Flipz

Don't see it--Namyrra ended up with the one from Quest 50. Out of curiosity, what class is Cinna planning to advance to when she hits Level 30? Dragoon? (Guessing purely based on Artifacts. )

"Well..." Arthur sighs. "To tell the truth, I haven't been 'OK' in a very, very long time. Hero-ing is...nasty business. Honestly, there are days when I wish I'd stayed back home and stayed a miner. But thank you. Your trust right now means a lot more than you know." "Pardon me for butting in, but the healing staves my friends carry are mine. And with all due respect, they're not for sale. They have too much...sentimental value, if you will." And they're both rare and damned useful, he adds mentally, trying not to offend the miner.

Shadeaux rep makes me more willing than usual to ensure my success. Cinna, Y U No take that Seductive Perfume? Why is no one else jumping for it, for that matter? It's crazily powerful, and lets you tank things like nothing else because you literally become immune to *everything* from the Enamored enemy.

Loot Distribution: Arthur--Bright Polish Erdathcath--Elixir Grimwald--Opal, Amethyst, Diamond Minoid--Phoenix Essence "Minoid, slot that into the dagger's Hollow Blade. If Lady Erdathcath goes down in battle, we'll need that to revive her." "Er--I suppose you could put it that way, yes. My name's Arthur." Arthur tries to ignore the memory of the despair he'd felt the last time she'd looked into his eyes, when he thought he'd have to choose between enslaving her or killing her. There had been trust in those eyes, even then, and in truth that frightened him more than the Oculoids ever could. "Though I hope you realize I couldn't have done it alone. You also have Lady Erdathcath, Master Grimwald, and Minoid to thank...as do I." He turns to the others. "Thank you for the support back there, friends. Especially you, Lady Erdathcath, even when..." Arthur looks down, troubled. "I...there are secrets, regarding me. Things I can't...it's not the time. It's not the time for these secrets to be revealed. I hope you can understand--can trust that I will do everything in my power to keep these secrets from hurting our party or our mission--which in this case, means keeping them under wraps. Can you handle that?" He takes a deep breath, hesitating--but he owed these people. They deserved at least the choice. "If you really want to know, of course, I'll tell you. But be warned--you may not like what you hear."

OOC: Just run up through Umbraloid's death and Minoid throwing the Unlucky Horseshoe, then.

OOC: They don't receive damage when used on players, but against enemies (e.g. undead, or in this case the miners) they do. OOC: Actually, once Umbraloid's down, Minoid retrieves the Unlucky Horseshoe and throws it at Photoloid exactly once.

OOC: Sure, though technically this Round Grimwald has a chance to take damage from the miners (but I've accounted for that with Minoid's action). Heal Derrek with Ether and Grand Potions until he's at max health, with one of Grimwald's actions being to heal Brittany. Once Umbraloid's dead, Ether-heal Brittany until Photoloid's dead from Bleeding as well. Battle Order: Arthur Arthur Erdathcath Erdathcath Grimwald Grimwald Minoid OOC: Also note that we'll stop using Grand Potions once it's down to Brittany, since we'll totally be able to get her health to max before Photoloid bites it.

OOC: No, assume she heals Derrek twice, with Ether. EDIT: Dammit, autocorrect!

@Dannylonglegs: gee, I wonder why this miniboss strategy feels so familiar? ...#ImissDLL...

"Time to focus mostly on healing Derrek, the Umbraloid is history." Arthur drinks a Remedy from the Back Row, using a Grand Potion on Derrek his second turn. Battle Order: Arthur Arthur Erdathcath Erdathcath Grimwald Minoid Grimwald Minoid uses a Grand Potion on Derrek from the Back Row, unless Grimwald was injured healing Derrick, in which case he uses the Grand Potion on Grimwald instead. OOC: That was a Grand Tonic, which restores 15 Ether, so Grimwald should have at least 11 left. Also, can we assume Grimwald is working from the Back Row? For his own sake. EDIT: Shucking auto-correct.

Honestly, this is assigning mechanics to things that don't need mechanics assigned to them. Sometimes it takes days to walk across Uland, other times it can be traveled in an afternoon. There's no consistency, nor is it needed. Quite simply, the Heroes get where they need to go when they need to get there for the sake of the plot. It's not pretty to think of it that way (even though it's the truth), which is why Quests set outside Eubric tend to have Heroes taking a boat or an airship and set either a battle or some roleplaying in between Eubric and the Quest location. This also helps lengthen the Quest itself in terms of real-world time, which provides a nice "buffer" in terms of time that helps smooth out some of the wrinkles in the convoluted mess that is this game's timeline. Regarding teleport: this universe breaks down if teleport (or any sort of transport, really) is cheap, easy, or safe. You can have one of the three, but the other two become the exact opposite: V-mail is easy, but it's not cheap, nor is it safe. A true teleport spell (like the Zeigfrieds have access to) is cheap, but it's not easy, and it's DEFINITELY not safe--that sort of spell requires immense concentration throughout a process that, from the user's perspective, is torturously long, and if it slips even a little there's a very real chance that you'll reassemble yourself incorrectly or even not materialize at all (the spell works by literally tearing your body apart at a subatomic level, transporting it along Ethereal ley lines which due to their extradimensionality aren't governed the same way by relativity as normal spacetime, and then reassembling it at the target destination)--not to mention the risk either way of ending up in the wrong place. There's teleport circles that basically act as a stored version of the teleport spell, but they have to be pre-linked to a companion circle at the other end of the spell, have to be re-linked fairly often, can't have their destination changed, and are hideously expensive in terms of rare reagents--not to mention several of the dangers of the teleport spell still exist, albeit lessened. There's also Planeswalking's dimensional doorway spells, but that involves fortifying a bubble of reality around oneself before walking bodily into the space between dimensions, which is similar to and connected to but not the same as the extradimensional space used by a teleportation spell. On the one hand, better control over target destination, and if everything goes right it's safer than the other options. If something goes wrong, however, it's a 100% guaranteed hideously painful death that doesn't even leave a body behind to try to revive--not to mention that planeswalkers of that sort tend to be notoriously reclusive and guarded of their secrets anyway, so good luck even learning the spell. The Zut'tau'ri Gate system, incidentally, is none of the three: the Gates are absurdly expensive and complicated to build, they require extensive technical and magical know-how in order to use, and the dimensions accessible through it, while generally safer than extradimensional pathways, still tend to be extremely hazardous (think along the lines of the Nether from Minecraft), and may possess hostile inhabitants (think Stargate SG-1). It's also impossible to use for intra-dimensional transit (i.e. Gate from Zut'tau'ri to Eubric) unless the destination has built their own Gate and has tuned it to the same dimension yours is currently tuned to (so in other words, either Zut'tau'ri or Etheria, and even that connection hasn't been made successfully in a very, very long time). (Regarding V-mail: in my headcanon, V-Mail works similarly to a teleport spell, but instead of disassembling the target instead places it in a pocket dimension that is then resized relative to the orifinal to be subatomic. Such a journey would normally be extended exponentially because of the relatively larger distance to travel (from the perspective of the cargo), but Valentine has engineered the propulsion method to slingshot the pocket dimension around the intersections in the extradimensional space of the ley lines, accelerating the journey but making it very rough on the passengers. It also utilizes a dimensional keying system based on the same school of magic as the Gates, allowing for pinpoint accuracy, whereas other transport spells tend to either be locked to predetermined endpoints or else be very inaccurate in where they drop the target off.) But back to my point: storyline-wise, the universe breaks down if teleport is usable on any sort of scale above "emergency use only"; not only would it render at least four of the Eubric factions useless, it would also radically alter the social structure of the world, such that--well, read it for yourself. That's what happens when unlimited teleport is available, and that's not the universe we need for Heroica.

Hmm, isn't there a ring as a potential drop in the Fields somewhere? (The one that's worth 15 gold or can be used to Enamor someone?) And you have a Necromancer who, if I'm not mistaken, has an Aquamarine on her...

Plot twist: he falls through a hole into Narnia a super-tough hardcore version of the Fields and has to fight his way out.

You want a S.D.M.G.? This ain't Terraria.

Maybe we ought to brainstorm a bit and try to come up with more things suitable for some of these less-used classes, then, in order to MAKE them more appealing.

I disagree. We've had special staves for Necromancers since before there were any Expert Class Heroes period, we've been getting Beast Warrior drops for ages even before Benji decided he wanted to go that route, etc. More importantly, though, is the fact that there's nothing suitable for them amongst the standard Artifacts, the way that Heavy Armor is suitable for Skirmishers and Dragoons, or the Robe of the Archmagi also works for Minstrels and Necromancers, etc. For all the other Expert Classes, there's a way for Heroes to plan and prepare for their upcoming role; for Cannoneer, there's nothing. I'd actually prefer if they were able to craft the Military-strength bombs (the ones that deal 10 elemental damage instead of 5). It makes more logical sense (since Cannoneers are part of a military force), and helps make them a slightly more useful class in the way that Alchemists are: by being able to create things that aren't usually available.

"Don't ask questions you won't like the answer to, monster."

OOC: Ah, another slip-up: Arthur threw his Gladiator Trident at Photoloid and then retrieved it; thus less damage to Photoloid, but it's Bleeding. Arthur growls. "Frail 'em and Sleep 'em, Grimwald. I tire of the sound of their voices. Lady Erdathcath, you're on healing duty." Arthur uses a Grand Tonic on Grimwald from the Back Row, then uses a Remedy on Erdathcath, also from the Back Row. Minoid uses the Remedy from the Hollow Blade Dagger on Grimwald, then uses another Remedy on himself, both from the Back Row. Battle Order Arthur Arthur Erdathcath Erdathcath Grimwald Grimwald Minoid

Holy cow. I just did a search because I was giving advice about classes to LotN and decided to do Customizer as well--there is literally ONE artifact in the game for Cannoneers, and it belonged to an NPC in 92. ONE. They don't even get to use quivers! What is wrong with us?! We're more creative than this!

I think that for players who've been around longer (and with warning that the QM would be doing so), the first-person narration wouldn't be so confusing. It was certainly one of the most interesting and immersive styles we've seen here so far. It also made a LOT of sense in a narrative fashion--Shawe reporting the events of the Quest to his superiors. It made the ending twist even more powerful. EDIT: @Pandora, I understand now why you went with Fire for Nyx. That element's a lot more useful than I previously gave it credit for.

"Master Grimwald, heal each of those miners please. On your Scroll turns, Sleep the Umbraloid. Lady Erdathcath, if you could kindly blast the Umbraloid once or twice with that lovely poisoned handcannon, that'd be most helpful. Minoid, you're on deck to Remedy any of us who get Hexed this Round." Arthur throws his Swift Halberd at Umbraloid. If his Artifacts are unequipped, he re-equips all of them except for his Cloak of Deception; otherwise, he de-equips his Cloak of Deception. Battle Order: Arthur Grimwald heal Brittany, then Sleep Umbraloid Grimwald heal Derrek, then Sleep Umbraloid unless Umbraloid already Asleep, in which case no scroll action Erdathcath if both miners healed and Umbraloid Asleep, handcannon vs. Umbraloid; otherwise, heal whichever miner wasn't already healed Erdathcath if both miners healed, handcannon vs. Umbraloid; otherwise, heal whichever miner wasn't already healed Minoid (if Arthur or Erdathcath Hexed, use Remedy on Hexed hero, priority on Erdathcath; if neither Hexed, use Grand Potion on miner with lowest HP [in case of a tie, Brittany]) OOC: ...drat, thought that would merge.

OOC: Fire does 2x to Ice. Fragile means 2x. In the Back Row with me means 2x. Cryoloid dropped Overkill, Photoloid is Bleeding, and Grimwald wasn't damaged.

Quest 4.

The big problem is how often we get people dropping out of the game, so we'd have people benefitting for sitting around doing nothing, or potentially penalized for having to take a few months away from the game (i.e. if a Hero angling for Hinckwell and Bonaparte rep was part of a faction that ended up supporting the Hinckwells and Ji Pei). It also sounds needlessly complex when we already have the Houses as well as other factions that give out prestige classes Expert Classes--we just need to expand a little more on how often we give said classes out.

OOC: I'd say yes to Miracle, as far as Roots go...hmm...I'll say yes as well, even though accidental un-Sleep-ing would be annoying. "Lady Erdathcath, don't worry about healing me--focus on the Cryoloid. Minoid, I could use that Health Core. Master Grimwald, I'm entrusting you to keep the other two asleep if they wake up--otherwise, feel free to join in the attack on Cryoloid." Arthur throws his Spider Leg at the Cryoloid, trying again if he fails the first time, or throwing his Swift Halberd as well if he is successful. If Cryoloid is dead, throw Gladiator Trident at Photoloid until successful, then retrieve. Battle Order: Erdathcath Erdathcath Minoid (if Roots of Life not rolled, use Health Core on Arthur, Back Row; if Roots of Life previously rolled, Quick Bow vs. Cryoloid, Back Row) Arthur Arthur Grimwald Grimwald OOC: Redirected attacks should go to Umbraloid, not Photoloid, unless otherwise specified.