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Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
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Glau said:
Ok, so your analysis then is that this is a neutral audience to be won over, but one which is unsure of our martial prowess.

I disagree- I think we've been manipulated into the position we are in now as a test by our host, and not playing out 'earnest but powerful commoner' is a better move.

You are, again, treating these nobles as children to be guided and protected. That works from a commander. It doesn't from an interloper. I think we are getting baited.
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No, this is a mixed arena, we have three agenda clusters and one unaligned minors.
-Luo is mainly interested in forging connections. While stretching the stereotype might not be wholly accurate, any cultivator focused on dogs is going to have a healthy serving of pack loyalty as a secondary concern at least. He's the big fish here, he got nothing to prove.
--Demonstrating our power is not important, demonstrating our willingness to be a team player is.
--Socializing can also score points, but the risk here lies in putting his Green 1s up against a Green 4(?) beast, upon which he'd lose a fair bit of respect, on the basis that HE let Ling Qi choose the hunt and her choices got his dudes hurt.

-Alingge is positively inclined, she likes people who respects spirits rather than using them as tools, she likes awesome legendary beasts, she likes people who actually put in the effort to know about their traditions, and we've been hitting those buttons hard.
--We're secure on these grounds, more or less, we already got her respect by aligning with her option, and are unlikely to lose it in an IC manner.

-Wujing is negatively inclined, he makes a big show of following Imperial noble customs, he opened the meeting with barbs and then even defended a mutual enemy because Ling Qi was apparently too savage to someone the whole group detests.
--Demonstrating our prowess would score approximately zero credit with his clique, but it'd not cost any points.
--Engaging with his clique would demonstrate our Yellow grade archery, and requires Ling Qi to win the personal connections of a group which dislikes her.

-The masses don't know shit about Ling Qi, beyond her status as an upjumped commoner.
--They'd probably appreciate it if they didn't get mangled because of her defending them however.
--On the other hand with the archery crew we also could forge personal connections with this markedly less prickly group than Wujing's clique.

The key factor here, I believe is that we're fighting against a generalized dislike. As such, preventing the broad opinions from lowering is more crucial than scoring a dramatic gain.

They have a lot of rumors, but note that they found our story of the Bai ambush unbelievable enough in our performance to actually blatantly sic a lie detector dog on us.
Our deeds sound farfetched.

We can put THAT to rest here.
 
Erebeal said:
They're apparently icky light tho.

We need a dark version that make illusions from shadows and wind.
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Maybe it'd've had a peer-counterpart of just that variety hiding in its shadow! Just like you'd expect from an illusionist cat!

Disabling both of them would have required pushing past our limits with PLR and served as the skill breakthrough arbitration for Dance, while simultaneously symbolizing Ling Qi's future as an agent that steps between the shadows and the light of her liege!
 
[] Ling Qi would stay and hide herself with the other archers, she had already showed off in helping Alingge quickly isolate their target. Now was the time to catch up on her original goals.

Might as well just be a socialite.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
People are being way over dramatic about the vote here.
Our main goal was reached simply from coming here, the last vote got us closer to a fellow cultivator and we did impress by finding prey so quickly. Sure it's not hugely impressive, but nothing was going be huge here, except possibly failure if we tried too hard to be a social butterfly.

The current vote follows my preferred "don't fuck this up" trajectory, with bonus option of maybe having some further gains.
 
[X] Ling Qi would stay and hide herself with the other archers, she had already showed off in helping Alingge quickly isolate their target. Now was the time to catch up on her original goals

Ive had a change of heart.

She was attempting to socialise, and Six suggested showing vulnerability. Something like...

"Since I suggested the plan I am happy to play the role of bait, I must admit my goals are to expand my social circle and interaction with my peers and possibly work on my weakest art - archery. I will take wharever role you decide with that knowledge "

Nicely conforming to the "taking twice as long" observation of Six, and putting the decision back in the leaders hands
 
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[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
 
[X] Ling Qi would stay and hide herself with the other archers, she had already showed off in helping Alingge quickly isolate their target. Now was the time to catch up on her original goals.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
 
OneArmedYeti said:
We can cultivate Yin Light tho...

If there's not an Inversion keyword, I'll eat Xuan Shi's hat.

Wait, my mental image of him has always included a massive hat.

Was I just making that up?
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Yin/Yang shorthand for figuring out what its like when changed.
Yang:
-Active
-Creates
-Dynamic/Chaotic
-Direct
-Ethereal

Yin:
-Passive
-Destroys
-Static/Orderly
-Indirect
-Material

Examples we've already seen
Wood on its own is a very Yang element, it expands and grows by definition. It creates life and feeds new life. Its strength comes from within.
Yin Wood inverts this. It becomes death-which-grows, the poison growing through your body only through the loss of strength.

Fire on its own is a mixed element. By the Trigrams, it is radiant, spreading Yang with a core of clinging, hungry Yin.
Yin Fire removes its radiant aspect, to cling close and consume everything without giving out anything.
We hadn't seen Yang Fire IC, but we can surmise from this that its like the Phoenix/Sun fire, inexhaustible fire that creates light and heat without fuel.

So lets take Light's attributes:
-Radiance - The light spreads far and wide. A candle in the night can be seen for miles away, even though it is weak. Even if you block it, it will reflect and spread in the opposite direction yet.
-Revelation - The light reveals that which was not known.
-Formless - You can see it, but it has neither size, shape, nor weight. You can obstruct it, but it expands in all directions without care otherwise.

Very naturally Yang-y, so without a simple material correspondence, we cheat by inverting all attributes:
-Radiance -> The Yin-light does not spread, but clings. It does not reflect, but infuses.
-Revelation -> The Yin-light does not illuminate, it passes unseen.
-Formless -> The Yin-light is coherent. It has shape, size and mass, though you can't see it.

Combine and blend: Yin Light is best rendered as Alpha particle radiation. Its radiance doesn't spread, it taints. It is unseen, but has form.
 
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[X] Ling Qi would stay and hide herself with the other archers, she had already showed off in helping Alingge quickly isolate their target. Now was the time to catch up on her original goals.

Lets's take Xixiang's advice to chill and socialize while letting everyone else do the real work.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.
 
[X] Ling Qi would take the role of bait, it was the best use of her abilities within the limitations of the hunt. It would be more impressive and she was suited to protecting the other 'bait' cultivators.

Glau said:
It's like there is no acknowledgment that showing people up further and coming in as the newbie to "protect" everyone could backfire.

Being awesome is not enough to make people like us.
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[] A cooperative hunt against a more cunning beast. Increased difficulty means less chance to play the social game, but impressive skills may bring admiration...

Literally mentioned in the option.
 
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