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A Sword Without a Hilt: A Song of Ice and Fire/D&D 3.5 Crossover

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Adhoc vote count started by DragonParadox on Aug 16, 2020 at 4:59 AM, finished with 52 posts and 12 votes.
  • [X] The Great Houses, as it might help you accomplish the task of killing two birds with one stone once you have interrogated and studied the slave soldier in question. The reason being that they are the mostly likely to have some besides the garrison itself, and competing interests could allow you to mask the disappearance as pre-existing internal divisions (Sons of the Harpy, Spicers, et al). And the Peacekeepers likely don't need enhanced soldiers to deal with brigandage, nor are the merchants liable to have what you're looking for.
    [X] Waymar Level Up
    -[X] Class: +1 Duskblade
    -[X] Skills (5 points): +1 Craft (Alchemy), +2 Knowledge (Arcana), +2 Knowledge (The Planes)
    -[X] Spells:
    --[X] 2nd Level:
    ---[X] Retrained: Escalating Enfeeblement >>> Sure Strike
    --[X] 5th Level: Chain Lightning
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Interlude DCCCLXXI: Of Flesh and Faith
  • Threadmarks
    • Of Flesh and Faith ​

    Eighteenth Day of the Second Month 294 AC

    Ever since her first visit to the court in Sorcerer's Deep where, she and her companions bent the knee to the Dragon King, Ceria had been keenly aware of the power the companions wielded, not only in the King's council, but each in their own way by their arts and powers. The King and his word of fire and magic both, the sage and her knowledge of the world's secrets, the Knight of Skulls and Kisses, like the very image of the Warrior and no doubt willing to fight the god himself if his King commanded him, but among that august company the sorceress's eye had slipped over one too quickly.

    Having seen the Lady Tyene cast down golden light like the glare of the Dornish sun and scour from foes their flesh from bones like the breath of the desert wind, she had forgotten one facet. Good with herbs and potions, Denys had said and Ceria had assumed that meant poison. It was the sort of thing Oberyn Martell, Oberyn Sandviper now, would see to that his daughter was taught. He had made good use of poison as the name could well attest. All that said Ceria had assumed the lady's interests in alchemy were as limited as her lover's these days.

    The truth showed itself to be rather different, in the form of five Unsullied still wearing the faded green of House Pahl stacked in the middle of the safe house's cellar, long since converted into a network of holding cells by the local commissar.

    "Were you not supposed to be merely scouting?" the Lord Justice asked, one eyebrow raised ever so briefly in askance.

    "I found a chance to poison an entire patrol without leaving any trace of magic behind, it would have been a pity to waste it, especially since one of them is a centurion," came the cheerful reply.

    "An officer?" Criston asked looking down at the slave soldier she had motioned to, still in the grip of the poison. "Doesn't look like much."

    "Officer is too 'prideful' a thing for the Masters of Slaver's Bay to allow their soldiers, but military units must have a hierarchy to function," Ceria explained. How much thwarted pride curdled to malice is there to this diabolic rebellion? she wondered. She did not for a moment believe it was possible to give someone power over their fellow man and not have them feel pride in the act. Perhaps that was the cardinal folly of the heirs of Ghis, they had come to believe their own lies, that the slave soldiers were somehow less than humans, and would act as humans do to free themselves even onto utmost peril.

    "Were you able to involve one of the Houses who still keep to the Harpy in the doing?" the Lord Justice asked. They had chosen Pahl after all because it was the latest come into the embrace of Baator and likely to be attacked by the Sons of the Harpy, both to discourage others from making the same pact and in the hopes that they would not be as prepared to repel an attack as other hell-bound Houses.

    "Killed an overseer, stole some documents, carved a harpy's talon into his chest," the lady explained with chilling straightforwardness. "I'm not the best carver, but then I imagine the Sons of the Harpy recruit more for enthusiasm than sense. I had knocked out the guards with a decoration of deathswort and nightshade so their fellows thought they were dead, stole the 'bodies' afterwards. There shouldn't be any sign that someone has living Unsullied to study."

    "And it would be difficult to divine the fact given that it involves all of us," Lord Vanor said with a sort of cool satisfaction that sent a small chill down Ceria's spine. It was a very fortunate thing indeed that fate had not conspired to make her this man's enemy.

    ***​

    The studies and interrogation that followed revealed as much as what the Lady Melisandre had anticipated in many regards. The Unsullied had been made stronger, faster and far more resilient than ordinary men and also utterly untouched by pain. Had they been limited to mundane physical means of interrogation it was quite likely they would have failed to learn anything more. Fortunately the Lord Justice's skills extended far beyond such methods, allowing him to spy within the mind of the centurion they had captured to see it reaching blindly for his still unconscious fellows.

    Untouched by fear or pain, able to strike harder, move swifter and take more punishment than flesh alone should be able to endure, even able to shrug off many magics of the first three circles which were the pinnacle of most mages' craft, the final accounting did not make a comforting reading. Ceria hoped the Legion would prove itself in the fires of battle this month, for they had yet worse foes to face here in Slaver's Bay.

    Secrets of flesh and sorcery were not the only ones unveiled for the centurion had been among one 'blessed' upon the Temple of the Lady Defiant, which lay not in Meereen nor in Yunkai but in Astapor beneath the Plaza of Punishment, whose spell-shrouded way would only open to blood sacrifice to the Lady of Spears made 'in the new way'. The words are Infernal, a pledge of service to Asmodeus through their Goddess. Ceria had no doubt all those who spoke them would be held to account by the baatezu, though they knew not the meaning.

    Denys hesitantly suggests warning the Unsullied of what they are pledging, but to Ceria's surprise it is Ting who shakes his head sadly. "If one's path is made Hell upon this earth by the whims of another few would deny a Hell more distant than promises relief in the moment."

    What next?

    [] Shift forces to Astapor in an attempt to disrupt operations there

    [] Contact the Sons of the Harpy and offer them resources to better serve as a thorn in the devils' side

    [] Attack the lesser forge in the Yunkai aquifer

    [] Write in

    OOC: I took a bit more time with this, there weren't really a lot of novel motivations here, but it let lent the characters a bit more depth. Hope this works. Also the runescared template does not come with a curse, that sort of shoddy work fits demons more than devils, when you sell your soul to Baator you get a solid product.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Okay, these new unsullied are dangerous as fuck. I say that we find all the forges and destroy them, then let the Harpies and Baator duke it out
     
    DragonParadox said:
    Of Flesh and Faith ​

    Eighteenth Day of the Second Month 294 AC

    Ever since her first visit to the court in Sorcerer's Deep where she and her companions bent the knee to the Dragon King, Ceria had been keenly aware of the power the companions wielded, not only in the king's council, but each in their own way by their arts and powers, the king and his fire, of word and magic both, the sage and her knowledge of the world's secrets, the Knight of Skulls and Kisses, like the very image of the Warrior and no doubt willing to fight the god himself if his king commanded him, but among that august company the sorceress's eye had slipped over one too quickly.

    Having seen the Lady Tyene cast down golden light light the glare of the Dornish sun and scour foes' flesh from bones like the breath of the desert wind, she had forgotten one facet. Good with herbs and potions, Denys had said and Ceria had assumed that meant poison. It was the sort of thing Oberyn Martell, Oberyn Sandviper now, would see to that his daughter was taught. He had made good use of poison, as the name could well attest. All that said, Ceria had assumed the lady's interests in alchemy were as limited as her lover's these days.

    The truth showed itself to be rather different, in the form of five Unsullied still wearing the faded green of House Pahl stacked in the middle of the safe house's cellar long since converted into a network of holding cells by the local commissar.

    "Were you not supposed to be merely scouting?" the Lord Justice asked, one eyebrow raised ever so briefly in askance.

    "I found a chance to poison an entire patrol without leaving any trace of magic behind, it would have been a pity to waste the opportunity, especially since one of them is a centurion," came the cheerful reply.

    "An officer?" Criston asked, looking down at the slave soldier she had motioned to still in the grip of the poison. "Doesn't look like much."

    "Officer is too 'prideful' a thing for the Masters of Slaver's Bay to allow their soldiers, but military units must have a hierarchy to function," Ceria explained. How much thwarted pride curdled to malice is there to this diabolic rebellion? she wondered. She did not for a moment believe it was possible to give someone power over their fellow man and not have them feel pride in the act. Perhaps that was the cardinal folly of the heirs of Ghis, they had come to believe their own lies, that the slave soldiers were somehow less than humans, and would not act as humans do to free themselves even unto utmost peril.

    "Were you able to involve one of the Houses who still keep to the Harpy in the doing?" the Lord Justice asked. They had chosen Pahl, after all, because it was the latest to come into the embrace of Baator and likely to be attacked by the Sons of the Harpy, both to discourage others from making the same pact and in the hopes that they would not be as prepared for to repel an attack as other hell-bound Houses.

    "Killed an overseer, stole some documents, carved a harpy's talon into his chest," the lady explained with chilling straightforwardness. "I'm not the best carver, but then I imagine the Sons of the Harpy recruit more for enthusiasm than sense. I knocked out the guards with a concotion of deathswort and nightshade, so their fellows thought they were dead, then stole the 'bodies' afterwards. There shouldn't be any sign that someone has living Unsullied to study."

    "And it would be difficult to divine the fact given that it involves all of us," Lord Vanor said with a sort of cool satisfaction that sent a small chill down Ceria's spine. It was a very fortunate thing indeed that fate had not conspired to make her this man's enemy.

    ***​

    The studies and interrogation that followed revealed much as what the Lady Melisandre had anticipated in many regards. The Unsullied had been made stronger, faster, and far more resilient than ordinary men and also utterly untouched by pain. Had they been limited to mundane physical means of interrogation, it was quite likely they would have failed to learn anything more. Fortunately, the Lord Justice's skills extended far beyond such methods, allowing him to spy within the mind of the centurion they had captured, to see it reaching blindly for his still unconscious fellows.

    Untouched by fear or pain, able to strike harder, move swifter and take more punishment than flesh alone should be able to endure, even able to shrug off many magics of the first three circles which were the pinnacle of most mages craft. The final accounting did not make for comforting reading. Ceria hoped the legion would prove itself in the fires of battle this month, for they had yet worse foes to face here in slaver's bay.

    Secrets of flesh and sorcery were not the only ones unveiled, for the centurion had been among one 'blessed' upon the Temple of the Lady Defiant which lay not in Meereen nor in Younkai, but Astapor beneath the Plaza of Punishment, whose spell-shrouded way would only open to blood sacrifice to the Lady of Spears made 'in the new way'. The words were Infernal, a pledge of service to Asmodeous through their goddess. Ceria had no doubt all those who spoke them would be held to account by the baatezu, though they knew not the meaning.

    Denys hesitantly suggested warning the Unsullied of what they are pledging, but to Ceria's surprise it is Ting who shakes his head sadly. "If one's path is made hell upon this earth by the whims of another, few would deny a hell more distant that promises relief in the moment."

    What next?

    [] Shift forces to Astapor in an attempt to disrupt operations there

    [] Contact the Sons of the Harpy and offer them resources to better serve as a thorn in the devils' side

    [] Attack the lesser forge in the Yunkai aquifer

    [] Write in

    OOC: I took a bit more time with this, there weren't really a lot of novel motivations here, but it let lent the characters a bit more depth. Hope this works. Also the runescared template does not come with a curse, that sort of shoddy fits demons more than devils, when you sell your soul to Baator you get a solid product. Not yet edited.
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    Here's an edited version of the chapter, DP.

    That's a pretty good upgrade package the Unsullied are getting. Reminds me that we need to the numbers for the first batch of Praetorians, how many volunteers, how many eligible, etc.
     
    Acolyte said:
    How do they ignore the first three circles of magic again. Am i missing something in the templates.
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    It's just a good IC way of saying the Axiomatic template gives them minor Spell Resistance. Since most mages have a low caster level, and can thus only cast low level spells, it would seem from an IC perspective that they are simply warded against low level magic.
     
    @Azel
    I have a few questions and suggestions regarding the loyalty map and the plan to take over Westeros.
    Skagos, what's this weird double markup? Perhaps they are not allied, which is strange given the presence of a bard and a friendly fire spirit next to them. But Likely Hostile? Rather neutral, because I very much doubt that the Starks took the islanders with their army.
    White Haven, why are they shown to be completely hostile? Yes, they did not kneel before us, but I am very doubted that Lord Manderly will meekly gather his knights to fight the dragon.
    Although, on the whole, I agree that the North will hardly have time to take part in the restoration of our dynasty.

    The second question is how do you get the idea to start an invasion with an alpha strike on Casterly Rock? Judging by what we have learned, no more than a third of the mages of the Golden Shields are located there, most likely less, since many are looking for help among the Spheres. A quick strike with the capture of the Rock and Lannisport, killing Tywin and his fellow, would leave the only significant human force in Vestros ready to confront us completely disorganized. And there is something that I really want to take from the Lannisters, the Golden Shields, I want as many magicians as possible in our structures.

    And the last question, how do you look at my proposal to organize the murder of Bobby B by his beloved wife? Moreover, in the publication of information about the true origin of the "heirs" of the Iron Throne?
     
    Sapphon said:
    @Azel
    I have a few questions and suggestions regarding the loyalty map and the plan to take over Westeros.
    Skagos, what's this weird double markup? Perhaps they are not allied, which is strange given the presence of a bard and a friendly fire spirit next to them. But Likely Hostile? Rather neutral, because I very much doubt that the Starks took the islanders with their army.
    White Haven, why are they shown to be completely hostile? Yes, they did not kneel before us, but I am very doubted that Lord Manderly will meekly gather his knights to fight the dragon.
    Although, on the whole, I agree that the North will hardly have time to take part in the restoration of our dynasty.

    The second question is how do you get the idea to start an invasion with an alpha strike on Casterly Rock? Judging by what we have learned, no more than a third of the mages of the Golden Shields are located there, most likely less, since many are looking for help among the Spheres. A quick strike with the capture of the Rock and Lannisport, killing Tywin and his fellow, would leave the only significant human force in Vestros ready to confront us completely disorganized. And there is something that I really want to take from the Lannisters, the Golden Shields, I want as many magicians as possible in our structures.

    And the last question, how do you look at my proposal to organize the murder of Bobby B by his beloved wife? Moreover, in the publication of information about the true origin of the "heirs" of the Iron Throne?
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    - Skagos is ruled by multiple houses, of which all but one are loyal to the Starks
    - Manderly made it clear he would obey any order received from Winterfell, regardless of his fondness for us
    - giving Tywin time to react to the invasion makes the aftermath easier for us, since he will spread out assets to counter our moves
     
    Tomcost said:
    Okay, these new unsullied are dangerous as fuck. I say that we find all the forges and destroy them, then let the Harpies and Baator duke it out
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    Asmodeus' agents vs Sons of the Harpy?
    I give them one week before all of Slaver's Bay flies Hell's banners on its pyramids.

    Okay, a bit of a hyperbole, but still nobody here except us is a match for real devils on any field.
     
    [X] Shift forces to Astapor in an attempt to disrupt operations there
     
    We can have Viserys, Richard, Mereth (as ones without a set Action for the turn and Sarnor just having gotten weird) to visit Slavers' Bay at the end of the month and destroy some Forges all sneaky-breeki like.
     
    Azel said:
    - Skagos is ruled by multiple houses, of which all but one are loyal to the Starks
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    Hmm it always seemed to me that the islanders pretend that they are vassals of the Starks, and the Starks pretend that they do not give a damn about the islanders. However, it does not matter at all.
    Azel said:
    - Manderly made it clear he would obey any order received from Winterfell, regardless of his fondness for us
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    Yes? It will be necessary to reread our communication with him, in my memory he did not show such devotion. But again, this is not very important.
    Azel said:
    - giving Tywin time to react to the invasion makes the aftermath easier for us, since he will spread out assets to counter our moves
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    I do not dispute that it will be more convenient to destroy Tywin's forces. I just wouldn't want to do much harm to what I already consider to be mine. Golden Shields, Dragons, we will find riders for them, perhaps someone else useful, who risks dying under the lion's banners without any benefit to us.

    What about Robert Baratheon?
    It's just that, as I read, I stumbled upon completely wild proposals that we should almost save this fat fool and keep him alive. So I would like to clarify the plan for him.
     
    Sapphon said:
    So I would like to clarify the plan for him.
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    Likely possibility is that we explode the fake!Varys all over him and the rest of the small(er) council.
    Wyldfire and Adamantune Flechettes, man.
    I would have loved to add some poison to that, but alas, only so much killyness can be fit inside a simulacrum :C
     
    Sapphon said:
    I do not dispute that it will be more convenient to destroy Tywin's forces. I just wouldn't want to do much harm to what I already consider to be mine. Golden Shields, Dragons, we will find riders for them, perhaps someone else useful, who risks dying under the lion's banners without any benefit to us.

    What about Robert Baratheon?
    It's just that, as I read, I stumbled upon completely wild proposals that we should almost save this fat fool and keep him alive. So I would like to clarify the plan for him.
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    No, the point is that Tywin will be forced to send away part of his forces to counter us invading the absolutely everything. We can then just drop in on Casterly Rock with the Dauntless and two Moonchasers and turn the place into rubble.

    As for Robert, I'm partial to having Cersei murder him, but I largely don't care. My only regret is that we can't blow up the entire Small Council (except Pycelle) and Robert with our Bloodraven-Bomb.
     
    Azel said:
    People wag their finger at too obvious assassinations. You are supposed to at least leave the option of pretending you don't know who did it. Being too obvious is considered rude.
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    But what if Varys has just always been a bomb?

    Propably since that Warlock of Quarth gelded him.
    Damn sneaky Warlocks, should take more action against those!
     
    I'm still surprised that Slaver's Bay jumped into bed with Hell to this degree. As customers sure, but they have to see that the devils aren't going to give their souls any sort of special treatment. You'd think slavers of all people would understand what it means to be made a slave, and resist it as well as they can. I'd still expect the devils to win, but these guys seem to be willingly selling themselves along with their "product"
     
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    Azel said:
    Well, if there's this much demand for it...

    Might as well kill Cersei and Jaime in the blast too.
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    Hey, the fewer politically inconvenient people we have to deal with - the better.
    We're gonna do war, not more and more diplomancing >_<
     
    I personally don't like the idea of an explosion. The only character that I am interested in there is Jaime, and I cannot say that he is very important. It just seems to me that the explosion is too rough and not an elegant solution.
     
    It would solve a lot if problems though...

    - Guncer Sunglass
    - Robert Baratheon
    - Petyr Baelish (assuming he survives until then)
    - Cersei Lannister
    - Jaime Lannister
    - Kevan Lannister
     
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