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Myth: A New Age CYOA

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Party/Organizational Changes:

Party Changes:

Derryth:

Item Lost:

1. One vial of the Green Mage's fluid. - Sent with Ceannard to the Academy for testing.

Skills Gained:

Musical Magic:
Vocal Training: Beginner
Natural Talent: Vocals

Thaïs:

Skills Gained:

Musical Magic:
Vocal Training: Beginner
Natural Talent: Vocals

Lyssa:

Skills Gained:

Musical Magic:
Vocal Training: Beginner

Ceannard has also left the party obviously.

Organizational Changes:

None that you are aware of.

Rolls:

As the entirety of the update is about positioning and dialogue the majority of the rolls also have to do with positioning and dialogue.

On your side everyone that spoke had at least one roll. You had a few leadership checks as well to see if the Old Man would submit to orders that he definitely disagrees with. You should be able to figure out how well you did based on the update but I can't provide additional clarity at the moment I am afraid.

Berty and the soldiers had a few rolls to set up and they did quite well there.

The hunting party had some rolls for people on their side and your scout also had a roll to try and snatch the club from the huntsman. It would not have done him much good and even if he did get it, that would not have likely changed what happened to him in a significant way but little details like that are often fun to leave to chance.

There were also a number of rolls around the Kingdom and beyond. For example, Mazzarin had a few rolls which may or may not have been related to certain urges on his part to murder half the bureaucrats he has recently met... :lol:

Other than that, I can not really get into details.
 
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Kz3r0

Arcane
Joined
May 28, 2008
Messages
27,013
Tentative plan:
Tell the Old Man that we know with absolute certainty that Mazzarin is alive, so Cropper is not lying.
That if the Seekers attack they are on their own.
And to at least gave us the opportunity to check the scouts with our mental spells to see if they are really spies of the Watcher.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
I like Kz3r0's plan, though I think I have a few ideas on how to expand on it.

I will throw in together a mish-mash of points and/or ideas and will bake them into a cohesive plan later.

First, about Mazzarin. I find his existence not that hard to believe. Here is what Albrecht told us about the storm in the desert:
That display of magic cast all sorts of light into the sky (which uninformed observers, essential country peasants and merchant caravans saw and assumed was some sort of storm) and scared every sufficiently powerful mage in Myrgard. The rumours started circulating soon afterward.
Every powerful mage - and the Old Wise Man is one - had felt it. They just didn't know what it was.

With about a hundred souls under his care, it should not be a trivial question to the Old Man whether he wants to cross an archmage - hell, THE archmage who is regarded as a Hero of the Light, - because of a misconception. If you want to do something that stupid bold, you want to at least to be sure you are fighting for the right cause and not just throwing your life (and likely the lives of your charges) away because you are too stubborn to consider that there might be something you do not know. If the 'Wise' part of his name isn't just for show, he might want to think about it very carefully.

All I am saying is that we might convince him to withhold judgement until we verify if the scout/scouts is/are guilty or innocent.

Cropper raises a good point. Do we really know that the Royal Army soldiers we welcomed in our ranks are indeed Royal Army soldiers or that they are loyal? All we know of them is that they were running away from the hounds. We just assumed they were our people because they run into our scouts and were traveling with them. Allies by association, so to speak.

As for the demons (not-demons?), they were the ones who offered us that opportunity in the first place. We should tell them to free the scout and have him head to our position to be examined. No further mutilation is allowed until then. Should he be found guilty, well, they know it would not bode well for him, as we don't have our reputation of fighting the Dark for nothing.

If he is innocent, we will have freed a hostage. Heal him and get him back in line.

We should probably invite the Old Man to interrogate the scouts together with us in case there is some sort of trickery and to let him see with his own eyes instead of accepting our word for it. I still trust the mage more than this Cropper.

And I think we might have to make a call to Mazzarin right away. Not because we are out of ideas and he is our last hope of salvation, but because he is a force that can make these guys pass each other without jumping at another's throat. I think Cropper and his master are outstepping their boundaries and acting beyond the given orders if they engage with the Seekers and try to cripple our army that is heading to fight the Watcher. The Great Mage would not be pleased to learn that demons or whatever they are think themselves smarter than him and murder people behind his back when this is not what he brought them for. It would be good to let them know we have the mage's ear and can report their transgressions. As for the Seekers, it would further prove our words about Mazzarin's existence and make them think twice before committing to a course of action that runs contrary to his goals. A mere passing of the archmage left the mages of the Kingdom terrified. Fighting or even questioning him is not very advisable.

I don't think Mazzarin will come himself - there are no teleportation spells, after all. But I think he can give them both a sign that he is watching (isn't that what the necklaces are for?), and children are far less prone to infighting if they know they are observed by someone strict and with a short temper.

It's the same ploy Gullveig used to make two other Shades work together even though they hated each other guts. If the survivor of the fight will have to explain themselves to Mazzarin and will be held accountable for what happened, there can be no winners. And if there are no winners, then the fight is pointless.

I feel that if that Cropper fellow is telling us the truth, then a fight between us is extremely stupid, and I am willing to play the Mazzarin card (not the favor, mind you, I just want to point out that what is happening will not go unnoticed and that both sides should better behave) to prevent that. Until the Watcher is gone, we have a common goal to work towards. The Seekers and the Hunters are both called to do a job, and they can settle their differences in their spare time when it is over. No slacking off until then.

And if Cropper is lying, I think the Great Mage would be interested in that, too. Thankfully, determining that should not be too hard.

Oh, and if they want peace, as he said, we can each go out separate ways starting now. We have our respective missions to accomplish. There is no need for us to speak with their Lord, and there is no need for them to continue sieging our line. They brought the Watcher's agents to us, and we will take it from there. Their work here is done.

Continuing to intimidate our soldiers and trying to provoke our mercenaries would be proving otherwise. And if they want to harm our mission, they employer might ask them - or better yet, their Lord - a question or two. We should use Mazzarin's name to compel them to leave. It would be best for everyone.
 
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Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Alright. So, the Plan (TM).

Our immediate goal is to stop the escalation of hostilities, and by the looks of it, it is the Seekers who want to start throwing fireballs. We should direct our efforts there first before switching attention back to the Hunters.

- Tell the Old Man that Cropper is not lying about Mazzarin and that we have met the mage personally. Tell him that it was Mazzarin's presence that the mages felt back in September. Tell him that if Cropper is telling the truth about who sent him, and if he is indeed acting on Mazzarin's orders, then attacking him would be tantamount to going directly against the Great Mage and the Hero of the Light, with all the consequences that it entails.
- Remind him that he has signed for the job of protecting the Kingdom from the Dark. If Cropper does not seek the destruction of the Kingdom, but the Watcher, and is not serving the Dark, but Mazzarin instead, then the efforts of the Seekers should be best directed to the ones that we know for a fact do seek harm to the country and its denizens, or the ones that want to turn it into a puppet state for the Dark Gods.
- Explain to him that as he has a duty to watch over his people, so do we over ours. We are not authorizing the attack until our scout is retrieved, be it to save him or to execute him if he is a spy, and we will not endanger the rest of our soldiers for nothing.
- Tell him that Copper's claims about hunting the Watcher's agents are easily verified. We are mentalists, and the Old Man himself has experience with interrogating techniques, even though we've only seen him using it on demons. We might be able to determine where the Hunters' allegiances lie and act from there, rather than act on impulse.
- We serve King Albrecht and we oppose the Watcher and the Dark. We will take no part in attacking the mercenaries the King chose to hire for the protection of the Kingdom, and we will not interfere with Mazzarin's plans if that is indeed what the Hunters are carrying out. Make this known, this has nothing to do with 'conspiring with the demons' or some such nonsense.
- Tell them both that we are marked and observed by Mazzarin. Should there be a fight between the forces that are both opposed to the Watcher, it will be regarded as a sabotage of our common mission, and the survivors will be held accountable for it and will have to answer to the Great Mage himself. There will be no winners in this one. They both have an option to ignore their grievances - the Hunters can simply withdraw, and the Seekers can choose not to attack without due justification (as in, actual evidence that the Hunters support the Dark) - so if it comes to battle despite that, it will be considered a premeditated defiance of the Great Mage's will, regardless of who started it.
- If they are impressed by our reasoning or implied threats (not from us, of course, we aren't threatening anybody, we are just stating the facts :cool:) enough to hold off the immediate hostilities, take the Hunters on their offer and ask them to release our scout. Tell the dwarf to head back to our positions and politely, but decisively disarm and detain the pursued soldiers for the purposes of examination. Be careful around them and take precautions as they might really be the Watcher's agents, but be respectful, as they might be innocent or only a few of them might be spies. If we find our wounded scout innocent, heal him.
- That said, if Cropper is really serious about us not being enemies and serving Mazzarin, we ask that they leave us in peace. They have their mission, and we have ours. They have delivered the agents of the Watcher to us, and we have a reputation for not leaving any of the servants of the Dark live. Their work is done here. Thank them for their assistance and ask them not to intimidate our soldiers and not to provoke the Seekers further with their presence. It does our respective forces no good, and it endangers the task that is set before us. Surely they do not wish that to happen and besmirch the reputation of their Master? Should they want to lend us aid when we are fighting the legions of the Watcher, have them tell us how we may contact them in the future. So, would they please go away and take their Lord with them? It might end badly for everyone involved, though we imagine Mazzarin will be less forgiving to the ones who are directly in his service as their actions reflect on him to a degree.
- Tell the Cropper that if the soldiers the Hunters pursued are guilty, they are as good as dead. If they are found to be innocent, however, we will have to report this to the Great Mage. We understand that accidents can happen, but we will leave it to Mazzarin to determine their responsibility if an unfortunate mistake have occured. Imply that if they have mistaken, they do not want to compound their mistake even further and invoke the mage's wrath to the point of no return. Basically, leave them an out even if it turns out they are lying should they just pack their things and go away, don't scare them with visions of torture and punishment to the extent they would want to get rid of the witnesses and hope no one will know.
- If we find the scouts guilty, cross-check them again after the demons leave to ensure it is not some magical influence, extract all useful information from them, and give them to Hamundr (as he is the closest thing we have to a military commander) to determine their fate. Or if he does not want to be held responsible, execute them yourself.

- Thais should handle the more tricky part of the negotiations, while Derryth should largely have a supportive role and follow her lead. We are equals in everything we do, and this situation calls for a persuasive leader. I see no problems with interchanging our protagonists to get better results depending on what their goals are.
- While Derry and Taide are busy talking out of their sexy asses, Lys should concentrate on calling out to Mazzarin through our necklaces. We have absolutely no idea what it will do, if anything, but knowing the creator of these things I hold out hope that it is our Awesome Button. I don't care what it does as long as it is sufficiently Awesome. It serves two major purposes - first, it proves our point that Kane Mazzarin lives, which might be important to the Seekers, and second, it shows that Mazzarin pays some degree of attention to what is happening around us, so it might make the present parties wary of involuntarily stepping on his toes, and less sure of the fact that they can do whatever they want instead of what the Great Mage wants. I don't think Maz would miss a chance to demonstrate that he is the top dog here.
- And tell Berty to keep an eye on the scouts at all times. If there really are Watcher's spies, the reveal of our affiliation with Mazzarin (I don't know how many of the Watcher's servants actually know this, aside from TWM who was driven to insanity and thus was not a very reliable agent) will paint yet another big shiny cross on our backs. We don't want everyone distracted by the Awesome.

If Lys alone doesn't cut it, we should try it all together. That might catch Maz' interest.

We'll see what happens. The goal is to provide both sides with an incentive to be on their own way. We might miss on some information from the Totally-Not-Demon-Lord, but I think getting out of here in one piece and with the Seekers intact is more important.

I will call it F: Operation: Boogeyman. :salute::lol:
 
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Jester

Arbiter
Joined
Mar 24, 2013
Messages
1,493
Kz3r0 plan + tell wise one that if he try to ignore direct orders like that again his contract might be terminated without being paid after situation is resolved.

Kingdom is concentrating at war with Watcher here. If he wish to chase some random demons fine, but NOT while he is being paid from Kingdoms coffers. Either he will behave like professional or we might say bye bye. Opinions and advices are welcomed, but there is clear chain of command here and it WILL be respected.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
He does not care too deeply about money. He is a man of ideology/faith. The Seekers behave more like a sect than a mercenary outfit.

Even though we pay our dwarven mercenaries, we would not take them to Nanshe, as the racial hatred is something that goes beyond money.

Gareth may be a professional, but he would still have killed us if we picked up the Necromancy spellbook and started practicing.

What can work is trying to convince them that these are not the droids they are looking for, and that these creatures serve Mazzarin and thus the Light, or that at least they do not serve the Dark. Only when they are sure they aren't betraying their principles can their professionalism and/or rational thinking kick in.

Our command over these people is tenuous at best.
 
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Karwelas

Dwarf Taffer
Patron
Joined
May 12, 2014
Messages
1,064
Location
"Mostly Harmless" planet
Codex Year of the Donut I helped put crap in Monomyth
F: Operation: Boogeyman is best way to deal with it. (I hope Seekers have enough brain in their heads and don't attack the demons after they will find out that they Mazz servants. If they are.)
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
There is no question about whether or not they are Maz' 'servants'. They brought it up before we did.

The question is, do they kill the Watcher's agents, or do they just skin the dwarves for fun? And if they do the latter, do we still want to fight them, or do we want to leave them for Maz to deal with?
 
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Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Just a reminder, I will close the voting in twelve hours or so.

At the moment the current leading option is F.
 

Absinthe

Arcane
Joined
Jan 6, 2012
Messages
4,062
Nevill, why not outright inform the Seekers that we revived Mazzarin and point to that lightshow as "That was Mazzarin enjoying his return to power in style"? I don't see why we should hide this detail. If anything that rather reinforces the narrative that we are not servants of the Dark.

Also, Fangshi, can we ask if the Seekers have anyone who can detect cultist, preferably their leader himself could do it. Given their tendencies, I would assume they have some methods of their own to detect who is a secret follower of the dark. Because if so, then we can have the Seekers verify whether or not the scout in question really is a follower of the Watcher instead of needlessly coming to blows.
 
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Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Absinthe said:
Nevill, why not outright inform the Seekers that we revived Mazzarin and point to that lightshow as "That was Mazzarin enjoying his return to power in style"?
Mazzarin is a big unknown. I'd rather not flaunt the fact we are involved in his revival for everyone to see, lest someone like Alric learns about it.

The resurrection of the archmage is not necessarily viewed as a universally good thing.

Besides, we are not a very credible source of informations, seeing how the 'demons' call us family and their Master - a Dark God as far as the Seekers are concerned - knew about our arrival and considers us his allies. The less we make it about ourselves, the better.

I would like to have a talk about great many things with the Seekers, but that will have to wait until the next update so that we know there are some Seekers left to speak of and they are still under our command.

Absinthe said:
Because if so, then we can have the Seekers verify whether or not the scout in question really is a follower of the Watcher instead of needlessly coming to blows.
That is a part of the plan.
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Absinthe said:
Also, Fangshi, can we ask if the Seekers have anyone who can detect cultist, preferably their leader himself could do it. Given their tendencies, I would assume they have some methods of their own to detect who is a secret follower of the dark. Because if so, then we can have the Seekers verify whether or not the scout in question really is a follower of the Watcher instead of needlessly coming to blows.

Yes, they do have methods of interrogation open to them, Derryth is certain of that as she witnessed the Old Man interrogating demons. She is not exactly sure how their methods work though and she does not know if there is any risk involved for the subject of the interrogation or the interrogator.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Well, we can do it without harming the subject, and if they are guilty, the Seekers can verify our conclusion should they wish.
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
And that should do it.

You will go with plan F, Operation: Threaten some demons and twenty battlemages and hope Mazzarin backs you up Boogeyman is a go.

The update should hopefully be up in twenty four hours but I guarantee nothing...
 

Jester

Arbiter
Joined
Mar 24, 2013
Messages
1,493
You will go with plan F, Operation: Threaten some demons and twenty battlemages and hope Mazzarin backs you up Boogeyman is a go.
So what if Derryth do the usual thing? Its Epic fantasy after all... i think.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
You will go with plan F, Operation: Threaten some demons and twenty battlemages and hope Mazzarin backs you up Boogeyman is a go.
Did you mean 'PRAY Mazzarin backs you up'? :lol:

I prefer to refer to it as an Operation: Warn the kids not to play on railways and hope there is a train passing by to illustrate the point. :cool:

It's not like you can threaten people with a train. :M
 
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Absinthe

Arcane
Joined
Jan 6, 2012
Messages
4,062
Well, I reckon this counts as negotiating in tense circumstances so presumably Thais gets a bonus to the persuasion, not to mention rerolls for working together.

I'm pretty sure we'd've been dead multiple times over by now if we didn't have Thais to contribute her social skills.
 
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Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Still chipping away at the update (well and playing some Grimrock 2... why did I go with four wizards... why... :negative:). If I decide to just wrap it up and post it then it will be up tonight. If I decide to give it a few more passes then it will probably be up tomorrow.
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Yeah, I can sympathize, Dominions, like Crusader Kings, is a game I avoid. Not because I don't like it but because I would get nothing at all done if I played it.


I have read over the update and I don't quite like it. I am going to run a few more passes on it and probably post it withing twenty four hours.
 

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