to grow the crops they want or need, and the pink of cherry blossoms attracts your eye from the west - the Quickling Grove, with the streams winding through it, whose trees bear a new fruit each season.

You hear a harpy call from above and retreat back into the grasses so you aren't spotted. The air of the Cornucopia is not empty, and the harpies are not the only things in it. Bats - no, wait.

Bat zombies.

/Fuck/.

"He has a necromancer," you murmur.

"Of course he does," River bitches. "Why should things be simple? Why? Why would that ever happen to us?"

You pass out the shade talismans; everyone affixes the protective badges to their shirts and shudders for a moment while the magic takes hold. There - now you ought to be proof against divinations.

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>>48824141
There is a muffled sound as Ordo's men finally close the door behind you, and you lead your group east, along the borders of the grasslands, with one eye on the sky at all times. Nathan loads his crossbow and works the mechanism to ensure that the weapon is ready. No one's really feeling like talking right now, which is fine. Stealth is most definitely called for.

Nathan takes up the rearguard, not that he has much of a choice in the matter. To your (completely unjustified; you should have been expecting this) great surprise, River easily takes point; she moves through the grasses without disturbing them overmuch, her hood up and her ears swiveling to and fro to take in the sounds of her environment. Your sister seems eminently at home in the role, and stops only to keep you from breaking out into the open fields.

She holds up a fist to stop the group short. "Open ground ahead, looks like a road," she tells you. "Like the one out of New Hell. Vanishes in a steel on the one side, heads towards the Seedhouse on the other. At a bet, entrance to the surface."

"Not a bad bet," you admit. "...Helluva journey down or up, though."

"Might not be a surface entrance at all," River admits. "Big chunks of this continent are riddled with underground cave networks."

"The Great Below," you agree, nodding. "Thoughts?"

"It's guarded," River says with a shrug. "We could storm it, maybe. Get some death for the bottle and open up another door out. Personally, I say we dash across the road and keep looking for the lizards."

"Or we could wait," Amy proposes. "Jump whoever's coming down the road and get some answers."

> Keep going
> Ambush a patrol or supplier
> Storm the mysterious door and its guards

>>48824197
vanishes in a steel door on the one side*

Anyway, I need to hit bed. Votes remain open.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>48824197
> Keep going

Don't we have an extra pair of hands hanging about specifically for snooping? Get the V twins to recon for us, either for the lizards so we don't get spotted by the bats, or on the door and guards.

>>48824197
>Ambush a patrol or supplier.
This is the best way to get information right now, to learn more about how the Lush has organized his forces, where the superior officers can be found, etc. Just gotta make sure we keep it quick and quiet, then dispose of the evidence once we're done.

I've also been thinking, that if there's one thing that Dick wants almost as much as his glorious new world, it's the secrets protected by the dead. What if there's a threat to him and his New Order, just lurking beyond the Veil? What if Brianna somehow has learned that secret from her departed ancestors, and is planning to use it against him?

So, if Lora won't reveal said secrets under pain of rape, torture /or/ by the compulsion of the Leash, then he just hires out other, far-less morally upright necromancers to go digging for him.

>>48824277
These guys are quick and clever, but they don't have a means of keeping in contact with Brianna. The'd probably do best while under Sir Fetch's supervision.

And since he's a rooster, in a place full of farm animals, he could travel pretty freely. Well, except for his colorful plumed helmet.

>>48823671
We could have turned that praying mantis in the roost into a thrii-ken...

>>48824197
> Storm the mysterious door and its guards
I don't want any ways out for the Lush's demons. Also, if we can find a map, it would be useful.

>>48824785
Nah, not really. The thing was even bigger than the Boar, and there /are/ size limitations. Mostly just the sheer amount of energy it would have taken to reanimate the damn thing.

Now, if there are giant bugs in the Cornucopia (let's be honest, with the amount of plant and animal life available, it's practically a given), we could make flying witch-bugs with poisoned scythe claws.

>>48824924
>Mostly just the sheer amount of energy it would have taken to reanimate the damn thing.
At the time, this wasn't a particular shortage in the Roost.

>Storm the mysterious door and its guards
Intel is intel.

>>48819564
Huh. Didn't know his actual name. Serves me right.

And Sunstone is very good stuff.

>>48824924
Dude, that's fucking neat.

we should try it

I wonder if these necromancers were just living down here and ended up swept up in the takeover like everyone else.

>>48824197
> Ambush a patrol or supplier

>>48824197
> Ambush a patrol or supplier

we do need to gather intel, though it'll be risky

>>48824197
>storm the door
We're blitzing, right? That seems like a viable thing to blitz. Let's blitz it. I like saying blitz. Blitzblitzblitz.

>>48824197
>>storm the door
If we storm thr door then we can wait for the patrol after, then move with LOTS OF DEATH for the talismans

>>48826203
Maybe? It's a big place. A couple of them probably came from the inner ring of the Warehouse, what with it's assorted collection of scary folk. Though, Lora being who she is, would have known there was someone fucking around in her territory; which is probably how they got looped into fighting for the Chain-Holders, now that I think about it.

>>48827192
We can always have the Boar rip up the bodies afterwards to make it look like an animal attack. Well, that, or we can use them as temporary minions once we kill `em. That's if they're soldiers and not, say, a slave farmer delivering crops.

Do we have a plan on what to do with any slaves we manage to free on purpose or by accident? They'd be in a rush to get the fuck out of Dodge, and that would get them hurt or killed.

We're definitely going to want to parley with the Harpies after we get our necromancy on. I don't feel comfortable just plucking them out of the sky (or getting /more/ bird-brains trying to shove talons into our soft bits).

Maybe we can do something similar to the deal with Borsh and Lista; one of us (likely Amy, since she can fly AND explain to them what's going on outside) can stay with them as a hostage, while they allow us to continue forward without having to keep looking up.

That's if they're even willing to talk first. I doubt the Lush has been as nice to them as he's been to his hand-picked officers, but they're still Harpies. We might have too, well, 'debate'. With fists.

>>48828479
>>48828716
it'll play our hand way too soon!

We only blitz AFTER we have been discovered, we need to move with stealth before that or we'll have the entire enemy force on our ass

>>48824197
>> Keep going

we're not even sure there's anything worth fighting for behind that door

>>48829459
Well, it's an escape route for the three Rakshasa and the Taster. We'd want to hit it, to prevent their leaving the Cornucopia before we can kill `em for good.

It'd also be a means of getting the slaves out of harms way before we really go at it with the Lush.

Honestly though, I wouldn't even worry about the damn door until we have our new minion army. Then we can storm the place, kill the soldiers, and secure it with minions. Barring /that/, we could always just slag the damn thing with Balefire.

>>48829557
>>48828716
I think we should try and find out what the door is before we decide to attack it.

>>48829875
that is a good idea, but wouldn't that be covered under the waylay a soldier and interrogate them?

>>48824197
>> Ambush a patrol or supplier

Need data.

>>48829976
Yeah; I voted for ambushing someone.

Just powered through the archive.
10/10 quest, shankbirb best birb though Isoldt is best waifu.

>ambush a patrol

>>48830087
Fetch best bird. Your opinion a shit.

>>48830295
Fetch isn't a bird he is a Knight of the Realm, sir!

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>>48830087
Welcome to the quest, anon! Can I get you to expand on those thoughts and/or anything else that caught your eye on the journey here like the massive slut for feedback I am?

I'm handling Real Life Stuff before I call and write. I'll be back soon, I promise.

Called, tallying, writing.

>>48830956
Sure!
Bri's necromancy style as a cleric of death is really cool. I like how she performs her duties but also holds a spot in her heart for living things like love and a family.

I like how demons are split away from Angels and the how the gods are real people and present in the world but also fallible in a way.

I'm not a fan of the three way love between Bri/Birb/Boy because I only see it ending in hardship, but I think it's going to end with Nat and Amy married and Bri going on to bigger things.

For the love of lewd, Harry and Isoldt's side story is amazing and should continue

Silence dying killed my soul. She was the only equal to Bri on all levels and she will be missed.

Amy is the best birb. I think her spat with the trifling shows what makes her the best. Mom bird and tatters (rip) come in second.

Another thing that drew me in was that all the "villains" each had a story and were invovled for complex reasons.

Except the Lush. I don't care about his soul one bit and when we pry the chain from his twitching fingers we use Lora's boon to erase the memory of everything he did. Scrub away the stain he's left on everyone's soul so he dies forgotten.

This brings me to my big criticism is that EVERYONE is getting second chances and that's not how life works. The scythe comes down and that's that. Sure maybe you get to be a ghost but really you only get one chance to do it right. If you are lucky Bri or Lora comes along and grants you that second chance but it's so rare. Why does the Poet get to live her life while Tatters is left on the ground? Nays mom gets to live with guilt but Silence gets hacked up into charms? It's not fair but those who fight Bri are getting secome chances left and right while those that fight with her suffer. I'm surprised no one has commented on it.vwe've doled out some justice but I hope with the Lush and the Pallbearer we use the tools that keeps River up at night and bring some balance to be scales.

>>48831721
>It's not fair but those who fight Bri are getting secome chances left and right while those that fight with her suffer.

Not strictly speaking true, the Vintner and the Moneylender beg to differ at least. The real reason is that Bri is always seeing that little speck of goodness and tries to nurture it, while our enemies don't care a whit for it.

>>48832332
I meant it more like, Amy lost her wings, Nat lost a Leg, Silence is dead, John too, Tatters and many of the Roost, Jewel is age-reset and burned, Bri is burning through the lifeforce we got back from Lora, for what?

The BBEG gets to have his children safe? The misbegotten clockwork people that the entire dungeon is suffering for?

And don't get me started on the gods. Hurr were gonna just sit this out because we told Lora we wouldn't bother her here. This is some fucked up shit and divine wrath should be pouring down into his place en-masse but nope. Barely a peep. I guess it makes sense that the celestial don't care about their progeny that much as evidenced by our most recent encounter with angels.

>>48832469
Gods respect her privacy and autonomy, I doubt they run on the same schedule as the rest of the world. But yes, the Gods function isn't to give you a good life, never was and never will be. I mean if they were, then Natalia would never have seen the future in the form of a world war. It's going to happen and the Gods aren't going to bother.

>>48832469
look at it this way, if your a parent that works over seas and focuses almost solely on their job, would they actually go and help their kid if something happened? Sure if they are close enough, but if the kid is on the other side of the world or in a secluded/locked of country(like the Dungeon and the gods not being aloud in there except for specific spots that they have set for them, they don't really work except for specific circumstances a la Bri) then if they even found out there would be little if anything they could do about it. Remember the magic "Words" thing Lora does still affects them too. It wouldn't be a stretch to say shit would be truly fucked or had to be fucked for them to be involved, rape play on words not withstanding the only thing I can think of is if the Door in the Warehouse being opened probably, or if signs of the Master fucking with reality start affecting everything. What my rambling amounts to is like, a rich guy having their kid taken by North Korea while they are vacationing there or living there(a dumb idea to compare with I know), you might be able to find out if word slips, but if they get across the border it will be difficult to fix the problem personally, hence sending in mercs/personal guards/spys or something in to rescue them.

>>48832469
I'm curious, with all this talk of disliking the secind chances we've given the Chainbearers: Who was your favorite? Are there any you feel shouldn't have recieved mercy that did?

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>>48824197
You gesture along the side of the road. "Set up," you tell your companions. "We need intel. We're going to ambush the next set of folks coming in or out."

<You should talk to your lovers, my lady> Fetch murmurs, about an hour into waiting.

<Not now, Fetch. We're ambushing.>

<And I am so very loud> the undead chicken drawls in your mind. <My lady, why have you been holding back?>

<...I'm looking for the right way to say it> you admit, at last. <Because I have real worries and concerns and I don't want to hear all about how I'm just being down on myself for no reason. I'm not.>

<You should still talk to them. They cannot help you if you don't let them in.>

You sigh, earning a concerned look from Amy. You shake your head, and she looks away reluctantly. <I know, Fetch. I...I know.>

<Also, a wagon is coming.>

"This is it," you murmur.

You and your companions had set up away from the door, around a bend in the road, because being spotted ambushing people would defeat the point of trying to remain undetected. You firmly order the boar to stay back and wait for the wagon to get closer.

Everyone but Amy and the minions puts earplugs in. The wagon is escorted by ten soldiers and driven by what is unmistakably a professional teamster - the look in the eyes, to say nothing of the /six loaded crossbows/, is a dead giveaway.

Amy starts to sing. You've heard her screech, and she's hummed softly to you and Nathan before, when she's feeling loving and cuddly, but you've never heard her /sing/ before. You remember, briefly, her saying that her song isn't as strong as a full-blooded harpy.

They must be terrifying. Even through the earplugs you can feel the lull of it, the warm comfort that suggests you put your weapons down and listen. The soldiers, totally unaware, stop and look around, their hands falling away from their short blades. Blissful expressions cross their faces as Amy weaves the song, drawing them deeper into the comfort of her voice.

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>>48833208
The teamster looks at them, even as the massive lizard hauling the wagon cracks a massive yawn and settles itself down on the ground.

You yawn yourself and shake your head to try and get Amy out of your head.

Then the teamster hauls up one of his crossbows and shoots the officer leading the caravan guard full in the face, the bolt piercing through the back of the man's helmet and releasing a thick gush of blood that follows the woman's tottering collapse to her knees, then to the hard-packed dirt of the road. The teamster throws the crossbow aside, grabs two more, and jumps from the wagon before sprinting away, towards the Seedhouse.

/Shit./

> Let him go
> Send Fetch & the hands after him
> Send Amy after him

>>48833244
>send sir fetch and the hands after him

>>48831721
Thank you for the feedback, my friend!

> I'm not a fan of the three way love between Bri/Birb/Boy because I only see it ending in hardship, but I think it's going to end with Nat and Amy married and Bri going on to bigger things.

Eenteresting. What gives you this impression?

> This brings me to my big criticism is that EVERYONE is getting second chances and that's not how life works. The scythe comes down and that's that. Sure maybe you get to be a ghost but really you only get one chance to do it right. If you are lucky Bri or Lora comes along and grants you that second chance but it's so rare. Why does the Poet get to live her life while Tatters is left on the ground? Nays mom gets to live with guilt but Silence gets hacked up into charms? It's not fair but those who fight Bri are getting secome chances left and right while those that fight with her suffer. I'm surprised no one has commented on it.vwe've doled out some justice but I hope with the Lush and the Pallbearer we use the tools that keeps River up at night and bring some balance to be scales.

Out of curiosity, is this a criticism of me as a storyteller or of anon's choices in these matters?

> And don't get me started on the gods. Hurr were gonna just sit this out because we told Lora we wouldn't bother her here. This is some fucked up shit and divine wrath should be pouring down into his place en-masse but nope. Barely a peep. I guess it makes sense that the celestial don't care about their progeny that much as evidenced by our most recent encounter with angels.

In a very real sense, intervening would break the trust between them and Lora, a trust that both sides value immensely. When you make the rules, it's a big deal when you break them - especially to the people who cannot.

>>48833244
>> Send Amy after him

Let's see how he deals with Knives Falling on him.

>>48833316
For the love triangle, Bri is duty first and I think the duty will take her somewhere she won't be able to take Amy and Nat with.

The cirticisim is with choices. Nats mom got off way too easy, as did the nephlihim and honestly River too as did the Poet. They commit terrible atrocities and then a few threads later it's a slap on the wrist and they are helping the war effort like it's no big deal. It flies in the face of the survivors and I think Bri and Lora are the only things keeping people from exacting revenge/justice. I would have voted to destroy the clockwork messenger for killing Silence, targeting children and will Vote to reneg on the deal and use the 600 clock people to draw out the Librarian. You don't get to have your dreams live at the cost his has. Death is impartial but mortals need some semblance of balance.

Also how is it breaking trust to help out your daughter when when she is suffering like this. This is what drove the Nephlihim to her end, the callous and blunt nature of the Celestials. They are stubborn and fearful of interacting at all. Would Lora be upset her parents came in and "violated the trust" they gave her? Maybe, but it I think she would also be grateful not to be raped to slee everynight by the Lush or to commit atrocities against her creation everyday. Sometimes a parent has to respect a child as another adult, but to turn your heart so coldly away is dispicable. What is worse is that they have Chosen they could send in to help and so far we got one from Big Red and some side help from Birdo. Now I could buy the whole "godly aloofness is really just hiding subtle but significant action" but we've established the gods are fallible in a sense so they have no excuse. I hope they are only waiting for Lora to adult-up and ask for help. Something bad is happening down in the dungeon that is outside the normal level of bad .

>Send Fetch and the hands.
I want to see trick and frack's new spider bits in action.

>>48833244
> Send Fetch & the hands after him

point will be to subdue. amy keeps singing, can't risk anyone waking up

>>48832469
The gods play a different set of rules. How much would the world being torn asunder actually bother them. They must have known they were creating a world with a hard deadline when they created Lora. I don't think the acceleration of such a thing really bothers them that much. I'm more curious as to why Lora seems to care so much honesty, is she unsure she would survive a new genesis while bound in the Chains?

I need to take a shower. Will call and write once I'm clean.

>>48833244
> Send Fetch & the hands after him

>>48833244
> Send Amy after him

I thought fetch specialized in killing demons.

>>48833244
> Send Fetch & the hands after him

Also
> Then the teamster hauls up one of his crossbows and shoots the officer leading the caravan guard full in the face, the bolt piercing through the back of the man's helmet and releasing a thick gush of blood that follows the woman's tottering collapse to her knees, then to the hard-packed dirt of the road.
>shoots the officer leading the caravan guard full in the face, the bolt piercing through the back of the man's helmet
>releasing a thick gush of blood that follows the woman's tottering collapse to her knees
>back of the man's helmet
>woman's tottering collapse
Seems a bit awkward as it seems that the man who got shot in the head turned into a woman on the way down.

>>48836005
Depends which head he was shot in.

>>48836005
It was a bolt of gender change.

>>48836005
There is no war in Ba Sing Se

That's what I get for paying attention. Sorry!

Blech. I feel like hell (physically, that is) for some reason. Called, gonna try to write.

Bump.

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>>48833244
<Fetch, get him. Alive.>

Fetch bawks for Vim and Vigor and takes off running while you and your companions emerge from the grassy border. The soldiers all have manacles and keys; Amy hangs back, continuing to sing, and you marvel as they calmly permit you to lock them up, one after another.

One furrows his brow, in vague suspicion, and asks if this is a sex thing.

"...Yes?" you offer, hopefully.

The man holds his wrists out with a dreamy expression, which is going to take entirely too much alcohol to scrub from your memories later. Just. Ew.

Amy stops singing only after they're all locked up and you're holding the keys. You look to your left to see the teamster coming back, his hands held where you can see them and a sullen expression on his face. The crossbows are nowhere to be found, though with Vim and Vigor on each shoulder you can guess why. Fetch follows along behind him.

"Damn harpies," the man complains, before he spits into the dirt. "What'cha want with the likes o' me, witch?"

> Ask why he was immune to Amy's song
> Ask why he shot the officer
> Ask what's in the wagon
> Write-in?

>>48840197
> Write-in?
Hello, we're here to kill the Lush. Wanna help?
Check for any secret marks and if there are, let them kiss the cross...bow

I gotta hit bed folks. Early day at work tomorrow. Votes, as usual, remain open.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated. Y'all have helped me improve quite a bit, and y'know I always like to hear critique or read discussion, even if I don't always address the latter directly.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

Bedtime bump.

>>48840197
>> Ask why he shot the officer
Why he was immune isn't the first thing we should ask, because killing the officer might have triggered some magic crap that alerted some people there where intruders.

>>48840197
>Ask why he was immune to Amy's song.
They way I see it, the Lush wouldn't have taken the Harpies into her 'service' if he didn't have a way to protect himself and his chosen officers from their songs or screech.

Also, check this douche for Lora's mark, and if he tries to lie or hold out on us, Sir Fetch can play good cop while we play bad cop and threaten him with Lora.

We could also threaten him with necromancy. We don't necessarily /have/ to, but Brianna using her Rot to rapidly decay the dead body would definitely be points towards Intimidation.

>>48841108
Oh, I know exactly why; he (since >>48837079 typo) knew things, had information that would be valuable to us. Meanwhile, this asshole wanted to cover his own ass, and thinks that he can hide this stuff from us even under pain of torture or death.

>>48841108
This too. I'm glad we're wearing our ant-divination charms. We should still make sure to cover our tracks, and disguise the kills as either being the work of wild animals, or if we feel like turning our enemies against each other, make it look like it was the work of renegade Harpies.

>>48834202

A critical part of why I like this, is that we try to help people. That we're being the bigger person. Bri is a saint in a lot of ways, because she believes she has to be. It's hard, it's complicated, and there is no right decision most of the time. But none of the Chainbearers we've saved have exactly been proud of what they've done. Either that, or they haven't been in their right minds for a long time.

Dick manipulated and twisted a lot of them, and we've put half the chainbearers we've met in the grave for those sins. I'm willing to bet that we're going to put at least four of the remaining five in there as well.

You can bet that each survivor is going to spend the rest of their lives (or deaths, in Jack's case) with that weight on their souls.

As to why the gods aren't coming? The Dungeon is Lora's domain. They literally aren't allowed down there. The Divine Language locks down on them too. You can bet Lora probably made arrangements to stop them from just casually having a bunch of Chosen ordered/requested down there too. Red Troth's gal got around it probably by deciding of her own accord to check it out, before hiring on with Natalia.

Were they aware of what's happening? Probably not at first. You can bet that one of Dick's first little tricks was to lock out all the ways he could think of for Lora to call for help or have her underlings bail her out. But you can bet that they eventually caught on, and have been watching, waiting, and looking for opportunities to help. They can't interfere in the Dungeon in any way, and probably can't even send in their Chosen without a good excuse. But you can bet that they're probably stacking the deck a bit on the surface.

That legitimization of Necromancy from Henrietta? The angels giving a bit of a show and giving the Duchess, our ally, the opportunity to mentor the Daughter, which is a hell of a negotiating tool? The Princess coming down to help and take an interest?

The gods can manage subtle.

>>48840197
Fucking weirdo's, even in the Lush's place...never mind I feel dumb..

>>48842363
Eh, it's understandable. It seems to take either incredibly strong willpower, complete deafness, utter insanity, a state of undeath, or magic to resist the siren's call. This guy definitely is one of the Lush's handymen, being granted that kind of protection.

Actually, that reminds me of the pin given to Brianna by Bridgette; doesn't it protect against mind-control and/or suggestion? Shouldn't she be protected against this kind of thing herself?

>>48842438
Oh yeah, your right, I forgot about that thing. She should be completely immune to mindshit as long as she has her hat on(read: Always) or at least super resistant.

>>48840197
>Ask why he shot the officer

>>48842438
Might have gotten damaged in the Diviner fight?

>>48840197
>> Ask why he was immune to Amy's song

If this is a thing around here, we need to know it.

>>48840197
>Ask why he was immune to Amy's song

We can check the wagon ourselves and he shot the officer to deny a possible enemy to gain intel. Either he doesn't have intel himself or is pretty damn sure it will not cross his lips.

>>48840197
>>48843729
Forgot to add, check for marks as a standard action on every higher ranked soldier we find.

Okay, so here's the deal. I just got up. I leave for work in about an hour, and I'm fucked up on three & a half hours of sleep and a kink in my neck that has me feelin' like the world got re-shot with vertical filming. So the votes are gonna stay open, and I might try to update from work, an' I might not. Either way, I'll be available for feedback as much as I can, but I haven't done a mid-shift in so long that I honestly don't remember what to expect any more.

I'll try to update when I get home just after 6 PM or so, once I find some dinner and get something to scrub these spots of pain outta my eyes.

Thank you for your patience.

>>48844218
Waiting warmly.

>>48840197
> Ask why he shot the officer

Who knows, maybe they were just /the/ worst road trip leader and had it coming, but I wanna know.

Also, finally made my way through the archives. A thoroughly fun ride ever since it caught my eye with promises of necromancy and a mega-dungeon. Hype for finally being a part of voting.

>>48840197
> Ask why he shot the officer

>>48840197
>"I have a friend, in a terrible spot right now, and she's got a few different names.."
>"The elves call her Aphrael, the dwarves Elli, and men of the cloth or /my/ profession refer to her as Azrael. But common folks just cut to the chase and call her Death."
>"Would you like to meet her? Or do you want to tell me what's in the wagon?"

His immunity is part-and-parcel of protections put in place by the Lush. Not going to help here.

He shot the officer to keep information from us. Bad idea.

He's gonna have a bad time.

>>48844218
I know thy pain. Literally, threw out my back few months back (YAY I'M A PACK MULE) at work but the store manager made me to stay another six hours. Spent the next few days on Hydrocodin and just...floated, like a dead body.

>>48845013
Welcome to the quest, my friend! You know what I'm gonna ask you already, don't ya?

>>48840197
>Interrogate him with the previous write-ins, and call on the murdered guard's ghost to get info from him. He must've been killed for a reason, might as well ask the victim too.

>>48845554
This.

>>48845684
Things that have caught my eye in particular are the Divine Tongue, Robert and River's relationship and the flavors of liches you've given us.

The Divine Tongue seems quite interesting to me, and I like the method of creation, but my main focus is on how it will be used/abused in the future by those who know it, and how a confrontation between two equally fluent individuals would look/sound like. How the Ripples from the words turn out to manifest from such a confrontation, or even a heavy usage of the Tongue is another idea I'd love to see. Overall, I like how significant, yet potentially disastrous a tool it is.

I love hearing from a Zombie Army necromancer and his attempts to teach River, and River's reaction to his ghostly shenanigans is always entertaining to me. Both characters are rich, especially given that you weren't expecting River to really take this route at all, and I love that River gives insight on both the Undead and the Secondborn, though I do wonder how she might experiment in combining the two in the efforts against the Chainbearers. The bit about Tasters being hidden in their master's shadow seemed especially...tempting.

The Caretaker, the Warehouse's Lich and the Lichking are all a yummy neapolitan arrangement, but I just can't help want some more flavors, or to see what little surprises they might hide away in their centers. Of course, the greatest of them, the mighty Coffee-Lich Vox, legendary for his commitment and flexibility, is my favorite of them all. Your first Quest is turning out to be quite the adventure and, like I said, was a complete thrill of a ride until the present.

I do have to say I am infinitely curious as to what could've been different if we truly save-scummed like you thought we might, and to what extent we could abuse that now, given that we have a contingency plan in the form of The Box.

>>48845950
This.

>>48846174
>Lichking
What? Where?

>Contingency plan in the form of The BOox.
What plan? And please tell me you aren't referred to the box from the Warehouse?

>>48840197

> Ask why he was immune to Amy's song

We might have to encounter more people like this in the future

Maybe he's deaf?

Anyway, let's play things close to the vest for now until we know this guys allegiance

>>48846439
DLQ #81, Vox expanded on the Harrow's background and how their royalty goes into a sort of hiberation-lichdom, as per tradition. One of them wants to keep awake and ruling though, so now there's a mad Lich-king roaming about. Fun times.

As for the box plan, I think it was made awhile ago, but there's a letter addressed to Ettie to bring her up to snuff on the situation in the event Bri dies, since it seems she'll return to life being in custody for /something/, and because having a Duchess friend can help smooth that over, the letter was made. I believe it was then put in a box, but I could just be mixing up containers and it's living its life on a shelf or in a pocket.

As for THAT box, in the Warehouse, the only plan I want to have for that is to see what happens when we find something "indestructible" and toss it in. Should be worth some popcorn and safety glasses.

>>48846819
Woops, I may have been too excited and forgot that the Lich-king was probably put down, but still, even dead liches are interesting liches.

>>48846866
There was something about people getting kinda nervous about the whole undead thing but the sleeping Liches are part of their heritage so they don't want to outright remove it, I think it was.

>>48846982
More or less, yeah.

Sorry I haven't been talkative folks. I've been here, just...fucked up.

>>48849487
Don't die, Vox. take a breather if you need.

OH FUCK BUMP

>>48849487
Get off the computer if you aren't well

>>48849991
Don't fuck bump, fuck Tina. She needs it after getting summoned into a sexless service.

>>48850164
Just tired. Bit of a moot point though, as I'm currently being Gainfully Employed.

On my way home.

Home. I'm going to mow the lawn, make coffee, then call and write. It'd be a kindness if an anon would provide a count but if not I'll get that done once I have caffeine.

You can do it lich!

So...

Who wants to see Isoldt giving the talk to her kids ?

Because that seems hilarious to me.

Ask why he was immune
>>48846639
>>48843729
>>48843601
>>48841313

Ask why he shot the officer
>>48841108
>>48842607
>>48845013
>>48845087

>>48840197
>>48855319
> Ask why he was immune to Amy's song
I'll try and break the tie.

Page 9 bump

>>48852035
>"I'm going to mow the lawn"
>five and a half hours later

It is known to us now. Languid is truly dead; the curse has descended upon a new host.

>>48858117
Roommate ended up needing the room and I passed out on the couch waiting for him to be done forgetting that the floors are thin and prone to collapsing in. My deepest and sincerest apologies, and thank you all for your patience.

Called, writing.

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>>48840197
You give the man a raised eyebrow. "To start with I'd like to know why you're immune to my harpy friend here when /my/ protections aren't working properly."

"You remember to get yours recharged?" the man drawls, condescendingly. He tips the brim of his straw hat, revealing a pin in the shape of a sheaf of wheat. "There's a witch that passes these around, on the quiet-like," he explains. "Somethin' about objecting while those scavengers eat you while you're still alive and swayin' to the damn music."

You look at Amy. She looks back. "What?" your lover asks. "He hasn't said anything /wrong/."

"Amy, that's fucked up."

"No shit."

"You ain't one of the giant's pets," the teamster reasons, looking from the group to the hands on his shoulders. "What is it you're here for?"

"Information, at the moment," you answer, casually.

Near the wagon, the guards are coming to.

"Damnit, you said this was a sex thing!" the one complains.

"/That/ is your complaint?" you snap, glaring at him. He withers, and then shuts up. You put your attention back on the teamster.

"You can't hold them," he points out, cynically.

> I don't intend to let them live
> We've got friends not too far from here and I appear to be in possession of a wagon
> Big words from a guy who shot one in the face. Don't act like you care
> Write-in?

>>48859762
> We've got friends not too far from here and I appear to be in possession of a wagon

>>48859762
>Don't give him any information.
>Ask what the door thing is.

>>48859762
> I don't intend to let them live
Would you like to shoot them?
Also, this witch. I would most like to converse with her.

>>48859762
>>Don't give him any information.
>>Ask what the door thing is.
Seconding this option, this guy's might be able to sneak off and if he does he should have as little info as possible

>>48859762
I'd like to kinda merge two of the options;
>"I wouldn't think you'd care, since you shot their superior officer, but I happen to have friends nearby, and seem to have come into possession of a wagon."

We should totally find this supposed witch and make friends. Or, barring that, get information and/or talismans - y'know, creative exchange.

>>48859762
> "Big words from a guy who shot one in the face. Don't act like you care."

Make sure to say it loudly, so the other prisoners can hear how this asshole killed their captain/superior officer and/or friend. Maybe Nate or Sir Fetch can call him a waerloch, just for emphasis.

I'm thinking we might do the same thing with these guys as we did with those soldiers of the Baron's that we found in either New Hell or the Atheneum (can't remember which).

Just truss them up, load them into the wagon, and tell them we don't actually want to hurt the common soldiers and such. Just the Lush and his hand-picked lackeys. If they want, we can either lock them up in a barn somewhere, or we can drop them off back at the door to New Hell (where they'd be prisoners, but alive and not being tortured or used for parts by a necromancer).

Also, were we still going to get the Harpies on our side? That seems like a supporting objective to eliminating the Lush's control over the Cornucopia. We don't actually need them to fight for us, just don't answer any summons from the Lush and don't tip off our location or actions.

Okay Vox, question time!

What are relations like between the Angels and the Secondborn?

Is there such a thing as a 'Fallen' Angel? Or do the gods or their Choirs' Archangel just take them aside to talk about their particular problems with mortals, themselves, or just how they disagree with how things are being run?

Any famous or infamous trysts between Angels and the Firstborn or Secondborn? Any particular Nephilim of repute?

What kind of crazy shit would happen if an Angelic or Demonic bloodline mingled with one from the Fae?

Also, which of the Gods created the Giants, and why? I had the idea they were made by the Forgemaster to help work the bellows of the Forge Below like self-aware tools, and were given a place in the Ironlands as reward for their assistance, but Mac Daddy Smith hadn't intended for them to survive or thrive outside of his workshop, thus leading to extinction.

>>48862135
Remind me about these later, 'cause I'm headin' to bed. Votes remain open.

Question (like these!), comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>48862147
So we already know about the god's love letter that drives mortals insane, what are some of the odder artifacts in this world?

>>48862377
/Heart's Ease/, yes. We (I'm assuming some of the other regular anons joined in the brief escapade to that /other/ place for the side quest) gave it back to Wren in exchange for one miracle, which was used to turn the clockwork-waifu Cuckoo into a living, breathing redheaded waifu.

/Heart's Desire/ is the legend that managed to spread around the Warehouse, about an object locked away in the Center that can grant a person their (as the name suggests) true hearts desire. Which translates into wine, women (or men, whatever your preference), gold and glory. Of course, its bullshit, and many an anon suspect that the Heart's Desire is actually an undead Angel, and Armageddon waiting to happen.

Some folks seem to confuse the two, though with the similar names, I can't really blame them.

I actually just reread the side-quest featuring Jack and Cuckoo, and I felt the need to share two things;

One, those two were fun to play as and I wanna go on another adventure with them.

Two, I /really/ need to read that Geargrinder document, if it was completed. There's all sorts of information that we'll need for later.

I would love to see Jack and Cuckoos first time as some smut

>>48859762
> Write-in?
>Why not? Is there a particular reason?
Continue to place them in the wagon and prep them for removal of course. No reason we can't talk and do things at the same time.

>>48859762
>Write-in?
"We'll get to that in a moment. Will you tell me of this giant?"

>>48859762
> Big words from a guy who shot one in the face. Don't act like you care
>Then raise the dead guy's ghost

>>48864528
No. Bad. Don't do shit like that.

>>48864528
That's an interesting way to get information

>>48864615
what is wrong with talking to a ghost before letting it go?

>>48859762
> Big words from a guy who shot one in the face. Don't act like you care

No, but we really need to get this infiltration going. We're going to have to figure out something to do with those guys, quick.

Also, when he says "You can't hold them," I can't help but feel he means that they can break those cuffs.

>>48864750
Raising ghosts for interrogation purposes sets a very bad precedent and an angry ghost is not something you want to fuck with too much.

>>48865042
Who says it has to be angry? And why are you worried about precedents? We've set enough good precedents already to last a lifetime, how is asking a ghost questions somehow worse than actually killing people?

>>48865277
Life is for the living, death is for the dead. Also, rituals, because such a thing is a ritual, are time consuming and care taking, and were EXPOSED IN THE MIDDLE OF ENEMY TERRITORY.

So it later if you have to do it and blame yourself for the consequences.

We should kill the thread so Vox can get the new one up before work.

>>48865366
It took less than two minutes to resurrect our Hero and if you're worried about wasting time, we've already fucked up by staying put and interrogating them in the first place.

Bri gets the ghost, someone else interrogates and the rest set up perimeter, everyone wasting time at the same time and we're none worse for the wear.

Every single option and write-in that lead to this was "ask [...]" and every single reply to >>48859762 is to continue talking. If you're so worried about making good time why haven't you written to suggest that we just bonk them and move on? No, >>48864775 doesn't count since it still calls for conversation.

>>48865494
That's resurrection. That's not what we'd be doing here.

We would be taking the ghost of a murdered man, binding it to his body or a verve, for a purpose, specifically questioning it. Letting a murdered spirit just go free isn't a really fucking good idea, especially when his murderer is right there, and even more so when we're in the middle of enemy territory on a road in sight of an unknown structure.

It's a bad plan, because the people who want to pursue it as a plan haven't actually thought about the ramifications of doing it.

>>48865494
You're also assuming I didn't suggest not hanging around and getting shit done in other ways already.

I'm up. Gotta hit dishes, get breakfast. I'm hoping we can put the sword in this before I have to hit work.

Called, writing.

>>48862135
> What are relations like between the Angels and the Secondborn?

Angels don't talk much about the Secondborn, usually making polite statements to the effect of, 'They can speak for themselves'. They're acutely aware of the demons' preference for how the Firstborn see them and don't want to spoil it by talking too casually.

The Secondborn have not been /recorded/ speaking about angels much, but this has more to do with how few summoners bother to write down things that demons say; after all, they're notorious liars and cheats. The few writings that can be found suggest that the Secondborn pity angels.

> Is there such a thing as a 'Fallen' Angel? Or do the gods or their Choirs' Archangel just take them aside to talk about their particular problems with mortals, themselves, or just how they disagree with how things are being run?

There are! From what the Firstborn understand, 'fallen' angels forsook (or were thrown out from) their duties for reasons they don't tend to share, and consigned to a mortal life. Their raw power tends to be reduced, and they no longer speak the tongue of angels (what Bri would recognize now as the Divine Tongue). The majority of nephilim tend to come from these fallen angels having relations with the Firstborn. The particulars of angelic politics are not known to the Firstborn and mortals don't trust the Secondborn enough to ask them (not that they know either) but falls are rare and generally seem to be with a minimum of hard feelings.

> Any famous or infamous trysts between Angels and the Firstborn or Secondborn? Any particular Nephilim of repute?

There was this one crazy bitch who started a cult and declared herself the God of Storms.

> What kind of crazy shit would happen if an Angelic or Demonic bloodline mingled with one from the Fae?

Depends on the rules around them. They might not turn water into wine, but they can breathe both.

>>48862135
>>48866598
> Also, which of the Gods created the Giants, and why? I had the idea they were made by the Forgemaster to help work the bellows of the Forge Below like self-aware tools, and were given a place in the Ironlands as reward for their assistance, but Mac Daddy Smith hadn't intended for them to survive or thrive outside of his workshop, thus leading to extinction.

The elders of the giants claim that they were created as the result of a bet between the Forgemaster and Red Troth about the nature of strength. The legend of Kratos and the Serpent tells the tale of how the Forgemaster won that bet.

>>48862377
A lot of the odder things are inventions which, like the Six Demon Bag, are either a bitch to make or someone forgot to write it down. World-shattering relics are in fairly short supply but odd little things can be found in the corners, when you go to look. One of the bigger curiosities can be found in the Greenwall Academy of Magic - the Dishonest Pen, which can only write things the writer knows to be untrue. It's broken up a few marriages because of young spouses deciding to get cheeky and learning things they'd rather not learn.

>>48862822
Yay! Any particular reason you wanna see another adventure with them?

>>48862917
Lewd, anon. Lewd.

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>>48859762
You fix the teamster with a level look. "You just killed a man in cold blood, /before/ attempting to escape," you tell him. "Don't start acting like you care if they live or die."

"Oh, but I /do/," the man growls in hateful glee. "If I had more crossbows or more time I'd've killed the lot of them, witch girl. I'd kill them and their lizard, burn the wagon, and keep killin' 'em until the giant finally got me. That giant, his soldiers took my boy from me. Used him, made him wear a collar like a dog, made him fuck their women and their sly men, and you know what happened when I got him back? He hung himself. Right there in the kitchen, with a stool and the fine belt they gave him for his service. Broke is fool neck and left me alone with this /filth/."

His hand goes to the gold belt buckle at his waist, made with expert care and depicting that same symbol - a sheaf of wheat.

"This is all I have left of my boy," he growls. "This fine belt, made by the /bitch/ who thought he had a pretty face and took him away from me. So you can kill me or you can let me go, but if you're gonna kill me, you let me watch them die first. You give an old man his last bit of pleasure."

"They weren't marked," River murmurs.

"I don't think he cares," you tell your sister. "You got a name, teamster?"

"Eric," the man answers. "You?"

"I'm pretty sure my name is still 'I ask the questions around here'," you answer. "Where's that door go?"

"Out," the man says with a shrug. "Out to the Mushroom Farms and the Compost Heaps. Related, obviously. Why, mushrooms go extinct in the upper levels all of a sudden?"

Distantly, you hear a harpy's cry.

> Drag everyone into the grass, you still need time to think
> Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
> Kill the soldiers and the lizard, drag the bodies into the grass

AND

> Keep Eric prisoner
> Let him go
> Kill Eric

>>48867057
>Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
>Let him go
>"Eric, Do you want to avenge your boy? Do you want to bring down that giant filth? We are here to make this a reality, help us cleanse this place!"

So mad right now. So. Fucking. Mad.

I gotta head to work, folks. I'll be back just after midnight; hopefully the thread survives long enough for me to be able to tally and write or start a new one. Votes remain open.

Questions, comments, discussion, feedback, and criticisms remain welcome and appreciated.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>48867057
>Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
And then there will be harpies to come kill when we get back - though trying a new entrance will leave them confused and waiting for us at the wrong place.

>Keep Eric prisoner
He can earn our trust though.

>>48867057
>> Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
>AND
>> Keep Eric prisoner

If he seems like he can calm down and focus enough to aid us, then we can let him aid us in the near future. For now, though, I think we need stealth more.

>>48867057
> Drag everyone into the grass, you still need time to think
> Let him go

>I'm here to do some killing too. Come with me if you want to actually see the giant dead yourself

>>48867057
> Drag everyone into the grass, you still need time to think
> Keep Eric prisoner

>>48867057
> Kill the soldiers and the lizard, drag the bodies into the grass
Harpies already heard Amy's song, let's not risk them giving us away.

> Keep Eric prisoner
Don't know if he's lying or not.

>>48867057
>> Kill the soldiers and the lizard, drag the bodies into the grass
Death for the death bottle!

>AND
>> Let him go
He's welcome to join/lurk/spread the word; but we're on a timer and keeping prisoners doesn't jive.

how likely are we to be spotted by harpies if we take the cart?

>>48870063
Depends on the effort you go to in disguise. Here at the borders there's less harpies.

Six and a half hours and change to call.

>>48867057
>>> Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
>>AND
>>> Keep Eric prisoner
I don't believe him but I also kind-of belive him.

>>48869776
>Death for the death bottle!
It's prolly at full charge already, we didn't have the time to use it up yet.

>>48867057
> Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
> Keep Eric prisoner

Three and a half hours and change to call.

>>48867057
> Unload the wagon, cram the soldiers into it, and deliver them to New Hell
> Keep Eric prisoner

Preferably with the others into New Hell. I'd like to examine that belt with our stone-with-a-hole to see if that bit of death is on it, just to see if his story checks out, but I'd rather just tuck him away to be safe.

>>48874142
Good thinking.

On my way home.

Home, called, writing.

Boomp

>>48877017
So, the Forgemaster had a large hand in the creation of both Elves and Dwarves, the Lady of Ravens and Red Troth were responsible for the Goblins and Harpies respectively, and I'm assuming that the Orcs were also created by Red Troth (haven't heard anything particularly /negative/ about them so far, which is astounding considering racism was a huge thing for literally most of real life history, and tends to be somewhat reflected in fantasy).

So, what drove Wren to create humans? Loneliness, maybe? An audience? The desire to share her works and passions with children of her own?

Also, isn't it weird for Gods (both in fantasy and real life religions - DON'T GO THERE GUYS, I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GONNA SAY) to be attracted to humans?
>Paladin kneels before the icon of his goddess.
>"My lady, your humble servant asks what you desire of him."
>"Maybe some of you, sugar."
>"MY GODDESS!"
>"Hey, if there's a piece of /me/ in every human, does that mean that having sex with one amounts to masturbation?"

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>>48867057
You nod your head to Amy. "Sing, please."

Your lover obliges. Her layered voice makes the soldiers' faces go giddy with bliss. You, River, and your shadows make quick work of unloading the wagon - almost entirely food and supplies such as blankets, pillows, and replacement strings for crossbows - and stash the goods in the grass before persuading the remarkably pliant soldiers into the storage area.

You have no idea how to make the lizard obey you. Nathan kills with with one clean bolt through the skull, and you drag it, too, into the grass before hitching the boar to the wagon.

Amy stops singing when you lock the wagon. You hear the groan of the complainer from before, after a moment.

"That guy has high hopes in his life," Nathan comments.

Tina makes a face. "There's a time and place," the succubus remarks.

"You're coming with us," you tell Eric. "Up on the wagon, if you'd be so kind, and don't make any particularly sudden movements."

"And where is it you're heading with my wagon?" the teamster asks.

"To the land where I'm still the one asking the questions," you answer, flatly. "On the wagon. You've seen the shadows, you know the hands aren't natural. You won't do much avenging of anyone or anything if you get torn to shreds for being an idiot."

"...Aye, fair enough," the teamster agrees at last. He climbs gingerly up into the wagon. You take a seat to his left, Nathan to his right, and start driving through the uneven ground towards the door to New Hell.

"I'm sorry to hear about your loss," Nathan offers, after a few moments. "I...I'd thought I'd lost my mother, for the longest time."

"How'd you get her back?" the old man asks, skeptically.

"She tried to kill me and most of my friends."

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>>48879850
"That'll sour a reunion, right enough," the old teamster agrees. "It's a sick thing, to bury your own son," he continues, bitterly. "An unnatural thing. An old man is meant to die abed, surrounded by the kin he's made miserable with his disrespectful passing, and hear their wailing and carrying on all the way to the Sunless Lands. Where's that boy get off, precedin' an old man whose glory is dead and done like that?"

You take the stone with a hole in it from your pocket and concentrate on it, getting a more focused taste of death.

The belt around the teamster's waist has fresh misery still dripping from it, marked with desperation, shame, and guilt. You get a flash; a kick, against something hard and wooden, and the grisly snap of bone filling ears in their last moments. You wince, and pocket the stone, letting the feeling go.

"We're going to deliver these men to New Hell," you tell Eric, after a long minute to find your words again. "What happens to /you/ depends on a few things. Let's start with a question or two."

"Ask, witch girl," the teamster answers, shrugging his shoulders and leaning forward. Vim and Vigor scramble to keep their perches.

"Where are the lizards stabled?" you ask him.

"If you call the Spiral Stair down into the Broken Jaw 'north', the giant keeps his lizards and their wranglers in the northeast, just past the Intruding River in a field planted with grasses so they don't waste decent seed with the likes o' them. His men train and barracks there, some, though not all of 'em. He's fortified all over this Floor, nothin' but hard points and sharp spears as far as the eye can catch."

"Who's this witch that gave you the charm?" you ask.

"You'll have to kill me and take it from my ghost, witch girl. I ain't givin' him up, not for blood or money. Those damn harpies are everywhere. He's doin' the gods' work, that witch is."

"He?" Nathan asks.

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>>48879919
"This might be a good time to remind you that 'hedge witch' is a word that gets used to describe people like me and River," you tell Nathan. "You get 'hedge wizard' sometimes but that's usually, um. An academic thing? Like, that's what a collegiate sorcerer uses to denigrate someone else's school. 'Hedge witch' is more common for wild traditions."

"Uh...huh," Nate says slowly.

"Where'd you find the Hero?" the teamster asks.

"I thought you said only folks in shady professions use that term," Nate protests sullenly.

"You need to know more teamsters," you answer back. "Alright, let's try this - who's leading the harpies?"

"Mated pair," Eric answers. "He's Red Song, she's Raking Swoop. Vicious little bastards. Giant hired 'em by promising to feed the rest of their Murder over in the Roost, and those winged vermin are some of the cruelest things you'd ever want to meet. Awful lot of men and women die from long drops in the Cornucopia these days."

You stop the wagon short at the door and instruct Kat to knock on it. Ordo's men seem a bit surprised, though less so when you reveal that you have prisoners.

In all, it takes about ten minutes to get those men and women shuffled out into New Hell.

"We got a plan?" Amy asks, from the top of the wagon.

> Animate the lizard as a zombie and use the wagon as a disguise
> Storm the door to the Mushroom Farms; maybe you can find allies on the other side
> Leave the wagon here, proceed on foot after destroying the supplies
> Write-in?

>>48879818
> Orcs

As was suggested in 'Injustice In the Mountains', orcs compete with dwarves (and used to compete with giants) for living space in the mountains and tend to be warlike, tenacious, and destructive. None of the gods actually take credit for their creation, but they revere Red Troth & the Quell pretty handily. Most of the things people think about goblins - vicious, pitiless, sneaky, treacherous - can be applied to orcs with the addendum 'and they're good at it'. Their reverence for the Quell does mean that an orc's word is often his bond, though.

> So, what drove Wren to create humans? Loneliness, maybe? An audience? The desire to share her works and passions with children of her own?

Wren made her children - humans, lamias, and others - both as a method of artistic self-expression and because she wanted someone to challenge her creativity. Her peers in the five Gods of Creation each offered unique perspectives of their own, but by the time Wren made her own members of the Firstborn she'd grown to feel like the divine perspective had inherent limits created by power and distance from that which was created. First and foremost, humans and their 'sibling' races were made to challenge Wren's distance and offer a way of looking at the world she'd otherwise never have.

> Also, isn't it weird for Gods (both in fantasy and real life religions - DON'T GO THERE GUYS, I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GONNA SAY) to be attracted to humans?

Is it, though? The gods made something with the deliberate intent that it would grow beyond their expectations and, perhaps, control. When that goes and /happens/, what does it mean for them?

The man /Heart's Ease/ was written for got Wren's attention for reasons completely unrelated to service, faithful or otherwise. He got her /attention/, and then what she saw, she liked, and then loved. The tragedy that resulted happened with the best of intentions, with a fire in both hearts that they didn't expect to burn anyone but themselves.

>>48879965
> Animate the lizard as a zombie and use the wagon as a disguise

We're going to get noticed eventually, let's make them get close and in range when they do investigate, and then let 'em have it. Zombie lizard's bite should be quite nasty against the first drumstick that gets close, assuming they're not open to Normal Diplomacy.

>>48879965
>Animate the lizard as a zombie and use the wagon as a disguise.
>Sell the supplies, then use the money and/or materials to help carry the disguise ("We just got back from New Hell; apparently some of the smiths were still wise enough to barter")

Would it be possible to send Sir Fetch with Vim & Vigor on another scouting mission? They can check out that Border Farm from earlier while we go after the stables.

Also, is Amy familiar with this Red Song (Red is the Glory?) and Raking Swoop? I still adamantly support getting the Harpies on our side; if they were fighting for the Lush in order to feed the rest of their families in the Roost, they're definitely not going to follow him after hearing about the Librarian's attack.

>The man /Heart's Ease/ was written for got Wren's attention for reasons completely unrelated to service, faithful or otherwise. He got her /attention/, and then what she saw, she liked, and then loved. The tragedy that resulted happened with the best of intentions, with a fire in both hearts that they didn't expect to burn anyone but themselves.

Damn. Sounds like Shakespeare.

Aight, I really need this thread dead. I'm gonna play a match or two of somethin' I can focus on while I'm strung out on exhaustion. I'm also fielding more questions if you've got 'em.

>>48880107
I know that feeling.

If the other Archangels only have parts and portions of the Divine Tongue, do they have greater mastery of these words of power? IE Lora knows how to 'speak' a forest or river into existence, but Sif can make them get up and do the tango.

Has there even been an item (aside from the god-slaying spear from the Lichyard) so powerful or so destructive that the Gods themselves had to lock it away?

If you combined Wraithsteel with Elemental remains, would you get an item that possessed traits of that element as well?

WHY THE ACTUAL FUCK WOULD THE GODS CREATE ANYTHING LIKE GORGERS OR TASTERS! YOU FUUCKING FUUCCKKS!! But seriously, are they some kind of living garbage disposals or something? Or were they purely accidental?

If Fae come from the Mistlands, and Secondborn from the Forge Below (which I take to mean some kind of incredibly deep underground sub-continent of magma and metals and jewels and fire centered around a giant damn anvil), where do the Angels go?

And for that matter, are there other planes or regions of reality outside of the Ironlands? Would it be possible to travel there (and come back alive)?

Would it be possible to summon a bunch of ghosts and/or specters to haunt/hurt the Lush and his followers?

What did Dick offer the Wyrm to make him turn on Lora? I'm assuming the dragon was born and raised in the Dungeon.

>>48880275
> If the other Archangels only have parts and portions of the Divine Tongue, do they have greater mastery of these words of power? IE Lora knows how to 'speak' a forest or river into existence, but Sif can make them get up and do the tango.

Practice makes perfect.

> Has there even been an item (aside from the god-slaying spear from the Lichyard) so powerful or so destructive that the Gods themselves had to lock it away?

They were kinda put off by the first one. Mortals have certainly made mistakes on a scope that frightened them, but that's mortal business.

> If you combined Wraithsteel with Elemental remains, would you get an item that possessed traits of that element as well?

Depends on what you use, how, with what intent & shaping, how you layer the magic...

An alloy is not necessarily out of the question, but such a result would depend as much on the smith as the ingredients.

> WHY THE ACTUAL FUCK WOULD THE GODS CREATE ANYTHING LIKE GORGERS OR TASTERS! YOU FUUCKING FUUCCKKS!! But seriously, are they some kind of living garbage disposals or something? Or were they purely accidental?

The Secondborn were made from scraps, recall. Things left over.

> If Fae come from the Mistlands, and Secondborn from the Forge Below (which I take to mean some kind of incredibly deep underground sub-continent of magma and metals and jewels and fire centered around a giant damn anvil), where do the Angels go?

Arcadia, the realm of the gods themselves, though many choose to live and dwell where their duties are. Lora is sometimes known as /the/ Arcadian.

> And for that matter, are there other planes or regions of reality outside of the Ironlands? Would it be possible to travel there (and come back alive)?

Arcadia is presumed to be hidden somewhere in or near the Iron Lands, since it definitely isn't Hell, but no one actually knows. The only things known for certain about it is that it isn't the Sunless Lands, isn't Hell, and isn't the Mistlands.

>>48880275
> Would it be possible to summon a bunch of ghosts and/or specters to haunt/hurt the Lush and his followers?

Summon, tricky. Persuade? More likely. Requires them on-hand, though.

> What did Dick offer the Wyrm to make him turn on Lora? I'm assuming the dragon was born and raised in the Dungeon.

Spoilers.

>>48879965
>"Storm" the door to the Mushroom Farms; maybe you can find allies on the other side

For a given value of 'storm'. It would be much easier to have them let us in, if Eric can be of any help in that situation.