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School of Sorcery

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[X] Screw it, just reassemble him to see what happens, announcing that this is probably a test or a prank anyway. (write in).
 
[X] Ring the bell. Rouse Garanhedd's undead guardians. Ask them for their side of the story.

If we're not going to raise giant god than we should wake his jailers. It would be just awful if some other idiot first years woke him up.
 
[X] Ring the bell. Rouse Garanhedd's undead guardians. Ask them for their side of the story.
I'm curious how they will respond...
 
[x] Do something else (write in).
-[x] Pray to the Forgotten God (or any other god that might know him) for guidance

An interesting dilemma. Still on the side of helping him though, consequences be darned
 
[x] Do something else (write in).
-[x] Pray to the Forgotten God (or any other god that might know him) for guidance
 
Kai Merah said:
Really, just why wouldn't they try to murder us? Can we offer even a single reason for them not to?
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They are personal bodyguards of an ancient hero who conquered this land, and then held it alongside the Seasons, the deities who were raised among humans and therefore are closest thing to the "good guys" the setting has... if we equate "good" with "what benefits humanity". :p

And they still have their wits about them, they aren't mindless undead.

I would think they aren't big on executing children.

They need to fix their alarm, though. Can't have students walking in and out of a tomb imprisoning a deity.
 
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Vote closed.

Huh. A narrow victory for "Leave the tomb. Confront Simony Bidwell and demand an explanation."
Adhoc vote count started by Chandagnac on Jul 9, 2020 at 11:41 AM, finished with 20 posts and 15 votes.
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Waking the Dead (Part Six)
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    • Waking the Dead (Part Six)​
    Chandagnac said:
    'And you, Phil?' you ask, turning to him. 'Do you have an opinion on this?'

    His smile is edged with malice. 'Oh, I would love to revive Garanhedd and ask him to kill my old man. But I understand why it might not be a good idea. What if he decides that he wants his ancient kingdom back? What would that mean for the people of Tyrepheum and surrounding lands? And what if he's lying to us to convince us to do his bidding? We've only got his word for it that anything he has said is true.'

    'So, we're agreed,' you say with a nod. 'We need more information."
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    'And the way we can get that information is by leaving this place,' you continue. 'I think it's time we talked to Simony, don't you?'

    With a firm nod from Venta, an uncertain smile and a nod from Isolia, and reluctant acquiescence from Philander, your teammates all agree. Thereafter, you cross the plank bridge, leave behind the desecrated tomb, head out through the earthen tunnels where the kobolds have been forced to make their home, through the small aperture between the knotted tree roots, and back out into the daylight.

    Simony is waiting for you, a sly grin on his face. Not for the first time, you are struck by his resemblance to Philander. Considering that they are supposed to have different mothers, it is quite unnerving how similar they look, almost as if they were the same person, just a few years older or younger.

    'Did you get the pin?' he asks.

    Wordlessly, you show it to him.

    'Good job! I'll take that, thank you,' he says, holding his hand out.

    'I think I'd like to keep hold of it, for now,' you say. 'I have some questions I want to ask first.'

    He shrugs. 'Suit yourself. What do you want to know?'

    'Tell us about Garanhedd the giant,' says Philander, a sharp look in his eyes. 'He promised each of us a reward for reviving him, but I'm guessing there was a reason why you didn't take him up on his offer. Wasn't there?'

    'You didn't talk to King Belorhiof or any of his men, did you?' asks Simony, raising an eyebrow and glancing around at you and your team. 'If you had, you'd know the answer to that question. Or part of it, at least.' He laughs, suddenly and unpleasantly. There is an edge of something not-quite-sane about his laughter. 'Very well, I'll give you a brief summary: when he was alive, Garanhedd was a cruel and rapacious tyrant; the humans living in his lands suffered under his misrule, so they hatched a plan to sneakily kill him; but even after his death, the giant's malevolent shade haunted them, telling his troll and kobold minions to make war on them, urging his old friends the gods of famine and pestilence to ravage them with horrible plagues, and so on. It was only when the Forgotten God sealed him in this tomb – with Belorhiof and his men to act as guards – that the bloody, long, and miserable war finally came to a close. Does that answer your question?'

    'No, it doesn't,' says Phil. 'You… you're like me, we both want to be out from under our father's boot heel. Garanhedd is a god. I'm pretty sure that he could smash through the protections given to the old man by his demonic patron, as a favour to you, if you brought him back to life. So why haven't you? Don't you think he would uphold his end of the bargain?'

    'Oh, I'm sure he would,' says Simony with a nod and a self-satisfied grin. "He still thinks of himself as a king, the true ruler of his land, and he would find it much harder to gather minions if they thought there was a chance that he wouldn't keep his word to them. And, if he were to come back to life and perform a few minor miracles to reward those who had served him so well – even if they happened to be humans – wouldn't that be a great advertisement for him? If he did that, he'd have lesser spirits flocking to his banner, soon enough.'

    'You still haven't answered my question!' Phil snaps at him. 'If you're certain that he'd keep his word, why haven't you resurrected him?'

    'Well… think about it,' says Simony, lifting up his head and gazing at the sky. 'Garanhedd has good reason to hate humans. I'm sure that he'd keep his word by rewarding whomever puts his bones back together, but that's mainly because it'd benefit him to do so. What would happen after that? After he's gathered an army of spirits and established himself as their king, what will he do then? Demand that we humans acknowledge him as the rightful ruler of this land? Threaten to destroy the city of Tyrepheum if we don't? Or would he be content to leave us alone, having learnt his lesson last time?' He laughs again. "I don't know. And I'm not desperate enough to want to find out. Not yet, anyway.'

    'What do you mean "not yet"?' asks Isolia, regarding him warily.

    'Oh, there have been times when I've thought… even if Garanhedd destroyed the city and killed most of the people within, as long as he got rid of "my dear papa", it would be worth it,' Simony replies, lowering his head and fixing Philander with gimlet eyes. 'But it's not time for that yet. That's last-minute stuff. For now, I still have other options available to me. What do you think, my dear brother?'

    Phil shakes himself, as though waking from an unpleasant dream. 'I suppose… I agree with you,' he says slowly. 'I want to accept Garanhedd's offer, but… the price may be too high, in the end. Even if it would solve a lot of problems right now.'

    Do you have an opinion on this?
    [] Write in.

    Do you want to ask Simony about anything else?
    [] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[] "Where did they come from?"
    -[] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    [] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[] "When did you discover the tomb?"
    -[] "How did you discover the tomb?"
    -[] "How did you disable the alarms in the tomb?"
    -[] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[] "Aren't you afraid of divine punishment because you desecrated the tomb?
    -[] "Did you steal anything from the tomb?"

    [] Ask him about the Explorers and Archaeologists' Club.
    -[] "Am I a fully-fledged member of the club now?"
    -[] "What benefits do I get from being a member of the club?"
    -[] "Do I have to pay a subscription fee?"
    -[] "Do you do a lot of this sort of thing, desecrating tombs and suchlike?"
    -[] "Aren't you basically a bunch of thieves?"

    [] Ask him something else (write in).
     
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    • Well now thatt is intriguing, of course both sides of the history have a chance of being equally biased, so I do wonder how accurate this is, still if we ever need a quick ally on our side, I guess we have an option to sneak back to!

    [X] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[X] "Where did they come from?"
    -[X] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    [X] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[X] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)
     
    Chandagnac said:
    'Well… think about it,' says Simony, lifting his head up and gazing at the sky. 'Garanhedd has good reason to hate humans. I'm sure that he'd keep his word by rewarding whomever puts his bones back together, but that's mainly because it'd benefit him to do so. What would happen after that? After he's gathered an army of spirits and established himself as their king, what will he do then? Demand that we humans acknowledge him as the rightful ruler of this land? Threaten to destroy the city of Tyrepheum if we don't? Or would he be content to leave us alone, having learnt his lesson last time?' He laughs again. "I don't know. And I'm not desperate enough to want to find out. Not yet, anyway.'
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    Well-reasoned, I suppose.

    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
    -[x] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"

    While we're here, just a courtesy tonguelashing and all that.
     
    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[x] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)

    There is no lack of desperate people in this city. If he is reasonable enough to treat it as a last resort, someone might not be.
    It certainly isn't something you use as a recruitment tool for students in the Academy full of children indebted to a broad variety of patrons.
     
    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[x] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)
    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
    -[x] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    The tomb question bugs me. There's always somebody desperate or stupid at the chance for power.

    More generally, I'm still unenthused over this club. It feels poorly managed. Like the dangers could be death, instead of just detention.
     
    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[x] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)
    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
    -[x] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    Yeah. Joining this club was a good idea in theory but it turns out we'd have to deal with the other members.
     
    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[x] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)
    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
     
    Hello everyone, I just joined this quest and plowed through the current story not to long ago.

    I have a few questions.
    Do us players have a general consensus of what mage archetype our MC is going to be based off of? Or, are we just picking what seems best at the current time.

    When we get back to the Academy, are we going to start focusing on ways to break curses, hexs and build up ways to ignore mystical tracking attempts? We are only First Year students and we are already involved in Gods and powerful Demonic Beings that are all terrifying beyond belief. We stand no chance against these types of creatures, so I'm hoping we can develop methods to break any bullshit curses or hexs. I am also terrified of that Lady that managed to recreate us by taking a piece of skin from our parents and managed to revert our DNA to our ancient elven ancestors. I wonder if that means if she can track us due to her literally rewriting our DNA and creating us.

    Also, one day I hope we kill that fucking Principal. He was a shitty person already, but the way he is dehumanizing the best teacher Green Flame deserves a death penalty.
     
    [x] Ask him about the tomb.
    -[x] "Why did you desecrate the tomb?"
    -[x] Isn't it dangerous to leave an entity like him lying around? Does anyone else know or is this a secret? (Write in.)
    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
    -[x] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?
     
    Amnesiac said:
    Hello everyone, I just joined this quest and plowed through the current story not to long ago.
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    Hello Amnesiac, it's a pleasure to meet you. Well, it's always a pleasure to meet a new reader who seems keen to participate in one of my quests.

    Amnesiac said:
    Do us players have a general consensus of what mage archetype our MC is going to be based off of? Or, are we just picking what seems best at the current time.
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    Well, the main character is still in his first month of school. He hasn't really had time to see all of the available options yet.

    So far as I can tell, my regular players don't have a clear plan for what kind of wizard they would like Dorian to grow up to be. So far, they've focused on boosting his physical stats and gaining xp for skills which they think might be useful.

    Amnesiac said:
    When we get back to the Academy, are we going to start focusing on ways to break curses, hexs and build up ways to ignore mystical tracking attempts? We are only First Year students and we are already involved in Gods and powerful Demonic Beings that are all terrifying beyond belief. We stand no chance against these types of creatures, so I'm hoping we can develop methods to break any bullshit curses or hexs.
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    You have already started learning 'Ritual Magic' which, in this setting, is a very versatile tool. You can use it to do almost anything you can think of, provided that you can gather enough magic, that you have enough willpower to temporarily rewrite the laws of reality, and that you have enough focus to keep your spell doing exactly what you want it to do and prevent nasty side-effects (and if you have a deficiency in any of those requirements, you can make it for it by increasing the complexity of the ritual).

    Basically, you should be able to use Ritual Magic to break curses or hexes, if you ever need to, but it might take some time and experimentation. Also, there'd be no harm in searching in the school library or asking some of your teachers about the best ways to magically protect yourself.

    Amnesiac said:
    I am also terrified of that Lady that managed to recreate us by taking a piece of skin from our parents and managed to revert our DNA to our ancient elven ancestors. I wonder if that means if she can track us due to her literally rewriting our DNA and creating us.
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    You are right to be terrified of her. That is the correct reaction. :evil:

    Amnesiac said:
    Also, one day I hope we kill that fucking Principal. He was a shitty person already, but the way he is dehumanizing the best teacher Green Flame deserves a death penalty.
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    You don't even know the worst of it. Remember when Green Flame said that she didn't actually have any money? Well... uh, the thing about that is...
     
    [x] Ask him about the Kobolds.
    -[x] "Where did they come from?"
    -[x] "Don't you think it was cruel to kidnap them from their homes and imprison them here?"

    [X] Ask him about the Explorers and Archaeologists' Society.
    -[X] "Am I a fully-fledged member of the society now?"
    -[X] "What benefits do I get from being a member of the society?"
    -[X] "Do you do a lot of this sort of thing, desecrating tombs and suchlike?"
     
    Chandagnac said:
    You don't even know the worst of it. Remember when Green Flame said that she didn't actually have any money? Well... uh, the thing about that is...
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    Was it something along the lines of:

    "I have a brilliant idea! We'll hire some elves as instructors!"
    "Because they're powerful magical beings with a great deal of experience?"
    "Because they're used to being servants and we won't have to pay them!"
     
    I think our main focuses for Dorian are Magical Arts and Crafts (Alchemy) and Gardening. We want Dorian to be financially well off enough to support him and his Mom, since his Dad is terminally ill and there's no other way for him to afford magic school.

    Actually, @Chandagnac , how much money would Dorian need to support his mother while he's at school?
     
    Faith said:
    Was it something along the lines of:

    "I have a brilliant idea! We'll hire some elves as instructors!"
    "Because they're powerful magical beings with a great deal of experience?"
    "Because they're used to being servants and we won't have to pay them!"
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    Hmm. I think it's something that you should probably try to investigate in-character, if you're interested. So, no more spoilers from me!

    Indivisible said:
    Actually, @Chandagnac , how much money would Dorian need to support his mother while he's at school?
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    You don't need to worry about it at the moment. Dorian's father, Theophyllus Valens, has set aside enough money that Carmenta, his wife/Dorian's mother, will be able to live comfortably for a quite a long time, barring unforeseen circumstances.

    I've also considered that maybe he'll set up a proper alchemist's laboratory, according to Professor Kunrath's instructions, and then that can be his bequest to Dorian, so that he will have everything he needs to start making his own money.
     
    What if we make multiple pieces of jewelry blessed by a God/Goddess of Medicine or Health to give to our characters father?

    Or, if we commission or pay our Alchemy teacher to do that for us?

    It won't cure him, I know that. Just to reduce the guys pain and improve his health a little bit.
     
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