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[Radio Controlled]

The odd haze that you assumed was produced by the weapon remains in place even after the actual thing itself is removed. It doesn't follow the weapon or connect back to it in any way either.

Does it connect to anything else? Is it tethered to something or someplace?

Go back to that earlier wall we encountered that we were blocked by (which I think leads somewhere else than to the weapon room we just explored?), and use the labradorite rod to create an entrance and see what lies beyond. If that doesn't work, carefully use wizard eyes to 'dig out' a tunnel.

Nevermind, was the same room apparently. Instead ponder the following: if I did a dive with Balarim => Xi to summon the knowledge of how to reverse the effect of the weapon using the tools we have, how many reinforcements of each would it take? Or do I need to involve another sphere?

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: 13
Awa: 12
Cun: 11
Kno: 10
Ner: 14
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Flammenvision!
Inventory

anti-heat suit
Soldier's chestplate
Clothing: simple priest robes, currently worn long to hide the black veins
Rubber Suit
Sobriety helmet: provides a +3 bonus against mind fuckery, though it will degrade over time as it gets "hit" with more effects.

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 broken crystal construct
labradorite rod

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
324 fathoms
5 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
set of numbered metal plates
anatomical drawings of ancient corpses found in the molten heart

- 0 x portal knife, not yet enchanted
- 1 x sacrifices for +3

1 x large collapsible doorway (large enough to allow crawler to move through), enchanted, but badly (!unknown destination!) :v
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.

[Parisbre56]

"So we have an experimental weapon that even its creators did not know how it worked and we have to not just figure out how it works but also reverse its effects? That's just great. I guess we could En the entire thing so that it was never fired in the first place but that item has affected the underworld to such an extreme extent we have no idea how removing it would change the present or if doing so would even reverse things instead of just making things worse. ... I suppose there might be someone I could bring this thing to that might be able to figure it out, but... I'm not sure what she would ask in return."

"Adam, can you take a look at that room? Its structure reminds me of the room we found the flame orb in in our first expedition, so I'm wondering if you know how they're related, if it's some sort of diving thing or if it was merely meant to amplify the effects of the weapon. With the luck we're having I bet we'll need to get that flame orb artifact from the church to fix it."

[Pancaek]

Friend Kara, you are good with machines, no? How about you take a look at it? I'll explain things as we go along, hopefully without colouring your perception of the weapon too much so that we can have a fresh perspective on it.

[Parisbre56]

"That's like saying a plumber would be able to replace a medic because organic bodies are full of pipes... But I guess a plumber is a better medic than a trader. ... Okay, I'll give it a shot."

With Clate's help try to examine the weapon and figure out anything I can about it. Even inconsequential things might be helpful. Do some sketches/flowcharts/logic diagrams in my notepad if it would help.

Even if I can't figure out how to fix it, maybe I can at least figure out where the trigger is. Then all I have to do is fire it in reverse. Somehow. It was meant to be able to transfer organic consciousness to Crystal after ripping them out, so that functionality should be in there somewhere. Maybe there was a bug that prevented that functionality from activating. If so, then all I need to is find a way to activate the "mind transfer" functionality without triggering the "mindrip" part.

Spoiler: "Kara" the Corven (click to show/hide)

Name: "Kara" is what most humans call her, though the closest pronunciation would be  Kr'ra-Kax
Race: Corven (advantage for climb, disadvantage for falls)
Appearance: She is a crow-like Corven with matte-black feathers. A bit short. Constantly moves her head around, examining her surroundings. Moves her tail up and down whenever she's excited.
Age: Adult, but just barely
Goal: Wants to find artifacts and experiences that she can use to make an (under)world-famous museum. Wants to prove herself to her mother and piss off her brother with her success (both financially and socially).

Status
Sacrificed left arm to reverse time (eaten by giant Shluck-like thing). Bandaged.

Stats
Str:11
Dex:14 
Spe:13 
End:10
Awa:12
Cun:12
Kno:13
Ner:12

Skills
Rifle: 1
Medical: 1
Translate: 2
Acrobatics: 1
Caving: 1
Machine Control: 1
Stealth: 1
Geology: 1
Archeology: 2
Navigation: 1
Unspent: 1

Inventory
Heavy Crystal Mirror Armour Shroud
Golden pin (in forearm)
Crystal Friend (with riding harness + Obedience Rod)
Radio
Telegrabber with Stasis Box (Rifle, 100 meters max grab range)
3 Stasis Boxes (diving enhanced containment container) for the Telegrabber
Ethral Rifle (scope+bipod) (rifle 3, pierce 3) 6/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 7/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 6/7
Crystal Weapon
Black Flame Crystal Golem
Field Lighter (Fire 2)
Shiny interconnected colorful gems
Grappling Hook + Ethral Silk rope 200 ft
1 Doctor's Bag
1 Dynamo Lantern (Light 3)
1 Knife (Cut/Pierce 2)
2 Slave Traps
Suit Repair Kit

In Storage
15 chemical junk
22 mechanical junk
Crystal Tablets (diary about All-Eater and Great Destroyer, inventory, obedience rod instructions, construct assembly instructions)
Church Documents (document ownership and events, and recommend favorable treatment)
Metal Card with the address of the Gilded Crow (corven Gangsters of Goldshore)
Mechanical Arm (not installed)
Bomb collar (unlocked)
All bomb collar remotes
A large number of shiny gold-like messenger path rocks
Notes on insect saddle construction
Ancient Bird-people idols
Ancient Mole-jewels depicting unknown beast
Simple Clothes (with hood)
Cot
Book (Adventures of Pilgrim)
Deck of Cards
760 fathoms (1% royalty for flame)

Kara's Diary

[NAV]

As much as I would want to be in the secret crystal research lab, it wouldn't really make sense.

I'm in the city. Empyrean, right?
Währeige always has an interest in tunnel bores, more of an obsession really. He heard there's a new bore in town. He goes to check it out.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Währeige
Description: An Ethral, a bit smaller and scruffier than average. It's difficult to tell where the grease stains end and his natural fur colour starts. He wears a mask with several clockwork mechanisms of unknown purpose and several interchangeable lenses.
Goal: Just wants to tinker
 
Stats
Str:7 
Dex:12 
Spe:10 
End:8 
Awa:7 
Cun:16
Kno:13 
Ner:10

Skills:
+2 Electrical
+2 Mechanical
+1 Machine control
+1 Chemical
+1 Weaponsmith
+1 Armoursmith

Inventory:
Mask
Clothes
Dynamo Lantern
Field Lighter
Empyrean Nail
100 feet of Silk Rope
2 units of Electronic Junk
2 units of Mechanical Junk

[syvarris]

Can Nyw get a point in translate for that crit?

In any case, hold out a hand for the medicine once the wolfman is done with it, and return it to its pouch.  Then hold out a hand to the wolfman.  If Nyw can remember the words for "come" and "assistance", say them.  Possibly throw in "doctor" and "translator", if Nyw's really feeling erudite today.  Hopefully it will come peacefully and we can lead it back to the tunnels without trouble.

Spoiler: The Unpronounceable Undead (click to show/hide)

Name: Nyw'geuq Otin Sunam; calls himself "The Lords' Child"
Description:

((TWO murakumo!  FINALLY, hahahaha!))
Goal: Inscrutable, which is code for "Talks like this.".

Stats:
Str: 15 
Dex: 10
Spe:11
End:14
Awa:14
Cun: 10
Kno: 9
Ner: 13

Skills: (Two unspent skillpoints)
Guard Rifle: +3
Unarmed: +1
Defense Skill: +3 (Full Plate)
Vehicle Skill: +1
Caving: +1
Navigation: +1
Murakumo: +2 (+1/3)


Inventory:
Full Plate Armor [Protective 4]
Ornamental Mask of the Child

Extremely crude harness, holding all Nyw's weapons:
Crystal Murakumo [Cut 6, Pierce 3]
----Enchanted to remove fragility.
Crystal Murakumo [Cut 6, Pierce 3]
----Enchanted to remove fragility.
Giant Guardian Hatchet [Chop 4, ]
Three knives [Cut 2, Pierce 2]
Tungsten Toothpick [Pierce 5] (10/10)
Slave Trap
Nine smoke bombs
Five flashbangs
Tunnel Clearer shotgun [5/5 shotshells] [shotgun 3] [Pierce 3] (5 spare shotshells) (3 spare slugs) (-2 on to-hit rolls)
Guard rifle [Pierce 2] (10/10) (210 spare rounds)
Pistol [Pierce 1] (?/?)

300' of silk rope
2x Silent Night
2x Black Flame
2x Cave Spider Venom
30x Path markers
10x Injectable tranquilizer.

77 fathoms.

Followers:
Gus (Young human with minimal training.  Healthy.)
--Equipped with a small iron melee weapon [Cut 3, Pierce 3] and a Black Flame [Cutting 3]
--Equipped with a low caliber ethral rifle.  [Pierce 2] (10/10), 50 spare bullets
--Armored with a mail shirt [Protect 3], and has two smoke bombs.
Baxter (Young human with minimal training.  Healthy.)
--Equipped with a small iron melee weapon [Cut 3, Pierce 3] and a Black Flame [Cutting 3]
--Equipped with a low caliber ethral rifle.  [Pierce 2] (10/10), 50 spare bullets
--Armored with a mail shirt [Protect 3], and has two smoke bombs.

Bore NPC "recruits":
--Five moths
--One lizard dude
--Two humans

[Pancaek]

Help Kara take a look at the weapon to figure out how to undo/reverse the effect.

If Kara can't figure it out, go take another walk through the crystal library to search for clues about the weapon and how to reverse the effect, then try again to figure out with (hopefully) this new info.

Spoiler: Clate (click to show/hide)

Name: Clate
Race: Shluck
Description: To bring back the crystal race
 
Stats
Str:  12
Dex:  9
Spe:  10 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
End:  13
Awa:  12
Cun:  9 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
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
(((1 free skillpoint from levelup)))

Inventory
pair of crystal swords. (cut 6, pierce 3) They look basically like normal crystals, but flattened so that two of its sharp edges are aligned.  There are no handles, as you can just fuse them to your body.
10 Crystal spears (pierce 3)
6 crystal lazer guns (pierce 3)


Bladed Shovel - handle coated with Pseudomagnetic mortar
Knife (cut2, pierce2)
TNT x5 (3 fitted to spiderbots)
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 x2 (1 on loan to Kara, 1 in Clate's possesion)
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. Ramiel V2.0, half the size of the original
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.
7. 3 suicide spiderbots. Smol, fast, each holds 1 TNT charge.
8. Knifebirb: Two long legs, attached to a single, long, razor sharp blade of crystal. It moves in a jittery, rapid way that makes anyone with flesh that can be cut stay far away from it. Cassowary Sized.
9. Protecto: a big rolling wall of hexagons that can reshift themselves around to form shields of different sizes, shapes, and thicknesses.
10. Death Blossom:  floating flower, it has a bunch of little points  and when attacking it rotates rapidly in place, firing small energy bolts from those points, like a minigun.


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

[piecewise]

The odd haze that you assumed was produced by the weapon remains in place even after the actual thing itself is removed. It doesn't follow the weapon or connect back to it in any way either.

Does it connect to anything else? Is it tethered to something or someplace?

Go back to that earlier wall we encountered that we were blocked by (which I think leads somewhere else than to the weapon room we just explored?), and use the labradorite rod to create an entrance and see what lies beyond. If that doesn't work, carefully use wizard eyes to 'dig out' a tunnel.

Nevermind, was the same room apparently. Instead ponder the following: if I did a dive with Balarim => Xi to summon the knowledge of how to reverse the effect of the weapon using the tools we have, how many reinforcements of each would it take? Or do I need to involve another sphere?

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: 13
Awa: 12
Cun: 11
Kno: 10
Ner: 14
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Flammenvision!
Inventory

anti-heat suit
Soldier's chestplate
Clothing: simple priest robes, currently worn long to hide the black veins
Rubber Suit
Sobriety helmet: provides a +3 bonus against mind fuckery, though it will degrade over time as it gets "hit" with more effects.

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 broken crystal construct
labradorite rod

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
324 fathoms
5 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
set of numbered metal plates
anatomical drawings of ancient corpses found in the molten heart

- 0 x portal knife, not yet enchanted
- 1 x sacrifices for +3

1 x large collapsible doorway (large enough to allow crawler to move through), enchanted, but badly (!unknown destination!) :v
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.

The haze seems to just be floating in the place the weapon used to occupy. Doesn't seem definitely connected to anything...but it might be connected to the spikes? It's just sort of like a cloud in that area.

Hmm. 5 each?

"That's like saying a plumber would be able to replace a medic because organic bodies are full of pipes... But I guess a plumber is a better medic than a trader. ... Okay, I'll give it a shot."

With Clate's help try to examine the weapon and figure out anything I can about it. Even inconsequential things might be helpful. Do some sketches/flowcharts/logic diagrams in my notepad if it would help.

Even if I can't figure out how to fix it, maybe I can at least figure out where the trigger is. Then all I have to do is fire it in reverse. Somehow. It was meant to be able to transfer organic consciousness to Crystal after ripping them out, so that functionality should be in there somewhere. Maybe there was a bug that prevented that functionality from activating. If so, then all I need to is find a way to activate the "mind transfer" functionality without triggering the "mindrip" part.

Spoiler: "Kara" the Corven (click to show/hide)

Name: "Kara" is what most humans call her, though the closest pronunciation would be  Kr'ra-Kax
Race: Corven (advantage for climb, disadvantage for falls)
Appearance: She is a crow-like Corven with matte-black feathers. A bit short. Constantly moves her head around, examining her surroundings. Moves her tail up and down whenever she's excited.
Age: Adult, but just barely
Goal: Wants to find artifacts and experiences that she can use to make an (under)world-famous museum. Wants to prove herself to her mother and piss off her brother with her success (both financially and socially).

Status
Sacrificed left arm to reverse time (eaten by giant Shluck-like thing). Bandaged.

Stats
Str:11
Dex:14 
Spe:13 
End:10
Awa:12
Cun:12
Kno:13
Ner:12

Skills
Rifle: 1
Medical: 1
Translate: 2
Acrobatics: 1
Caving: 1
Machine Control: 1
Stealth: 1
Geology: 1
Archeology: 2
Navigation: 1
Unspent: 1

Inventory
Heavy Crystal Mirror Armour Shroud
Golden pin (in forearm)
Crystal Friend (with riding harness + Obedience Rod)
Radio
Telegrabber with Stasis Box (Rifle, 100 meters max grab range)
3 Stasis Boxes (diving enhanced containment container) for the Telegrabber
Ethral Rifle (scope+bipod) (rifle 3, pierce 3) 6/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 7/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 6/7
Crystal Weapon
Black Flame Crystal Golem
Field Lighter (Fire 2)
Shiny interconnected colorful gems
Grappling Hook + Ethral Silk rope 200 ft
1 Doctor's Bag
1 Dynamo Lantern (Light 3)
1 Knife (Cut/Pierce 2)
2 Slave Traps
Suit Repair Kit

In Storage
15 chemical junk
22 mechanical junk
Crystal Tablets (diary about All-Eater and Great Destroyer, inventory, obedience rod instructions, construct assembly instructions)
Church Documents (document ownership and events, and recommend favorable treatment)
Metal Card with the address of the Gilded Crow (corven Gangsters of Goldshore)
Mechanical Arm (not installed)
Bomb collar (unlocked)
All bomb collar remotes
A large number of shiny gold-like messenger path rocks
Notes on insect saddle construction
Ancient Bird-people idols
Ancient Mole-jewels depicting unknown beast
Simple Clothes (with hood)
Cot
Book (Adventures of Pilgrim)
Deck of Cards
760 fathoms (1% royalty for flame)

Kara's Diary

Help Kara take a look at the weapon to figure out how to undo/reverse the effect.

If Kara can't figure it out, go take another walk through the crystal library to search for clues about the weapon and how to reverse the effect, then try again to figure out with (hopefully) this new info.

Spoiler: Clate (click to show/hide)

Name: Clate
Race: Shluck
Description: To bring back the crystal race
 
Stats
Str:  12
Dex:  9
Spe:  10 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
End:  13
Awa:  12
Cun:  9 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
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
(((1 free skillpoint from levelup)))

Inventory
pair of crystal swords. (cut 6, pierce 3) They look basically like normal crystals, but flattened so that two of its sharp edges are aligned.  There are no handles, as you can just fuse them to your body.
10 Crystal spears (pierce 3)
6 crystal lazer guns (pierce 3)


Bladed Shovel - handle coated with Pseudomagnetic mortar
Knife (cut2, pierce2)
TNT x5 (3 fitted to spiderbots)
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 x2 (1 on loan to Kara, 1 in Clate's possesion)
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. Ramiel V2.0, half the size of the original
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.
7. 3 suicide spiderbots. Smol, fast, each holds 1 TNT charge.
8. Knifebirb: Two long legs, attached to a single, long, razor sharp blade of crystal. It moves in a jittery, rapid way that makes anyone with flesh that can be cut stay far away from it. Cassowary Sized.
9. Protecto: a big rolling wall of hexagons that can reshift themselves around to form shields of different sizes, shapes, and thicknesses.
10. Death Blossom:  floating flower, it has a bunch of little points  and when attacking it rotates rapidly in place, firing small energy bolts from those points, like a minigun.


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

[7]
You and Clate go over the weapon, him explaining to you what he can see or understand and you attempting to comprehend his lack of comprehension.  After about a half hour of talk Kara starts going through her notes, crossing things out and circling other things, checking back with Clate every so often.  Then, finally, she sets them down.

"I think...Ok this is my best guess. Imagine it like a radio broadcast.  The overmind is already like that, right? A sort of pervasive...signal.  They were attempting to use that existing signal as the medium for their new broadcast. This weapon generated the signal initially, but it was carried and continued by that existing broadcast. The mistake was that the two signals interfered with each other in a way they didn't expect. Its sort of canceling them both out, but its stuck on loop. Thats why removing the thing didn't stop it: this is just the way to start the broadcast, once it begins it will keep going on its own.

If we're gonna stop it we need to...well I guess the way to put it is that we need to cancel out their weapon signal.  And to do that we need to broadcast a new signal, one that will replace it...or fix it...or cancel it."

Can Nyw get a point in translate for that crit?

In any case, hold out a hand for the medicine once the wolfman is done with it, and return it to its pouch.  Then hold out a hand to the wolfman.  If Nyw can remember the words for "come" and "assistance", say them.  Possibly throw in "doctor" and "translator", if Nyw's really feeling erudite today.  Hopefully it will come peacefully and we can lead it back to the tunnels without trouble.

Spoiler: The Unpronounceable Undead (click to show/hide)

Name: Nyw'geuq Otin Sunam; calls himself "The Lords' Child"
Description:

((TWO murakumo!  FINALLY, hahahaha!))
Goal: Inscrutable, which is code for "Talks like this.".

Stats:
Str: 15 
Dex: 10
Spe:11
End:14
Awa:14
Cun: 10
Kno: 9
Ner: 13

Skills: (Two unspent skillpoints)
Guard Rifle: +3
Unarmed: +1
Defense Skill: +3 (Full Plate)
Vehicle Skill: +1
Caving: +1
Navigation: +1
Murakumo: +2 (+1/3)


Inventory:
Full Plate Armor [Protective 4]
Ornamental Mask of the Child

Extremely crude harness, holding all Nyw's weapons:
Crystal Murakumo [Cut 6, Pierce 3]
----Enchanted to remove fragility.
Crystal Murakumo [Cut 6, Pierce 3]
----Enchanted to remove fragility.
Giant Guardian Hatchet [Chop 4, ]
Three knives [Cut 2, Pierce 2]
Tungsten Toothpick [Pierce 5] (10/10)
Slave Trap
Nine smoke bombs
Five flashbangs
Tunnel Clearer shotgun [5/5 shotshells] [shotgun 3] [Pierce 3] (5 spare shotshells) (3 spare slugs) (-2 on to-hit rolls)
Guard rifle [Pierce 2] (10/10) (210 spare rounds)
Pistol [Pierce 1] (?/?)

300' of silk rope
2x Silent Night
2x Black Flame
2x Cave Spider Venom
30x Path markers
10x Injectable tranquilizer.

77 fathoms.

Followers:
Gus (Young human with minimal training.  Healthy.)
--Equipped with a small iron melee weapon [Cut 3, Pierce 3] and a Black Flame [Cutting 3]
--Equipped with a low caliber ethral rifle.  [Pierce 2] (10/10), 50 spare bullets
--Armored with a mail shirt [Protect 3], and has two smoke bombs.
Baxter (Young human with minimal training.  Healthy.)
--Equipped with a small iron melee weapon [Cut 3, Pierce 3] and a Black Flame [Cutting 3]
--Equipped with a low caliber ethral rifle.  [Pierce 2] (10/10), 50 spare bullets
--Armored with a mail shirt [Protect 3], and has two smoke bombs.

Bore NPC "recruits":
--Five moths
--One lizard dude
--Two humans

Pretty sure you get points for crits only with weapon skills.

Nyw takes the meds back and then struggles through a bit of Deep Gothic, telling the wolf to follow him.  The Wolf appears a bit hesitant but does seem to be willing to follow. Though with the injured leg it can't move too well. Nyw would have to  lend it a shoulder or a crutch. 

As much as I would want to be in the secret crystal research lab, it wouldn't really make sense.

I'm in the city. Empyrean, right?
Währeige always has an interest in tunnel bores, more of an obsession really. He heard there's a new bore in town. He goes to check it out.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Währeige
Description: An Ethral, a bit smaller and scruffier than average. It's difficult to tell where the grease stains end and his natural fur colour starts. He wears a mask with several clockwork mechanisms of unknown purpose and several interchangeable lenses.
Goal: Just wants to tinker
 
Stats
Str:7 
Dex:12 
Spe:10 
End:8 
Awa:7 
Cun:16
Kno:13 
Ner:10

Skills:
+2 Electrical
+2 Mechanical
+1 Machine control
+1 Chemical
+1 Weaponsmith
+1 Armoursmith

Inventory:
Mask
Clothes
Dynamo Lantern
Field Lighter
Empyrean Nail
100 feet of Silk Rope
2 units of Electronic Junk
2 units of Mechanical Junk

There are hundreds of bores moving in and out of the city. Its the capital after all. So instead of going after one particular one, you head down to the main hangout for such things. There's an area along the major pathway through the city where pilgrims, traders, and other passersby hang out, refuel, sell goods and otherwise mingle. The place is a constantly bustling chaos of people, tents, wandering storefronts and religious groups. Of all of these things, the more interesting are perhaps the bores that are quiet; the ones that don't have an obvious reason to be here, that aren't selling or unloading or covered in iconography.  You find one sitting apparently abandoned and locked up, with a strange pattern of scarring and repairs across its upper half.

[Parisbre56]

"Hmm... I don't know if radio is the best analogy but... Hear me out here. If this was just a radio I could simply fiddle with it until I reversed the signal and cancelled it out. But this thing is nothing like a radio. I have no idea if I can reverse the signal. And fiddling with it is dangerous. If it's a transmitter that can send a signal all across the underworld, then a wrong transmission could mean various horrible things for us, for the Crystal people, for all living things. So perhaps a more... brute force approach could work. We don't need to cancel the signal. We simply need to drown it out to the point where it ceases to exist."

"Here's my theory: If the overmind is a signal that pervades all stone, that uses the stone as a medium of transmission, then it should have an origin point, a point where it comes from, a point where it is strongest. From what we've seen, the overmind still exists near large concentrations of Crystal, but it is weak, fractured. So, what if we went to the largest concentration of Crystal we can find, to a point where the overmind is strongest and used this weapon to boost its signal even further, to cut through the weapon signal and reach all Crystal of the local area? Do you think, if we took this to one of those Crystal trees you mentioned, we could hook it up there and have it amplify the original Crystal signal? If we can boost the original signal enough, then the weapon signal shouldn't matter, right?"

[Naturegirl1999]

((Sorry for being away for so long))

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:11
End:11
Awa:11
Cun:13
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: 2

Inventory:
0 Fathoms
Free Clothing
Organic/Bio Junk x3
Hooked Cleaver
Mail Shirt
Relic Fragment
Crystal Egg Creature
Grappling Hook
Radio

I’ll give my 100 fathoms towards the adding of life support systems, leaving 400 requisite fathoms remaining
Rhea wakes up and noticed everyone’s left. She must’ve fallen asleep for a while. She found a note near a teleportation knife explaining that Adam, Kara and Clate are at the Molten Heart to deal with the Superweapon, along with instructions on how to use the knife. As she doesn’t have a heat suit, she decides to go outside. Upon opening the door, she notices an Ethral with a mask of various clockwork parts observing the bore. Hi. I see you’re looking at the bore here. What drew your attention?
((NAV, hi))

[Radio Controlled]

"I think going to a strong concentration of crystal would be a good idea, but before we try anything novel we could just ask the overmind how to reverse or cancel the deleterious signal. Perhaps it retains enough knowledge of how this thing works to be able to give us detailed instructions on how to undo this.

Alternatively, after some meditation I've determined that the dive required to divine the method of fixing this is doable. Not easy, and I'd definitely want a good sacrifice and some prep work, but it's a viable option.

Clate, it's up to you."

Help Clate with figuring this shit out.

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: 13
Awa: 12
Cun: 11
Kno: 10
Ner: 14
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Flammenvision!
Inventory

anti-heat suit
Soldier's chestplate
Clothing: simple priest robes, currently worn long to hide the black veins
Rubber Suit
Sobriety helmet: provides a +3 bonus against mind fuckery, though it will degrade over time as it gets "hit" with more effects.

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 broken crystal construct
labradorite rod

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
324 fathoms
5 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
set of numbered metal plates
anatomical drawings of ancient corpses found in the molten heart

- 0 x portal knife, not yet enchanted
- 1 x sacrifices for +3

1 x large collapsible doorway (large enough to allow crawler to move through), enchanted, but badly (!unknown destination!) :v
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.

[Pancaek]

Let me take another look at this thing. Now that Friend Kara has given me an idea of what it is and how it should work, I may be able to look at it in a more targeted way and figure something out. If I can, then I think we are already in the correct place to solve the problem. Seeing as this is the place the original signal was started and then catastrophically cascaded from, it would make sense that we should transmit the cancellation signal from here as well.

Going to somewhere else where the overmind is wouldn't really help much in regards to the signal, I don't think. When I spoke with the overmind in the other ruin it was through a kind of, ah, wired connection if you will. So that wouldn't help us with this 'wireless' signal, otherwise the Overmind surely would have already devised some way to do something in all the time it has had.

However, if I am not able to glean the way to cancel out the signal, we may still have to go ask the Overmind. Or let Friend Adam attempt his dive.


Now that Kara has told me the basics of what this thing is and how it works, take a look at it and this entire situation again (both in the general sense and using my crystal powers. Approach the problem from multiple angles if need be). Armed with the new info, try and figure out the way to send out a new signal that cancels out or replaces the one that is currently gimping the overmind.

Have Kara brainstorm with me if I think that could help.

Spoiler: Clate (click to show/hide)

Name: Clate
Race: Shluck
Description: To bring back the crystal race
 
Stats
Str:  12
Dex:  9
Spe:  10 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
End:  13
Awa:  12
Cun:  9 (+1 from levelup not added yet)
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
(((1 free skillpoint from levelup)))

Inventory
pair of crystal swords. (cut 6, pierce 3) They look basically like normal crystals, but flattened so that two of its sharp edges are aligned.  There are no handles, as you can just fuse them to your body.
10 Crystal spears (pierce 3)
6 crystal lazer guns (pierce 3)


Bladed Shovel - handle coated with Pseudomagnetic mortar
Knife (cut2, pierce2)
TNT x5 (3 fitted to spiderbots)
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 x2 (1 on loan to Kara, 1 in Clate's possesion)
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. Ramiel V2.0, half the size of the original
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.
7. 3 suicide spiderbots. Smol, fast, each holds 1 TNT charge.
8. Knifebirb: Two long legs, attached to a single, long, razor sharp blade of crystal. It moves in a jittery, rapid way that makes anyone with flesh that can be cut stay far away from it. Cassowary Sized.
9. Protecto: a big rolling wall of hexagons that can reshift themselves around to form shields of different sizes, shapes, and thicknesses.
10. Death Blossom:  floating flower, it has a bunch of little points  and when attacking it rotates rapidly in place, firing small energy bolts from those points, like a minigun.


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

[NAV]

Hi. I see you’re looking at the bore here. What drew your attention?
((NAV, hi))

"So it isn't abandoned after all. Hello!

 What drew my attention? Well it was the rather interesting state of the bore and it's repairs. What even happened to it? Y'see I'm a licensed bore mechanic, among other things, and I see a bore that looks like it might need a bit of TLC."

Look at bore. Attempt to discern model/year/place of manufacturing?

What sort of repairs are on it, and how high quality?

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Währeige
Description: An Ethral, a bit smaller and scruffier than average. It's difficult to tell where the grease stains end and his natural fur colour starts. He wears a mask with several clockwork mechanisms of unknown purpose and several interchangeable lenses.
Goal: Just wants to tinker
 
Stats
Str:7 
Dex:12 
Spe:10 
End:8 
Awa:7 
Cun:16
Kno:13 
Ner:10

Skills:
+2 Electrical
+2 Mechanical
+1 Machine control
+1 Chemical
+1 Weaponsmith
+1 Armoursmith

Inventory:
Mask
Clothes
Dynamo Lantern
Field Lighter
Empyrean Nail
100 feet of Silk Rope
2 units of Electronic Junk
2 units of Mechanical Junk

[Naturegirl1999]

Hi. I see you’re looking at the bore here. What drew your attention?
((NAV, hi))

"So it isn't abandoned after all. Hello!

 What drew my attention? Well it was the rather interesting state of the bore and it's repairs. What even happened to it? Y'see I'm a licensed bore mechanic, among other things, and I see a bore that looks like it might need a bit of TLC."

Look at bore. Attempt to discern model/year/place of manufacturing?

What sort of repairs are on it, and how high quality?

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Währeige
Description: An Ethral, a bit smaller and scruffier than average. It's difficult to tell where the grease stains end and his natural fur colour starts. He wears a mask with several clockwork mechanisms of unknown purpose and several interchangeable lenses.
Goal: Just wants to tinker
 
Stats
Str:7 
Dex:12 
Spe:10 
End:8 
Awa:7 
Cun:16
Kno:13 
Ner:10

Skills:
+2 Electrical
+2 Mechanical
+1 Machine control
+1 Chemical
+1 Weaponsmith
+1 Armoursmith

Inventory:
Mask
Clothes
Dynamo Lantern
Field Lighter
Empyrean Nail
100 feet of Silk Rope
2 units of Electronic Junk
2 units of Mechanical Junk

According to other crew mates, who are currently off doing other things, there was a diver who wasn’t careful. Don’t try repairing anything until everyone gets back. The results of the failed dive are in a sphere which is contained by a fungus, wanna take a look? As long as you don’t touch it it should be fine. My name’s Rhea. What’s yours?
Ensure that this newcomer doesn”t damage the bore while examining it

[Parisbre56]

"If you feel like you can do it, then I'll try to help..."

Kara shall also join the intense thinking session. Some of the below ideas are based on thinking of the problem as a signal or infection, so they might not really apply to this magic thing, but just in case they're relevant.
Can we simply "play" the signal in reverse?
Could we temporarily stop ALL Crystal transmissions to "kill" the signal and stop it from repeating, to force a sort of "hard reset"? Perhaps by using the weapon to force the overmind to transmit some sort of white noise signal equivalent? Would the original signal then "restart" due to the physical presence of Crystal, the Crystal serving as a sort of hard drive?  Has the physical Crystal itself been infected, meaning the corrupted signal would return? Would destroying the infected parts help? Or is it all infected?
Could we use diving to bring the original overmind signal from the past and use that as a guide to repair this thing?
Could we use diving to target the signal contained in the weapon and use it as a template to destroy the signal in its entirety?
Is this thing like an artifact? Could we burn it to go inside it and... I dunno, find the metaphorical representation of the signal and fix it there? Or insert Clate into the signal to serve as a new template?

If we aren't able to come up with a solution that would work here, then consider this: Would my idea of taking the weapon to a large concentration of Crystal (say one of those Crystal trees, the branches of the original Crystal that gave birth to the Crystal people, the ones Clare says exist somewhere off-map) and using the weapon as a sort of transmitter to boost their "original" signal and thus override the corrupted signal via sheer brute force? Or perhaps using their signal as a template for us to repair the signal in our local area?

Spoiler: "Kara" the Corven (click to show/hide)

Name: "Kara" is what most humans call her, though the closest pronunciation would be  Kr'ra-Kax
Race: Corven (advantage for climb, disadvantage for falls)
Appearance: She is a crow-like Corven with matte-black feathers. A bit short. Constantly moves her head around, examining her surroundings. Moves her tail up and down whenever she's excited.
Age: Adult, but just barely
Goal: Wants to find artifacts and experiences that she can use to make an (under)world-famous museum. Wants to prove herself to her mother and piss off her brother with her success (both financially and socially).

Status
Sacrificed left arm to reverse time (eaten by giant Shluck-like thing). Bandaged.

Stats
Str:11
Dex:14 
Spe:13 
End:10
Awa:12
Cun:12
Kno:13
Ner:12

Skills
Rifle: 1
Medical: 1
Translate: 2
Acrobatics: 1
Caving: 1
Machine Control: 1
Stealth: 1
Geology: 1
Archeology: 2
Navigation: 1
Unspent: 1

Inventory
Heavy Crystal Mirror Armour Shroud
Golden pin (in forearm)
Crystal Friend (with riding harness + Obedience Rod)
Radio
Telegrabber with Stasis Box (Rifle, 100 meters max grab range)
3 Stasis Boxes (diving enhanced containment container) for the Telegrabber
Ethral Rifle (scope+bipod) (rifle 3, pierce 3) 6/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 7/7
Ethral Rifle magazine 6/7
Crystal Weapon
Black Flame Crystal Golem
Field Lighter (Fire 2)
Shiny interconnected colorful gems
Grappling Hook + Ethral Silk rope 200 ft
1 Doctor's Bag
1 Dynamo Lantern (Light 3)
1 Knife (Cut/Pierce 2)
2 Slave Traps
Suit Repair Kit

In Storage
15 chemical junk
22 mechanical junk
Crystal Tablets (diary about All-Eater and Great Destroyer, inventory, obedience rod instructions, construct assembly instructions)
Church Documents (document ownership and events, and recommend favorable treatment)
Metal Card with the address of the Gilded Crow (corven Gangsters of Goldshore)
Mechanical Arm (not installed)
Bomb collar (unlocked)
All bomb collar remotes
A large number of shiny gold-like messenger path rocks
Notes on insect saddle construction
Ancient Bird-people idols
Ancient Mole-jewels depicting unknown beast
Simple Clothes (with hood)
Cot
Book (Adventures of Pilgrim)
Deck of Cards
760 fathoms (1% royalty for flame)

Kara's Diary