Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[piecewise]

"I have said my piece. I will return to the Cist and prepare for action, but will not act until given the word. Whatever our Path presents us beyond this Waypoint, I will do my best for the benefit of us all, as long as our journeys continue together. Honored Nyw, I regret that we will not have time to get the answer to your question, though the value of our Enemy's opinion is unknown. Perhaps specially because of that."

Approach the Cist and wait for everyone to get into position.

Spoiler: Not so much a character, but a mistake (click to show/hide)

Name: AsHul
Description:Former human. Awful, ugly, indifferent.
Goal:To find God
 
Stats
Str:10  Dex:10  Spe:10  End:12  Awa:13  Cun:13  Kno:12  Ner:16

Skills (+1 skillpoint from levelup)
3 Diving
2 Animal Handling
1 Survival
3 Weapon skill: Guitar

Inventory
Relic Fragment
Black Book (Genuine)
Black Book (copy, strata 1,2,4)
2 Silent Night
4 Worm Blood
100 ft of rope
1 knife (cut/pierce 2)
2 Occult Junks (1 a skull currently holding Lighter Water)
some kind of lightning tree from the plane of elemental forces
Song Book (Treasure, Vomit, Dissociate, Shred) (Shape Steel: very hard to play. untitled song that makes people feel well but fall asleep and have a seizure)
neodymium collar (enchanted to be explosion, plasma, and mindbreak resistant.)
1 Bone-fretted haunted electric guitar
1 mundane acoustic guitar with wave patterns in abalone and turquoise
1 Crystalline Clate Guitar
140  Fathoms

You do so.

Based on what Adam knows, does it seem likely that the bomb we have could significantly damage the messenger path or the containment chamber, either due to the explosive or the diving effect?

Secondly, what detonation options does this bomb have from what Adam can see (without touching the bomb!)? (in case Ozarck doesn't remember)

Spoiler: Adam Blavatsky Darvaza (click to show/hide)

Name: Adam Blavatsky Darvaza
Description: A young man of slightly pale complexion and eternal 9 o’clock shadow, he was raised in a small village. While the village priest and passing mystics droned with endless sermons of the Church and their teachings, what had always captivated young Adam’s attention more were the stories of his Granny.
Old stories of the world as it once was, before people were forced to flee to the caves and crannies of this damp hell. Of warm days where pleasant green plants tickled your feet as you walked through them and a cool breeze blew through your hair. Where food was plentiful, nature was benign and endless vistas reached as far as they eye could see.
Adam was nominally a card-carrying member of the church, though he mostly did it for the connections and perks that brought. They were powerful and had ancient lore, all things he would need to fulfill his true heart’s desire: to return to the surface, vanquish the madness that tainted their homeland and reconquer paradise.
After his encounter with a Word of God, the edges of his vision are flickering with black flame and his skin is extremely pale with what appear to be black veins instead of the normal blue ones. It also forced him to reevaluate his views on the cthonic church and god.
Goal: Plunge the secrets of the depths below to find an answer to the horrors above.
Stats
Str: 11
Dex: 11
Spe: 13
End: 12
Awa: 12
Cun: 11
Kno: 10
Ner: 14 
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Flammenvision!
Inventory

Soldier's chestplate
Clothing: simple priest robes, currently worn long to hide the black veins
Rubber Suit

1 ethral rifle [7 rounds]  (pierce 3)
5x black flame
2x smoke bomb
1 flashbang

3 Silent Night
4 worm blood

1 minor artifact
1 beaker artifact (found in crystal ruins) => in locker
1 crystal construct

Transport mission papers
1 black book copy
1 black book
1 book "Artifacts of Faith"
1 empyrean city map
1 field lighter
1 radio
portal knives design
445 fathoms
4 unspent skillpoints
copy of cult papers
cult holy book
scribbled notes with faces of cult conspirators
lenses of telescope that can look through solid matter
slabs with the history of the crystal people
mysterious cult chest

- 1 x portal knife, not yet enchanted
- 1 x large collapsible doorway (large enough to allow crawler to move through)
- 2 x sacrifices for +3

1 x portal knife, enchanted
1 x Custom collapsible doorway, enchanted (Warning: portal's end point isn't very well anchored to the physical object. There's some drift involved (4,5 meter), so you will come out in the general area, but maybe not spot on.) Currently deployed on the bore, there is padding on the floor to prevent damage from drift.

[2]
The bomb is of significant size and force. It would likely damage this organic area or a normal messenger path area; though you know there are mechanisms in place for these to be repaired (The Antediluvians will return).  But that containment chamber...it could likely take this explosion. It was strong enough to contain the warrior and that thing...that thing seemed to be able to summon up fire and death at a thought.

If memory serves,  Timer, remote via wire, and remote via radio.

[Hotfire90]

Alex turns away from the warrior, facing the door as he talks into his radio.

"Hey guys I'm done talking to it. I received all the answers I wanted, and a few more. It would be nice if you opened the door and let me out now."

[Radio Controlled]

((Are we sure radio signals can go through that wall? We should probably ascertain this before anyone answers.))

[Parisbre56]

"I agree that we might be able to mitigate my other concerns or that some of them might be exaggerated. However even if it were so, I would still not agree. Because no, Alex did not spring this on you out of the blue, he had made his intentions to hold a conversation with the warrior to confirm his findings clear and had obtained your assent. Because the issue you had with Alex having a 'private' conversation was not that Alex would be hidden from view and thus in a position to be compromised by the warrior without your knowledge. Indeed, any conversation or action that would take place would happen in plain sight. If anything, sealing him inside would be more dangerous. No, the thing you took offense at was that you might not be receiving the same information he would be receiving. The only reason I could think of for that is that you were afraid he would be receiving information that you would not want him or the rest of us to know. Why should I trust that you'll let him live now that he might have whatever information it was he was after? Even now, you give a vague argument of 'not having enough time' to bring him out, even though that could very well be trivial depending on the circumstances inside. That tells me that you do not actually want to get him out but also want to 'save face' by appearing to make a token effort to save his life. If you were not, you would at least be willing to make an attempt to get him out alive or give some provisions under which you think it would make sense to attempt to do so. If what I say is not true, then feel free to prove me wrong."

"So how about this? We open the door. If everything in there is calm, then Alex simply walks out or I send Crystal Friend to retrieve him, whatever makes more sense at the time. You can use your eyes to ensure he is not the warrior in disguise or something silly like that. Then, when he's out, we set the timer, throw the bomb in, close the door and run away. Or we close the door after Alex is out, have a discussion with Alex to assuage your concerns and make sure the bomb is safe to use and then we throw it in, whatever you want. If things are not calm, then we go with your plan."

[Parisbre56]

((Are we sure radio signals can go through that wall? We should probably ascertain this before anyone answers.))

((Nope. Piecewise says we can't hear him.))

[Ozarck]

On hearing Kara's accusations, AsHul goes calm, sits down, back against the Cist wall, legs akimbo, hands folded in his lap. His voice displays none of his previous passion. Instead, he speaks in a dry, monotone, formal manner.

"Noble Corven. I regret that we are unable to come to an agreement on this matter."

[Pancaek]

Clate Stand between the other three, writing in all three their directions at once. His golems alls till focused on the cist door.

I don't wish to intrude upon your delightful little squabble here, but I'm going to need you all to get to some kind of arrangement now or I'm out. I do have more important things to be working towards compared to...whatever you'd call the situation we find ourselves in right now.
I can encase Alex in stone once he's out if we want some kind of middle ground between killing and just letting him walk freely. But it really seems like we have some bruised egos with a dash of wishful thinking here, and it's getting us nowhere.

Your choice, squishlings. Make up your mind and form a plan. Or don't, and I walk away.

[Radio Controlled]

((Are we sure radio signals can go through that wall? We should probably ascertain this before anyone answers.))

((Nope. Piecewise says we can't hear him.))

((Yeah, figured as much. Thanks for asking!))

Clate Stand between the other three, writing in all three their directions at once. His golems alls till focused on the cist door.
I don't wish to intrude upon your delightful little squabble here, but I'm going to need you all to get to some kind of arrangement now or I'm out. I do have more important things to be working towards compared to...whatever you'd call the situation we find ourselves in right now.
I can encase Alex in stone once he's out if we want some kind of middle ground between killing and just letting him walk freely. But it really seems like we have some bruised egos with a dash of wishful thinking here, and it's getting us nowhere.
Your choice, squishlings. Make up your mind and form a plan. Or don't, and I walk away.

"I understand your annoyance at how long this is taking, my rocky friend. But please do exercise patience for a little while longer, for not just the fate of that one person hangs in the balance here, but possibly also the coherence and future of this whole crew.

Now, when you say you could encase him in stone, do you mean this as a method of very rapidly extracting him from that room? Or just as a means of restraint afterwards? Secondly, could you perhaps look into crafting that small stone box or platform on which we can put the bomb, so that you could stonebend it closer to the machine and away from ourselves?

Ashul, do you think we should detonate the bomb after we close the wall again? And do you possess the remote control currently? We'll need to make sure we have the means to set of the bomb in a controlled fashion."

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"I agree that we might be able to mitigate my other concerns or that some of them might be exaggerated. However even if it were so, I would still not agree. Because no, Alex did not spring this on you out of the blue, he had made his intentions to hold a conversation with the warrior to confirm his findings clear and had obtained your assent.

Because the issue you had with Alex having a 'private' conversation was not that Alex would be hidden from view and thus in a position to be compromised by the warrior without your knowledge. Indeed, any conversation or action that would take place would happen in plain sight. If anything, sealing him inside would be more dangerous.

No, the thing you took offense at was that you might not be receiving the same information he would be receiving. The only reason I could think of for that is that you were afraid he would be receiving information that you would not want him or the rest of us to know. Why should I trust that you'll let him live now that he might have whatever information it was he was after?

Even now, you give a vague argument of 'not having enough time' to bring him out, even though that could very well be trivial depending on the circumstances inside. That tells me that you do not actually want to get him out but also want to 'save face' by appearing to make a token effort to save his life. If you were not, you would at least be willing to make an attempt to get him out alive or give some provisions under which you think it would make sense to attempt to do so. If what I say is not true, then feel free to prove me wrong."

"So how about this? We open the door. If everything in there is calm, then Alex simply walks out or I send Crystal Friend to retrieve him, whatever makes more sense at the time. You can use your eyes to ensure he is not the warrior in disguise or something silly like that. Then, when he's out, we set the timer, throw the bomb in, close the door and run away. Or we close the door after Alex is out, have a discussion with Alex to assuage your concerns and make sure the bomb is safe to use and then we throw it in, whatever you want. If things are not calm, then we go with your plan."

"I'm afraid you are forgetting something here: at no point whatsoever did I think it a good idea to let anyone talk to that thing! In fact I counseled against it at every junction because I knew it would cause us nothing but grief, and here we are. The central issue is not that he simply wished to have private information, for in just about every other situation I wouldn't care, but as I have tried to impress upon all of you, it is the nature and source of this information which is the big problem here. Similarly, I was not the one who decided to lock him into that room, and I'm not sure if that was the most optimal choice of action either. However, given the circumstances I can't judge much there, things were tense, given that oblivion personified was staring us in the eyes.

As for why you would trust us? Well, as indicated before, the honored undead there, a being incorruptible by it's most basic nature, would be the one keeping guard over his head and over the proceedings to determine his true allegiance, and the fact that you yourself would be part of the triumvirate deciding on his fate. If you want some additional assurances, I wouldn't be against the idea of you standing guard over Alex at all times once we retrieve him so you can be assured no monkey business occurs. We could even invoke the sphere of Gesh and bind me, you, or whoever you deem necessary into following the plan as stated, or some other oath. And for whatever it is worth, as soon as I was convinced of your good intentions, I argued in your favor.

I'm also not sure what exactly is vague about thinking just walking a crystal being over there is too slow? The point is simply to act quickly and destroy the warrior before it has a chance to pull any tricks or catch on to us or anything like that. Every second that door is open without the warrior being dead, the clock ticks closer to armageddon. Your teleporter contraption is simply the single fastest method we have available, that does not rely on battlefield diving, a most risky prospect.

My goal here was simply to propose a compromise that lets us move forward without permanently breaking the crew. However," he said, glancing over at Clate, who seemed to be growing ever more impatient "if we do not reach an agreement soon the window of opportunity will close and then he will be dead for sure. The only other option I see in that case is for you to excuse yourself from the proceedings, though of course this would deprive Alex from the biggest advocate in his favor, something I do not wish upon him."

[Pancaek]

Now, when you say you could encase him in stone, do you mean this as a method of very rapidly extracting him from that room? Or just as a means of restraint afterwards? Secondly, could you perhaps look into crafting that small stone box or platform on which we can put the bomb, so that you could stonebend it closer to the machine and away from ourselves? "

I meant restraining afterwards, but I suppose rapid extraction could work. Though, I can't guarantee his safety in that case. It's not exactly the safest material to use on a squishling at high speeds, you know.

Sure, some kind of stone container shouldn't be a problem.

[Radio Controlled]

Now, when you say you could encase him in stone, do you mean this as a method of very rapidly extracting him from that room? Or just as a means of restraint afterwards? Secondly, could you perhaps look into crafting that small stone box or platform on which we can put the bomb, so that you could stonebend it closer to the machine and away from ourselves? "

I meant restraining afterwards, but I suppose rapid extraction could work. Though, I can't guarantee his safety in that case. It's not exactly the safest material to use on a squishling at high speeds, you know.
Sure, some kind of stone container shouldn't be a problem.

"Hmm. Perhaps then, some sort of pre-prepared dive effect to teleport him wholly, rather than just his head, could work... Perhaps we could even pre-prepare this stone prison as the teleport destination. Brother Ashul, if we modified the plan as such, would that still be acceptable to you? And what about you, sister Kara? The biggest potential problem I see with it is that the warrior might be able to hijack the teleportation dive and have himself transported as well though... Maybe we could prepare the full-body teleport, but only use that if the warrior is not near Alex when the door opens, then if he is we use the device and only go for the head, which hopefully would be harder to hijack in the same way. I don't particularly like it, but it's about at the edge of risk I would be willing to take."

[Parisbre56]

"I understand that these were not your choices. Please forgive me for directing my frustration towards you. I hope you understand my frustration about this matter though, for my words have also been ignored."
"I would had preferred it if you and everyone else concerned about this had been more vocal about this matter beforehand rather than letting it come to this, a sentiment I think you agree with based on what you say. Both parties are responsible for a misunderstanding, even though the shares of the blame might not be equal. From our conversation I understand it won't be easy to convince you of my perspective and as you say we have little time, so I will simply say this: I would find it unfair for Alex to pay for this misunderstanding with his life while others pay no share of that price."
"As for teleporting him, sure, I would agree to that. I would agree to any plan that does not require his death. Though you would look rather silly were we to open the door only to find him in the same place he was when we closed it, right next to it."

[Ozarck]

"Hmm. Perhaps then, some sort of pre-prepared dive effect to teleport him wholly, rather than just his head, could work... Perhaps we could even pre-prepare this stone prison as the teleport destination. Brother Ashul, if we modified the plan as such, would that still be acceptable to you? And what about you, sister Kara? The biggest potential problem I see with it is that the warrior might be able to hijack the teleportation dive and have himself transported as well though... Maybe we could prepare the full-body teleport, but only use that if the warrior is not near Alex when the door opens, then if he is we use the device and only go for the head, which hopefully would be harder to hijack in the same way. I don't particularly like it, but it's about at the edge of risk I would be willing to take."

"I have no objections to this modification, as long as Alex is constrained until we have satisfactorily determined his future place in our crew.

And as long as his rescue does not interfere with my primary goal, which has remained constant since this mission was entrusted to me."

[Radio Controlled]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"I understand that these were not your choices. Please forgive me for directing my frustration towards you. I hope you understand my frustration about this matter though, for my words have also been ignored."
"I would had preferred it if you and everyone else concerned about this had been more vocal about this matter beforehand rather than letting it come to this, a sentiment I think you agree with based on what you say. Both parties are responsible for a misunderstanding, even though the shares of the blame might not be equal. From our conversation I understand it won't be easy to convince you of my perspective and as you say we have little time, so I will simply say this: I would find it unfair for Alex to pay for this misunderstanding with his life while others pay no share of that price."
"As for teleporting him, sure, I would agree to that. I would agree to any plan that does not require his death. Though you would look rather silly were we to open the door only to find him in the same place he was when we closed it, right next to it."

Adam considered this for a moment before answering.

"Hmm. Yes, yes you are absolutely correct. Given the gravity of this situation, we Cthonics should have done more to adequately impress upon you all how strongly we feel about this divine assignment. That might have prevented a lot of this mess.

And yes, it is entirely possible we'll open that door and those two won't have moved a muscle. But, I'd rather look a fool a thousand times over than take a risk with that ancient warrior.

Either way, it seems we have reached an agreement. Splendid! Let us not dawdle any further and make our preparations then."

How many reinforcements of Telazch and Xi respectively would we need for an enchantment that, when activated (activation mark is thinking about the target you want) would teleport a person into a pre-prepared destination (in this case a stone encasement of sorts to hold a person in custody without harming them)? The teleport should also change the person's body/limb position as needed to avoid telefragging or other such nonsense. For distance, assume Adam will stand fr enough back to be safe from the bomb's effects both physical and preternatural.

Speaking off, assuming Clate pushes the bomb closer to the warrior, how far away do the unshielded need to be to be reasonably safe?

Spoiler: Adam Blavatsky Darvaza (click to show/hide)

Name: Adam Blavatsky Darvaza
Description: A young man of slightly pale complexion and eternal 9 o’clock shadow, he was raised in a small village. While the village priest and passing mystics droned with endless sermons of the Church and their teachings, what had always captivated young Adam’s attention more were the stories of his Granny.
Old stories of the world as it once was, before people were forced to flee to the caves and crannies of this damp hell. Of warm days where pleasant green plants tickled your feet as you walked through them and a cool breeze blew through your hair. Where food was plentiful, nature was benign and endless vistas reached as far as they eye could see.
Adam was nominally a card-carrying member of the church, though he mostly did it for the connections and perks that brought. They were powerful and had ancient lore, all things he would need to fulfill his true heart’s desire: to return to the surface, vanquish the madness that tainted their homeland and reconquer paradise.
After his encounter with a Word of God, the edges of his vision are flickering with black flame and his skin is extremely pale with what appear to be black veins instead of the normal blue ones. It also forced him to reevaluate his views on the cthonic church and god.
Goal: Plunge the secrets of the depths below to find an answer to the horrors above.
Stats
Str: 11
Dex: 11
Spe: 13
End: 12
Awa: 12
Cun: 11
Kno: 10
Ner: 14 
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Flammenvision!
Inventory

Soldier's chestplate
Clothing: simple priest robes, currently worn long to hide the black veins
Rubber Suit

1 ethral rifle [7 rounds]  (pierce 3)
5x black flame
2x smoke bomb
1 flashbang

3 Silent Night
4 worm blood

1 minor artifact
1 beaker artifact (found in crystal ruins) => in locker
1 crystal construct

Transport mission papers
1 black book copy
1 black book
1 book "Artifacts of Faith"
1 empyrean city map
1 field lighter
1 radio
portal knives design
445 fathoms
4 unspent skillpoints
copy of cult papers sold to the church
cult holy book sold to the church
scribbled notes with faces of cult conspirators sold to the church
lenses of telescope that can look through solid matter
slabs with the history of the crystal people
mysterious cult chest sold to the church

- 1 x portal knife, not yet enchanted
- 1 x large collapsible doorway (large enough to allow crawler to move through)
- 2 x sacrifices for +3

1 x portal knife, enchanted
1 x Custom collapsible doorway, enchanted (Warning: portal's end point isn't very well anchored to the physical object. There's some drift involved (4,5 meter), so you will come out in the general area, but maybe not spot on.) Currently deployed on the bore, there is padding on the floor to prevent damage from drift.

[Naturegirl1999]

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

 Name:Rhea Alcove
Description: A female human with blonde hear. She holds a Hooked Cleaver in her right hand and wears a Mail Shirt for protection. She wears a denim shirt and denim jeans, along with tennis shoes.
Goal: To explore and learn as much as she can

Stats:
Str:11
Dex:10
Spe:10
End:10
Awa:11
Cun:12
Kno:11
Ner:12

Skills:
Weapon Skill(Cleaver): 1
Diving: 1
Unarmed: 1
Persuasion: 1
Defense Skill(Mail Armor): 1
Survival: 1
Biological: 1
Caving: 1
Navigation: 1
Animal Handling: 1
Geology: 1

Inventory:
130 Fathoms
Free Clothing
Worm Blood x1
Organic/Bio Junk x6
Hooked Cleaver
Mail Shirt
Relic Fragment
Crystal Egg Creature
Grappling Hook

Continue making sure they don’t get closer to the rest of the group

[Pancaek]

In preparation of plan [name to be decided], stoneform 2 things:

- A carrying ase/platform for the bomb, that will allow me to move it by stoneforming without interfering with the bomb's function
- A 1 person stone jail/coffin. Should be able to comfortably hold 1 Alex-sized person. Mayabe some kind of coffin with a small slit the occupant can peer out of.

Spoiler: Clate (click to show/hide)

Name: Clate
Race: Shluck
Description: To bring back the crystal race
 
Stats
Str:  12
Dex:  9
Spe:  10
End:  13
Awa:  12
Cun:  9
Kno:  14
Ner:  15

Skills
Natural +3 Caving
Natural +3 Geology
Natural Mute
Natural No clothing
Natural Stonesenses
Natural Stoneshaping

Unarmed: +2
Weapon skill: Stone Blade +2
Stealth: +1
Archeology: +2
Weaponsmith: +2
Navigation: +1
Armorsmith: +1
Chemical: +1
Crystal Biology: +1

Inventory
Bladed Shovel - handle coated with Pseudomagnetic mortar
Knife (cut2, pierce2)
TNT x5
Dynamo lantern
Field lighter
Path markers x10
"Muggy"(skull mug scrimshawed with "can we fix it?" on the side, "No, it's fucked." on the bottom. Has trigger on the inside of the spine-handle that, when squeezed, caused the mandible to open and close)
100ft silk rope
6 Octahedrons - supposedly replicate materials
1 container of Pseudomagnetic mortar
labradorite/Obedience rod (on loan to Kara)
Silver ethral pendant: small silver pendant in the shape of a compound eye wreathed in white fire
Ethral archive promissory note



243 Fathoms


Crystal Babies
1. Big Chonk Ramiel, about the size of a car.
2. Pryamid with stumpy limbs
3. Crystal snake. hiss. 18 inches long.
4. snake golem. Its larger than the original by several times and rougher, sort of like a squirming line of uncut gemstones, each the size of a human fist.
5. Crystal Praying Mantis (Can fire lazer, Cut 4 Claws)
6. 2 small golems with black flames mounted on their heads. Suicide bots.

Warehouse/bore storage:
Bomb Collar
Slate box
Spool of thermoreactive wire.
Acoustic guitar (Metal + guardbone, totally mundane.)
Rifle (pierce2, 6/10 magazine)
Small Knife from crystal barrel
Small bowl from crystal barrel
roll of very thin and flexible stone
small cube of the extremely dense material
sharp pyramid shaped wedge thing
3 structural junk
30 chemical junk
1 gold ingot