>>30878639

“Ah, Erick!” Seated in the sand nearby, Sonia lifts the Ocean Fangworm Shard, offering it to you in both hands. “I almost forgot! You wanted me to give this back now, right?”

“Right, right. It nearly slipped my mind too.” You graciously accept the Shard back, tucking it into your knapsack. “Could you feel the Soul within?”

“Mmhmm! I think so.” She nods, giving a wide, toothy grin. “I bet it's really powerful.”

“Looks like you're leaving with a reward too, huh?” Rebecca says. “What are you planning on doing with that?”

What will you say?
>“It'll probably be useful to us. I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide.”
>“I was thinking of creating something we could pass off as a relic weapon and sell.”
>“Actually, I was hoping you'd let me use it to repair your broken weapon.”
>Other

>>30878649
>>“It'll probably be useful to us. I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide.”

Rolled 6, 2, 2, 4 = 14

>>30878649
>>“It'll probably be useful to us. I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide.”

>>30878649
Maybe we can kill some smaller animals for souls Sonia can practice with.

>>30878649
>“It'll probably be useful to us. I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide."

Once we do figure out what it does though, I think we should give Rebecca a new weapon though.

>>30878797

I concur. We should make some sort of note about how if these guys are all going to be around us, and we have a crazy shardkeeper woman with a flame breathing dragon in tow coming after us randomly, we figure it's only fair we outfit them.

>>30878751

Maybe later. I would like to see what qualities smaller fangworms possess, if this big'un could manipulate water at will.

>>30878649
>>“It'll probably be useful to us. I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide.”
i still want to make this one into jewelry.

>>30878797
We dont have to use boss deep one soul for them. Some other beasts that we can hunt relatively easily would be ideal for now. We could make some weapons/armor for them. If we try to have strong shards for all of them we will never have enough time.

(( As an aside, feel free to call upon aspects of Erick's knowledge of Shardkeeping and its practices, or anything he might reasonably know of the world. I'm not going to tell you everything unprompted, but I'm also not going to withhold information for no reason. ))

>>30878685
>>30878722
>>30878797

“It'll probably be useful to us.” You say. “I'd like to figure out its capabilities before I decide.”

“Sounds fair. Hell, with the city the way it is right now, we might not even need to go down that path we thought of before.” Rebecca replies. “Selling relic weaponry, and whatnot?”

“In hindsight, that seems a little more dangerous than it might be worth.” Daeron shrugs. “Though this does mean we'll actually have to work for the coin...”

“Oh, sorry.” Rebecca folds her arms. “Was Erick your retirement plan?”

“I'm... not going to address that question.” The bowman sighs.

“Right, then.” The huntress turns to you. “Considering we've still got the rest of the day ahead of us, I'd like to say we could head out east, and figure out what's going on with Pleasance and the monsters crossing the Imedagne border. Unfortunately, having my weapon destroyed was the last thing I was prepared for. Is anyone opposed to heading back to the city for now?”

>What will you say?

>>30879218
"Do you have all the parts of the weapon in mind?"

(I forget what the limits of infusing repair were.)

OR

>I don't mind terribly.
>>Try infusing the neat new soul into your bag.

Rolled 3, 4, 1, 1 = 9

>>30879218
Lets go back to the city.

Could we repair a broken relic weapon?

>>30879181

They're monster hunters, we should be accruing strong shards at a fairly good pace.

>>30879218

"You know, actually, if you give me a few minutes to check out this shard then I could repair that for you temporarily using it."


Perfect.

>>30879290

Her weapon was normal, I think.

>>30879218
We should kill a few smaller monsters and infuse their souls into our party's weapons.

Rolled 4, 3, 3, 4 = 14

>>30879315
Oh right.

But I am still curious about the topic of repairing relic weapons anyway.

>>30879218
What are the beasts we could hunt around these parts for shards? Not something too powerful that it'll risk the entire groups life, and not something so weak that a normal human could handle. We should hunt something relatively safe and use its shard for her weapon.

>>30879370

Why not give her the Deep One shard for the moment? Not like we couldn't take it off later.

I even think she used a halberd too, so it's like a test run for our weapon.

>>30879364
>>30879290

(( Relic weapons aren't easily damaged or broken.

In the event that this happens, though, a Shardkeeper can repair them through a process similar to Shard infusion, assuming he's got all the pieces on hand. It doesn't take a particularly short amount of time to do, however. ))

>>30879396
This.

>>30879396
Is that the one we just got? I'd rather see what it does first.

>>30879396
>>30879523

I'm down for giving her a repair, she doesn't necessarily have to get the Deep One shard though.

Ask her if she'd rather have the Earthbreaker halberd [Tregalis], one with poison powers (and likely a bit besides) [The Snake], or the Deep One.

>>30879396
because we just acquired it and have no idea what it does. i wouldn't imagine giving normal people unntested shard infused items is a good idea, espcially if they are tgought to be strong.

>>30879218
>What will you say?
Put our hands behind our back. Switch which hand the shard is in. Then hold out our closed hands to Sonia. "What hand is the shard in?"

Then say we're OK with going back to town.

>>30879602
I honestly don't like the Earthbreaker halberd. I much prefer Tregalis in the boots or cloak.

>>30879615
Agreed. Let's offer her Tregalis for now. The Swamp Viper and Ocean Fangworm shards haven't been tested in halberds yet. And we sure as hell can't give her our spirit shards. Even if that were possible, which I can't remember if it is, it just seems like a terrible idea.

>>30879602
Tregalis is way too useful to give away. Maybe the Swamp Viper instead.

>>30879673
Lets just go hunting around the area?

QM can i get that knowledge check on monster around the are even if we do not go hunting?>>30879370

>>30879687

Yeah, we have him in our boots right now (and he doesn't do much there).

I'll vote for repairing her halberd with the Swamp Viper shard, then reinfusing our boots with the Mega-Fangworm, just to see what it does there.

What will you say?
>"I'm alright with heading back for now."
>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."

>>30879710
Seconding. Even a few weak souls is better than none. And I'd rather not give away our souls.

>>30879673
Giving up our only defensive shard? I would much rather part with swamp viper. The snake is just a less powerful version of Skeith. Anything we put the snake in will probably have the same powers as when we put Skeith in it. Just a weaker version of it.

>>30879726

>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."

Make sure we go somewhere no one except our part will see us.

>>30879726
>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."
Hell, why not? Let's work some magic.

>>30879726
>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."

>>30879726
>>>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."

>>30879726
>"You still have the pieces of your weapon, correct? Give me a few minutes to experiment; I think I can provide a temporary solution."

>>30879726
Didn't we still have one swamp mosquito shard? What happened to that?

>>30879746
The swamp viper in our cloak makes for a defensive item, too. Not as good as Tregalis, but still pretty useful. And I imagine, given how the Ocean Fangworm defended itself, that we could make some good armor with it.

>>30879726
I want to hunt shards for her but i am completely ignored i guess? Strange nobody wants that.

>>"I'm alright with heading back for now."

>>30879805
Oooh, true.

Oh boy. At least dont go giving away our shards anons.

>>30879805
Nah, I want to keep Tregalis. If we want to give away a shard, let's go with the swamp viper.

>>30879742
It's just a temporary fix. I think we're still going to get her a new halberd and get the soul back eventually.

We could go back to the beach and take some lesser fang worm souls to give to the archer.

>>30879806
We just got out of a fight. Our party's tired. We can hunt some new shards later, for now we're just getting her halberd fixed in case we run into anything before she can get it non-magically repaired.

>>30879833

Why not? These people are in some pretty hella danger from Anise attacking just by sticking with us. Don't they deserve some sort of compensation? Or at least the ability to defend themselves?

>>30879870
Nah, I want to keep on hunting.

>>30879891
i am not against making them stronger. i am just against making ourselves weaker in the process.

>>30879917

Oh, fair enough.

We're already running out of practical things to imbue anyway though.

>>30879939
Not really. We've imbued our cloak, our boots and our weapons. We could imbue plenty of other things. Helmets, coats, belts, masks, gloves, any number of different types of tool...plenty of stuff to work with.

>>30879979

...We might experience some conflicts if we imbue all that stuff.

>>30880053
Has the QM said that?

>>30879979
and any and all jewelry a person can wear. also any kind of container we have. no need to get autistic about shard items for ourselves, but we can definitely imrpove our equipment a lot. We should improve it.

>>30880053
Is there something I'm not remembering about the limits of our abilities?

>>30880076
>>30880067
Other than common sense? I dont remember anything specific.

>>30880076
>>30880067

No, but cheese is generally frowned upon by QMs.

>>30880119
and sensible players.

>>30879710

(( Erick isn't terribly familiar with the area. According to Daeron, “coyotes and worgs” hunt in the woods beyond Callestria; he also spoke of spiders dwelling in caves beneath the hills, and creatures called “brontotheres” which were either hunted to extinction or forced to migrate northward. The party has suggested that the fauna in Imedagne, to the east, are a bit more exotic and dangerous, but haven't gone into great detail. ))

>>30879752
>>30879766

“Rebecca, do you still have the pieces of your weapon?”

“Of course.” She responds; you notice the two broken halves of the glaive hang horizontally on her back, just above the waist, pointing acutely apart from one another. “I was hoping to get it repaired, but that might not be possible.”

“If you give me some time to experiment with them, I think I could afford you a temporary fix.” You say.

“I'm... interested.” Rebecca says, raising an eyebrow. You accept the broken glaive, taking a look at it. The craftsmanship is of a particularly high quality, but the weapon has seen years of use. “You think you could?”

“Provided I could do it somewhere no one else could see.” You respond.

“I can't imagine there'd be anybody 'round the hills up there.” Daeron motions to the east. “Or you guys could head back to that cave.”

What will you do?
>Restore the glaive with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.
>Restore the glaive with the Swamp Viper Shard.
>Restore the glaive with the Rock Lizard Shard.
>Other.

>>30880171
>>Other.
Do we still have that mosquito shard? If not Swamp Viper.

>>30880098
>>30880119
I'm not saying we should imbue every single item we have. Just that to think that we've exhausted the potential of shards is silly. We've imbued a grand total of five different items. Let's experiment more, find an optimal set of shards to equip.

>>30880171
>Restore the glaive with the Swamp Viper Shard.
Fangworm shard is untested and lizard shard is way too good to give up.

>>30880171

Do the Swamp Viper. Put Fangworm on our boots.

>>30880171
>Restore the glaive with the Swamp Viper Shard

>>30880171
>Restore the glaive with the Swamp Viper Shard.
And warn her to be careful with it, it's almost certainly going to be poisoned, now.

>>30880230

Agreed.

>>30880244
seconding this

>>30880171

Use the Swamp Viper, re-enchant our boots with the Fangworm.

Is 4chan glitching again?

>>30880581
nope. not for me.

>>30880171
>Restore the glaive with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.
Her weapon is the same as ours. Seeing what it does in her weapon will tell us what it will do in ours.

>>30880634

Alright, here's hoping the QM is still alive.

>>30880692
I support this, but anon-opinion seems to be greatly against this. So instead I say this >>30880304
>>30880230

>>30880182
We gave the mosquito shards to the boy and the old lady.

>>30880228
>>30880230
>>30880239
>>30880244
>>30880304

I am disapointed that no one wants to see what the Fangworm does in a weapon. We already know what the viper is going to do.

>>30880759

I do, so do a couple other anons.

But a lot more seem to think that it's too dangerous or something.

>>30880759
Yeah, but if I remember correctly she made us keep one of the shards.

>>30880759
>>30880806
We want to see what it does, we just don't want to give it away until we've done some experimenting first. It's OUR new toy, Rebecca doesn't get to be the first one to play with it.

>>30880842

That's rather churlish of us/you.

>>30880841
They're too weak to do anything of note anyway, I suspect.

>>30880230
>>30880254
>>30880304
>>30880743
Why put the Fangworm in the boots? It probably just going to give us some water walking ability that we'll never use because we don't fight on lakes very often.

And I really don't want the "water shield" that the Fangworm had before we killed it. There are a lot of things that I associate with good defense water is not one of them.

The steam blaster is the coolest ability the Fangworm demonstrated while alive. And, we'll probably one get that if we put it in a weapon.

>>30880887

At the moment it's because we're removing a soul from our boots and "why not?"

Let's leave aside why it only takes 1 shard to enchant 2 boots.

>>30880759
>Lets give a normal human being who had no knowledge of shards till a few days ago an untested weapon infused with a stron shard.
i know the plot armor is there, and i dont think something terrible would actually happen, but just for a second try to think from the ic perspective before suggesting things.

>>30880842

It's not like she'd refuse to give it back if we wanted it.

>>30880912
Makes sense to me. This is a soul we're using, not completely inanimate raw magic. It can probably grasp a bit of abstraction and understand that even if they're separate, the boots are part of a set.

>>30880884
>They're too weak to do anything of note anyway, I suspect.

I'm assuming if we enchant a weapon with it it will make it harder to destroy like the other shards.

>>30880913

The other members of her hunting party had relic weapons, she's known about relic weapons (strong ones too, because her friends' ones are STRONK) for a while now accordingly. Shit, she's probably given theirs a swing or two just to see what it's like. This is a non-issue, especially in character.

“That'll work, I suppose.” You nod. “We'll just—”

“Sounds good.” Daeron says. “I'll be staying here.”

“My legs'll take a few minutes' rest as well.” Grato adds.

You glance over at Sonia, who seems to be lying supine in the village square. For a moment, you wonder how this bunch ever got anything done.

“Fine.” Rebecca sighs. “Erick and I will be right back.”

The path to Maraja's cave looks much clearer now, the remainder of the living Fangworm pack having fled back into the tides. As you make your way clear of the village, you see a number of men and women hauling the remainder of the creatures' corpses back the way you came; they pay you little mind, though a man who looks to be in charge of the project waves to Rebecca as the two of you pass, and she nods in kind.

“That's the guy that paid us.” She says quietly. “I figured it wasn't a good idea to tell him that we know a magician and the fish will be back soon, but I'm making him give us a cut of whatever they make selling to the city proper.”

You arrive back at the cave before long, and remove your shoes, beginning the recrystallization of the Swamp Viper Shard.

“Decided against using the one from that Fangworm?” Rebecca asks.

“I figure it'd be better to go with a more predictable result.” You respond. The snakeskin withdraws, and Soul gathers in your hands as your boots are restored to their tattered leather state. You remain seated on the cave floor; the two broken pieces of Rebecca's weapon sit across your lap, and you believe you can restore the broken weapon to a functional state via Shard infusion.

>Cont'd

>>30880946
I was more making a commentary on /tg/'s mindset when it comes to quests. We always want to play with the cool new abilities whenever we get them. No one wants to let the NPCs have the cool stuff.

>>30881015

You apply the energy to the glaive; first, the break must be bound together. You understand this, and communicate with the Soul. Color gives way to bright light as the two pieces attract to one another, forming a spear of white light across your lap that illuminates the dim environment. The weapon takes form. Scales like the Swamp Viper's skin crawl out from beneath a sharp, jet-black spike at the bottom of the shaft, reaching up toward the weapon's new head, a single-edged blade of jade crystal.

>Shard Infusion – Ophidian Pike: A glaive-like weapon resembling the scaled body of the Swamp Viper, with a blade of jade crystal. The weapon's strength is paradoxical; though it seems to augment the wielder's agility, its true power lies in a venomous ambush attack that grows more powerful the longer one lies still in wait.

“A real relic weapon, huh?” Rebecca chuckles as you stand up with the weapon; you don't think you've seen her quite so impressed. “I'd almost started to mourn the loss of my blade, but that looks better than new. Is there anything you can't do?”

What will you do?
>Other

>>30881047
"There are many things i can not do. More than i can actually."
Explain her the weapon's powers.
Than lets try our new shard on a bracelet or a ring.

>>30881047
"Oh, sure, but it's better for my reputation if I preserve the mystique."

>>30881047
>Is there anything you can't do?
"Find a woman" Then explain what the weapon does.

>>30881047
"All sorts of things.

It's not actually fixed, if I remove the infusion then it'll be in two pieces again."

Hand her the glaive, let her know about its powers, give her a chance to familiarize herself with it and test it out.

>>30881297
Lol second

>>30881297
Yep.

>>30881297
>>30881179
>>30881129

“The things I can't do outnumber the things I can.” You nod, offering her the weapon. “But it's better for my reputation if I preserve the mystique.”

“Right.” She grins, accepting it. “Anything I should know?”

“First of all, it's not actually repaired. Were the Infusion removed, it'd break into two again.” You say. “It's an ambush weapon; the blade is poisoned, and will strike sharper if you lie still in anticipation before you attack. Despite this, it'll allow you to operate at a higher speed in combat, which might take some getting used to.”

“Any tips?”

“Just think like a snake.”

“...What?”

“The shard I empowered your weapon with comes from a great snake. That's the power you bring to a fight with a relic weapon in your hands.” You say, wondering for a moment why the idea seems foreign to her. “Imagine you're a snake, and you won't have any trouble.”

“Right.” She nods. “I suppose I'll figure it out.”

What will you do?
>Infuse the leather boots with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.
>Infuse the wood grain ring with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.
>Perform some other Soul ritual.
>Rendezvous with the group.
>Other

>>30881510
>Infuse the leather boots with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.

>>30881510
>>Infuse the wood grain ring with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.

>>30881510
>>Infuse the wood grain ring with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.

>>30881510
>Infuse the leather boots with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.
If it only lets us walk on water I'm voting to take it right back out. Hoping for magic water powered roller blades.

>>30881510
>>>Infuse the wood grain ring with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.

>>30881510
Sure why not?

>>30881662
>Infuse the wood grain ring with the Ocean Fangworm Shard.

Forgot my vote

>>30881557
>>30881629
>>30881652

The Ocean Fangworm Shard, a sandy quartz crystal, burns away in your hand. You apply its energy to the small wood grain ring, which bounces and vibrates as it accepts the energy. The soft metal brace takes the shape of jagged blue crystal through which water appears to flow; wood grows over with a smooth gray carapace, and blue light bleeds through cracks in the grain, filling them with a faint glow.

>Shard Infusion – Seaward Ring: At a thought, the wearer can generate a small water orb, forcing Soul to take a physical form—is this an adaptation of the practice of Shardkeepers? As the old Fangworm attacked with boiling water, so can the wearer harness a scalding blast; as the beast deflected attacks with its shroud, so can one move the water like a limb to defend themselves.

What will you do?
>Perform some other Soul ritual.
>Rendezvous with the group.
>Other

>>30881920
Holy shit try that now.

"Hey, check this out! I'm a fucking wizard!"

>>30881920
Aw yeah, we're waterbending now. Sweet. Let's head back to the group.

>>30881920
it paid off nicely.

>>30881920
I like the ring. Lets go back to the group.

>>30881920
Hey Soul are there weapon proficienccies? Or are we a jack of all trades?

>>30882050

(( Erick is trained in unarmed combat, as well as the use of bows, spears, and other polearms. It stands to reason, though, that he could adapt to using another weapon if necessary. ))

>>30882023
>>30881961

You and Rebecca head back to the fishing village, where the other hunters wait.

“Welcome back.” Daeron says. “We happy?”

“Quite.” Rebecca responds. “I'm about ready to get moving somewhere, unless anyone objects.”

What will you do?
>Eastward to Imedagne. You'd like to see the problem at the border.
>Eastward to Pleasance. Disappearing people can't be normal.
>Back to Callestria.
>Other.

>>30882211
Wasnt this Calsomething spirit to east? Then lets go another way. Any way that is not east or back the way we came is fine.

>>30882211
>Eastward to wherever

>>30882211
What is there on other directions?

>>30882251

(( Pleasance is to the east, and not outside the greater Callestria area. Imedagne's border is a distance further beyond that; this is also the location of Calizan's suspected activity.

The city proper is to the north, surrounded by hilly forest outside the walls. Further to the north and a bit westward is the swamp, and beyond that, the village that Erick departed from at the start of his journey.

Days beyond that, one would encounter a desert that Sonia once called home, and further still, a volcanic region. ))

>>30882211

To Pleasance, the Imedagne border is still far away if we go there right?

>>30882211
>Eastward to Pleasance. Disappearing people can't be normal.

It's a good place to start, and we might be able to get news about Imedagne from there.

Rolled 11

>>30882211
>Eastward to Pleasance. Disappearing people can't be normal.

>>30882211
>Eastward to Pleasance. Disappearing people can't be normal.

>>30882363
>Eastward to Pleasance. Disappearing people can't be normal.
Might as well stay relatively close to home since we did promise not to go chasing after Calizan's suspected activity.

>>30882584
i am pretty sure this thing will be tied to calizan somehow. well, i may be wrong, it is decided regardles so we'll have to play it out and see i guess.

>>30882647

I find your lack of faith in the QM's imagination...disturbing.

>>30882410
>>30882426
>>30882403

“I'm not sure if you're now adverse to becoming involved in affairs of the Spirits.” You suggest. “But I'd like to investigate the scenario at Pleasance. We might be able to figure something out about Imedagne without having to stray too far in that direction.”

“Today turned out well, all things considered.” Daeron says.

“Agreed.” Rebecca says. “With you on our side, matters of the Spirits are practically unavoidable. As long as we can handle some usual business in between, I think we've got a working formula on our hands.”

“I'm growing quite fond of seeing a different side of this world.” Grato chuckles, patting you on the back. “You'll have to introduce me to your personal companions sometime, boy.”

“Me too!” Sonia tugs at your cloak.

“That might not be a good idea.” You shrug. The four of you head north out of the city, following the eastward road toward the village of Pleasance.

>Cont'd

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>>30883117

The sun has since begun to fall by the time you see the place in the distance. As you draw closer and cross into the town proper, you feel a strange weight on your shoulders. The place has architecture similar to any given street in Callestria, but appears to be a veritable ghost town. Building windows are darked, and street lanterns appear to have fallen into disuse.

Roadside merchant stalls are empty. A crow, or some other kind of corvid, stares idly at you, standing on the roof of a nearby building. The place is utterly quiet; there's a strange sense of claustrophobia in the sound as the hunters begin to speak.

“Well, you weren't kidding.” Rebecca says, raising an eyebrow as your party stops in the middle of the street. “Grato, you know anything else about this place?”

“Wasn't a terrible amount of people who lived here, and word is they all vanished at once.” The axeman says. “When word got back to town, they sent some members of the guard to go check it out—they didn't find a thing. Nobody's shown back up or decided to come and stay, and it doesn't seem like anyone's bothered to come clean up.”

“And now it's a ghost town.” Daeron says. “I don't care for this.”

What will you do?
>Other

Rolled 3

>>30883144
Sense for spirits.

>>30883144
Start by checking for spiritual presences and the like. Then take a look around the place, look for inhuman tracks or anything like that.

>>30883144

This sounds a lot like what happened with Skeith...

>>30883144
Yeah, lets meditate and look for spirits

>>30883171
>>30883180
>>30883252
Obvious choice is obvious

>>30883297

Perhaps...a bit TOO OBVIOUS!!!

>>30883252
>>30883171

>1d20

Rolled 11

>>30883248

I actually have my bets on a monster, or a group of sapient-ish monsters that have access to soul powers.

>>30883339

Rolled 19

>>30883339
Please dice?

Rolled 19

>>30883339
K

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>>30883390
>>30883360

Rolled 14

>>30883360
>>30883390
I hope we can get a DOUBLES bonus.

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Rolled 3

>>30883390
>>30883360

Rolled 18

>>30883424
In fact, all of the first three are technically doubles.

>>30883424
This isnt Ogre Civ Quest.

Rolled 11

>>30883546
I know, just hopeful.

>>30883561
Hopeful he'll suddenly switch dice mechanics?

Rolled 1

>>30883606
No, hopeful that he is a worshiper of the dice.

>>30883606

This certainly doesn't merit it. If we someday manage to get straight 20s or straight 1s I'd like to see some sort of special permanent ability/penalty applied though.

>>30883617
Oh right, you're that retard that never turns off his dice. Damn, too bad you found this quest.

Rolled 17

>>30883672
I've actually been here for a while now, perhaps longer than you, I don't know because you're an Anon!

>>30883360
>>30883390

>19

Something's not right.

You focus, pushing the world out of your mind. There's more here than you can see, hidden in the dark corners of this place.

But the presence of Soul conceals itself from you. Prying, you faintly detect it, and as you press your own presence further, it withdraws, recoiling further into some abyss.

The voices of the Hunters grow faint. The dark town of Pleasance falls out from beneath your feet, buildings vanishing around you as you walk forward into darkness. It's been hard to maintain this meditative state in your experience, but you're beginning to find it easier, able to view this parallel world and identify the Spirits that dwell among you.

Something is hiding from you—something is surrounding you, moving in the abyss. Is it hands, or eyes that you see? No, great, dark wings and a massive tail—twisting shapes, fangs, and swirling vortices of Soul among the shadow.

What will you do?
>Other

>>30883701
Then turn off the name and stop attention whoring.

>>30883742
Warn our companions that something is here. Sounds kind of like the thing the other apprentice was riding on.

Rolled 13

>>30883779
You are the first person in this whole quest to say I was attention hoarding.

Rolled 1

>>30883811
*whoring
stupid autocorrect.

>>30883742

Hmm. Warn our companions that (like they didn't already know) there's something dangerous behind this. Continue into the town looking for clues.

>>30883779
Maybe. She might be able to conceal soul energy (like we want to learn to do) and that'd explain this. I wouldn't bet on it though.

>>30883811
>>30883834
Dude why do you still have the dice on, QM didn't call for it.

>>30883880
Ok, I'll turn it off. I don't have the best memory.

>>30883811
I've seen you in other quests with your shitty write in dialogue and general attention whoring.

>>30883742

Proceed further into the town, look for clues. See if anything has been looted/stolen, if there are livestock around, etc.

If we can capture this, its concealment abilities would be of great help in avoiding further confrontations with Anise.

Tell our companions "I think a way to avoid further confrontations with my former companion might be hidden around here..."

>>30883935
Really? People generally don't mind my suggestions, or even like them. In fact, you are the first to call my Write Ins, and I quote, 'Shitty',

>>30884012
I wasn't gonna comment in this argument, but I'm pretty sure a few others have said the same, if perhaps in different ways.

Now both of you settle down. It's rude to SoulQM.

>>30884115
Ok, I just don't think anyone said that before. But I'll stop now. Sorry SoulQM.

>>30883839
>>30883779

“There's something concealing itself...” You turn to call out to the hunters, but feel something take hold of your spiritual presence, preventing you from breaking free from the darkness.

You stand in some aphotic void, with shapeless creatures of dark moving about the edges of your field of vision.

“It is not ordinary to so easily detect this influence. Another Shardkeeper, then?”

What will you do?
>Other

>>30884142

Did something else say the blackspeak to us?

>>30884142
"Yes, I am Erick Valstein, a shardkeeper. But that leaves the question, who and what are you?"

>>30884142
Probe the darkness. We're going to need to see what's out there.

>>30883964
>f we can capture this, its concealment abilities would be of great help in avoiding further confrontations with Anise.
While I agree it would be useful, let's not jump to conclusions here. We don;t know if we can harness it's concealment abilities.

>>30883742
>What will you do?
Tell the others you sense something. Investigate further. Keep it simple.

>>30884142
Try to respond to that.

"That I am. What are you doing here?"

Be ready to pull out Skeith and murder things.

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>>30884142
>What will you do?
Search your feelings

>>30884142
"Another? Have there been others who came investigating this?"

>>30884199
>>30884240

I don't think we need to announce that. This thing has something to do with the disappearance of the villagers, it's not friendly.

Also, I think we're stuck in the realm of the soul and unable to withdraw to our body.

>>30884142

"Do you really need to me answer your question? It seems your conclusion has already been drawn.

Why is it that you have ensnared me, kind presence? Obviously you do not wish me to cower in fright, or flee at the might of your form or you would not conceal yourself so."

>>30884261
It knows we're here. Talking to it probably wont hurt. And, asking who it is seems prudent.

>>30884326
>>30884251

Combine these two.
I'm a sucker for rhymes.

>>30884400

“Do you really need me to answer your question?” You ask. “It seems you've drawn your conclusion already.”

“I see.” It echoes from somewhere. “You are different.”

“Why is it you've ensnared me?” You continue. “Obviously, you don't wish me to cower or flee, or you wouldn't conceal yourself.”

“It is in our nature, to conceal ourselves among the Dark.” There—your eyes adjust to the darkness, or to the shape of a single entity among it. You see her, in the form of a human with white hair the length of her body, black dress hemmed with numerous ribbons that flutter about, incessantly groping at the dark. Her skin is pale, save for her arms, solid black from just below the shoulder to her fingertips as if painted. A pair of disembodied hands cling tightly to her face, covering her eyes, twitching subtly ever-so-often. She stands motionlessly, some distance away.

“You said 'another' Shardkeeper.” You stand cautiously, prepared to reach for your weapon at a moment's notice. “Have there been others who've come to investigate this place?”

“One.”

>What will you say?

>>30884677
"Male or female?"

That should be simple enough for them to answer.

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>>30884677

>>30884677

"A female.

So what do you wish of me, milady? I have come to investigate this place, and lend what help I may. Shall you help me, or hinder me? ...Or perhaps you will prefer to step back into the shadows."

>>30884775
>>30884713

Something along these lines. If the...thing answers that it was a female, confirm that you suspected as much.

>>30884677
"What can you tell me about the shardkeeper? Was it a man or woman?"

If you only ask male or female, she might only answer male or female. 'What can you tell me' gives her room to volunteer information.

>>30884713

“Was this Shardkeeper male or female?”

“Are you not well acquainted already?” Her lips curl into a wicked smile. “Upon discovering our nature, she exposed her desire to wield our power against you—to hide her own strength among the Dark.”

>What will you say?

>>30884972
ah...her, I know her

>>30884972
Does wielding this power come at any cost?

>>30884972
"And did she gain her desire?"

>>30884972

"Ah, her.

And did you agree, or was the winged shape with massive tail a conjuring of my own mind?"

>>30884972
"Do you know why she desired this?"

>>30885042

I can second this.

>>30884972
"I do know her, and it seems she got what she was looking for. Does this power come with a price?"

>>30885027
Obviously she did. It's how she hid from us in the city. I want to know if we can get the same power. But, power sometimes comes with a price.

>>30885048

To wield their power against us, that's why.

>>30885101
>>30885042

I concur with both of these. We need to figure out if she's nearby pronto, every minute we stay in this fugue is a minute Anise could decimate our friends.

“And did she gain her desire, or was what I saw just now—a winged shape with a massive tail—a conjuration of my own mind?” You ask.

“Do you fear her, Shardkeeper? Do you see what you fear among the Dark? Your race is a curious thing; born from Dark, and from that moment, your every action is made to elude returning to that place.” She pauses. “We are alone here. I am an avatar of Dark, in a covenant with the Shardkeeper Anise.”

“Does the use of this power come at a cost?” You ask.

“Perhaps,” The entity before you laughs. “Once she spends so long in hiding, she will forget the importance of being seen.”

>What will you do?

>>30885339
Ask for more details on this covenant.

>>30885339

"Your vantage is an interesting one. Was Anise the one who spirited away this village?"

>>30885352

I think those are kept between Keeper and spirit usually...Though I suppose the water spirit didn't.

Jesus, spirits are just like littering the ground in this world.

>>30885421
We need to find a spirit to bang like our master did.

>>30885339
>Born from Dark

...And the furtive Pygmy, so easily forgotten.

>>30885339

Both of these, if more silver-tongued anons aren't going to contribute.

"You vantage is an interesting one, and much appreciated. Fear is the mark of my kind, and far be it from me to overcome it...yet.

Was part of your covenant with Anise to spirit this village away? While it is much appreciated, I must ask why you parlay with me, Spirit of Darkness, if you have made pact with Anise?

>>30885604
>>30885398

“Your vantage is an interesting one.” You say. “Was Anise the one who spirited away the people of this village, then?”

“No,” she says, “It was I. My shadow passed over this place, and its people now rest among my darkness, so that the creatures you see here might feast upon their dreams. Once they have eaten their fill, these people will be returned to their homes, and I will be gone.”

“I see. While it's appreciated, Spirit, I must ask: why do you parlay with me, if you've made pact with Anise?”

“We are merely in accord, Shardkeeper. I am conscripted to lend my power, but not bound to her service. You peered into my shadow out of curiosity, and I was curious as to your nature.” She turns. “I have not violated some agreement by merely speaking with you.”

“I see. Can you tell me the details of your covenant with Anise, then?” You ask.

“It is one of unique circumstances—circumstances tied to the reason I no longer wish to conceal myself in one particular location. Your enemy was particularly assertive in her offer—is it strange, for the Dark itself to fear?” She wanders towards you, though non-threateningly. “Ordinarily, one would be a fool to make a threat against me. It is the one she calls Master whom I fear.”

>What will you say?

>>30885604

Seems good. I think most of your player base has fallen asleep, SoulQM

>>30885773

(( We'll be wrapping up shortly then. ))

>>30885770
Ask her if her master was here as well.

>>30885773
More likely it's because write in responses. It'll probably pick up after this.

>>30885770

"I know who she once called Master, would you enlighten me as to who does now?

What are these creatures that feed on these men and women's dreams?"

>>30885811
I'll stick around as long as you will, mining for information.

>>30885870

Hmm, I hadn't considered that. Maybe.

>>30885770
"As you are right to. She has allied herself with something most foul. But let us not speak of such alien nightmares when the more familiar ones are closer by. Will it do permanent harm to the people of this town for your pets to feed on them?"

>>30886001

Seconding.

Ask her what they are also.

Does anyone remember if there was a Dragon on the Eastern edge of the Swamp?

>>30885891

“I know who she once called Master. Would you enlighten me as to who she does now?” You can only hope that the one who taught you your craft hasn't turned against you.

The Spirit stops in front of you, within arm's reach.

“In faint whispers,” she says, “withering Spirits speak of the power of the traitorous Calizan, whom even the Dark fears. The powers of Spirits are diverse, but we believed that only two were unknown to us; we believed it impossible for a Spirit to completely destroy another, and we believed it impossible for a Spirit to truly enslave another.”

Your eyes widen, as she continues.

“With Anise serving under him, Calizan has both of these things at his command.”

(( I'm tired as hell, actually. Archiving. Thanks for the posts! ))

>>30886164

Okay, time to kill Anise.

>>30886201

I voted for killing Anise with a vengeance, but whiteknight faggots were all like "nuh, muh yandere waifu"

Implying Skeith isn't the yandere waifu.

>>30886201

It was time to kill her when we had the chance in the city.

At least we beat her that time (and with a sub-optimal combat loadout no less), instead of rolling double 1s and falling flat on our faces.

>>30886201

I'm not sure it's exactly that easy.

Also, that might provoke Calizan himself to come here and that wouldn't be good at all.

>>30886565

That brings up a question, how mobile are spirits when they aren't bound in place like Skeith was?

>>30886725

(( Skeith is a sort of land-bound Spirit; he draws power from poisoning the land around him and making a little nest of it.

There's a lot of Spirits that are attuned to a particular location or type of location, and who draw power from the land. Those that aren't bound in this way, or are particularly powerful or just have the urge to wander are usually free to travel about as they please.

That said, the density of Spirits that Erick has encountered in the area he's in is a bit unusual. ))