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

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
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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.
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(Quote slightly edited to avoid spoilers)
 
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Greymere said:
Edit 2: @BirdBodhisattva I don't suppose the Comet FO counts as a social action we can spend bits on to make it more effective? :V
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An excellent question. :V And not this one in particular.

Money-spending is more useful for getting ponies from friend to good friend, after all, not the following step

Pittauro said:
so she didn't impress them even once this season yet?
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It is understandable that the recent events have made them a bit more demanding. Not to say outright stressed.
 
Well even if we can't aid Rarity missing one season or couple of shows should not be sufficient ground for firing her. If it is and Needles decide to become problem for us then we should just deal them. I still remember how they attempted to cheat us, who is to say that they don't do similar things to other designers who do not have someone like our uncle behind them. Some inspections would not be amiss then.

Also Rarity at Grail 3 can summon influence for Velvet. In this case Velvet can lead expedition herself. After replacing aid Rarity with valid action modified version of the plan looks like this



[X] Plan Rarity to the rescue v3
-[X] Selene (Winter)
-[X] Rarity (Grail Influence on Velvet with Cadre bonus, Grail 3 reagent)
-[X] Servants (Find a way to reduce suspicion of rituals done at your barn (don't tell them that, of course))
-[X] Jade (RotT for Twilight at our barn after its refurbishment, equip SH artifact.)
-[X] Hintchasers (get a body)
-[X] Raisen (steal manuscripts)
-[X]DoA (Lead expedition under Canterlot castle)
-[X]Velvet actions
--[X]AoTL for Comet action (Free)
--[X] Explore Woods (Free)
--[X] Craft Reagent (Grail 3 , Free)
--[X]1.Teach Rarity
--[X]2.Comet Feet social. With Fluttershy, not in reserve
--[X]3.Soft Sweeps social
--[X]4.Lead rescue Twilight expedition, take DoA with you
--[X]5.If doing FR for Twilight craft Forge 3 reagent x2. Otherwise Teach Lores to family
--[X]6.Help Twilight(FR after making sure that Twilight is not in the state where it can kill her or another action depending on circumstances).




In fact I don't think that there is high chance of us doing FR on Twilight due to unavoidable plot twists. But having spare action to deal with Twilight situation one way or another is benefit in itself.

On another note if only concern people have with FR is that it is not very reliable I think I actually can make a plan that all but guarantees it, although as I mentioned I have doubts that we actually will reach it

[X] Plan Guaranteed FR
-[X] Selene (Winter)
-[X] Rarity (Grail Influence on Velvet with Cadre bonus, Grail 3 reagent)
-[X] Servants (Find a way to reduce suspicion of rituals done at your barn(don't tell them that, of course))
-[X]DoA (Search Manehatten for Twilight)
-[X] Jade (Lead expedition to rescue Twilight. Take DoA with you. Kidnap Twilight and have her rescued by Velvet not far from Ponnyvile. Do not reveal yourself to Twilight)
-[X] Hintchasers (cast RotT to find Forge 3 book. Buy it and have it delivered to Loremaster)
-[X]Velvet actions
--[X]AoTL for Comet action (Free)
--[X] Red Church (Free)
--[X] Craft Reagent (Grail 3 , Free)
--[X]1.Teach Rarity
--[X]2.Comet Feet social. With Fluttershy, not in reserve
--[X]3.Soft Sweeps social
--[X]4.Read Books Forge 3, Forge 3, Forge 3. Lead Twilight expedition yourself if Hintchasers failed to acquire third book. Have Jade do Memory of Light action instead,
--[X]5.If doing FR for Twilight craft Forge 3 reagent x2. Otherwise Teach Lores to family
--[X]6.Help Twilight(FR after making sure that Twilight is not in the state where it can kill her or another action depending on circumstances).
 
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zxzx24 said:
So what is Vespertine?
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Do you mean the plan itself, or the word? Because the plan you can just read in the vote tally, I'm not really sure how to describe it better than itself.

The word, however, is defined as "relating to, occuring, or active in the evening". Which is probably referring to all the Expeditions we're doing.
 
Alex Sol said:
--[X] Visit the Dry Well (Free)
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This is pointless. Visiting Manaus sites a second time gives lesser rewards. I imagine the most likely one would be a grail 1 or 2 influence, which we don't need.

Either go red church, or if that's too risky a wood or stairways location (though stairways would only find it, not explore it)
Alex Sol said:
--[X]4.Read Books Forge 3, Forge 3, Forge 3. Lead Twilight expedition yourself if Hintchasers failed to acquire third book. Have Jade do Memory of Light action instead,
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We don't have 3 forge books that give scraps. We have exactly 3 useful books.

BOOK FORGE Level 3. "A real guide to beginner's level blacksmithing. The bookstore owner almost seemed excited in having this reach your hoofs via your servants."

BOOK FORGE Level 3. "The book is simply titled 'Chemistry', and your servants reluctantly admitted that was the only word they understood in it. Of course you know they were being dramatic, but that also means that the contents of the book must be way, way beyond what they teach at schools."

BOOK LANTERN Level 6. "An ancient, and enormous, hardcover tome written in an unknown language. You are not even sure what its title is, if it even has one, but the symbol laid on its front was enough for you to understand what it is about. On its cover you can clearly see the icon of a Sun, Divided." (DECIPHERED, will grant +one Lantern Lore if studied, small risk of FASCINATION.)
 
Pittauro said:
This is pointless. Visiting Manaus sites a second time gives lesser rewards. I imagine the most likely one would be a grail 1 or 2 influence, which we don't need.
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Have we actually explored it? Not sure how many actions we have spend on it, I just remembered that Velvet refused to look inside it, although it could have been simply local feature and not an indication of incomplete exploration. Is there one action to find and one to explore in Woods and have we spend both on it?
 
Alex Sol said:
Have we actually explored it? Not sure how many actions we have spend on it, I just remembered that Velvet refused to look inside it, although it could have been simply local feature and not an indication of incomplete exploration. Is there one action to find and one to explore in Woods and have we spend both on it?
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For the Woods (and only the Woods, I believe), the 'find' action is the same as the 'explore' action. Which is why we got the Grail scrap and +10 Influence when we found it. If we hadn't explored it, we wouldn't have gotten the rewards.
 
Alex Sol said:
After some discussion i replaced Dry Well with Red Church. Inform me if it matters to you and you would prefer another location
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I'm not voting for your plan, but I'll note that if your original intention was to avoid the Church this turn, there are still places in the Woods we haven't found and explored. You could always just go loooking for those.

Or you could search for a new place in the Shattered Stairway. We probably wouldn't be able to actually explore, but knowing a specific place to go for could be useful in the future.
 
Ericwinter said:
I'm not voting for your plan, but I'll note that if your original intention was to avoid the Church this turn, there are still places in the Woods we haven't found and explored. You could always just go loooking for those.

Or you could search for a new place in the Shattered Stairway. We probably wouldn't be able to actually explore, but knowing a specific place to go for could be useful in the future.
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I actually wanted easy Grail. Church is more risky but it would not matter much if we do it toward the end of turn. Otherwise i just go with option that is more popular
 
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