*redacted*

[Azira]

1A
2A>B
3B
4C

 

[Nevill]

Both Kraka and Sarah are chronic liars. I do not remember, was there even a single instance of them telling us the full truth upfront?

That said, I can't say I am very surprised by the accusations Kraka raised against our 'allies'. It would be perfectly in their nature to do something like that, though I doubt the situation is exactly as the Violet Elf describes it.

As long as they remain locked in their struggle, they are going to dig up dirt on each other and present it to us in hopes of recruiting us to their cause, which is just fine as long as we don't conduct ourselves as a bloody simpleton. Seriously, how long will we continue to take the words of others - least of all, some undead abominations - at face value?

Kraka gave us a lead and we should pursue it. At the very least it should lead us to the outlet through which our technology leaks. Puppet or not, they need to be stopped. And if there is a bigger conspiracy behind that, well, bonus points for us.

I still don't know what were we thinking by granting Isaac immortality. Who wants to bet that if the conspiracy is real, he is one of the main pieces in their scheme? Ah, well.

Cassidy, who is our current spymaster? We should first and foremost check if they aren't implicated in this business. It will either make it clear how boned we are, or make it easier to come up with counter-measures.

A - Give the Scandinavians the military tech. Without due foundation, it is going to be a relic of the past is a few decades, and it's not like we can stop the spread of tech now that even tribals can get artillery.
B? - Naturally, follow the lead we have. Though if Freyjanna gets seen, will it not give our deal with Kraka (or at least the fact that we've had our conversation) away? Maybe it would be more inconspicuous to do this as Angartyr? We need to put our spymaster on this ASAP if they are clean.
B - I am not waiting for them, the situation home is quite dire.
C - Let her remain there. We might need to get back to Vinland if there is an emergency, and I am not sure if anywhere else would be safer.

 

[Cassidy]

Both Kraka and Sarah are chronic liars. I do not remember, was there even a single instance of them telling us the full truth upfront?

Not yet. However, there could be another factor influencing heavily in the behavior of both besides both being deceitful.

Spoiler

How many times do you think Sarah rolled for sanity and failed?

Spoiler

Kráka is bipolar.

Spoiler

The blood of the vampire influences the mind of the one who was turned all the time, no matter how strong. Even Freyjanna's mind, despite the *I can't believe I'm writing this shit* hybridization between a vampire and some eldritch remnant with more than 4 dimensions emulating and reconstructing when necessary two human bodies almost perfectly and safekeeping the consciousness that shares them. Fortunately that influence is null on Angartýr, but other factors may drive him to craziness. Were Freyjanna mortal before the deal with the two vampires, she would end like:

Although besides horns, the following would be a more fitting analogue to 100% batshit insane Freyjanna

http://warhammerfb.wikia.com/wiki/Valkia_the_Bloody

It is possible to fail enough SAN checks or make enough wrong choices(or right, depending on the persepective) to end with a protagonist that argues with road signs, regardless of which body the consciousness is on

Seriously, how long will we continue to take the words of others - least of all, some undead abominations - at face value?

As long as Angartýr can take a hot shower and thank the gods for the inventor of toilet paper, because without such undead abominations, he would still be shitting in the woods.



Now honestly, when I first wrote the meeting in the temple, I was expecting the "purge the unclean" option would win, and because of the element of surprise, Freyjanna would have a very good chance of succeeding at slaying both of them and Freyvald as well, if necessary, and that would have changed dramatically the course of this. The only mutant, undead or xeno you can trust 100% is the one 100% purged, but of course, that approach has its downsides.

Kraka gave us a lead and we should pursue it. At the very least it should lead us to the outlet through which our technology leaks. Puppet or not, they need to be stopped. And if there is a bigger conspiracy behind that, well, bonus points for us.

There are multiple ways to search for clues. I haven't mentioned this in the update, but it seems logical for both Angartýr and Freyjanna to at first check the most prestigious hospitals and laboratories that do blood exams. If there has been years since most of the council members or wealthy industrialists/inventors did their last blood examinations and medical checkups, for example, that would be suspicious, but not an absolute proof by itself of the claims ghouls thralls were made from high-ranking people as sleepers. As for who is better at what: Angartýr is better for intimidation and presence, but he will draw more attention, while Freyjanna is better for persuasion, bluffing and getting in and out of places unnoticed.

I still don't know what were we thinking by granting Isaac immortality. Who wants to bet that if the conspiracy is real, he is one of the main pieces in their scheme? Ah, well.

Unfortunately the only people who could lead Angartýr to where Isaac is are Jacob and Sarah because he has no idea where the undying former mercenary captain is.

who is our current spymaster? We should first and foremost check if they aren't implicated in this business. It will either make it clear how boned we are, or make it easier to come up with counter-measures.

I have yet to come up with a good name for the current spymaster. One of the downsides of a narrative with a very long time span... again, getting blood samples, whether from a laboratory linked to the hospital where they did check ups or through a more direct approach will reveal the extent of the infiltration and whether Kráka was lying or telling the truth about it. One thing that is very likely is that those "nice" people Angartýr found in Crimea are probably involved too. Isaac could be a lead too, perhaps.

 

[Nevill]

Spoiler

The blood of the vampire influences the mind of the one who was turned all the time, no matter how strong.

Spoiler

Any stabilizers and/or meds to hinder, stop or reverse the process of descending into madness/becoming something inhuman?

Why does Angartyr remain unaffected if they both share consciousness? Shouldn't Frey's craziness transfer to Angy? Are 'consciousness' and 'mind' different concepts as far as this LP is concerned?

 

[Cassidy]

Spoiler

Any stabilizers and/or meds to hinder, stop or reverse the process of descending into madness/becoming something inhuman?

Eventually there will be ways to wipe memories, but they will come with a risk of unlearning skills. Other than that, spending years having something resembling a "normal" life helps.

Why does Angartyr remain unaffected if they both share consciousness? Shouldn't Frey's craziness transfer to Angy? Are 'consciousness' and 'mind' different concepts as far as this LP is concerned?

Think of Angartýr and Freyjanna as avatars. Their consciousness no longer exist in normal time and space and it can easily isolate itself from the influences of a body it is not controlling at the moment. Technically there is nothing stopping Angartýr and Freyjanna from being conscious at the same time besides the protagonist not knowing yet how to achieve that and the risk of losing humanity and sanity by doing such a thing. Or maybe the real Angartýr and the real Freyjanna were consigned to oblivion and the protagonist is a mentally handicapped eldritch abomination with copies of those two human memories and experiences assuming they are its real identity rather than mere masquerades or tools to keep it contained, but this is just like the "if a teleporter disintegrates and reintegrates a person on the other side, is the person showing up the same or a copy of the original who got killed in the process?" question

 

[Major_Blackhart]

1B
2A
3B
4C

 

[Cassidy]

1 - A, Offer Scandinavia all of Vinland's military technology in exchange of their naval support in the Great War;
3 - B, Dismiss an escort by the Scandinavian Navy and head back to Vinland immediately;
4 - C, Don't try to break Freyjanna out again.

Those options won, but there was a draw of 2 votes each for

2 - A, verify Kráka's accusations that the Council is enthralled by vampiric blood as Angartýr
vs.
2 - B, do the same as Freyjanna.

Therefore, which is better and why?

 

[Cassidy]

*redacted*

 

[Azira]

CA

 

[Major_Blackhart]

1A
2G

 

[Nevill]

No giving away a sample of our blood, please. We have enough of these abominations running around, no need to make them our equals or, worse yet, betters. Not to mention that our blood might give them power over us, a weapon to neutralize us, or something else entirely.

I wonder why she couldn't just take it from us when we were asleep.

1C, probably.

Can someone remind me what was the deal with Alexis? Did we forgive him, or is there other reason he still draws breath? Is the Eastern Roman Empire at war with us right now?

2A. It's too early to go after Sarah - she knew what she was doing when she guided us to Kraka, so she should be on alert. If our spymaster is worth anything, we can't sneak inside their house unnoticed, either, so it's better to start from the basic stuff like blood samples. I hope the spymaster has them taken like any other good citizen in our country.

 

[Cassidy]

No giving away a sample of our blood, please. We have enough of these abominations running around, no need to make them our equals or, worse yet, betters. Not to mention that our blood might give them power over us, a weapon to neutralize us, or something else entirely.

There is something tricky about Kráka trying anything funny with either Freyjanna's or Angartýr's blood. If it gets in the deadened blood of any vampire, the same will instantly fit in an ashtray.

I wonder why she couldn't just take it from us when we were asleep.

Maybe there is a magical, occult element influenced by the same being given willingly.

Can someone remind me what was the deal with Alexis?

A long time ago, Alexis tried to sacrifice Freyjanna in a "Satanic" ritual in exchange of having his curse cured.

Did we forgive him, or is there other reason he still draws breath?

He cannot really be killed in any case. After the treason failed he witnessed something horrifying shortly after escaping from the Maw of Ahriman and promised to never cross paths with Freyjanna again. Freyjanna had her retinas burned down and was temporarily blinded while that happened, so trying to go after him would be pretty much impossible.

Is the Eastern Roman Empire at war with us right now?

Yes, plus France, England, the HRE, Poland and the Rus. The only Christian kingdoms in West Europe that are not involved are the Iberian ones because they are too busy in the Reconquista to take chances. And Scotland too has refused to get involved because they refuse to fight side by side with Anglo-Normans. Hungary's king succeeded in his WIS check and is expecting for the Byzantine Empire to fall apart after something that could fuck them up a lot more than the disaster of the Byzantine-Persian wars.

Unfortunately the ERE has advanced much more and is the most technologically advanced enemy(still fortunately somewhere around Not-Franco-Prussian wars tech rather than Not-WW1), also responsible for essentially all battleships, cruisers and advanced vessels of the crusader fleet. And unlike the feudal kingdoms of West Europe, their understanding of industrialization is progressing fast beyond following STCs exact instructions without knowing how they work.

 

[Nevill]

After the treason failed he witnessed something horrifying shortly after escaping from the Maw of Ahriman and promised to never cross paths with Freyjanna again.
...
Yes, plus France, England, the HRE, Poland and the Rus.

So he broke his promise by waging a war, didn't he? Now I am tempted to throw his skull to the skull throne.

But I will probably prefer Frey to regain a bit of her sanity and that means staying away from the likes of the Queen of Death.

 

[Grimgravy]

C
C>B>A

 

[Nevill]

"...we have some troubling reports about the coast around Smaragdur and the region itself, and it may be wise to cull the horrors within there, for they might react violently to rapid scientific progress.
[...]
3) Troubling reports about the coast and region of Smaragdur sounds worrisome. Should Freyjanna investigate it and make sure ther is no substitute for Narackamous rising within the Skraeling, or gathering of horrors, aware of how Vinland sacrificed readiness for war to ensure a fully literate generation?

I have nearly forgotten, seeing how it was written in July, but could it be that Smaragdur is actually one of the sources of our trouble?

Kerosene or not, it might have been a right decision to recapture it ASAP.

Also, did anything ever come out of our conversation with Alp Arslan? There was an intention to form an alliance with Turks, but it was eclipsed by the pursuit of technology. Did we give up on the idea, or did something happen that prevented it naturally?

 

[Cassidy]

Also, did anything ever come out of our conversation with Alp Arslan? There was an intention to form an alliance with Turks, but it was eclipsed by the pursuit of the technology. Did we give up on the idea, or did something happen that prevented it naturally?

The alliance was simply given up, and most have chosen to go with only Scandinavia as an ally in the Old World.

 

[Jester]

C
B

 

[Cassidy]

*redacted*

 

[Major_Blackhart]

1

 

[Azira]

Dun dun dunnn... 1

 

[Grimgravy]

1

 

[Nevill]

Hah.

Who wants to bet that it started with Isaac and bloomed when we set sail for Jerusalem, leaving the country wide open to vampiric manipulation while we searched high and low for their artefacts? The 'Dex is full of l1bruls who just can't say no to a capitalist pig and would hug with a pair of vicious bloodsuckers.

1. Hide Frey under a table and go back with guns blazing.

Cassidy, how poisonous is our blood to vampires, exactly? How much is enough to turn them into ash? A droplet of blood? What if it is dissolved in a glass of water? Can we 'poison' the water with our blood? If we feed them a Freyjanna-flavoured steak, will it kill them? What effect would our blood have on normal humans?

What happens to the thralls if their masters die?

There might be a way to kill them all using our unique condition. I imagine the conspiracy would be easier to believe in if major Counsil members would spontaneously combust where they stand. Though doing it in the middle of the war is risky.

Also, when did the records stop? For how long (and since when) this was going on?

 

[Cassidy]

Cassidy, how poisonous is our blood to vampires, exactly?

Instant final death. Diluted in other liquids, however, it loses its effect. Only direct application to the deadened veins of an undead should work.

What effect would our blood have on normal humans?

Turning them into crack whores ready to do anything Freyjanna wants them to do for just another drop.

What happens with the thralls if their masters die?

Withdrawal and if they can endure it, they return back to normality.

There might be a way to kill them all using our unique condition. I imagine the conspiracy would be easier to believe in if major Counsil members would spontaneously combust where they stand.

Not going to be this easy. However, with Jacob and Sarah out of the picture, the situation should get back to normal. Except for the crooks continuing to be crooks.

Also, when did the records stop?

Wasn't it clear that none of the major members of the government in Vinland ever had a medical checkup? There is literally no record of exams for any of them, which means it's probably happening since Jacob and Sarah agreed to spread their knowledge over a decade ago. In fact, it is likely successors are being enthralled before they are appointed and those responsible for the membership trials have been compromised too.

The worst thing in all of this is that so far this almost all of these thralls are sleeper agents, doing nothing suspicious, acting like if nothing had ever happened, which makes proving this as impossible as proving tin foil hats protect against mind control beams.

 

[Nevill]

Only direct application to the deadened veins of an undead should work.

What is the most efficient method of delivery that is available for us, then? A syringe, a special 'bullet'?

Are tranquilizer guns invented yet?

In fact, it is likely successors are being enthralled before they are appointed and those responsible for the membership trials have been compromised too.

Only mass executions will save the country now.
:russia:

Well, our best chance lies with destroying J&S, then. We can't behead our whole country, and we likely have no one loyal left to do the beheadings anyway.

I wonder though how deep the corruption goes. Do the thralls even realize they act against their own country, or are they not aware of their masters' plan?