NorseQuest (A Norse Xianxia)
- Thread starter I.F. Ister
- Start date
- Original Fantasy Action
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- Tags
- norse mythology (mythology) original xianxia cultivation western cultivation ask sirihand did your mother tell you anything? discussion pleases yggdrasil farming gloating gets people killed granary management hubris is a coward's word you will die norsemen do not die when they are killed the qm has a bad memory the qm is bad at math viking courtroom drama (legal drama) vikings
Shard
One and Many
- Location
- Malaysia
I.F. Ister
Fortifying The Thread
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- He/They
Every single damn time I read or wrote 'stoke', my brain autocorrects to 'stroke'. One day, it will accidentally slip by me, it is inevitable.
Talk about stoking your ego, eh?
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Burning 3 to see what happens is likely worth it on that, yeah.
Speaking of which (since it's relevant to getting enough iron to do this) @Imperial Fister how does turning Bog Iron into Forged Iron actually work mechanically?
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- Pronouns
- He/His/etc
Won't that just make mail that isn't flammable?
Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
The hope is that it'll give permanent DR vs Fire damage
I bet it's a Forgefire Trick myself. Sten'll probably tell us in our brief "Hey, I've got a Forgefire Alloy now, what are the best Tricks I should pick up for it" discussion.
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I'd assume there's also a mundane way, but there probably exists a Forgefire Trick for this, it's true.
That depends on how you count it, doesn't it?
Like Hamr, Hugr, Fylgja are either 3 (infusions don't count seperately) or 6 (Infusions count)
{3,6}
Hamingja could count but doesn't need to
{0,1}
The new stat could count as 1 (not infusable or infusions don't count) or 2 (infusable & infusion counts)
So, infusion counts, stat is infusable, and hamingja counds would give 6+1+2=9
Or infusions count, stat is not infusable, hamingja & Orth count 6+1+1+1=9
Or [...]
- Location
- Mid-Atlantic
What's the difference?
I have only the roughest knowledge on it, from some light wiki surfing, from years ago, so take it with a truckload of salt.
Basically, modern "Damascus" blades are just normal steel or other well known blades, treated with chemicals and to give the still coloration (and some working defenses against the weather iirc) that also gives it the pattern of the original.
Meanwhile, the original was.... Kind of a miracle, in that so many stuff was involved in its making.
The base metal was from India, traded to the middle east, and there start the many "secret methods" to maki it..... One of which was quenching it in goat blood.
The original Damascus blades (or forks or whatever was made, like that one pillar somewhere) has a grainy makeup, so as it was used it shed these grains, which caused it's edge to always remain sharp, no matter what or how long you cut with it..... (Or how long you didn't.)
Damascus weapons, mostly swords, were very prized for that quality.
Basically, modern ones only have the pattern burned/drenched into them, or the ignots' inner pattern pulled out to mix it with the outer one to get it, but it's pure steel.
Original Damascus was ful of impurities, and we still don't know how it was made.
I recall the method being rediscovered, but no specifics, and iirc glass is somehow involved.
But it's still worse than the original one.
Also, if you want to buy one, look for the impurity rates. If it doesn't have it listed, it's a scam.
Oh, yeah. I did needed to look it up, but the either the original or the reproduction is also called Wootz steel.
That's all I can recal at the momen on phone, but the wiki page is very helpful.
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I do not personally think that Infusion should count, or that we need another stat, for the record. We theorized there might be one based purely on Sten having a total of four (he lacks Fylgja but has both Haltija and Itse), but that being purely a result of mixing cultivation styles also makes a lot of sense.
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Should/need is a different question, but If IF wants to keep the symbilolic numbers and if IF wanted to add a stat, that would be a way to get both.
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I mean, sure, I was just clarifying that I'm pretty sure that we the Questers are not actually requesting that, and would in fact, at least in my case, actively prefer that there not be another stat at all. We hypothesized there might be, but that doesn't mean we're asking for it to be true.
Yeah, the system is quite mechanics-heavy as it is, I think any additional complexity would need a really compelling reason to justify itself.
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@Imperial Fister some minor character sheet errors:
This should be 11, I believe. We should've had 13, but then spent two on Boulder Missiles.
3 of these should be holding 1 point of Frenzy.
This should be 20 Orthstirr, I think. Either that or we should have 4 more Orthstirr in our main pool (our main pool is correct for it being 20).
This should be 1/6 Trick Capacity, given that we have Composure 3 and 3 levels of Infused Composure.
This is listed under Armorcraft rather than Weaponcraft.
EDIT:
Actually, going over it further...I also think this should be 25/34 assuming Rough Tricks count (and 22 if they don't, though I believe they do). We have 12 Hugareida Tricks at Rough or better (3 are at Rough specifically), 12 Muna, and 1 Seidr spell.
This should be 11, I believe. We should've had 13, but then spent two on Boulder Missiles.
3 of these should be holding 1 point of Frenzy.
This should be 20 Orthstirr, I think. Either that or we should have 4 more Orthstirr in our main pool (our main pool is correct for it being 20).
This should be 1/6 Trick Capacity, given that we have Composure 3 and 3 levels of Infused Composure.
This is listed under Armorcraft rather than Weaponcraft.
EDIT:
Actually, going over it further...I also think this should be 25/34 assuming Rough Tricks count (and 22 if they don't, though I believe they do). We have 12 Hugareida Tricks at Rough or better (3 are at Rough specifically), 12 Muna, and 1 Seidr spell.
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I.F. Ister
Fortifying The Thread
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Ope, thank you! I'll make the changes today, once I update the character sheet with the update.
As for the Bog Iron question, I'll cover that this update
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Cool. I hope you caught the last one I edited in.
Sweet. That works.
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Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
Huzzah! Looking forward to it!
I.F. Ister
Fortifying The Thread
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- He/They
Almost done, just need to do the formatting and boom, there we go
Winter 7/Finally at the end of it
I.F. Ister
Fortifying The Thread
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- He/They
[X] +1 to attaining true understanding of the Atgeir
Talking to Eric
Training with Drifa
Talking shop with Sten
Talking to Eric
Training with Drifa
Talking shop with Sten
The old training field is littered with divots and pockmarks, wounds of a hundred different battles tearing away at the grass and dirt. With winter still having a firm grip over the land, most of the battle scars are covered in a thick layer of snow. Though not even mighty winter can hide the crater-turned-iced-over pool left from a particularly vigorous match between Sten and Steinarr — which you somehow missed, dammit!
Drifa lays on the snowy ground with her limbs splayed out in a star shape, her red face turned to the sky as she gasps like a fish. She was so excited to train with you that she forgot to do her pre-spar workouts, but you fixed that right up!
Of course... maybe you should have started her out on a lighter routine, one more fitting for her weak endurance rather than your regular workout. You are, what, a few dozen times her strength? Maybe more? Maybe less? Honestly, you hardly even remember being nine-years-old, let alone how physically fit you were!
'Few nine-year-olds are capable of lifting twelve tons, let alone while at a dead-sprint.'
You scoff, "You probably were."
'But am I wrong?'
"No..." you sulk, kicking at a patch of snow. "It's just..."
'You're too excited to be able to teach rather than learn.'
"Yeah... yeah I am, yeah."
'That's a lot of 'yeahs'.'
"Yea-" You cut yourself off with a squint as Blackhand chuckles away, "look, alright, it's just that, well, it's..." How to put it?
'You fall into a familiar pattern of speaking that makes it difficult to break away from?'
"Ye- That's exactly right!" You grimace, having nearly said it again, "I... need to work on that."
'You don't need to, it's your choice. If it's a flaw, then correct it. If not, then leave it alone.'
"Thanks, Blackhand." Your smile is brighter than the clouds in the sky.
'Thanks are unnecessary, but appreciated nonetheless.'
It's then that Drifa picks herself off the ground, her face is still as red as her hair — a cough escaping her lungs. "Thor's tummy, auntie!" You struggle to keep a face straight as Drifa 'swears' — Sten had told her off for using anything harsher than that. Her eyes are filled with dazzling sparkles as she leaps to her feet, a deeply impressed smile on her face, "No wonder you're so strong!"
"Thanks, Drifa-ough!" You can't keep the grin off your face as she slams against you and draws a playful wheeze from your lungs. She buries her face in your stomach as her arms wrap tight around you, "you little pipsqueak!"
"I'm not a pipsqueak!" She gasps, voice squeaking as she scowls up at you — slipping away from the hug in the process, "I'm gigantic! And awesome!"
"You're 'Gigantic?''" You quirk your head to the side as a wry grin plays across your face, "but I thought you were Drifa?"
'Nice.'
Her mouth falls open as her mind grasps for any response. Her eyes dart wildly side-to-side, desperately looking for any escape route or tool. Eventually, after about a minute of this, a sidelong smirk of her own slips up her face.
"You fool! Now that you've revealed the secrets of your training to me," ah, so she's changing tactics. Well, two can play at that game! All you need is some time to rev up your tickling fingers... "I can be both Drifa and Gigantic at the same time! And Dreadful while I'm at it!"
You blink and laugh, having honestly not seen that one coming. She jabs a finger at your bemused expression, a triumphant look blazing across her face. "See? Even the great Halla Skyfire falls victim to Drifa the Dreadfully Gigantic's clever tricks!"
You feign stumbling back and wipe the back of your hand across your mouth. Hocking a wad of spit to the side like it was a mouthful of blood, you eye your little niece as your wiggling fingers rise into the air. She takes a half-step back, eyes trying to keep every finger in focus at once.
"You claim to have bested me, the one and only Halla Skyfire!?" you smile as you scoff, imitating the greatest villains of the sagas, "But you know not where you stand, Drifa the Dreadfully Gigantic!"
"Oh yeah?" Drifa jabs another finger your way, her eyes narrowing as she stands as tall and as proud as she can. "Don't leave us waiting, Halla Skyfire! Where do I stand?"
"The Fields of Tickling Grasses!"
Confusion turns to horror as she tries and fails to scramble away from your wiggling fingers. She writhes in the snow, giggles escaping her as she struggles to stay composed — to no avail, of course.
A cough draws you from your reverie. Sten and Eric stand nearby, their weapons held in loose hands as the same smirk plays across both their faces. "You," Eric begins, eyes darting between you and Drifa, "are very cute."
"I am not cute!" You blink at the echo as the cold sensation of a horrifying realization slowly spreads through your body, Blackhand's laughter ringing through your mind all the while. You and Drifa... You spoke at the same time! Gods dammit!
After some light sparring with Eric and Sten, you settle down with the older of your brothers. Sten's in the middle of hammering out a few new links for his mail, which had taken a couple of hits over the course of numerous spars.
Sparks fly as the hammer falls, the pinpricks of light fading to nothing as the hammer rises up to fall again — gravity doing most of the work here. He'll be at this for another hour or so, perfect time for you to ask some questions!
You rub your palms together as a wicked grin spreads across your face. Sten arches a brow as his eyes narrow to slits. "You have questions, don't you?"
The grin widens ever-further. "You know me too well!"
He scoffs, rolling his eyes, "All I know is that your curiosity is a bottomless well, it doesn't take a genius to know that you've got questions on the mind. So," he says as rests the hammer on the anvil and pulls a sweat cloth from his belt, "you'd better not leave me hanging — I'll be rather cross if the fires go out."
You laugh. He doesn't.
Your laugh trickles off as he crosses his arms, his brow now clean of sweat and soot. "So, um, where does Forged Iron come from?"
"Dwarves," he scratches at his chin, a light scowl passing over his face, "and they're not too keen on sharing."
Your shoulders slump, "Aw, man, I was hoping that you knew..." Your eyebrows furrow as a thought comes to mind, "Wait, dwarves don't live in Christian lands, right?"
"Right."
"So where did the people who made Gabriel's armor get their Forged Iron? That's what it's made out of, right? Forged Iron?"
"That's a good question, one with answers I'm not privy to," he shrugs, a slight scowl on his face. "It involves the impurities in the iron, that much I'm certain of. If there's too little iron in the slag, then the iron's gonna be shit. The few times that I've managed to make dwarf-standard Forged Iron, however, were all while I was deeply sleep deprived, so I don't remember all that much about it. If I had to make a guess, though, it would be that the Christians figured out a way to replicate Forged Iron at steady enough of a standard that it can be used to make their armors. That, or they just melt down the weapons that failed raids bring them."
You frown, not convinced. "The latter doesn't seem all that likely, given the relative rarity of Forged Iron."
"You're right," Sten nods, "plus they'd have to contend with all the shifting levels of quality that bone-ash can add to the mix. A tall order, that, even for the greatest of smiths." He clicks his tongue as something comes to mind. "Speaking of bone-ash, you should probably bring some the next time you want to reforge Sagaseeker, they can add all sorts of effects to the mix."
"I'll keep that in mind," you say before moving onto the next question in mind, namely, "So, what kind of Forgefire tricks are there? More specifically, are there any that you think would be a good fit for me? Something that could repair the edge mid-fight?"
"Now how did I know that that was what you would be asking next?" He laughs, running a hand through his iron-speckled hair as he picks at his teeth — a few flecks of iron lodged between them. "But, there are a few that immediately leap to mind. Furnace Bellows is one that only uses your mouth. Short range, little damage, but it does cover a large area of that short range. Perfect when you're locking weapons with someone."
"That does sound nice," you nod, thoughts already filled with ideas. "But, you said there were a 'few' that spring to mind, right? And what about the edge repairing?"
"I assume that you're talking about Sharpen, right?" You nod and he grimaces, like he was expecting that, "Sharpen takes material off, Forgefire by itself doesn't add more material. If you were wanting to do that, you'd have to use Ironbloom in tandem with Forgefire. Now, I can do that for you, so you're not out of luck, but if I'm not around then you should probably exercise caution in your Sharpen usage." You take a mental note — that is, you have Blackhand remember it — before Sten launches into the next few tricks he's got for you. "Molten Metal is a solid trick. It, essentially, is just you flinging molten metal at people. Very short range, has armor piercing, and does decent damage. Forgefire tricks tend to be rather short range, you see, even more so than Ignition."
"Molten Metal, Furnace Bellows, got it." You nod, already committing those to memory, "any more combat? And some noncombat, please."
"You? Noncombat?" He snorts a laugh as you roll your eyes, "Never thought I'd see the day! But, to answer your question, I've got two more combat tricks and a couple noncombat that I think might be useful. The two combat tricks are Ember Eyeshot and Sparkling Beam. Ember Eyeshot is a tiny trick that deals very little damage, but it's a real bitch if it gets in your eye. Not much better for distracting someone, I've found. Sparkling Beam is a good heavy attack and also works as a finisher if you really pump it. Requires both hands, but it works at all ranges, decently fast, and does heavy damage for relatively low cost."
"As for the noncombat... Forge Weld and and Heat Hold are what spring to mind immediately. Forge Weld is just taking two pieces of metal and welding them together. Heat Hold... well, it holds heat in place. Great for when you're working a fine detail and worry that the fire'll ruin it."
"Thanks, Sten," you thank him earnestly before turning to leave.
"No problem, Halla! And remember the bone-ash!" You return the wave as you exit his forge. You thought about getting your hands on some bone-ash before, the last time you reforged Sagaseeker, but if you're going to do something as permanent as that, then you want the bone-ash to be as strong as can be!
As you return to the house — the sun starting to set in the distance — your thoughts are in the shape of an atgeir. Your dreams that night are of a certain purring weapon, a specter of death.
But before you can sleep, there's something you need to know.
"Blackhand, how did your father die?"
The wind suddenly picks up, extinguishing candles all at once. Candle smoke wafts through the air, forming pictures and skulls and swords as darkness swallows the room — the only light coming from the full moon emerging from behind clouds.
'Sigmundr...' Blackhand's voice is soft and somber, 'I was a child when Atilla came seeking vengeance on my grandmother, who, in revenge for Atilla feeding her brothers to snakes, fed him his own sons. She tried to poison him, but it didn't stick. But Gudrun was long dead by that point. But Atilla cared not, he would have his revenge. He ordered his men — legends all — to attack.
Sigmundr was outnumbered. He was outarmed. He was outpowered. He was outplanned and he was a dead man walking — everyone knows who Atilla is, the power he wields. There was no hope of him surviving.
But in the end... well, he was never intending to survive that day.
My father, like his uncles before him, fought like a lion. Hundreds of champions fell to his sword, men whose predecessors had been slaughtered by my great-uncles decades before. Just like then, it took Atilla himself taking to the battlefield to put an end to the mockery Sigmundr was making of his greatest men. He killed my father, but my father's sacrifice allowed the rest of us to escape.
It was then, that fateful day, that I witnessed odr being used for the first time. It was that moment that set me down the path I walked until the day I died, the path that brought me to your mind. The path of revenge.'
"Did you... did you get your revenge?"
'In a way.'
It's clear he'll say no more on the matter. Not now at least.
0~0~0
Personal (Pick 2/3, if no Exploration is picked):
[ ] (Playdates) Set up a playdate between one/multiple of your kids and one/multiple of other kids. (Write in)
[ ] (Wavedancer) Check out your new ship!
[ ] (Aki) Aki's come to say thank you
[ ] (Empty Sack) ...Maybe you should try stuffing that empty sack full of straw?
[ ] (Violent) Pick a fight or spar with... (Sparring with people reveals a summery of their character sheets)
-[ ] Spar with Abjorn, your husband
-[ ] Spar with Gabriel, without armor
--[ ] (Optional) With armor
-[ ] Spar with Stigmar
-[ ] Spar with Stigr
-[ ] Spar with Aki
-[ ] Someone else (Write in)
[ ] (Personal) Spend time with... (Write in)
[ ] (Shopping) Ask Abjorn to buy something for you (Write in) (Can only be used to buy or sell things you are already aware of and cannot haggle)
[ ] (Court) Send Abjorn to make a case at the Thing (Write in) (Unavailable)
[ ] (Crafting) Try to make something (Write in) (Hugr+Some kind of crafting skill)
-[ ] (Optional) Focus on repairing something (Write in)
[ ] (Poetry) Try to realize an Inspiration (Write in one of your Inspirations)
0~0~0
Exploration/Travel (Pick 1 or none):
[ ] (Visit) Go visit...
-[ ] The Witch!
-[ ] Asvir!
--[ ] (Optional) Attend the Thing (Unavailable)
-[ ] Vidby, Vidar's Farm
-[ ] Kerby, Stigr's Farm
-[ ] Buriby, Osborn's Farm (Has a solid chance of ending in a fight)
-[ ] Glebby, Sverre's Farm
-[ ] Runby, Aki's Farm
-[ ] Hasviby, Hasvir's Farm
-[ ] Halfdanby, Halfdan's Farm
[ ] (Exploration) Go on a walk through...
-[ ] The fields!
--[ ] (Optional) Send your fylgja in your place (Does not cost an action)
-[ ] The Hading!
--[ ] (Optional) Try to find those bandits you heard about
--[ ] (Optional) Send your fylgja in your place (Does not cost an action)
-[ ] The hills!
--[ ] (Optional) Send your fylgja in your place (Does not cost an action)
[ ] (Battle) Go and attack somewhere...
-[ ] Nothing, as far as you are aware, is available at the moment
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Training: You have 38d6 training dice to spend as you see fit.
[ ] (Research) Try to figure out how things work (Write in)
[ ] (Drifa) Teach Drifa some of your tricks (Write in)
[ ] (Blackhand) Try to develop old/train new hugareida tricks (Write in)
[ ] (Steinarr's Training) Ask Steinarr to teach you a trick/some tricks (Write in)
[ ] (Training) Hamr (122 successes to rank up)
-[ ] (Optional) Train a hamr skill or trick (Write in)
[ ] (Training) Hugr (60 successes to rank up)
-[ ] (Optional) Train a hugr skill or trick (Write in)
[ ] (Training) Fylgja (31 successes to rank up)
-[ ] (Optional) Train a fylgja skill or trick (Write in)
0~0~0
Orthstirr Available: 474
How do you want to use your orthstirr? You can turn on passive tricks here.
[ ] (Orthstirr Usage) (Write in)
0~0~0
Fylgja Capacity: 4/8
Do you want to withdraw or deposit anything in your fylgja?
[ ] Write in (Optional)
0~0~0
Equipment/Capacity/Shapeshifting/Alloy/Pocket Management
What do you want to have equipped on your person, in your capacity, or for your shapeshifting? Leaving this blank means that no changes are made.
[ ] Write in (Optional)
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AN: I'm still very unhappy with the farming mechanics and I just don't really know what to do with it. It can't be too complicated because I've already got my hands full with the regular stuff, but it also shouldn't be too simplified because it was such a major part of Norse life.
But hey, writing this one was a blast.
25-minute moratorium.
edit1: added in trick talk with Sten
edit2: added in blackhand talk about father
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Alectai
Speaks Words of Wisdom... On occasion
A doot! A doot! My life for a doot!
Ah, more progress.
So, I'm thinking researchwise...
Some points towards continuing to reduce our excess number of Pockets, another upgrade to the Armory Pocket, and then check out what the Brewery Pocket can do.
Then we want to look into establishing a perimeter in our Soulspace, securing it with a good Wall. At least bouncing ideas off to figure out what's needed to make a good one there.
Finally, with the hint we got, we want to look into our cultivation spot, maybe see about feeding Odr into the tree/stone there and seeing if that has any effects?
BTW IF, we should be at 500 Orthstirr now, with our yearly Feat related drip.
Anyway, I'm thinking the "Ask Steinarr about farming Tricks" shouldn't take an action? So we can swap that out with the Aki Action that just opened up methinks. That, the Asvir visit, and the Wavedancer should sort us out for the turn.
As for other things to put XP into, I kind of want us to get Slipstream online, but I also want us to develop our "Firebomb Strike + Skewer Flick" Combo Trick. Getting our hands on a Dragonfire Dive technique would be super helpful, and the combination of a piercing attack with an explosion should do absolutely ruinous damage to a target.
Ah, more progress.
So, I'm thinking researchwise...
Some points towards continuing to reduce our excess number of Pockets, another upgrade to the Armory Pocket, and then check out what the Brewery Pocket can do.
Then we want to look into establishing a perimeter in our Soulspace, securing it with a good Wall. At least bouncing ideas off to figure out what's needed to make a good one there.
Finally, with the hint we got, we want to look into our cultivation spot, maybe see about feeding Odr into the tree/stone there and seeing if that has any effects?
BTW IF, we should be at 500 Orthstirr now, with our yearly Feat related drip.
Anyway, I'm thinking the "Ask Steinarr about farming Tricks" shouldn't take an action? So we can swap that out with the Aki Action that just opened up methinks. That, the Asvir visit, and the Wavedancer should sort us out for the turn.
As for other things to put XP into, I kind of want us to get Slipstream online, but I also want us to develop our "Firebomb Strike + Skewer Flick" Combo Trick. Getting our hands on a Dragonfire Dive technique would be super helpful, and the combination of a piercing attack with an explosion should do absolutely ruinous damage to a target.
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- Location
- Bretonnia
- Pronouns
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Not to nitpick, @Imperial Fister, but what about our talk with Blackhand about his father?