- Location
- United Kingdom
[X] Goldfish
A Sword Without a Hilt: A Song of Ice and Fire/D&D 3.5 Crossover
- Thread starter DragonParadox
- Start date
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- Tags
- a song of ice and fire a sword without a hilt d&d 3.5 dungeons & dragons 100% high octane dragon fuel ave corvidae battle action dragon diplomacy best sister bureaucromancy delicious soul-stuff dragon dreams come true dragon ta'veren greatest uncle hubris is a coward's word in defiance of gods and men mammon's folly mutually assured mage's disjunction qm murderhobo top tier coatl
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Part MMMCDXXXIII: Watchers Above
Watchers Above
Twenty-Seventh Day of the Twelfth Month 293 AC
After some thought on the matter you counsel Lord Mullendore to continue trading with the Court of Stars even after refusing their offer of protection. Hopefully the shadow-forged ring, twin to the one you had given Lord Ashford, will keep the fey envoys from realizing the full reason for his decision, though you suppose the very fact of being unable to divine his choices and peer into his mind will give them some notion of what might have happened. Still, you would judge the Court of Stars unlikely to make too aggressive a move here in Uplands, especially not while there are other lords whose cooperation they wish to keep and obtain. The same could not be said of likely foes looking to enthrall, to manipulate or simply to feed.
Thus you leave in Lord Martyn's keeping a Whispering Brazier, a sending stone and genie charm to lead him to Armun Kelisk in time of danger.
"I'll hand that to Elys rather than drag my old bones away to play messenger," the old lord replies with a wry smile. "Who knows, maybe I've still got a few more good swings of the sword in me."
"More than you might think, my lord, if you would allow one more spell," you reply, unsurprised by his answer.
"Of course." Healing the aches and pains of old age may not bring the same wonder as flight, but he breathes easier for the casting.
More at ease with leaving thinking messengers and spies in his service you also assign a trio of lesser false ravens and one greater to follow the lord's commands, bearing messages to trusted bannermen and other lords of the Reach who have sworn themselves to you.
"Isn't that something?" the old lord nods in greeting to the birds. "I heard the tales of ravens that could speak like men as a boy of course, but never thought I'd see some of them before I died."
"They are not precisely of that breed, my lord, though such exist. Ser Waymar Royce's familiar is one of them," Lya explains. "These I helped make, from feathers, steel and souls of the Endless Sky."
- 1x Whispering Brazier
- 1x Sending Stone
- 1x Teleportation Charm
- 1x Greater Three Eyed Raven
- 3x Lesser Three Eyed Raven
"Marvelous," he claps. "I'm certain you will have a great deal of news to share with me, my friends, and not just about what goes on in Sorcerer's Deep, eh? I'm curious to see what some of those envoys of the Court do when out of my sight."
"Probably best not to risk that, my lord," you interject. Any fey envoy who finds himself trailed by an unseen raven would be able to guess your hand in matters instantly, you suspect.
"Traders tales it is then, Your Grace, just don't tarry too much in claiming your throne. I'd like to know I have a king worth calling upon, the sooner the better." Turning to Lya with a surprisingly graceful bow he adds. "And a queen of course."
***
"You know, I think I liked that one the most," Lya says when you are back in the Deep for lunch and the daily report from other corners of the realm.
"You only say that because he bowed to you and not to me," you reply in a mock-aggrieved tone.
Ser Richard looks like he would like to grumble more seriously on the breech of protocol, but in the end thinks better of it. However eccentric the Lord of Uplands may have been he has shown himself more practical and clear-sighted than many of his peers.
***
The next leg of your journey takes you beyond the green hills of Uplands to the stormy waters of the Sunset Sea and the tall white cliffs of the Shield Islands. Not so embattled by the sea nor so bleak as the Iron Islands whose raiders have long troubled these shores, the domain of lord Humfrey Hewett of Oakenshield is nonetheless a far cry from the bountiful fields that most come to mind when one imagines the Reach. That, however, is not all that is odd in these lands.
As the three of you walk up the path to Oakenshield Keep you notice a small shadow briefly passing over the face of the sun, a sea bird most like, yet when you look up you are greeted with a far stranger creature. Thin yellowish skin streaked out over fin like wings and a wide grin filled with sharp needle-like teeth below eyes that burn like tiny coals. A gremlin, you recognize it at once, though not of a kind you have ever encountered in the flesh before.
It is Lya, however, who spots the likely reason why such a creature is flying in wide circles over the keep and village. "It has a token of mage-sight. I think it's looking for infiltrators."
"Not very well," Ser Richard points out. "It hasn't seen us, has it?"
"If there are more sharp-eyed watchers out there they would themselves be veiled," you muse. "I wonder, does the creature serve the Lord of Greyshield looking out for one of his more favorable neighbors or Lord Hewett himself?"
The mind of a gremlin is not a difficult one to peer into, though the way the fey's mind flit from thought to thought is quite distracting. Still, you find the answer soon enough. The little gremlin is part of an entire troupe that roosts in one of the keep's formerly abandoned towers, pledging their service to the Lord of Oakenshield in exchange for protection and sustenance, sailor's sweat and week old bread in their case.
It seems Lord Hewett has no objection to fey servants, only fey holding power over him. That certainly makes your task easier, but the connection to Bandon and his fellows might make him feel more secure against the perils of the world than most of his peers.
How to you introduce yourself to Lord Hewett?
[] Write in
OOC: And here we are, I figured giving you guys a chance to vote on this introduction makes sense since it's your first time meeting with the highborn allies of Brandon and company.
Last edited:
- Location
- Argentina
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
Watchers Above
Twenty-Seventh Day of the Twelfth Month 293 AC
After some thought on the matter, you counsel Lord Mullendore to continue trading with the Court of Stars even after refusing their offer of protection. Hopefully, the shadow-forged ring, twin to the one you had given Lord Ashford, will keep the fey envoys from realizing the full reason for his decision, though you suppose the very fact of being unable to divine his choices and peer into his mind will give them some notion of what might have happened. Still, you would judge the Court of Stars unlikely to make too aggressive a move here in the Uplands, especially not while there are other lords whose cooperation they wish to obtain and keep. The same could not be said of likely foes looking to enthrall, to manipulate, or simply to feed.
Thus you leave in Lord Martyn's keeping a Whispering Brazier, a sending stone, and genie charm to lead him to Armun Kelisk in time of danger.
"I'll hand that to Elys rather than drag my old bones away to play messenger," the old lord replies with a wry smile. "Who knows, maybe I've still got a few more good swings of the sword in me."
"More than you might think my lord, if you would allow one more spell," you reply, usurprised by his answer.
"Of course." Healing the aches and pains of old age may not bring the same wonder as flight but he breathes easier for the casting.
More at ease with leaving thinking messengers and spies in his service, you also assign a trio of lesser false ravens and one greater to follow the lord's commands, bearing messages to trusted bannermen and other lords who the Reach that have sworn themselves to you.
"Isn't that something?" the old lord nods in greeting to the birds. "As a boy, I heard the tales of ravens that could speak like men, of course, but never thought I'd see some of them before I died."
"They are not precisely of that breed, my lord, though such exist. Ser Waymar Royce's familiar is one of them," Lya explains. "These I helped make, from feathers, steel, and spirits of the Endless Sky."
- 1x Whispering Brazier
- 1x Sending Stone
- 1x Teleportation Charm
- 1x Greater Three Eyed Raven
- 3x Lesser Three Eyed Raven
"Marvelous," he claps. "I'm certain you will have a great deal of news to share with me, my friends, and not just about what goes on in Sorcerer's Deep, eh? I'm curious to see what some of those envoys of the Court do when out of my sight."
"Probably best not to risk that, my lord," you interject. Any fey envoy who finds himself trailed by an unseen raven would be able to guess your hand in matters instantly, you suspect.
"Traders tales it is then, Your Grace. Just don't tarry too much in claiming your throne. I'd like to know I have a king worth calling upon the sooner the better." Turning to Lya with a surprisingly graceful bow he adds. "And a queen, of course."
***
"You know I think I liked that one the most," Lya says when you are back in the Deep for lunch and the daily report from other corners of the realm.
"You only say that because he bowed to you and not to me," you reply in a mock-aggrieved tone.
Ser Richard looks like he would like to grumble more seriously on the breech of protocol, but in the end thinks the better of it. However eccentric the Lord of the Uplands may have been, he has shown himself more practical and clear-sighted than many of his peers.
***
The next leg of your journey takes you beyond the green hills of Uplands to the stormy waters of the Sunset Sea and the tall white cliffs of the Shield Islands. Not so embattled by the sea, not yet so bleak as the Iron Islands whose raiders have long troubled these shores, the domain of lord Humfrey Hewett of Oakshield is nonetheless a far cry from the bountiful fields that come to mind when one imagines the Reach. That, however, is not all that is odd in these lands.
As the three of you walk up the path to Oakshield Keep, you notice a small shadow briefly passing over the face of the sun, a sea bird most like, yet when you look up you are greeted with a far stranger creature, thin yellowish skin stretched out over fin-like wings and a wide grin filled with sharp needle-like teeth below eyes that burn like tiny coals. A gremlin, you recognize it at once, though not of a kind you have ever encountered in the flesh before.
It is Lya, however, who spots the likely reason why such a creature is flying in wide circles over the keep and village. "It has a token of mage-sight. I think it's looking for infiltrators."
"Not very well," Ser Richard points out. "It hasn't seen us has it?"
"If there are more sharp-eyed watchers out there, they would themselves be veiled," you muse. "I wonder, does the creature serve the Lord of Greyshield looking out for one of his more favorable neighbors, or Lord Hewett himself?"
The mind of a gremlin is not a difficult one to peer into, though the way the fey's thoughts flit from thought to thought is quite distracting. Still you find the answer soon enough. The little gremlin is part of an entire troupe that roosts in one of the keep's formerly abandoned towers, pledging their service to the Lord of Oakshield, in exchange for protection and sustenance, sailor's sweat and week old bread in their case.
It seems lord Hewett has no objection to fey servants, only fey holding power over him. That certainly makes your task easier, but the connection to Brandon and his fellows might make him feel more secure against the perils of the world than most of his peers.
How do you introduce yourself to Lord Hewett?
[] Write in
OOC: And here we are, I figured giving you guys a chance to vote on this introduction makes sense since it's your first time meeting with the Highborn allies of Brandon and company. Not yet edited.
That is one ugly Gremlin. And it drinks sailor sweat? Yuck!
- Location
- Germany
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Is that - a sense motive and diplomacy skill above 5, wed with common sense? In a Westerosi noble?
Hm. Does Moonchaser crew count?
Yes, they identify as sailors.
- Location
- Germany
- Pronouns
- He/Him
New Gremlin job: gymn trainer.
- Location
- Argentina
Why does this make so much sense?
Last edited:
The funny part is that he would be considered quite ill suited to court, case in point not formally proclaiming his allegiance, it's just that he's eccentric in a way Viserys finds charming rather than disrespectful as most would.
Crake
I AM THE STORM THAT IS APPROACHING
- Location
- USA
Viserys can tell he doesn't mean anything by it. He's just old and quirky, which is endearing, instead of aggravating like it normally would be since that quirkiness is also paired with a head screwed on mostly-straight, at least where it counts.
Jack vile Ripper
The swellest guy in Creation.
- Location
- Indonesia
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Ah, a Sheogorath figure. Got it, got it...
Nowhere near that bad. Sheogorath is also not that endearing if you consider his lore.
Jack vile Ripper
The swellest guy in Creation.
- Location
- Indonesia
- Pronouns
- He/Him
FOOL! BOW BEFORE THE IMMACULATE ORDER OF JYGGALAG!!!
RESISTANCE IS FUTILE!!!!!
- Location
- Germany
- Pronouns
- He/Him
That's why I assumed 'Sense Motive' - he gets his visitors good enough to know that this behavior is okay. Could be blind luck, but that doesn't fit to the remainder of his description.
Is the vote too open again? Should I put up some default options?
- Location
- Germany
To be frank, I don't care about these people. At all.
[X] Crake
- Location
- United States
He's definitely more connected to the Court of Stars than I'd like. There's also the conflicting loyalties that come in play since he's more connected to the Westerosi adventurers, so if conflict erupts he might try to side with them instead.
Crake
I AM THE STORM THAT IS APPROACHING
- Location
- USA
Working right now.
I am a bit concerned that one of the biggest, long-running plot arcs in this quest generates so little investment, at least in so far as how the Fey are interacting with us, via proxy using the Lords.
That's fine, we can treat this like an entirely different obstacle course than a social one, but given the fact that it requires the Lords' agreement for the fey plot to even work, you'd think we could do the bare minimum? With our social scores.
I am a bit concerned that one of the biggest, long-running plot arcs in this quest generates so little investment, at least in so far as how the Fey are interacting with us, via proxy using the Lords.
That's fine, we can treat this like an entirely different obstacle course than a social one, but given the fact that it requires the Lords' agreement for the fey plot to even work, you'd think we could do the bare minimum? With our social scores.
Fair enough, it is a bit more of a showcase of the Reach than a moment of narrative tension.
Goldfish
Friendly Spider-Fish Abomination
- Location
- Formerly of the Far Realm
[X] Attract the Watch Gremlin's attention and ask it to pass on a message to Lord Hewett that we would like to meet with him at his earliest convenience in regards to a matter of great importance pertaining to the safety and prosperity of his lands.
- Location
- Germany
Hence me delegating to someone who does care about these lords. Otherwise I would just ask to background this and throw some dice after them.
The problem isn't the existence or lack of tension, but that these characters are inconsequential, flat NPCs we will likely never see again. They are lucky if they are mentioned in passing again. Hence me caring about as much about them as if they were furniture.
They are a mandatory side-quest we have to grind through to get back to the interesting parts.
- Location
- United States
More or less. This is something we need to do to stop the advance of the Court of Stars, and it can't be postponed or sidestepped so we're doing it now. But you're right, we're probably never speaking to most of these lords again. Their sole purpose is to not make stupid bargains with the Fey.
[X] Goldfish