Dungeon World PBP play (Inactive)

Game Master Elsine

The Tears of Annalise would have been super useful when we thought that Ron was dead.

I turn the boots over in my hands. "Yes, these should do nicely. I've been smelling like livestock for far too long. I think it's been years since any of us took the time to bathe."

Roshan whips around. "Maybe it's slipped your mind, but cleaning our equipment and bodies is an essential part of our discipline." She turns to get confirmation from Cassandra, then remembers she's back at the castle with Seprahime.

Adjusting the fit of her armor awkwardly, Roshan follows Belym into the internal chamber.

Belym moves to help tend to the wounded person, pulling a set of bandages as she does so. "Belym Felstone, and some friends of mine. Glad we made it in time. Who are you? "

So, the ring offers a difficult-to-use form of flight, basically?

Yeah, a difficult, drowny sort of flight

Or several short hops/enhanced anime leaps where you hold your breath the whole time.

we are the eidonlons. left to be guardians of the seal. preserved by the magic of this chamber, able to defend the seal with our avatars, until they disabled them. he says, accepting the bandages,a nd using them to stanch his fellows bleeding

I expect the empire is in turmoil, for the seal to face so brazen an assault. another says. this one is a wrapping of faded velvet cloth, this one with more a resemblance to Conwall than Ron or Roshan, though still apparently human.

"What empire?" Roshan asks on the heels of the explanation. She begins to re-assemble the censure of Hebron to speed up the injured one's recovery.

" How long have you been in here? " Belym asks, almost the same time as Roshan.

Ron briefly examines the spearhead, shrugs and tosses it in his pack. He then rubs his eyes in disbelief as the party enters the door they were just fighting to keep closed. Wait ... gods damned it ...

He moves to defend the entrance, staying on the outside, and his ears perk up when he hears "eidonlon." Impossible ...

Spout Lore: 2d6 + 3 ⇒ (4, 3) + 3 = 10

The empire of Zorast the mighty, who bent the forces of magic to the will of man? Has your education been neglected? the one in faded velvet says

I do not know. the one tending the fallen alongside Belym says I think centuries, perhaps half a millennium. I think it has been a half a decade since that cultist roused us from our torpor

Ron

Some part of you remembers the term Eidolon. they were the the greatest servants of some mage-king, in the times before the fall, where some catastrophe tore apart an empire, leaving only ruins. You definitely have no way to know this, though. odd.

Spout (slightly different) Lore: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 3) = 8

Roshan

In the time before, the land was united in one empire. There aren't many records from that time, but the intervening millenia have rendered most, but not all, of their ruins to rubble. what remains is still powerfully magical.

this is from way back at the start of the game. like, two years ago. Ron and Belym might remember.

"All things considered, I believe your efforts outlasted anyone's estimation by ages." Roshan waits for someone to laugh.

Ron instructs the Cardinal to man the door, and then slips inside the Eidonlon chamber. Yer empire's dust, and yer seal is breached. Gotta ask. What're ye sealing in there, and better yet, how do we kill it?

Disappointed that she wasn't able to remedy the mood of the room with humor, Roshan mutters, "always seems to work for Conwall..."

That's one way t reak hard news

The empire is no more? What happen- Who was- How? the one in velvet says

Terrible mindrending abominations. Our king, with the aid of the gods, and the other Primordial Lords. we were only able to seal them away. If you seek to destroy them... Perhaps you can draw more gods to your cause, or rally the dragons again. Has the tradition of sorcery been kept alive in the world? The short one seems to possess it, and this one. he indicates Roshan If you can gather more of them, perhaps you would stand a chance.

"I doubt you'll be able to discover what happened; there hasn't been a Surfacer empire worthy of the title for centuries, maybe millennia." She glances back at the door, and the chamber beyond. " Can your seal be fixed? Are there others like it? "

Can we rest here while we help the Eidonlon's recover?

"I doubt you'll be able to discover what happened; there hasn't been a Surfacer empire worthy of the title for centuries, maybe millennia." She glances back at the door, and the chamber beyond. " Can your seal be fixed? Are there others like it? "

I mutter Well, there’s one...

Yer empire was destroyed by some catastrophe. I don't know what kind. And it has been long enough that yer mage-king's name is no longer taught to our children. I am sorry for yer loss.

Ron turns to whisper to Conwall. Would the elves rally against this foe? Or would we only bring devastation to this entire province?

I shrug It could go either way, I’m afraid. If we made an impassioned plea that this is not a foe one can just nuke there might be a chance. But by “we” I mean “not me” because I’m currently Elfsonoa non grata among my people. And by “we” I mean “not you” because they’d never listen to a non-elf.

What if we brought an elf here, to see what we have seen, and to make the case to yer people? Are there any that would at least hear us out?

I can think of a few, but they’d be equally likely to advise the council to destroy this area.

You can absolutely rest in the weird timeless room beyond the creepy death caverns

If the empire has fallen, I doubt there is still in existence the spells that forged that seal. The man who helped Belym says

A crude facsimile could maybe be made, but it would lack much of the failsafes and secondary wards. It would take me perhaps a month to begin, and I could no doubt spend years improving the design.

As for the other seals... We know there were two others, but we don't know where they were. a badly scarred man says But, I can tell you where you could discover it.

This seems an appropriately dramatic point to Call EOS

The scarred man rummages through a trunk in the room, until he brings out a very well preserved map. There were archives, places made to house the collected knowledge of the empire. they were meant to survive cataclysm and calamity. there are two, one beneath each of out great cities. one here He points to a place in central Boqeuq and the other here. he says, pointing to the holy city at the base of Pelnore.

Either one would have the location of the other two seals and much more; if you can get past the defenses

Spout Lore(Boqeuq): 2d6 + 0 ⇒ (2, 3) + 0 = 5
Uncomfortable with her thoughts on Boqeuq, Roshan turns to Conwall. "You feel like looking up your God's skirts? I'm not thrilled by our alternative..."

"Defenses? That sounds ominous. What kind of defenses?" Belym asks.

Conwall nods. Yeah, I'm not sure about that. I'm not exactly...welcome in the Elven lands. Do you remember those elves I killed a few days ago? They were here to hunt me.

Pelnore must be a last resort. The last thing I want to do is fight one hundred Conwalls.

Has Boqeuq been mentioned in the gameplay thread before? The search function seems to be broken. Also, it seems like the plague issue is tied to the aboleth issues, so we probably can't do more to help here in the duchy. Am I reading that right?

Search is working okay for me. It's a new word.

We're owed shout-worthy sums of coin... We can 'help' them with that.

I snicker. The last thing you want to do is fight one Conwall, but the point stands. None of us would survive a visit to the Great Forest.

Roshan

we aleady established this (more than a year ago)

Boqeuq: on the far side of the southern sea lies the strange country of Boqeuq. noted by visitors for it's incredible feats of architecture and engineering, unfamiliar flora and fauna, strange (Indeed, according to many mages and warlocks, impossible) forms of magic, and for it's apparent inhabitance by a race of psuedo-elves (Similar appearance, keen senses, and longevity, but lacking the preternatural speed, strength, and strange manner of death)

The green Vance... oh, what's her name again? anyway, she is in Boqueq, last you heard. why does she have it out for you, Roshan?

Belym

The standard, bound spirits, monsters, traps, enchatments and hexes the scarred man says

If you were an archivist, or with one, you could bypass them. But the archivists and scholars are all long dead. the man in velvet says

"That... is probably a firmer point than I had. Golnaz would not kill us all..." Roshan nods solemnly.

Golnaz Kaur of the Green Vance tutored Roshan on the basic tenants of Hebron's word while also teaching her reading, writing, and arithmetic. They had a fairly standard nun/student relationship until Roshan attempted to play a 'prank' on Golnaz by setting a fire in her library. Golnaz sent Roshan away (and not without threatening to send the then-teenage reformed imp to Hebron's side) forcing Danyal to abandon a high profile case in Boqeuq.

Search is working okay for me. It's a new word.

We're owed shout-worthy sums of coin... We can 'help' them with that.

So we finish up here, port to the Duchess to get paid, then port to "The closest I've ever been to Boqueq"?

Sounds like a plan. In the meantime, imma clear some bonds.

As the group prepares to leave, I approach Roshan hesitantly.
We should talk...

Roshan is kneeling when Conwall approaches. "Yes... Where would you want to start? That I am a demon-touched imp? Coming to terms with an evil past? Comparing notes on lost histories? What demons are actually like? Danyal's hunting of cambions? Is that... Should I not use that word? I've wanted to talk to you since we spoke to... Sarah, but I don't know what would be the least sensitive topic. I have not had an opportunity to talk about my past with someone who might be sympathetic to its... turns. Generally when the..." Roshan waves a hand over her face. "-fades there is less talking and more bloodshed... As I have said, I am no goodly person."

Any...all of that, really. I feel my world has turned upside down. I was raised to eliminate all traces of Asmodean corruption. “It’s better to extinguish a thousand lives than permit a single sliver of demon to thrive.” Discovering a trusted ally is a demon is one thing. But yo learn that my whole race decends from demon-kind? I can barely fathom the fallout if this becomes known.

I get quiet. There are those in power who are such fanatics that they’d end our race forever if they knew.

On board with Ron's plan.

Belym nods. "Alright. How do we even find the archive? "

Roshan nods. "It is easier, I think, for most to look at good and evil as two faces of a coin, seperate and distinct. I think we should start, however, with what I remember about the place folk call Hell, and what I have been taught as a Templar. When I was very young, I murdered my father, and this invited the Orphan Mother to my door. Her influence, and that of those like her can reshape an impressionable human child into a creature like those you killed." She stops, and an inscrutable cascade of emotions crosses her face. "I don't blame you for that. We are... dangerous in large numbers. I am fairly certain imps are not meant to live for very long in any case. I have never seen one my size, but I have not been under her influence in a very long time." Roshan's hand goes to a scar at the back of her neck.

"The demons I knew were petty, moody, and spiteful. They depend heavily on a social heirarchy, and I feel like their backstabbing nature is maybe more to do with overcrowding. They openly discuss who they hope to murder to make for themselves a higher position. Danyal called them Transgressors, which I used to think meant they did something wrong, like they broke the rules, but looking at it now, I think it's just because they came here from another plane. This one is exceptional, I think. Full of life. Hell is exceptional too. There are only so many ways in or out, but the Transgressors are clearly clever constructors of portals. I do not think it is a coincident that the aboleths and demons were cooperating here. What have you been told about them? Our teachings do not have a solid record of the events leading up to the demons' banishment. What shape does Elven history choose to take, if they have hidden this?"

Ron moves towards the group of Eidonlons. We will travel to the archive at Boqueq and do what must be done. How long can ye hold here? Are ye in need of supplies

Belym

Finding it will be tricky. the entrance would be buried like this one is. But it was built under the palace, and If our mages were as good as we thought, the enchantments will persist, if diluted. look for people with the traits of nobility. swordplay, bearing, Grace, and Magical aptitude. If there is an area near where I indicated that has those traits in abundance, it is like to be the place you seek. The man in Velvet says

Ron

We will not want for supplies in here the archer says But the door is breached. for the next while, we are dreadfully vulnerable. If we can make it a month, we can hold out for some time, I think.

Just ... hypothetically speaking ... what percentage of Norwhich's militia can I send through a shadow portal at a single time?

technically, as many as can fit in a small room... but may i remind you that Norwhich is on the border with Braxtos, a country that has intention of invading... and that these 5 are ancient warriors selected specifically for this task, and the norwhich militia are more-competent-than-average farmers and millers and the like.

It wouldn't be impossible for Roshan to send word to the Templars, just personally inconvenient. If we can get to Bocucumber quickly, we'll see Gulnaz anyway. They would be a kind of people to send for when defending a place from da evils, but they would come with... other complications, especially for the Duchy. Not Point-level community cleansing, but... lots of tough love.

Belym mutters to herself, " Should that list include arrogance?" Aloud, she replies, "Alright, I guess that'll have to do then."

Belym heads out to the antechamber, and kneels, pressing fists of stone and flesh to the floor. She casts her thoughts into the stone, but without the focus she usually applies, instead listening for what memories may be there, finding what may feel unique to this place.

Fictional justification (hopefully) for a way to find the archive without having to dig up the entirety of Boqueq. Let's ask the dice, shall we?

Discern Realities: what here is useful or valuable to me?: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (1, 2) + 1 = 4

...and the dice replied.

reaching down into the stone, you feel the old enchantments. they make the stone resonate, like a node. it is very distinctive. but also below you are the mindrenders, so so old they are almost stone themselves. and when you gaze into the abyss...

Belym, tell me, what precious thing do the Aboleths now know about?

A young dwarf girl stands on a stool beside her father, as he unrolls an old, well-preserved sheet of parchment. "And this, little one", the elder dwarf says, " shows our family's history." The map is covered with notes, marks, and lines, in a broad variety of hands. " This right here is where we are now..."

==============

Belym mutters "Get out!" before returning to the rest of the group. " If we get close, I think I can probably find the vault", she reports.

you guys heading out? gonna o anything for them first? Cjeck in at Eolen, at norwich, just going for Boqueck?

Roshan needs to check on Cassy and Sarah.

As they are finalizing their preparations for departure, Ron approaches Belym and whispers. I'm worried about these defenders. With the door open, they are vulnerable to all manner of assault. Could ye seal the door with stone? Might not be much, but its something.

Ron will also spend an hour thoroughly rifling through this cult complex. He is looking for documents, and any of his old gear.

Discern Realities?: 2d6 + 0 ⇒ (1, 1) + 0 = 2

Classic.