Historical records preceding the Waking Nightmare indicate that even before Lifting Oil was first refined, Man was using raw Ichor in projectile weapons, though these selfsame records suggest that these weapons existed somewhere between 'curiosity' and 'folly', as they were inevitably only commissioned by individuals wealthy enough to afford the raw Ichor to operate them, and they were near as likely to kill their master as they were his foe, for self-trajectorizing planes had not been developed yet. Interest in these weapons waned once gunpowder came into common use.Annotation in the margins: Disingenuous or ill-informed? Mundane accelerators from this period were 'follies', in the same vein as Puckle the Elder's guns – but Witchwork wouldn't need planes. Must have existed during this period, no doubt.However, once Lifting Oil began to be refined on an industrial scale in Nemours II 8, interest rebounded. Development was further accelerated once Gorgona Secundus, the first 'whole-oil' Refinery in the Known World was founded in Nemours II 15, and it took only three more years for the self-trajectorizing fléchette to be developed and for these weapons to be described as 'accelerators'. With the singular exception of the head, the look of the war-dart has remained effectively unchanged. Pre-Estrangement head designs ran a gamut; barbs, needles, split-heads, wedges – as well as the bodkin-style, now the Standard of the Imperial Arms. Dimensions were also variable; the war-darts of yesteryear ran larger than their modern counterparts.Dates are solid at least, but has the writing style changed? Could a Censor have re-written this? If so, what is being censored?In addition to hand-accelerators, prototype siege-accelerators were also developed in this period, but while hand-accelerators were considered viable alternatives to hand-guns, siege-accelerators were considered impractical, if not flatly inferior to the cannons of the time. The first 'whole-oil' refineries were only able to produce up to hundredweight Lifting Oil, so the largest fléchettes could only be a few pounds at most, and even still, copious amounts of the most expensive Oil would need to be used for each dart. Moreover, the design requirements of a self-trajectorizing fléchette are at odds with a projectile suitable for knocking down fortifications.Another potentially deliberate omission; mundane siege-accelerators were considered impractical, but Witchwork artillery were in use during this period. In his Northern Dispatches, Vol II Nemours II considers naming one of his War-Witches his praefectus fabrum for her bombardment of Sicamber.The history in this text is either compromised or worthless. Will it be the same for the alchemistry, the instrumentality, the millwrighting?- An annotated passage from On the Manufacture of Wandering Whistlers, a Controlled text from the Imperial Arms
In Scrimshaw Mount, all graves are shallow. Even on the Promontory, where Nature, through the permutations of the Pattern had placed soil on the otherwise nude basalt of the Mount, the bone white stone was never more than a few feet down, commonly less than one. As such, getting graves to the standard depth of eight feet was simply not practical for those interned in the Mount's public burying grounds. But those that lived their lives and died their deaths on the Mount didn't take overmuch umbrage at their shallow graves. For both the practical and pious among them understood full well that under the panopticonical Gaze of the Patternmaker Above … all things are shallow. Your name is Chlotsuintha, and at the moment you are still footpadding your way through the late Aldoin's house. Your pace through his basement was rather slow, and what progress you made can best be characterized as 'one step forward, three steps back' – but now, you are out of the basement, and moving with much fleeter feet than before. This quickening has been brought on in no small part by your near-certainty that this house is empty, save for yourself and your father's Constructs … as well as a steadily growing fear that you are not going to be able to keep your schedule for tonight at the rate you were going. Even moving as you are now, you still have doubts … but at the moment, your attention is divided between finding the right second-story fireplace, so you can hopefully see the emitter-Organ – and mulling over the Mystery that had been deployed behind you, in the servant's stair. Idly, you step out into the hall that the servant's stair has opened up into, and look up and down its length. Unlike the stairwell you just left, here there is no trace of the Strangeness whatsoever – though there is much of this handsomely appointed hall that it outside of the envelope of the Strange-Staining Scarification Glyph, etched subcutaneously on your upper back. There are a number of doors up and down its length; two of which look as if they could lead to a room that shares the chimney than ran through the kitchen - the very same chimney that holds the Construct you are currently pursuing. You contemplate the pair of portals for a moment, then it dawns on you that you are just standing in the middle of the hall, and you impulsively start to move towards one of them. Being exposed like this doesn't sit well with you - after all, you are only nearly-certain that you are alone in here - but then again, you are still in the envelope of the ranged-remediation cast from the Constructs. Right now, nothing is sitting well with you ... though you are feeling long leagues better than you did down in the basement. How much of that is a matter your current distance to the emitter-Organ active on you and how much of that is more and more of the Strangeness that you have been carrying has been Cleansed away, you cannot say with any surety.
For the first time, you consider what exactly you are to do if it turn out that the Construct you are after is not accessible or even visible from any of the fireplaces in this house. Thinking about it, father would want the Construct to be as hard to reach as – no, wait, that isn't true! That isn't true at all! The other Construct, the one that nearly took you off of your feet when you barely got within arms length of it – that Threadbare thing was just sitting in the ashbox of the other chimney. Well, you assume it was in the ashbox. You were getting it in such spades and 'barrows that you never actually managed to clap eyes on the thing, but surely that had to be the emitter-Organ. What else could have been thumping like that, or throwing up those clouds of greasy, sooty ash? And you certainly were feeling more and more of the ranged-remediation cast as you drew yourself closer and closer to it. So of course, if you cannot reach this Construct for whatever reason, then you will go straight back down to the basement – which you were intending to do at some point regardless – and bear the brunt of the ranged-remediation cast once more … which you most assuredly were not intending to do again. But for the nonce, you will dwell on this no more; at this moment, you are faced with one of the doors most likely to lead to the chimney that you are seeking – as well as a decision on how to approach the rooms on this floor. > Please choose ONE of the following:> You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs. Moreover, you have burnt too much time here already. So long as you have no reason to believe that you are outside of a bedroom, and there is no fresh evidence to undermine your near-surety, then you will not bother trying to listen at doors, nor try your hand at peering under them. Pattern's Perdition, you have already been over this! > You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs … but if there are silently ailing residents still in this abode, then you must be closer to them then you have ever been. Though you have fallen behind on your schedule, this is the time and place to be more cautious, not less. Moreover, while the complications that would arise from you unmaking your own schedule in your trepidation would not be inconsequential, the complications that would arise from being seen here would be much worse. Perhaps even worse than being seen by the captain of the Euthyphro.>> Previous thread: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2023/5737272/>> Archive: https://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html?tags=Eternal%20RomeTerribly sorry about the delay on the new thread; I got sick for the first time in years – feeling much better now, though. This vote is a bit of a re-tread of a previous decision, but I figured it would make sense to get everyone on the same page on the new thread.
>>5793948> You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs. Moreover, you have burnt too much time here already. So long as you have no reason to believe that you are outside of a bedroom, and there is no fresh evidence to undermine your near-surety, then you will not bother trying to listen at doors, nor try your hand at peering under them. Pattern's Perdition, you have already been over this!
>>5793948>You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs. Moreover, you have burnt too much time here already. So long as you have no reason to believe that you are outside of a bedroom, and there is no fresh evidence to undermine your near-surety, then you will not bother trying to listen at doors, nor try your hand at peering under them. Pattern's Perdition, you have already been over this!Thought you're dead for a while
>>5793948> You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs. Moreover, you have burnt too much time here already. So long as you have no reason to believe that you are outside of a bedroom, and there is no fresh evidence to undermine your near-surety, then you will not bother trying to listen at doors, nor try your hand at peering under them. Pattern's Perdition, you have already been over this! Welcome back!
>>5793948>You are nearly-certain that this entire house is empty, save for you and the Constructs. Moreover, you have burnt too much time here already. So long as you have no reason to believe that you are outside of a bedroom, and there is no fresh evidence to undermine your near-surety, then you will not bother trying to listen at doors, nor try your hand at peering under them. Pattern's Perdition, you have already been over this!I do not wish to dilly around much longer
... no, no. No. You aren't doing this again, damn it all. From your very first footfall inside this house, all the way to this very door, you have encountered nothing - nothing at all - that would suggest that there is anyone on the other side of this door, or in the entire fraying house. So unless something happens to suggest otherwise, you are not going to let yourself get in your own way any more. Feeling flustered and frustrated on top of the lingering miserable effects of the ranged-remediation cast, you free up your right hand, heft the 'stick in your left high - then immediately regret hefting it so high when the flame damn near gutters out on you. Before you can fall into a fit of self-recriminating silent conniptions, you take a deep breath - vainly hoping that it will fortify you - then you slowly push open the door, all the while watching what remains of the light atop your 'stick to make sure that it is not snuffed out by an errant puff. Once the door has opened to its fullest extent, and you can see that the puddling remains of your candle is still gleaming atop your 'stick, you lower your gaze, and peer out into the room. For a split second, your mind runs away with itself, and you think on how someone might have been in the this room after all, how they might have seen you at the door, how they might now, at this very moment, be watching you, concealed somewhere within the room ... but you regain yourself before these idle fears become any more of an impediment than they already are. Surely, if there was anyone else in this house, by now they would have made their presence known somehow.Still ... there are no windows in this room, none of the sconces on the walls bear a lick of light, nor does the chandelier on the ceiling. There are 'sticks in the room, though none save for your own bear candles - which is such a pitiful specimen that it barely can be taken into account for such considerations. Suffice to say then, that this room - a sitting room of some stripe, if you were to judge - is rather dark. While the room is rather open, the shadows at its fringes are deep, and as you step into the room and debate on closing the door behind you, you notice that the room is carpeted, wall to wall or near enough, so you couldn't necessarily count on hearing - Maker's Mercy, you cannot be doing this right now! This is the absolute worst possible time to lose your head, your nerve, your stomach. Could this be a more subtle effect of the ranged-remediation cast? Induced paranoia? That wouldn't be a typical effect from a remediation cast, but by all standards and measures, this is not a typical remediation cast. Yet ... this could also just be the wages of taking a long day on little to even less sleep. You rub your right temple with your right hand - making a point of keeping it clear of where the envelope of the Hide-Eyes Glyph would be were it active.
As you rub, your eyes finally begin to adjust. And it so happens that the more of the room that you can see, the less of a grip that idle and ... utterly baseless fears have on you. It also so happens that you are finally able to make out the fireplace on the far side of the room ... and the intermittently flinching and wiggling mass that hangs half in and half out of it. It twitchily sits on the cast iron fire-dog, the Living Mystery as tall and thrice as thick as any stack of logs the andiron could every have been intended to bear. The two-thirds or so of the mass that has spilt over the struts of the fire-dog does not rest on the floor of the hearth - rather, it seems to hold itself in some tension, or at the very least, it is pinned somehow to the wrist-thick Conduits that run up and down the height of the firebox. Between the darkness and the obstruction of the Construct, it is hard to make out much inside the chimney from where you stand.All other thoughts having slid off of your brain as the morning dew slides of blades of grass, you find yourself approaching the Construct to get yourself a better look. But as you start to pass around the couches and baby trestles on your way to the fireplace, you stop yourself. If this is in fact the emitter-Organ that you are looking for, then what is going to happen when you touch it? Or even draw near it? You don't know how its Logic works, but isn't it possible that it would prioritize targeting the Strangeness on articles and individuals closer to the emitter-Organ, as Cleansing them would be easier than targets further away? Clearly, something happened down in the basement that made the other Construct start to target you. Mercy, just thinking about that ranged-remediation cast you got a taste of standing in front of the ashbox to the other chimney ... damn it all, the whole rationale for looking for this Construct in the first place was that you couldn't bear to be the presence of the other one while it was active and targeting you. So if you were to set this one off on you, then ... all of this time and effort would have been for naught, right? Well, what else is there? Reaching for it through the Firmament, and trying to disable it that way, before physically inspecting it? Conceivably that could work - assuming there were no security-sureties Woven into the Emitter - but you would almost certainly end up doing some damage to the Construct in the process. Trying to ignore the feeling of a victory slipping out of your hands, you turn to the walls. At the very least, you could get some of the sconces in here lit, so you can actually see what you are trying to look at. Beyond that ...
> Please choose ONE of the following: > You will attempt to disable the Construct, accepting the near-certainty of damaging it.> You will not attempt to disable the Construct, accepting the risk of it targeting you during the inspection. > Please choose ONE of the following:> You will inspect the Construct without touching it, limiting the extent of your inspection.> You will touch the Construct, potentially complicating your inspection.> Write-Ins are allowed, subject to QM approval.
>>5794217> You will not attempt to disable the Construct, accepting the risk of it targeting you during the inspection. > You will touch the Construct, potentially complicating your inspection.
>>5794217Glad that you're back QM, you had me worried there for a moment!>>5794233Support, just to speed this process up- though it makes sense to look at the Construct before touching it.
>>5794233>Solid call. Supporting.
Well, either way, you are going to get more light in here. With your free right hand, you fish out the snap-sparker you pilfered earlier from the basement, then after taking a lingering look at the squirming, fleshy mass of the Construct, you turn on your heel and carefully make your way over to the nearest of the sconces on the wall, hoping to find candles that have been left behind in their perches. So you could get some light in here ... and also so you could pinch a few, and be able to put the waxy revenant you have atop your 'stick to rest. Actually, considering what candles are going for now-a-days, you would do well to load yourself - no, you can't be thinking like that. Right now, you need to concern yourself with the Strangeness, the Constructs and the Mysteries of Aldoin's house first and foremost before you can bog yourself down with swag-seeking. To tell it true, at the rate you are going, you might have to forego swag-seeking entirely. Obviously, that is a distressing prospect, considering just how much wealth is just lying about you in this house ... but you also have to consider that you already have a handsome little hoard of your own, waiting for you back in the Belfry. And of course, the longer your head start on the Inquisition is, the more likely you are to make a - oh, damn your black luck! Oil sconces! Well, so much for stockpiling candles ... You spend more than a few moments single-handedly fumbling with the sconce - which even at your height is still over your head - before you finally figure out how to get at the wick. You bring the snap-sparker to bear on it, and soon you get the wick silently sizzling away. For a brief second, you consider trying to take the entire sconce off of the wall, to carry it with you instead of the 'stick ... but as the sconce doesn't have anything on it that looks like a reservoir, you think it might get its oil from a line in the walls. Resigned to sticking with the 'stick for the immediate future, you walk over to a few of the other sconces and light them up. As you return to the fireplace, it occurs to you in passing just how ... odd it is, to have a sitting room like this. On the second floor. With absolutely no windows. And now that you notice it, with only one door. To be sure, you can understand why Aldoin would want to muster up as much privacy as possible, but ... well, it is just unsettling, that's all. And it certainly doesn't help that whenever you are looking at the Construct - as you are now - your back is to the room's only door. Damn it, is this more induced paranoia, or is this genuine instinct?
You stifle a sigh, and turn your attention fully to the Construct in front of you. Immediately you notice that this portion of the Construct appears to be ... you'd describe it as 'wrapped' in an pallid and fleshy Membrane with a really noticeable oily sheen. Of more interest than the texture is the Glyphs that have been etched onto the Membrane- and the occasional protrusions you can see here and there underneath the 'wrap', some significantly larger than others. A number of the wrist-thick Conduits lead into the mass, but the juncture - or possibly, the socket - is covered up by the Membrane. Beyond that ... even though the Construct is squirming in place atop the andirons, it is making no noise that you can hear, nor it is releasing any redolence of any kind - in fact, the only thing you can smell at the moment is the fraying sausage link you still have around your neck. Beyond whatever is giving the Membrane its sheen, you can see no evidence that there is any physical discharge from the Construct - and when you timidly stick out your hand to check, you can feel no heat or nor cold nor anything else emanating from it. Having exhausted every other avenue for inspection, you shakily swallow in your suddenly dry throat before closing the distance to the hearth and the mass that bulges out of it. You are a full-stride and a half away from the Construct - and nothing happens. At a full stride away, nothing happens. Same at a half-stride, an arm's length, a hand's breadth and even a finger's breadth. And when you hastily and softly poke what you judge to be the center of the mass, still nothing happens - though you do notice that the Construct is warm to the touch; though considering the scale and type of cast that is in play here, it is surprising that it is merely warm. In fact, just considering the amount of Fuel that a cast like this would need, you are surprised that touching this Organ isn't like touching the door of a working furnace.
> Please choose ONE of the following:> You may have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, but for now, you are going to hold off on any further contact with the Construct - you will inspect only what you can see now. > You may have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, but for now, you are going to reach out and into it through the Firmament and see what you can learn that way instead.> As you have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, you are going to try to pull it out of the fireplace, so you can get a better look at the Glyphs on the Membrane.> As you have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, you are going to try to unwrap the Membrane, so you can get a better look at the Glyphs - as well as the protrusions underneath.> As you have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, you are going to disconnect the Wrapped Mass from the wrist-thick Conduit so you can get the best possible look at the whole thing.Okay, that is the 'run' for today. I'll be back tomorrow, probably sometime in the early afternoon (Eastern Standard Time). It is good to be back!
>>5794674>You may have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, but for now, you are going to reach out and into it through the Firmament and see what you can learn that way instead.
>>5794674>> As you have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, you are going to try to pull it out of the fireplace, so you can get a better look at the Glyphs on the Membrane.If there's a tie later I'm fine with the firmament option too.
>>5794674>You may have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, but for now, you are going to reach out and into it through the Firmament and see what you can learn that way instead.Hell's Heights.
>>5794674> You may have determined - provisionally - that it is safe to touch the Construct, but for now, you are going to reach out and into it through the Firmament and see what you can learn that way instead.We haven't really done a lot of astral plane stuff, I'm curious!
Alright, closed and writing!
Without taking your eyes off of the Construct, you get down on your knees in front of it, then you stoop your head under the mantle and lintel of the fireplace, staying clear of the wrist-thick Conduit as much as you can. You rake your eyes back and forth over the Construct, greedily taking in every detail that you can. After a couple of passes, it occurs to you that the Glyphs that have been Scrivened onto the Membrane that the Organ is wrapped in might be the same - or at least functionally similar to the Glyphs on the wooden blocks, embedded into the Conduit ... but when you compare the two, you find that beyond being Scrivened in the same Language, there is no obvious similarity between the two of them. From your Interpretation of the Glyphs that you can see, their function seems to be split between compression, thermal regulation, and ... anti-coagulation? Obviously, an Organ of this size - let alone complexity - is not going to be able to get away with running 'dry' or even with hydrostatic internals. No, an Organ like this would need organs of its own; a fully functional pulmonary and circulatory system - and the blood to pump through it. Or at least, something that could fill the role of blood. And you can also understand that an emitter-Organ would presumably be very delicate, and that it could conceivably end up damaging itself somehow. So the presence of the membrane makes sense as a way to protect the Construct from tearing itself up or splitting apart under its own weight, as does the compression aspect of the Glyphs. But anti-coagulation? You'd want to bleeding, not clotting. You check to make sure that you Interpreted the Glyph correctly - and your second reading comes out the same as the first; compression, thermal regulation, and anti-coagulation. Still confused, you treble check, making sure that there isn't an Inverter Modifier on the Clause of the Glyph that covers the anti-coagulation aspect. There isn't; moreover, there aren't any Inverter Modifiers in any of the Glyphs that you can see. You sigh exasperatedly - which turns into an exasperated sounding cough. As you clear your throat, you rack your brain, trying to puzzle your way out of this ... but unless this Glyph has been Scrivened in a Language that is almost identical to the one you believe it to be in, save for 'anti-coagulation', then you aren't able to unravel this. Perhaps ... perhaps you should try reaching into the Glyph. Assuming it was active, and there weren't security-sureties Woven into the Membrane that the Glyphs were Scrivened on to stop or counter your incursion, you could get a clearer picture. Honestly though, if you were willing to risk reaching, then you might just be better served reaching into the body of the Construct instead - all things considered, you are almost certain that the emitter-Organ is active at the moment ... not on you, blessedly, but elsewhere in the house.
Presumably, there would be a lot more you could glean from the Organ than just its outermost layer. Of course, considering the Draw that the cast from the emitter-Organ must have, if anything were to go wrong, odds are it would end up much worse for you ...Oh, damn it all to the Heights of Hell, you need something to show for all of this! > Please choose ONE of the following:> Reach into the Glyph on the Membrane> Reach into the emitter-Organ
>>5795236>Reach into the Glyph on the Membrane
>>5795236> Reach into the emitter-Organ
>>5795236> Reach into the Glyph on the Membrane
>>5795236>> Reach into the Glyph on the Membrane
>>5795236>Don't reach in after all. Move on.
>>5795574>>5795375>>5795307>>5795297>>5795246Alright, consider this closed. Writing.
You shift your weight on your knees as you consider your options. Occasionally, you will shoot glances over your shoulder, though the half-lit room at the door facing directly at your back. After the third time you catch yourself fitfully peering, you start to give some serious credence to the idea that your current unsettled state is somehow being induced by the ranged-remediation cast; perhaps caused by your proximity to the emitter-Organ. Admittedly, you aren't sure how exactly this would work - and you didn't experience similar effects when you were within an arm's length of the other emitter-Organ down in the basement ... but there is much about this Construct and its cast that you don't understand, and for all you know, you could have been on edge or paranoid back there. The subtly of this particular effect would have been lost on you, as you were nearly ready to pass out on your feet. You find yourself sighing again, and increasingly frustrated that for all the time you have spent looking at - and for - this Construct, you still have yet to answer even the most basic questions about this thing. In fact, considering that there are wrist-thick Conduits running up the flue, just like there was in the kitchen fireplace, there might be more of this Construct on the third floor, or in the attic. With the thought of so much more to investigate looming over you, you make a split second decision to reach into the Glyph. Of the two options before you, it is obviously the safer one ... though it remains to be seen if the Glyph is even active. Pushing that concern to the side for now, you take one last long look at the Glyph, carefully lay your right hand on it, and before you can make this any more difficult for yourself than it needs to be, you squeeze your eyes shut hard, to commit yourself. Then you take a series of these sequentially deeper and deeper breaths, then once you are as ready as you can be, you reach - into the Firmament. The pitch-blackness behind your eyelids suddenly becomes more luminous, as if a great light was drawn close to your eyes. A bout of trembling threatens to pull you back, so you stiffen your back to ramrod-straightness - and after a moment, the shivers pass, and once your body flushes with warmth and your breathing becomes noticeably more labored, you know you have managed to reach the Realm of Forms. Staring intently at the luminous darkness, which now resembles a shiny, shifting and rolling oil, you try to reach for the Form of the Glyph. Physically, you are not only right in front of the Glyph, you are actually touching the fraying thing. It should simply be enough to reach into it as if you were reaching into one of your own Glyphs.
But ... you don't feel a Glyph. There is certainly something there to sense, to feel - presumably the Membrane, or even the emitter-Organ underneath it ... but the Form of the Glyph is not Manifesting as you had hoped. It is either inactive, or it is secured against incursions such as this. Now, this isn't the end of the road, but if you wish to pursue this further, things get a bit more complicated - and dangerous. As you know where the Glyph is physically in the Realm of Shadows, then it should be ... safe enough for you to attempt to temporarily Manifest what you believe the Form of the Glyph should look like, based off of your Interpretation of the Glyph, into the 'space' in the Realm of Forms that the Form of the Glyph would be were it active. If your copy of the Form is close enough - and the physical Glyph is not secured against incursions like this - then reaching into the copy in the Realm of Forms will cause the physical Glyph in the Realm of Shadows to activate, which then in turn you should be able to reach into and get a proper feel for. However, if you don't manage it properly, or there is some security-surety that you have overlooked ... then things could go very poorly for you. Setting aside all of the nastiness that a security-surety could do to you while you are vulnerable from Projecting into the Firmament, the worse-case scenario for a failure would be a 'temporary' Manifested Form of the Glyph that becomes permanent, altering or even superseding the True Form of the Glyph. If that was to happen, then the physical Glyph in the Realm of Shadows would end up being subject to those alterations, and would physically change - not only would the Glyph probably break in the process, either you or the Construct would end up getting used for Fuel to make those changes. Suffice to say, that is not a pleasant prospect ... though you really don't have any other options to deal directly with the Glyph. But indirectly ... you know that this Construct is active on some level, as it is alive. So unless there are security-sureties Woven in, then you should be able to reach for it. And if the Construct as a whole is designed in some way to interface or Fuel the Glyphs on the Membrane ... well, then if you were willing to accept the risks of reaching into the Construct instead, you might be able to isolate the portion of the Form that interacts with the Glyph, and from there make deductions about it. You'd also have the opportunity sense and feel the rest of the Construct's Form - but even though you wouldn't be delving as deep into the Firmament as you would if you continued with the Glyph directly, you are still taking risks. This is the emitter-Organ, and you still don't understand its targeting Logic. Who knows what could happen if you were to reach into it while you are vulnerable from Projecting?
You suppose you get to pick your poison here ... or you could forgo them entirely, and limit your investigation to the Realm of Shadows. > Please choose ONE of the following:> Investigate the Glyph directly by Manifesting your Interpretation of it [Requires Rolling]> Investigate the Glyph indirectly by reaching for the Construct instead> Withdraw from the Realm of Forms, and physically investigate the Construct for more clues
>>5796018>> Withdraw from the Realm of Forms, and physically investigate the Construct for more clues
>>5796018> Investigate the Glyph directly by Manifesting your Interpretation of it [Requires Rolling]Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
>>5796018> Withdraw from the Realm of Forms, and physically investigate the Construct for more clues
>>5796018>Investigate the Glyph directly by Manifesting your Interpretation of it [Requires Rolling]
>>5796018> Investigate the Glyph indirectly by reaching for the Construct instead
Okay, I'm back ... and I see we have a 2-2-1 tie.As I don't feel comfortable rolling for this, I suppose we will have to wait for a tiebreaker.
> Withdraw from the Realm of Forms, and physically investigate the Construct for more cluesWe can save the riskier stuff for last.
Closed and writing.
>>5796018I would prefer to keep investigating the glyph, but I ain’t willing to tie the vote up again. Consider this a tiebreaker in favor of investigating, if the vote becomes tied up again.>>5796443No offense friend- but in my experience in this quest, it’s always better to bite the bullet and reap the rewards immediately rather than trying to wait and play it safe, for the safe option always complicates our efforts in the future.
Maybe ... maybe you have put the cart before the horse here. With the risks involved in investigating the Glyph or the Construct in the Realm of Forms, wouldn't it make more sense to exhaust all of your options in the Realm of Shadows first? Suddenly, sensation begins to return to your knees - which is the actually the first time that you noticed that you had lost feeling, though from your very limited experience with Projection, that is typical. However, thinking about physical sensations like this restores feeling piecemeal to the rest of your body, and before you know it, your Projection is faltering. Disappointed with the yourself, you ease yourself back into the Realm of Shadows, letting the luminous of the darkness falter and fade to the typical view of the back of your eyelids - though you know enough to wait to open your eyes only once the tightness in your chest and the full-body flush of warmth has faded away. Once your eyes are open, you blink freely as you try to get them adjusted back to the Flesh as quick as you can. Through the 'veil' of these blinks, you stare down at the Construct - right where and as you left it. And as you do, you start to seriously second guess your decision to continue your investigation in the Flesh. This isn't like it was down in the kitchen, or in the stairwell of the servant's stair, where there was poor lighting and circumstances that could cause you to miss something. As it sit and strains before you, the emitter-Organ is an open book; one that you have already read. If you wanted to limit your investigation to the Realm of Shadows for the nonce, then to learn more about the Glyphs or the Construct as a whole, you are going to have to move it, one way or another.> Please choose ONE of the following:> You are going to try to turn it over, to see if there are any other Glyphs on the other side of the Construct. > You are going to try to pull the Construct out of the chimney, in part to make it easier to look at, in part to see if anything happens, and in part to make it easier if you do decide to try to detach it later. > You are going to try to unwrap or pull away a portion of the Membrane over the emitter-Organ, so you can see what the Organ underneath really looks like - and possibly understand the relationship between Glyph, Membrane and Organ better.
>>5796630> You are going to try to turn it over, to see if there are any other Glyphs on the other side of the Construct.
>>5796630>> You are going to try to turn it over, to see if there are any other Glyphs on the other side of the Construct.
>>5796630> You are going to try to unwrap or pull away a portion of the Membrane over the emitter-Organ, so you can see what the Organ underneath really looks like - and possibly understand the relationship between Glyph, Membrane and Organ better.
>>5796630>You are going to try to turn it over, to see if there are any other Glyphs on the other side of the Construct.
>>5796630>You are going to try to unwrap or pull away a portion of the Membrane over the emitter-Organ, so you can see what the Organ underneath really looks like - and possibly understand the relationship between Glyph, Membrane and Organ better.
Well ... you suppose it is as they say - if there is nothing ventured, then how can there be anything to gain? And really, after all of this, you need something a bit more than a confused Interpretation of a Glyph to show for it. For a start, you are going to try to turn the Construct over, to see if there are other Glyphs - different Glyphs - on the other side of the Membrane. If you are right about the 'style' of the Glyphs that you have seen and Interpreted already, then this isn't shooting in the dark by any stretch of the imagination. There are two primary 'styles' of Glyphs - Linothorax, the composite 'style' and Cuirass, the singular 'style'. Linothorax Glyphs - like the ones on the Membrane before you - are low-Draw, and the Bearer or the Bearing Article will have a number of these Glyphs all over. All of these Glyphs are intended to activate simultaneously, and work in tandem to induce the intended cast onto the Bearer or the Bearing Article. As is the case with the Membrane, it is typical for Linothorax Glyphs to be identical ... but it is also typical for Glyphs in this 'style' to be spaced out regularly over the Bearer, commonly in a particular pattern - which is not the case on the Membrane. There is no rhyme or reason that you can see. And you can only think of two explanations for that. You could be dead wrong about the Glyphs. They could be in the Cuirass 'style' instead, like your Hide-Eyes, Strange-Staining and Cold-Touch Glyphs - high-Draw, with only one needed per cast. Beyond redundancy or sequencing, you aren't sure why so many Cuirass Glyphs would be needed, but because only one is needed for each Bearer, the placement of these Glyphs is inconsequential ... unless there are other Glyphs or Mysteries that could interfere with its intended function. That also happens to be the case for Linothorax Glyphs too. It is possible that there is another set of Glyphs or something else on the other side of the Membrane, and the irregular spacing of the Linothorax Glyphs is a necessary precaution to ensure that the neither side of the Membrane breaks or otherwise impedes the cast or the function of the opposite side. Invigorated at the prospect of finally getting some answers for one of your questions, you start towards the Construct to flip it over - then you catch yourself. Not only are you dealing with a Mystery that you know next to nothing about, you have no idea how strong that Membrane is, what would happen if you were to injure or tear it ... and perhaps most importantly, if that beady oily sheen is something that you should be exposing yourself to so carelessly. Determined now to do this properly, you decide that you need a bit more elbow room on hand - so with great care and deliberation, you work your way out from underneath the mantle and lintel of the fireplace, still on your knees.
You are looking after your head, so you don't rap it on the stonework, you are looking at the Construct so you don't somehow manage to jostle it and risk hurting the Membrane ... and you are even being careful of your apron, to make sure that you don't catch it on anything and accidentally dump out one of the pockets or tear it on the cut and polished stone of the hearth. It takes frustratingly long, but you do manage to get free and clear of the fireplace without incident. You straighten yourself up, while remaining on your knees, then as a final precaution, you get the 'stick well clear of the Construct - that oily sheen on the Membrane looks flammable, and you could just see yourself being the brute by accidentally lighting the Construct on fire as you are trying to study it. But while you aren't likely to turn the Construct into Strange kindling anymore, there is another risk that you simply cannot put aside. The mass of the emitter-Organ is perched on a cast iron-fire-dog, and you are concerned that simply trying to turn it over in place will rent the Membrane right apart. So it seems that even though you don't intend to take the Organ out of the chimney, you are still going to have to lift it to clear the prongs of the andiron before the turning. As certain as the Stars, that is going to make things difficult, especially when you consider that only the back third of the thing is actually resting on the fire-dog, the rest of the mass is simply held in tension. Somehow. Possibly by the 'compression' Clause of the Glyphs, possibly by the Conduit, possibly by the Organ itself - which you haven't seen much off, wrapped and concealed as it is by the Membrane. Perhaps even it is a bit of all three ... but you are getting lost in the weeds here. What you need to focus on now is how to lift and then turn the Threadbare thing, not how it is holding itself up. So you take the better part of a minute, looking the entire thing over again. Eventually, you settle on the best spot to lift the thing - but immediately you realize that you are not going to be able to get a good grip or leverage without putting your head right into the middle of the wrist-thick Conduit running up and down the firebox. Impatient with yourself, you resolve that if it is safe enough to lift the Construct, then it should be safe enough to touch the Conduit too. With that, you duck your head down even lower, and move further into the fireplace. As you move in, brushing up against the Conduit, they start to sway back and forth a bit - seemingly trying to get back into the position they were in before you dislodged them. Of course, these Conduit have quite a bit of weight to them - and if their speed they demonstrated earlier wasn't an indication of their strength, then how much the hurt when they smack into you certainly is.
As you move in, you get your ears boxed, and your neck and shoulders - still sore and sliced up from last night - slapped and thumped for your troubles. Blessedly, once you get to where you intended to go and stop moving, the Conduit starts to settle down, though you are still getting a little roughed up. Keen to be done with this, you get both of your arms around the Construct, you hold it tight - and then you start to lift, getting both of your feet underneath you in the process. Maker's Mercy, why does your left arm hurt so bad? Still, you put all you can into this, and you are rewarded with the sensation of the Organ moving freely in your arms, no long resting on the andiron. You think you might be clear of the tops of the fire-dogs, but as you are moving again, the Conduit has resumed slapping you about the head, which makes seeing what you are doing in the cramped quarters of the firebox even harder than they would have been otherwise. Wanting to be absolutely sure, you jerk the mass even higher - and then the Socketing Needle in the crook of your left arm jolts itself in deeper somehow. You fraying moron - your left arm wasn't just hurting because of the ranged-remediation cast! But as mad as you are - and in as much pain as you are - you are not giving up on this. You grind your teeth, and you do your best to blink away the tears accumulating in the corners of your eyes as you slowly and steady shift and twist the mass in your hands. You know that you aren't going to be able to flip the thing over ... but if you were just able to manage a quarter turn, that would be enough. The Organ is squirming in your arms, and you can see that the oily sheen on the Membrane is getting all over your apron, but you are almost certain that you have made more than enough of a turn by the time you feel your arms start to fail on you. Moving quickly, you line the Organ back up with the fire-dogs as best you can while being belted in the head by the Conduit, then you set it down as carefully as you can. Somehow you manage to get the thing back on the andiron before your grip completely gives way. You pull your smarting head out from amongst the Conduit, and take your first good look at your handiwork here. Immediately, you can see that there aren't other Glyphs on this other side of the Membrane - because there barely is an other side to the Membrane. Instead, the edges of it are pinned into the fringes of a massive protrusion, leaving it uncovered. You see the prehensile orifices, the regular contractions, the look of mass - immediately, you can tell what it is. A Fuel Governor, sometimes called a Fuel Pump. So it seems that you haven't found the emitter-Organ after all, you found the Construct's Fuel Nodule instead. An absolutely gargantuan Nodule! Pattern's Perdition! How close were you a few minutes ago to reaching into this? Too damned close!
It would have been as if you threw yourself onto a fire, to try to determine just how hot it was. Or ... alright, perhaps that is a bit of an exaggeration. Reaching into a Nodule of this size wouldn't guarantee you getting hurt, like you would if were to touch an open flame - but with so much of That-Which-Is-Drawn on hand in the Nodule, even the smallest of missteps could have had serious consequences. But you refuse to cry over milk that wasn't spilt, because this ... this right here is an incredible find. You don't know how much Fuel remains in it, and without a Dowser that has been paired with this particular Governor, the only way you could find out is by getting this thing on the Life-Loom and trying to Draw into it. Odds are you'd foul that up somehow, but forget that for now. Don't worry about how much is left. Just ... the capacity on this thing. Judging from how heavy it is, it has to be more than a Hundred-Weight. A Six-Score, perhaps? No, that seems a bit high, once you factor out the weight of the Membrane and the Governor - oh, and the protrusions, assuming that they are Moderators or Optimizers or whatever the fraying things are called, and not just irregular growths of the Nodule. So, what, a Nine-Dozen then? You look down at your apron pocket, where you have crammed your bundled spare dress into one of your pockets. Inside that mess, Shielded by the False Silverware, is your remaining supply of Fuel Nodules that still carry 'charge'. One of them at maximum capacity could Fuel eight individual casts with your Wand of Head-Knocking. Now, with eight casts in an Ounce Nodules, and sixteen ounces in a pound, that is ... one hundred and thirty-six casts for - no, damn it, one hundred and twenty-eight casts, for one pound of Fuel Nodule. And if you are right, and this is a Nine-Dozen - one hundred and eight pounds of Fuel Nodule - right here in front of you, then the maximum capacity of this Nodule expressed in the lowest intensity cast possible with your wand would be ... uh ... well, it would be quite a bit over ... ten thousand casts. And that is just at the baseline of efficiency - if those protrusions are ... whatever they are, the things that make Nodules 'carry' more Fuel per pound then they typically do; but if they were, then the capacity could be higher still. Of course, you'd have serious reservations about actually Socketing this monstrosity to your Wand of Head-Knocking and casting with it. With so much Fuel on hand, if anything were to go wrong, it would really go wrong ... not to mention, with so much available, the wand might end up Overdrawing, without some dedicated ... you think they are called Regulators. Father never really taught you about high-end Nodule design or much about Fuel at all - probably because he was concerned that you'd be messing around with them behind his back if he did.
Not to mention, you doubt that you will ever find yourself in a situation where you are within six yards of ten thousand or so men who you need to knock out for a few seconds. And to be sure, the Nodule is presumably quite far from its capacity at this point. Still ... even if it only had a tenth of its total 'charges' remaining. That is more than a thousand casts! Pattern's Peace, this puts you in a predicament, doesn't it? Everything that you have seen of the Construct so far indicates that once it is done Cleansing the house, it is going to Cleanse itself away as well. All of it, including this incredible Fuel Nodule, as well as the emitter-Organ, wherever exactly it is. Are you going to be able to accept that? > Please choose ONE of the following: > These Constructs were put here for a reason. You will take every opportunity you can to study them, but you will not risk bungling things up by trying to make off with this Fuel Nodule, or any other part of the Construct. > You will take the time to study this Construct, without doing anything that could break it, or impede its intended function; Cleansing this house. Once you are done poking around with the Nodule and the emitter-Organ, you will continue to investigate and pilfer your way through the rest of the house, while these Constructs continue to Cleanse the place. If you finish going through the house before the Constructs finish Cleansing it, then you will make a decision then on taking pieces of them with you - this ensures that as much of the house as possible gets Cleansed as intended.> Who knows how long it would take you to figure out how to make a Nine-Dozen Fuel Nodule on your own? Pattern's Perdition, who knows if you will ever able to figure it out? And you still have no idea about how this Construct prioritizes what to target for Cleansing, or how it coordinates with the other Construct. For all you know, this Construct could be just minutes away from running out of targets and initializing its self-Cleanse. You are not walking away from this. After all, the whole reason you are still in the Mount is to protect your father's work - this right here is your father's work, so hurry up and protect it! Attempt to disconnect it immediately.
>>5797545> These Constructs were put here for a reason. You will take every opportunity you can to study them, but you will not risk bungling things up by trying to make off with this Fuel Nodule, or any other part of the Construct. Don't want to bungle Father's plans.
>>5797545>These Constructs were put here for a reason. You will take every opportunity you can to study them, but you will not risk bungling things up by trying to make off with this Fuel Nodule, or any other part of the Construct.
>>5797545>> Who knows how long it would take you to figure out how to make a Nine-Dozen Fuel Nodule on your own? Pattern's Perdition, who knows if you will ever able to figure it out? And you still have no idea about how this Construct prioritizes what to target for Cleansing, or how it coordinates with the other Construct. For all you know, this Construct could be just minutes away from running out of targets and initializing its self-Cleanse. You are not walking away from this. After all, the whole reason you are still in the Mount is to protect your father's work - this right here is your father's work, so hurry up and protect it! Attempt to disconnect it immediately.
>>5797545> These Constructs were put here for a reason. You will take every opportunity you can to study them, but you will not risk bungling things up by trying to make off with this Fuel Nodule, or any other part of the Construct. There is this much fuel here for a reason. And if Father could acquire such a nodule so readily as to be willing to 'casually' dispose of it then I'm sure that one day we can as well.
>>5797545> These Constructs were put here for a reason. You will take every opportunity you can to study them, but you will not risk bungling things up by trying to make off with this Fuel Nodule, or any other part of the Construct.Is there a way to charge our existing nodules with this?
>>5797852The Nodules that Chlotsuintha has on hand are all 'charged' to capacity. Alright, consider this closed. I'll get to writing right away.
>>5797886I actually want to debate this when I get back home- this Large Fuel Nodule is revolutionary, and will undoubtedly be useful when we finally leave the mount. We simply shouldn’t let this get burnt to cinders when it’s finished.>>5797685>>5797782Father may have built this, but whether this was part of the plan is a different question entirely- and there are serious concerns that Aldion’s family is already incriminated beyond salvage.
>>5798067I'm willing to come back to this if we discover enough about this thing to come to the conclusion that there will be leftover fuel after its job is complete and if we can determine when that actually is so that we know when to disconnect the fuel nodule.
You ... you are going to have to accept it. As hard as it may be, you are going to let this one go. By designing, Weaving and deploying these Constructs here, your father is being responsible, like a Witch should. Like ... you weren't. After you ... damn it all. It wasn't bad enough that you just walked away from the ... unfolding calamity in the Midden and Morgue, that you turned your back on the Coroners or that idiot Animal Control Leper that effectively reported himself to the Inquisition, no, you were going to go out of your way to undermine your own father's deliberate, time-intensive and expensive effort to do the right thing. How ... just how selfish are you? You choke down a shaky breath and wipe angrily at your eyes when you feel tears forming. But there will be a horn-full of opportunities later to beat yourself up over this - right now, you need to be wise with your time. Wiser than you have been, certainly. The issue at hand; you have no idea how much time you are going to have with these Constructs before they Cleanse themselves. So it behooves you to study them as hard as you have ever studied anything immediately. Except ... you aren't thinking very clearly at the moment - case in point, you managed to overlook the needle in your arm before you tried to lift more than one hundred pounds of Fuel Nodule. If you rely on memory alone to keep your findings with the Constructs, then details might get flipped - or dropped entirely. You would like to think that you could teach yourself to make a Nodule like this on your own, eventually - but you aren't sure. Father had mother. Right now, it looks like you are going to be on your own. Setting that aside, notes would be an unparalleled boon for your studies. You have the journal with the 'map' of the basement in it to write in, but nothing to write with. And while you are sure that you could remedy that by getting yourself to a study or some-such room for a spot of quick pilfering, you are concerned with how long it might take you to find such a room - and more acutely, with how long the Constructs have left. It wouldn't serve for you to waste the remaining time you had with the Construct off somewhere, looking for a quill and pot, would it. Perhaps ... perhaps if you look at it straight-away, then look for something to write with immediately after, while it is still fresh in your head? > Please choose ONE of the following:> You will focus on the Construct now, and finding something to write with later. It is even possible that the Construct will still be in one piece at the point, so you could end up having your sweetroll and eating it too.> You will find a quill and pot immediately. The Construct should be good for at least the next ten minutes or so - but an hour later? The odds certainly aren't as good. Just a moment now, and you can be practically assured that the Construct will be on hand as you make your notes.
>>5798155> You will find a quill and pot immediately. The Construct should be good for at least the next ten minutes or so - but an hour later? The odds certainly aren't as good. Just a moment now, and you can be practically assured that the Construct will be on hand as you make your notes.Just sprint, it won't take more than a minute or two.
> You will find a quill and pot immediately. The Construct should be good for at least the next ten minutes or so - but an hour later? The odds certainly aren't as good. Just a moment now, and you can be practically assured that the Construct will be on hand as you make your notes.
>>5798080Clearly there is going to be leftover fuel- father is meticulous, and he certainly wouldn’t underfuel a mitigation Construct if given the choice. Besides- there may be other nodules connected to this Construct, like that living thing in the box in the basement.>>5798155Consider me supporting the current majority for expediency sake- but my guess is that it’s logic would dictate that all Strangeness be remediated until a predetermined draw level, and if it’s father we’re talking about, he’d probably set it up so that the Construct remains active at the predetermined unStrange draw level for a longer length of time, to ensure all Strageness has been remediated in totality. And with Chlot not just Strange, but generating Strangeness, it might take even longer- potentially another reason why there are no witchlets in the house, beyond the mitigation pain.
>>5798155>> You will find a quill and pot immediately. The Construct should be good for at least the next ten minutes or so - but an hour later? The odds certainly aren't as good. Just a moment now, and you can be practically assured that the Construct will be on hand as you make your notes.So long as we don't get distracted by literally everything that we see is every single one of the rooms we search, this should go fine
>>5798283Also, another point- there are certainly other witches here that have a vested interest in cleaning up the Strangeness, and will conduct an inspection to make sure that all the Strageness is mitigated. Taking the fuel nodule later wouldn’t majority impair their ability to cleanse the rest of the Strangeness.
>>5798155You know. Now that I stop and think about the number of casts this battery is capable of... are we sure these constructs are meant to burn down the house and not blow it to smithereens?
>>5798319I’d consider it contrary to their interests, but I love the idea of Chlot getting that idea in her head and doing a mad dash to grab all the swag possible before the house implodes.
>>5798155>> You will find a quill and pot immediately. The Construct should be good for at least the next ten minutes or so - but an hour later? The odds certainly aren't as good. Just a moment now, and you can be practically assured that the Construct will be on hand as you make your notes.
Alright, closed and writing.
Sorry about the delay - I had a hard time deciding how to take the update, when back and forth a few times on the draft. Satisfied now, will get it out soon.
As you mull - or more truthfully, desperately churn - this latest decision over, your eyes are locked on the still trembling mass of the Nine-Dozen. And the longer you look at it, the more and more ... complex the Construct looks, the more deliberate the placement of everything seems. How can you possibly expect yourself to remember every one of these details well enough to render this in script and sketch? You ... you just can't. As much as you hate bailing on something you have underway, only to start on something else ... you just don't see relying on your memory for this working out well for you. Say you were to try to Weave a Nine-Dozen, or any larger, more complex Fuel Nodule. As it was, with the kind of Draw that something like that would involve, you would be taking your Thread into your hands. Now just think of how much more dangerous it would be if you were trying to recreate that following unclear or unsound notes and descriptions. That prospect is enough to get you back on your feet, though you are far from pleased about it. Scowling - and grimacing a bit too, on account of your left arm - you snatch up the 'stick, turn on your heel and head straight for the door. As you quit the room, it occurs to you once more how ... unusual this room is. There are couches and tables to attend them, a few chairs in one of the corners, attended by a single, round table. Besides these, there sconces on the walls, the chandelier on the ceiling and the carpet on the floor ... oh, and the fireplace, too - but beyond that, there is nothing else in the room. A lot of seating, and a lot of light in a relatively unadorned room right next to the servant's stairs on the second floor. From your ... admittedly limited experience with such room, this is an unusual one. Then again, there was that odd ... burst of paranoia that hit you as soon as you entered this room. Perhaps this is just an outgrowth of that? After all, how much do you really know about sitting rooms, or ... interior design? Your only exposure to these kind of places is entirely from either staking them out or passing through them during knock-downs. Damn it, you belabored this point enough. As you pass through the door back out into the hallway, you take a deep breath - hoping that it will help clear your head. You ... don't feel much more focused, but it at least helps you break yourself away from that meandering, lingering train of thought. Now, on to the matter at hand. A pen, and a pot to go with it. Really, if you think about it, this place is probably lousy with writing implements. Not only was Aldoin keeping records of his experimental plantings down in the basement, but the man was a Governor-Docent of the University to boot. Surely, there is a study, or a library, or a nook. A more typical sitting room, perhaps, complete with a desk for correspondence. The question now, however, is how best to find these rooms ...
> Please choose ONE of the following:> Look specifically for rooms likely to have pens and pots - to isolate your search. > Just start opening every door you come across - to expand your search. I am really sorry about the double delay everyone. All of a sudden a bunch of stuff just got piled up on me. I've worked through it though, and I intend to get back to running this quest with multiple updates a day - which includes tonight, if I can get enough votes in before I need to hit the hay. Regardless, thanks for sticking with me - again.
>>5801777> Just start opening every door you come across - to expand your search. With a few quick glances we can probably get a sense of what each room is and the relation of each room to another. Again, we aren't concerned about noise anymore. We can just sprint through the house and throw open every door and look inside. It probably won't even take a minute.
>>5801778Support for expediency sake- maybe we can even grab a satchel or two as well for the books below
>>5801777> Just start opening every door you come across - to expand your search. Let the good times roll :)
>>5801777> Just start opening every door you come across - to expand your search.
Okay, well, I am not quite done with the update yet, and I keep catching myself writing sentences that don't make any sense, so I am going throw up some suitable overnight vote instead, and finish this properly tomorrow. > Please choose ONE of the following:> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a brace of mundane, concealable weapons that are in proper working order. Moreover, they are better than the pin-stilettoes.> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a very handsomely-made pocket timekeeper in proper working order and an equally handsomely made naturalist's rucksack. > Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find an out of place book of considerable interest - and worth. Father would have wanted to get his hands on this, certainly.> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a clue for one of the other mysteries of this house. Moreover, the clue itself has intrinsic monetary value.
>>5801944> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a very handsomely-made pocket timekeeper in proper working order and an equally handsomely made naturalist's rucksack. Books are nice and all but we have enough materiel to read and not enough time to read all of it.I forget if we have a timekeeper already, but I seriously doubt it, and this isn't an item we are likely to come by legitimately given our schedule. Both of these items are just plain useful.I think in any serious outbreak of violence it'll come down to our wand or running, unless our opponent is taken by surprise or is of poor constitution/poorly equipped.Mysteries, meh, we'll find the rest eventually.
>>5801944> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a very handsomely-made pocket timekeeper in proper working order and an equally handsomely made naturalist's rucksack. Just like the op pic :)
>>5801944>> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a clue for one of the other mysteries of this house. Moreover, the clue itself has intrinsic monetary value.
>>5801944I do quite like the idea of having a pocket watch, but these MYSTERIES intrigue me.
and of course I forget to actually paste the choice I have chosen because morning brain> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a clue for one of the other mysteries of this house. Moreover, the clue itself has intrinsic monetary value.
>>5801944> Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a very handsomely-made pocket timekeeper in proper working order and an equally handsomely made naturalist's rucksack.
>>5801944>>5801944 > Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a clue for one of the other mysteries of this house. Moreover, the clue itself has intrinsic monetary value.Mystery box mystery box!!
>>5801944>Chlotsuintha doesn't find a pen or a pot in the first room she searches, but she does find a very handsomely-made pocket timekeeper in proper working order and an equally handsomely made naturalist's rucksack.
Alright, that is 4-3 for the rucksack and pocket timekeeper against the clue. Consider this closed. I'll re-work what I have of the update to include this, then I will finish it as soon as I can.
>>5801944I would just like to say- if our Father would’ve wanted this book from a fellow witchlet, it’s usefulness and worth is probably absurd.So too is actual brace of mundane, concealable weapons that are in proper working order- that are better than the pin-stilettoes. I repeat- they are better than our current loadout. Invaluable in our line of life.
>>5802484Eh, there will be other rooms.
>>5802705God I hope so
>>5802805I mean...the prompts literally say 'in the first room she searches'.
Well ... no matter how it is dressed and cut, needing to get your hands on a pen and ink to properly record your findings with the Construct is a complication. But perhaps it does not need to be a huge, time-chewing complication. If you were to just open every single door that you came across, then from a quick look inside, you would be able to determine if it was a room likely to have writing implements or not. Feeling fortified by this latest little scheme of yours, you start towards the nearest door - only to realize that it is the door that leads to the servant's stair you took up to the second floor. You feel foolish, charging out like you were some brute bull ... but you continue forward, because in between the door that leads to the stairs and the end of the hallway there is another door. You cannot remember if you saw it or not the first time you were in the hall - though you wouldn't be too surprised if you didn't, considering that nearly all of the time that you spend in the corridor, your back would have been to it. It looks to be narrower than the other doors, suggesting that it might be a closet - though whether it is a 'wet' closet or it simply is for storage, you couldn't say.Equal parts curious and ready to get started with your search, you close the distance and push open the door. The only light in the room comes from the continually stuttering remains of your candle, as well with whatever light filters in from the hallway - which is to say little and less. There is no window in there ... which now that you think about, you should have realized that before you opened the door; the far wall of this room would have to be the inside wall of the servant's stair. Still, you there is enough light on hand for you to definitively make out that this closet is certainly not 'wet'. It is for storage, clearly - and if there is a pen in here somewhere, then you would have to dig for it. There are stacks of folded sheets on both waist-high and neck-high racks along the walls, joined by wooden boxes and decorative odds and ends. There are also larger and cruder crates on the floor by these racks as well, and propped up against the wall are a number of these long and thing metal rods, the purpose of which alludes you at the moment. And there is more - a lot more, obscured by half-shadows, and their own sheer numbers. The room is so full that the space left to move into and through it looks as thin and as irregular as a game-trail. Had you not been through the burning hulk of Gothorum-One last night, this well and truly would have been the biggest mess you had seen in quite some time.
But out of this mess, there is one article that has caught your eye - not a pen, nor an inkwell, unfortunately ... but certainly something useful. Sitting askew on top of one of the waist-high racks is a rucksack. And it is a far cry from the typical specimen, some gaping bundle of salvaged sail-cloth, stitched and strapped up - no, like nearly everything else you have come across in this house, it looks to be thoughtfully made - and without overmuch concern for the cost. Besides the main 'body' of the sack, there looks to be at least a dozen smaller pockets on the outside of it, each with its own flap and toggle to secure it shut. Oddly enough, the thing even has a wooden frame that would rest against the wearer's back and the carry straps all connect into. You have never seen its like before ... but if you had to guess, you'd say that it made it easier to carry heavier loads - you certainly doubt it is to make it any more comfortable. It might not have been what you were looking for ... but honestly, how could you walk away from this? As it is, your apron pockets are at risk of bursting and your arms - especially your left - are aching. So you snatch the sack right off of the stack, and after one last quick look around the room, you quit the closet. Once you are in the marginally better light of the hallway, you set the sack down - and are surprised when you hear something thump against the wood floor. Your first thought is that it was the wooden frame making contact, but now that you look, you can see that with the cut of the straps you don't think the frame made contact with the floor; moreover, the noise sounded metallic. Curiosity getting the better of you, you open up the main body of the rucksack and start to rifle through it. It takes a bit more doing than you would have expected, as the main body of the sack is sub-divided - and there are even pockets on the inside, too! You clear all of them, turning up nothing more than a hint of dirt - no doubt left over from specimens once carried in here. Confused, you turn your attention to the pockets on the outside - which is where you eventually find what you are looking for. Slipped into one of the lower front pockets, is a time-keeper of all things! Maker's Mercy, what a find! It is missing its chain, but as you turn it over it, then open it is up and look at the dial, everything else seems to be there and unbroken. The chain breaking might explain why it was stowed away like this, but it beggars your probity, your credulity that someone could just ... seemingly forget that they had a time-keeper. Admittedly, these mechanized pieces have apparently been getting cheaper and cheaper over the years, but they are still well beyond the means of most of the Empire.
As a gravedigger, you know that it is in vogue for the very wealthy to be buried with a time-keeper, set to the time that their Thread met the Shears. Though ... as a graverobber you know that nearly all of these buried pieces are just as dead as their wearers. Your father tried to teach himself time-keeper keeping, so he could repair these broken ones for sale - he even knocked down a Master Keeper's place of business, for the tools - but in the end, getting or making replacement parts proved too high of a wall to mount. If this one no longer worked, it would do much to explain how someone would be able to forget it in a rucksack in a closet. Truth be told though, it looks to be in a lot better condition then the dozen or so grave-swag keepers that father accumulated before he gave up on his little scheme. Holding your breath without even intending to, you delicately pinch the winding-stem, softly turning it in both directions. When you twist to the right, there is absolutely no give - but when you twist to the left, the stem turns. Not freely or even loosely, either - it is tight and regimented. You bring the keeper closer to your ear, wind it several more times and let go. When the dial-plates start to spin, you damn near drop the thing in surprise. Against all odds, this piece appears to still be in working order - though you are not entirely out of the woods with it yet - it is possible that the damage was subtler in some way, and it loses more time than it should, or it might stop before it works all the way through the winding. But right now, you are absolutely beaming at your freshest bit of swag. Setting it aside for now, you unload your apron pockets into the rucksack, only leaving in the wand, a few pieces of the False Silverware and the pin-stilettoes. After half a second of thought, you decide to keep the time-keeper in your pockets as well; as it was allowed to wind down completely, the device is not telling the correct time. It is possible however, that Aldoin kept another time-keeper somewhere in his house, one that has been wound recently enough to still be telling the true time - if you found it, you could use it to set your little one here ... and if you wound up staying in the house long enough, to check to make sure that your piece wasn't losing too much time. Finished up with your repacking, you loft the 'stick up, and look up and down the hallway. As all light save for the little from the remains of your candle - or more truthfully, the remains of the remains of your candle - is from the window at the far end, you can plainly see that it has gotten darker. Not too dramatically, but ... some time has passed since you came up onto the second floor. With that observation spurring you into action, you start towards the nearest bank of unopened doors. > Please may I have three rolls of 1d4? And if any anon rolls a four, could they please roll a 1d20 as well?
Rolled 3 (1d4)>>5803120like this?
Rolled 3 (1d4)>>5803120
>>5803131Yes, just like that.
Rolled 2 (1d4)>>5803120
Alright, can I get another set of 3 1d4 rolls? Again, if one of them comes up as a 4, could that anon roll a 1d20 please? To clarify how things work - because I ran out of character on the post and didn't write it up in another one - the 1d4 determines if Chlotsuintha finds a room that is likely to have writing implements. If she gets the roll, then the 1d20 determines the odds of the room actually having the implements - after that, it leads into a sight test. It is important to note that it is possible for these odds to be zero, and I have scrambled the outcomes of a 1d20, so the higher the roll does not necessarily correspond to better odds for the test.
Rolled 1 (1d4)>>5803185
Rolled 1 (1d4)>>5803185Room full of pee jugs?
Rolled 3 (1d4)>>5803185
Alright, well, that does it for this stretch of the hallway. I'm going to get lunch, then I will write up a quick update. Once it is up, we will need some more fresh rolls.
>>5803196Or perhaps the professor's research is even worse.
>>5803244There's a reason Father is burning this place to the ground. Heh.
To your surprise, the first door that you try opens up to a room that is completely empty, save for the motes of dust flitting through the air - which you can see clearly, as this room has its own window. You back out of the room and step out into the hallway again. You consider leaving the door open, so you can quickly keep track of which rooms you have been in or not, but after allowing yourself a moment to mull it over, you decide against it. It shouldn't be that difficult to keep track of the rooms - and even if you do get turned upside-down, well, then you will just open the door or doors again and check. It will only take a second; and announcing your presence by keeping the house in disarray ... it is true that you are comfortable enough that no one is in the house beside you for you to walk around the place freely. But what if someone comes through the front door and heads straight up to the second floor, to find all these previously shut up doors swinging wide? And what if - no, damn it all, you are not wrong about being alone. You are alone. It is you, the Constructs in the chimneys, whatever in the Heights of Hell was in that random dug-up chest, and the fraying grass. That is it. If you catch yourself bellyaching one more time about 'what if' you are liable to do something drastic! You have to stop yourself from slamming the door shut, but you see to it that it is properly closed before you move along.Frustrated with yourself and the general lack of progress here, you practically throw yourself at the second door. And to your surprise, you find another empty room lit by the fading light filtering through a window. As you close the door, you mull this over. Perhaps Aldoin didn't have this house built for him as you had assumed. Perhaps he bought it, had it outfitted to fit his particular needs - and ultimately found that he had more house on his hands than he could possibly use. That makes enough sense ... but it doesn't account for the generally aberrant layout of the house, or at least, what looks that way in your eyes. This room and the one that you were just in would have made perfect smaller bedrooms, for his grand-children or even guests -if they had a fireplace. Without one, a nights rest in one of these rooms during Sleep Season would be so could you might as well just sleep outside. There is absolutely no way that an architect could have just overlooked something like that, so they must have had some other intended use ... but whatever it is, it is beyond you. However! The intent behind each room of this house is the absolute least of your concerns. In fact, you should be taking heart right now. An empty room is a room that you don't have to spend anymore precious time on! That's right! Alright, okay - forward! Onward!
You come to the next door and open it up - to find a third empty room. Trying to not falter, you close the door and immediately move to the next one - the last one in this bank of doors, and one of the few remaining in this hallway that you have not opened. This too is an empty room - and in spite of your best efforts, you can no longer shake the feeling that you are overlooking something about these rooms. That said, you are able to keep yourself on target; after shutting up this door as well, you move to the other side of the hall, and try the nearest door. Without any windows, the only light in this room is from your long-suffering candle - but you can make out that this room is in fact furnished. You take a few steps inside and look around a little longer; eventually you determine that this must be ... another sitting room. There are paintings alongside the sconces in this one - and no fireplace, but besides that, it seems to be identical. Now the hair on the back of your neck is rising. What possible purpose could there be of having two nearly identical sitting rooms right next to one another? You get out of that room as quick as you can, and you make absolutely certain that you shut the door. Okay, things have just gone from inexplicable to ... sort of sinister. No, that - no. Surely, there is some patently reasonable explanation for this. It just must be over your head because you haven't spent much time in places like this; or really, because you don't belong in places like this. Not feeling the least bit better, you make haste to the next door - occasionally shooting glances back at the door to that unsettling Doppelganger room - and open it. Another surprise; this door leads into a hallway that looks very similar to the one you are in - except that it has no window to light it. This just gets better and better, doesn't it? > Please may I have three rolls of 1d4? And if any anon rolls a four, could they please roll a 1d20 as well?
Rolled 4 (1d4)>>5803416That feeling when you are in a dream but don't quite realize it yet. Could it be...?
Rolled 8 (1d20)>>5803430
Rolled 4 (1d4)>>5803416
Rolled 4 (1d20)>>5803434Praise the Patternmaker!
>>5803430>>5803432>>5803434>>5803436The amount of 4 synergy here is insane!
Rolled 1 (1d4)>>5803416Chlot is going to go insane if she sees a mansion
> Sight Test; Series I, Run I> DC 30: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is not Keen of Eye, making a Rudimentary Sight Test like this [Easy]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 14 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has next to no knowledge of Aldoin's Second Floor.> + DC 1 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is attempting to search a next-to-unlit area with a nude light> + DC 5 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is prioritizing speed at the moment, but still attempting to seriously search Room VIII-II> - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is well versed in casing rooms for valuables and hiding spots. > - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha was looking around the room as her eyes adjusted, improving the efficacy of her efforts.> - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has a narrow scope of her search, looking for specific spots in Room VIII-II where writing implements might be> DC 42: Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. No hostile re-roll(s)]> No Passes: Chlotsuintha has Extreme Confidence that she has properly searched this room for writing implements. She is wrong, but baring something changing her mind, she will not search here again.> One Pass: Chlotsuintha has High Confidence that she has properly searched this room for writing implements. She is wrong, though she will allow herself at least one more search through Room VIII-II before moving on.> Two Passes: Chlotsuintha has High Confidence that she has properly searched this room for writing implements. She is more like to be right than wrong, though she will allow herself to search again through Room VIII-II before moving on.> Three Passes: Chlotsuintha has Extreme Confidence that she has properly searched this room for writing implements. She is correct in this assessment She gains Knowledge of the Second Floor.> Unique Rule: Critical and Near Critical Failures are nulled for this series of tests.> Unique Rule: For every passed test with digits that sum to 15 or greater, Chlotsuintha finds an article or articles of interest [something in the vein of the rucksack and time-keeper] while searching.> Unique Rule: With the roll on this post, using the scrambled odds from >>5803432, it will be determined if there is or is not a writing implement in Room VIII-II to be found. The three rolls of 1d100 will determine how well the results of Chlotsuintha's search reflects the actual condition of the room.
> Sight Test; Series I, Run I cont'd> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this test.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll of 100 or 99) then Chlotsuintha immediately finds a writing implement with ink, as well as the clue with intrinsic value from >>5801944> May our luck run white, and may I please have three rolls of 1d100?
Rolled 85 (1d100)>>5803838Omniscience?
Rolled 61 (1d100)>>5803838Wah!
Rolled 93 (1d100)>>5803838Oh joy, may our luck be white
Rolled 5 (1d20)Damn it all, the roll fell off the post. My apologies. This is the roll ...
... now, this is the verdict; Chlotsuintha correctly concludes that she has properly searched Room VIII-II when she finds the writing implement that she was looking for! I didn't expect that it would be over so quickly; I figured that it would take two or three runs through the test. A welcome surprise, to be sure. I really don't have anything to put up for an overnight vote, but I figured I'd throw this out there, as a write-in: Assuming that Chlotsuintha is able to make a clean break from Scrimshaw Mount, and arrives in another city or large town without reason to believe that she is being followed or watched, what would she want to do? Not something critical, like stocking up for the frontier, but something entirely for herself. This won't bind us to anything, but suggestions here might crop up as options later.
>>5803884Cook with spices.Feel what it feels like to live as wealthy (sort of), free-ish woman without a mask or people dumping waste on our head for kicks. Just walk the streets, socialize, go to a nice restaurant or something.Have a moment to come to terms with the fact that we may very well never see our father again.Sleep for a whole day, be lazy for a spell.Shopping for nice things.Learn a new skill. A normal one, albeit one that an eccentric rich person might have if it ends up being an odd one.I forget, do animals hate us? Buy a cat or something. Maybe that is too much, just a burden. Pet a cat or dog or something at least.Go horse riding, or learn how to do so.Get around to reading our books.I really have to get around to rereading the quest.
>>5803884Socialize and get some real friends, maybe even boy ones
>>5803884Get Etiquette Lessons- maybe even a tutor- so we can participate in high society without being more of an awkward duckling.Making some of the food Chlot wanted- I do hope none of it goes bad beforehand. Drink some coffee and/or hot coco. Stocking up on alcohol and other alchemical agents and just mess around, experimenting.Staying all day in a bookstore and buying a bunch of useful book- smithing and engineering, totally.Organize and clean up our stuff- it’ll feel nice l bet.I would love to read through those receipts- just for future reference on potential future contacts. I have no doubt that our mysterious Strange foreigners are smugglers/merchants of some sort.I wouldn’t mind knocking down a couple of places either- I’m quite enjoying myself thieving.Talk with strangers, excessively- maybe start bartering on the side, getting skilled as a merchant may prove to be of some value.Praying in the nearest church, and checking the bounty boards- I haven’t forgotten the sins we must atone for.Magical Cocaine and Crab People, if we really want to go crazy here.
>>5803884Get a job
>>5803884Visit a bath house. Properly soak all the grime and stress off.
>>5803884Cooking. Dancing. Horse riding. Getting some men's clothes for solving those murders or just classifying the murder of witches as murders and going after murderous inquisitioners.Eventually set up a new lair.
>>5803884Being treated as a personGetting dressed in fine clothingEnjoying the magic of pubertyExperiencing a relaxing massage Making friends and loversLearning a new language
It would be cool if she found an older female role model.
An update on the update - I am back to square one on it, after somehow neglecting to save my work. It should be finished sometime tonight, hopefully with enough time for there to be a smaller second update with an overnight vote. I'd also like to thank everyone for all of the great ideas; I'm not sure if I will be able to use all of them, but I will certainly try to work in as many as I can - not all at once, though.
Continuing to have problems; internet just went out. I'll get the post up as soon as I can, but under the circumstances, I'll bring the vote forward.> Please choose ONE of the following:> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will continue upstairs to look for the rest of it, particularly the emitter-Organ.> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will attempt to unwrap a portion of the Membrane to look the 'body' of the Nodule, accepting the minor risk of damaging it in the process.> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation, you will attempt to reach into one of the Glyphs on the Membrane again while using a trick to soft-activate it, accepting the minor risk of cascading complications.
>>5804803> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will attempt to unwrap a portion of the Membrane to look the 'body' of the Nodule, accepting the minor risk of damaging it in the process.
>>5804803>>After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will continue upstairs to look for the rest of it, particularly the emitter-Organ.Caution seems wise.
>>5804803> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will continue upstairs to look for the rest of it, particularly the emitter-Organ.
>>5804803>> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will attempt to unwrap a portion of the Membrane to look the 'body' of the Nodule, accepting the minor risk of damaging it in the process.
>>5804803>> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will continue upstairs to look for the rest of it, particularly the emitter-Organ.
> Please choose ONE of the following:> After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will continue upstairs to look for the rest of it, particularly the emitter-Organ.
>>5804803>After concluding the cursory inspection and documentation of the Fuel Nodule, you will attempt to unwrap a portion of the Membrane to look the 'body' of the Nodule, accepting the minor risk of damaging it in the process.
Stop tieing things up arghhhhh. Since when did we get so many players?
Internet should be restored around 2pm Eastern Standard Time. If it isn't for whatever reason, then so help me I will rewrite the update on my phone and post it that way.
>>5805960Or just use hotspot?
You don't consider yourself yellow-stomached, or skittish or ... unduly fearful in any particular way. But the prospect of wandering through completely dark, inexplicably designed corridors ... that, that wouldn't appeal to anyone! Blessedly, there are still three doors that remain untried in this hall. The first of them sits at what is now the far end of the hallway, right by the closet and the sitting room with the fireplace; you have reason to believe that the space has been set aside for the servants of the house - and therefore it is not likely to yield any writing implements, considering the rarity of literacy amongst skill-less Subjects. The other doors are a little further along, closer to the only active source of light in the corridor, a window. Even with the light coming through it diffused somewhat by the torn linen sheet hung over on the outside, to mark the house as being in mourning, it is still much brighter than anything your 'stick can muster. Figuring - or perhaps just hoping - that the door nearest to the window will lead to a room that has windows of its own, you skip over the nearest door, making short work of the distance with long strides. Cautiously - and now with noticeable timidity - you push open the door. The room before you has a number of windows, and even though they are all covered over, the collective light that wins through the linen is more than enough to illuminate the space. And what a space it is! Its like … an exhibition gallery, writ small. You've never been in one, admittedly, but father had knocked down a couple over the years, and he'd told you enough about them for you to recognize one of them. All along the walls, there are these true-to-life paintings of plants; you recognize some as natives to Outremer and the Empire, others you'd judge to be from more exotic climes. There are even a few aquatic plants mixed in with them. Clustered together in the corner, there are a number of these foot-thick tomes, propped up on some substantial looking wood stands. There are rolling stands as well, with blown glass covers over them as well. Most of these are as large as the book stands are, but there are a few that are a bit bigger – and one that it is the size of child's bed. All of these are crowded around the nearest of the windows in the room. Out of the nearest of rollers, you can just make out a hint, right where the lip of the glass mates with the uppermost wood of the frame. Obviously, these are living specimens – but you cannot immediately understand why they would be down here, instead of in the roof-top conservatory? If it was too cold out, then perhaps … but, no, there is no chimney in this room either.
Setting aside those … seemingly unanswerable and unsettl - bothersome, those annoying, meaningless questions, you shift your rucksack on your back a bit, then you move further into the room. The center of this space is given over to three trestles, arranged length-to-length-to-length, and damn near carpeted in dried plants, propped up underneath glass domes. On the other side of them, there – oh, Maker's Mercy! A desk! You tear right over there, and nearly rip the bureau apart opening up all of the drawers. In a matter of seconds, you are able to put your hands on a pot of ink, and you start to offer up a silent prayer to the Patternmaker in thanks. When you find the quills before you are finished you actually have to choke down a sob of relief. You conclude your prayer, then start stuffing the writing implements into you now empty apron pocket. The quills are cut long enough that a few inches of them stick out of the pocket's brim - heh! It looks like you are smuggling a cottage-pheasant down there! Your chuckling withers and dies once you recall that the Construct in the chimney could start Cleansing itself at any moment, and immediately you bolt out of the room with the ink-pot grasped awkwardly, so you can hold it and squeeze the stopper tight all in one hand. It is only once you stop in front of the door to the sitting room with the chimney to hook the handle with the feet of your 'stick that you realize that in your haste, you finally managed to accidentally extinguish what remained of the candle. You cannot even spare it a glance at this point though, instead, you just set the 'stick down just clear of the door, and haul the thing open with you now free left hand. Your range of movement is a bit constrained by the wooden frame on the naturalist's rucksack, and Perdition, does your arm hurt - but all the same, the door flies wide, and that is all you can really care about at the moment. For even at this distance, with the sconces on the far side of the room lit, you can see into the fireplace - and see that the Construct is still there, right where you left it. A wave of relief washes over you - but you will save your silent prayers until you are done with your documentation and inspection. Everything that you can see, you need to describe or depict in sketches as best you can. This limited, shrinking window of time might be the only opportunity you ever get in your life to examine a working, safe and sound Nine-Dozen Fuel Nodule. And once you are done with what you can see of the Nodule as it sits right now, there are other things you need to do as well! > If you haven't voted in >>5804803, please do so to break the tie!
>>5806252I was content to leave this decision with the other anons, but if you truly need a tiebreaker, and the risk truly is minor, then I see no harm in going with the fuel nodule- lord knows that this house is still Strange, so with any luck we may actually get to recover the fuel nodule intact and with a bit of juice in it.
To be clear, you are talking about unwrapping the Membrane of the Nodule, correct?
>>5806583Correct- sorry it took so long to get back to ya, a nap overwhelmed me.
Alright, consider this closed. I'll get to writing.
As determined as you are to describe and depict everything you can see of the Nine-Dozen, it still takes some time before the proverbial well starts to run dry, and you find that you are repeating yourself, describing the same things over again, just in different ways and word. Still, for the sake of any future attempts at recreating such a gargantuan Nodule, you make a split-second decision to jot everything down regardless of how redundant it might seem at the time. After all, you are battered and tired - not to mention under the effect of a ranged-remediation cast - effects that you might not completely understand, or even be aware of. There are those ... disquieting, roiling surges of paranoia, quick to come, quick to leave, though notably, you haven't had any since you began your documentation work here, so you fail to see at the moment how you could tell if they were an effect of the cast, an effect of being in the presence of the Construct - or just your nerves unraveling from everything you have been buried under. But while that is all questions still, the your physical reaction to the cast - which you would judge to still be slowly slakening away - has been incontrovertible. And how long did it take for the realization to roost that the chills, the aches, the assorted pains - that it was the work of a slow-burning, distant Mystery? Perhaps you have grown overly ... concerned ... but, truly, what if it becomes apparent that there was another effect at some later point, an effect that ... clouded your judgement, or otherwise enfeebled your powers of observation, more-so than just the stresses and sleeplessness? So it is with this in mind that you write down everything that comes to you, recording every thought that you have, even the ones that seem to cover already covered ground - hedging your bets, that the second or even third description of the Nodule might carry some seemingly inconsequential detail omitted in the first. A mistake, an oversight here would be unforgivable - regardless if it was caused by an unknown effect of the Mystery, a known effect, or something entirely more mundane. So you sketch and scribe until you are as satisfied as you can be under the circumstances. You blow on the last bits of ink to dry them down, then you take a moment to look at the Construct. While you have gone over every square inch of it now, depicted every Glyph, accounted for every protuberance - all you have really seen is the Membrane and the Governor. If you want to see the body of the Nodule itself - and you desperately do - then you are going to have to try to peel back some of the Membrane, to properly see what lies underneath.
> Please choose ONE of the following:> You will prioritize the integrity of the Membrane. Once you start pulling, if there is any resistance whatsoever - even if you don't think that the Membrane will tear - you will stop regardless. > You will prioritize uncovering the Construct. Once you start pulling, you are not going to stop if you encounter resistance. Only if you get to a point where you believe the Membrane will tear will you stop.> You are determined to uncover the Construct. Once you start pulling, you are not going to stop, even if there is some tearing or damage. Only if you get to a point where you believe that you will kill or disconnect the Membrane will you stop.> You are determined to uncover the Construct completely, by pulling the Membrane off of it entirely. Only if you get to a point where you believe that you will kill or entirely disconnect the Membrane will you stop.> You are absolutely determined to uncover the Construct completely, by pulling or cutting the Membrane off of it entirely. If the Membrane is disconnected or is killed, then that will be the wages of the work - the Construct is more important.
>>5808111> You will prioritize uncovering the Construct. Once you start pulling, you are not going to stop if you encounter resistance. Only if you get to a point where you believe the Membrane will tear will you stop.It's fleshy and oily, I doubt it'll tear. Probably not dry and cracked.
>>5808111> You are determined to uncover the Construct. Once you start pulling, you are not going to stop, even if there is some tearing or damage. Only if you get to a point where you believe that you will kill or disconnect the Membrane will you stop.
>>5808111> You will prioritize the integrity of the Membrane. Once you start pulling, if there is any resistance whatsoever - even if you don't think that the Membrane will tear - you will stop regardless. I think we should be very careful handling the protective membrane covering what is basically a miniature nuclear reactor
>another Trash MC dies via explosionBut I don't think the risk is that high in this case, given that nothing seems unstable about it. More worried about breaking it completely, but a tear or two on the outside shouldn't do that.
>>5808111>You will prioritize the integrity of the Membrane. Once you start pulling, if there is any resistance whatsoever - even if you don't think that the Membrane will tear - you will stop regardless.
>>5808111> You will prioritize the integrity of the Membrane. Once you start pulling, if there is any resistance whatsoever - even if you don't think that the Membrane will tear - you will stop regardless. Even this is risky. Let's not get greedy.
>>5808111> You are determined to uncover the Construct. Once you start pulling, you are not going to stop, even if there is some tearing or damage. Only if you get to a point where you believe that you will kill or disconnect the Membrane will you stop.It’s gonna burn anyway, right? Be mindful of the mess though.
>>5808111Can we take a moment to appreciate Trash's dedication to detail with this vote? What other qm would ever tolerate or antecipate this level of granularity? I want to frame this update and put it on the wall.
> Handling Test, Series I, Run I> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 25 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, slowing and in places precluding Handling, but otherwise making it more likely to succeed. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > DC 14. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. No hostile re-roll(s)]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Something had to Give. As she was pulling, Chlotsuintha felt ... something give. She is uncertain if it was a tear or just the Membrane coming loose. [Progress 1/?] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Stressing the Undressing. The going is slow and slick, but Chlotsuintha makes appreciable process with the Membrane without any issue. [Progress 2/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II]> Three Passes: Tugging at the Membrane-strings. In short order, Chlotsuintha makes serious headway with unwrapping the Membrane. [Progress 3/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II] [- 1 DC Boon Bestowed]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then Chlotsuintha both sees and hears the Membrane tear, as the damage is rather serious. [Prompts Vote]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100? > Additionally, there is an article that Chlotsuintha has on her that might help with Handling the Membrane. Take a shot at naming it; but only one guess per ID. If you get it right, then Chlotsuintha will use it to get a Boon to Handling for this test. Explain your choice too; even if you don't come up with what I was thinking, if you can sufficiently explain how your choice could be helpful getting the Membrane off, then I'd give a Boon for that as well.
Rolled 93 (1d100)>>5808660Do we have an inventory anywhere, or is it our in-character responsibility to remember what we have on us.Been so long I haven't kept good track of it.
Rolled 79 (1d100)>>5808660It’s our Socking Needle, ain’t it? Not just a tool used my witches and witchlets to insert and connect to a Construct- it can also aid in poking around and gently disassembling the Membrane as a pin-needle of the Firmament.
>>5808660Want me to wait for a third comrade, or just get on with it?>>5808661Whatever we pocketed in our apron and took with us into the house I’m afraid- surely you can come up with a reasonable alternative article, and explain why it would help? It could be our bandoleer for all we know!
Rolled 63 (1d100)>>>5808660But seriously, the socketting needle. Maybe we still should use the Strange incindiary here vefore we leave?
Rolled 4 (1d10)Good rolls, good progress. As for the inventory, I have one save somewhere on this computer, but I can't seem to find it ... and I haven't updated it in a while anyway. Probably should have done that before presenting this challenge. I'll pull something together tomorrow. As I don't have it for you now, I don't see how it would be fair to keep you all limited to one guess per ID anymore, so feel free to keep the guesses coming.Socket Needle isn't what I was looking for though. While it is thin and can provide Chlotsuintha leverage on the Membrane as she pulls and tugs at it, the sharp point could pierce the body of the Membrane - or the Nine-Dozen, for that matter.
> Handling Test, Series I, Run II> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 25 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, slowing and in places precluding Handling, but otherwise making it more likely to succeed. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 1 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has made good progress with her Handling efforts here.> DC 13. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. No hostile re-roll(s)]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Something had to Give. As she was pulling, Chlotsuintha felt ... something give. She is uncertain if it was a tear or just the Membrane coming loose. [Progress 4/11] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Stressing the Undressing. The going is slow and slick, but Chlotsuintha makes appreciable process with the Membrane without any issue. [Progress 5/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II]> Three Passes: Tugging at the Membrane-strings. In short order, Chlotsuintha makes serious headway with unwrapping the Membrane. [Progress 6/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II] [- 2 DC Boon Bestowed]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100? > Feel free to keep guessing, too. Restrictions waived, as per >>5808687
Rolled 74 (1d100)>>5808690
Rolled 97 (1d100)>>5808690That Mysterious False-Silverware then? To help pull away some of the membrane with the spoon (or tongs, if we got some).Quite frankly, I was thinking in terms of Construct creation and usage in witchcraft equipment, and not that the membrane is wrapped more like a tightly woven enchilada. It ain’t gonna be our stilettos, wand, or fuel nodules, I can tell ya that much.
Rolled 57 (1d100)>>5808690
> Handling Test, Series I, Run III> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 25 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, slowing and in places precluding Handling, but otherwise making it more likely to succeed. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has made good progress with her Handling efforts here.> - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 8. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. No hostile re-roll(s)]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Something had to Give. As she was pulling, Chlotsuintha felt ... something give. She is uncertain if it was a tear or just the Membrane coming loose. [Progress 7/11] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Stressing the Undressing. The going is slow and slick, but Chlotsuintha makes appreciable process with the Membrane without any issue. [Progress 8/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II]> Three Passes: Tugging at the Membrane-strings. In short order, Chlotsuintha makes serious headway with unwrapping the Membrane. [Progress 9/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run II] [- 3 DC Boon Bestowed]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100?
Rolled 9 (1d100)>>5808896
>>5808753You got it! Good job, anon! I'm going to be chipping away at the inventory, but I will be prioritizing the updates today.
Rolled 66 (1d100)>>5808896
Anon really came in clutch with that guess, the two nines would've failed without the bonus.
> Handling Test, Series I, Run IV> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 25 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, slowing and in places precluding Handling, but otherwise making it more likely to succeed. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has made good progress with her Handling efforts here.> - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 7. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. No hostile re-roll(s)]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Something had to Give. As she was pulling, Chlotsuintha felt ... something give. She is uncertain if it was a tear or just the Membrane coming loose. [Progress 10/11] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Best Undressed. The going was slow and slick, but Chlotsuintha has managed to unwrap all of the loose Membrane. [Progress 11/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run V] [Prompts Vote] [- 3 DC Boon Bestowed]> Three Passes: The Tugs of the Membrane-strings. In short order, Chlotsuintha managed to get all of the loose Membrane off of the Nine-Dozen. [Progress 11/11] [NCF and CF nulled for Run V] [Prompts Vote] [- 3 DC Boon Bestowed, Aptitude Progress 1/?] > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100?
Rolled 82 (1d100)>>5809101
Rolled 48 (1d100)>>5809101
Rolled 46 (1d100)>>5809101
Closed and writing!
Undecided for the nonce, you tap the tip of the pen over the pot to dry it, then you set both to your side at your left. You set Aldoin's journal of the basement plantings - now your journal of observations of the Nine-Dozen, its Membrane and the wrist-thick Conduit leading into and out of it - right next to the inkpot ... before thinking better of it, taking it up again to set it down to your side at your right. As you do, you finally notice just how much of the ... oily discharge from the Membrane has made its way onto your hands, just from the few times that you had to adjust the Nodule. The first thought that blunders its way through your increasingly tired mind is that it could have stained your documentation, and so your immediate reaction is annoyance - until the eighth-talent finally drops, and it occurs to you that you have had unknown, potentially Mysterious grease drippings on your hands for ... you don't even know how long! Pattern's Perdition, how long has it been since you pulled this thing off of the fire-dogs? Fighting down panic, you start to take up your apron, so you may wipe your hands clean on it as you occasionally do when given cause while wearing one of your cobbled-together dresses. Blessedly, you recognize your folly before it is made; with Mitigators on - and above - the Mount, one of the worst things that you could do would be traipsing through the city wearing clothes stained by discharge from a Sub-Assembly. It might not be Mysterious, and Strange-Staining has not activated on it either ... but if there ever was a night not to take needless and heedless risks, then it would be tonight, certainly. You then go to wipe your hands on the carpet, but then you realize that might not be a good idea either - considering that you don't know what this does, you should look for something more disposable. Before you completely lose yourself to panic though, you finally remember that there were linens and such in the closet off of the hallway. You bolt over there, only remembering once you open the closet door that there was no window nor any lights inside, and your 'stick is unlit in the sitting room. Swearing under your breath at your self and your stupidity, you grope around in the darkness, in the general area where you remember the linens being before you finally get your hands on one. Without even bothering to unfold it, you wipe your hands on it vigorously, then once you have felt that they are clean enough, you pick up the sheet - trying your best to avoid the areas that you have already wiped the discharge onto - and run right back to the sitting room. Once you are by the sconces, you open up the sheet and make sure that your hands are completely clean before looking them over for any signs of an adverse reaction. Your hands do seem a bit red ... but odds are that is just from your frantic scrubbing.
Beyond that, you can see nor feel anything that you were warned about in your alchemical training; no unexpected tenderness or numbness, no signs of rash or wrinkling - nothing. Well ... good, that is good. Because if you are going to try to see whatever is underneath that Membrane, you are going to be getting more of this stuff on your hands. Presumably a lot more. Standing underneath the sconce, still contemplating your hands, it belatedly occurs to you that this might have been another one of those paranoia-surges. Of course, concern was warranted - you had an unknown, potentially Mysterious discharge on your hands for ... the better part of ten minutes, thereabouts? But the level of concern, that feels suspect now. There is nothing to do about it now though, and cognizant that you are being kept by the keeper here, you turn back to the fireplace and the Construct sitting half out of it. The absolute last thing you want to do is damage the Membrane in any way ... but you have seen precious little of the Nine-Dozen; just the lumps and the Governor. To tell it true, your notes on the Nodule are really notes on the Membrane - and that simply must change, if you want to have any real hope of safely recreating something like this on your own. And for that to change, you are going to have to accept the risks and unwrap it. Well aware that you are plowing a planted field, you quickly kneel down on the polished stone of the hearth floor, setting the linen between you and the Construct. Back in the figurative saddle, you resolve yourself to pushing neither your luck nor the integrity of the Membrane. If you are to come across any resistance while you are pulling the Membrane, you will stop and find a new 'hem' to pull on instead. To be sure, you might end up barely uncovering anything - but right now, you just want to make some appreciable progress. There is one last point though - the discharge. While you are no longer in a state of panic over it, you aren't keen on exposing yourself to any more of it than you already have ... just on the off-chance, of course. You consider wrapping your hands - Damn it all! Your footwraps! You could have wiped your hands on your footwraps. How ... no, don't beat yourself up. Just, keep in mind that you clearly aren't thinking very well at the moment. Now, your hands. You could wrap your hands in the linen - or in the footwraps, for that matter - but you worry that the deftness of your fingers and the sureness of your grip will be undermined by the fabric. Under the circumstances, you will presumably be better off using your bare hands for the work, and wiping them periodical on the linen. So as you contemplate the Construct - and if you have anything else in your possession that might assist in this work - you unfold the sheet to get to a clean portion. You still haven't come up with anything when the Construct has an unusually violent series of undulations.
The spasms pass as quick as they came, but the fear that the Construct might be reaching its end-of-life remain with you - more than that, they spur you into immediate action. You take up the closest 'hem' of the Membrane between the forefinger and thumb of your right hand, then you gently tug at it. You make cautious but appreciable progress for about ten seconds before encounter resistance - which seems to be centered on one of the protuberances on the Nine-Dozen that you can see the outline of pushing into the Membrane. It hadn't occurred to you before, but now it seems possible that at least some of the lumps and bumps might be 'anchor' points for the Membrane - if this bares out elsewhere on the Construct, then you cannot give yourself good odds for seeing much more of the Nodule than you already have. Hoping that you are wrong, you take a moment to wipe your hands off on the linen and unfold over a clean portion - then you try another 'hem'. You go even slower this time, and are pleased to find that you are unable to unwrap a little bit more than you were with the first one ... but eventually your tugging is met with resistance once more, and you stop yourself before the Membrane could come to harm. So begins a process of feather-light and glacially slow pulling. You always stop at the first hint of resistance, and you always wipe your hands in between pulls. After a few more 'hems', it occurs to you that you might have something to help with this after all - the False Silverware. You take a moment and fish out one of the knives. It has a completely rounded tip, and besides a handful of minute serrations, it is completely blunt. For something that was not purpose made for a probe, you seriously doubt you will be able to find much better - though those little teeth give you some pause. In the end though, you figure if you angle the thing properly it shouldn't ever be in a position where those teeth could catch on anything. When you use it on the next 'hem' you find that while it does not let you uncover any more of the Construct then you were when you were just using your hands, it does speed things up considerably - and as an additional boon, it keeps your hands much cleaner. You haven't given the freshly uncovered portions of the Construct much more than a cursory glance, but you can feel that there is much more of the discharge on the inside of the Membrane than on the outside. Considering this, perhaps it is intended as a lubricant of some sort? To allow the Nodule some freedom of movement underneath the Membrane? Certainly it would make sense - but even as you find yourself falling in behind this idea, it occurs to you that this could be just wishful thinking; after all, if it was just lubricant, then it would presumably be safe to the touch for you, and you wouldn't have to worry about anyth - oh, well, you would have one less thing to worry about, at least.
You set that line of thought aside, and focus on the work at hand - and before long, you have tried every 'hem' of the Membrane. There were a few that offered resistance immediately, though most had enough play to them that you were able to get an appreciable patch of the Nine-Dozen uncovered. In the end, you were able to uncover a few of the smaller protuberances as well. There are a few of the Glyph-bearing wooden blocks like you saw on the Conduit up and down the chimney - though these are smothered the discharge to the point where you aren't entirely sure if they are same Glyph or not. There are also what appears to be Sub-Assembly Constructs that have been Woven onto the body of the Nodule - though the function of these Sub-Assemblies is not immediately apparent. The largest of the protuberances that you saw just seems to be a turgid portion of the Nodule, though now that you think about it, it could be that there was something inside of the Nine-Dozen. There are however larger and more distinctly shaped lumps, bumps and points of interest under the Membrane that you haven't even gotten close to unwrapping - and you weren't able to see anything of how the Conduit connects to the Nodule. > Please choose ONE of the following:> You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and that is what you did. You are not going to take it any further. Instead, you will use this opportunity to document what you can see. > You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and you are glad you did ... but you are going to want a little bit more before you go back to documenting everything. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear tearing. > You did prioritize the integrity of the Membrane ... but your interest is the Nine-Dozen, and you are not going to see it if you don't get a bit more forceful. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear killing or disconnecting the Membrane.> You did prioritize the integrity of the Membrane ... but your interest is the Nine-Dozen, and you are not going to see it if you don't get a bit more forceful. Resume pulling until you have the entire Membrane off, or you fear killing it or total disconnection.> You did prioritize the integrity of the Membrane - and that was a mistake. The real score here is the Nine-Dozen. Pull the damned thing off - failing that, cut it off. If the Membrane is killed or totally disconnected, then that is wages of the work. The DC for each of these options will be higher than the DC for the option that you have already went with. Furthermore, the DC may incrementally (+1 or +2) increase from run to run, and some choices may have higher 'base' DC than others.
>>5809613> You did prioritize the integrity of the Membrane ... but your interest is the Nine-Dozen, and you are not going to see it if you don't get a bit more forceful. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear killing or disconnecting the Membrane.
>>5809613>> You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and you are glad you did ... but you are going to want a little bit more before you go back to documenting everything. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear tearing.
>>5809613>You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and you are glad you did ... but you are going to want a little bit more before you go back to documenting everything. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear tearing.
>>5809613> You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and that is what you did. You are not going to take it any further. Instead, you will use this opportunity to document what you can see. Chlotsuintha has a history of being reckless about learning magic, let's show her growing some restraint.
>>5809613>> You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and that is what you did. You are not going to take it any further. Instead, you will use this opportunity to document what you can see.
>>5809613>> You did prioritize the integrity of the Membrane ... but your interest is the Nine-Dozen, and you are not going to see it if you don't get a bit more forceful. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear killing or disconnecting the Membrane.
I'm also fine with > You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and you are glad you did ... but you are going to want a little bit more before you go back to documenting everything. Resume pulling, now only stopping when you fear tearing. if it's needed to tiebreak
> Handling Test, Series I, Run IV> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has made good progress with her Handling efforts here.> - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 17. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Something had to Give. As she was pulling, suddenly and entire portion of the Membrane went slack. There is no visible damage, but the Membrane has begun to perspire more lubricant ... if that is in fact what it is. [Progress 4/?] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Undressing Room. Trying to work through resistance makes the going slower - and all the more harrowing - but progress is being made, without injury. So far, at least. [Progress 2/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VI] [+ 1 Malus Bestowed, Boon Revoked]> Three Passes: Slipping out of Something Uncomfortable. It is touch-and-go - not to mention more harrowing - but good progress is being made. Push on ... just, not too hard. [Progress 3/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VI] [+3 Boon Reduced to +2]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100
Rolled 80 (1d100)>>5810038
Rolled 39 (1d100)>>5810038
Rolled 66 (1d100)>>5810038Oh no.
>>5809613> You were going to prioritize the integrity of the Membrane, and that is what you did. You are not going to take it any further. Instead, you will use this opportunity to document what you can see.
>>5810063A little too late
The Membrane now starts to demonstrate a limited self-reassembly ability, where it can attempt to re-wrap portions of itself. As it is a passive stationary article, instead of rolling against your rolls, this ability will instead be mechanically reflected by giving the Membrane one offensive re-roll for each run of Handling where Chlotsuintha attempts to force through resistance in the wrapping. Offensive re-rolls target the dice of opponents, while defensive re-rolls target the character's or article's own dice. It feels odd to be introducing mechanics like this on the eleventh thread of a Quest, but there has only been two instances of combat so far, and none of the opponents had re-rolls of their own - or lived long enough to roll against her at all, for that matter.I will be re-rolling >>5810052, the highest of the three rolls. Though before I do, we should hold a quick vote on the rules. As established, re-rolls and auto-passes cannot be used to revert critical or near critical rolls; that applies to offensive and defensive re-rolls, the valuable auto-pass and the rare and terrible auto-fail (don't worry - it would be for only one test out of three, unless Chlotsuintha picked a fight against against a Herald of the Patternmaker, or an equivalently powerful entity or being, in which case it might be two or three of the tests). What remains to be seen is what happens when an foe's offensive re-roll comes up as a critical or a near critical. Note: These rules will apply to ALL offensive re-rolls, including Chlotsuintha's.> Please choose ONE of the following:> The roll should be taken as is. If the roll comes up as a success, either critically or near-critically, then that it what it should be. Likewise for failures.> The roll should be considered as a simple pass or fail, depending on what it is. If a roll comes up as a critical success, then it is treated as a passed test. Likewise for failures.> The roll should be taken as the OPPOSITE of what it is, as it is the opponent's critical or near-critical. If the roll comes up as a critical success, then that should be treated as a critical failure. Likewise for failures.> The roll should be considered as a standard pass or fail, depending on the OPPOSITE of what it is, as it is the opponent's critical or near critical. If the roll comes up as a critical success, then it is treated as a failed test. Likewise for failures.> The roll should be considered reflective of the OPPONENT. If it comes up as a critical or near-critical success, then it is treated as failed test for the TARGET and the OPPONENT gets another offensive re-roll, that they may use as they like. If it comes up as a critical or near-critical failure, then the OPPONENT wastes the re-roll; the original roll of the TARGET stands, who also gains an offensive re-roll of their own that they may use as they like.> The roll should redone, regardless if it is a success or failure. > Write-ins allowed with QM approval.
>>5810102> The roll should be considered as a simple pass or fail, depending on what it is. If a roll comes up as a critical success, then it is treated as a passed test. Likewise for failures.I'm voting for this because it's generally simple and reduces the likelihood of crits.
>>5810102>The roll should be considered as a simple pass or fail, depending on what it is. If a roll comes up as a critical success, then it is treated as a passed test. Likewise for failures.Keep it simple
>>5810102> The roll should be taken as is. If the roll comes up as a success, either critically or near-critically, then that it what it should be. Likewise for failures.De-critting the mechanics take a lot of fun outta rolling, in a system where critting was already a rarity. Besides, I get a giggle outta an enemy rerolling Chlot’s success into a crit-success and brains himself through his own fault.https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cgLMSMIU124
>>5810102Granted, I like > The roll should be considered reflective of the OPPONENT. If it comes up as a critical or near-critical success, then it is treated as failed test for the TARGET and the OPPONENT gets another offensive re-roll, that they may use as they like. If it comes up as a critical or near-critical failure, then the OPPONENT wastes the re-roll; the original roll of the TARGET stands, who also gains an offensive re-roll of their own that they may use as they like.simply for the struggle mechanics and the reaction reroll afterwards as a follow up- make it a bit more of battle between opponents desu.Now, for the OPPOSITE mechanics, it depends a lot on how we view an opponent rerolling our roll and claiming it as theirs- like, does the DC change and invert as well, or is it a different DC for the opponent? At least with the reflection of the OPPONENT, it changes it into an interesting back-and-forth dynamic that would be narratively entertaining.Now, the Redone mechanics are interesting- and they become beneficial if the DC is below 50, as it means the odds are in our favor in such a critical reroll.
>>5810337I'm not sure what you mean by >Now, the Redone mechanics are interesting- and they become beneficial if the DC is below 50, as it means the odds are in our favor in such a critical reroll.It's essentially always in the favor of the one forcing an offensive reroll because they're rerolling the enemy's highest die. In this case our 80 is being rerolled, not a random roll that we might've failed. The only situation in which someone is at risk of not benefiting from forcing an offensive reroll is if they roll a crit success for the enemy when it was just a normal success before. [if that ends up becoming a thing]
Rolled 79 (1d100)Re-rolling >>5810052Alright, going forward, the roll will be considered a simple pass or fail depending on what it is. If there are issues with this in practice, we can revisit it later - I don't consider mechanics something that needs to be 'set in stone'.
> Handling Test, Series I, Run VI> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has 'momentum' with her Handling here, but things are starting to get harder to manage – especially with the reassembling slowly and steadily undoing her work. > - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 18. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Under Wraps! Chlotsuintha was so focused on the portion of the Membrane that she was working on, she didn't notice that other bits of it started wrap themselves up again on her. [Progress -2/?]> Two Passes: Distressing Undressing. Chlotsuintha is still making forward progress without injuring the Membrane, but it is getting harder and harder. [Progress 5/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VII] [-2 Malus Bestowed, Boon Revoked] > Three Passes: Still Slipping. It is still touch-and-go, and part of you is just waiting for the other solea to drop, but progress is still being made and the rebinding is still manageable. [Progress 6/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VII] [+2 Boon Reduced to +1]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100
Rolled 42 (1d100)>>5810510Stop fighting, dumb membrane.
Rolled 6 (1d100)>>5810368I was referring to the statistical odds- if hostile crit reroll ends in just another reroll, that means there is a small difference in the odds that favor us. It isn’t the best thing, or even a relevant thing, but it’s certainly more exciting than a stale pass/fail system.>>5810484>spoilerHopefully we’ll be able to spice things up later then>>5810484Welp, here goes nothing
Rolled 3 (1d100)>>5810510I’m rolling to expedite the situation- I assume this isn’t the end of the current series of rolls, correct?
>>5810527>>5810533…point taken Patternmaker.
Rolled 83 (1d100)Well ... hmm. Re-rolling >>5810521
Alright, so we are looking at Under Wraps! - unless anons decide to use a re-roll or an auto-pass to try to get to Distressing Undressing.> Please choose ONE of the following: > Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps! > Use defensive re-rolls and attempt to get the two pass outcome: Distressing Undressing.
>>5810556> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps! Much better to save them for important things rather than fighting this
To clarify the point, in case it was not clear. In Under Wraps!, you don't lose two points of progress, you lose 5, setting your total to -2. If you stick with this option, or attempt a re-roll and fail, then Chlotsuintha will have lost ground from the point where she started attempting to force her way through resistance in the Membrane.
>>5810560Yeaaaa- just gonna bow out of the vote then, maybe come back later after this vote is resolved
>>5810556> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps! These wraps are clearly childproofed.
>>5810556>> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps!
>>5810556>> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps!More like chlot proof haha
>>5810556> Use defensive re-rolls and attempt to get the two pass outcome: Distressing Undressing.
>>5810556> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps! No wasting rerolls on that
>>5810102Late on this, but may as well vote.> The roll should be taken as is. If the roll comes up as a success, either critically or near-critically, then that it what it should be. Likewise for failures.>>5810556> Accept the standing rolls and the one pass outcome; Under Wraps!
> Handling Test, Series I, Run VII> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha has 'momentum' with her Handling here, but things are starting to get harder to manage – especially with the reassembling slowly and steadily undoing her work. > - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 18. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Battening Down. All of a sudden, the entirety of the Membrane slightly constricts against the body of the Nine-Dozen. Progress will be harder, from here on out. [Progress -1/?] [-2 Malus Bestowed, Boon Revoked, False Silverware Halved]> Two Passes: Reversing the Reversal. Chlotsuintha is able to get back to where she started when she started working through resisting portions of the Membrane. The going is noticeably harder this time though. [Progress 0/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VIII] [-2 Malus Bestowed, Boon Revoked]> Three Passes: Unwinding-Down. Chlotsuintha is able to regain a goodly bit of the progress she made on the Membrane, though she notices that things are marginally harder this time through. [Progress 2/?] [NCF and CF nulled for Run VIII] [+2 Boon Reduced to +1] > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then Chlotsuintha seriously injures the Membrane in her unwrapping. She heard the tear, and she can most certainly see it as well – and how the Construct is reeling. [Prompts Vote]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100
Rolled 37 (1d100)>>5811020
Rolled 31 (1d100)>>5811020
Rolled 53 (1d100)>>5811020
Rolled 2 (1d100)Re-rolling >>5811047Sorry about the delay, I got away from my computer. Rer
Rolled 1 (1d10)>>5811091That certainly could have gone better. Rolling to determine progress remaining.
>>5811091Is that a crit?>>5811093Is that good or bad
>>5811147It should just be a normal 2 success >>5810484
> Handling Test, Series I, Run VIII> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > + DC 2 Membrane's self reassembly ability it proving to be more and more of a complication> - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 22. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: What a Jerk! Without warning, the Nine-Dozen goes from regularly and gently shifting and undulating to irregular and forceful. It is no longer safe to use the False Silverware, and with the Nine-Dozen tugging, it will be more difficult to make any progress. [Progress 1/8] [+ 4 Malus Bestowed, + 12 Unsteady Specimen Condition Applied, - 4 False Silverware Condition Annulled] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Sticking it Out. Chlotsuintha continues to make forward progress, but she finds that the consistency of the discharge from the Membrane is starting to change – becoming stickier and stickier, as if it was trying to glue itself together. [Progress 2/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run IX] [+3 Malus Bestowed, +1 Slightly Sticky Condition Applied] > Three Passes: Unwound and Unbound. Chlotsuintha makes significant strides in unwrapping the Membrane – and for once, progress is steady, not slowing. [Progress 4/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run IX] [+2 Malus Remains] > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run. > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100?
>>5811147> Is that a crit?No, as per the rules we just established, the passed test from >>5811047 has now turned to a failed test. > Is that good or bad? It is one of the few times in this quest that a roll of 1 would be good. I'm calculating progress remaining until Chlotsuintha manages to get as much of the Membrane off of the Nine-Dozen without risking injury to either. The smaller the number here, the less progress that needs to be made until this point - and the fewer tests that need to be run too.
Rolled 47 (1d100)>>5811197
Rolled 11 (1d100)>>5811197
Rolled 83 (1d100)>>5811197
Rolled 42 (1d100)>>5811216Re-Rolling
> Handling Test, Series I, Run IX> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does. > + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane. > + DC 3 Membrane's self reassembly ability it proving to be more and more of a complication> + DC 1 Discharge from the Membrane, especially from the side facing the Nine-Dozen has become slightly sticky, complicating Handling. > - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane. > - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here. > - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 24. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Stolen Swag. Chlotsuintha was making appreciable progress, in large part due to the False Silverware – but suddenly the Membrane began wrapping itself on the flat of the blade, and now you cannot get it out. [Progress 3/8] [+3 Malus Increases to +5] [Prompts Vote]> Two Passes: Still Sticking it Out. Chlotsuintha manages to unwrap more and more of the Membrane, but the discharge on the inside of the Membrane seems warmer now, and it is getting noticeably stickier. [Progress 4/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run X] [+3 Malus Remains, +1 Slightly Sticky Condition Becomes +3 Somewhat Sticky Condition]> Three Passes: The Slip and Slide. Chlotsuintha manages to make solid progress, and with the end in sight, she finds that working through the resistance is now becoming marginally easier. [Progress 6/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run X] [+3 Malus Reduces to +2] > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run. > If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds the unwrapping and unraveling to be going much better than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100?
Rolled 39 (1d100)>>5811250
Rolled 67 (1d100)>>5811250
>>5811250Oh joy
Rolled 25 (1d100)>>5811250>>5811325Hopefully the Patternmaker doesn’t smite me for my mistake
Rolled 4 (1d100)Re-Rolling >>5811323
> Handling Test, Series I, Run X> DC 45: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is Out of Her Element, making a Handling Test like this [Moderate]> + DC 6: Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Tired II and is not as perceptive as she might be otherwise> + DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is currently Drained II, and may not be thinking as quick as she normally does.> + DC 2 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is under the effect of slow-burn ranged remediation cast.> + DC 10 Membrane was not Woven or intended to be unwrapped in these circumstances. > + DC 5 Nine-Dozen is heavy enough to prove a complication for Handling the Membrane.> + DC 3 Membrane's self reassembly ability it proving to be more and more of a complication.> + DC 3 Discharge from the Membrane, especially from the side facing the Nine-Dozen has become somewhat sticky, complicating Handling.> - DC 15 Membrane is Well-Woven, and as such is somewhat resistant to tearing or other forms of damage.> - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is deliberately taking her time with the Handling of the Membrane.> - DC 15 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is still prioritizing the integrity of the Membrane, but will now attempt to force through resistance - increasing the risk of injuring the Membrane.> - DC 3 Witchlet Chlotsuintha knows enough about Constructs to assist in her Handling efforts here.> - DC 4 Witchlet Chlotsuintha is using an appropriately blunt piece of False Silverware to assist in her Handling. > DC 26. Anything lower is a failure. [Re-rolls and auto-passes are available. One hostile re-roll]> No Passes: Pain in the Membrane! Chlotsuintha didn't see the tear - but she certainly heard it. Now she has to make a new decision ... [Prompts Vote]> One Pass: Battening Down. All of a sudden, the entirety of the Membrane slightly constricts against the body of the Nine-Dozen. Progress will be harder, from here on out. [Progress 5/8] [-3 Malus Increases to -5, False Silverware Quartered]> Two Passes: Getting Stuck in. Chlotsuintha is able to unwrap more of the Nine-Dozen, but the discharge on both sides of the Membrane – as well as the Membrane itself – is warming up an getting Sticker Still. If this gets much worse, further progress will become a real uphill battle. [Progress 6/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run XI] [+3 Malus Remains, +3 Somewhat Sticky Becomes + 6 Stickier Still Condition]> Three Passes: The Slip and Slide. Chlotsuintha manages to make serious progress, and with the end in sight, she finds that working through the resistance is now becoming notably easier. [Progress 7/8] [NCF and CF nulled for Run XI] [+3 Malus Reduces to +1]> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Failure (Roll of 1 or 2) then nothing happens, as NCF and CF have been nulled for this run.> If ONE of the THREE rolls comes up as a Critical or Near-Critical Success (Roll 99 or 100) then Chlotsuintha finds her work to be going much smoother than expected. [Prompts Vote]> May I please have three rolls of 1d100?
Rolled 99 (1d100)>>5811344What is this, the boss battle in Aldion’s house?
Rolled 92 (1d100)>>5811344The self-reassembly on this membrane is something special.
Rolled 42 (1d100)>>5811344
>>5811358It is - or rather, it was, so long as the last roll isn't a Critical Failure to override your Near Critical Success.>>5811375> The self-reassembly on this membrane is something special.Yes, it certainly is. I'm heading out for a walk, so it might be an hour or so before I get the vote up.
Re-rolling >>5811389 (not that it can do anything, but simply to get into the habit).As she is working through some of the toughest resistance she has encountered, suddenly and unexpectedly the entire Membrane goes limp - and while she is scared for a moment or two that she has killed it, what has actually happened is that the self-reassembly ability has reversed itself, and the remaining wrapped portions start to unravel. The Membrane falls away from the Nine-Dozen, connected only by two umbilical connections - an Outbound, leading from the Membrane to the Nine-Dozen and a Bothbound, with Needles in both the Membrane and the Nine-Dozen. Chlotsuintha can now document the Nodule without the obstruction of the Membrane, as well as getting a good look at the Membrane itself. She does however need to make a decision; what to do once she is done with the documentation? Does she try to re-wrap the Membrane around the Nodule, which is now constantly trying to unwrap itself? Does she leave it as it is? Does she try to Socket the Outbound Needle into herself and attempt to Reach into it again, or even try to Master it? If she does Socket it into herself, does she leave it Socketed to the Nine-Dozen, accepting the risks of having all of that Draw on hand - or does she use one of her Ounce Fuel Nodules to provide the Fuel, which would total drain and seriously damaging it? > Please choose ONE of the following:> Chlotsuintha will attempt to re-wrap the Membrane to the best of her ability> Chlotsuintha will leave the Membrane where it lies on the hearth, off of the Nodule, but still connected to it> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and the Nine-Dozen> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and in the Ounce Nodule that was overheating earlier.> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and an the Ounce Nodule that was not overheating earlier.
>>5811450> Chlotsuintha will leave the Membrane where it lies on the hearth, off of the Nodule, but still connected to it
>>5811450>Chlotsuintha will leave the Membrane where it lies on the hearth, off of the Nodule, but still connected to it
>>5811450>> Chlotsuintha will attempt to re-wrap the Membrane to the best of her abilityDid you forget to roll?
>>5811450> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and the Nine-DozenWe need more intel.Otherwise, I support rewrapping it- it was wrapped for a reason lads.
Rolled 91 (1d100)>>5811516You are right, I did. Not that it would be able to undo the Near-Critical, but for completion's sake here it is.
>>5811450I think this decision would probably be better left to after we have finished our documentation so that we can understand what is going on.> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and the Nine-DozenBut if we don't do that then I do think we should learn more while it is unwrapped, followed by re-wrapping it. It was meant to be unwrapped. I'm guessing the sticky stuff really was a lubricant, growing more tacky as it became less covered owing to the heat being dealt with less well.
>>5811556It probably would - but the update will take some time, and I wanted to get this vote out while I started work on the parts of it that were set in stone by the previous rolls. The vote is still open.>>5811358I suppose I should clarify - assuming all goes well, this is the boss battle of Aldoin's house. But, if enough bad choices are made ...
>>5811450> Chlotsuintha will leave the Membrane where it lies on the hearth, off of the Nodule, but still connected to itHow much do you want to bet this thing will switch back to auto re-wrapping itself after a while?
Consider the vote for >>5811450 closed. I am still working on the update, look for it sometime tomorrow. While I was typing down all of the new rules we set today on re-rolls, it occurred to me that there was one point that we didn't cover: can defensive re-rolls be used on rolls that were altered with offensive re-rolls? > Please choose ONE of the following:> Defensive re-rolls should be allowed to reverse deleterious offensive re-rolls.> Offensive re-rolls should not be allowed to be reversed by defensive re-rolls.
>>5811851>> Defensive re-rolls should be allowed to reverse deleterious offensive re-rolls.
>>5811556Er, meant to say that it was meant to stay wrapped or not meant to be unwrapped.>>5811851>Defensive re-rolls should be allowed to reverse deleterious offensive re-rolls.I feel like enemy rerolls would be too strong otherwise, biasing us pretty heavily towards failure against strong opponents. Plus it is just dissimilar to other systems of its kind on this board, making it less...comfortable, I guess?
>>5811450>> Chlotsuintha will Socket the Outbound Needle of the Membrane into herself while the Bothbound Needle is in the Membrane and the Nine-Dozen>>5811851>> Defensive re-rolls should be allowed to reverse deleterious offensive re-rolls.
>>5811851>>5811867I mean, our defensive (or offensive really) re-rolls are not naturally reoccurring for Chlot like it would for a hostile situation- and frankly I don’t think there would be a situation where the hostile natural re-rolls would be on our side for once. Is there was any inkling to the contrary, it would lead to a different conversation.
>>5811851>Defensive re-rolls should be allowed to reverse deleterious offensive re-rolls.
With no way of knowing how much time you have left to work with the Construct here - or to find and document the emitter-Organ, for that matter - the absolute last thing you want to do right now is hem and haw. And yet, that is exactly what you end up doing. Considering just how important this opportunity here is, how with decent notes and drawings you could stand to learn more from this Construct than father would have taught you about Weaving and Construct-design in an entire year, you cannot fault yourself for hesitation - well, actually, yes, you can and are faulting yourself. It is just ... this might very well be your last chance to learn from your father ...No, damn it, you cannot. Not now. Just ... the fraying choices. The choices at hand. Well, you could work with what you have now - that would be the safest and quickest of the options, certainly. And making haste here would give you more time with the emitter-Organ too - as well as everything else in the house, but you cannot get bogged down with that. Right now, the Construct in the chimney is the only thing that can fit on your plate - you must finish it before you can start in on anything else. So, you could do the documentation now - but that would mean giving getting a look at all those different-sized masses underneath the Membrane. Odds are that you aren't going to be able to do much more than make a vague identification - an educated guess as to what they are, what they do and how exactly they do it ... but even if it was just an educated guess, it would serve you so much better than just ... leaving them sight-unseen. You'd be making guesses then too - and while they'd be educated as well, they wouldn't be as educated. That settles it for you. So long as you can remove the Membrane without tearing or otherwise hurting it, you are going to go ahead with uncovering as much of the Nine-Dozen as you possibly can. If you could get even half as much as you did, stopping when you felt resistance, you'd consider it more than worthwhile ... though as nearly all of the 'hems' were tight around those wrapped-over protuberances, you have to wonder if you are even going to be able to uncover any of these points of interest. Of course, you won't know if you don't try. Aye, work through all of the resistance that you can without endangering the Membrane; then once you are done, regroup and decide if uncovering whatever remains covered is worth risking the Membrane for. So you take up a 'hem' again, one that offered resistance from the onset - and begin to worry it up and away from the Nine-Dozen. Immediately, it is quite clear that progress has slowed from turtle's-feet to snail's-tail, but even so, there is still progress. With insistent tugs you are managing to unwind this 'hem' - in spite of the resistance and without tearing it.
For the next few minutes, you work this one 'hem', revealing more and more of the Nine-Dozen underneath it. You pleased, certainly - and relieved that you are able to push through the resistance in the Membrane without tearing or injuring it - but the uncovered portion that you are working on draws nearer and nearer to one of those covered protuberances, the 'hem' proves all the more harder to move. By bringing the False Silverware to bear against it - probing, prying, slipping, sliding - you are able to push even closer to this point of interest; from the length of a hand away down to the breadth of a hand away. But from there, no further. At this point, the 'hem' is fighting to stay in place so mightily that you feel to move it you would need to rise to your feet for the leverage, or to take the thing up in both hands - neither of which you are willing to do. You have no way of knowing for a surety, but you have the sense that you are reaching - or have reached - the limit of what the Membrane can bear without injury. Your primary concern is tearing, but you are well aware that even it remained in one piece, it is possible that if you were to push your luck and the Membrane too far and too hard, you could end up doing internal damage - something that you would have no hope whatsoever of fixing. Setting aside the mess that you could end up with on your hands - this slick discharge, mixed with whatever passes for blood inside of this Sub-Assembly pooling into an abscess, then bursting like a lanced boil - it very well end up being dangerous as well. Beyond the wisps of an idea from three Clauses you Interpreted off of the Glyph, you really don't know what this Membrane is doing for the Nine-Dozen. If you were to accidentally kill, or otherwise impair its intended function, who knows what would happen to the Nodule. It could throttle itself, or do the complete opposite and dump That-Which-Is-Drawn into the rest of the Construct, the whole Assembly. You wouldn't want either to happen - and you certainly wouldn't want to be anywhere near it if it did. Worst still would be the Nine-Dozen cooking itself off - if that were to come to pass, you would consider yourself lucky if there was just a fire; depending on how the Nodule was configured when it was woven, it is entirely possible that the Nine-Dozen could detonate like a cauldron-sized 'peter-pomegranate. Already, the 'hem' in your hand looks to be noticeably more blanched than the others still nestled against the Nodule, or even the others that you unwrapped earlier. Seeing that is enough. You lean back, taking the knife - though it seems silly to call something with no tip and barely any edge such - and you do your best to wipe it clean on the linen that you have set between you and Nodule. Then you do the same for your hands, with noticeably less success.
Whether this is lubricant, blood substitute or just discharged waste from the Membrane it seems that this stuff has a way of ... permeating skin. As redouble your efforts to scour the mess off of your hands, you offer up a quick and silent warding prayer ... not that you think you are making a mistake, getting this on your hands, just - The Membrane is now moving and flexing. Not the Nine-Dozen, which has been trembling and undulating since you first saw it - the Membrane itself. You have no idea how, considering there doesn't appear to be any musculature to the Sub-Assembly, but it is clearly moving, wiggling and flopping independently from the Nodule. Most of this movement is centered on the edges of the uncovered portions of the Nodule. It isn't immediately clear what it is doing - or attempting to do. Is it injured? Is this is death throes? Is it trying to wrap or otherwise adhere itself tighter to the Nine-Dozen, to increase the resistance in the 'hems'? Could it be that it is trying to re-wrap itself? You judge the latter of these options to be the least likely - as it would be the most difficult to Weave, especially for a Sub-Assembly so thoroughly unendowed by brawn or Logic. But yet that seems to be what is happening here. As you watch, the fringes of the uncovered portions are being encroached by the Membrane as they wiggle, squeeze and shuffle their way forward. Intermittently, one of the 'hems' flops, slapping itself loosely against the body of the Nodule - sometimes over an uncovered portion, sometimes over a covered portion, and sometimes onto the cut and polished stone hearth beneath you, or fruitlessly through the air. Most just flap loose, but when one hits home against the body of the Nodule it holds itself fast - and a swath of the Nine-Dozen that took you minutes to uncover is covered again in seconds. There was that Clause in the Glyphs you saw on the outer surface of the Membrane - was it for 'compression' or 'contraction'? Maker's Mercy, it certainly is a good thing that you took notes if you cannot even remember that! But could a simple Glyph - no, a simple Clause of a simple Glyph be responsible for this? You don't think so. As much as you want to see the emitter-Organ, you are starting to think that the Logic-Organ of this Construct is going to be the real score. Of course, at the rate you are working the 'hems' here, you it will probably be some time before you are finished here - or you end up throwing in the towel and moving on, more like. It is unfortunate, but had serious doubts that you were going to be able to unwrap the entire Membrane before this ability manifested itself. Now, not only are you going to have to work through increasing resistance, you are going to have to defend that progress. And that prospect is not made easier by the lack of any discernible rhyme or reason to when the Membrane makes those floundering slaps - or when those slaps will manage to hold fast or not.
Well ... it really doesn't matter if it is going to be easy or not. If you aren't able to do it, you aren't going to be able to uncover much more of the Nine-Dozen.With that, you lean in and redouble your efforts. But it seems that double is not going to be enough. Try as you might, it is plain to see that you have gone from eking out progress to losing it in fits and spurts right before your eyes. There is less and less play in the 'hems' that you try, and in spite of your best efforts, you cannot seem to guess when the Membrane is going to try to batten itself down. And on top of it all off, it seems to be succeeding more and more at holding itself fast to the body of the Nine-Dozen. Minutes pass, and all you have to show for it is slick, greasy hands and less uncovered Membrane than you had when you started trying to work through the resistance. Frustrated, you let go of the 'hem' in your hand, and wipe your hands on the linen. When much of the discharge remains even after your best efforts, you resort to using your nails and the False Silverware knife to scrape the stuff off. That works for now, but as you turn your attention back to the Nine-Dozen just in time to see another 'hem' manage to work itself back into position, snug against the Nodule, you find yourself wondering if the discharge is getting harder to get off of your hands, or there is simply more and more of it on there from longer bouts of handling the 'hems'.Spurned onward by that thought, as well as your continually nagging doubts about the safety of touching the discharge like this, you lean in and treble your efforts; hoping to either make a breakthrough ... or to reach a point where you could justify to yourself setting this aside and focusing on something else. Something that doesn't saturate your skin with ... whatever this is. With these concerns worrying away and worming through your mind, you find that your patience is thinning and your caution is waning near as quick as the Membrane is floundering around, trying to cover itself up. Looking to be done with this, you set aside earlier fears and bring your off-hand to bear against the 'hems', and make more and more use of the False Silverware knife. Minutes creep by - and even with the Membrane agitating itself more and more, you can see that once again you are making headway. Amusingly, this observation is enough to ease some of your concerns about the discharge. But that cannot be called a surprise, not by any measure. Of course it is easier to stomach a risk with a reward than a risk without. You are however, becoming increasingly certain on one point - you are not imagining that the discharge on the inside surface of the Membrane has thickened and become stickier than it was when you started. You are making progress though. That is what you will choose to focus on. You reach a point when you can lean back for a moment, to wipe your hands clean, again relying on the knife and your nails to do the heavy lifting.
You do one hand at a time, keeping the other free to bat at the Membrane when it tries to flop itself back into position against the Nine-Dozen, By the time that your hands are as clean as they are going to be under the circumstances, the Membrane made five attempts to cover up the Nodule. You managed to interpose your off-hand all five times, and all of those attempts impotently wobbled off. You have no way of knowing if your petulant slapping did anything or not, but regardless, it makes you feel better. Resuming your work without having lost much ground makes you feel better still, and in spite of everything, you can feel yourself smiling as you lean back in and resume hauling away at the 'hems'. But that smile is a thin thing, and rather short lived; even though you are able to well ahead of the Membrane's reassembly ability, once more you find yourself waiting for the other solea to drop, and the 'hems' to start moving with more vigor, more purpose, for more of them to land home and hold fast, or for you to make some misstep. And when none of that happens, and you are able to make good, solid progress while keeping the slapping flaps of the Membrane from undoing your earlier work, you find it to be a source of consternation and frustration, not relief and encouragement. This damned thing has fought you tooth and nail, fought you in ways you didn't even know a Construct so seemingly simple could fight. You just know that this cannot be the end of it ... and after a few minutes, it seems your gloomy prognostication holds true. The change was gradual enough that you couldn't immediately notice, but at this point it is undeniable - the discharge from the inside surface of the Membrane, the side facing the Construct, has started to heat up. You couldn't call it hot - actually, to tell it true, you can barely call it warm. But it definitely warmer than it was when you took a break to wipe your hands. You are also starting to see the Membrane sticking to the Construct - not squeezing itself against it, but sticking to it. Attempts that previously would have just been misses are now covering portions of the Nine-Dozen. You can still pull them off, but once they are stuck they start to inch back into their position, and it seems that each time that you stop tugging on a 'hem' to pull another one free, it is harder and harder to do. But just as you are starting to seriously consider stepping away and documenting what you can before it re-wraps itself, everything comes to a complete stop. The Membrane and the Nine-Dozen stop moving. There is the sound of something venting, and then the entire Membrane goes limp, and falls free from the Nodule, connected only by two umbilical. The Membrane resumes twitching, so while you have no idea what exactly caused this ... complete reversal, at the very least you know it is still alive.
Bless the Maker, Bless the Made. It seems that your gloomy prognostication was wrong after all. You will document what you can see - and you can certainly see everything on the surface of the Nine-Dozen, and on both sides of the Membrane - then you will ... > Please choose ONE of the following: > While you want to find the emitter and Logic Organs, you are not done here yet. With the Membrane moving, discharging and altering the consistency of the discharge, it is clear to see something is active. Try reaching into the Glyph again.> While you want to find the emitter and Logic Organs, you are not done here yet. With the Membrane off, you are getting a great look at all of the protuberances. Deduce which ones should be safe ... or rather, safer to reach into, and try your luck.> While this well might not be completely dry, you feel that you have reached the point of diminishing returns. And as you don't know how long this Construct has left, you are going to take the servant's stairs and look for the rest of it right away. > While this well might not be completely dry, you feel that you have reached the point of diminishing returns. And as you don't know how long this Construct has left, you are going to find the main stair and then look for the rest of it right away. Happy Hallow'een! Since we spent so much time talking about them, have a Single Test Offensive Re-Roll [Double Eagle Tenth-Talent] and a Single Test Defensive Re-Roll [Lucky Tenth Talent]
>>5813886>> While you want to find the emitter and Logic Organs, you are not done here yet. With the Membrane off, you are getting a great look at all of the protuberances. Deduce which ones should be safe ... or rather, safer to reach into, and try your luck.
>>5813886>While this well might not be completely dry, you feel that you have reached the point of diminishing returns. And as you don't know how long this Construct has left, you are going to find the main stair and then look for the rest of it right away.
>>5813886>> While you want to find the emitter and Logic Organs, you are not done here yet. With the Membrane moving, discharging and altering the consistency of the discharge, it is clear to see something is active. Try reaching into the Glyph again
>>5813886> While this well might not be completely dry, you feel that you have reached the point of diminishing returns. And as you don't know how long this Construct has left, you are going to take the servant's stairs and look for the rest of it right away.
>>5813886>> While this well might not be completely dry, you feel that you have reached the point of diminishing returns. And as you don't know how long this Construct has left, you are going to take the servant's stairs and look for the rest of it right away.
This isn't something I'd feel comfortable rolling a tiebreaker for. Perhaps if someone was willing to make the case for their choice, it might convince someone else to change theirs?
We're already here and spent all the effort to expose it, may as well examine it further before we spend time to look for and check on the rest, which could be covered up.
>>5814975I didn’t vote because I had no strong feelings on this choice either way. Quick question before I weigh in>With the Membrane off, you are getting a great look at all of the protuberances. Deduce which ones should be safe ... or rather, safer to reach into, and try your luck.What does that mean? If that, like, checking the Realm of Shadows and Forms again, or just reaching in the physical form and just grabbing shit?
>>5815080It would mean going into the Realm of Forms again. The Sub-Assemblies are pretty well put together, they aren't something that could be pulled apart.
>>5815114I’m curious about the Realm of Forms, so we can sneak a little peak before anons decide to take the stairs>> While you want to find the emitter and Logic Organs, you are not done here yet. With the Membrane off, you are getting a great look at all of the protuberances. Deduce which ones should be safe ... or rather, safer to reach into, and try your luck.
>>5814975What decisions would you be comfortable rolling for?
>>5815165Closed then. Sorry I fell asleep, I'll get the update out as soon as I can.>>5815478Things like purchases, or in situations where no danger is present.
> Reaching I; the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly> DC 100 and greater; Critical Success. Chlotsuintha's Reach immediately illuminates the purpose of the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly and how it interacts with the Nine-Dozen, and how the Assembly interacts with its twin and its own Sub-Assemblies.> DC 99 and greater; Near-Critical Success. Chlotsuintha's Reach immediately illuminates the purpose of the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly and how it interacts with the Nine-Dozen, and how the Assembly interacts with its Sub-Assemblies. > DC 35 and greater; Complete Success. Chlotsuintha's Reaching almost immediately illuminates the purpose of the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly, and how it interacts with the Nine-Dozen.> DC 25 and greater; Partial Success. Chlotsuintha's Reaching eventually illuminates the means by which the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly interacts with the Nine-Dozen, but it doesn't definitively explain its function. > DC 24 and lesser; Partial Failure. Chlotsuintha's Reaching doesn't illuminate anything about the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly, but she is immediately ready to Reach again and suffers no deleterious effects. > DC 14 and lesser; Near-Complete Failure. Chlotsuintha's attempts to Reach into the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly trigger something; unexpectedly the Lump distends and with a soft whistling pop falls free from the rest of the Construct.> DC 4 and lesser; Complete Failure. Reaching does illuminate the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly; physically! The Lump starts to glow - though it is unclear why, as well as how safe a second Reach would be, and how long the Lump has left.> DC 2 and lesser; Near-Critical Failure. Reaching does illuminate the Waxy Lump Sub-Assembly; physically! The Lump suddenly glows with a bright, harsh light and smoke starts to rise from the Construct around it. > DC 1 and lesser; Critical Failure. Instead of Reaching, Chlotsuintha Projects into the Sub-Assembly, and accidentally traps her own consciousness in there. She won't die if she isn't able to Project herself back into her own body before the entire Construct eventually Cleanses itself, but she is at risk of becoming Inopportunely Dissociative, a condition where her consciousness will randomly (with higher incidence while casting or around Mysteries) Project itself into nearby articles and organisms. To Chlotsuintha's knowledge, this condition is permanent, but there are ways to 'treat' it, by through a Counter-Projection School of Casts called Binding. > May I have one roll of 1d100 please?
Rolled 87 (1d100)>>5815913
>>5815932Alright, I'm working on the update. While I am, here is a vote: Chlotsuintha can see three other types of Sub-Assemblies embedded into the Nine-Dozen that wouldn't be the provenience of death wishes to Reach into, however, some of them look to be more inviting than others. There is one type that Chlotsuintha believes should be about as dangerous as the Waxy Lump Sub-Assemblies (with DC shifted anywhere from -5 to +5), there is one type that looks a little more dangerous (with DC shifted anywhere from +5 to +10) and one that looks borderline (with DC shifted anywhere from +10 to +15). Of these three types of Sub-Assemblies (to be clear, there are a number of each) which - if any - should she attempt? > Please choose ONE of the following: > You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows - and in the condition you are in, you think you should pace yourself. Every time you Breach into an active Construct, you are taking a risk after all - and there is the emitter and Logic Organs to consider. There will opportunities to probe Sub-Assemblies that don't have dangerous amounts of Draw or Fuel inside of them. And if things go well there, then maybe you can come back down here and try the others later.> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows, and you aren't in the best condition for Reaching. But there is one more Sub-Assembly that looks like it shouldn't be harder than this one ... just do it, just that one. > While you don't have much experience with the Realm of Shadows, you have enough to do a bit more Reaching down here. You will play it safe, of course - so those small Sub-Assemblies around the Governor are out, just in case.> How exactly are you going to learn if you keep walking away from opportunities like this? So long as it doesn't have a Cast or Draw running through it, or Fuel inside of it, it should be safe enough to Reach into. Now get a move on, the Realm of Shadows is waiting!
>>5816023> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows, and you aren't in the best condition for Reaching. But there is one more Sub-Assembly that looks like it shouldn't be harder than this one ... just do it, just that one.
>>5816023>> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows - and in the condition you are in, you think you should pace yourself. Every time you Breach into an active Construct, you are taking a risk after all - and there is the emitter and Logic Organs to consider. There will opportunities to probe Sub-Assemblies that don't have dangerous amounts of Draw or Fuel inside of them. And if things go well there, then maybe you can come back down here and try the others later.
>>5816023>>> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows - and in the condition you are in, you think you should pace yourself. Every time you Breach into an active Construct, you are taking a risk after all - and there is the emitter and Logic Organs to consider. There will opportunities to probe Sub-Assemblies that don't have dangerous amounts of Draw or Fuel inside of them. And if things go well there, then maybe you can come back down here and try the others later.Why are we indulging these dangerous impulses of hers again?
>>5816023> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows - and in the condition you are in, you think you should pace yourself. Every time you Breach into an active Construct, you are taking a risk after all - and there is the emitter and Logic Organs to consider. There will opportunities to probe Sub-Assemblies that don't have dangerous amounts of Draw or Fuel inside of them. And if things go well there, then maybe you can come back down here and try the others later.
>>5816023> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows, and you aren't in the best condition for Reaching. But there is one more Sub-Assembly that looks like it shouldn't be harder than this one ... just do it, just that one. >>5816098Ranged Remediation via assembly lad- invaluable in our lot in life. Also, it’s our Father’s final creation that we know of- this is probably the last time we’ll ever get to learn from him.
>>5816023>> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows, and you aren't in the best condition for Reaching. But there is one more Sub-Assembly that looks like it shouldn't be harder than this one ... just do it, just that one.
>>5816023> You don't have a lot of experience with the Realm of Shadows - and in the condition you are in, you think you should pace yourself. Every time you Breach into an active Construct, you are taking a risk after all - and there is the emitter and Logic Organs to consider. There will opportunities to probe Sub-Assemblies that don't have dangerous amounts of Draw or Fuel inside of them. And if things go well there, then maybe you can come back down here and try the others later.What would be the potential benefit of trying a more risky one?
At some level, from the moment you clapped your eyes on this Construct, you knew that there would always be more water in this well than you would ever be able to draw. But that doesn't make it any easier to accept. You will just ... have to trust that you can intuit enough of the blanks to make something that won't cook itself off the moment you try to stabilize Draw into it. It is a bitter thought, difficult to accept, but from where you sit - kneel, rather - you don't see anyway around it. And of course, your time with this Construct is limited - not just by the prospect of the self-Cleansing being initialized at some point, but by the sheer number of other things that you have to do tonight to ensure that your dismount of the Mount is as safe and successful as it can be. So you take up the increasingly soiled and saturated linen and wipe, scrape and scour your hands clean with no small sense of frustration. Once your hands are serviceable enough, you ink your pen and take up the journal you pilfered from the basement, then flip through the leather-bound booklet until you find a suitably large enough margin to do your documentation work. There is a lot of new observations to document too; all of the Protrusions proved to either be Sub-Assemblies or Scrivened blocks of wood for a start, and there were Glyphs on the inside surface of the Membrane as well, around those 'anchors'. Were this not the end of your probing and prodding, but the beginning, you'd be overjoyed! But you are being kept by the keeper here - and even if you weren't, there really isn't anything more that you could find with just hands and a knife. You just need - No, you are not done - not yet! Your hands and this stupid, near bladeless, tipless knife might have failed you, but the Realm of Forms awaits! To be sure, Reaching - or more technically, Breaching - into a living Construct is ... a bit less ... certain than doing the same to a Glyph, but if you can manage it, you will be sure to get something - unlike with the Glyph, there is no question that all of these Construct are living, and therefore on some level active. Eager and optimistic once more, you push yourself through the remaining documentation as quickly as you can without cutting corners, even forcing yourself to write down any seemingly redundant observations that come to you. In the end, you are not quite sure how long it takes to get everything down, but once you are satisfied with your descriptions and depictions, you set the journal aside and turn the entirety of your attention back to the Nine-Dozen. Well aware of how dangerous it would be to attempt to Breach into Sub-Assemblies with high Draw or Fuel inside of them, you instead look for some of the safer options available.
To your eyes, the safest would be one of the little waxy lumps - the most common type of Sub-Assembly embedded into the body of the Nine-Dozen. At first, you had assumed that these were there to 'anchor' or otherwise adhere the Membrane to the massive Nodule, but in all of you 'hem' pulling, none of the resistance was ever centered around one. Moreover, you managed to get the wax on your hands once or twice - which is how you found out it was wax - and it was not the least bit sticky then. And when you set your hands one one of the nearest of these Sub-Assemblies, you find that it still isn't sticky either. Well ... with any luck, you'll know for a surety what it is intended to do in just a moment. After taking one last long hard look at the specific bump between your fingers, you squeeze your eyes shut hard, committing yourself to darkness. As it had been with the Glyph, you take a series of sequentially deeper and deeper breaths, then you Project yourself into the Firmament. An absence of sensation starts to cover you like a blanket, from the extremities inward, once the pitch-blackness behind your eyelids becomes in all at once more luminous. You are looking to move ahead, and definitely trying to remain focused, but the numbness - this is not something that you have experienced before. On the few occasions that you have Projected your entire Will into the Realm of Forms, there has been this flush of warmth, and constriction in your breathing. But this time here, there is none of that. You are not entirely sure if this is cause for concern or not though, as father never taught you Projection - and if he ever learned that you were teaching yourself something like this, then he'd probably wear a belt or two out over your -Instantly, you regain sensation all across your seat, along with the usual warmth you experience in the Realm of Forms.Uh, well, that is certainly interesting - and a little embarrassing. At least you seem to have stumbled on to something; thinking of your body parts piecemeal is enough to regain them. So it is a matter of moments you have regained your entire body - with the warmth head to toe, and the familiar tightness of breath as well. You are not sure what could have caused this, but you should definitely figure it out before you attempt to Breach into the - wait! Damn it all, no! Well before you were ready, you Will, so susceptible to suggestion in this state, breaks the yoke and bolts on ahead! Before you can do anything about it, you are spiraling, tunneling towards the Form of the little waxy lump in your hand. Spooked, you try to pull yourself out of it - to no avail. The luminous darkness, once like shifting oil, has brightened considerably - and is continuing to brighten, more and more.
Your Will is now bound by the vagaries of the Firmament, and your Corpus now seems to have no regard for your intent or desires. In a desperate moment, you consider trying to conclude the Projection prematurely, in a bid to force your Will back under your control … but instinctively you just know that could – no, that it would – be worse than simply continuing onward. And as soon as you come to this conclusion, you realize that somehow you are going to need to stop thinking about it immediately, otherwise you might end up doing it by accident once your Will returns to you. And it just so happens, that either in a black stoke of white luck or a white stroke of black luck, a distraction chooses this moment to inflict itself upon you, wiping away these unwanted incursions of thought. A rolling sensation of resistance overwhelms you – it is not painful, but it is overwhelming, total. Without conscious thought, you know that it is the Idea of you being distinct and separate from the Sub-Assembly. But near as soon as you perceive this resistance, this nature of being separate – your now seemingly indomitable Will batters this Idea aside, as a bored cat might alight upon a ball of yarn. You Breach into the tiny Construct. Once inside, there is a new sensation awaiting you – one of being tugged, pulled, drawn in all directions, much like a filing of steel in the presence of innumerable magnets. You are still not in pain, but again, the sensation is overwhelming. And yet, it does not overwhelm your Will. Instead, you find that your Corpus is fortified, anchored – and as you stop panicking, you find that you instinctively realize that you are being tugged away by the Assemblies Logic Organ. On some level, it makes sense – just as water and weight are want to fall downwards, so to should will the Will of the interloper seek out the Seat of the interloped-upon's own Will. Were you brave enough – and your Will restored to you – you could try to let it take your Corpus to the Logic-Organ. But after what you have been through – what you are still going through – that is not an attractive proposition. Assuming you get the opportunity to you – actually, you probably should stop thinking about this, just in case. So instead you focus the entirety of yourself on your Corpus, and you find that as time – or what passes for time in the Realm of Forms – progresses, you are more and more within yourself. Ultimately, you reach a point where you intuitively know that your Will has been restored to your Corpus, and that they are indistinguishable once more.
As for the questions you had, suddenly you have answers for all of them. There was no conscious searching, no realized discovery - one moment you had questions, the next you had answers, answers that you have seemingly known for your entire life. You know that this Sub-Assembly functions as a lymphatic node for the Nine-Dozen, working to filter out and expel black humors and other impurities from the Nine-Dozen. That in fact it was Woven out of a lymphatic node taken from a young bar hog; and that after Weaving it was ... preserved somehow. Unfortunately, you cannot find anything else about this - though perhaps, it would be more accurate to say that you cannot remember anything more, as now you have always known these answers. But you do know that it interfaces with the Logic Organ through a second Membrane, embedded just underneath the outermost skin-jacket of the Nodule ... which you had no idea about, even though you looked the surface of the Membrane over so hard, so many times.The pulling sensation has gotten much less overwhelming - and for a split second, you consider trying to release yourself, and allowing it to take you along. But you stop yourself, and instead steer your Will out of the Lymphatic Lump. At some level - perhaps not as intuitively as your new intelligence about the Sub-Assembly - you have the inescapable sense that you got lucky here; or at least, things could have gone another way. And that is all the thought that you are going to give it, at least until you are in the Realm of Shadows once more. Soon your Will manages to restore the Idea of you being separate from the Lymphatic Lump, and from there you can safely restore your Corpus to your body, and conclude the Projection. You open your eyes, and immediately look down at the Nine-Dozen. Blessedly, nothing seems to have befallen it ... or you either. Besides a spot of dizziness, and a residual tightness in your chest you cannot feel or see any physical effects of your escapades in the Realm of Forms. No fever, seemingly no loss or gain of weight - and you didn't fuse to the Lymphatic Lump or any your clothes or surroundings, either - chalk this up a scary but complete success! You will get the wax off of your hands, write all of this down, and then -
> Please choose ONE of the following: > While you are not keen on Breaching into any other of the other types of 'relatively safe' Sub-Assemblies ... you do want to try the Glyph on the outside of the Membrane again. > While you are not keen on Breaching into any other of the other types of 'relatively safe' Sub-Assemblies ... you do want to try some of the new Glyphs that you found.> It isn't easy to admit, but you bit off a lot more than you could chew here. Your best bet right now is to take the servant's stairs up to the third floor to look for the rest of the Construct.> It isn't easy to admit, but you bit off a lot more than you could chew here. Your best bet right now is to find the main stairs, and head up to the third floor to look for the rest of the Construct.> Write-ins allowed with QM approval.
>>5816666>> It isn't easy to admit, but you bit off a lot more than you could chew here. Your best bet right now is to take the servant's stairs up to the third floor to look for the rest of the Construct.
>>5816666> While you are not keen on Breaching into any other of the other types of 'relatively safe' Sub-Assemblies ... you do want to try some of the new Glyphs that you found.
>>5816666>It isn't easy to admit, but you bit off a lot more than you could chew here. Your best bet right now is to take the servant's stairs up to the third floor to look for the rest of the Construct.
>>5816666> It isn't easy to admit, but you bit off a lot more than you could chew here. Your best bet right now is to take the servant's stairs up to the third floor to look for the rest of the Construct.
>>5816666>> While you are not keen on Breaching into any other of the other types of 'relatively safe' Sub-Assemblies ... you do want to try some of the new Glyphs that you found.
You know, though it does slow down play at times, I take it as a point of pride just how often there are ties on votes in this quest. If any of you are still in the thread, perhaps explaining your position might convince someone to change their mind, or convince a lurker to throw their hat into the ring. I'll check back on the thread in thirty minutes or so.
>>5816929Sure, I voted to go upstairs. Although I will admit that the fuel nodule and indeed the whole construct is very *interesting*, I don't see it as very important to our main objective of getting the heck out of dodge. We have a lot to do tonight, including loot this place, and learning about magic seems low priority
Alright, consider this closed. I will get to writing.
And then ... well, uh ... oh, Perdition. As much as it galls you to admit it, you ... really don't know what you are doing when it comes to Breaching into active Mysteries. And you barely know anything about whole-Will Projection either. Obviously, both are dangerous on their own, but done together, simultaneously? It is ... too much for you at the moment. More than you can handle. To be sure, Breaching into a Glyph would be safer than any sort of Construct ... actually, can you even say that as a surety? It would make sense that they would be safer, considering that there is a lot less to a Glyph than a Construct, but then again, you shouldn't expect the Many Mysteries to make sense. Father taught you that much, at least. No. You ... you are done here. You have to be, otherwise you are liable to hurt yourself, or worse. You will finish your documentation, then you will head upstairs, straight - Actually, there might be one last thing for you deal with here; the linen - or at this point, the very expensive rag. Much of it has been saturated with the discharge from the Membrane, and some of that is the stickier variant too. There is also the wax from the Lymphatic Lumps on the thing as well. For obvious reasons, you don't want to throw it into your rucksack - and to tell it true, you are not keen on taking it with your either. That said, you are also intent on not leaving any traces behind if you can help it - and this is one that you certainly could help. What would be the other alternative? Put it underneath the Nine-Dozen, and hope that when it self-Cleanses it destroys the rag as well? > Please choose ONE of the following:> Swing by the closet in the hallway, grab a fresh linen, and take the rag along with you - at least for now.> Leave the rag behind underneath the Nine-Dozen - but go grab a fresh linen from that closet in the hallway.
>>5817095> Leave the rag behind underneath the Nine-Dozen - but go grab a fresh linen from that closet in the hallway.
>>5817095>> Leave the rag behind underneath the Nine-Dozen - but go grab a fresh linen from that closet in the hallway.
Okay, consider this closed. I am going to cook myself lunch, and then I will get to writing.
Well ... from everything that you have seen, taken along with everything that you know of Construction and Life-Weaving, it would be a requirement to still have Fuel in the Nodule at the start of the self-Cleansing process. The Logic Organ, whose existence you have deduced from the circumference of the Conduit and the complexity of the Construct itself, would consume Fuel to determine when the self-Cleansing should happen, moreover, it would consume Fuel to actually bring about this Cleansing. And it follows that Cleansing a Nodule with Fuel still in it is going to be a rather intense process, given the nature of Nodules. Moreover, you already know from your interpretation of the Glyphs on the wooden blocks embedded in regular intervals on the Conduit itself that the entire Assembly is going to immolate, to Mitigate and Mitigate until nothing is left but ash and soot. So it should be a surety that if you slide the linen underneath the Nine-Dozen it will be taken to cinders as well. To be sure, if this thing does reach its planned 'end-of-life' before you quit the house, then you will make a point of coming back here and checking to see that the linen - and whatever the Hell is on it - was taken care of. Feeling all the better for having a plan, you look the linen over for clean portions to make sure your hands are as clean as they can be before you start the final stretch of documentation. There is just enough for you to work with, but you find that having to very deliberately avoid the soiled portions while you clean slows you down considerably. But before too long, your hands - as well as the knife from the set of the False Silverware - are wiped, scraped and scoured, and the linen is wadded and crammed between the fire-dog and the Nine-Dozen, right near the join of the Nodule and the wrist-thick Conduit, which also happens to be well within a hands-breadth of one of the Scrivened wooden blocks. Confident that the linen will be burnt - especially if either the discharge or the wax proves to be flammable - you shift the entirety of your attention over to documentation. Ultimately that doesn't take up too much time either, even with you being as deliberate and descriptive of your experiences in the Realm of Forms as possible. Almost before you know it, you have run out of things to say or to sketch - and you must move on. You slide the quills and your notes into your naturalist's rucksack; the inkpot, however, remains out. As it has no appreciable seal, you are going to have to carry it in your hands from here on out - or accept that it will open up inside the haversack or any pocket you stuff it in. Far from optimal - but you are well past the point worrying that there is anyone or anything in this house that you are going to need to defend yourself from, and as Aldoin clearly was a naturalist himself, then perhaps with a little white luck, you will be able to put your hands on an inkpot designed for field use.
After one last look around to catch anything you have not yet accounted for, you fish your snap-sparker out, and bring the thing to bear on the remains of the remains of the candle that you have slap-dashedly smashed atop your 'stick. An embarrassing number of abortive attempts later, the slumped waxy detritus is somehow able to sustain a timid, already guttering light. Clearly, this is the end of the rope - or rather, the wick - for this candle. You will assuredly be keeping your eyes peeled for a replacement - but so far, the only other sources of light you have seen upstairs have been the sconces and the chandeliers - and both are oiled, and feed through the wall. Very carefully you rise to your feet, taking care to not crack your head on the lintel or mantle, or to have the 'stick snuff itself out from the disturbance. You take a second last look around the room, then you head over to the walls, and extinguish the sconces you lit one by one. As each of these lights go out, you become increasingly aware of just how little light your stub of a nub is able to put out at this point - in fact, when you wind close the oil-feed for the last sconce, you find the room so dim that you instinctively check to see if you have snuffed your candle as well. You didn't though. Obviously, you are not pleased about this. And it isn't just about the inconvenience that this presents, either. One of the few conditions for your Strange Staining Glyph to 'fire' is that you are able to sufficiently see the surface or article where the auto-internal Glamour is going to Portray a Strange-Stain. Even if something had been exposed to a preposterous degree of the Strangeness, and it was well inside the typical operating envelope of six feet from the physical site of the Glyph, it wouldn't matter. There would be no Staining. And from past experiences with similar levels of darkness as this, you know that Glyph can miss things under these conditions. But short of a fresh candle falling into your lap, or breaking one of the sconces off of the wall to saturate another linen sheet in oil, then prying one of the legs off of one of the chairs here to make a torch, you don't have any other options at the moment. Of course, with such limited light, finding any other options is going to be difficult ... But you will make due. Somehow. Even if you have to go without light, crawling on your hands and knees, you will make due. ... Alright, maybe not on hands and knees, but the sentiment still applies. You quit the sitting room just like you quit the hearth, stopping and taking another final look around - though this one cannot truly count, as currently you cannot see much beyond the vague shapes and shadows of the seats and baby trestles in center of the room. The fireplace itself is lost to the darkness. With that foreboding thought, you turn your back on the Nine-Dozen, all of the mysteries and Mysteries of it, and set out into the hallway.
The long corridor, which runs nearly the entire breadth of the house, has gotten noticeably darker. Trying not to think about how late it must be already, or how much you still want to do in this house, let alone out on the Mount, you move as quick as you can with your ailing light over to the linen closet. Distressingly, it seems that this room is even darker than the sitting room you just quit, though surely that must be more to do with the space being smaller and much more crowded in than the candle failing that much in the span of six or so steps. Surely. Not looking to linger here - or anywhere else in this house, for that matter - you set down the inkpot on some pile that you judge to be flat and stable enough, then you alight upon the wooden rack from which you pulled the sheet currently languishing underneath the Nine-Dozen, just a-waiting on oblivion. From the stacks on the rack, you draw out another sheet of the similar size and seemingly the same thickness and quality, then you hold it underneath your left arm while your right hand opens up the rucksack that you pilfered from this very room. On a thief's impulse, you pinch a second fresh linen, then you take yourself from this room before you can burden yourself with a third, carefully closing the door behind you ... only to remember as soon as you step away that you left your inkpot in there. Blushing and swearing at your stupidity, you reopen the door. Once you bring the light to bear on the clutter of the closet once more, you find the inkpot exactly where you left it ... but when you reach for it, you are overcome with this inexplicable wave of black, rolling and roiling terror. It passes as quick and abrupt as came on, but as your feet feel as if they are rooted to the floor and your breath is now thin and laden with gasps and hitches, you find that it takes you more than just a moment or so to process what just happened. On one hand, it is now clear that those trills of panic and paranoia that you were experiencing earlier were not your nerves failing on you. This has to be induced somehow, there is no doubt in your mind anymore about this. But this certainty brings you no satisfaction or comfort - only alarums. You have had starts and fits of fear inside and outside of the sitting room, not to mention up and down this hall; so you have nothing to suggest that this is caused by proximity to the Nine-Dozen ... save for the fact that you had no such fits until you were on the second floor. But now you must wonder; was all of your bouts of panic down in the basement your own, or was at least some of it the artifice of some outside influence? Well ... you are either carrying as much of the Strangeness as you were when you first came up the servant's stair, or less, so it doesn't seem as if it correlates there.
Of course, now that you think about it, at some level, it simply must be proximity dependent. The envelope of the ranged-remediation cast is huge, but ultimately finite. And unless the intensity of the cast is so finely tuned that it is at full efficiency up to the maximum range, beyond which there is no bleed over whatsoever, there has to be gradients of efficiency, regions where the cast is more effective than others. Perhaps instead of proximity to any particular Organ, the acuteness of this effect is determined by your proximity to the target. That makes a bit more sense ... but it is discomforting through and through that there are effects from this cast that are so hard to feel or otherwise perceive. What if there are dangerous, deleterious or otherwise detrimental effects that you couldn't perceive at all? What if you are getting hurt by this cast right now - not the shudders and aches and chills and what-not that have mostly faded away by now - but in some manner that didn't cause pain? If that is indeed the way of it, then it is all the more reason to want to find the emitter-Organ. It is unlikely that you would be able to learn about the effects that it may have on individuals inside of its envelope just by looking it over - in fact, you probably wouldn't even be able to learn much about that in the Realm of Forms, if you were up for a third attempt at a Breach. But it is possible that once you see it, you could deduce something - or maybe there could be some pertinent information in one of the Clauses of a Glyph on it or something. Those are admittedly very long odds - but they certainly are better than the odds you have of understanding this phenomenon if you remain here. With that urging you onward, you turn to your right; there is a door at this end of the hallway, which unless you have overlooked something, should take you straight to the servant's stairs - Or it might, were it not locked from the inside. Well - at least you know for a surety what is causing this latest bout of chills ... > Please choose ONE of the following: > You will find the main stairs, and use them instead. > You will descend to the first floor, and then take the other set of servant's stairs up to the third. > You will find some way into this section.I'm really sorry it took so long to get this update finished - I got buried under a bunch of small tasks unexpectedly, and it took me longer to clear through them than I thought it would. With any luck, we should have a proper run tomorrow. See you all then!
>>5819956>> You will find the main stairs, and use them instead.
>>5819956>You will find some way into this section.
>>5820579Looking back on this after a good night's sleep, I see that I did a very poor job of wording this particular choice. To be more explicit, this vote is for physically breaking the lock with the candlestick. Chalk this one up to being tired and trying to get the last leg of the update out before I fell asleep again. Of course, if this wasn't what you wanted, you should change your vote. Also, and this is directed towards everyone; write-ins are allowed for this vote as well (with the usual QM approval). That bit fell by the boards last night as well it seems. Hopefully I'll learn my lesson about QMing while half-asleep.
>>5819956> You will find the main stairs, and use them instead
>>5820631Yes. Let's break more locks.
Alright, closed for looking for the main stairs.
>>5819956>You will find the main stairs, and use them instead.
>>5819956>Break in
Sorry for the delay again; there has been a lot of little stuff cropping up unexpectedly. Update is underway, and it will be out in two hours or so.
Be calm! And for once, think before you throw yourself headlong into panic! When you quit the kitchen on the first floor, and walked through what must have been the servant's quarters, you found that there was two sets of servant's stairs. The set of stairs to the right, the ones you took, went to the second floor and no further, bypassing this locked section and dropping you into this hallway. So for a surety, the set of stairs to the left, the ones you didn't take - those must lead to this section, and the other floors. If you wished, you could retrace your steps downstairs, then take these other stairs up to the third floor ... but you are sick and tired of back-tracking. Quite honestly, it feels as if you have spent more time retracing your steps in this house than you have making them in the first place. No, no more! You turn neatly about on your heel - nearly guttering out your light in the process like a fool - and stalk down the hallway towards the door on your right that leads to another hallway. You pass though the door, closing it behind you - and find yourself in a completely unlit corridor. And unlike the hallway you were just in, this one does not have any windows; though there are unlit sconces along the walls at intervals. There is something, no many things ... deliberately wrong about the design of this house. All of those empty, seemingly unused and useless rooms along the hallway you just left, the locked and cordoned off section between that hall and the servant's stairs, the near identical sitting rooms right next to each other ... and other oddities, like the staircase leading from the basement to the first floor right by the front of the house, or the regimented little rooms of the basement - though that could be explained as a necessity for the planting. This hallway though - this is inscrutable, at least in a house that was built all at once, which this place has every indication of being. Surely, it would have been possible to lay things out so that a hallway like this could have had windows, some means of natural light - and even if such a thing was impossible for some reason, then why make this space even darker by walling off a space that did get sunlight? And where in the Heights of Hell are the stairs? There should be a landing of the main stairs accessible off of this hallway - but as you peer into a stark darkness, ameliorated only a little by the failing light off of your 'stick, you can see no landing, no spurs of this main passage. There are only doors up and down its length, along with the sconces along the wall, and a 'runner' style carpet. You struggle to envision the house in the eye of your mind, hoping that perhaps you have forgotten a turn you took somewhere ... but after twenty solid seconds of thinking, you cannot find any obvious mistakes in your recollection or your 'model'.
This hallway simply must be running the long-length of the house, and based off of where it is on the short-length, it should have access to the stairs. So it seems that the stairs must be beyond one of these doors - presumably one of the ones near the center of the corridor's span. You start towards one of them, but then your stride falters as it occurs to you that it might be better - once again - to backtrack to the second set of servant's stairs. On the other hand, you are sick, tired and increasingly upset about sending yourself back and forth like a shuttle - perhaps you should just stick this out. After all, this is just going to be a matter of poking your head through a few doors until you find the ... oh, what it is called, uh - the foyer! Aye, surely there is no sense in a reversal at this point. You are not thinking straight, and you have been thrown for a loop by some deranged design. It isn't as if you aren't going to be able to find the main stairs, right? ... Right? > Please choose ONE of the following:> You will stay the course. Look for the foyer in this hallway.> You will reverse course. Go back to the first floor and take other servant's stair..
>>5822319> You will reverse course. Go back to the first floor and take other servant's stair..OK what the fuck is going on here. Is this some kind of backrooms shit and the architecture is procedurally generated? Are we trapped?
>>5822319>> You will stay the course. Look for the foyer in this hallway.The paranoia thing is getting to us.
>>5822319>> You will stay the course. Look for the foyer in this hallway.
Testing to see if I still have my ID and special formatting privileges ...
>>5822319> You will reverse course. Go back to the first floor and take other servant's stair..Idon't have strong feelings on this one, so feel free to ignore my vote in case of a tie
>>5822319>> You will reverse course. Go back to the first floor and take other servant's stair..
Alright, consider this closed. I'll get to writing as soon as I can.
In a sudden moment of clarity, you recognize just how close you are to cracking up - or at least, making a heedless and rash decision. So you force yourself to step away and stop. You set the 'stick down on the floor, then - with a little bit of awkwardness on account of the new-to-you naturalist's rucksack perched on your back - you sit down right next to it, on the tightly woven fringe of the runner.- making yourself as comfortable as you can in the oppressive gloom of this uncomfortably isolated hall. For now though, you push such thoughts aside, and return to one of father's earliest lessons; when faced with a problem that seems inscrutable and unanswerable, break it into the most fundamental pieces possible. So, for a start; what is it that you want to do here? Easy enough, you want to check the fireplaces on the third floor for the emitter-Organ and the Logic-Organ and other Sub-Assemblies of the Construct. And to do this, you are going to need to take the stairs up to the third floor. Your concern, the issue at hand, such as it is, is that you cannot find the main stairs. But this is not the Estrangement come again; you know where another set of stairs are - the left-hand servant's stairs. To be fair, you are just assuming that they go up to the third floor, but ... But what? What exactly are you afraid of here? That they don't? That this place is more than just a cumulative heap of deliberately inscrutable design decisions? That this entire house is one great big Mysterious trap, set just for you? That is one Hell of a leap, isn't it? Just because something is inscrutable, suspicious or mysterious, it doesn't follow that it has to be Mysterious! Seriously, what could possibly be at play here? Glamours? You have been through and over enough of this place - and knocked into enough of it as well - to comfortably say that this house is on the whole quite tangible. That is not to rule out that something on the premises might be concealed by means of a Glamour - but there is no way that the entire house could be Glamoured; if it was, by now you would have walked through a Canvas or bumped into a Depictor. Delusions seem more likely, but from what little you know of them, not much more. To begin with, you wouldn't consider your current condition to be a 'dream-like' state - in fact, it is pretty much the opposite of it. There are also duration limits on Delusions; typically you can only run them for a few minutes before the incongruities and inconsistencies pile up to the point where the target inevitably concludes that they are in an altered state. You have been in here, what? An hour? Two? So what does that leave? That Aldoin was not a Docent-Governor of the College of Botany dabbling in the Many Mysteries, but a Devouring Lotus plucked right out of the darkest reaches of antiquity, and this house is his Steaming Citadel, physically forming and reforming itself around you ... for no other reason than to just frustrate and frighten you?
You need to pull your head your ass - and more to the point, you need to get to the left-hand servant's stairs. You take up the stick once more, and rise to you feet. It is with a renewed sense of purpose you pass back into the more familiar, more lit corridor, and then head to the door that first lead you into it. On your way down the right-hand servant's stairs, you notice that the Strange-Stains over the walls have retreated considerably. And once you are back on the first floor, heading over to the left-hand servant's stairs, a less Mysterious reason for the inexplicable design comes to you. You for a fact that Aldoin was not a recluse; there was a goodly turnout at his Last Ablution - and more to the point, that asinine sot boss of yours, the South Sexton, considered him a friend. Quite clearly, he had some presence in the social mileu of the entitled Subjects living on the Mount. Entertaining would have been expected; and if he was planning from delving into the Many Mysteries at home when he was putting it up to have it built - which by every indication he was - then it would make sense to have the place be designed as obtusely as possible, to keep guests penned in and Mysteries cordoned away.The reasonableness of that thought is enough to send a wave of relief through you strong enough to make your knees tremble, but regardless of whether they are steady or shaking, you employ them to mount and ascend the other set of servant's stairs. However ... while you are not looking to get bogged down in any other distractions, you do find yourself taking the steps a bit slower than you might have, had you not found evidence of some Mysterious 'Wood Filler' on the other stairs. And you find yourself paying more attention to the walls around you, instead of the runs and risers of the step - at least until you nearly trip and in your frantic attempts to steady yourself, manage to extinguish your stub. Understandably enough, having to fish out the snap-sparker once more and get the puddling remains of the candle to take a light - all the while you are perched on a stair that is small for someone of typical size, let alone you - is enough to affix the entirety of your attention on your footing. Occasionally, your eyes do stray - you are not sure what you expect to find, but ultimately, there is nothing. No evidence of Mysteries being used, no evidence of a struggle or a fight or damage to the stair or walls, nothing. Nothing out of the ordinary. All the way to the second floor, where you find a landing - and more stairs. Pattern's Peace! Oh, that is ... that is another wave of relief. But of course, they were going to be here! They were always going to be here! You just - ah, no sense dwelling. Forward! Upward! Onward!
You rush up the switch-backed stairs, and very quickly find yourself at another landing - which has another set of stairs; ones that should take you to the attic and conservatory. Beyond that, you cannot find it in you to spare it another thought - all that matters is on the third floor, surely! You pounce on the door, and wrench it open, to find yourself standing at the foot of another hallway, strikingly similar to the one of the second floor, though there are more doors up and down its length. One of these doors assumes your full attention - there is a light gleaming from underneath it, illuminating as much of the corridor as the alarmingly waning sunlight through the windows as. You start towards it, but then you catch yourself - before your eyes, the light is growing brighter and brighter. > Please choose ONE of the following:> This must be the Construct. You are not sure why it is putting out light like this, but there is much about it that you do not understand. Approach it with all due caution, and try to get a good look at it through the door. > This must be a mourner, roused by the noise you made on the stairs. You are not sure why they weren't roused before, but there is much here that you don't understand. Approach the room with caution - and stealth - and sneak a good look through the door. > You cannot say with any certainty what is making the light, or why. Perhaps it would be best to remain where you are right now, to observe from a place of safety for a while. > You cannot say with any certainty what is making the light, or why. Perhaps it would be best to wait until the light passes before getting yourself stuck in - you could ... [write in previous point of interest to investigate; eg. desalinator, buried Construct, Wood-Filler ...]> Write-ins are allowed with QM approval
>>5823842>> This must be the Construct. You are not sure why it is putting out light like this, but there is much about it that you do not understand. Approach it with all due caution, and try to get a good look at it through the door.
>>5823842> This must be the Construct. You are not sure why it is putting out light like this, but there is much about it that you do not understand. Approach it with all due caution, and try to get a good look at it through the door.
>>5823842>Hmmm... that light is... troubling. It definitely means something, but who's to say if it's the construct or something dangerous. For now, best to check all the other doors first. Maybe the fireplace and the Emitter-organ are in one of the unlit rooms and you don't have to deal with the mysterious light at all!
Alright, consider this closed. I will get to writing as soon as I can.
You are not even going to entertain the idea that this is a mourner or some other 'denizen' of this place - no, that ship has long since sailed over the horizon. With all the time you have spent here, you have not had anything even approaching a sign that someone could still be in the house ... and that is not even considering how much noise you have made. No, by now there would have been some indication that there was anything aside from yourself, the Constructs and the fraying plants alive in this house. So this just has to be the Construct - and if it is emitting light, then it stands to reason that it could very well be the emitter-Organ! Knocked out of your stupor by the prospect of the object of your search being so close at hand, you offer up a quick prayer and take a deep breath - then a few more even deeper breaths - seeking some sense of fortification before setting out. None comes - but you are at least able to muster up yourself into forward movement. Feel rather quite daunted, you approach this light, which was brightening the entire duration of your little 'sabbatical' - and is still brightening now, brighter and brighter still ... until you are about four or so strides away from the door, and the gleam is almost enough to make your eyes water, even in the relative darkness of the corridor. Abruptly it dims, significantly, though if you were any to judge, you would stake it on it still being brighter than it was when you first laid your eyes upon it. Belatedly, you realize that you have stopped dead in your tracks, and after allowing yourself another set of deep breaths, you resume your approach - your footfalls must more light, your strides much reduced. You half expect the light to either resume brightening, or to go out entirely. It doesn't - the gleam is now steady and constant. With a final step, you are in front of the door. The way is built so the door sits tight against the frame - tight enough that only small threads of light escape from anywhere save the bottom. Bringing your 'stick to bear, you try to shed some light on the handle of the door - hoping for a keyhole ... though you realize if you don't see light pouring forth, odds aren't good that you would be able to see anything through it, even if there was one. Which there isn't - a shame, because you feel you would have better chances to see something through a keyhole than peering through the slit under a door ... Awkwardly, you get down on your knees, set the 'stick and the pot well aside, then you bend the rest of the way to bring your eye onto a level with the slit. There is nothing for you to see but light filtering through the darkness, but in the straining and shifting of your search, you accidentally bump the bruised crown of your head on the door - and a wave of pitch-black terror washes over you. It is unarticulate - you cannot explain why you are scared, you simply are. Darkness consumes everything; you cannot make out anything any more.
Eventually, it wains enough for you to regain some semblance of your senses - and you realize that you have squeezed your eyes shut without even realizing it. You open them to find that you are doubled over on the ground - and have toppled over your 'stick. The surge of anger and upset at the sight further slakes the grip of the terror, and before too long it passes completely. Sucking down air like someone almost drowned, you turn your blurry eyes towards your 'stick. It is a signed and sealed frustration, to be sure ... but you expected the thing to last an hour, and in the end you got probably closer to two out of it. Besides, the wick basically fallen apart. Aye ... nothing to be done about it now ... With your one and only distraction spent, your attention is forced to turn to what just happened. Propping yourself up off of the floor with one arm, you look upward at the door, somehow all the more dark and imposing for the faint halo of leaked light issuing from its gaps. It is plain to see that the moment that you touched the door, that terror hit you as if it was a Slaughter's sledge-axe. If someone told you that was what it felt like to have your Thread passed through the Shears, you would believe them without hesitation or qualification. But where does this leave you? As there is nothing to see besides more beaming light underneath the door, if you intend to see the Construct you are going to have to open the door - which is going to involve touching the damned thing again. What if that puts you back on the floor again? It took quite some time to fade away - what if it takes longer the next time? What if it doesn't fade away the next time? And this is only from the damned door to the room. If this is ... some sort of defense, then you'd imagine that it wouldn't be limited to the door; no, the entire room would be a 'cauldron', as you can nearly take it as a surety that the Construct is in the chimney, and you can take it as a surety that the chimney is on the far side of the room. As for what is actually 'pulling the trigger', you are not sure if it was the movement of the door being jostled as you bumped into it, or the noise of the bump that set the response off ... but there was so little of either that if this is a security-surety for the Construct, as you fear it is, then it is one of great discernment and sensitivity. But perhaps ... perhaps you have been colored by this bout of terror. It is ... not impossible that this was just a freak coincidence, and you could be keeping yourself out of that room without cause. After all, there were bouts of paranoia and fear that hit you seemingly without rhyme or reason earlier - though it could be that this is some incidental effect of the emitter-Organ that has been utilized here as a last line of defense.
And therefore there would have to be limits to how often and how hard it may induce such fear ... though with that Nine-Dozen one floor down, those limits may very well be beyond yours, so the prospect of trying to exhaust the Construct to create a window of time where it is safe to examine is not one that you take lightly. Keeping yourself well and clear of the door, you work this problem over and over again in your head - only to find yourself brought back to the same point. If you are going to have to contend with bouts of terror that are enough to send you to the floor - er, well, you were already on the floor, but ... the point is, how can you possibly hope to study anything if you are nearly out of your mind with fear? > Please choose ONE of the following:> Before you start 'closing doors', you are going to try to open this one. Right now, the only thing stopping you is you, and with time never having been more precious, you must not waste if, if it can be helped. > You are not going to push your luck or risk your safety. You triggered a Mysterious defense by touching the door, that is obvious. You will not touch the door again, unless you have a plan to get past the security-surety. [Prompts Vote for Plan]
>>5825210>> You are not going to push your luck or risk your safety. You triggered a Mysterious defense by touching the door, that is obvious. You will not touch the door again, unless you have a plan to get past the security-surety. [Prompts Vote for Plan]
>>5825210>You are not going to push your luck or risk your safety. You triggered a Mysterious defense by touching the door, that is obvious. You will not touch the door again, unless you have a plan to get past the security-surety. [Prompts Vote for Plan]
>>5825210> You are not going to push your luck or risk your safety. You triggered a Mysterious defense by touching the door, that is obvious. You will not touch the door again, unless you have a plan to get past the security-surety. [Prompts Vote for Plan]
> The Plan; Intelligence Collection I: > Please choose ONE of the following: > Before you spend serious time coming up with a way to close the distance without getting scared to death, you should try to ascertain more about the 'trigger' - if it is sound or movement based. You have a notion that if you were to raise the hue and cry outside of the door without actually touching it, and nothing happened, you'd know that the movement is what activated the security-surety, and not the noise.> Whether it was the noise or the movement that did it, the fact remains that there was so little of both the distinction is of no significance to you. You are not going to be able to move through the room while making less movement than you caused by bumping the door - and you aren't going to be able to move through the room without make as much sound, either. Moreover, you don't want to activate the security-surety again if you can help it. > Write-ins allowed with QM approval
And directed towards the players; would you prefer if these votes were just general actions [Chlotsuintha is going to figure out if the 'trigger' is based on sound or movement, by [write-in]] or actions and specifics together [Chlotsuintha is going to figure out if the 'trigger' is based on sound or movement, by doing so-and-so and such-and-such]? Whenever I play other QMs Quests, the moments I remember the most fondly are when players manage to catch something and exploit it, or devise some out-of-the-box solution to a problem - and I feel I'm sort of shortchanging you guys on this front by just throwing the specifics out there. On the other hand, I know that open ended prompts really slow down the progress of a thread, and I feel that this is already one of the boards slower Quests by one of its slower QMs. To be clear, the way that she could isolate if the 'trigger' is sound based or not was pretty par for the course as far as difficulty is concerned, but there are some coming puzzles that might have answers that aren't so obvious. > Please choose ONE of the following: > These votes should propose general actions only, the specifics should be worked out by the players.> These votes should propose general actions and specifics - though write-ins should be given preference.
>>5825910> These votes should propose general actions only, the specifics should be worked out by the players.
>>5826400Don't forget the other vote!
>>5825882>> Before you spend serious time coming up with a way to close the distance without getting scared to death, you should try to ascertain more about the 'trigger' - if it is sound or movement based. You have a notion that if you were to raise the hue and cry outside of the door without actually touching it, and nothing happened, you'd know that the movement is what activated the security-surety, and not the noise.>>5825910>> These votes should propose general actions and specifics - though write-ins should be given preference.
>>5825882> Whether it was the noise or the movement that did it, the fact remains that there was so little of both the distinction is of no significance to you. You are not going to be able to move through the room while making less movement than you caused by bumping the door - and you aren't going to be able to move through the room without make as much sound, either. Moreover, you don't want to activate the security-surety again if you can help it.>>5825910> These votes should propose general actions and specifics - though write-ins should be given preference.
>>5825882>> Before you spend serious time coming up with a way to close the distance without getting scared to death, you should try to ascertain more about the 'trigger' - if it is sound or movement based. You have a notion that if you were to raise the hue and cry outside of the door without actually touching it, and nothing happened, you'd know that the movement is what activated the security-surety, and not the noise.
>>5825882>Before you spend serious time coming up with a way to close the distance without getting scared to death, you should try to ascertain more about the 'trigger' - if it is sound or movement based. You have a notion that if you were to raise the hue and cry outside of the door without actually touching it, and nothing happened, you'd know that the movement is what activated the security-surety, and not the noise.>>5825910>These votes should propose general actions and specifics - though write-ins should be given preference.
>>5825910Tbh, I’ve been busy with rl demands of my attention, so I haven’t been keeping up as I should’ve- and it seems like we walked straight into a Blue Boy situation yet again. I’ll catch up and see what I can input in the situation we found ourselves in. Though it is curious that this mysterious defense mechanism isn’t affected by the Mitigation Construct (assuming that this isn’t a byproduct of the emitter Construct itself btw), so the question is, is it a Construct, or a magical (or non-mundane?) entity, which considerably empathic abilities?
>>5825882> Whether it was the noise or the movement that did it, the fact remains that there was so little of both the distinction is of no significance to you. You are not going to be able to move through the room while making less movement than you caused by bumping the door - and you aren't going to be able to move through the room without make as much sound, either. Moreover, you don't want to activate the security-surety again if you can help it.
It will be difficult, that much you can take as a surety. Dangerous too. Perhaps even impossible, considering that this is your father's artifice ... but to tell it true, the presence of this defense suggests that this is the most important part of the Construct - which means that in spite of the risks, you have all the more reason to try. But how to try, that is the question of the hour ... hmm. Well, before you spend any of your increasingly precious time on trying to come up with a way to win through and close the distance without getting stricken, it seems sensible to ascertain more about the 'trigger'; specifically to see if it activates on sound or movement. With the level of discernment that is at play here, you don't think that you are going to be able to knock the door without making noise - to isolate movement. However, it should be trivial to make noise immediately outside of the door without touching it - to isolate sound.Of course, conducting this little test is trivial - but the prospect of getting stricken again is not. And who is to say that it is not 'triggered' by both sound and movement?Just like that, whatever forward momentum you had boils away, and instead you are going around in circles, hemming and hawing over if you should actually even bother with these sort of tests, as if they fail - or succeed, depending on how you want to frame it - you are going to get yourself stricken again. Eventually you are able to work your way back to solid ground - though it takes you much longer than you would have liked - with a compromise. You will not needlessly push your luck or your safety with these tests. Trying to isolate sound as a 'trigger' should be safe enough though - considering that you are not being completely silent outside of the door already, you can already make an educated guess that sound is not the 'trigger'. Still, you want more than an educated guess, you want surety - or something much closer to it than what you have now.With that settled, all that remains is to decide how to make the noise. Hitting the door is out, of course - and if you are keen on being keen, then you shouldn't be hitting anything, just in case the impact makes the door move. So, do you just ... talk to it? It seems silly, but - well, you shouldn't over think it. You draw yourself as close as you dare, close enough that even in the gloom that has blanketed the corridor after your 'stick toppled you are able to see the grain of the individual planks that compose the door, close enough to kiss it, then before you can lose what little remains of your nerve -"Hey, you in there!"Nothing. To be absolutely certain, you try again with a little more volume."Can you hear me?"There is no response, spoken - or strickening. So it seems you have your answer, both to the question of the 'trigger', but also to if this is going to be impossible, or just difficult.
> The Plan; Intelligence Collection II: > Please choose ONE of the following: > You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will do this with whatever light is available to you.> You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will find another source of light to replace the 'stick first, though.> You are going to poke around on the fourth floor, to make sure that there isn't more to the Construct. You will do this with whatever light is available to you. > You are going to poke around on the fourth floor, to make sure that there isn't more to the Construct. You will find another source of light to replace the 'stick first, though. > Write ins allowed with QM approval.
>>5827784WRITE IN:>Last time you touched the door you got a terrible shock, so what if *you* were to NOT touch it... delighfully devilish Chlotsuintha. Grab you candlestick and poke the door to see if the trigger is communicable via objects.
>>5827841I approve this write-in, players may vote for it and the options in >>5827784
>>5827841Fine with this- also be fine with whateverCurious thing would be to test the limits- via throwing something at the door and waiting for the terror to hit us, moving slightly (or significantly) to the side potentially, or slowly moving our hand to the door and seeing if it’s maybe an aura/radius affect instead.Hell, seems to me like it’s basically a Projection, even acknowledging my limited understanding of this magic system. Aldion’s dislocated spirit, trying to communicate with us? Could explain how he ‘died’ with the graven ball- tried to Project into it to gain a better understanding, freak accident dislocated his soul and basically killed his flesh while Strangeness was being pumped into his body.
>>5827841+1
>>5827784>> You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will do this with whatever light is available to you.
>>5827841Supporting
>>5827784Finally read this proper-and I just realized we’re probably wasting our time. The Construct is clearly movement based, because it has fucking eyes, and the eyes are illuminating the room because it’s actively casting atm.Figuring that, decent chance it also contains the Logic-Organ as well- for it would be far simpler to leave the eyes connected to the brain, which would logically be the Logic-Organ.
So it is you find yourself feeling more confident in your prospects. Marginally so, perhaps, but most assuredly better. Still on the ground in front of the chamber door, you sit back and start to contemplate your next move. You are leaning towards looking for alternate ways into the room, over making sure that this is the extent of the Construct - when another test that you could perform comes to you in a bolt of inspiration! You have tentatively isolated movement as the 'trigger' ... but you could also learn about the targeting of this security-surety; specifically the scope of its ability to target - and possibly even the ways and means it acquires its targets as well, with one simple test. You are quite pleased with the notion - and yourself for coming up with it; it feels like something a proper Witch would do. So much so that you actually stop to write this down; there is just enough light from around the door to see what you are doing - and you want to record this, as you feel strongly that this will be important in sluicing your way through a number of this Constructs secrets later.After pulling together your writing supplies and fishing out your documentation journal, you squint through the discomfortable dimness of the corridor and you jot down the your basic observation - that when you made physical contact with the door, you got stricken, presumably because you caused it to move, and the Sub-Assembly that is responsible for the strickening strikes targets the source of the movement. But the question that you want to answer - honestly, that you really must answer - is how did it target you from the other side of the door, assuming that there is not a Lens or Peeper secreted in this hall. Either the Sub-Assembly has a dedicated Peerer, or is in some other way 'Form-facing', perceiving and isolating the location of targets through the permutations of the Firmament - or this Sub-Assembly is 'Shadow-facing', where it peers through this Realm with flesh-eyes, looking for and reacting to physical disturbances in the tangible world around it in the way a brute beast might. It is certainly a pertinent question - so pertinent, in fact, that the more you think about it, the more embarrassed you feel for not asking it earlier. But you can at least take some satisfaction in the test that you concocted ... Then again, can you really say that touching the door with the 'stick instead of the crown of your head is really a stroke of genius? Well, at the very least, you are better off for eventually thinking of it. That is ... something. Oh, damn it, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself - you are running on two short naps, and a handful of sausages and pretzels. All things considered, it is a feat that you are still coherent at all.
Returning your attention to your writing, you scribble down your rationale for the test - if the Strickening Striker does its targeting through the Firmament, then short of finding some way to completely Shield yourself, or managing defensive Projection - something that you don't even know how to describe, let alone attempt - you are simply not going to be able to move through that room without getting yourself stricken. If the target of the security-surety is your Will, then there is no way that you can hide - so long as you are inside of the operating envelope, it will know exactly where and what you are. But if the striker seeks its targets in the Realm of Shadows instead, say by looking for movement and then inducing a state of terror in all consciousness in a given distance from that disturbance - then you might just be in white luck here. Physical eyes - both Mundane and Mysterious - will have blind spots, can be hid from, and if need be, blinded. To be sure, that is all easier said than done. For a start, sighted Constructs are typically endowed with more than the typical two eyes - and if they have been positioned well, then hoping for blind spots or to hide from them could just be wishful thinking. And of course, blinding by some violent act could risk the health of the Sub-Assembly ... or engender some response-in-kind. There is also the question of the parameters of the target. The range of the strickening could target all consciousnesses within a couple of inches of the perceived movement, or it could cover the entire floor. Alright, that might be overkill, but the entire room - that would be sensible, so long as it was practical. And that is the root of the problem here - all of the Mysteries involved here are so far beyond you that you don't have a good sense of what is and is not practical. Even the idea of a security-surety that is 'Form-facing' would seem absurd from a complexity and cost perspective - but so does a Construct that is at least three stories tall and capable of ranged-remediating an entire house. Therefore, the test is to see if you can physically disturb the door without getting stricken yourself. If you can, you will have successfully determined that the ways and means of the Strickening Striker's targeting are 'Shadow-facing'. Well ... it should. At least from your admittedly limited knowledge of the Realm of Forms. As you understand it, if it is your Will to cause movement within the operational envelope, then the Strickening Striker will be able to target you, no matter how far you - actually, no, not no matter how far, but the range limit would be considerable, like beyond the next house over - definitely outside of your ability to test here. Regardless, if you get stricken, then the test is inconclusive, because it could be either.
Wait ... instead of touching the door with the 'stick, shouldn't you be throwing it - or something of similar and considerable heft - from a distance? That way you'd have a better chance of isolating a 'Shadow-facing' method by a non-response. But if you do it that way, then even if the test works, you will have no conception of the range of the strickening. Is it enough just to know that it is 'Shadow-facing'? Or do you need to know the range of the strickening as well? You suppose you could throw the 'stick from progressively shorter distances until you get stricken - or are touching the door. But can you accept the prospect of doing that much damage to the door - and to the 'stick, which you had figured you would be keeping - with all that testing? Can you accept the prospect of doing any damage to the door? Perhaps it would just be better to touch the damned thing like you initially planned, and hope that there isn't any response. Ah, man alive, you wish you could come up with a better way to do this! Or at the very least, you wish you had some testing subjects, something to observe; as you are most assuredly not keen on getting stricken ever again! > The Plan: Intelligence Collection IIS: > Please choose ONE of the following:> It will be enough to know that the method is 'Shadow-facing', and that stealth might be viable. Therefore, you will go to the greatest distance that you can hit the door with the 'stick and proceed to throw it. Conclusive or otherwise, this will be the only test like this you run.> It is not enough to know that the method is 'Shadow-facing', and that stealth might be viable. Therefore, you will go to the greatest distance that you can hit the door with the 'stick and proceed to throw it. Assuming you aren't stricken, you will throw it at shorter and shorter distances, until you are finally stricken, or you find yourself close enough to the door that you can reach it with your arms at full extension and the stick in your hand. > It is not enough to know that the method is 'Shadow-facing', and that stealth might be viable. Therefore, you will get close enough to the door so that you may touch it with the stick with your arms at full extension. [If stricken, Prompts Intelligence Collection IIS=]> Write-ins allowed with QM approval
>>5828728I mean, we do have a test subject- that box in the basement has a living creature living in it yea?Also, would some of the Mysterious silverware help shield us from the effects of being stricken? If we’re truly operating in the Realm of Shadows.And if it’s operating on our Will, it wouldn’t have waited for us to accidentally bump our head into the door- instead, it would’ve reacted to our Will to open it, or our Will to see what’s going on, ja? Chlot would have a better understanding than I do about all this though.
>>5828664Oooooooo! I hadn't thought of this. The light being from eyes (like ours!) is really clever. I don't know how to go about approaching the construct, but that's a real clever deduction
>>5828902> Also, would some of the Mysterious silverware help shield us from the effects of being stricken? If we’re truly operating in the Realm of Shadows.It wouldn't be enough to tie down a couple of pieces of the False Silverware around her head to stop being stricken - for something like this, she would need a sealing Shielded helm. If she did manage to batten enough down around her head, it might help a little though ...>>5828902> I mean, we do have a test subject- that box in the basement has a living creature living in it yea?I was wondering if or when someone would remember that little number. I should make an distinction here though - from her current understanding of what is transpiring here, the test subject would need to have some level of consciousness (or in the case of a Construct, Logic) for the casting of the security-surety to reach completion. It should not be enough to use something alive - something like a plant wouldn't be affected. Or a more simple Construct without Logic of its own. And there is no way to know if the Construct has Logic or not without looking it over.>>5828902> And if it’s operating on our Will, it wouldn’t have waited for us to accidentally bump our head into the door- instead, it would’ve reacted to our Will to open it, or our Will to see what’s going on, ja? Chlot would have a better understanding than I do about all this though.Assuming the security-surety is 'Form-facing', the ability of the security-surety to perceive Chlotsuintha's (or anyone's) Will would likely be limited to the room. Continuing with the assumption of a 'Form-facing' nature, Chlotsuintha believes that it is the ripples through the Firmament caused by moving through the room (referred to as the operating envelope) that do the 'triggering'; and the target is any Will or consciousness associated with disturbance within the range of the security-surety. I believe that the point of confusion here is that the maximum range at which the security-surety can cast is independent (and much much larger - as she said, like beyond the next house over) from the operating envelope. To be clear - she believes that if this is 'Form-facing', then what happened is that her Will caused the door to move, the door was inside the operating envelope, and so she was stricken. It is likewise possible for a 'Form-facing' security-surety to target intent to enter or move through the room (as you suggest), but in addition to being much much more complicated, Chlotsuintha has been intending to move into that room from the moment she stepped into the hallway. If the security-surety targeted intent to move instead of movement itself, then the second that she thought about walking through the room (the presumed operating envelope) while she was in range of the casting (anywhere inside the house) she would have been stricken on the spot. Such is the power of 'Form-facing' Mysteries.
>>5829115Also, in the theology of the Priests of the Pattern, (and by extension, Chlotsuintha's internal monologue) Will is not just intent or desire - it is the sum total of an individual's consciousness (which includes intent); on the whole, it is what we might call a soul. More than that, the core tenet that all denominations of Patternmaker worshipers hold to is that those in the Covenant have Freedom of Will, a great privilege given to them by the Maker; that they are Patterns who Make Themselves. Everyone outside of the Covenant is a 'brute' - that is, they may be conscious, but everything they do is ultimately dictated by the Idle Permutations of the Pattern, or by Intercession from the Patternmaker Himself.
I appreciate the work of the other anon who puzzled this out, but I am stumped. We're up against a construct in a locked room that can (probably) detect our soul and send us into a panic attack whenever it does. I think it's time to discuss throwing in the towel, looting the house, and leaving to go do something else
>5828728> It will be enough to know that the method is 'Shadow-facing', and that stealth might be viable. Therefore, you will go to the greatest distance that you can hit the door with the 'stick and proceed to throw it. Conclusive or otherwise, this will be the only test like this you run.
>>5828728Would string or a length of rope connected to the knob work better/faster than throwing the candlestick repeatedly, at gauging the range of the effect?>>5829115I still haven’t forgotten about the books either, or the ‘empty’ metal chest bolted to the floor.So, it’s awareness (assuming it’s Form-facing) would’ve extended throughout the range of the cast instead of just operating in the operating envelope? Curious- I wonder if there is a way we can somehow use that for information collection in the future, considering how encompassing that could be.Surely, there must be a way past the security-surety though- the Mitigator would’ve put a backdoor in just in case something went wrong and the Construct in the operating envelope needed to be worked on or maintained.>>5829118Curious- would it be accurate to say this Construct has a limited Will of it’s own, since this wasn’t created (I hope) by the Pattern’s Idle Permutations or the Patternmaker’s active hand, but by a witchlet with a Freedom of Will? Or this that just horrible blasphemy?>>5829130It ain’t over yet mate- there’s gotta be a ‘backdoor’ in the security-surety, else our Mitigator would get hit trying to work on it himself. Besides, there’s no keyhole for a lock on this door.
>>5829115Also, if it’s just attacking our Will, as opposed to our physical form in the realm of shadows, could there be a way for our Will to override/overpower the attack, or fortify itself in defense? I’m assuming it’s meant to keep out the brutes and the uninformed or unaware of the Many Mysteries in this house, as Chlot was caught unawares by the assault on her Will.
>>5829206> Would string or a length of rope connected to the knob work better/faster than throwing the candlestick repeatedly, at gauging the range of the effect?That is an interesting idea - I'd imagine that tying the rope/string would take longer than just lobbing a 'stick, and it might be a bit more difficult to jostle the door ... but it definitely wouldn't leave marks behind like the stick would. Chlotsuintha has the linen sheet on her, and she knows where more of them are - should I count this as vote for running a series of tests at shorter and shorter intervals until there is a response or Chlotsuintha is within arm's length of the door with sheets instead of the 'stick? >>5829206> Surely, there must be a way past the security-surety though- the Mitigator would’ve put a backdoor in just in caseIt is possible. But it is also possible that the reason there are two Constructs is for redundancy in case of failure, as opposed to needing two to get coverage. If this was the case, then it is reasonable to assume that the responsible party (almost certainly Chlotsuintha's father) made no such accommodation.>>5829206> Curious- would it be accurate to say this Construct has a limited Will of it’s own, since this wasn’t created (I hope) by the Pattern’s Idle Permutations or the Patternmaker’s active hand, but by a witchlet with a Freedom of Will? Or this that just horrible blasphemy?Before the Estrangement, it was a point of contention amongst Witches, Priests and philosophers if a Construct with enough Logic was created by a Witch born into the Covenant would have Freedom of Will or not. Most contended that they didn't, but there were those that disagreed. After the Estrangement however, it is widely accepted that they don't. In fact, there are denominations that do not even consider those born into the Many Mysteries to have Freedom of Will - instead considering them to be living Trials imposed on the faithful by the Patternmaker. The Reformed Priests of the Pattern (the newest of the three mainline denominations, the most practiced in Outremer, and the denomination that Chlotsuintha has been raised in) have a marginally more moderate stance - that it is possible to be born into the Many Mysteries and the Covenant, though only from proven bloodlines - from which they pull their Mitigators, their Weavers and other sundry Practitioners. It should be noted though that even those in these controlled bloodlines are considered to be Soiled, that is hereditarily spiritually unclean - much in the same way Lepers are. And of course, those born into the Many Mysteries outside of these proven bloodlines aren't in the Covenant. As for the specific Construct in the chest in the basement, it is unlikely that something so small has enough of a Logic Organ to in turn have enough Logic to have ever been considered possessing a Will of its own. The Patternmaker didn't make it.
>>5829213> Also, if it’s just attacking our Will, as opposed to our physical form in the realm of shadows, could there be a way for our Will to override/overpower the attack, or fortify itself in defense? I’m assuming it’s meant to keep out the brutes and the uninformed or unaware of the Many Mysteries in this house, as Chlot was caught unawares by the assault on her Will.Is such a thing possible? Yes. Is Chlotsuintha, who is completely self-taught when it comes to direct dealings with the Realm of Forms capable of doing it? Almost certainly not. She wouldn't consider even attempting something like than unless all of her other options have been exhausted - and then only if she had some reason to believe that she could do it safely, or she would be in danger if she didn't. Neither of which she has at the moment. >>5829130> I appreciate the work of the other anon who puzzled this out, but I am stumped. We're up against a construct in a locked room that can (probably) detect our soul and send us into a panic attack whenever it does. I think it's time to discuss throwing in the towel, looting the house, and leaving to go do something else.Chlotsuintha has not determined if the door is locked or not. Would you like me to consider this a vote for stopping the investigation? Anyway, on the vote in: >>5828728. I see a lot of good discussion but only one formal vote >>5829137, what might be a write-in for an alternative test >>5829206 (which I accept, if it is), and what might be a write in for walking away >>5829130 (which I also accept, if it is). Regardless if there is one, two or no write-in votes, I don't feel that there has been enough input to close this. I think then I am going to leave this up for another night. I'll be in the thread to answer questions, and hopefully, there will be enough votes in the morning to close it.
>>5829756While I am personally inclined to giving up, there are some good ideas floating around so I will change my vote to this:> It will be enough to know that the method is 'Shadow-facing', and that stealth might be viable. Therefore, you will go to the greatest distance that you can hit the door with the 'stick and proceed to throw it. Conclusive or otherwise, this will be the only test like this you run.
>>5829756Okay, well it seems that this is going to sit a little longer then. I'll wait until 8:00 pm EST, then unless I get confirmation that what I think may be intended as write-ins are write-ins, I will close this with the only formally cast vote. If the write-ins are confirmed, then we wait for a tiebreaker, as long as that may take.Hopefully, this doesn't turn into another torpedo recovery.
>>5830015Or the vote will come in while I am typing up my post! Disregard everything, and consider this closed. I will get to writing after lunch.
>>5829749>should I count this as vote for running a series of tests at shorter and shorter intervals until there is a response or Chlotsuintha is within arm's length of the door with sheets instead of the 'stick?Certainly- if there was any other vote going on. In this case, feel free to consider me supporting >>5829137 for expediency sake- both irl and in-universe. Can't really justify how long it would take unless the others decide it's a decent idea itself.>It is possible. But it is also possible that the reason there are two Constructs is for redundancy in case of failure, as opposed to needing two to get coverage. If this was the case, then it is reasonable to assume that the responsible party (almost certainly Chlotsuintha's father) made no such accommodation.I don't necessarily see how that tracks, even if I love the idea from a scavenging/knowledge gathering PoV- even ignoring the time and resource investment building two duplicate, high-range, high-intensity Constructs opposed to a lower intensity, distributed network, it would still make sense to put in a backdoor incase his luck was as black as charcoal- and that isn't taking into account how extremely cautious Father is characterized as being.
>>5830169Sorry it took so long to post this- I wrote this around 12AM and fell asleep because 4chan decided to shit itself.
You permit yourself a few dozen moments of quiet thought, in the hopes that you can come up with some other means to the response of the security-surety. But the time slips away from you, leaving behind nothing satisfactory. The closest you managed to get to a viable alternative was to use your linen sheet - perhaps in conjunction with others from the closet on the floor below - as an improvised rope that you would secure to the door handle, walk to an appropriate distance away, then use it to haul on the door, hopefully jostling it enough in the process to construe an effective test. This idea doesn't make muster on two counts; first, there is the additional risk introduced that you set off the security-surety when you are securing and then positioning the 'rope' for the test, and second, it is possible that you are not going to be able to jostle the door enough to trigger a response, because the movement will be primarily outward, away from the presumed limits of the operating envelope. As crude as the thrown 'stick may seem, there is no risk of premature strickening for you - and the jostling caused by the impact will be primarily inward, towards the operating envelope, making false negatives much less likely than with the 'rope' alternative. It is the simplest and most fool-proofed option that you have in your quiver at the moment, and considering that you are 'tilting' at what is almost certainly an unavoidable, unbeatable 'Form-facing' caster Sub-Assembly, and are therefore practically guaranteed to get stricken again by this test regardless of how much distance you put between yourself and the door - let alone any attempts to actually win your way into the room - you are desperately and most assuredly going to need something fool-proofed.But as much as you hate even thinking about that overwhelming deluge of fear and helplessness, if you run the test and don't get stricken, then setting aside the possibility of a false negative, that means - well, it strongly suggests that the security-surety is 'Shadow-facing'. That it is using some physical means to see, and that it presumably attempts to cast the strickening strike in the vicinity of any detected movement. If all of that is the case, then that means that this isn't over and done with, dead and buried - no, quite the opposite. It means that you have a chance! Slim, and slimmer still if you cannot find another way into the room, but a chance nonetheless! So it is with great trepidation but even greater hope you unsling your new-to-you naturalist's rucksack, and make sure it and everything else is well clear from the door. Then you take up the 'stick, and without allowing yourself to overthink things you walk through the gloom of hall, to an appreciable distance away from the door. Between the distance and the angle, you are no longer able to discern the little threads of light coming out from around the sides and top of the door - only the glow from the bottom can be seen.
You offer up a quick prayer, then you shift your grip on the 'stick, holding it as one might hold a throwing axe. Then perceiving that there is nothing left to do but the test itself, you let fly with the 'stick. The distance between you and the door is great enough - and the hall is dark enough - that you lose sight of the 'stick as it sails through the gloom. Holding your breath, you hope that it is flying as true as it looks - then before you can articulate any other thoughts, there is a resounding thud, followed almost immediately by a metallic clang. And it is not followed by a strickening! Your knees go weak in relief, and your breath - which you hadn't even realized you had been holding - explodes forth in a ragged sigh or relief ... but you have the presence of mind to not lose yourself in self-congratulations until you check to see if the 'stick actually managed to hit the door; if it didn't, this test is worthless. So you dash through the gloom, the runner soft and compliant underneath you foot-wrapped feet until you stand before the door. Barely visible in the gray haze of near-darkness around the frame is a thumb-sized shallow dent on the surface of the door. If knocking the door with your head was enough to trigger a response, this should have been as well. So it is true, then; things are getting interesting! > The Plan: Intelligence Collection III: > Please choose ONE of the following: > You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will do this with whatever light is available to you.> You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will find another source of light to replace the 'stick first, though.> You are going to poke around on the fourth floor, to make sure that there isn't more to the Construct. You will do this with whatever light is available to you. > You are going to poke around on the fourth floor, to make sure that there isn't more to the Construct. You will find another source of light to replace the 'stick first, though. > You are going to take another look at the space underneath the door. It might be large enough to get the Wand of Head-Knocking underneath there - though whether you could get it in position safely, or even use it on the Construct remains to be seen. > Write-ins allowed with QM approval
>>5830515Okay, so that's cool, we learned that:A) the door is somehow lockedB) objects either don't trigger the strickening or the range is very limitedWRITE IN: Okay, so you learned that the door is locked and, at least from afar, inanimate objects don't trigger the strickening. But what about objects up close? Like, on your body close? It seems like here is an opportunity to solve two problems at once: try to batter open the door with your cloth-covered shoulder
>>5830515I’m basically fine with any of these options>>5830566The door isn’t locked- it just doesn’t have a keyhole. Presumably we can open the door if it didn’t make us sick.As much as I like your experimenting write ins, now isn’t the time- we don’t have the time to waste, as unfortunate as that reality is.
>>5830515Seems anons are lacking direction, so I guess I’ll provide it> You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will do this with whatever light is available to you.Working theory is that the glow will help provide a potential way in.Tbh, I’m REALLY tempted by the Wand of Headknocking play, as that has the most direct chance of solving this rather quickly, but I’m uncomfortable with unilaterally deciding that in case no one else votes, so I defaulted to the 2nd most expedient option.Also, considering >>5830566 isn’t contradictory (though it clearly is painful and I’ll-conceived), I would swallow the bitter pill of accepting suck ill-advised action if it mean we can get another update out tonight.
Just double-checking, it's a push door and not a pull door, right?> You are going to poke around on this floor, to see if there are any other ways into this room. You will do this with whatever light is available to you.
>>5830860Correct. Anyway, we have three votes with a 2-1 spread. Considering that voting seems to have slowed down a bit, I think that it enough to consider this closed. I will get to writing as soon as I can.
Of course, you must not take your Triumph before your victories. This door before you is obviously in the sights of the security-surety, so unless your plan is to just endure strickening strikes for the entire breadth of the room, in the fain hope that you can find some blind spot - in the darkness, while you will be going out of your head with fear ... no, no - you are definitely going to have to figure out some other way to win through the operating envelope, one that does not entail having your mind roasted like a chestnut by this damned security-surety. But how? Well ... the exact same way that you would win your way into any other trapped or guarded room. Find another door - or failing that, make one. Though, quite honestly, if it came down to having to batter your way into the room, you might find yourself seriously reconsidering enduring your way through from this door instead - or at least trying to come up with another plan. You are quite keen on leaving this house as close to the way your father left it - and bashing down a wall, or going through the ceiling or the floor seems very likely to make a lot of movement through the operating envelope. And that is not even considering your complete and total lack of appropriate equipment for such an undertaking. Aye, your best bet is to find yourself another door, not to make one ... though it does occur to you that this is presumably a bedroom, which typically do not have multiple ways inside. Then again, how much of this house has been typical? Buoyed by that thought, you approach the room to the immediate left of the glowing door, looking to make short work of this - but when you open that neighboring door, you find nothing but impenetrable darkness waiting for you, no matter how hard you squint and strain your eyes. No matter. You turn on your heel, and approach the nearest of the sconces on the opposite wall - then you turn on your heel again once you realize that you don't have your snap-sparker in your pocket any more, that it is in your rucksack. Rifling through this new acquisition in gloom of the hall is not the easiest task you have ever set yourself, but you do eventually manage to find the thing. You then return to the sconce, bring the snap-sparker to bear ... only to find that you cannot get a drip of oil into the lamp. You spend what must have been three minutes fussing over the damned thing, looking for a catch, a release, a stop-cock, something that was keeping the oil from filling the sconces reservoir ... all to no avail. Worried, you then head to the next nearest sconce on the wall opposite to the door that you intended to go through - only to find that you cannot get that one to light either. Of all of the stupid things to stymie you, a lack of light has to be the dumbest. Frustrated, but with no other option, you hold the snap-sparker aloft, and pumping its wheel, you walk yourself into the room.
As you snap your way inside, it belatedly occurs to you that this is presumably a bedroom, and if there was - No, damn it! You are not doing this! You are not double guessing yourself, and you are not treble guessing yourself either. This place has been quiet as the grave this entire time - save for the moment that you knocked into that table in the basement, and when you threw that 'stick. No one is here. Something would have tipped you off by now if there was. You need to get that through your thick, thick head - and more importantly, you need to get a move on! Setting aside everything else that you planned to do this night, you are overdue for one of those random strickenings that you have been being hit by - and you would prefer to be further away from the security-surety when it does happen, as it seems that proximity is a factor in the strike's severity. You then turn your attention to the room - which you still cannot really see, in spite of your best efforts with the snap-sparker. Perdition, you wish it was a snap-flamer instead! The spark is simply not enough to illuminate anything more than two strides away, and it lasts for only a sliver of a sliver of a second. Also, it aggravatingly precludes your eyes from ever adjusting to this darkness. To tell it true, you are starting to think that you might be best off just groping through the darkness instead. After all, you are just looking for a door - it shouldn't be too hard to find if you move methodically along the wall. Going that route would preclude finding anything else in these rooms though ... but of course, that isn't the point of this little excursion. You stifle the urge to sigh. Perhaps there is a better way to approach this search, a simpler stratagem ... but quite honestly, you are just ... you are feeling pretty spent, right about now. Maybe it will come to you; but until then, you are going to need to make call here. > The Plan: Intelligence Collection IIIS: > Please choose ONE of the following: > You are going to grope your way through the darkness instead of relying on the snap-sparker. > You are going to rely on the snap-sparker instead of groping your way through the darkness.> Write-ins allowed with QM approval
>>5831792> You are going to grope your way through the darkness instead of relying on the snap-sparker.
>>5831792>Cast some rudimentary spell to turn on the ol' eyebeams.
>>5830515> You are going to take another look at the space underneath the door. It might be large enough to get the Wand of Head-Knocking underneath there - though whether you could get it in position safely, or even use it on the Construct remains to be seen. >>5830848I'll go ahead and take it
>>5831792Goddammit again with the update. Anyway I feel this is a waste of time, we'd be better off trying the wand thing
>>5831885Had the same thought earlier as well- didn't voice it because there's no proper way to turn it off if there is another eyeball in the house on a lookout. In all honesty, we should've bought some welder's goggles or something we can put over our eyes to hide the light yet still maintain sight.Also, the ol' ice lockpick trick would do the deed just fine. Just watch out if the Logic Organ.>>5831922>>5831924I largely agree, but I'm still uncomfortable without a plurality supporting such an action- a holdover from the more contentious votes I've been a part of involving a minority vote winning before the majority could weigh in.
>>5831792> You are going to grope your way through the darkness instead of relying on the snap-sparker. Take me down for this for now, and if it fails we try the wand thing
>>5831792Do the wand thing
>>5831885>>5832094Though I will say, being brutally honest, that this is probably the hidden answer the QM wanted us to come to- as per>>5831792>Perhaps there is a better way to approach this search, a simpler stratagem ... but quite honestly, you are just ... you are feeling pretty spent, right about now. Maybe it will come to you; but until then, you are going to need to make call here.Quite honestly, I'm probably overthinking this to an absurd degree.
I'll accept the write-in (of course) - but I should point out one thing; any cast that has enough Draw to cause Chlotsuintha's eyes to glow would also produce the Strangeness, potentially on her, her clothes or her possessions. Setting aside the risks of Estrangement, Chlotsuintha is inside the operating envelope of a ranged-remediation cast, and has come to the assumption that the deleterious physical effects of being inside the field; the shakes, shivers, chills, uncomfortable warmth, aches and shooting pains worsen the more Strange you are. Right now, there is pretty even spread of votes, but groping through the darkness is ahead. I'm still not ready to write yet, so I will leave this open for a little bit longer - just wanted to give a caution about casting under these circumstances.
> You are going to grope your way through the darkness instead of relying on the snap-sparker. I don't want to try the wand thing because if we get struck by terror as we're slipping our wand under the door there's we may be fucked on getting it back.
Still lads, this>Perhaps there is a better way to approach this search, a simpler stratagem ... but quite honestly, you are just ... you are feeling pretty spent, right about now. Maybe it will come to you; but until then, you are going to need to make call here.leads me to believe that we are missing a rather simple solution to the light problem
Alright, consider this closed.
Trying to push aside the sinking sensation that you are overlooking an alternative - a better alternative - you settle on groping your way through this mess. You stuff your snap-sparker into one of your now-emptied apron pockets, and begin your quiet, shuffling campaign through the room. By keeping your movement deliberate and measured, you are able to keep some semblance of a heading, and before long and without overmuch fuss, you manage to make contact with the wall. You position yourself facing it, putting the palm of your right hand flush against the wall. Simultaneously, you hold your left hand a few inches out from your hip, so that you will not be completely taken by surprise by some lurking furnishing as you progress. With these simple precautions completed, you resume your shuffling progress through the ink-black space, only now you are crab-creeping. In spite of how physically undemanding the whole process is, you find it to be quite straining, actually. You have absolutely no idea what is in this inscrutably dark room, and after announcing yourself with the light from the snap-sparker, you have gone and turned your back to it. Of course, you don't seriously believe that there is anyo - anything! Anything! Damn it all, there is no one in this house, how many fraying times to do you need to tell yourself that! For the Heights of Hell, you need to keep it together. You cannot afford a crack-up, not tonight. And definitely not here. Though actually ... come to think of it, perhaps this nagging doubt, this ... fear that you aren't alone is actually just a subtle bout of paranoia induced by either the strickening Organ, or the general effects of the ranged-remediation cast. You - wait, did you already come to this conclusion? Damn it. You ... don't think so. But maybe you ... oh, fray it all, this is a new low, isn't it? You cannot even keep track of your own damned thoughts you simpering - Your left hand bumps into something solid, and though you nearly cry out in surprise, the interruption is enough to focus you back on the task at hand. After you work your way around the obstruction - a washbasin stand, proof-positive that this is a bedroom - you continue on along the wall, keeping your right hand in position, trying to not dwell on how exposed you feel, how tired you are, how much you ache - and how at least some of your discomfort is presumably being caused by the ranged-remediation cast. Ultimately, there are few obstructions along the wall - an upholstered chair, and a side table to go with it, a chest or dresser, a wrought-iron hat-stand, a desk or perhaps a table - before you find yourself in the far corner of the room. You then switch your hands and reverse your direction, making your way around those obstructions again until you reach the near corner. As you might have expected, there is no door in this room.
You grope your way out into the hall, and immediately repeat the process in the room on the other side of the door, crab-creeping your way along the other shared wall. The only difference is that this room appears to be empty - or at the very least, it doesn't have anything along the wall as the previous one did. You retreat once more into the hallway, feeling on the whole rather defeated, even though you knew going into this that it was a bet not particularly likely to pay out. There is, of course, one more shared wall ... the one on the far side of the room, the one that the fireplace abuts. Of course, reaching it is going to be a lot more involved - assuming the layout of this floor follows the layout of the floor below, you would have to route yourself through at least two more hallways. And with your current bounty of black luck, they'd no doubt have sconces that didn't work either. From there, it would then become a question of finding the right room or rooms to make sure that you checked all of the shared wall for doors.That ... well, that could chew through quite a few minutes - with absolutely no guarantee that you will get anything out of it. And that is if you are even checking the right rooms ...> The Plan: Intelligence Collection IIIS=: > Please choose ONE of the following: > You have chewed through enough minutes on this already. > You planned on checking all of the shared walls for doors, and that is what you are going to do, regardless of any further complications.> You planned on checking all of the shared walls for doors, and that is what you are going to do - so long as the layout remains consistent with what you have seen of the second floor, and the sconces along the walls of the corridor with the doors you will be trying work.> Write-ins allowed with QM approval.
>>5832916> You have chewed through enough minutes on this already. I would also support the wand idea if other anons wanted to try it
>>5832916>> You have chewed through enough minutes on this already.
>>5832916Do we know if this was an occupied room? A candle on a desk, table, or nightstand could be the thing we missed. Like, we're clearly missing something, right?>Just use the snap-sparkler or cold-touch to get some damn illuminationI'm frankly getting tired and frustrated- and do we have to question the long-term effects of this remediation to our psyche? It can't be as simple as setting fire to the fuckin' footwraps, right?...actually, is it as simple as using the footwraps as string to turn the handle of the door?
>>5832916If we scream loud enough in frustration maybe we can reduce stress?
>>5832916Try out the wand thing
Okay, we will forgo checking the last of the shared walls. I've seen quite a few anons call for using the Wand of Head-Knocking, so I will post the operating conditions and requirements in the post below this one. Additionally, there is going to be a moderate situational malus here, on account of the fact that if Chlotsuintha was to use the wand, she would not be able to see what she is aiming at. After calculation of the typical DC of the cast, a flat 15 DC malus will be applied, to account for the fact that Chlotsuintha cannot actually see what she is casting at; this lack of sight makes it harder for her to take the cast to completion by introducing potential issues with the line of sight requirement and makes it harder for her to direct the cast to the desired target through the Realm of Forms. Outside of that consideration, the casting will work as described in the operating conditions and requirements posted below. Chlotsuintha is certain that the chimney is within six yards of the door - based off of her knowledge of the footprint of the room beneath this one - so there is no issue on that front. There is, however, a glaring problem with using the wand that so far has been overlooked. If you can figure out what it is, I will make it worth your while - and if you cannot, then Chlotsuintha will figure it out at the last moment and take care of it in short order - so there will be no harm, no foul. Going forward, I'll try to do more puzzles like this - as extra opportunities for swag or bonuses, as opposed to things to derail or undermine a run.
Wand of Head Knocking, 2nd Degree. Unstable. School of Kinesiology. Targets known or presumed living organisms with brains or living equivalents, causing the brain or equivalent target to vibrate violently, causing concussions, disorientation, nausea, and potentially unconsciousness or even death. Can be blocked by Shielding substances or sufficient Mysterious means. LIMITATION: The tip of the wand must be in an unobstructed line to the brain or equivalent of the target. Range is up to six yards with casting, up to twelve with overcasting. Catalyzed with eighth-charge of salt with casting, or a fourth-charge with overcasting. Fueled with eighth-charge of an ounce-nodule with casting, or a fourth of an ounce-nodule with overcasting. Some Strangeness produced on caster and on fuel source with casting, Strangeness in the Second Degree produced on both with overcasting. One-in-one-hundred chance for some Strangeness produced on target with casting, one-in-five chance for some Strangeness with overcasting. Base DC 5 for hammer cast. Base DC 10 for hammer overcast. Base DC (2+1pC) for each standard cast of a chained casting. Base DC (4+2pC) for each overcast of a chained casting. LIMITATION: Subsequent chained casts of Head Knocking do not have cheaper casting costs. LIMITATION: Chained casts of Head-Knocking can target up to three separate targets with seven total separate casts – any more than this requires a second action. Hammer casts and overcasts of Head Knocking has a nineteen-in-twenty chance to completely knock the target out cold for thirty seconds or so, and each chained cast or overcast of Head knocking has a thirteen-in-twenty chance to completely knock the target out cold for twenty seconds. The duration of unconsciousness stacks with subsequent successful casts of Head Knocking that also manage to fully knock out the target. Each successful cast of Head Knocking has a one-in-five-hundred-and-twelve chance to kill the target in the absence of killing intent (one-in-two-hundred-and-fifty-six with), determined independently from the target getting completely knocked out. For every subsequent successful cast of Head Knocking on a target that is currently concussed, the odds of outright killing the target are doubled, and then run again.
Example: Chlotsuintha performs seven standard casts of Head Knocking, in a chained cast, all at one target, with killing intent but no bonuses or maluses effecting her cast. She rolls seven d100 dice each with a DC of 9. She succeeds at six of them, meaning that the cast reached completion six times, and that the target has become concussed. She rolls six d100 dice with a DC of 2 to determine if any Strangeness is produced on the target. She succeeds at all of them, meaning that no Strangeness is produced on the target, though Strangeness is produced on herself and on the wand’s fuel nodule. She rolls six d20 dice with a DC of 8. She succeeds four times, meaning that the target is out cold for eighty seconds. Then the QM rolls one d256 die, one d128 die, one d64 die, one d32 die, one d16 die, one d8 die and one d4 die, all with DCs of 2. Two of the tests fail, target dies. > The Plan: The Means and Ways I:> Please choose ONE of the following: > You will make a standard hammer cast with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume an eight of a charge (an ounce) of sea-salt and an eight of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 20. On success, 19-in-20 chance to knock out target for ~30 seconds and 1-in-512 chance to kill target.> You will make two standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume two eights of a charge of sea-salt and two eights of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 19. On success, two cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~40 seconds. 1-in-512 and 1-in-256 chances to kill target.> You will make three standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume three eights of a charge of sea-salt and three eights of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 20. On success, three cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~60 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, and 1-in-128 chances to kill target.> You will make four standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume half of a charge of sea-salt and half of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 20. On success, four cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~80 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, 1-in-128 and 1-in-64 chances to kill target.
> The Plan: The Means and Ways I (Cont'd):> Please choose ONE of the following (Cont'd from above):> You will make five standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume five eighths of a charge of sea-salt and five eighths of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 21. On success, five cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~100 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, 1-in-128, 1-in-64 and 1-in-32 chances to kill target.> You will make six standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume six eighths of a charge of sea-salt and six eighths of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 22. On success, six cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~120 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, 1-in-128, 1-in-64, 1-in-32 and 1-in-16 chances to kill target. > You will make seven standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume seven eighths of a charge of sea-salt and seven eighths of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 23. On success, seven cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~140 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, 1-in-128, 1-in-64 1-in-32, 1-in-16 and 1-in-8 chances to kill target.> You will make [write-in] standard casts with killing intent, adjusting the odds and outcomes accordingly. > You will make [write-in] overcasts without killing intent, adjusting the costs, odds and outcomes accordingly. > You will make [write-in] overcasts with killing intent, adjusting the costs, odds and outcomes accordingly. > You will attempt to break your way into the room through the shared wall to the left (as you face the room in the hallway)> You will attempt to break your way into the room through the shared wall to the right (as you face the room in the hallway)> You will attempt to break your way into the room through the ceiling of the room with the Nine-Dozen. > Write-ins allowed with QM approvalDon't forget to try to figure out the glaring problem that is being overlooked! It really will be worth your while! I'll leave this up until after dinner, then if there are enough votes, I'll close it. If I feel that not enough of you have had time to throw your hat into the ring, then I will hold off.
>>5833523One glaring problem I can see is that we don't know how badly or in what way our fuel nodules were affected by the ranged remediation.There is also the issue, unrelated to our wand (these are not guesses) that the construct might not have a brain or at least not one in this room. Another one is that, if there is a brain, disabling the fear trap might also make it stop doing other important stuff that our father wanted it to do.
>>5833523>You will make five standard casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume five eighths of a charge of sea-salt and five eighths of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 21. On success, five cumulative 13-in-20 chances to knock out target for ~20 seconds for maximum of ~100 seconds. 1-in-512, 1-in-256, 1-in-128, 1-in-64 and 1-in-32 chances to kill target.
>>5833573> One glaring problem I can see is that we don't know how badly or in what way our fuel nodules were affected by the ranged remediation.That certainly is a concern, but Chlotsuintha has already recognized it as a potential issue and done everything she can to ameliorate it by surrounding the part of the bundle with the Nodules in it with the False Silverware, and segregating out the Nodule that was running a temperature. > [T]he construct might not have a brain or at least not one in this room.Again, this is admittedly a concern, but Chlotsuintha has acknowledged that she really doesn't know anything about the Construct in this room, beyond the fact that it is presumably responsible for the light and the strickening strikes. The ability of the Sub-Assembly in this room to carry out those strikes suggests the presence of some Logic Organ, which is why she is willing to Estrange herself - she believes there is something in here that she can knock out of commission with the Wand. > [I]f there is a brain, disabling the fear trap might also make it stop doing other important stuff that our father wanted it to do.Another concern, but this is still something that Chlotsuintha would be acutely aware of (even if she has not expressed as much in the narrative). No, the problem that you are trying to solve hasn't been considered by Chlotsuintha - or any of the anons in the thread.
>>5833523Is this something that we went over before, like during Chlot's Trial, or something that's been mentioned only in this house? Because I don't think it's the magazine size that's the problem.>>5833573It's a problem that seems to be easily fixable- did we damage it accidently, or am I miss remembering?
>>5833523Also, we haven't checked out the celling, did we?
>>5833733Wait a minute, it ain't the socket needle right?
>>5834218> Wait a minute, it ain't the socket needle right?No, the Socketing Needle is fine - and to prepare for the cast, she will check to make sure the Socket is still sound, so if there was a problem she'd catch it on her own. This is something that she - and the players - have overlooked.>>5834213> Also, we haven't checked out the ceiling, did we?If by that, you mean that Chlotsuintha has not been to the fourth floor - then yes, you are correct. Would you like me to consider this a write in for heading to the fourth floor? >>5834212> It's a problem that seems to be easily fixable- did we damage it accidentally, or am I misremembering?You are right in that it is a straight-forward problem. As for the Nodule - the one that was hooked into the Wand of Head-Knocking when Chlotsuintha first entered into the house - it had a physical reaction to being inside the operating envelope of the ranged-remediation cast; it got noticeably hot. Chlotsuintha was (and is) concerned that it might no longer be in working order. That is why she unhooked it, and stowed all of the Nodules inside her bundled spare dress, Shielded as best she could by the False Silverware. >>5834212> Is this something that we went over before, like during Chlot's Trial, or something that's been mentioned only in this house? Because I don't think it's the magazine size that's the problem.The problem has to do with one (or more) or her potential plans to examine and document whatever components of the Construct are on the other side of the door. I really cannot give any more clues away, otherwise it wouldn't be a challenge.Remember to actually vote on this - so far we only have one formal vote cast, and one potential write-in. I'll check in on the thread in the morning.
>>5834253So, it has less to do with the wand, and more to do with what using it means for her plans to examine and document the Construct? It can't be it's brain getting knocked around- surely that's accounted for. Neither the light (do to our eyes) or the quill and ink are problems related to wand usage. Can't be giving Strangeness to the Construct- can't really prevent it from the cast, and the Construct is already Strange. Can't be proximity from the chimney- Chlot should already be accounting for that. Keeping the sensory organ from perceiving us after it wakes up again?A glaring (obvious) problem, which leads to swag (or research material) relating to the Construct, that would become a specific problem because we used the wand. Curious- shame I'll be gone for the majority of the day in a couple hours, even if I figured it out it'd be hard for me to post the solution.As for the write-in, sure- though I'm torn on that as well. I can't help but spin my wheels thinking on this- every option is suboptimal, between risking Estrangement while we're finally clean, to bumbling around in the dark, to wasting even more precious time finding some illumination. Can't seem to make up my mind over this.
Well this is suboptimal
Well ... it seems that you all have figured out the meta-game, here. If no one votes, that means that everyone has more time to figure out the puzzle. Heh. I guess going forward, puzzles should have hard and fast time limits, independent from the vote. >>5834308> So, it has less to do with the wand, and more to do with what using it means for her plans to examine and document the Construct?Yes, that is correct.> It can't be it's brain getting knocked around- surely that's accounted for. Damage to the Construct caused by the Wand of Head-Knocking has been accounted for, yes.> Neither the light (do to our eyes) or the quill and ink are problems related to wand usage.That is correct as well. > Can't be giving Strangeness to the Construct- can't really prevent it from the cast, and the Construct is already Strange.You are right in that the odds of releasing the Strangeness on the Construct cannot be prevented - though I would point out that these components of the Construct may or may not be Strange. So far, none of the Construct has triggered Strange-Staining. > Can't be proximity from the chimney- Chlot should already be accounting for that. That is correct too.> Keeping the sensory organ from perceiving us after it wakes up again? That is close - and in the hopes of preventing the thread from stalling out any more than it already has, I will consider it close enough. Unlike previous casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking, the duration of unconsciousness induced here is absolutely critical. With the Middenguard, it didn't really matter how long they were knocked unconscious for - Chlotsuintha could see that she had managed to down them all, and she proceeded to kill them as quickly as she could. The important point is that she had no way of knowing how long they were going to be out for the count the players might have, but they shouldn't have, and in the sabbatical I took from the Quest, I figured out how to fix that by randomizing the thirteen out of twenty possible outcomes of a twenty-sided die that result in twenty seconds of unconsciousness.I also see now that while I did correct the write-up for the Wand of Head-Knocking to reflect these new rules, I didn't completely update the given example - so this puzzle was harder than I intended, and therefore should pay out a bit more. Back to the point at hand; Chlotsuintha is going to have to guess how much time she has to work with, and then figure out how to make the most of it. The longer she is with the Construct the better her inspection of it will be, but the more likely it is that she gets seriously stricken on the other end. There are some easy things that she is going to do to make the most of this time though. Still need votes on >>5833519 >>5833523, we are technically tied 1-1.
>>5833588I support this anon
>>5834623I’m >>5834308, and you can officially consider me voting for the most expedient option, despite my misgivings.>Well ... it seems that you all have figured out the meta-game, here. If no one votes, that means that everyone has more time to figure out the puzzle. Heh. I guess going forward, puzzles should have hard and fast time limits, independent from the vote. I don’t think that’s the case here- we already stalled on >>5830515 without the puzzle. I think anons are legitimately at a loss on how to proceed.In any case, I hope the limits aren’t hard or fast (or at least too much so)- I have to divvy my time working full-time, and I feel like I’ve had the most quest impact, between the puzzles and crit rolls.>The important point is that she had no way of knowing how long they were going to be out for the count…huh, I sorta figured the problem was getting past the sensor-organs. Didn’t think it’s eyes would be mobile- since there’s only one obvious way in, it makes sense to keep it stationary and focus investment on other purposes. Didn’t expect we’d be time limited by the Head-Knocking, since I figured we could’ve put the linen sheet over it’s eyes and take out time with it.
Is leaving with everything we marked an option?
>>5833523>> You will attempt to verbally communicate with the construct to try and establish if it has ill intent or not before proceeding and if that fails make a standard hammer cast with the Wand of Head-Knocking without killing intent. It will consume an eight of a charge (an ounce) of sea-salt and an eight of a charge of an Ounce-Nodule. First-Degree Strangeness will be produced on caster and Nodule. 1-in-100 chance of First-Degree produced on the target. DC 20. On success, 19-in-20 chance to knock out target for ~30 seconds and 1-in-512 chance to kill target.
>>5834966> Is leaving with everything we marked an option? Do you mean stepping away from the Construct and pivoting to looking for swag, or leaving the house entirely? Either way, both of those are acceptable write-ins - but I will need you to specify which for the count.>>5835126Write-in accepted. >>5834957> [Y]ou can officially consider me voting for the most expedient option, despite my misgivings.Just to be clear, you are voting for the option that has the most votes to expedite the update, right? > …huh, I sorta figured the problem was getting past the sensor-organs. Didn’t think it’s eyes would be mobile- since there’s only one obvious way in, it makes sense to keep it stationary and focus investment on other purposes. Didn’t expect we’d be time limited by the Head-Knocking, since I figured we could’ve put the linen sheet over it’s eyes and take out time with it.If the Sub-Assembly that is responsible for the strickening strikes is unconscious, then it is of no consequence if other sensory Organs perceive Chlotsuintha - assuming, of course, that there are no other security-sureties that share the sensory Organs. Now, these Organs could be mobile or at least able to pitch and yaw - and the sheet is an excellent idea by the way - but the crux of the issue is the range of the strickening strike. When (if) the Organ responsible for the strickening strikes regains consciousness, and receives any inputs from the sensory Organs about movement in the room, (even if it is not Chlotsuintha) the security-surety will perform a strickening strike on all consciousnesses with a currently undetermined range of that movement. When Chlotsuintha bumped into the door, she got stricken. When Chlotsuintha threw the candlestick into the door from a few yards away, she did not. Therefore the range of the strickening strike falls somewhere in between these two distances. It is possible that much of the room will be covered by the range of the strike. That sheet is really quite a clever idea though, so long as it doesn't move - or Chlotsuintha isn't in range of the strike if it does move - then you might have solved this encounter, or at least made it substantially easier! I am going to wait just a little bit longer, to see if this clarification changes anyone's votes - once I feel it has sat long enough, I'll close it. I might be able to get an update out tonight too, but no promises ...
>>5835340>Just to be clear, you are voting for the option that has the most votes to expedite the update, right?Correct, even if I'm starting to get misgivings over it.>If the Sub-Assembly that is responsible for the strickening strikes is unconscious, then it is of no consequence if other sensory Organs perceive Chlotsuintha - assuming, of course, that there are no other security-sureties that share the sensory Organs. Now, these Organs could be mobile or at least able to pitch and yaw - and the sheet is an excellent idea by the way - but the crux of the issue is the range of the strickening strike. When (if) the Organ responsible for the strickening strikes regains consciousness, and receives any inputs from the sensory Organs about movement in the room, (even if it is not Chlotsuintha) the security-surety will perform a strickening strike on all consciousnesses with a currently undetermined range of that movement. When Chlotsuintha bumped into the door, she got stricken. When Chlotsuintha threw the candlestick into the door from a few yards away, she did not. Therefore the range of the strickening strike falls somewhere in between these two distances. It is possible that much of the room will be covered by the range of the strike. That sheet is really quite a clever idea though, so long as it doesn't move - or Chlotsuintha isn't in range of the strike if it does move - then you might have solved this encounter, or at least made it substantially easier!Ah, it seems I misunderstood the mechanics of the Construct. I though using the wand would work because it's Logic-Organ, and I assumed that was the centralized 'brain', or processor, of the Construct. But it seems like what you're saying is that the processing power is distributed into the sub-assemblies themselves- each with their own miniature processing unit, or 'brain', for it's sub-assembly. I'm I correct in the mechanics of this?
>>5835356> Ah, it seems I misunderstood the mechanics of the Construct. I though using the wand would work because it's Logic-Organ, and I assumed that was the centralized 'brain', or processor, of the Construct. But it seems like what you're saying is that the processing power is distributed into the sub-assemblies themselves- each with their own miniature processing unit, or 'brain', for it's sub-assembly. I'm I correct in the mechanics of this?Well, yes and no. There would be a primary Logic Organ for the entire Construct, and then for sufficiently complex Sub-Assemblies, there would be a localized Logic Component - a Sub-Sub-Assembly - effectively a miniature Logic Organ, but these are less like 'brains' and more like nerve endings. They exist to efficiently and precisely process the inputs of the primary Logic Organ to their Sub-Assembly, as well as relay outputs to the primary if there are any sensory Components to the Sub-Assembly. Simpler Sub-Assemblies typically don't need Components, it is easy enough for the primary Logic Organ to run them directly. If the Logic Component is knocked out, disabled or killed, then the Sub-Assembly that was being controlled through that Component becomes dead weight - unless the primary Logic Organ is 'clever' enough to recognize that it has lost a Component and 'flexible' enough to attempt to assume direct control of the associated Sub-Assembly. It would be as if you could - with some focus and physical effort - temporarily assume direct control over your smooth muscles. But even the highest echelons of Weavers do not commonly put that level of 'flexibility' into their their Witchwork though; it is exceptionally difficult to implement, and in most cases, if the Construct were to come under attack, the attacker wouldn't have the means or knowledge to target the Logic Components. If the Weaver believed that the Construct might come under attack by another Witch, however, then Weaving in that sort of redundancy might be worth their time. Anyway, it is pretty late. I'm going to leave this up overnight - but assuming there is not a tie when I open the thread in the morning, then I will close it right then and there and get to writing as soon as I can.
Alright then, consider this closed. I will begin writing immediately.
Update on the update - I wasn't able to get the whole thing finished today, and I don't want to ask for the rolls without the post. I'll have it out sometime tomorrow, I promise. To make it up to you all, I'll have Chlotsuintha realize what that wrought-iron hat-stand actually was - it will definitely make the inspection go much easier.
No, you - no. Too much time has already been milled, and for precious little gain to boot. Moreover, the rear shared wall seems to be just as unlikely to have a door as the ones to the left and the right. Or, if by some masterstroke of white luck it did, then where is the surety that you would be able to walk from this portal all the way to the chimney without being noticed by the sensory Components that the Construct quite clearly has in this room? There is none, and that is the plain and pure truth. No, there is going to be no easy way out here - or rather, no easy way in. And when you consider the fact that battering down a wall or through a floor is just as likely to fall afoul of the sensory Components and Organs in this room as an alternate door, then it becomes clear that there is only one way forward, one way into that room that comes with the possibility of avoiding any more doses of that black, roiling and rolling terror. Through the door, after returning the favor to this Construct with some strickening strikes of your own - a goodly number of chained casts from your mother's Wand of Head-Knocking, Second Degree! Embracing this new resolution, you turn to your rucksack and fish out your bundled dress, intending on pulling one of the Ounce-Nodules out of its improvised Shielded wrap. But as you fumble your way through the folds and False Silverware, you are stricken; not by the Construct, blessedly, but by a realization. The light by which you can see right now is from the Construct; either it is the way and means by which its sensory Components are able to perceive movement, or it is a by-product of the Construct's casting or living-operation. But regardless, there is a chance that when you knock out the Logic Component of the Sub-Assembly responsible for the strikes, you won't just preclude the Construct from strickening you again by rendering it unresponsive to the primary Logic Organ, you could also end up dowsing or significantly dimming the light. To be sure, after using the wand, your eyes will be glowing - so it is not going to be as if you are in complete darkness ... but your eyes don't put out light like a nude flame would, no, they beam in tight bands, just like a shrouded lantern or peep light does. You will certainly be able to see the Construct, you have no doubt about that - but there is only going to so -Pattern's Perdition! An even more glaring oversight!
You assume that the light that you are seeing right now is integral to the security-surety that is responsible for the strickening strikes; and that is a patently reasonable assumption, based off of everything that you know about this Construct and Constructs in general. Additionally, you are assuming that if you can see light from the other side of the room underneath the door, then there must be a viable path for a cast to hit the security-surety; now, you would still consider that a reasonable assumption, though to tell it true there is more than a hint of hopes and prayers to that one. It is possible that there is some obstruction in the room, something that the light is shining through or around - and while the documentation for the wand never specified that the caster had to have sight on the target, you cannot imagine that not being able to see the target makes anything easier. Still, you know that the security-surety exists, and you know roughly where it is - hopefully that will be enough. If it - when it ... if it works out, and your casts successfully target the security-surety, and a number of them reach completion, then the light from the security-surety will likely be dowsed or noticeably reduced ... or at least effected in some way. That is also patently reasonable to assume - even without hopes and prayers. More to the point, if it so transpires, then you will have a fairly obvious way of telling that at least one of your casts with the Wand of Head-Knocking reached completion, so you will know that it is safe to proceed into the room. But that is the extent of it. You won't know if the second, or the third, or any of the subsequent casts won through to completion or not. And because you won't know how many reached completion, then you won't know how long you have before the security-surety starts to regain consciousness. Say you were to 'chain' together the maximum possible number of casts - seven. You see the lights dim or dowse, and you bolt into the room. You could have as little as twenty seconds to reach the other side, look the entire thing over with whatever light remains in the room and from your eyes, and rush back to the hallway. That doesn't even seem feasible. But now that you really think about it ... is the full hundred and forty seconds that much better? You are going to pay dearly for that time too - for a start, you are going to be Estranged. You are also going to have one less Ounce-Nodule to use - and who is to say that whatever happened to the Nodule that you had pinned into the wand when you entered the house won't happen to whatever Nodule you pin in to use here? You think you know enough about Fuel Nodules to recharge one if it was in proper working order ... but you wouldn't dare to go as far to say that you could repair them, or make replacements for them.
Still ... this remains your best bet. Having since been distracted by your thoughts, you turn your attentions back to your bundled spare dress, and finally finish retrieving one of the Nodules. It is not as warm as it once was, which is all well and good, but it remains to be seen if it has come to any harm - or if it is even still in working order. You start to shift the bundle around in the rucksack so you can get it buttoned up again when your hand brushes up against one of your latest 'conquests' - a linen sheet taken from the closet. Which makes you think - if the sensory organs in the room happen to be Lenses or Peepers of some stripe, what would happen if you were to cover them up, or move them so they were pointing at a wall? Well ... it is possible they could still perceive movement through the sheets, or see the sheets as moving, and target strikes accordingly - and as for moving them, you could end up hurting the Construct. Or yourself, for that matter. After all, if it was worth it to set one security-surety, odds are that it might have been worth it to set a second. Or a third.Yet somehow, in spite of all of this, you feel undaunted. You feel as if this trick with the linen is going to work. Because it has to. Twenty seconds is not going to be enough time. Neither is a hundred and forty. You take up all three sheets under your left arm, then close your rucksack up. All that is left to do is pin in a fresh Nodule, and then perform the casts. Still, you wish you had more light to work with. Perhaps you should take the snap-sparker in there, just ... just in case your eyes aren't throwing off enough light. No, that - no. It won't put off enough light to be worth the trouble. If you had a candle, you'd bring it in, unlit, in your hand, then light it with the snap-sparker once you got into position at the fireplace - but you don't have any damned candles. Besides that waxen derelict you found discarded in the basement, you haven't seen a single candle anywhere. Maybe ... would it be worth it, just to check the room to the left of this one. There was that desk - at least you thought it was a desk. If it was, then there might be candles or something to write by just sitting on it, waiting for you. On the other hand, to check it, you would have to do quite a bit of groping just to get there. It was practically in the far corner of the room, past that wrought iron ... hatstand?!Oh, you fraying, blithering idiot! No one makes hatstands out of iron! That must have been a candelabra!Almost before you even realize it, you are bolting to the door - the other door. You wrench the thing open, and rush right in, making a beeline for the shared wall. Once you smack the meat of your right palm down on it, you proceed to bull your way through the blackness. No crab-creeping this time! You bull into the chest, having managed to overshoot the preceding obstructions, but if anything it makes you glad, because the very next ... ah! Here it is!
You take your right hand off of the wall, and with both of them you quickly grope your way up the shaft until you reach the crown, then you follow them up and - Pattern's Peace! That is a candle holder! And ... that is a candle! Maker's Mercy! Oh, what a candle! You pluck it out of its perch, and turn it over in your hands. It has to be more than a foot tall, and as there is still a bit of taper to its top, you judge that it has barely been used. Beeswax too, though you have come to expect such luxury from this house. You kiss the silly thing as you stuff it in your apron, and when you discover that it wasn't alone atop the candelabra, but that there were three others just like it, you end up kissing them as well as you stuff them into your apron as well. For good measure, you kiss the candelabra when you turn to leave, and when you bump into the trunk or whatever on your way out, you end up laughing and kissing that as well. To tell it true, you'd probably be skipping right now if you weren't in near-total darkness at the moment. Oh, you don't know if you are relieved, or you are cracking up, but either way, you really, really needed this. Once you are out in the hallway, you get your 'stick set up right outside the illuminated door. You figure you will leave a candle burning in the 'stick and the door open, so just in case something happens, you have a light to lead you out of the room in a hurry ... though you'll need to be careful opening the door, otherwise you might just snuff it out. Then you make sure that you have everything you'll need on you - and nothing you don't. Once you have satisfied yourself on this account, you pin in the Fuel-Nodule, offer up a quick prayer, then get down on your knees in front of the door once more. Time to roll the proverbial dice! > May I please have five rolls of 1d100? The DC is 21; if there are still rolls remaining after ten minutes, feel free to roll again. There is going to be a lot of rolling tonight, assuming I don't fall asleep on you lot.Also, I would like to state for the record that I did manage to get the first post of this update on Monday as I had promised, but I screwed it up, and then had to wait ten minutes to delete it and post it properly, by which point it was already Tuesday (for EST). I probably wouldn't have been able to get the rest of the update posted before the midnight oil burned out, but an effort was most assuredly made!
Rolled 84 (1d100)>>5837825Best of luck then- may the Patternmaker bless our rolls white!
Rolled 11 (1d100)>>5837825Welp, here goes nothing again
Rolled 24 (1d100)>>5837825Third time's a charm, bless the Pattern!
Rolled 96 (1d100)>>5837825Well, may the Patternmaker bless the fourth one
Rolled 83 (1d100)>>5837825Guess the final roll is mine, bless the Pattern and it's Maker!
All told, a very strong showing. Now I need one more 1d100 to determine if the target is Estranged, and five rolls of 1d20 to determine if the target is knocked unconscious.
Rolled 53 (1d100)>>5837883Fun
Rolled 14 (1d20)>>5837883And may the Patternmaker bless this roll as well!
Rolled 19 (1d20)>>5837883And the Pattern this roll!
Rolled 3 (1d20)>>5837883And maybe a little white luck from the Lodestar in this one!
>>5837883Oh, correction, we just need four rolls of 1d20.
Rolled 3 (1d20)>>5837883>>5837927Okie dokie QM
Rolled 92 (1d512)Alright, now I do the death-rolls. Hope that none of these turn up a one, otherwise things get a lot more complicated.
Rolled 171 (1d256)Now here is the second.
Here is the third ...
Rolled 1 (1d128)>>5837954... or rather, here is the third ...
>>5837956
>>5837960>>5837954Hmm. Well, this certainly changes things. I'll definitely want to get an update out before I throw out options to vote on. Look for it tomorrow. Not that it matters now, but you did manage to knock out the security-surety for the full eighty seconds, so you can feel good about that, I suppose. I should also point out that in the future, I'll need to 'scramble' the DC for the casting as well as the rolls to determine if the target is unconscious to get the ambiguity I am looking for. With the DC 'unscrambled' it was obvious that you reached completion four times - which gives away a lot of the uncertainty in how long the target could be unconscious, and goes against the grain established in the narrative of Chlotsuintha not being able to determine how many times the cast reached completion. I don't know why any of this didn't occur to me when I was revising the rules for the Wand of Head-Knocking last night though. At the end of the thread, I'll have the newest new rules up - assuming we don't use the wand again.
>>5837966As great as that would've been, you can imagine that is cold comfort to my ears, considering how everything is royally screwed now. A set of fantastic rolls, a feat of success more stunning that Aldion's house knowledge, a run of unusually white luck- all turned black as ash in my mouth, right after my main reason for using the wand resolved itself by a puzzle I failed to perceive. Oh joy.I do hope I'm just being overly dramatic, and that we didn't just induce brain death in the central Logic-Organ.
>>5837956It's over
Good thing dad will never find out about this
>>5838437Oooof.
Well folks, I guess we'll need to burn this house down the old fashioned way, strange incindiary and half our supply of arson stuff in the cart. Good news is we'll free up space for the false silverware.
In the light from the 'stick and its nearly new candle, you check one last time that the Nodule is pinned in as perfect as can be. Once you are satisfied on this account, you bring your head down to the floor, and look through the slot underneath the door once more. The gleam from the Construct plays across your face, and the thought that this illumination might be the way and means by which this massive Witchwork 'sees' sends trills and chills up and down the length of your spine. You find yourself frozen still for a moment, waiting for the strickening strike, hoping that your Wand of Head-Knocking will survive any convulsions it might cause - but there is no strike, there is no strickening, just as it was when you first peered through this slit. Buoyed by that, you rouse yourself back into action and conduct the final preparation - the sea-salt catalyzation of the wand. You pull out the little battered purse of salt from your apron, and dole out more than enough salt to cover the four chained casts that you have decided to perform, which will give you up to eighty seconds, if all of them win through to completion. But even if you only get one, the twenty second window you have should be enough to get across the room and cover, move or otherwise enfeeble any sensory Components. Once the grip of your wand is salted down, you take a pinch for yourself - swallowing some, and keeping the rest underneath your tongue. As you go to put the sail-cloth purse of salt away, you change your mind at the last moment, and decide to go for five chained casts instead. This isn't standard operation, after all - not knowing where your target is or what it looks like is going to make performing such a cast notably harder. You simply cannot count on all of the casts reaching completion - in fact, telling it true, you cannot really count on any. It is entirely possible that the targeting - Ah, damn it all, you have been through this. Just ... do it. You twist yourself a little - careful not to knock the door! - to check your apron pockets, to make sure that you are carrying the candle and the snap-sparker. You are. Then you twist a little more to check that the sheets are still pinched tight underneath your left arm. They are. You look over the Socketing Conduit one last time, and then, finally with nothing left to do, you take a deep breath, bring your Wand of Head-Knocking to bear into the breach, and initialize your casts. The temporary rush, the air getting knocked out of your lungs - these things are all absent while casting with a Instrument. In fact, the only proof you have delved into the Mysteries at all is that your eyes are all a-glow - and that the light within the room, which had been stead and constant for so long is flickering, fading and - From within the room, there is suddenly the sound of cracking, and in less than a moment, the glow from inside is all gone.
Instinctively you just know, something terrible has happened. You bolt to your feet, catching sight of the Nodule pinned into your wand swinging freely as you rise, the fleshy ovoid covered tip to tip with Strange-Stains, its remaining three charges unusable - at least until the Strangeness has been Cleansed or dissipated from it. The tremors, aches, the ever-sinking pit in your stomach, and the warm flush which had almost subsided to the point of obscurity if not absence, rush back into your body as water might rush back into a reservoir once a sluice-gate is lifted. No doubt some of it is from the ranged-remediation cast, but a goodly portion must be your natural response to all of this as well. You wish it very much so to not be the case ... but that cracking, what could that cracking have been but the death of security-surety? You suddenly realize you are still standing without, and grab at the handle to the door. But you stop yourself before opening it. If you are right - and you have precious little doubt that you aren't - then something Mysterious has just died in a rather spectacular fashion inside that room; something that was directly or indirectly hooked to a absolutely massive Fuel Nodule. Even if you assume that only the security-surety came to any harm, that still means that the rest of the Construct is going to be Estranged by all of the Strangeness released on the death of the security-surety. Considering the size of the Construct in question, the Estrangement will presumably be localized, but still ... will the Construct target itself with its own ranged-remediation cast? Will the other Construct? Would the now-damaged Construct on the other side of this door be able to still function as intended? Could the death of the Sub-Assembly caused imbalances or shorts in the rest of the Construct that imperil other parts of it? Would it even be safe to go inside this room? There is a tightness in your chest all of a sudden - so suddenly that you feel that it must be caused by a ranged-remediation cast ... though now that you are giving it attention, you are no doubt making it worse ... oh, Maker's Mercy, why couldn't this just have gone right? It should have been a trifle, just a trifle ... > Please choose ONE of the following: > You have spent the time and material so you may inspect and document this part of the Construct. It may not be unexpectedly dangerous to do so, but regardless, you are going to have to see this undertaking through. > You may have spent time and now material to inspect and document this part of the Construct ... but under these circumstances, it is too dangerous to do so, at least right away. [Prompts Vote for Next Action]
>>5838913>You have spent the time and material so you may inspect and document this part of the Construct. It may not be unexpectedly dangerous to do so, but regardless, you are going to have to see this undertaking through.We gotta try and fix this mess.Personally though, I imagine that the Strangeness will be rectified fallowing the final mitigation, and that steps were taken to prevent the operating-envelop from being remediated- after all, the remediation process does produce Estrangement itself.
>>5838913Would it be possible to project into the dead construct and set off the fire components... potentially?
>>5838943Yes, it would. I would remind you, however, that Chlotsuintha is completely self-taught when it comes to that sort of projection and there are a number of potential complications and undesirable outcomes on the proverbial table. It wouldn't be a 'free action' either, there would have to be some rolling. Attempting to perform a Salt-Mitigation on the remains of the dead Sub-Assembly is also an option, I might add - if you were concerned about the effects of allowing this Estrangement to continued unchecked.
>>5838913>The strangeness inside must be contained with a salt mitigation before it outpaces the ranged remediation going on. Where to go from there however...?
>>5838913>> You may have spent time and now material to inspect and document this part of the Construct ... but under these circumstances, it is too dangerous to do so, at least right away. [Prompts Vote for Next Action]
This certainly isn't something that I am comfortable rolling for, so I'll wait until we have ourselves a tie-breaker.
>>5838913>> You have spent the time and material so you may inspect and document this part of the Construct. It may not be unexpectedly dangerous to do so, but regardless, you are going to have to see this undertaking through.
Okay, just seeing >>5839482 now. I will get to writing the update as soon as I can.
Got a little caught up in Thanksgiving prep - update hopefully after dinner.
>>5840348Take your time, Thanksgiving is special.
With every heartbeat, every breath, every thought, more and more dread pours into your stomach. Plainly put, as scared as you are of what will or could happen to you if you enter the room, you are more scared of what will transpire in the room and the rest of the house if you were to turn your back on the now-ailing Construct. You far from certain that you will be able to do anything to help - further now, after this latest blunder of yours - but against that is an undeniable fact, one of the few you have about this place and what occurred here. Your father Wove and deployed two Constructs. Two. For a surety, he must have had ample reason to spend the time and resources. At this point, all there is to it is to do everything in your power to see that his plans are not undone. To be sure, there very well could be nothing that you can do, but still ... aye, no way around it, you have to try. All there is to do ... is to go into this room, and look upon what remains of the Construct in the chimney. With the Sub-Assembly responsible for the strickening strikes dead, and if you are to judge by the sound, physically cracked open, it remains to be seen if there is any other security-sureties present and active in the room. Regardless, it nearly goes without saying that it would still be in your best interest to make your way quickly through the ... actually, no, it isn't that cut and dry, is it? If you were to take up the position that the sensory Components inside this room are shared between the dead strickening striker and an as of yet unknown second Sub-Assembly, for the sake of an argument - well, then it is entire within sense and reason that the sensory Components could also have been directly and significantly impacted by the death of the strickening striker. They could have died themselves, killed by the shock or imbalances of the striker's demise - or they could just be 'under the weather', and not able to serve as well as they otherwise would. In this hypothetical, if the sensory Components were dead, then there would be no particular reason to run through the room - if there were in fact other security-sureties present, they would be struck blind and deaf by the loss of the sensory Components. And if the sensory Components were just ailing instead, then it could be that running would be counter-productive. Yes, with the disruption from the slaying of the Sub-Assembly, the sensory Components might have been left in a state where they are not quite so sensitive. You still wouldn't be able to outrun them, but if you were to take is slow, low to the ground - move you like you were climbing a sheer wall, something like that, you might slip through. It certainly isn't overly queer to think so - with the directness of the connection between the late security-surety and the sensory Components, they would feel the first and worst of any disruption, if they weren't killed outright themselves.
Of course, all of this is a unsharpened stake if there was only one security-surety present and operating in the room - even if the sensory Components are still in perfect condition, walking through the room would be fine, as these Components will only be feeding a corpse. But ... it is also an unsharpened stake if there are other security-sureties in the room with their own dedicated sensory Components, just in the complete opposite direction - running would be your best bet. Actually, if there were other sureties, with other components, then odds are running probably wouldn't be enough - but at this point, what could you realistically do about that anyway? Besides, you have already committed yourself to going in ... you just need to decide how to do the 'going'. In the end, you suppose, it all comes down to your father. Would he set one or more security-sureties over this room? And if he set two, would he go to the trouble of making sure that they were hooked into two different sets of sensory Components? Obviously, your father is extremely skilled on the Life-Loom ... but he isn't the Spine-Bearer by any stretch of the imagination, and decent sensory Components aren't the easiest things to make, even at his level, so duplicates - two sets of duplicates, assuming the other Construct in the other chimney is similarly equipped - seems extravagant. Or perhaps you shouldn't think of separate sensory Components as an extravagance, but as inelegant redundancies instead.Cry fie and fray it all! You are just going in circles, much like you have been traipsing through this house. To be sure, there isn't much to go on ... > Please choose ONE of the following:> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components OR security-sureties, and you may walk or run across the room as you please.> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components, but there ARE other security-sureties, so walking or crawling is your best bet.> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there ARE redundant sensory Components AND security-sureties, so running is your best (but still rather poor) bet. > ... and based off of the way you have bungled your way through this place up to this point, you have decided that the Emperor would be better suited to make the call here. Flip a talent, see what he has to say about walking or running.> Write-ins allowed with QM approval
>>5841825>> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components OR security-sureties, and you may walk or run across the room as you please.We need to move fast if any chance remains that we fix this construct. Maybe we can resesuctate it pr minimize the damage?
>>5841825>> ... and based off of the way you have bungled your way through this place up to this point, you have decided that the Emperor would be better suited to make the call here. Flip a talent, see what he has to say about walking or running.
>>5841825> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components OR security-sureties, and you may walk or run across the room as you please.If he had extras, he would’ve focused them on the fuel nodule- take that out, and the whole Construct stops operating. Unless he wants to keep the Logic-Organ afterwards, I guess, but the mitigation glyph throw that idea into doubt.
>>5841825> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components OR security-sureties, and you may walk or run across the room as you please.
>>5841825> ... but based off of what you have seen of the Construct so far and of the philosophy behind its Weaving, you would say that there AREN'T redundant sensory Components OR security-sureties, and you may walk or run across the room as you please.I dunno man, frankly I just wanna get out of this house
>>5842448We had a good chance after finishing with the Nine Dozen but now we've mucked things up in classic Chlotsuintha-style and will end up spending more time and getting less out of it shile salvaging this heinous mess.