1307 replies and 92 files omitted.
>>173870Paper Clipping’s horn is across the armrest, and his tail spread over the opposite armrest.
Silver does *not* see White Orchid in the living room, the dining room, the kitchen, or the bathroom, nor is he visible on the porch.
>>173871>>173869It should be mentioned, Silver would definitely blush should Clip's nudity reveal...certain anatomical structures he hadn't seen before on him.
Okay, now Silver is getting worried. He even goes as far to check underneath the house and the area immediately surrounding their home.
>>173868I can only assume this warrants a survival check.
Posey uses the shade of the building for stress support.
And also
[1d8+2 = (5+2) = 7]Some bloodletting, for extra clarity.
Survival
[1d20+5 = (3+5) = 8] >>173873Okay, that's a failure.
Posey heals herself up, and goes back to looking for signs.
>>173868>>173869Is there anything else that Posey can do to discern the direction that the building was fired at from?
>>173875Yes. Roll int.
>>173873Posey hears more insects buzzing around her than before
>>173868Which mud does she uncover, exactly?
>>173872He isn’t underneath the house. He isn’t immediately around it, nor in the half-constructed “rock garden”… Ah! There he is. He’s sitting by the water.
>>173877Whew! Panic attack averted! Silver trots out towards the colt, calling out to him, "Mind if I join you?"
>>173878“Huh?” He turns his head back.
“Oh. Uh. Sure!” And after a pause “I was just… watching the water. After walking around a bit.”
>>173877>Yes. Roll int.[1d20+3 = (20+3) = 23]>Which mud does she uncover, exactly?The mud at the bottom of the pit, the one with the gas mask near it.
>>173879"Heh, sounds like
ton of fun," he says sarcastically, before sitting down with the colt. "See anything interesting so far?"
>>173880Yes, yes, yes! Finally! My quest may finally come to a close.
>>173880Parts of shell fragments, and a bag. The back has a New Mareland flag on it, and inside, has medical tools.
Posey is able to piece together the scene now based upon the poles, the level ground, plastic bags filled with plasma, the craters, the truck, and the general surroundings. This site was the location of a mobile army surgical hospital set up by New Mareland forces, being next to a road. At some point it was shelled by Equestrian artillery, evacuated, with the evacuation having… mixed results, with most of the equipment being removed, but tents and poles being left behind, and one truck clearly completely destroyed. Some of the craters belong to lighter artillery, evidently 18 pounders, but several belong to larger 35 pounder guns. Now, unlike New Mareland forces, who use artillery as their primary weapon in most attacks and will shell anything that disagrees with them, Equestrian forces employed fewer guns, especially in the Eastern Front and especially in the south, and tended to use them either in important parts of the battle or on important targets. Now, while the lighter artillery could be used in any general attack, the heavy artillery was almost certainly saved for an important target, like a battery, or an intelligence headquarters. It is unlikely that they intentionally shelled a hospital with heavy shells, as doing so exposes their heavy artillery to counter-battery fire. So the question for Posey is: why would they think this was the site of either a headquarters or a battery? There is a third type of crater there, belonging to 60 mm mortars. These could be either Equestrian or New Mareland, and likely came at a later time in the battle than the heavy fire, when this became a front line to an Equrstrian counter attack, rather than in the rear.The equestrian guns must have been miles away, but that isn’t what she is looking for. She’s looking for the New Mareland battery, and wherever the guns were taken.
>>173881White Orchid frowns, but then says,
“Well, two freighters have come in to the harbor so far. One has left. I also saw some sort of sea creature. I don’t really know what it was. Mint would know. I don’t know.”
>>173883>She’s looking for the New Mareland battery, and wherever the guns were taken.Is she able to discern what direction the guns were fired from? She would like to travel towards the place from where New Mareland set up its artillery line, to find any artillery devices that might've been abandoned there.
>>173883"Close, so close... A little further, Posey, and you'll be out of the sun." Posey says to herself, trying to ignore the obnoxious white light in the sky as she scours the ground for any signs to tell which direction her charge is.
Surely, my nat 20 ability check enables her to find her way to the artillery itself, right?
>>173886||There’s one more tiny piece that hopefully you’ve already put together.||
Actually… the sun isn’t so bad. Posey doesn’t mind the light so much now.
>>173884"It does sound like this is more Mint's bag. I get feeling you like camping, from what I bought for you on our first day of me taking you out. What else do you like?"
>>173887>here’s one more tiny piece that hopefully you’ve already put together.Now I'm feeling stupid...
>>173887Is there anything in the truck? The building?
I'm sorry, I'm drawing blanks. I've been on this quest for more than a month, and it's difficult to keep track of all of the clues over time.
>So the question for Posey is: why would they think this was the site of either a headquarters or a battery?She can only presume something tipped them off, perhaps with machinery moving through the area.
Being from the Dread League, Posey isn't necessarily proficient in modern warfare lore.
I'm going to make another Int check to see if she would know the answer to this question.
[1d20+3 = (18+3) = 21] >>173891Posey doesn’t know a whole hell of a lot about artillery pieces. But she does know that they are big, they are heavy, they have to be pulled either by teams of ponies or trucks, and they have wheels that put pressure on the ground. They are, quite simply, not suited for a swamp. The only way they came through is on a proper road, or at least, through clearings and solid ground. Posey knows that the area she is at is accessible by truck, given the presence of the burnt-out truck. She knows the Equestrians must have thought the artillery was close, either thinking this was it, or it was the headquarters it was being directed from. Thus: follow the road. It’ll take her there.
>>173888He looks up at Silver
“Well… I’d like it if there were a beach. With sand. Not just rocks. I like ships. I like walking around. Um…”
>>173892>Thus: follow the road. It’ll take her there.And so she shall.
[clippity clopping sounds]
>>173892Silver smiles at the colt.
"I will have to figure out way to take you to beach. Maybe take household out on trip to Meridiennes, or Puerto Caballo. There has got to be sandy beaches there to trot along there, and public docks where we can rent ship to go sailing in."
>>173894He wags his tail and stands up.
“Sailing? We could go sailing?”
>>173895Silver nods, continuing to smile. It's good he has a colt like White Orchid around to remind him of how adorable young ponies can be.
"Of course, if that is what you want! We could make entire day of it if you wished."
>>173893>>173892Posey trots down the road, until she finds signs of artillery.
What does Posey see at the end of the road?
>>173896"I would like to go sailing! I could raise the sail, and steer the rudder, and... stand... well I don't really know much about sailing. But I'd like to find out!" White Orchid says excitedly
>>173893>>173897>>173899>>173900Does Posey find anything at the end of the road?
>>173901Before Posey can leave the ruins of the house, the hum becomes louder, until it sounds like a pony humming a song right next to her. The blue glimmer in the air becomes wider, turning into waves of blue and white, until it takes a definitive shape - that of a pony with a helmet and a saddle bag, looking at Posey, until it becomes a full, translucent equine figure standing in front of her
>>173902>an apparitionPosey is taken aback, although she seems more concerned about her appearance, having just waded through the swamp and not expecting to meet anypony
"Oh.. H-Hello there." Posey says, hastily adjusting her mane
She gives a bow of her head
"I am Rosey Ring, Sorceress in training. Might I ask your name? If you remember, that is."
>>173902Rolling Religion, to identify this apparition
[1d20+9 = (4+9) = 13] >>173904It appears to be a simple ghost. Whether it's actually the soul of a pony, or a magical remnant is up to interpretation.
>>173903It stops humming, and in an odd, distant voice, seems to say
"Carried Pack. Why are you here?" >>173905>173905>ghostOh, powerful. Must have something anchoring him to the plane
>Why are you here?"I am on a mission, for my masters, to examine the remains of this battlefield to learn of the weapons that were used in this battle, particularly the dual action shock absorber from a New Mareland 25 pounder." She says, levitating a wrench
She looks around
"And from the looks of it, there was quite the bombardment."
She puts on a bit of a casual tone
"Might I ask you, Carried Pack, what is your reason for haunting this plane? Could it be that you wish to join the undying legion? Or is it that you have some unfinished business left here? From the look of it, your passing was quite abrupt."
>>173908"It is [insert current year here]."
"My masters are across the sea. The Dread League, masters of the unliving."
>I need to get home... She puts on a bit of a sympathetic expression
"I can tell that you're confused. It's understandable, given your predicament. I'll make it clear for you: you are dead. You died some time ago, likely in this battle here. You're anchored to this plane, for one reason or another. Perhaps you might be able to return to where you lived, but there's little left for you in the world of the living."
Btw, is unicorn telekinesis a force effect? Can I use it to touch ghosts?
>>173909"No... I need to get home..."I'm tentatively going to say that it's like a hoof, and will touch the ghost the same as a hoof would
>>173912Posey peers at the ghost, intrigued
"So, what's to stop you from going there now? Do you know the way there? Are you stuck, or just confused? Can you leave on your own power?
Is that close, btw?
>>173913No. Not even remotely close.
"The trees are endless and the same... I cannot go far..." >>173913End quotations at the word "power"
>>173912>>173914"That's quite far off even at flying distance..." Posey says
She puts on a thinking face
"You must be lonely out here, all by yourself. Would you mind accompanying me on my journey? You can tell me all about yourself, and we can figure out what's next for you."
>>173914"Say, do you have any objects of yours here? Something that identifies you, such as a dog-tag, or a piece of uniform? Anything that might anchor you to this place. Perhaps if it were mailed to your home, then maybe your spirit would follow it."
>>173918>173916>"But I am not alone.""Oh, you aren't? Do you have friends here?"
>knifePosey levitates it
"Hmmm, should be easy enough to mail. Do you remember your home address?"
As glad as I am to chat with the ghost, I am really tired and have to sleep. Maybe the dead soldiers can speak to Posey tomorrow, since it's memorial day.
>>173900"We can learn together! I am certain you would be natural." Silver wonders if White Orchid is at all aware how adorable he is.
"We will do it soon, I promise you, but there is one thing I need to do first. I imagine you would enjoy having your own room?"
>>173925>>173919Posey takes the knife and slowly walks down the road, talking with the ghost as she goes.
>hurr durr why are you helping ghosts when ur evil?Because this is an experience that would help Posey train herself as a spiritualist to expand her personal powers, and might mean a second or third level up at the end of this quest.
>>173929>others"Well, where are they now?" Posey says, looking around
"You can come out now." she calls into the ether "No point in hiding, we're all dead here."
>>173933>>173930One pops up from that same crater Posey was examining earlier, peaking out and slowly walking forward, as if his hooves still mattered. One materializes from blue light from a laying position a couple feet off the ground in the clearing. One seems to hop out of the ruined truck. All four are ponies and male. It seems there is one of each type, including a bat winged pony, though she'd need a closer examination to say for sure. They slowly approach Posey
>>173922White Orchid smiles widely and his tag wags intensely
"I'd like my own room! I haven't had one in... in years!"
>>173854"You're... you're welcome" the mare responds, again with that signature pony smile
Kira returns and finds that the water is fairly effective in shaping the bread. It doesn't taste as good as before, but Kira
can balll it, and she
can swallow it.
>>173935Damn, Silver knew he was an orphan, but he didn't know he had been one for
that long. This colt desperately needs his own room, Silver couldn't imagine growing up and going through his body's changes without a bit of privacy.
"Well that is next thing on my agenda. I am going to look for mission to get enough Bits to expand our house, maybe add bedrooms to underneath area, enough for you, Mint, and Clip. Then while our house is being worked on to add those new rooms, we can all go to Puerto Caballo or somewhere like it for vacation."
>>173935She didn't much care for the taste of the bread anyhow, finding it to be a bit bland for her, like the rice. At least now Kira can properly eat her bread, and with it finished she's done with her meal.
>>173934"Greetings." Posey says, with a bow of her head
>>173937>>173935Unless, of course, Neela wants some of Kira's bread
>>173934>>173938>>173929Posey puts the knife back where she found it, and turns around to proceed down the road.
"I guess it's none of my business why you're still here. I for one am on a mission though. Tag along if you wish." she says, walking away slowly with swish of her tail
>>173938>>173942Well which is it? Does she engage, or walk away?
>>173941Neela seems uninterested in getting in the way of Kira and what she is eating
>>173937Neela eats more slowly, and looks over at Kira as Kira struggles with the act of chewing. She gets up and follows Kira when Kira moves to go inside, taking the bag with her. When Kira is done, however, Neela still has food, especially bread, in the bag.
>>173936White Orchid jumps up in place
"I can have my own room? And what is this 'Puerto Caballo'?"
>>173943Kira looks over at Neela.
"Had your fill? I don't know how much non-lamias usually eat..."
>>173943>Does she engage, or walk away?She's coaxing them to follow her, so that she can get more information out of them. Also, because she has no way of knowing how powerful these ghosts are, so she has to be careful before fighting them. She's banking on the idea that ghosts tend to be lonely types who are eager to either find somepony who will help them resolve their unfinished business, or relentlessly hound them with their with their stories.
>>173943>>173934I would like to make some Sense Motive checks (Assess Opponent), opposed by their Bluff checks, to assess the power (CR) of these ghosts, relatively to my HD (3).
I know for a fact that they must be a minimum CR of 2 (assuming lvl 1 nonelite warriors), and likely CR 3 or higher (assuming lvl 1 elite PC classed characters, or lvl 2 nonelite warriors), so I can discount any result that would say Pushover, so I'll know if these guys are Easy (CR 2), a Fair Fight (CR 3 each), a Tough challenge (CR 4-6), or a Dire Threat (CR 7+)
https://www.realmshelps.net/charbuild/skills/sense_motive.shtmlPosey does this because she is sizing them up to check if she can command them (CR being equal to class lvl for PC classed characters, or lvl -1 for NPC class; which gives her a sense of HD), thereby extrapolating their HD. Luckily, Ghosts are one of those class-leveled undead who's CR scale very quickly with HD.
I know this is metagaming, but this is the sort of thing that Posey would be an expert in and would be careful to observe before she makes her next move.
Check for the first one (the one who first spoke to Posey)
[1d20+3 = (1+3) = 4]And the others (in order that they appeared in)
[1d20+3 = (11+3) = 14][1d20+3 = (1+3) = 4][1d20+3 = (17+3) = 20]>A successful assessment reveals that your foe belongs in one of two adjacent categories (for example, "Easy" or "A fair fight"). If your Sense Motive check result exceeds the opposed Bluff check result by 10 or more, you can narrow the result down to a single category.>By contrast, if the target's Bluff check result equals or slightly exceeds your Sense Motive check result, you gain no useful information. If the target's Bluff check result exceeds your Sense Motive check result by 5 or more, you may (at the DM's option) gain a false impression, believing your opponent to be much stronger or weaker than he really is (equal chance of either). If the target's Bluff check result exceeds your Sense Motive check result by 10 or more, your assessment is off by at least two categories (for example, a dire threat might be assessed as a fair fight). >>173946Idk why I keep rolling for things I should be taking 10 on...
>>173943Silver nods.
"That you can, all by yourself to do what you want with and decorate as you please. Puerto Caballo is big island south of Equestria. It is supposed to be warm, tropical island of sandy beaches and friendly faces. It sounds like good vacation destination, yes?"
>>173945The approach:
Bat pony, from the field
"Who are you?"Unicorn, from the crater
"That flower is dangerous! Get away from it!"Pegasus, from the truck
"Who sent you here?"The earth pony Posey has been talking to, from the house
"Why do you leave?">>173946One is reasonably dangerous and is easy for Posey to defeat if faced alone (but very likely to kill her if, for example, she simultaneously had to face 3 others) one is much the same, though a bit stronger... except
not a combat type, one is an extreme push over, and one is extremely dangerous.
>>173944>>173944"Yes." She says, opening her mouth as if she is going to say more, but then stopping herself
"I saved some for later." She stands up, and looks back to Kira
"I didn't think you'd try to eat anything here"
>>173949"I went to a beach when I was much younger... much younger. I was with my father, my mother too. I remember the sun being hot, blinding my eyes. The sand sticking to my fur and my mom told me to wash it off, and then more got stuck to me. I found a starfish. My dad told me to throw it back, and I did. And I built a sand castle! ... it wasn't very good. That was a long time ago. I don't remember much else."
>>173950>"Who are you?"Oh, I thought they were listening on the prior conversation.
Posey introduces herself again, with a whirl of her cape
"I am Rosey Ring, the Undying Sorceress. Trainee spiritualist, Blackweave Warmagus, Dread Commando, and Aspiring Necromancer." She says, with her chest puffed striking a pose
>"Who sent you here?""My masters in The Dread League across the sea sent me sent me here to collect information and samples on the artillery used in warfare here."
>"That flower is dangerous! Get away from it!""Oh, these?" Posey says, taking off the flowers and levitating them
"I thought they'd make a nice gift for my little Gloomy at home."
>"Why do you leave?""I am on a mission to investigate the artillery down the road. I'm hoping to get it done quickly, so I can get back home to my little colt."
"Would you care to join me for a stroll? We could talk about ourselves on the way there."
I am going to make a Religion check to see just how much Posey knows about ghosts, their threatening abilities, and how to handle them.
I've played ghosts before, so I know most of their abilities, but Posey is only lvl 3, so I can't assume that she knows.
[1d20+9 = (8+9) = 17]
>>173953>Must you leave?"I must finish my mission. I will be coming back the same way though."
>flowers"Hmm, too bad then." Posey says, levitating a flower above her hoof and withering it with the negative energy of her charnel touch
>Those guns"Well, technically I'm looking for a shock absorber, not the gun itself..."
She puts on a bit of a cutesy face
"You wouldn't mind if I took just one, would you? Pretty please? They've been sitting out here to rust for years."
>"I cannot follow far""Oh dear, an anchorite. How unfortunate. Is it that you can't stray far from the building, or something inside?"
>>173950"Would you like to make some new memories of building sand castles and trotting along beach?"
>>173950"Well, I was hungry, and I'm in a new place. I thought I'd try the local cuisine."
Kira smiles at her, and flicks her tongue.
>>173956"Yes! Maybe not so much the blinding. And the clinging sand. I want to build sand castles. I wish we had a beach here."
>>173957Neela seems to smile back, actually closing her lips to do so.
"Well it's not really 'local'. It's from Maregypt here. But I understand. Was that... your... first time to eat something like that?"
>>173958"Well...I've had potatoes, and recently bananas, but no, never anything cooked like that. That was a very novel experience! Have you ever had anything like that before?"
>>173958"Me too. I guess we are still just barely too far north for sandy beaches. It is kind of sad. Too far south for snow, too far north for sand." He plays a bit with some of his fluffy winter coat on his chest. "I almost wish it would snow little bit."
Sorry, something came up.
>>173955>missions"Until my powers exceed those of my creator
(which means being lvl ~6-8), I must carry out their will." Posey says, wistfully
"Dead, but still not free. You could say we're not so different, you and I."
>That is not normal magic"Oh, this? It's basically blackweave magic, commonplace where I come from. I've practiced it well enough to conduit it effortlessly, even though my horn is out of power."
She poofs her mane
"I wanted to keep a strong connection to the gray, because it helps me stay pretty."
>to kill Monarchists and Griffins. Not to sell for scrap"Well, that's precisely what we're fighting over at the Arcturian front. Griffons and Solarists are ever so tenacious." She says
"And it's not to sell, but to analyze."
>The knifePosey levitates the knife again
"Would you join me for a stroll if I brought this with me?"
>>173961"How so?""THow do you know such magic?""Fuck the griffins and the solarists""Yes">>173959"Well, I've had falafel before, and of course the pita bread. The pepper is new to me. Have you... had bread at all?"
>>173960"I like snow" He says
"I've seen it... twice, I think? No, three times. When we went to Vanhoover. Near Vanhoover. I had an aunt there... I think. There was snow. It snowed here in Baltimare... two years ago, I think? Just after Hearthswarming. And then once in the mountains when I went there. I think."
>>173962>"How so?""Well, through practice, study, experience, and danger. I feel my powers grow whenever I am close to death, or in the throes of battle. Just earlier today I fought a five headed hydra all by myself
(which would have been a hard fight for an entire party of Posey's level), underwater: I can feel my powers growing already."
(Posey is of the Nerrulite belief that "killing makes you stronger")
>How do you know such magic?"I always had an attitude for it, but my masters in Magehold taught me how to channel it properly, or at least at the basic level."
>"Fuck the griffins and the solarists""Based."
>"Yes""Then come along." She says, slipping the knife in her satchel.
She looks to the rest
"Would you mind joining us?"
>>173962"Where I was born it snowed every year, from late autumn, to winter, even into early spring. Foals would go out playing for hours in snow, making snowponies and snowangels before coming back indoors for warm drink while sitting next to fire. At Hearthswarming, everypony would come together in town center to tell stories, spend time with friends and family, and make merry. There would be so many ponies and so many warm and happy spirits that you could feel temperature rise and much of snow in city melt over course of day and night."
>>173962"Not...not really." She rubs the back of her own head with a leg, blushing. Her tongue flicks out again. "We never had to rely on bread or cake when I was growing up, whenever times were tough, and the bread the less fortunate lamias made and ate definitely looked nothing like that."
>>173964>"Why do you say that I am dead? I just want to leave""Because you are dead. You're a ghost." Posey says
"I'm dead too, even though I don't look it. My spirit is bound to this body."
She raises her hooves, revealing her little heart-shaped stigmata.
"Bound by my master, long ago."
>"I need to save others""Who are the others? The battle ended years ago."
>"I need to kill Monarchists""An attitude that I can understand."
>"I need to get home""Perhaps I could help you with that."
She looks at the rest
"Perhaps we could all help each other. What do you say? Why don't we be friends? I'm sure we could all... Benefit."
I roll seduction. As per libris mortis, I am adding a +4 bonus, for appealing to the business that anchors them to this plane.
[1d20+13 = (5+13) = 18] Seduction. Not diplomacy seduction
The bat pony's wings extend, and though he is still translucent blue, Posey can see the bloodlines in the webbed wings
"I will be your friend"
"The other soldiers..."
The unicorn says with uncertainty
"They have no decency to shell a hospital. Can you help me end them?"
"Please... help me get home"
>>173966"Should we go back?" She asks
"So... what
do you eat? Zebras, I would assume?"
She picks up her bag with her mouth
>>173965"That sounds like fun! We did something sort of like that at the orphanage. You know, with... less snow. But we would tell stories and... well there wasn't any family, but... warm drinks sounds nice! We would get coco. Sometimes."
>>173968>"I will be your friend""Excellent." Posey replies
>"The other soldiers...""Likely gone by now. There are few here in this swamp among the living. Was there anypony in particular you were thinking of?"
>Can you help me end them?"Oh, we'll end them alright."
>help me get home"That can be arranged." Posey says.
"If this knife anchors you to the plane, mailing it to your home address should send you with it."
>>173971The bat pony comes even closer, moving to Posey's side. The spectral edge of the wing touches Posey's side
"So can we travel together?""No... I mean.. in general""Then I will come"Says the pegasus
"As will I" >>173969Now she'll have to figure out how to fuck a ghost
>>173970"We still need some furniture, and maybe some food to put in the refrigerator for you for later, so getting those sounds like a good option to me."
At that second question, Kira blushes profusely and waves her arms in front of her.
"Oh no nonononononono no! No zebras, never! Never any sapient creature. Mostly it was sheep, goats, antelope, sometimes fish."
>>173972>"No... I mean.. in general""Well then, it wouldn't hurt to tour the swamp to see who's left, would it? If I'm not mistaken, I should be trotting right by where your comrades had their artillery set up. Why don't you join us?" Posey says, walking down the road
>>173970"Next Heartwarming you will be here to do all of that with us. Well, at least I hope that is what you choose."
>>173975The unicorn specter stares - or seems to, hard to tell - for a moment, and then replies
"Then I will come">>173976"That's a whole year from now"
He looks up, and then blinks
"Are we going to do all of this? Snow and Caballo and coco?"
>>173974"No, I..." She looks over at Kira with an odd expression
"Know you don't eat those... but... like, big creatures? And yes, we need furniture."
>>173977Posey proceeds down the road, humming softly. She continues strolling until she finds the artillery.
"The machinery should be not far from here..."
>>173977Silver nods with conviction, like he knows for a fact that is exactly what they will do.
"All of it."
>>173977Kira tilts her head, a motion she has become very familiar with today.
flicks tongue"I...suppose they are fairly big? Oh, and pigs. Really just whatever we can hunt out in the savanna or that the herders and fishersnakes have ready for eating."
>>173980"I... see... So do you plan to eat falafels, mostly, while here?"
>>173978"Wait. let me get my cards.""We cannot leave yet.""The Monarchist magic has trapped us here.">>173979intense tail wagging"Yay!"
>>173982Ffs, let me check the rules for exorcisms...