And yeah, go ahead and vote on the sparring. Or discuss it.
I missed that. ooc sparring would be fine, IC he’s not inclined to go outside, they’re too far up.
Also, I’m confused about why everyone’s still doing spoilers for the common room, since that’s where all PCs are. Or did I miss something?
Darn good question, Thalmor. :D I went with the flow. And Thuurvi asked Thalmor something, and sort of indirectly asked Three something.
I was still doing them because technically Catalyzer is still part of the party and is still not in the room. But you are correct, there is not much of a need for them now. Let's go ahead and drop them unless someone is having a private conversation or leaves the company of the rest of the party and does something they wouldn't have knowledge of.
Thanks for answering that post, Thalmor.
Alright, go ahead and role-play what you all do for the next couple of hours (2-3) on the ship, and finish off the conversations that you're having. I'll post what the rest of the ship is up to by and by.
We should work out what the contract was that you signed. Something a little off the beaten path, a little odder than a standard contract. We also run into the curse and mark that apply last one week at your first level...which almost certainly has passed now. How was Thalmor planning on handling that, and what does he plan to do when he catches up with this guy? (only I don't want him then trying to haul this guy off back to wherever in character).
Also, Thalmor I just noticed the new portrait. Love it!
I was reading up on Kol Korran and the Oathkeeper, just so I am familiar with things that might affect your character in the story. It is an intriguing build in Eberron. Kol Korran is True Neutral and actually isn't about oaths, so much as commerce, and even has more association with the trickery Domain. Likely from the "do business better and maybe you won't get screwed" mindset, or something. Kol Korran is even known to work against the rest of the Sovereigns for his own benefit on occasion, which I did not know about.
Sure, there is a conflict between sources. The eberron/pathfinder conversion site assumes that he’s Lawful Neutral. It also gives him the earth domain. I was using that without going back to my old books. The combination of the various things seemed to fit with the character design.
That said, commerce always requires contracts, and an inquisitor of the deity, regardless of their alignment, would probably be dedicated to people who disrupt commerce. Not all inquisitors of his would be oathkeepers, but he is.
We should work out what the contract was that you signed. Something a little off the beaten path, a little odder than a standard contract. We also run into the curse and mark that apply last one week at your first level...which almost certainly has passed now. How was Thalmor planning on handling that, and what does he plan to do when he catches up with this guy? (only I don't want him then trying to haul this guy off back to wherever in character).
So, Thalmor didn’t sign a contract, he stamped a contract between two parties with his seal. Other parties sign it. He doesn’t take any penalties if it’s broken, the breaker does. He also knows where the creature is, and who broke it, for one week after its broken. The contract, as written, lasts forever until the terms are fulfilled, only the curse lasts weeks.
Regarding the time since it was broken, well, the background that we worked on was that the bad guy “breaks it” thinking he’s safe, and Thalmor immediately knows and turns around. So technically, it’s been as long as it took for him to hop onto an airship. If you remember, he immediately stopped what he was doing, and went back to Sylbaran on the rail in the first draft - which you changed to an airship. I had intended that we get there with a handful of days to spare, that we find the guy, arrest him, and he gets to be jailed in Sylbaran, as he would have committed the crime there and be subject to their laws.
If you intend to change the timeline, then obviously tracking down the oathbreaker without the aid of the curse becomes adjacent to impossible unless they decide to stay in the town after their threat. You can do that, but I suspect that this will be the only time during the campaign when the ability is used, so it might be better to let me scrap the archetype completely (if we’re not using it in the background and it won’t be used in the future what’s the point). Let me know!
Thanks :)
Yeah, I knew they take the penalties and the contrast is between them, my thought was more of what is the contract and who are the people who signed it, so I might start to weave them into the story. :)
That works. He was in Sharn when it broke, and he quickly grabbed this airship. Okay, that works with the opening I wrote, of you saving time and money. Good.
I was going to ask about that...if you wanted to keep it in Perpetuum. I am fine with you being that and moving out of it and into something else at 2nd level at essentially no cost. Just role-play a little as we go that he's moving away from it and it'll be good to go when you hit 2nd level.
Awesome!
Regarding the contract, I will write something up tonight (though I’m not a lawyer, I do work a lot with land use lawyers as an engineer) and email you. I’ll be making assumptions about the NPC he’s hunting, so you should modify them as fits the story (maybe they could be an existing NPC?)
And as for the archetype, what it replaces is very minor. I’ll think about dropping it. If we do, we can treat it like “retraining” if you’d like, though it may be best to handwave the requirement that he find another inquisitor. The thing is, track is a very minor thing to lose, and monster lore is useful at the margins (+3 to 5 of Thalmor’s skill checks). If he graduates to more adventuring and less banking, it might make sense, but it may be a convenient way for us to dispose of enemies instead of killing them. As he levels up, once they’re jailed, we (the party) can ask that they sign a contract to do something to make amends. They could also just go to jail, but if Thalmor is level 6, for example, and has grabbed a headband of wisdom, a -4 penalty for 6 weeks along with the party being able to track them down anywhere on the plane is a pretty good incentive. Maybe it’s a good reason to stay in Sylbaran. The reaches are so far from everything, there could be value in having a non-lethal way of dealing with lawbreakers.
Two off-topic questions,and something that you have to use your discretion to decide:
1) Many deities have special creatures they can summon. But obviously this mechanic isn’t native to Eberron. I couldn’t find a sacred animal for Kol Korran either. Thalmor is getting a lot of interesting ones for free, so he doesn’t *need* this but I thought I’d mention it.
2) Most deities in Golarion have a deific obedience, one of my favorite PF feats, and one I almost always grab if my character is a religious one. Would you be interested in making one of these? Or adapting an existing one?
Yeah, I actually love specific summons to specific deities.
Tell you what: suggest a specific summon that is about the relationship that Thalmor has with Kol Korran, and I'll consider it. And if you would like to make and propose deific obedience and benefit, I will consider that as well. It is a Feat I literally have never used, lol. So get creative, lets see what you've got that is interesting. I like flavor over bonuses (flaming swords are interesting, +1 swords are dead lame; 50 magic missiles are lame, 10 maximized magic missiles are more interesting, etc.)
I hope everyone is having a relaxing Valentine's weekend! It was here. Nice and peaceful with about 8 to 12 cm of snow.
I'm still interested in a vote on the sparring when you all have time. :)
I'm up for sparring!
Ooc I am but I doubt IC Thalmor would be. He’s, as of yet, not here to make friends (also he has no friends other than his summons).
One for, one IC not for. Three, Jacynta and Tuk?
For what it's worth, I'm familiar with the changes mittean has made to the combat system, and I think it would be in everyone's best interest to see them at work in a combat that won't have lasting consequences. If we can make it work IC that's cool, but even for those who don't necessarily want their character to participate, having the rest of us do it so everyone can see and ask questions and stuff would be beneficial. I helped him come up with some of the ideas and test most of them, and everyone that has played with them so far has enjoyed them, but they do definitely change the feel and flow of combat in ways you haven't seen in RAW.
Sure a bit o' the fisticuffs would be fun!
Alright, I'll start that this evening. I'll set it up IC, so you should be able to just role-play it. Combat will likely start by tomorrow, once the dialogue is done.
I'll post a rough summary here, explaining the basic idea, while we're doing the smackidy-smacks.
Okay. Big post is up.
If anyone is ever unsure of anything, it’s totally okay to ask here. I try to write in a way that gives all the information that you need, but I do miss things on occasion.
Alright, let me explain my combat briefly, in concept.
First off, as I’ve stated: active defense. So you roll your attacks AND you roll your defense, as do enemies, rather than using 10 as your base as you do with AC.
But when someone rolls a defense and BEATS the attacker, they activate something I call Reactions.
The idea for Reactions is simple: attacking is boring, as damage is non-descriptive and not tactical. And defending is even more so, as it’s a static number (AC) with no repercussions.
Reactions work very simply: when someone misses an attack, because the defender beat their attack roll with a Defense roll, a random reaction is triggered. This is the Defender “taking advantage of the moment, of an opening, or a mistake”.
Reactions can be done TO you as well if you miss someone, so be wary.
Typical reactions give you some sort of tactical situation to respond to. It is USUALLY beneficial.
For instance, you might sweep someone’s weapon into their allies attack, messing it up. You might bull rush someone back, or shove them away, or bowl someone over. You might damage their weapon, or armor, or an item they carry. They might get their weapon stuck in something for a round. There are many, many options.
These mostly come from Combat Maneuvers, although they are changed a little (the first being you don’t need to be trained in them to React with them. You still must be trained to ATTACK with them). There are minor changes to fit better, and other maneuvers I’ve found on the interwebs, and ones I’ve created myself.
These create TACTICAL responses - what do you do when an orc knocks your sword out of your hands? (Use weapons you rarely touch, or retreat); what do you do when your ally bull rushes a displaced beast right into your hands? Or into range of your spell? What do you do when your Barbarian companion shatters the shield of the giant you’re fighting? What do you do when he shatters yours?
Hopefully this will come across on a pbp, and be cool and fun. And hopefully it will make sense.
:)
My only distant concern with active defense is how it will run in pbp. Do you want every PC to roll their own defense rolls every single round of every fight (in spoilers)? How many should we roll, and should we roll all three of our defenses?
It may be better for you to roll the defenses for each PC, otherwise I expect the pace will be considerably slower than regular pbp (where the typical round takes one day already). Especially since you have to run the active defenses of each enemy as well, because we don’t have access to their stats.
I am planning on rolling the defenses. That way, for you all, it feels no different than if it was AC. At the table, I do have players roll competing rolls, but not on a pbp.
Thalmor and I will happily watch sparring, etc. but I don’t think IC he’d be keen on going upstairs out of the relative safety of the inner part of the common room.
I'll let you all decide: when running combat, how long should I let go for a round before I "bot" a character? One day? One week? One month? ;)
I give people 24hrs from my last combat post...
That is my knee-jerk thought.
Thalmor has a HeroForge mini linked in his description! Ha! I love it!
Hey Thuurvi, how tall are you? What are your weight and eye color and age as well?
Thalmor has a HeroForge mini linked in his description! Ha! I love it!
I couldn't find a perfect picture, though the one I found was pretty good. I had never used HeroForge before so it was a fun experience.
Yeah! Jacynta got my girlfriend and me miniatures made from there as a surprise when he was running Strange Aeons for us for a bit.
Honestly, everyone would likely enjoy going and designing one.
Thuurvi is 6'2". HeroLab, that tremendous liar, says I weigh 257 pounds. Hair: orange. Eyes: orange. Skin: gray. Age: 17.
There are no great examples in stories, movies, tv, and games of healers, clerics, holy men, and oracles casting spells...because that is not what the character type is for. Personally, I hate clerics. And bards. Eff bards. GD loony fancy-pants humming morons get the F out of the way before the dragon eats your fa - never mind. He already ate it.
I like clerics and oracles (typically) to be the NPCs that the party visits in town...come in, get some miracles from the priest, receive a vision from the oracle, check some lore with the bard...go back out on a quest. Because that is what those archetypes are for in stories, lol.
But in this game, they exist. Sigh. So typically I address it as they perform miracles. For an oracle, perhaps it's about manipulating the world through will, and accepting the guidance of nebulous ideas (like the Force). Or trying to explain strange occurrences. Like, her confidence in winning becomes the Bless spell, but as she draws her dagger, mist seeps up from the floor and falls from the ceiling...why? HOW THE HELL WOULD SHE KNOW. She hates it, this kind of crap always happens. She's not accepting the curse...she's cursing it, but utilizing it. Like blind Chirrut, he praises the force, but just sort of does what he's going to do, and plays off all his luck being something else influencing chance...not him casting spells.
Calipso in Pirates 2 and 3 (despite being an imprisoned deity) comes across as a witch/oracle...curses, hexes, magic of bones, visions, predictions, crossing the veil...even resurrection. She's likely the closest I can think of. She doesn't cast a spell as they are falling off the end of the world...she just rolls bones and consults them. She pets a crab (and likely casts commune with animals or locate Jack Sparrow or sommit like that), but all she tells everyone in the party is "witty Jack is closer than you think."
That is likely how I would play it. Make it clear you're doing something...but don't call it a spell, or casting. Get creative. I will likely try to utilize you for stuff on occasion, story-wise because of that.
Perhaps remove the statement of "I cast bless." Instead, laugh and throw cheese in the air (please don't) or blow smoke from your mouth. The what happens is defined by the rules. The how, within reason and theme, can be defined by you.
An oracle is about destiny more than choice. It's about seeing things that aren't there, about getting to understand ideas and truths that others have through different paths, paths that seem strange and dangerous to others. It's about a journey of the self, for while wizards may have Wizardly Orders, clerics may have religions, bards may have colleges, psions may have esoteric disciplines, but in the Occult magic...it is all about self.
What if you referred to them (and actually, when I say refer to, it is almost just in Thuurvi's head...how she thinks of them, not what she calls them, necessarily), something like this:
These were just thoughts I had, figured I would through them out here to you. Do not feel obligated to use them at all. The idea of using your senses to detect poison, and later on in your career using your inspiration to have Crown of valor or your awakenings to control light...it might not track exactly with everything, but it is a thought of vocabulary she might use for herself.
Neat. I will have a think on it as well. I almost wonder if what Thuurvi should be 'saying' during 'casting' is something in a sort of made up language to keep the demons from taking over her soul. Like, the words have nothing to do with the 'spell' per se, but are her own warding mantra.
By the way, fellow players: yes, Thuurvi spoiled everyone's view. She likes chaos and she'll attack with everything she's got if she doesn't have to hold back. Thus is the curse of Obscuring Mist type stuff! :D I promise more team-friendly tactics in a real fight so as to not be Chaotic Jerk, but battlefield bothersome is what she's built for. (Maybe we can get goz mask equivalents in the future.)
Eberron is nice because faith comes back...we do not know if deities walk amongst us. As a matter of fact, aside from ancient culture myths, we know they do not. This is a world of men and monsters...but no Fizban, no Mordenkainen, and no Elminster, and also no Torag, Mishakal, or Pelor.
I like the idea of callings. That is a good name. Great flavor. (If it's not obvious, I love flavors, lol.) Treating them as if they are halfway between a summon and an Eidolon. Incidentally, the greater form of Summon is Calling, IIRC. When you use Planar Ally or Planar Binding, I think. Other good options could be things like Invokes (rather than Evoke) or Convokes if you decide not to use Callings. Whatever you choose, I like them!
Welcome back Three!
We live in Utah. Snow is customary here. But I hope you’re safe and heated. That makes it unbearable.
We’re just waiting on Tuk’s AoO, his Immediate Action, and then I can finish that round.
If I am likely to have an AoO for some reason (reach with combat reflexes) I tend to pre-roll. But I know that’s because I’m extra fastidious, so as a GM I roll my player’s AoOs (few other people do this). You should consider having us plomp in a standard attack at the top of our profiles if you go that direction.
You should do it whatever way you want, I’m just letting you know a handful of tips that I learned in my limited time doing pbp GMing :D
Yeah, I debated on that. Because it’s another back and forth (which is the biggest time suck.) Assuming people are posing regularly, I’ve no worries with it. Or I can do them. I’ll take feedback from the group, see what everyone else thinks.
As I was writing this last night, I came upon a situation I didn’t like. Valeros bumbling blindly out is going to run into Three and Tuk. There are no rules for that. They just state “you stop”. Which I hate, as the real world does not function that way.
The closest rule is Overrun. But this isn’t something he’s choosing to do...it’s unintentional. Which is not normal. (You really have to choose to Sunder or Steal or Bull Rush). I don’t like forcing the use of this Combat Maneuver and stealing an action PLUS provoking an AoO...so I decided that he will provoke (cause he’s doing it, even unintentionally) and get the result for the same reason, and then he’ll get his normal attack. And then a feisty halfling is going to get up in his grill.
Before I go, can I consider his failed overrun to be a missed 'attack' for the purposes of firing off my.immediate action?
Yeah, I'm in the northeast, so snow is a typical winter time. Its just a bit much with the wife teaching from home while everyone's stuck inside.
Go ahead, Tuk. Consider it a failed attack, and do an AoO and an IA.
My treatise on Underfoot Assault and the 5 ft. step.
Everyone can read this, but the rule specifically applies for Tuk. I've put it under spoilers because it is...lengthy.
I actually haven't seen much discussion on this. This implies that you can't just be anywhere under a giant, with your ally around them to get the flanking bonus. It implies the two of you must be adjacent. Honestly, my knee-jerk is to hate that for being hyperbolically limiting and specific. They repeat it specifically again here, being very specific to identify both sides of the flank. Here is the difficult wording. "if the foe attempts to move to a position". It doesn't address 5 ft. steps or a withdrawal action being stated exceptions to a movement that provokes an AoO. I think it is important that they were hyper-specific just one line before. This implies to me this is a broader term, not a specific term, meaning it covers more, not less, for this situation alone.
The triggering cost to get into the Underfoot Assault is:
What you get from the underfoot assault:
Because the AoO is about ending the ability, a 5 ft. step and full withdrawal action will trigger an AoO from the mouser, as an exception to the normal rules of 5 ft. step and full withdrawal actions. This would end the Underfoot Assault, which would need to be re-engaged with a missed attack, a Panache point, and so on.
I am willing to rule this: if an opponent steps away, and you have the Step-up Feat or greater, you may spend a Panache point to retain the Underfoot Assault status.
In summary:
Phew. Game theory to the max. Lol.
Hopefully, I have not missed anything or had any logical fallacies. This time, lol.
hmmm. Quite the analysis :).
Nice little feat chain you've laid out for me !
Thanks, I have problem at all with your interpretation.
Just checking in with everyone. It is the player's turns,
I have removed Catalyzer from the group.
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Okay, I have gathered together everything the party did in their first scene, up to just before the combat. I wrote it up as a narrative and was able to keep everyone's dialogue about 95% the way they wrote it. The only changes I made were to help the flow of reading (like if a word was said then repeated again the next sentence, or if two characters said very similar things), to change around the flow of the story (making it so all the disparate lines that were out of place fall in place, creating a flow), and any grammar or punctuation. I changed the tense of the story to be past tense, rather than active, as that fits a story better. Sometimes this necessitated minor changes. I did cut out a dream, and the scene above deck for now (they are separate scenes), and trimmed the opening to be a little smoother. Usually, if I removed something, I tried to find another spot to insert it.
Hopefully, none of the changes upset anyone. :)
It came in at 11 pages, and reads pretty well, I think. I wanted to let you guys know before I posted it anywhere. I am considering posting on the campaign journals page, on the giantslayer page, and perhaps on the Eberron Reddit, if no one objects.
Here it is:
The room lay in darkness. The cramped quarters were full of bunk beds, their occupants having arrived late last night. A small ever-burning lantern hung by the door, its hood allowing just a crack of light to pierce the darkness of the room.
Thalmor had not slept well. With every bump and sound reminding him - and his insides - that he had boarded the House Lyrandar airship ‘The Colossus of Stormhome’.
Departing Sharn late last night, he had pulled some strings to get him aboard and was now bound for the town of Sylbaran in the Eldeen Reaches. A bit of luck, it seemed, to be able to go straight to his destination rather than forcing him to take the lightning rail up to Passage in Aundair, and then charter a House Orien Coach down to Sylbaran. The whole journey would have cost upwards of 250 galifars and taken two more weeks of travel. This was strikingly easier. It also involved a very uneasy dwarf flying. That was strikingly more difficult.
A bell sounded for cooks to begin preparing breakfast in the main kitchen.
The halfling Tuk jerked up in his bunk, his eyes wide, his breath hard in his chest as if he'd actually been pressed into the ground and crushed. As the warforged Engineer #3 Mk. II rose from a nearby bunk and exited the cabin in the dark, Tuk was glad the dim light kept his shameful reaction hidden.
Taking a deep steadying breath, he shook his head, his damp locks splatting against his neck and cheeks.
Thalmor groaned quietly, kicking his legs out of the bed, while he rubbed the back of his neck. He pinched the tip of his beard, twisting it. With a heavy thump, his broad feet ‘plomped’ onto the ground, swaying uncomfortably as the airship hit a pocket of rough air. Blinking blearily, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes as his tummy growled. He frowned as he grabbed his stuff, eyeing the rest of the sleeping room in the flying airship they were on.
Thalmor grumbled audibly and exited the room to find whatever vittles these airship masters might have scrounged. His eyes adjusted to the darkness as he made his way with heavy footfalls through the storage compartment in the next room over, before climbing the steep stair out of the passenger section of the hold. The ship creaked sleepily around him. Ahead, he could make out quiet voices talking...likely the warforged that left the room a bit before him speaking in low tones with someone else.
The common area ran the width of the ship, almost forty feet wide at this point. A table and chairs lay just in front of Engineer #3 Mk. II with cabinets full of loaves of bread and other sandwich fixings against the left wall. Another steep stair directly to the left of the door led up to the main deck, chockablock with boxes and barrels strapped in behind the stair and hanging from the rafters over the cabinets.
Beyond the table, a counter jutted out from the left wall, full of other cooking utensils and some foodstuffs.
To the right of the door, a couple of bodies lay wrapped up in bedrolls on the floor in front of a padded wrap-around bench built into the walls. They snored softly, while above them a hammock lay empty.
Another counter jutted out from the right wall; it was kitty-corner, and offset just enough from the one on the left to allow passage between them. The deep blue of early morning from the portholes along the walls glinted off bottles and other drinking utensils.
In the dim area beyond the two counters, light from the lit stove of the kitchen could just be made out; a recognizable silhouette stood in front of it.
Roderik d'Deneith turned and smiled. "Good morning, Engineer. Sleep well?" Roderik chuckled at his own joke.
A groan emanated from one of the bedrolls on the floor, and the groggy voice of Kurst Grath, Roderik's younger brother, croaked out. "It is way too early for your Khyber-spawn puns brother." He rolled over towards the wall. "Three, please throttle him and his happiness so I can sleep."
"Good morning Roderick. Kurst.” Three said entering the room. “I am unable to strangle happiness, and it would serve no purpose to slay someone so obviously in distress. Perhaps a caffeinated beverage and some warm foodstuffs would improve your disposition Kurst? May I be of assistance in the galley?"
Scratching himself and muttering crossly, Thalmor stumbled into the room and maneuvered around the detritus towards the table and chairs. He pulled one out and settled into it, withdrew a ledger of sorts, and began to examine it, making notes at the margins. It seemed that he was waiting for something, and the furtive glances towards the kitchen, along with gurgling dwarven belly, made said thing apparent after a short while.
Roderik laughed jovially at his brother and Engineer #3 Mk. II "Absolutely. Get over here, you can help fry up some tomatoes. We're on our own this morning, the lords and important folk are having breakfast up in the main galley."
Roderik pulled out a mug and a craft of beer from a storage locker. "Let me get you an ale, Master Thalmor," he said, greeting the dwarf. "I was told you would be joining us on our trip home.” Condensation dripped down the sides of the craft, wettening the table as Roderik plonked it down, a dark brew slopping over the sides. “Welcome."
Thalmor looked up and nodded, a nearly imperceptible movement at the corner of his mouth betraying his pleasure at morning ale, "Aye, lad, much obliged." He gripped the handle of the mug, taking a draught of the dark liquid. The foam caught here and there on his bushy beard, and he wiped it off with the back of his sleeve. He nodded, satisfied, "not bad for a morning brew, at least," he said in a gravelly voice. He rubbed his brow a moment and then returned back to his ledger.
Thuurvi wandered in, chewing on a bit of dried ginger. She yawned hugely, displaying distinct canines on top and larger tusklike ones on the lower jaw of a half-orc.
"Thuurvi, good morning,” Roderik smiled at Thuurvi as he headed back to help Three.
Tuk emerged after Thuurvi and nodding politely made his way to the stairs leading up to the deck of the ship. He carried a bandolier and a weapon belt and was rubbing his neck. His wild shock of red hair caught Thuurvi’s notice, her own hair in a long orange braided plait down the center of her head trailing down her back.
Watching the halfling exit above decks, Roderik flipped an egg. "Thuurvi, would you like some fried tomatoes and eggs with a couple of rashers of bacon?"
"That would be wonderful, Roderik.” Thuurvi nodded at Roderik's gaze following Tuk, ”...ah, I guess he's not going for breakfast just yet?” She chuckled, “I'll be the honorary halfling and eat his breakfast as well if he doesn't come back. My stomach is regular as a clock,” she yawned, “even if I didn't sleep well." She hovered for a moment near the cooking area, wanting to help out before taking a seat. "I would help, but spoons and knives tend to fly around me at times."
“Kurst!" Roderik exhorted, kicking at the lumps on the ground. "Rise and shine!"
A young female halfling entered the room. She glanced around as if looking for something as Kurst rolled over with a groan, “Sovereigns be damned. I'm getting up."
"Are they discussing the artifact up there in the lofty halls of the blessed gentry?" Thuurvi asked, running her black fingers through her bright flame-colored hair.
A man belched, "unlikely," he said entering the room. He smiled at the young halfling woman fondly, hugging her. "Jacynta! Good morning, my dear. So glad you could join me again."
He crossed to the table with Thuurvi and Thalmor seated at it, and tossed a leather journal on it, followed by a quill, a jar of ink, a handkerchief, several coins, a loose bit of paper, and a mouse - which promptly scurried off the table into the detritus around the edges of the room. "Oh dear, how'd that get in there?" he chuckled, walking over to pull out a mug from a shelf behind Kurst, who was still lying on the ground, his elbow over his eyes.
Thuurvi narrowed her eyes at the mouse as the man gestured to Jacynta to join him at the table.
"My name is Aemon Grahame if you please," he sighed, sitting down and pulling the craft of beer over to him. "I am the scholar who found the Xen’drik artifact in question.” He scoffed, “‘artifact’..." shaking his head he poured the beer from the larger pitcher into his cup, to find it had only a few drops left. "Odd that," he looked inside the craft as if there might be some alcohol still hidden in its depths, frowning. "It's a pillar. A stone..." Roderik handed him another craft of beer, "- thank you. A pillar of stone. A stone pillar. Apparently, it comes from the town of Sylbaran," he brandished his now full cup in salute to the room in general. His eyebrows raised as he spotted Thuurvi's twisted shadow on the wall behind her before dismissing it with a shrug. "So...reason to celebrate!”
Jacynta eyed the bacon and the offered seat but remained standing. Distracted, she peered back over her shoulder into the ship where she had just come from after not seeming to see what she was looking for in the common area.
Aemon took a long pull from the mug. His skin was a soft red-chocolaty hew, very warm, and had clearly seen the sun. His hair was a lovely dark shade with bits of grey, a large swoop of his forehead bald. He had a neatly trimmed goatee that had gone mostly gray. He had to be almost sixty and had a likability about him despite his gruffness, and a playfulness that belied his age.
"Aemon,” Thuurvi nodded at the dark-skinned man. “Thuurvi Muth-la-Zash, a Jhor'guuntaal of the Reaches, although my family was originally from the Marches,” she said sipping her water.
"Kurst." Roderik snapped. When nothing happened he barked, "Custennin Grath!"
Kurst lurched up, entangled in his bedroll, his white legs on display under his nightshirt. "I'm up, I'm up!" he groused.
"A jogun - I'm sorry...” Aemon leaned forward, stroking his goatee, "a jo...jogunt -"
"Jhorgun'taal," Kurst grunted, pulling on his pants, his tongue trilling on the 'r' in Jhorgun'taal. He looked remarkably like his brother if his brother needed a haircut, hadn't slept all night and was two drinks in. "It means 'born of...” he stopped pulling his pants up and closed his eyes for a second, thinking, "...both bloods', or something like that."
Next to Kurst in the other bedroll on the floor, another man stretched and yawned, his mustache curling up at his cheeks. "'Two bloods'."
"Help yourselves." Roderik set down a couple of plates of bacon, fried tomatoes, toasted muffins, and bright butter. "Omast is right. It is 'two bloods'. Actually, correct me if I am wrong, my lady, it means 'child of two bloods', correct'?" He gestured welcomingly to Jacynta again to sit and join them.
Thalmor stopped writing for a moment, and took a swig of ale, watching the warforged cook.
Thuurvi turned back to Aemon, amused. "Yes, Roderik has it. 'Child of two bloods'. The Shadow Marcher orcs took in many humans long ago when none else would have them, and the admixture is a mark of pride in many parts of the Marches." Thuurvi spoke while availing herself of a plate. "Tak, Roderik. I get so hungry when I'm off my beauty sleep schedule," she mumbled, tucking into her food relentlessly.
Thuurvi leaned against the table, her curiosity piqued. “So how is it that a Xen'drik pillar winds up in the Reaches of all places?” Crumbs on the tabletop skittered away from her, wafted by unseen forces. “Were there Giant colonies established there in the past?"
"Um...colonies might be a strong word, but there's certainly evidence of Giantish construction, just up Blademark Hill.” Jacynta finally stepped a little farther into the room. “Well, Bloodmarch Hill, most people call it. Sorry, but did anyone see another halfling come through a minute ago? With red hair?"
"Yeah, he hopped on up to the deck," drawled Thuurvi. "Apologies for the term - I should be mindful that 'colonies' has all sorts of implications. Bloodmarch Hill, a colorful name. I'm sure I've walked it but don't recall that particular moniker."
Kurst and Omast rose and put away their bedrolls and the hammock. "On Bloodmarch hill the only real evidence of anything is the remains of the...foundation I guess...of a citadel that once stood there,” Roderik said, a bit subdued. “I don't think it was giant-made, however. I'm pretty sure it was made by man. Before it was destroyed."
After a time hanging back, Jacynta approached the table and climbed onto a chair next to Aemon, helping herself to a slice of his bacon. She otherwise seemed content to just listen to the morning conversation.
Thalmor’s face was stoic as he nursed his ale, listening to the half-orc woman chat with the others. His gaze seemed to be resting on a particularly interesting piece of wall detritus, lost in thought.
“Destroyed?” Aemon questioned, "what happ-"
The hatch burst open and the red-haired halfling returned, looking much more convivial than when he'd passed through earlier.
"Greetings all!" Tuk declared from the ladder. "My apologies if I was abrupt earlier, I seem to be averse to sleeping on an airship! Tuk Nimbleguts, 273rd of that name...at your service!" He delivered a sweeping bow with one hand, holding onto the ladder with the other.
Thalmor’s trance broke with a snort and a little bit of ale coming out his nose when the energetic halfling entered again. Wiping it away roughly, he shook his head and returned to his ledger.
Thuurvi chuckled at Tuk and Thalmor, but she was all about the bacon and tomatoes. "Mmph. Shpilled-yer-gutsh?"
"A stone pillar of giant-ish construction, originally from Sylbaran?” Three queried, efficiently cooking food for everyone in the galley, deftly using their large fingers in place of more traditional utensils. “Most curious.”
Tuk hopped down from the ladder, not at all discomfited that most ignored his greeting. He managed a wide smile when he spotted Jacynta. Taking a seat at the table, he grabbed whatever foodstuffs were within reach, stuffing a prodigious amount of food into his small frame.
"I do not recall any areas within the town where such a pillar might have resided,” Thuurvi mused, taking another couple pieces of bacon.
"Is it magical or psionic in nature?” Three asked, cracking some eggs to fry. “Or does the stone hold only archeological significance?"
Aemon’s ears perked up and he grabbed a muffin and slathered on a thick helping of butter. "I don't think the pillar is psionic in nature. Or arcane, for that matter. Mind you, I'm no expert. I will say it holds power. Of what kind...I cannot say." He looked around the table, picked up the plate of bacon, and peered under it before setting it down again. He called out to Engineer #3 Mk. II in the kitchen, "I say, what are you called dear fellow? And do you have any preserves hidden back there? Fig perhaps?"
"My designation is Engineer #3, Mark II. For ease of reference and brevity, most I converse with end up addressing me simply as Three.” Three piped in from the kitchen, “And yes, Master Aemon, there is a basket holding assorted preserves and jams. Would you prefer a single selection or a variety?"
"Well let's have the whole basket then,” Aemon laughed.
Omast disappeared back into the ship through the door everyone came out of, and Kurst stepped into the kitchen with Roderik where they conversed quietly with one another, laughing occasionally as the energy in the room picked up with everyone enjoying their breakfast.
Tuk listened to the discussion of the nature of the pillar being delivered to Sylbaran. He spoke up around a mouthful of food, "Giantsh like the ol' shtuff made by th' ol' giantsh." He chewed a bit and swallowed, clearing his throat, "sorry...I've heard that the giants of Droaam revere the old Xen'drik giant sites. Might be a mistake putting something like that up with a town so close..." he finished, letting the statement hang in the air.
"Mmm, I suppose that's a fair estimation Tuk," Thuurvi nodded at him, for both his statement and his ability to eat. "But giants are not monolithic, no pun intended. The giants I knew in Droaam tended to be reverent, but there's a spectrum. Not all are - some resent their past. Some are back-to-Xen'drik nationalist or speciesist types, and those are scary indeed."
Thuurvi tapped her plate with her knife, thinking. "I suppose you'd put me on the 'cautiously reverent' part of the scale. I'm not one for enslaving elves, for instance." She made a face, shuddering, "even if they do odd things with their dead. And as for humans putting a town close to somewhere? That's what humans do. Expansionist empires or scurrying refugees, that's how my dear pinkish ancestors like to get into lands they probably shouldn't be occupying."
As the group ate, a middle-aged half-elf with a shaved head and crow's feet on his eyes stepped through the doorway from the bow of the ship that Omast just went through, followed by a younger female half-elf, her dark brown hair offset by pale green eyes. "We should arrive about an hour before the midnight bell," he instructed, speaking to her and paying everyone no mind as they headed up the ladder onto the deck. "I want us ready to turnaround by midnight so we can arrive early in Fairhaven."
"So tell me," Aemon asked, wiping his mouth with a cloth and looking over everyone gathered, "I know dear Jacynta here, I've worked with her before. Are you all from Sylbaran?"
"Yes. From Sylbaran as much as from anywhere.” Engineer #3 Mk. II replied. “I work with the smith and magewright, and assist with the town's defense as needed."
"My apologies,” Thuurvi stated, “I think I've seen you around Three, but I'm usually running off to the woods."
"No apologies are necessary. My work typically keeps me close to Clamor, unless called on for patrol or defense work,” Three responded. “I am very rarely to be found outside the walls or in the forests."
"And a good help he is at that," Roderik beamed at the warforged.
"Oh, of course. I've met Sara Morninghawk. Three, a pleasure.” Thuurvi smiled placidly at the 'forged. "I'm sure you do fine work,”
Everyone sat quietly for a moment, the sounds of clinking silverware and shifting chairs filling the space, as they waited for the others to respond.
Thalmor seemed to wait until the others bored holes into his skull before sighing. He leaned back, putting down the half-empty mug, raising his eyebrows at the question. "Eh? Nay. I’m a banker. Only been to Sylbaran a few times.” He watched the others’ expressions carefully. “An oath was made and broken,” he explained as if that were extensive enough.
"All right, Thalmor, I'll chew. What sort of oaths are we talking about?” Thuurvi soaked up some egg yolks with her muffin.
Thalmor shrugged, "It’s my business, that’s all. Don’t know why I thought anyone in this lot would be in league with my quarry.”
"Fair," chuckled Thuurvi. "I like to shout at ducks when I'm hunting them as well.”
"A banker! Ha. And a magewright, always a good thing to have. What brings, or -" Aemon nodded at Engineer #3 Mk. II, "- brought you to Sylbaran?"
"Only been in Sylbaran for a bit. I mainly grew up in Droaam and the Byeshk Mountains." Thuurvi wiped her plate clean with some bread, giving Thalmor a little 'cheers' with her table knife and a closed-mouth smile.
Aemon turned, looking at Tuk. "And where are you from, Master 273rd? What brings you to Sylbaran?"
Tuk took a drink, eying Aemon before answering.
"Well, I be from HalfHome, where all us Tuk's were born and bred," Tuk said proudly, biting off a piece of buttered bread. "But, that's all gone now.” Tuk grabbed a slice of cheese and folded it with a piece of bacon into his bread. “Seems someone's got it out for us Tuks. Going ta ground, as they say, in Sylbaran. Hopin' to make meself useful..." Taking a bite, he leaned back and looked at Aemon and the rest, gauging everyone there.
"HalfHome?" Thuurvi knitted her brows. "Can't say I recall it...something happened to it?"
Kurst sighed and sat back in his chair. "Not good things, that's for sure."
Roderik nodded. "The village was hit by a landslide. Freak accident. There were a lot of good people there. Decimated it, unfortunately. My condolences, Tuk."
Thuurvi smacked her brow. "Ah, 'Steeth. I recall the name now. Only heard rumors about it and nothing about its destruction. I'm truly sorry, Tuk. The Byeshk Mountains are beautiful, but damned if they don't eat up a number of lives each year." Thuurvi sighed, pondering. "Who's really from where they were from originally, though?"
"Eberron is a fascinating place. The world is alive...it lives, it breathes, we move about and migrate, things are connected in ways that we would never guess, and may never understand." Aemon burped quietly, "excuse me," he murmured, reaching across the table. He took Thalmor's mug of beer and placed it a few inches from where he picked it up. "What connects things?" He grabbed Thuurvi's cup, and then Tuk's cup as well, moving them on the table to different spots. "Are the Eldeen Reaches forested with deep ancient woods because the Wardens and that ancient talking tree are there? Or did the tree start telling stories because the woods are so thick and old, and that brought the Wardens of the Wood to that place?" He leaned back in his chair, interlinking his fingers over his belly.
"Dragonmarks, Manifest zones, the prophecy, even the Day of Mourning...if you find an ancient pillar in a far-off land and return it to its home, what else might happen? How will Eberron change, and respond, and...adapt to such actions?" He chuckled whimsically, and gestured along the line of the beer mugs...on one end was Jacynta, on the other Engineer #3 Mk. II stood in the kitchen area, with everyone's mug in the middle in a line. "How will Siberys respond? Or Khyber? What connects disparate people together in our world?"
Thalmor gaped as his ale was moved, opening his mouth then closing it after a short moment. He grabbed the ale and held it close, as another pocket of air moved the ship in an unnerving way. “Lad, some things ain’t for moving. Better to have left them be.” He took a swig and gestured to the airship and surroundings, "damn thing shouldn’t exist for one...”
Thuurvi frowned at the mention of the Wardens. "What connects people and things? Strife and confusion, or so it seems. The whole thing is gone pear-shaped. A creation myth involving two males and one female is surely suspect to be either horribly wrong or horribly correct and absurd besides. As if menfolk of any species could create anything except spurts of..." she tipped her cup over to spill a bit of drink on the table, "...blood."
Reaching across the table to fetch his cup, Tuk observed Thuurvi drily, "The womenfolk ain't been shy of spilling the blood either, I reckon’."
"Only fair to deliver what's been given, Tuk.” replied Thuurvi. “Chivalry is dead and buried."
"Sylbaran has definitely had its share of blood spilled during the war." Roderik sighed.
“Roderik, I heard a bit about that,” Thuurvi commiserated, “but I was safe in Droaam during the War."
Thalmor leaned forward, frowning as the ship creaked loudly. “As for Eberron -” he paused looking at Aemon, “I know her well. She doesn’t like people poking where their noses don’t belong, does she?” He leaned back again and took another swig from his mug, this time holding onto the thing with an almost iron-like grip.
"Connections exist without our awareness many times.” Three leaned on the shelf in between the kitchen and the table. “A seemingly random occurrence in one city may result in a tragedy across the continent. Most people are blind to these happenings, and will never know what transpires around them. Some are more 'lucky' and will come to understand those connections. I do not yet know which is the greater mercy; awareness or ignorance."
A somber pause hung over the room.
Aemon chuckled, a huge smile on his face. "Well said," he lifted his mug of beer towards Engineer #3 Mk. II and toasted. "To awareness..." he downed the mug in one long gulp, smacking his lips, “...and to ignorance.”
“We have the afternoon to ourselves.” Aemon plunked his mug down, “I think we arrive later tonight -"
Roderik interjected. “The quartermaster said something about arriving at the eleventh bell tonight.”
"Did he?" Kurst muttered, looking at his brother while chewing on his breakfast. "I must have missed that."
"...yes, we arrive at the eleventh bell." Aemon nodded at Roderik, standing. "Right. I will be doing a presentation on the pillar around sunset. I imagine some politicians aboard will likely try to take credit. Until then -" he clapped his hands together and rubbed them. "- the day is yours to do what you will. Does anyone have anything they need to do? I know I could start with a...ah..." Aemon pointed at his empty mug and the empty craft of beer meaningfully, "...a bit of a starter. Anyone else have any plans?"
Thalmor exhaled, sighing and relaxing. "It’s as good as any meal, Aemon,” he raised his mug in salute.
"I have no pressing tasks. Most likely, I will assist with maintenance and cleaning on the vessel.” Three said, washing the dishes up.
Tuk pondered Aemon's query, "I'll likely snag a bit o' a nap, as I says, sleep wasn't comin' last night. Or I'll haunt the deck. Interesting view...more interesting conversations..." he said, trailing off mysteriously.
"Usually barley-water and tea for me, thank you. And I must go meditate to the gods in order to receive my sacred blessings of divine mercy for the day." Thuurvi said with an almost-pious expression on her face. Her lips pursed to hide her tusks, and she made her eyes puppy dog-wide for a split second, then burst out laughing. "Sorry. I can't lie to save my life. Nap, a round of song and cloud-watching on deck, and anything I can do to help without bothering the crew, that's what I have on the docket. Say, do warforged sing?"
Jacynta took a deep breath and let it out slowly, muttering, "I suppose now is as good a time as any." She continued in a more conversational tone, looking at Tuk. "Before you go, Master Nimbleguts, there's a matter we should discuss. With some privacy, if we can get any."
Thuurvi raised an eyebrow at the halflings.
Tuk sipped his drink, nodding at Jacynta, "Sure, if ya like. But, I'm no Master…” Tuk smiled, “not yet at least."
Jacynta led Tuk into a corner of the room to speak with him in hushed tones.
"I'm not much good at this kind of thing, and I don't really know how to couch the news, so I'm sorry, and maybe you've heard already, I don't know, but -"
She paused to take a breath and break her rambling. "I knew one of your - I don't know, a cousin, maybe - in Xen'drik, and...he's dead."
Tuk rubbed his face with one hand at the news, shaking his head, "Ah, 'tis sad news Jacynta, but thank you. Xen'drik you say? Hmm, could have been Tuk The Seeker...or perhaps Tuk The Lost. Hard to say, we went all over."
Tuk considered Jacynta for a moment, "I'll let you in on a secret,” he whispered, leaning closer. “Seems one of my cousins pissed off someone or something, and Tuks have been dying ever since. That landslide that took out my home? Deliberate." He spoke the last word really slowly to let its meaning sink in.
Three looked out over the group. “Do any of you require metalwork or maintenance on your equipment?"
Thalmor shook his head, grumbling, “nay, this contraption is not to my liking. I’d stay below lest anyone have use of me.” He stretched, looking a little unsettled, "an unlikely event, I expect, given that there wouldn’t be much use for a banker on an erm, airboat. But -" he raised a manicured finger, seemingly considering for a moment. “Should anyone wish to lose money in a game of cards or summat, I am certainly available to win it.” He grinned for the first time, though it was hard exactly to tell, given the length and thickness of his black, wiry facial hair. His eyes glittered mischievously.
"If it's a game of chance yer after, I'm up for it!" Tuk beamed from the corner with Jacynta.
“No, I'd just as soon toss galifars right down the latrine. I can't fool people to save my life," Thuurvi exhaled.
"If the cards or dice are fair and balanced, I would be amenable to a game.” Three approached the table. “I admit, most humanoids are unlikely to ascertain my mental States. Perhaps dice might be the most equitable chance for each to win,” Three mused.
Aemon got a refill on his mug from Roderik and took another large swig.
Thuurvi wiped her eyes as a torrent of laughter escaped her. She picked up a leftover fork, eyes on the 'forged. "Three. Say this is a die," she dropped it casually on the table, still watching them as it whisked off to hit the wall behind Aemon, and clatter on the planks. "No dice games for me. But do enjoy."
Looking at the fork, then into his cup, Aemon glowed, “Roderik my boy, you brought me the good batch!”
Engineer #3 Mk. II watched the fork bounce away, then turned his eye-lenses back to the half-orc. "That seems like it would make things difficult, Thuurvi. Is there something that can be done to alleviate this problem? Will that pose concerns for adventuring or working with you in the future?"
"Nothing need be done Three; thank you for your concern. I just try not to drop things. Fortunately, I don't live in Sharn." Thuurvi grinned at the 'forged. "One learns to find value in one's flaws."
Just checking on everyone. :)
I meant to say that I like the written summary and think it will be a great record. We have a little issue with not catching everyone's cues, but that's Pbp and life. ;)
Thank you. Yeah. I tried to work most things in. Some were moved from dialogue to description. It took about...six Re-writes, I think. Still found an error after I posted it, lmao. The life of a writer, sigh.
The goals were to make my writing sensible (Jacynta will likely confirm, sometimes I make no GD sense, because it’s in my head), Keep it consider where needed, make everything flow and feel like cohesive writing, but also keep the voices of each of the characters you wrote.
I really liked the ending line of the scene that Thuurvi gave: "One learns to find value in one's flaws." Great scene-ending line.