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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Aranfan said:
The main reason I am doing the key mention is that it's the closest to saying "Axe is not a prize to be won, she is a mare with her own thoughts feelings and goals. Treating her like a prize will only alienate her."
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I think what that option is doing is what it says on the tin: telling him about Axe's quest for a key that only opens.

I think that sort of neutral, not encouraging/discouraging but just-good-relationship-advice is stuff Bird has told us Velvet will be delivering by default, already. (May also part of the difficult/lonely mare with things going on options).
 
[X] Plan Velvet is Pro-Love and Pro-Schedule and Pro-Sanity

This is probably the least risky plan. Overall, it's a little discouraging, but that's worth it if it means tempering expectations.
 
I say let Pride go searching for the Frangiclave if he wants; either he digs up leads we can follow up on (thanks Soft for cozying up to his closest maid, it makes spying much easier), he accomplishes diddly and is out of our hair, or he somehow miraculously retrieves the Frangiclave, frees DoA, and remembers just who pointed him in that direction in the first place.

Or he could theoretically die if he doesn't bail on an Expedition at the first Wound.
 
[X] Plan Velvet is Pro-Love and Pro-Schedule and Pro-Sanity
[X] Plan Velvet is Pro-Love

Fine, I'll throw in an approval vote
 
Talon TigerDino said:
I say let Pride go searching for the Frangiclave if he wants; either he digs up leads we can follow up on (thanks Soft for cozying up to his closest maid, it makes spying much easier), he accomplishes diddly and is out of our hair, or he somehow miraculously retrieves the Frangiclave, frees DoA, and remembers just who pointed him in that direction in the first place.

Or he could theoretically die if he doesn't bail on an Expedition at the first Wound.
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We should also remember that our father has eyes among Pride's servants so if he begins to search for it, Hills will be aware. So the question is, do we actually care if Hills knows about it?
 
> Velvet tells Pride about the Key
> finds it herself the next turn

Unless we can say with one hundred percent certainty that we'll be able and willing to involve him in its retrieval, this just strikes me as something that might come across as a really weird and kind of mean flex. Also looks kinda like backstabbing him by taking a thing he could use to earn Axe's favor and giving it to her ourself. And not in the way that the Gifts would be.
 
@BirdBodhisattva is a write-in along the lines of
"Axe is something more than a Mare (I don't know the precise details) that I happened to discover via a now-lost magical artifact, and I need a open space to bring her back ALONE through the methods the artifact taught me to; can you help me in preparing such a space?"
viable?

Basically,
1: Axe is something more than a Mare that needs to be brought back through special methods
2: I learned this method through an magical artifact (which broke, and which I can't teach you about)
3: It requires a large area of space, and cannot have anypony else in the vicinity in the meantime
4: I don't have such a area of space now (the place collapsed or something), mind helping out?
 
lurker9875 said:
@BirdBodhisattva is a write-in along the lines of
"Axe is something more than a Mare (I don't know the precise details) that I happened to discover via a now-lost magical artifact, and I need a open space to bring her back ALONE through the methods the artifact taught me to; can you help me in preparing such a space?"
viable?

Basically,
1: Axe is something more than a Mare that needs to be brought back through special methods
2: I learned this method through an magical artifact (which broke, and which I can't teach you about)
3: It requires a large area of space, and cannot have anypony else in the vicinity in the meantime
4: I don't have such a area of space now (the place collapsed or something), mind helping out?
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Mechanically, that is trying to nab yourself a non-suspicious ritual place, which I am already against as a mechanical outcome of this vote. The point of this action is to start meshing yourself into Pride's life, and since you didn't take last turn's FO then you must take the narrower door of "he wants to talk about Axe right now." So, again, the mechanical focus here is trying to influence Pride's current mindset.
To that point, notice how all options relate to him. All options either give him information or point him on a particular direction. And even the "Gifts" vote is intentionally either a neutral outcome (you gain 100 bits to summon Axe and Pride is sad) or a net negative (you gain 100 bits for any ritual and Pride gets angry).

Narratively, that story is way, way too convoluted, and could implicated Velvet in too many loose ends. Saying "Axe is snek" is fine because... well, it's "fine" in the sense of being believable. But the outcomes of that decision are still "???" for a reason. Still, just saying she is not a pony is the simple equivalent of saying "yes my guest is a yak". It doesn't usually raises questions of "why?". Or at least none that are aimed at you.
But making up a so-called broken artifact, and claiming you need to "bring her back ALONE" is... it just raises too many eyebrows. And Velvet is too anxious of a mare to want to risk that (yes, even after the Frightened debuff was removed).
If nothing else, I definitely wouldn't allow that kind of "trying yourself up" with such a simple, undiscussed, write-in vote.

And from a meta perspective, now is not the time to talk about the Lores. Or their adjacencies.

I could say more. But basically: no.

Thank you for the suggestion thought!
 
Mmm We have stuck our hand in the shipping pot between them.

Kind of want Mareinette to encourage the DOA or Velvet Pride next turn 🤔

Though honestly she might just do that of her own accord.

Ericwinter said:
Unless we can say with one hundred percent certainty that we'll be able and willing to involve him in its retrieval, this just strikes me as something that might come across as a really weird and kind of mean flex. Also looks kinda like backstabbing him by taking a thing he could use to earn Axe's favor and giving it to her ourself. And not in the way that the Gifts would be.
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He's going to be upset she isn't laboring under a dreadful curse? Or upset that we were more capable than we seemed?

[X] Plan Velvet is Pro-Love and Pro-Schedule
 
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A potato is clearly Grail, in that it is both something that is Devoured, even as it gives birth to its new plant.

Then again, it comes from deep beneath the earth, so might be sacred to the Velvet, which is a Moth hour.

Hm... then again, a potato from which thing grows can be seen as eyes. Eyes that are also a door. The Door in the Eye? The watchman?

But openings on the other hand, can also refer to a Knock Hour. A potato with seven 'wounds' in them might be a reference to the Mother of Ants!

There is also the 'peeling' of potatoes. On one hand, this could be related to an 'edge' influence, but then, 'peeling' could be both referring to undressing or a haircut, both of which then go back to Moth.

There is the frying, baking, boiling that you can do if we want to think of forge.

But since they're such a hardy plant, that endures much, and can support people in such circumstances, perhaps we should consider Heart influences and..

[continues ranting, scrawling a massive diagram with a potato in the middle on the wall]
 
w34v3r said:
I feel like we need to mention the age thing specifically.
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What age thing?
SolipsistSerpent said:
[X] Plan No Taking Advantage & Letting The Chips Fall Where They May
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Uh, I didn't actually vote for that plan I posted way back when, so you aren't voting for a actual plan as is?

zxzx24 said:
Or upset that we were more capable than we seemed?
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Maybe we could pass the key to Pride to pass to Axe, if somehow Axe isn't already present on the relevant Expedition?
 
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[X] Plan Encouraging and Information, WITHOUT TELLING HIM ABOUT THE KEY

I prefer this, but it might not win. So approval voting.

[X] Plan Encouraging and Information

I really want to mention the snake-mare thing.
 
Why though? I think it's a toss up between encouragement/discouragement myself (probably closer to the unthinking encouragement side off things), and it does carry the risk of not knowing how Axe will react?
 
lurker9875 said:
Why though? I think it's a toss up between encouragement/discouragement myself (probably closer to the unthinking encouragement side off things), and it does carry the risk of not knowing how Axe will react?
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Among other considerations and/or preferences:
1) Axe is not a pony and is damn old. She doesn't give shit about modern pony cultural norms and Pride doesn't know what norms she operates under.
2) Axe is quite lethal and Pride making her irritated is inherently more dangerous than a regular pony mare.
 
Wouldn't part of 1) fall under the "difficult" part of things? And if you can handle "difficult", then 2) won't matter?
Also, telling Pride this may make DoA irritated at us instead?
 
lurker9875 said:
Wouldn't part of 1) fall under the "difficult" part of things? And if you can handle "difficult", then 2) won't matter?
Also, telling Pride this may make DoA irritated at us instead?
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Depends on what Bird thinks on the matter, but I don't think so. 'Difficult' means you know what to do but have to spend a lot of effort. 'Unknown' means you don't known what to do and have to solve THIS problem first.

I expect DoA to be irritated short term for saddling her with attention of a lordling anyway.
 
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