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Hmmph... this junior is a good seed [Cultivation Management Quest]

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New Good Seed and Omake Rule Updates
  • Threadmarks
    • Good Seed and Omake Spreadsheet Rules:

    Firstly, if you have questions about Good Seeds and the like please read here. If that doesn't answer your question please ping me in thread, or on Discord.

    If you write a new Good Seed, or write an omake, please update the spreadsheet if you have access.

    If you do not have access, please ping a collaborator (Swordomatic, Alectai, Quest, TehChron, Insane-Not-Crazy, Humbaba, ReaderOfFate, Kaboomatic, no., BungieONI) letting them know what you want and they will update the spreadsheet here. To gain access, you will need a gmail account of some kind. Throwaway emails are fine (I'm using one for the spreadsheet), but to gain access it's as simple as sending me either your email via PM, via DM in Discord, or just in Discord's #spreadsheet-requests channel.

    This is mandatory. If a Good Seed does not record their omake by pinging collabs (or just requesting access and editing things themselves - this is the preferred option), I won't give out awards. If a new Good Seed is not recorded here, they won't advance. By doing this it makes the whole thing manageable for me - it's gotten pretty unwieldy!

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    Omake Writer Instructions:

    There are four fields you need to fill out.

    Omake Link, which is just a link to your first omake for the turn. This makes it easier for me to read them as I do the update - without this it's tough to know off the bat which omake were written this turn, and to properly

    Requested Bonus, which is your requested bonus for your omake. You can leave it up to me if you like. You can see more info in the Good Seed infopost here.

    Cultivation Aims. For those following unorthodox paths - higher than 9th Heavenstage or later than 7th Dao Pillar paths. Please put in what you are aiming for before you break through. I have left it as 'default'. If you do not edit it, I'll go with that.

    Turn Notes - Do you want to do something specific? Enter a Secret Realm? Help the Clan out in some way? If you have something specific you want to accomplish on this turn, put it in turn notes so I can adjust your Fate around it.

    All other fields are for QM use to record character information to properly run the flow of the game.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Alectai said:
    I live in terror of rolling bad on my fate check and losing Rina :(

    Then again, my ambitions are going to put her on the firing line again and again regardless so welp?
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    Kaboomatic said:
    Frankly, after the amazing showing last turn, I'm just hoping the Ninth Prince survives this turn
    The dice be fickle
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    Haha Same! While my ambitions aren't that high, the lack of a safety net makes me nervous. I'll probably aim for the Life Saving Treasure bonus after this current turn. I'll be glad if my good seed can make it to core.
     
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    Wei Feng - Good Seed Background
  • Sidestory
    • @occipitallobe

    Good Seed submission:
    Wei Feng

    Early life:
    Wei Feng was born a peasant in a relatively poor village. Its only virtue was that it was on one of the lesser travelled routes that straddled between various territories held by cultivator sects and clans.

    The village was almost beneath notice. Yet occasionally passing cultivators would test out the children for talent. If they found one, they would shower the village with a cultivator's pittance and take them away. Yet for mortals, is not a cultivator's pittance great wealth? Each rare time this happened it would be a cause for great celebration.

    Wei Feng could not be called familiar with cultivators, save that they rarely found mortals worth more than a sneer. Their contempt was brought home to him when he witnessed one of the rare talents briefly return to the village, only to beat and denigrate their own family.

    Cultivation beginnings:
    When Wei Feng was 16, he was lucky enough to be scouted by a member of the Flood Dragon sect, who begun to teach him the ways of cultivation. Enamoured of becoming a cultivator under one of his folk heroes. Wei Feng swore that he would not so easily forget his origins, nor be so enamoured of immortality that he forgot that no cultivator known was truly immortal.

    The Flood Dragon gang were nomadic, and after a few years of travel and training, Wei Feng had witnessed many instances of the contempt and abuse even 'righteous' cultivators heaped upon mortals.

    Perhaps his breaking point was when he witnessed a battle between a Demonic cultivator and a righteous cultivator. The Demonic cultivator had taken over a mortal village, and begun torture it's inhabitants to death, boiling many alive in a great cauldron and forcing the others to watch. The righteous cultivator had arrived and simply obliterated the village in an alpha strike in an attempt to strike down the demonic cultivator.

    The Demonic cultivator was heavily wounded by this initial attack, and the righteous cultivator shortly prevailed. Burning at the injustice, yet unable to challenge this much greater cultivator, Wei Feng was even more appalled to see tangible evidence of heavens favour reign down upon the 'righteous' cultivator for his destruction of the Demonic one.

    Arrival to the clan:
    Shortly after this, Wei Feng fell into a rage upon meeting another cultivator of the same sect and savagely beat him. Worried for the enemies he might have made and concerned about his disciple's building contempt for both righteous and demonic cultivators, his master took him on the long road to study with the Flood Dragon gang's desert allies. Hoping that seeing them be good rulers and Demonic cultivators could temper his disciple's growing rage.

    Trait: Love of mortals:

    Weng Fei has not forgotten his origins, or the tragedy he saw that day. He is deeply contemptuous of those who mistreat mortals and will not hesitate to protect them if he believes he can help. Whilst this will not overwhelm him into challenging those far above him, it makes him more likely to be reckless in taking fights than he should be.

    Starting bonus:
    Blood boiler cauldron art. A body cultivation method recovered whilst burying the dead on the same battlefield where Wei Feng saw a village destroyed. The demonic cultivator Boiling Village Feaster took an established technique and further perverted this art for his own ends, and this manual contains both the original notes and Boiling village feaster's 'improvements'. In it's original form the art demands the user immerse themselves in a boiling cauldron that is filled with various reagents, including spiritual herbs or beast blood. The manual has clearly been through several owners, with it's first Demonic user inventing a way to use the remains of dead enemies to enhance the effect. Boiling Village Feaster has added several comments around increasing the efficiency via pain and suffering (surprisingly including some improvements from increasing the users pain & suffering, though this was by no means his focus) or subsuming innocent mortals instead of enemies. Nevertheless, even in it's original form it is a powerful technique. If Wei Feng can bear to read the manual. If he can be convinced to use it.

    High concept: Peasant boy determined to not become contemptuous of mortals who wished to be heroic, like most teenagers. Became increasingly contemptuous of cultivators as a whole following various poor encounters. Brought to the clan by his master to get away from some self caused trouble and to try to rehabilitate his view of cultivator treatment of mortals and demonic cultivators as a whole.

    Cool thing: Body enhancement method looted off a nasty demonic cultivator.

    Wei Feng

    Ascenscions: HS 12

    Age: 296
    Cultivation - Foundation Establishment, 5th Pillar.
    Effective Cultivation level - Core 5
    Impact:
    Orthodox: 70
    Unorthodox: 13
    Unorthodox:
    +9 - Body Purification
    +4 - Qi Purification

    Orthodox:
    +1 - Soul Filling rasp - Allows one to disguise oneself as a mortal to Qi Condensation senses. Depreciated, likely to be folded into other factors.
    +1 - Poison Resistance from Faeces Coconut tree. Marginal at current stage. Likely to be folded into other factors.
    +7 - Phoenix-Salamander Constitution. (Foundation for regenerative ability.)
    +6 - Phoenix Transformation. (Temporary transformation into a powerful phoenix, with ramping strength/speed/regenerative capabilities. Heavily draining. Partial transformation is cheaper than complete transformation.)
    +6 - Cloud-Stepping Lotus (Petals grant 1 hour of highly maneuverable flight once per year) - Turn 11.
    +4 - Light-Phoenix Constitution (explodes in a burst of Light Qi when he dies) - Turn 12.
    +2 - Silver Tinges (silver nails, hair, eyelashes and brows. Largely aesthetic, but pretty badass.)
    +4 - Purifying Phoenix Constitution (evolved Light-Phoenix, bursts of Light Qi when Wei Feng is simply injured)
    +4 - Silver-Fire (Silvery fire wreathed around silver regions of body, burns enemy Qi to grow hotter, improving the strength of blows throughout a fight)
    +18 - Advanced to Death Step True Phoenix Bloodline + Spiteful Phoenix Mirror Technique (May touch opponents to inflict injuries equivalent to Wei Feng's current state. Takes several seconds to use, but transcends Law to function.)
    +10 - Death Depicting Plumage (Can express any single "death" inflicted on oneself once as an offensive technique. Deaths are depicted on feathers as engraved images. If the expression kills an individual, the depiction disappears.)
    Turn 2:
    Edit: Omake 1: Wei Feng Omake: A Young boy's view of righteousness. (740 words)
    Humbaba said:
    Snip
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    Bonus request: Generic cool thing?

    Omake 2:
    Challenging the heavens. – More musings from the mind of a young cultivator (497 words)
    Humbaba said:
    Snip
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    Second omake of turn. Not eligible for bonus.

    Turn 3:
    Omake 3: Days in the life ( 3744 words. Wei Feng reflects on his poor cultivation results in turn 2, studies and trains his cultivation art and fights a dangerous blood cannibal in a ruined village.)

    Omake 4: Demonic cultivation and you! Or 'the blood path and why Demonic cultivators should avoid it' (1537 words. Set in turn 2 shortly after arrival at the Clan. Wei Fang get's an explanation of how the blood path of Demonic cultivation works, why it is almost impossible to use for good, and some of the things the clan does instead.)

    Turn 3 bonus request: Cultivation boost.

    Turn 4
    Omake 5 Meditations beneath a poison tree - Wei Feng meditates, trains and reflects in the shadow of a poisonous tree. (626 words)

    Turn 4 bonus: Lifesaving treasure

    Turn 5

    Wei Feng 6- Trials and Choices The Trials are coming. All must deal with the horror in their own ways. (1754 words).

    Wei Feng 7 - Desert Ambush - Takes place during year 65 (Turn 4). Wei Feng fights to protect a small village from a raiding party of Abyssal Devil Bees. (2112 words).

    Wei Feng 8 - Foundation's fall (Year 70) - Wei Feng saves a town by trapping of a foundation establishment Abyssal Devil Bee cultivator for later clean up. (2176 words)

    Seeking Tips from Seniors: The contribution board - A young cultivator seeks knowledge from the wisdom of his seniors at the contribution board. (1216 words).

    We must dissent – Or "Why the council won't institute a proper essay ratings system on the contribution board" - An almost certainly non-canon look at why the contribution board system is as it is. (1078 words).

    [Fake] Fifth Sea Interlude: (Un)sustainable farming practices - A (non-canon) look into the head of one of higher ups of our Fifth Sea enemies. (575 words).

    So you've just become a cultivator? A Health PSA - A reassuring health announcement for new cultivators and a warning about a 'serious' condition that can occur as a cultivator develops. (659 words)

    Turn 5 bonus requested: Lifesaving Treasure. Saving Juniors roll x2. Attempting the Yuan secret realm.

    AN: I am terrible at names.
     
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  • Sidestory
    • Hmm, I wonder if we're looking at the Good Seed report next or if something else'll happen first?
     
    Alectai said:
    Hmm, I wonder if we're looking at the Good Seed report next or if something else'll happen first?
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    occipitallobe said:
    I think the votes are done.

    I have a rough plan. One update on Jingshen Clan and the Intrigue to come, followed by an infopost on the Trials. Then I think the results of the replacement search, then Good Seeds, then the new vote.
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    We got the Jingshen Clan update, and the Intrigue one too. IIRC we got the Trials infopost in Informational. So, all we have left is results of the replacement search then Good Seeds.
     
    ReaderOfFate said:
    We got the Jingshen Clan update, and the Intrigue one too. IIRC we got the Trials infopost in Informational. So, all we have left is results of the replacement search then Good Seeds.
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    I think that got folded in with the most recent intrigue post? Mentions of how he found someone who was a bit on the low side cultivationwise but had the right skills and could be raised up to par with a little work?
     
    Wei Feng 1 - A Young boy’s view of righteousness.
  • Sidestory
    • @occipitallobe And an omake for my Wei Feng good seed.

    Nothing cool happening here as it's just backstory, so can I ask for a generic cool thing bonus?

    Wei Feng Omake: A Young boy's view of righteousness.


    AN: All opinions are those of the character not the writer. It is important to remember that Wei Feng is from a peasant society background that promotes certain values. He'll get better I promise. Assuming he lives.

    He still has a lot to learn about the world.

    I remain terrible at names.

    -------------

    What does it mean to be righteous?

    To be a righteous cultivator one must be morally upright and virtuous. Never straying from the correct path.

    What does it mean to be self-righteous? It means a belief in your own moral superiority and virtue, no matter the circumstances.

    Yet to cultivate, one must be steadfast in one's convictions. Never uncertain of your own correctness. How then, can you avoid straying from the path?

    For Wei Feng did not wish to become merely self-righteous.

    As a child, he had seen the sneers of the so called "righteous cultivators" as they passed through his village. At first, he had felt this to be simply the truth of nature. Were cultivators not heaven's favoured children?

    Young Wei Feng had heard that Cultivators were rarer than lords & more favoured than monks and priests. Wealth dripped from their fingertips and they paid it no more attention than water drops after rain.

    Wei Feng doubted they were rarer than lords. He'd never seen a lord pass their village, but he'd seen several cultivators. Stories of their wealth though, he had seen for himself.

    At 10 years old, he had celebrated along with the entire village when Yi Weng Fei had been chosen by a wandering member of the Labyrinthine Rapids sect and set on the road to become a cultivator. The Labyrinthine Rapids member had handed out enough coin to keep half the village fed for months. The celebrations had lasted for most of a week, until the departure of the extra trade caravan the headman had organised to the nearest village. Wei Feng's father had even brought him back a set of rough carved wooden soldiers to play with. It had been a good time.

    He had been there a scant three years later, at Yi Weng Fei's return, to see the self-righteous contempt of cultivators. He had seen Yi Weng Fei strike his young sister as she ran to embrace him. She'd sat down in the dirt out of shock and Fei had started loudly yelling at her about decorum and threatening to spank her before dragging her off towards their house. It had made him squirm to watch. He knew bone deep, that you shouldn't hit girls; and she was only eight. But as her older brother he was within his rights to discipline her in his father's stead.

    Then he had dragged their father out of the house. Shouting and haranguing him about:

    "How could you have raised such a rude child?"

    Yi Weng Fei's father went red, embarrassed and angry.

    "My son, I-"

    "Son?" He roared. "You claim I could be related to this rude child?" He gestured at the girl, frozen behind him. "How dare you claim I could be related to such an inadequate father! Can a housecat beget a tiger?"

    Yi Weng Fei's father went white, face contorting into a rictus of rage.

    A gasp flew from Wei Feng's lips, echoing from one mouth to the next among the onlookers. To dare to harangue his father in public was bad enough, but to deny their relation entirely? Such of breach of filial piety was inconceivable.

    Meanwhile, the face of Yi Weng Fei's father slowly completed its journey from embarrassment to helpless rage to terror. Realising there was nothing else he could do he fell to his knees.

    "Of course not, sir. Forgive this one. This one's eyes are old and his heart's hope for his son's return blinded him to the truth. Please allow this one to take his daughter and discipline her." He begged.

    "Hmmph. Pathetic. Take your rude urchin and go". The cultivator sneered down at him, before turning to leave. Ignoring the shocked crowd he left in his wake.

    The village stared after him. A mere three years and he had forgotten his respect for family. A mere three years and he was consumed by the glory of "immortality".

    Wei Feng swore that if he became a cultivator, if he was chosen by heaven he would never forget himself and his origins so.
     
  • Sidestory
    • Ambrus Nike 2 - Stirrings of War
  • Sidestory
    • @occipitallobe OMAKE FOR THE OMAKE THRONE. MUH MAN AMBRUS'S TALE CONTINUES.
    Desired treasure for omake (also noted in character page): Lifesaving Treasure.

    Ambrus Nike #2: Stirrings of War

    Life had been very good to Ambrus recently he mused. Since his discovery of his bloodline trait and the honorable Manuel's assistance his cultivation had absolutely soared. In a mere twenty years Ambrus's cultivation had doubled from the third heavenstage to the sixth. More than that, he had even managed to assist in killing someone a minor realm above him after using his soul consumption in a pinch. He had received a soul water-skin for his troubles, an unassuming small bag that could hold the souls of those in qi condensation. A truly invaluable treasure for Ambrus. Before he had needed to go hunting every couple months for someone strong enough to actually be worth eating since Ambrus's stomach could only hold one soul. Now those dangerous hunts were completely unnecessary. He received enough souls on his missions that he always had a healthy stockpile in his water skin.

    Indeed many would say life was going very well for Ambrus.

    That was exactly the issue. Things were going well for Ambrus now, but he knew that the heavens were terribly fickle. While none from his class had died yet, several had been severely injured. Every time something went right for Ambrus, he became increasingly aware of how it could have gone wrong. He knew he could not rely so heavily upon his luck and now murmurings of war were on the horizon. Even out here, in the mortal kingdoms, Ambrus had heard of the news on the Cannibal front and while he did not fear going to war. He had recently come to realize that those who were unprepared were more vulnerable than they realized.

    In that fight with the fifth heavenstage bandit and his men, Ambrus had felt as though he were walking upon a tightrope. In fact, he had nearly been gravely injured himself in the fight. The bandit had been fighting recklessly and Ambrus had thought to take advantage of this and burned the soul he had been consuming to strike at him with a burst of power. But right as Ambrus's Blade had been about to sever the mans head, a Jade plate had materialized between his blade and the bandits neck. The jade broke, but Ambrus's sword had been repelled and were it not for the diligence of the squad leader, Ambrus would have died to the counter-attack. the squad leader had warned Ambrus of being careful for enemies who might be hiding such last resorts in place. Ambrus had received the bandits soul water-skin for his contribution in breaking the treasure of the bandit.

    It had been an eye opening experience for Ambrus. He had always assumed that cultivation was paramount in fights between cultivators. Now he realized his viewpoint had been shallow. Now, with his newfound vulnerability and the possible war on the horizon, Ambrus felt naked as he fought with his comrades in battle. Ambrus's battle achievements mounted as he had successful hunt after successful hunt, minor victories all.

    So Ambrus began to save his money and his contribution points to the clan. He pursued rumors and perused many a strange shop. Danger was always at his doorstep, whether he realized it or not and Ambrus would not be caught unprepared.
     
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  • Sidestory
    • Wei Feng 2 - Challenging the heavens
  • Sidestory
    • @occipitallobe And one more omake for the road.


    Challenging the heavens. – More musings from the mind of a young cultivator

    AN: More chunni, edgy, teenage young cultivator musings!

    -------

    Wei Feng had often heard it said that to cultivate was to defy the heavens. Yet everything he had learned said that most did not. The heavens did not care that people simply cultivated. Oh, certainly it would make some effort to strike them down during each ascension stage. Many did die. Yet, the wrath the heavens brought down on a Core formation cultivator would certainly destroy a Qi Condensing cultivator attempting to establish their foundation.

    If the heavens wished, they could destroy cultivation wholesale. Yet they did not.

    Why?

    Neither were these the random acts of an uncaring god. If the heavens had been like a man walking the path and all stepping on a trail of ants unnoticed, then tribulations would strike at random. Not at all who attempted ascension.

    Even the worst Demonic cultivator rarely triggered any direct wrath from the heavens. The continued existence of the murderers of countless millions who had not reached the heavens attested to that.

    No, Cultivators of all stripes were walking the path of the heavens, not defying them. Perhaps challenging was the correct term. As a skilled charioteer challenges the course he intends to race.

    As a child, Wei Feng had been warned not to touch the rice pot whilst it was over the fire. This was a good rule, for disobedience would get him burned. He had also been told to avoid widow Li or she would curse him. This was a poor rule, as no one who talked to widow Li had ever been cursed. Wei Feng did not intend to defy the heavens for defiance's sake. Yet he wondered. The heavens did not care for fairness or mortal justice. So which rules were good, and which were bad?

    The Golden demon clan stood as testament to the danger of truly defying the heavens. Yet their continued existence showed that even the heavens had limits.

    Perhaps the majority were correct. It was much better to challenge the heavens than to truly defy them. But he had not joined the Flood Dragon Gang simply to accept the status quo and cower away from improving things. He had sworn never to forget where you had come from.

    He had no doubt that he would truly defy the heavens. He would need every tool in his arsenal.

    He reached out for the Blood boiler cauldron art manual, but he felt his gorge rising. He heard the ghosts of screaming. He considered having to read Boiling Village Feaster's notes on the horrific tortures he had visited on innocent people to find non-depraved insights. He thought better of it.

    Eventually. He would defy the heavens eventually. Best to pick his time carefully.
    -------

    AN2: Not sure why I decided to make his cool thing a manual gift-wrapped with trauma, but it is giving me things to write at least.
     
  • Sidestory
    • Enigma said:
    Will the lands actually provide us with more resources though? As I understand it the land, which is already super low quality what with everything being massacred, will just keep getting worse as we own it. Will the investment to make it worth something turn a viable profit in the hundred years away from Old Cannibal we get?
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    Yes - they have Spirit Stones mines equivalent to roughly ~5% of the Clan's income each. Taking all 3 provinces would be a 15% income boost.

    Alectai said:
    I'm fairly certain that Manuel isn't going to be fooled by cheeky 'Exact Words' shit like that.

    More importantly, I feel said third power probably would have gone to Old Cannibal in the first place if they felt they could subvert him, or would have set it up now.

    Which is, I suppose, a genuine risk--that he's subverted and trying to bait us into a trap because his puppetmasters are not bound by the agreement, but at that point we're getting well into the rabbit hole.
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    And yes, assume you're not getting screwed by exact words.


    Garlak said:
    Question -- although this agreement would be magically bound, does this agreement ONLY mean that he can't attack and take back those lands specifically? Or would it mean that he, and the Blood Cannibal Sect, cannot aggress against the Golden Devil Clan at all for a hundred years? Because if it means the former, he could theoretically still just attack and take other territory of the Golden Devil Clan, right?

    I don't mean to say that he will be in a political and military position to be willing do this. Rather, I just want to clarify what the "magical binding agreement" actually is and does and limits them to.
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    It'd basically restrain Old Cannibal from acting personally for a hundred years against your lands. He could in theory send forces to invade, but sending forces when there's no implicit threat of a Nascent Soul backing them up is basically 'sacrifice men for nothing: the tactic".

    Katana1515 said:
    Each update makes me happier we went for the veteran old monster option rather than the young genius. I dread to think how snookered we would be without our massive Intrigue bonuses.
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    To be fair, the old monster is heavily advantaged in the early game, which is where you are right now.

    Alectai said:
    I live in terror of rolling bad on my fate check and losing Rina :(

    Then again, my ambitions are going to put her on the firing line again and again regardless so welp?
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    Gotta get yourself a Lifesaving Treasure! Full steam ahead is nice, but what can it compare to insurance against the vagaries of Fate itself?
     
    occipitallobe said:
    Yes - they have Spirit Stones mines equivalent to roughly ~5% of the Clan's income each. Taking all 3 provinces would be a 15% income boost.



    And yes, assume you're not getting screwed by exact words.




    It'd basically restrain Old Cannibal from acting personally for a hundred years against your lands. He could in theory send forces to invade, but sending forces when there's no implicit threat of a Nascent Soul backing them up is basically 'sacrifice men for nothing: the tactic".



    To be fair, the old monster is heavily advantaged in the early game, which is where you are right now.



    Gotta get yourself a Lifesaving Treasure! Full steam ahead is nice, but what can it compare to insurance against the vagaries of Fate itself?
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    That's my next priority! I just wanted to get my Cultivation back onto par with the other front runners! (Or at least have security against another awful roll :p)

    Speaking of that, is the Good Seed update next?
     
    Good Seed to Read 1 - Rina Callista
  • Threadmarks
    • Pretty flat-out today, so I'm not doing anything update-wise (probably - Good Seed updates take a lot of time, being a creative/dice merger that requires a bunch of reading and checking on top of ensuring things are at least somewhat thematically appropriate).

    What I thought I would do though is start my Good Seed to Read thing.

    I've written ~24k of Clan creation and story stuff, and around ~8k of information posts.

    Conversely, there are ~74k words of Good Seeds! There's easily over 100,000 words of stuff to read in this quest, scattered across different characters and stories.

    Now, I personally read them all with great enjoyment, but if you're a simple lurker, that's a big investment. So each turn I thought I'd offer one Good Seed who I think is worth reading, along with my personal thoughts on them.

    This means as you go along you might find the mass of omake simply intimidating - but I hope by highlighting one every now and then, lurkers and readers will find it easier to go read some of the great omake questers are generating!

    -------------------

    Good Seed to Read 1 - Rina Callista (NB: Click on the link and scroll down - it's in reader mode, starting with Rina's background. You'll need to go onto the next page to read them all)

    I think Rina is one of the most popular characters so far, but the reasons I'm highlighting her first are three.

    (1) @Alectai has been one of the biggest plan generators, I think winning or tying all plan votes in the creation phase.

    (2) In that vein, Rina's updates have some of the most consistent worldbuilding for the Clan you'll see in the thread.

    (3) Smol cute girl very stronk

    1 & 2 tie in together.

    The Array Engineers along the walls looked up at the rising sun, nodding sagely to themselves as it rose on schedule--cries steadily went out across the outposts of the walls, and the spell-formations throughout the Manor changed to respond to the trials of the day. A shimmering heat-haze splashed against newly refocused walls, deflecting the worst of the heat. Throughout the land, other formations engaged--spirit stones delivering vital Essence to the network as fountains burst to life, springing up and delivering their bounty to the stables, the grain and vegetable fields, the orchards
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    This is what I'm talking about. Manuel as a character is a disengaged, plotting old monster. He thinks in terms of costs and benefits, and while he has a moral bottom line, it's often very far removed from his actions. He's not evil per se, but he's certainly not paying attention to the intricacies of the world in its smallest parts. He's trying to figure out how to take fifty cities, or save five hundred thousand lives - for him, it's all forests, no trees.

    The posts with Rina in them, on the other hand, establish a real sense of place for Callista Manor, a tangible sense of 'this is how the Golden Devil Clan works for mortals'. It's easy to say you're good - and Manuel on a very, very high level does try and do good, but it's a utilitarian 'how can I best spend lives to ensure the best benefit for the Clan and its ideals', not a firm youthful idealism. The cynicism and plotting of Manuel makes it hard to think 'wow, the Golden Devils are different.' Beginnings and Endings establishes that in a way I thought would take me a very, very long time to properly demonstrate.

    She's also a very naive character, which makes it easy for parts of the world to be explained to her and the reader at the same time.

    All of her omake are great, but Beginnings and Endings is probably my favorite omake in the thread - it goes so far to establish Rina, the Callistas, and the Clan more generally with a sense of place and being you're unlikely to get from the more detached main story posts.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Decided to start rolling at least, getting things set up instead of doing the various things I'd decided to today. (I'll get to them, I promise!)

    The curse of the Heavens is really coming in force.

    2 Good Seeds crippled, 1 in a coma
     
    occipitallobe said:
    Decided to start rolling at least, getting things set up instead of doing the various things I'd decided to today. (I'll get to them, I promise!)

    The curse of the Heavens is really coming in force.

    2 Good Seeds crippled, 1 in a coma
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    Well shit. good thing i asked for a lifesaving treasure, here is to hoping that it didn't get burned the very turn i asked for it lol. If so, though. That would be a very timely treasure lmao.
     
    occipitallobe said:
    Decided to start rolling at least, getting things set up instead of doing the various things I'd decided to today. (I'll get to them, I promise!)

    The curse of the Heavens is really coming in force.

    2 Good Seeds crippled, 1 in a coma
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I really, really hope it isn't my good seed, But it seems that the journey of at least three good seeds is going to become much harder.
     
    One unlucky fortunate quester didn't ask for anything with this turn's Omake!

    I decided by executive fiat to grant them a Lifesaving Treasure.

    Because otherwise they'd be dead.
     
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