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Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

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T_of_A said:
So we are working on Minato Seal 6. Which one are we aiming for again ? Seal 8, right ?
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Six is the minimum required to start on the necro-seals. Having done seven might be better, but I can't remember what Kagome had to say about that. Eight is the maximum we can currently do (beyond that Hazou and Kagome don't understand the notes, and we think they might require TH knowledge).

So we're pretty close, especially if we keep moving at this rate. If we go up to MS7 then we're only like a week away.
 
(Once more, with thanks to @Paperclipped for doing all the work!)

ContextBot said:
Any news on the Kangaroo and maybe even the Squirrels? Enma talked to us about both of them in Chapter 322 and 323.

He mentioned to be on good terms with the Kangoroo Boss Kanga. So I figure he would have a quick talk with both Clan Bosses about the whole "Maybe Dragons are real and maybe talk to Kumokogo" situation.

+ the Arachnid emissary of course.
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The Squirrels professed their disinterest to Enma when he passed through the first time. On his way out, the Squirrels seemed more concerned after hearing his tale of the Dragons. Enma says they said they'd check it out.

Enma says that the Kangaroos spoke with him, but they requested that he keep their conversation secret. He implies that you might be hearing from the Kangaroos soon.

faflec said:
What is the situation with the Conclave/main timeline?
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Three days remain till Enma arrives. If you wish, you may vote to cover all three days in the next Conclave plan.

acidshill said:
Further clarification question for Paper or anyone else who knows the answer: is the goal that once Enma arrives, the representatives will then be convinced their bosses should show up, or that we convince them now that their bosses should show up to hear Emma's message? If the later, do we actually have enough time for the bosses to make the trip before Enma gets here?
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The hope is that it will go:

Enma arrives -> representatives go home and retrieve their bosses -> Bosses arrive and Enma sells them all on the Crusade -> Bosses go on Crusade -> all Dragons die -> everyone lives happily ever after
:)


Sir Stompy said:
@eaglejarl @Velorien @Paperclipped IIRC it's been stated multiple times that one of our goals at the Concave is to obtain permission for Conjura to visit the Conclave. I don't understand why.

We need Conjura to fight the Dragons, not to convince the other Clans that there is an imminent threat. So obtaining an agreement that any Clan Boss who wants to join the Crusade, even if they or their representive isn't present to sign the nitial document, seems like a sufficient win condition to me. Is there any reason Hazou thinks this is insufficient? Or why we need Conjura in particular to be present at the Conclave?

Getting Conjura to the Conclave requires her to place her neck in Pantsaa's proverbial claws, so it seems something of a hard sell. Not least since the Pangs won't be thrilled either.
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The goal isn't necessarily to get Conjura into the room with Pantsaa, just for her to be a party to the Conclave so that she can negotiate her price for helping in the Crusade. The ultimate goal is for her to be willing to fight at Pantsaa's side (and vice-versa).
 
MadScientist said:
[x] Action Plan: Record Scratch
  • Hazou has a horrible thought: what if the hellstorm isn't caused by EM? What if wind spirits just hate being cold?
  • Research a seal capable of producing an effect that mimics that of Akane-level extreme cold in a small area. With Asuma's permission, test it somewhere safe to do so, turning off the seal if any of that weird cold liquid shows up.
  • Uh-oh.
  • "Sir, we may have a problem…"
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edited
 
eaglejarl said:
The goal isn't necessarily to get Conjura into the room with Pantsaa, just for her to be a party to the Conclave so that she can negotiate her price for helping in the Crusade. The ultimate goal is for her to be willing to fight at Pantsaa's side (and vice-versa).
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Couldn't she just show up on the eve of battle in Arachnid and negotiate her price then? I'd expect her to get a better price when the Dragons are literally around the corner.
 
Hazou could try talking to Pantsaa, with a basic outline of:
it sucks that we're in conflict, and it sucks that there's conflict between you and your summoner. It sucks for you that many of the other clans actively hate you now.
Would you be content with the condor lands, and letting the actual populace leave? That gives you the room to support a population boom of actual pangolins, and takes you out of conflict with Hazou, Kei, and a bunch of clans.
What non-genocidal things could we help you with? We have gems and seals(contingent on a no-genocide promise) and the creative genius that leads to things like skywalkers and the trade network.

Naive? Probably.
But it does something besides leaving Kei in the lurch, and gives us a the pangolins an opportunity to cooperate on fixing our relationship, instead of being enemies.
 
acidshill said:
So, fellas, how about those estate plans?
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[x] (Goketsu Estate): With a Population Like Ours, We Need a Town Unto Ourselves
Words: 298

  • Sanity Check everything (and vet businesses) with Gaku, Mari, and Kei
  • Design:
    • Hire Shikamaru-recommended architect from NFF (flatters Shikamaru ; spotlights program).
    • Blend elements from other compounds (represents our connections within Leaf):
      • Uchiha (Hazou's ancestors, highlights bloodline connection to Leaf).
      • Nara (Kei's marriage to Shikamaru).
      • Senju (Jiraiya's teammate, and Noburi's role model).
      • Sarutobi, (Jiraiya's sensei).
      • Yamanaka (Hazou/Akane's relationship with Ino).
      • Aburame (budding business relationship).
    • Require architect collaborates with...
      • Kagome (maximize trap-setting potential).
      • Noburi (medical checks).
      • Mari (general I&S defenses)
      • Kei (sanity checks/optimization/logistics)
  • Construction:
    • Hire KEI-recommended construction crews from NFF (spotlights program ; increase KEI connection).
      • Monitor for corruption.
    • Using Earthshaping, fix structural faults in (and hyper-condense) all building materials (increases defensiveness).
      • Work with construction crews/engineers to ensure Earthshaped material is safe to use.
    • ES-Condensed Corundum windows (Main Family Building)
    • Glass windows (important buildings).
  • Details
    • Therapy Building (grief counseling)
      • Soothing aesthetics
    • Wooden facades (nod to Leaf's architectural styles)
    • Kagome-approved Underground Evac Buildings (civilians)
    • Goketsu Event Building
      • Huge dragon skeleton carving.
      • Relief carvings of Summon Clans we've contracted.
    • ES-Reinforced walkways (QoL improvement)
    • Hide Koi pond for FOOM OPSEC training.
    • Lampposts (increases visibility at night)
      • Marble statues, holding seals? (Leaf's heroes. Include fallen Goketsu?)
      • Without compromising effectiveness, Replicate light placements within Nara compound (Nara Homage)
    • Gardens with water features, flowers, and fruit trees (Yamanaka homage, supplements Food Bank)
      • Subtly incorporate defenses.
        • Examples...
          • Benches that're comfortable, but also reliable cover
          • Brick Facades over MEWs around garden/park perimeters
    • ES gold filigree into important buildings (use shapes reminiscent of sealwork)
    • ES relief carvings that resemble sealing on surfaces, hiding real seals in the noise.
    • Private monument to clan's fallen in the heart of estate (provides solace).
    • With Mari, Hazou Earthshapes fully anatomically accurate Jiraiya Colossus. Clothe in Arachnid Silk garments.
 
This quest has a way of making a Terminal Doomer out of any optimist reading it. I do wonder when Hazou will experience a final psychotic break and start to just be a puppet of the eldritch forces piloting him toward destruction (without having the ability to put the mask of humanity back on afterward, that is).
 
Crake said:
This quest has a way of making a Terminal Doomer out of any optimist reading it. I do wonder when Hazou will experience a final psychotic break and start to just be a puppet of the eldritch forces piloting toward destruction (without having the ability to put the mask of humanity back on afterward, that is).
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We'll need to wait for the QMs to give us back LoVe
 
[X][Conclave] Action Plan: Wrapping Things Up

Word Count: < 300
  • Direct Noburi to talk to the Leopards
    • He can take whatever approach seems best to him, this is his time to shine.
  • (Offscreen?) Talk to the Capybara
    • Optimize with Mari/Kei
    • Get an idea of where they stand and what they think of the dragon threat
    • Bestow appropriate gifts
  • Ask Ruri if she can summon Convei and figure out why she isn't at the Conclave
  • Skip to Enma's Arrival
The idea here is that, since we have three days, it would be a little strange for Hazō not to talk to the Capybara at all, but we don't really know much about them and—suggestions are appreciated, but I have no idea how to write a plan for this, and I don't especially care about the scene, so I figure the QMs can write it if it seems interesting to them and otherwise they can skip it.
 
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Noumero said:
Okay, if nobody else has any ideas, here's an attempt at a plot-relevant lore update. Take it or leave it.

[x] [Conclave] Action Plan: Not One Unusual Thing Has Ever Happened
Word count: <300.
  • Meet the Rats again. Sanity-check with Mari.
  • Nezala's speculations on the Seventh Path's design interested you. On both Paths, everything to do with the Sage is steeped in legend, and usually revered, in a way that's hostile to questioning. The Rat Clan, however, seems like it'd interested in the physical truth of what happened during that era...
  • You're also interested. The nature of reality is of utmost relevance to improving the sapient condition within it...
  • ... And for protecting it. Let us suppose, for this discussion, that the Dragons are real. Not as mythical beings, but as a banal part of the world, sitting some distance thataway. Conditional on that, how do the Rats' beliefs on the past change?
    • Notably, you're not asking "what legends are true?"; none are. You care about the latent truths that legends are refractions of.
  • From your end, share the information on Pain's Rinnegan (and whatever ritual Akatsuki planned), the bijuu and the overview of sealing failures (if the Rats don't know about either), Jashin, and whatever insights the Summoning Scroll and the Great Seal granted you.
    • Meditate on the Out before the meeting, write insights down, then filter them into sane-sounding speech. (Source: unspecified sealing lore.)
  • Topics of interest:
    • The Rat Clan's broad agreed-upon inferences about the Sage's era, if they exist. Again: physical truths, not legends. What's the story?
    • Any other sealed monstrosities? Between the Dragons (supposedly reclaiming their powers by exterminating Clans) and the bijuu, "split the monster, seal the parts" seems the Sage's modus operandi...
      • Don't mention the Five. Do steer the conversation if something relevant seems to have come up.
      • What's this about "summoning Death"?
    • Cross-dimensional travel. Any helpful lore? What's cosmology like?
      • Don't talk about your necromancy plans, but do describe whatever of Naraka you've seen.
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To make some more progress when it comes to getting the Clans to warm up to us, would you be willing to work in a second Clan diplomacy scene?

The three Clans we have yet to speak to at all are the Mara (who Asuma said to steer clear since their Summoner is an enemy), the Leopards (who hate Hazou for cutting off the deal before their enemies the Hyenas were conquered), and the Capybara (a neutral clan.)

I'd prefer the Capys personally, as the other two have some issues. There's not a whole lot for us to go off of, but the Capybaras are known to be really good spies (somehow... I don't see how they impersonate other Clans or anything), maybe we could regale them with stories from Jiraiya/Mari doing spymaster/infiltrator stuff
 
acidshill said:
  • Direct Noburi to talk to the Leopards
    • He can take whatever approach seems best to him, this is his time to shine.
  • (Offscreen?) Talk to the Capybara
    • Optimize with Mari/Kei
    • Get an idea of where they stand and what they think of the dragon threat
    • Bestow appropriate gifts
  • Skip to Enma's Arrival
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Couple things I'd like to see.

We should find out what happened to the Condor Pantsaa sent to check out the Dragons, Ruri could summon her to the human path and see if she can go to the Conclave.

We are also supposed to be floating the idea of Conjura visiting the Conclave, so something like safe passage needs to be voted on or something similar.

We are also supposed to be figuring out how to approach Pantsaa wrt Kei's behavior at the Conclave. I don't have great ideas here.
 
Sir Stompy said:
We should find out what happened to the Condor Pantsaa sent to check out the Dragons, Ruri could summon her to the human path and see if she can go to the Conclave.
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Does Ruri have a contract with her? We already asked around about Convei and didn't get anywhere, I don't know what else we can do about that.

eaglejarl said:
Offscreen you asked around after Convei (the condor who saw the Dragons); you were given some mealy-mouthed responses and it's unclear if she's being sent for or not.
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Sir Stompy said:
Yes, she's how Ruri observed the Dragons in the first place. You need a Summon physically present in Arachnid.
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Right, makes sense. I've added a line about that. I figure safe passage for Conjura would be voted on after Enma arrives. I have no idea how to appease Pantsā and I figure that relationship is probably just doomed, but I'm open to suggestions.
 
Shrooms said:
500 to 3000, respectively. (Wait, which Akane razing did you mean?)
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I meant the one she destroyed during the Rock war.

I wanted to calibrate on Asuma's gross human rights violations. If we hold that the Isanese and random Earth villagers are equally innocent (IMO fair) then whether or not we change our attitude towards Asuma (who signed off on murdering that village) really depends on how you feel about the risk posed by the continued existence of that village during the war vs. the risk posed by the continued existence of Isan.

For me, this means no real change.
 
FaintlySorcerous said:
I meant the one she destroyed during the Rock war.

I wanted to calibrate on Asuma's gross human rights violations. If we hold that the Isanese and random Earth villagers are equally innocent (IMO fair) then whether or not we change our attitude towards Asuma (who signed off on murdering that village) really depends on how you feel about the risk posed by the continued existence of that village during the war vs. the risk posed by the continued existence of Isan.

For me, this means no real change.
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Honestly nuking Isan is 1000x more reasonable to me than torching that city
 
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