NorseQuest (A Norse Xianxia)

[Orbmorb]

On further reflection I also want to ask about the divine shroud, and I doubt Steinarr would have been able to tell us much before the memory problems

[X] Yes, there is!
-[X] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
-[x] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
-[X] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

Dropping combat seidr because a major battle is a bad time to test a new technique, and the invitation is sort of time sensitive

 

[DeadmanwalkingXI]

Yeah, fair, asking about the divine shroud also seems reasonable.

[X] Yes, there is!
-[X] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
-[X] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
-[X] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

 

[Sirrocco]

continues to bandwagon

[X] Yes, there is!
-[X] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
-[X] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
-[X] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

 

[I.F. Ister]

So this is a bit pedantic, but isn't Steinarr in his late fifties or early sixties?

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Couldn't remember the proper name as I was in a bit of a rush to edit it in or if dementia was rude or not, so I just slapped a potentially too vague blurb down hoping that folks would get it. If I should change it, just let me know what I should change it to.

 

[alexthealright]

[x] Yes, there is!
- [x] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
- [x] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
- [x] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

 

[weeblypanda]

[X] Yes, there is!
-[X] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
-[x] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
-[X] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

 

[ilalthal]

Couldn't remember the proper name as I was in a bit of a rush to edit it in or if dementia was rude or not, so I just slapped a potentially too vague blurb down hoping that folks would get it. If I should change it, just let me know what I should change it to.

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So, like is dementia a normally occurring thing in setting?

In cultivator viking land where cultivation is based on personal legend and so on, dementia being normal seems kinda weird. Like, how can you forget the life thats more or less carved into your soul?

 

[I.F. Ister]

So, like is dementia a normally occurring thing in setting?

In cultivator viking land where cultivation is based on personal legend and so on, dementia being normal seems kinda weird. Like, how can you forget the life thats more or less carved into your soul?

Click to shrink...

All things have their price and the strength that lies within your bloodline is no different. You are no less vulnerable to the perils of aging as any other person and, in fact, may even be more so.

 

[mythfan12]

All things have their price and the strength that lies within your bloodline is no different. You are no less vulnerable to the perils of aging as any other person and, in fact, may even be more so.

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... Ah. Yeah, besides the death of Blackhand, I can see the Charred Soul trading mental memory for soul memory.

 

[Orbmorb]

so I just slapped a potentially too vague blurb down hoping that folks would get it

Click to shrink...

I did assume it was boutique memory problems, but I also assumed it was gonna be Dorri forgetting he'd authorized the dwarf deal, which would have been less emotionally devastating but maybe more immediately dangerous

Cognitive decline is the most clinical term that doesn't reference a specific malady if you want to be more specific in the warning

 

[Alectai]

I think it's more that we're so high spec that we wear down faster.

 

[Skippy]

Couldn't remember the proper name as I was in a bit of a rush to edit it in or if dementia was rude or not, so I just slapped a potentially too vague blurb down hoping that folks would get it. If I should change it, just let me know what I should change it to.

Click to shrink...

I mean, I don't really know? Mostly because I don't know what (apparently terminl) medical condition Steinarr has which is apparently causing this. Is it a bunch of small micro-strokes - termed "vascular dementia" - caused by some underlying vascular issues? A brain tumour? Both might cause memory loss like this, but I'm not the author so I can't say for sure.

His motor skills still seem fine, which would rule out a lot of neurodegenerative diseases, assuming that a super-Viking would even experience those the same way. And actual early-onset dementia isn't really a terminal illness in the sense that Sten meant. Or well, it kinda is terminal, but it still takes years, which I don't any of us would enjoy. 😟

Sorry, I don't mean to be snippy here, just kinda bummed out about this. Vascular issues might make the most sense given Stoker State, I guess.

 

[DeadmanwalkingXI]

So, like is dementia a normally occurring thing in setting?

In cultivator viking land where cultivation is based on personal legend and so on, dementia being normal seems kinda weird. Like, how can you forget the life thats more or less carved into your soul?

Click to shrink...

Dementia like Steinarr is displaying isn't really memory loss per se, it's memory confusion. You often don't actually lose long term memories, you just have trouble accessing the appropriate ones in reference to the appropriate things...and getting lost in one's memories unable to see the present for what it is seems very much a valid problem to have within the context of 'Memory Is Forever' in Norse Cultivation.

And, of course, there's the fact that all cultivation systems are overlaid on, well, people...anything the cultivation system doesn't explicitly change remains human standard, and Norse cultivation does not help with old age.

... Ah. Yeah, besides the death of Blackhand, I can see the Charred Soul trading mental memory for soul memory.

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Nah, Charred Soul is specific, and Steinarr never had it. If the memory issues are from anything family related it's more something like Born of Fire or even the whole bloodline.

 

[Shard]

Lone-standing runes greet you in a grid-like pattern, seemingly inviting you to punch in a series. Shrugging, you gently tap your name in as the runes appear in a previously empty box. You only get two runes into your kenning when the surface turns red and an angry beep rings out. Wincing, you look down just as the red disappears alongside your unfinished name.

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That's.. That's a password.

Can we Sundersight our way to the correct password?

 

[Orbmorb]

Sundersight shows us a little residue where the sticky note all the passwords were written on used to be before it disintigrated

 

[Mystic Pentagram]

That was painful and heartbreaking to read, as somebody who has seen similar things happen to elderly family members i could really empathize with Halla there.

As always IF has treated such a delicate topic with all the necessary caution and grace, i am impressed by his ability to invoke emotions in the reader.

[X] Yes, there is!
-[X] ask about Steinarr's condition and what kinds of things she knows we might be able to do to help him, even temporarily.
-[x] ask about the Divine shroud around Steinarr's soul: what it is, what it does, what it means, where it comes from
-[X] Reprise our question about where she stays in the winter and invitation to stay with us if she would prefer

 

[I.F. Ister]

Sorry, I don't mean to be snippy here, just kinda bummed out about this.

Click to shrink...

Don't worry about it, it's supposed to bum you out a bit. That's how I know I did a good job ;P

That was painful and heartbreaking to read, as somebody who has seen similar things happen to elderly family members i could really empathize with Halla there.

As always IF has treated such a delicate topic with all the necessary caution and grace, i am impressed by his ability to invoke emotions in the reader.

Click to shrink...

I'd like to shout out my mother, as she's got a degree in gerontology and has spent damn near most of her life providing care for the elderly. I've heard a lot of stories over the years and I've even seen her perform a few cognition tests on elderly relatives, which helped me out here.

Cognitive decline is the most clinical term that doesn't reference a specific malady if you want to be more specific in the warning

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Good idea. I added it in earlier, but only now did I think to properly acknowledge it

 

[Shard]

I guess Sterki and Steinkell might need a new teacher if things continue as is.

 

[DeadmanwalkingXI]

I guess Sterki and Steinkell might need a new teacher if things continue as is.

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I suspect Sten will take over for the most part, though we should certainly offer to help out.

 

[Shard]

All things have their price and the strength that lies within your bloodline is no different. You are no less vulnerable to the perils of aging as any other person and, in fact, may even be more so.

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Basically, by closer blood relation to Odin, we are simply more intrinsically bound to the deeper Norse Culture? So the effects of stuff like All Men Die, Power Demands Sacrifice, Memory is Forever, those affect us more deeply than it does other Norsemen. Though also makes it easier to earn Muna and stuff.

 

[TheCount]

Sten nods, "As soon as I realized something was wrong, yeah. She said that it probably wasn't nidheart, but that his soul was shrouded by powerful, divine magic so she couldn't tell anyways. Gave him some gunk-smeared leaves to chew on and it helped, but not for long."

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Hm... I wonder... does the shroud has anything with becoming an einherjar?

[ ] Yes, there is!
-[ ] Write in

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oh, i see there is already a switch to ask about Steinarr. can we also switch where she lives for counters/detection about the doppelgangers?
Edit: You know, we can pretty easily just roll the divine shroud and Steinarr's cognitive decline into one question.

 

[Skippy]

Given Halla has an essentially medieval understanding of health, it's not unreasonable that we don't know the disease or condition which is causing this: because Halla herself wouldn't. But it is a bit of a puzzler; I want to emphasise that this kind of cognitive decline at Steinarr's age is really rare. Dementia-like symptoms are not a normal consequence of being in your late 50s or early 60s, or even of most terminal illnesses.

Vascular dementia caused by cumulative strain on the circulatory system by Stoker State might be a good candidate? But for obvious reasons I'm a bit loath to suggest we canonise this explanation given Halla and essentially our entire extended family would also be at risk.

 

[Shard]

Given Halla has an essentially medieval understanding of health, it's not unreasonable that we don't know the disease or condition which is causing this: because Halla herself wouldn't. But it is a bit of a puzzler; I want to emphasise that this kind of cognitive decline at Steinarr's age is really rare. Dementia-like symptoms are not a normal consequence of being in your late 50s or early 60s, or even of most terminal illnesses.

Vascular dementia caused by cumulative strain on the circulatory system by Stoker State might be a good candidate? But for obvious reasons I'm a bit loath to suggest we canonise this explanation given Halla and essentially our entire extended family would also be at risk.

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Cancer exists as a disease that can be identified in setting, and is probably curable with Sickness Sear.

Unlike IRL, magic actually works as a mechanism to heal people.

Vascular Demetia doesn't really work though. Injuries on Norse bodies don't really stay on them. Like, Vagn doesn't have permanent brain damage from that time his head got cut off, for example.

 

[Skippy]

Cancer exists as a disease that can be identified in setting, and is probably curable with Sickness Sear.

Unlike IRL, magic actually works as a mechanism to heal people.

Vascular Demetia doesn't really work though. Injuries on Norse bodies don't really stay on them. Like, Vagn doesn't have permanent brain damage from that time his head got cut off, for example.

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That's a good point, yeah. We also know that magical healing was attempted, and whilst it was somewhat effective, it wasn't effective in the long-term.

I mean possibly Stoker State might have some sort of magical side-effects which make it harder to clear with regular Norse healing, but there's no particular reason to believe this is the case. Although Norse healing's abilities also seem pretty variable, given it doesn't stop ageing or stuff like arthritis. The only solid conclusion is we don't know much, really.

It might be worth seeing if a Sickness Sear which we empower with Odr helps with his symptoms at all? Even if it just provides temporary relief, we could plausibly do this for the remainder of Steinarr's life so long as the monthly Odr cost isn't too high.

 

[DeadmanwalkingXI]

It might be worth seeing if a Sickness Sear which we empower with Odr helps with his symptoms at all? Even if it just provides temporary relief, we could plausibly do this for the remainder of Steinarr's life so long as the monthly Odr cost isn't too high.

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This is worth a shot, yeah. We can only spend 4 Odr per time we use it at most...if that works, we'd happily do it every turn. Even if it just significantly reduces symptoms, that's still really good...if it even mildly reduces symptoms we'd Master it and maybe Perfect it to do a better job at that.