Zepher

Along with their signature time pauses, Red Moon Mysteries are well-known for not being able to be made sense of.

Boomingham coughs and splutters as he is brought to. "Screw Ennoc," he mutters to himself as he props himself up. He smiles and winks at En Sabah Nur. "Quite the battle, Mage. I'd love to have your dagger at my side instead of in my side, some time." Boomingham gets himself to his feet, a long and laborious affair. "I've got to go get something to drink. Getting the stuffing beat out of you can do that to a man. Meet me back at the hall. I'll show you an old favorite drink of mine. Flaming Gumballs. It's a secret pleasure of mine... don't tell Barty, I don't think he'd approve."

I think the power of the diadem should be halved, so he'd still be standing, with 4 health. Sorry we're putting you through all this trouble. (((9*2=18)+3)=21)/2 = 10 (divided by 2 due to his backrowness 10 times 2 rounds = 20 So he should be at 4. Roll this round!

Yes sir! And without the pesky Mafias to keep me away, I can play even harder! A pause wasn't all that bad!

I think that one RPG is enough for the time being, but I'm not a MOD.

OoC: That was BD saying that my diadem worked here, or else I would have taken it off. No point to take the health hit if the attack bonus isn't there. Boomingham holds up his hand to En Sabah Nur to indicate a pause. He takes out a flask, takes a sip, and then pockets it again. Next, he produces his handkerchief and mops his brow. He then pockets that too. "One final time then, my friend," says Boomingham. He swings the King of the Desert from the back row.

This is very interesting. There are a lot of good elements. I love the sets and feeling of it, and the story seems to be fun with lots of twists and gags. The characters need more development though, I have a hard time telling them apart and they seem to float through the story rather than drive it. There is no character conflict, bring it in, because the story is pretty interesting so far and a lot of the things you've been doing are great. Killing off the first person you introduced and making the leader of this faction bonkers were both cool and fun twists, but without strong leading characters these events are just happening to folks, not people that we really care about. This doesn't mean that you should stop what you're doing, just start to interweave a few more character moments. Don't have anyone sit down and say who they are, your story is too good for that. Rick seems decently developed, but give me even more about him, and the others are faceless, so start to tell me about them. Just do it in small steps, don't sacrifice your plans for it!

OoC: Have we been counting my thorny diadem? Adds 3 to my attack. Boomingham's eyes are narrowed as his head bobs back and forth. "Barty, where the hell were you on that one?!" Barty hovers near-by, arms crossed. "I cannot condone fighting for sport. It's barbaric and pathetic."

Boomingham rethinks his action and hops back to the front row, swinging his sword. "Sorry, Mr. Mage, but you don't get a break!"

"This, my friend, is where I have the one up on you," Boomingham says as he winks, hops to the back row, and heals himself.

OoC: Dark elementals do double damage here, and the King of the Desert is that. Not sure if you factored that in. "Quite a nasty dagger you've got there, chappo! Well, we fight until we go down, isn't it? I'll come at you again, sir!"

OoC: That lucky effect is going to screw me over. Boomingham steps into the arena, draws his mighty King of the Desert, and stands in the front row, waiting for his challenger to arrive.

Boomingham hears word that he is called in the Arena. He can hardly recall signing up for a match, but none the less strikes out towards the Arena, ready to plow down whoever he may be fighting.

Boomingham nods stoically. There's not much to say. Sometimes all one can do is listen and nod, and try to understand. "Some people deserve to die," is all Boomingham says at the end of the story. "It isn't a pretty thing to say, I suppose, and it's certainly not many people... but some people deserve to die. I wouldn't have done anything differently." Boomingham turns to Dyric, who he had ignored while waiting for Tesni's reply. "I'm Earl Lawrence Boomingham. Time traveling Paladin of honor. I'm a charmer and a good one at that, so if you've got a lady friend, take care of her." Boomingham laughs uproariously. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding, chap. I'm respectful at least, I do have some honor, if not a lot. As long as you're not a green skinned monster under there, we should get along just fine." Boomingham lurches back as a dragon suddenly appears in the hall. He has not run into an Evoker. "Holy Ennoc... give a man a warning, would you?! My heart's racing, and if I got any more excited I think my whole body might just stop. What are you trying to do, Alexis?! Kill me?" Boomingham chuckles nervously, whips out his handkerchief and pats his sweaty brow profusely.

Boomingham was starting to sober up even more, and for the first time noticed a significant change in his friend's voice, though he did not comment on it. Instead he nodded sympathetically. "Well, my old ears are ready to listen if your young mouth is ready to do the talking required." Stories were important, and Boomingham knew it. You couldn't rush them or push for them, but if they were shared... Barty flew up to Hoke. "He has named me Bartholomew, but he won't let me tell you why. He's rather foolish. I'm an angel, I've been allowed to review his entire life, and his stories are blown far out of proportion... though he was at some point a true warrior," Barty concedes. "You seem like you've got a head on your shoulders. Have you ever considered serving Ennoc? It's really quite lovely, and maybe I could hop ship. I'm supposed to be finding and punishing the wicked... and helping the poor and lonely and all that I guessssss, but really, there is so much corruption in the world it seems much easier to just stop that, and then maybe all the poor lonely people will just feel better. Point is, I haven't been doing much of anything except watching him get drunk. Alcohol is a vile creation, I do not understand why they serve it in this hall."

Boomingham smiled. "All appropriate answers, chap. I look forward to questing with you some day. That's the lovely thing about the Hall, you always get to meet new people!" Boomingham winks at Hoke. "And no stories yet. You've got to work for that. Buy me a drink and talk sweet to me a little first." Boomingham laughs and spittle lands on the table. Barty looks ready to die. Boomingham then turns to Tesni and addresses her. He smiles, but his eyes are a little watery. "I do," he says, and it's the most honest thing the Paladin has said since he arrived in the hall. "But that's just life, isn't it?" He then laughs again. "Would you like to tell me how you got into the same boat as me? Is it the same exact thing as me - everyone you knew was dead? You buried the priestess, I seem to recall you telling me. It isn't a pretty boat, that's for sure, and I can promise you everyone in it has quite a lengthy story. Any more to tell, my dear?" Barty hovers around Tesni's two stronger swords nervously. "Doesn't anyone in this hall recognize demons and evil influences? Why am I so much smarter than all these poor fool?" he mutters sadly.

"Haha! Looks like I was speaking while you were doing. The wife always says I'm a rambler. She told me to pay better attention. And drink less. Zero for two. Ah well."

"Do you know what it does yet? Have you licked it yet? When in doubt, always lick things. Something I learned in the war. This Elven scout fellow in my unit, I think he may have been with Ennoc, he always licked everything. Said that we use our touch, smell, hearing, and sight all the time, but no one ever uses their taste. He said he understood 20 percent more of the world than the rest of us... of course, he died of terrible poisoning... don't know how much creed we ought to give his method..."

WP: 14! And it's quite okay, I should have given you more clear instructions. We all deserve a beer now and then.

OoC: Posted in C&D for you, Peppy. Boomingham looks up. He has spent the night in the hall, and his head is swimming. At his table sits Alexis and Tesni, and another knight he has not seen before, but he is human and clearly made of strong stuff. Boomingham winces as he feels a weight on his head and reaches up. The thorny diadem pricks his hand. He can only half remember purchasing it. "Hello, friends. Welcome back, my dear, it's been too long," says Boomingham quietly, patting Tesni on the arm across the table. He then turns to Alexis and nods kindly, he has already caught up with her. "Madame Ranger, still waiting for your Mage in shining armor to come back?" And finally to the new knight: "Name's Boomingham. King Lawrence Boomingham. Bet I've got more land then you. What's your name, son? Who do you serve under? Where do your morals lie? It's a tough world out there, stick with me, kid. I know... I know how tough it is. You ever seen a war?" Boomingham nods sleepily, but smiles. He redirects his focus to Tesni. "It's lovely to see you again Tesni. I was afraid you'd forgotten me. Don't think we've seen each other since before Alexis and I were hired by the Hinckwells, but how lovely to wake up to your face again! Did you watch over me all night? Do tell me what's happened since I've last seen you! You'll have to be quiet though," Boomingham leans in and whispers, "I'm a little drunk. Don't tell anyone though, my pip-squeak of an angel won't approve at all." Barty sits, leaning against an empty beer mug, glaring at Boomingham. "I can hear you, you old fool. You're useless. I wonder if I can be reassigned."

OR he was busy finishing up his quest. Look for an update today or tomorrow, I'll be adding the NPCS from Masked and Capt. John Paul, along with the few from Sandy and Brickdoctor that I never alphabetized last time, AND the remaining few NPCs from my quest. It says in the Quest Thread, if you haven't found it yet. Must be named with Zoot in the title, and it has a WP of 2/3 your current level, rounded up.

The Side Quest Please note, these are not all the posts, just the select few required to tell the sketch of what happened to the heroes. No, you may not. "I'm extremely confused. Until I can figure things out, I refuse to fight. So I will flee." Before the battle you must complete the following: a) Assign the number of Guards you'll use. b) Assign the number of Captains you'll use. c) Assign who in the party will carry the Phoenix Smoke. (Each battle will have a specific set-up, please read them all). Before the battle you must complete the following: a) Assign the number of Guards you'll use. b) Assign the number of Captains you'll use. c) Assign who in the party will carry the Phoenix Smoke. (Each battle will have a specific set-up, please read them all).

Barty taps Boomingham nervously, and the great man lurches awake. "Some of the heroes are leaving." Boomingham nods sleepily and staggers to his feet. He makes his way over to Atramor first, and, half for balance reasons, hugs the much smaller man, nearly crushing him. "You watch out, little guy. I don't trust those Orcs, and you've got one. You're a good kid. I think my son maybe grew up like you, you know. It was good to see you again." Boomingham teeters away from the man, and rams into Rufindel, his first party leader. "Ruffi, you're a good man... elf... too. I never got to ask you if you saw action in the Orcish Wars... those were some great times.... some terrible times, but some great times. Take care, sir. I respect you." His swings and trips next bring him to Nyx. He holds her close and whispers in her ear. "You're one of my only friends who are still alive. All my other good friends have been dead for a very long time. Please don't join them, dear." "Watch out for the chicken, Madame Mage," whispers Barty, before carefully leading Boomingham back to the table.

Notes Personal Notes/Self-Critique I know the quest was long, about a month longer than I said it would be. I’m truly sorry for that. I also think that the characters could have been developed a little better. Wren gets a positive reaction, but I want ALL my NPCs to be loved, and I need to beef up Felton, Hans, and Poletad more. And in case you're wondering, they'll all be returning in the next Wren Quest, along with two other characters from either #7 or #19. I also think my story line was a little clearer to me than to the players. I will work on it in the future. I need my prose/dialogue to be more snappy and to the point. I do want to be a writer, so I should improve this either way. Other than that, I was fairly happy with myself. I personally like all my NPCs (I wish Boomingham got half the press Wren did... ). I was happy with the PACE of the Quest - other than a few hang ups in the Christmas season I think that I kept it going at a reasonable speed, even if the entire thing was longer than I thought it would be. I liked my story-line, and I think I told the story I wanted to in the end, though it got lost at times. Side Quests were an exploration for me. I will not do them the same way again, for at least my next Quest, but they will be involved in all my quests that they seem applicable. I don't mind them at all, and they slow down/frustrate players, which would probably be what happened if the heroes were separated from their party. Though, of course, I gave Sisco/MDM more to do than I gave the prisoners from #7. Cronk asked if he could have a companion to bounce ideas off of if there was ever a side quest again, so I took two of my party this time. Final note - I hate large battles. I'm terrible at stats. My party was 8 the first time, with NPCs, and then six this time, and I foolishly kept adding NPCs (Sir Poletad was NOT supposed to exist, but I'm happy he does. FUN FACT: He was set dressing, but Skrall talked to him, and then he became one of my favorite characters, so everything with him was 100% not planned). Player Feedback - General You guys happen to be the most virtuous players in Heroica... not really, but you had a few chances to kill NPCs that you never did. Poletad is still alive due to you, and both Samuel and Haddock escaped your wrath. Likewise, you did not chop off McColt's head, and Gregor survived in the side quest as well. In case you were wondering, all these actions would have made your final battle much harder. For each dead NPC, the Chaos Beasts would gain 25 health and 1 level. Most of you did not accept the Dream Quests that were sent to you by Wren. Legonator and Skrall did, and they were successful. The rest of you refused them. Well done on that, I tried to do things that wouldn't necessarily hurt you, but would hurt the team, if completed. Skrall/WBD I advise everyone every where to pick Skrall as a party leader. He is fantastic at it. Your battle orders make a lot of sense, and your plans are ALMOST always sound (minus when you screwed up the bombs ). Your battle orders even reflect character choice sometimes - when you trusted Guard Felton more, you put him lower on the line-up, and Rebel Felton took more hits than him. Not sure if this was on purpose or not, but it was funny to me. You've got a GREAT out of the box character and you stick to him. He's the middle-aged, working, sensible Ogre with a crossbow, and he's VERY lovable. Tesni/PepM I sensed you were getting a little impatient near the end, sorry that you were stuck in Haddon so long! Hopefully the Zoot Plaything makes up for it. You know how well regarded Tesni is regarded as a character. Wren and her ARE actually pretty similar in character, and I'm happy they got to meet each other. I'd pick you again in a heart-beat if you were to sign up again. Hoke/MDM I don't know if you're in the game for loot or for character, but you're good at both. Hoke is a pretty solid character. He was a gamble near the beginning, I didn't really know him, but I'm more than happy I chose him. He's kind of quiet, sensible and just. He doesn't seem to have many twists... and that's GREAT! Really, it is, no sarcasm at all. He's very cool, and he seems like a good solid straight guy. He is who he is, and he sticks by it, and I love him for it. I'd be interested in a bit more back-story. You may have brought it up before, but it didn't really poke through in this story, so I'd love to see even more of it - it's the only place I feel Hoke is weak; he's awesome, but WHY is he awesome and WHERE did he come from? If you're in it for stats... you've got a really impressive character. I HAD to make free-hits do 1 damage automatically, or else you'd be indestructible. I don't know WHO gave you those Warrior Treads, but they're awesome, and I think Hoke is already one of the strongest characters in the game, and you don't have a Advanced Class yet. One note - in the side quest, you sort of stopped playing. What's up with that? I don't know, once Sisco was gone I imagine it was harder, but even before that you started to stop a bit. Which is too bad, because I really do love Hoke. As soon as you were back with the others, things returned to normal, so maybe you just were angry about the side quest. Jess/Sisco Your computer died. Up until then, you were great! You and Haldor need to seek more ways to connect, but for the time being, your love is feasible to me. Your character is strong, and I was happy to have a returning Quester. Sorry Wren knocked you out. Haldor/Scorpiox Haldor has grown quite a bit in this quest. I'd advise you define him a little more. Where he's going looks good, we got his back-story, we got a lot of personality, but I can't tell where he stands on things. He gives tons of wonderful speeches, but you've got to remember he cheated on Jess in Quest #12, and he acts tough sometimes because he was apparently very beaten upon in childhood. He seems to have more troubles than his pure good attitude lets on, I'd love to see them poke through. They're starting to, just push it, and really have him pick a world view and stick to it. He seems lawful good, but he does unlawful bad things on occasion, so let's see those two conflict! Like I said to Sisco, explore the full relationship between Haldor and Jess. There's a lot of good stuff there, but explore it more. I'm sorry if I seem harsh towards you. Haldor's a awesome character, but I think and believe that you can take him one step more. As for your actions, they were always spot on, and I wouldn't disagree with a single strategical choice you made in this quest. I'm excited to see what Advanced Class you go for! Dyric/Legonator Like Haldor, Dyric grew a lot this quest, and like Hoke, I really didn't remember reading about him much in previous quests, so you were a welcome surprise. We got back story, we got a lot of personality. I'll again tell you, like Haldor, you can push the envelope a bit, and explore more of your character. You also made a few choices I didn't understand strategically. You fought from the back row a lot when you would have survived the front row, and you could have ended some battles more quickly if you had done so, and made more coin (though you made quite a bit this quest ). You can throw your dagger and then come in with the chainwhip, and pick the dagger back up at the end of the battle. Thank you all so much for questing with me! I had a blast. Tell me what you all thought!!!

Boomingham is passed out on a table. As a stream of heroes return to the hall, he groggily awakes. At his table is Tesni and Alf, the former his friend, the latter someone who he had passed out on. Upon returning to the hall Alf had introduced himself, and Boomingham had fainted into his arms. Boomingham assumed that the man had dragged him to the table. Before he can think hard enough to form words, Tesni gets up and leaves, clearly tired from battles he would learn of time permitting. Boomingham quietly goes back to sleep. Barty sit on the table watching the three chatting birds. "Evil evil evil," he mutters to himself in disgust, and then looks at Boomingham with utter contempt. "Useless useless useless. And the chicken thinks she has a hard time looking after her charge!"