Goldengirl

Alright, folks, sorry I've been away over the weekend, as Kov gets moved around throughout Terrestia. As it stands, I'll probably be posting something tomorrow about Ood's and Kov's activities in Terrestia. As it is, I have some things to set straight via PM.

Originally Posted By: Hypnotic What is the time scale on this game? Currently two weeks has past for shaper Spddin and his army. Now they are going to Drypeak. Meanwhile the seige of Perkalia has taken place over about 2-3 Days. All of these events are running concurrently. So my question is this. Should we make each post be a maximum of a Day or two just let things play how they like? The concept is referred to as fluid time. That is to say, things go how fast they need to go. Just so long as there aren't massive discrepancies, like the Sholai being a year ahead of everyone else, than it works.

Southforge Citadel Chaos reigned, and in the confusion, people failed to notice the fleet of ships arriving at the harbors. Lifecrafter Boon had finally nailed Shaping, with the help of canisters and tomes, into the minds of his pupils, and they were all intensely studying the corpses that had been shipped in from Dillame. As such, they did not notice the army of Sholai coming in from the harbors until the armies started marching towards the citadel. Yet they recognized the imposing figure that led the forces; they recognized the banners and flags adorning the soldiers and their vessels. High Councillor Ood walked right into Southforge Citadel, and took control. Lifecrafter Boon could only stare in confusion, at this figure he had heard about when a Sholai's lips had been loosened by alcohol. And his confusion only magnified, as Ood lead Boon, and Boon alone, into the war room. There, it was that Ood informed Boon personally of the Sholai Council's quest, and its urgency. Then, most astonishingly of all, Ood Shaped a messenger shade, and programed into it a message to all of Terrestia. Throughout Terrestia... A shade manifested itself, floating in the air. It hovered there, silent, for minutes; people noticed it, eventually. Finally, it's wispy mouth opened, and Ood's voice projected through it, magnified to carry. "People of Terrestia, this is the messenger of High Councillor Ood, of the Sholai. We are here on a mission of justice, chasing a renegade from our lands, the warlord Kov. Kov is a megalomaniac, and has resurrected a strange and powerful creation, known as the Presence. With this creation in tow, Kov is incredibly dangerous; the Presence allows him to take all but the most tightly controlled creations and seize control of them. We seek only to find this man, and bring him to justice for his heinous crimes against life." The shade vanished. The Fens of Aziraph "We are to flee to Okavano, where my brothersss wait," hissed one of the Illyan Drakons, who had told Kov of what the New Takers had planned for him. Kov nodded grimly, as they made their way towards Aziraph Freehold, that barred the passage into Burwood and the Western Morass beyond it. The swamps, as they were, were more miserable than ever to travel through. Before the current political vacuum had formed, the Fens of Aziraph had been neglected. Monarch's empire-building scheme had depopulated the region of many of it's inhabitants, and the ones that remained had struggled to rebuild life in Grosch. That, along with serious competition from the Okavano, had led to this region being neglected until fairly recently. As such, the road system was poor; a proper road led from the Eastern Rise, through Grosch, to the Aziraph Freehold. Kov, and his band, were not on that path, allowing them to avoid detection, as the Drakons advised him too, but also, lowering morale through all the ranks of cultists, and the handful of Drakons, that travelled with him. Dillame High Councillor Ood had arrived, and gotten the report from Whittaker. The renegade had fled north, into the swampy marshes of Aziraph, to negotiate with the Gazers there. Enraged, Ood had Whittaker make for the Western Rise to try to catch him at Grosch and have the Eyes aid in his destruction. Whittaker, glad to no longer be responsible for the rule of a city, accepted, and left, leaving the servile forces of his army behind, and taking Lifecrafters with him to make up for the difference. Ood, meanwhile, sent a single envoy into the woods, unarmed, to try to find Vess and discuss peace with the Confederacy. Lifecrafter Boon was to be the envoy. Conquest was not Ood's ultimate goal, though neither was killing Kov.

Originally Posted By: Nioca Anyway, I agree with you, Goldenking. But keeping something like the Presence secret is nigh-impossible when you're throwing it at the enemy. How many creations can do what it's doing? Nor does it help when Kov's shouting about it to the heavens. That would be something I wouldn't expect to be a secret, anymore, at this point. I was more referring to the Presence in its early days, before it was used so extensively. Also, for future reference, my faction is going to be splitting in two around Kov and the Presence in the Near Future .

Kov looked at the devastation that was Dillame, and sighed. Fires were slowly burning themselves out near the break in the wall, and an estimated twenty soldiers lay dead in the rubble. Some were cultists, some were Sholai, and some were of the mysterious band of serviles that had banded together with them during the furious fighting that had taken place as the bizarre Shapers made wave after wave of their strange creations to attack Dillame's walls. Had it not been for the power of the Presence... The battle, it seemed to Kov, was mostly attrition. Surely the Shapers would not have fled so quickly, if they had not been running low on essence. Kov's heightened senses told them that they were fleeing south, to the sea, but Kov felt too unprepared to pursue an army of Shapers with only the Presence giving him an advantage. The Presence! How it's voice surged during the battle, to the point where Kov watched from his eyes as the Presence directed him! Oh, but such glorious power had erupted from him when he surrendered control of his body like that, such magnificent strength had burst forth when the line between Lifecrafter and creation was dissolved. "Lord Kov?" Whittaker's innocent request shook Kov from his introverting. "Whittaker... I'm leaving you in charge of Dillame and the rest of Illya, understood? I want these walls patched up immediately, and I want these creations sent to Southforge for study," Kov said, gesturing to the corpses of Arbors, Spike Tralls, and the warped remains of the Spike Roamers, "I want them reverse engineered, weapons built to fight them, and better designs built immediately. And... negotiate with Vess, here. Treat them honorably. Do you understand?" After Whittaker gave his affirmative, Kov departed into the dusk. Silently, the cultists rose and followed him, north: to the Fens of Aziraph, where he planned on negotiating with the Gazers. Milenchov had not yet been able to communicate his deal with the Drakons to Kov, so he came in peace. The Open Sea Milenchov smiled wistfully as the sea sprayed its wonderous aroma onto the faces of the Sholai. The imposing warfleet had gained knowledge of the current political landscape of Terrestia, and had decided diplomacy with the Shapers, who were openly hostile with the Sholai, or the Doctors, for that matter, was a lost cause, for now. Instead, they would continue sailing across the sea, far from lunatics waiting on the coast. Soon, they would be back in the Forsaken Lands, with news of the great alliance that was formed. Sholai Lands The farsight crystals were, initially, a Sholai innovation. While the mages of Terrestia studied Shaping with nearly all of their devotion, barely even dabbling in other forms of magic, the Sholai were not so fortunate. Instead of such a magnificent field of magic that had so easily define a civilization, the Sholai studied in-depth other fields of magic, including crystals, and war magic. It was because of their innovations with crystals, and farsight crystals in particular, that the Council was able to follow Kov's actions as he carved an empire out of Terrestia's landscape. They saw his emersion in the arts of Shaping, and his creation of the Presence. They gave it all little regard, until they saw how he had, more or less, fought back an entire army of Shapers with the strength of that one creation. It was at that point that the Council knew they must do something about this tyrant.

Just as a note, my negotiations with the Gazers, and with the Drakons, are hush-hush. In fact, I think everyone needs to know this: If you don't have a reasonable way of finding out (such as having someone from your faction there) you shouldn't be able to find out about things other factions are doing. Such as, for example, when I Shaped the Presence. It's just bad roleplaying etiquette.

Originally Posted By: Shaper Spddin Just so you know2. Im joining the battle for the illya. Say Good-bye to the Sholai (Rhyme intended) Just so you know, SD's soldiers will be there, too, along with any remnants of the Illya cultist army. And Illya is made up entirely of serviles, other than the Sholai at this point.

Personally, either Geneforge or Geneforge IV would have to get it. Geneforge encapsulates all the mystery, and has the concepts of creation rights and balancing power, concerning canisters, fairly well. Geneforge IV, however, really has the rebel-Shaper dynamic going well, as well as Shaping's power/responsibility, and creation rights all put in there. Actually, scratch that. Geneforge IV wins.

As way of clarification, my quick take over of Illya was planned ahead of time with Sleeping Dragon; I did most of the fighting, while SD's serviles marched through, thoroughly bored, wondering where all the enemies were at. It's that band of serviles that Kov sees coming at the end of the Illya section of my post. As for the Okavano, Ackrovan, feel free to control the encounter as much as you want based on what we've been PM'ing each other about.

Illya Lord Kov broke General Whittaker's jaw. "These serviles think the Presence is some sort of god, and are worshipping me now! These cultists are our allies! It reached out to them, and touched something in their primitive minds!" Kov yelled at Whittaker. A great buzz of anger and fury started to manifest itself as words in Kov's mind. The Presence was growing in power, as it conquered the receptive minds of the cultists, and their spooked pets. And with every mind it took, it's "voice" become louder, and more clear, in Kov's head. Puffing himself up, he extended the Presence out over the creations, as head had done at the beginning of the confrontation. This time, instead of terrifying the kyshaaks and tralls, and causing the cultists to think they had been touched by God, it stayed firmly in them, sinking it's misty tendrils into the depths of their brains, and taking over. Suddenly, a shade appeared before Kov, in the form of a translucent Shaper. "I am the messenger of Dantius, of the Eyes of Terrestia..." it murmured, "We have positioned ourselves upon the Fens of Aziraph... and wish to discuss the possibility of an alliance with the Sholai... Your response?" "Tell your master that I will come to Grosch, personally, to discuss the possibility." Kov said, and watched as the shade vanished back from whence it came. Very strange. Another messenger appeared, telling of imminent destruction. It left back to where it was from, only to be replaced momentarily by yet another messenger, asking for spare Geneforge parts. Kov told them that there were no spare parts to give, and that was that. With the messengers gone, Kov and the Sholia marched on, augmented by the cultists and their pets, towards Dillame, and the imposing fortress of Rivergate Keep off in the distance. Three hours later, they were there, facing the cultist garrison of Dillame that had assembled itself along the walls. Anticipating a dangerous battle, the servile civilians of the city had been hustled north to Rocky Point to wait out the inevitable victory. The defenders on the city walls, however, didn't get the chance to fight. Involuntarily, Kov's arms rose and fired out rays of mist onto the cultists, who spasmed, before the mist consumed them and they stood erect. The gates of Dillame were opened to them. Good, hissed the Presence in his mind, to Kov's surprise. However, Kov didn't have time to react, as a dozen Unbound suddenly came into view, charging straight for his forces. Rushing, the cultists started flinging spells at the mad beasts. Meanwhile, the Sholai drew their blades, and started shooting their batons at the rabid creations. The kyshaaks and tralls that the Presence had comandeered ran ahead of everyone else, and some were now fighting the Unbound up close. Kov, meanwhile, was Shaping pyroroamers en masse to weaken the Unbound as much as possible. Eventually, the Unbound were defeated, although the kyshaaks were now all dead on the streets with them, and only half of the tralls remained. And it was at this point that the lords of Illya, the five Drakons who directly ruled the province, fled north. They might have been arrogant, but they knew they couldn't defeat an army single-handed. Kov had only started to survey his new domain, when he saw a band of armed serviles coming in from the west. They were clearly not the cultists who ruled the land. The Okavano Fen Meanwhile, the fleet of the Sholai lay down anchor off of the Okavano coast. A smaller rowboat, with an envoy, was sent out, to the actual shore. By the time he got there, a host of creations loomed ominously, prepared to assault at any time. As the boat came to a stop in the murky waters, the diplomat rose slowly, with his arms out, hoping silently against hope that the rulers of this land were friendly...

I too, would send out shades, but I'm already having my fleet sail around to visit people's lands and negotiate with them. Based on the messegner shades I've been getting, though, it seems like there will be some lands I'm skipping over.

To pre-empt any concerns over Kov and the Presence: neither are invincible. Kov, in fact, is as mortal as ever. Stab him through the heart, and he dies. The Presence, on the other hand, can always fall back from host to host, until it is too weak and dies with a host. The more creations it controls, the more powerful it is. The Presence cannot control high-level creations such as Drakons and Gazers at its current prowess. It also can't control creations that are under the direct control of a Shaper or Lifecrafter. However, as it gets stronger, this will eventually change.

With a final discharge of energy, and one last searing flash of light, the Shaping was completed. Kov exhaled and inhaled in long breaths, standing in the empty vat that once contained the Geneforge, and hopefully would once more. His mind registered the Presence, growing in his mind cautiously, soaking up information. Curious Lifecrafters and Sholai started filing in through the now-open blast doors. Their leader, however, Lifecrafter Boon, stopped them. He led in a rogue cryoa, and released it from its chain. The action was simple, and natural, like what he had learned from the canisters. Simply raising his hand, the Presence shot forth from him, like a mist, and possessed the snarling lizard. It instantly became pacified, its eyes reflecting the torchlight and a mist developing around it. Kov heard the Presence sigh, satisfied, in the back of his mind. The next test was even more simple. Turning his back to Boon and the rest of the observants, he raised his hands to Shape. A battle alpha coalesced upon the platform, and showed the distinctive reflective eyes and misty aura that indicated that it was possessed by the Presence. Curious, Kov looked into a pool of water, and saw that he, too, had those very same eyes, that reflected light. There was, as of yet, no aura, though. It had been indicated that the Presence had to have a host creation when Shaped, or it would simply take one. It had been decided that the host had best be intelligent, so that the Sholai could use it properly. Also, a host capable of Shaping would make the best weapon for the Sholai's army. As no serviles could, as of yet, Shape, Kov volunteered, seeing as he had used the most canisters, and therefore was the closest one to a creation. Boon came in with robes for Kov, who quickly donned them. After questioning him on his condition, the two of them went down together, to the throne room, where the rest of the Senate waited. They had been discussing the state of the Forsaken Lands while the Shaping took place. "The... cultist army oustide of the Cairn Gates grows larger every passing day, Lord Kov. If we do not do something about that situation soon, they could overwhelm our forces and invade the Forsaken Lands," reported General Whittaker, a Terrestian by blood, descended from the refugees taken by the Sholai in the last days of the Rebellion. Whittaker was present on the Senate only due to his popularity with the army. "Then we shall attack them, with my new weapon turning them against each other. I shall lead the attack myself. And, also, I do not believe we need to engage our grand fleet in protecting our fishing fleets; the Sholai are, after all, the rulers of the ocean-sea. Instead, have them tour Terrestia, to see what other nations are arising," Kov said, standing up, "Are there any other issues?" Admiral Zeke stayed silent. Lifecrafter Boon brought up the Geneforge and the continued training of Lifecrafters, to which Kov said would have the Citadel's full focus now that the Presence was completed. At this, Kov's mind twitched; the hazy creation realized that it was being discussed. Mayor Therese of Therile brought up industry. Kov told them to do as they saw fit, farming, practicing alchemy, mining, smithing, and whatever other sectors arose. With the Senate's concerns allayed, Kov dismissed them. Admiral Zeke prepared his fleet to set sail for the Ashen Islea, while Lifecrafter Boon continued combing the archives, searching for the recipe for the Geneforge. Meanwhile, Kov strode confidently, pondering the Presence's power over him as he arrived at a glaahk-drawn chariot. As the glaahks drew him swiftly over the arid landscape of the Forsaken Lands, Kov decided that he was the one in control of the Presence, which was, after all, a mere creation.

The great task of Shaping was under way in Southforge Citadel. The search for the Geneforge had been, momentarily forgotten, but no one was complaining. The scent of essence was thick in every corridor of the great Citadel, and there was a constant buzz of excitement and activity. Lifecrafters and their apprentices rushed about, vials of mysterious liquids and misty vapors clutched close to their robes. Guards waited anxiously in the hallways, discussing the gossip that was this mysterious discovery of Kov's. Throughout the Forsaken Lands, a great search for materials was taking place in order to complete the great ordeal. Fortunately enough, the required materials were not exceptionally rare, and were gathered quickly; the true issue was in generating enough essence in Southforge's breweries to make the creation perfect. Kov, in the meantime, had travelled to the edge of his domain, to the Cairn Gates. The reports from the scouts where true, the smokes of a warcamp at the Illya checkpoint were present. His scouts had even confirmed that the forces gathering were growing, and were of some concern. Kyshaaks and tralls waited in pens, while bizarre serviles danced around bonfires, chanting ominously. It seemed that the Drakons of Rivergate were preparing for war. Kov was not worried though. Litalia's masterpiece, the Presence, could disrupt their armies, bulstering the Sholai over the lower creations that the Drakons threw at them. Kov grinned madly, as he pictured the look on those heavily tattooed faces as their creations turned on them mid-battle, and devasted their forces. He continued beaming, as he patted the dusty tome that had detailed Litalia's last creation, which had been hidden so deep within the archives of the Citadel. A Trakovite masterpiece that surely could have ended the war, had Litalia not been so hasty to Shape it. Well, it was now a Sholai masterpiece that could end the war. And they had all the time they needed to Shape it perfectly.

The land will take care of you, if you work it right. Kov was a mere novice, in years, at Shaping, but had taken to it quickly. Canisters abounded in Southforge Citadel, which he had indulged in to an excess. At some point, the Conclave had discovered a puresilver mine at the Boiling Caverns. The mine had long since been worked over, but Southforge Citadel, long since converted from turning Serviles and humans into Lifecrafters into a canister workshop, had reaped the benefits in full, and had still been processing the puresilver when the Sholai came. Even with the Forsaken Lands being a valuable source of canisters for the Conclave's will, it was sparsely populated. A few agricultural colonies, primarily Therile, flourished off of heavy Servile labor, but they were more a punishment for rebelious underlings of the Conclave than anything else. The Drakon who ruled this desolate land showed talent as a leader, but had crazed ideas of equality. With only a few other Drakons with him, he was forced to allow loyal humans and Serviles, with control tools, of course, to become Lifecrafters. It was those very Lifecrafters which now trained the Sholai, having nowhere else to go where there weren't Drakons would enslave them, or worse. But, most important to the Sholai's present endeavour was the library that was the lower floor of the Citadel. And it was in that library that Kov lurked, reading the histories of the Rebellion, looking for a recipe for a new Geneforge...

Power. Everyone wants it, desires it. Feels the need to grab for it. The desire for power overthrew the Natives, Shapers, and the Drakons. It is through power that we shall rise to dominance over Terrestia, finally. After the Rebellion had eliminated the Council in the great Battle of the Shaper Citadel, we took quick action. Panicked civilians fled from the doomed last stands of Nodye and Lethia, to the seas with us. Litalia's last stand, and Bennhold's, too, sent Trakovites and natives to our folds, where they rested, defeated. When we sent our envoy to the conclave, we were told that our presence in Terrestian lands would lead to war. We left, and bid our time. And now is that time. Our own people have forsaken us, just like they had forsaken Trajkov before us. They say war is not our way, and that Shaping is forbidden. But power will lead us to be the rulers of two continents, if need be. Faction - The Sholai (Renegades) After the Sholai heard of the great battle at the Citadel, they sent a fleet to Terrestia. Led by the ambitious grandson of the controversial Trajkov, the fleet arrived in time to catch the final moments of the war. Picking up refugees, the admiral secretly hoped to learn the secrets of Shaping. Panicked citizens on the west coast brought nothing but wealth, and the wary defeated Trakovites and bandits from further east brought nothing but stories. Dismayed, a diplomat was sent to the Conclave to discuss trading. The diplomat's head was returned, severed. They returned to the Sholai Lands, with refugees and their wealth as cargo. A city was made for the refugees, and the admiral was the ruler. Eventually, he died, leaving only his son, and then his grandson, Kov, to lead these people. Kov, power-hungry, rebelled against the Sholai, and took his followers to Terrestia, which was illegal. Fortunately for Kov, the Conclave had just been brought down. Not knowing this, Kov attacked and seized Southforge Citadel and the Forsaken Lands, learning quickly of the Conclave's fall, and started preperations for conquest, with his fleet as his strength. Leader: Lord Kov of the Sholai Ideology: Kov is greedy for power, but he has heard many of the cautionary tales about his ancestor Trajkov, and other figures of the Rebellion. As such, the Sholai believe in seizing Shaping for themselves, even canisters and the Geneforge, but ultimately know that there will be a need for regulation in the end. They want as much power in the short-term as possible, so they can survive, but plan to bar self-Shaping in the indeterminate future. Creation Rights Stance: Serviles, cultists, humans, and even Drakons or Gazers, if they wish, are all allowed to join the Sholai as equals in the new order. All other creations are beasts, possessions, to be treated well and kept alive as long as possible, as seen by creation hospitals.

Artemis, you aren't saying that control all of the farmers, everywhere, are you? Because that seems... ridiculous. Farmers don't all think the same, they're extremely wide spread geographically, etc.

I may well join this RP as a Native-Trakovite, Sholai, or a Barzite/Tullegolite type of a faction, but as it is, I simply don't know if I can commit at the moment. In the meantime, there are three good faction ideas for anyone trying to figure out an ideology for their faction.

This starvation effect... is similiar to the one from Exile? I suppose it makes sense, given the plot.

Originally Posted By: Munchkining Rabbit Roth 1: Briefs. Roth 2: Boxers. So, which do you prefer, Boxers or Briefs? I have themes that I try to follow for each creation. For example, fyoras are named after fire, like Ember, Blaze, or Flame. Cryoas are name after icy things, drayks after famous dragons, etc. But my favorites are drakons, whom I name after famous tyrants and terrors. Like Dracul.

Originally Posted By: Velzan Why if you can shape Alphas and wingbolts would you not be allowed to shape a mere limb to replace an "inferior one " Because that is self-Shaping, which is expressly forbidden.

Originally Posted By: Loyalist Shaper Ganduv Yeah um, this might sound stupid but what is skribbane? Bliss. An illegal Exile/Avernum drug known for it's addictiveness, and also for making the user faster, stronger, etc. for a temporary amount of time.

The last book I read was a biographical novel, Thousand Pieces of Gold, by Ruthanne Lum McCunn. It is, unlike my first suspicions, a very good book, all things considered. It's about a Chinese girl who gets sold into slavery in the Pacific Northwest, her eventual freedom, and other, less interesting aspects of her life. It actually stays exciting for the majority of the book. Not to mention that it touches on a few good topics, such as predestination, as well as providing a great historical perspective on the post-gold rush mining towns.

Getting both up to around 7 or 8 early on, and then raising them as needed, seems to be the general strategy for mechanics and leadership. Although, I personally prefer to get them up to 10 each as soon as possible.

Originally Posted By: Thuryl Originally Posted By: Goldenking I'm betting the Vahnatai have something to do with the Blight. Not necessarily the Olgai, but some tribe of Vahnatai or another that got annoyed by the invasion of humans... ffffffffffff i hope not As am I. It does seem like something they would be able to do, though. Plus, cutting off Avernum, and only Avernum, from their food would be helpful to their cause. I can't imagine the "Slith Horde" being that magically adept, or anything. The Empire might, but I can see no reason why they would. Or, it could be entirely natural. Frankly, I'm hoping for a really explosive end to the series, here. As in, volcanoes. And lots of them.