Well, if that's true, then Liminal Branch's Vault is valuable because it's an instant learn.
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Even Further Beyond [Complete]
- Thread starter Rihaku
- Start date
- Original
Well, if that's true, then Liminal Branch's Vault is valuable because it's an instant learn.
Enohthree
Hypersane
What? This is the opposite of how it works.
It always exists, its just moving. Hence we'll find it where ever it goes thanks to Cerebration. We're not going to spend a Cerebration to learn about an option and then not take it, that would be silly. We learned about the option from the Ravens, hence why we know about how they got Bleak Procession, but we'd only spend the Cerebration once we decide to go after it, that's the only logical thing to do.
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DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
...everyone here knows there's going to be a civil war here the moment we hit 9 BP, right?
DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
People are still suggesting that? God damn it guys.
I want Elves because I want to LEARN WHAT THE FUCK NATURALISM IS guys. Let's learn the final part of Thrice Great, shall we?
- Location
- Actually pretty lost
It's going to be glorious. We'll be able to save up the huge influx of Salt Points and convert them into Emotion Points, which will act as fuel for dramatic insights for Mastermind Points.
Do we even get Naturalism? I thought we only got one of the two Binary Magics, else it would be Quadruple Great?
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
So... "could we sell them land?" would be a stupid question, right?
DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
Hah!
I think the reason Natualists make poor Artificers and vice versa probably has to do with them using their essence in different ways and due to Cultivation being able to restore essence...
Origami Clock
Right twice a day
- Location
- Brighton, UK
Are you going to deny us power just because it would require Build Votes? Who are you and what have you done with Rihaku's body?
DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
But I want to know what Naturalism does! It's the one last shiny we have zero ideas about.
Literally zero. We even have a bit of info on TRUTH of all things! But not Naturalism besides the fact that it, for some reason, does not work well with Artifice normally.
Enohthree
Hypersane
The Sincerest Form of Flattery - 617 words
The Regalia of the Knight Errant was an incredible Artifact, not only for its combat related improvements on the base form, but also for how it improved the wearer visually. There were precious few Titanic level artifacts in existence and to craft one at the request for physical beauty, no matter what utility it brought, was an expenditure conceivable only by the Fated Overlord during a six week long constant celebration of himself for his most loyal guard.
Peak beauty was a nebulous concept however. There were hundreds of thousands of significant subjectivities, all of which compounded on each other in different ways. There was no one 'peak look' that all aspired to, and effects of the Regalia would not warp Suizhen into something unrecognizable from herself if she did not wish for it to be so.
So how she currently looked, given the parameters of 'general improvement' and 'improves on original looks,' could have taken many different paths.
Which made the current path it had taken somewhat of an elephant in the room.
"So," said Nameless as he idly played with his glass, addressing Suizhen from across the table. "I see you took some, ah, local inspiration for your form."
Suizhen giggled nervously and tried her best to not look to his left. She was not one that was normally cowed by Xiaoling, but the deadly look in her eyes as she glared promised harm that could cross cultivation stages if so desired.
"She looks like me! Her nose! Her lips! She's trying to steal my looks, Unloved!" Any go at subtly had died an early death in the face of such blatant fashion theft. Xiaoling was on a warpath, and it was only the significant amount of booze clouding her head and Nameless' hand on her shoulder that was preventing horrific escalation of the situation.
"I-Its not like I was aiming for t-this! The improvement was i-intuitive and this is what..." she trailed off, her still clear blue eyes pleading her case. The fact that she looked like some perfect blend of herself, Xiaoling, and the an abstract concept of a supermodel was really quite distracting.
But the Ming heiress was about to explode so there was no time to do anything but play damage control.
"I made the Artifact but I didn't grow up knowing the elves and how they treated their arts. Does this mean that Fate itself has decreed that the best way for someone to look better was to take after you?"
She spared him a half lidded glance and her mouth twitched. She didn't do anything not perfectly ladylike such as snort at his obvious flattery despite her currently fuzzy head, but she shot back just the same.
"Artifacts reflect their maker, dear, so perhaps it seems that the only way you saw for her to become prettier was to wipe away her old looks and replace her with me? How utterly shameless, pining after me so much that it reflects in even priceless Artifacts."
"So long as we're debating the cause, it could be Suizhen's preferences coming to bear?"
At their respective cultivation speeds, the whiplash from how quickly Ming and Kong looked at each other was enough to create an audible crack.
"N-no! That's not- no! If anything it would be me overstepping my bounds and trying to look like who I thought Sir would-"
The benefit of Quickening was that it allowed him six times as much time as he normally would have to figure out a way to save the conversation before she finished her hastily blurted out defense. Men across the planet would have killed for such a boon.
It was still not enough time.
The Regalia of the Knight Errant was an incredible Artifact, not only for its combat related improvements on the base form, but also for how it improved the wearer visually. There were precious few Titanic level artifacts in existence and to craft one at the request for physical beauty, no matter what utility it brought, was an expenditure conceivable only by the Fated Overlord during a six week long constant celebration of himself for his most loyal guard.
Peak beauty was a nebulous concept however. There were hundreds of thousands of significant subjectivities, all of which compounded on each other in different ways. There was no one 'peak look' that all aspired to, and effects of the Regalia would not warp Suizhen into something unrecognizable from herself if she did not wish for it to be so.
So how she currently looked, given the parameters of 'general improvement' and 'improves on original looks,' could have taken many different paths.
Which made the current path it had taken somewhat of an elephant in the room.
"So," said Nameless as he idly played with his glass, addressing Suizhen from across the table. "I see you took some, ah, local inspiration for your form."
Suizhen giggled nervously and tried her best to not look to his left. She was not one that was normally cowed by Xiaoling, but the deadly look in her eyes as she glared promised harm that could cross cultivation stages if so desired.
"She looks like me! Her nose! Her lips! She's trying to steal my looks, Unloved!" Any go at subtly had died an early death in the face of such blatant fashion theft. Xiaoling was on a warpath, and it was only the significant amount of booze clouding her head and Nameless' hand on her shoulder that was preventing horrific escalation of the situation.
"I-Its not like I was aiming for t-this! The improvement was i-intuitive and this is what..." she trailed off, her still clear blue eyes pleading her case. The fact that she looked like some perfect blend of herself, Xiaoling, and the an abstract concept of a supermodel was really quite distracting.
But the Ming heiress was about to explode so there was no time to do anything but play damage control.
"I made the Artifact but I didn't grow up knowing the elves and how they treated their arts. Does this mean that Fate itself has decreed that the best way for someone to look better was to take after you?"
She spared him a half lidded glance and her mouth twitched. She didn't do anything not perfectly ladylike such as snort at his obvious flattery despite her currently fuzzy head, but she shot back just the same.
"Artifacts reflect their maker, dear, so perhaps it seems that the only way you saw for her to become prettier was to wipe away her old looks and replace her with me? How utterly shameless, pining after me so much that it reflects in even priceless Artifacts."
"So long as we're debating the cause, it could be Suizhen's preferences coming to bear?"
At their respective cultivation speeds, the whiplash from how quickly Ming and Kong looked at each other was enough to create an audible crack.
"N-no! That's not- no! If anything it would be me overstepping my bounds and trying to look like who I thought Sir would-"
The benefit of Quickening was that it allowed him six times as much time as he normally would have to figure out a way to save the conversation before she finished her hastily blurted out defense. Men across the planet would have killed for such a boon.
It was still not enough time.
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- Location
- Actually pretty lost
Inserted tally
LordOfMurder
Bhaal
- Location
- Australia
[x]Palimpest of the Nameless one
-[x]Don't go Further Beyond
[x]Journey to the West
Since Elves are apparently better for improving our dao.
-[x]Don't go Further Beyond
[x]Journey to the West
Since Elves are apparently better for improving our dao.
- Location
- Actually pretty lost
Wait, what? No they're not - the Netherine dungeon is, definitely?
EDIT: Well, almost definitely. It's full of the stuff that Cultivation was originally cobbled together out of, after all - a big part of why we'd like to go is to see how exactly that came about, and whether we can improve upon it. Understanding Cultivation better will certainly lead to understanding the point and function of Daos better.
Also, it gets us more MMs in the long run, since the Elves will still be there after but we might outlevel the only remaining dungeon dangerous enough to work.
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OctarineShrike
Avatar of Mandos
[x]Palimpest of the Nameless one
-[x]Don't go Further Beyond
[X] Tomb of the Netherine
Elvegekiere's Protector can get us something beyond a Requiem stand in terms of power once we reach Even Further Beyond. It also gets good esoteric defense if you go for Orichalcum but that's seemingly a lost cause. It's Requiem Stand Tier at Philosophers Stone if we hybridize it with the Essence Version of its diagram.
-[x]Don't go Further Beyond
[X] Tomb of the Netherine
Elvegekiere's Protector can get us something beyond a Requiem stand in terms of power once we reach Even Further Beyond. It also gets good esoteric defense if you go for Orichalcum but that's seemingly a lost cause. It's Requiem Stand Tier at Philosophers Stone if we hybridize it with the Essence Version of its diagram.
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DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
So talk to the Elves and fully exploit our Thrice Great Nature by learning Naturalism. Instead of, you know, go dungeon diving for treasures and lore. Things that don't help develop the Dao.
Honestly, it's amazing that NOW you guys are all gung ho over actually exploring and generating MP instead of back when we had a hell of a lot more options for dungeon delving.
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
I think it's important that we save our Beyond Points for the time being. The Vault's enhanced functions will be better claimed at higher combat power and we don't need the temptation of making a lower strength Artifact to enhance it. Due to those factors, it's better to build towards one of an undiscounted Even Further Beyond, keeping a reserve to go Further Beyond on an unexpected but important multiplier, or to spend a couple points to get Truth sooner after reaping the low-hanging fruit of adventuring opportunities and reaching five or so Mastermind Points.
Previously I would have advocated for either Further Beyond on the Philosopher's Stone chain or to go Even Further Beyond on either Reality Forming or Grand Solipsism, but judging by Rihaku's comments about Further Beyond efficiency and the value of Even Further Beyond Dao Cleaving or Titanic Ascension, vague though they be, I suspect that that's a relatively inefficient way to spend points unless we aren't going to reach Titanic Ascension or run out of good places to put points.
Previously I would have advocated for either Further Beyond on the Philosopher's Stone chain or to go Even Further Beyond on either Reality Forming or Grand Solipsism, but judging by Rihaku's comments about Further Beyond efficiency and the value of Even Further Beyond Dao Cleaving or Titanic Ascension, vague though they be, I suspect that that's a relatively inefficient way to spend points unless we aren't going to reach Titanic Ascension or run out of good places to put points.
MP are worth twice as much now, we're in less danger doing so, and the Liches are almost assuredly gone.
DarkKing98
Certified Village Idiot
- Location
- USA
Indeed they are. And talking Peace with elves will give us the one MP needed to inefficiently, but very quickly, get Truth. The dungeon will still exist after Peace talk with the Elves. We have no gaurantee that the other way around is the same. Nameless THINKS that they won't fall in a few months. Problem is, he can be wrong and it will fall by the time we leave the dungeon. A certainty? No. A possibility? Yes.
Da Boyz
The Cutest Apocalypse.
A reaction which we meet our waifu bodyguard for life. The statistician in mean cried a little rereading this I have to say. 1311 words.
Fate is most certainly not subtle in this universe.
Its kinda depressing how rare and valuable "Not an asshole" is as a trait in this world though. When the world is built around the gratification and glorification of a few living gods "might makes right" helps to do away with the niceties of civilization.
This chapter served primarily to transition Nameless away from boyhood and set him on his journey to topple heaven and slay its champion as many times as is needed. In a very real sense the most important part of Nameless's life has begun as he's emerged from his chrysalis as a beautiful vengeful butterfly out to scam the universe into giving him ultimate power though obscure magical synergies. While Suizhen's introduction he is contrived enough to beggar belief it does present a neat reminder of how heavily the Divines have weighted the dice for even our knockoff brand luck to be able to produce this outcome. One can only imagine how horrifyingly unfair the Heroine's luck will be or the nightmare that Full Bloom would have created.
Mildly surprised that our compound is small enough that there's only one opening. While Grandad probably wouldn't want a country sized palace
Somewhere far away Yong Shen is brooding about his latest Go loss.
Dad truly gives the most thoughtful and best gifts. Mildly curious as to if Nameless has abused his position with any of the maids if his dad's joking that openly about it. Given that he's as far above any unfortunate mortal as the peak of the mountain is from the Earth its not like he couldn't get away with it. Hopefully enough of his original morality from his first life has survived to curb any egregious abuses of power though, one benefit of being raised first in a place with a different set of norms.
His little boy is all grown up and ready to go out and scam people into enslavement for profit.
Makes sense that our dad would be the cause of the rain in retrospect. He's almost certainly taught in Grandad's style unless he developed his own Dao of Scamming, and is of a high enough level that he can warp local reality to match his internal world.
Ouch. A sad reminder that we've lost our way and missed out on spending our childhood with our family. While ensuring that we aren't subjected to eternal servitude comes first its still a punch in the gut.
The benefits of having a superhuman bodyguard who is happy to watch you every second of the day. Also wow while I get that most of the clan wouldn't be threatened by a mere cobra in the gardens don't they have some garden reserved for the kids of the family? One which doesn't include the more deadly attractions?
I'm vaguely concerned about what our childhood would have been like if he had decided to spend more time with her now. We know that being with mom would have given us enough self-discipline that we'd be able to remove a Heroic Passion and if she approached everything with that attitude things might have gotten...unpleasant.
I'm kinda surprised that she and Liefang are letting us leave home this early honestly. We're (seemingly) just a kid and in the eyes of Immortals we're practically an infant. Moreover given the immense long-term potential we have you'd think we'd have been hoarded away with the greatest of clan treasures until we could benchpress a mountain on our own. Some sort of local custom/tradition for children to make their way out of the nest at this age? Or maybe Nameless just managed to sell the trip to the Southern Provinces as non-dangerous to his parents.
Odd that she still has that after her falling out with the White Orchid Sect. Well presumably it was a falling out, Liefang was supposed to be assassinated and instead got married to their protege after all. Maybe they're just honor/Daobound to respect the authority of the pendant?
How long has it been since Nameless forged his mentor into a vessel for his soul? Since he sacrificed the crux of fate for the Age of Truth so it might live on on his finger. Nameless has learned resolve at least from his mentor's sacrifice. Maybe that will be enough to crack down on the spoiled excess from now on?
I'll miss you dad you glorious asshole. Wouldn't be surprised if he was being completely serious here though after all they're still young and from the sounds of things large families are encouraged/the norm.
The innocence of youth has to end eventually, for us that was the day our father laid eyes on us but still!
Ah suicidal xianxia bandits. One of the few genre spanning constants, let the protagonist his his first taste of blood on an acceptable target.
For all that we joke about her being naive later on its good to see that Suizhen has a good understanding of dirty tactics others might use and the foresight to head them off. Probably comes from being a battle savant or her time on the road.
An amusing reaction which first shows Suizhen's insecurity/humility, while it'd later be inflamed by standing in the shadow of the Thrice Great for the moment she is the strongest cultivator around and yet she shrugs off something that could be taken as an insult from a mortal without seeming to take notice of it. Of course there's also the depressingly likely possibility that she didn't actually notice it could be taken as an insult.
Don't listen to them Suizhen they didn't even have an individual bandit speak for them. Instead they all seem to have begged for their lives in eerie synchronization, they're clearly either faceless mooks or were intelligent enough to practice their begging beforehand.
"I mean a large number of those great monsters now rule the world and subsequently whitewashed history to redeem their image and show themselves as virtuous but I don't think that counts."
Since we have a moment here to breathe while the trash burns can I just point out the sheer improbability of this? While teleporting thousands of miles per jump across an expanse that can be measured in "Asias" we just so happen to stumble upon a group of bandits and be saved by Suizhen. Suizhen notably has to have traveled all the way from Kong to get here, a trip which probably deserves its own epic for all the adventures she probably had along the way.
Fate is most certainly not subtle in this universe.
Wish we got a more detailed explanation of what the "Forgotten Arts" entail here. Are they heterodox paths of Cultivation, remnants of past ages which occasionally resurface, obscure techniques which have been lost to the sands of time?
The Yong Liefang school of negotiation: Bulldoze through negotiations with a mix of sleeze and promised payment.
Clearly Nameless has read enough fairy tales to recognize what you should do when the knight in shining armor saves her Prince Charming. Also "pen-pal" is an interesting description for Xiaoling all things considered. While accurate it makes you wonder how often the two of them were even able to meet in person.
"Plus you didn't even fall to the whispers of glory and value which emanate from my dread ring of an age made manifest."
Its kinda depressing how rare and valuable "Not an asshole" is as a trait in this world though. When the world is built around the gratification and glorification of a few living gods "might makes right" helps to do away with the niceties of civilization.
Not a word about the oddness of us not having a name. Given that our family name is the more important part of it (for now) I imagine it isn't that massive an issue in the eyes of others. Just a quirk caused by a whim of a Titan or the Lord of Vermin.
This chapter served primarily to transition Nameless away from boyhood and set him on his journey to topple heaven and slay its champion as many times as is needed. In a very real sense the most important part of Nameless's life has begun as he's emerged from his chrysalis as a beautiful vengeful butterfly out to scam the universe into giving him ultimate power though obscure magical synergies. While Suizhen's introduction he is contrived enough to beggar belief it does present a neat reminder of how heavily the Divines have weighted the dice for even our knockoff brand luck to be able to produce this outcome. One can only imagine how horrifyingly unfair the Heroine's luck will be or the nightmare that Full Bloom would have created.
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- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
A possibility I'm not willing to credit with a vote. Further, I don't think getting the Truth quickly is worth spending our resources that unwisely. I'm willing to spend one extra BP by getting it with 5 MM, but two extra is too much for me, especially when you add in delaying the Tomb Cerebration to next year; I think using Cerebration on the Heroine or Kong Zang is unnecessary this year but will become quite valuable once the Heroine awakens and as we get closer to Kong Zang checking in. Even beyond that increasing value calculation, we may need further Cerebrations to make use of what we find in the Tomb and I want to leave that possibility open.