[LP CYOA] 傳

[Jester]

Also I would like to say hello to codex members and thank Treave for creating such wonderful Story, So wonderful it made me register to this forum after lurking for 4 months... That actually made me love you guys more.

Edit: Fuck me and my drunken state to misspell names

Hello there i think that CYOA are awesome. Drunken state realy helps misspell names and love us guys.

Elfberserker sound quite nice, would make interesting P&P rpg chara.


Vote C1

Fire cult: We issue challenge to 8 sects, problem Jing? You wish to join winners team?
Jing reaction:, but wait . Ok i am in.

Jing new plan:
1) Join cult and send info to Zhang about central plains challange
2) beat orthodox sect participants
3) say "You were defeated by MTP disciple of greatest pugilist, problem fire cult?"

4) If cult masters object wait for reaction of Mad one.
5) Enjoy slaughter.

There are two possibilities here WiB is main villain, or fire cult is main villain. It looks like it would be easier to gain intel from infiltration of FC. If they cooperate with WiB there are possibility of gaining info who is contacting them. If we will go there we could send memo to JB "I am pursuing guy who rudly assaulted me, gonna be back in few months. Check envelope for herbs, if they aren't there speak to massager."

 

[Esquilax]

A3, first I'll concern myself with Zhang's challenge, which we have only a year time to accomplish. And beating this prick is something of a first step.

A year is plenty of time to beat everybody on Zhang's list. However, A2/3 does provide a pretty interesting scenario: we give BJ back the medicine, and in our injured state, we lose the fight. We are forced to agree to the terms that BJ set and we give a humiliating apology... which nobody takes seriously due to the injuries we suffered against Guo Fu and Nameless. He'd look rather petty for beating up the very person who beat the Fire Cult that's challenging the Eight Sects, especially in our injured state. I could see us earning a lot of sympathy for taking the fight under such circumstances and BJ losing a ton of support for trying to claim that his win over us is legitimate.

So, to sum it up, C2 has us following a cult that will probably abduct us and force us into their hierarchy, probably can't do a whole lot with our qi (I think Master Zhang and Wang "The Boner" Zhengchong are our best hopes for learning how to mold our chaos and create things out of it; I want to channel raw lightning, goddammit, not some weak-ass fire) and may not even have Yunzi in the first place (Shadow Wolf is either her or Huluzi who is looking for her). Sounds weak, I'd understand it if they were some bloodthirsty cult focused on annihilation of everything in the world, I'd join them in a heartbeat, but they're not. Most likely, these Zoros are looking for a new home after fleeing from the Religion of Peace. Which is all fine and dandy, but they're nowhere near the levels of BRO that the old farts and Master Zhang have, so I'm not too keen on the former replacing the latter.

As for our qi, Vahista implied just the opposite:

"No, you do not. I am sorry for asking such a silly question. You have a great power, and are unbound to any of the orthodox sects; if you are interested in finding out how you can use it to serve a better cause, we would gladly educate you."

I initially thought that Vahista said that we have "great power", but he said "a great power" which I take to mean a reference to Jing's qi. Each school of martial artists is going to have a different approach when it comes to our qi. Master Zhang just decided to smash all of our meridians and see what would happen, the Grand Taoist will meditate upon it to learn what exists beyond The Way, and these guys will likely have a solution of their own in mind. In any case, learning more about our qi and how to harness it was never really a big selling point in joining these guys. It was always about engaging in a risky play to learn more about the WiB through the Cult, and to (perhaps) use them as a tool to complete Zhang's challenges with.

I think that your point about Jing not having a background in intrigue is sort of unfair; he's never really been one for intrigue, but he's smart, charismatic, and in a position to gain the Cult's confidence. He may never have had the inclination for this sort of intrigue, but he still has the aptitude for it, and some experience in dealing with nobility as a result of his upbringing. Much like with his apprenticeship under Zhang, Jing is just going to have to sink or swim if he wants to get into the good graces of this Cult and gain more information from them.

Edit: C1, to me, really explains why I wanted to go the unorthodox route in the first place. We knew that the WiB were an unorthodox organization, and by getting in bed with the most dangerous, ruthless and secretive organizations in the pugilistic world, we would be in a far better position to learn of the plot against the Prince. We have the opportunity and ability to access places that the likes of Abbot Fangzhang or Qi Liuwu don't.

 

[Baltika9]

I think that your point about Jing not having a background in intrigue is sort of unfair; he's never really been one for intrigue, but he's smart, charismatic, and in a position to gain the Cult's confidence. He may never have had the inclination for this sort of intrigue, but he still has the aptitude for it, as well as experience in dealing with nobility from his upbringing.

How is it unfair? Espionage is an extremely complex job that demands specific talents and mindsets. There's no shame in not having the talents for it. Jing isn't the "spy" type (and as I've mentioned before, I personally have no interest in playing him as such, wold have picked a Rat or Snake Adjutant if I did; besides, Tigerbro is awesome as Tigerbro), just because we have good INT and CHA scores doesn't automatically make us James Bond, mindsets and skillsets still matter (perhaps matter more) and we're by no means an actor or social chameleon. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have his own talents and skills. and they can be put to much better use with us staying here than us trying to infiltrate the cult (what are you expecting to learn about their deeper motivations, secret colleagues and leadership in six months in the first place?), capitalizing on our reputation and the contacts we made in the higher echelons:
We still don't know the Emei's Yuchang Jian technique, something that we can ask or challenge them for.

We might want to get Wang off of Wudang for this upcoming challenge. As the leader of the Chinese pugilists, he'd better be there and not meditating for two years in seclusion while everything goes to utter shit.

Also, getting Zhang off of his Island. The more Greats are present, the less chance for the Zoros trying something funny. We could even write him a taunting letter from the cultists, challenging him and his student to personally attend their little tournament (although that probably won't bode well for their well being )

And dropping by Luoying Manor, I doubt the Zoros will let us make a trip away from their base so soon.

And that's just off the top of my head. You also mentioned that the orthodox sects may be eager to put their students against us, the one who defeated the Zoros' champion, to better prepare them for the fight and I'm confident that you were correct on that point. That means we can dictate the terms, like taking some techniques and training from them, in return.

It was always about engaging in a risky play to learn more about the WiB through the Cult, and to (perhaps) use them as a tool to complete Zhang's challenges with.

That would demand a lot of dedication and time on our part. Honestly, they don't seem the type to value Jing's character of a brash, cocky and impulsive scoundrel (we'll probably be castrated in the first week for touching holy maidens) in a subordinate. What I'm getting at is this: we'll be doing work in exchange for information, and we may end up doing said work for a long-ass time. And it also may not be the cleanest work, while I'm not saying they're the incarnation of evil, their methods aren't the cleanest or purest either, in fact they sound like their self-righteousness would put Huehueshan to shame. Framing, defamation, contacts with the Wudu Cult and the WiBs. Yeah, these guys are definitely shady and are not working for the benefit of any group Jing is sympathetic to.

As for Agent BJ Blazkowicz, we're giving him a clear shot at defacing us with C1, simple as that. Yes, the Greats left to prepare for the challenge, but the general public and some of the less concerned martial artists are still pumped up and eager to see the current champion face the old one, especially after today's demonstration and the manner in which we were challenged. Also, everyone heard the Zoro's offer to us, and with his pride stung at being stood up for a date duel like that, he'll definitely take the opportunity and accuse us of joining up with the "foreign devils." Which won't be good for us in the long run, since it makes life more difficult for us. We have enough stigmas associated with us already, "Race Traitor" seems like a bad addition.

Lastly, about our qi: I really think that Wang and Zhang are our best choices for molding our primordial chaos into something else. The Zoros are too hung up on fire and, honestly, it seems kinda bland to me. I'd rather wait and hear the experts on qi to give us their input on our condition and what can be done with it, instead of locking ourselves into a particular path just like that.

 

[Rex Feral]

I'm gonna flop to whatever has most votes except C1. If we go with A or B we still have a choice regarding what we're doing next. If we go with C1 we lock ourselves on this path. I rather we do the Yuhua Hall main plot after we finish Zhang's chores, but it's still better than running off with some persians, completely forgetting our assignments.

 

[Esquilax]

How is it unfair? Espionage is an extremely complex job that demands specific talents and mindsets. There's no shame in not having the talents for it. Jing isn't the "spy" type (and as I've mentioned before, I personally have no interest in playing him as such, wold have picked a Rat or Snake Adjutant if I did; besides, Tigerbro is awesome as Tigerbro), just because we have good INT and CHA scores doesn't automatically make us James Bond, mindsets and skillsets still matter (perhaps matter more) and we're by no means an actor or social chameleon. But that doesn't mean he doesn't have his own talents and skills. and they can be put to much better use with us staying here than us trying to infiltrate the cult (what are you expecting to learn about their deeper motivations, secret colleagues and leadership in six months in the first place?), capitalizing on our reputation and the contacts we made in the higher echelons:

Here is what I want to learn:

• Their contact with the Wudu Cult.
• Any ties to the WiB.
• Why they are so intent on undermining the Eight Sects - not the reason that Vahista presented in the tournament, but the actual reason.
• We're almost certain that Yunzi is with the Cult, and we need to learn how she became involved with them, why she left the Ashina (did the WiB attack again?)
• And if the Holy Maiden is Yunzi, why there have been problems in the northwest borders. Has the Khagan begun to launch raids?

It's true that we don't have the particular mindset for spying, but not every task and opportunity that we should take is going to be perfectly suited to our character's predispositions either. Yes, Jing is reckless, hotheaded, and despite his intelligence and charisma, he hasn't developed the skills of a courtier. However, once the Cult heads further west from Wufushan, it's unlikely that we will encounter them before the date of their challenge, so we need to take the opportunity now that we have the chance.

We still don't know the Emei's Yuchang Jian technique, something that we can ask or challenge them for.

We might want to get Wang off of Wudang for this upcoming challenge. As the leader of the Chinese pugilists, he'd better be there and not meditating for two years in seclusion while everything goes to utter shit.

Also, getting Zhang off of his Island. The more Greats are present, the less chance for the Zoros trying something funny. We could even write him a taunting letter from the cultists, challenging him and his student to personally attend their little tournament (although that probably won't bode well for their well being )

And dropping by Luoying Manor, I doubt the Zoros will let us make a trip away from their base so soon.

We might have established a good relationship with the Frathouse, but I doubt that they're going to give their techniques away in return for the privilege of having their students getting the shit kicked out of them by the Southern Maniac's apprentice. Qi Liuwu has been generous with sharing some more of his Xianglong Eighteen Palms, and we've added a new style of the Shouwang Claws to our arsenal thanks to the manual - we've managed to gain a fairly solid set of techniques so far. I don't think it's martial arts skill we're lacking in, it's knowledge of the world around us.

However, your point about Luoying Manor is a good one. If we stay for the long haul to gain more knowledge of the cult and other clandestine unorthodox groups like the WiB for the next several months, we would postpone that long-awaited visit even further. But I think that this Cult deserves investigation and it's the only potential thing we have in front of us that might lead us to the WiB. Sure, we also have a lead in Yuhua Hall, but this one is far more time-sensitive. To be fair, BJ's challenge is time-sensitive too, but it isn't nearly as urgent now that we've seen hints of this group's intentions and this being likely our only chance to approach them.

As for Agent BJ Blazkowicz, we're giving him a clear shot at defacing us with C1, simple as that. Yes, the Greats left to prepare for the challenge, but the general public and some of the less concerned martial artists are still pumped up and eager to see the current champion face the old one, especially after today's demonstration and the manner in which we were challenged. Also, everyone heard the Zoro's offer to us, and with his pride stung at being stood up for a date duel like that, he'll definitely take the opportunity and accuse us of joining up with the "foreign devils." Which won't be good for us in the long run, since it makes life more difficult for us. We have enough stigmas associated with us already, "Race Traitor" seems like a bad addition.

Lastly, about our qi: I really think that Wang and Zhang are our best choices for molding our primordial chaos into something else. The Zoros are too hung up on fire and, honestly, it seems kinda bland to me. I'd rather wait and hear the experts on qi to give us their input on our condition and what can be done with it, instead of locking ourselves into a particular path just like that.

Yeah, BJ will probably take the opportunity to shit-talk us while we're away, but why should that concern us? And for that matter, why should our victory at the tournament concern them? Okay, we lose face in front of a BJ and his pals, and maybe a few schools who don't like us use it as an excuse to rebuff our challenges until we fight BJ, who will probably be waiting at Mount Hua. Maybe BJ even spins it as us joining up with the "foreign devils" against his own countrymen, but that isn't enough to force the Eight Sects into a misguided assault against Master Zhang. Considering that we've established friendly contact with the Frathouse, they'll know where our true loyalties lie. We might get tarred with the reputation of a traitor to add to our current reputation of being apprentice to a savage killer, but everyone who matters (i.e. Prince Shun, the Grand Taoist, the Abbot, Abbess Miecao, Qi Liuwu) will know what our real intentions are.

We became unorthodox partially because it would allow us to get into the nitty-gritty of things a lot easier by blending in with the worst of the worst. If we want knowledge of the situation, it's going to require an investment of time and some willingness to tarnish our rep among the more respectable types in the short-to-mid term time frame. I think that this is a more than fair price in exchange for what we could learn.

You see this as getting locked into a path, but I see it as letting a great opportunity to learn the nature of the conspiracy slip from our grasp. This is an (up until now) secret organization that wants to discredit the pugilistic sects, and is a foreign interest that also probably has bad intentions towards the ruling dynasty as well. The parallels to the WiB are obvious, and we can't just let it go right now.

 

[Baltika9]

We became unorthodox partially because it would allow us to get into the nitty-gritty of things a lot easier by blending in with the worst of the worst. If we want knowledge of the situation, it's going to require an investment of time and some willingness to tarnish our rep among the more respectable types in the short-to-mid term time frame. I think that this is a more than fair price in exchange for what we could learn.

You see this as getting locked into a path, but I see it as letting a great opportunity to learn the nature of the conspiracy slip from our grasp. This is an (up until now) secret organization that wants to discredit the pugilistic sects, and is a foreign interest that also probably has bad intentions towards the ruling dynasty as well. The parallels to the WiB are obvious, and we can't just let it go right now.

My point was that we're not going to get all of this out of them in just six months. If Jing were some superspy secret agent, maybe, but as he is now, he ust doesn't have the skills and smarts to make them trust him "like that" so quickly. At most, we can expect to be Yunzi's (if it's really her) Adjutant (hurr) like we were to Shun, her assistant and sparring partner since we defeated her in an all-out duel. Will they give some newbie all their secrets in just a few months? Fuck no. We're talking at least a year of proving our loyalty and usefulness for them to even consider letting us know something low-key. And organization that remained secret for so long probably keeps it's secrets closely guarded. In the meanwhile, our sudden departure/race betrayal still lets the Conspiracy play with our persona of Zhang's apprentice and goad him into doing dumb shit. Especially since we didn't put our face and name out there. Anyone can dress up as MTP and emulate our jackassery, claiming to be Zhang's apprentice.

I honestly think that all the contacts we made in the Central Plains will let us prepare for the Zoros and their plans better than actually joining them for six months. Besides, nothing says we can't nab Yunzi during that little tournament of theirs, especially if the Shadow Wolf turns out to be Ashina (Huluzi?), and then find everything out directly from her.

Look, diving into their organization headfirst, digging up compromising information and arranging for Shun's Secret Police to be present at the tournament to arrest everyone would be a great idea. That's just not in Jing's, or our, capabilities to pull off such a sensitive operation so quickly.

 

[Kipeci]

Or we could genuinely look into their principles and possibly become a (hopefully more successful) Hong Xiuquan-type figure? Let's see what they're all about before we decide to try setting them up for failure.

 

[Baltika9]

And betray ShunBRO? Never. And I'm sure that what they're after is a new home for themselves, with the Caliphate pushing them out of Persia.

 

[Kipeci]

We would be helping him to realize his potential in the new faith, of course, so that wouldn't be betrayal.
It's pretty clear from the updates that these guys aren't Persian, politically or ethnically. Whoever they are, it might be a good idea to allow China to absorb their talents and power by admitting them entry.

Of course, I'm mainly being contrarian here. I want to scope these guys out before we aim for doing one thing or the other, but whatever we do, it's probably a good idea to be honest about our intentions. Zoroastrians didn't historically take falsehoods very well.

 

[Baltika9]

" 'Sup bros, I'm a secret agent of the Prince and I'm here to scope you out. It's cool if I take a look at your secrets and contacts, right? Oh, what's that business you have with the People In Black that tried to assassinate the Prince? And your dealings with the Wudu Cult? Surely you can't be planning civil unrest and upturning China's social order, right? C'mon, you can tell me."

 

[Kipeci]

You yourself have been saying that the secret agent approach wouldn't pan out too well, and I don't think that's a path that we should go down, either. We're intrigued by their power, their challenge, and so on, and I think we should be honest about that and finding out more in the world being a reason for us tagging along.

 

[Baltika9]

Yeah, secret agent approach isn't the best way, but coming out and saying that we're here to monitor them for the prince, when they obviously don't really care for the guy, won't pan out too well either. Unless we decide to fuck Shun and the Empire and help these guys come to power. Which I don't want to do either. That, and being their pet Lithuania Hitman doesn't sound too good to me either, "Using our special talents for the 'Greater Good' " my ass.

 

[Tigranes]

The Fire Cult may be strong but if replacing the pugilists is their intention they will need allies. And the public nature of their challenge made clear that part of it is to win hearts and minds. They will also be aware of the strategic benefit of having the tournament winner on their side. So yes, if we go C1, I think we can afford to say "hey we're unorthodox anyway I'm not gonna sign in blood but let's work with you for a while, if I want out I"ll say so." Maybe. I still think is B3 is better in the sense that:

-if the Fire Cult are crazies to demand our undying devotion C1 won't work well anyway
-if the Fire Cult are pragmatic and will accept our cooperation then we will have a later opportunity to get in touch with them
-if we leave for them now BJ will be able to paint us as a traitor, if we take care of him with B1/2/3 then combined with Master rep we can leave that flank secure.

 

[Grimgravy]

B3>B2

 

[asxetos]

Going for B2 and i seriously hope we get a chance to follow the cult after confronting BJ.

 

[Nevill]

Like how we thought we'd get a chance to prepare for a fight with BJ by training with Yandi after the tournament was over, only for him to get dragged away by his master?

No, I am pretty sure this is a one-time thing.

-if the Fire Cult are pragmatic and will accept our cooperation then we will have a later opportunity to get in touch with them

Another "we can always do it later" argument.

-if we leave for them now BJ will be able to paint us as a traitor, if we take care of him with B1/2/3 then combined with Master rep we can leave that flank secure.

And how this will concern us if we go with the cult? We won't be around for our reputation to mean anything, and six months from now on, when we will be fighting Zoroastrians (and we will, we are not abandoning Shun here), these accusations will not hold. Unless you are saying that people will think us to be so traitorous a traitor that we have betrayed our new 'masters' after betraying our country.

 

[Tigranes]

Another "we can always do it later" argument.

Oh no! A do it later argument! Proven to be wrong in any permutation for any situation whatsoever! I saw one the other day. Terrible things.

Why are you sure this is a one-time thing? If these guys are the sort that are haughty or dogmatic enough to say if you don't come now forever you shall be our enemies, then do we really want to go along with them and put ourselves in their power?

I don't know what your last sentence is saying, but if things are going to come to a Fire Cult vs. Pugilistic World confrontation, I'm not so sure I want almost everyone in the pugilistic world thinking we're on the other side. I want us to be in a position where we can take up with the Fire Cults on our own terms and selectively, not "hey gais I'm here now so who are you?".

 

[Esquilax]

Oh no! A do it later argument! Proven to be wrong in any permutation for any situation whatsoever! I saw one the other day. Terrible things.

Why are you sure this is a one-time thing? If these guys are the sort that are haughty or dogmatic enough to say if you don't come now forever you shall be our enemies, then do we really want to go along with them and put ourselves in their power?

I don't know what your last sentence is saying, but if things are going to come to a Fire Cult vs. Pugilistic World confrontation, I'm not so sure I want almost everyone in the pugilistic world thinking we're on the other side. I want us to be in a position where we can take up with the Fire Cults on our own terms and selectively, not "hey gais I'm here now so who are you?".

Because looking for them after tomorrow will be significantly harder. Without any clear leads to their location after they leave Wufushan, and the possibility of wasting our time looking for them and not finding them as they head further west, we probably aren't going to start chasing after them. We'd probably want to go for things that are more sure bets, such as a visit to Luoying Manor, Yuhua Hall, or one of the nearby martial arts schools.

How would this invitation not be on our own terms? He invited us, and we have the choice to accept it or not. Unless you believe that they're going to murder us or something once we meet them. I can't see why they'd have bad intentions to us right now, given that their challenge was just accepted and things worked out for them regardless. They probably want to see if they can entice us into their service. Which is good, because as someone who serves the Crown Prince, we want to know as much about this organization as possible.

When I was proposing fighting alongside the Zoroastrians, that was just one alternative out of many. The main idea in the immediate future (i.e. tomorrow) is to get an idea of their organization to see how they came to find their Holy Maiden, and to see if they have any potential contact with the WiB, because we know that they're a clandestine organization and we know that they've dealt with other unorthodox organizations like the Wudu Cult before. How can you possibly tell me that the information we'll gain isn't worth a measly rep hit? We aren't an orthodox martial artist that is hyper-conscious of his image; so long as the sects aren't going after Zhang in bloody vengeance, we are good. There is a lot to gain from meeting the cult, and a lot of avenues we can explore, and little to lose.

I'm gonna flop to whatever has most votes except C1. If we go with A or B we still have a choice regarding what we're doing next. If we go with C1 we lock ourselves on this path. I rather we do the Yuhua Hall main plot after we finish Zhang's chores, but it's still better than running off with some persians, completely forgetting our assignments.

Everything locks us into a particular path. If we joined the Wudang, for example, we would have been locked into that particular path for a while as well. Look, this isn't a Bethesda game where you can do anything, so you have to take advantage of opportunities as they come, because they might not come again. The things you mention here all related, and it's a huge mistake to look at it all in isolation. After we finish Zhang's challenges a year from now, the situation with Shun and the WiB's plans might change considerably. In the absence of clear leads, this presents an opportunity for us.

My point was that we're not going to get all of this out of them in just six months. If Jing were some superspy secret agent, maybe, but as he is now, he ust doesn't have the skills and smarts to make them trust him "like that" so quickly. At most, we can expect to be Yunzi's (if it's really her) Adjutant (hurr) like we were to Shun, her assistant and sparring partner since we defeated her in an all-out duel. Will they give some newbie all their secrets in just a few months? Fuck no. We're talking at least a year of proving our loyalty and usefulness for them to even consider letting us know something low-key. And organization that remained secret for so long probably keeps it's secrets closely guarded. In the meanwhile, our sudden departure/race betrayal still lets the Conspiracy play with our persona of Zhang's apprentice and goad him into doing dumb shit. Especially since we didn't put our face and name out there. Anyone can dress up as MTP and emulate our jackassery, claiming to be Zhang's apprentice.

I honestly think that all the contacts we made in the Central Plains will let us prepare for the Zoros and their plans better than actually joining them for six months. Besides, nothing says we can't nab Yunzi during that little tournament of theirs, especially if the Shadow Wolf turns out to be Ashina (Huluzi?), and then find everything out directly from her.

Look, diving into their organization headfirst, digging up compromising information and arranging for Shun's Secret Police to be present at the tournament to arrest everyone would be a great idea. That's just not in Jing's, or our, capabilities to pull off such a sensitive operation so quickly.

We would be extremely lucky if these guys wanted us to help the Holy Maiden prepare for the challenge in six months. Even the man that came after us with killing intent, whose power rivals Zhang (and whom I suspect is their Temple Lord) yielded once she gave the order. Being that close would be a tremendous success for us. In any case, we'll find out what our options are once we meet up with them. But, the fact that we beat their best fighter and we are unorthodox ourselves makes moving through the ranks far easier. We have the respect that being a champion breeds and the understanding that, as the disciple of Master Zhang, we also (to their knowledge) want to discredit the Eight Sects as well. They would likely want to paint us as the "reformed" disciple of Zhang Jue, who has now seen the light and begun to atone for his sins, should we decide to infiltrate. They'll probably try to use us as an example for what the cult can do for the wayward and lowly.

As for the potential for future impostors, our name might not be out there, but our face is definitely known to the public here since we lost our mask during the fight. Not every dickhead with a mask can pretend to be us, because with our championship, they would need the skills to back it up. People have seen how we fight and they know what we look like, which should be enough to establish our identity in the eyes of the pugilistic community. Whether or not BJ will spin our sudden departure against us is another matter, but I don't see any future black-masked impostor plots on the horizon after this.

And betray ShunBRO? Never. And I'm sure that what they're after is a new home for themselves, with the Caliphate pushing them out of Persia.

These guys aren't ethnically Persian:

The man nods. He removes his hat, and the rest follow suit. They don’t appear to be Persian, but neither are they Han; their looks are exotic and you cannot place their ethnicity.

I think that they're Parsi. Like Freddie Mercury. But of course our character wouldn't know this. Anyways, regardless of whether or not we visit the Cult, betraying Shun won't be an option on the table for this particular character. If our character thinks that these guys are a threat to Shun's rule, the only option will be to try and undermine them. Whether that's through posing as a friend, or through other means, we won't be betraying Shun.

 

[Baltika9]

As for the potential for future impostors, our name might not be out there, but our face is definitely known to the public here since we lost our mask during the fight. Not every dickhead with a mask can pretend to be us, because with our championship, they would need the skills to back it up. People have seen how we fight and they know what we look like, which should be enough to establish our identity in the eyes of the pugilistic community. Whether or not BJ will spin our sudden departure against us is another matter, but I don't see any future black-masked impostor plots on the horizon after this.

To unskilled martial artist and civilians that are attacked (again), that won't be so noticeable. All they need right now is a guy that looks vaguely like us, physically (if we went naked for our fight with Faceless, this wouldn't be an issue. Pray tell, why didn't we do that? ), can fight well with strength and agility, and our face can be faked by anyone with talent in acupuncture. Leaving now without securing our identity will leave available for exploitation, that's the consequence of going anonymous, simple as that. That is, if they don't have us help them carry out the "frame Zhang" plan*. If you have the real apprentice on your side, why would you send out impostors?

Anyways, regardless of whether or not we visit the Cult, betraying Shun won't be an option on the table for this particular character. If our character thinks that these guys are a threat to Shun's rule, the only option will be to try and undermine them. Whether that's through posing as a friend, or through other means, we won't be betraying Shun.

Honestly, if they are trying to take him down, I really doubt they would let us, the newbie, know of their intentions. Most likely we would be doing missions without knowing the reason for them.

*I have a theory on this: their plan was to stir shit up against Zhang through their members pretending to be his disciple, make him a public menace and force the orthodox sects do debate and DISCUSS! whether or not and how they should deal with him. While they're doing that, the number of victims is rising while the sectarians are talking, public demands intervention and before the orthodoxes react, bam, the cultists already intervened and took him down, making the sectarians look horrible in the public's eyes and making themselves look efficient and powerful by taking out the most savage and powerful of the unorthodox Masters and securing for themselves the position of the Southern Great. These people are after the hearts and minds of China.

Look, C1 looks fun as hell to do, and we did promise, to the moon and stars, to be with our Yunzi forever, and I'd like to do it. But I don't like the situations it can put us in the future and the fact that we're leaving ours and Zhang's rep exposed. This information we can come by by other means, like piecing the puzzle together or plain old beating the shit out of some cultists and interrogating them, Bauer style. C1 is the fun move, B2 is the smart move.

 

[Kipeci]

I don't see how you're worried about our rep, let alone Zhang's. That one in particular is pretty much so set in stone that I don't think one could budge the general opinion of Zhang one way or the other.

Our personal reputation is only important for the moment in that we need to have some level of badassery established already so that we can go through our challenges without having to fight a swarm of minions first. As champion of the tournament, that's no longer really an issue, so why bother to hang behind and waste this opportunity? Maybe if we were an upstanding orthodox martial artist heavily dependent on a general public recognition of honorable behavior we would need to spend time countering such a threat to prevent facing troubles, but our earlier actions have plenty of people spreading around negative rumors about us even without the help of the women in black, and I honestly think it's a bit ridiculous to be traipsing around China in order to beat up people for saying mean things about us.

 

[Baltika9]

The whole point of defaming us was to provoke the orthodoxes to go against Zhang and kill him. That's what I mean by "leaving our rep exposed."

 

[Kipeci]

With the sect heads alerted to those plans, I think we're fine on that, especially since the plan was goofed.
At any rate, the sect heads can gather information on them much better than we can. We are the only one who can take advantage of this invitation.

 

[Tigranes]

Not all the sect heads met with us. The masters we met specifically talked about the generational difference and how some sect heads from the younger generation are the prime suspects for this plot. Your assessment of the situation is far too optimistic.

 

[Kipeci]

So you think that we'll be better than the sect heads we did talk to at rooting out information on this by going to Yuhua Hall as some guy when they're personally friends with the Madame of the hall? Some people are going to be plotting all the time, but what do we bring to the table in that area?

 

[Baltika9]

treave, when are the polls losing?