(Note: sorry...game keeps crashing when I try to assemble npcs via console for the pretty screenshots, so I'm just going to post without them.)
Episode 30: Legion training week 4, Ash Ghouls
Let's finish our basic training
Keep some feelers out, your guard duty is coming up, maybe an opportunity present itself to get something together.
Let's finish our basic training,
AWOL/Derilection of duty should be a last resort only
we go AWOL
steal away at night.
Four to two.
Basic training day 22
Today you learn about the various laws of Vvardenfell and their punishments. How much is the fine for theft, assault, murder, etc. Interestingly it turns out that while "trespassing" is a crime, it is only a crime if the home or land owner/renter takes action to prevent or halt trespass, which was then overcome. It is perfectly legal to walk into someone's house in the middle of the night, check out their basement, walk through their plantation, etc. But if they lock a door, picking the lock is considered criminal trespass regardless of entry.
:
"So I could walk into Duke Dren's bedroom and that would be ok?"
:
"If he leaves the door unlocked, yes. You may assume he did not wish to bar entry.":
"What if somebody else picks the lock and I just happen to come by later, find it unlocked and 'assume' he did not want to bar entry?":
"That's not your responsibility. You can't reasonably be expected to know it was locked if it's unlocked when you arrive.":
"What if he asks me to leave?":
"That would be considered 'action to halt trespass.' If he asks you to leave and you refuse, you would be criminally liable."Interesting.
Basic training day 23
Early today, your lessons are interrupted by a shout from upstairs.
:
"Legionnaires, assemble!":
"What's that?":
"Either an inspection or a duty assignment is about to be issued.":
"Duty assignment?":
"We're not here just to guard the fort, Recruit."You follow Strillian outside where a dozen or so legionnaires are in the process of forming a line in front of General Darius. Strillian points you to a spot, and the two of you join the line to wait for the remaining stragglers. Once everyone has arrived, the General speaks.
:
"Legionnaires, I regret to inform you that Spearman Vatollia Apo was slain in the line of duty today while on the Seyda Neen-Hla Oad patrol route."The line is silent.
:
"I have not had the opportunity to see the body yet, but according to officer-in-charge Sellus Gravius, he was subjected to extreme blunt trauma and electrical burns. No tooth or claw marks, minimal blood, and none of his possessions were taken. Finally...magical examination revealed that he had contracted Ash Woe Blight. Legionnaires, it seems that we have an Ash Ghoul on our hands."Darius pauses for moment while a murmur of unease sweeps through the line.
:
"Commander Gravius has requested reinforcements for a hunt. "You feel Strillian tense up next to you.
:
"Sharkub gro-Khashnar, Varian Angius, Asha-Ammu Kutebani...you are to report to Commander Gravius in Seyda Neen at once."Strillian relaxes.
:
"Everyone else, dismissed."Legionnaires disperse, and you and Strillian return to the barracks.
:
"Worried he was going to pick you?":
"Fighting ash ghouls is unpleasant. That disease the General mentioned basically turns you into an idiot, making it difficult to cast. But there was no way he would have sent a team without a battlemage. So it was either Varian or me. That I know of, we're the only two posted to Gnisis this month. Of course, odds are good those three won't see any combat. Ash ghouls are rarely seen outside the ashlands. It probably got lost or something and will be long gone by the time our team gets there.":
"How will the team send word back? How long does it take?":
"Communication between forts is done via recall. In this case, let's say our team finds and kills the ghoul. They'll be under Commander Gravius' command, so won't report directly to the General. First, they might need to secure the area, reassure civilians, etc. Then, depending on the situation, casualties, etc. most likely they'll either walk or recall back to Seyda Neen. If they lose Varian, they might have to walk. Then they'd deliver their report to Gravius, who'll write it up dispatch a messenger here. So it might take hours for the report to get here.":
"Who all would receive a report like that?":
"All reports go up the chain, but it's up to the discretion of fort commanders whether to pass messages sideways or downward. For example, even a minor incident at say...Fort Buckmoth, would be reported to General Darius, but it would be up to the Buckmoth fortress commander to decide whether to report it to, say...Fort Moonmoth. And regardless, General Darius would pass it up the chain of command to Ebonheart. Though in a case like this, where a Legionnaire has died, Sellus Gravius would almost definitely have reported it to all fortress commanders. Information is precious and restore Magicka potions are cheap."Hmm. So if something happens, it's possible that every fort commander on the island could be made aware of it within hours of the event.
:
"But if a commander decides to report to everyone, how does he do that? You don't really have half a dozen different mages on hand at every fort with marks for every other fort, do you?":
"No, that's not necessary, since we can each have several locations marked. For example, I have marks for Gnisis, Fort Buckmoth, Ebonheart and Balmora. It takes a custom spell for each location, and spellmaker costs increase exponentially for each extra recall point, but it's totally worthwhile to be able to teleport to any of several locations."Interesting. That's a significant difference from vanilla.
:
"Actually...come to think of it, that's probably why Varian was selected for this assignment rather than me. I think he has a Seyda Neen mark. So he'll transport the team there to save travel time, and they'll be able to report to Commander Gravius immediately if they find anything.":
"You can take people with you when you recall?":
"Yes, most mages are strong enough to take a person with them. A few are strong enough to take two.":
"Strong, as in physical strength?":
"No, magically strong.":
"What determines how much you can take with you?"He thinks for a moment before answering.
:
"I'm not sure how to answer that. But as you becomes a stronger caster you'll be able to carry more weight. It's rarely an issue. "Hmm. So Strillian doesn't have access to his character sheet numbers. Guess I shouldn't be surprised. Neither do I.
Basic training, day 24
You spend the rest of the day learning proper protocol for approaching, fining, and/or apprehending a criminal. It's a highly formal process, but it can roughly be summarized as:
1. Upon seeing a criminal act or known criminal, approach scum immediately and without delay.
2. Clearly inform them of the nature of their crime. Be firm, but polite.
3. Give them the choice of paying the appropriate fine, or accepting jail time.
4. If they pay the fine (and release any stolen goods, if applicable) let them go
5. If they refuse or are unable to pay the fine, escort them to the nearest fort and/or magistrate or on-shift commander for incarceration.
6. If they resist arrest, kill them.
7. Return stolen merchandise to owner
8. When applicable, observe local customs for corpse disposal.
9. At next convenient opportunity, deliver fines to your commanding officer and submit a written report.
In some cases, the arresting officer is allowed some discretion in how to handle specific cases. For example, any criminal who accumulates more than 4000 gold worth of fines may be engaged and executed freely without the opportunity to pay. If a criminal expresses willingness to pay but does not have funds on their person, an officer may elect to escort them to where funds may be available. If criminal is unable to pay and promises to turn themselves in to jail, an officer may elect to allow them to do so rather than escort them personally. In the event that a crime is not personally observed by an officer, eyewitness testimony may be accepted instead.
Basic training day 25
Today begins with an involved discussion of ethics. As you've seen, Legionnaires are granted a great deal of trust and authority. As judge, jury and executioner, it is crucial to the entire system that they be honest. You're a bit surprised that the ethical discussion is taking place this late in the training, but so far as you can tell...either the Legion is very naive, or apparently people in Tamriel are just generally honest by nature. You suspect the latter.
During the lesson, a Legionnaire walks in to the mess hall and requisitions his weekly meal from Strillian.
:
"Have you heard?":
"Heard what?":
"Our ash ghoul turned up in Pelagiad. Walked right in the front gate and started casting lightning balls at civilians.":
"Same ghoul that killed our man?":
"Nobody knows for sure, but yeah probably. Our team never found anything and you know how rarely we see those things.":
"Was anyone hurt?":
"Fortunately, no. The way I heard it there was a healer among the civilians who kept everyone alive, then half a dozen dunmer conjured ancestral ghosts to mob the ghoul. Guard heard the screams from the other side of a house, but by the time he got there the ghoul was just a grease spot in the dirt.":
"Good to hear it. I'm sure our team will be happy to come home.":
"Nahh, General's keeping them at Seyda Neen for now. Seyda Neen's happy for the extra patrols."Legion training, day 26
Today you learn how to submit written reports. It is very dull.
Legion training, day 27
Today begins with a map of all of Vvardellfell. Strillian shows you the various standard posts and patrol routes. There are
lots of them, but a few general trends are immediately obvious.
Influence within Vvardenfell can be roughly divided into several zones. While all of Morrowind is an Imperial province, the Imperial presence is mostly confined to the western and southwestern edges. The strongest points being the region roughly extending from Gnisis to Caldera to Pelagiad to Ebonheart (peninsula southwest of Vivec), with points of control at Wolverine Hall in Sadrith Mora and the island of Dagon Fel. The entire region curling clockwise from the Urshilaku camp to Tel Mora, to Sadrith mora, to Tel Branora to Vivec could reasonably be described as being under the control of factions antagonistic to the empire: House Telvanni, the various ashlander tribes and the Tribunal Temple.
:
"So we just don't patrol that entire half of the island?":
"No, no...it's not that we don't patrol it. Of course we do. We just, you know...don't patrol it...exactly. Roughly the middle top third of the island, nobody lives there except ashlanders and a giant volcano. Not much point patrolling Vivec city when there's Vivec himself and the temple ordinators there. I don't believe the hype that Vivec's a 'god' but any wizard much past 4000 years, I'm not going to be the one to tell him he isn't. And the east coast is mostly Telvanni. We do have a sizable outpost on the outskirts of Sadrith Mora, but the Telvanni have thousand-plus year old wizard-lords leaking out their ears. Adding a couple Legionnaires won't make the place any safer.":
"Not for them anyway. What about the other two Houses?":
"Both are friendly towards the Empire, and sharea lot of georgaphic overlap with us. House Redoran is the smallest, with influence primarily in Aldruhn, and extending up to Khuul. And House Hlallu's influence extending from Gnaar Mok to Balmora to Suran.":
"What about Dagoth Ur?":
"Tribunal Dagoth? I'm pretty sure that's a myth. The tribunal temple claim he's an evil god or something, I don't know much about it. But theydo have a sizable military presence at Ghostgate to monitor the Ghostfence that extends around Red Mountain.":
"Why?":
"It's constantly spewing ash and toxic fumes that poison and mutate anything that breathes too much of it.":
"Is that what they told you?":
"Yes, of course. Ash, blight and corprus monsters are all very real, but just ignore the local superstitions about them. Just diseased creatures, nothing more.":
"Right."Legion training, day 28
Today starts out with lessons on-
:
"Legionnaires, assemble!":
"Another duty assignment?":
"Maybe. But more likely the General just wants to officially announce that the ash ghoul was killed. Let's go see."As you did a few days ago, you file out and assemble before General Darius. Once everyone is present, he speaks.
:
"Legionnaires, I have grave news. I have just received word that the settlement of Khuul has been attacked."Silence.
:
"The silt strider caravaner claims that several ash creatures apparently under the leadership of a creature described as a 'giant slug wearing robes' descended on the town and began killing everyone. When it was clear that the attackers were winning, he fled Khuul to Gnisis. At present we don't know the situation in Khuul, though one Legionnaire, Knight Errant Ondi is stationed there. I have heard no word from her. Clilias Pullia, Ertius Fulbenus, Nash gro-Khazor, Snakha gro-Marob, Strillian Macro, Michael...Recruit Michael!":
"Yes sir?":
"Do you have a last name?":
"Umm...no, sir.":
"Very well. You are all assigned to Champion Saprius Entius."There's a bit of a murmur at that, before Entius speaks.
:
"General, sir...are you certain you want me to lead this sortie? ":
"I know all about your situation, Entius. But you're still a Legionnaire and the Empire needs you. Get out there, do what you need to do and bring my men back alive, you understand?":
"Yes, sir!":
"Dismissed."Just over half the Legionnaires disperse, leaving you standing with two orcs, two imperials, Strillian, and the Champion in charge, who speaks to Strillian:
:
"Strillian, you're on transport. Duty roster claims that no one on duty in Gnisis has a mark for Khuul. I don't suppose you changed yours since you last reported":
"No. Sorry, sir?":
"Damn. Alright, everyone...gather up anything you need for a combat mission, then meet at the silt strider. I want everyone aboard in five minutes. "There's a chorus of "yes, sir"s as you and Strilian rush back to the barracks.
requisitioning a scroll of Divine Intervention would be a very good idea whatever we do.
I totally agree that a scroll of divine intervention should be on our list of near-future priorities
:
"Hey, Strillian. Any chance I could requisition a scroll of divine intervention? This sounds dangerous, and I'd like an escape route ":
"You're not seriously suggesting that you'd abandon your first assignment?":
"...well, no...but...you know I couldn't take on one ash ghoul, let alone half a dozen of them. And what about that slug thing? You don't mean I'm expected to fight to the death when faced with a superior opponent?":
"Of course! The Legion is fearless! We are the Emperor's army! What good would we be if we just ran away from every fight? Yes, you may die, but the Legion will live on.":
"...right. But what about how I'm not done with basic yet, but I'm being asked to go on active duty? How can I be expected to fight to the death when my training isn't even finished?":
"I'm confidant the today's review on routes and paperwork won't make the difference between life or death.:
"Well, yeah...but still. What if everyone else dies, and I'm the last one left? Wouldn't it be better for me to report back so the General knows what happened rather than just die?"At that, he nods.
:
"Yes, true. It would. Anyway, I cant' give you any. We don't have any in stock. I don't suppose you have any paper on you?":
"It happens that I do.":
"Ok. Give me a piece and I'll make one for you."You grab some paper from your bunk and rush back to the storage room. Strillian is stowing some gear of his own.
:
"Why do you have so much paper?":
"College student. Any chance you could make me a bunch of scrolls?":
"No time, and we may be going into battle. I'm not going to drain my magicka dry for this."Strillian takes one piece of paper, speaks the words "take me home" while waving one hand and is engulfed in sparks of magic. He then unceremoniously hands the sheet of paper back to you. "Take me home" has been inscribed on the paper. Strillian makes to leave.
:
"You have about two minutes to get to the strider. Don't be late."
Level 5
Health 50/50
Armor rating: 1
25.7 Strength (20)
33.1 Speed (30)
35.7 Agility (30)
34.1 Endurance (30)
42.0 Intelligence (40)
42.6 Personality (40)
54.0 Luck (50)
Numbers in parenthesis are starting values
27 Acrobatics (0)
21 Athletics (5)
5 Armorer (0)
5 Block (0)
5 Heavy Armor (0)
5 Medium Armor (0)
5 Unarmored (0)
5 Blunt Weapon
5 Hand to Hand
5 Longblade
5 Shortblade
5 Spear
5 Alchemy (0)
5 Enchanting (0)
17 Speechcraft (10)
6 Mercantile (0)
* Cursed ring of athletics and drain health
* Chitin spear
* Imperial steel Cuirass
* Imperial steel helm
* Imperial steel shield
* Combat belt
* Commoner's shirt
* Commoner's pants
* Tennis shoes
* Interior coinpurse, containing 44 gold
Stashed under your bed in the imperial barracks at Fort Darius
* Steel tanto, with scabbard and carrying straps
* Chitin club
* Steel longsword
* Imperial chain cuirass
Backpack (also under your bed in the barracks at Fort Darius)
Main compartment:
* A strange note that you don't know where it came from
* Letter of introduction from Ranis Athrys
* Colovian fur "helm"
* Commoner's belt
* Yellow notepad with 55 pages left
* 1 divine intervention scroll, trigger words 'take me home'
* 1 pen
* Apprentice mortar and pestle
* 1 Standard Restore Health potions
* 1 empty bottle
* 2 soulgems of uncertain size
* "20% cooler" Rainbow Dash t-shirt,
* Denim pants
* a cellphone and wallet with picture ID and $30 in cash
Small compartment
* 122 gold
* 1 ampoule Pod
* 1 bread
* 7 bungler's bane
* 3 hypha facia
* 1 kwama cuttle
* 11 luminous russula
* 1 rat meat
* 3 saltrice
* 5 spore pod
* 6 violet coprinus
ampoule Pod - [1]Restore speed
Bread - [1]Restore Fatigue
bungler's bane - [1]Drain agility
coda flower - [1]Restore luck
hypha facia - [1]Drain
kwama cuttle [1]Restore health
luminous russula [1]Paralysis
rat meat - [1]Poison
saltrice [1]Restore endurance
spore pod - [1]Paralysis
Small Kwama Egg - [1]Restore Fatigue
violet coprinus - [1]Water Walking
What do you do?
Author
Topic: Marooned in Morrowind (FINISHED) (Read 435402 times)