Battleship_Fusou
(The Itty-Bitty Pretty Battleship Kitty)
- Location
- Surigao Strait
I'm okay with this.
Why Yes, I am an Evil Lair. (Worm/Dungeon Core) (No Longer A Quest)
- Thread starter Automatonation
- Start date
- Location
- United States
I am guessing that a 'Contract' trumps all Powers due to the 'Through our agreement, all prior chains are broken' part.
Wrin
Not an Owl
- Location
- United States
Given how flexible and warped magic can be? Probably. It may have actually broken her connection to her shard though, which would be interesting. Is magic now filling in as the energy source and directing force? Does Tats still have a conflict drive?
Edit: ....or has the Dungeon Core just acquired its first off-world installation via the portal needed for Tattletale's power to work? Did it gain not just her loyalty but her shard's?
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- Location
- Somewhere over the Rainbow
due to WHAT?
FTFY
LOL.
A question - WHY did Lisa keep dying in the previous timeline splits?
And perhaps, the only reason the 'wrong' timeline closed would be due to Trump effect blocking that timeline from closing. As such, the other timeline was forced to shut down. (At least, this is the explanation Coil will come to somewhat)
After all, shards are Bullshit. There's no reason they COULDN'T cause a shatterpoint- actually splitting the timeline.
After all, the are responsible for the many possible Earths...
I suspected Lisa's situation would be fixed in place... but if mercs are still alive, then how did mana gain not vanish?
If the effects of events in the dungeon can't be undone (the dungeon keeps it even after timeline closure) - what about the previous times Coil sent in Mercs?
Or did I just misinterpret that somewhat? I read that the Mercenaries sent in were no longer dead... (the whole 'standing outside the dungeon')
On another note, when relative to Canon is this? Has Taylor Triggered?
no, they aren't it's natural.
- Location
- Beyond the Unknowable Veil
Yes she has. Tats was thinking that recruiting "Bug Girl" was now not going to happen because Tats had been pulled in to do this Dungeon dive.
Battleship_Fusou
(The Itty-Bitty Pretty Battleship Kitty)
- Location
- Surigao Strait
Hmmm... is Tattletale gonna go bring Taylor in to contract the dungeon?
- Location
- The INTERNET!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Thanks, the remainder of that sentance has been corrected to :
Incomplete emulation of a Mana-based consciousness. Guesswork based on documented actions indicated that the Dungeon murder-ganks things with Zombies and turrets, therefore Tattletale was murder-ganked with Zombies and turrets.
- Location
- Earth Prime
Missing an indefinite article.
Oh. Nice establishment of a mystery.
Also, nice use of Calvert's history. While most people remember Piggot's history with Nilbog, it's easy to forget, in how much we despise him, that Nilbog also was a formative trauma for Calvert.
Regarding the explanation, I actually like the explanation less than the mystery. This is, of course, your story, so don't feel obligated to change anything, but I'm still going to give my critique.
You have several elements that could be at play, with the "Shard fails to model things correctly, and this time it realized that it just COULD NOT, and would get more information letting things play out than it could simulate," explanation working, but being somewhat unsatisfying.
Having Calvert's timeline collapse on its own is almost a cliché, now, but I don't think I've ever seen the wrong timeline close before. That was almost chilling, and you captured Coil's discomfort with it very well. I imagine it's like trying to take one more step up than there is in the stairwell, only to find out that there's also a pit beyond and you're now falling.
One of the explanations I thought of as I was reading it was, "So, the contract is magically inviolable; does that mean it also won't let itself be undone by temporal shenanigans?"
Another was related to the contract as well, but based on the mercenaries nervously waiting outside the entrance. I thought maybe the right one had closed after all, but elements related to the dungeon and its new contract had been copied over by the dungeon's magic.
In all, though, good chapter.
- Location
- The City of Tears, Hallownest
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Really? I have several times
ScottotheUnwise
Verified Crack (fic) Dealer
- Location
- Mulberry, Fl
Very nice. You could probably mitigate a lot of the Tattletale hate by adjusting her need for shard driven conflict being reduced as it is now inundated with 'new' information coming from the connection. Her shard could be very happy now to pass information back the other direction as it is getting a buffet worth.
I don't know if it was intended, but for some reason in my head his voice came out like someone breathing in helium at first (squeaky, high pitched), due to him taking in all that mana gain. So her giggles were for him sounding like an ADHD chipmunk. That it corrected after a few moments but also breaks like a teenaged boy whenever he is also using mana (cracks when he makes the new units etc.) is now my head canon.
Did I imagine it or did TT have a physical boost as well? Seems like a some brute rating result.
She should totally try to get him to make a secondary entrance like a direct ladder up to the surface so she can come and go without Coil's knowledge. Step 1 Bring down a couple dogs obtained from the pound --injured, non-operable, about to be euthanized ones that he can absorb for templates. Step 2 would be bring Bitch down to get a contract herself. Then Bitch can boost his new minion dogs.
If he can dismiss/fill-in rooms, he could simply wall himself away from Coil's base with no clear idea on where the dungeon is now. Since he is downtown, he could take up under the Empire itself. Then open a trapdoor to drop a group into his Dungeon at a time.
Mana, mana, mana-mana … MANA.
Either way, keep it coming!
Edit :
I think those were the guards left after the squad went it. They would not leave it unguarded.
I don't know if it was intended, but for some reason in my head his voice came out like someone breathing in helium at first (squeaky, high pitched), due to him taking in all that mana gain. So her giggles were for him sounding like an ADHD chipmunk. That it corrected after a few moments but also breaks like a teenaged boy whenever he is also using mana (cracks when he makes the new units etc.) is now my head canon.
Did I imagine it or did TT have a physical boost as well? Seems like a some brute rating result.
She should totally try to get him to make a secondary entrance like a direct ladder up to the surface so she can come and go without Coil's knowledge. Step 1 Bring down a couple dogs obtained from the pound --injured, non-operable, about to be euthanized ones that he can absorb for templates. Step 2 would be bring Bitch down to get a contract herself. Then Bitch can boost his new minion dogs.
If he can dismiss/fill-in rooms, he could simply wall himself away from Coil's base with no clear idea on where the dungeon is now. Since he is downtown, he could take up under the Empire itself. Then open a trapdoor to drop a group into his Dungeon at a time.
Mana, mana, mana-mana … MANA.
Either way, keep it coming!
Edit :
I think those were the guards left after the squad went it. They would not leave it unguarded.
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- Location
- East of Sun, West of Moon
@Automatonation Another option to explain why Coil's power fucked him over is that it saw the projected future where Lisa entered the Dungeon grow fuzzy as she came into contact with an OCP, and to Shards, nothing is as precious as completely new data. And, best of all, having the Inference Engine be the very first Shard to encounter it - the gains will be out of this world!
Again, this ascribes Shards with a degree of independence, but not more that already displayed (see L33t's power attempting to kill him for being an unsuitable host).
Again, this ascribes Shards with a degree of independence, but not more that already displayed (see L33t's power attempting to kill him for being an unsuitable host).
- Location
- The INTERNET!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Sarah is her birth name but Lisa Wilborn is her chosen identity, and that has significance, mystically speaking.
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Yeah, Sarah's the name her parents gave her. The parents she hates and wants nothing to do with.
Lisa Wilbourn is the name she chose for herself.
That sort of thing matters a whole hell of a lot.
Lisa Wilbourn is the name she chose for herself.
That sort of thing matters a whole hell of a lot.
beast_regards
[Censored]
- Location
- Valid Location
So, basically, Coil let the timeline continue because it was the most successful in obtaining the information, and would close it, but Contract with the Dungeon Core is basically absolute. Contract simulated by the shard counts valid, and overrides the reality making the situation happen...
...which is ... well, fair enough, but makes me think what power it has over the other Thinker powers. Will it override Accord? Will it override Contessa?
Contract will be most likely formed. Even though, Lisa should have difficulty to explain why other people should form the contract with the Nilbog 2.0 Tunneling Edition. Especially Taylor. She is committed to be a hero, and still ignorant about Shadow Stalker identity. Unless she is made to believe Contract is not binding, but it is unlikely, considering Teacher precedent.
...which is ... well, fair enough, but makes me think what power it has over the other Thinker powers. Will it override Accord? Will it override Contessa?
Taylor is ... irrelevant. Chapter proves that narrative causality is firmly in the grasp of the dungeon, Taylor is no longer relevant.
Contract will be most likely formed. Even though, Lisa should have difficulty to explain why other people should form the contract with the Nilbog 2.0 Tunneling Edition. Especially Taylor. She is committed to be a hero, and still ignorant about Shadow Stalker identity. Unless she is made to believe Contract is not binding, but it is unlikely, considering Teacher precedent.
I doubt deals with the devil can be outsmarted by fake names, unless said otherwise. Contract with the dungeon is kinda this.
- Location
- Earth Prime
Could you provide examples? Not arguing, just curious if I've read any of them and forgotten, and/or if any are worth reading that I haven't.
Depending on whether it's a "true name" thing or not, using her name that she identifies with is either mystically more significant, or just not mystically insignificant enough to get her off.
Signing in blood probably means it doesn't matter WHAT you sign; it's your blood.
- Location
- The City of Tears, Hallownest
- Pronouns
- He/Him
The only one off the top of my head is a forced example: A Champion On Earth Bet there are more but I can't remember
beast_regards
[Censored]
- Location
- Valid Location
Bitch may not be willing to strike the deal with the Dungeon unless she can take her dogs with her, and her dogs may not count as a valid target for contract, or as dungeon's minion, unless the fact they belong to Bitch counts as conversion by proxy.
Regent won't take the deal, I think. All he wanted to escape the Master, he won't work for another one, especially one that forms bonds you can't run from.
Grue probably won't take the deal either. He needs money, dungeon isn't paying. Unless his sister strikes the deal with the Dungeon first.
Regent won't take the deal, I think. All he wanted to escape the Master, he won't work for another one, especially one that forms bonds you can't run from.
Grue probably won't take the deal either. He needs money, dungeon isn't paying. Unless his sister strikes the deal with the Dungeon first.
- Location
- The INTERNET!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
The thing is, Thinker powers can aclimate to the effects of Mana, given exposure. Right now, Accord has no effects from it. Some plans may have hiccups if they interact with the dungeon, but if Accord spends some time in a Mana-rich environment, he would begin to be able to incorporate Mana into his plans.
Contessa's Path to Victory has already absorbed enough Mana to be able to incorporate it into her plan. There may have been a step that told her to hang out with a statue for a week.
Coil's problem is that he is trying to exert his influence on the Dungeon without being close enough for his shard to begin incorporating and understanding mana. Given his habits, that may or may not occur.
But coils shard was talking to Tattletale's shard so wouldn't it have a good start on that already.
- Location
- The INTERNET!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Somewhat, but it's like a blind man having an elephant described to him over the phone by an extremely enthusiastic five year old on a sugar high. You know how the kid on the phone is reacting to it, but it doesn't give you more than broad strokes of what it's actually like, and it's difficult to put together without any context.
beast_regards
[Censored]
- Location
- Valid Location
If core was around for a week, why it didn't build Dungeon and defenses? It obviously didn't form a Contract with Contessa.
- Location
- Anchorage, Alaska
Also contessa is bullshit...seriously that is one bullshit power of "I win everything" the only thing it can't do is insure the victors happiness, aka it's easier to be the bad guy then the good guy.
Plus if it was for victory why didn't contessa. Try to save hero?
Plus slaughterhouse nine...not to mention the other gangs around the globe.
What the hell kind of plan do they have when scions dead? The villains aren't going to suddenly stop and be good people afterwards...hell some people might just want to see the world burn.
Plus if it was for victory why didn't contessa. Try to save hero?
Plus slaughterhouse nine...not to mention the other gangs around the globe.
What the hell kind of plan do they have when scions dead? The villains aren't going to suddenly stop and be good people afterwards...hell some people might just want to see the world burn.
- Location
- The INTERNET!
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
It was kept unconscious by one of the odd powers that Cauldron has on hand. Barely any Mana production, but no risk of suddenly Slimes.
It's not likely to matter, Contessa wants the Dungeon to thrive.
AUTHOR REQUEST:
Please no Cauldron Morality derail in my happy dungeon murder thread?
Yes, Cauldron exists, and had controversial means to a difficult end with bad intel.
There is no point beating that particular dead horse any further.