Previously, I've quit more than one of my quests because I got so depressed that I just couldn't continue (including this quest, a couple of years ago). But since I've started taking medication, I seem to be able to handle my depression a lot better than I used to. Still, I feel better about this quest now I've got an idea of when and how it will end.
Besides, like I've previously said, the end of the 'War Against Aspitolm' story arc isn't likely to come anytime soon. It could take most of another year. So don't say goodbye to me just yet.
Others have already said most there is to say, so my additional cents:
End of "War Against Aspitolm" sounds like a good break point to leave the world and leave the remaining story-threads to the readers imagination.
Its a living world with interesting story-threads wherever we look (like aspitolm war, the rumblings of civil war in Sambia and whatever could come of it, player projects like founding a magic academy or a deep one knight order) and at the quality level you write at, there will probably be new things coming up organically. So such a cut will probably have to happen, unless you just keep going on until you burn out.
Lets keep having our fun, keep growing the tapestry of stories, and when the end finally comes around, lets remember:
The moment this thread ends isn't the end of Elys + friends, just the end of us watching them.
Finally, and most importantly:
Thank you @Chandagnac for all the work you put into this weave of stories so far.
Ahh, I'll be sad to see this end earlier than planned, but it's more important that this is something you want to do and enjoy doing! Indivisible's right, especially with just how long you've written for this world when ((correct me if I'm remembering wrong)) you originally intended Hedge Maze to just be a fun little adventure.
So, thank you for all that you've written so far, and for when this story reaches the end of the war. ^^
And then you hear a sickening crunch, a shudder underfoot, and you are nearly thrown aside with shattering as one of the other ghost ships crashes into the one you are currently on. Fortunately, you and your friends can levitate, so it is easy enough to avoid a nasty fall by making sure you land on your feet instead.
However, when you look around, you see a boarding party made up of more than a dozen bloated and decaying corpses: some are shipwrecked mariners, others were slain in previous sea battles, and a few might have been slaves who took ill or died at sea and then were thrown overboard. No matter how much you sympathize with them for how much they have suffered in life and in death, they are a threat to you and your friends, so they must be destroyed.
Jana and Catharne stand ready to fight. And you have mighty magic of your own.
It seems you needn't have worried. Catharne breathes a cloud of steaming acid over the walking corpses, causing them to stagger and melt away, reduced to fused blobs of rotten flesh. Any of them that continue to advance are easily dispatched by swift slashes from Jana's new sword, which gleams like silver in the faint moonlight. Your closest friends seem well-practised, easily capable of defending themselves and you. Thus reassured, you turn your attention elsewhere.
A second ship has been reduced to drifting wreckage by Sildar and Jorantul. You open a portal so they can move on to the next. In the distance, you see yet another ship consumed by emerald flames, burnt down to the waterline, little more than floating chunks of ash.
By now, you're convinced that there must be a better and more efficient way to fight this battle. The ghost fleet consists of at least fifty ships; so far, your friends and allies have destroyed a mere handful. You're sure they could destroy the rest, given enough time, but what if the other Aspiti fleet comes to their rescue? What if they decide to flee in so many different directions that you'd be unable to chase after them all? Lavokthagua has been assigned to pick off any stragglers that get separated from the rest, but he can't be everywhere at once.
Your enemies have an obvious weak point: the rogue necromancers who've raised, reanimated and now control the drowned mariners. Without them and the arcane rituals they use to sustain their undead slaves, the ghost fleet will cease to exist.
With that in mind, you telepathically contact Bellona, who you're fairly sure has been countering the necromancers' spells since the beginning of the battle. You try not distract her too much when you ask, "Where are the enemy necromancers?"
"A few of them are scattered here and there, on different ships, maintaining the spells that keep the fleet together," she replies. "But most of them – a large number of them, at least – are on the flagship, guarded by Egan Korentyne and some of their more unusual undead constructs."
You recognize the name 'Egan Korentyne'. Some say he was the best admiral the Rivayni ever had, despite the fact that he lost the sea battle he is most famous for. The Rivayni navy at the time was relatively small and crewed by inexperienced men, so it came as no surprise that they were defeated. However, even as they were defeated, they dealt such a terrible blow to the larger Aspiti fleet, which had better ships crewed by more experienced sailors, that several decades passed before the Aspitis felt able to threaten Rivayne's coastline once again.
And now, Egan Korentyne's waterlogged corpse has been enslaved by his sworn enemies, who are using him to command a fleet they will use to attack his beloved homeland. If anything of his soul remains after so long, it must be as if his worst nightmare has come true.
"Point me to the flagship," you say. "I'll send Sildar and Jorantul there next."
Sure enough, when they've hacked their way through the latest crew of walking corpses, you send them to the place indicated by Bellona. And you decide to teleport yourself, Jana and Catharne closer to it so you can keep an eye on what's going on. One of the ships that was recently-and-bloodily emptied makes for a decent vantage point.
"Give us a bit of warning next time," Jana mutters, trying not to stumble into a pool of foul-smelling sludge.
"I'm sorry," you reply, hanging your head in shame.
"Just don't do it again."
Meanwhile, Sildar and Jorantul have arrived on the deck of an enormous old ship that appears to have been designed to look as much like a floating castle as possible. A mass of rotten wood, encrusted with barnacles and draped with seaweed, it looks as if it will collapse into splinters as soon as the magic holding it together is dispelled. On the forecastle, hiding behind the walls and crenelations, there are several black-robed and hooded figures. Presumably they are the rogue necromancers Bellona told you about. On deck – and on the stairs leading up to the forecastle, there are a dozen undead abominations, each of them entirely unique: some have multiple arms and legs, some appear to have been made out of human and animal bodies merged together, and some consist of multiple human corpses moulded into a single being, as if their flesh was as soft and malleable as clay.
Their apparent leader is a walking skeleton, barely more than a few mouldering bones, except they are bound together by a shadowy silhouette that resembles a large, heavy-set man with a blunt nose, close-cropped hair and eyes that that blaze like a smoky bonfire. He is wielding a magical blade decorated with the heraldry of the Korentyne family.
Of course, if not for your magically-enhanced senses, you wouldn't have been able to see him so clearly, or to hear the words that issue from the black chasm of his ruined mouth: "I am chained. I have no choice but to fight you. Please kill me. For real, this time."
His wrath was so terrible that his soul didn't go back to the Wheel when he was slain in battle, you realise. Instead, it lingered by his decomposing corpse, becoming a ghost. Then, after the passage of more than a century, necromancers working for the Aspiti Empire came along and enslaved him.
"A request we'll be happy to grant," says Sildar, gathering magic in his hands. Next to him, Jorantul gives a laconic nod.
However, victory here may not come as easily as they would like. They are attacked on all sides by undead monstrosities, pelted with magic missiles, and hard-pressed by the spectral figure of Admiral Korentyne, who it seems was an excellent swordsman – and who has been magically enhanced by the necromancers, in much the same way that Sildar uses his magic to enhance Jorantul. Although they strike with as much skill and ferocity as usual, reducing several of their foes to mangled piles of mutilated flesh, bone and gristle, you fear that they will be overwhelmed.
What will Elys do to help?
[] Teleport them to a better position, where they can more easily strike against the necromancers.
- On top of the forecastle, maybe?
[] Call upon Bellona to aid them.
[] Call upon Red Ruin and Green Flame to aid them.
[] Join the battle herself, with Jana and Catharne in tow.
[] Do something else (write in)
There's nothing to stop her from trying to do multiple things, if you think she has enough time.
Team Monster mower:
-Catharne & Jana
-kill the monstrosities so Team Admiral can give it their all against Admiral Korentyne without having to worry about being flanked/backstabbed by monstrosities
-join Elys if needed/all monstrosities are taken care of
Team Necromassacer:
-Elys (maybe joined by GF and RR?), Catharne & Jana when/if they are free
-kill Necromancers to stop their spellcasting
Lavok:
Attack ships with necromancers as directed by Bellona.
Cleanup else.
Bellona:
Points Lavok towards the necromancers, keeps counterspelling and undoing the necromancers spells.
option B:
Elys with Jana and Catharne challenge Admiral Korentyne.
(Maybe try to pray to some war/strife god (like Kerons shadow?) who would consider this a very juicy ritual to get some buffs?)
Tell him that they are the new generation, that they will free him and show him that they are strong enough to finally defeat the Aspiti Empire.
Sildar & Jorantul go kick necromancer butt.
Lavok attacks the other ships with necromancer, Bellona points them out to him (as in option a).
You recognize the name 'Egan Korentyne'. Some say he was the best admiral the Rivayni ever had, despite the fact that he lost the sea battle he is most famous for.
Our troop disposition, as it stands:
-Sildar and Jorantul: focusing on main objective
-Bellona: on support, cancelling out the necromancers' influence on the battle
-Lavokthagua: handling stragglers and fleeing ships
-Elys: transportation, strategic overwatch
-Jana, Catharne: keeping Elys safe
-Red Ruin, Green Flame: taking out the mass of ships
I think our best bet here is to have Bellona direct GF and Red Ruin to focus fire the other ships with necromancers, and have Elys and/or Catharne weigh in with a decisive breath or two through a portal, with Jana acting as guard in case a monstrosity slips through in retribution for the interference. Lavokthagua can keep at it, since we don't want to break 'encirclement' or let a necromancer get away. We just have to... tip the scales. So to speak, anyways. Pull their attention a little without getting into too much trouble. And naturally as the non-main necromancers are picked off they'll either have to disperse or widen their focus to keep their fleet from sinking.
I am just really hoping the Mystic Path guy whose schtick the Aspitis are pilfering doesn't show up to hassle us.
I think our best bet here is to have Bellona direct GF and Red Ruin to focus fire the other ships with necromancers, and have Elys and/or Catharne weigh in with a decisive breath or two through a portal, with Jana acting as guard in case a monstrosity slips through in retribution for the interference. Lavokthagua can keep at it, since we don't want to break 'encirclement' or let a necromancer get away. We just have to... tip the scales. So to speak, anyways. Pull their attention a little without getting into too much trouble. And naturally as the non-main necromancers are picked off they'll either have to disperse or widen their focus to keep their fleet from sinking.
GF+RR supported by Samaya on other-ship necromancer hunting (directed by Bellona) sounds good, too.
Lavok keeps on doing his role in the background: Yeah, you are right. Too big risk when dualtasking. Maybe we'll get a chance for him to show his fighting later.
Elys+Catharne portal sniping the other ships:
Disagree.
Imho should focus on this ships boss battle, in a support role of "prevent issues from the monstrosities" and "kill the necromancers that buff + enslave the boss"
Could sidestep the fight by fly-by acid-roasting the monstrosities and then attacking the necromancers.
Or portal to where the necromancers are.
Yeah, Elys Catharne and Janna are the only ones not tied up making sure the rest of the fleet and necromancers can't interfere, so some nice hit and run on their part should help take some of the pressure off.
Ahhh, sorry I haven't been around very often, and happy Halloween, everyone!
Funny this gets brought up now, my original idea was to set set up some kind of ambush for the fleet, crowding them all into some kind of channel to set them all ablaze with a few fireballs, or failing any terrain benefits, locate key commanders, have Lavokthagua come to breach their ship with his shell and make them easy pickings.
Just to clarify--is sinking a ship a "win condition" against one of them? I can't imagine that anyone wants to be in the sea when the Lord of the Depths is your enemy.
Anyway, here Elys is! I'll add one vote to:
[X] Portal-sniping the main ship
There's always the possibility to open portals not directly onto the ship, but off to the sides of it or in midair where nothing can easily get across, right? Barring some stray lucky arrow shots, I doubt anyone would be able to simply get through some carefully-made-and-sized portals in midair, especially when you can cut someone with space displacement so easily.
I'm sorry, I'm a bit confused as to whether or not you've reached a consensus as to what to do next. Is "portal-sniping" what you want to do? Please let me know.
Just to clarify--is sinking a ship a "win condition" against one of them? I can't imagine that anyone wants to be in the sea when the Lord of the Depths is your enemy.
Most of them are ghost ships raised from the bottom of the sea by dark magic, so they're barely holding together as it is. And, as I'm sure you can imagine, Mishrak isn't exactly happy about things being stolen from his domain. So, if you manage to sink them, that'll probably be the end of them.
I'm sorry, I'm a bit confused as to whether or not you've reached a consensus as to what to do next. Is "portal-sniping" what you want to do? Please let me know.
I'm fine with portal sniping the necromancers, if the others prefer it over direct battle with them or Elys Jana & Catharne challenging the old admiral.
I'm sorry, I'm a bit confused as to whether or not you've reached a consensus as to what to do next. Is "portal-sniping" what you want to do? Please let me know.
I think that's the consensus, yeah. I imagined Elys opening a portal, Catharne breathing through it to soften up the abominations Sildar and Jorantil are being overwhelmed by, rinse and repeat a few times until either the necromancers redistribute their on-ship troops to block Elys, they send a few of the abominations to try to take her out (in which case we will rely on Jana and Catharne), or their numbers are whittled down enough for Sildar and Jorantil to win the day. I suspect going directly for the necromancers themselves more than once might lead to Bad Things. It might be prudent, though, to give them our first shot to disrupt them, then switch to the creatures.
I think that's the consensus, yeah. I imagined Elys opening a portal, Catharne breathing through it to soften up the abominations Sildar and Jorantil are being overwhelmed by, rinse and repeat a few times until either the necromancers redistribute their on-ship troops to block Elys, they send a few of the abominations to try to take her out (in which case we will rely on Jana and Catharne), or their numbers are whittled down enough for Sildar and Jorantil to win the day. I suspect going directly for the necromancers themselves more than once might lead to Bad Things. It might be prudent, though, to give them our first shot to disrupt them, then switch to the creatures.
I'm sorry, I'm a bit confused as to whether or not you've reached a consensus as to what to do next. Is "portal-sniping" what you want to do? Please let me know.
Oh, sure, but if we do that, I think it's more likely something or someone will slip through to harass Elys before she can switch from breath-ing to closing the portal.
Oh, sure, but if we do that, I think it's more likely something or someone will slip through to harass Elys before she can switch from breath-ing to closing the portal.
They are attacked on all sides by undead monstrosities, pelted with magic missiles, and hard-pressed by the spectral figure of Admiral Korentyne, who it seems was an excellent swordsman – and who has been magically enhanced by the necromancers, in much the same way that Sildar uses his magic to enhance Jorantul. Although they strike with as much skill and ferocity as usual, reducing several of their foes to mangled piles of mutilated flesh, bone and gristle, you fear that they will be overwhelmed.
"I'm going to open some portals," you say. "Catharne, get ready to use your dragon breath. Jana, be prepared to repel anyone – or anything – that tries to strike back at us."
They nod their agreement, seeming ready for action. Your plan is simple: while Egan Korentyne and the undead monstrosities are trying to surround and overwhelm Sildar and Jorantul, you will attack from unexpected angles, seeking to disrupt and damage the undead as much as possible. Hopefully, this will give your beleaguered allies the opportunities they need to strike back against their opponents and win the fight.
Dragon breath is a magical attack designed to do as much damage as possible. Unlike Green Flame's mastery of fire, for example, it isn't very versatile. In fact, it is highly specialized and therefore can only be used to blast whatever is in front of you with a cone of magical energy, which might be flavoured with acid or fire or some other nastiness. Whereas Green Flame can use her fire magic to create a pretty light show to entertain a crowd, a wall of fire to protect her allies, or whatever else she can imagine, dragon breath is only useful for hurting or killing. But that doesn't mean it isn't useful.
You open a portal, just a small one, and peer through it to where a lumbering horror is looming over Jorantul. Which is quite an impressive feat, considering that Jorantul is one of the tallest men you know. "Now!" you cry, taking a step back and indicating to Catharne that she should aim through the hole.
A moment later, she breathes a cloud of hot acid through the portal. It causes the monstrosity to collapses into a heap of melted flesh and old bones. Jorantul is nimble enough to avoid being caught by the spray, while also jabbing at Korentyne with his sword in a snake-fast movement that removes several of the dead admiral's ribs.
At the same time, Catharne's breath attack destroyed the guard rail and the edge of the ship near where she is standing. Fortunately, you aren't going to need to stay there for very long, but you should still be careful. Just in case. Falling into the sea wouldn't kill you or your friends, but it would waste time that would be better spent on other things.
You open another portal, directing Catharne to take another shot. Another monstrosity dissolves into a foul-smelling puddle. And then another, barely a few seconds later. In fact, your tactics are very successful. Given enough space to move and fight without constantly being attacked on all sides, Jorantul is able to disarm Admiral Korentyne – literally, he chops off his swordarm – and then decapitate him.
"Thank you," says the dead man, with apparent sincerity, as he collapses into dust.
So far, Bellona has done an excellent job of preventing the necromancers from using any of their more dangerous spells, limiting them to the largely ineffectual magic missiles they've been pelting Sildar and Jorantul with: beams and balls of energy that bounce harmlessly off your allies' layers of protection. However, you feel the need to reach out to her telepathically and ask, "Could you guide Green Flame and Red Ruin to where other necromancers are hiding out? So we can put an end to this?"
"Raef is already doing that," she replies. "She decided she might as well make herself useful."
"I'm glad to hear it. Thanks for letting me know," you tell her.
Opening another portal, you watch as Sildar and Jorantul run upstairs to confront the necromancers, who briefly manage to hold them off with a magical barrier, until Bellona dispels it. However, that gives the other necromancers enough time to cast another spell that… you're not quite sure what it's supposed to do, but it has a murky and unpleasant feel to it. Actually, it reminds you of a portal spell… but it can't be, right?
You're reminded of one of your lessons with Raef, who at the time was a tall, white-bearded man dressed in wizard robes. While he was teaching you how to use portal magic, he would occasionally get sidetracked and lecture you about various other things he found particularly interesting. Or that were relevant but which you didn't need to know. For instance, he once said, "Dumar's attempt to wipe out all portal mages other than himself was doomed from the start. The basics are too well-known. Scrying, for example, can involve looking through a magical window to a far-off place. Sooner or later, someone would realise they could turn that window into a door and walk through it. Or demon summoning, which involves creating a connection to the Underworld and pulling them through it. How long before the summoners worked out how to strengthen that connection and hold it open, turning it into a gate that would allow passage to and from the Underworld? And how long would it take them realise they could open gates to other places? It's a secret that will inevitably get out, unless Dumar spends most of his time murdering anyone who might realise how to do it."
At the time, you said that Dumar probably wouldn't mind if he had to spend most of his time murdering people, to which Raef conceded the point.
Anyway, you're fairly sure the necromancers are summoning a demon. Or something similar. One of them says, in a sepulchral voice, "We are followers of Luth-a-Nyvech, lord of all that is dead in the sea. He will deal with you."
Obviously, bad things will happen if you let them finish the spell. So what are you going to do?
Well?
[] Write in.
I don't want to make this too easy for you. So yes, there's a possibility that the Mystic Path might get involved.
Anyway, you're fairly sure the necromancers are summoning a demon. Or something similar. One of them says, in a sepulchral voice, "We are followers of Luth-a-Nyvech, lord of all that is dead in the sea. He will deal with you."
Obviously, bad things will happen if you let them finish the spell. So what are you going to do?
I'd guess:
A big serving of acid breath to the face.
Combined with asking Bellona to counterspell that in particular.
Presumably dying an agonizing death would be quite distracting from spellcasting.
Wonder if Elys portal magic would let her be a nuisance that prevents them from finishing their summoning...
Not necrssarily in a true counterspelling way, just a "they can't complete their summoning because my short range portal is much quicker and makes it extremely weird for them to get a feel for the location to connect it to the underworld"
Also, this Luth-a-Nyvech fellow sounds like he ought to be stomped by Mishrak for stealing things from his domain.
Rituals can be disrupted by violence, as we saw with the dream world/real world merging, so let's dish out some violence via dragon breath and escalate from there.
Dragon breath is a magical attack designed to do as much damage as possible. Unlike Green Flame's mastery of fire, for example, it isn't very versatile. In fact, it is highly specialized and therefore can only be used to blast whatever is in front of you with a cone of magical energy, which might be flavoured with acid or fire or some other nastiness. Whereas Green Flame could use her fire magic to create a pretty light show to entertain a crowd, a wall of fire to protect her allies, or whatever else she can imagine, dragon breath is only useful for hurting or killing. But that doesn't mean it isn't useful.
Yeah that's a big problem. We extra don't want that to happen. If we wanted to be jerks we could sandwich the portal with two portals of our own that are a few feet underwater. Try and cast through that! If we wanted to be real subtle about it we could just... warn Lavoktagua, Sildar and Jorantil of this plan, open a portal for Lavokthagua to swim through, and he can rock the boat, then return through the same portal before they know what's what. Try and cast through that, fools!
If we wanted to be real subtle about it we could just... warn Lavoktagua, Sildar and Jorantil of this plan, open a portal for Lavokthagua to swim through, and he can rock the boat, then return through the same portal before they know what's what. Try and cast through that, fools!
Sounds like it would take a while and we could have killed multiple necromancers in the time that takes.
Lavokthagua would need a huge portal.
Catharne is a flying can of kick ass with claws, teeth, and acid breath.
She could either fly there herself, or peek through an extending portal to give the necromancers cases of "face being melted by acid", then go through (followed by Elys+Jana).
If killing the necromancers doesn't end the casting: try to delay it while ending the remaining necromancers and leaving before big bad arrives from being summoned.
