>>44627471
Cluck.

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>>44627471
You are currently in a high place of the cavern, cradled in the arms of Diving Shadow; your brothers ride her shoulders patiently, their claws gripping her flesh.

You can see the Baron's men marching. The contingent is fairly large - roughly fifty, with perhaps a dozen Overseers - and followed by a mass of skeletons being herded by a thin, reedy man in a broad hat.

<That's the necromancer> Brianna says in your mind. <Remember, you can't hurt him. Don't even try. I need access to him long enough to disrupt whatever he's doing to the death.>

"The floppy hat is our target," you tell Diving Shadow. "He's just as invulnerable as you were. Don't hurt him."

"No promises," the harpy says in a low voice. "But I'll try. I'm going to drop you at those bodyguards of his. Can you occupy them?"

"Of course," you promise. "Just wait for the signal."

The Miners themselves hide in the buildings of the Company Store, letting the living soldiers pass them by. They're marked for mercy.

The skeletons, on the other hand...

The necromancer raises a hand and speaks, or at least you presume he does. The witchflames flicker, and then gutter out. The Store is no longer protected.

"Fuck," Diving Shadow curses. "Hold on, we're diving /now/."

The harpy /leaps/ and tucks her wings for greater acceleration. You cluck an order and your two brothers leap from her shoulders, firing quills at the zombies that flank the necromancer.

You're after the hulking ogre skeleton just behind him.

> Hit it and hop away
> Hit it and cling
> Hit it and bounce to the necromancer

>>44627646
>Hit it and bounce to the necromancer
Distractions! Might make an opening for the Shadow to either bind him or snatch the badge.

>>44627646
> Hit it and cling

>>44627646
>> Hit it and cling

Keep it off Shadow's back so that she can get the necromancer.

>>44627646
>Hit it and cling, while screeching at the necromancer.
>"I am Sir Fetch the Nightfeather, Defender of Chicks and Slayer of Hellspawn. Your oafish bones shall not save you or your wicked master from the righteous punishment you so justly deserve. HAVE AT THEE!!"

Distracto-Raptor Engaged. Initiate Murderbird Formation. Priority target; that asshole in the fucking hat.

>>44627846

> that asshole in the fucking hat.

...I'm not sure that word is allowed on this page.

No; for as long as we are Sir Fetch, the Nightfeather, it must only be "clucking."

>>44627846
>Hit it and cling, while screeching at the necromancer.
>"I am Sir Fetch the Nightfeather, Defender of Chicks and Slayer of Hellspawn. Your oafish bones shall not save you or your wicked master from the righteous punishment you so justly deserve. HAVE AT THEE!!"

Called, writing.

This would be the previously-mentioned extended votes and/or writing times for professional stuff, by the by.

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>>44627646
Diving Shadow looses you, and you go flying through the air with talons outstretched, in deathly silence.

Behind you, you hear the signal to attack go off, probably prompted by the change in the battlefield. Good, good.

You hit the ogre skeleton's collarbone, hard, and grip it with your talons. The minion looks down at you, and you spread your wings wide.

"I am Sir Fetch the Nightfeather!" you call out, at the top of your completely non-functional lungs. "Prepare to meet true death!"

You fire your quills into the ogre's eye sockets, making its head snap back and obstructing its vision. Behind you, Diving Shadow hits the necromancer at top speed, wings flurrying to strike him and arms going for his wrists.

"KILL!" the necromancer snarls.

You hop up, away from the ogre's grasping hand, and cling to its back. Your beak comes down in rapid strikes against its skull, and you realize swiftly that while you've been upgraded, it has not been - you can kill it, if you're quick, and clever, and brave.

Oh joyous battle!

> Focus on the ogre
> Aid Diving Shadow

and

> Leave your brothers to their own foes
> Call them to your side

>>44629436
> Aid Diving Shadow

> Call them to your side


The point of this exercise is to get the necromancer, everything else is secondary

> Focus on the ogre

> Call them to your side

>>44629436
> Focus on the ogre
Frankly, I am not sure how we'd help capture the necromancer. It's not like we can restrain him. Keeping minions off of Diving Shadow is the best we can do to help her.

> Leave your brothers to their own foes
Sir Fetch the Nightfeather needs no aid defeating a mere undead ogre.

>>44629436
>> Focus on the ogre
Our means of helping Shadow against the necromancer are mostly things that wouldn't affect him until he's released the spell twisting death in this area.

> Leave your brothers to their own foes
Yeah, we got this. Don't let the other enemies get a chance to regroup and distract Shadow.

>>44629436
>Oh joyous battle!
Am I detecting a bit of Blood Knight in fair Sir Fetch? He is indeed an undead raptor, out for blood!

>Focus on the ogre.
We should collect the ogre's teeth later and make a necklace for Sir Fetch.
>Leave your brothers to their own foes.
Hopefully they're competent enough to handle themselves without direction.

>>44629436
>> Focus on the ogre
We are Sir Fetch. Such a battle as this shall be enjoyed.
>> Leave your brothers to their own foes
Our fellows have the glorious task of support. We shall not dishonor them.

>>44629436
>Focus on the ogre
>Leave your brothers to their own foes
The goal here is to cause chaos and keep them disorganized while Shadow extracts the necromancer.
Also it'd be more Fetch's brothers needing his support than the other way around.

>>44629997
I've been telling my friend that Fetch is a glorious death knight, because he is.

>>44629436
>> Focus on the ogre
> Call them to your side
SWARM

>>44629436
>> Focus on the ogre
>> Leave your brothers to their own foes
take out the creatures that resist the tried and true screech.

Question, the screech doesn't affect them, but does it disorient everyone hit by it?

>>44630630
The undead are, well, dead, and cannot be hypnotized nor have eardrums to burst. So, the ogre skeleton and the zombie raptors would be unaffected. While the necromancer...

It should be worth noting that, depending on where we are, the screech could also effect the Miners.

>>44630732
I meant the necromancer and the Baron's forces. THe screech can't stun them, but does it disorient them for a half second while not leaving permanent damage to the slaves?

>>44630808
Maybe. That's a question for Vox really.

I'm actually wondering if the screeches and songs of harpies can become stronger if multiplied..say a duet, mother and daughter?

Called, tallying, writing.

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Okay. I know what'll kill this writer's block.

I'll be back momentarily, I'm going to secure booze and energy drinks.

>>44631398
Coffee+Painkillers+Booze+Energy Drinks= either SOMETHING happening, or a dead Vox.

>>44631448
>Our glorious lich author
>dying
That would certainly be something happening.

>>44631448
Somehow, if Vox died, I think we'd just get a post saying "sorry for the delay guys, I had some death stuff to sort out," before resuming regular updates.

>>44631398
Jesus Christ Almighty, that's a fucking creepy picture. My woody's afraid of that Woody!

Also Vox, /please/ don't kill yourself. Then what would we do with all of our spare time?

>>44631594
worship his phylactery

>>44631398
>>44631448
but uh, seriously, that sounds so, so bad

>>44631692
B-but that s-sounds super lewd!

>>44631692
>worship his phylactery
Any bets on what it would actually be?

>>44632168
His coffee mug.

>>44632184
More likely the coffee MAKER. That way, whenever he reforms, he has the ability to brew right there

>>44632184
>>44632209
Nay gentleman! He is not the mug nor the maker! /He becomes the coffee itself!/ And thus the circle is made complete, when Vox consumes himself in mad addiction!

>>44632339
So he transitioned from QM to Lich to Ouroberos. Nice

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>>44629436
Your brothers are serving a vital support role and must not be disturbed.

You will face this foe alone.

"You did your work poorly, necromancer!" you call out, mockingly. Your beak hits the ogre's skull twice, thrice, making the bone crack in spiderwebs, before you're forced to let go and drop to the ground to avoid its grasping hands.

"I will not be criticized by some half-trained apprentice's familiar," the necromancer snarls as he grapples with Diving Shadow. On instinct, the harpy's talons rip down his stomach; the wounds seal as fast as she makes them, and you distantly hear the shriek of a dying slave.

|Diving Shadow, you must not!| you chirp, fluttering away from a heavy blow from the ogre's foot.

|I can do my job| the harpy woman screeches back, rolling over to bash the knife out of the necromancer's hand.

But you have your own foe to attend to. You leap at the ogre's knee and rip your beak into its leg, pecking as fast as you dare. You hear bones creak and give one last peck before dropping away and dashing between its legs.

"Your brute is slow, necromancer!" you taunt.

"Gods, did your master fucking enhance you?" the villain curses, throwing a left cross into Diving Shadow's face. "What a waste."

You leap and catch the back of the ogre's ribs, out of reach of both its hands and its legs, and start drilling into its spine with your beak. The skeleton flails, clattering with hollow sounds.

"JUST DROP ON THE FUCKING CHICKEN!" the necromancer screams. His offended distraction lets Diving Shadow plant her talons into the ground - and throw him, weightlessly, into the distance.

<Now I've got you> your master mutters triumphantly, not quite aware that she's talking.

The ogre falls backwards onto you, and you hold on like grim death, cracking at its vulnerable spine.

It has to die to death eventually.

I'm a bit confused that Diving Shadow didn't just hypnotize him. That's what she was doing to miners and things, right?

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>>44632495
You are Brianna la Croix, and your birthday came early this year, because you've got a fucking present heading your way.

Kat rises up to catch the necromancer as he falls and slams him against the roof upon which you are standing. He opens his mouth to spit an incantation, only to get a sweaty ball of your socks jammed into it. You can hear him gagging on the taste.

"Hello," you greet, leaning on your cane. "I'm probably going to kill you a lot, but there's some things to do first."

> Examine the death-transfer
> Dispel his skeletons

>>44632579
Harpy hypnosis probably doesn't work well in the middle of the person trying to kill you.

>>44632646
> Dispel his skeletons
First thing's first. From the sound of it, there are a lot more skeletons than there are invulnerable overseers.

>>44632579
>>44632669
That and she didn't want to risk him having a contingency that would make the skeletons dogpile her.

>>44632646
>> Examine the death-transfer
we know skeletons, we DON'T know this
this is the Baron's big trump card

>>44632646

>Examine the death transfer

>>44632646
>Examine the death-transfer
If we only handle one thing, it's the death-transfer. Anyone can take care of skeletons. We're probably the only one that can take care of the death-transfer.

>>44632646
>Dispell his skeletons
It could take a while to analyze AND dispell the death transfer, during which we don't want to be distracted by his minions.
That would make it take -longer-.

>>44632646
> Examine the death-transfer

The skeletons can at least be smashed up and beaten. We crack the invulnerability, and the morale of the Baron's soldiers is /destroyed/. This is on top of the fact that the first couple of hits they tank thinking themselves still immortal will probably kill them.

We can dispel the skeletons second, but fucking up the Baron's so-called invincibility is top priority.

>>44632646
>Examine the death transfer

Would be AWESOME if we reversed it

>>44632895

That's how you get zombie armies

>>44632646
>> Examine the death-transfer
Related to this, probably not exploitable, but: is necromancy powered by _giving up life_ or by _taking on death_? If it's the latter, I'm assuming it wouldn't be practical to use a death transfer as a way to power necromancy by pushing death on to other people?

>>44632646
>Examine the death-transfer

>>44633062
If I strike a match, did I light a flame or cast a shadow?

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>>44633192
I don't know, but I have hot cocoa

>>44632646
>Examine the death-transfer.
Remember the plan people. When the talismans fail, the Baron's forces will break and we can mop up what's left.

I do hope he's got the chain. I mean, I /really/ hope he doesn't try to summon Lora, but this is exactly the kind of opening some opportunistic rat would use to take it from under our noses.

>>44632895
>>44633062
And as for Brianna using the Death-Transfer, she'd probably use it as counter hex (like if a warlock tried to use a paralysis spell, she'd use a certain object, like one of Fetch's feathers, to blow it back in his face). Otherwise, no go.

>>44633192
Both, Lord Voxwagon.

Excellent. I have now had ten shots in less than 20 minutes.

Now to wait for the sobriety to flee my soul.

>>44633398
HORY SHEET VOX! YOU BLOODY MADMAN!

Y'know, I can't remember what particular branch of necromancy Brianna studied with the Caretaker. I know it was Rot or Darkness, but I can't remember which.

Also, once we school this fool in what a real mothercluckin' necromancer can do, and shove these stupid talismans up the Baron's arse, can we finish upgrading the Zombie Chickens? We can totally turn them into undead Musketeers. Would that make him d'Artagnan?

>>44633479
Darkness, that's why we had the option to blind the soldiers instead of summoning her aunt.

>>44633479
Sadly we can't make them undead musketeers, only Fetch.
The others can't reach the same level without being turned into a familiar, and Bri can only have one familiar.

>>44633561
That's okay. I've suddenly realized something.
d'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis.
Fetch, Nathan, Amy, and Brianna.

The intrepid heroes ARE the Musketeers.

>>44633062

>>44633192

THIS WAY LEADS ZOMBIE ARMIES

>>44633835
Asking questions leads to knowledge.
It's how you use it that matters.

>>44633835
I never realized matches were so nefarious.

>>44633914
Why do you think Frankenstein's monster hates fire?

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AHAHAHA, IT ALL HIT ME AT THE SAME TIME.

VOTES CALLED, FUCKING WRITING.

Also, choose one!

> "Being weak, small of stature, and relatively lacking in magical power, imps are naturally some of the most dangerous amongst the Secondborn." - Demons: a Spotter's Guide
> "The song-magic practiced by wild harpies is among the most potent of mind-affecting sorceries, thereby making it the subject of numerous lurid romances and erotic woodcuts." - Just a Whisper, by Mary Nells
> "If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains

> "Being weak, small of stature, and relatively lacking in magical power, imps are naturally some of the most dangerous amongst the Secondborn." - Demons: a Spotter's Guide

>>44633994
> "If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains

Also Vox, thank you for linking Kongos as battle music some time early in the quest. Good band.

>>44633994

> "Being weak, small of stature, and relatively lacking in magical power, imps are naturally some of the most dangerous amongst the Secondborn." - Demons: a Spotter's Guide

I'm interested in the harpy one, but morso in finding out if this is sarcasm, stupidity, or actually correct.

>>44633994
> "If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains

>>44633994
>> "If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains

>>44633994
>"The song-magic practiced by wild harpies is among the most potent of mind-affecting sorceries, thereby making it the subject of numerous lurid romances and erotic woodcuts." - Just a Whisper, by Mary Nells
Would (heh) you a wooden dildo?

>>44633994
> "Being weak, small of stature, and relatively lacking in magical power, imps are naturally some of the most dangerous amongst the Secondborn." - Demons: a Spotter's Guide
Let us continue learning of our younger siblings.

>>44633994
Um, I am both excited and concerned.
>"If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains
Just because we haven't seen or heard anything regarding the standard Dungeon mooks.

>>44634074
That Imp that gave Amy her demon arms and armor had something of a mobster vibe to him. Dangerous indeed.

>>44633192
nigga is this some of that philosophy shit?

>>44634600

If a question is posed and concordance is reached, was there a gain of enlightenment?

>>44633994
> "If goblins seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models that teach them these traits." - Injustice in the Mountains

I wonder if this is perhaps a historical inference, that the most 'successful' goblins have been terrible beings, or if it's indicative of the fact that they picked up their worst traits from people who'd as soon wipe them out as look at them.

>>44633994
> "If the song-magic practiced by wild harpies seem vicious, savage, and murderous, it is because they have successful role models amongst the Secondborn."Injust Whisper, by DeMary Nells

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>>44632646
The necromancer yells around your sock gag, and you cup a hand to your ear in deliberate mockery.

"I can't quite understand," you tell him, with exaggerated sympathy. "I don't speak murderous asshole."

He yells around the gag, and you kneel to put a palm over his heart. "What did you do," you muse, closing your eyes. "This is going to be difficult. Interesting, wrong, and difficult..."

At first you're not sure what you're looking at. The spells binding the necromancer to his skeletons are easy enough to parse, but the one that weaves the death transfer is literally reliant on principles that are impossible under normal circumstances, and it requires careful examination.

"You've been planning this for awhile," you muse. "You must be someone close to the Baron. I wonder how angry he'll be when you're dead."

Muffled objections go through the gag.

"No, you'll definitely be dead," you tell him. "You've perverted the arts of necromancy. You've defiled everything I hold sacred. You passed the point of mercy when you turned death into chains that made slaves of free men and cruel soldiers of the innocent. You hear the sounds of the battle you've brought here? Each and every one of them is your fucking sentence, waiting to condemn you."

There it is. The spell. It's...gods, it's strong. They must have forced Lora to reinforce it.

It's gonna hurt to break the hard way.

> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

And

> Order Kat to keep the necromancer restrained
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
>> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

"It's okay to be selfish." - Brianna La Croix

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873

> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.

>>nogooddeed.jpg

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
Self-destructive, et cetera, et cetera. It's Bri. Come on, people.

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken
Strategically, he's too much of a risk to let live. Morally, it's not even a question.

>>44634949
>> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken
Seconded.

>>44634873
> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
Life is a currency, and we're a generous soul. Spend it to save the others below.
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken
The dead can sort him out - we don't have time for his shit, I'm afraid.

>>44634873
>> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
Lora better be ready with that refund, although we may still be running at a net profit depending on how much Bri spent BEFORE coming to the Dungeon. If not.....no good deed
>> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

We really, really can't afford to just fall unconscious next to an angry necromancer.

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

I'd love to keep him alive to interrogate, but the thing about interrogating casters is that they can use their voice to cast, so... yeah. We're probably also about to back the Baron into a corner, so let's hope that he dies in battle really quick.

I understand the "I'll spend my life as literally as I please", but is this the best place to be passing out?
In the middle of a small war?

>>44634873
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
>> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
passing out would be bad.
>> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

I can't help but feel more of our friends are gonna be hurt because Anon is worried about passing out. But such are votes, that mine is not the only opinion counted.

>>44635079
To me it's less about the passing out and more about wanting Bri to realize self-destruction ain't the way to play it, baby!

>>44633994
> "Being weak, small of stature, and relatively lacking in magical power, imps are naturally some of the most dangerous amongst the Secondborn." - Demons: a Spotter's Guide

>>44635079
Could also go the other way - if we're not awake to help our friends deal with something unexpected, they could be hurt.

I trust them to murder everything quickly enough if we end the spell, though.

>>44634873
>Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
>Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

We have a fight still going on, and Fetch can't kill them all by himself. Also too risky to let this one live.

>>44635079
>>44635120
If Bri passes out, not only is she at risk, but she also can't protect her friends.

>>44635155
>she also can't protect her friends.
....how? She has the cane sword, and that's about it. Fetch won't pass out. How else would she protect them?

>>44635155
>Amy is a strong, independent harpy who don't need no woman!

The fact that they can't kill the overseers and are fighting a bunch of skeletons is the main reason they'd get hurt, I feel. If we want to protect them, kill the spell so they can start defending themselves. We're out of the fight, but if we kill the necromancer they *should* be able to wrap up.

>>44635182
Also, this. I kinda forgot Bri was apparently pretty weak after summoning Aunt Carol earlier. Fetch mentioned how she was leaning on her cane sword to stay moving.

Night, everyone. For shits and giggles, try calling Lora a cute at some point. Her reaction should be entertaining to take in.

>>44635285
"Lora you're cute!"

"I've just been gang-raped by a dozen armed men."

"Uhhhh, y-y-you're stil c-c-cute! H-heh?"

>>44635222
not who you're replying to but, I'm just worried /something else/ might popup that we weren't expecting. If Bri is passed out she wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Even just telling others to *insert action here* would help out.

But I do see your point about doing it fast so others can take action. That is entirely valid.

>>44634873
>Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
Something tells me we'll lose many more years off other lives
Also can we use this assholes lifeforce to power part of this?

>>44634873
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

>>44635621
Woopsie.
>>44634873
> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873

>>44635045
alright. scratch my vote, I'm swapping.
> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.

> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken

>>44634873
> Force it. You need this broken now, even if it means a few years off your life.
as long as we don't pass out immediately, we should be fine
> > Order Kat to keep the necromancer restrained
we need a couple of silver nails, a spare knife, and a box of mirrors before we do anything else to this guy.

>>44635742
just delete your old vote and re-vote, no need to link

>>44635787
'Error: You cannot delete a post this old.'
Besides, I link as a backup/doublecheck.

>>44634873
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

brute forcing something reinforced by a bound angel sounds like a great way to fuck up.

> Order Kat to keep the necromancer restrained
we should probably kill him under controlled circumstances to make sure he dies all the way.

>>44635766
... Damn it, this is a legit point. We need to run his corpse up to the lichyard and make sure he gets buried.

>>44635010

This is my old vote.

New vote is:
> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.
> Order Kat to keep the necromancer restrained

This isn't to say we can't break his legs or anything, or possibly his fingers. But we need him restrained and properly contained until we can ensure he dies without leaving a dangerous ghost obsessed with revenge running around.

We need to make sure he gets a proper send-off to next world.

>>44634873
>> Unweave it gently. You can't afford to pass out next to this necromancer.

>> Order Kat to kill him the moment the spell is broken
only if we can be sure he stays dead (and gone), else restrain him

>>44635853
>>44635766
I'm hesitant about that. If we skewer his limbs, he could contract with the Dead. Kat is not trained in dislocating limbs. I'm not ready to put faith in just rope.

>>44635766
>>44635853
Yeah, changing >>44635022 to
>restrain

Yo Vox, just finished a week long archive binge, all I can say is

Good fuck your amazing. Your a fucking spartan and I'm glad I've caught up so I can participate. I've never been on a binge like I have this week and all I cant believe the whole tooth bit.

God speed caffeine man. I will be voting later tonight.

>>44635944
sorry, not Dead, Spectres like Aunt Carol.

>>44636000
Just an anon but I wanted to echo this sentiment. I actually didn't read this quest for a while because you were running so often. I figured this would go either very slowly or often and poor quality. Pleasant surprise all around basically.

Also for a quest that I found kind of similar; http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Uraemrys in which we played a creator deity of death and secrets who wanted to teach mortals to question reality so they could to learn from them in turn.

>>44636000
My god a new reader! Hi! WELCOME TO THE QUEST, MY FRIENDE! I'm glad to have you here and hope you have fun reading and participating; any feedback or criticisms you may have is, of course, wholly welcome.

Votes called, tallying, writing. Lots of changes this time, will make the tallying a bit of a bitch.

I may tuck into bed early tonight b/c surgery and all tomorrow, dunno. I'll let folks know when I'm winding down, though.

What's anon's feeling on this chapter thus far? There was that spike of bad shit happening but...I dunno, it felt like the right time for each of the individual pieces? I dunno. Still playing this by ear, would like your perspective.

>>44636132
Yeah at first I thought that this would be a slow quest I would have to check weekly for or somthing but when I saw how much he puts out in a short time I was stunned.

>>44636132
And an eager welcome to you as well! I will attempt to read that quest when I am not drunk or high, if I remember. You may need to remind me later.

>>44636142
I FEEL SO WELCOME OMG TY

>>44636142
I like it a lot, good contrast between the other chapters. The Baron isn't as central to the story, but more personal stuff is being dealt with instead, which is a good thing I think.

So far you're doing a pretty good job of making each floor and chapter feel unique.

>>44636142
I think it's really great how LITTLE we know about the Baron, that by the end of it he might be killed by some miner and we'd never know what his deal was.

>>44636237
...Legitimately unsure if sarcasm or compliment.

>>44636274
compliment. Fighting isn't always about learning everything there is to know about the opponent. sometimes, they don't deserve it, and more often, we can't afford to give them that much. Same with the necromancer.

>>44636274
Compliment. Sometimes it's nice having a villain you know nothing about.
Like in Fifth Element, that the protagonist and antagonist don't even know of each other.

>>44636142
I want to say that I'm loving the ambiance you've created for the quest. The feeling of how ancient the dungeon is and how that would make it look is great. The Lich was a great indicator of this, so old but not so old as to be beyond comprehension but then you think about Lora...

The fact that you're using the bad shit not because you can but because it fits is awesome. There's a real sense of peaks and valleys in this quest that a lot of QMs struggle to get right. Bad shit happens but not to the extent that you feel there's no light over the horizon. People die and things go wrong but it doesn't feel like the universe is going out of its way to shit on us y'know? I think a good example would be Nathan losing his leg. I mean yeah we freaked out but at the end of the day Nathan himself is happy with his choice, he's not going to let it define him and will move on.

>>44636335
Oh and the opposite is true as well. The things our main characters have been through has left them permanently marked not just physically but emotionally as well. There's healing of wounds but still scars will remain kind of deal. Lora again is a good example, she wants vengeance so very badly but hates the idea of being just like her tormentors. I think when we find out more about her that'll explain more as well in that you get a sense of overwhelming hate and rage but also not wanting to be whatever she monster she imagines herself to be.

So yeah, lots of things in this quest that I absolutely love, so lets give examples of flaws so you don't think I'm just trying to make you feel good about your self and not give a genuine attempt at critique.

Your babel arc was your weakest so far. The start with the Poet just appearing i town and holding all of that power over Bri was great but then you didn't keep a hold of that momentum. I think letting us go to the surface either before that or not at all would have been a better idea. It just seemed you had too many interesting elements and not enough time to do them all justice. An example would be finding the phylactery already full, nice twist and I liked how it was handled but it took away from the narrative of the Poet. Also the need to go to a different town to find the book was a good touch logically but it felt mostly like padding, no reason we couldn't have hunted for the book in the dungeon y'know? It just felt like side quest damage as opposed to a necessary part of the story.

Loved having a sympathetic enemy and the poker game was great. The Ancient lich? Fantastic. So yeah after reading for the past few days through all the threads that's what really stands out to me as mistakes.

The whole redemption through giant croc with warnings that even this gesture will eventually go badly? Love it, it gives the weight. Doesn't make the act pointless simply goes to show things have a price.

CALLING THE WORLDBUILDING VOTE.

WINNER: GOBLINS

WILL WRITE LATER WHEN LESS TIRED AND DRUNK.

Writing update now. Will be final update of night.

>>44636299
>>44636307
Thank you for clarifying this.

>>44636335
>>44636521
I appreciate the feedback anon. Good note on the sidequest thing; I'd done it initially for the callback to Kurt's Crossing, which had been previously mentioned by Brooks. I felt the need to walk my talk but it was perhaps not as necessary as I thought it was.

Writing for real now I promise. Will archive thread when done, possibly post an update pre-dentist but no promises.

>>44636708
Do one post-dentist and make sure that they don't skimp on the painkillers

>>44636708
>>44636811
If you're really feel out of it just give us more of that sweet, sweet world building lore.

>>44636855
I second this, pls do

Y'know, I keep hearing about this new webcomic Vox's working in (with?) but I haven't seen a link to it. So, link, por favor?

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>>44634873
You listen to the sounds of battle below and sigh.

You can do this fast, or you can do this right, and you're pretty sure doing it fast is going to cost more in the end than doing it right. You put a cigarette between your lips and light it, to have something besides the sounds of battle and dying men to focus on.

The Miners won't know or understand that you've condemned some of them to death, but /you/ will.

"I wish I could say this will hurt," you mutter, "but you probably won't feel a thing until right at the end. Kat, kill him when I'm done."

Unweaving the spell is a lot like untying a braided knot made of white-hot steel. You can feel the bite against your life force as you work with it, 'touching' gingerly so as to avoid both the more severe injuries and snapping the spell. If unwoven improperly, it could hurt both sides - the Overseers /and/ the Miners they're connected to. Unwoven with patience, as you are now, it will hurt no one but you.

<I am victorious> Fetch croaks. <My lady, I need repairs.>

<Be safe, Fetch> you tell him. <None can say you fought without valor this day. Quit the field with your head held high and return to my mates.>

<As you command, O my queen.>

The necromancer is trying to plead through his gag, but his cowardly moans and struggles fall on deaf ears.

He has desecrated death. He knew his fate.

"You lost," you murmur. "Go out with some dignity, man. You knew this was coming. It was going to be a rival, or a Hero, or a slave, but someone was going to do in for you. Entropy always wins."

You look at his wide, fearful eyes, staring at yours in desperate need for reassurance. You sigh deeply and place his hat back on his head.

"No one should meet the gods without their hat," you murmur, your anger dying before it could really live. "I can't let you have any last words. You know why, yeah?"

The necromancer nods, pitifully.

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>>44637079
You're teasing apart the last few threads of his spell now, letting it come undone and fade back into the background of death.

You can feel Kat tensing, overflowing with her lust for blood.

You suck a drag from your cigarette and kneel next to the necromancer, putting your palm on his forehead. You haven't attended to someone's true death in a long time, not in circumstances that permitted you to pray for them.

You still remember the words, though.

"Gods of Creation, judge this, your child, with compassion," you murmur. "Know that he too is a victim of life, condemned both to live and to die, and guide him to understand both his mistakes and his triumphs as he could not in life. Give him the peace of death and the forever rest beyond the Veil, and welcome him into the sunless lands. All who live pay their debt of sorrow; let this life's be paid in full, and cleared forever more."

Grateful tears well up in the necromancer's eyes.

The spell snaps apart, its final thread coming undone, and Kat tears out his throat and crushes his skull into a pulpy mass.

"Fucking gods," you snap shakily, forcing back a small sob. "Have some manners, you fucking shadow."

> Join the battle
> Slip to the barn
> Rest here for a bit; you've done enough

>>44637165
>> Slip to the barn
protect the waifus

>>44637165
>> Join the battle

>>44637165
> Slip to the barn
We've done what we can for the miners. Now we should protect our own, and see to any wounded we can help (whether with healing or just with peace).

>>44637165
>> Join the battle
But not full-scale, just look if we can help a bit.

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>>44637077
I'm writing, the esteemed Domochevsky is drawing. We just scripted the third update (they've been kinda long here at the start 'cause we're kinda...well, dealing with Events) and it'll probably go up while I'm still out of comission from the drugs.

You can find the first of the two current updates here http://wildwestscifi.net/gallows-humor/13683-gallows-humor-prologue

Voting is currently closed but will be open with the next update. There are lewds available in the 'behind the building' link on the right-hand side of the page; the most recent is DLQ fan lewds.

I'm leaving the vote open until...well, until I close it, really. If I'm not feeling able to write I'll do you the courtesy of stopping by to say so, though; I don't want to leave you guys hanging. That'd be rude.

As always, questions, comments, discussion, theories, feedback, and criticisms are both welcome and appreciated. They help me improve, even when I'm drunk.

Thank you all for reading and participating!

>>44636855
>>44636973
I will consider doing this. Must say I'm kinda surprised at how much folks have liked the worldbuilding.

>>44637165
> Slip to the barn

>>44637165
>> Rest here for a bit; you've done enough
Fetch can inform everyone

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And thread archived. Passing out for real now.

G'night, DLQ readers.

>>44637165
>Slip to the barn
We did what we had to, time to go back with the other cripples

>>44637304
A lot if people on /tg/ find that good world building makes them moist.

>>44637165
>> Slip to the barn

>>44637165
>Slip to the barn
I would imagine we earned a wee break

>>44637304

>surprised at people liking the worldbuilding

Given the shit we've had to put up with, you're an oasis in the fucking desert.

>>44637165
>Slip to the Barn.
If the Baron is any kind of competent, he'll attempt to flee to his compound. We need to know where that damn chain is and how to get it before he can.

Also, Sir Fetch deserves a few medals and commendations of valor and bravery.

>>44637079
> Rest here for a bit; you've done enough

>>44637304
> slip to the barn

We gotta hank the baron, otherwise this was all pointless.

>>44638633
I'm a little sad I wasn't able to join earlier and convince people to turn our retard chicken into a Mongolia of massive disruptive power. Full points to strength and speed. Just straight up glass cannon in and out of the fray under the covering fire of the other chickens while Sir Fetch got crits/attacks of opportunity.

>>44638979
An entire Mongolia?!? You must be mad!
But then again, I'm imagining a Jesus Burgess from One Piece as an undead luchachicken. Fun times.

>>44638979
Its true that we currently dont have much "heavy" power, since Verve was a balance of finesse and power and now nathans missing a leg.

That said, i dont think a chicken is where to start with that kind of power. In the same way we could get a witchlight bat, maybe we can have one more animal. Ill think of a suggestion when im not on my phone

Although Kells technically fills the role the best right now.

>Join the fight

>>44638633
I'm not up-up (I'm going right back to sleep) but I need to note here: the Baron's /forces/ are here. The Baron himself never was and I never said he was.

Back to sleep with me.

>>44639501
At some point we need to find some dungeon denizens with a pest control problem and kill two birds with one stone. (or kill one bird, then kill a bunch of other birds with that bird)

>>44640858
Boy, He is going to be SO PISSED when this news reaches him. I love it.

>>44641773
It would anticlimatic af, but I'd find it hillarious if Baron was caught by surprise by the whole enchantment dissapearing, and had drunk himself to death.

>>44641773

It would be particularly appropriate if he had developed a habit of doing something that would be self-destructive, like having someone stab him, just because he *could* (and because of the pain it would inflict on others), and then the necromancer's work goes *poof*, and he tries it again...

>>44641825
>>44641842
So we could possible find him drunk off his ass and bleeding out? Nice.

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Alright folks, I don't have time to update before the fun drugs pre-surgery. I will /attempt/ the worldbuilding update in the time I have between now and surgery but no promises.

If the thread stays open, I'll be back to tell you if I'm feeling up to updating (and/or if I want to attempt to sleep it the fuck off and then update).

As always, discussion, questions, and critique remain welcome.

Now to attempt to write about goblins.

>>44641976
>don't have time to update before the fun drugs pre-surgery
Which means... you'll update during when the fun drugs kick in.
DisGonBGud.gif

>>44641976
>>44642131
>typing during surgery
>are you sure this is fine, doctor?
>it's alright, the anaesthetics have kicked in, he won't make typos due to pain

>>44642215
I always find that anesthetics don't fully numb the pain. They dull it to a minor annoyance at worst, but you will notice your nerves being pulled out.

>>44642253
I've had them for wisdom tooth operations. The pain from the nerves disappears, but that doesn't really eliminate certain physical effects, ie. the tooth vibrating from the drill reverberating through the jaw. Not painful as such, more like an uncomfortable feeling, but you have to make sure you don't think about how much you SHOULD be screaming at this point.

Assuming a screen that you can still look at from that angle, I think typing is actually possible. But it was really just a joke.

>>44642253
That was my experience when I got my wisdom teeth out. The anesthetics were mostly effective, but I could definitely still feel them poking around in there and it did still hurt whenever they pulled on something, if only a little.

>>44642253

That's because of two things; the nerves nearby the anesthized ones that get hit by the surgery as well (or just are being pulled on because they're connected to the ones in the surgery area) and the cognitive awareness that something is WRONGWRONGWRONG in that area despite not knowing what that is (the abscense of which is what makes shock so goddamn dangerous).

That feel when the consent form says I'm not to sign documents for 24 hours after the procedure.

I get the feeling that this IV is gonna be extra fun.

>>44642838
But it doesn't say anything about QMing, so...

>>44642838
Enjoy it

>>44642838
The no documents clause is because anesthetic drugs (dose-dependendly) affect your ability to think, thus they might impair your judgment. Any contract you sign while out of your mind is void. And because it is impossible (for the other party) to prove that you were totally fine at the time of signing, even after one tiny pill that you don't even feel at that moment, the 24 hour rule was added.
Because it's fucked if you sell a house to somebody and three years later they come back and say "I want my money back because I was not in control of myself because I had 1 mg of valium (or similarly, 1 sip of beer) 23 hours earlier."

Source: Being a doctor, you're always only one step away from prison. You save a person's life and they still sue you because they lost an eyebrow in the process.

Okay. I'm up. Head's fuzzy but I think I might be okay. Gotta get my prescription drugs and some liquids. Will try to finish goblins when home.

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

>>44643853
It's all good Vox. You take care of you.

Also, all of this talk of surgery and anesthesia is making me wonder; could Brianna create an undead prosthetic for Nathan? Y'know, take a fresh leg, strip it down, coat it in steel, animate it and bam! New limb.

>>44644495
I imagine we'd have to come up with some way to tie it directly to his subconscious/spinal column. Otherwise it probably wouldn't be any better than a peg leg.

>>44644669
Magic. Skeletons do it.

>>44644707
Kind of? Skeletons follow orders, but try playing QWOP sometime if you think giving the leg orders is a good plan. Now, they also manage to coordinate themselves and walk and such, but that's generally because the whole skeleton has one will. I'm not convinced that we, as a necromancer, can animate something as part of a living person's will. If we can, great, but that doesn't at all seem like a given to me.

Remember the pevious discussion re: undead prosthetics; they generally tend to kill the host.

I'm gonna try to sleep this off, folks. I'll be back. 'm sorry for the delays today.

Will provide goblins.

After the sleep.

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One of the Basement towns had a leather worker right?

I do suspect we'll have to somehow get Nate to accept a wraithsteel leg. It IS an extension of his will once forged and named, which would make it a lot easier to use and control. Maybe even feel with it, due to psychic connection shenanigans.

...hell, build a gun into it, for bonus points. Let him kick things with a BOOM. ;P

The difficult part would be in letting him accept it in Amy's stead. I suspect he'll feel that if he uses it for himself then he will have nothing gained in the process. And of course Amy has to agree as well for this to be considered. She's pretty well set with her ability to jump entire buildings, but Nate without a leg is a lot more hampered.

We'd basically have to get the Hero to accept that he did good here for Amy, while also helping himself. (possibly even with something he feels is an upgrade. Like a boomleg.)

Bonus: It does kinda depend how MUCH of the wraithsteel is actually given to them. If it's enough for a set of wings then it's definitely enough for an intricately crafted leg, courtesy of one free commission.
Might be possibly to do something for both, shifting the percentages around. Like, get her a set of small folding wings she an glide with, with the strategic skeleton of the material set in the stuff. That might satisfy him.

>>44644843
Probably a stupid question, but what's the current level of clockwork tech? I find the idea of our notHero with a sweet robot leg. Ideally built by an artificer with a few screws loose and a penchant to add gadgets to Nate's leg. Just my 2 cents

>>44645495

That's something I've been wondering myself,

Amy is undoubtedly nowhere near as crippled without her wings as Nate is without his leg. Depending on how much wraithsteel we get, we could concievably get both his leg and her wings done, but if we do have to choose we should favour the former (with Amy's presumable support and Nate's presumable opposition, because all three of us are self-sacrificing morons).

The wings are not necessary for her to do what she does, while the leg IS necessary for Nate do do pretty much everything/anything.

>>44645495
It might all depend on the quantity of the wraithsteel in Nathan's share. I mean, Amy /is/ smaller and lighter than a normal human, and she has stated that she already used her innate magic to help her fly /before/ she lost her old wings. If there's enough to go around, they could both receive new limbs and not be short-changed.

Of course, knowing Vox, we'll have to choose who gets upgraded because of TEH DRAMA and character development. Not that I disapprove.

>>44645964
> The wings are not necessary for her to do what she does, while the leg IS necessary for Nate do do pretty much everything/anything.
Counterpoint: Prosthetic legs are a lot easier to make from mundane materials with medieval tech than prosthetic wings are. Nate with a pegleg (or preferably a well-engineered prosthetic, maybe something in the style of Götz von Berlichingen's hand) would probably be no more disadvantaged than Amy is now, maybe even less so. With that in mind, the choice is much less clear-cut, and frankly, it's Nate's wraithsteel. He lost a leg for the damn stuff. He should probably have final say on what we do with it.

>>44646877
And frankly, a wraithsteel leg helps you walk. Maybe do something cool. I'd be more for it if he had lost both legs because we could give him some sick lower limbs.

Replacing BOTH wings with wraithsteel means Amy will be pulling some sickass maneuvers.

How about having Nate make a WS knee joint for his peg leg with the rest going to Amy for wings?

>>44647276

An ankle joint maybe. The leg is gone below his knee.
That might work if we want to be conservative with the material. Probably also makes it easier to convince him with.

Why havent we given amy a huge fuck off sized greatsword yet?

>>44644843
Isn't Nate undead? "Mr. Wheezy Barely Breathing?"

>>44647887
Because she's already really well trained in other weapons?

>>44646877
We could always get more. We'd just have to cut a deal with the Fae. We would probably have better luck if we presented her with a congratulatory "gift" and heavily hinted that it would be nice if the Hero got some help (enough wraith steel) to replace the leg he lost saving her and her remaining men.>>44646877

>>44647887
Meh, she /can/ make things lighter, but the impact is also significantly reduced. There's also a toll that she takes for every increase in mass she lightens. She could lift a boulder, but it would also tire her out trying to keep it up in the air.

>>44648069
I don't think that it's necessary. Cool, but not necessary. Nate doesn't /need/ a shiny wraithsteel leg when he's already got Verve. And we'll probably loot something awesome for Nate when we kill the Baron.

>>44648618
>not turning off the magic that makes it lighter mid swing for more force

>>44648633

Momentum problem. Shutting the magic off doesn't mean the speed remains constant; the force used to throw it is still the same.

>>44647995
No. In order to purge the cancer in his body, Brianna had to strangle him to death before she brought him back again clean and mostly whole. The damage from her killing him is a lasting side effect, and its why he stayed in the Dungeon with Brianna; he doesn't have the lung capacity to endure a long march on the surface, so he became an adventurer.

>>44648718
And that's somehow easier on the lungs?

>>44648764
No, but he's not forced to march for hours on end now, though he's very stubborn about doing it anyway.

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This one's shorter than the others, but...

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1x_2JVEBG_J-5V9ZM2i0DcjK8xWILnZsbo5naPNT4Y2k/edit?usp=sharing

>>44648807
The fact that he's a Woundseeker and seems to have a natural tolerance to fatigue and pain doesn't help, in that regard. His stubbornness and personal code of honor might cause a few problems in the long run.

>>44649374
I like it. Do they worship the same gods as everyone else (Red Troth, the Lady of Ravens, etc.), the same but by a different name, or do they have their own particular pantheon?

>>44650195
It is unknown if the war-figure they revere is another name for Red Troth or one of his children, servants, or a prophet of some kind; however, the existence of goblin Chosen suggests that it's either Red Troth or one of his kids. Goblins also revere the Lady of Ravens in a sort of fearful way; they see her as a psychopomp and reaper, and practice air burials (where one leaves the body in a high place to be eaten by scavengers and exposure) to appease her.

Actually the major issue of deciding between them is: Where are we going to find TWO high quality wraithsteel forges soon.
We know of one, of course, but we need two for two items to be made at once.
A foot would be easier, faster, and more important than a set of wings, along with it being Nate's metal.

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Alright folks. I am not going to attempt to update in my current state. I am up the fucked and while unable to go to sleep I'm not confident in my ability to focus enough to actually write.

So we get to burst into SONG I mean a Q&A session! There seems to be some questions regarding Nate's state and/or wraithsteel; please feel free to ask me the things you'd like to know. Worst-case scenario is you get an "As previously discussed" or "that sounds like spoilers".

>>44650825
Is Nate in going to be okay? I mean, he did lose a leg. His brain must have been screaming "Oh Fuck Me! Where's Lefty?!"

>>44650825
What is the current state of prosthetics in this world? That is to say, is there a middle ground between pegleg and wraithsteel prosthetic, and if so, how good is it and how rare is it?

>>44649374
>It is my belief that a goblin tribe, uplifted from their status as hunter-gatherers and raiders, would have great potential as a culture of its own
Seems something new and quite interesting may be emerging from the dungeon in a few goblin generations.

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>>44650895
I'm gonna be the first person to say that I don't have a lot of familiarity with the psychology behind limb loss and amputation. That in mind, those shades of Viking you're seeing in Nate are there on purpose; the phantom limb effects aside, Nathan's not too tore up about how he lost the leg or his decision. He'd do it again in a heartbeat.

That in mind, yes, his brain keeps trying to do things with the foot that's not there. Currently included in this is shove it up Amy's ass, for [REASONS].

>>44651008
Prosthetics are reasonably advanced, though even wraithsteel won't return true sensation to the limb (it's a damn sight better than most other options, mind); prosthetic advancement has been encouraged by the fact that even in times of peace, monster attacks and magical accidents can cost people limbs. Getting one made isn't necessarily easy but all the appropriate skill sets are available, and there's a strong chance that Isoldt knows how it's done. You'll need some time with the demoness & Harry, with Meadows or Brooks (or both), and access to the leatherworker if you'd like to cover up the bare metal.

From a practical standpoint, a wraithsteel leg might be seen by Nate as a waste of good wraithsteel. While from the perspective of his personal comfort it's easily the best option, he can fight and move with a less high-quality prosthetic; meanwhile, Amy's wings cannot be made with a less high-quality prosthetic and this is the first opportunity to replace them that's come up in months.

Perhaps more to the point, Nate still thinks of himself as a warrior and doesn't think he's less of one for having to limp slightly while he kills the shit out of people...but he knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Amy thinks she's less than the person she was without her wings, that she stays up at night sometimes mourning them and wakes up sobbing from dreams where she can fly again. The sky was stolen from her.

>>44651172
Bri did say that the minotaurs were wasted on raiding caravans...

>>44637079
>>44637165

>"You lost," you murmur. "Go out with some dignity, man. You knew this was coming. It was going to be a rival, or a Hero, or a slave, but someone was going to do in for you. Entropy always wins."

>"No one should meet the gods without their hat,"

>"Gods of Creation, judge this, your child, with compassion," you murmur. "Know that he too is a victim of life, condemned both to live and to die, and guide him to understand both his mistakes and his triumphs as he could not in life. Give him the peace of death and the forever rest beyond the Veil, and welcome him into the sunless lands. All who live pay their debt of sorrow; let this life's be paid in full, and cleared forever more."

Christ, this was a good scene.

It really hits the sheer reverence and respect that Bri has for death. Sure, at least part of the purpose was probably to prevent his angry ghost from rising up and wreaking havoc, but still.

She's incredibly angry at this guy, but still tries to send him off with some dignity.

> "Fucking gods," you snap shakily, forcing back a small sob. "Have some manners, you fucking shadow."

This line too. Bri respects death, and tries to make it clean. And those tears, it really just hits home that for all of her worldliness, her drinking and bizarre continuous use of really terrible tobacco, her frankly huge responsibilities and the amazing way she's handled them... Is she even twenty one at this point in the story?

>>44650825

Also, yay! Q&A!

By virtue of the fact that there's 13 Chain Holders, one could infer that there's thirteen levels... Except for the fact that the Roost doesn't currently have anybody there. So far it's been:

Basement (Vintner-DEAD)
Lichyard (Moneylender-DEAD)
Atheneum (Poet-NEUTRALIZED)
Mine (Baron-FUCKED)
Roost (No Target, but needs fixing anyway)
New Hell (Traitor)

... And that's it. So, how many floors does the Dungeon have, and what're they called? I mean, asking for details or names would be a bit much, but I'd still like to know if there's any more 'extra floors'.

Also, because paranoia Victoria isn't the Daughter, is she?

>>44652077
The Roost isn't a level of the Dungeon: it's a vertical section that spans, IIRC, about 5 levels.

>>44652147

It's a named portion that we're going to be spending time in trying to make it a better place. So, close enough.

Also, once the Baron's gone, does that mean the Mine's going to be able to reconnect to the Atheneum, or are we going to need to find a new way up?

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>>44652045
> Sure, at least part of the purpose was probably to prevent his angry ghost from rising up and wreaking havoc, but still.

This is part of it, yes, but...a bigger part is a sort of solidarity, an understanding that regardless of his mistakes he has something in common with Brianna.

Necromancers don't die of old age a lot. And while that might be Brianna's personal end goal ("How did you die, la Croix?" "IN A BED, SURROUNDED BY GRIEVING CHILDREN! WOO!"), she doesn't expect it to happen. She figures that one of these days she's gonna get a sword through the gut or get lit on fire or die in some other miserable, painful fashion, and here's this guy, about to go out the same way.

At the end of the day, she understands, and she wanted him to know she understands. And for a man whose life probably contained no understanding whatsoever, it was a hell of a gift.

Brianna is just over 24. She has a birthday coming up.

>>44652077
The primary floors of the Dungeon are, in order (the):

> Basement
>Lichyard
> Atheneum
> Mine
> New Hell
> Cornucopia
> Warehouse
> Broken Jaw
> Sunless Sea
> Mire
> Gauntlet Below
> Redoubt
> Sanctum

Sublevels include (the):

> Roost (connects levels 4-8)
> Delta (connects the Mire to the caverns around the Dungeon; contains the underground city of Port Swallowglade)

>

>>44652253
You will indeed be able to connect the Mine back to the Atheneum. Technically the connection still exists, it's just that the Shaft is controlled by the Baron's forces and in need of liberation. With a couple of days to do it, you can call in reinforcements once you do so.

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>>44652759
>Sunless Sea

God I love that game. I look forward to seeing your take on it, Vox.

>>44653131
...It's a game?

BUT WHAT WILL WE NAME NATE'S LEG?
OR AMY'S WINGS, AS MAY APPLY?

>>44653177
Dance / Soar

>>44653154

It is indeed a game.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/304650/

You sail a 1880s steamship around a huge underground ocean filled with various eldritch monstrosities. It's also very reading-intensive and has about a novel's worth of text in it. Also London is there, for reasons that are not very clear.

>>44652759

Ah, hell man. Talk about No Good Deed. I mean, I wasn't kidding when I said before that her chances of surviving this ordeal were pretty slim, but it's a bit of a downer to know that even she thinks she's going to die a horrible violent death.

Most of the floors seem pretty sensible, and about the only one we know the Chain Holder for is the Sanctum, because that's obvious FINAL BOSS- MASTER territory. But it's really neat to see anyway.

The Cornucopia is after New Hell, and I'm guessing that's a land of plenty. Maybe there's an artificial sun or something that lets plants grow like normal.

The Warehouse probably is filled with dangerous artifacts, on top of metric tons of more normal stuff. I'm getting sort of a vibe like the final scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark with that stupidly huge warehouse just filled with boxes.

Broken Jaw... I've got nothing.

The Sunless Sea seems like it might be connected to the Delta, and is also the name of a certain video game. So, there's probably a terrible tentacle beast to deal with.

>>44653516


Mire's a swamp. That's going to be a pain in the ass to get around in, but I look forward to seeing what kind of terrible voo-doo shit's lurking in the dark to get us down there. Probably another necromancer or two hanging out.

The Gauntlet kind of signifies the beginning of the end. Traps, mazes, monsters, and all sorts of other unpleasant things to try and maul you to death. It's probably under the control of whoever has the Chain, so this is going to be neat. Let's hope the walls don't crush us.

A Redoubt is, apparently, a type of fortress. The final line of defense. Given it's defending the Sanctum, kind of makes sense. This is probably going to be a sneaking mission and involve some clever stealth because fortresses tend to have armies in them. Maybe it was defended by constructs before the Master came in, or maybe by something else. Either way, whoever's running this floor probably has control over whatever the Redoubt.

And, finally, the Sanctum. Before the Master came, it was probably where Lora hung out. A holy place to kick back, consider things, and take care of the dungeon from. I don't imagine a lot of physical defenses, but it's probably got one hell of magical barrier to keep people from butting in. Crack that, and it's final boss time.

>>44653469

London's there because it was stolen by bats.

... Or possibly because the Queen made a pact with an eldritch being beyond human understanding.

Either way, Sunless Sea fits the Dungeon's aesthetic pretty well, if you strip out the Victorian London bits along with more brain melting abominations and the fact that the rats are smart to create their own societies.

>>44653469
>>44653688
Having never played nor heard of the game before right now I can tell you that the Dungeon level by that name is not gonna be related to it by anything more than coincidence, if that.

>>44653725

Fair enough. I that given how original most of the content was, you wouldn't go for ripping off a relatively obscure game. It's just an amusing coincidence.

... Another question for you though. Just how useful is Wraithsteel, given that you can apparently go full Icarus and make functioning wings out of the stuff? For that matter, can you get it from any other place than murdering dangerous creatures made out of the stuff?

>>44654037
Very, very useful, but its greatest use is generally both in building enchantments into a tool, weapon, or item, and in enhancing things that are already magical. Wraithsteel wings wouldn't help Brianna, for instance; they can't make her fly on their own. But they can help Amy fly, as good as she did before, because they can harness the part of her that *is* flight and work from there.

And no, murder is pretty much 100% of wraithsteel acquisition.

wait a minute. we know a wing maker.
Amy's pop-pop.

>>44654463
Lemme just clear some stuff up.

>Nate's leg is cut somewhere along the shin downwards
>Wraithsteel wings would return full flight capacity
>Nate actually thinks a peg leg is an negligible decrease in his agility
>Bri should probably not touch the wraithsteel ever, due to the way necromancy conflicts with it.
>Isoldt and Harry could probably help, whatever we do, but that implies that this will probably be done AFTER the Mines.

all of that right?

>>44654770
All of that is correct. And not peg leg; Nate's current willingness to settle for a peg leg is based on it being available /now/. A better prosthetic would be desired down the road; a peg is an 'I have people that need to be dead now' sort of solution.

>>44649374
>Given a terrible situation and little time to think, a goblin will most often choose the least awful solution without a moment’s second thought or hesitation
Hah, a dangerous but effective trait

>their fierce bonds of loyalty
>loyalty
I gotta ask, loyalty to whom? To family? To the nation? To the race/culture? To idealogy? This greatly defines what they could do and on what step of "progression" things could go horribly, horribly wrong.

>>44654897
The tribe, generally. A goblin thinks of the tribe first, their mate second, and then any allies of the tribe third. This is not to suggest that they don't have a survival instinct but for many goblins death in battle is sort of their life goal so they don't always prioritize living to fight another day.

>>44654880
I'd personally settle for ankles-only for Nate, and skimp a bit on the wings. Particularly, limited flight but the ability to fold itself compactly on Amy's back. Rather than "getting something back", this is a conscious decision to "trade one specialization for another".

>>44655031
so the question is whether that tribe loyalty remains constant even after the "tribe" grows to a far larger scale than they imagine, or if it splinters off into smaller barangays

>>44655133
One of the interesting problems with modern prosthetics is that people spend a lot of time making the limb itself nicer, but comparatively little time developing better ways to attach that limb.

Result: extremely fancy limbs and joints and things that are absolutely painful to wear.

So from a quality of life standpoint, it might actually be worthwhile to think about the top of the prosthetic as well as the ankle.

>>44655249
Hadn't really considered QoL as such, mainly because this wraithsteel came from a giant snake that made sonic boom schreeches. I can't imagine that as something "comfortable" when it's attached to you.

>>44655320
Horrifyingly good point. That said: Amy also has a pretty strong affinity for sound. So if she does end up with the wings she might also end up with a terrifying sonic weapon.

>>44654880
Two related questions here;
1) Just what are all the types of magic in this setting?
2)Given we know necromancy(death) magic exists, what about the opposite? Something like biomancy?

>>44655514
...That sounds like something I can write into a worldbuilding thing.

I'ma start doing that while fielding more questions.

>>44655546

Awesome, more world building.

... Speaking of which, Starfall's been name dropped a bit. And Victoria's technically the duchess, for all that she currently lives in the Dungeon with Brigitte making sure that her girlfriend doesn't kill herself.

So, I guess I have two questions. The first, is what exactly is Starfall? Beyond a region, anyway. The second, is shouldn't Victoria be kind running the place? Or is she currently 'relocating' her capital the Atheneum? Or are we looking at an abdication sort of scenario?

>>44655718
...Brah.

Victoria is not the Duchess. I am not sure where you got this impression. As Marsh mentioned, the former Duke recently died; his daughter Harriet is the new Duchess and is eager to speak to Brianna.

As for Starfall itself, it's a somewhat stubborn and independant duchy known for the Dungeon, as well as its access to trade along the river (both up land and to and through the sea) and the quality of its timber and wool. Nominally part of a larger kingdom, Starfall has always been more or less permitted to do whatever the fuck it wants, because when it's /not/ they start making trouble and retreat into the Dungeon whenever anyone tries to punish them.

Essentially, Starfall is like a somewhat mature teenager that helps with the bills right up until you start telling them they're not allowed to have girls over.

>>44655718
Victoria is the girlfriend of the former dictator of the Atheneum (Poet), she was only there because of Brigette and did absolutely nothing besides living with her. Why should she be the duchess and why should she be allowed to rule at all in the dungeon?

>>44655819

Can you update the google doc?

It still says that we owe Mark a ride in our body, amongst other things.

Nate's prosthetic is one of those times I wish things weren't set in old time fantasy.
Modern athletic prosthetics aren't that complex. They actually just require spring steel and realizing that form is not function. The latter was sadly lacking back then.

>>44655860
I'm working on this now.

>>44655961
I'm a bit torn between going, "Them's the breaks," and going, "Well...they've had a somewhat higher than usual global rate of people losing limbs, thanks to fucking monsters. This might be plausible."

>>44655819

Whoops, I think I got her mixed up with Victoria. I think I see what happened. We got told that she wanted to see us, and then Victoria showed up in the middle of the night to give us that mind charm, and I made a dumb assumption.

Well, don't I feel like an absolute moron all of a sudden.

>>44655859

See above, and I thought she'd start ruling Starfall from the Dungeon or something.

My apologies for the inconvenience.

>>44656084
Happens to the best of us anon, it's quite alright.

>>44655997
The mentality of the time this is more or less based on, people didn't think of the foot as being a flexing pivot. The foot was a foot, and a foot worked because it did foot things.
So they modeled their prosthetics off the appearance of the foot because they thought if it looked like a foot it would do foot things.

Instead of the modern mindset of "HOW does a foot do foot things?" and taking away what didn't do foot things.

>>44655997
You've also got smith-wizards and healers that probably have a better understanding of anatomy and metallurgy than in the comparable time IRL.

>>44655997
Probably a decision better made after the drugs wear off a bit, but this is the sort of thing I could see demons knowing and humans not, what with their greater knowledge of the properties of metals and their presumably less normative ideas on what feet should look like.

>>44656102
What
>>44656162
said, not to mention the smith-wizards may be able to mimic the anatomy and not just the appearance of the foot.
>>44655514
I'm going to assume footamancy is a course at wizard school.

>>44656322
It's part of the Muscle Wizard course, but the Fist elective is more popular.

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I've updated the characters and places doc (https://docs.google.com/document/d/19gNVgtevar647l4ZumUaVH6GlJzvxLlDNKaH8DrQMWE/edit?usp=sharing) if anyone would like to look it over and tell me if I forgot anything.

>>44656206
Good plan with regards to sobriety. I'll come back to this tomorrow, depending on how I'm feeling, and also chat it over with some writer friends.

I have to say, this Q&A session (and the previous ones, for that matter) has felt surprisingly natural and pleasant. What would folks think of taking some time for one thread a week or so to field this kinda thing and take time to pause updating, answer questions, maybe write worldbuilding snippets and/or do critique on writefaggotry?

>>44656405

I'd like more story, but this is fine as well.

... I'd also like an idea of what I could possibly write to help fill stuff in, because I find myself rather interested in writing bits and pieces for this, but don't quite know the setting too well just yet.

>>44656405
I'd prefer more of the story. But doing Q&A whenever you don't feel like writing a story post (like now) or when you have not enough time is fine.

>>44656405
I personally like the idea. A day off from working you mind to death each week is something you've certainly EARNED. If what you want to do with it is world building and Q&A, then that's fantastic.

>>44656460
>... I'd also like an idea of what I could possibly write to help fill stuff in, because I find myself rather interested in writing bits and pieces for this, but don't quite know the setting too well just yet.
This. I enjoy writing on occasion, and I could see trying my hand here, but nothing's jumped out at me as something to write.

>>44656405
Oh no, whatever shall we do, world building.

Yessssssssssssssss

>>44656460
>>44656816
Define 'fill in' in this context. I'd be happy with just about anything, including some of the concepts we've already played with - la Croix vampire hunters (policing those members of the living dead that have gone unacceptably mad), hard-luck adventuring healers, how Kells lost his hand.

I had a reader awhile back who teased me with wanting to do AU fic of one of the other MCs but she ultimately backed out, much to my sorrow.

Had to do some real life stuff, writing the magic thing now. This may prove helpful in general.

>>44657180

"Fill in" was a pretty shitty choice of word on my part. I meant more, I'd like to write something in/for this setting. A look at our trio from another angle, or something like that.

>>44656405
Excessive threads devoted to world building leads to Decu and months of world building with 8 - 10 posts of quest in between.

It's the Zombies of QMs.

>>44658250
...Dare I ask who or what is Decu?

>>44658269
QM. Does... Magical Girl Noir, I think?

>>44656405
You need to update Lakehallow, Vitner's dead.

>>44658269
Does Magical Girl Noir Quest. Excellent writer, but he spends way more time drawing his various waifus and shitting up his goddamn twitter feed with bullshit world-building then actual quest posts.

It's meandering and long and tending towards BAD END pretty hard since Decu is kind of not the greatest at guiding his players and he has some pretty hard penalties for not guessing right/investigating and hitting his "avoid horrible death of everything you love" flags.

Still, I personally am enjoying our journey into failure.

>>44658629
>Excellent writer
Yeah, but i wouldn't call him a great QM. He's good, but has several flaws that just don't mix well when choices come into play.

>>44658304
>>44658629
>>44658755
I see. Thanks for the info.

>>44658530
I KNEW I forgot SOMETHING. Updating now.

Magic thing almost done. May even actually update tonight; after a day to rest and clear my head (and painkillers) I'm feeling much better.

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>>44659733
Lakehallow information update.

More River apprenticeship notes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bkf7JE55i_BqNnuXyA75hLz0CX3xqOJzeJiMXwgFlVE/edit?usp=sharing

>>44660397

>so I can masturbate in peace

The earlier personal touches were nice, but that was fucking gold.

>>44660397
who's Penny Dreadfuls?

>>44660564
it's the "illusion is technically kinetic" that got me

>>44660713
A penny dreadful is a term coined on Earth during the Victorian era, referring to one-penny stories or novels filled with lurid tales of drama, adventure, horror, and/or romance.

The meaning is not much changed in this context.

>>44660397
It is truly enjoyable reading these journal entries and it got me wondering, have any of the characters written journals in their past or even currently are for other things? Would those be interesting to read write?

>>44660817
It hasn't come up a lot lately, but Brianna still has a battered diary on her person that she started the Quest with, and with literacy being the general norm in Glen (and thus Lakehallow), citizens of both communities may keep journals.

Amy doesn't, Nate might. River definitely does, as do the Rose Cultists (it's required by their faith), the Keepers of Arcadia, and the citizens of Split. Both Brigette & Victoria keep journals and there is, of course, the rough drafts that Scribbles is making for her novels.

If you're asking about maybe writing some of those journals I'd be tickled pink to see your ideas and willing to offer critique on them.

>>44652759
Vox, my man. I am loving this.
>The Sunless Sea is going to be /so/ much fun. Red Kells is going to show up and teach the gang how to be a proper scallywags.
>The Cornucopia is going to have the very best tobacco/hashish and we need to nab that shit for Lora.
>The Broken Jaw sounds like some kind of fight club.
>Brianna is going to feel right at home in the Mire (the La Croix from the Blind Marsh are more than a bit Cajun, aren't they?). Frog gumbo anyone?

I might just doodle up some background/environment sketches.

>>44660397
I like the way you describe magic. It makes more sense than most fantasy stuff that never really explains how things work.

To that end, would Brianna be able to expand upon or combine her Necromancy with other magical branches?

>>44660817
Amy's diary would probably be fucking adorable and filled with bird puns.

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Alright folks, I'm gonna sleep the last of this off and do a real update in the morning. IF an anon would be kind enough to tally the story votes, that would be wonderful, but as usual I don't expect it; that's my responsibility, not yours.

If the thread is still open when I get up I'll finish out addressing discussion, questions, comments, and criticisms. Otherwise I will do my level best to address them when I open a new thread. Thank you all again for your patience and understanding with today's focus on worldbuilding and discussion; I needed the rest.

>>44661443
To an extent, yeah. That's where you get stuff like balefire from, though generally one discipline is seen as "dominant", usually defined by the principles you draw on most heavily. Balefire, for instance, requires sympathy, gesture, sacrifice; more necromancy than kinesis.

Glad to hear you're excited about the upcoming levels!

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>>44661494
Of course I miss question/answer time, I've been looking at a pile of shoes thinking about Nathans replacement leg all day and I miss it. DAMMIT JOB.

I wanted to ask, if Nathan had a wraith steel leg and bri used some necro on him would it hurt the wraith steel? Because I remember earlier that it was said she would destroy it or something because necromancy and wraith steel don't mix.

Just a thought.

>>44662099
Wraithsteel is /alive/, in a fashion. It's why Fetch stayed with Brianna rather than go with Nate on the snake hunt; his necrotic claws would've rotted the metal.

I asked a similar question about whether Bri could animate some old bones for Nate's prosthetic, and Vox said that the necromantic energies tend to kill the host.

Vox has said that Nathan would be content with a normal peg leg as a stand-by until a proper prosthetic can be commissioned. I'm thinking that we could probably ask Harry and Isoldt to make a new leg for our Hero.

Amy can have Wraithsteel Pinions, and Nathan can have a Hellforged Leg with a hidden Matchlock mechanism.

>>44662427
Holy cow a hell forged leg for a woundseeker hero... that would be amazing! Thanks for the clarification, you live up to your name :)

>>44662837
Another thing to keep in mind concerning Amy's replacement wings; harpies probably have a three-dimensional fighting style while on the wing, and Amy could use her Wraithsteel wings as weapons, giving her a literal edge over other harpies. She could quite easily live up to her name; Falling Knives.

>>44662904
interesting link to the name

>>44662904
Yeah I was thinking about that, wings that could also be used as a fan/sword. Make her parents happy to boot!

>>44662904
Given the Naming involved with Wraithsteel items, that could be reinforcement too.

>>44661494
Ok, before I hit the sack at a ridiculous hour, I'm gonna drop this lame as hell map of the Roost.

The way I imagine it, the harpies build their homes in holes in the walls, while they do business out on boardwalks linked together by rope bridges and wooden gondolas, with wicker basket elevators connecting the various floors of the Roost.

Each of the levels within the Roost would have features related to the greater layer of the Dungeon it's connected to (like the third floor connected to Cornucopia having hanging gardens and lots of plant life).

Feel free to correct me or share your ideas. Just brainstormin' over here.

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>>44663387
Of course I forgot to add the pic. Goddamn it.

>>44662956
Don't forget that Name and Form are only two of the three factors for Wraithsteel items. The third is Source, and the source here had incredible sonic attacks plus razor-sharp teeth. Utilizing these as resonance for Amy's own screech plus wing-blades is going to make her unbelievably lethal

>>44663509
Amy can be our glass cannon, Fetch is the distracto-raptor, and Nate's the tanky meat-shield. I guess that makes Brianna the obligatory cleric/mage?

>>44664023
Anyone else play City of Heroes back when it existed? I've been thinking of the group as a scrapper/brute/mastermind trio. Allow me to explain.

Scrappers are melee damage dealers. They can take a hit or two, so they're not true glass cannons, but they're definitely better at damage than tanking. Amy, with her penchant for vicious melee murder, would be our scrapper.

Brutes are tankier than scrappers, and not as damaging, but they're still not true tanks. They get stronger as fights go on, and as they deal and take damage. Nathan, with his woundseeker powers, would be our brute.

Masterminds use a mix of minions and support powers to get the job done. Their direct attacks tend to be pretty terrible, so they do their damage through their minions. They're technically a tanking archetype, what with all the meatshields they can have, but a very nonstandard one. Bri, with her combination of semi-healing, crowd-control, and minions/summons, would be our mastermind. Fetch would be her strongest permanent minion.

And now I've got myself wishing that game still existed so I could make the party in it. Damnit.

Bumpin' for the love of Vox.

>>44662099
I know this pain.

>>44662427
>>44662837
Wee, theorizing!

>>44662904
This is accurate. They also, as you've seen, use their wings in personal combat. Mind you, Amy might not be able to do that in a friendly fashion if they're razor-feathered wraithsteel posthetics but it'd certainly make her a lot meaner in lethal combat.

>>44663387
>>44663399
Eeenteresting. You may wanna wait until you get top-down description, though.

>>44664865
Nifty!

Tallying now. Going to write what will probably be the final update of this thread, and then start the new thread. Glad folks enjoyed the worldbuilding.

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>>44637165
Down below you can still feel the battle raging on. The Miners are focusing their efforts on the skeletons, but it looks like no one's realized the spell is undone yet.

But you have some of your own to worry about. You can tell Lark on your way back to the barn.

You climb shakily down the ladder, Kat holding it steady for you, and draw your sword-cane, holding its sheath in your other hand.

You're not sure how much of this is rage and how much is sorrow.

The Baron's forces take notice of you. A whistled command to Kat makes her rip the feet from beneath one of the slaves and punch him out before he can lunge for you with his bayonet; another comes at you with a pick, which you sidestep and return with a heavy blow from the oak. You're reasonably certain you only stunned him; you didn't crack the skull.

The Overseer commanding this knot of men takes notice of you, and raises his revolver just as you doff your hat. The clinging darkness that wraps around his eyes (you can feel the energy drain from your chest, making you breaths come heavy and slow) draws a panicked scream from his lip.

"Nothing to see here," you murmur as you pass, flicking your blade in a backhanded cut. Hot blood sprays onto your body as you pass, splattering your cheeks and soaking into your coat and hat.

Miner and slave alike stare at you as you walk silently past, eyes staring straight ahead, and drip red blood from the tip of your blade.

Lark looks at you with an edge of fear when you approach, but you walk past with a muttered, "The Overseers can die now. Inform the others," without making eye contact.

Amy's sitting up when you slip into the barn, and Nathan has the gun on a small table next to him, out of reach of accidents but handy if he actually needs to kill anyone. Good. Good thinking.

Nathan, Larry, and Amy look at you in concern, and Amy has to restrain herself from running immediately to your side.

>>44665489
> "Job's done."
> "Someone hold me. Please."
> "Stop my life, I wanna get off."
> Write-in

>>44665502

> "Job's done."
> "Someone hold me. Please."

>>44665489
>"Someone hold me. Please." both Amy and Nathan
>Write-in
>Check in with Fetch, he did good, give reassurance.

Upgrading Fetch was one of the best things we could not have planned for.

>>44665585
>Someone hold me. Please." both Amy and Nathan
>Write-in
>Check in with Fetch, he did good, give reassurance.
Seconding all of this.

>>44665502
>>44665585

Supporting.

>>44665502
>>44665575
Much as I'd like to stick to one answer, I really do feel like a combination of these two is the best response. So, I guess
> Write-in
> "Job's done. Now someone hold me."

>>44665489
>Write-in.
>"I know this isn't really the time, but can I get a hug?"
>Brief cuddle-pile and a few tears, including our favorite familiar.
>"You performed admirably today, Sir Fetch. You have made your Queen proud." If at all possible, award him a talisman of his very own, protecting him from slaying magic.

Once the Baron and his forces are eliminated, we'll have to deliver the necromancer's body to River and the Keepers. They'll be able to perform and proper interment and prevent his spirit from doing anything nasty.

>>44665502
>> "Someone hold me. Please."

I think it's now more or less safe for us to stop being a rock, at least for five minutes or so.

>>44665502

>Jobs done

>someone hold me. Please

Called, tallying, writing.

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>>44665489
You try to put on a brave face but you're not entirely certain your expression has actually changed at all. "Job's done," you whisper harshly. "Necromancer's dead. Spell's undone. Our forces outside know."

"Bri," Amy says, worry in her voice.

"...Yeah," you murmur back. You flick the blood from your blade and wipe the rest on your pant leg before you sheath it. "I know."

You limp slowly towards Nathan's cot and take a heavy seat. When you pat the part next to you for Amy, the half-harpy comes over and holds you around the shoulders; Nathan takes your hand, and you squeeze his gently.

"If I have to use the gun, cover your ears," the Hero tells you.

"Got it. I..." You slump, head hanging low while you hunch forward. "I'm sorry. That was rough. It's...it's been a long time since I killed one of my own."

"You don't have to apologize for having feelings," Nathan reminds you, and you chuckle grimly at the reminder of your own words to him.

"Yeah...Fetch back yet?"

"Here, my lady," the bird says from under the table. Even from here you can tell he's had a time of it; one of his legs is broken and you can see splinters of bone poking out from his body. "I am afraid I had an entire ogre fall on me."

"We'll get you patched up," you promise.

"Worry not, O my queen. I cannot feel pain, and am thus spared suffering. Attend to your own needs."

Larry looks at the three of you and, bless him, decides his best place is outside the room for now. He slips into the door that leads to Lark's dining room, such as it is, and you finally let yourself cry, in big, heaving sobs like you used to as a little girl, with your lovers there to hold you.

"You did good love," Amy tells you, stroking your dark hair. "You did good."

You nod, silently, and wipe your eyes.

> Compose yourself before Diving Shadow gets back
> Fuck it. This is nice.

>>44666506
>> Fuck it. This is nice.

Diving Shadow can deal with a somewhat informal Necrofowl Inc. when she gets back.

>>44666506
>Fuck it. This is nice.
Brianna deserves to vent when she needs to.

>>44666506
>> Fuck it. This is nice.
Harpies tend to wear their hearts on their sleeves, right? Diving Shadow should understand.

>>44666506
>Fuck it. This is nice.
Fuck it.

>>44666506
>sleep, your role is done for now, and its time to meet lora

>>44666506
>> Fuck it. This is nice.

>>44666506
> Compose yourself before Diving Shadow gets back

>>44666506
>> Fuck it. This is nice.

She's earned it.

>>44666506
> Compose yourself before Diving Shadow gets back

>>44666506
> Fuck it. This is nice.

I think bri needs this

Called, will write soon.

This thread needs to be slain. Anything to ask or discuss?

>>44666997
I realize that while Brianna did spend some time training alongside the Caretaker, she still has a lot to learn. After will deal with the Baron, can we ask for more lessons? Or do we want to head straight into the Roost?

Also, I'd like to involve Silence in the Baron's dethroning. Something tells me she'll enjoy that a hell of a lot more than just getting a trade deal with a duchess (Yes, I remembered that bit).

>>44667071
How you spend your time is of course up to you. The Roost is a side-plot; how you handle it is very much on you. You could have Bri remain behind and task the other party members with it; you could let Amy try to handle it on her own, you could ignore it.

That in mind, I should note that you'll also have the option to keep training with Nathan, though be warned that he's not gonna do this wishy-washy shit; if you ask him to learn the sword he's gonna expect you to stick with it this time. It's kinda a respect thing at that point.