Cool, only a week or so of sleepless nights! Cool cool cool.

Relations is a must, then maybe Imposition for an instant Dreamspace panic room?

Lilly's already getting a lot of utility out of summoning and re-summoning the Heartstaff. More pocket dimension tricks would be good.

Somehow, I get the feeling The Child is sipping a Piña colada on a tropical beach and laughing at us.
 
I think Dissolution is probably the better pick rather than Imposition. The latter would probably help make our Essence formations more permanent, but Dissolution should be useful as both a defensive and offensive tool, stripping techniques from us or others for example.
 
So, to take my mind off the stress, I did a look into our character sheet progression.

I noticed something. Deific Source power cannot be generated or controlled in the slightest without the use of a Domain, those blocks were straight up crossed out until [Towering Edifice to the Heavens] came online, at which point they suddenly appeared--with the yellow background that backstops Domain based traits.

Noticably, while [Effervescent Animus] was a Deific Ethos, it didn't actually give any ability to wield Deific Power with it. It all had to be used through Evie... Given that, and the fact that Lilly can now detect, generate, and utilize Deific power, I wonder if she can actually learn to use [Effervescent Animus]'s powers on her own, instead of having to use Evie as a proxy to do the heavy lifting for her? Treating it as a "Normal" Ethos and its training wheels for power instead of what amounts to being a contract with a supernal being.

Huh, I wonder if that Deific Awareness is going to be more important than I thought in the upcoming event? If Aboleath does something, doesn't that mean Lilly would be able to detect it instead of it just manifesting as a "YOU CANNOT GRASP THE FORM OF ABOLEATH'S POWER"
 
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First Draft resolving the Valerie situation is done and I just have a couple of tangential bits to write.

Possible Definitions of "Tangental Bits"
  • Lilly politely asking Ladder about the necessity of asking "How could things get worse" every 3 hours since this hot garbage wasn't detected until the last minute.
  • Lilly explaining her true nature, and dealing with Sarah's concerns, Micah's fears, Marcus's awe, Myah's devotion, and Zach's ever-increasing sense of inadequacy.
  • Lilly figuring out how to tell Captain Martin about her controversial therapy treatment on the girl who just killed one of his best men (along with other reports coming in from the north).
  • Lilly preparing to transport comatose Valerie to the Petal tree, leading us to the start of the Grasp 10 cutscene.
  • Lilly's new Ethos coming with a "divine advisor", giving her the traditional "angel and devil on her shoulders".
  • Not-Jeremy deciding that NOW would be a great time for the trial to start, with the grand prize of preventing Lilly's family members from bleeding out.
  • Zach's Ethos triggering early under the stressful situation.
  • One month timeskip as Lilly's body finally reforms after a "total family wipe"
  • Epilogue
...Also @Slyvena if you'd be willing to put my omake on page 111 under an Apocrypha threadmark, I would appreciate it.
 
Lilly's already getting a lot of utility out of summoning and re-summoning the Heartstaff.
It does have a tendency to come in clutch, doesn't it.
And hot diggity dam does she get some utility out of it in 2.5 too.

...Also @Slyvena if you'd be willing to put my omake on page 111 under an Apocrypha threadmark, I would appreciate it.
Already on my todo list. I haven't decided what bonus to give for what is arguably your best work so far.
 
Heartstaff is and remains one of our single most iconic powers, as is right and proper.

When we can then also emit divine energy blades from it to create fancy anime weapons we will be in business.

(Would that be an Artefact?)
 
Sure, but we can practice things there that we might not be able to practice in the real world.

I also wouldn't be sure that he can't teach us interesting stuff about Concordance and Essence, too. Like, he's trained a guy who eats fire and turns it into a concussive blast. He's pretty versatile.

Ok I can't find anything that says one way or the other how his training works if he was trying to teach us something other then combat so if he agrees to run with us I would be ok with training everything otherwise it would let two much out when someone decided to question him and we don't need Waters learning more of what we can do.
 
{Artefact} Creation
Heartstaff is and remains one of our single most iconic powers, as is right and proper.
When we can then also emit divine energy blades from it to create fancy anime weapons we will be in business.
(Would that be an Artefact?)
When making an artefact you may choose a power or sub-power as an inspiring base which will heavily influence its final shape, but may also then push it toward certain concepts or purposes.
So you can guarantee something will be defensive, or a weapon, or 'help with healing', etc
I take that input and come up with a few different results that fit the mold, then roll to see which is selected.

So you could take {Heartstaff} and push the resulting Artefact toward 'Weapon' (to make sure it didn't spoof too strongly off the reinforcement, tele-recall, power-conduction, shape-shifter, etc concepts too strongly) and you would get some form of direct enhancement to the offensive dimension of the {Heartstaff}.
You need the requisite amount of Gravitas for a Rank F Artefact available in your Gravitas Weaving 'Free' cell, and an available Artefact Slot to be able to initiate a new Weaving.

I mean if you really want you could decohere the {Primordial Chassis} and recycle it into a different Weaving if you don't want to wait for a 2nd slot.
 
Nah, I don't think so, {Primordial Chassis] is just too clutch.

That being said, given Lilly's grasp on it, how does Gravitas distribution work? Is it just that it mostly just manifests it's own Gravitas in activated categories on its own every so often? Does it pop stuff in? Do we have to invest 10,000 Gravitas in one go to gain a new 'Floor' or is that just "Gravitas that you've committed to various stuff inside"? So that spending some on--say--upgrading {Primordial Chassis} also has it count as invested into the next stage?

She's 8/10 Grasp (And probably going on 9 given how you've described one of the Secret Challenges is getting us one of its utility effects), so these seem like things she's at least got a rudimentary understanding of now?

...

That aside, why did [Effervescent Animus] get an absurd amount of XP last update? It wasn't from the drip we've attached apparently. The implication seems to be that it's Ethae we primarily use, but unless it was just "You resolved the Myah Event by way of {Hybrid Siphon} so because of that, [Effervescent Animus] got pretty much all the Gravitas attached to it" something weird's going on there and apparently its getting a big workout
 
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Maybe Evie got most it from unstopping parts of Lilly's soul? If she didn't unstop Lilly would Lilly have been able to do anything? Also, Evie helped {Dream} and {Bedrock} integrate Lilly's domain senses, and exchanged information with Petal allowing her to expand.
 
Sometimes I think we might have a chance at getting through everything, with the depth of all the analysis and planning here. Reading all of Lilly's absurd growth and triumphs gives me hope. Silverking even just got another bonus because of his great writing. Maybe one day we might even get a full week where we won't need to worry about spooky spirit shenanigans.

But I also have a sinking suspicion that Slyvena's real name is Senus Marnic and everything so far's an elaborate plot to disguise the instant epilogue next update. The bonus is being able to choose which dear character we get to see brutally murdered in their very own bonus chapter.
 
Personally, I wonder if the XP dump is literally from figuring out an Evie Function-understanding one's Ethos-
Well. Fundamentally, Ethos are about integrating them into your soul, taking the power and making it YOURS, as I understood it. And figuring out aspects and things about the Ethos to pass on such findings to Lily has been consistantly the nature of our secret challenges- basically giving Lily the insights she might have had if her life wasn't a madcap roller-coaster with more spikes then a hardcore platformer game level.
 
That being said, given Lilly's grasp on it, how does Gravitas distribution work? Is it just that it mostly just manifests it's own Gravitas in activated categories on its own every so often? Does it pop stuff in? Do we have to invest 10,000 Gravitas in one go to gain a new 'Floor' or is that just "Gravitas that you've committed to various stuff inside"? So that spending some on--say--upgrading {Primordial Chassis} also has it count as invested into the next stage?

It's kind of complex, but suffice to say, if you invest at least 10,000 XP into various aspects of the [Tower], it will slowly tick up to a pass its Level Threshold on its own. It's a two step system.
The forumla is on the more recent spreadsheets. I take 10% of the difference between the [Tower]'s current XP and the cumulative sum of its four sub-Gravitas sinks and increment the current XP by that amount. I refer to incoming Gravitas going into the four sub-Gravitas sinks as 'Float XP' and XP that has also been duplicated into the Current [Tower] XP as 'Integrated XP'.
 
It's kind of complex, but suffice to say, if you invest at least 10,000 XP into various aspects of the [Tower], it will slowly tick up to a pass its Level Threshold on its own. It's a two step system.
The forumla is on the more recent spreadsheets. I take 10% of the difference between the [Tower]'s current XP and the cumulative sum of its four sub-Gravitas sinks and increment the current XP by that amount. I refer to incoming Gravitas going into the four sub-Gravitas sinks as 'Float XP' and XP that has also been duplicated into the Current [Tower] XP as 'Integrated XP'.

Ahhh.

And the Gravitas we're pouring in will go into our Artefacts/Relations stuff until it's filled out? But to actually level them up we need to practice them? (Or is that tied to invested XP?)
 
It does have a tendency to come in clutch, doesn't it.
And hot diggity dam does she get some utility out of it in 2.5 too.

*Sees invisitext*

Ah, I got it. 2.5 is going to be emergency open-heart surgery featuring the Heartstaff as "a surprise tool that will help us later."

Honestly, the kids are just so smart these days!
 
Domain + Heartstaff + tremendous mechanist is a hell of a combo.

Something Lilly should do is expand her domain over the heartstaff at all times.

If I had known that domain can be extended I would have added that as an AC to healing actions. Try to cover the patient in Domain, which would make healing a lot easier. Or doing any sort of single target enhancement for that matter.

On something unrelated. I want to tie relation into Evie, Attune Locus, Primordial chasey.
I want to expand the primordial chasey artifact to cover both Petal and Lilly, have it consider Lilly, Petal, Evie as the same entity.

Relations can tie things together, make them 2 ethos work together where naturally they would be incompatible.

Using Relations to combine {Sympathetic Linkage} and {Critical Pivot} would be a massive massive boost. Right?! Be able to extend her luck to all those she powers and enhances. Right?
Hmm. Or linking {The Ladder} with {In thy Likeness}, to give another source of information for the ladder to pull from. The dreamscape. Since we found out that the legend part allows the dream to connect to the greater dream which all living things share.

Going back to healing and domain. I think a minor domain link to anyone might do the same as covering them with our domain. It might not do more than covering them with domain already does. The minor relations would possibly allow us to take Valerie into the dream with slipstream. Since bringing things out of the dream is possible so bringing them in might be as well.
Minor relations removes a few limitations from power, like allowing them to apply to other people where usually they only apply to Lilly. And Minor Relations can be quickly swapped, little temporary things. We've got 2 to use. So using both {Slipstream}, and the power {The World Beneath}, may very well allow Valarie to be hidden away within Lilly's dream.

A minor link to the girl by Lord Waters to give her critical pivot, our luck power. Could do her good. Or alternatively, could it be possible to get her away with applying both hybrid syphon and slipstream. Then jump with her. Tho the thought of applying them to her and pulling her to us trough the slipstream. Snatching her away with a single onesided pull.

Linking {Rest State} and {Thread Compression} with a minor link would likely help figure out the right use for the power. Because in the notes on the character sheet Lilly mentions she's using it wrong. I say it would help because rest state aids in healing. So if you let rest state guide it... well.
Compression. I think thread compression may be meant to reduce distances, manipulate {Remanian Geometry}. Or alternatively, compress the strands to build tension, and then release it in measured and precise bursts.

Actually. I think {Thread Compression} will work with {Applied Current}. A tool for programming essence. Like a trigger or making big complex essence formations, and then compressing them into smaller packets. And then Lilly can insert them into people to heal or damage, uncompressed by an infusion of essence. I say this because an unexplored part of {Dream within the forest} is programming essence, and this can very easily link into that.

I wonder. {Magnify} links Lilly to where essence has been in the past and then time travels Lilly's body there. I wonder. Is there a potential combo with {the ladder} finding those paths, or in {Ply the Line} or its sub power forcing those paths to exist or make Lilly find them super easily. The ladder would likely highlight the path automatically, skipping Lilly's need to look for it. While Ply the Line could force concordance to slightly alter reality, or Lilly, to have created the ideal movement for her in the past and pigibacking off of that retroactive change.

Assuming that with a link to [The Cleaver of Fortune] wouldn't let {magnify} use essence paths created in the future. But if it could, then Lilly could plot out an essence path in the future, follow that if not pull it into a present. It'd jailbreak {magnify} to allow her super-speed without the limitations of following existing essence paths, cause there always exists a potential future where Lilly has taken a step towards her desired direction.


I think the poem of the entity. Possibly Manoth, relates to dad's ethos being damaged.
Yolun Silas |Integration Vector:: [Iteration to Perfection]: Mana :: 31st 23rd Growth|
Memory loss. :V When the joke is that the fourth son, the dead one, is technically alive but as an inverted essence. An undead.
Taking power from others is a common theme for inversion. And look at that, dad is missing 8 levels.
 
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...Lilly doesn't need to breathe.

I'm getting increasingly convinced that the Ominous Poetry is about Zach, honestly. But I don't know why.
 
...Lilly doesn't need to breathe.

I'm getting increasingly convinced that the Ominous Poetry is about Zach, honestly. But I don't know why.
Point. And Lilly is the one who left Second, to the forest and pretended to be dead among the roots. Unless like.
4 siblings. If Lilly is not breathing. Then that indicates towards there being a missing kid, and implied to be alive.
I wouldn't be surprised. :V This family has secret closets within secret closets.

However, if it's a game... then it makes me think the pieces are the bloomlings. Tho that is unlikely and a stretch. Kin. Hmm. Talking about entities?

I suspect what's going on is that the poem is an info hazard trap. Like Lord Wasters rose. He even distracted Eevie just before giving it. So she couldn't notice it sink into Lilly's mind.
The oath side was dealt with... But the flow side got through.
 
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Point. And Lilly is the one who left Second, to the forest and pretended to be dead among the roots. Unless like.
4 siblings. If Lilly is not breathing. Then that indicates towards there being a missing kid, and implied to be alive.
I wouldn't be surprised. :V This family has secret closets within secret closets.

However, if it's a game... then it makes me think the pieces are the bloomlings. Tho that is unlikely and a stretch. Kin. Hmm. Talking about entities?

I suspect what's going on is that the poem is an info hazard trap. Like Lord Wasters rose. He even distracted Eevie just before giving it. So she couldn't notice it sink into Lilly's mind.
The oath side was dealt with... But the flow side got through.
...What are you off on? I don't think that makes any sense - because I'm reasonably convinced that whoever this is, be they Maw sublet or just someone who paradox'd themself so hard they exist anyway (...something something insert muttering about Excrucians here), they don't operate within the normal rules and the normal sources. It feels the same as Maw corruption.

Also. There's four kids in the Silas family. Zach, Lilly, Marcus, Little Dude With An M Name That I Can't Be Bothered To Look Up Right Now. Count the statues.

...I'm actually thinking that this could have been a Thing About Valerie, except we're actively intervening in that right now so...no, unlikely. This guy can see Concordance for days.
 
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Lilly is also the first born so she doesn't fit the 'order they left was not the order they were born' part since if her stint in the Forest was her 'leaving' it means she was first to leave as well as the first born
 
{Imposition of Intent} is an power neglected. It makes Lilly's will have concordant weight. It's the power above sample space.
If Lilly is invested in a specific outcome and committed to it, then things go as she desires. Because her will is more important.
If she is focused on making Valerie recover, Lilly's actions are more likely to result in that outcome. If she is focused on Zach solving the beef with pops while also avoiding the big sis complex, this will help it along.

It may also combo with {iron will} trait, which too gives metaphysical weight.

What Lilly wants Lilly gets.

Madam advised against having solid plans. But cleaver obfuscates Lilly from the concord and also works best with clear goals and outcomes that Lilly wants.
The power creates new futures which didn't exist before, so they can't be divined in the first place.
 
Lilly is also the first born so she doesn't fit the 'order they left was not the order they were born' part since if her stint in the Forest was her 'leaving' it means she was first to leave as well as the first born
yeah, that's exactly why it's almost assuredly why it's about Zach: he's second-born and he's slated to die in the chaos after he gains an Inverted Ethos, so to someone looking through the Concord the rhyme is currently accurate, as the second-born will be first to die. (at least once we are done with Valerie)
 
I wonder if you can use oath to lock in outcomes with concordance because if the game was something like how well do you cope after I murder all of your loved ones. It would make sense if he revealed the secrets of concordance being that people can be locked into a fate that they could have otherwise avoided if they were dumb enough to agree to be the toy of a random spirit.

What do we know about the temple of virtue because the update made it seem like we thought that they could heal Marius but the guards knew that there was no point in taking him there. We also know that Essence healing doesn't normally allow that sort of recovery from Pithe exhaustion so something is going on with how we heal but our essence doesn't seem special. Is it an effect of our legend secondary?
 
What do we know about the temple of virtue because the update made it seem like we thought that they could heal Marius but the guards knew that there was no point in taking him there. We also know that Essence healing doesn't normally allow that sort of recovery from Pithe exhaustion so something is going on with how we heal but our essence doesn't seem special. Is it an effect of our legend secondary?

It's not that our Essence is "better" than a Laywoman's, but the fact that we have access to a nearly endless supply of it. Marius had screwed himself into the Mana-Curse equivalent of Stage IV cancer, and most traditional healers would have run out of juice before they could put a dent in it.

While there are Spells that can heal very rapidly are the cost of side effects commonly referred to as mana-curse, what had come over Marius was orders of magnitude worse than what you'd witnessed when he healed your father's arm. There was an immense weight and solidness this time that for the most part you were only able to dislodge due to the brute application of a frankly obscene amount of essence. An Essence healer would not have been enough, one like you who can draw from a 'locus' was the only thing with a chance.
 
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