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[IcyTea31]

Question: Do my demonic minions need any upkeep? If so, what kind of and how much?

[escaped lurker]

Question: Do my demonic minions need any upkeep? If so, what kind of and how much?

There will be a maximum, depending on Intelligence and Wisdom. Exact numbers in the update. Which will be delayed because binge-drinking film-watching evening is currently in progress.. ;3 ;o


Edit: Yeah.. so between throwing my friends out of the flat ( I am host 9 out of 10 times, since over a decade. Am I doing something right, or horribly, horribly wrong? ), re-cleaning it (not like I didn't do that just yesterday, right?), visiting my parents for our shared sunday lunch, and other stuff, the update won't be today either. Caus' I need a break from my "weekend" ><

[escaped lurker]

Cavern Keep

~
War for the Underworld

The Underbowels
Some Cavern
Day II, Early Dark

Spoiler: Map (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Keep (click to show/hide)

Agex & Borgrum
Seeing as half of the gathered creatures take a rest, salamander and orc decide on a little excursion to the aforementioned spring. An excursion that is cut short, as Ignacius points out that the spring is within the keep – who would ever build a keep without fresh water after all? Well, except any of the unliving races, that is.

The spring turns out to be an ankle-deep pond of filthy muck – drinking from it is at least bound to give you dysentery, if not worse. Well, it most probably won't kill outright, but it is an inconvenience that most of you could do without. Where now a gentle trickle of water is to be seen, the stone bears obvious marks of water once bursting over the cliffs in a waterfall. The whole area around the pond, and the aqueduct beneath are full of mud and plant-life. Sending out the Imp to both ends holds some information though. The water trickles down a most steep slope – the creature is not able to climb it for very far. Partly covered with most rusty grates, the pipe below is more full with mud than not, but seems to follow the road outside of the keep, seemingly underneath the sewer. As for tracks, while Agex is able to make out some that he attributes to newts in the mud of the aqueduct, they are already a few days old.

Found Filthy Spring, Unaccesible Aqueduct & Sewage System, Several Rusty Grates ( 8 Scrap Metal's Worth )

~

Izak
The fallen seemingly had not his fill of bloodshed for the day, and goes out to hunt again. How wise it is to do so alone can be disputed, but as he safely returns with a dead fanged newt from his efforts, everything worked out satisfactory. He even explored a bit further, seeing as the previous hunt has most of the animals that inhabitated the area either in hiding or dead. Before entering his undisturbed Rest, he is pleasently surprised that the others have kept the animal bones - considering his magic capabilities good acting on their part. Result – 12/??

Gained 2 XP as Hunter, Gained 1 Fanged Newt Corpse

~

Rocetta & Kashmar
Harpy and Vampire concoct a most daring plan, and after having rested and fed, are upon it. Rocetta uses her magic to inspect the eggs for signs of life, and of the ten eggs, only half seem to be. The Dark Priest then sacrifices one of the newts, asking the eggs to be blessed with the dark energies of his Lord, allowing the deity to govern any changes that it may want to impose on them. One of the eggs is not able to take the strain, but the other four have been blessed by advanced mutations, with the deity not at odds with the whole idea. Result – 33/??

The harpy then blesses the remaining eggs with the energies of life, and before long the eggs start to hatch, revealing four small snakes with some features that seem quite un-snake-like. A quick study of their body reveals them to have three pair of eyes on each side,  dark, barbed scales on their backs, full rows of hollowed teeth and spikes on the end of their tails.  Result – 22/20

Kashmar gained 10/30 XP (+6) as Dark Priest, Gained Some Godly Favour, Lost Bloodless Fanged Newt Corpse
Rocetta gained 4/20 XP as Druid, Gained 4 freshly hatched Snakes with Advanced Mutations

~

Crest
During the third shift, the Gargoyle turns into a statue for rest, his flesh severely hardened during the act. After waking, he returns to where he started his excavation, and continues in that vein. This time, he is far more successful in his endeavour, and is almost able to finish in time. He spends half an hour of the next day to get the job done completely. Result – 40/40 (+22, +1),

Gained 8/40 XP (+5) as Earth Elementalist, Excavated One Tile

~

Ssitoc
After having rested and restored himself, the blendec attempts to build some simple snares. Scavenging some of the local undergrowth for young, still-blue twines, he is able to do so, albeit their effectiveness is rather limited by the questionable materials. He sets them up either way, checking them at a later date might just yield results. Result – 10/??

Produced and set up several Makeshift Snare-Traps, Gained 2/10 XP as Engineer

~

Ignacius
After mulling it over, usurping more territory seemed to be the only good move at the current time. Not one to question those voices inside his head that made sense, that was what he eventually did. He also noted that he would need to go outside of the keep, were he to annex more than 1 Territory on the next day.

Lost 10 Influence, gained 2 Income of Influence
Resources:
6 Scrap Iron
1 Big Earthenware Pot
2 Stationary Manacles
Skeletons - 2 Flightless Bats, 1 Fanged Newt

Food: 35 Food, 20 Water, 5 Blood
2 Flightless Bat Corpses / 2 Rations each
4 Fanged Newt Corpses / 1 Ration each
1 Honey-Ant Corpse / 1 Ration Honey
25 Rations of Food
20 Bottled Water
5 Vials of Blood (Kashmar)
Ignacius:
769 Influence
-11 Influence daily

Spoiler: Rundown (click to show/hide)

Dungeon Heart: +20 Influence Daily
4 Territories: +4 Influence Daily
7 Champions: -35 Influence Daily

Spoiler: Spells (click to show/hide)

Summon forth Champion - 100 Influence
Usurp Territory - 5 Influence, +1 every 5 Territory owned / currently 5 Influence

Player List

Spoiler: Izak / Jboy2000000 (click to show/hide)

Name: Izak the Purple
Race: Fallen

Attributes:
Strength: 2
Endurance: 2
Agility: 2
Wisdom: 4
Intelligence: 5
Charisma: 2

Skills:
Necromancer: 2
Daemonolouge: 1
Loremaster: 1
Ambassador: 1
Sneaking: 1

Traits:
Flight: Able to fly without restrictions
Unholy: Will take increased damage from positive energies and weapons out of silver alloys.
Vengeful: Desecrating holy sites, killing followers and priests of good and neutral gods gives morale and experience boosts

Equipment:
Bone-Sword:  Mundane Quality, +1 Melee
Quill & Inkwell: Mundane, +1 Scribe

Backstory:
After being banished, began to study necromancy. A slew of undying, mindless slaves would fit his purposes just well. History was filled with men cast down by those above them rising again and defeating their masters. He can't really recall who his master was, and why he was cast away, but it doesn't matter to him. He isn't as petty as others of his kind, he could care less about his master, what wanted was bigger. What he wanted was to rule. Even he would never come to own his own fiefdom, ruling a band of undead slaves to do his bidding will do just as well.

Spoiler: Kashmar / Tomcost (click to show/hide)

Name: Kashmar, the Blackened.
Race: Elven Vampire

Attributes:
Strength: 2
Endurance: 2
Agility: 2
Wisdom: 3+1
Intelligence: 5
Charisma: 3

Skills:
Dark priest: 3
Bloodmage: 1
Loremaster: 1
Ambassador: 1

Traits:
Sanguine Feeder: Needs 1 Portion of Blood daily. Failure to feed saps at the vampires willpower, until it becomes feral / insane. Feeding leaves the victim extremely weakened for multiple days.
Old Memories: Elven Wisdom
Unholy: Will take increased damage from positive energies and weapons out of silver alloys.

Equipment:
Dark Iron Obsidian Staff: Mundane Quality, +1 Melee
Scribing Tools: Mundane, +1 Scribe

Backstory:
A solitary keeper of knowledge, Kashmar was an introverted soul, but it was not something he cherished. His tasks were mostly boring and repetitive, with sentient contact being scarce. Depression often struck him, until he found company... in The Dark One. "Blessed" by him, he now serves his God as one of his many representatives.

Spoiler: Rocetta / Weirdsound (click to show/hide)

Name: Rocetta
Race: Harpy

Attributes:
Strength: 3
Endurance: 2
Agility: 3+1
Wisdom: 3
Intelligence: 4
Charisma: 2

Skills:
Peasant: 1
Hunting: 2
Druid: 2
Beast Tamer: 1

Traits:
Flight: Able to fly without restrictions
Fell Swoop: Dive against enemies with great speed, even able to knock back or lift them. Needs enough space and 1 Turn of preparation.
Nimble: This race is far more agile than most

Equipment:
Longbow Mundane Quality, +1 Ranged
Shovel & Plow: Mundane, +1 Farming

Backstory:
Rocetta was an up and coming Druid and Warrior in her small harpy tribe. In her time, she fought many a monster, captured many a man, and healed many a Heroine. Eventually she felt that she was strong enough to challenge her chieftess to claim said title for herself, but was proven wrong; The Chieftesses witchcraft was too much for her, and Rocetta was defeated.

As punishment for her treachery, she was tossed in the void between worlds, where she lingered for many centuries. During this time, her combat skills and muscle memory almost completely faded away, but she was able retain some of her magical and pastoral knowledge through meditation. Since the overlord has released her from this prison, Rocetta intends to serve him, because he saved her, and because she knows she has no chance of overthrowing him

Spoiler: Borgrum / IcyTea31 (click to show/hide)

Name: Borgrum Marad
Race: Orc

Attributes:
Strength: 3
Endurance: 3
Agility: 2
Wisdom: 3
Intelligence: 4
Charisma: 2

Skills:
Melee: 3+1
Observation: 1
Tactics: 2
Daemonolouge: 3

Traits:
Combat Prowess: Natural talent for melee combat
Disciplined: Very unlikely to digress into a negative mood, or be affected by fear.
Observativ: Higher chance to find traps, ambushes and similar

Equipment:
Spiked Metal Shield: Mundane Quality, +1 Armour
Summoning Utensils: Mundane, +1 Daemonolouge

Followers:
1 Lesser Imp

Background:
In the internal politics of orcs, you have to be sharp. That, or have the aid of something supernatural. Borgrum was one to have both. He was raising the army to "unite" the orcish kind once and for all, but he ended up summoned. While you'd expect him to be grizzled about this, he instead sees serving the Overlord an even better chance to seize control of the world.

Spoiler: Agex / Sarrak (click to show/hide)

Name: Agex, the Seeker
Race: Salamander

Attributes:
Strength: 3
Endurance: 2
Agility: 4
Wisdom: 2
Intelligence: 3
Charisma: 3

Skills:
Ranged: 2
Sneaking: 2
Observation: 1
Hunter: 4

Traits:
Fire Immune: Invulnerable to any flame, safe that of a mature fire dragon
Firebreath: Able to blow a cone of flame. 1 Daily Use.
Hot-Blooded: Scalding to the touch. Only able to wear iron or even higher metals. Swimming or water spells can easily cause hypothermia.
Local Wildlife: Agex has studied the wildlife in the starting cavern, and is thus more proficient at hunting there

Equipment:
Volcanic Larvae Bone-Bow: Mundane Quality, +1 Ranged
Leatherworking Tools: Mundane, +1 Leatherworking

Backstory:
Agex is a born hunter, seeker of prey. Many season he has stalked mountains and plains alike (avoiding forests due to his heat), hunting various beasts with different traps and weapons. He was an aimless wanderer - before he heard something that could be only described as "call". Call, that promised many beasts to hunt and many dangers to force or avoid. Without any second thought, he followed.

Spoiler: Ssitoc / GiglameshDespair (click to show/hide)

Name: Ssitoc the Maned
Race: Blendec

Attributes:
Strength: 4
Endurance: 3
Agility: 4+1
Wisdom: 2
Intelligence: 2
Charisma: 2

Skills:
Cavalry: 3
Melee: 3
Beast Tamer: 1
Engineer: 1

Traits:
Nimble: This race is far more agile than most.
Headbash: Horns and a Thick Skull make for great natural weapons
Animal Friend: Animals are far less likely to attack or shy away

Equipment:
Long-Chained Flail: Mundane Quality, +1 Meele
Vetinary Kit: Mundane, +1 Wound Treatment

Spoiler: Crest / Deathsword (click to show/hide)

Name: Crest the Rebuilt
Race: Gargoyle

Attributes:
Strength: 2
Endurance: 2
Agility: 2
Wisdom: 4
Intelligence: 4
Charisma: 3

Skills:
Loremaster: 3
Earth Elementalist: 3
Observation: 1
Melee: 1

Traits:
Glider: Able to fly for short amounts of time
Stoneform: Strong Natural Armour, Will turn into a statue when asleep, will only regenerate lost HP if asleep
Unliving: No need to Eat, Immune to all but magical afflictions

Equipment:
Stone Claws: Mundane Quality, +1 Melee
Tome: Mundane, +1 Knowledgeable

Spoiler: Waitlist (click to show/hide)

Waitlist
Shadestyle
Harbringerjm
Varee
IronyOwl
sjm9876
Ochita (Edited Wish of Re-Entry in after sjm's post)

As I don't really wish to tediously track who found what after all, I won't do so in the future. If you found it first, you will be able to claim or use it. If you don't, it will be counted as common goods. If there really is the need to, you could reserve some materials for your own use, which then would be counted in an extra bracket, but that would only be cosmetic - mainly by reminding other players about the matter.

[Tomcost]

Kashmar smiled at the sight of the snakes. The might of The Darkener, with all his grace! He has to help Rocetta to take care of them, but there are some small priorities first.

He walked to the Harpy, and said:



-Praised be The Dark One! The ritual, everything was carried out excellently! I suppose that you can see the... usefulness of the Dark One. In the near future, I will try to put this library in condition. As you can expect, it will involve removing the big mushroom there. If you are interested in it in some way, you can keep it. Or, if you happen to want to analize it, I will gladly document any findings. Otherwise, I think that its soft cap will become a pillow for my person.
On the other hand, and, if you don't mind, I woul like to ask you two favors, both of them pretty minor. The first one would be if you could give me the skull of one of the animals you ate, as it would be an ideal piece to start an altar. The second one, would be that, if you happen to go hunting again, you could give me the bodies of your preys so that I could extract nourishment from them, and then give them back to you. Of course, in exchange, I could help you back with something you need.

((Shifts coming after the response from Weirdsound))

EDIT: ((any name for the snakes? How about "The Darkspawn"))

[IcyTea31]

First shift: Go out and look for where the sewer should flow out.
Second shift: Explore the keep for more of its secrets.
Third shift: Eat, drink, sleep.
Fourth shift: Practise combat with Ssitoc, the imp, or anyone else interested.

I'd be grateful if one of our hunters went out to capture some live creatures, I'm sure others could use them too.

[Samarkand]

PTW

[Tomcost]

((I have to ask: what would be the level of a school of magic to be able to do "That badass ability", if you know what I mean))

[IcyTea31]

((Or, to extend the question, what is the maximum level for any skill?))

[Weirdsound]

The Harpy thinks on it briefly before answering in her pitched voice.

"Yes. a Library might be nice. I have an idea to get that mushroom out of your way. If it fails, just try to keep the mushroom intact when you remove it, and I wouldn't use the cap as a chair; that is where the spores are all kept. Undead or not, nobody here wants random fungus growing on their skin."

She then clicks her beak a few times, and smiles, "I don't think I'll go hunting today, but unless we find ourselves with a food shortage, feel free to do whatever you will with what I bring back."

Shift 1: Sleep/Eat
Shift 2: Use life magic on the mushroom in the Library. Attempt to turn it into some sort of mobile fungus monster to use in battle, or failing that, give it temporary mobility and the urge to resettle elsewhere in the keep.
Shift 3: Use Druidism on own body to make Rocetta a better 'mother' to the snakes. She will try to gain immunity, or at least resistance to their venom, and will modify her breasts to produce a 'milk' with all the nutrients that a growing reptile might need.
Shift 4: Work on taming the snakes/teaching them to ride peacefully on the neck/shoulders of a biped.

(Hopefully my turn with give some information on the snakes, which we can put towards coming up with a less generic name)

[Tomcost]

-I'm glad that you agreed. I hope we can do some business again soon. I thank you for the advice on the mushroom.

Shift 1: Grab the skull from the newbt corpse. Use a vine or whatever nearby to tie its mouth shut (because symbolism), then use it to buil an altar in the lower right corner of the library, maybe with some rocks that were left behind by Crest's excavation.
Shift 2: Accompany Ignacius while he annexes outside territory, observing the general area and discussing local politics with him. Document any information I can get from the plantlife.
Shift 3: Eat, drain of blood the rest of Rocetta's corpses for later use.
Shift 4: Sleep.

[escaped lurker]

((Or, to extend the question, what is the maximum level for any skill?))

100 ... I guess. Such an Individual could pull Entities like Ignacius at full power out of thin air (as in, no sacrifices required), Create new races from scratch as a druid, Smith artifacts that bend reality just by being in existence, hunt down dragons despite being a simple humanoid or mine at a speed that the elderly would walk at. Unless we play for multiple years, I severly doubt we would ever face such a god-like existence, not to talk of a player attaining such heights.

((I have to ask: what would be the level of a school of magic to be able to do "That badass ability", if you know what I mean))

I.. don't, but let me tell you that ingriedients are key, and can make up for lacking skill. You want to summon forth a champion yourself? Go get 5 humanoids as sacrifice. Kashmar wants to summon an Arch-Something of his Lord? Eh... get real chummy with him, and ~20 should do. That is, at your current skill level. Even someone who only knows the basics of smithing, can create an adamantite sword that cuts as good as a Masterwork Steel one.

Obviously doing so would be a complete waste, and in the case of magic, the backlash of failing the spell can very easily have dangerous to deadly consequences. Also, the effort needed to catch 5, or even 20 humanoids, is better spent training the specific skill, but said numbers are more to give you the idea, instead of set-in-stone rules.

[Tomcost]

((Oh, because I thought about an ability for combat for my dark priest class: "Devourer's maw". Basically, it makes a shadowy mouth appear and engulf somebody, disabling him for some time. And also doing damage, hence the "badass" ability))

[Sarrak]

Shift 1: Still sleeping.
Shift 2: Eat & Drink, then go on a hunt using my knowledge of the area.
Shift 3: Scout further, looking for a signs of prey and ruins of old.
Shift 4: If nothing was found - scout even further. If something was found - hunt/explore, then return with new information to others.

[Tomcost]

((We have to claim those old ruins at some point. I'm all in for exploring them at some point in the future.

Also, Ignacius should keep annexing territory. We need him to have excess influence so that he summons some workers for us. Let's face it: we don't want to do menial tasks.

[escaped lurker]

Shift 2: Use life magic on the mushroom in the Library. Attempt to turn it into some sort of mobile fungus monster to use in battle, or failing that, give it temporary mobility and the urge to resettle elsewhere in the keep.

Well, I can tell you beforehand that, while it would be possible to do, it will clearly take more than one shift. So your efforts will be wasted by Kashmar, who will remove it one shift later.

((Oh, because I thought about an ability for combat for my dark priest class: "Devourer's maw". Basically, it makes a shadowy mouth appear and engulf somebody, disabling him for some time. And also doing damage, hence the "badass" ability))

Well, paralyzing, confusing, slowing and silence effects are possible for spells, but they are limited. I don't want to have D&D-like end-game situation, where you either have a support-buffer against these things, enchantments against them, or your fights are a ticking time bomb.

"Quicksand", which indiscriminately targets a tile, would be lower than "Arcane Binding", which targets a specific enemy. What you want there, is not only a targetet paralyzing effect, but also damage and illusionary / more difficult to resist effect. That would be quite "badass" indeed, and you will need above 10 Skill for it. The exact number will somewhat depend on how the players develope spells and stuff, but that much I can already tell you.. ;3

Shift 3: Eat, drain of blood the rest of Rocetta's corpses for later use.

Draining corpses for later use will be difficult, as you only have 5 vials. Not any kind of vials though, as their enchantments will keep the blood inside them fresh.