Esquestria: The House of the Sun - A pony cultist experience

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
Reader mode
Dear reader! Whether you are new here, archive-reading and whatnot, or you are already someone who has been with us for quite a while, I would like to say a few words that I believe are best kept close to mind.

-This is an MLP quest. And more importantly, none of us are gratuitously cruel. So good things will happen on this quest, and I hope that enough good things have already happened to prove that.
-This is also a horror quest, so bad things will happen. Bad things might happen to good characters if you are not able to protect them, and you most certainly will not be able to intervene if you lack the tools to do so.
-And finally, this is a quest in which you jostle with powers greater than yourself, with all that it entails.

Please, do keep those things in mind as you go forward. But ultimately, this is also a quest in which it is hoped we all have fun! So if any of the above points is not exactly your cup of tea, or somehow make the experience as a whole "not worth it", then this quest might not be for you. Which is fine! Individual tastes are a thing, so don't think any more about it if you don't want to read anymore. And regardless, I hope you have a lovely day!

Kaelor said:
PSA for whoever needs to hear it:

Readers should take their own mental health into consideration when voting and not subject themselves to triggering narrative elements like rape or constant mental torture of a friend just for the Greatest Good of a world that doesn't exist.

If those are fine for you or Regrettable is even more triggering, then GREAT! More power to you. But you aren't a bad or selfish person for picking the option that keeps the characters you've emotionally connected with safe. [REDACTED for spoiler warning]

This is a high intensity quest that doesn't hold back when it comes to horror and negative consequences. Take care of yourself.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
(Quote slightly edited to avoid spoilers)
 
Last edited:
To be honest the staggering amount of cruelty twilight was exposed i would not be surprised if she was not bothered by it. Kinda Ironic the role velvet have to slip in to get it done.
 
I'm glad it was close, which shows pretty well that if it weren't so critical, it could easily have gone the other way. Of course, based on the history of the quest it'll probably be critical next time, and the time after that, so it is what it is.

I did chuckle a bit at one response that taking the harder path was alright because death is an acceptable outcome, which is completely on board with how Cultist Simulator normally runs, too. Even though it wasn't voting to die, I still imagined that one meme:

"You chose mercy because it's the moral high ground. I chose mercy because the Protagonist's death would have cool lore implications. We are not the same."
 
Honestly I'm not sure sparing them would have been a mercy anyway. I get the feeling Copper would be... displeased. And the displeasure of Grail is a cruel, cruel thing.
 
I'll fully admit that I'm pretty much always going to vote for the ruthless option, because I maintain that being too soft to break Twilight's heart is what got us into this mess in the first place.
 
Master_Fireball said:
I did chuckle a bit at one response that taking the harder path was alright because death is an acceptable outcome, which is completely on board with how Cultist Simulator normally runs, too. Even though it wasn't voting to die, I still imagined that one meme:

"You chose mercy because it's the moral high ground. I chose mercy because the Protagonist's death would have cool lore implications. We are not the same."
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I wasn't trying to be funny, but thanks anyways. :V

Seriously though, I play for the story. Sometimes that's a person overcoming tremendous odds due to stalwart morality, and sometimes it's said morality getting them killed and a family member going on a rip roaring rampage of revenge as a result. Either way works for me.
 
Alchemist767676 said:
I'll fully admit that I'm pretty much always going to vote for the ruthless option, because I maintain that being too soft to break Twilight's heart is what got us into this mess in the first place.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

It was a wake up call for us all.

I'll admit I'm proud of the QM for what he did with that. Seeing our actions have consequences gives the quest a sense of realism.

I will always remember how our relationship with Spike was that he trusted us, trusted us to do what was best to keep Twilight safe. It makes me sad, but still, what a tragedy, it's like reading one of those greek plays.
 
Last edited:
Meh. What's done is done, and I'm not going to waste my time and mental well-being worrying. Instead, I'll just be here hoping to get at least some good shit out of this.
 
Likewise.

You put up a good fight for the don't murder people team.

I just... couldn't.

The break was too long. I fought so hard to try and keep soft sweeps relatively alive and sane. For us to not kill ponies on a whim.

Things change. I follow dozens of quest where the heroes casually cut down swathes of evil mooks without blinking. Maybe it's time for this quest to change into one of them.

We will see.
 
I guess the recent (in-universe-time-wise) barrage of controversies have burnt a lot of people out when they got too invested. Heavens know I've had more than a few good moods ruined when I checked this thread and the vote was going the opposite of what I thought was the right idea.

So, in short, remember that this is a work of fiction, which is to say that its primary purpose is for the enjoyment of, or at least to be food for thought for thread participants. And not to cause headaches and flame wars.


EDIT: You know what, coming back here in the first place was a mistake. If I wanted to feel miserable and frustrated and helpless and depressed, I have far too many other ways to. I'll be leaving and setting the thread to ignore.
 
Last edited:
Waiting is generally a lot worse than accepting events after the fact.

And this wasn't a particularly painful vote. As far as these things go.

Tribal Dooooooor <.<
 
Getting mad about it isn't going to change the outcome.
I think Bird took the closeness of votes into account before, so I hope it will mean Velvet struggled with the decision.
I'd be a lot more worried about the quest if the result was 'all aboard the murder train'.
 
I do like the scale of the quest for certain.

The stakes are high. But our decisions are usually very personal and small scale.

Velvet smashed the Tribal Door over two lives. And let the Baldomare lapse her summoning for the sake of her daughter.

We have done big stuff. Commanding the guard. Secreting Luna away. Also the Tribal Door :V

But it all still feels very real, very personal, and very desperate.

Balancing the knifes edge of success or failure based on the life or death of two ponies.

I had some thoughts about similar things relating to Comet feet. Another time perhaps.

But I do like that even choosing to kill ponies was a big deal. Even if it becomes less and less of one as we grow gradually more blood stained.

Though we fought against that for Comet Feet.
 
Welp, at least we'll find out if the Tribal Door really needed to go or not. I feel bad having voted for it already. Damn Down With the Sickness playing in my head for that vote, how dare you push me over the edge that day?
 
Talon TigerDino said:
Welp, at least we'll find out if the Tribal Door really needed to go or not. I feel bad having voted for it already. Damn Down With the Sickness playing in my head for that vote, how dare you push me over the edge that day?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Mm. The decision was made with the information we had at the time. There's no real point in beating ourselves up over something we only now know in retrospect.
 
Reader mode
You must login or register to reply here.
Back
Top