[X] Vragni Silverbrand and his horde of attendant apprentices.
[X] Sven Baragmaker nodding in satisfaction as a truly gargantuan Bolt Thrower is hauled into camp.
[X] Brynna quietly watching a group of Zornish warriors go about their duties.
All the Runelords. Fuck it let's go!
Some interesting pieces from the doot that caught my eye.
You call it the Rune of Siphoning.
And it is not complete.
For all the good work you have done here you are vexed by a problem whose solution somehow eludes you. Much like the Runes you inscribed in your Master Rune testing area the Rune of Siphoning is Static, and loses almost all efficacy if moved continuously, requiring time to regenerate its field of influence. Your educated intuition and simple experience tell you that this is perhaps a fault of how the Rune draws up the Deep Magic at first, having to redig an entirely new shaft to reach the source once more so to speak, but there are a few things that remind you it's a challenge that can be overcome.
This thing would work well in a lair for the Dragon, or under Kraka Drakk (Potentially, depends if its sphere of influence can encompass the entire Karak when its made Really Big. I'm a bit skeptical there). Very useful for its very large energy demands.
She'd rather be examining the feathers if she were honest.
Making a note of that for the Frostbirds.
On the whole, all living things generally work from the same baseline functions. Fear, hunger, joy, these most primal impulses are the easiest to touch, to influence you've found.
And the things the Chaos Gods have anchored too, in some sense. This is a really interesting peek into what's going on down here, and yeah, poking the mind/soul of individuals tracks as difficult to me.
Heeeheee Skarri go nyoooooooom. It ain't gonna stop, you're on this ride and you can't get off.
Love the eye, absolutely bullying field increasing. Get fucked magic. My guess is that in battle this will cause a Aura of Equipment Degradation around Snorri, a general ticking down of equipment quality like what we saw against Hogrimm. Thank you Snerra!
You turn your thoughts towards such a stance, and things begin falling into place. Why was Mhorni, or whatever it was that created Mhorni even in your vicinity? To the best of your knowledge, your armour only drew up energy, not conjured nor cajoled beings from the aether into this reality. You can't discount the possibility of simply having drawn them in with the amount of power being thrown about, but that left the question of why your work bound Mhorni the way it had. Runes did not allow for such irregularity. If Mhorni was a being of Aetheric, why had it not been consumed by the Runes and turned into the formless and orderly power source that all magic is transformed into by the workings of Thungni's craft? They could be for the same reasons that Daemons are not, you admit, and its not as if you've ever tested Runecraft against Elementals or Elemental Incarnates either, but what makes Mhorni stand out, in particular, is the nature of its existence. As you've noted, Mhorni is bound to your armour, and that usually cannot abide. Runes do not appreciate foreign magic attempting to meddle with their workings, and yet here Mhorni is, hale, whole and arguably benefitting from the Runes effects. Which itself only makes you wonder why that is the case. Elemental or no, you did not bungle these Runes, you made sure of it. So why do they see Mhorni as a non-threat at worst and an ally at best?
There is something here. Some piece of the puzzle you cannot yet grasp beyond the haziest, most general, understanding.
You stare at the energy flowing around you, noting that about half of the flow now consists of the same teal energy as what Barak Azamar pulls up from below. Mhorni and Deep Magic, Gronti and Deep Magic, there is a connection there beyond the mere reality that the latter powers the former…
I wonder if the Gronti are embodied collections of the Deep Magic, kind of like Deep Magic Elementals given a body and form. Of a similar class of being to Elementals. Because there are direct parallels being drawn here between Mhorni and Gronti's ability to know dwarf culture and mindsets.
Theory aside, in terms of Runecraft the Phoenix feather was of some interest. Your work reveals that it's about on par with Hearthstone for most Runes, but had startling similarities to the Great Eagles whose feathers you use for a bevy of Runes. The implications of the latter may point to a related origin, or perhaps it implied nothing at all. Given how magic operates both were equally likely you'll admit. Much to your chagrin and disappointment, the Phoenix Feathers had little use in the way of healing Runes, a surprise given the creature's miraculous abilities, but perhaps you required a different organ or body part to impart that effect.
Hmm! If I had to guess, a Phoenix's Heart would contain the vital forces for healing, as Hearts lie in the Energy Source category of reagents. But a "Use this for Hearthstones or Great Eagle stuff" is a good find! Frostbirds must be older ones from all this description. Funky.
Nain getting down the maintenance line I am super happy for him. If he wants to have at that, fuck yeah dude! Go wild and get yourself out of that rut.
E: Also the Akazit down to 7 is a great sign. Means we can do 3 actions into it on turn 48 and only 2 actions on turn 49, opening up 3 actions for something else. Which is a huge relief on time pressures.
-Diction Direction Pt. 2, new totals:
[Cost: (8 -5) =3 actions]
-The Movement of Things Pt. 6, new totals:
[Cost: (16 -5) =11 actions]
-The Movement of Things Pt. 5b, new totals:
[Cost: (14 -6) =8 actions]
-The Mind of Things Pt. 5, new totals:
[Cost: (16 -14) =2 actions]
Very happy to see the mass of stuff getting put in a nice place for further pushes on turn 48
