CMP

I think he meant that as in wait until the quest is over before making any judgments about it.

I realized far too late that I had angled the wall way too much and that it has been way too short, but it was getting late and I just wanted to get the update up. I've actually done in a bit before but I don't think anyone noticed last time.

Thanks for the distracting us for the first 24 hours of the day with your claim, Clementine. Unfortunate as it is, I'm feeling like Clem is town as well. Doing a poor job of handling her role, and yet still probably town. Her logic isn't really sound, but that doesn't mean it appears to be a scum trick. Anyway.... I'm gonna Vote: Claw (TheLazyChicken). Fluff, pointless speculation about kills, a somewhat valid but kind of...I don't know, empty point. It's day one, the scum probably aren't concerned with killing people over random day one suspicions. Okay, so he suspects Minga. And assumes.... .....Seamus is town..... ....three different times. So here's what Claw calls a vote analysis. And here's what his number one suspect puts forward, quite possibly the only really constructive thing I've seen today. Incidentally I agree with Minga's conclusion. Anyone have any thoughts on this or any other suspects they want to bring up? I kind of wanted to see if Claw was going to follow through on his suspicions of Minga but we need to get some real discussion rolling, I don't think debating for Clem for the rest of the day will help us reach a conclusive lynch.

"It's not worth dwelling on? I beg to differ. Your organization has phenomenal power. We've been around for a long time. Our people are fully prepared to sacrifice their lives for our cause." "It has not slipped our notice that somehow, next to no heroes have had to die for theirs. Perhaps it has slipped yours. Consider: you are some of the most well-trained warriors in the world. You receive pleas for help, with potentially world-altering decisions and repercussions, from around all of Olegaia. And your people simply...don't die anymore." "It's not something you can refuse to acknowledge. At least, it won't be for much longer." "Some heroes deliberately betray their employers for personal gain. That doesn't sully the good deeds of your fellows, cripple their own goals in the process?" "So far. Yes. I don't think it will last much longer." "Entirely possible, but most clashes between our organizations stem from the fact that we don't often let anything stand in the way of our goals. But the Rose, apparently rightly, believes that by proper exposure to eachother's methods, we can prove to be effective allies." "But yes, if any of you attempt to enslave any archdemons or the like, we will not hesitate to strike at you. I tolerate your words because I am explicitly ordered to do so in the interest of gaining an unbiased understanding of your organization and those who represent it." "It is true the Order can be extreme our own methods, but it is a necessary extreme, and one all of us are willing to take. We are a singular force, unlike Heroica. Our battles often pit us against the unknown. You could say it is our ultimate philosophy. We embrace that which we can understand and destroy what we cannot. We must learn and evolve at the natural pace of things. Magic is a rapidly multiplying and growing threat to our future. All this.....technology that should not yet exist is a very present danger. And divine faith...." Avina trailed off momentarily. "....is a relic that must be abandoned." The discussion had taken up most of the trip, and by now the heroes were on the docks. Gnats fluttered in the lantern light that made most of the docks visible, drawn to the dancing flames and the stench of fresh fish. Most passerby were either packing in and going back to their families, while the sailors visiting Eubric were just getting started and hitting the taverns. One tall building caught their eye, lit up by tiny, ethereal lights contained in glass bulbs. A large, violently glowing trident was emblazoned on the front. As the heroes stared at this anomaly, the lights slowly began to flicker out, from the top down. The large trident dimmed, and the other lights fizzled out, until only a large sign overlooking the front entrance remained alight. Reddish light was visible from inside. And the only man still in the building was just exiting, locking up for the night.

You really like that emoticon.

Aren't you pretty much just telling the scum "hey, don't impersonate PRs, we'll know about it!" ? Wouldn't it have been better to keep quiet about it for now to catch anyone trying to pull that off?

I'm about to hit the sack, so maybe my logic is a little slow right now, but what's the benefit to having claimed in public, Clementine?

Sounds like an easy way to short-circuit a lot of quests.

"I, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss our offer. The Wolfgang will soon have a presence greater than you can guess." "Aye. Never seen a strike coordinated fast in my life..." "The year. AI means After Invasion. Current year is AI 254." "...hmpf...I need to have a chat with our editors...." "Believe me, you won't find us around here anymore." Reg throws Briar over his shoulder and grabs Big Red by the back of the hood, pulling them both out of the Locale. "I'll make sure out higher-ups hear about this. And, uh, I'll be sure to cooperate next time, I swear." The heroes exit the brothel as the Sewer Wolves slink off to lick their wounds. Avina shrugs, adjusting her hood, and follows the party. It's getting into the afternoon now, and the sun is slowly lowering over Eubric as the party goes towards the docks. "I'm surprised at our progress. We have countless squads at our disposal, but few of them command the combat capability and loyalty of others as you heroes do, as mismatched as some of your parties may be. On occasion you can even impress me. But I'm curious, or perhaps, concerned about something, heroes. The Order of the Crimson Crown has very clear-cut goals. They haven't wavered since our organization was founded long ago. There was a time, when Heroica was founded, your kind were known as the Avengers of Ennoc, Champions of the Free Isles, even The Bane of Baltarok. But the meaning of 'hero' has changed since the Invasion when Heroica claimed the title for its own members. I've seen your actions firsthand recently, and I've read many reports on the other activities of your organization. Many of you do what you think is right. Some of you work to benefit yourselves, or personal allies. There are several who no longer care about the word 'heroes' and are merely sellswords." "What do you think Heroica's goal is?"

Atramor turned towards his partymates. "Then maybe we ought to follow this rail line."

What in the world are you talking about? Most QMs I know don't run battle statistics by Sandy.

"So, this railway system leads from Frumpknob over to Krumpknob? Is that how ya' transport the ore once it's been refined?" questioned Atramor.

"We sho-" Avina paused. "....that's up to you, heroes." "Can't say I saw where they came from...ain't many buildings around here big enough. Maybe a warehouse?" "One of the main issues we've had in tracking down recent, cooperative victims is that these machines can strike fast, and vanish without a trace. There has to be something more to how they're deployed. They can't just be everywhere." "If Chalvo is paranoid to enough have gotten himself a fake identity, I doubt discretion is an option." "He'll bolt as soon as he sees you coming, believe you me. Skittery old bastard." "I doubt he'll hold up under pressure, then. Cornering him should do the trick if we want answers out of him. But we need to be careful. If Chalvo is the Eubric Knight, he'll have plenty of tricks up his sleeve." Avina finally managed to find Chalvo's file, and passed it around the party. "We can leave whenever you're ready to hit the Tritech workshop. It's getting late, they should be closing up shop soon." "It worked, didn't it?" Briar and Big Red look to be injured, but still alive. Reg looks rather concerned as Kellim goes on about turning them in. "If you want, we can deliver them to the Town Watch, there should be a few at the gates of the Hovels if-" "Now hold on just a moment, little lady. I'm sure me and the heroes can work out a better arrangement. After all, I'm sure the Wolfgang would be grateful if you happened to let us go..." Reg raised his eyebrows hopefully.

I've been sort of busy today so I can't do the necessary editing/pictures, but I'm going to bed now and the next update will be up first thing tomorrow.

Then if any of his claims are even remotely true he's the worst omnipotent dragon lord ever, because two continents have been consumed by demons and the High Kingdoms were nearly razed to the ground.

"Threi, Threi Havloc is the name I set him up with. He's an older guy, dark red outfit. We got him a job at the Tritech Workshop down by the docks...familiar stuff, for him." "Wouldn't be much of a technique if I shared it with anyone, now would it, boy? Heard your combat trainer teaches something similar, the ways of the Rogue Thief. But these teachings I got right from the woman herself." "The old bastard wouldn't give me any details, but it didn't take a genius to figure out he was paranoid. Crazy, almost, like he expected a shot at the back at any second." "It is. He was our top suspect for a variety of reasons, he worked for the Ji Pei but he went off our radar recently. Guess we know where he is now, though. I should have his file on me..." The ogre snorted and opened his eyes groggily not long after being fed the essence. "...eh? Oh, damn." He grumbled low, pushing himself back up to his feet. "Did those blasted machines get me? One second one of 'em walked right up to me with a club, and then there four more practically blinding me. Thanks for the help, lass. Miss Cammie doesn't let the girls loose for anything less than an invasion." While looking for Chalvo's file, Avina surreptitiously scribbles down some notes in two others.

I feel like a lot of allegiance is going to be heavily weighted that way. Atramor is most closely aligned with the Ji Pei, so...there's one more.

The only switch is Shadeuax and Hinckwell and they're entirely interchangeable. Plus this color scheme matches better.

Didn't we know the division ahead of time?

Atramor pulls off his hat and wipes his brow. "Hey there mate. What's all this-...uh." The drafter frowns, rubbing his chin as he looks at the piles of silvery ore. "...that stuff s'post to be Mythril?"

"Sounds like onna of the higher ups has been siphoning the Mythril, or they're bein' paid for it, at least, and the maybe the one controllin' these monsters hits the shipments as they move outta Frumpknob."

"Gee Haldor, how do we gain the support of the clan leaders of Baltarok?" "I'm glad you asked, Dyric! We'll cook them a sizzling chicken sauté, with my brand new Cookmaster Non-Stick Frying Pan TM! Look - the grease comes right off, 80% more effectively then the competitor's pans." "This sauté is delicious, human." "I'll say!" Cookmaster - bringing the peace, without the grease!

Hmm... The case against Clementine makes sense. She has been seriously all over the place in terms of the suspicions, whether based on any random sentence or two or pre-conceived ones based on metagaming. But I simply don't feel comfortable having Doctor Xen around after that outburst. And I already brought up that immediate contradiction in her previous statements. Vote: Doctor Wen (Xenophobic Monoxide) That should be his previous statement, sorry. You humans and your silly genders.

"Feel like I just got decked full-on. By a tornado." "Haw. I thought Heroica'd know more about it. She saved this place once, back when Eubric was still a fishing village. Just my way of remembering the woman." "I'm afraid not, sire. Little muggings and such, I suppose. People claim to have been attacked by figures that match this description." Their weapons are lying by the fallen ogre bouncer, and are handily collected by their owners. ""Pft. Don't insult us girl, or-..." "You are in no position to make threats," cut off Avina, toying with her dagger. "Gontzo let slip that they've attacked you once. The automatons only seem to target troublemakers. What were you doing?" "...hmph. We were doing a bit of side work. Turns out Briar here ain't half bad with a quill, Red can change yer face a bit with his magic, and I'm a pretty charismatic guy. A little elbow grease and it doesn't take much to get someone a fake identity...a new life." "....really? Hmm.....and who was your most recent client?" "Dunno why you're so interested. Old fellow, scientist or something. His name was Chalvo, I think. Why, that mean something to you?"

The first one. To the Marauder question.