>>181014 I was just waiting for the retcon/ruling in the OOC thread, before we decided how to continue. Maybe pretend it never happened, and start the session with some lore checks.
Dark Star... Or is he still Solar Night? Wakes up in his tent. The light penetrates through the cloth, and opening the flaps, he sees outside to the now extinguished fire, to the cloud studded sky, and to the oak tree that looms above. If the trees weren't in the way, he knows he'd see the top of the Tall Sails building as well
There's something so relaxing about camping and being in nature. It's lonely, to be sure, and nature can be brutal in its indifference. But that's the charm, really. Nopony, and especially, nocreature, to cause him trouble. No expectations, no disappointment. No troubles of society at all. Just the sound of birds chirping their early morning songs, and the occasional movement of the wind
>>181020 Dark Star sighs and rubs the back of his head before sitting up. he straightens his jacket and walks outside into the picturesqe landscape and breaths in the fresh air. He looks around his campsite, a few bottles of apple whiskey lay strewn out near the campfire. then he feels the slight headache from the good time he had drinking. he walks down to the river bank where he has left his fishing pole from the night before.
>>181028 Yea, Dark Star is an Earth pony ranger, He's like Fascist James dean. Red Coat, Short black mane, black leather jacket, sometimes he has his coat dyed for his job with the black hooves.
>>181029 ~Ooh, a Fascist Ranger, with excellent taste in clothing. What are his Favored Enemies? Does he consider himself a warrior? A huntsman? Does he hold deep feelings of resentment or hatred towards his favored foes? Does he want to exterminate them? Does he wish to grow stronger? Does he fight for a cause? Would he even... die for that cause?
>>181030 >What are his Favored Enemies? Zebras >Does he consider himself a He's a Gunslinger, think Travis Bickle from taxi driver. >Does he hold deep feelings of resentment or hatred towards his favored foes Extreme feelings of resentment, yea >Does he want to exterminate them? TZD >Does he wish to grow stronger? Of course > Does he fight for a cause? He fights tofree Baltimare from the decadence and degeneracy that the princess's let fester even before the war, and put ponies back on top in the city and in general >Would he even... die for that cause? A stallion is not truly alive until he's ready to die for something greater >>181031 Kek, exactly how it went
>>181032 >Zebras Based Does he hate griffons and changelings too? >a Gunslinger, think Travis Bickle from taxi driver >Extreme feelings of resentment Based >TZD Based >Of course How far would he go to grow stronger? >put ponies back on top in the city and in general Based pony supremacist. >A stallion is not truly alive until he's ready to die for something greater ~Ooh, I believe that Dark Star and Rossy Ring could become very, very, very good friends. I look forward to meeting you in game.
>>181033 >Does he hate griffons and changelings too? He hates them both yea. >How far would he go to grow stronger? depends on hat you mean >Ooh, I believe that Dark Star and Rossy Ring could become very, very, very good friends. I look forward to meeting you in game. Tell me a bit about your character. >does he have strong Vril? The Vril loves Him
>>181034 >depends on hat you mean Would he dabble with secret dark, forbidden occult forces and make the ultimate sacrifice to become Darth Stellaris? >Tell me a bit about your character. Rosey Ring is a Dread Necromancer, who hails from afar. She's a beautiful white unicorn, with a long red mane and alluring golden eyes. She's says she's from Farbrook, but she's secretly a dark mage from the Dread League. She wants to exterminate the changelings. >The Vril loves Him Definitely Death Knight material.
>>181035 >Would he dabble with secret dark, forbidden occult forces and make the ultimate sacrifice to become Darth Stellaris? He's encountered the undead before, he would probably be a little trepidatious in going down that road, but maybe, who knows >She's says she's from Farbrook, but she's secretly a dark mage from the Dread League. Based, I Dont think Dark Star would even be aware of the Dread leauge as he grew up on a Farm outside Baltimare. >She wants to exterminate the changelings. I Think they'll get along just fine indeed. >Definitely Death Knight material. That could be an interesting turn
>>181036 New side quest for Posey's bucket list: Dark Star into a Death Knight by seducing him to the dark side. >He's encountered the undead before, he would probably be a little trepidatious in going down that road, but maybe, who knows Posey can be very persuasive:3
Anyways, your character is cool. Posey's cutie mark is something like a Dark Star: it's a Dark Sun over a white sky. Perhaps they were destined to meet.
This might be ooc thread material, but I think character descriptions and introductions are better here.
>>181037 >New side quest for Posey's bucket list: Dark Star into a Death Knight by seducing him to the dark side. Good Luck, Kek >Anyways, your character is cool. Thanks, so is yours Dark Star's cutie mark is a Fasces >Perhaps they were destined to meet. Perhaps so kek, stranger things have happened > but I think character descriptions and introductions are better here. Agreed
>>181000 >>181014 I'll be back in like twenty min. Not that there is any stress. Just want to say that I'm ready and willing if you are. >Tea and amoebas ^^
"Hey! Are you asleep?" I shout-whisper into the black thread only lit up slightly by the luminescent swastika on an Aryanne pulshie standing guard besides the cthulhu-esque dreaming form of GM-kun.
My iron grip on my stack of four-hundred A4 pages backstory is so hard that it drains the blood from my knuckles. I'm about to drop it on his face but my hands are stop by his sleep-talk.
"It's- It's Tiara... Not crown. *snore* Reee- *snore* eeee *snore* eee..." GM-kun says in his sleep and follow it up with bunch of lip smacks. Like, you know, that scene in Disney's Robin Hood with the sleeping Prince John lion.
"Oh,-" I blink. "-never mind."
I put my stack on top of another stack of paper on his night table. The night table creaks ominously. I briefly read the brief on the other stack before overlapping it with my own, apparently it's some kind of domestic divorce dispute about money, so now he has two pleasant surprises to wake up to.
I see that he fidgets in his sleep. Clearly his dreaming of a third-party DnD source book lecturing him while using the word, 'hereby'.
I feel for him so I pull out my Luna plushie and place it beside him on his bed. A bit of an ass-pull, hehe, get it?
He sense the pony in his sleep and pulls her close to his chest.
I pet my plushie and say, "You're appreciated autism support soft toy."
The few birds continue their chirping, and the trees are mostly leafless, with the dead leaves covering the ground. The air, however, is fresh and cold. He can see his breath coming out of his snout. It has none of the smell of diesel and gasoline fumes back in Baltimare.
Walking towards the stream, Dark Star finds the fishing pole he left leaning against a tree. The pole has fallen down against the tree, but at least it hasn't been stolen in the night by a homeless zebra.
The water in the stream continues its trickle along the rocks Or are you suggesting he's by a larger river like the Delemare or a tributary?
Does he clear his mind, or does he let all of the thoughts of the two nights before, and of the larger world, flood back in?
Okay, for Baltimare crew. In the long term I would like Dark Star, Virgin Flame, and Amber to meet up for a quest. I'm not sure how long that would take, but it's the goal.
>>180904 → "Well..." She pauses, and takes multiple seconds breathing in and out before proceeding "May we be with Celestia. She kind of needs all of the champions she can get."
Heather slowly trots up next to Vir, sits down, and places a hoof on Vir's shoulder. She speaks softly, as if telling a secret.
"When Chrysalis shot back at Celestia, and the crown came off..." She moves her eyes to make eye contact with Vir. "I think that many ponies took that as a sign that she was just a pony. A pony like us. Sometimes I wonder if it made her think that."
She gives Vir a small pet that perhaps is more for her own reassurance than for Vir's
"I think it's okay to not be okay right now. Not a lot of us are."
"Oh, I wouldn't start with When the Apricot Blossums Fall. I enjoyed it, mind you, and you'll probably enjoy it more than I if you're not familiar with the tropes of the genre, but there are better books out there if you are just starting. 'Autumn's Fire" is one of the better pieces. It's a period Piece, set back during Nettle's Rebellion. That one, and 'Adieux, Darling,' which is an older book, but a classic, is where I would start.
As for magazines, well, in this industry, the Manehattan Review is a solid starter, as is the Canterlot line of the same. The latter was recently bought out by Sassy Saddles, and has improved."
>>181051 Amber grins and decides to look for those books at the earliest opportunity. She puts her front hooves up on the counter and has her ears swiveled forward in eagerness.
"Who's Sassy Saddles? Is she really sassy and wears a saddle?"
>>181050 >Okay, for Baltimare crew. In the long term I would like Dark Star, Virgin Flame, and Amber to meet up for a quest. I'm not sure how long that would take, but it's the goal. That sounds cool though I will play Virgin in character all the time, or try, so she will only join up if it makes sense. But I have nothing against it, since I think I'd enjoy interacting with the other plays ic. ^^
---
Vir's eyes widen in realization and she nods upon the words, 'that she was just a pony'.
She stares back into those eyes with a sense of reliability and pity. She feels her, in metaphorical way. Then she looks down at her hoof. She absentmindedly scratch the ground with that hoof.
"Before the world turned upside-down, at the Orphanage I grow up at, I had three friends, or well, sisters. We weren't related. Just three orphaned foals growing up at a monastery together," she says and takes her time with each sentence.
Images of being chased by brown filly with pink and red in her mane, teasing her that she couldn't catch her before the filly spread her wings, whereupon, young Vir changed her tone, "You're cheating, Pew." In the foggy background of her memory, there's a pale-green unicorn giggling at the display into her hoof.
"We were happy." -A memory of being pulled into the soft bed of swamp-colored unicorn by a chocolate furred Pegasus. The unicorn is surprise as she was reading her book. Her young self tries to leave only to be pulled back by the pleading voice of Pew. Soon the memory shifts to the day after as Vir is awaken by Celestia's sun, which light reveals her to trapped in bundle of soft limbs.- "We were inseparable. But then-" The blue aura of her friend zaps out, leaving on sooth around her steaming horn. She screams in pain and goes down. She's screaming with tears running down her face. A black hoof, gleaming like latex, constrict Pew's throat and you hear her pained gasp.- "One of them was taken by the changelings."
>>181053 Amber, in a previous failed knowledge roll, determined that Sassy Saddles was either that wife of the former Foreign Minister that shot a printer and had a famous trial some years ago, or maybe she was that prime minister who rounded up and moved a bunch of diamond dogs from central Equestria quite a few years ago.
“Hehe, no. She’s the foremost expert on design in Canterlot. An associate of Rarity.”
>>181061 She sausage at her words as if flinching back when someone gets hurt. She gaze is pitying.
She moves closer. She leans into the other but not too much. I assume Heather is a bit smaller, or rather not as heavy than my character whose a bit warthog, quite dense while still not bulky exactly. She lets her neck rest on Heather's shoulder?.
>>181058 "Ohhhh, well that makes sense. If she publishes a magazine like you said, then it must have everything on fashion. Can I find it at that bookshop? Please don't mind if I have another question…."
>That sounds cool though I will play Virgin in character all the time, or try, so she will only join up if it makes sense. But I have nothing against it, since I think I'd enjoy interacting with the other plays ic. ^^ I'm excited about the idea!
>>181062 "Yes" She moves her eyes to look over towards the larger mare. "I... don't want to talk about it." This does not stop her from taking her hoof and trying to pet whatever part of Vir's body is available and fluffy.
>>181065 Vir shuffles away just a bit before rolling completely over on her side but not in way that she squash the other mare. ^^ She can feel Heather behind her. She reaches out and grabs her petting hoof. She gives it a little squeeze.
Her dejected gaze wanders about the garden. Does she see anything nice?
"It's not really right that you're comforting me if you too are hurtin´," she says and gives the other mare's hoof a small caress.
>>181065 "May I borrow one? Mmph, no, that wasn't my question." She scrunches briefly before continuing, "How do you know Dark Denizen? You know, Club Maurice's owner, the batpony mare who pulled up here in a beautiful, fancy car."
>>181049 i was thinking more of a stream yea, nothing so grand as the delemare He Enjoys the fresh air in his lungs it had been a long time since the pleasant sensation feeling them with noe of the smells of modernity, He casts his mind back to the bar a few nights ago and the fallout of what happened
>>181089 The smile leaves and she pulls her lips close together, staring at Amber for several seconds
"That wasn't Dark Denizen."
>>181101 No smells of vomit, zebra shit, who even knows what kind of industrial chemical, none of that. Nope. None of those thoughts...
But the other night...
Dark Star still clearly sees the sight of a Diamond Dog's head exploding, of the drywall on the wall exploding outwards into the hall as bullets pass straight through the wall. Of a pony bleeding out on the ground. Of a highly banded earth pony groveling in fear, and begging for the gnoll to not maul him...
Well, let's see. Blue Skies terrified and running when she hears the sounds of sirens. No. Later. In the bar. Yes, those two mares. How does he feel about them anyways? They were nice, but Dark Star can banish the thought that they wanted something more than simply friendly conversation.
And then that next day. Blue skies laying on the table at Breakfast, looking a bit defeated. And Sea Breeze... being not too pleased with starting a fatal firefight within the city...
>>181106 He washes his face in the river, replaying the way the diamond dog's head exploded again "Hmmmm. Wrong place Wrong Time." He clears the thoughts from his mind as he picks up the fishing pole and casts it hoping the serenity will help him forget things. "They're probably Angry with me, I Can't help but feel good about cleaning up the city in such a tangible way though."
>>181110 bang A rifle round hits the head and causes the back to explode outwards
bang The bitch's eyes roll up
bang She drops to the floor
bang Little droplets of blood scatter across the... diamond design on the walls? Little red diamonds on a white background as the wallpaper design? Heh. Diamond dog blood on red diamonds. Heh.
Could Sea Breeze actually be angry with him? Dark Star has done him a favor. He'll come around.
>>181112 Dark Star pushes the images of her corpse to the back of his mind, he chuckles unsure of why he let it get to him so much in the first place. "Maybe i should head back soon, its been a couple days, i could use a real shower and some more Whiskey, the black hooves could need my help."
>>181115 Wait. If Dark Star has been out here for several days drinking, not showering, living outside... Oh Haygle, is he turning into a homeless donkey?
>>181119 Alright... time to roll up the tent. Do you need to pick up those bottles of whiskey. Well yes, obviously. Don't be a zeeb. But then he also has to carry the fishing pole... Maybe best just to leave it there.
>>181120 "Someone else could get some use of the fishing pole if they come across it, It wouldn't be so bad to leave here, i won't need it back in baltimare anyway."" , he thinks to himself, he goes on to pick up the bottles then leaves the campsite. treking up the trail
>>181067 >Does she see anything nice? I forgot about this one. Well, there's a cherry tree. Most of its leaves are off. The most obviously interesting object is a granite or cement statue of Princess Celestia. It's not very big, 18 inches standing up, and it stands on top of a 3 foot tall decorative ionic column. The most impressive thing about it is the wings, which are extended. The very end of the right... No, that's the left wing, it's facing you - the end of the left wing is chipped off, or the third feather is. There's a crack that runs across the chest from the bttom left (vir's left) to the upper right, but it doesn't seem to threaten it. The statue has a nice smile. There's more than this. There's a wheelbarrow with blue paint chipping off of it. Near it is a shovel propped against a wall. By that is a bed next to the wall where mud is being dug up. And besides all of that... Well, there's always details.
Heather blinks. "Are you... Here to meet with her?"
>>181122 Dark Star doesn't want to fish in the harbor? Anyways. He remembers the way to the road. At least he thinks he does. Just go in any direction, you'll find a road eventually. Then just follow the road until you get into Baltimare. Hitchhike if you have to. Or call a taxi, though of course they are only close to, or even within the city.
>>181124 >Long detailed and nice description Thank you. It's appreciate.
Vir watches Schrödinger's butterfly till it disappears before rolling over so that she faces Heather and her back to the Princess Celestia stone statue.
"I hope so. But I don't know if I'll find her," Vir says.
>>181125 For the first. At least few miles, only a single car passes, a much older model black car. A pony trots by with a car, but for whatever reason doesn't seem to want to interact. It's when he gets to the main roadway that things change, with more cars and passersby. Houses show up, a lot of a business selling tractors, and a mill. Slowly, he enters into the city.
>>181127 But was the butterfly even there to begin with?
"You don't know where she is?" Heather presses her lips together in a look of concern, and flops her left ear.
>>181129 >But was the butterfly even there to begin with? Idk, but if it did, I bet it flapped its wings tho, it would rain on them ponies at the whaling station.
Vir nods. She swallows.
"After Pew was... I wasn't the only one who was.. Crushed. Then when the collapse happened, when Celestia... Lost, my other sister, Hope's, lost her faith."
>>181129 He walks closer to the center of the city, passing streets of undesirables, he loos at them with disgust. "This used to be a nice city, now its filled with scum."
>>181132 Yes, hippogriffs and Kirin in the less decayed portions, but in the older slums, zebras, griffins, donkeys, diamond dogs, and shudders bat ponies. This is besides the pony folk who have fallen into hard times, living on the streets with unkempt manes and empty bottles of beer surrounding them. At least Dark Star doesn’t have to pass through the tenements of the eastern part of the city. He enters the city center. He can go to the Blackhooves headquarters, or if he prefers, go on to the Eastside Tavern.
>>181136 In fairness to the decaying carcass of a city that is Baltimare, animated now mostly by the necromantic force of International Capitalism - the old, decripit, necrotic, and third worldly portions of the city that are non-pony majority are concentrated in the eastern portion of the city. The western portion, which Dark Star walked through, is overwhelmingly pony, and with newer structures as ponies move from the eastern portion, to the western portion of the city. The city center - which is a newer commercial district built around the passenger rail station - has many non-ponies to be sure, but some respectable architecture. Like the Grand Baltimare Hotel, headquaters of the Blackhooves in the Equestrian South East.
Dark Star surely shows his ID and firearms license - I doubt he walked the city streets unarmed - to the guard outside, and then to Filipe at the door.
"Hey Dark Star" The blue minotaur looks down towards the earth pony. "Haven't seen you in a while." He sniffs and tilts his head. "You smell of rotting leaves. Did you... visit the farm?"
>>181135 <rain on the other ponies Wait, is it raining there right now? If so, pic related.
--- "She will," Vir says a bit forefully before blushing sheepishly. "That's why I'm here after all."
Mare, she's parched but she knows she has to give this mare the whole truth before she can ask. A moment passes.
"Your words earlier. About what ponies thought when her crown fell, they were similar to what my sister said too. That Princess Celestia was just a mortal, like us."
>>181142 "Yes, you could feel a diference after that. Certainly the Fascists never would have dared attempt what they did if it were not for that moment. The Iconoclasts would have, but it emboldened them. But you could see it among the normal ponies... something changed after that. The ponies were... worried. It was easy to explain away. We had new heroines, after all, and that reassured us in the moment. But you could tell that something had cracked in the way we saw Princess Celestia, or well, how we saw ponies in general. And that crack came back, years later."
The scene in the boat in the whaling station on Mended Horn will be moved back to the end of combat, with the helmet removed from the red griffin, the white griffin withdrawn from combat in the cockpit, the yellow griffin still standing but afraid, the black griffin laying down on the floor with Brie "in intimate proximity," and all of the player characters reeling from the magical grenade the zebra tossed in.
>>181146 "Oh, not a whole lot. We had a kid try to toss a bomb at us. That was yesterday's highlight. Of course it didn't detonate, he damaged that when he tossed it. Picking it up was sure fun. It's being examined now, I believe, to see if they can learn who made it." Pausing, and looking into Dark Star's eyes.
>>181144 Vir clench her teeth together and glares at some plants.
"I hate it. It's like as if in one of those stories mother would read for us, the heroine loses her first fight with the villain and instead of rooting for her to get back up and win, we start rooting for somepony else in the story, maybe heckle them, or even start rooting for the bad guy."
She lightly kicks away some dirt from the ground with the hoof she previously held together with Heather's.
>>181144 I like that idea that ponies, just like us started to see Celestia less like this god figure and more like something else after her string of failures or... Yeah.
>>181155 > just like us started to see Celestia Not, really like us. I didn't really consider it. But I remember DWK talking about it one of his videos, where he called Celestia Equestria's mom.
>>181153 "Oh no, people didn't root for Chrysalis. Heheh" She drops the laugh almost immediately, realizing it is not funny.
"Well, it's not really that. I don't think, anyways. It was, well, Celestia is an idea, more than, well, a mare. She needs to be solid, stable, and strong, to be that idea. But, yes, I do understand, and it is frustrating. We needed to stick by our princess, and many did, but, many didn't."
>>181159 We didn't find out. He ran off long before we were able to stop him. The fact that the bomb didn't even go off meant that not as many guards knew something was off. He was wearing a brown leather trench coat and had a black fedora. We didn't see his mane, and his coat was grey-brown. I would assume he was an anarchist, as they are the most fond of bomb tossing. And if it were an ELF bomb, it would have detonated."
>>181145 Zeeb had also just healed Silver, the party realized that Posey tanked a couple stabs to the heart and lived, and Kira is "ooooooo"ing and "ahhhhhhh"ing at both Posey's resiliency and Dust's healing magic.
Anyways, with the crown/tiara safely taken care of, Silver turns to Cavaliere to ask him to translate so the party can talk with the red griffon. I don't know if Garv's player is online.
>>181145 Posey professionally wraps the tiara in cloth, and stashes it in her satchel. "Well, that was an experience..." she says as the fight concludes She makes a finger-like construct with her magic and snaps it in front of the red bird. "~Hello! Are you still with us? Any brains left in there, birdie?"
>>181167 Silver trots over, and gives Mala some pets. Assuming Cavaliere would be willing to translate for the party, he asks the red griffon, "What is last thing you remember? Can you tell me your name?"
Kira, meanwhile, has picked up the red griffon's harpoon and is examining it. She pokes one of the harpoon's barbs with a hoof before reeling it back in with a quiet "ow!" and putting her hoof in her mouth.
>>181160 “Interesting, If i hear anything about it, I’ll tell sea breeze. Sounds like a serious issue. We can’t them throwing weapons at our guys.” He considers the appearance and thinks if he had ever seen anypony like that
>>181174 The little white unicorn mare with the blue eyes, the pink mane that tied up in a ponytail, and the manehattan accent recognizes Dark Star, and sends him on back.
Sea Breeze sits in his chair, and moves his eyes up towards Dark Star
>>181167 Since cavalier isn't here to translate ATM, Posey retreats to a corner to fawn over the tiara and examine it beneath the cover of her cloak, without putting it on. Making checks Arcana [1d20+11 = (19+11) = 30] Religion [1d20+11 = (8+11) = 19] History [1d20+3 = (18+3) = 21]
"You know what you did, right? You went into a restaurant where customers were being served, and killed six creatures. They were violating the firearms restriction law, to be sure, but you had no probable cause to know that. Six civilians, who were not charged with any crimes, and we are not the criminal police, anyways." He sighs.
"No, not much has come of that. We were able to convince the papers to call it a raid on illegal firearms traffickers. At first we were going to ban them from reporting on it at all. But that was never going to work. It's interesting when ponies die. The news was always going to get out somehow, so let it be on our terms. The Popular Front can't hide the fact that there were firearms there, and firearms are illegal under both the Occupational Authority and local law. Of course the Popular Front thinks that everypony should be armed, but the bottom line is that these were no ordinary civilians.
What you did disturbs a delicate balance - a delicate ecosystem created by the Social Democrats back during the Principality. A number of illegal activities had coalesced under a single organized group. The Social Democrats decided to negotiate with this one group, tolerating it, so long as its crimes remained mostly malum prohibitum rather than malum in se. This one organized criminal group, in tun, by keeping a strict monopoly on gambling, loan sharking, and exotic animal trafficking, likely kept these crimes at a lower level than if the city had to fend for itself. Certainly, the number of murders and kidnappings went down compared to before, and especially compared to Manehattan or Fillydelphia. We haven't had a Hearts and Hooves Day massacre here like happened in Bales, for example. Of course the gang in return gave services to the Unions and the Social Democrats, like disappearing ballots or threatening scabs.
What this means is that the Waterfront Gang had, more or less, abstained from our politics. As you've discovered, this isn't precisely true. At least some of their number have engaged in weapons trafficking, and this is intolerable. What they have not done is wholesale sided with the ELF or Popular Front, as the gangs have in Manehattan. But they only did that after the local government started on their crackdown."
He sighs, and then leans forward "Dark Star, do you know what our goal is here? What the goal of the Blackhooves of Baltimare is? I want to hear from you first."
>>181179 If Posey wishes to study it, she must spend a decent amount of time sitting in the corner, doing just that.
The stories are honestly rather conflicting
Some say that there is - or rather, was - an entire civilization of sea creatures who took the form of sharks and other fish.
Some say that there is - or rather, was - an entire civilization of sea ponies whose existence is separate from the later Hippogriffs who, though magic means, would claim the title.
It isn't controversial that at least one of these existed, what is controversial is was it both, or was one confused for the other, and if so, which one? Were they actually in this form, or did they obtain it by magic, the same as the Hippogriffs? And then, the separate question of when it ceased to exist.
The stories of finding sea ponies in nets, of villages being wiped out in the dead of night after some transgression against the sea, or of remote tribal villages having pacts with creatures from the sea, are well known.
These particular kinds of tiaras, and other jewelry, are extraordinarily rare, being found only on accident by dredging, or especially, in the stomachs of dead leviathan whales.
Posey can understand that this particular piece was intended to be the head piece of a religious functionary - a priest, presumably the ritual priest. It has the symbols and signs of whatever culture made it, and the sea creature depicted is probably a fantastical representation of a more well-known creature, like a sea dragon. It is impossible to know how old it is.
It is made of a gold alloy, with either silver or palladium mixed in to a lesser degree, which gives the tiara a slightly white hue. It has many marks in it from something being pressed and rubbed against it - probably squid beaks.
It channels - neigh, it has accumulated - quite a lot of divine magic. Presumably it was designed to channel spirits or otherworldly magic to its user.
Oh, and one more important thing:
Don't put it on The magic will surely overwhelm the wearer, like a discharge of static electricity.
He adds, to interpret for Silver, "Wat is het laatste dat je je herinnert? Kun je me je naam vertellen?"
GM, concerning Amber, did Dark Denizen visit Amber at High Sewn's shop before the night of the heist? I asked in the OOC thread but you didn't get back to me.
>>181190 Near any malign energy could send its magic through the crown. Demonic possession, a pissed off god, somepony's errant mind control spell - take your pick.
Of course the crown is designed to channel the divine favor of the favored god, but it appears to have been hijacked in this instance.
Posey can feel that the threat has not ended.
>>181191 I didn't see it No, it was a different pony. You're thinking of the pink unicorn who came by, stole a shirt, and refused to elaborate.
>>181185 He shrugs as he explains exactly what was done, then his ears perk up as he says nothing has come of it. nods along as sea breeze talks about the legality of fire arms.
"To maintain order is the goal, is it not? so nothing happens here that will have to be dealt with by the black hooves at a later date, as they have political tensions going on over there."
"Exactly as I understand it. Or have understood it. The purpose of the State Security Administration is to enact the will of the Blackhooves Political Party. In the Baltimare Governate, that has meant one thing specifically - stability. Stability, and providing a steady flow of refined chemicals, dyes, tin, oil, jute, bananas, and sugar to the larger Customs Union. And that is what we have done. After the revolt last year, we were declared "Pacific." Do you understand how great of an acheviement that is? To be pacified? Dark Star, it's incredible.
Do you know what the reward was for this achievement? You know exactly what the reward was. Our money and especially, our ponies, have been and are being siphoned off to elsewhere. Manehattan starts a civil war. And because of it, they have more than twice the number of operatives as before, as if they weren't already the largest branch." He sighs
"I know, it's how it should work. But High Command seems to be more impressed by Revolution than by stability. Or at least, that's who gets the reinforcements."
>>181195 You're probably thinking of the bat pony black hooves agent who came by. The pony that summoned Amber was a pink unicorn
>>181196 Posey feels herself go dizzy. She feels as if she is outside of herself, being pulled into the crown. Some one is talking, and it isn't any of the griffins. The sensation ends when the tiara starts to slip away, out of her hooves.
>>181197 >Posey feels herself go dizzy. She feels as if she is outside of herself, being pulled into the crown. Some one is talking, and it isn't any of the griffins. The sensation ends when the tiara starts to slip away, out of her hooves. Posey gives a bit of a tipsy giggle beneath her cloak, before stowing the tiara in her purse and resuming her compared, professional face.
>>181197 Oh, that explains it. Thank you. I would like to see more of that batpony agent, I had forgotten about her. Should we just retcon that line? Instead let Amber's question be this:
"Why do you think that pink unicorn mare decided to pull up here in that fancy car? You seemed familiar with her and kept mum…".
>>181197 Dark Star Nods, almost wishing he would have stayed in the country side. he grimaces "I can understand and even sympathize with their positions, but this....if baltimare, the baltimare from the past is to survive, things can't go on as they currently are. it's a shit situation all around, sir."
>>181200 With a talon Cavaliere motions to 'Olaf' to keep calm.
"Je hoeft je geen zorgen te maken. Die kroon is buitengewoon gevaarlijk en heeft ervoor gezorgd dat je je gevoel van eigenwaarde bent kwijtgeraakt. Ik snap het zelf ook niet, maar we moeten hem naar een veilige plek brengen."
>>181201 "This item is dangerous, and seems to be cursed, it needs to be handled with professional care, lest somepony end up like that griffon." Posey replies, as she wraps the precious in cloth before stowing it. "Besides..." she says, cocking an brow "You have your pocket watch. Kira has her necklace. I will hold onto this the Tiara." Bluff to conceal the following emotion [1d20+14 = (2+14) = 16] https://m.youtube.com/shorts/rW4I7jVtfE0
>>181204 "Tell him if he tries to take it back, I'll feed him to the sharks!"Possy says, putting on her Pirate scowl OOC: Don't actually tell him this.
>>181215 >"And that has nothing at all to do with the fact that the crown is very obviously more valuable than the pocket watch?" "It's only valuable to a pony who would be able to handle it. An item so cursed it can't be worn or used is hardly worth anything at all on the market. It might have some value for research though... And it's very pretty." Is this Mala speaking? >>181213 You sense that Posey has ulterior motives, but she's not lying about the crown being dangerous.
"Anyways, we can decide what to do with it once we get home."
>>181216 No. What we had to retcon was a curse. What we are doing now is fighting over loot to make sure my DMPC gets more money Silver's cohort gets his fair share.
>>181205 >>181211 Cavaliere scowls with disapproval. "I don't think either of you can be trusted with it. I shouldn't need to remind you that we are still on a mission and the last thing we need is an ancient artifact driving us mad."
He leans over to Mala and speaks quietly. "Put the tiara in a bag and don't let any creature take it. And for all our sakes, don't put it on. Throw it away if you feel tempted."
He turns back to the other griffon. "En jij kunt dat blijkbaar ook niet. Kijk naar jezelf. Je ziet er erger uit dan een ruiende kerkuil. Je bemanning is bang en gewond. Geef het op."
I thought we established that the red griffon, Sørvik, speaks only his Norwegian-like language while the yellow griffon, Nils, speaks Feathesian and is acting as an interpreter.
>>181217 Cavaliere nods to Silver. "I've said as much."
>>181217 >>181215 "That's right! Who knows how long you would have lasted before this thing turned your brain to jelly, or sucked your soul out, threw you into a portal to Tartarus, or... *huffs* sh-hriveled you into a lifeless husk..! Y-you wouldn't want that!" She shimmies her hips a bit and prances in place as she goes on about the horrible things it could do to him
>>181225 "What I did see what you falling asleep laying against that thing, drooling onto the floor until you fell over and dropped it, while I watched the prisoner."
Assuming the gayniggerjew isnt going to do something stupid (and ready to kill if he is) Brie draws his .38 special, aimed at the tiara (or Posey. If shes hidden it amongst the many posts). "I think we've all has enough with that there."
>>181221 "That's fine by me. Anyways, I'm trained to handle these sorts of things, so I will carry it. If anypony else wants to claim it, we'll discuss that after we locate the Marines." >>181222 "Ask him if he's seen the Marines." Posey says >>181227 UwU "That's how I know it's dangerous..." Posey says >>181228 The more I hear from Dark Star, the more based and redpilled he sounds. I want Dark Star to be the Red Horse of war. He will make a good Death Knight.
>>181229 "You're right, Sir. i am aware. of the threats the black hooves face from the griffons, they have my sympathies. But the situation here remains the same. with all due respect, Sir." >>181231 Thanks kek
>>181230 The Tiara is in Posey's purse. Also, are you really about to attack Posey? Are you sure you want to do that? I'm not hoarding the crown to myself (yet), I'm just holding onto it until we split the loot later. >>181234 >Okay, what is that "UwU" for? There is nothing in that post that justifies an "uwu" Posey is a masochist, and that experience would be quite exciting for her. >>181234 "I can handle it without touching it." Posey says, gesturing to her horn "Trust me, I'm a professional." >>181235 "No." She replies "Quite frankly, I'd trust Mala more."
>>181231 "It's precisely because you think that you are qualified to handle it that you shouldn't handle it. You don't need the distraction which it clearly is. Mala the gnoll is dependable enough to carry it, and if he isn't, we'll choose another."
>>181235 Cavaliere sighs. "Put your gun down, Brie. We don't need any 'battiness' at this time. Silver, Kira, Dust, what is your stance on this?" he asks the other party members.
He then asks Sørvik, "Herinnert u zich dat u hier ooit pony's bent tegengekomen?"
Brb, gotta find the name of the pony you wanted me to ask him about
>>181238 >are you about to atrack No, but the vibe is awfully casual about the thing. Like lets pretend it could kill us all.if we looked at it funny. And not pretend its a "quest item" or wtfe
>>181217 Mala tugs on Silver's shoulder. He looks up towards Silver
"Silver, I - I noticed that these griffins here have their rings and I think their money... Can I take it? The unicorn, Posey, is taking the crown, so can I at least have the rings?"
>>181240 That's why Posey wrapped it in multiple layers of cloth. >>181243 "We're pirates, remember? You can take what you wish." Posey replies, with a mischievous grin
Silver: "These griffons have been through enough, having their minds controlled and being forced to turn against their fellows. I do not think they need us robbing them."
>>181247 Yeah, I figured that's what it meant but I was gonna ask for clarification.
>>181241 A masochist and a sadist. >>181248 >adventurer >against robbing What are you a paladin or something? >>181249 The dark mage nods in agreement. "Yes, yes. They even skewered Silver with that harpoon, and they knifed me. They should be glad they got away with their lives." she says "Besides, they did want a way off the island, didn't they? We could offer them a ride on our Swan Boat, for a price..."
>>181249 D'awwwwwwww. It'd be hard to say no to that face, but Mala is running into an issue with Silver: his morals. The problem of being the cohort to a good-aligned character.
Silver: "You want to do yourself proud, yes? If not, maybe do me proud? Following ways of Harmony?"
>>181256 The dark griffon looks disgusted at even the mention.
"I told them their property would be respected by us and I intend to keep to that statement. What we earn from this mission far outweighs petty gains from thievery."
>>181259 Posey's ears droop a bit "Oh, fine... I can't wear rings anyway." she says "You should probably tell them about the boat offer though. This ship isn't going anywhere soon."
>>181257 "Yes! Yes! I do! And I have. Normally when we had prisoners like these that still had rings on them, we'd run up to them, bite off their fingers with the rings still on them, and swallow it. Well, I'd get beaten to it, sometimes literally beaten. But I mean, look at them. They have all of their fingers. We're letting them keep them. Can I have the rings? The white one got the crown..."
>>181262 Silver gives Mala a hug. Kira is still a bit disturbed hearing about Mala's past.
Silver: "That is not so much in line with Harmony, either. Let us leave them be. Do not worry, we will find you far better loot later, something far more valuable than some rings and that you can feel good about acquiring."
>>181262 "~Wow! You are such a fearsome warrior. What a fine specimen of a Gnoll." Posey says, patting Mala behind the ear with her magic, and offering him another bone "So heavy and strong too. Did either of your parents have Flind in them? You are built like a Flind."
Okay, I don't speak Gungan, so do these birds have many info on the marines, or not? Do they want a ride, or not? Will they help us on our quest, or not?
>>181286 [1d20+3 = (9+3) = 12] bluff "Oh him? A distant cousin of an associate of mine, he was most excited to get on board with this festive crew." he says.
>>181294 "But why? Why would she do that? Why would she do any of that?"
Heather looks at Vir with concern and confussion
>>181250 "I think you are aware of the reforms implemented back in Metropolitain New Mareland, and are being implemented now in Manehattan.
A reform of the education system such that the curriculum teaches a love of the family, the village, and the nation. An elimination of anything resembling the teaching of immorality in schools. The promotion of tested, classical literature with morality plays in education. The establishment of a blacklist for educators in the university system, where professors are not outright required to be members of the Blackhooves party. National oversight of Education.
In the arts, the promotion of the already existing "Hay Code" to the level of law for films, and the banning of degenerate art elsewhere. The banning of certain specific new fields of architecture... You'd know it if you saw it. The promotion of local and national holidays with Government funded festivities and restrictions on labor. The promotion of national and local names and flags. National oversight of the arts and culture more generally.
Tax incentives for families, free housing and guaranteed work for pony migrants to Griffonia. Criminal penalties for public intoxication, adultery, and extra marital births. Not severe penalties, mind you, but consequences all the same. Abortion by need of the State, and not the whim of the individual. New taxes on tobacco and alcohol. Severe penalties for the smuggling of drugs and contraband. Very severe - and very public - penalties for corruption of government officials, with a section of the SSA dedicated to anti-corruption. Reinstatement of the Death Penalty. Zero tolerance policy for any kind of organized crime.
Mass deportation of those migrants for whom integration is hopeless, the establishment of pony colonies in specific portions of Scarlet Island, Gryphus, and once we take it, Talouse. The redistribution of lands in certain griffin areas away from Griffin owned corporations, foreign owned churches, and corrupt local nobles, and towards the griffin flock more generally, our settlers, and our nationally owned corporations.
The establishment of a national labor union to represent the interests of workers, an oversight board for corporations, and the requirement of partial ownership of every large corporation by the State.
I think you're familiar with the jewel in the crown of our social programs, Universal National Service. As it is now, it is the requirement of every stallion over the age of 17 and below 45 and every unmarried mare, with some important exceptions, to serve the State as required. Of course it... hasn't worked out perfectly, by any means.." At this point, Sea breeze tilts his body to show his left side to Dark Star, a reminder that his left foreleg and left hindleg have been completely removed, that much of his fur is missing, showing naked pink skin underneath, and his horn is cracked.
"But uh, for future generations, it will be mostly non-military, for a much shorter term, and with much more leeway to families. A chance to participate in sacrifice for the nation. May their sacrifices be lesser...
And then, there is the crown of New Mareland itself - our great Customs Union. We do not call it an empire, for an empire is simple dominion. This Customs Union is our protection from the whims of international trade and relations, to ensure our factories always have a steady market, and to protect the sacred right that every pony has to work in a respectable, decently paying job. It means we have our own currency and our own, fixed exchange rates, no longer at the whims of foreign banks or foreign ministers and their tariffs. It means that we need not fear the griffin next door, as we have a buffer against foreign invasion, or will, rather, once the struggle with Wingbardy has concluded in our victory. It means that we will assume the mantle of teacher of the non-pony races, to civilize the griffins to the extent that is possible, to teach them a lesson on the value of harmony, and to revitalize the nations of the Evi River Valley which have for so long suffered under the yoke of Imperial rule, and under the enforced ignorance of the old Imperial Church and the Sicameonese corporations.
And most of all, most importantly of all, it means that no Purple Pony Princess overseas will allow us to be flooded with griffin migrants until we are a minority, and strangers on our own soil, until this new majority votes by referendum to join Wingbardy and Aquelia, destroy our nation once and for all, and place us permanently under the griffin claw.
Dark Star, this is our grand vision for this generation. More will come in generations to follow, and much of this great plan has already come here to Baltimare. If we can hold the line abroad and keep things stable here, soon enough, Baltimare will shine as the Metropol does now.
>>181287 "Ben je op de rest van het eiland geweest? Waar zouden gecrashte luchtpony's een schuilplaats kunnen zoeken?"
It should be noted that Cavaliere does not speak with any sort of accent that fellow griffons would pick up as coming from "the old country," whether that be the Herzland, Feathesia or Wingbardy. If anything, his accent would resemble the Nova Griffonian way of speaking which bears similarities to how cosmopolitan ponies speak.
You could describe it like that, or like ", she speaks in her oddly enticing accent." There are a lot of tricks to writing to add flavor.
>>181299 Cavaliere responds to the gnoll, "It is better that we abandon the idea of treating the tiara like 'loot.' It is extremely dangerous to the holder and will have to be given to an institution that can keep it out of the wrong claws. We can decide on the particulars of that later. Let us sweep this ship for anything valuable and then be off."
He asks Sørvik, "Is het goed als wij het schip doorzoeken terwijl we u behandelen, voordat we u evacueren?"
I won't be available for the next several hours, hopefully this is enough of a response that you won't need me to carry on the game.
>>181299 Heh, I like the juxtaposition where the response to me is somepony asking why a pony would join the Blackhooves and the response below is a character explaining why somepony would. ^^
---
Vir pulls back slightly and holds up a hoof in a self-defensive gesture. Before she looks up at the sky in exasperation. She has an out of place smile on her features for a moment, stemming from having someone else agree with her on this, before she gains a neutral expression if with tinge of negativity.
"I know. I'm just as confused as you are," Vir says before she brings her hoof together before pulling them apart towards the sides in a quick motion. "The things she said didn't make sense to me." She shakes her head and exhales. "She's always been the smarter of the two of us. But... I don't get it. She called the princesses frauds and that the Black Hooves actually cared about ponies, unlike the princesses."
Mala again tugs on Silver “Hey, the black griffin says that we should take anything of value in the boat. Should I start with what the griffins have on them?”
Brie steps over to Silver and mutters softly, his voice usually bright and chipper is instead low, gravelly so that only Silver could hear (DC 20), with an air of sinister intrnt (not directed at him) "You and I both know she can't be trusted with the crown. You saw the way she looked at it. She has a tell that Ive detected several times, in her casual dismissals; she's lying, most noticeably to to with that crown. As though she's terrified of even the idea of letting it go. I'm not familiar with the practice of hiring wizards that can summon vile beasts to run their freighter ships, so one has to assume the crown was in some way related. I would advise throwing it in the lake and forget about it, but who knows what havoc that would be unleashed by our hooves. Regardless, we can't trust her with it, I don't trust her with it. Not to mention, you saw how badly she was stabbed, and look at her now; not a scratch on her. I'll leave it to you to address - for now - but this entire thing stinks to literal hell it seems, and here I'm dressed for winter."
Concluding his little spiel to Silver, Brie pulls out his revolver, loads it (yes, kek) and then pulls out the oil filter looking thing and carefully screws it to the barrel of his .38. He stops midway and looks at anyone glancing at him. "What? I didn't think I was actually going to have to use it," he then looks at Rosey, tips his head in acknowledgement that the gun wasnt even loaded, and then tightens the filter a few more turns.
>>181314 Reeeeee Brie secures the firearm in a wire frame that swings out from a amall seam along the side of his rear right leg, specifically designed to holster a revolver with a suppressor.
>>181304 "Surely the Captain can offer us some form of very legally binding reward for coming to the aid of him and his crew, on behalf of the shipping company of course, we wouldnt want to dip into the pockets of hardworking blue-collar ponies would we?"
>>181330 Dust scrunches slightly at "Zebro" "The earth's laws are mine to follow To keep the dust we come from hallow From the dust is where we begin And to the dust we shall return again Those who attempt to escape death's shadow Mess with the order of all life's ways To return to the earth is our greatest honor In the cycle, our part we will all play This is the way we all must prosper." Lawful neutral, no god just a general reverence for the earth, life, and the natural process of death.
>>181311 On this point, its meta for me to have Brie do this so soon after. I have had the benefit of sleep and contemplation, whereas Brie has not. He has reasons to be suspicious of Rosey and the crown, but it wouldn't be until later that he would come to a conclusion, and longer still to mention it to Silver. If no o e objects, I would nix this part
>>181299 "I See." He looks down at his hoof, lost in thought. "This is what i want too, time is not on our side though, and with the changelings in the west...The future seems more Uncertain than ever before. I do not wish for our ponies to be under the hooves or claws of any sub-pony filth. We are aligned on this. Sir."
>>181304 Oh, one other question for the captain, how did the crown grt on his head? Did he put it on? It was at an odd angle, suggesting someone else placed it, and it would be useful to know who did and why.
>>181344 Entirely up to you! I've read the post and thought of how Silver would reply to it, but if you feel now isn't the most appropriate time then that's perfectly alright with me.
>>181308 Silver actually has to think to recall if the black griffon has said anything recently in reply to Cavaliere.
>>181350 Nah, as a GM I would say no to the player who tried on grounds of meta, because Brie has only experienced common and uncommon items and wouldn't fully appreciate the potential risks/gravity of such an item yet. If its all the same, I would retract.
>>181348 "Well, either way, I hope you can appreciate that we are low on resources, especially ponies. When the war in Griffonia ends, it will all be different. That is one of the reasons we need you. Not to imply that Baltimare wouldn't need you, even if we were not here. Equestria too, needs its heroes.
I hope that now, at least, you understand the mid-term goals we are working for. The fact that we have so little time is exactly why our Governor has assumed the goal to be stability. The more stable things are here, the less of a drain on resources the territory will be, and thus the better we will hold up in the event of a Changeling surprise attack.
But Revolution has a logic all of its own. The Manehattan Governor claims that National Service could be brought to Manehattan, and that very easily an army of 100,000 or more could be raised. Think of that, 100,000 or even 1 million of Equestria's own sons defending their land from the Changelings. But these 1 million will be lead by the seasoned generals who won Griffonia, and they will have a much better chance than before.
Something to think about, to be sure
If it makes you feel any better, you should know that in the wake of what went down in Hoebuck, our sister service, Revenue and Migration, has conducted multiple raids on populations of illegal aliens, and more to the point, illegal aliens that practice that occult. I can't say I am very pleased, because R&M is a rival of ours, but someone getting the glory, at least."
>>181305 "Ugh... No, the princesses do care for us. Even now they raise the sun and the moon. Even now, they protect us in our dreams. And even now, they inspire us, and give us hope. I suppose in a way I can understand it, that dark night of the soul... Bless her, may she one day see the light."
>>181351 I liked Brie's statement because it was basically Brie agreeing with what Cavaliere said just before about the tiara maybe being considered dangerous. It was a nice issue for Mala to use to argue for why the presence of the tiara means he should be allowed to loot more or to get a bigger piece of the share.
>>181357 Well, the questions to be resolved that might lead to Brie having a better idea are: 1. Is the captain a spellcaster 2. How did the crown get on his head 3. A more detailed account - perhaps impossible due to the clumsiness of direct translation - from the captain specifically, about his experience (>inb4 amnesia) 4. Money prease
>>181357 >It was a nice issue for Mala to use to argue for why the presence of the tiara means he should be allowed to loot more Let the boy have his loot. We are supposed to be pirates.
>>181304 He takes a moment to think, looking off in the distance. Then he answers,
"Ja.
Waarschijnlijk het oude verlaten ponydorp. Het zijn er eigenlijk twee. De oudere ligt in het midden, maar de meer ontwikkelde ligt aan de zuidelijke baai. Misschien de vuurtoren op de noordpunt."
>>181313 Cavaliere shakes his head in exasperation.
>>181319 >>181349 "This is not a shipping company and everything indicates these griffons work independently."
Nevertheless, he asks Sørvik, "Wordt dit schip gecharterd of zijn jullie freelancers? En heb je die vervloekte tiara zelf opgezet of heeft iemand anders hem op je gezet?"
Additionally, he says, "U en uw bemanning moeten snel alle persoonlijke bezittingen die u op dit schip en de huizen hebt achtergelaten, ophalen. Laat mijn kameraden alsjeblieft meegaan om iets nuttigs te vinden, maar houd ze in de gaten, want ze zijn niet te vertrouwen in de buurt van waardevolle spullen. Zodra je klaar bent, kunnen we een schuilplaats voor je vinden waar je kunt schuilen totdat we de pony's vinden."
>>181331 I enjoy the wordplay you come up with. I can't for the life of me make good poetry.
>>181369 Cavaliere looks at him with a serious, yet empathetic expression.
"Een Stalliongrad-schip met ongeveer tachtig pony's aan boord, waaronder matrozen en mariniers, is op dit eiland geland of gecrasht. Het is onmogelijk voor u om dit schip te repareren en het water uit het ruim te pompen voordat ze u vinden. Ze beschouwen dit eiland als het hunne. U moet uw verliezen nemen en vluchten."
>>181373 "We hebben verschillende opties, afhankelijk van wat de situatie vereist. Onze beste kans is om de airponies te redden en onder dekking van de duisternis te vertrekken. We moeten ze snel vinden voordat het te koud wordt of de communisten ze opsporen."
>>181378 "Dat zijn ze waarschijnlijk wel. We sloegen een eenzame zeeman bewusteloos op het strand ten westen(?) van hier. Hij was net zo hysterisch als jij met de kroon op. We weten niet wat de oorzaak was of wat ze nu aan het doen zijn. Jij en je vrienden hebben tien minuten om te verzamelen wat je nodig hebt voordat we vertrekken. Ik zal mijn collega's ook klaarmaken."
He turns around to the others. "He'll be cooperative with us. From what he knows of this island, the ponies are either at the lighthouse on the northern point, at the village on the southern bay, or in the older village in the middle. I gave his crew ten minutes to get everything they want to save from this place, and I suggest we take no longer than that ourselves."
He gives a single nod, and then looks to the yellow griffin, and starts speaking in a language that is less silly, but more alien. Then he speaks sharply to the black griffin, and looks around and finds the white griffin. They are sharp in their replies back and seem to start arguing.
"Assuming more of this ship isn't completely flooded, we should split up. I will start with the wheelhouse." He adopts a more stern look, and glances especially at Posey, Mala and Brie. "Let the griffons keep their personal possessions. Anything that they choose to leave behind is free for the taking."
>>181398 >>181399 I gave ten in-game minutes for a reason. Technically speaking Cavaliere has no authority to issue orders like that, but it's a good compromise between giving the griffons a chance to pick up what they need/letting the party loot the ship and getting on with the mission already.
He interrupts the griffons' bickering. "Sørvik, ben jij een soort geestelijke? Terwijl je onder invloed van de tiara bent, heb je een spreuk uitgesproken. Weet je nog iets van dat?"
"Yeah, about that. The point of the story is that, and it's kinda of a long story anyway so we can skip head to it: At some point, I started drinking and now I'm almost an alcoholic. So while I'm embarrassed to ask this, do you have some... Wine?"
>>181406 Brie cocks his head uncomprehendingly. He shrugs, assuming an explanatoon on that AND A WHOLE lot more, will be forthcoming before long or else hell ask again
>>181403 He turns back to Brie. "Then accompany one of them, and pick up what he leaves behind. Don't wait for all of them to be finished at the end of the ten minutes."
>>181406 "Yes, they know will have to abandon this ship."
>>181409 Even through the mask, Brie's cheekbones betray his smile. >>181410 He nods in assent, then turns briskly toward the Griffons, stops, turns back to Cavaliere and briefly asks "How does one say "lead the way" and "what is this thing?"
>>181410 >"He is not and has no recollection." "Hmmm, so the cursed tiara either bestows power on the wearer, at the cost of their minds and autonomy... Or perhaps it has a mind of its own... Certainly a dangerous item..."
"Ve are losing daylight. Let us search the towns at once." >>181409 Posey joins him in a mischievous giggle. >>181412 Ha
>>181410 >>181408 The griffins start bickering, and start moving, especially after the white one speaks to the others.
Mala explains to Brie, "They won't leave anything small and of value behind if they think they won't have a chance to come back. If they think they will come back they will hide it. But if they think they will not, they will try to take it with them.
We could have done this from the beginning, they would have found all of the hidden things for us. They may still get more valuables in their houses."
Mala blinks, and looks over at Cavaliere. "You're smart, Cava-caval... Mr. Garv. I can see why they brought you. I'm not a planner, but uh, I can help keep them in line while we're moving."
>>181411 pet pet pet "Come inside and have some tea" she says
>>181416 Comprehending, Brie will nod slowly, comprehendingly. Ahem "Youre right Cavaliere, do you prefer mister? It would in fact be untoward to deprive the ship of anything they might wosh to retrieve at a later time, humble fishermen that they are."
>>181416 >>181417 Cavaliere follows closely behind the others, observing them closely. He does not share in Mala's enthusiasm. "We are not robbers, Mala. These griffons gave up everything they had to pursue a life out at sea, and now they have to give that up, too. They cannot carry everything they want, but what they do choose to carry is to be left on their persons. What they must leave you're free to take, because better us than the communists. Do you understand?"
>>181433 "Ze zijn een beetje een vergelijkbare afstand. Het oude dorp en de vuurtoren. De vuurtoren staat op die heuvel, langs de nok van het midden van het eiland tussen de noordelijke baai en de zuidelijke baai. De vuurtoren staat langs de kust als je hem rechtdoor volgt. Het ligt op een voorgebergte in de richting van het water."
"The lighthouse and the old village are at roughly the same distance from us. I recommend going to the lighthouse first, as knowing the coastline will give us an advantage and might let us spot the enemy freighter."
Should we wait for the other party members to be present before proceeding with scavenging items and discussing the next course of action? I don't know who's online now but everyone should get a shot at it.
We should probably go to the lighthouse first because it's on higher ground, that way we will be able to see smoke/fire that the Marines built to keep warm if they're in the town. The lighthouse probably has provisions and comm equipment in it, and the Marines would know that. They would be predisposed to go to an official building for refuge, and as Marines their standard protocol would be to make camp on the highest possible ground when in contested territory.
>>181437 "I agree. Let us go to the lighthouse." >Should we wait We could just roll the check for what we find, and then appraise/count the loot after we finish the mission. No real need to count shekels now. I would like to get started in the lighthouse search tonight.
>>181437 Ostensibly, any loot will be a result of individual search checks that can be freely allowed (within reason, so taking a 10 or rolling 10 times) and where progress could be stalled until all players weigh in individually, if GM doesnt mind
>>181446 >>181447 Cavaliere follows suit, and gives the notes he had stowed away in his backpack. "Pardon the intrusion on privacy, but when we came across your camp it looked abandoned. We read your letters to better understand what happened."
>>181449 Correct me if I'm wrong, but this means that its been confirmed that the captain remembers fuckall but put the crown on, went eldritch crazy,... involuntarily. Does Brie need to roll a check to connect that the crown may have mind controlled the captain possibly without it even being in his possession?
>>181449 Silver: "He did not try very well if he did. I would have thrown them in outhouse or something to that effect. We saw there was pistol and bottle in there." Silver looks over at his blood stains. "Are any of you injured? Do you need one of us yo take look over you?"
>>181454 "The bottle... Olaf probably dropped one. Or hid it maybe. He tried to hide his alcoholism. A gun? Maybe that was Ingerstadt? I missed that part.
Yes, several of us are wounded. I've been stabbed... I think what happened was... the wounds were chilled and dried with salt to stop the bleeding."
>>181456 Im not asking for probably, Im asking - in detail and in character if needs be - where was the crown found, etc etc. This is weird shit to Brie, hes not used to being surprised.
Brie expressly asked in character for an account from the captain if remembered, an account from the crew surrounding, and the other non-loot question was answered
>>181459 >hes not used to being surprised Rolling to sneak up behind Brie, and surprise him Move silently [1d20+9 = (9+9) = 18] Intimidate [1d20+15 = (19+15) = 34]
>>181457 Silver: "If you will permit us, we can have look over your injuries. I do not believe we are so strapped for time that we can not tend to some wounded griffons. You all may end up moving more swiftly as well while patched up."
>>181463 "Yes." He nods. He moves his jacket to show what appears to be a stab wound. The wound itself cannot be seen, but a shirt tightly wrapped around it that is soaked in blood, can be.
>>181463 Cavaliere sighs. "We will have to. We cannot perform any advanced treatments like a blood transfusion, so I have to ask that you don't overexert yourselves."
GM should account for reduced HP on some of the griffons, and not just from the fight
>>181464 Heal: With the current absence of our resident zeeb, Silver takes up combat medic duties, tending to the white griffon's wounds to the best of his abilities.
>>181470 The wound seems mostly competently handled for now. It could use more pressure though, to make sure that the wound coagulates and does not come apart as they move.
>>181472 Seems simple enough to take care of. A fresh bandage, tightly tied, and a dose of antiseptic to prevent infection should be enough to tide him over.
>>181471 What all is ailing the bat? I know there was the Sound Burst, but was there anything else causing him problems?
>>181473 I'll get you next time... >>181470 >>181476 "Ooh, that's some serious damage, could become gangrenous. I recommend immediate euthanasia." (Posey went to medical school in horse Canada)
>>181481 It is Posey's professional opinion based on her medical certification, and has nothing to do with being a death-worshipping necromancer. [1d20+14 = (2+14) = 16]
>>181478 >>181476 Silver rolls his eyes and chuckles at Posey's statement before talking with Brie. "Do not mind her, she likes to mess with others. She tried doing something similar with me earlier today, talking about that fruit having hidden consequences or some such."
>>181490 >>181492 >>181494 I can tone it down, but theres no threat of this spiralling outward cuz context, and Posey and I are trying to find a way to mesh our player styles.
Like kittens, it looks like fighting, but we're learning to play together (again)
>>181497 Nah, I can tell there's nothing hostile going on between you two at the moment, just having some fun shitposting and messing with each other. Please, carry on.
I have a suspicion that you want Sea Breeze to directly give Dark Star a quest or objective. Is that correct? And if so, which one(s)? Do you want him to get right to it, or what do you want him to do?
>>181578 Heather holds onto Vir's foreleg and helps her up.
"Come along."
She opens the door, and takes Vir in. She takes Vir down the small hall that twists around the end of the church, until she comes to a door that she opens into a small kitchen, with a wooden floor, and prominent wooden table. Flowercup is already here and evidently has already started the task of boiling the water, which begins shortly thereafter. She takes a tea bag and places one in a small, porcelain cup, and begins pouring the tea.
"You can sit" Heather says, and helps Vir to the table. She picks up a small porcelain container with a tea spoon in it. Flowercup comes by and places the tea cup with the tea and tea bag in it in front of Vir.
"I can take a cube, or two... Let's make it three actually," Vir says and licks her lips.
Is there a reaction form the other two ponies in the room at this hilarious line of dialogue? ^^
Vir looks at Flowercup and hums to herself.
"I realized that despite having spent the night here, I haven't learnt you guys'es names. You-" She points to Heather. "-are called Heee...Heather. And you-" She points at Flowercup. "-are..." She rolls circles in the air with her hoof. "Don't tell me."
>>181622 Brie dispenses with all pretense with a shrug and returns to the party. He isnt going to give the full 10 minutes before going and looking, but better for the griffons to think hes staying behind for now. (In standby)
>>181631 Flowercup's gaze cuts like knife and Vir tilts her face away sheepishly. However, instead of looking remorseful of being caught with cookie crumbles, something about being scrutinized by a filly cause lips to quiver as she try to restrain her mouth to form a smile.
She's not very successful. c:
"Okay, okay. Hehe, I didn't. Sorry. I'm not known to have good memory," she says with mirth in her voice.
>>181630 >Rolls a 20 I assume that this means Flowercup sees Virgin's soul right now.
>>181654 She sees nothing more than mare with her pants down... At first. But then it's almost like world drifts off as Virgin takes her full attention. She reverts back into a scrawny filly but with abnormally large fetlocks for her age. A smile like that you could find one friendly and panting dog adore her face. Her excited but dumb gaze fall down onto the table.
On it, a glass vase has appeared with single red rose. Filly Virgin Flame is delighted to see it and take sniff of it and melts to the loveliness of the aroma.
Suddenly, and out of nowhere, the stem breaks and the rose dangles of it by a green thread.
Virgin's mouth forms an 'O' and she carefully but quickly grabs the rose. She tries to put it back like it was but the rose's stem won't be mended no matter how many times she tries to places it back on top.
Tears run down her pale face as she gives up... For now.
>>181671 >Tears run down her pale face as she gives up... For now. Actually no. Instead: Tears run down her pale face but she doesn't stop. Nothing changes.
>>181677 Silver gives Mala some more pets. "If you mean looting what they are unable to take with them..."
>>181676 Silver: "If that is what everypony is agreeing on. It sounds as if all of major locations on island are equidistant from each other, so distance is not factor. Personally, I believe those flying things Cavaliere saw on his scouting run were kites or some such flown by our Navy ponies, showcasing their position when they heard sea plane fly overhead."
Technically the modern village is a little further than the lighthouse or old village
The flying things are nearer the old village.
The lighthouse is on a kind of promontory north of the whaling station, and to the side of the north bay. To get there, go the direction towards the small whale bones and beyond, either going slightly inland and going up the hill, or stay on the beach and hug the coast.
The old village is on a hill kind of near the center of the island, inland and between the northern and southern bays. To get there, go in land from the whaling station, basically just going the opposite direction of the boat.
I was really hoping that map would be ready by now...
>>181676 >>181677 >>181678 Cavaliere widens his eyes in surprise. "I was expecting you to be eager to try to strip this boat bare. I have no objections regarding moving immediately, but we will probably not be able to return here if you get second thoughts."
We can wait if you want to. I will be away for a few hours starting now.
Vir blinks at the as she noticed Flowercup's change in expression but doesn't know what to make of it.
She blew on the tea causing tiny ripples. If there's sugar nearby, then she helps herself to some. She then takes the cup, which probably is quite warm between her hooves. Vir's fat fetlocks keeps her from not dropping it. She takes a sip. She smacks as she roll the flavor over tongue.
>>181684 Brie gestures to Rosey "Appreciating that time is of the essence, with diligence and a sharp eye for value (+11 appraise) we will make haste."
>>181687 Basic search check, for goodies [1d20+11 = (19+11) = 30] I dont wanna break the shit/ship into categories, so Ill roll another search for 1 more area [1d20+11 = (17+11) = 28]
On hand for any griffon interactions, but simplifying with base value rolls
>>181686 Silver approaches Posey in the middle of his search and asks her, "You have experience with magical items, yes? How easily can you tell if item is magical or not through examination?"
I'm gonna roll search too Ship: [1d20+5 = (1+5) = 6] Area: [1d20+5 = (20+5) = 25] >>181711 "Most magical items are exquisitely crafted and are eye-catching aside if their power, but not all of them. There is no reliable way to tell without magic, but a skilled appraiser may be able tell what an item is worth. A skilled arcanist may also notice the value in magical items."
That's an absolute shit reply, but I'm too drunk to correct it. They answer is "maybe".
>>181720 >>181682 Armorsmithing: Actually, now that Silver has the helmet out and he's not inside the dark, dank Catacombs, he takes the moment to investigate the strange helmet's construction, figuring out elements of its design such as what kind of creature it was made for or what metal it's made of. Even if he can't determine the exact metal, perhaps he can figure out certain properties of the metal it's made out of.
>>181722 The metal is a manganese-nickel-iron alloy that is strangely high in impurities, bearing closer resemblance to a naturally occurring metal than anything smelted. He's seen this before
The helmet is something like a peytral, or at least, vaguely resembles one, with overlapping pieces of metal on the back that hang down and can move. It isn't very long, though that may be due to the lower sections being missing. The top is rounded, but with two triangular protrusions that sweep back, each on the opposing side and vaguely imitating triangular ears. These are somewhat sturdy, and it is unclear if they are simply decorative or for practical effect. Across the top and going down the back, there is a wide strip of what is presumably gold leaf covering it.
In many places, the metal is visibly pitted or corroded, and seems to have signs of an active attempt to remove corrosion.
>>181711 Kira found the boat at least. Oh, and a nice seashell.
>>181710 Cavaliere finds a telescope, a compass, and a map in the cockpit
>>181688 Keys, a hidden bottle of bourbon, and rifle bullets
>>181726 >>181713 >>181710 >>181688 Kira, having no adventuring experience before this point, isn't put off by finding no valuable loot. In fact, she gasps upon finding the seashell, and picks it up like a treasured artifact. She excitedly shows it off to the other searching members of the party, going to each of them and exclaiming, "Look at this pretty shell I found!"
>>181729 My first assumption would be that they're the keys to the boat.
>>181726 Hmm...perhaps Silver's Wisdom or Intelligence can help him recall previous examples of this strange alloy, or help him with remembering its origins.
>>181726 Goodies! Cavaliere stows these items away, putting the map away in his map case That is, if OOC it's not ready. If it's ready he will have a look at it and the compass and telescope in his backpack. He still is bearing a medium load, though the extra pounds are irksome.
I assume that the telescope is similar to the spyglass from the handbook, though it might have more magnification. There's no description of any compass. Would it grant a survival check bonus?
The silicate content (the worst possible impurity) is low, so it's probably not made from slag. At the same time it's greatly higher than Silver would ever make, or honestly any proper smelter would make, so if it is the product of smelting, it is quite primitive.
The oxide content is higher than Silver would expect out of metal of extra-terrestrial origin, and the alloy isn't quite right for it either. The nickel content is vastly higher than most natural ores Silver is familiar with, yet just a little lower than metal from the sky. There is also no obvious evidence of platinum group metals, for instance, but there is a very noticeable quantity of especially Manganese present, higher than would be expected from extraterrestrial origins or any primitive alloy.
Because of the presence of the impurities, the metal probably does not quite equal steel. Yet the alloyed metals definitely improve the quality from what it would otherwise be.
However, Silver can identify it as being similar to the spearheads found earlier.
>>181732 The map is a map of the Rocky Sea area from the Village up North to Ravenskoye to Ny Winghaven. Mended Horn appears small on the map. However, it is a faithful and detailed enough outline of the island and the Nova Griffonian coast to have at least some use for navigating Mended Horn.
Probably should have included a sextant
>survival check bonus For purposes of navigation, yes.
>>181733 >>181734 It would be valuable in this setting because it might help with spot checks at a distance, but the window for usefulness is narrowing due to fog and diminishing sunlight.
Cavaliere lends the telescope to Brie, saying "You're a skilled lookout; see if you can make good use of this."
He spends his remaining time on the boat searching for something that could use this sort of key. [1d20+2 = (17+2) = 19]
But how much do the compass and map weigh? Cavaliere is dangerously close to the heavy load threshold.
>>181737 Brie accepts the telescope with a quizzical expression (if not masked), picturing its use being something like pic related. He pulls some paracord from a bracelet to loop it so it hangs across his back. "I found keys. With luck we can find what they open before departing"
>>181735 Now that he's getting a closer look at the equipment, Silver grows even more perplexed. Clearly, this was made by someone who knew at least a little about smithing, as evidenced by the clearly intentionally decorative touches added to the helmet. But this alloy is odd. Again, whoever made it knew what they were doing as clearly they put in a lot of work to make this metal serviceable, but it looks a bit like it's made out of metal scraps, and probably bad metal scraps at that with as many oxides are present. But that only brings up more questions, such as why was this made in the first place if it was made out of scraps? The spearheads made sense, the griffons here needed spearheads and had little in the way of proper metal to make them with, they're practical. What could be the practicality of such a helmet as this, and why was Curwhinny so interested in it as to have it in his lair?
Perhaps getting some insight from Posey on its potential magical capabilities may answer some of these questions, and Silver has to remember to go to the university to get it properly examined once they return.
>>181741 Fuck the keys then [1d20+15 = (2+15) = 17] (I gave a +2 cuz his gloves should also be masterwork, ostensibly granting him a +2 to his lockpick check, but if thats too much I'll ammend it)
Upon review, its masterwork TOOLS that grant the +2, so ammending that. Theres no listing for "try again", so Im just gonna try again [1d20+13 = (7+13) = 20]
>>181741 >"Um, tea?" Vir chuckles at the cuteness before her. Surely, Flowercup has to have a charisma score beyond thirty. ^^
>Sri... Cervidea?" "Sorry," Vir says through a chuckle. "Didn't mean to put you on the spot."
>"It's an older container we have from overseas. I thought I'd bring it out for you." She scratches the back of her neck. "I don't really know anything about tea myself. Never drink it, to be honest. It sure was tasty, but you didn't have to."
Hello, the zeeber is not dead. Just preoccupied. I guess I'll join in the looting unless any more medical help is needed? Of course search is an Int skill. Search [1d20 = 3]
>>181754 Oh, yeah. Considering zoober is likely only gonna find his boat with that search check.... Mr. Zeeb walks up to the bat where he sits, safe cracking, and raises a hoof with a slight glow to it. He looks at Brie with an inquisitive look.
>>181755 Dust arrives just as Brie is getting frustrated, pulling off his mask so that the sweat of exertion stops soaking into it. The strange camoflage paint he uses forms a porous layer thats oil based and really hard to get off once it dries. But at least his mascara never runs.
>>181760 Dust looks at Brie and gestures the glowing hoof towards his ears. Brie can't tell if he's not talking cause he's a quiet fellow, the ear thing, or some secret third thing. As for permission to heal, since one party member doesn't believe in healing spells....
>>181763 Brie realizes what's being offered, nods briefly and pulls out a cigarette and a match. He relaxes visibly and lights the cigarette. "Much appreciated! I can't imagine that went how you envisioned it. There was a moment where I was seeing red, fortunately I couldn't move and by the time I could bullets were flying. No hard feelings!"
>>181775 Correct! Looky there, back to normal. Dust reaches out a hoof and places it on the bat's withers, as a soft glow spreads from Dust's hoof to the bat's ears. At the same time, Brie can feel an energy radiating from the ground towards his ears. >>181773 Dust nods "For that I am glad to here My plans went off the trail Although bad my intentions appear I am glad to hear you are not after my tail."
>>181789 Brie breathes a sigh of relief, the ringing in his ears finally subsiding. "My good,..." he recalls the slight facial tick at 'Zebro', "Stallion, I can't thank you,... us Bats, we have such sensitive ears. Even with proper earplugs and ballistic sound suppression, I really prefer not to even use firearms if I can help it. I would opt for concussion grenades but for the same reason. It's a pity too, because the Master still won't teach me the secret of how to fight while blinded yet." He begins this little spiel going back to work on the safe, hoping that with the ringing gone the dice gods will remove the context-nerf that was cursing his skill checks. [1d20+13 = (20+13) = 33]
>>181794 Well hot damn. Dust can't roll to save his life, but apparently he can help others. He watches with curiosity as the bat gets back to work. >>181795 I'm going to scrunch very hard
>>181794 So thats a nat 20, and a 33, which defeats a good lock by the book numerically. And is also a nat 20, if you wanna look at it that way. I do, obviously, but,....
In a corner of the boat somewhere, with nopony else around:
>>181799 As Posey finds her skull alone in some corner, it momentarily starts glowing, twin beams firing from its eyes as it animates with a sickening cackle, levitating in mid air.
For the first time in this game, Posey looks genuinely afraid. "M-master, I...!" The skull roars "MAKING FRIENDS WE SEE! ART THOU HAVING FUN?!" "M-m-master! I can can explai-" "WHAT HAVE THOU CONQUERED, ROSEY RING?!" "Master, it has been a week! Wars take ti-" ENOUGH EXCUSES!!! MUCH WAS INVESTED IN THEE, RING! THE MAGIC ETCHED INTO THY FORTIFIED BONES IS NOT THYS, IT IS OURS!!!" Posey collapses to the ground as the runes in her bones surge with power, cursed sigils writhing beneath her skin as she convulses like Reagan in the exorcist She shrieks "IT SEEMS AS THOU ARE UNWORTHY OF BEING OUR CREATION!!!" "P-PLEASE HAVE MERCY!" "MERCY?! MEEEEERCY?! DID WE TEACH THEE MERCY? LIKE THAT PALADIN THEE LET ESCAPE?!" "I'M SORR-" "AND WHERE ARE OUR TITHES!" "Th.. The.. They are in the mail... I swear..!" "WE DID NOT SEND THEE TO EQUESTRIA TO HAVE FUN, RING!" "I... I can do bett-" "UNWORTHY OF THE GIFTS WE HAVE GIVEN THEE! IT IS TIME THAT THY LEARNED TO EARN THY OWN POWER!" (Posey is just sobbing at this point) "THE GIFTS WE HAVE GIVEN THEE ARE HEREBY FORFEIT! DO NOT DISAPPOINT US AGAIN, MISS RING!"
And so, Posey is left in a groaning, smouldering heap, smoke rising off of the sores where her spellstitched runes burned themselves away. She takes several minutes to nurse her wounds before rejoining the party.
>>181794 Brie still hears a tinnitus ringing in his ears.
>>181727 The shell is rather large, white in color, and has a number of concentric rings. There are pink stripes along the surface. It has something of a geometric pattern to the angles in the circles, which are not smooth save on the outer most layer, but have ridges that are more like a number of straight lines that turn, like a polygon rather than a circle.
>>181797 Brie opens the safe to find that it is two levels. The top portion is empty. It’s possible that no one stored anything here, but somehow this seems less likely than any valuables being taken out.
In a lower, larger portion of the safe, Brie finds a single object.
It’s a harpoon head that is oddly wide, and oddly girthy.
>>181811 Hold up hold up hold up Brie dpesnt open the safe yet, he was unlocking it. Opening it takes different preparation. Sheesh, the unprofessionalism
>>181808 >Th.. The.. They are in the mail... I swear..! I've heard the ca-neigh-dian postal union is striking, you might have wanted to let him know it was gonna take longer cause of that. >>181812 >>181813 >>181811 Dust watches Brie over the shoulder, curious as to his work
>>181818 "Never can be too careful. Some ponies, griffo s, etc. Will leave booby traps behind, preferring to sacrifice the item rather than allow a thief to abscond."
>>181808 May Kira make a listen check to see if she heard this, and came to investigate? Mostly just because Kira isn't doing anything else at the moment and I think it would be pretty interesting for the snej to watch from around the corner, but I don't want to if you feel like it would create problems.
>>181809 Kira is very happy about her beautiful find, regardless of its true value.
>>181740 Hmmmmm...well, Silver isn't exactly planning on selling it, but if the bat would like to try appraising it, he is more than welcome to.
Rosey Ring is feeling kind of lonely and angry after rudely getting her bones seared. >>181795 >>181789 I am going to test out my new, reduced Str mod by grappling Dust. She takes off her armor first Touch attack [1d20+5 = (1+5) = 6]
>>181835 >>181833 >>181825 Brie is only mildly irritated by the commotion behind him, fixated as he is on the task at hand. Im not gonna go forward till I get the results of the trap search, Im sure GM knows
>>181831 >>181825 Kira slithers up to Posey, waiting patiently for her and Dust to stop play wrestling so she can talk with her.
>>181834 With Posey being in the area, Silver also arrives, helmet in hoof. He shows it to Brie, asking him, "You have more experience than me with appraising items, can you tell anything more about this than I can?"
>>181835 Well he's grabbed. Surely I can roll over a 10 on a will save. [1d20+9 = (18+9) = 27] "A strange pony you are From lands of afar For mystery you set the bar A firey head A fortune unread Perhaps at first I had you misread"
>>181838 "One moment, my Stallion, I may have found something interesting, but fpr everyone's safety - most expressly my own - I must do this VERY carefully." Brie replies, not taking his eyes away from the task/inside of the safe.
>>181840 Dust scrunches as this petite mare somehow gets the upper hoof over him and pins him down "Firey indeed A tribe you could lead Now I hope for your intent This is your furthest intent"
>>181842 No opposed check? Dust is pinned. Now completely unable to move or speak, as Posey stuffs his face in her chest fluff. "Shush, be a good colt and help me scratch my itch." She rips off his codpiece with her horn "Now stand that thing up for me." She says, brandishing a hand-like Construct with her magic as she reaches behind her Rolling Perform (loodness) [1d20+8 = (18+8) = 26]
"Am I gonna have to roll a freaking concentration check? Is that what youre after? This could be some Raiders of the Lost arc shit right now. Can you take that elsewhere?" Brie says loudly, still focused.
>>181845 I didn't know I was entitled to an opposed checked, I don't know how any of this works >codpiece >implying The zeeb's eyes somehow seems to shrink and go wide at the same time. Some muffled noises come from Posey's fluff
>>181849 >>181847 >>181851 Posey and Dust feel something smooth and muscular come between them, before Kira wraps her tail around the struggle snuggling mare and pulls her off the poor zeeb. She gives Posey a nice, friendly snek hug while petting her mane.
>>181849 "Hmmmmpf, no fun allowed." >>181852 This is how we do things in Magehold. Respect muh culture. Posey use begrudgingly pulled off with a *POP* sound
>>181854 >>181856 Kira: "Shhhshhhshh, now's probably not the time for struggle snuggles. Or anytime, for that matter. Something tells me Dust would rather have his honor remain un-besmirched."
She continues petting her cute mare friend's mane, before wrapping her forelegs around the exposed portion of Posey and hugging her tight.
Kira: "Besides, you look like you could use a nice friendly hug right now!"
>>181859 Possibly, Kira has a lot left to learn about a lot of things.
>>181862 I would like to propose that Posey probably isn't quite as intimidating as she normally would be at the current moment, being smothered in a big friendly lamia hug.
>>181862 Dust shudders a little bit, regardless of whether or not the intimidate works. Opposed [1d20+10 = (11+10) = 21] "Much too firery a mare Who needs to make herself part of a pair Perhaps under better circumstances And with one who reciprocates her advances."
>>181868 >"Much too firery a mare >Who needs to make herself part of a pair >Perhaps under better circumstances >And with one who reciprocates her advances." ^^
>>181871 Dust scrunches harder. Much harder. That bat is getting scrunched into the 5th dimension >>181875 Dust shivers a little as the fiesty little fireball snaps at him. It reminds him of many a croc he's seen at the watering holes. >>181882 Kek
>>181887 "Alright, almost home free," he says, not assuming that his detection was succesfull, mechanically superior that it was. A bead of aweat runs down his brow as he takes his leather/composite mask as a makeshift pouch. With a sleight of hand [1d20+17 = (14+17) = 31] (the masterwork gloves/spats would apply here) he will attempt to slide the object - seemingly a polearm head? - into the makeshift bag.
>>181890 This should end well. Does zebra shaman cum count as holy water for the purpose of dealing with vampires? >>181892 I think Kira's fun >>181894 Not fun, not fun
Heather: "Oh, but of course we do. We always bring out the best for the guests. You should try tea more often. It clears the mind, and can calm you down."
>>181898 >>181902 >Posey's alignment shift is facilitated by zebra cum Hmmm... I can dig it
>>181918 >>181915 Kira looks over into towards the cockpit, before reluctantly letting go of her and slithering away to see what Posey is pointing towards.
>>181919 In the cockpit, beyond the helm and below the windshield, Kira sees it.
Standing there in all of its glory, Kira sees a figurine 5 inches tall and made of probably some sort of plastic or wood of a female hippogriff, light green in color, wearing a skirt of dried brown leaves, and holding a mandolin or some other kind of stringed instrument in its right claw. She wears a ringed crown of flowers on her head, and a necklace of seashells. She smiles right at Kira.
>>181922 Kek >>181923 Dust watches as Kira slithers off, before slowly turning towards the unicorn who is now unattended. His eyes drop to pinpoints as he looks at her. He definitely doesn't have a spell for this.
>me rn Like, I can pet the qt kitter with a face (its like a momma tongue) but I suspect its gonna get interesting soon. And if not let me put away the thing so Brie can be helpful elsewhwre (if time, prolly not)
>>181922 >>181923 >>181924 >>181925 Kira: "Oooooooooo!" Kira takes this pretty figurine. She admires how the beautiful hippogriff looks, with her cute skirt and adorable flower crown and shell necklace, before she goes around to the nearby creatures and shows it off excitedly to them. "Look at this! Isn't she super pretty?"
>>181933 Reee, thats unrelated and u know it. Kira wasnt around, Brie was already fixated on the safe. And even if for some reason not, sorry not sorry, Kira hasnt impressed Brie (except cuteness) so far, including the super almost best grappling. Cuz has head in a safe. Xp
>>181933 Kira: "Ooooooooooooooooooooo!" Kira stares in awe, eyes transfixed on the hypnotizing dance. She's never seen anything this amazing before! Well, she might have, but this is still pretty amazing to her.
>>181933 >Because you didn't acknowledge Kira's cool new shell when she got it Posey was preoccupied at the time. >>181935 >>181934 Posey decides to go help the party with the looting, for now.
>>181908 >"Um, it's okay. It's just... a weird word." She nods invitingly.
>It clears the mind, and can calm you down. "Really," Vir says and looks down at the dark-brown, almost resin colored liquid in her cup. Then she proceed to take a careful mouthful of it.
It sends down a shiver down her spine, like somepony drew a cartoonish bolt of lightning over her frame. A content sighs escapes her lips as the cup leaves them. Her eyes are closed as her body is occupied with relishing the tea that spread out from her core and gives gentle caresses over her body.
>>181933 >she dances Yep, that's treasure. Looks like a treasure statue with permanent animate objects cast on it. If so, it could be worth 15,660 gp, before considering the craftsmanship . Unless I'm reading too much into it... Arcana [1d20+11 = (12+11) = 23]
>>181943 Yes, though they're non-venomous and fairly well hidden until she opens her mouth fully. They're there to help hold things in place as she swallows them whole.
>>181941 >>181943 >>181944 >>181935 Kira shows off this cool function of the dancing hippogriff figurine to all of the nearby creatures in an even more excited fashion than she otherwise would.
>>181941 >Heh heh. Maybe he should teach her a lesson. You know, by raping her I'm gonna start scrunching at you. >>181939 Dust sighs from relief and decides to help with the looting as well. >>181945 Dust smiles at the silly snej
>>181944 Posey can place the culture depicted as North Zebrican, presumably North Zebrican (Arisian), although perhaps it is not a faithful depiction of reality, but rather something fanciful. The substance it is made out of is untarnished. The origin cannot be discerned.
>>181945 Look! It moves her little claw to play the little strings when she dances! I know I've said that before, but it's so neat!
>>181943 Kira's fangs a retractable into the upper jaw. Normally she looks like she has bat pony fangs, but when extended they are much longer.
>>181852 >>181858 Cavaliere enters the room just before Kira grapples Rosey. "Thank you, Kira, for helping to handle this. She put Dust in a poor position as he would have had to hit her to free himself."
>>181950 But can Posey discern the spell effect that infuses it with Anima? Spellcraft [1d20+16 = (6+16) = 22] >fangs a retractable Posey's fangs are retractable too. >>181952 >this means the party has lost all the tattoo buffs? No. Spells continue for their full duration.
>>181953 Much of the secret/technique to the Funny traditionally named bat style Briebhas an apprenticeship in is that most of its stealth kills dont involve stabbing, so much as they involve pressing the tip of a blade and then constricting. Technically speaking, a proficient grappler could intuit the technique by observation and a bit of instruction/practice
>>181958 In a technical/rules sense, its just improved grapple with uncanny dodge (uncanny dodge retains dex bonus when otherwise losing it, except for immobilization) and sneak attack while grappled, but I like when PCs can teach PCs
>>181958 Cavaliere smiles at the giant snake swaying as if she was being charmed. "You made a good find. There will be time to dance soon, but we need to get moving to that lighthouse."
>>181954 Posey can't quite tell at a distance. Maybe by examining it more closely, but honestly, there are no clues to any specific school of magic at a distance.
>>181963 Hes a good boi. He showed up 2 werks ago, frail and basically starving. Hes better now, well nourished, past his parasite wip, and playful and happi as shit. Baast knows wherein to deposit her wayward kitters.
>>181966 >there are no clues to any specific school of magic at a distance U really want to avoid using my detect magic SLA on what might just be s knick-knack.... Eh, let's just put it in the bag and i'll examine it with everything else later.
>>181968 Kira would like to hold onto it, just to keep it safe. If it turns out that it is indeed just a knick-knack that isn't worth 17,000 Bits, she might just want to keep it herself.
Brie's player is currently engaged in a struggle, wanting to literally force GM to cough up about the trident piece Brie is delicately truing to secure.
He is holding out knowingly, just ss I predicted the keys reapnse.
"I never did find out qhat these are for, if anyone wants to investigate."
Vir finishes the cup with swig and smacks her lips with loud smacks. The smacks that real horses make when they chew on a carrot with their thick lips that sound more like vacuums being popped on repeat.
"K-can I, have some more?" she asks like a filly asking for an extra slice of cake during a party.
>>181984 He goes up, opens the door and... Yeah, the room is basically as it was. Papers strewn on the table, bed unmade. Like someone is living there. Kind of cold.
The shower is open.
>>181994 Uh... I'd have the look that up. I want to say white for Flowercup and kind of an eggnog yellow-brown for Heather, but that's probably completely wrong.
"Oh... Okay..." Heather says, looking at the adorable large mare. "Flower cup, pour her some more."
Flowercup comes by, very awkwardly holding the handle of the teapot with her mouth, and then slowly pouring the tea in Vir's cup... maybe overflowing a little bit... and then it gets on the table. And then Heather tells Flowercup "Clean that up!" and Flowercup has to go back, get a rag, and then come bag and clean it up. And then when Vir tries to pick it up to sip it, a little more spills.
Anyways, Heather offers to provide sugar. One, two, three cubes... and the cubes cause it to overflow again. Damn it Flowercup.
>>181998 Oh, I was expecting something dramatic "Well. I'm sorted here, any way I can help further?" Idk how much time is left, but without having determined the point of the keys, Brie is satisfied tat theres 'a thing' to look into
>>181999 oops, I need to look at post numbers >>182000 The hug of trips! Dust is hugged by the lamia fren, and after a moment reciprocates. She's too bubbly, it's contagious.
>>182002 Paperwork on weapons equipment stockpiles with the Baltimare Police.
Dark Star is able to do this well enough. There is warm water, and it's a nice change of pace from the outdoors. Civilization has its benefits, like warm water.
>And then Heather tells Flowercup "Clean that up!" and Flowercup has to go back, get a rag, and then come bag and clean it up. At first, Vir says nothing as she preceives there too be some kind of tension in the air. To Vir the filly seems nervous. She could be wrong about this of course.
>cause it to overflow again. Damn it Flowercup. ^^
A teeth revealing grin forces its way onto Vir's features. Deep laughter erupts from her. Vir then reaches out with her, now somewhat coated in tea hoof, to Flowercup and just places it on her head just behind the ears. She gently rubs her hoof into her mane.
Her hoof feels like living stone with a pulse running through it. Her frog kinda reminds Flowercup of a pillowcase but if your stuck as many pillows in it as you possibly could.
Does she realize how hopeless it would be to try to escape this mare if she grabbed her?
"Not worry over me," Vir says, smile, and closes her eyes like this: '^^'
So assuming nothing happened while wrapping the seeming polearm broadpoint Brie pulled from the safe, he would be concluded on any fixative agenda. He would doff the telescope tho, too unwieldy/weighty especially in that hes straddling the line of a light load. He would offer n it to the party. And advocate for its market value.
He fondles the keys he never figured out what goes to. "A keepsake, perhaps?" Unable to imagine a scenario where he leaves the keys for the commies, Brie pockets the keys. He then turns to the knife. Acceptable, he supposes. The style and shape of the blade certainly arent his preference, more Rambo and less early-Doctor Strange. He doesnt have any sheathes for it. Best to put it from his mind he thinks, as the knife falls from his hooves with a clattering sound, belying it's false tang and welded fittings (ugh).
>>182037 See: >>181749 >>181750 Cavaliere adds, "The fuel line is cut. This boat cannot be sailed without extensive repairs, and I cannot help you with that."
>>182038 "A cut fuel line? Thats it? Hold on, the ship isn't sinking because of a cut fuel line. Not contesting the fuel line is cut, just saying, theres more than that under the hood."
>>182039 It suddenly occurs to Brie that with a cut fuel line, this boat is a firebomb waiting to gomoff, potentially. "You know what? Nevermind. We should go."
Okay, Baltimare crew: Dark Star, Virgin Flame, Ambersubset.
I want to at some point make your characters meet up. Or at least, two of you. I have a few quest ideas. One is participating in an immigration raid on gnolls, zebra voodoo practitioners. Another is encountering possible spoop in the Baltimare underground, an abandoned hospital, or out in the woods. I can do individual quests if this is what is desired. Please give input on what you want to do.
Some friends have convinced me to go to Bronies NL Meet 31, which lasts tonight until midnight. This might limit my ability to engage seriously tonight, though I am not certain. I will try.
>>182046 I am open to Amber doing anything as long as it is in-character for her to do so. She will not intentionally seek out an armed conflict without having a good reason.
>>182047 Go ahead and enjoy yourself. You're there in Holland for a limited time, while the game will be around for a while.
>>182048 >I am open to Amber doing anything as long as it is in-character for her to do so. Same for Virgin.
>>182046 >I want to at some point make your characters meet up. That would be fun. ^^
>Please give input on what you want to do. Okay, here's everything.
In general, I find making my own quests or take my own initiatives to be quite easy for me with Virgin. Just RP-ing with Heather and Flowercup, you can rest assured is enjoyable to me. In fact, I kinda want to explore those characters deeper and I think Virgin will settle at the Church, at least for now, as her temporary home, if Heather allows her to stay.
Virgin is in fact on her way to Blackhooves HQ right now. She is going there because she thinks that if anyone would know about Hope's whereabouts, it would be them. Also, it's completely up to you what happened with Hope's and her history with the Blackhooves. Hope's doesn't even need to have step a hoof in Baltimare. I decided that she simply disappeared the next day after an argument they had or something Only if that is okay with you. and now, Virgin is in Baltimare just because she gotta start somewhere and that she'd heard that Baltimare is a nest for the Blackhooves or something in the passing.
I did notice that Dark Star was at HQ so the though of getting there faster did enter my mind but I decided against it. I want things to happened diegetically, as you said in the other thread, and so I decided I was gonna engage with Heather and Flowercup before moving on to HQ and if Dark Star was still there then it was fate.
When it comes to meeting the others, my thoughts are: Let's take Dark Star for example. I think, if I'm not mistaken, he was your very first pc of the entire game. His legacy grants him meta prestige, whic he has earn but makes it awkward to interact with him. I, in general, don't wanna step on any othe pc's toes or steal their thunder. However, while important to the game's history, his character doesn't matter to me. I care, first and foremost, about my own.
There is otherwise a interesting dynamic between the two of them, since Dark Star is with the Blackhooves and Vir, blames them for, well, most things, while I think they share values and would agree on a lot of other things.
I'm just being open with my thoughts here. I do want to try it out though and I think I might just worry too much. I'll just try to keep Virgin in character and treat the others like any other pony.
When it comes to Amber, I know even less who she is. I think she's a socialite of somekind.
But as I stated in the beginning of this essay, I would like to join up with the other pcs.
And like magic, Brie's and Lacey's backstory makes sense, to the degree of detail so far established, perfectly aligned with EaW lore and established story.
Did you know the technical term for bat pony is "Thestral"? (you probably did) Or that Thestral society is in Everfree Forest, presided over by the Night Court? Its a political/financial aristocracy of factions and families that rule over their society. There are plenty of factions in the night court, as well as breakaway factions, among which is the Shadow Syndicate. It's the criminal underbelly of the Night Court.
Also, because 'Mayan' doesnt appear on google translate, the "official" dialect proxy for Thestral is Maori ^,_,^
>>182031 >>182032 >>182035 >>182045 Since presumably Posey's handy floating magic disk has disappeared, Silver helps tie the unconscious Sea Stone to Kira's back as was the original plan, so they can still take him with us on their way to the lighthouse.
>>182058 >Posey's handy floating magic disk has disappeared No. Spells last for their full duration, regardless of changes in the caster. Floating Disk can't even be dismissed by the caster.
I don't mean to poke holes in this floating disk thing or give cause for it to disappear, but how does it work exactly? Does it just follow behind wherever the caster is looking? Behind the caster's body? If that's the case, what happens when the caster goes somewhere the disk can't follow because of size constraints or objects in the way? Does it stay where it is? Does it damage the surroundings until it can force its way back to the caster? Does it clang glitchily into the surroundings making Source engine noises until the forces being applied to it are so great it clips through the physical objects between it and the caster? What happens to what's on it in that case? If the disk knows to pathfind around solid objects between it and the caster, is it intelligent? How can it tell what's there that needs to be pathfound around? And if it's controlled by the caster's mind, can it still be controlled even when you've lost access to casting the spell? And if the caster can't dismiss the floating disk, can the caster make multiple copies all at once? Does the world end up being littered with discarded floating disks from all of the creatures who can cast the spell?
I know it sounds like I'm being stupid, but I'm genuinely curious about all of this.
>>182064 It is a magical co juration of a duration based on caster level. It maintains a proximity also determined by cl, and I think Roseys is 35'. Its a tray that is controlled by the mind
>>182071 Maybe? What would Posey’s action be, if it is possible to be more elaborate than “she goes to the lighthouse.” Like, does she walk along the beach line? Does she go inland to walk up the ridge line of the hill to get there? How does she do it?
>>182064 > Does it clang glitchily into the surroundings making Source engine noises until the forces being applied to it are so great it clips through the physical objects between it and the caster? I’m pretty sure this is how it works
>>182072 Rosey isnt the only.one eager to depart, especially with the concept of a large and increasingly probably vat of.gasoline surrounding the freighter
>>182082 Brie nods in assent, before looking for any contrary gestures or faces, assuming none, he swoop-flaps to an elevation thats,... kind of a complicated equation, so we'll start with 60' and wait to see how thick the fog is >>182083 >thestrals can't doggy-paddle-fly Noted
By doggy-paddle fly, I mean a pattern that involves swooping up to the left, and then dropping, then the right then dropping, not actually hovering, but "maintaining a general elevation"
The breeze is nice, drying and cooling the pooled/collected sweat from the safe-cracking. >>182101 I see 'em, I just haven nothing to do for Brie that pertains to Silver or Kira atm
>>182098 "If we're to aim for efficiency, Kira should assume groundpoint scout/lead while I mirror her position from the sky," Brie whisper-echoes, using echo-locative voice.
Is that a thing? GM, plz say thats a thing. Its plausible :3
>>182099 You are being followed by an undead hunter with stripes. A truly terrifying encounter. Though he may be more afraid of you. >>182102 Kira is being followed by a friendly zeeb, who would probably pet the snej if asked.
We’re early enough in the quest such that all encounters are story related, but things can be shuffled.
I was going to say one survival roll for the whole party. Posey can roll with her pitiful modifier and mediocre luck, or you can wait for Kira, who is better at the skill and far luckier. It appears the choice was made already
>>182090 They lean towards trying to repair the ship to leave, if that is possible.
>>182115 >>182118 Okay, they probably need their keys back, then. Silver would tell them to stay safe, and that if they haven't got their boat fixed by the time the party is ready to leave then they've (hopefully) got seats for them on the seaplane to Trottingham.
>>182118 >>182119 >>182121 Not only is time critical on this mission and having to backtrack delays our exfiltration, but Stalliongrad is probably sending out more scouts along the shore and the boat is far too visible. By the time we get back they could all be dead. We also told the griffons that they had to leave now and that we would protect them. Should we go back on our word?
The fog outside of the boat greatly intensifies, until visibility is down to 100 feet.
The radio starts playing static, unbidden.
>>182020 Okay, so I went back and reread the descriptions of these ponies, and I was pretty close to accurate. Flowercup is a filly (age is unsure) with a white (slightly grey or off-white) coat and wearing a white cloak with a reddish-black mane tied into a bun. Heather is a beige mare with an orange coat and a black cloak.
Flowercup "No?"
Heather laughs "No, I am an assistant here. She is a trainee. We are not related."
>>182122 We've got a task to complete, and the possibility of running into the enemy troops and ending up in a firefight is pretty high. I'm not sure they'd want to be in tow for that, and they likely know the ship and how to fix it a lot better than we do. As long as they stay hidden, they should be fine. The Stalliongraders are more interested in that airship than they are in a nearly abandoned whaling station.
Was the radio on this whole time? Silver (after taking note of what frequency it was on so they can call the plane if need be) fiddles with the frequency to see if he can clear up the static.
>>182126 >The fog outside of the boat greatly intensifies, until visibility is down to 100 feet "Watch out everypony, Necrophages like to hide in these conditions, and the crashing of the ship may have attracted them to the island." Rosey Ring says, as she steps out into the fog >The radio starts playing static, unbidden "Could be sea wraiths too. Keep an ear on the radio."
>>182130 I'm going to assume that "incorporeal undead" is code for "ghost." The voice sounds like a living pony giving sounds of clear stress, fear, and physical wear. Not that that wholly rules out a ghost.
>>182132 Heather has a beige coat and orange mane. There's a mention of a "dawn breaker" something in the old posts
>>182129 Dust cocks his head at the noises, his earbs flicking about a little bit. Listen check to see if he can discern anything of note [1d20+4 = (14+4) = 18]
>>182139 >dawn breaker I think I prefer Sunny Day, tbh. But as the name for a martial art made by nuns worshiping Celestia it kinda fits.
Are these two both earth ponies?
Vir suddenly feels the need to cock her head towards the filly instead of simply turning towards her. It must be dat filthy zigga's voodoo! :'cTho, this joke doesn't work anymore since this post came too late.
>>182139 >I'm going to assume that "incorporeal undead" is code for "ghost." Ghost, Wraith, Shadow, Specter, Allip, Caller In Darkness, Ghostly Visage (Posey's familiar at lvl 7), Dream Vestige... the list goes on. But I see it's a living Pony now. Posey's in-character knowledge of radios is hereby exhausted.
"~Oh no, I'm just a vulnerable little mare made of juicy, entropy-infused, prime meat. I sure do hope no drowners or foglets lunge out of the mist to tear me limb from limb and gnaw on my innards. I have such a pretty face; it would be a shame if some Ghostly Visage or Defacer stole it to assume my identity. I'm so skilled at magic: if a demon possessed me right now I would be an excellent vessel. I hope some lovecraftian entity does not lunge out of the ether to steal my intelligence, because I would freak out." wanders out into the spooky fog "I think it might be cryohydra mating season, btw. Islands in frigid seas like this make great nesting grounds, and the aggressive males can get incredibly territorial." sprays self with artisan perfume made of the gonads from the hydra she killed last week "This artifact sea crown is priceless. If a young dragon added it to its hoard, it would be the greatest hoard in the seas, grander than even the alphas who take all of the good treasure for themselves. Luckily there are no big, scary dragons to swoop down and snatch me up right now." swings hips and flags her tail up and down "Or any rival pirate gangs who might want to plunder my booty."
The good news is the Griffons ARE armed, and the Captain could possibly be useful in a pinch and otherwise relied on to lead his 'men'. They also could be said to have been tasked with carrying the telescope (if they werent expressly, I dont translate the languages I dont know in character), which may be useful especially at the lighthouse.
"~I am just vulnerable Sorceress with a feeble grapple mod. If a Remorhaz burst out of the ground to swallow me whole, I have no idea what I would do. My hit points are so low that it would burn me to cinders instantly. I would NOT want that..."
Brie is so glad he and Kira are on point. No offense.
Btw, does the fog give partial concealment at his elevation, therefore allowing him to be hidden? Hes still focused on spot tho, so prolly not. "All this out-in-the-open nonsense," he laments.
Srsly though, it would be nice to ACTUALLY kill something :3
>>182175 Reminder that there is indeed a creature in the party already with a pretty high grapple modifier who eats creatures by swallowing them whole.
>>182186 I'd assume so, just waiting on people to arrive and to hear what this broadcast entails.
>>182150 This is so, but is he simply going to a nearby restaurant, presumably one where he has eaten before? Is he going to the Eastside Tavern? Does he intentionally want a seat at a window to stare towards the building?
>>182187 >Reminder that there is indeed a creature in the party already with a pretty high grapple modifier who eats creatures by swallowing them whole. uwu
>>182186 I have a flight tomorrow, so it’s unlikely I could get into combat
>>182177 >concealment No more than anything Brie is looking at.
>>182193 How much progress outsode of combat? We're 'in transit' at the moment, and while we had a break during the search of the ship, we havent had a moment to stop for any duration. Without spoiling when combat, will we have a chance to stop for a minute before? I wanna look at the thingy
>>182217 "Since we seem to have a momentary breather,... Ms. Ring? Mr. Defiant? Help me take a look at this please," Brie says, kinda unsure about what to think about the thing.
>>182219 >>182220 Dust plods over in his usual way, curious what the bat may have. Though to be honest, the wording is making me think Dust is about to see some horsecock
Dark Star finds the restaurant. The outdoor patio seats are all gathered up. There are no lights through the windows. There is police tape over the entrance, even as the letters "Golden Sun" still hang above.
It doesn't look open
>>182224 >>182220 It's metal, somewhat cylindrical with a dull head, and a bit girthy. It kind of does look like a horsecock, yes, but it is made of steel.
>>182232 Dust tilts his head one way, then tilts it the other. He withholds any comments comparing it to a penis or a turd "I do not get it. Does this item hold some sentiment?"
>>182232 Anyway, give me the goods. Good lighting, not in a hurry or anything, tell.me all about it. And not just me/Brie. Defiant and Rosey are privy, as well as anyone else who wants to look.
Brie's first point of inquiry/observation: does it seem comparable/relatable to the tiara and/or Silver's mystery helm? [1d20 = 14] not sure what check, will apply mods when known if the roll isnt ass
>>182238 The facade is brick, and there is a wooden roof that extends from the building to cover an outdoor patio. There is a second floor of windows, and the roof of the building is flat. The bricks are a dark brown color, evidently a bit weathered.
On the outside? There are none, and none through the windows either. On the inside though...
>>182239 It's steel with a pointed head and a cylindrical body, and spikes at the bottom that can come out. Almost looks like a squid
>>182240 It does not resemble any religious artifact that Dust is familiar with. It's made of steel
>>182243 Brie is very confused. He looks at both Dust and Rosey, forgrtting to hide his confusion for a few seconds. "I may have wasted your time. I was worried about something worrisome like that tiara the griffons were speaking of. I apologize, in our haste to leave the whaling ship I didnt get a look at the object in the safe and wanted more knowledgeable eyes."
>>182251 I/Brie thought - since he found it in a safe - that the weird harpoon head might be related to these weird habbenings. Apologies, it seems mundane. Maybe a mechanism, but clearly not spoopy now we have it in decrnt lghting.
>>182243 Rolling Arcana, to see what I know about this [1d20+11 = (15+11) = 26] Religion [1d20+11 = (8+11) = 19] History [1d20+3 = (14+3) = 17] Dungeoneering (incase it's related to aberrations) [1d20+3 = (6+3) = 9] Nature [1d20+3 = (3+3) = 6]
>>182243 He realizes that something feels different within him since that night, he feels lighter somehow,, He shakes his head and then He trots down the street, heading towards the eastside tavern
>>182269 Glistening Glass is putting up bottles behind the counter. He looks back.
"Dark Star!" Hey hey! How is it going? Things aren't too bad myself." He turns around. "I haven't seen you since you" He winks and makes a clicking sound, placing his foreknees on the table and letting his muzzle rest on his two, propped up hooves, with a sly smile on his face "went up to bed with those two young mares."
>>182268 Is it masterwork quality? Either way, we're probably going to just sell this thing, unless it's a particularly good magic spearhead. Add it to the bag.
>>182298 >He's too far away for you to rape When I level up, I'm going to put some ranks in Lucid Dreaming. Luna is cocooned: nopony can save you in the dream realm.
"Is it an explosive harpoon head? Those are often used by whalers."
Also waiting on parsing any messages from the radio. Cavaliere rolled a 20, and although he doesn't speak Severanyan he could imitate the sounds to Silver who would then translate.
>>182319 Cavaliere approaches Sørvik, who by now should be ready to leave. "Een van mijn collega's heeft ingebroken in uw kluis en dit gevonden. Weet u waar dit voor is?"
>>182332 I really don't know what you're talking about, or what the significance of this nonmagical item is supposed to be. I thought we were already on our way to the lighthouse.
>>182341 In Brie's defense, GM Pone said only that it appears to be non-magical, not that it absolutely is. There's a small risk, I just don't think it's worth freaking out over it.
>>182343 Well, I guess I could use my Detect Magic SLA to determine its aura strength, caster level and school. I was going to cast it anyway to check out the rest of the treasure. Just put it in the bag and I'll examine it at the end of the mission.
>>182324 Sørvik replies, looking and sounding irritated Wat doe je om mijn kluis te kraken?”
He stops, looks down at the object, and takes a second. “Dat is een explosieve harpoenkop. Je duwt hem in het lichaam van een walvis en hij zal ontploffen en hem doden. Hebben we dat nodig? Ik heb alles meegenomen, maar dat heb ik laten liggen.”
Cavaliere can see a time-delay detonator on the object.
>>182393 >Be Brie >Literal traps and explosives expert >search for traps >nat 20 >object is a LITERAL TRAP >HUH, i never noticed the explosives >put away >pull out later to inspect >Huh, never noticed the explosives, not prompted to roll by GM >hand off the weird thing Ive never seen anything like before,.... >its a bomb/trap
>>182393 "~Ooh, a button. I have read of these devices before. We do not have many buttons in my homeland. When you press them, magical things happen." reaches magical finger for the detonator https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TB6aj4Em05Q
This is a shitpost. I'm not actually touching the detonator. Unless....?
>>182302 “Ohhhhhh, a tussel. I see…” he tilts his head to look at Dark Star inquisitively. “Was it over a mare?” He pauses. “Do you want to talk about it?”
Where exactly were we in the narrative? I don't know anymore. I thought we were on our way to the lighthouse, but idk now. It's fine if we want to take time to examine the harpoon thing.
>>182414 Smiling “Alright, I’ll let you keep your secrets. Just like with the mares…” he looks down and reaches for something. When he pulls it up, it’s Apple Whiskey.
>>182431 We're waiting for a description of what's being broadcast over the radio, since it sounds like the Stalliongraders are in trouble and it possibly will lead into the next encounter.
>>182130 >>182152 >Posey evidently intends this roll as an exhaustive inquiry into the intersection of radios and spoop. Fine, we'll do it your way.
Incorporeal undead tend to be composed of various forms of magic, whereas radios work by picking up specific waves of the electromagnetic force. And yet, sometimes the former affects the latter. Just as a banshee can call out in the twilight, so too can ghosts, wraiths and what have you speak over radios to communicate - or at least, that is what is reported. Undead don't sound like the living - not quite - and Posey could surely pick up on the subtle differences.
Some permutations of ghosts - or more accurately, of lingering phasmic energy - simply replay scenes of the past that have stained themselves upon the material plane. Reports of radios playing broadcasts and communications of years before are not unknown, and in one famous episode a title card of a horseton television station - defunct three years prior - randomly appeared in a television broadcast in Trottingham. Perhaps the radiowaves bounce around indefinitely in the ionosphere or the lower spheres, to be reverberate back at some time in the future. In these instances, it may be hard for Posey to tell what is a real pony voice and what is undead - when, after all, the broadcast is nothing more than an echo. And of course, if some malevolent force tried to use the radio to deceive ponies... Well... that's another matter.
It's hardly out of the question that a radio could pick up ambient physic or phasmic energies in the air, given off by the presence of incorporeal. In just the same way as the static sound of a radio may be from the buildup of static electricity in the air, in prelude to a lightning strike, so too may the radio detect the presence of a nearby specter or wraith. Of course, it wouldn't sound like a pony's voice. It would just sound like static.
>>182140 >>182145 >>182142 What follows cannot be heard and understood by any one pony alone, for no pony is able to discern every detail in its totality. It is only when they compare notes that the following is pieced together:
Static sounds. While the static has gone down significantly since Silver changed the frequency, it is ineliminable
A stallion speaks with a slightly reassuring, if unconfident tone Оставайтесь на месте, товарищ. Оставайтесь на месте и мы приедем к вам. - Stay put comrade. Remain in place and we will come to you.
There's a sound almost like an object dragged against the ground, though it may be the caw of some unknown animal. There is one, then two rifle cracks.
Second Stallion: Некоторые из «Нежелательных» зацепили нас. Мы потеряли Парселия. - Several of the Unwanted ("Nezhelatelnykh") have us pinned down. We have lost Parsely. There is a very unhealthy sounding cough, and a "tak tak tak" like the call of an insect. А еще на нас подходит Петрушка из Light Water. And there are Light Water's Petrushka coming up on us as well. Rifle crack.
There is a sound like something scratching against stone, twice.
There is a third stallion's voice. Judging from the signal quality and circumstances, it appears to be from the same receiver as the first stallion: Я только что подслушал защищенную передачу... Солдаты прибыли и идут нам на помощь... Подождите еще немного. Даже если у меня есть сомнения, что мы проживем достаточно долго, чтобы встретить их, держитесь - I just overheard a secure transmission...soldiers have arrived and they’re coming to rescue us... Hold on a little longer. Even if I have my doubts that we’ll live long enough to greet them, hold on.
Second Stallion: Может быть, помощь уже в пути, но я не жду ее. Нам нужно добраться до северной бухты. - Maybe help is on its way, but I’m not waiting around for it. We’ve got to get to the north bay. There is a sound like a bullet flying nearby.
First Stallion Я не уверен, что хочу возвращаться. Что, если мир узнает, что мы делали? - I'm not sure I want to go back. What if the world finds out what we were doing? Static crackle, and very possibly a nervous sounding laugh
Second stallion, weakly: Они будут знать, что мы стояли с Черной Пяткой против Light Water и его Чернобога. У меня сдуло шляпу по дороге к хижине. Я чувствую, как мой разум ускользает. Меня укусили, и я теряю кровь. Мне нужно идти на берег. - They will know that we stood with Black Heel against 'Light Water' and his Chernobog. My hat has blown off in the run to the hut. I can feel my mind slipping. I have been bitten and am losing blood. I must go to the shore. The next sound is either a static crackle, or the sound of blood spurting out of the mouth. Hard to tell.
First stallion, with mild despiration: Нет. Оставайтесь на месте. Солдаты идут, чтобы спасти нас. - No. Stay put. The soldiers are coming to save us.
Second stallion, in fear: С каждой минутой создается все больше нежелательных элементов. Я не жду, когда стану марионеткой. Я еду на берег. За Хохтед-Хилл! - More Unwanted are created by the minute. I am not waiting to become a puppet. I am going to the shore. For Crested Hill!
Multiple gunshot cracks like a machine gun. The sound cuts off.
>>182499 "It sounds like the Stalliongraders have been attacked by monsters... But whatever could have overwhelmed a group of soldiers like them?" >There is a very unhealthy sounding cough, and a "tak tak tak" like the call of an insect. "Changelings? No, he would have said so..." >More Unwanted are created by the minute. I am not waiting to become a puppet. I am going to the shore. For Crested Hill! "Sounds like spawning monsters... The kind that spread like wildfire. Could it be wights? They're known to animate sporadically on battlefields." >"I can feel my mind slipping. I have been bitten and am losing blood. I must go to the shore." "Definitely monsters... Could they be Drowners?"
I would like to roll Arcana to get a clue of sort of monsters may be in this area that this could indicate [1d20+11 = (14+11) = 25] And religion, for what could be a potential undead activity [1d20+11 = (9+11) = 20]
>>182502 I know. It's beautiful. I'm kind of proud of it. It's the colors of the flag of the Soviet Union. Either highlight the English text with your cursor so that it shows up white, or translate the much more legible Russian text.
>Arcana There are many potential animals or magical beasts, yet nothing should be this much of a hassle
>>182506 Can Posey make out any monster sounds that would indicate what's attacking them? Or know any magical effects that could lead to such a situation? I rolled a 25, give me a little hint.
>>182506 >Either highlight the English text with your cursor so that it shows up white, or translate the much more legible Russian text. I just put the whole thing into Read Aloud, like I do with most of the long descriptions.
>>182499 >>182502 Cavaliere sounds uneasy, and he looks back and forth. "They will be more occupied protecting themselves than searching for the airponies. That could be good for us, but the airponies are also in danger from whatever is out there."
>>182517 "The airponies, and us as well. Whatever was able to send an entire team of navy fleeing with their tails between their legs could easily compromise our extraction. We should locate the Marines before we investigate the North Port."
>>182510 >>182502 An insect sound that sounds massive and... off. A slight growl that is also, well, it mimics but does not belong to a mammal. There is a sound of a bullet passing by, implying they are being shot at by at least one firearm bullet. There is no tattletale ersatz voice as would be found with undead, but neither do these sound like true animals or magical beasts.
>>182512 He pours a whiskey for Dark Star, slowly moving the bottle upwards to let the stream fall from a steady height.
"And here you go, one whiskey to let your problems slip away, and to lubricate your day.
>>182522 >An insect sound that sounds massive and... off. A slight growl that is also, well, it mimics but does not belong to a mammal. There is a sound of a bullet passing by, implying they are being shot at by at least one firearm bullet. There is no tattletale ersatz voice as would be found with undead, but neither do these sound like true animals or magical beasts. Well, I guess that's that, unless Posey happens to know any monsters in the region that make those sounds. >I've never heard of that It's nifty
>>182522 Rosey Ring increases her pace as she moves towards the lighthouse. "We already know that the commies are going to the North Port: we don't have to worry about them. For now, all we need to be wary of is monster activity, which is a serious threat to consider if those sounds on the radio are what I think they are."
Cavaliere hikes along and keeps his distance along the right side from the rest of the others. He warily watches the fog as he traverses the uneven landscape.
>>182499 Can Silver recall any information on these "Unwanted", or Light Water's "Petrushka" and "Chernobog", given his origin?
>>182517 >>182519 Silver: "It sounds as if Stalliongrad is also sending relief force, and when they arrive we will be truly in trouble. They were also doing something that they do not want world to know about...what were they bringing with them on that ship? Is it was is attacking them now? Turning them into puppets, controlling their minds? We must hurry. Kira should take point, let her scout ahead so we can avoid whatever this thing is and get to those Navy ponies faster."
>>182545 "Unwanted" - it may have been the similar if distinct word to mean "uninvited." Hard to say. "Petrushka" - a "little Peter." It is a term to mean a puppet. "Chernobog," a figure of folklore, a "black god" or devil.
>>182547 Cavaliere might let Kira go first if she agrees with Silver (she probably will), but he will be just behind her and to the right of the group, within visual range.
>>182499 Kira: "Those poor ponies...I know they're supposed to be our enemies, but...surely there's something we can do. Can't we help them? Maybe if we help them out, we can get them to leave the island peacefully."
>>182547 My understanding is that Kira has ground point, and Brie is directly over her position, probably closer to 40' as we get further from the village
Ten? Pretty solid formation, depending on initiative. I could geek all day about strategies and possible synergistic maneuvers. Brie prefers to go at the same time as someone else, so that he can coordinate with them; either giving them flanking on their attack, and/or removing the opponent's dexterity bonus cuz grappling. If the opponent is already grappled, flat footed, or blind (loses their dex bonus) Brie does 4d6 total on his sneak attack, which if he's already threatening, is 2x/round. He has ranks in tumbling (and the obvious flying) so he also likes to throw himself around and into the middle of the enemy formation and do a full-round dodge action to (total ac, 24). Or, if there's lots of them, drop a gas grenade and slowly work through them. Lots of options, very excite.
>>182549 >>182557 >>182558 >>182559 Real quick, before we move on: should Silver try to speak over the radio to the Stalliongraders, bluffing that he's a member of a relief force and try to get information out of them like location or what the hell is attacking them?
Unless confident of a pony's ability to authentically bluff being a Stalliongrader over comms, Brie would advise against it if for no other reason than that Stalliongrad's squad would ostensibly be unaware of this group's presence, and unless a proper feint/decoy could be setup, better to maintain stealth.
>>182585 >>182586 Silver is Severyanan, so he does indeed both speak the language and have the accent to match. He doesn't have any ranks in Bluff but with the Stalliongraders under duress they may not question it.
>>182584 Possible, though I'm not sure how responsive the soldiers would be to hearing a mare's voice through the radio.
>>182604 That's another problem: the soldiers may not question it if Silver (a stallion) calls them over the radio, but it's more likely they will if Posey (a mare) does. So, the question becomes do we risk using Silver who no ranks in Bluff but is a stallion, or do we risk using Posey who has plenty of ranks in Bluff but is a mare?
>>182608 “Well, other brands. This Tall Tails whiskey, this one from Trotsas, these are from the other side of the line. Not easy to replace. A couple other foreign products. There’s wine, you know. Vodka too. What are you feeling like?”
>>182604 >>182618 Silver would have to use his (very low) bluff modifier to attempt a bluff. Posey could attempt it, but she’d have a very heavy debuff because she doesn’t speak Bolshevik and shouldn’t be able to pronounce the words. Mares in the military is not unheard of, especially in the role of a radio operator, but is still not super common on or near the frontlines.
>>182626 I got +14, and Silver assisting me should be a +2. Let's roll the dice. >>182618 Give Posey a message to repeat. Preferably one that inquires them to describe the enemy. Posey has a vaguely east-European accent (based on B movie vampire nonsense), so she may be able to pull it off.
>>182628 Silver hoofs over the radio along with a message to repeat: "Это спасательная группа, вызывающая Костромскую экспедицию, приезжайте в Кострому. Что там внизу происходит? Похоже на перестрелку. Вы вступили в бой с фашистами? Кто враг?" He repeats it multiple times to Posey to help her get the pronunciation down pat.
A basic translation for the benefit of the rest of the party: "This is the relief force calling the Kostroma expedition, come in Kostroma. What's going on down there? It sounds like a firefight. Have you engaged the Fascists? Who is the enemy?"
>>18263 → >"Это спасательная группа, вызывающая Костромскую экспедицию, приезжайте в Кострому. Что там внизу происходит? Похоже на перестрелку. Вы вступили в бой с фашистами? Кто враг?" Posey repeats the message to herself a few times, and then repeats it into the microphone, trying to sound as charming and professional as possible. Rolling to see if it sticks [1d20+16 = (8+16) = 24]
Btw, I need to revise my known languages. I have enough to know three languages, but idk what's available.
>>182631 >>182630 The radio is adjusted to make sure that it will send, as surely as receive sound, and a button is pressed. Posey delivers her message. A slight sound is made, indicating that a button to send a message on the opposite side has been pressed. Talking can be overheard at a low volume.
>>182636 Roll listen. Although Silver would be the only one with significant benefit. It's obviously a conversation between two ponies (presumably they are ponies) in a room speaking together, when they have forgotten the send-button is held down.
>>182642 >>182639 Based off of the (lack) of response, it's pretty clear that the message is not immediately accepted as genuine. Is the wish to go further, or to leave it at that?
>>182640 "Well, we have a red wine from... Sire's Hollow. A white wine from Coltifornia. Huh. That's rarer now. To tell you the truth, not many ponies ask for wine, but I do keep it around."
>>182644 Perhaps, but they also aren't actively in a war.
>>182652 >>182654 Silver whispers in Posey's ear to repeat the first part of the message he gave her: Это спасательная группа, вызывающая Костромскую экспедицию, приезжайте в Кострому.
>>182657 "Which one? Coltifornia? Sure." He takes a moment of turning around looking for a wine glass, evidently not remembering where they are stored. He picks one up
>>182655 >>182656 A male voice replies "Кто нам звонит?" He pauses for a couple seconds, an "uh" sound emanating from his throat. "Это... Это матрос Смородиновый лист из Костромы. Мэйдэй, Мэйдэй, Мэйдэй. Мы..." Hesitating, "Осажденные внешней силой и предателями внутри."
>>182408 >>182149 These characters were used in passing later and I wanted the depiction to be consistent Okay, so Heather is actually the priestess herself. Both appear to be earth ponies
"Yes, here we have an associate priest, Vibrant ray working here, and often a handymare named Sauntering Lily."
>>182631 The language of the bullsheviks is Severanyan. There's dozens of languages to choose from depending on theme and background applicability, and theres a surprising amount of thought put into which group gets which language >bats didnt get polish/russian I didn't say there was justice in the world,.... For Lacey I wanted her to be highly multi-lingual, chatgpt gave me all the answers I needed for EaW (and without bothering GM [Im working on it])
Take what ChatGPT tells you with a grain of salt, when Dust's player asked it for EaW information and lore it told him about a country that doesn't exist.
>>182668 Yes. To that end, it is good practice to have it regularly give you a summary of what you have developed, for you to paste and remind IT when it starts getting "creative"
>>182662 Krr, the potential tea tray ring out as Vir places her tea cup on it.
"Okay," she says and nods absentmindedly before moving her full attention to Heather. "I-I wish to stay here. Just- Just for a short while. While I'm looking for my sister."
The chair creaks against the wooden floor as Vir stands up. She tosses the hem of her tan cloak so flips up on her back. The cloak is actually relatively thick and the hem reveals it to consist of three different fabrics, or three different cloaks, sewn together. The inside one is of lavender color. She lifts up her hoof and flex it's biceps muscle? Or something, anyway, her hoof goes from being somewhat unassuming to mold into a mound of statue-eque thickness. But then she looks up with pleading eyes as if she's mere foal asking her mom for cute stuffed animal she saw in the store.
>>182661 He looks the bottle over and then glances at the strange looking glass "Hey you never answered my question earlier, are those two mares still up in my room or did they leave?"
>>182673 Heather takes a moment to look down at the strong, presumably thin limbs of the muscular mare.
She pets the poor mare’s mane, moving her hair to make sure she doesn’t cover Vir’s eyes.
“I.. believe we have an extra bed here. There’s a room for Vibrant Ray that he doesn’t use. I suppose it can be used by a mare in need. We’ve lent it out to those in need before, after all.”
“I have seen them since. I’ve seen them walking around the rooms, at least once. Twice I think. But more importantly I’ve seen them in the bar. I know the cream colored one has asked for you, but more so there was an incident. They both sat down and ordered food. Like a couple burgers and fries. When it came time to pay they both frantically searched around and didn’t have money. To me it looked like they genuinely thought they had money; I assumed that if they wanted to dine and dash they would have just left. But they said they were with you and said where you lived. They basically said to put it on your tab, which was fine since I knew they were with you and you’re a partial owner. I’m sorry, I thought they were your mistresses you were keeping here away from your marefriend. Okay well if you say that isn’t what they are then that isn’t what they are, but I figured they were… rescues? Is that how to put it? Like stray dogs you feed and they stay around. But yeah. I don’t know if they are here now. They have left at least a couple times I think.”
>>182687 He laughs as Glimmering glass explains things "yea its no problem, I brought them here to keep them safe, you know how it is out there, especially for a Drunk mare, easy pickings for some less than moral pony or" He shudders "Some sub pony filth." "i figured it was a good idea at the time. i still think it was the right thing to do, to be honest. We have no problems mr glass." He glances at the stairs then around the bar "When was the last time you saw one of them by the way?"
>>181202 >>182690 “Oh, well we don’t need to inquire into why every mare does what she does. Can you really say why any mare does exactly what they do, anyways? Who knows what could have motivated her. Let her have her privacy.”
>>182691 “No, I haven’t seen them bring up any zebras stallions, or any stallion besides you. I saw one of them leave yesterday morning. It was the green one. She was wearing a sweater. It kind of looked like she was going to work, but I don’t know. I kind of got the impression they were homeless. One of them mentioned they were from near Cloudsdale. That’s the Changeling zone.”
>>182702 >>182697 >Утвердительно. Пожалуйста, дайте совет по вашей текущей ситуации, Кострома. Rosey Ring repeats these instructions. I guess this is another bluff check? [1d20+16 = (11+16) = 27]
>>182705 “Sure. You want them out of your room? I… suppose I can make that happen. Yeah. Not Cloudsdale exactly but some city near there. I asked them where it was near and they said Cloudsdale.”
>>182704 "Да. Четыре пятых нашего числа были потеряны... Мятеж. Судно село на мель на песчаной косе в естественной гавани... Нова Гриффония? Я и несколько верных пони под командованием комиссара Черного Каблука высадились и держимся. Я оказался в ловушке в разрушенном... Каменный дом? На холме. Не доверяйте Light Water. «Легкая вода» опасна. Есть опасность. Приходите только с большой силой. Привозите компанию или больше. Вы слышали передачу комиссара Черного Каблука?" - "Yes. Four Fifths of our number have been lost to... Mutiny. Ship has run aground on a sandbar in a natural harbor of... Nova Griffonia? I and a few loyal ponies under Commissar Black Heel have disembarked and are holding on. I am trapped in a ruined... stone house? On a hill. Do not trust Light Water. "Light Water" is dangerous. There is danger. Come only with great force. Bring a company or more. Did you hear Commissar Black Heel's broadcast?"
>>182708 She stops for a moment, and looks up to Amber, looking her in the eyes
"Why do you ask?"
>>182714 "Alright, I can try to arrange that. May be hard to move them though. If you would like another room... Alright, I'll see if there is some way I can get them out of there."
>>182776 Cavaliere waits for Silver and Posey to complete their radio broadcasts and then asks the grizzled Sevaranyan, "What's happening at their end?"
Amber looks pensive for a moment before replying, "Decent or not, a lot of ponies like to gossip. I know my other boss and her waitresses do, especially about me and my coltfriend. I know his mother gets into gossip too and tries to share it all with me." She shakes her head. "What should I do?"
>>182776 >>182777 >>182780 Maybe, but we can discuss this in character after the radio broadcast is finished. Silver holds up a hoof to silence Cavaliere as they're not yet finished. He gives Posey another statement to repeat: Да, мы слышали вашу передачу. Можете ли вы предоставить более подробную информацию? Координаты, местонахождение и численность сил противника, что-нибудь?
>>182781 >Да, мы слышали вашу передачу. Можете ли вы предоставить более подробную информацию? Координаты, местонахождение и численность сил противника, что-нибудь? Posey repeats this message.
>>182784 Talking in the background, and the speaker pulls away to say something
"Координат, мы не знаем. Там был... Поднялся мятеж. Мы не знаем, где мы находимся. Я не знаю, где мы находимся. Может быть, у кого-то есть. Число? Они зарабатывают больше. Вражеские силы, вы бы мне не поверили, если бы я сказал вам. Пошлите большую силу. Э-э-э, фашисты преследовали нас." - "Coordinates, we do not know. There was a... There was a mutiny. We do not know where we are. I do not know where we are. Maybe someone does. Number? They make more. Enemy forces, you would not believe me if I told you. Send great force. The uh, the fascists were tailing us.
>>182785 >>182786 >>182787 Silver makes sure Posey isn't pressing the button to transmit when he speaks. "This does not sound like any changeling plot I have ever heard of..." He gives Posey another another prompt, hoping to learn more details about what they mean by "they make more": Они создают больше? Можете ли вы объяснить ситуацию подробнее?
>>182790 "We need to locate the airmen. We can decide what to do with the commies later." >Они создают больше? Можете ли вы объяснить ситуацию подробнее? Posey repeats the message.
>>182797 >simply retry telling bluffs that work until you get an average Taking 10 isn't retrying. It's doing something carefully in a non-stressful situation. >When your character is not being threatened or distracted, you may choose to take 10. Instead of rolling 1d20 for the skill check, calculate your result as if you had rolled a 10. For many routine tasks, taking 10 makes them automatically successful. Distractions or threats (such as combat) make it impossible for a character to take 10. In most cases, taking 10 is purely a safety measure —you know (or expect) that an average roll will succeed but fear that a poor roll might fail, so you elect to settle for the average roll (a 10). Taking 10 is especially useful in situations where a particularly high roll wouldn’t help. Only one try is made
Retrying over and over is taking 20. >Taking 20 means you are trying until you get it right, and it assumes that you fail many times before succeeding. Taking 20 takes twenty times as long as making a single check would take.
>"Magic, I think. Come to us. Come now. We do not have much time." Are they speaking in non-bolshevik?
>>182797 >"Magic, I think. Come to us. Come now. We do not have much time." Assuming Silver translates for us
"They are calling for help, but... It is not really our problem, is it? We should secure the airponies first." She says "After we secured the airponies, we could see what's left of them." she continues She turns to the group "Does that sound like a good idea?" >>182802 "Well, it appears that is that. They must be preoccupied with fighting, or suspect that we could be spies."
>>182804 "The more we talked with them, the higher our chances of being found out were," Cavaliere responds, sounding disappointed. "We should have left off sooner instead of pushing our luck. Was there any mention of their strength or what caused their distress?"
>>182807 >>182812 "I had no intention of getting involved with them in the first place. I am somewhat nervous it we got involved in something that we should not have..." Posey admits "In fact, I don't even know what I said to them." She adds, with a shrug
>>182814 "If our trip to the light house goes well, we may be able to avoid them entirely." >>182815 Things we learned >enemy's preoccupation >enemy's location >enemy forces are fragmented and infighting >mysterious magic at play Quite a bit of info, if you ask me. Let's go to the light house. >>182816 >cometent What?
"There is a nonzero chance that the enemy knows of our presence, but they seem to be too preoccupied to pursue us at the moment. We should make haste to find the airponies."
She continues marching, towards the lighthouse >>182818 I mean, +16 is a decent gamble, even if there's a huge penalty. I think it was worth the risk. >oversight Oversight of what? Posey was just repeating what Silver told her, which was the plan we agreed on.
>>182811 Silver does his best to give a summary to the creatures who don't speak the language. "It appears there was mutiny among Stalliongraders. According to pony on other side of radio, around four fifths of them under leadership of pony named Light Water have commandeered Kostroma, while remaining soldiers and sailors have been forced off ship under leadership of Commissar Black Heel. It appears Black Heel's troops are under assault from both mutineers and some unknown magical threat, and are holed up in abandoned stone house on hill."
>>182804 >>182817 Kira: "Can't we go save them? Maybe if we help them, they'll help us or at least leave us alone?"
Silver: "Kira..."
Kira looks at the group with big, pleading lamia eyes.
>>182819 "Expect the best, prepare for the worst. That's the motto that I trot by." Posey replies, holding her head confidently. >>182822 Cry more. >>182821 >"Can't we go save them? Maybe if we help them, they'll help us or at least leave us alone?" "We have our own mission to attend prioritize, and our own ponies to save. We should secure our air ponies before we take detours."
OOC, I have no problem with going to save the radio ponies, but in-character Posey is supposed to be coldhearted and pragmatic.
She directs the full force of her pleading lamia gaze towards Posey.
Kira, if you haven't already figured it out, is basically like kindness and cuteness given a lamia's form. My primary concern is how badly it will mess with GM pone's plans for encounters, and what he thinks about the idea.
>>182823 >>182826 "I agree with Miss Ring here. The airponies are the most important and they are in danger too. After we help them, we can and should investigate what happened to the Stalliongrad sailors."
>>182826 >She directs the full force of her pleading lamia gaze towards Posey H-hey, GM already ruled that charm gaze doesn't work on fellow PCs... And m-muh immunities Fuck it, Will Save [1d20+7 = (13+7) = 20]
>>182829 You could have said something if you disagreed with the plan. >>182826 Posey is unfazed and coldhearted, but considers her offer "Perhaps we could intervene, but I still would prefer to find the airponies first." She says "Perhaps the airponies could even assist us once we find them. They're trained marines, after all."
>>182830 Hmmph. Very well, you pass, and can resist Kira's adorableness. For now...
>>182834 Kira can accept this outcome. "I just hope we can save them both in time!" Taking point again, Kira resumes keeping lookout for any dangers for the party along their route.
>>182834 Rosey presented herself as being able to pull off the subterfuge. It remains to be seen how it turned out. But Brie is interpreting from radio that it failed. He could be wrong, and he/I could owe you/Rosie an apology
I have to go to work early tomorrow, so I can't stay up tonight. Posey ultimately agrees to whatever plan the party does, while reminding them of the mission. She's all aboard with rescuing some communists so long as she still gets to kill.
>>182832 You had multiple game days and plenty of replies to signal us to stop using the radio. Brie even offered to try to detect changeling speech. It's a little late to put on the brakes. >>182837 Whether it succeeded or not, Posey was following Silver's direction and did the best job you could reasonably expect.
>>182838 Sorry, Im not intending to beleaguer. Brie thought he had a better idea (radio silence). His idea wasnt followed, so he will assert everything failed cuz his idea wasnt followed. Its not personal. Still
>>182845 Oh, sorry. I really shouldn't have done that, especially not in the RP thread. I guess repeating a language you don't know counts as a stressful situation anyway.
For the RECORD: Im not begrudging anything. What I AM doing is basing Brie's perspective off what he was thinking would happen, and what happened. Brie does NOT think the bluff check passed, even if it did. He doesnt speak russian, so he doesnt know. Hes kinda shitting himself, cuz hes envisioning a whome squad deciding to look where they are.
Is there anything else Posey needs to do for the party before I go to bed? I guess the radio sequence is over. Posey does not press the need to prioritize the lighthouse any further, and goes along with whatever >>182843 pats Can't win everything. As GM just said, chance of failure makes things more interesting. I'm optimistic for how the story will go.
(Im not arguing or contesting what Silver and Rosey did, Idek if it worked or not. I AM using Brie's wisdom bonus (-1) to try and make a mix of an idea of whats happening; he assmes ni good (better to assme the worst and be wrong, amrite?)
To clarify, that was all rp in character posturing anf mentalization. Im not mad, nor thinking anyone fucked anything.
>>182859 I will better distinguish betwen Brie's perspective and mine. The details simply inform context, I assume the fight is/was inevitable as is. There's no REAL avoidance, eben if you get past "this" one.
>>182686 A shudder runs down Vir's back as a memory of waking up to the splashing of Delamare river on its bank and hitting her head on the underside of its bridge. She rembered how the tips of her hooves had gone numb, the one part of her she hadn't been able to fit under her cloak. She also recounts the taste of alcohol induced womit in her mouth.
Vir jumps up in Heather's face like an big affectionate dog. She pulls Heather and her cute pony forelegs into her embrace as they both stand only on their backlegs.
>>182860 Posey flags down Brie "~Hello, chauve-souris au fromage." She says, still walking She levitates her satchel with her magic, and from it produces five Easter eggs. "Chances are that we will not make it off this island without fighting, so I think believe you might like to have these." She says, levitating one of the eggs "Eggshell Dust Grenades. Alchemical weapons of the ninja from the east, crafted by my maste- I mean Mentor. Throw them directly at your target, and they will be blinded for long enough for you to take advantage of them. I believe you might fancy them." "These are all I have with me, and I do not have the skills to replace them. However, I could be persuaded to part with them, if you would do me a favor." Her unseen servant opens her satchel, and she produces several items. "As a freehorn warmagus, it is often that I get paid in avant garde ways. I am not versed in the currency of this country. Would you please tell me what the following items are worth in gold bits? I am trying to open a business, so I need to count my assets. We do not do the paper money thing where I come from." The items are >Hyena Totem (magic item) >Hyena Mask (magic item) >Gold Bracelet (the one from the Crocutta apartment) >Gold necklace >Gold Bangle >Clip of magic bullets >Second clip of magic bullets >Magic Crystal that was attached to a magic rifle >186 dollarydoos >24 Thalers >38 Abyssinian Birrs
I've had these items for a long time, and I have no idea what they're worth. I asked what their value was a while ago, but GM was occupied, so I didn't get their value. I have no ranks in appraise, so I can't appraise the value of exotic items (basically all magic items). You have a mod high enough to take 10 on each item though.
GM, if you forgot the value of the jewelry, please just roll one of the treasure tables or just assign whatever value you deem is appropriate.
>>182865 Oh, I forgot one >"Electric Polearm" Idk what the abilities of this weapon are, but knowing its price could help me guess. The bullets I believe should be worth at least 368.32 gp per clip (assuming 8 bullets), but idk their enhancement bonus, so I want to be sure.
Rosey Ring levitates the items to Brie, and requests that he help her estimate their value, in exchange for giving him the eggshell grenades.
>>182865 Brie spins left and around, swooping gracefully down alongside. "These are,... metsubushi! How did..." he shakes his head slightly, 'this unicorn is full of surprises'. "Alright, let me take a look then," he lifts his visor to give him a better look. "I must warn you, I'm not in a position to determine their value as far as enchantments are concerned, I can only appraise the value of the pieces and their materials. Lets start with the PRETTIES," his eyes sparkle a bit as he says it. Hyena Totem [1d20+11 = (10+11) = 21] Hyena Mask [1d20+11 = (7+11) = 18] Bracelet [1d20+11 = (15+11) = 26] Necklace [1d20+11 = (3+11) = 14] Bangle [1d20+11 = (17+11) = 28]
>the two MAGAZINES of magic bullets [1d20+11 = (13+11) = 24] "I don't know what you were expecting. Theyre fine quality, but they just look like ordinary magazines to me." >Magic Crystal [1d20+11 = (17+11) = 28] "You know theres a tea shop owner in Baltimare who would simply LOVE one of these. Her shop is all done up with crystals and stones and incense,... equal parts delightful and offensive. Alas,... unless you want me to try and make it work (use magic device), while is pretty and has some value,...." >the monies "I will have to check with my associates on ptecise exchange rates at the moment, but roughly speakingdoes that even require a check? the combined value of that coinage is roughly [to be answered by GM]" >Electric Polearm [1d20+11 = (15+11) = 26] "An impressive piece to be wielded by one so small. I'm not criticizing of course, but one doesn't tend to encounter spellcasters so martially capable, it was a surprise indeed (where do you stash it?)?"
Eh, Im not worried, he can be interrupted at any time.
But about the eggs,.... First off, are they in s carton? :3 Secondly and in character: "Na te kuini po...." Brie mutters softly, lifting one of the eggs gingerly. >>182867 "If it weren't a bother and you'll permit me to inquire, I would be most interested to learn more about your mentor and how he came upon the recipe for these. A recipe either lost or hidden ages ago.Naturally I'll have to try one at earliest convenience; for science," theres that twinkle in the eye again. His eyes dart reflexively to the distant Griffons before visibly dismissing the idea. "While they are no doubt effective simply thrown at an opponent, the egg shell is intended for its breakability after all, one is actually intended to crush the egg in the frog of their hoof and then fling the powder directly into the pony's eyes. A pony will tend to react more evasively to a thrown object than sudden sparkledust, and that moment of incomprehensiom can be the difference between success and failure."
"In my own,... studies, Ive had the chance to look over a torn manuscript that describes their use in detail, but all attempts to ascertain/decipher the recipe - that I'm familiar with - have been unsuccessful. Beyond myself, I can safely assert a half dozen or so in particular who would pay well for a supply of these, and handsomely for the recipe."
>>182876 >>182875 Using the eggs in THIS manner MIGHT avoid any nearby allies from having to make the check. I will probably attempt both methods, especially if several opponents are in a group
>>182875 >I would be most interested to learn more about your mentor and how he came upon the recipe for these. A recipe either lost or hidden ages ago.Naturally I'll have to try one at earliest convenience; for science "My mentor was a powerful mage who has accrued deep and wide knowledge from time immemorable, including alchemy, particularly the study of decay, which he used in his studies. He made me what I am today..." She pauses "But he was also quite covetous with his knowledge, and I am not permitted to speak of him or otherwise compromise his privacy." She continues "The grenades are created with alchemy: they may be difficult to recreate for any pony who lacks magical power. The components are rather cheap, but the skill required to make them steep."
>>182882 >was "My condolences then, a shame to lose a skilled and knowledgeable practitioner of magic," his tone belies that he doesnt fully grasp the significance of the statement, thiugh he does know enough to appreciate the prestige that mages command. "If perhaps his manuscripts could be located,...." he very not-subtly insinuates.
>splash affect This is precisely what the crush-the-shell, eye-flick technique is intended to address. It focuses the powder directly at the face/eyes of the opponent, rather than letting the contents rupture and chaotically spill everywhere to the consequence of the user and any potential allies. Not saying it will.make any difference, but regardless he is familiar with the technique and would employ it. (Unironically, he has a mission to get as many of these eggs to Lacey's Grandfather for study as possible)
Before GM has to figure out how to structure that whole appraisal sequence, I'll ammend my intentions to say that Brie would fucks with the polearm FIRST
>>182795 Dark Star Stands up and trots slowly over to the stairs "I'll grab my things now.." he walks up the stairs and moves to his room and listens at the door for any mares that may or may not be lying in wait for him
>>182785 I'm mildly disappointed that no one tried to listen into what was being said in the background as the two ponies spoke to each other. Oh well... can't win 'em all.
>>182798 >>182804 >>182821 The mention of "magic" was withdrawn and redacted, and the response wherein that was mentioned was changed to the ponies turning their side off. Of course that's a cat that's never going back into the bag.
Vir kinda put the other pony back down. She grins, blushes, and look to the side at Heather's words.
Then her smile vanish before she loghts up again.
"You know who took it right? The rest of the body? Maybe, I can get it back for you as well," she says sounding as if she just invented the best thing since sliced bread.
>>182912 "Of the statue. No. Surely it was some hooligan. Young, probably. Almost certainly one of those anarchists. Somepony who thinks that they are doing something good, or fashionable. Probably bragged about it to his friends." She tilts her head. "How could you get the rest of it?"
>>182914 The room looks empty. But the bed is unmade, and there are a couple strange clothes on the floor, as well as a pair of apple cores on the far table.
>>182918 "Well... I don't know who did it... I suppose the police did. Since they guessed that the head was tossed into the river." She answers, evidently a bit puzzled.
>>182902 >>182889 Swing, and... Wait, no. There's an effect here. Brie knows this. Okay. So how do you activate it? Do you swing it? No? Make it make contact with something? No, that's not it. Aha! There's a trigger, or at least a deadman's switch here. Apply pressure to that... that does nothing. Okay, apply and swing it. And... that does nothing. Is Brie wrong? Let's look at it again. No... Brie doesn't think he is. There's something wrong with it. Let's take a look at it... And of course. It's one of those new-fangled cheap, mass-produced magic items. It uses ammunition - or rather, magic from another source. It's empty at the moment.
>>182920 >>182882 "Spent it seems. Theres a trigger mechanism, or a toggle.of some sort, but it's inert. Maybe if we could zap it? Perhaps the batteries(?) On the whaling vessel, or if we find the airship? Theres a clear degree of technique and sophistication, so its probably of moderate-high value."
>>182907 >You want to figure all of that out now.... It doesn't have to be immediate, but preferably this year. >I'll get numbers to you later. Great. >I'm mildly disappointed that no one tried to listen into what was being said in the background Didn't know that was an option, but sure. I don't think Posey would have been able to distinguish background whispering in a language she didn't understand though.
Anyway, I think we decided to check out the lighthouse first.
>>182931 Shortly after entering the room, Dark Star finds himself lunged at by an unknown attacker, hiding in ambush to the left of the door. He enters into the room, hears a creak, and then
squeak Dark Star feels that he has been leapt upon by a small, green mare, who has wrapped her hooves around his shoulders. Dark Star stands strong enough that he is not knocked down by the force. Nevertheless, he is in her grasp.
>>182930 >It's this esoteric item from a book I've never read, and not just a Storm King soldier's weapon represented through homebrew that needs its battery replaced You know what? Sure
>>182929 "Perhaps, or somepony else around who may know something." She says
>>182936 The mare giggles as she grabs him, but a moment later, her smile fades to a grave expression. The pupils in her blue eyes shrink, and her lips go down. She lets go of Dark Star and moves away and then makes an awkward smile. Her tail is between her legs.
"I uh. I. Sorry. I thought you were... someone else." She blushes and turns her head to look away.
>>182933 I was shitposting with the grell alchemy. I just thought the items were similar in concept. I knew it was a storm king thing. >Dark Star feels that he has been leapt upon by a small, green mare, who has wrapped her hooves around his shoulders. Dark Star stands strong enough that he is not knocked down by the force. Nevertheless, he is in her grasp. See >>181840
>>182932 "So long as we're walking, you can check them all."
>>182940 He sees her feeling embarrassed and slowly extends his hoof towards her in a non threating way, to shake hers "Hi." idk if she would recognize the voice or not, he didnt put on a different one when he was solar night
>>182945 Well it's a dye, it ought to linger until it's either removed or grows out. Do you want him to go back to his dark red-brown? It would be difficult for him to reintegrate with the college if he did, though he'd certainly be Dark Star
>>182946 yea he can always go back to the spa and get it dyed again, he's Red again let's say. he would have probably went for a swim a few times when he was down by the river so there might even still be some dye that is on him
>>182943 The mare does not extend her own hoof, but backs up until her rump hits the wall and makes her sit down. She moves her head back c clearly cared.
>>182951 She alternates between looking up towards Dark Star, and away from him. “Oh. Uh… Yeah… Uh… He let us stay here. I think. Uh. We uh, were friends.
>>182952 "Yea he mentioned something about waffles and cigarettes." He laughs. "He told me to come pick up some of his stuff, he said that he was going to let you and your friend stay here and pay for it for you."
>>182953 “Oh yeah, heh heh, waffles. I remember that.” Her smile fades. “Did he say anything else about…” she pulls her lips back, showing her teeth. She places the tips of her hooves together. “Wait. Pay for it?!” She tilts her head
Dark Star feels a pair of knees on his shoulders and something on his back. At first it seems that the attacker has a grip on him, but then Dark Star remembers that he's awesome. So he knocks, or even bucks the attacker off.
Sorrel: "Tricky, no! That's Dark Star. He's uh, a friend, of Solar. Apparently."
>>182975 Dark Star can't see the mare, but just by feeling her he's able to extend his leg, hold onto her, and let her down gently. Presumably he would remove the wet towel that is covering his head so he looks less like a zebra in a turban.
Dark Star knows the voice as belonging to Tricky Truffle "I uh... sorry... I just saw a strange stallion, and I though Succulent here was in trouble..."
>>182979 Tricky looks at Dark Star confused, at first. Then she looks closer, and is inquisitive
Tricky: "Well hello, 'Dark Star'." She smiles, her golden eyes looking into Dark Star's and her fire-red mane, wet and hanging down. Her coat is porcelain white and still wet. "Are you a police officer?"
>>183022 Soon >>183024 "He said that you three were friends." Dark Star Nods "I assume that's why, he said that you two needed a place to stay for awhile so he decided to pay."
>>183034 Tricky has a smile across her face, and her wet tail starts to move, as if being wagged. She looks away. "That's uh, that's nice of him." Her head is moved away, but she looks up towards Dark Star.
Sorrel "I'm still kind of disappointed he left though."