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Heroica RPG - Quest Masters' Lounge

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Figure I may as well unpack some quest things here while I have time. 

 

Quest #150: so yeah, the Burning Pilgrim was once a prince of a small, holy kingdom who fought in the Orcish Invasion and was one of Heroica's first recruits. He became a Veteran later, the Adamant Arbalest, and trained heroes much as the Copper Fox does now. He led a quest back to his homeland when he heard it was being attacked, and found the Crimson Crown burning everyone and everything in an effort to erase the kingdom's patron archangel from history. They burned him alive, too, and at some point in the future he was raised as an undead. (Didn't fully think this part through yet, I think I was going to tie into the Cold Circle somehow). He's one of the only witnesses to how far the Crimson Crown is willing to go, and built up his little gang of Boba Fetts to fight back. :laugh:

The Crimson Crown has serious sway over one of the orc clan leaders, and they basically paid for Imaestym to be rebuilt, so he was operating under the impression the Crown had fully taken root in Baltarok. Worse, after he heard about the Battle of the Bridge, he began to suspect the Crown was also manipulating the (seemingly unkillable, which irked him for obvious reasons) heroes of Heroica. Mission 'assassinate all the corrupt leaders of Baltarok' became mission 'get some heroes in there, so I can see if they're actually still good guys and could help'. Rather than straight up attempting to kill the clan leaders, he hires some third parties and sets them up so he can observe Heroica in action. If the clan leaders die, well, mission accomplished. If Heroica actually displays some honest-to-god heroics and saves them, maybe they're not lost after all.

After you dueled the Burning Pilgrim you either would've had to help him kill Jaret, who is the one whispering in Baltarok's ear, which the Baltarok leadership really wouldn't like. Otherwise, you'd have to take him and the whole Wandering Silence out in another fight (in which he'd be in his second form and much less tanky.)

Which reminds me: I really kind of screwed you out of some (I thought) really neat boss loot. Sorry. :blush:

Kill Pilgrim:

Adamant Treads (SP: 5, the user can teleport away from battle, avoiding damage; the effect ends if the user targets an enemy. The hero can do this a number of times per battle equal to the number of Adamant artifacts worn, legwear)
Adamant Bracers (SP: 5, when struck by a Free Hit, the user counterstrikes, dealing equal to their level times the number of Adamant artifacts worn, handwear)
Adamant Visage (SP: 5, when attacking, the user has a 1/3 chance to deal the fragile and weakened effects for each Adamant artifact worn, headwear)

Kill Jaret:

Crimson Inquisitor Cloak (+10 max health, the wearer is immune to the last negative effect dealt in battle, increases to the last two or three effects with multiple Crimson artifacts worn, backwear) 
Crimson Boots (+10 max health, once per battle, the user can reroll the attack die a number of times equal to the number of Crimson artifacts equipped if they’re the last person listed in the battle order, footwear)
Crimson Masque (+10 max health, wearer gains additional power equal to the number of ether users in battle multiplied by five for each Crimson artifact equipped, headwear)  
 

Kind of a mess overall, looking back. In summary: heroes think they're stopping assassinations, when the guy pulling the assassin's strings is just testing them to see if Heroicans are still good guys, so they can team up and kill some Crimson Crown.

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Few of my further ideas are super articulate.

-Next quest was going to focus on dragoons. The Dragon Heart's Flame has been extinguished (would've cleared that with Zepher obviously :tongue:) and they think that Heroica recently messing around with it caused it. So the dragoon summit convenes, featuring dragoons from all over Olegaia. The Dragonlord and Smaragdea, Giuiliana and Volmuniix (from one of my past quests, forget which one), Eckmar (from the Spesiala quest), a dragoon-less dragon from Njago, a Summerset Isle pair (but the dragoon was abusive, so the dragon had its owner killed by the Crimson Crown, who's now infiltrating as the dragoon), Daske and Aazy (from Baltarok - only the greatest dragoon from each nation are supposed to go the summit, but Daske is the only one in Baltarok, so...), High Kingdoms pair, and a Vartland pair, the dragon of which I believe I was going to use a dinosaur for. :laugh:

I never got as far as figuring out what the quest would actually entail. But the basic concept was dragoon civil war. The Crimson Crown doused the Flame because, contrary to what everyone thinks, it does not grant life to mortals or immortality to dragons. It is the link between the dragons and the Spirit Pools - and enabled dragon and dragoon bonds in the first place. This revelation causes the already tenuous summit to fracture. Several present, of course, are ready to wreck the Crown, but others present think that perhaps, given what it represented, perhaps the Flame is best left dead. Dragons and dragoons rarely survive when separated, but this is no longer the case. The kinship between them remains, but the Flame is no longer keeping them bound together forever. Everyone starts scrambling and trying to figure out who begat the lie that the Flame is the source of all life - did the dragons lying to protect their tie to the Spirit Pools, or did the mortals lie to keep dragons from running off on them? 

Probably a bit hard to believe given what we've seen of dragon/dragoon relationships, but like any relationship they can go poorly, and I wanted to push the concept that while some pairs become legendary, others end in disaster. I'm thinking I was directly inspired by Flipz' dragoon quest, and ran with the idea of "maybe these problems go all the way to the top."

Anyway, summary: heroes are on trial for dousing the Flame. Crown shows up, says the Flame doesn't do what everyone thought. The dragoon summit fractures over whether they should leave it or reignite. Awesome dragoon civil war ensues. :grin: And that's as far as I got.

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-Värtland saga (has anyone else that was part of it talked about it yet?) My part was going to focus on the Cold Circle side of the undead war that was taking place, the end of the cult, and (I think...I don't recall if I trashed the idea or brought it up to Sandy) the origins of the Aurora Nornalis. There were a lot of moving parts behind the scenes and we never quite got it all worked out, but I did have a rough draft for my end. Terribly out of date, probably, but there it is. :laugh:

Spoiler

While helping liberate a few of Eubric’s young, remaining slaves, Kukulkan’s Aurora Nôrnalis was stolen. It’s usually trivial for Åsa Niflheimr to track the artifact, but its magic appears to have been nullified – for the time being. The Veterans fear that in spite of its life-giving properties, the true purpose of each Nôrnalis is that of a key...a key to unlocking the true power of Helvetia’s Siege – in the wrong hands it would be capable of making one truly immortal, for in myth, it is throne of the goddess of death.

Åsa believes the Nôrnalis being stolen away is the work of a powerful necromancer - she reveals that, contrary to popular belief, it was not the nords of Värtland who forced the Nôrns out of their homeland, but the Shaman King, and his undead horde. The Shaman King was the man frozen within the Siege for as long as the Nôrns can remember, and was somehow freed from his icy prison a decade ago. He raised a horde of undead, and then nearly conquered the country before vanishing. And according to all reports, he has returned to Värtland. She suggests that Hrîst, the sole remaining priestess of Nôrnia, may have information pertaining to the Shaman King’s return, and will know where to find the Siege – and hopefully the Nôrnalis. But Nôrnia was the deep northern heart of Värtland, preserved by Helvetia’s magic, and is now overrun by the Shaman King’s armies.

Kukulkan, meanwhile, maintains that this is all conjecture, superstitious nonsense. He is skeptical that the Shaman King’s return has anything to do with the Nôrnalis being pilfered: his influence does not stretch as far south as Uland, nor is he one for subtlety. Instead, he offers a more immediate alternative. He suspects one of the slaves pickpocketed him, the slaves who he shipped back to Baltarok aboard the Taroksh-Kon, a ship that's been helping Kukulkan get slaves back to the homeland for years now. Kukulkan’s contacts reported the ship never stopped for supplies in the Kingdoms, as it normally did. In fact, he’s been told the ship altered course...and went to Värtland. And he has every intention to go and reclaim the artifact, so he joins the party.

They track the ship down and find that it landed on the southern coast – hidden along with the choice few orcish vessels that have arrived to threaten Clan Sindrung. Their raids have been drifting closer to orcish lands, so Tarvalk has come to put an end to it. He’s furthermore very upset about the errant slave situation. With Haldor’s help, the heroes broker an uneasy truce between Baltarok and Värtland, and then return to the orc camp, only to discover they are being ambushed by undead – aided by the orcish slaves, that appear to be under mind control. Heroes have to work to keep them alive while taking them down despite Kukulkan steamrolling most of the enemies. But, as the battle winds down, he is struck by a surprise attack, a spell that lingers like the touch of death.

Meanwhile, Rook morphs back into his regular form, handing the Nôrnalis over to Malphien, leader of the Cold Circle, who then departs. He posed as one of the slaves, and was the one who took the Aurora Nôrnalis, and on top of that the one who has effectively taken Kukulkan out of commission.

Kukulkan is tended to but the healers inform the heroes in no uncertain terms that he is going to die in a matter of days. When it comes to most heroes, their invulnerability draws from the combined power of all six Nôrnalises. The lifeforce of the six Veterans, however, become tied solely to theirs over years of wielding each. The nords investigate – but the scattered undead don’t match the Shaman King’s forces. A few of them mention a quieter undead cult, Kaldr Hringr, has been on the eastern coast for as long as anyone can remember. They point the heroes down a dark mountain path, to the Frozen Abyss, where the cult is purported to reside. The heroes spend the night, then trek out, with the fate of one of the Veterans hanging over them.

The heroes go there...and find priestess Hrîst observing an enormous battle, with both the Cold Circle and the Shaman King undead locked in combat at the Abyss. The Shaman King has sent a substantial portion of his forces to stamp out any resistance. Hrîst quickly leads them away north to her camp.

There, she explains that she had begun to feel the spirits of winter, the last true denizens of Nôrnia, weakening. To her horror, she found the Siege of Helvetia melting even further, and shortly thereafter she was forced to flee the remains of Nôrnia as the Shamam King’s forces rolled over her old homeland. She was left to wander the hostile Nordic wastes for weeks when, one day ago, she felt the aura given off by the Aurora Nôrnalis, being deeply attuned to its magic, present at the Abyss. She had to investigate, despite the danger she obviously knew infested it. No life is said to pass into or out of its darkness.

Then, the trap is sprung: another section of the Shaman King forces have surrounded the camp while they speak, and then charge down the heroes. At the same time, Cold Circle undead clash with them, creating a brutal three-way battle. The heroes manage to escape the endless undead.

The heroes confirm the Nôrnalis’ presence in Värtland, and, frightened, she quickly decides they must head north again. With a Nôrnalis present in Värtland, the Siege is vulnerable. Even if they must cut through the Shaman King’s forces, her oath demands she protects the Siege at every cost. Thus, she takes the heroes north, to protect it.

Along the way, she explains that the Shaman King has allied himself with an incredibly powerful demonic entity, and that she believes he’s interested in something more than the Siege. The Cold Circle, on the other hand, has become defensive over Värtland, and, with the Siege now within their grasp, an undead war rages in the far north of the country. Then, they arrive in Nôrnia. The land is dead....wiped clean by the Shaman King’s last invasion.

Looking back, I think I straight up stole one of the best moment from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Whoops. :blush:

Malphien was a Norn and was seemingly abandoned by her fellow norns in her time of need. She turned to necromancy and even darker magic, invoking every aspect of Helvetia and pushing the norns out of her good grace, allowing them to be overrun by vikings and forced out of Vartland. Now she needs a Nornalis and to sit upon the Siege of Helvetia so that she can pass from this world in peace (lying to all her followers and telling them it'll bring them power and whatnot).

Summary: orcs, undead, evil norn, good norn, archdemon fight, end of the Cold Circle. 

 

The other quests had some very awesome ideas as well. Flaming cultists, Bonaparte dragon slaying, Wolfgang origins, and my personal favorite: orc nordic clan politics! :grin: 

 

All against the backdrop of an undead war. And the island-sized archdemon, of course.

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Oh, neat, you knew about that as well?  That was actually my original pick for the role I ended up making Nocturnis to fill, but then Sandy explained to me why exactly that wouldn't have worked out for my concept. :tongue:

 

Kind of sad that Dragoon quest never came to be, could have been really interesting for Arthur and Miirym to experience together.

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On 1/7/2018 at 2:30 PM, KotZ said:

Matthias- First, thank you for catching my mathematical mistakes. Second, thank you for being so involved with this quest. I really liked Matthias, and I wish I could have had him on quests earlier, or had Kiray quest with him. He became the de facto second in command, and if this game continued, I would love to see him take on a true leadership role.

No problem on the math - I tend to be much more interested in the mechanics of the game than the lore or relationships... to my detriment. It was a fun quest, and believe me, it was really, really, really satisfying to have Matthias just absolutely wreck house.

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Fascinating, CMP!

Thanks for hosting us, KotZ. I'm glad I could bring along Petaldan for a Tridentia quest. I did like the party interaction, though there could have been more of it.

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20 minutes ago, Palathadric said:

Fascinating, CMP!

Thanks for hosting us, KotZ. I'm glad I could bring along Petaldan for a Tridentia quest. I did like the party interaction, though there could have been more of it.

I always love having Petaldan tagging along with Ezeran.

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Quest #158

For this being my final quest to participate in, I enjoyed it a lot.  Although I am not familiar with the specific story arc, I felt that it came to a good conclusion.  Some things could have been better in the quest but I will get to that shortly.

Overall, I felt the story was great but it could have been stronger.  The one thing I would have liked to have seen undoubtedly was the death of the NPC's or Luke.  Vindsval seemed to have a good connection with Luke and I think if he had died, there would have been a bigger impact and a better ending.  Sometimes the "everyone lives happily ever after" ending is dull but when dealing with an adversary as hyped up and powerful as Calder Den, it would have been very necessary.  Perhaps if his magical painting had been feeding off the souls of people to boost the strength of the power and them becoming part of the painting would have been interesting too.  My favorite part of the quest was the curve ball you threw at us with Jeremiah.  I honestly thought that he would be loyal to his grandfather to the end but his act of betrayal was quite heroic.

This is usally when I critique the other heroes and give my thoughts but seeing as Heroica is at its end, it seems unnecessary to do so.  I am more than happy with the party I had with this quest.  It was great to quest with Ezeran and Petaldan again as well as Vindsval even though I did it with a different character.  He was the first hero I ever quested with.  That was when my character was Salt-Upon-Wounds, the Hobgoblin Barbarian.  Nevertheless, it was great to quest with Vindsval at the end.

Hopefully there is a Heroica II or something because I would love to quest with you guys again and create new memories!

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:wacko: Something blew up in the formatting of this post. Please delete. 

Edited by The Legonater

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So I figure I might as well share my two cents. Obviously, the Duplovia arc had a bit to go. I really like the ideas I had for it, the core themes and direction, but in the end, I didn't really feel like I had the QMing chops to tell the story I wanted. This is all while my own interest in the game was waining, so my interest in sitting down and crunching numbers for a few months wasn't really that high either. I received an offer for someone to co-quest, but at that point, I simply wasn't feeling it. Which is a shame because, once again, I really liked the core idea. It evolved a lot from what it had started from, and would likely evolve more, but the story as it is is pretty strong. The Duplovia arc started from a question of what would heroes do if they were hired to work for people who were, effectively, the bad guys. I wanted to see the Hero's motivations challenged, and I wanted them to see the impact that Heroica was having on the larger world. Duplovia and Delfrin were going to change and shape in reaction to the heroes, and hopefully in ways that would shake them 

Most of the quests had only the most basic outlines, but the first one was 99% ready to launch. I'll try to abbreviate it as much as I can without losing the essentials.

Deception in Delfrin:

Spoiler

Eyric and Quellir recruit the heroes, believing they can finally track down the identity of Morcrass' employer in Delfin. With them are Dovanna and a kind, elderly Magewho uses primarily earth magic. The Mage has been working to restore magic rights in Duplovia, and believes working with Eyric will up his pedigree. The basic plan is to reach out to contacts in Delfrin and see if they can't establish a network to find some pieces to their puzzle. It is important to note that this begins differently than past quests, Aves does not meet the heroes, nor will rogues be excluded. 

After arranging things in Newharbour and an encounter with Flipz' party as mentioned in his post, the heroes would head forward to Delfrin. Once in the city, the team would split up two ways. Bardrick the Miner would inform them about Norgh resistance movements and deep pits appearing in the city, Lachterson of the Delfrin military would mention that he has been withheld from investigating the Morcrass situation, with King Somoril insisting Duplovia and Delfrin should do it together. He had, however, noticed an increase in activity and has offered a possible hideout location. The other groups talks to a Phibbian priest, investigating why a Phibbian would join the force in the mines, and the priest suggests that this employer must be truly powerful. They would also stop at a weapons shop, getting some words on the street from the seller. Both these paths would include some puzzles. The heroes group up and swap info, and conclude that the Norghs have been moving to this suggested hide-out. On the way there, they are ambushed by the Pact from Flipz' quests, lead by a guy with two lances. The Heroes fight off the Pact, who retreat. Before the heroes can celebrate, they are surrounded by Delfrin forces, led by the strict and obstinant General. The Heroes would be forced to surrender, in order to prevent a diplomatic incident. They would be brought before the Delfrin King, where the heroes would find out that this op was not sanctioned by Somoril or any higher-ups in Duplovia, rather, it was Eyric's. This all to say, the Duplovians and Heroica are in the city illegally. The Delfrin King puts them in jail, considering his options.

In jail, Eyric reveals his hand. He believes that Somoril is the employer, but has no proof or motive, just the symbol that was on Morcrass' crates. The heroes simmer on this, when chaos sounds further in the cell. The Archer arrives, flanked by mercenaries. It turns out that Dovanna and the Mage are working with him, and he was sent to bail them not realizing that the Heroes were with them. They reveal that they were sent by Morcrass to divert the investigation. The Archer gives them a choice. He wants to clear out the villainous Pact from Delfrin's streets, in return for the support of the Delfrin Princess, who he has a history with. He decides to throw in proof of the employer's identity for good measure. Eyric still feels there's another way to get proof. 

Should the heroes follow the Archer, Dovanna will peace out and the Archer will lead them to one of the pits mentioned by Bardrick. Uglrukh, the Norgh leader, will reveal that these pits are being dug by the Norghs, building a tunnel across the city. The heroes will get a more positive perspective on the uprisings from him. The Pact springs up from the pit, and after a battle, the Archer will conclude that they found another entrance. He leads the heroes over to the Pact base, where they will defeat the leader and put an end to their Delfrin chapter. The Heroes will realize that the tunnel runs directly under the palace, and conclude what exactly Archer's plan is. They will run off, heading for the palace and leaving the villains behind.

Should the heroes not follow the Archer, he'll shrug and let them pass, not interested in a fight. Dovanna and the Mage go with him. Eyric suggests they try the hideout again. It is abandoned, but they find directions to a contingency, and they follow it to the Pact base. They make introductions with the Leader, but are attacked by the Mage and a team of Norghs attacking from the pit. They fight off the Norghs and the Mage escapes in a whirl of dirt, closing in the pit. The Heroes realize make the same connection that the tunnel runs under the palace, and realize an attack is likely underway. They race to the palace, trying to find the quickest path through the city. 

At the palace, the Heroes find Dovanna leading a Duplovian force through the palace gates, claiming that the detaining of a Duplovian prefect was an act of war. The Heroes fight the Duplovians off, and while the King is wounded, the princess is able to heal him, revealing herself to be a cleric. The King offers the Heroes his thanks, repealing charges. Either the Pact Leader or the Princess gives the Heroes the proof they need, depending on the choice they made. Eyric notes that the mission was won, but war is now inevitable. 

 

Chaos in the Crossfire:

The Heroes are called on by Duplovia to defend them from a full-scale assault from Delfrin. My goal was something along the lines of Quest 17 with Delfrin's forces moving through the city, and the Heroes will run through to different key locations after the forces break through the doors. The path with eventually lead inward to the castle. The Market Guild will make an appearance again, helping defend the Marketplace. During the quest, the Prince of Delfrin will appear as a recurring boss, and when the Heroes finally kill him there will be a significant moment where the Delfrin forces mourn his passing. At the end, a Norgh force lead by Uglrukh and the Archer tunnel up around the castle and storm inside. Not expecting the Delfrin force to get so far, Somoril has planned his escape, slipping out with the Archer. Begrudgingly the Heroes will have to let him slip away while they defeat the last of the Delfrin force at the castle gates.

Warfare in the West:

The quest opens with a scene of Somoril's force (the Archer, Dovanna, Uglrukh, the Mage, Princess and Morcrass) wandering north of Duplovia following the previous quest. They run into a combined force of a couple small kingdoms, led by McColt, ideally. There is a major conflict and McColt has to retreat. 

Eyric and Quellir recruit the heroes, having assembled a small army to stop Somoril once and for all. He has stepped forward to seizing the area and is moving on Garran. Notably, the Princess of Delfrin is next-in-line with the Prince dead. The first part of the quest is the heroes helping stop the assault on Garran. During this, Quellir may be killed in a fight with his old protoge Dovanna. After they save Garran they move towards Delfrin, which Somoril is in the process of taking, using the Princess' influence. The bridge is up, forcing the heroes to go on an expedition on their own to lower it. After that, they move in on the palace. Once there, they arrive just in time to see Morcrass murder the King. Somoril and his group reveal themselves.

Somoril tries to recruit the heroes, showing his hand. He believes that with their history, Delfrin and Duplovia will always, always return to war, as all the kingdoms do. His goal is to completely take over, ruling the entire High Kingdoms with an iron fist and establishing true peace. Eyric comments that there's no way he can possibly maintain that sort of control, where Somoril insists that the Heroes have given him just the idea. He will set up his own version of Heroica with his own veterans; Archer - the Ranger, Uglrukh - the Knight, Dovanna - the Barbarian, Mage - the Mage, Princess - the Cleric, and Morcrass - the Rogue. Somoril's pseudo-Heroica will act as a military police, insisting that's all that Heroica's become. Our heroes decide to prove him wrong. The Final Battle is them against Somoril and his Veterans.

Final Thoughts

I really love the image of major villains through the arc standing together as a Dark Heroica. We really hadn't gotten that sort of villain in Heroica yet, and I think it would provide a really thought-provoking idea. Heroica is affecting the world, and in this case, giving them some very dark ideas. The heroes would be forced to consider what Heroica would look like in the wrong hands, and if their hands are really so clean. After all, in numerous instances, they will have been directly involved with Somoril's plan. The Duplovia arc would be a discussion on the nature of Heroica, and some of the ethics of being a hero. 

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On 10/30/2018 at 12:04 AM, Waterbrick Down said:

QM Note: Technically the quest is over, if there are other things some folks wanted to do. There will be a few epilogue posts for me to have up and I'd like to see a satisfactory conclusion reached with the current conversations, but other players need not feel obligated to continue participating if they do not wish to. I'll post final stats in my next update. Thanks to everyone who participated not only in this quest but in the last seven years, it's been one amazing ride! I'll have more to say about the quest and the game itself once things wrap in this thread, but feel free to post any thoughts in the QM lounge or general discussion.

Suppose I'll break the ice - not terribly long reviews, but I'll try and hit everything:

The Quest: Perfect. Hit all the points, and kept surprising. Only notable criticisms might be that what we were supposed to do, to "fix" the city, at the end, felt slightly ambiguous - there wasn't any guidelines provided as to how to proceed, or what we should am for - but, I suppose that was the point, it was ultimately our choice. Giving any more guidance than you did, might - and probably would have - provoked criticism - however unwarranted - that it was a "rail-roaded" ending. So in the end, I think you made the right choice.

Also, from what I remember from before I hopped in - thanks, also, for letting so many players jump in, even though it had already started long before! - after the party left the tavern, there seemed to be the same lack of specific directions to head in - but this can be dismissed with the same reasons as before. So...yes, basically as close to a perfect quest as I remember, and definitely an ending far, far, far better than I expected. 

I also especially appreciated how open you were to suggestions - no offense, Kintober, *thinks*...uh, Kintober, and Endgame...and Endgame...and Endgame* - but WBD, I think you're probably the best QM I've ever played under. You were always open to suggestions, and handled them with an incredible maturity and thoughtfulness. You were always willing to listen to the players, and you skillfully allowed the players to push for small changes that didn't seem to be in your original plan(like when the Founders went off to stop Rosier, so we could save the fort as well as the elven city).

Questions:

  1. It's silly, but what was in the Dragon House package?
  2. Was Byblos ever scheduled to make an appearance?
  3. What would have happened if we had saved the Fort, but not stopped Rosier?
  4. What would have happened if we had stopped Rosier, but not saved the Fort/stopped the Hangings?
  5. Was there ever any plans for PCs to travel to the elven city? Was that ever a possibility?

Unless I remember anything, and come back to edit it in, I'm afraid my PC reviews are going to be brief. It was fun questing with all of you, though - sad that it's all over, but glad I got to do it at least once!

PC Reviews:

Althior Emorith (K-Nut):

I don't think Lind and Althior have ever seen eye to eye, and you vanished pretty early on, but it was great to see one of the earliest heroes still be around for the very last quest!

Atramor Gibbin (CallMePie):

Lind/Lind the player, and Atramor/CMP definitely all have different ideas how to tackle battles, but it was still great playing with you! Very consistent RPing all the way through, and you've made a very memorable character/!

Benji Carvenhall (Flare):

I really enjoyed our RP! It was nice to come across a character that Lind was able to make friends with so quickly, after initially antagonizing them(unintentionally)!

Hoke Ablesword (UsernameMDM):

We've definitely had our differences, but as I said in General Discussion, you've always been kind of a Heroica constant, and your ending for Hoke really tugged at my heartstrings. Glad I got to quest with you again, and really glad Lind and Hoke seemed to become a little more friendly towards each other!

Torc (Username MDM):

A fine dragon.

Skrall (Waterbrick Down):

The way you've played Skrall is very impressive - never too much on one side or the other, very much his own deal. Saw it back in Moone, and saw it again here, even though you were clearly hampered a bit by having to have him act as both a PC and as an NPC of sorts. Well done!

Arthur Justus Regulus VII Ziegfried (Flipz):

Like with Hoke, we've had our differences. Still good playing alongside you, one more time.

Dyric Rone(The Legonater):

Very fun RPing with you! I don't believe I've read too many of the quests you've been on, but you do a great job playing Rone! Like Skrall, he's his own person!

Karie Alderflask-Cour (Kintober):

I've always been impressed by your RP. You play Karie with incredible consistency, no matter what quest she's in. Your IC voice is always excellent, as is your OC. Great job! And it was great getting to play alongside you, in this, the last step of Lind's redemption arc. (Come to think of it, as either a player or a QM, you've been alongside most of it!) You played Karie very well - not entirely convinced, but willing to be convinced of Lind's changes - and willing to react when he showed them. Thanks!

Lord Lawrence Boomingham (Zepher):

Boomingham is one of those characters that always seems to stay the same, no matter what quest he's in. We didn't interact much, but what we did, was good.

Matthias (Stickfig):

Like I said in General Discussion, he's a very unique character! Good to have gotten the chance to play alongside him one more time, and glad that they seemed to have made up a few of their differences!

Monk Pretzel (Palathadric)

Very friendly character, well played! Thanks for being so generous with your gear! (Which reminds me, I need to hand that Mace back, if I haven't already...)

Nerwen Calmcacil (Chromeknight):

You posted almost less than K-Nut...but it's nice to have old characters return for the finale!

Vindsval Half-Born (Asphalt):

It's always funny when Lind and Vind meet. IRL, we're friends, IC...less friends. But it was still great, and you always do a great job playing him!

Eric (Khorne):

Kind of the same deal with K-Nut and Chromeknight - but glad he was along!

Ezeran Yavarr (MysticModulus):

Shame that Heroica's ending - he's a neat character! Thanks for playing along with all of the Crescent stuff - it was fun bonding as a crew!

John 'Heckz' Brutenhal (Cutcobra):

Wish you hadn't vanished. He's a fun character, and it's always fun to read back and see that he's a part of something, because you do such a great job with him! Sad Lind and he didn't get a chance to play together before Lind's redemption arc - despite being different, there are a lot of similarities, and I think they could have gotten up to some great hi-jinks. Glad you still were along, though, even if silent.

Kiray Nastayo (King of the Zempk):

We didn't interact much, but all the times we did were great!

Lind Whisperer (Lind Whisperer):

I'm satisfied with his character. And I'm glad I can say that.

Petaldan Parfenius (Played by Palathadric):

Played consistently.

The Demon Germ (samurai-turtle):

Germ is a fun character, and, frankly, undervalued. I think he and Lind really got each other, a little bit, and it was fun teasing each other, with both PCs and players knowing it was teasing, and having fun with it. (And thanks for playing along with the Crescent stuff, as the first person to vote for Lind, it meant something)

Sad he doesn't seem to have come with us to the Hall, but you mentioned he wanted to leave Heroica - so I'm going to assume he did that. Glad that he got out safely, before it killed him!

Throlar Wineghilm (Lord Duvors):

A controversial character, but I've always liked him. He sticks to his morals, even when others don't approve. Well played!

Torald Waruelf, Matchmaker (Alfadas):

Sad to see you go. But what a way to go! Well played(and thanks for playing along with the Crescent stuff)!

 

*For leaving the game at nearly level 30, I seem to have played under a very short list of QMs. :blush::laugh:

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Might as well get the ball rolling.

So, 159. I said in the General Discussion thread that this quest sums up the best and worst of Heroica, and I think that’s a fair statement. This quest had a lot going for it and a lot going on, it was big and grand while still carrying a lot of pathos and weight.

I love how ‘low’ the stakes were, at least at the beginning. Having the Founders be the ignition point for everything makes so much sense, it centers the conflict on the heart of Heroica and makes it all very personal. Fair warning, as a general rule, I liked the Founders as villains way more than Rosier. Rosier felt very over-the-top and a little too ‘end of the world’ for my tastes, though she worked well as an ultimate final boss for Heroica. Still, I like how the Founders centered everything on Eubric itself, especially Heroica. Every hero had their stake in fighting the Founders. They set a tone where things were serious, but not necessarily world-endingly serious. My best comparison is the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect – the conflict is solid and personal, but on a level where the ‘plot’ can still focus on tying up loose ends and wrapping up character arcs.

All-in-all, the first act was fantastic. Everyone trickling back into the Hall had a good sense of nostalgia, but also carried the sense of the end of an age. Sorrow’s death, while obviously unplanned by WBD, did a really good job in emphasizing that ‘old Heroica’ was gone, and something new was coming. And then, yeah, the Houses are torn down and the Founders show up from the dead, and all the Heroes are kicked out. Immediately there’s a big mystery set, and a lot of angles to cover. I loved everyone meeting back up in Lady Luck’s Locale, especially Hoke’s line as everyone saunters into this dump. There’s a clear sense that we’re going to have to fight to redeem ourselves, to reclaim what’s ours. Also, in the Locale, I love the clear tension there is between the groups of heroes. Everyone’s thrown in together with an extensive net of histories and conflicts, and I think a big part of the arc of this quest was everyone going from this initial tension to the united front we show against Rosier. The barroom blitz was a lot of fun, and introduced a lot of cool mechanics in terms of specials. All the enemy specials in this quest definitely felt like ‘endgame’ specials, and I think that was a cool move.

Everyone split up heading into Act 2, which is where I think a lot of the problems began to creep in. I really liked the group division, though I wish there had been a little more crossover. I think the biggest problem at this point was a pendulum between feeling railroaded and directionless. For the most part there was a solid middle line struck between the two, but other times there was a clear tension. I think the whole thing with trying to commune with the Golden Dragon was the biggest example of this, and my personal biggest frustration. We were clearly guided towards the Dragon House, presumably with the intention of proving that the Founders were fake. Yet, after jumping through several hoops to get to that point – including traps in the House, picking the lock, fighting a wave of dragons, then marching over to the Ziegfrieds and back – after all of that, we were put up against what was clearly intended to be an impossible boss fight. I like that the Founders were a legitimate challenge, but it definitely felt at this point like we explicitly weren’t supposed to talk to the Golden Dragon – in which case, why not just say so? I don’t know, I just recall feeling pretty strung along at that point. I think after that point things picked up, even despite some inactivity in the group. I really liked the freeform nature of Eubric in this quest, and how it felt like we had to rely on the resources and connections we’d collected over the past seven years of playing in this city, but I think that same freeform nature was also often pretty daunting. We were given a lot of dots and expected to connect them, but we were given leisure to connect them ourselves, which sometimes brought some confusion, I think.

Act 3 was solid. I enjoyed everyone meeting back up and swapping notes, and slowly coming to conclusions. The charge on Fort Freedom was a lot of fun, and felt appropriately ‘big.’ I think my only real disappointment in this stage was how easily the Founders were swayed. I went into the fight expecting a huge showdown with all of Heroica against these five absolute powerhouse enemies, and I’m a little sad we didn’t get that. Again, I thought they were much more interesting as villains than Rosier – but that may have been partly due to Dyric’s investment. He was much more set on redeeming Heroica and fighting the ‘fake Miracleworker’ than he was on going after this archdemon, and we were both pretty surprised when the Founders could just be talked down. The Rosier fight was still well and cool and big, but I can’t help but feel that the Founder fight would have been more dynamic. That said, the dream sequence was superb, and was very well done. A very eerie sensation.

All in all, very strong. It felt very fitting for Heroica’s swan song. I loved being able to openly travel through Eubric and recruit old allies and resources, and I enjoyed the ‘moving through the city’ mechanics. That said, I wonder if the loose structure of the Quest may have hurt elements of it in the long run, or at least I think the guidelines could have been a little clearer. There were a couple times where it felt like we were floundering for an answer. That, and my criticisms of Rosier, are my only real knocks on a largely fantastic conclusion. I loved seeing Heroica and Eubric assemble one last time, and I loved the amount of small character moments that were parked into this big, grand finale. I want to talk about individual characters in a future post, as well as the conclusion of Dyric’s own arc. Thanks to WBD for a stellar finale, I can’t imagine the pressure behind closing out something like Heroica, but you did it with style!

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On 11/1/2018 at 1:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

The Demon Germ (samurai-turtle):

Sad he doesn't seem to have come with us to the Hall, but you mentioned he wanted to leave Heroica - so I'm going to assume he did that. Glad that he got out safely, before it killed him!

I hope you have some answers now. Their is a little more left but @Waterbrick Down is going to put the last bit up, with everyone else's "stories". 

I guess I should put something down... I really don't have much say about the quest story. (It seems like any thoughts I might have someone else already or could say.) As for the other "players" they seem to play it better than I do, in my head. Heck, I feel like a "new player" most of the time, even though I have been playing this game for a couple of years now. Plus, to me their does seem like their is some snobbery at times. And I can see that putting off some new potential players (just my two cents). And with this quest being so long and half of players just going silent without any warning, didn't help the quest in general... I hope my random thoughts were not to confusing. 

As for Germ himself...at times I wonder if it was a good idea to even use him in general. (As I mentioned other places.) I depowered him down to avoid being a "cheater". In my head he could get in a fight with Superman and maybe win. :def_shrug: (But that might just be me and my odd way of thinking, like some sort of geek.) Witch was his motivation "get back to power". And yes, he was an E.T. but to him it was no big deal, seeing he has been to multiple planets and this just another planet to him. Another part of his personality was formed from this, seeing as being in Heroica was "not his first rodeo" it might of made him a little jaded to boot. Plus, part of my story style was trying to put out bits and pieces of his story. I guess part of my reason for doing this is my indecisiveness for any commitment to make it set in stone. :sceptic: Another part of his personality was he really didn't like most of the other "Heros" (if you couldn't tell :sarcasm:). And part of the reason was because he was not "human" like them. Also he thought how they where doing things was wrong most of the time. Plus, the "Heros" seem to have their clicks and Germ didn't seem to be in any of them. (I think this might of been where some of the snobbery came in that I mentioned earlier.) 

Part of me wonders at times why I stayed around so long? Their was a time I was not getting picked for quest and I felt that I should just leave. A little story here, at first I would wonder why anyone would leave this game but after this "forced inactive" I started to get why people would disappear. On a kinda of different note, I also thought of "second" characters to use, so I can soft reset. But, now since the game seem to be over, and if it does go on, I figured it would be appropriate time to change characters. Again, I hope my random thoughts where not to confusing. 

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4 hours ago, samurai-turtle said:

I hope you have some answers now. Their is a little more left but @Waterbrick Down is going to put the last bit up, with everyone else's "stories". 

I guess I should put something down... I really don't have much say about the quest story. (It seems like any thoughts I might have someone else already or could say.) As for the other "players" they seem to play it better than I do, in my head. Heck, I feel like a "new player" most of the time, even though I have been playing this game for a couple of years now. Plus, to me their does seem like their is some snobbery at times. And I can see that putting off some new potential players (just my two cents). And with this quest being so long and half of players just going silent without any warning, didn't help the quest in general... I hope my random thoughts were not to confusing. 

As for Germ himself...at times I wonder if it was a good idea to even use him in general. (As I mentioned other places.) I depowered him down to avoid being a "cheater". In my head he could get in a fight with Superman and maybe win. :def_shrug: (But that might just be me and my odd way of thinking, like some sort of geek.) Witch was his motivation "get back to power". And yes, he was an E.T. but to him it was no big deal, seeing he has been to multiple planets and this just another planet to him. Another part of his personality was formed from this, seeing as being in Heroica was "not his first rodeo" it might of made him a little jaded to boot. Plus, part of my story style was trying to put out bits and pieces of his story. I guess part of my reason for doing this is my indecisiveness for any commitment to make it set in stone. :sceptic: Another part of his personality was he really didn't like most of the other "Heros" (if you couldn't tell :sarcasm:). And part of the reason was because he was not "human" like them. Also he thought how they where doing things was wrong most of the time. Plus, the "Heros" seem to have their clicks and Germ didn't seem to be in any of them. (I think this might of been where some of the snobbery came in that I mentioned earlier.) 

Part of me wonders at times why I stayed around so long? Their was a time I was not getting picked for quest and I felt that I should just leave. A little story here, at first I would wonder why anyone would leave this game but after this "forced inactive" I started to get why people would disappear. On a kinda of different note, I also thought of "second" characters to use, so I can soft reset. But, now since the game seem to be over, and if it does go on, I figured it would be appropriate time to change characters. Again, I hope my random thoughts where not to confusing. 

Sad to hear that you have been struggling to find your place in this game. I guess one big issue with Demon Germ is that he is really hard to roleplay since he isn't as human as other characters. This point is often valid in most RPG's and it's even harder when you are not playing RPG:s in real life but only via text. I guess it also has to do what you want to get out of the roleplay, in my opinion it's not as rewarding to play a super-charged character that's almost invulnerable as to play a slightly more human character (human being irrational and emotional, not really a question of selection of species). From what I have seen this has been a hard time to for you when it comes to making your character relate to other characters. I don't know, roleplaying is hard and others probably can probably explain these things better than me.

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9 hours ago, samurai-turtle said:

As for Germ himself...at times I wonder if it was a good idea to even use him in general. (As I mentioned other places.) I depowered him down to avoid being a "cheater". In my head he could get in a fight with Superman and maybe win. :def_shrug: (But that might just be me and my odd way of thinking, like some sort of geek.) Witch was his motivation "get back to power". And yes, he was an E.T. but to him it was no big deal, seeing he has been to multiple planets and this just another planet to him. Another part of his personality was formed from this, seeing as being in Heroica was "not his first rodeo" it might of made him a little jaded to boot. Plus, part of my story style was trying to put out bits and pieces of his story. I guess part of my reason for doing this is my indecisiveness for any commitment to make it set in stone.

4 hours ago, MysticModulus said:

Sad to hear that you have been struggling to find your place in this game. I guess one big issue with Demon Germ is that he is really hard to roleplay since he isn't as human as other characters. This point is often valid in most RPG's and it's even harder when you are not playing RPG:s in real life but only via text. I guess it also has to do what you want to get out of the roleplay, in my opinion it's not as rewarding to play a super-charged character that's almost invulnerable as to play a slightly more human character (human being irrational and emotional, not really a question of selection of species). From what I have seen this has been a hard time to for you when it comes to making your character relate to other characters. I don't know, roleplaying is hard and others probably can probably explain these things better than me.

If I've learned one thing from this game, it's that coming to the story with a too much of a backstory, usually isn't as much fun as having your character respond to things, and building their character up that way.

Just a simple outline works best, I think.

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Yeah, I think too much internal monologue just doesn't work in a game like this, especially for a character that is so inhuman (can I say "inhumane"? :tongue: ) Germ was so out there that he was very hard for other characters to relate to. Monk Pretzel was probably his closest thing to a friend. :poke:

In truth, I did enjoy some of Germ's internal monologues (the ones I could understand), and quite a number of his lines were utterly hilarious, but overall he was a little incomprehensible, even if not to the other players, then certainly to the other characters.

Just my thoughts.

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On 11/1/2018 at 12:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

Suppose I'll break the ice - not terribly long reviews, but I'll try and hit everything:

The Quest: Perfect. Hit all the points, and kept surprising. Only notable criticisms might be that what we were supposed to do, to "fix" the city, at the end, felt slightly ambiguous - there wasn't any guidelines provided as to how to proceed, or what we should am for - but, I suppose that was the point, it was ultimately our choice. Giving any more guidance than you did, might - and probably would have - provoked criticism - however unwarranted - that it was a "rail-roaded" ending. So in the end, I think you made the right choice.

I think you've struck upon one of the biggest struggles I faced with this quest: how to give a satisfactory conclusion to every player. I think we all intrinsically wanted a happy ending, peace restored, evil vanquished, etc. the trick was allowing to come naturally as opposed to directing all the players in a "rail-road" fashion. Glad to know it worked for you. :classic:

On 11/1/2018 at 12:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

Also, from what I remember from before I hopped in - thanks, also, for letting so many players jump in, even though it had already started long before! - after the party left the tavern, there seemed to be the same lack of specific directions to head in - but this can be dismissed with the same reasons as before. So...yes, basically as close to a perfect quest as I remember, and definitely an ending far, far, far better than I expected. 

While the extra players was a little daunting balance wise, I was glad to incorporate whoever wanted to come along. Given the number of years people have sank into this game, I figured everyone deserved a chance to be there for the finale as much as they could manage. All in all I think we had five extra players who jumped in mid-stream, but I don't think I would have wanted it any other way.

On 11/1/2018 at 12:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

I also especially appreciated how open you were to suggestions - no offense, Kintober, *thinks*...uh, Kintober, and Endgame...and Endgame...and Endgame* - but WBD, I think you're probably the best QM I've ever played under. You were always open to suggestions, and handled them with an incredible maturity and thoughtfulness. You were always willing to listen to the players, and you skillfully allowed the players to push for small changes that didn't seem to be in your original plan(like when the Founders went off to stop Rosier, so we could save the fort as well as the elven city).

The more I've gotten into RPG's, the more I'm convinced that allowing people to play how they want and being open to reasonable changes in the middle of a game make things more enjoyable for everyone as opposed to making folks stay locked in to my particular vision of how the story should go.

On 11/1/2018 at 12:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

Questions:

  1. It's silly, but what was in the Dragon House package?
  2. Was Byblos ever scheduled to make an appearance?
  3. What would have happened if we had saved the Fort, but not stopped Rosier?
  4. What would have happened if we had stopped Rosier, but not saved the Fort/stopped the Hangings?
  5. Was there ever any plans for PCs to travel to the elven city? Was that ever a possibility?

1. The remainder of the dragon eggs that the count was sent to protect in the event of anything happening to Cain. The Founders needed to ensure that any considerable force that might be used against them was under control. Hence why the moved on the Tritech corp to secure the company's automatons.
2. Only in name to give a clue as to what was happening in the Fae. The epilogue with Torald was unplanned until he decided to step into the void.
3. Rosier would have eventually broken through the door and into the city between the worlds spreading her control to countless other planes of existence.
4. The Founders would have hanged Heroica's supporters, then moved to quell the Hovels uprising, and at last start hunting down the heroes.
5. In theory it was a possible ending, but I figured it was better as an epilogue as opposed to making it part of the quest ending. There was already so much going on, throwing a wrench like an inter-dimensional portal into the mix seemed too much.

On 11/1/2018 at 12:15 AM, Lind Whisperer said:

Skrall (Waterbrick Down):

The way you've played Skrall is very impressive - never too much on one side or the other, very much his own deal. Saw it back in Moone, and saw it again here, even though you were clearly hampered a bit by having to have him act as both a PC and as an NPC of sorts. Well done!

Having not been able to play Skrall in over a year, I was really starting to miss the guy. I'm glad he was able to be there in the end even if it was a quasi-NPC. I'm satisfied with his ending and glad for everything he's been able to experience.

Thanks again for all your feedback, I know I've given you grief previously about your play style, but I'm glad Lind was able to come along for the end of the ride. I've really seen you grow as a player over the years and am glad you've been willing to allow this game to positively shape both your PC and your play style.

On 11/5/2018 at 11:32 PM, The Legonater said:

Might as well get the ball rolling.

So, 159. I said in the General Discussion thread that this quest sums up the best and worst of Heroica, and I think that’s a fair statement. This quest had a lot going for it and a lot going on, it was big and grand while still carrying a lot of pathos and weight.

I love how ‘low’ the stakes were, at least at the beginning. Having the Founders be the ignition point for everything makes so much sense, it centers the conflict on the heart of Heroica and makes it all very personal. Fair warning, as a general rule, I liked the Founders as villains way more than Rosier. Rosier felt very over-the-top and a little too ‘end of the world’ for my tastes, though she worked well as an ultimate final boss for Heroica. Still, I like how the Founders centered everything on Eubric itself, especially Heroica. Every hero had their stake in fighting the Founders. They set a tone where things were serious, but not necessarily world-endingly serious. My best comparison is the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect – the conflict is solid and personal, but on a level where the ‘plot’ can still focus on tying up loose ends and wrapping up character arcs.

I'll speak more about this further down in the post, but the Founders were never intended to be straight up villains. They were an ideal from a bygone era, however because they were actually the Founders in spirit it meant they were in the end rational and I think it speaks volumes to Heroica's ability to solve the conflict with them through peace rather than war. I think the perspective of Rosier as a villain may be dependent upon which sub-quest you were on. The sewer's party got to deal first hand with the problems she was causing, but I'll admit for the other parties it probably came out of left field a little bit that the archdemon was pulling the strings behind everything even if it was inadvertently. I still like to think of the Fort battle as the climax of the quest, it really got to the heart of the issue, the Rosier battle was simply the heroes doing what heroes do best; kicking the megablocks out of archdemons!

On 11/5/2018 at 11:32 PM, The Legonater said:

All-in-all, the first act was fantastic. Everyone trickling back into the Hall had a good sense of nostalgia, but also carried the sense of the end of an age. Sorrow’s death, while obviously unplanned by WBD, did a really good job in emphasizing that ‘old Heroica’ was gone, and something new was coming. And then, yeah, the Houses are torn down and the Founders show up from the dead, and all the Heroes are kicked out. Immediately there’s a big mystery set, and a lot of angles to cover. I loved everyone meeting back up in Lady Luck’s Locale, especially Hoke’s line as everyone saunters into this dump. There’s a clear sense that we’re going to have to fight to redeem ourselves, to reclaim what’s ours. Also, in the Locale, I love the clear tension there is between the groups of heroes. Everyone’s thrown in together with an extensive net of histories and conflicts, and I think a big part of the arc of this quest was everyone going from this initial tension to the united front we show against Rosier. The barroom blitz was a lot of fun, and introduced a lot of cool mechanics in terms of specials. All the enemy specials in this quest definitely felt like ‘endgame’ specials, and I think that was a cool move.

The quest structure was intentional. I was certainly hoping for a "Starwars: New Hope" feel and am glad that came across in the opening act. I completely agree watching everyone having to intentionally interact and react to the predicament they found themselves in was great. It was cool to see interactions between certain PC's that wouldn't happen usually.  As far as specials go, I'm not one for battle mechanics, but I figured with this being the last quest we might as well try some new things to give people some variety.

On 11/5/2018 at 11:32 PM, The Legonater said:

Everyone split up heading into Act 2, which is where I think a lot of the problems began to creep in. I really liked the group division, though I wish there had been a little more crossover. I think the biggest problem at this point was a pendulum between feeling railroaded and directionless. For the most part there was a solid middle line struck between the two, but other times there was a clear tension. I think the whole thing with trying to commune with the Golden Dragon was the biggest example of this, and my personal biggest frustration. We were clearly guided towards the Dragon House, presumably with the intention of proving that the Founders were fake. Yet, after jumping through several hoops to get to that point – including traps in the House, picking the lock, fighting a wave of dragons, then marching over to the Ziegfrieds and back – after all of that, we were put up against what was clearly intended to be an impossible boss fight. I like that the Founders were a legitimate challenge, but it definitely felt at this point like we explicitly weren’t supposed to talk to the Golden Dragon – in which case, why not just say so? I don’t know, I just recall feeling pretty strung along at that point. I think after that point things picked up, even despite some inactivity in the group. I really liked the freeform nature of Eubric in this quest, and how it felt like we had to rely on the resources and connections we’d collected over the past seven years of playing in this city, but I think that same freeform nature was also often pretty daunting. We were given a lot of dots and expected to connect them, but we were given leisure to connect them ourselves, which sometimes brought some confusion, I think.

This was the hardest part of the quest, keeping all three groups involved and somewhat balanced on their different paths. The one I kind of hurt the most for is the dragon house group. I'll admit I wasn't sure how to handle your idea to go get a necromancer to actually question the corpse of the Golden Dragon. I figured you had your answer, i.e. the breathing Golden Dragon is obviously a fake because her corpse is in the crypt, and wasn't sure how more information would help you. I wanted to express how dangerous things were to be out in the open, i.e. the dragon fight, but also wanted to communicate that the heroes couldn't move about the city freely, i.e. the Doomsayer fight. In the end I think it worked out, Flipz joined the quest and the Chesterine Matthias arc began, but I probably could have handled the execution better. The dots connecting was intentional, I didn't want one group of heroes running the show, I wanted everyone to have to work together and bring their pieces of the puzzle to the light, that obviously allows for some confusion just as a jumbled puzzle does, but I think it resulted in a better collaborative experience for everybody.

On 11/5/2018 at 11:32 PM, The Legonater said:

Act 3 was solid. I enjoyed everyone meeting back up and swapping notes, and slowly coming to conclusions. The charge on Fort Freedom was a lot of fun, and felt appropriately ‘big.’ I think my only real disappointment in this stage was how easily the Founders were swayed. I went into the fight expecting a huge showdown with all of Heroica against these five absolute powerhouse enemies, and I’m a little sad we didn’t get that. Again, I thought they were much more interesting as villains than Rosier – but that may have been partly due to Dyric’s investment. He was much more set on redeeming Heroica and fighting the ‘fake Miracleworker’ than he was on going after this archdemon, and we were both pretty surprised when the Founders could just be talked down. The Rosier fight was still well and cool and big, but I can’t help but feel that the Founder fight would have been more dynamic. That said, the dream sequence was superb, and was very well done. A very eerie sensation.

As I touched on the first part the Founders were unfortunately never meant to be the overarching villains, also when the Founders entered the battle it definitely felt like most of players thought the battle was unfair, I'll touch on this later. The best compromise I could come up with was to allow the Founders to be swayed and aim for a better balanced battle with Rosier. I really appreciated Dyric's interactions with the Miracleworker and the arc he went through I thought was fitting. The dream sequence was something I was really looking forward to and am glad you enjoyed it. The trope is often seen in plenty of pop culture and I was excited to see how well it could be pulled off in an RPG game like Heroica.

On 11/5/2018 at 11:32 PM, The Legonater said:

All in all, very strong. It felt very fitting for Heroica’s swan song. I loved being able to openly travel through Eubric and recruit old allies and resources, and I enjoyed the ‘moving through the city’ mechanics. That said, I wonder if the loose structure of the Quest may have hurt elements of it in the long run, or at least I think the guidelines could have been a little clearer. There were a couple times where it felt like we were floundering for an answer. That, and my criticisms of Rosier, are my only real knocks on a largely fantastic conclusion. I loved seeing Heroica and Eubric assemble one last time, and I loved the amount of small character moments that were parked into this big, grand finale. I want to talk about individual characters in a future post, as well as the conclusion of Dyric’s own arc. Thanks to WBD for a stellar finale, I can’t imagine the pressure behind closing out something like Heroica, but you did it with style!

Freedom vs guidelines has always been a particular sticking point for me. I'm glad it didn't interfere to much in your enjoyment and I'm glad to have had Dyric participate so much. Dyric has always been one of those PC's I wished I could have run a story specific quest for as I think you've struck the balance between having a character informed by his past but not weighed down by it. His interactions with heroes both old and new has always been refreshing and as a QM encouraging to know that I have a player willing to get along with everybody else. Thanks for all the great moments you and Dyric have brought over the years.

On 11/7/2018 at 10:29 PM, samurai-turtle said:

I guess I should put something down... I really don't have much say about the quest story. (It seems like any thoughts I might have someone else already or could say.) As for the other "players" they seem to play it better than I do, in my head. Heck, I feel like a "new player" most of the time, even though I have been playing this game for a couple of years now. Plus, to me their does seem like their is some snobbery at times. And I can see that putting off some new potential players (just my two cents). And with this quest being so long and half of players just going silent without any warning, didn't help the quest in general... I hope my random thoughts were not to confusing. 

I don't think Germ's thoughts are confusing, they simply come across as an inner monologue, which usually work in books or films, but are incredibly difficult to pull off in RPG's without breaking the immersion of the moment. The quest was indeed long, but I'm glad you stuck through it and I think Germ provided some of the more balanced perspective in keeping everyone grounded.

On 11/7/2018 at 10:29 PM, samurai-turtle said:

As for Germ himself...at times I wonder if it was a good idea to even use him in general. (As I mentioned other places.) I depowered him down to avoid being a "cheater". In my head he could get in a fight with Superman and maybe win. :def_shrug: (But that might just be me and my odd way of thinking, like some sort of geek.) Witch was his motivation "get back to power". And yes, he was an E.T. but to him it was no big deal, seeing he has been to multiple planets and this just another planet to him. Another part of his personality was formed from this, seeing as being in Heroica was "not his first rodeo" it might of made him a little jaded to boot. Plus, part of my story style was trying to put out bits and pieces of his story. I guess part of my reason for doing this is my indecisiveness for any commitment to make it set in stone. :sceptic: Another part of his personality was he really didn't like most of the other "Heros" (if you couldn't tell :sarcasm:). And part of the reason was because he was not "human" like them. Also he thought how they where doing things was wrong most of the time. Plus, the "Heros" seem to have their clicks and Germ didn't seem to be in any of them. (I think this might of been where some of the snobbery came in that I mentioned earlier.) 

I'd agree with you, Germ never quite fit into a group. I thought we might have something a while back between Boris, Nalguz, Germ, and Na'im as the misfit group, but unfortunately that pairing didn't get to make it to other quests. :sad: I do have to give you credit for trying to play Germ as 'other'. Most of the time when people play a non-human race we tend to simply make our characters different colored-humans, or scaly humans, or humans with wings, or tusks and never really get into the parts that make the character not-human. Seeing things from an alien perspective is hard enough, responding and interacting with the alien perspective is tremendously more difficult. For what it's worth I think its awesome that you tried.:thumbup:

On 11/7/2018 at 10:29 PM, samurai-turtle said:

Part of me wonders at times why I stayed around so long? Their was a time I was not getting picked for quest and I felt that I should just leave. A little story here, at first I would wonder why anyone would leave this game but after this "forced inactive" I started to get why people would disappear. On a kinda of different note, I also thought of "second" characters to use, so I can soft reset. But, now since the game seem to be over, and if it does go on, I figured it would be appropriate time to change characters. Again, I hope my random thoughts where not to confusing. 

RP'ing is tough enough with a small group, with a large group of 20 something or more people there are going to be plenty of times where a PC can get lost in the confusion. I think part of the hard part of relating to Germ was he seemed too aloof or too focused on his backstory and not on the stuff going on around him. RPing requires some suspension of disbelief and Germ sometimes seemed to omniscient which made interacting with him as a PC difficult. Granted it also allowed him to be a voice of reason within the group, so he had that going for him. I'm glad you decided to to be on this quest and like Lind I do think Germ has grown over the years. Maybe not in ways you might have anticipated, but it was growth none the less.

More to come this evening...

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Alrighty folks, so I'm still not sure where to begin. But first off, let me reiterate how thankful I am to everyone who took part in the finale. Looking back over the community we built over the years, it's astonishing what we managed to pull off. Not only did we create a game system, we created an entire world, history, and experience unlike anything I've ever had the honor to be a part of. To Sandy most of all, thank you! To the QM's and players, you have been amazing! Now on to the quest.

During the later part of 2017 it became apparent that we were really starting to lose our player base, rather than let this game simply fizzle I thought I'd try my hand at bring things to some sort of fitting conclusion. I've never been great at huge overarching quests and I think some of those inadequacies showed up in 159, but I figured everyone deserved an ending to what we had created. Right from the onset I knew I wanted to bring the Founders into the quest somehow. With so much lore and mystery surrounding them, I figured this would be the last shot to expand upon them. From there I needed to figure out how they managed to arrive on the scene. Time travel was a little too sci-fi for my taste and necromancy was a little too cliche, so I landed on simulacrum. I had been watching a bit of HBO's West World recently and the whole concept of beings born of dreams and instilled with life fascinated me. So I knew that the Founders were going to be based on someone's dreams/memories, that was no problem, it had been established earlier that Euflear was still around, I simply needed a mechanism from which to create the simulacrum. Enter in Rosier. A being tied to the Fae, of which Euflear was closely tied, and who had a history of run-ins with Heroica, i.e. all the archdemon and Pandemonicon quests. Her quest to devour all things fairy dust, a substance of pure creation and morphology, created the tie for the creation of simulacrum's of any being's hopes and dreams she fed off of. Euflear's remembered the Founders in their prime, their first quest would thus be to ensure the safety of Eubric. From there evolved all the setup of the quest, the exposing of the houses, the take-over of the hall, etc. With the stage set we were ready for Act 1. I do remember when the Walking Mountain and the Doomsayer walked into the Hall, the response was just perfect as folks began to make the connections as to their identities. Atramor's exit was also incredibly fitting as has been previously noted.

Act 1 was pretty straight forward, present the heroes with the fallout of the Founder's takeover and let the chips fall. The vast majority of the quest was intended to be free-form and it was super exciting to watch all of the groups develop and start to formulate ideas on how to handle the situation. Pretty early on some of the heroes emerged as leaders of the smaller parties and I was glad to see everyone somewhat organize themselves without having to do it for them. I can remember thinking that you all did a fantastic job in deciding on differing lines of investigation and checking out the different leads. The bar-room fight was geared toward reinforcing the rebellion sort of feel to the quest and I think it worked well. It was cool to see how some of the heroes definitely weighed their actions since they had had previous dealings with some of the town watch and paladins before.

Act 2 was chaotic to say the least. While it was fun allowing folks to pretty much have free run of the city, handling three groups at a time was exhausting and I'm grateful for all of your patience while I ran the sections. The dragon house group definitely ran into some of the toughest challenges, both intentionally and unintentionally due to their level. It was fairly straightforward but I think the group had one of the biggest impacts upon the overall quest by recruiting Bellanotte and defeating the Doomsayer. The dragon fight was probably one of the toughest I've ever designed and it was pretty amazing watching a high level party work together so well. The dragon puzzle was also high in terms of difficulty, but thankfully the group was pretty dedicated. I've said it earlier, but I am sorry about the Doomsayer fight, in retrospect I realize I didn't do a great job of communicating to the party that returning to the Dragon House might have consequences and that the Doomsayer may have been too much for the party to handle alone. Granted the party managed to find away around the mechanics of the fight and I'll admit I was a little frustrated with it, but in the end I think it all turned out for the best. The Golden Dragon conversations and Matthias's interaction with Chesterine more than made up for the gaff and I think it helped me with some of the other Founder fights in the other quests. After the Dragon House I was glad to see the group head for the Embassy and rescue the Lion Knights as I felt the group certainly deserved to have their spot in the finale.

The Hovels group was interesting, they certainly found out some of the earliest information regarding Rosier and Germ's memories certainly helped to nudge folks in the right direction. The bits with Elphaba were great in my opinion and I feel she's always been an underused NPC, outside of her merchant role. The tracking of the flowers and the Hanging Gardens scene were just how I had hoped. The party's bits with Waldorf and the puzzle door were perfect and while I was originally worried no one would figure it out, you pulled through. The fight with Lady Luck was more in line with what I had planned, essentially previewing their strength and elaborating a little more on the Founder's motives/future plans. As the party headed underground, Torald's relationship with the Pandemonicon deepened and I am so thankful to Alfadas for running with the entire bit, it really helped to be able to give the players a nudge when necessary. The group picked up more clues as to Rosier's intentions and finding the Oracle cemented the real danger the city was in.

Heading into the Sewers Party subquest I wasn't quite sure what to expect, however the group had some of the most influential RP exchanges out of all the subquests. From their interrogation of Rook at the Eubric Herald, the negotiations with Ulric, the tracking of Asa, to the last minute warp from Tritech, and the final battle in the Fae and rescue of Euflear the party was a thrill to watch. This group also managed to pick up the most extra PC's netting Skrall, Lind, Benji, and Heckz. All in all it was a lot of fun hopping from area to area. The Tritech fight with the Walking Mountain was as nail-biting as I had hoped and the assault on Rosier's forces in the Fae was excellent teamwork. With the last pieces of the puzzle, the groups were ready to put everything together.

Act 3 took a little to get going, while it was exciting watching everyone bring all of the clues together I will admit the free form nature of the quest did make it a bit chaotic when it came time for everything to coalesce. I really wasn't sure what the group would do in terms of either going to stop Rosier or confront the Founders, but I think it really speaks to the heroic nature that's been cultivated over the years in a lot of the heroes to stop the immediate death of the innocents. Storming the fort brought with it some interesting challenges mechanically. With such a large party (28ish I believe) level discrepancies were unavoidable, thankfully I think for the most part the battle ended up being manageable. The actual Founders battle was something I stressed over for a while, I knew I wanted to make them powerful, the epitome of heroes, but at the same time conceivably beatable. Because of the system we run, statistical swinginess is somewhat unavoidable and all in all it felt like there was some reservation about the balance. In the interest of allowing for a satisfying confrontation, I decided to let the Founders take a rational approach to the problem at hand. After all they were Euflear's unknowing creations and while I know some of the heroes were really chomping at the bit to have a go at them, I figured it was better to allow for the final combat to get to the root of the problem. I figured it wouldn't have felt right to have two climactic battles and thus in order to preserve the Rosier confrontation diplomacy won out. As mentioned in an earlier post, the dream sequence was one that I had been planning for a while and I'm glad the ruse lasted as long as it did. The Rosier fight itself was almost deadly after the first round, but in true form everyone finally worked together and saw out the victory. The ending negotiations wasn't something I had quite planned on, but it sort of made sense given the state of the city and hopefully everyone was somewhat satisfied with the way things turned out. I will say that I hope no one felt slighted for not ending up a veteran. I contacted each of you about how you saw your characters ending up and a lot of you had a preference for veteranship. Hopefully I was able to capture the consensus of the group and I did not intend for anyone to feel slighted or looked down upon if they weren't nominated. In my book you're all worthy of veteranship.

From a quest overview perspective, I enjoyed my time. The battles were some of the toughest I've ever had to manage, the puzzles were great watching everyone tackle them, the sheer number of NPC's I got to bring back was enjoyable in and of itself, and getting to allow everyone one last romp through Eubric brought me a lot of joy.

I'll have more to say about individual players in another post and my thoughts for the future of Heroica or whatever game comes next. But I've got to say that over the past years this game has meant so much to me. Since I started, I began dating my now wife, graduated college, got a job in my field, got married, had a kid, had several close relatives pass away, and through it all this community has been part of that. I didn't even know what an RPG was until I started playing Heroica and now I DM 2 D&D games on a regular basis. This game has kept my love of LEGO alive and has allowed me to progress in my building skills farther than I probably ever would have wanted to go. This game has yielded such great friendships and I am truly grateful for each and every one of you. :cry_happy:

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PC Thoughts

Althior Emorith (K-Nut) - I'm glad Althior was able to come back for this last quest, it seemed fitting to have so many of the original players going at it one last time. While you were inactive for the latter half of the quest, your build mechanically saved the party on a couple occasions. As a whole, Althior's arc has always fascinated me, from starting mage, to depressed drunk, to prophet, you've always been good at allowing the character to change over time. You, Zepher, and CallMePie have in my opinion been the greatest examples of how to write familiars/companions well. While I was hesitant about Finnegan at first, I think you really showed how comedy could be done correctly through the use of a secondary voice without taking the focus off of your main character. Althior was also a great example of house alliance, while Arthur actually integrated himself into the Ziegfried family, I believe Althior did an excellent job of showing how dedicated a character can be to a cause/family without having a real stake in its survival. I only had the pleasure of hosting you for one quest prior to this one, but that one quest (116) was probably one of my favorites to host. Playing in quests along side you was as much a joy and even though both Skrall and I can never keep Althior and Atramor straight, your dedication to this game has been appreciated.

Atramor Gibbin (CallMePie) - From the moment this game started you have never been afraid to have Atramor embrace the rogue with a heart of gold trope. You never really strayed from that mold, but I don't think any of us would have ever wanted you to. You really showed how the trope can be played without allowing it to become stale or predictable. Like K-Nut, I'm really happy you were around for the finale and as I mentioned in a previous post I can't express how fitting it was for Atramor to be the last one to leave the Hall at the beginning of Quest 159. In quest you pulled off your leadership roll swimmingly and I don't think anyone would disagree that no one was more deserving of the position of overall party leader and Atramor's eventual veteranship. Like Althior, Atramor's relationship with McCaffery was amazing and really highlighted how to elaborate on someones background to other players without having Atramor ramble on to the other characters. I really wished we could have gotten a little more closure around McCaffery's story, but I think leaving some of the mystery helps maintain some of the coolness of the arrangement. Mechanically I think Atramor may have played the most interesting advanced classes. Between Witch, Regulator, Decamon Drafter, and Rogue Thief, Atramor's loadout made him a significant threat to any enemy and always a challenge to balance for. At somepoint I think I gave up trying to purposefully create enemies to take him out and simply let him do his thing. :laugh: Watching him play the first expert class I created was always a joy and it's cool to see how certain mechanics you invent in theory get applied by someone else. As one of the oldest players in the game, I got to not only host you, but be hosted by you, and play along side you in so many quests that it's hard to boil them all down into a single sentiment, but I've got to say, over the years you have been one of my favorite players to have in this game. Your insights into mechanics, storytelling, RPing, and your attitude with which you shared those is something that kept me coming back to this game again and again. It's been absolute thrill playing with you!

Benji Carvenhall (Flare) - It was really great to have you for the Finale. Even though you didn't pop in till Act 2, you still made a significant impact upon the quest. As a player Benji definitely took the eleven archer theme and ran with it which was cool to see. When you decided to go beast warrior and really play up the Jekyll/Hyde aspect of the class I was equally impressed. Your contributions to the game through your two quests always make me smile as they helped bring some levity to a sometimes to serious game and for that I'm grateful. As a member of the Quest 116 party, you will always be part of my favorite trio of heroes I had the pleasure of QMing.

Hoke Ablesword (UsernameMDM) - I think you've said it before, you are Hoke and Hoke is you. If nothing else it has made your character one of the most consistent in the game. :laugh: As another of the first wave of heroes, I think it was fitting having him along and take such a dominating role in the quest at least battle wise. Hoke has always been one of those characters I had a hard time balancing against and like Atramor I finally decided it was easier to simply allow him to do his thing and make sure the enemies don't get slaughtered too quickly. :tongue: Build wise, between Guts, Arthur, Pretzel, and Atramor, Hoke is probably one of the strongest forces to contend against and I've always respected your dedication to a mechanically sound build. I know you had a few moments of frustration with your class mechanics during this quest and I'm super grateful you compromised some of your advantages for the realism of the situations. Hoke has always been one of those characters whose goals are pretty straightforward. He wanted to be a dragoon and he kept to that path no matter what and I think your dedication to that goal should be admired. Your handling of Torc while different then a few of the other dragoons I felt fit Hoke's style. Hoke comes across as more of a GoT type fantasy character than a Eragon or high fantasy character and I think it did him well to extend those qualities to Torc. For all the flack you might get for not RPing too much, I think your final epilogue in quest 159 really showed off your writing chops and while I'm slightly sad we never saw any more of that, I'm glad you shared that with us in the end. :classic: As another player I've had the pleasure of hosting multiple times and playing along side, it was great to always have your dependable character. :thumbup:

Arthur Justus Regulus VII Ziegfried (Flipz) - Where to begin... Outside of Sandy I think you have cared more about the lore of this game than any other player. That and your dedication to giving constructive criticism to both players and QM's alike is something I've always admired about you. While I was sad to see you go with your hiatus I completely understand why and was overjoyed to have you back for the wrap up of Heroica. I think everyone would agree that no one can match your strategic reasoning and your propensity for figuring out the best tactics, but I think we often forget that you managed to integrate that seamlessly with your character's personality. It never felt jarring to have Arthur explain the best path forward, because that was who he was. I remember when you first started playing and being cautious at your enthusiasm, but I think over time you settled in well as a player that others could trust and a needed voice of perspective on how things both in game and out of game affected others. As a character, I've got to say, you managed to weave so much lore into Arthur that I sometime wonder if its a little too much. :laugh: You really swang into the deep end with the chaos arc, but I think you recovered well and were able to see the impact it had on how your character was perceived. Even then you didn't retcon those flaws or mistakes, you incorporated them expertly into the characterization of Arthur moving forward. All in all your contributions to this game would be too many to count, from the Theater and it's wacky plays, to expert job class analysis, to your wiki entries, to your very own quest. It's been an honor developing this world along side you and watching you grow as a player. I'll really miss playing with you. :cry_happy:

Dyric Rone(The Legonater) - The original assassin of light! I remember reading Dyric for the first time and simply pegging him as one of those loner angsty rogues with a tragic backstory, I'm glad you've proven me wrong a dozen times over. Dyric is a superb example of having a backstory that informs his character but doesn't control it. While I'm sort of disappointed we never got a full Duplovia quest line, I feel in someways that I've been there, just through how it has come out in Dryic's characterization. His overall arc is one of the best in Heroica and I think anyone would be remiss in not reading it. The ending you wrote for the character was fitting to a 't'. In quest it was fantastic to watch him really embrace the heroic outcast role and serve as other heroes' hope that things were turn out right in the end. I loved the somewhat existential crisis he had with the Miracle Worker and it was one of my favorite bits in the quest. I really only hosted Dyric once, but it was probably my favorite quest and the memories of the times Skrall got to travel with the assassin throughout the entire Wren arc will always be precious to me. Mechanically I have got to give you props for sticking with a single class for so long, it really speaks to your dedication of the character concept and I think he sort of developed a type in his own right. Like Atramor I think it speaks for itself how many people felt he deserved veteranship, and I think its a testament to your style as a player. It's been an absolute blast playing with you.

Karie Alderflask-Cour (Kintober) - One of the few characters I enjoy arguing with in character. :laugh: I was a little worried about how closely Karie was becoming tied to the syndicate lore, but I think you managed to keep her independent enough to not be tied down by it too closely. Karie is one of those characters that's easy to like, she's multifaceted which allows her to establish relationships with other PC's on multiple levels and I think that is what kept her engaging. As a player you did an excellent job of balancing backstory with changes your character faced from actual quests. You took the experiences such as Karie's constantly being hexed and rolled with it. While it may not be my favorite romance in Heroica, I think the way you realistically incorporated Masson into her story really helped breath life into your portrayal and I think your willingness to work with another QM to impact your character is commendable. As one of the few minstrels in the entirety of the game, I think you truly showed how game-changing a support class can be in Quest 159. I'm sorry we never really got to go into Kayla's backstory anymore, but I'm really glad you were willing to lead your particular party so strongly. Between the debate with Rook, Ulric, Patricia, and even the other heroes at the end, I think you were an excellent example of how to argue from a character's perspective and not simply from your own personal feelings and that was simply amazing to watch. Your epilogue was a great send-off and I'm glad Karie got some solace in the end. :classic:

Lord Lawrence Boomingham (Zepher) - Being among the early wave of heroes, Boomingham is another of the tried and true characters. You've played him for so long your interactions simply come across as natural. Like Atramor and Althior, you demonstrated perfectly how to portray a secondary voice in the character of Barty. I was truly saddened when he left and I shed a little tear at your nod to him in your epilogue. Out of all the characters you did the best job at allowing your backstory (and a pretty unique one at that) to not dictate the future of your character. Throughout the entirety of Heroica I don't think it ever felt like any of his progression was forced. He slid from one arc into the next seamlessly and you did a fantastic job of balancing inner and outer monologue. As a QM, outside of Sandy, I think you had one of the most impact storylines on all of Heroica with the Wren saga. I think it's been shared enough times that she really was one of the best villains we've ever had and I've got to give my hats off to you for giving us so many wonderful and unique NPC's over the years. Between Hans, Felton, Tadpole, Guffington, Gnash, Daneeka, Vipera, the list goes on and on each and everyone of them near and dear to not only my heart but all of the players of your quests. I got to host Boomingham quite a few times and each time was a delight, I'm sorry I never game him satisfying conclusions with sub-villains like Natnail or J. Smith, but it means the world to me to have had such minor characters have such an impact on the old king. In Quest 159, you demonstrated once more Boomingham's experience and perfect balance between authority and friendliness. He was a dependable voice of reason and the number of times I smiled at his responses are too many to count. When Sandy decided to leave, I'm glad I had you to work with to try and maintain some of the spirit of the game and while you, JimB, and I knew the inevitable was approaching it was nice to not have to face it alone. One of these days we'll have to meet in person and I will shake your hand for the tremendous impact you have had upon me as a writer and a RP'er. Thank you!

Matthias (Stickfig) - Matthias has always been one of my favorite PC's to QM and I've been lucky to have him on a few of my quests. As has been shared previously he's such a tremendous amount of fun to not only read but also interact with. The way you ran with the Chesterine interactions was perfect and I think you've done a fantastic job at letting the little guy grow as the years have gone by. I know life engagements can make involvement tough, but I'm thankful for your dependability and for always bring a cheerful attitude to the game both as a PC and as a player. As one of the newer wave of heroes before things started to slow down, I think you have been a great addition to the community and am glad that your character had such a lasting impact.

Monk Pretzel/Petaldan Parfenius (Palathadric) - I was never too sure how to take Pretzel. Was he supposed to be satirical? Either way I think you showed that regardless of how he started he was adaptable to the ever changing story around him. I remember hosting him in Quest 108 and 155 and really starting to grasp just how much he wanted to have a positive impact on the world around him. Even though the beginning was rough, he really came into his own eventually and I think made him a dependable ally to a lot of the characters. Mechanically, I think we can all agree at his point that the Artisan is OP :tongue:, you at least did a great job at showing off some of the more interesting combos, even if it did make balancing battles for him a nightmare. Petaldan has always felt somewhat like the opposite Pretzel, he isn't cynical, he has an innocence about him that is simply magnetic. Quest 149 really highlighted his character I believe and seeing him take a leading role in quest 159 was amazing to watch. The little group of Torald, Ezeran, and Petaldan has been through a lot together and watching them each come to differing character development points by the end of the quest was really heartwarming. Allowing the little guy to become a Paladin was one of my favorite parts and his commitment to good really set him apart form some of the more jaded characters. All of this goes to show that you're a top notch RP'er and I really appreciate your consistency throughout the entirety of the game.

Nerwen Calmcacil (Chromeknight) - I was sorry you couldn't be as active as you probably would have hoped, but I am glad you were with us in the end. Nerwen as a character is another one of my favorite examples of natural RP. Her character arc is exceptional and I think had she been a little more involved there was a strong case for her as a veteran. Either way, you have always been one of my favorite players to read and QM and I have a fondness for all of Nerwen's quite charm you exuded in the quests she participated in.

Vindsval Half-Born (Asphalt) - From the moment Vindsval entered the scene I think most of us were intrigued, if by nothing else than the figure! Over the years you've done a particularly incredible job of displaying how a faith character can be RP'd well. Vindsval's entire arc with the Wanderer has been tantalizing and I was super excited when he finally got access to the Vindicator quest (one of my most enjoyable contributions to this game). In 159 he showed time and time again how rock solid his faith in his deity was and as a QM it really is a delight to be able to have such an anchor character available to bounce scenarios off of. While it did make him difficult to argue with I think you did an amazing job of making your character approachable and at the same time true to his beliefs. Mechanically, Vindsval is a beast in terms of raw damage output. The multipliers you managed to stack through your class, artifacts, and weapons was insane, but at the same time thrilling to watch as he'd totally decimate an enemy in a single hit! I don't think there's anything for me to criticize. As a more recent addition to the game you definitely left your mark and it was always a great time either QMing you or playing along side.

Eric (Khorne) - Sorry you weren't able to commit yourself fully to the quest, but thank you for keeping me updated. Eric is a great example of a somewhat selfish character that people still don't mind rooting for. He's passionate about very few things, but he still manages to be relatable to readers. Ever since he walked into the hall I wondered what niche he would fill, I think you carved out his style quite nicely and did a great job of setting up a fantastic grudge against the Bonapartes that while it never overwhelmed his portrayal it healthily influenced it. I would have definitely been interested in more quests from you as I think you had an excellent QM style, but I know how life can get busy. I will say your contributions to the Nord lore were top notch and I really think it helped to flesh out a rather under-represented part of the game!

Ezeran Yavarr (MysticModulus) - Not many people can claim to have such an odd character. Even then not many can claim to have not milked that oddity to death in their portrayal of their character. You did a superb job of allowing Ezeran to become his own character without ever allowing the symbiot to overshadow his development. Along with Petaldan and Torald, you helped to cement the newest block of heroes in the game and I'm glad you were able to play so much in 159. Even though Ezeran was slightly undergeared in comparison to some of the other heroes, the fact that he held his own against several enemies was impressive and your writing of him was top notch.

John 'Heckz' Brutenhal (Cutcobra) - Ah Heckz, probably the nuttiest PC Heroica's had, but somehow or another the most endearing. I think you found a niche for the guy earlier and you did well to stick to it. We didn't have many comic relief characters in the game and I think your writing was a breath of fresh air for some of us. When you contact me about joining I was glad to jump at the opportunity and although you couldn't commit to the end, I still feel that Heckz got to show off his signature flair as we've all come to love and laugh at. As a fellow QM I've got to commend you for your bravery in hosting, its a daunting quest, but one I think you handled well and wouldn't have minded seeing more from you. It was really nice playing with you.

Kiray Nastayo (King of the Zempk) - This quest was honestly the first time I actually got to QM Kiray and like Hoke she comes across as a very consistent and logical character. That being said, I think your willingness to allow her to be adaptable to the quests around her speaks volumes to your ability as a RP'er. The romance between her and Dianna, while not one I had really read very much of, truly showed how comfortable you were with allowing your character to grow and progress in her own storyline perhaps free form any preconceptions. As a fellow QM it was an honor to be able to make the scenes for your quest and like Cutcobra, I've got to congratulate you on undertaking the harrowing job of providing other peoples entertainment, you did it well and you definitely grew over the years. 

Lind Whisperer (Lind Whisperer) - Lind I'll be honest with you as I think you can take it. When you started playing, you definitely frustrated me, your character, your play style everything. But over the years you've definitely grown as a player and your character has progressed as well. You were so enthusiastic that I think it was a little off-putting, however I think your willingness to recognize your flaws really shows tremendous strength of character. Thus I was glad when you asked to join in on Quest 159. I liked that you tried to make amends in character to other PC's and I think as a strategist, while not on the level of Flipz, you do a pretty fine job. I think parts of your enthusiasm for the game were contagious and I want to thank you for being not only willing to take constructive feedback but give it as well. Your encouragements throughout the running of the quest were also appreciated and I'm glad you were able to enjoy yourself.

The Demon Germ (samurai-turtle) - I've said a lot earlier about Germ, so I won't add too much except to say thank you for your willingness to continue playing. People are under no obligation to participate in these games and the fact that you were dedicated to keep playing even when you weren't sure how much you liked Germ or anyone else did, speaks volumes to your play style. It was great playing with you and thank you once again for your patience and consistent challenging of the norms. I think its something we all needed from time to time.

Throlar Wineghilm (Lord Duvors) - We've spoken a lot in PM so I won't deliberate too much here, but I do believe Throlar ended up as one of the best negotiators in the game and that credit is all due you. While Throlar often came across as contentious and argumentative I think it truly did stem from honest convictions that you wove into your character. While at times it was a little difficult to sift your opinions from Throlar, you did a great job of having patience with the other players and PC's and trying to be understanding of their individual perspectives. Throlar's paladin relationship with the Gray Angel was one of my favorite parts to RP and I'm glad we finally got to see him into his advanced class. You sometimes second-guess yourself and I think that shows that you really are concerned with portraying your character well and for that you are to be commended. I've got to host Throlar a few times and every time I've been impressed by the way you keep him consistent both personality wise as well as story wise and how each quest he's been on has shaped his perspective on the world. Well done. 

Torald Waruelf, Matchmaker (Alfadas) - Torald is one of those characters that people like relating too. He's a tremendously good example of a barbarian done well. His arc is fitting and the relationship he established with Petaldan and Ezeran is an arc in and of itself. When he decided to interact with the Pandemonicon in Quest 159 I was initially hesitant not knowing how much you'd like to play with that aspect of your character. I never should have doubted you. You played the torn allegiance character very well and I was glad to be a part of that unfolding. Your decision to step into the portal unplanned floored me and in the end I think it really game his arc an incredible conclusion. While his friends may mourn, I think you managed to really leave a lasting impact on the PC's he's quested with over the years and that was really special to watch.

To all the other players over the years who have contributed to this game: @Sandy, @CorneliusMurdock, @JimBee, @Scorpiox, @Jebediahs, @Scubacarrot, @Endgame, @swils, @Quarryman, @Darkdragon, @Siercon and Coral, @Capt.JohnPaul, @Masked Builder, @Tanma, @The_Customizer, @Myrddyn, @LordoftheNoobs, @Sisco, @Bricksandparts , @Pyrovisionary, @Emjajoas, @Costy , @Pandora, @Purpearljellyblob, @Dannylonglegs, @Peppermint_M, @Rumble Strike, @Professor Flitwick, @posades, @Tachyon you have been amazing and have impacted my life in ways I can't even imagine. Thank you!

We made it over 7 years, over 159 quests, over 150 players, through forum shut downs, forum software changes, image hosting site shut downs, 1 mafia game, nearly a dozen special events, building contests, and an uncountable number of milestones in the lives of our players both euphoric and tragic. This experience will always be something I hold near and dear to my heart.:cry_happy:

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I just wish I could have mustered Tesni one last time, but I think the girl from the mountains went missing some time ago. I know I shared reasons in the past and I could never put my heart into her character quite the same way.

Now all this is over I think some epilogue to the wielder of Cysgodion is due..

Thank you, dedicated players and world builders. Quest Masters and creators who brought life to countless characters of every race imaginable. You built a place of wonder and shared it with all who stopped to listen.

Tap the mead barrel and drink! 

 

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5 minutes ago, Peppermint_M said:

I just wish I could have mustered Tesni one last time, but I think the girl from the mountains went missing some time ago. I know I shared reasons in the past and I could never put my heart into her character quite the same way.

Now all this is over I think some epilogue to the wielder of Cysgodion is due..

Thank you, dedicated players and world builders. Quest Masters and creators who brought life to countless characters of every race imaginable. You built a place of wonder and shared it with all who stopped to listen.

Tap the mead barrel and drink! 

 

Feel free to add it on to Quest 159. Tesni certainly left her mark and I think it'd be fitting. :classic: 

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I have to admit, I kinda thought that the dream sequence was a hasty conclusion brought about by unfortunate IRL circumstances at first (as has happened quite a bit in Heroica's past); it wasn't until I saw a few others being suspicious that I cottoned on that something was wrong. :laugh:

I do wish I could have participated more, but unfortunately other life priorities got in the way much of the time, and unfortunately when it comes to this universe I'm afraid I'm sadly a mere shadow of my former self.  A part of me will always be Arthur, but at this point he's a dim ember in my consciousness compared to how much I've changed since the old days, and that does make him hard to actually write.  Still, I'm glad I managed to tough it out long enough to give him a proper ending, and that he didn't miss the conclusion of the RPG entirely.

5 hours ago, Waterbrick Down said:

Arthur Justus Regulus VII Ziegfried (Flipz) - Where to begin... Outside of Sandy I think you have cared more about the lore of this game than any other player. That and your dedication to giving constructive criticism to both players and QM's alike is something I've always admired about you. While I was sad to see you go with your hiatus I completely understand why and was overjoyed to have you back for the wrap up of Heroica. I think everyone would agree that no one can match your strategic reasoning and your propensity for figuring out the best tactics, but I think we often forget that you managed to integrate that seamlessly with your character's personality. It never felt jarring to have Arthur explain the best path forward, because that was who he was. I remember when you first started playing and being cautious at your enthusiasm, but I think over time you settled in well as a player that others could trust and a needed voice of perspective on how things both in game and out of game affected others. As a character, I've got to say, you managed to weave so much lore into Arthur that I sometime wonder if its a little too much. :laugh: You really swang into the deep end with the chaos arc, but I think you recovered well and were able to see the impact it had on how your character was perceived. Even then you didn't retcon those flaws or mistakes, you incorporated them expertly into the characterization of Arthur moving forward. All in all your contributions to this game would be too many to count, from the Theater and it's wacky plays, to expert job class analysis, to your wiki entries, to your very own quest. It's been an honor developing this world along side you and watching you grow as a player. I'll really miss playing with you. :cry_happy:

Thanks. :blush:  It's fascinating to me that I'm still considered the tactical mind despite having almost completely lost all ability to plan things like Battle Orders and Free Hits -- Pie and Kinto deserve a lot more credit for their own contributions in that regard.  (I'll also state that Pala has utterly outstripped me in terms of finding ways to break the game; our PM convos toward the end revealed some nasty tricks in his arsenal I would never have caught in a million years, and that's saying something. :laugh: )  I started playing Arthur at a deeply formative part of my life, when I was just starting college and just starting to think and develop my own opinions on the world rather than just cleaving to what I'd been taught my whole life.  I think a lot of that changing perspective came through in Arthur, and a lot of that wildly swinging pendulum of personal morality reflects the things I was going through on a much smaller scale.  (Ironic, then, that I never found a good time for Arthur to go Regulator. :laugh: )  Huge shoutouts go to Tanma as well; the guesses and interpretations he had about Arthur and his backstory were hugely influential in giving me material I then used to build Arthur's past for real, and Arthur became a much stronger character because of it.  It also helps that Arthur has a huge diversity of factions and characters that he became invested in, which in turn tied him more deeply to the world as a whole and gave me a reason to keep caring about it for his sake.  Of course, that does become massive baggage in terms of keeping track of what Arthur cares about and how he feels about a truly massive array of different subjects, which makes him nigh-on impossible to play at times, but ultimately I wouldn't have had a reason to bring him back for the finale if it hadn't been for those bonds, so it did work out in the end.

I do regret that I never managed to complete the two big Quest-hosting projects I'd originally planned; the first being the Cathedral of Commerce Quest that died because I burnt out while working on a massive fully-explorable environment while developing a realistically diverse array of factions and characters to inhabit it while being for the most part the sole writer and set-builder, and the second being the pair of Quests linked with both each other and part of Legonater's planned Duplovia Quest that... died... because I burnt out while working on a massive fully-explorable environment while developing a realistically diverse array of factions and characters to inhabit it while being the primary writer and set-builder for my portions.

...huh.

Well, while my notes on the Cathedral Quest are pretty deeply buried, I'll see what I can recall from memory.  The base concept was that the Cathedral used to host a semi-regular ceremony in which thieves and rogues are challenged to try and break into the vaults to test their defenses.  The (at the time) recently-installed High Priest, a former Hero from Hestia Bonaparte's generation, had decided to reinstate the rite for some unknown reason and invite Heroes to join in.  The first half of the Quest would have been an investigation along the lines of the Ace Attorney Investigations series, complete with clues and details given as semi-tangible Logic blurbs that could be combined to deduce new information.  (Three guesses what series I had just recently gotten introduced to and where I was in the series at the time. :tongue: )  The intention was for the players to gain information about what the Rite was, how it worked, and why it had been reinstated alongside information about the various other competing groups, with them using that knowledge during the second half to solve puzzles and either defeat or recruit their opponents while traversing through the various rooms of the Cathedral.  A few of the Theater NPCs were created specifically as early-bird cameos (Carly Swift specifically being the main planned participant for that), with Skuld and Shaun being another appearance as well as the trio of Skirmishers I eventually repurposed for the sake of Arthur's Skirmisher training.  I think I ultimately had at least half a dozen various participating groups planned, all with their own histories and motives and methods that could either be fought or recruited based on knowledge from the first half or allies already made in the second (not dissimilar to the student factions from 93 now I think of it), but sadly the majority of that has been lost to the sands of time.

I think I already outlined my two-thirds of the planned "Duplovia Trilogy" (aka "Hi Legonater, I have two interlinked Quests going to Duplovia, let me hijack yours by linking it to mine and then burn out and go on hiatus and prevent you from running your Quest entirely" :wall::blush: ), so instead I'll talk about a somewhat smaller Quest I had planned connected to it.  Originally, "Stormy Weather" was not going to be the introduction of the Circle of Tempestas and Merryweather Ziegfried, but instead there was going to be a Quest called "Winter Wrap-Up".

Yes, it is exactly what you think it is.  Yes, it is a deliberate reference to what you think it is referencing.  Three guesses what show I had just started watching at the time of planning. :tongue:

Basically, it was time for the Weather Mages to help Winter change to Spring in Eubric, but Merryweather was short-handed.  (Originally, this would've been foreshadowing for the missing Weather Mage from Stormy Weather before I decided to put Stormy Weather first in the queue and have this one be a consequence of her demise.)  As a result, she was going to call in 9 Heroes, immediately train them all as Weather Mages (regardless of Level), divide them into three groups with a set of pre-picked gems for each, and send them off handle some of the minor tasks.  At each location, however, the party would be given optional battle objectives at the request of various faction members to help one side or another sabotage their opposing faction using the weather; depending on what weather the party used and what objectives they completed, they could either gain faction rep, or if all three groups picked the "neutral" option they would have been rewarded with being allowed to attend a special start-of-Spring rite that would let them gain significant permanent stat boosts in a "battle" depending on what spells they cast at the target and how effective their spells were.  Overall a much simpler Quest, and Sandy had even agreed to build the sets for me, but ultimately timing issues and my own ambition on the other Quests got in the way.

I think I had a few other Quests planned besides that -- I know I had one that was basically "Orcish Inazuma Eleven", and the Diamond Authority from the Charis Quest in my planned duology was going to get a series of follow-ups that would have included Diana getting her "Sense of Love" stolen by a reverse-engineered Harvester and if it had been gotten back (with the help of Olivia from the Syndicate), that would have been the point at which I originally planned Diana to outright confess her feelings for Kiray, but for the most part they were only brief snippets of ideas that never got any serious development.  Ultimately, while I wish I could have hosted more (and in retrospect I really should have just hired myself out to run everyone's battles while they built the sets and wrote the characters :laugh: ), I'm at least satisfied with the two Quests I got to run and the myriad of guest QM stints I did. :classic:

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25 minutes ago, samurai-turtle said:

OK, @Waterbrick Down something I was wondering about the "were hound" thing. Was it just a way to level up "the book" bound to Torald Waruelf @Alfadas. To me it seems like their could be more the "were hound" story. 

 

It was simply a task for Torald to complete, nothing more. The book definitely had its own agenda, mainly making it to the city between worlds and potentially causing havoc there. Torald actually did a really good job of unknowingly thwarting both Rosier and the book by stepping into the portal. :laugh:

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