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

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Interlude CMXXVI: Between Sky and Storm
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    • Between Sky and Storm ​

    Twelfth Day of the Third Month 294 AC

    It was and uncommon day when Sorcerer Deep saw rain last for more than a few hours for the Winged Serpent knew that most of those who dwelt there took more joy from warm sunlight than the rumble of the storm or the stark illumination of a lightning bolt. Rarer still was the day when the wind howled among the marble clad apartments of downtown. 'A blow off the Summer Sea,' the old salts would have called it in the days before the Serpent came to live among them, but this was so much more. Craft, even a god's craft required the harnessing of tools.

    Lya ascended upon racing updrafts, giddy with the joy of beginnings, as though the wind flowed through her as much as all around her. She burst though the clouds lighting dancing all around, catching in her hair and clinging to the soles of her boots as the magic in them instinctively sought to found it. As soon try to drink the ocean entire, the young archmage thought with a laugh that echoed thunder deep inside.

    As she burst through the clouds the firmament above was almost blinding, the stars seeming somehow closer, the colors more vivid than even her magic touched eyes had ever seen. But there was something off about them...

    "Zathir why are the stars not where they're supposed to be?" she asked calmly. Judging by the angle between the Sow's 'snout' and the Shadowcat's back these were the stars of a little more than four hundred years ago.

    "Stars above storm below," the god replied as he flew towards her without a sound. "These are the last stars that looked over and unbroken Sarnor, more than mere glamor, but still far short of physical reality. A alignment of purpose."

    "Oh good, I don't think my schedule covers going back in time," Lya laughed. At least not four hundred years in time. She had lain in bed wondering sometimes what she would do if she could to back to that stormy night when she had first found the arcane symbol for 'light' deep in the temple archives. How much sufferings and ill doings she could unmake.

    "That was not to say that I wish you to dwell on the path young one," the god's voice interrupted her thoughts.

    Lya flushed scarlet at the notion that her thoughts had been influenced. Even beyond all the wards she bore her should be beyond that. "My apologies I did not mean to..."

    "Peace," Zathir interjected. She could see a smile in his eyes, but his tone was wistful. "It is the nature of this time, this place to unbind the deeper thoughts and flights of fancy both, it is not compulsion which you are most adept in guarding from but its opposite."

    "Flights of fancy," Lya frowned as she took the Skyforger, or its last echo at least out of her bag and handed it into the god's unseen hands. "Does that mean you don't know what you are going to make?" She shook her head. "No offense, but I don't think i can work like that."

    "A poor proponent of creativity and craft I would be if I expected you do," came the reply as the hammer began to float upwards, bolts of lightning arching of its haft. "This shall be and instrument of creation, but as to what form it shal take we will discover together. You might gain new insights from what you see, but there is no need to worry about my particular... idiosyncrasies."

    A laugh bubbled in Lya's throat. "Do you tell your priests that too?"

    "Yes," the Winged serpent replied, sounding faintly bemused.

    "Those poor souls, I would pray for them, but it might just confuse them more," Lya replied.

    Zathir sniffed, as much as a snake could, but she could see laughter lurking in his gaze as he replied simply: "I'm ready to begin."

    The light of a thousand thousand stars reflected burned in the hammer's metal revealing flaws and imperfections there before there had been none. No not flawed, marks of crafting, each unique and each wondrous to behold even in this faint echo of power that was.

    What aspect of the reforging will Lya focus on observing?

    [] Metallurgy to aid in the creation of the Imperial Steel Network (Skill: Craft (Metalworking))

    [] The deeper nature of the Divine, to aid in Crafting an Imperial Pantheon (Skill: Knowledge (Religion))

    [] Enchanting, to further the craft of runes to new heights (Skill: Knowledge (Arcana))

    [] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    OOC: The options above are ordered least to most difficult, but this is a unique enough situation that even Lya's inhuman skills are not enough to estimate hard DC. Not yet edited.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Might as well go for the big prize.
     
    DragonParadox said:
    Between Sky and Storm ​

    Twelfth Day of the Third Month 294 AC

    It was an uncommon day when Sorcerer Deep saw rain last for more than a few hours, for the Winged Serpent knew that most of those who dwelt there took more joy from warm sunlight than the rumble of the storm or the stark illumination of a lightning bolt. Rarer still was the day when the wind howled among the marble clad apartments of downtown. 'A blow off the Summer Sea,' the old salts would have called it in the days before the Serpent came to live among them, but this was so much more. Craft, even a god's craft, required the harnessing of tools.

    Lya ascended upon racing updrafts, giddy with the joy of beginnings, as though the wind flowed through her as much as all around her. She burst through the clouds, lightning dancing all around, catching in her hair and clinging to the soles of her boots as the magic in them instinctively sought to ground it. As soon try to drink the ocean entire, the young archmage thought with a laugh that echoed thunder deep inside.

    As she burst through the clouds the firmament above was almost blinding, the stars seeming somehow closer, the colors more vivid than even her magic touched-eyes had ever seen. But there was something off about them...

    "Zathir why are the stars not where they're supposed to be?" she asked calmly. Judging by the angle between the Sow's 'snout' and the Shadowcat's back, these were the stars of a little more than four hundred years ago.

    "Stars above storm below," the god replied as he flew towards her without a sound. "These are the last stars that looked over an unbroken Sarnor, more than mere glamor, but still far short of physical reality. An alignment of purpose."

    "Oh good, I don't think my schedule covers going back in time," Lya laughed. At least not four hundred years in time. She had lain in bed wondering sometimes what she would do if she could to back to that stormy night when she had first found the arcane symbol for 'light' deep in the temple archives. How much sufferings and ill doings she could unmake.

    "That was not to say that I wish you to dwell on the path young one," the god's voice interrupted her thoughts.

    Lya flushed scarlet at the notion that her thoughts had been influenced. Even beyond all the wards she bore, her mind should be beyond that. "My apologies I did not mean to..."

    "Peace," Zathir interjected. She could see a smile in his eyes, but his tone was wistful. "It is the nature of this time, this place, to unbind the deeper thoughts and flights of fancy both, it is not compulsion which you are most adept in guarding from, but rather its opposite."

    "Flights of fancy," Lya frowned as she took the Skyforger, or its last echo at least, out of her bag and handed it into the god's unseen hands. "Does that mean you don't know what you are going to make?" She shook her head. "No offense, but I don't think I can work like that."

    "A poor proponent of creativity and craft I would be if I expected you to," came the reply as the hammer began to float upwards, bolts of lightning arching of its haft. "This shall be an instrument of creation, but as to what form it shall take, we will discover together. You might gain new insights from what you see, but there is no need to worry about my particular... idiosyncrasies."

    A laugh bubbled in Lya's throat. "Do you tell your priests that too?"

    "Yes," the Winged serpent replied, sounding faintly bemused.

    "Those poor souls. I would pray for them, but it might just confuse them more," Lya replied.

    Zathir sniffed, as much as a snake could, but she could see laughter lurking in his gaze as he replied simply, "I'm ready to begin."

    The light of a thousand thousand stars reflected burned in the hammer's metal, revealing flaws and imperfections where before there had been none. No, not flawed, marks of crafting, each unique and each wondrous to behold, even in this faint echo of power that was.

    What aspect of the reforging will Lya focus on observing?

    [] Metallurgy to aid in the creation of the Imperial Steel Network (Skill: Craft (Metalworking))

    [] The deeper nature of the Divine, to aid in Crafting an Imperial Pantheon (Skill: Knowledge (Religion))

    [] Enchanting, to further the craft of runes to new heights (Skill: Knowledge (Arcana))

    [] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    OOC: The options above are ordered least to most difficult, but this is a unique enough situation that even Lya's inhuman skills are not enough to estimate hard DC. Not yet edited.
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    Here's an edited version of the chapter, DP.
     
    This was a neat interlude, one that really showcases the inhuman power Lya now wields. The best part, however, was when she took a glance at the night sky and was instantly able to estimate that it was a view from over 400 years in the past. Nice brain!flex, Lya. 🧐
     
    [] The deeper nature of the Divine, to aid in Crafting an Imperial Pantheon (Skill: Knowledge (Religion))

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Making us choose between these two? I see that DP wants a contested vote for once!
     
    TBH, I see the crafting of a pantheon as a long-term project which will require a lot of mutual cooperation, but the network that we shape, how the interactions will work, will be informed greatly by how we design both the afterlife, and write out the initial agreement with regards to the central deity's power source.

    With that in mind, I think that we should make sure that as much as possible the afterlife is a much our own personal creation as is possible, meaning Lya having more control over what it looks like is important when we lay down the foundations. And that is knowledge that is difficult to get without it being parsed through the lens of a biased source.

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Of course, even utilizing it as second hand knowledge combined with other native understanding/sources of knowledge doesn't make it perfectly objective, but it's easier to remain objective when you are able to experiment and figure things out on your own, rather than contracting out the work.
     
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    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    I've been convinced.
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    With access to spells like Moment of Prescience boosted using Wild Arcana, Surge of Fortune, and Grand Destiny, Lya can enhance her resting +33 Knowledge (The Planes) bonus up to +76, then add another +1d6 using her Mythic Surge. If the check is as difficult as DP is implying, a +76 + 1d6 isn't a guaranteed success, but it should give her a damned good chance.

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    DP: *Attempts to make a contested vote, gives sk.e very shiny choices*
    The thread: *instantly converges on one thing*
    DP:

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    DragonParadox said:
    [] Metallurgy to aid in the creation of the Imperial Steel Network (Skill: Craft (Metalworking))
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    Bit of a waste in my book, since this is "just" a project that is similar to the Valyrian efforts to create Fleshforges and siphoning power from the 14 volcanoes.

    Not easy to do, but we got other angles to aquire useful knowledge for this.

    DragonParadox said:
    [] The deeper nature of the Divine, to aid in Crafting an Imperial Pantheon (Skill: Knowledge (Religion))
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    Pass. This is something where we can just bribe Yss and the Old Gods to get more knowledge and our prospective pantheon is full of pragmatic and greedy gods who can be roped into the endeavour.

    The main problem for this is not the knowledge, but to get big enough bribes to paper over problems, so a boon giving us more power would be more useful.

    DragonParadox said:
    [] Enchanting, to further the craft of runes to new heights (Skill: Knowledge (Arcana))
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    Neat, but while advancing this knowledge is very hard, I don't think we couldn't do so in other ways. Like bookifying Aboleth runesmiths or dissecting a dead god or something similar.
    DragonParadox said:
    [] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
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    Very limited number of sources for this knowledge and the gods we could ask about this have a very vested interest to not create more competition for souls by enabling us to harvest them. Also, this is likely stupidly hard and has the potential to give us ludicrous power, so...

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    egoo said:
    DP: *Attempts to make a contested vote, gives sk.e very shiny choices*
    The thread: *instantly converges on one thing*
    DP:

    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
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    He presents three options. Then a fourth one burying the lead in the middle.

    1) Lya can become a top-tier crafter with no limitations eventually just by leveling/pathing up.

    2) Pantheon will be shaped based on the limitations inherent in the system and the initial agreement laid out. Also least amount of control from players because all Deities have large amounts of agency here.

    @DragonParadox 3) Metal-crafting knowledge? Is this a joke?

    The last one is the one that we need to have any semblance of control over our own plan.
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Well, might as well do a major flex on most of the gods.
     
    Which reminds me that we should start some reconnaissance flights over Valyria now that we have cameras for the Wyverns.
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Seems like the best bet for making our Imperial Afterlife.
     
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    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))
     
    [X] World-Shaping and Wishcraft, to aid in crafting a new realm for the dead of the Empire to call home (Skill: Knowledge (The Planes))

    Nobody else will give us a lecture on this willingly
     
    Azel said:
    Which reminds me that we should start some reconnaissance flights over Valyria now that we have cameras for the Wyverns.
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    Isn't it basically overlapped with the Plane of Fire in some respects? And covered in ash storms? Not sure how much data we can extract from that, other than maybe being able to extrapolate upsurge in planar energies in an area (maybe pinpoint where ash storms are going to go).
     
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