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[Aqizzar]

Yay, I got mine!

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward by Threetoe:

+@u@++||@++

The dwarven king paced to and fro before the thick oaken door.  Inside
he heard the muffled screams of the queen giving birth to another
infant he had sired.  Twelve daughters.  Without a son, the line of
kings would be at an end.  The king ground the pipe between his teeth.
The door swung open suddenly.

"A beautiful baby girl!" cried the nurse.

Something vital to sanity snapped in the king's mind.

"My son!" he cried.  "A son at last!"

To the horror of the queen and her twelve older sisters, the king
taught his daughter the ways of the axe and crossbow.  Together they
worked the forge and created new weapons that the king's new 'son'
know the secrets of metal and fire.

One day, the thirteenth child sat at the grinder, polishing her axe
when her father entered the room.

"Thonak," said the king, "it is time to make your debut at the palace."

This is how you encourage donations - offer intriguing serial stories as rewards, so I gotta donate again to see what happens.

As part of the recent wave of donations, post your Three-Toe ASCII art.

[Sylverone]

That's amazing.

"A son at last!"

[umiman]

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward (story by ThreeToe):

g%gg%%ggggg%///@&

Drums sounded deep within the dark fortress of evil.  The goblins
jumped up and down, packed into the great hall.  Toe to toe, they
leapt, screaming with excitement as another severed head was thrown to
the crowd.  High on a carved stone platform, their dark master raised
his huge black blade.  His meaty fist held the cleaver high, while his
other gauntleted hand pressed Halson onto the stone slab.  The hand
let up slightly as the blade fell and Halson slipped away.  He
launched himself off the platform as the dark lord cried out in
surprise and anger.

The adventure slammed into the sea of goblins, but quickly righted
himself.  Before the evil lord reached the floor, Halson was halfway
across the room, kicking off from goblin head after head.  When he
reached a window, he propelled himself through.  Only a few seconds
freefall -- and then into the moat!  He squeezed the prize in his
hands as he fell, the dark lord's bracer.  A hard splash and into the
cold, the escape had only begun...

[Linthar]

Got these a while back but they feel pretty relevant now with everyone focusing on the new elves.

Part 1:

Code: [Select]

##EE##S##S##S###+@@@++++.

Misty clouds passed by above and below as the birds soared.
Elequaina, the elf princess astride her giant eagle, stared into the
horizon, her face like stone, hiding the fury within.  At her sides,
giant sparrow men flew, awaiting her command.  When they reached the
dwarf fortress, she gave the signal.  The birdmen dove, clearing the
battlements of sentries and sending the doomed dwarves hurtling to
their demise.  Dwarves, the hunters.  Dwarves, the killers of trees.
They would all pay with their lives.  The hated enemy sent up a volley
of deadly missiles from their crossbows.  Many a sparrow man were
knocked from the sky.  Elequaina looked on grimly.  She took solace in
the knowledge that for every birdman that gave his life, a thousand
woodchucks were saved.  Spying the dwarf king in his tower, she dove.
and Part 2

Code: [Select]

#######hhhhh@@++++##@EE######

Air rushed by with a thundering howl, drowning out Elequaina's
vengeful cry.  To the left and right of the king stood two
professional axe-dwarves decked out in black plate menacing with
spikes of obsidian.  The elf lord swung her mighty wooden sword around
her head and signaled her elite hawk man guard to attack.  The bird
people clashed with the dwarves.  Many were slaughtered instantly by
the expert chops of the dwarves, but the moment of confusion was all
Elequaina needed.  With a single graceful swoop the giant eagle
clamped its claws around the dwarf king's shoulders and hoisted him
into air.  The marksdwarves took aim but held their fire for fear of
hitting their liege.  Helplessly, they watched their king borne away
to a unspeakable fate.

[Benny]

Code: [Select]

ggU,%..gUg,%.-..ggU~~~~~

All was lost.  Everywhere people were screaming in grief and terror.
The sky was filled with the black smoke of a hundred burning
homesteads.  Amlin walked, hands bound, flanked by two goblins.  He
could not lift his head and watch his people butchered.  When they
reached the irrigation ditch, a goblin kicked the back of Amlin's leg
and brought him to his knees.  The goblins forced him face down into
the water and held his head down until he stopped struggling.  They
kicked the body into the ditch and laughed as it floated away.

Once he disappeared from view, Amlin rolled over and took a desperate
breath.  He struggled out of the water and cut his bonds on a sharp
rock.  He looked back over the low hills and saw the smoke.  All he
knew was gone.  All that remained was vengeance.

[Hanuman]

I really enjoy reading these ASCII Art Rewards. I wish I had some money to donate so that I could receive one of my own. Until then I suppose I will have to keep an eye on this thread for more of other peoples rewards.

I am assuming the little one line of ASCII relates to what is going on in the stories correct? It's such a great idea. Too bad I am not 100% proficient in ASCII interpretation. I can get the general idea of how the stories relate to the ASCII but I get a little confused as to what some of the letters and symbols stand for.

[imajia]

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward by Threetoe:

kkk""kS'''UUEU".,..>

At last, thought Holgrim, the lost fortress of Battlehands was in
sight.  Long had the party cut their way through the jungle.  They
carried heavy loads on their backs as the native bearers had fled
after the first kobold attack.  A setback, no matter how great, would
never hinder Holgrim's will.  Long had he planned this expedition,
with every precaution marked and taken twice.

Key to the leader's efforts to reach the lost citadel was his team, a
group of chosen adventurers whose keen skills would overcome any
obstacle.  First there was Bull, a massive warrior from the wastes of
the west, his wide chest bearing the scars of many battles.  Then
there was Slendara, a beautiful elf maiden and archer who could shoot
a coin in half from a league away.  Finally there was cautious
Thomson, a thief from the capital city who never acted without careful
thought.

A huge mountain of stone jutted up out of the mossy jungle floor  It
was carved into an enormous statue of a dwarf blowing a massive bugle.
 The entrance lay between the statue's feet.  Thomson approached his
master.

"We must take care, as dwarves are wont to guard the entrances of
their dwellings with all manner of deadly traps," said the burglar.

As the leader considered the advice, a commotion could be heard in the
trees behind.  A furious scraping and rustling came from the jungle
mixed with the yipping yaps of a hundred evil throats.  "Kobolds!"
cried Slendara.  A crude arrow slammed into the tree beside Holgrim's
head.  The enemy were too many, their attacks growing in strength with
every foray.

As Thomson pulled on his master's coat tails, pointing toward the
mountain, the fighters stood their ground.  Bull let up a terrifying
warrior yalp, smacking arrows out of the sky with his great axe.
Slendara notched arrow after arrow in rapid fire succession, hitting a
kobold between the eyes with every shot.  Holgrim drew his sword, a
blade etched with the runes of his people, and prepared for mortal
combat.

"We must withdraw to the fortress," cried Thomson.  "It is our only chance!"

"Silence," said Holgrim.  "Now is the time to fight."

A crash echoed from the jungle.  The kobolds made way for the huge
monster that emerged from the shadows.  It was a giant sloth, at least
ten spans high, twenty when it reared back on its hind legs to release
a horrible roar.  On its back rode the kobold chief, decked out in
bones and leather.  Instantly, Holgrim regretted his hasty words to
the thief.  Now was clearly the time to run.

[puke]

wow, this stuff is really inspiring.  I really enjoy it when ThreeToe posts his fiction for us, and these are really amazing shorts.  the potential is really inspiring, leaving lots to the imagination in regards to prequels and sequels.

the next time i donate, i think i'll include my own little snip of art and story with the check.

What do people think about a "fan art serial" in the stories forum?  people could take turns posting their own ASCII art and short bits of story, each one advancing the larger plot?

Also, the ideas about giant eagle and giant sloth mounts are pretty amazing.  i'm thinking that might be a preview of something to come.

[Davion]

Code: [Select]

bBbBbBbB####HU*########||+UU+||

The master thief leapt from the tower, the royal jewels still in his
hands.  The pursuing guard ran to the side to watch in wonder as the
burglar plunged to his death.  But lo, a giant hawk flew down and
plucked him out of the sky.  The aging king stormed out onto the roof
of the tower, still in his bed clothes.

"Curse you Faltrix!" screamed the king as the bird flew toward the horizon.

The rogue had known the hawk since it was a hatchling.  It was then he
had pulled an arrow from its wing.  Thus began the most famous
partnership of the age.  The hawk rider and his steed were known
throughout the land as heroes of the people, stealing from the rich
and giving to the poor.

A dark cloud rose on the horizon.  The smile fell from Faltrix's lips
as the evil creatures sprung their ambush.  Bat men!  How had these
creatures strayed so far from the mountains?  The evil beings rode
giant bats and shot poison darts from their blow guns.  Faltrix
commanded his mount to dive low.  Perhaps he could lose them in the
trees of the forest below.

[Fishersalwaysdie]

Man, I simply love that giant sloth idea...

[Aqizzar]

I can forsee a glaring problem with giant sloth mounts.

[Nonanonymous]

Oddly enough, a while back I whipped up and posted this: 

Code: [Select]

[CREATURE:GIANT_CAVE_SLOTH]
[NAME:giant cave sloth:giant cave sloths:giant cave sloth]
[TILE:'s'][COLOR:7:0:0]
[LARGE_ROAMING]
[POPULATION_NUMBER:10:20]
[CLUSTER_NUMBER:1:2]
[PETVALUE:50]
[NATURAL][PET][TRAINABLE][MOUNT]
[BENIGN][MEANDERER]
[PREFSTRING:lazy movements]
[PREFSTRING:suggestion of gentleness]
[PREFSTRING:deadly claws]
[BODY:HUMANOID:2EYES:2EARS:NOSE:TAIL:2LUNGS:HEART:GUTS:ORGANS:THROAT:NECK:SPINE:BRAIN:MOUTH:3TOES]
[SIZE:7]
[BODYGLOSS:CLAW_FOOT]
[SPEED:950]
[MAXAGE:30:70]
[ATTACK:MAIN:BYTYPE:GRASP:slash:slashes:1:4:SLASH][ATTACKFLAG_WITH]
[ATTACK:SECOND:BYTYPE:MOUTH:bite:bites:1:3:GORE][ATTACKFLAG_CANLATCH]
[ATTACK:MAIN:BYTYPE:STANCE:kick:kicks:1:3:BLUDGEON][ATTACKFLAG_WITH]
[ATTACK:MAIN:BYTYPE:TAIL:slap:slaps:1:3:BLUDGEON][ATTACKFLAG_WITH]
[CHILD:1][CHILDNAME:baby cave sloth:baby cave sloths]
[FAT:2]
[NOCTURNAL]
[BIOME:ANY_TEMPERATE_FOREST]
[BIOME:ANY_TROPICAL_FOREST]
[BIOME:MOUNTAIN]
[BIOME:SUBTERRANEAN_CHASM]
[STANDARD_FLESH]
[HOMEOTHERM:10067]
[LAYERING:100]
[SWIMS_LEARNED][SWIM_SPEED:2500]
Along with a few other creatures.  In fact, the stories involving the greater multitude of animal people also started showing up not too soon after the More-oh mod was released with Modbase, if I remember correctly.

[Areyar]

yay, i got mine!

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward by Threetoe:

gggggggggg.UC

The pale man rose from his bed with a huge gasp.  He pressed his
fingers to his temples.  The nightmare again.  Throwing a black cloak
around his body, he walked to the door and opened it onto a scene of
unimaginable pain and suffering.  Below his chamber, the goblins
worked their torture-craft on helpless prisoners.  A heavily-scarred
goblin approached the cloaked man and, seeing his condition, dare to
speak.

"The dream again, master Darquan?" asked the goblin.

"Yes," said the goblin lord.  "Dwarves.  I'm a child, and the dwarves
steal my toys."

Darquan looked at the gate that opened onto the side of the mountain.
"The dwarves will never steal again," he said, "Make ready my armor."

The goblin nodded enthusiastically.  Soon the goblins were armed and
in formation.  Darquan sat astride his mount, a giant cobra.  The evil
army spilled out onto the mountainside and into the haunted forest
below.  In a few short days, they would arrive at the dwarf fortress,
Darquan would be free of his nightmares, and the forces of good would
be utterly crushed.


[MathijsBuster]

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward by Threetoe:

###,,.U/M.,.||

As the adventurer climbed up the steep mountain path, a quake shook
the mountainside.  A rocky arm broke away from the stone, followed by
the impossible body of a human-shaped creature.  The adventurer drew
his sword.  A mountain man, he thought, so be it.  He had killed
giants and ettins with nothing but a scratch, how could this mindless
creature do him harm?  The mountain man opened its fearsome eyes which
were made from cool green emeralds.  The adventure swung and the
creature caught the blade between its palms.  This would be a
difficult trail indeed.

[Mr.Person]

Code: [Select]

Now for your ASCII Art Reward by Threetoe:

###,,.U/M.,.||

As the adventurer climbed up the steep mountain path, a quake shook
the mountainside.  A rocky arm broke away from the stone, followed by
the impossible body of a human-shaped creature.  The adventurer drew
his sword.  A mountain man, he thought, so be it.  He had killed
giants and ettins with nothing but a scratch, how could this mindless
creature do him harm?  The mountain man opened its fearsome eyes which
were made from cool green emeralds.  The adventure swung and the
creature caught the blade between its palms.  This would be a
difficult trail indeed.

Oh snap, THAT sounds deadly.

Also, giant cobra mounts make me smile. Not as cool as GCS mounts.. but whatever.