| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
Still alive, still healthy, still well. Had my phone break and found out I owed an awful lot of money to the IRS from previous years in the same day and it sort of left me overwhelmed, but I've got the payment plan set up and the phone is being repaired now. I never realized how much I relied on my phone alarms until I lost them. Mostly, honestly, I've just been slacking. I'll make a post today, or at least make some headway.
Things went pretty well! In hindsight, I would have liked to prepare a clearer "battlemap" and pressure to get involved for the crocodile/bunyip situation (and maybe picked something less whacky than a crocodile), and I think what I would have done would be to include some bait for the players to say Pazuzu's name (or Lamashtu's), which would trigger the bird swarm I'm hitting them with now.
We went on a pretty significant start-stop hiatus (people just kept getting sick), so we really haven't progressed too far! Currently the party is investigating danger in the waterways (Gogmurt and Thrakle have noticed the Howling Hole's resident seems to have vanished) and Shayliss's mysterious avian condition. Olivia and Aktri are headed to Chopper's Isle to meet with Shayliss; Paz, Blue Moon, and Wormbasil are headed to the mills. I am planning on maybe pillaging the ideas from James B. Kline for what Olivia and Aktri encounter, but swapping in a transformed Shayliss for the Devil. It's mostly going to be a chance for Olivia, Isabelle, and Aktri to bond through peril. They will not be able to fix Shayliss's condition yet, but they will encounter some dangers of the Isle (haunts that largely left Blue Moon alone). I am notably making significant tweaks to Stoot's story, as I am honestly not super compelled by the narrative of the Red Bishop. If I ever run 7DfS, I'll have to reconcile these changes with its story, but that's a problem for Future KC. The Tragedy of Jervis Stoot:
Jervis Stoot was a shy man with difficulty communicating his thoughts, a gentle soul who had been locked up for many years by the ruling of a cruel and corrupt Magnimar judge. He'd come to Sandpoint to find peace, and the people of Sandpoint had welcomed him.
Of course he resented his ill treatment. There was always rage in Jervis, but he channeled it into his carvings, into his love of birds--creatures that, like him, could not bear to be caged. Though he didn't know it, the home Jervis had chosen was a site sacred to Pazuzu, King of the Wind Demons. This was not intentional. It was not a coincidence, either. As a lover of winged creatures and one who hated to name the things that frightened him, Jervis had always born a seed of Pazuzu's faith hidden deep within his heart. He felt drawn to the Isle. Sensing Jervis's connection to him, the demon lord of temptation saw an amusing plaything, a potential pawn to match the mischief he knew Lamashtu was wreaking elsewhere. Stoot found himself plagued by strange night terrors and intrusive thoughts, horrifying daydreams of acts he had never wanted to commit. Birds started talking to him, promising him wonders and threatening him with horrors. They sang to him of metal cages and fluttering wings with equal delight. They reminded him how he had been hurt, told him the people of Sandpoint would lock him up. They told him of the cruelty of Father Tobyn, the selfishness of the town, the greed of the ruling families. Slowly, Pazuzu's will sought to bend Jervis Stoot into a servant of malice and cruelty. Jervis Stoot focused on his woodcarving. There were still birds trapped in the wood. He wanted to keep cutting them free. Something strange was happening on the Isle. Jervis Stoot was ensnared by Pazuzu, enthralled, unable to flee, to fight back, or even to communicate his danger to the kind people of Sandpoint. But Pazuzu was trapped, too. At least a little bit. Something about Jervis Stoot's intense fixations, Jervis Stoot's gentle love for birds and hatred of cages, had formed a delicate web of fascination. Jervis would not name his fears, but nor would he acknowledge them. Jervis Stoot could not escape the temptations, but nor would he act on them. Jervis Stoot was a sinkhole for Pazuzu's malice, completely absorbing Pazuzu's attention. As long as he kept carving, kept 'freeing the birds', Jervis Stoot was safe, and the town was safe. And then the Runewell awoke. Jervis Stoot had been angry for a long time. He had done everything in his power not to be--everything except face it head-on. Now he could ignore it no longer, and it was too late to seek help. Pazuzu seized on the brief weakness, and the birdsong echoing in Jervis Stoot's mind became a cacophony. There were birds trapped in the people, too. Jervis Stoot needed to cut them free. Shayliss will meet Olivia and Aktri upon the wet sands beside Chopper's Isle. It is the neap tide, the lowest point, and the sun is dropping low. She's afraid, but she has the statuette. Maybe if she gives it back, the transformations will stop. But she can't get back to the island except at the lowest tide, and by the nights of the neap tide, she will be... no longer herself. Unluckily for her, today the low tide comes at dusk. Chopper's Isle:
First, the party must advance up the cliff face. The first part of the climb is difficult, because of the slippery rocks (Expert, DC 20), but the remains of the staircase make for fairly easy climbing afterward (two checks at Trained, DC 15).
Shayliss has the stats of an elite servant. When transformed, she has the rough stats of a [https://2e.aonprd.com/Monsters.aspx?ID=718]leucrotta[/url], plus a fly speed, the standard werecreature abilities and weaknesses, and swap the jaws/hoof for a Piercing bite and Slashing claw attack. She also remains Medium-sized. The Isle's haunts and threats are oriented around what tormented Chopper and his victims in life--a haunt that makes you go blind and mute as you start bleeding from your mouth and eyes, an elite undead murder that arises from a collection of carved bird figurines, and a haunt that simply compels you to start hacking into the wall to "let the birds out" (more flavor than threat). I gotta iron out the details soon because game starts in 15 minutes! The Turandarok:
This one gets to be a lot simpler, but there's still room for some drama! They're going to stand guard at the the river by the old lumber mill. They will maybe catch a glimpse of a Banny Harker/Katrine Vinder "rendezvous", but then they spy a commotion in the water just beyond the walls--the elite bunyip is there, tangling with an elite ghoul crocodile. Unbeknownst to them, Aldrena Foxglove has been terrorizing the marshes south of here. The bunyip flees after a round, but the crocodile stays. It likely isn't obviously undead as far as they can tell (no darkvision and it's half-underwater!), but there's definitely something off about it. Its body will float out into sea unless they take pains to stop it for inspection. I hate to lean on Elite so much, hehe, but I'm in a hurry!
We lost one, hopefully no more! I don't know if I'll get to this game today, since there's a fair bit to go over. High-level Pathfinder terrain control...
Gosh, I am lagging so hard on this post. Routine got pretty cooked. I'll get it done tomorrow.
Boy, I'm glad I had something really epic ready to justify the wait.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! The outages and holidays have hindered my triumphant return, but we'll be back soon. :P
I have been so so swamped lmao but I am excited to get back to updating this! We're starting Chapter Two tonight! Here's a little recap of what happened: - Beating up Ripnugget was all fun and games until he called Aktri a homophobic slur. Olivia exploded him. The Thistletops suck.
Eben's spell washes over the four Swords of Kyuss, but the hideous magic of Hess's prayers drive his magic back from all except the farthest.
She points to the groups of Swords in gold and green armor, and in starbursts of light the elected souls of a family of woolly rhinoceroses appear and charge into one of the groups of ancient dead.
The lead celestial beast skewers one of the Swords with its horn, nearly sending it flying right back over the cliff. Unable to contain herself any longer, Astraden then declares "Regelloes zon!" As she twists her hands to complete the spellscar, a section of the sun-blasted rock around the Swords in green-draped armor washes out even further, left a dull grey. The Swords themselves crackle with unstable potential as the spell takes hold. Astraden herself cackles in excitement.
Within this area, any spell, spell-like ability, or magic item activation automatically triggers a primal magic event—a spellcaster can avoid triggering such an event by making a concentration check (DC 15 + twice the spell’s level), but non-spellcasters who activate magic items have no such option.
** spoiler omitted ** Spoiler: A lot of people forget that Hitler at the time was seen as an abrasive moron. It's part of why he was underestimated. The big difference between Nazi stupidity and neonazi stupidity is that American neonazis have been thoroughly poisoned by decades of neocon/libertarian brainrot, so whereas the Nazis were at least willing to spend money to keep their base happy, the Trump administration is off slashing the very strings holding their own government together. There was a strategy to what the Nazis dismantled. I think Hitler was probably closer to Bush-moron than Trump/Musk-moron, but it's a close split.
No worries! It'd be ridiculous to get on your case for not noticing and replying to a small detail immediately when we're going at such a slow pace. For what it's worth, all, I am feeling more able to maintain a steady pace lately, and we'll see if that lasts. I've made my peace with the glacial pace, but it's nice to occasionally strike a better rhythm. Appreciate everyone's patience as always.
We finished Book One tonight! :D I'll try to get another batch of recaps in tomorrow. The town sections are hard to recap, but we'll be in the Glassworks soon enough...
As a note, the boar hunt is Day Four of the campaign--aka, three days after the Swallowtail Festival. Belor will not return until Day Five, because he's gonna run into trouble at the Seven Tooths.
Alright, let's run through the sessions and go over notable changes. I'll do these in small bursts. SESSION FIVE
Meeting with Aldrena:
I played the Aldrena scene pretty straight, using the opportunity to introduce Ameiko's employee, the halfling Bethana Corwin, as well as the atmosphere of the Rusty Dragon in general. I really had to hunt to find out that Ameiko plays a samisen, by the way. Huge pain.
Aldrena asks the PCs endless questions about themselves, flattering them effusively. When inviting them to the boar hunt, she also suggests that in thanks for her rescue, she'd like to take them to Vernah's Fine Clothing and get them outfitted properly. Her treat. Ameiko comes in and makes conversation, setting up her father's illness and generally being her charming self. Meeting with the Sheriff:
The next morning, the PCs are invited to meet with Hemlock at the Sandpoint Cathedral.
Easily the largest building in Sandpoint, the Sandpoint Cathedral is not dedicated to the worship of a single deity. Rather, it gathers under its eaves the six most commonly worshiped deities in the region, providing chapels for all of these deities in a communal forum. The Sandpoint Cathedral is nearly totally empty at this time of day, morning services having already been completed. Nearby, Father Zantus and several other acolytes pace between the shrines, swinging sweet-smoking censers and chanting hymns to the six gods. To the south, facing Sandpoint’s heart, are the shrines of civilization: Erastil and Abadar. To the west, offering a view of the Old Light and the sea beyond, are the shrines of Shelyn and Gozreh. And to the east, offering a view of the Sandpoint Boneyard and the rising sun, are the shrines of Sarenrae and Desna. Father Zantus and the others appear to be casting the consecration ritual that was interrupted two days ago. The previous chapel wasn’t the first holy site in this location. The core of both the original chapel and the new cathedral is an open-air courtyard surrounding a set of seven ancient standing stones surrounding a circular stone altar. It is here that Sheriff Hemlock waits for you, accompanied by Kendra Deverin and, oddly, the gravetender Naffer Vosk. Information covered:
Hemlock seems dismissive of all the inside job stuff. In reality, he’s wary of pissing off the power players, especially as he privately suspects one of the founding families may have been involved.
Without Shalelu or Neeka the Bard, the town is flying blind. Hemlock is planning to take some guards and visit the Seven Tooths personally today. He doesn’t know what he’s in for, but someone’s got to figure out what's going on. Luzane suggests that the party help hold down the fort while he’s gone. Hemlock is annoyed. He’ll be back by tonight, and he doesn’t want to make a habit of appointing deputies without a damn good reason. The PCs are also free to investigate the graverobbing/inside job stuff; the sheriff is stumped, and reluctant to even touch it for now. Hemlock knows his position in town is a little tenuous.
SESSION SIX
Meeting Shayliss:
I wound up playing this sort of straight. Sort of.
Shayliss seeks out an attractive female partymember telling him she’s got a problem with birds in her attic. Big birds. Crows. She just kept leaving the shutters open when she wasn't supposed to, and she doesn’t want her father to know. Could Basil please help her shoo them out? One of them looked awfully big, and she’d feel a lot better with someone with her. Shayliss intends to tell the PC about her situation, but a mix of getting flustered and wanting to deflect will lead to her coming onto them instead—her bodice slipping off and so on. The PC will see a lot of black feathers and a big sheet hung up like a curtain, cordoning off Shayliss’s bed from the rest of the attic. The other side of the curtain reveals a full-on nest and collected trophies, including the object she took.
SESSION SEVEN
Foreshadowing Scenes:
At 9am the next morning, all of you are greeted—perhaps woken—by a set of letters. [Aldrena's future obsession] finds hers tied to the doorknob by a loop of red thread, while most of the others have them delivered directly to the door by an errand boy, or by their innkeeper. Each one has your name written on the outside of the folded parchment, and each addresses you warmly in inviting you to Vernah’s Fine Clothing at noon to prepare for the afternoon hunt.
A character approaching Vernah's from the north will encounter Aldrena herself. As you make your way to Vernah’s, you notice a bit of a scene at the Sandpoint Lumber Mill. An elderly, very well-dressed man is emerging from the mill, tugging at his cravat as he turns to shake his eagle-headed cane at a rugged, good-looking fellow you recognize from that rigged Lighthouse Smash game at the festival. “This is my mill, Harker! My money built it, and by the First Vault, if I think it’s being used to bleed me, my money will tear it right back down! May you never forget it!” “Of course, Mr. Scarnetti.” Banny Harker rolls his eyes. “Got forgetfulness on your mind lately?” The old man’s eyes bulge. “You… you rough-hearted jackanape! One of these days, your own greed’s going to nip you in the rear!” He turns to storm off as Harker slams the door behind him. Aldrena raises an eyebrow at you.
A character approaching from the Rusty Dragon or through the town square: As you pass through the town square—relatively empty today, since it’s not a market day—you notice that one of the stalls has been vandalized. Raw eggs drip from its sides and begin to cake into the driftwood, and someone has crossed out and written over the words on the sign with red paint so it now simply reads, “Murderer Mavvi’s”. A handful of passersby tactfully ignore the stall. Nearby, children prance across hopscotch squares, chanting a nursery rhyme about a living scarecrow. Mumble Mumble Scarecrow,
But when the moon she rises,
And when the dog is snoring,
Paper Dolls:
Vernah’s Fine Clothing is a big, beautiful building, stylized to resemble a red barn with white trim. The red-and-white color scheme pervades the interior, too, giving everything a subtle gingerbread house aesthetic. Aldrena greets you all gleefully as you arrive. Rynshinn looks on with the aiuvaren’s standard bemused half-smile.
The Boar Hunt:
The basic RP scenes are exactly as-written. Aldrena flirts and praises and questions a lot.
The initial pursuit of the boar is a Chase Encounter. Obstacle One: Mud Patch [Requires 3 Successes]
Obstacle Two: Angry Ganders! [Requires 4 Successes]
Obstacle Three: Mischievous Fairies [Requires 5 Successes]
The PCs will chase the boar to a thicket by a pool, where they encounter a giant tick feeding on a dead juvenile firepelt cougar. It gets excitable when so many arrive and rushes to attack.
After the Fight: As the party is recovering from the battle, they will hear someone running towards them from the hill above. Shalelu appears above, pierced through the shoulder with two long silver-fletched arrows. She sees the group, then collapses.
This DC is lowered back to 15 for flat checks granted by an ally providing assisted recovery, provided the attacker is not also that ally’s most hated enemy. These outlines do get harder to write in this area, where so much of it wound up being open-ended improv based on where the PCs decided to go next.
President Mention: I think the American president's attempt to endorse a Canadian candidate by saying he'll make Canada flourish as the 51st state, objectively political poison for the Canadian Conservatives, is a great example of how I temper my fear: As malicious as they are, they are also so, so dumb. America is hard enough to run even when you actually know how to keep allies and do your job well. These guys are gonna launch the Department of Take Over The World And Arrest All Political Enemies And Fire All The Nukes At Whoever Makes Eye Contact and then within five minutes accidentally shut it down and fire everyone in charge and throw all its funding into a pit.
Not to say I don't still take all this dead-seriously. It's just something that brings me comfort.
For what it's worth, I do think we're already seeing the backlash starting to materialize against this in America, and I hope it starts to hit in the UK, too. Montana's strong shutdown of those anti-trans bills gives me hope. Transphobia Talk: I think the thing about a lot of mainstream transphobia is that its malice is incredibly poorly thought out. Passive transphobes--the kinds who don't let transphobia take over their whole identity--tell themselves they don't hate all trans people, they just think things are going "too fast" or are worried about "bad actors". They're still bigots, but they think of themselves as reasonable centrists.
Really, they're just reactionary losers who get reflexively indignant when the world moves faster than them. They haven't considered that protecting their egos here, clinging to what they know, means gambling trans people's actual lives. Mainstream transphobes have given the mask-off transphobes a lot of political power now. But the transphobes in power aren't mainstream. They aren't passive and lazy but vaguely "well-meaning". The transphobes in power know what these policies will do, know people will die, and they want that. I think, in the US, you can see mainstream transphobia starting to trip on its own feet. None of those "centrists" actually wanted the excesses transphobic laws lead to. It's infuriating that they'll act like this isn't what they voted but, but I do believe a lot of them are going to start getting cold feet now that they don't get to feel like the underdogs anymore. Cultural transphobia isn't sustainable in the United States anymore. I hope the same holds true for the United Kingdom.
Alright! I'll try to get back to sharing the changes I've made. We're over thirty-two sessions ahead of the recaps, so I probably won't resume posting those unless there's a lot of interest. I could keep posting the low-effort notes Aktri's player takes, if people like!
Great timing! It is still going, and we're returning from a couple weeks' hiatus today! I can get back to posting, if there's interest. For what it's worth, the party just defeated Nualia after a tense rematch and is now advancing into the lower levels.
Honestly, it's weird we haven't gotten sthenos yet. They look tailor-made to be an ancestry. They're probably inevitable.
623. Skyberry Bush
Skyberries are supposed to taste a little like apricots, but caramelize into a sweet-savory jam which deep gnomes are quite fond of. If prepared properly, the jam can be used to concoct an effect similar to the gentle landing spell.
I'll try to get the post up today! Been very untethered from my work routine lately, but I managed to get in an application to Paizo yesterday and I'm working on reestablishing at least a temporary rhythm.
621. Common carnivorous moss
This species is usually edible, but has little flavor of its own, making it useful mainly for cooking down into soup stock. Its flavor is similar to cabbage, with a hint of umami thanks to its diet and a texture similar to broccoli. It should be noted that depending on what the moss preys upon, it may contain toxins when caught. As such, as a rule, it is recommended to survey the surrounding flora and fauna before deciding to eat wild cave moss.
Still around, planning to get the post up tomorrow. It's been a long month, though. Not all bad, but very long. February's always like that. x3
Just picked up the supplement and I ADORE IT! Especially the little nods to Kingmaker for the Tanglehorns! Oh gosh, I'm so so glad you like it! That's so nice to hear. With any publication you never really know if people are actually reading what they buy, so it means a lot! ^^ Now I'm brainstorming Starfinder spin-off titles. A Constellation of Kobolds. A Corona of Kobolds. A Conjunction of Kobolds. The problem is, I'm just not into Starfinder's weird kobold lore. But that's a topic for my own grumpy "I don't get it" thread, probably.
Kobolds with a planet-sized benefactor could be fun... Wellspring kobolds, do they perchance spread colored substance on their faces before doing heroic suicidal actions? They would just like you to see this cool move they're about to pull off. [they pull a lever, their car immediately explodes in a shower of wild magic and construct parts.] Wow! Pretty cool move!
*deranged laugh* I've shown them! I've shown them ALL! (how cool the Remaster kobold lore is and how many opportunities it grants, which I have done by creating a supplement which provides five new unique warrens and a bunch of new feats and heritages to accompany them and publishing it on Pathfinder Infinite) (it is my Pathfinder Infinite debut and the first serious TTRPG thing I have published not under my deadname.)
Passports are technically federal property, so. It's a whole thing and may well be legal. Definitely infuriating. Just take care.
I've long thought we should add more "teamwork feat" mechanics, but with a bigger emphasis on giving other people reactions and stuff. (I actually had an idea for a set of camping/downtime activities where you "craft" bonds with your allies, granting you little bonuses or reactions or rerolls for select situations. Like, the rogue bugging the wizard with questions while she's preparing spells and later getting some benefit to Arcana checks.)
Alright, I should be able to get up a post Sunday or Monday and get this combat rolling. Aside from the political burnout, I had a very small project to finish up before a deadline.
I hate to bring in bad news here, but I've had confirmation that some federal employees are confiscating passports if you go in for name change stuff. Pass it on and be careful.
Oh, congrats! Getting my hormones on the right track took me literal years, and injections were in the end the answer. They slap. <3
Oh my word that's all so cute!
Shoonies have very particularly Aroden-focused lore. Trying to genericize them into being wider dogfolk makes no sense. This is a ridiculous discussion necromance, but a very late backlogging here made me think about how my friend Marcy and I were working on this dark edgy Golarion AU where Golarion came to life and started eating other planets to keep Rovagug sated and everything in the world was just kind of worse.
I'm bringing it up because we then decided Arazni tried to help the shoonies as an act of spite, the shoonies repaid this by freeing her, and now shoonies are born with all kinds of dog breed aesthetics as her gift to them. Lots of jackal-influenced shoonies, of course. She doesn't really know what to do with the shoonies, but they think she's the bee's knees.
LMAO For what it's worth, HRT generally clears up trans girls' skin over time, so this will hopefully pass. Anyways, getting very very close to actually publishing my first PFI thing, so that's very exciting! My big resolution this year was to keep moving, and that means trying to work on the same thing a little every day or so.
The t-blocker's what actually really packs the punch, in my experience, but I'd expect it to take a couple months before things really feel that different! Also, welcome, Maya! Great to have you here, by the way! <3
I will try to get the post up next week! I'll probably just resign myself to this week and the next being single-post weeks. I'll get back to the double-/triple-post weeks after the 28th, when the holidays are past. I hope this rate hasn't felt too sluggish! It feels very sustainable for me for now, but I'd love to try to speed things up a little in January.
Oh, that's lovely! I hope the patches aren't driving you too crazy. Mine itched terribly--so bad I lowkey wondered if I was allergic. missed you. Hope you and girlfriend are eating well. My and my three girlfriends are doing great! X3
I think the play is let him fly around in the worm chamber, honestly. I combined it with the big worm for a much more cinematic battle. The party actually had to flee the first time and then scry-and-fry later on. I did also give him time stop. it was fine. they were fine. almost no one died.
Good luck, Orthos! I 100% get the body hair thing, that's always been one of my biggest problems. I used to feel bad or shallow about being so turned off by body hair. Then I realized I just didn't like thinking about body hair period, on anyone, because it was such a driver for my own dysphoria. XD Anyways, haven't been here for a bit, but it's so nice seeing you making your way through this! Through some pretty rough times, it's some of the most hopeful news getting posted on this thread. In a way, transfems getting to live happily as transfems is our most basic form of activism.
As an update, for anyone still watching, we went on a lengthy hiatus after our landlord decided to subtly force us out of our home, likely in hopes of selling it. Then everyone got sick, and then... well, it's been hectic. We're going to do our first session in ages either this week or the next. They'll be finally heading to Thistletop! I may link the recap document Aktri's player has done, although it's a lot rougher than my prose recaps. More likely I'll just try to summarize more of my changes.
You got it, Carina. Back to Redhand to buy dresses and accessories for the next two months.
The enormity of the task would in theory make the surgery an easy matter, but Carina already spotted the fine filaments trailing from the roots of the Mournful Song deep into the tissue of the great wyrm. Even with Viruinne lying on its stomach and staying as still as possible, she needs the help of her stronger partymembers to reach some areas or to hold enormous roots up while she crawls underneath. She is covered in gore and ichor. The foulness coats the roof of her mouth, drips into her eyes, clogs her throat like revolting, carrion-sweet oil. A few times she has to retreat just to brush away filaments that have begun to creep beneath her protective gear. And the tree does not cooperate. Even as Carina works, she can feel the foul, ancient thing squirming and writhing beneath her scalp. The spell holds it from striking her, keeps it too dazed to fight back, but it can still tense its hideous musculature, twitch and burrow away from the knife. But Carina has been doing this for years, and over the last six months, she has gotten very, very good at cutting out parasites. The music of Eben's spell rings in her ears, guiding her slices, steeling her resolve. She doubles her efforts, noticing the tree's struggles beginning to solidify, realizing the single precious minute is almost up. Her heart is pounding. She can feel Viruinne's pulse, fast and frantic as the dragon struggles to control its involuntary pain spasms. She can feel the drumming of the Song start to creak back to life, can feel its voice echoing in her mind, whispering, hissing, screaming, howling, promising horrors beyond despair mere seconds from now. Eben's song, though, echoes louder. And then, with one last incision, the drumming stops. The tree twitches, flicks, and then spills off of the dragon's back like wet seaweed. Viruinne tenses, then goes almost totally limp, its eyes squeezing shut in desperate, devastating relief. Everyone feels a sensation sort of like their ears popping. It's like a ringing they didn't even notice has finally dropped away. The interplanar distortion breaks apart, and the world returns to normal, fiery leaves dulling back to their oily hues. The night twist is gone, and where it once stood at the clearing's center there is now only a black, charred snag bound with rusting iron chains. The forest is back to its true unpleasant nature, and yet... something is different. The forest feels different. The ichor dripping from the leaves looks more like ordinary pitch. The shadows seem shallower, the canopies above less oppressive. For the first time in millennia, the Mournful Song is perfectly silent.
Oh gosh, sorry, this slipped my mind pretty hard. So, we're still moving in. It's been an intense process, and we still aren't that close to unpacked. Simply moving out fully took all week. Then the election happened. And then we all got sick! This game's still a priority, just wanted to be clear! I just haven't been able to focus much on anything. We're recovering now and hoping to finish the move next week. Or I guess this week, now.
Oh, also, striped tights became a stereotype for a reason--tights and leggings in general can be very flattering for trans girls (we tend to have nice legs) and they also cover leg hair and make skirts/kilts a bit more forgiving when sitting down. That's obviously much more blatantly on the fem-presenting side of things. Anyways, good luck!!
You haven't at all! These are super normal concerns and worries, I feel like. I wish I had a how-to guide to offer you! I guess just keep looking into those medical options, looking for ways to keep transitioning socially, maybe get your ears pierced since it sounds like something you really want, and start thinking about names if you want to change yours. There's no right or wrong way to transition, but long hair, changed name, t-blockers and pretty skirts are very common ways that often seem to work for people.
At the same time, if you catch yourself feeling disappointed by the possibility that you might not be transfem, boy have I got good news for you. while you don't have to rush to a label, it's also like. It's okay to rush to a label! you can try the label out in safe spaces, nobody worthwhile's going to call you a fake gaymer and nobody worthwhile is going to penalize you if you later change the answer. Most of the time, I think people figure out their exact gender identity by trial and error. Anyways I'm on my phone so my grammar is lazy but I'm super super excited for you, Orthos!! (These are things people told me, for what it's worth. In my case, turns out they were what I needed to hear!) (They also told me to be careful about admitting any confused feelings to doctors, because we have a super cool health care system that definitely doesn't punish us for acknowledging nuance.)
Alright, that's definitely the last post I can wrangle before the move starts. We do the main trip this Sunday. See you all on the other side! Good luck on the roll, DCat! If Carina fails her check, it's still extremely unlikely the night twist with 50 hp will survive to its turn. Whether or not the surgery works, unsurprisingly, a power word stun has essentially ended the "fight" part of the fight.
Ancient sigils spill from Viruinne's toothy maw like living things, massing into a single ring of gleaming arcana. The dragon seems to struggle a moment, its mouth moving as if trying to piece together a sound it cannot hear. And then it speaks a single word of power, and the howling night twist shakes and flails like a reed in a hurricane. The magic settles, and it goes still. "Now, quickly, Carina," the dragon hisses, shuddering in pain, "cut it out."
|