Heimurn Chronicles (No, SV, you're a young valkyrie in the middle of a bizarre and dangerous journey)

With all the stuff that's going on in the world, when this story would come to an end I'll be writing an epilogue with the "behind the scenes" section, the latter would likely be the size of a huge update. Seriously: this quest is becoming somewhat autobiographic.

As the title says, I'm changing the rules for attribute checks in order to decrease the influence of the random element. In order to do so, the dice bonus for attributes will use the value 5 as the "equator", meaning Strength at the value of 14 would provide 9 dice bonus while Charisma at 4 would be -1.
In order to balance things out, the difficulties checks table for attributes was altered as well, and now looks like this:


After playtesting, I can confirm that the average performance of the characters against the non-extremum difficulty tiers remained the same while the number of situations where trained characters flop at simple tasks decreased drastically. The change of rules does not affect the contribution of attributes to natural skills bonuses.

These changes would be the default rules to the spinoff story which I launched a month ago, too.

Now, what's next in the pipeline? I'll try to drop a lore chunk post sometime this weekend and write an update to the spinoff before the end of the ongoing voting period in this thread. The current state of the IRL circumstances would hopefully allow me to pull it off (unless something akin to a supervolcano eruption or alien invasion happens. It's 2020s, after all...)

Regarding art posts: the plans have changed a little, so the next art piece would not be a character art but something related to the worldbuilding and something I probably should've commissioned first. Before it's posted, I'll leave it to your imagination.

@SnowSpartan @Bladesguy You might want to throw your votes for Lucy's armor since there's a hefty chance her art update would include it

That's all for now. I hope you'd enjoy the latest update and stay safe wherever you are.

Oh! And happy easter for those of you who celebrates it!

Fragment of conversation with Karl Norskov on 16 Bloom of the year 1469

Thaumaturgy? Pardon me, but isn't it you who should've been explaining to me instead of the other way around? So that you know, you put me in a disadvantageous situation when I'd have to scramble for something to tell while avoiding sounding like an old theorist fart patronizing a young practitioner. Do you think so? Fair, fair...

Well then, telling you that thaumaturgy is an arcane aspect centered around light, moderation of other magical branches, and the sun would be a waste of time, so why don't we delve into some finer details? For example, have you often used the arcane archetype trees concept or paid attention to the theories explaining their structure? In most of them - if not all - thaumaturgy would be placed near the system's root, but have you wondered why?

That is a curious theory of yours, but that's not the reason. There are two theories, one of which states that the arcane aspects emerged not simultaneously but one after another in all the eons that separate us from the hypothetical moment of the birth of existence. Its sibling theory mirrors this logic and applies it to the known contemporary species, extrapolating the central tendencies of arcane aspects' natural spread among demographics. But let's return to the more "philosophical" sibling for now, shall we?

According to this theory, the theoretical core of existence - the primordial Logos - is the original seed of every matter and process. Perhaps, you remember our old talk about the metaphysics of the core. If you do, it would be easier for you to draw my attempts at describing within your imagination. So, as the core - or the Logos - aged, it began to fill the void around itself, eventually separating its "territory" with the matter & elementals arcane aspects belt. And ever since then, the metaphorical wall of corporality and its functions separated Logos from the original chaos. At this point, the "biological" sibling of the theory finds a correlation between the age of Roths as a race and their unparalleled aptitude for elemental magic.

With the establishment of the "playing field," Logos did not stop there - propelled by the accelerating complexity of the overall architecture of essence, Original life as we know it came into the realm. It is represented by the workings of the life aspects layer — namely, spirit, emotions, reason, and organics. Same as the previous correlation, one can be found here: while not barred from the elementalism gift, many Alvizians are born with the bound to one of the life aspects, or sometimes even two. Coincidentally or not, Alvizians are considered to be the second oldest of the contemporary races.

And finally, we come to the most mysterious part: with how thaumaturgy regulates and interacts with all other aspects, it is safe to assume that it carries out the intermediary or "interfacing" functions of the Logos, noticeably without the gift of metaphysical shaping. The central mystery that haunts the minds of numerous theorists in arcane and philosophers is whether thaumaturgy as an aspect existed way before the elemental belt came to be or is it, perhaps, the most recent product of the Logose's core. The organicists tend to claim the latter, putting in front the fact that only humans - arguably the youngest race - can be born with the gift of thaumaturgy. However, Soltsveig Alvizians - in their traditional alvizian manner - seemed to be poking holes in this theory in the two last decades as their archeologists reportedly uncovered evidence of the precursor races being aware of thaumaturgy and even operated with it. Believe me when I tell you how mightily their possible findings divided the frequently dogmatic academics of Lyf. But that's straying off the point while the gist is, as of now, the intellectuals are debating whether thaumaturgy existed for about as long as Logos itself or is it the most recent product of its metamorphosis.

Now, if you find what I just said confusing, I might have some food for your thoughts which, in your case, don't require extensive familiarity with theory. With how you seem to naturally conjure, shape, and disperse the luminal barriers and blades, have you ever wondered about the material from which you make them? Oh, I see it from your eyes that you don't know. Well, to be frank, no one knows for sure - not even the Olfadirian thaumaturgists who claim it to be the essence of Highfather. Although, if we swap Highfather for Logos or the Existence's Core, admittedly, it stops sounding so outrageous.

But anyway, this matter you conjure is a unique trait of thaumaturgy. From solid to ethereal, from matter to pure energy, this substance is ludicrously convertible from one state to another. Some call it the "condensed light," the "solar glass," or just "luminite." Its properties are unknown mainly due to the scarcity of scholastic thaumaturgists, but the sun is known to be its source in a way, proving the innate link between thaumaturgy and the celestial body. Another theory states that luminite might be the "rudimentum" - the rawest primal mater, which is the product of the Arcane Core's existence and from which all other forms of essence might have branched out. The fact thaumaturgists seem to be unable to form it into more complex states while still having a degree of control over it confirms the link between the Arcane Core and thaumaturgy, in which they act as a conduit.

And here' comes the most intriguing part, Lucifina, the one which might be of your utmost enthusiasm: as thaumaturgy is native only to humankind, whose low natural arcane threshold does not allow to reach the peak in any of the aspects, the higher workings of thaumaturgy are unknown. Aside from legends of the Highfathers' divine beasts and exaggerated tales about Saint Aethlig, we have no clue what lies at the peak of the thaumaturgy "tower." For all we know, assuming the previous "rudimentum" theory is correct, and thaumaturgy is indeed an intermediary of the Arcane Core, it can be the bending of time and matter, the gift of the unconditional creation, or it may contain the key to understanding the nature of Logos itself. And here you are - the rare entity whose magical saturation already surpasses that of simple humans like myself while still having access to thaumaturgy. Unironically, your efforts to master it might eventually lead to the most significant scientific and philosophical discoveries in written history.

Now, there. I'm not trying to intimidate or flatter you: just stating the obvious. This potential that lies within you is one of the reasons why I agreed to take part in this journey in the first place. The less personal reason, anyway.

Entry excerpt from Lucifina's journal dated 16 Bloom 1469



Lately, I've been musing about races that inhabit this world. Not only because of what Karl told me concerning the distribution of arcane aspects between the denizens of Heim, but also due to the sheer variety of them and my own concerns regarding my belonging.

After Ren, Sephie, and I returned from our visit to Rene's ruined belltower, I had a hard time turning in for the night due to all the thoughts circling on my mind and referred to writing this entry instead. And Amalia, being herself, sniffed out my mood with ease, after which we engaged in a discussion about all the significant species populating the known world. While doing so, she, to my surprise, snatched my journal and began to sketch all the main racial groups. This quickly drew Sephie's attention and transformed into a cozy bedtime gossip party with jokes, birch juice drinking, and illustrating. We always knew that Amalia is a girl of numerous talents, but, until now, we did not suspect that drawing is one of them.

Also, I wasn't expecting Amalia to draw me, too. But thinking of it now, it seems like she did so for me to not feel like a lonely alien in this vast and sometimes scary world. Lia, if, by any chance, you are peeking into my diary and reading this entry, I want to say 'Thank you.' Thank you for being so kind and caring to all of us and myself.

Once again, you found your wings restrained under the wrapping of the faux bag. Itchy, uncomfortable, borderline aching, you might have voiced your displeasure aloud if only the circumstances that brought you out weren't this appalling, and there wasn't one outsider inbound. You could only resign yourself to following Inga's hasty gait for the time being. Speaking of Inga, you could feel the tension building up inside her with each step that brought you closer to the ill-fated outpost. Most likely, she did not witness the scene first-hand and only relied on the news brought to her by others. Oddly, she reminded you of Ulren when he tried his best to hide his emotions. However, she wasn't the only one with a heavy heart: with all four combatants of your group taken for the raid, there was a nagging feeling that coming back to Hjorn's yard might warrant surprises. You weren't paranoid of the assassins that assailed Rosaline's manor taking your other groupies as hostages. Instead, you had this nagging feeling that leaving Jory and Isaac unsupervised might bring troubles. But enough of that: you can hardly afford to be distracted by your gut feelings when there's a chance to shed more light on the series of murders plaguing Tevon.

"Would it make things easier if we had that Elgar fellow of yours with his pooch?" Ulren spoke to Inga, causing her to recoil from what appeared to be a deep contemplation state.

"Why, indeed, and I hope to see him on the spot along with the previous shift's rotation group." Right after saying this, Inga's face employed a pained expression.

"That's not a whole lot of confidence."

"The last time I saw him was yesterday evening. He's still recovering from the lurks' jaws, so it's not like he's actively sent on assignments, which makes his absence this morning confusing." After saying this, Inga endured what seemed to be a little struggle for whether to disclose more or not, eventually following up with: "He seemed concerned for the last two days; maybe even frustrated by something. But even then, he still turned down my offer to listen him out; all he said to me yesterday was him having a pretty darn bad feeling." She sneered sadly and shook her head, "five men dead, and one missing is beyond bad if you'd ask me. If this goes on, by this year's Dawnstar, there won't be any of us left."

To this, Ulren only shook his head slightly and produced a grumpy sigh.

"But, let's not get ahead of ourselves," Inga attempted to derail the conversation, "I see you brought two new people with you today."

"Two? Haven't you met the daeva already?"

Reacting to Ren's notion, Inga looked back at Sephie, who walked by your side somewhat behind the roths. Noticing this confusion, Sephie, clad in her new armor, lifted the visor mask of her helmet, outright gracing Inga with a sassy face. Perhaps, the meeting's somber atmosphere was the only reason that prevented your friend from sticking out her tongue to drive her message further.

"Oh, didn't recognize her at first," Inga tried to grin, but it wasn't looking very convincing, "thought it's someone else from your merc band." You caught Inga's assessing from-bottom-to-top gaze scanning Sephie. "Fancy harness you've got out there," the gvuroth murmured, "what's with the hue, though?"

"The set's made out of the remnants of what they described as a royal manticore." From Sephorah's smugness, you could have seen how she barely resisted mentioning how the beast tried to mess with her bosom but ended up being worn by her.

"Wonder what Hjorn would've made out of a behemoth's pelt," Inga mumbled nearly undistinguishably while briefly focusing on Karl. The latter noticed being investigated but did not comment as Inga made the first move: "We weren't introduced, no?"

"Indeed. While my companions told me about you, it's rude of me not to present myself, still — name's Karl. I'm what you could describe as fire support of this roaming mob."

"Fire... support?" For a moment, Inga looked more confused than low-key nervous, "Like... boiler watcher?"

"When our group's dear logistician doesn't feel like fiddling with flint and tinder, then I indeed am," If only Amalia were around to hear this, she would've probably burst out in laughter or tossed something at Karl (most likely a shoe), "but otherwise I am an elementalist; a pyromancer, if to be pedantic, or a fire bender, primitively speaking."

"Ah... I see," For a long moment, Inga's expression lost some of the undersurface tension as she delved into her musings, "That must be so nifty: scaring off some predators, camping with less regard to the weather, walking into the night without having to carry torches, and just having a heat source whether you need it for cooking or craft. So many possible utilities... It's hard not to be envious."

To this comment of the gvuroth lass, Karl tried to retort with something - he even raised his hand with the index finger pointing upwards to articulate his objection but then reconsidered, settling on a silent headshake with a bemused expression. A part of you wished Lia were here to witness this.

Alas, minor distractions like these failed to lift the uneasy atmosphere of the group and its guide. The road to the destination took you all about two hours in total, aiming South-East - right in the direction of the cursed valley your group came across on the way to Tevon. The involuntarily troubled recollection of that night sent a chill down your spine. To avoid sinking deeper into the memories of the event you wish you could forget, you tried chatting up Inga about local fauna. To your relief, she seemed eager to oblige, presumably keen on jumping on a convenient opportunity to flee from her own concerns, at least temporarily. And so, with Sephie and Ren distancing to have their separate chatter, Karl quietly basking in his melancholy, and you mining knowledge out of Inga, your group eventually made its way towards the Kherees outpost.

The outpost overlooked a crossroad cutting into the spacious meadow, full of sweet grasses and early wildflowers. Like an ambush predator hiding in the bushes, only parts of the fortification, such as the watchtower and fragments of the fence, were visible behind the compact woodland. The surrounding trees were trying on the dresses made of the fresh green, spawned after the winter dormancy and sheltering the building from the outside world. Hence, the landmark looked like anything but the associations with the killing grounds that your mind painted on the way here - No cues of destruction, skirmishes, or arson whatsoever. And, perhaps comforted by the ambient, you might have even felt the tiny yearning to take off the twice-damned leather wrap restraining your wings and let yourself flop onto this fresh, grassy carpet below you.

Yet, it was a poor time to indulge such urges: not only were there strangers nearby, but the sense of sparse chaotic aether trails in the surroundings ruffled you too much for comfort. And it wasn't just the singular pesky trail of entropic sediment - the background fone contained a higher density of void radiation than in the town. It was as if the picket itself and the adjunct outdoors were caught in an invisible fog or stream of entropic energies emanating from somewhere else. Was it the work of the demonic entity? Or was it due to the higher proximity of the spot to that damned valley your group barely escaped? If it was the latter, then could it be that blowouts of the void aether hotbeds can cause a chain reaction, exacerbating corruption of the surrounding chaos-corrupted nodules?

While you pondered this newly-born theory outside the fence, where your guide told your group to wait, Inga returned from the outpost's inner yard, visibly pale as milk. She tried to put on an impenetrable face, but the way she leaned with her back against the wicket the soonest it was closed left you no room for optimism: the scene she must have witnessed just now was, without a doubt, ghastly. No one, including you, managed to scramble for the words appropriate to the situation, seeing a formidable huntress in such a state. It was Inga herself who broke the grim suspense with the words spoken out so quietly one could've taken them for mutter.

"One at the entrance, three in the barrack, and one beyond the fence," she murmured, "the rotation team, Elgar, and Loїс, which came here before us, haven't yet found the sixth hunter."

The gvroth huntress made a loud gulp, closed her eyes for a long moment, and repeated a couple of deep breaths before continuing: "After what we've been through at the lakeshore manor, I'm sure you know what to do now. I informed others of your presence and cooperation." After saying this, she permitted a couple of tiny nods, with you nonverbally replying to her with a more defined one.
________________________

Phase 1 out of 3
Assign characters to the tasks. One character can only investigate one zone during one phase. Each character will make rolls mentioned in the tasks. The higher the scores, the more & better clues would be discovered. If more than one character is assigned to a single site, the highest score will be taken into account, with a chance of getting additional bonuses.
Each character has unique expertise and talents, which may yield extra clues.
More options might open in later phases, depending on the progress made.


[] Investigate the skirmish scene. (Perception attribute roll, Intelligence attribute roll, Wisdom attribute roll, melee skill roll, defense skill roll, balance skill roll, coordination attribute roll, luck roll)
-[] Lucy
-[] Ulren
-[] Sephorah
-[] Karl

[] Study the location around the skirmish scene. (Reconnaissance skill roll, sneaking skill roll, mobility attribute roll, burglary skill roll, perception attribute roll, luck roll)
-[] Lucy
-[] Ulren
-[] Sephorah
-[] Karl

[] Inspect bodies. (normal willpower skill roll (20), perception attribute roll, Intelligence attribute roll, pharma and treatment skill roll, melee skill roll, luck roll)
-[] Lucy
-[] Ulren
-[] Sephorah
-[] Karl

[] Seek for the missing person. (Reconnaissance skill roll, geography lore skill roll, huntsmanship skill roll, nature skill roll, perception attribute roll, luck roll)
-[] Lucy
-[] Ulren
-[] Sephorah
-[] Karl

[] Talk to someone regarding the series of murders. (Hard CHA check (20) OR Hard persuasion check (24), Luck roll)
-[] talk to Inga
--[] Lucy
---[] Disclose the leads on the murderer
---[] Do not disclose the leads on the murderer
--[] Ulren
--[] Sephorah
--[] Karl
-[] talk to Loїс
--[] Lucy
---[] Disclose the leads on the murderer
---[] Do not disclose the leads on the murderer
--[] Ulren
--[] Sephorah
--[] Karl
-[] talk to Elgar
--[] Lucy
---[] Disclose the leads on the murderer
---[] Do not disclose the leads on the murderer
--[] Ulren
--[] Sephorah
--[] Karl