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[Luckyowl]

The museum has opened a new wing where works of art about the world of Orid Xem can be admired.
It can be found in the post with the museum items.

Great work Luckyowl, for me those descriptions on musical forms look like they are written in chinese, so I very much appreciate someone diving in and bringing them to life.
With the game currently getting graphics and music, there's some hope that someday the musical instruments will be brought to live in the game itself..

Thank you! Right now, I got a whole batch of songs. They're fairly easy once I established a format to extract these scales. After that I just tune it down to 430.5 Hz to give it a different feel and that's pretty much it. The only thing that's annoying is when the form contradict itself, but I just simply ignored anything that says, "play chords." when the former said, "The music is melody and rythmn, with no harmony."

But so far I really like Empire of Peeks for it's very middle eastern vibe. I'll upload more music from Orid Xem soon. After I fix some parts here and there. After that I'm thinking of doing the Wall Dyed forms. Which is honestly hardest, with all those scales changes, and such

I think my favorite one is the Lute of Glimmering from the High Confederacies(Sastpesor). I call it the Hymn of the Sastinite Soilder since it's meant to be played before a military engagement. The way I wrote has a solemn timbre. Probably to strike fear unto their enemies.

When I'm done with them I'll edit my post above and place them there. Another thing I notice, is that there is a lot of music form created by other composers in the world of Orid Xem. Really cool to think about.

Also Bralbaard, are we allow to use Advfort? I want to try something when my turn comes around.

[Bralbaard]

Looking forward to reading the rest, Glloyd!

Spoiler: Your adventurer certainly seems to have had some interesting effects on the world... (click to show/hide)

Regarding the hands of planegifts, if my theory about their populations growing until they overflow and get set to zero holds out, Hummedraces should pop soon. It's right at the upper edge of 32-bit signed integers now. In any case, I'm fully in support of nuking the bugged pops if we can find a way to.

You can fix Legends Viewer by opening up the world_sites_and_pops.txt file and deleting a digit or two off of the HoP population in Hummedraces.

Wait what? 
Charcoal Brutes are playable now?
The world is doomed...

Speaking about impending doom. I agree we have to do something about the hands of planegifts issue.
I think it would be wise to fix this before we move on.
So since I do not have the time (or likely the skill) to dive into fixing this myself we might as well turn it into a game, even if it is a bit Meta.

Whoever manages to fix this will get a commemorative custom engraved slab in the museum, which will state that you are the savior of the world, or something like that.
(I know I can do that in dfhack, at least).
I think Yarlig has a head start, he's done some good research. If we are unable to fix it directly, we should check if Nogoodnames theory that it should wrap back around to 0 holds up, that would make it manageable as well if it doesn't spread to too many towns.

I'll add Tonnot98 and Glloyd to the list for a new turn.

[tonnot98]

I hope this is at least providing a useful stress-test for Toady to figure out what the hell's going on in long-lived adventure worlds.

[Imic]

Hops from one foot to the other oh gooodddd, this is all giving me ideas for my next adventurer’s story. I can’t wait! Curse so many people reading and playing and enjoying this game and signing up for turns so they may continue reading, playing, and enjoying this game into the hopefully distant future assuming those hands of planegifts don’t actually undergo nuclear fusion and doom us all!

[Quantum Drop]

Hops from one foot to the other oh gooodddd, this is all giving me ideas for my next adventurer’s story. I can’t wait! Curse so many people reading and playing and enjoying this game and signing up for turns so they may continue reading, playing, and enjoying this game into the hopefully distant future assuming those hands of planegifts don’t actually undergo nuclear fusion and doom us all!

I know that feeling; been writing the basics of my guy's adventure for a week now. Still, that would be a pretty metal way for The Universes of Myth to go out - enough Hoppy-Bois spontaneously undergoing fusion/exploding that the world literally cracks apart.

Spoiler: Your adventurer certainly seems to have had some interesting effects on the world... (click to show/hide)

Spoiler: Didn't think much of it at the time, but: (click to show/hide)

That would explain what I found in one of my test runs (NGN's save, for posterity) - over in Incenseorder, there were a bunch of CB merchants crammed into a hall with a dozen Human merchants. Weirdly enough, they weren't hostile at all except for the Overlord (you may know that guy from past posts, as the guy that offed Braalbard), and LegendsViewer indicated they were all at Dabbling combat skills rather than the hardcoded ones. Is this a bug of some kind? Is this a result of them suddenly becoming peaceful traders? Can we get a gelotologist in here?

(Also, obvious that this may seem, I suggest amending the rules to forbid using Charcoal Brutes as playable characters or companions. Clowns are hax levels of killy, if only due to sheer size.)

[Glloyd]

I wouldn't be against nuking some of those towns if possible, I had a number of crashes during my turn where I'd (d) stop at a * group on the overmap or at a small town and the game would just lock up. I figured it was because of the HoPs around, because they seem to be moving from town to town. However I wouldn't want all the HoPs to be nuked. They show up as random enemies in the north, which adds to the eerie atmosphere.

Edit: I also encountered those charcoal brutes during my few trips to incensceorder. I was just waiting for them to attack me, but they all seemed docile. I wonder if some of my actions in Incenseorder have to do with that change regarding charcoal brutes. Hmmmm. (Edit2: actually yes, it is exactly because of what I did in incenseorder. DF is a funny game like that)

Also, Bralbaard, if you get a chance, could you post the population graphs again? I don't think my 300+ goblin kills made a noticeable impact, but I did inadvertently cause the deaths of about 10% of the total kobolds population, so I do want to see what sort of effect I had elsewhere.

[nogoodnames]

Speaking about impending doom. I agree we have to do something about the hands of planegifts issue.
I think it would be wise to fix this before we move on.
So since I do not have the time (or likely the skill) to dive into fixing this myself we might as well turn it into a game, even if it is a bit Meta.

So I did some poking around in dfhack's gm-editor. I managed to find the offending populations in df.global.world.world_info.sites[index].unk_1.inhabitants. Deleting the bad inhabitant entries seems to fix the problem. I was able to visit Hummedraces without crashing.

Disclaimer: I am still very much a dfhack novice. I don't know what broader consequences editing these values could have.

If you're willing to take a chance on it then I can make a save with the edited populations.

[Glloyd]

Part 2

Upon arriving in Drillshine, the first thing we noticed was the recently decomposed bodies of goblins lining the path towards the meadhall. The scene inside the meadhall was scarcely better.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

A number of humans stood around, taking care to avoid the pile of mostly goblin corpses in the centre of the room. One of the humans informed us that she was the lady of this village and asked us of our business there. When I told her that I was looking for information on Iden Bloodinked and the missing crown from Emeraldcrown. Upon mentioning Iden’s name her back straightened up. “I am the representative of Iden Bloodinked here. I rule Drillshine in the name of the Iden and the Walled Dye. We are his servants in the war against the goblins.” She went on to inform me that the leadership of the Nations of Honoring had been taken over by goblins from The Most Sin, and Iden had led some sort of war against the goblins, conquering various towns inhabited by goblins, and in Drillshine, slaughtering the entire goblin leadership of the Nations of Honoring.

Something that she said caught my interest however, so I continued to press her with questions; “Isn’t the Walled Dye a dwarven civilization? All of you are humans, and so was Iden.” “Of course,” she replied, “but as Iden taught us, the dwarves are the only ones who can protect the north against the goblin threat. The human leadership has failed us, so we have turned to the dwarves for salvation and we will retake the north in their name.” This was shaping up to be an intriguing tale, so I asked her if she knew where Iden had gone. Before she could answer, one of the other humans in the mead hall piped up “You should try asking the goblins at Lipbraided.” “Yes,” said the lady, smirking, “I’m sure the goblins at Lipbraided will have plenty to say about Iden.”

Undeterred by their behaviour, we left Drillshine, travelling east towards Lipbraided, passing by abandoned hamlets and villages along the way. At one point, we saw what looked to be thousands of Hands of Planegifts wandering around in the ruins of a village, so we made sure to steer clear of any such sites on our journey. Before long, we were at Lipbraided.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Although smaller than some of the other abandoned cities of the north, Lipbraided is still quite impressive. As with the other dead cities of the region, it was destroyed during the rampages of the necromancer armies in the 300s. Since then, it has remained largely uninhabited, a chilling reminder of the past horrors. Recently, a goblin religious cult has made Lipbraided home, and in the keep, we found what remained of them.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The exterior of the keep was lined with mangled goblin corpses, including what appeared to be a goblin corpse that had been butchered and prepared, a ghastly sight to be sure. Inside, the scene was similar, although there were some living goblins huddled in prayer. They were wary initially, for obvious reasons, but warmed up once we mentioned that we were trying to track down Iden Bloodinked to find the missing crown from Emeraldcrown. Apparently, Iden had come by here only a few weeks ago and slaughtered all the members of the cult who were living in the keep, including their cult leader, who had held that position since 286. In doing so, he stole the symbol of the cult, a legendary silver longsword called the Forest of Heather, along with some other minor artifacts. However, the goblins had no information on where Iden might have gone, only that he had headed south into the lands of the Most Sin, where he had carved a bloody path through the goblin war parties sent after him on his way through their territory.

--

At an apparent dead end on our journey, we decided to head to Incenseorder, to see if the stories about Iden stirring up insurrections held any weight. However, instead of returning across Razorbridge, we decided to follow the coast of The Peaceful Waters. Although this would take us through goblin territory, it was more direct than looping back up northwest to cross at Razorbridge. This proved to be a mistake, as the territory of the Most Sin was abuzz with activity. Goblin war parties roamed the countryside, likely searching for Iden Bloodinked. They were certainly eager to take out their anger on any human they saw, and although we tried to keep a low profile, we had the misfortune of running into a party of 20 or so goblins out for blood.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Although we managed to fight our way out of the ambush, we didn’t do so without adding a few new scars to our respective collections. This is the part of adventuring I had seemingly deliberately ignored, and I wanted no further part of it. Bruised and bloodied, we decided to abandon our trip to Incenseorder and return home to Boltspumpkin and the Shelter.

--

On our way back, we hugged the mountain range of the Perfect Horns in an effort to steer clear of any further ambushes. In doing so, we passed through what appeared at first glance to be an abandoned dwarven hillock. However, upon entering the hillock, we realised that it was still populated, and we stopped into the main mound, which was full of dwarves and animals milling around.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

They informed us that they were a party sent from Emeraldcrown a few months prior to reclaim this abandoned hillock. To my surprise, despite their isolation, they knew Iden well. He had passed through here on his travels and had actually recruited a number of dwarves to head north with him to fight the goblins. One of these dwarves, Id Ringshields, had helped Iden conquer the hamlet of Peekedstill to the north, and had also aided Iden in an insurrection at Incenseorder. Apparently, the party had split up after the insurrection failed, and Iden had headed north to the Nations of Honoring, while Id had returned home. He mentioned that he had heard that there were more insurrections in Incenseorder, although he had no idea where Iden had gone after heading north. All he would say besides that is that the stories of Iden having some hidden treasure trove were true, although its location was unknown to him.

--

We remained at the hillock only a short time before heading south again. A few days later and we had arrived back at Boltspumpkin. I stopped by the museum itself before returning to the Shelter of Adventures, and I left the poster from Emeraldcrown there, along with a small note of my own. If any adventurers do find the missing crown, hopefully it can be returned to its rightful place.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Back at the Shelter, I sat in the tavern and pondered our journey. It seems strange that someone so larger than life as Iden could simply disappear, and yet that seems to be the case. Perhaps someone at Incenseorder knows where he went, or perhaps it is just another dead end. For all I know, he could be in a hideout somewhere enjoying his ill-gotten gains, ready to return and wreak havoc on the people of the north at any moment. I had hoped the darkness hanging over Orid Xem would pass soon, but if my journey has shown anything, the world is darker than ever. The north is in chaos, and news from the south is full of stories of the horrors that followed in Raki’s wake. At least here, at the Shelter of Adventures, we can pretend to be insulated from all that. At least, for now.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

OOC: That's the end for now, I hope someone stumbles across my corpse on their journeys. It seems my trip had some interesting repercussions. Looking into it, the reason you can now play as a charcoal brute is because Incenseorder had peaceful charcoal brutes living there. After Incenseorder was conquered, they joined the Walled Dye, and sent an expedition to reclaim a Walled Dye fort. The population of the "dwarf" fortress is listed below:



Orid Xem is an interesting place.

[Yarlig]

Nogoodnames' I think it would in fact be good if you uploaded the save; this way everyone willing to help' but lacking any dfhack ability (including me' though I'm too busy right now to delve any deeper into this problem; if I manage to get anything' will share it here though) would get a chance to see if there are any consequences. Poke around' play an adventure or two' maybe make a fortress and see if anything happens in the long run. Best case scenario' everyone gets a personal piece of fun' messing with pops doesn't break the game and we can restart the turn list from your save. At least that's how I see it.

Also I'm seconding Quantum's suggestion to ban charcoal brutes; adventurers already have enough destructive potential' even with vanilla races.

[nogoodnames]

Heh, I was thinking of creating a demigod charcoal brute since I need to have an adventurer or fort to save the changes. Kind of a secret boss for anyone who sought it out. But maybe not...

I'll get the fix ready. It has been perfectly stable from my tests so far.

[Bralbaard]

Great work NoGoodNames! It's fine with me if you leave a single charcoal brute somewhere, you deserve it. but I'll update the rules later today that you can not have demon adventurers from now on. (edit to add: don't go on a full blown adventure with it, but leaving a named demon somewhere would be a !!FUN!! addition. )
I had some hope because of the name that this was one of those glass-cannon demons that die in a single strike because they are made of a brittle material, those might be somewhat fun if playable. It turns out that despite the name this one is not made of charcoal though, in fact my adventurer was killed by an unexpected charcoal brute encounter during my second turn. These guys should not be messed with, they are firebreathers and extremely though. They would be extremely overpowered as an adventurer.
For reference this is what they look like (from my earlier post):






I'll also update the museum posts later with the custom slab I promised for solving the planegifts issue, but I will add the in game slab at a later date, when I have another reason to pick up the save.

[Quantum Drop]

Yeah, TBH, I think we can all make a single exception for NGN on the whole Clown Adventurer thing. The idea of a hidden boss of a Clown adventurer is quite the Fun one, and could certainly open up some pretty cool possibilities.

EDIT: Also, fun fact for TheFlame52: your last adventurer (Galka Fancyrocks) is now a Countess of the Walled Dye. Quite the step up in the world, no?

[Tehsapper]

Nice to see that the Museum project is still alive and kicking!
I would like to sign up for a turn : )

[Bralbaard]

Nogoodname's demon could be a good excuse as to why all those undead have dissapeared. We could just say it was divine (or is that demonic?) intervention by the charcoal brutes. Anyhow, the demon should only be used for testing purposes.

Edit: Hey Tehsapper, good to see you are still around! I'll add you to the list.

[Glloyd]

The Journal of Iden Bloodinked

[The journal itself has been nearly destroyed by fire, and the wear and aging of the past 20 years have
only further deteriorated its condition. What is below is what was able to be salvaged by Glloyd
Ancientborn the Round]

749, Slate

…parents were killed by goblins when I was young, which fostered a hatred of those beasts in my heart
ever since. I was adopted by dwarves, and they told me stories of how the goblins had destroyed their
once great civilization. I felt at home with them, even though as a human I was still an outsider.
Nonetheless, they made me feel like part of their culture, and raised me with a wariness of goblins. I
think of my birth family and my adopted family every time we raid a goblin camp. Today was a good
haul, found an iron short sword that is of sturdy quality. It served me well in a raid on a town. A good day.



[the next few pages appear to be missing]

After raiding some of the small towns around Incenseorder, we returned to stash our goods in
Peekedstill. My recruits have taken to calling me lord, a title I’ve grown fond of. Iden Bloodinked, the
bandit lord. It has a certain ring to it.



I don’t feel bad killing some of the humans in these towns. Even though this land is still allegedly ruled
by humans, the cities are full of goblin filth, and goblins have infiltrated many of the leadership
positions.



Goblins even control the town of Incenseorder. The people there chafe under the harsh rule of the demon lord Pis, but my attempts to lead them against him have failed. His power is too strong. We are heading back towards Incenseorder to give it another try, hopefully we will be successful...

[a large portion of the journal after this is unreadable]

…moved to the north. … Large areas here controlled by goblins. We’ve come here in the hope that it
might be possible to reclaim these northern cities for dwarvenkind, and of course to find some good
spoils in the process. We can build a new dwarven kingdom here, as a bulwark against the goblin lands
of the Most Sin to the south. In the distant past, many here once swore fealty to dwarven warlords, but
now the cities lie in ruins, populated by goblin filth and the humans and elves they have subjugated. We
will change all of that…

…eekedstill was a good base, but we still need to establish a foothold up here. Tomorrow we move on
Lipbraided. It will be our new capital in this area.

13th Felsite

The attack on Lipbraided was a success. We slaughtered the goblins in the citadel, and anyone left was
forced to swear fealty to me as their lord. We made off with a good haul of loot too, including an
extremely ornate silver sword.





[the next few pages are burnt badly and are illegible]

…remnants of the necromancer armies. Hands of Planegifts they call them. They are easily dealt with, but they are found all over the place
here, and in larger numbers, they can prove dangerous. We lost Duli to a group of them earlier today.



Felsite ??

Escu died today. Killed by one of the many demonic creatures that dot the landscape up here. The group
that I had marched north with have all died in our war on the goblins. I press on alone.



Hematite ??

My war on the goblins continues. We have conquered villages all across the northern realms, and they
have been forced swear their fealty to me. However, I’ve decided to head south again, to try to recruit
some more brave dwarves to join me in my conquest. I will stop at the fortress of Emeraldcrown, before
heading further south to the hillocks near where I was raised.
…attacked by one of the same creatures that killed Escu. I managed to kill it, but I lost my leg in the
process



I managed to fashion myself a crutch, it’s slow going, but I’m learning to fight while moving with it. I was
attacked by some goblins today while crossing a river, and managed to defeat them, so I can still hold
my own.

…

I think my leg has become infected, I’ve been growing delirious. My hatred for the goblins still persists
however, and I will press on in my fight. I must gather up another army and push north again. The
leadership of the Nations of Honoring, the human realm that still claims to rule in the north, has been
entirely supplanted by goblins. Even their lawgiver is a goblin. I will hunt them down and kill them all in
the name of the Walled Dye.

…

Stopping at Emeraldcrown, I stole Galleyhazey, the crown Emeraldcrown is built around. Is it really
stealing if I am the lord of the dwarves? After all, it is my destiny. I am Iden Bloodinked, lord of the
Walled Dye, King of the Northern Realms. My enemies have begun calling me “The Mire of Cities”. I will
show them what they fear. We return to the north, for the last time.




[the remainder of the journal is severely damaged, I have included what pieces I could salvage below]

Malachite [?]

I slaughtered them all and bathed in their blood. They ran into the pits and I followed. I bashed their
heads in with my crutch and watched them die slowly. Justice has been dealt here today.




--

Arrived at Drillshine, the town where the leadership of the Nations of Honoring resides. Tomorrow, I will
strike.




--

Moving back towards Peekedstill. The Most Sin still rules at Incenseorder, where my rebellion failed
many months ago. I will have my victory this time against the Demon lord Pis and his goblin followers.

[The journal ends here. Iden allegedly did kill Pis, although what happened to Iden afterwards remains a mystery]


9th of Malachite, 749

With one final blow, Pis Meadowshafts collapsed to the ground, dead. Iden collapsed into the nearby throne. He had done it, he was finally in control of Incenseorder. The Most Sin had been pushed out of this part of the world, and he was king.




Iden tried to get up, but his strength had left him. Smoke filled the air inside the keep, and he had trouble breathing. A small rest wouldn't hurt, right? After all, he was the king...