>>30854479
>Your Magic and Resistance have both increased to [4]

Having awoken from… whatever it was you were in, you quickly explain what you saw. As you do so, Undine attempts to heal you, looking distressed as it appears to have no effect. A deep fatigue has set into your body and you’re not sure what it will take for you to recover. It’s not enough to substantially weaken you, but it means you won’t be able to be as reckless in combat as you tend to be, unless you want to pay the price.

As you finish explaining what had occurred, a lull settles over the room. Gnome and Sala look intrigued whereas Vad looks concerned. The fox’s tails shifts back and forth rapidly as though he’s thinking very hard. You notice Lynn, who clearly zoned out partway through the explanation, is closely watching his tails.

“Well, I don’t know how you saw what you did,” Vad says, and you worry he doesn’t believe you before he continues, “but I did some scrying of my own while you are unconscious. That cavern and black stone castle? I saw it, too. With your help, I know what it is, too – the revenant has created some sort false extension to the world. His instability is warping reality. The only difference between what we saw is that I saw a grassy field rather than an empty cavern. Which means he’s transforming rapidly…”

“Gnome,” you say, “you haven’t heard of the Order of the Bloodied Hippogryph?”

She shakes her head. “No, I’m afraid not. There were no small number of knights that came along to the Last Line. I know the Knights of Basette, of course. They recruited no small number of orders in the weeks leading to that last climatic battle. Destroyed quite a few afterwards, too.”

That caught your attention. “Afterwards? I thought the Knights of Basette fell during the war against those monsters?”

>continued

>>30854493
Gnome shakes her head. “No, Grandmaster Arquin kept plenty of them alive during the Last Line. Then he went around destroying those orders that had been too cowardly to heed his call. Then…” she trails off with a slightly pained expression. “I’m sorry, I am bound not to say what happened. A holy quest, so to speak, spelled their end. They fought to the last, I heard.”

Once more your familiar refuses to tell you something that could be important. One of the downsides of having a being that has served so many masters previously – no small number of secrets have passed through her and some are still relevant today, it seems.

“Really?” Vad says, disbelieving. “You’re his familiar and you refuse to tell him about something that happened a couple of centuries ago? Isn’t that kind of against the point of serving him?”

Gnome gives him a glare. “I will not forsake my oaths, especially not when they are as relevant today as they were then.”

You should probably weigh into this before it becomes more problematic. You…

>1. Side with Vad. You dislike the fact that Gnome is keeping important secrets from you.
>2. Side with Gnome. If Gnome needs to keep such secrets, you trust her to make the right decision.
>3. Disarm the argument without taking sides. You doubt the fate of the Knights of Basette is immediately relevant. The fact they survived the war, is, however and Gnome told you that.
>4. Custom

>>30854479
>UP MAGIC AND RES DAMMIT

YOU CAN'T MAKE ME.

>>30854538
Whoops, forgot to remove that. It was a reminder to myself.

>>30854510
>2. Side with Gnome. If Gnome needs to keep such secrets, you trust her to make the right decision.

>>30854510

3, leaning towards 2.

"Gnome, thank you for sharing what you have. I would not force you to break your oaths. If anything it only proves that you value your word, even when those you made the oath with are long gone..."

>>30854510
She answered our question, let's move on.

>>30854510
>>3. Disarm the argument without taking sides. You doubt the fate of the Knights of Basette is immediately relevant. The fact they survived the war, is, however and Gnome told you that.

So glad I get to participate for once, missed the last three threads, god damn guys step it up.

>>30854510
>3. Disarm the argument without taking sides. You doubt the fate of the Knights of Basette is immediately relevant. The fact they survived the war, is, however and Gnome told you that.

This is awkward, I can’t find the previous occurrence of Gnome not telling you something she should due to oaths. I have a feeling it was in a scene I wrote but never posted.

>3.

“This isn’t important right now,” you say, raising your voice to catch their attention. “What is important is that I know that the Knights of Basette survived and, Gnome, thank you for answering my question on that.”

Vad scratches the back of his head, his ears lying flat in an odd expression. Gnome shrugs a bit.

Sala is the next to speak up, “You know, it’s lucky for the revenant that the armoured figure appeared when he did. He didn’t have to die like the rest of his order.”

You frown at that. “Are you certain the rest of his order died there?”

“You said they were overrun. If that happened, it pretty much meant the end for whoever was holding that position. Most knights could hardly scratch the shadow beasts, a small order like that, afraid to fight in the first place, would have no chance.”

That’s right, both Salamander and Gnome likely fought in that very same battle you witnessed. Vad’s giving them an odd expression as they talk.

“If things were so hopeless for them, why would they have gone?” you ask.

“In this case, most likely it had to do with the order’s faith,” Gnome says. “Orders that were part of the Disciples of Theros were overrepresented amongst the soldiers fighting. Unsurprising given the angels strong involvement in the war.”

“That still seems strange. I thought the angels hated the Disciples of Theros?” you ask.

“The archangels hated them. The angels basked in the attention,” Gnome replies. “It wasn’t until after the war that Theros was openly denounced and the Mage Guard started hunting them. That may have also had something to do with their beliefs regarding the barrier, though.”

>Are there any more questions you want to ask your comrades about the experiences of last thread?

>>30854866
>Are there any more questions you want to ask your comrades about the experiences of last thread?

I would but right now doesn't seem the best of times for it. Given the reality warping Revenant still hasn't been handled and Talon likely hasn't had the time to collect his thoughts entirely on it as well.

Essentially I'm saying I'd like an inner monologue on it first to help focus up. But would rather have it as a scene post.

>>30854866
None about what happened really.
Little confused why we cant' be healed, but I don't think that's the type of question you meant.

>>30854866
not really right now.
but do ask if any of them have any input about what to do, maybe a way to disrupt or shelter yourselves from the reality warping

>>30854967
>inner monologue

You tell everybody to take a short break while you mull over what you saw. Vad tells you that things aren't so pressing that you can't spare a few minutes.

Leaning against a wall, you review what you saw. The cavern where you... lost yourself is apparently here in reality, though it's been created by the revenant and looks a little different. For some reason, the revenant is creating shadow beasts unconsciously and the cavern appears to be where they're focusing. Judging from the memories you went through, the shadow beasts are a definite focus. Why, precisely, they're the focus of his instability is beyond you. You think he became a revenant as a result of it, but it's eluding you as to precisely why he would be so focused on that event compared to the others he has no doubt been involved in.

The later memories are confusing as well. The revenant was a knight, but clearly not a very good one. You know he was one of the knights present in the main hall when they met the Knights of Basette - perhaps he was the grandmaster or the one who spoke strongly of friendship? His lack of knowledge of weaponry and armour means he is still likely inexperienced - but that just raises further questions as to why he is a revenant? Are they not powerful warriors? Why else would you expend the energy to raise one from the dead?

Finally, there was a the battlefield. The order had been overrun by shadow beasts and he had run off for help - who had you been standing in for before you got shoehorned into the role of being one of his comrades? You're certain you changed roles when you got attacked and shouted 'Horace' to another knight. Finally, the armoured figure appeared and saved the revenant before he died. Somehow, that seems wrong...

You're not sure if your thoughts are in any better order. Mostly because you suspect you missed the most important parts.

>I'll start on the plan discussion now and take questions as they come

>>30855169

I keep putting together ideas that don't make a damn bit of sense. Feels like we're missing just something small that would put it all together.

I do think for sure there is another reason he was a Revenant. Something beyond his martial prowess. Astral ability perhaps?

Damn it man you're killing me here. Also, thanks for the short and sweet summary, it helped.

>plan discussion

“We need to work out how we’re going to approach this,” you say after calling everybody back together. “In order to fight him, we’ll be walking into his territory. I’ll talk any ideas as to how we might be able to deal with that.”

Vad speaks up first, “That’s your speciality. You’ve got the astral power and the revenant’s off the deep end. We walk down there, you start bending his own world against him, we finish this.”

You stare at the fox is disbelief. “I don’t have the slightest clue how to do that, Vad. I’m more about making myself stronger or blowing stuff up.”

“You don’t ‘know’ how to do it, but you’ve still been doing it,” Vad says with a slight scowl, obviously agitated. “That’s the whole point of having astral power – you bend reality. Even when you’re making yourself stronger or blowing stuff up you’re doing that. You just haven’t realised it. You walk down there, you use the rampant energy in that world to fight against the revenant and win. Heck, we can even help you if you let us.”

You scratch your head. “If astral power lets you warp reality why aren’t there stories of the Lords raising the dead or creating strange worlds? Or other seemingly impossible things?”

“The Lord of Ember is described as controlling the ‘Fires of Creation’, Talon,” Vad says bluntly. “That’s pretty much impossible. The reason they don’t create other worlds within this one like this revenant has is that it attracts attention and leaves them vulnerable to other users of astral power.”

Gnome nods at that. “I’m not as knowledgeable on this, but that would make sense. The archangels have made attempts on the Three Lords before. And the Infernals supposedly have ways of fighting angels – you might even have stumbled on to one with that ward, there.”

>continued

>>30855403
That still doesn’t leave much of a battleplan, you think. It means you might have an edge you didn’t know about but whether it’s enough… You’re wounded in some strange way, too, so you wonder if it wouldn’t be better to retreat for now.

Undine supports the idea. “If this relies so heavily on Talon then we should wait until he’s fully rested.”

“We might not have the time to wait,” Vad says emphatically. “If the revenant stabilises, he’ll be a faerie. That’s not an opponent we want to deal with. He’s unstable now and that means even without a great deal of experience, Talon has an edge.”

There’s a little bit of bickering over your safety versus defeating the revenant, but the decision is ultimately yours. You’re not certain whether Vad will go with you if you retreat, though, as he seems certain you need to move on the revenant now.

>I’ll allow a bit of discussion about retreating versus going forward before calling a vote

Faeries suck, finish it now.

>>30855417
yeah probably best to move on it now before it gets much stronger.

>>30855403
>you start bending his own world against him

Alright so in Talon terms we can just straight up shatter his reality(or parts of it) with an Astral Barrier Break yeah? Because if I'm reading correctly he's essentially been breaking the reality of magic every time he has done it thus far, i.e. the original break in the First Siege, and the more recent one in Vitria. So that might be an idea.

>Heck, we can even help you if you let us.

Wait we actually know how to do that. It's happened before, but Talon never focused on learning it. Could Talon possibly lend his strength like he did to the HMKs that one time?

>>30855417

Honestly I think we should go for it. I think whatever has wounded us is something that is more relevant to ourselves and the Revenant as well. There's some sort of connection.

>>30855503
>Alright so in Talon terms we can just straight up shatter his reality(or parts of it) with an Astral Barrier Break yeah?

Vad clarifies a bit. "You could try doing something like that. I mean, it's possible you could break his false world completely. If you can't do that, you should still be able to modify things. Give yourself an army to lay siege to his castle, for one. If you modify things to exploit his psychological weaknesses, his instability should worsen and he'll be weaker when you fight him in person."

VOTE
>1. Retreat for now and rest up to fight later. This risks the revenant becoming more dangerous.
>2. Push onwards despite your current poor health.
>3. Custom

>>30855417
We should move in now.
Can Talon do the "water" thing where he weaves his way into the astral power like we did at the monastery? possibly extending it to the others? then use this to reach the revenant and talk or fight if need be. Vad's plan seems kinda aggressive

>>30855563
Forward!

>>30855563
>If you modify things to exploit his psychological weaknesses, his instability should worsen

Alternatively. Improve things to pacify him. Avoid fighting, figure out what is going on with him, we have more questions than answers. Why should we assume that he is evil?

>>30855563
>3
Rest for a few minutes, see if there's anything Undine can figure out about your wound and how to heal it, or if there's anything you can do with astral power. Then move in, whether you succeeded or not.

>>30855563
>>30855596
adding to this
>3 we try to will ourselves healthy like the archer dude told us before we do >1
ask the others if this is possible if not successful

>>30855606

To add on to this. The shadow beast might be a side product of his instability. They might be causing him more harm than good. We know his religion and could possibly create an army of angels to slay the shadow beasts.

>>30855596
That's a feasible non-combat option. I'll be sure to make it available if the time comes.

>>30855618
>>30855634
I'll add these in no matter the result.

Rolled 4, 2 = 6

testing...

>3. Wound investigation before 2.

“We’ll move in shortly,” you say decisively. “We can’t give him the time to become a faerie. First though, Undine, could I talk to you about what happened when you tried to heal me?”

The water elemental nods and explains, “It feels like you have wounds but when I cast the healing spell it doesn’t seem to do anything. I can’t explain it. You don’t seem to be openly wounded, either. Did you do something that might have partly healed it?”

Partly healed it? You… you think you may have done something like that. There was a vision that came to you before you entered the castle. What was it?

“Talon, are you alright?” Gnome says, her voice full of worry.

No you’re not. Why can’t you remember that vision? You clearly remember acting on it, but not how. You…

[DC19 Memory]

Rolled 6

>>30855796

HERE WE GO.

Rolled 1

>>30855796

Rolled 10

>>30855796

>>30855813
>>30855814
>It's happening again
Yep gonna be one of those days.
We gun die.

File: 1394922503284.gif-(529 KB, 480x360, 1391918735863.gif)

529 KB GIF

>>30855813
>>30855814
>>30855831

I can't be doing with this man.

>dramatic failure

You chase the memory, but it seems the more you concentrate on it the more it fades. After a short while, you can barely even remember having the vision in the first place. It frustrates you that your usual good memory has failed you now.

“Say,” Vad says, “why don’t you try healing yourself with your power? It should be more than possible. I mean, you mentioned earlier you nearly raised the dead. No reason you can’t apply that to yourself.”

You blink. That makes sense. “I don’t really know how I did it then, though.”

Vad shakes his head with a smile. “Well, why don’t we take a few minutes while I show you how you might try? It might not have the full effect the first time you do it, though.”

Vad takes a seat in front of you and talks you through what you need to do. It’s all about focus. You need to focus your power and simply… wish your body back to full strength. Believe in your own strength.

[DC12 Regeneration]

Rolled 8

>>30855941

Rolled 20

>>30855941
>You chase the memory, but it seems the more you concentrate on it the more it fades.

And Talon's descent into madness begins

Rolled 9

>>30855941

Rolled 6

>>30855941

1?

>>30855987

WELL THEN.

Rolled 17

>>30855987
AWWWW YEAH

>>30855987
<3
based anon
savior of the emperor

>these rolls already

Well this shit is going to be hysterical.

>>30855987
ALL HAIL TALON! ALL HAIL HIS GLORY!

>>30855987
>Madness
>Not dementia

>exceptional success

You need to focus your power. Believe in your strength. If you channel your essence into your body, you should be able to restore it. The power comes easily, it floods your body and makes you feel light. The fatigue lifts quickly and you feel as though a constriction on your chest is lifting.

But… something else calls to you as the power flows through you, clear and strong.

“You are strong though. Stronger than you believe,” comes a deep voice from your memories. “Believe in that strength, and nothing you do not believe in will happen to you.”

You believe. With this power flowing through your body, it is so very easy to believe in your strength. Where before you used this power on dozens of your men, believing in their strength, now you use it on yourself, believing in your own strength.

>You have learnt Iron Body I, with this you make yourself immune to pain and gain enhanced regeneration. Even in situations where you should collapse or suffer from grievous wounds, you do not fall or suffer.

You open your eyes. The world is clear. The shadows in the room appear that much lighter. You look around at your companions, who are staring at you in wonder. Vad seems the worst affected, looking at you as though you were a ghost. Gnome stares at you with narrowed eyes.

“We need to get moving,” you say, standing up and putting on your helmet. “The longer we wait, the stronger the revenant becomes.”

“R-right,” Vad responds, shooting to his feet. He looks a little stupefied. You give him a slap on the shoulder.

“Jeez, Vad, you look like you’ve never seen somebody use astral power before,” you say jovially. “Weren’t you bragging earlier about using it yourself?”

He stares stupidly at your grin for a few seconds before grinning sheepishly in return. “It’s, uh, a bit different than I expected. If I tried that, I would have turned myself inside out. You become a god.”

>continued

>>30856422
“I thought we already had that discussion,” you say, striding out of the room. Your companions follow, with Vad hurrying up to keep next to you.

It’s only a short matter of time before you wind up in the cavern again, though it certainly doesn’t look like one. The stars glitter in the night sky that is obviously fake. The castle stands against a cliff, bristling with armoured soldiers. The grass glitters with droplets of rain, having fallen clouds that do not appear to exist. Truly a sign of the instability of the world. Even as you gaze up into the sky, you see clouds slowly begin to form. Most likely it will begin to rain shortly. The revenant is setting the scene.

As you stare out at the walls of the castle it clicks. This is the same castle you were in earlier. The fortress of the Order of the Bloodied Hippogryph. It’s a last stand. Their banners fly high. Archers and ballistae are at the ready. It looks magnificent.

And it’s fake. This never happened. This order didn’t perish in some fabled last stand, side-by-side with their comrades as they fought for their bonds of fellowship. No, they died fighting on the other side of the Magi Line mountains, in the most disastrous and famous battle against the shadow beasts.

>continued

>>30856434
You stand in the cavern, on the side that is still reality. You have a few options here. You could take Vad’s approach, stepping into that fake world and launching an assault. Judging from what awaits here, that may not necessarily be destabilising. It might depend on who and what you use for the assault. The revenant wants a last stand, but against who and what?

You could also attempt to simply break the world, force the revenant to face you head on. It would weaken him but would likely mean your comrades couldn’t help you at all, whereas if you face him in that phantasmal world you could use your own power to let them aid you.

Or, you could attempt to do this peacefully. Approach the castle in peace or attempt to use your own power to slip through his false creations. If the revenant is hostile, this will most likely be a mistake, but if not then there may be something to gain.

The choice is yours.

>1. Lay siege to the castle.
>2. Destroy the phantasmal world.
>3. Approach the revenant peacefully.
>4. Custom

>that entirely appropriate nat 20
>Talon's swag turned back up to 11

I love it.

>>30856462
>3. Approach the revenant peacefully.

I think there is something to be gained here. But I think we need to play his games a bit as well to help pacify him.

>>30856462
>3. Approach the revenant peacefully.
Convey a wish to parley

>>30856462
>3. Approach the revenant peacefully.

It knows we are here anyway. So might as well.

>>30856462
>3. Approach the revenant peacefully
Pretend to be a negotiator of the force that is laying siege or a relief force of the order of the griffon(make some make knights and amour for your party)

Since we can bend the reality as well is it possible to sneak by the fake soldiers by turning our party and selves into Angels?

Also riding Griffons. I want that to be so.

>We get iron body
Yessssssssssss
So much yes.

God damn I am happy right now. Alright, I am feeling a little more confident.

>3.

You elect to approach the revenant peacefully. The question is how to do it. You could try to slip past everything and approach the revenant directly through some judicious application of your astral power, just as you did in the monastery. This would mean you would avoid any chances to stabilise or destabilise the revenant by participating in his play.

Alternatively, you could participate in the ‘play’ by asking for parley as the commander of a besieging force, the most obvious one being the Knights of Basette given that this last stand involves the revenant’s order having acted as cowards, or as the commander of a relieving force, though you do not know who you could use for this. Perhaps Gnome or Sala could help with that?

Finally, you could attempt to play as more powerful beings, such as angels, and get in that way. This would require somebody to explain to you exactly what an angel should look like and it also relies on the order still being sympathetic. The revenant is surely aware of the fact the Disciples of Theros were denounced in the ensuing century.

>1. Slip past using astral power
>2. Parley as a besieging force
>3. Ask to enter as a relieving force
>4. Pretend to be angels to gain access
>5. Custom

>>30856922
Might be best to just get in quietly and finish this.

Rolled 31

>>30856922

>2. Parley as a besieging force
It seems the likely way to finding out more about this particular event, we can act accordingly from that.

>>30856922
>2. Parley as a besieging force

This gives us the best opportunity to enter the ordeal peacefully and immediately go on the offensive should things fall to pieces.

We'll have to conjurer up a force though. HMKs, Arcane Archers, and suitable MMKs should suffice to destroy his reality should we need to.

>>30857044
Oh, right, forgot to mention explicitly - there's no mage knights around at this time in history. They've only been around for 50 years or so and this effectively takes place around 150 years ago, as far as the revenant is concerned. Still, you won't have much trouble creating a suitable army. Talon's a student of military history, in a sense.

>>30857100

I immediately realized my mistake upon posting that. Good to know though.

Arcane Archers would be easy to hide though wouldn't they? Posing them as regulars has worked thus far, just as a back up.

>>30857130
Given the Knights of Basette were fabled to be absurdly strong, their archers probably match your AAs. The reason 'knight' is a term for magical warrior in-universe can be traced back to these guys.

>I'll go with 2 if there's no additional votes.

>2.

You explain your plan to the others. You’ll try this peacefully first, pretending to be a besieging force. This means you’ll need to create an army to support you. Gnome had mentioned earlier that the Knights of Basette had spent time going around destroying orders too cowardly to fight the shadow beasts. If the Order of the Bloodied Hippogryph thought they would have a last stand, then it is clear they were cowards in this alternative reality.

“Stay close to me,” you tell your comrades as you step into the revenant’s world.

As you step inside, something tugs at you. It feels like you’re a fish that’s just taken the bait and something’s trying to reel you in. Time to remind the revenant that you’re a fish too big for his line.

[DC13/17 World Bending]

>>30857180
Well, I would have voted 3, but I don't think it's going to make a difference. Plus I don't remember enought of the dream world to know how to handle this.

Is there a legitimate chance the Revenant might know who Gnome and Salamander are? Just based on reputation at least?

Also I hope this goes well, the Revenant's knowledge would be invaluable.

Rolled 8

>>30857324

Rolled 5

>>30857324
DICE GODS I CALL UPON YOUR MIGHT!

Rolled 20

>>30857324
Uh oh

Rolled 10

>>30857324

Rolled 9

>>30857324

Rolled 16

>>30857359
Oh, God. I can see what type of day this is going to be.

>>30857359
>these rolls

Well I guess I'm going to have to keep sacrificing goats to the Dice Gods. May the forever roll. Amen.

>>30857359
You fuckers fucking owe me!

Sorry, first positive crit I've had in this quest and first time I've cleared the DC in a long time.

>>30857330
He might. Vad hasn't, for one.

>>30857359
Um, I'll need a second to determine how this will go. This is 3 crits in a row, now. Certainly an interesting start.

Rolled 15

>>30857420
>Um, I'll need a second to determine how this will go.

Hahhahaha. I love the dice gods so much right now.

Rolled 19

>>30857420
>we triple crit
>shatter the revenants mind
>ez

Rolled 17

>>30857420

>>30857507

First crit was a fail though....

>>30857550
see >>30857420
ofc we didn't crit on the second round so the dream is dead
20 then 19 is damn good though

>>30857420

>need a second

What's harder this? or last thread with all dem 1s?

>>30857592
Sorry, I meant a 'second' in terms of time. I was a bit stumped as I hadn't expected a third crit in a row.

Didn't realise how poor my selection of language was.

>>30857612
dang dude, we rolled so well there too
15, 17, 19

Rolled 15

>>30857612

I kind of figured you meant that given the context. I rolled just because I got my dice perma on.

Note to self
When we get back discuss our astral status with sarah.
I would rather she didn't find out much later and be all "why didn't you tell me? don't you trust me?"

>>30857756
Good point.

Let's do that when we get back from learning said thing, Aspir.

>>30857756

But we didn't even tell Undine, Sala or Lynn until this came up.

I don't necessarily see the need.

>>30857879
Yeah, and they got mad at not being told earlier.

Best to just get it out of the way.

>Exceptional success

If you were a fish caught by a fisherman right now, this would be the moment where the fish yanks the fisher into the water to remind him whose territory this really is. As the revenant’s mind attempts to close around yours and pull you into his play, you very firmly enclose his with your own. Power rushes through your body for the second time in as many hours. It’s time to bring this foolish revenant back to reality – you’ll play his game, but on your terms. If he wants a last stand, then it’ll be just as it might have happened had his order been so foolish as to refuse the Knights of Basette. When you parley, it’ll be the same.

First, though, this ‘cavern’ is too small. You swiftly triple the size of the meadow you’re in, with plenty of distance behind you and your friends. Enough room for a large army, which you fill the meadow with. The famous knights were two thousand in number, each as strong as a modern heavy mage-knight. You decide that’s a good number to start with. Might as well suit yourself up, too.

Rain falls, clinking against your thick plate. You feel a little taller now and gaze around at the army you just created. Two thousand of some of the greatest warriors in history. They’re lined up in formation, bearing their weapons and appearing like a wall of solid steel in the enormous heavy plate. You drew heavily on the knights you saw in the tower and their array of weapons – enormous halberds, swords and axes; tower shields the size of a normal man; plate thick enough to withstand a hammer blow. With the magic in their bodies, even were they the real knights rather than mere projections, they surely had little difficulty wielding them just as you swing about your greatsword as though it were merely the weight of a dagger.

“You certainly got the look down,” Gnome says, a wry smile on her face. “Where did you see that armour though?”

>continued

>>30858061

“It was on the leader of the expedition I saw,” you say as you trudge forward, stepping lightly over the boggy ground and ignoring the pouring rain and the sounds of thunder. “A Sir Arquin.”

“Grandmaster Arquin, you mean,” Gnome corrects you. “He was promoted after Grandmaster Sorteth perished a month before the Last Line. Well, it’s safe to say you look the part of the leader of the Knights of Basette.”

Vad speaks up, his voice a little more shrill. “Um, this whole thing is a little weirder than even I’m used to. The rain doesn’t appear to be affecting us and the… fabric of this world appears to be changing. What are you doing?”

“Reminding the revenant that if wants to rewrite the actions of the past, he needs to realise their consequences,” you say gruffly.

You come to a stop halfway between the gates and your army. You stand, silent, for some time. The men on the walls appear to watch you in anticipation. Your own knights stand at the ready. The rain continues to pour, harder and harder, as though this world will be washed away. Thunder resounds throughout the valley and you take that as your cue.

“I am Grandmaster Arquin of the Royal Knights of Basette,’ you bellow, using the formal name of the order you’re pretending to be part of. “I am here to parley with the masters of the Order of the Bloodied Hippogryph, to hear the words of defense of those who would not see to their duty in defense of the people of this world.”

>continued

>>30858091
Your voice echoes throughout the cavern, the power inside it having penetrated the false world and echoed off the walls you are actually contained in. Once more you stand silent as this false world weeps at its own imminent destruction. The wet tears one of the banners hanging from the walls and it falls to the ground. Shortly thereafter, the gates of the castle open and several men in armour comes out to greet you. You fashion a tent in which to receive them, so you can talk without the rain filling your mouths.

“Grandmaster Arquin, I’m surprised that you even agreed to talk to us,” says Grandmaster Tassin to yourself. “I have heard you merely destroyed the other orders who had stayed behind to see to their true duties.”

You look around at the gathered men. All present, including the one who spoke of friendship with his order. He stares at you, hollow-eyed. This is the revenant, though it is only an avatar of himself. You hadn’t expected him here, but clearly when you enforced your will he decided to see for himself what was happening.

You respond with…

>1. Civil. Ask them to explain why they did not come to the Magi Line mountains to fight the shadow beasts.
>2. Aggressive. Remind them that they promised they would come to fight and instead they remained behind like cowards. Demand an answer for this.
>3. Belitting. Say you expected better, given they claimed to be supporters of the angels. Instead they stayed behind and forsook their own beliefs.
>4. Custom

>>30858116
As the wise Babycakes once said, be aggressive.

>>30857879
>But we didn't even tell Undine, Sala or Lynn until this came up.
1. and they still got mad
2. this already came up. As in, sarah is now the ONLY girlfriend who doesn't know. If we tell her IMMEDIATELY upon return we can say "I just got confirmation on my trip, so I am telling you as soon as possible"
If she finds out a month from now? and that all the others knew and she wasn't told? that would be awful for the relationship

>>30858116
>2. Aggressive. Remind them that they promised they would come to fight and instead they remained behind like cowards. Demand an answer for this.

Think we'll need to play the part at least a little.

Also, that armour sounds awesome. I think Talon is in need of a new set here eventually. That sounds appropriate. It would be interesting to use some of these memories in his current army.

>>30858116
>2. Aggressive. Remind them that they promised they would come to fight and instead they remained behind like cowards. Demand an answer for this.
If we are to play a role in this historical drama - then we should act the part.

>>30858116

2, with a hint of 3

>>30858116
>2

Rolled 8

>>30858116
>2. Aggressive. Remind them that they promised they would come to fight and instead they remained behind like cowards. Demand an answer for this.

>>30858177
We are going to wind up telling absolutely everyone this won't we?

>2.

“The difference between you and many of the other orders,” you say, your voice a low growl. “Is that you, all of you standing here, promised you would fight. That would come to the Magi Line mountains and fulfil your duty. I wish to hear why you instead chose to be cowards? Did you agree with but a fleeting amount of courage and then see it flee, having expended your lifetime’s supply?”

Tassin stares at you shocked, but as he speaks the world seems to warp. Garbled noises come out of his mouth, crackling and popping oddly. Colour drains from the world. You hear Vad gasp behind you and his tails rustling as he prepares to do something. You beat him to it though, and bat away the revenant’s attempt to intrude on what is now your world. His avatar makes a strangled noise and grips his chest, drawing the attention of your comrades. The other knights return to normal, however.

“I, we… We promised but…” Tassin, it seems, has no answer. No surprise there. The decision they had made was different in reality. The revenant had tried to pretend that they had never agreed but you put a stop to that.

“We stayed behind because we our real duty is to each other,” the revenant rasps out. “Why should we die for you? To act as fodder for you bastards and the Gods and the other monstrous beings who actually meant something in that battle.”

You respond with…

>1. Duty. Your duty as knights is not to each other or the order, but to the people you claim to protect.
>2. The Angels. If you worship the angels, believe them to be great, why then did you refuse to fight for them?
>3. Questioning. Why do you think you are fodder? You never went there, after all, so you never had the chance to make a difference.
>4. Custom

>>30858464
>>1. Duty. Your duty as knights is not to each other or the order, but to the people you claim to protect.

>>30858464
>3. Questioning. Why do you think you are fodder? You never went there, after all, so you never had the chance to make a difference.

This is incredibly interesting. Talon is fighting with wills not strength. I like the change.

>>30858464
Stand by your word or don't stand at all.

>>30858205
I don't know, I've always thought plain unornamented weapons and armor were more striking than the gaudy sort.

>>30858464
>1. Duty. Your duty as knights is not to each other or the order, but to the people you claim to protect.

>>30858464
>3. Questioning. Why do you think you are fodder? You never went there, after all, so you never had the chance to make a difference.

>>30858464

>1 & 3

"And What do you base this idea of being fodder on! Or is it that your Order is so weak, so frail, that you could not even perform your Duty as was expected of you! Has your Order no Honour!? No Pride!? You call yourselves Knights, but all I see are Children Playing Soldier. So I Ask, What Say You?"

>>30858464
>3. Questioning. Why do you think you are fodder? You never went there, after all, so you never had the chance to make a difference.

>>30858311
>We are going to wind up telling absolutely everyone this won't we?
an entire city believes we raised the dead.
a powerful demon saw us (dwarf bandit)
foxes can tell on sight and vad will probably inform his family, especially if we open diplomatic ties with them
more people will figure it out
everyone in the world will know if/when we bind a pop.
the monks probably know too (recording ward)

the secret isn't going to stay secret for long, and I don't see sarah tattling on us.

>>30858464
>3. Questioning. Why do you think you are fodder? You never went there, after all, so you never had the chance to make a difference.
Also, why do you think you didn't make a difference? I took the time to personally recruit you because I believed that you could make a difference. If I wanted fodder I'd grab some random peasants. Never assume you are helpless

I'll go with 3, as it just has the edge in votes. Not going to try to mix the two as the intentions are different. The next post might take a little while as I'm cooking right now, but we're approaching the end of the revenant part.

>3.

“Why would you think you would be fodder?” you ask imperiously. “I personally sought you out because I saw the benefit your order could add to the battle. Yet, having never been on that battlefield you tell me you would be nothing but fodder. Why do you think you can see the future?”

“Why? Why! Why do I think we would be fodder?” the revenant says, his voice rapidly raising in volume. “Because I have been on that battlefield. I did not stand in a fortress, watching those beneath me die, pretending they were just numbers. I saw my friends die. All of my comrades, standing here, are dead! You took us to our deaths, you bastard. I… I was the only one who survived. Tassin, Horace, Janus… They’re all dead.”

The other knights in the room turn to corpses, their faces bloodied, charred and eaten away. You could have stopped the revenant’s emotions from turning them into this, but didn’t want to risk a fight just yet. He’s destabilising more, but if you collide with him too early it could be risky.

And once again, something niggles at you. What he said at the end bothers you, just like the scene where the armoured figure appears to save him from death. It’s just eluding you, though.

“The fact you are here is proof that you did not need us,” he cries. “Why then must we be punished for your success?”

[DC14 Charisma]

I’ll accept write-in responses, too, and they may lower the DC if they’re particularly good. Also, standard rule for mysteries is in effect – if you catch the problem, Talon immediately gets it.

Rolled 4

>>30859042
oh ho oh ho no ho no ho dice gods GODS!

Rolled 6

>>30859042

Rolled 18

>>30859042
i am afraid to roll

>>30859042
"you didn't survive "

>>30859115
Relief.

>>30859042
so, what is our goal here? what is our plan?
It seems to me that we are acting semi at random.

Are we trying to convince him to let go of life and pass on? are we trying to mentally destabilize him so we can kill him more easily in a fight? are we trying to convince him to join us in fighting the good fight?

I am really not sure what we are actually trying to achieve here.

Rolled 14

>>30859115

THE FUCK! that was so goddamn perfect.

>>30859042

"Then If you Survived, Why are you dead? Why are you now a Revenant? Why create a dolls house of the past?"

>>30859168

I think a lot of people want to get to a point where we can talk, for now it seems like we're working at playing the part.

Personally I think the Revenant has some seriously unresolved issues and if nothing else we're helping him work them out. Kind of.

>>30859168
You're engaging peacefully with the revenant as a way to both gather information and get him to face you himself instead of in make-believe. There's some stabilisation/destabilisation effects too, though I haven't been making them entirely clear because you don't have enough of a picture of the revenant to know which is which.

>>30859042

The armoured figure never saved him, and is the one talking to us because we connected to the Revenant. His words are always revolving around personal strength, without him the Revenant can't keep going because he's lost his support.

The scene where he saved him was essentially the Revenant's reasoning for him still being alive. He thinks the armoured figure, his master, saved him and is alive because of it. Without that piece he's falling apart. He hasn't even realised he's dead.

>>30859042
>“Why then must we be punished for your success?”
"What gives you right to anger? My comrades died on a battlefield, without the allies that swore to aid them, in order to protect the people they both pledged themselves too. You've branded yourselves cowards with the choices you've made, here I am, with my right to end you where you stand, but instead I give you one last chance, to fight for those you've forsaken and to make the deaths of those we both cherish not be for naught. Now what say you, will you stand and fight making a mockery of courage, or will you answer the call?"

I think the revenant, abandoned the field at a crucial moment and his own guilt is causing his instability.

>Target met

“Because there are consequences for actions,” you say. “If you went to the battlefield you may all die. If you stay behind, you will definitely all die. Whether it be at the hands of the Knights of Basette or the claws of the shadow beasts.”

You reach up and take off your helmet, and the revenant stares at you in surprise as you’re revealed not to be Arquin.

“You say you alone survived, and here you are one-and-a-half centuries later. You outlived any survivor of the battle, all of your friends.”

“I, I,” the revenant stutters.

You have a chance here, to strike at him directly with your words. Just one chance, now that he’s in the open.

>1. “Did you truly survive? Are you not a revenant?”
>2. “You wished for a glorious last stand – but did you intend for everyone to die to prove your point? Or for you to win and prove that it was going to the Last Line that led to your deaths?”
>3. “It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into.”
>4. Custom

I'll mix any write-ins in if they show up.

>>30859550
>3. “It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into.”

>>30859550
>3. “It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into.”

>>30859550
>3. “It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into.”
"The only why to change the past, is by shaping the future it gives life to."

>>30859550

"You are the last, one of but a handful of people who remembers the events at that battle, Though time has moved on, Those against whom you fought and died for are no more. The Order of Basset has been lost to time. I know not what force bound you all this time, but now you are once more your own being. The question is, What will you do now?"

>>30859550
>>3. “It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into.”

>>30859550

"I have seen many men die in my time. I discovered that it is better live in the now and do what you can then it is to dwell forever on what can never change."

>3.

“It has been so long, as I said. As you know. You can move on and be something more than whatever you think that battlefield shaped you into,” you say, keeping your voice level. “You are the last of all but a handful who fought then.

“Move on?” the revenant says, his voice breaking. “But… they were with me. All of this time, they were with me. I am the last but they were with me for so long after that.” His voice transforms into a wail as he continues, “I gave him everything and now he’s gone and they’re gone. Why must they remain dead? Why must I forget them?”

His voice transforms into a wail as he looks around. The astral power surges around you. Something you said must have set him off. You…

>1. Concentrate on maintaining control of the fake world. You can use it to keep him here and keep the initiative.
>2. Let go of the astral power and instead prepare yourself for whatever comes.
>3. Try to stabilise him with words. <Write-in>
>4. Custom

>>30859907
1

>>30859550
Just got here these crits, this quest is such a rollercoaster man.
I'll toss in with >>30859690
or 3 for ease as they are similar I think.

>>30859939
second.

>>30859907
>3
"You must move on because the world has changed and to stay in it you must stay a part of it. But that doesn't mean you should forget your fallen brothers, for those memories and moments are what gives a life value. I'm asking you to join me, to join this world, to see you're friends remembered, their names written in the books of history for all to know, and for you to make a new mark upon this world. To change things for the better rather than trying to relive the past."

>>30860057
isn't this a rehash of what caused him to flip out?

>>30860057
I know you guys want a rev but this guy was a wuss, I'd rather grab a good rev later then this damaged goods one. Thats just my opinion tho.

>>30859907
>3. Try to stabilise him with words. <Write-in>

"You are the only person who can remember them and honor them but instead you hide yourself here. Tell me do you think they would be happy to know you are like this?"

>>30860100
200 years of experience and an astral warrior.

>>30859907
>3. Try to stabilise him with words. <Write-in>
"No one is telling you to forget them, you do them a disservice with this mockery of life. Instead why don't you make the sacrifices they made worth the lives they've given?"

>>30860100
Very much a wuss. Still he is pretty damn old so he could be useful to us knowledge wise.

>>30860100
Who said we want *a* Rev?

>last thread Aspirational was worried about our hp and whats to come
I just love how we tore down his misconceptions from last time.

>>30860178
>mfw we want ALL the revs
its in character, we are greedy
>>30860100
He is no longer just a rev, he is becoming a fae-like-ex-rev.
Very powerful.

>>30860123
>>30860154
>>30860178
True.
>>30859907
+1 Combo of these >>30860136 >>30860116

>>30860100
I don't want this guy as a fighter so much as a souce of information. That said, he might not be a strong Revnant, but no one that can maintain their existence in he world through sheer forced will is weak.

>3.

"You are the only person who can remember them and honor them but instead you hide yourself here. Tell me do you think they would be happy to know you are like this?" you shout, as the surging astral power tears away at the world around you. “Why don't you make the sacrifices they made worth the lives they've given?"

The roar from earlier settles down and your voice echoes through the small cavern you are in. The revenant stands in front of you, tendrils of shadow extending out from him, binding him to the ground and walls. Black armour, of a design similar to what you saw on the armoured figure earlier, appears to be growing out from his body.

“I tried to honour them! I tried to make them happy!” he shouts. “I made the sacrifice but they’re gone – after all these decades. But Phalris is gone now and they vanished with him. I just… I just wanted them to live on. I couldn’t save them. Even if we never went to that battlefield, they still wouldn’t have been saved. I was the only one who lived, I’m the only one who can live. I thought his gift would make it all fine…”

He falls silent but you can feel the astral energy surging. He’s stabilised just now, but it’s only temporary. You look around and find your comrades missing, then suddenly a little black puffball pops into existence next to you.

“Talon, I was wrong. This isn’t a-“ comes Vad’s voice from the puffball, before it suddenly becomes coated in frost, crashing to the floor and shattering.

The revenant is destabilising again. Astral power is surging through the shadowy tendrils. There’s no trace of sorcery here.

>1. Kill him. He’s too dangerous. You can’t risk him becoming Fae.
>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.
>3. Wait and see what happens.
>4. Custom

>>30860497

>1. Kill him. He’s too dangerous. You can’t risk him becoming Fae.

>>30860497
>1
Time to cut our losses.

>>30860497
>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.

>>30860497
Wait, I thought we WANTED him unstable?
Shit. Well, it seems like this guy made deals with demons to bring back his friends, even if it was only a memory for him to relive as many times as he liked

>>30860497
>2

>>30860497

Wait. Whose gift? If Vad was saying that he was wrong, then what we are facing isn't an unbound revenant....

>2

>>30860497
>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.
Hmm we need the whole story.

>>30860497
>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.

>>30860497
Oh damn, I used the wrong term. My bad.

>I thought his gift would make it all fine…”

Should be:

>I thought his blessing would make it all fine..."

Sorry about that.

>>30860497

>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.

>>30860497
>2. Try to keep him stable by speaking to him until you can get more advice from Vad or the others.
Its sounds like this pharos fellow was a powerful person.

>>30860625

still want to know Whose Blessing...

>>30860570
No, unstable turns him into a fae...or I guess, daemon. Stable ought to give us the options of helping him move on and binding him to our, or Vad's, service.

>>30860497
>4. Custom
Use astral power to make everything right.

>>30860651
>Phalris

I think anyway.

>>30860625
>Blessing
Oh fuck, an archangel or some god is involved.

>>30860570
When dealing with an unstable revenant, normally destabilising them means you would find it easier to overpower them as they're less able to control their power. It also speeds the transformation process, which Vad didn't tell you.

>2.

“Dammit, stay with me!” you say, trying to contain your growing panic. “You said that Phalris’ blessing would make it fine? Why can you not make it fine? You’ve survived for a hundred and fifty years. You can live for another hundred and fifty and ensure they live on in spirit.”

“But,” he begins to say, before he cuts himself off with a small scream as some of the armour on his face grows a bit more. “But I have always been with them. How can I do it myself?”

[DC12 Charisma]

Rolled 17

>>30860773

Rolled 4

>>30860773

Rolled 2

>>30860773
And now our luck inevitably turns...

>>30860808
Nice roll bro

>>30860808
>>30860811
>>30860815

AHAHAHAH. My last few rolls in all my quests didn't break 8. The dice gods have changed their favor.

>>30860773

Good guy Talon never let's beings entirely beyond his understanding fall into darkness and madness.

>>30860773
By helping me.

>>30860773
"Who said you had to do it alone?"

File: 1394935876109.jpg-(13 KB, 300x169, 1329275493223.jpg)

13 KB JPG

>>30860808

File: 1394935941182.jpg-(409 KB, 1240x624, 1360771479519.jpg)

409 KB JPG

>>30860869
>>30860854

>Target met

Your agitation grows with every second. The surging power around you, the growing inhumanity of the being in front of you – and you trying to talk to it instead of just killing it. It’s unusual and pushing you to the edge a bit to be in such a dangerous situation and not take the obvious action. Still, if you hope to rule an empire you need restraint and so you let your agitation out in a more controlled fashion.

“You call yourself a knight!” you shout in the cavern, slamming your fist into the rock wall. “They didn’t keep you alive, you did. They helped you but a knight does not stay one by letting others carry their load for them. That is why your order went to fight. That is why you knew it was the right thing all those years ago.”

You pull your hand out of the wall and hold it in front of his face where he can clearly see it, ignoring the sending you just received for a moment. “And, when you need help I can offer it. The world is not so large that you need to continue on your own. You move on, without forgetting those from before, and you honour them and make them happy by finding others and continuing with what you always did together before. Did you not risk your life for Tareth? Did your brethren not sacrifice themselves to give Horace the chance to escape?”

>continued

>>30861078
The revenant stares back at you and his face twists in torment. Tears run down his face. You worry for a moment that you’ve pushed him too far but you feel the astral energy begin to become more controlled. You take the moment to check the sending you received from Undine.

‘Vadoric says not a revenant. Blessed human. Fae master died. Transforming. Must stop.’

Who the hell is Vadoric? is your first thought. More importantly, a blessed human-

It comes to you in a shock.

>You’re… Hmm, you could be like Sigismund from the Great Marches. Supposedly he was ‘blessed’ by a Fae and given ‘immortal strength’ – you haven’t fought any Fae, have you?”

That’s what Vad said to you days ago. This… Did Vad learn more about the blessing as you travelled and he read those books of his? And the question is, how do you stop the transformation?

If this isn’t a revenant, is it just a matter of stabilising him or is something else happening? He never died, and his Fae master – Phalris – brought back his friends. Now, it seems, with Phalris dead the blessed knight is… turning into Phalris? You don’t know enough. You don’t know for certain what to do.

>What do you do?

>all this shit hitting the fan

SCARED.png

Lend him our strength, that Knight did, so can we. Show him we mean it.

>>30861101
What the Christ? No seriously What the Christ?

>>30861101

Fuck, I have no idea what to do either.

I don't want to have to kill him, but it seems we don't have much of a choice.

>>30861151
this works.

>>30861101
He's distracted by our discussion - distracted, scared and confused. His guard is down.

Could we hit him with a massive burst of astral energy to try and dominate his will and being. If he is simply a human who has been given abnormal powers, we should be able to crack his mental defences and contain his rapidly fraying mind.

So is it confirmed that there is a demon?

>>30861224
This sounds interesting.

I feel like it would be smarter to kill him but, I also feel like we have come to far promising him things to betray him now seems wrong.

>>30861249
no, no demons. just fae.

>>30861249

It is not. Looks like Fae work.

>>30861273
>>30861273

Honestly stabbing the guy in the face would be fine with me at this point. But at the same time he seems useful so might as well see if we can grab him.

>>30861151
this is a good plan talking is working
i vote for this

... is becoming a fae inherently bad? I thought it was just an issue... oh right, the going insane part because he isn't a real fae.
But that is for revenants, and this isn't quite one... but vad still says to stop ... (the transformation? or what we were planning on doing?)

>>30861328

Can we attempt it and then stab him if it starts to go wrong? Or would it be beyond the point of intervention?

>>30861151

If we can somehow manage to do what we did with the HMKs and connect our Astral power to him I think it might work. He just needs help, someone to whisper, "You are strong, through this you will gain strength"

>>30861372
I'd imagine it would be beyond but, I have no real clue.

>>30861393
Or he might go insane and then be stronger due to our power

>>30861189
I'll explain in full later. You missed some of the pieces of the puzzle in the revenant's memories so it comes across as very disjointed. Plus, I faffed about a bit too much earlier and this is taking far longer than expected.

>>30861224
You don't really have mind control or mental powers. The best you could do is kill him very quickly that way. The alternative is to try, in some way, to separate the Fae from the human though that's be a shot in the dark at best as you don't have the slightest how to do that. Or you could try to help him fight off the Fae, if he can do such a thing.

>>30861372
The closer he gets to Fae before you try to kill him, the harder it will be to pull it off.

>>30861354
Fae are bad. They tried to destroy the world more than a millenium ago. They're synonymous with chaos and destruction. They're completely otherworldly, to the point they have their own world separate from the everybody else.

VOTE
>1. Kill him now before he becomes Fae.
>2. Try to destroy the Fae without harming the human. You might kill him along with the Fae if you screw it up.
>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.
>4. Stall like crazy in hopes you get help.
>5. Custom

>>30861101
Could we do something similar to >>30861224
but rip his mind and take as much info as possible?

>>30861411

Oooh yeah, that doesn't sound good.

>>30861411

Then we rend the life force from him like we did with the Dragon.

>>30861425
>>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.

>>30861425

1

>>30861425
2

>>30861425
>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.
But be prepared to do 1.

>>30861425
>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.

GONE TOO FAR TO TURN BACK NOW.

>>30861425
3

>>30861425

2
but ask him to help us help him...

>>30861425
>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.
in for a penny, in for a pound

>>30861425
>1


>>30861474
um no
stop
go ahead and give up on hoping to ever vote intelligently

>>30861425
3

>>30861425
2
I don't trust tg dice. screw up and kill both is better than screw up and make the fae stronger.
(I bet if we succeed on 2 he ends up a normal human, while a success on 3 makes him retain some power?)

>>30861425
>3
Wouldn't getting rid of the fae kill him anyways since he'd be really old and not sustained anymore?

>>30861425
Hey can you run this with a secure vote? 3 is getting samefagged really hard here.

>>30861523
Yeah, but he'd die himself and be able to move on and whatnot.

>>30861523
Depends on how sustaining was done and whether this setting features snapback reality. He could rapidly age... or he could start aging normally.

>>30861493
>tries to lecture another on voting intelligently
>votes 2 when 1 is literally the same thing except there is a chance of him surviving

I'm going to call a contentious vote in two minutes. Voting period will be five minutes.

>>30861523
If you stop aging, you don't suddenly superage when it stops in this world. Magic can slow down or stop the aging process and when it stops doing that it simply resumes as normal.

>>30861560
If you were to do 2 and fail to kill either the human or the Fae then you'd have a harder job of killing him, period. 1 is the easiest way out but with the least reward in a way (alternatively, it might have the most reward as you don't have the risk of getting splatted).

>>30861560
Are you the QM? No? Then I guess you can't say the options are exactly the same.

Contentious vote.

Option 1
Kill him now before he becomes Fae. This is the lowest risk option.

Option 2
Try to destroy the Fae without harming the human. You might kill him along with the Fae if you screw it up. It's possible you may kill neither. It will be harder to kill him if this fails.

Option 3
Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger. It will be harder to kill him by the point you realise he's failing.

Rules for voting are to make a post with a link to this post and the number you are voting for. No other text, no greentexting the number. All informal votes will be discarded. Voting window will be five minutes after the first vote.

>>30861663
3

>>30861663
3

>>30861663
1

>>30861663
3

3

>>30861663
3

>>30861663

Fuuuuuuuuuuck I don't trust the dice in a crisis like this.

>Option 1

>>30861663
3

>>30861663
Abstaining

Sorry boss, I see the risks pretty easily, but not the upshot of taking them...

>>30861663
1

>>30861663
1

>>30861663
2

File: 1394938570202.jpg-(116 KB, 627x476, facepalm.jpg)

116 KB JPG

>>30861696

Ahaha I'm a moron.

>>30861663
3

Closing the vote now.

These votes always surprise me with the number of players.

>>30861425
>3. Try to use your astral power to help the human fend off the Fae. If it fails, the resulting Fae may be stronger.

>>30861754
I'm always surprised they pick the DC 18 option...

>>30861754
Yeah. Even accounting for 10% samefag ratio for people with proxies, 3 won out handily.

I swear, people are too nice and it's gonna get us killed one of these days.

>>30861754
just shows that 3 was same fagged once, and that 2 was same fagged twice.

>>30861776
tit's like last thread never happened
buncha short sighted voters here

>>30861778

tg has always loved white knighting, even if it is not in the pursuit of a harem...

>>30861791
I forgot to qoute the post so I don't think mine counts

>>30861817

What can I say, we fucking love our paladins.

File: 1394938923056.jpg-(25 KB, 752x375, LaughingDiceGods.jpg)

25 KB JPG

>>30861817
People are getting cocky because of the decent rolls this session.
But it's okay.
The Dicegods are watching.
Waiting.
Mark my words.

>>30861776

/tg/, from my experience running quests, are gluttons for punishment and if it involves high risk/high reward it's happening.

Plus, this actually seems kind of in line with Talon's character, risky Talon pops up sometimes in between tactical and intelligent Talon and it is a lot of fun.

>3.

You resolve yourself to try to help this poor bastard fend off the Fae. He’s survived this long, weeks of travelling. It’s probably that he had a lot more willpower and this broken state is what he’s been reduced to after such a long period of mental assault from the Fae.

At the same time, you don’t really know how you can help him. You can kind of tell, if you concentrate, that there’s another being in the same place as the man in front of you. You can even sense the difference between the strange armour consuming him and the rest of his body. Maybe you can use that. It’s worth a shot, at least. Even if it means indirectly duelling with an ancient faerie.

[DC18 Astral Battle]

Rolled 16

>>30861851
>that guy literally calling the DC

Rolled 9

>>30861851

Rolled 10

>>30861851
God dammit.

>>30861817
I honestly just want to save the guy due to his usefulness.

File: 1394939078195.jpg-(98 KB, 895x529, 1344621918448.jpg)

98 KB JPG

>>30861862
>>30861867
>>30861873

FUUUUUCK

SO CLOSE

>>30861862
Eh, hey it could've been worse. Could've been nat 1

>>30861862
>>30861867
>>30861873
Why did we pick 3 again

>>30861887
You can't possibly be surprised.

Rolled 4

>>30861851

>>30861851
Can we lower the D by doing a speech or conversation?
That seemed to help him.

>>30861862
>>30861867
>>30861873
We just summoned the king of the fae

>>30861851
>You can even sense the difference between the strange armour consuming him and the rest of his body.

Not going to lie my initial reaction whenever that happened was Empower self and rip the armour off. Not as tactful as Astral Battles but... Well yeah.

>>30861851
Any chance on lowering the DC by talking to the fellow and inspiring him?

>>30861911
Gonna add Fae Kingslayer to our titles eh?

>>30861894

I'm more shocked we didn't critfail.

Talon and JJ from HMQ need to meet up as drinking buddies and complain about rolling like crack bitches or something.

>>30861910
>>30861933

Not by 2 points. Maybe 1, but not 2.

>>30861964
He has lowered it by 2 before.

>>30861911

So the first of the otherworldly kind that will fall to Talon's might.

I'm cool with that.

>>30861911
We didn't roll a 1.

>>30861973
Then write something epic and do it quickly. I don't doubt that Aspirational's already writing.

>>30862003
Give me a moment.

>Target not met

You slap your hands down on the man’s shoulders, astral power surging through your body. You rub your fingers to confirm there’s none of the Fae armour beneath your palms and fingers before trying to inject your power into him. Or around him, really. The faerie is trying to consume him from the outside, rather than the inside – otherwise there shouldn’t be that odd difference. Or at least, that’s what you feel. If you can keep the growth at bay, you’ll have a better chance of supporting him

Unfortunately, it seems you were wrong. The armour continues to creep across his skin and your energy is simply… absorbed by it. You quickly realise you’re doing something wrong here. By absorbing some of your power, the transformation seems to have sped up. You suspect you’ll only have one more shot at it before things get too much worse.

The shadowy tendrils begin to pulse and astral energy once more begins to surge through the room. It seems that the faerie has pushed through the mental wall you created earlier by giving the knight a ‘pep talk’. You…

>1. Cut your losses and kill him now.
>2. Keep trying to fight off the Fae. Put all your concentration into focusing your astral power. This may give you a second shot if this fails,
>3. Keep trying to fight off the Fae, but also try to encourage the knight to help you more. (<write-in speech>). This may make things easier, but if it fails you’ll likely lack the chance to strike before the faerie takes control.
>4. Custom

>>30862080

1

>>30862013
waiting for this guy

>>30862080
>2. Keep trying to fight off the Fae. Put all your concentration into focusing your astral power. This may give you a second shot if this fails,

>>30862080
>1
Seriously, just stop trying to save him guys. Please. We recovered from our mistake, let's end this.

>>30862080
>2. Keep trying to fight off the Fae. Put all your concentration into focusing your astral power. This may give you a second shot if this fails,

Think we might have to go dragon path this time. Empowerment didn't work, rending might.

>>30862080

2.

if it fails this time, just kill him. maybe with a remark that we will honor his sacrifice and construct some form of memorial for him and his order...

>>30862080
>1

>>30862118
sorry can't right a proper speech as quick as this, if i had a day or an hour yeah, but not now.
“I remember the time that we took mead together,
2 when we made promises to our prince
3 in the beer-hall – he gave us these rings –
4 that we would pay him back for his battle-gear,
5 these helmets and hard swords, if such a need
6 as this ever befell him. For this he chose us from the army
7 for this adventure by his own will,
8 thought us worthy of glory, and gave me these treasures –
9 for he considered us good spear-warriors,
10 proud helmet-wearers, even though our prince,
11 shepherd of his people, intended to perform
12 this act of courage all alone,
13 because he has gained the most glory among men,
14 reckless heroic deeds. Now the day has come
15 that our noble lord has need of the support
16 of good warriors; let us go to it,
17 help our warlord, despite the heat,
18 grim fire-terror. God knows for my part
19 that I would much prefer that the flames should enfold
20 my body alongside my gold-giving lord.
21 It seems wrong to me that we should bear shields
22 back to our land, unless we first might
23 finish off this foe, defend the life
24 of the prince of the Weders. I know full well
25 that he does not deserve to suffer
26 this torment all alone among the Geatish troop,
27 or fall in the struggle; now sword and helmet,
28 byrnie and battle-dress, shall be ours together!”

2

>>30862080
>2. Keep trying to fight off the Fae. Put all your concentration into focusing your astral power. This may give you a second shot if this fails,
>>30862161
here

>>30862080
AND THEN WE STRUCK HIS SKULL RIGHT OFF HIS SHOULDERS
>1
Fuck this guy, I don't want to fight alien gods just because he wasn't that bad a guy.

>>30862080
2

>>30862080
DON'T put astral power IN.
Take astral power OUT.
Steal the fae's power while its still weak.

>>30862080
1

>>30862161
Jesus i botched that up.
I meant to say that if i had more time, i could write up a proper speech using beowolfs as a template, but since our QM writes fast i can't do much.

Why do you guys keep trying 2...
why...

Just stop. Give up, cut your losses, and stop getting us into more bullshit why don't you?

>>30862080
>2. Keep trying to fight off the Fae. Put all your concentration into focusing your astral power. This may give you a second shot if this fails,
Another contentious vote?

The way this is going seems to dictate how Talon is growing as a person so well.

His instincts to just finish it harkens back to his soldering days, hell even occasionally it pops up now. Something that still sticks with him and pulls when things get uncomfortable.

Then saving and protecting, hell even serving; from his men to the familiars he's casting his wings over them all, giving them hope with words and forging forward into the unknown.

The fact it keeps going back and forth like this really makes it feel like Talon is struggling himself to even really make a decision.

>>30862196
Your Talon-sense tells you that coming into contact with the raw astral power from an otherworldly being is a very bad idea. You don't know where that soul's been.

>>30862221
Given how strong the support was for 3 last time, I don't doubt that 2 is still strongly supported.

>>30862080
>1

>>30862212
Yeah, I really don't get it either...

The easier DC was 18. What the hell do people expect it to be now? It's only going to go up from here, unless Aspirational offers some strong fiat.

>>30862290
>You don't know where that soul's been.

Wear an astral condom?

>>30862255

yeah, that's why I think, despite the contentious votes, either way it goes can be justified by his characterization.

At this point, I'm pulling for a particular option, but I'm not going to bitch if things go otherwise.

>>30862290
To clarify, I didn't mean to CONSUME the power (steal was a bad way of phrasing it) but to tear it out and disperse it, preventing it from coagulating

>>30862338
That's still touching it dude.

Even if you don't cum inside, you still put it inside. That counts.

>>30862317
Thats how I feel as well. If 2 fails and we get the chance I'm with killing him, I hope Talon sees the victory as bittersweet.

>>30862363
Honestly I don't see him thinking it's bittersweet. I kind of see him being like "Poor bastard."

>>30862398
Same, plus it removes any doubt that we could had helped him.

>>30862080
>1. Cut your losses and kill him now.
Some men are destined to be lost.