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Author Topic: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-36 Decisions, Decisions  (Read 656638 times)

GlyphGryph

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1275 on: October 22, 2012, 11:34:55 pm »

Shit, nice catch. Make sure to examine the ceiling thoroughly before this is over - it might be our escape right, since that feeling doesn't seem natural - he might just not want us to look.
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RAM

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1276 on: October 23, 2012, 08:23:35 pm »

While the ceiling may well be the way out, given that this place is purportedly a device of magic pertaining to death, there may be ways out that we would rather not indulge in... Although we should endeavour to become familiar with all aspects of necromancy if we are to avoid potentially hostile surprises...
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racnor

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1277 on: October 24, 2012, 08:45:47 pm »

we entered this section of the dream by diving into the pool. I think the ceiling is the way back to our personal dream.
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Grek

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1278 on: October 24, 2012, 09:04:48 pm »

I think that if the ceiling looks dangerous that we should assume, provisionally, that it actually is dangerous. Again, not exerything is the EXACT OPPOSITE of what it seems. Not everything is out to trick us.

Only start trying to escape through it if it doesn't looke like we'll be getting out any other way.
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RAM

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1279 on: October 25, 2012, 05:44:52 am »

I still would like to try to figure out if we can get back unaided...
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wer6

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1280 on: October 25, 2012, 05:53:01 am »

from my experiences og dreamscaping if we try to go to sleep in this world we wake up: or if we kill are selves then we wake up tough ushaly if you kill your selves you die in the real world.
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RAM

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1281 on: October 25, 2012, 09:02:56 pm »

Presumably this place is a forum or a prison. If we are in a prison and we are not in control then we are presumably trapped already and our prospects are dim. If it is a forum then it stands to reason that making it possible for participants to harm one another directly is unlikely to contribute to ordered discussion...
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monk12

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-5
« Reply #1282 on: November 21, 2012, 11:04:35 pm »

Spoiler: Author's Note (click to show/hide)

I would advise against stalling. We're in a dream, so it may not even work, and even if it did it would be needlessly antagonizing a powerful opponent, which is #7 on the Big List of Things Not To Do When Becoming a Powerful Wizard, right alongside "don't brag" and "don't cast spells that you don't know what they do".

We should say that A] We agree with their goal of making the world safe for necromancers, but B] we can't agree to be on the same side as someone like Curo Nightroar since his sort of necromancy is the sort that gives all necromancers their bad name, and C] because of that we're not saying where we are until something changes and we are willing to join.
Also, I don't think they really expect us to go all "yeah, let's kill all our previous societies". If they aren't stupid, they will consider the possibility that we are still attached to our previous societies and should be willing to take the longer route of letting us getting disillusioned with it while pushing us relatively gently to their side along the way.

"Will you work with us, and share our knowledge? Where are you?"
"I'd like to work with other Necromancers, but I can't endorse your methods. You want me to abandon my people, my friends? To join up with a maniac like Curo Nightroar? It's Necromancers like him who make everyone feel the need to bring whole armies against us."
"You'll see- your friends and family will abandon you once they know who you really are. It's inevitable."
"It's only inevitable if you don't try! There has to be another way- Necromancers coexisted with the rest of Urak long ago, and they can do so again. I know it!"
Fale rolls his eyes, striding closer to you. "Pfft. You know nothing. You'll see the truth of my words sooner or later, but don't hold onto your stubbornness for too long- I can't help you if you get yourself killed. We'll talk again- until then, stay out of our way."

Suddenly, Fale lifts his hand- his fingers are wreathed in purple fire as he gives you a firm shove. Surprised, you fall backward, tumbling into your fishing hole as Fale's strange room fades away. The purple fishes swarm around you, blocking your view as they mass in impossible numbers, swirling closer and closer...


Anyway, on the morning inform Omo of the situation, and tell him you need to start working on becoming able to oppose them, which including training, researching and building a power base. Work on doing so. We need to work on overtime to be able to be in a position where we can actually declare opposition to the other necromancers. If the necromancers can somehow scry us and see that we tell them that we are doing so so can keep him as our asset for now and that we are working on creating a power base so we are safe from those who would hunt us. Stall some more. Also, research old tomes and etc. to discover if there is any "good" death god, or at least a neutral one. We might need a god to handle another.
But make sure to tell everything we can to Omo in the morning of this event - Full transparency. Let him know we're relying on him to be our conscious as we descend into this political powder keg.

After a night of murky, half-remembered dreams, you awake to the sound of Omo snoring on the floor. With a tired groan, you roll over in bed- although your other dreams are rapidly dissipating, your encounter with Fale Packunion remains sharp and clear. There is no doubt in your mind that he (or she, or it) is no figment of your imagination.

Judging by the weak light attempting to crawl in the window, it is either early morning or quite cloudy outside. After rubbing your eyes, you conclude you won't be able to get back to sleep. In the interests of fairness, you decide Omo should get up as well- sitting up, you dig through your pack for Prestidigitation for the Beginning Practitioner. Close inspection confirms that it is a sturdy, well crafted tome. Reassured that the book will be fine, you toss it off the foot of the bed, about where you judge Omo's head to be.

"Agh! Wha- Did you just throw the book at me, Nym?"
"Yeah. I had a weird dream last night."
"So you chucked your textbook at my head!?! You could've brained me!"
"It's not like you were using those brains anyway."
"On the contrary, those brains are giving me a nice pounding headache to thank me for the ale I had last night. I was rather hoping we'd get to sleep in before we go tramping through the wilderness."
"Sorry, no such luck. Listen- the dream I had wasn't really a dream, I think. Somehow, some other Necromancer contacted me in my sleep."
Omo sits bolt upright before wincing and rubbing his head. "Wait, what? Necromancers can do that?"
"I guess? He said his name was Fale Packunion."
"Strange name- sounds vaguely dwarven."
"Yeah. He appeared to be an elf though- actually first he appeared to be a human woman, then changed to an elf man. He said he was trying to unify the Necromancers under Morka, god of Death. Ever hear of him?"
Omo shakes his head. "No, I've never heard of Morka. I know the Golgothans worshiped Golgoth, but they're all dead now."
"Wait, really? I didn't know that."
"Yeah, well, you'd have known if you had paid more attention to the Sages. That's pretty much all I remember, though. What happened next?"
"He said something about teaching me Necromancy in exchange for my allegiance, and everyone I love will betray me, yadda yadda so on and so forth. I turned him down- I know he's definitely working with Nightroar, and any friend of his is no friend of mine."
"Right. So... what now?"
"I don't think he knows I've left the Vale- he kept asking where I was, like he didn't know. I don't know if anything has really changed for us- we know the other Necromancers are working together to conquer the world, but not much else at this point. I say we go on like before. If we leave now, we should make Aloclesno before nightfall."
"Yeah... that makes sense, I guess. Let's get some breakfast first, though."

After taking advantage of the opportunity to freshen up, you head downstairs. The common room is empty except for the sleepy innkeeper, who stifles a yawn as he brings you a bowl of oatmeal with some dried fruit slices on top. Omo begins to devour his portion with single-minded determination.

"So do you know which way we're going?"
"Mmmph. Yeah, I was talking with the soldiers about it last night. There's a dirt road that should take us straight to the forest, more or less. There's a few flyspeck farming villages between here and there- most are abandoned, but the one furthest south is still inhabited."
"The village closest to the forest?"
"Mmhm. Patrols head that way every now and again to make sure they're alright, but they haven't seen much in the way of zombies- too far out of the way, likely. We should be able to spend the night there before going on into the forest."
"Wait, you didn't tell them we were going into the haunted forest, did you?"
"Please, give me some credit. If anyone asks, we're looking for family from one of the abandoned villages."

After breakfast, you gather your things and hit the road. As it turns out, it is indeed both early in the morning and quite cloudy out. A warm southerly breeze promises rain as it tugs at your cloak and stirs the flags of the Imperial troopers. There is a general exodus in progress as most of the soldiers gear up and head out on patrol, while the remainder continue their efforts at fortifying the village. Leaving through the East Gate, Omo quickly peels away from the marching warriors and takes you down a narrow dirt road.

It is something of a kindness to call it a road- more accurately, it is a set of wagon-wheel ruts straddling a strip of dirt hard-packed from generations of traveling feet. Hardy weeds stubbornly eke out an existence on the otherwise barren path. The road zigs and zags its way through the farmland near the village, but once out in the open spaces it straightens up quite nicely. It also deteriorates somewhat- clearly, not many travelers leave the highway to visit the boondocks.

For the most part, the road leads through uninhabited wilderness, grassland broken only by the odd bush or shrub. Every once in a great while, you pass a solitary farm- some are abandoned, their windows boarded shut and occupants fled, but many of the farmers stubborn enough to scrape an existence this far from civilization are also stubborn enough to remain in their homes despite the Necromancer threat. Their life appears largely unchanged as they work the fields, getting the first crops of the season planted.

As Omo mentioned, there are indeed small hamlets out here, little more than a half dozen stone farmhouses clustered around a good source of water, with maybe an inn or some craftsman's shop. The grey clouds begin to drizzle on you as you pass through the first hamlet, but by the time you've passed the last villager returning from his field the rain has stopped. When you pass through the second hamlet early in the afternoon, however, there are no villagers to pass- every home and shop is boarded up, abandoned. There is something profoundly unsettling about a completely deserted village- rather than take your lunch there, you continue on a ways out of town.

The drizzle makes a serious attempt to qualify as rain as you continue following the road southeast, but ultimately peters out after about an hour of dampness. The farmhouses become few and far between as the land gets more and more rough, the monotony of the countryside now broken up with the occasional boulder. The road becomes less a road and more of a trail as the grass and weeds grow over the wagon tracks, making footing difficult. It's a very boring afternoon of walking- Omo seems to be alone with his thoughts, and you find your own thoughts returning to your strange dream, searching for clues. You've never heard of Necromancy being associated with dreams in any story, but then again, you've also never heard of them being associated with golems, either. Prestidigitation for the Beginning Practitioner makes no mention of dreams or dream magic for any of the other Magical Faiths. Really, the only dream magic you've heard of comes from fairy tales which have no basis in fact.

The sun hangs low in the sky when you begin passing farmhouses again. Though they appear to be deserted, they do not appear to have been abandoned for long- children's toys and farming implements still litter the ground, and at one farm you see a small herd of cattle still within their pen. Looking around, you see no farmers- your shouts elicit no response from the locked and hastily boarded up farmhouse.

The village comes into view after another couple miles of walking. It is clearly larger than the hamlets you passed on the road here. Not only are there more houses, but a prominent two story building rising up in the middle of town appears to be a temple. You hear plenty of commotion, but encounter no villagers until you stand in the center of town. Beside the temple is an open, grassy area- or rather, it would be open if it were not full of villagers standing around, talking anxiously. Other villagers hurry in and out of the temple, running off on whatever errand is important enough to take precedence over dinnertime. Looking further down the road, you can see a large, loud man directing a line of villagers shoveling dirt, digging a trench to the east of the village.

Omo scratches his head, looking at all the activity. "Well, I don't see anyplace that looks like an inn. Maybe the temple? I don't know what the commotion is about- hopefully they don't look poorly on strangers."

You look around in concern. You'd hoped to get a good night's rest here, as well as some more information on the supposedly haunted forest you plan to skirt, but you aren't sure where to go or who to talk to. Any ideas?

Spoiler: You (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Spells (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Omo Thunderjaw (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Notable Figures (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Planned Experiments (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Maps (click to show/hide)

Felius

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-6
« Reply #1283 on: November 21, 2012, 11:18:21 pm »

IT'S ALIVE!

Oh well, the village seems to potentially be in danger of an attack. Get some information about the whole deal, try to discover what exactly is going on and if they expect to be attacked in less than a day. If so, we should consider carrying on to somewhere else, even if we don't get to sleep. If they are to be attacked we can't really make any difference or be of any help except possibly by using necromancy itself, which not only is not even close of being certain to help, can easily lead on to the villagers turning onto us and getting the word out of us as a necromancer. That would suck. Hard.
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racnor

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-6
« Reply #1284 on: November 22, 2012, 12:21:17 am »

IT'S ALIVE!

Oh well, the village seems to potentially be in danger of an attack. Get some information about the whole deal, try to discover what exactly is going on and if they expect to be attacked in less than a day. If so, we should consider carrying on to somewhere else, even if we don't get to sleep. If they are to be attacked we can't really make any difference or be of any help except possibly by using necromancy itself, which not only is not even close of being certain to help, can easily lead on to the villagers turning onto us and getting the word out of us as a necromancer. That would suck. Hard.
+1, also, should we work through some of the experiment backlog while we travel next time?
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Grek

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-6
« Reply #1285 on: November 22, 2012, 01:08:32 am »

IT'S ALIVE!

Oh well, the village seems to potentially be in danger of an attack. Get some information about the whole deal, try to discover what exactly is going on and if they expect to be attacked in less than a day. If so, we should consider carrying on to somewhere else, even if we don't get to sleep. If they are to be attacked we can't really make any difference or be of any help except possibly by using necromancy itself, which not only is not even close of being certain to help, can easily lead on to the villagers turning onto us and getting the word out of us as a necromancer. That would suck. Hard.
+1, also, should we work through some of the experiment backlog while we travel next time?
This and yes, we should, if Omo has no objections to it.
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Ancre

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-6
« Reply #1286 on: November 22, 2012, 04:09:43 am »

UPDATE :D

And I agree with the poster above.
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Felius

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-6
« Reply #1287 on: November 22, 2012, 07:04:16 am »

Experimenting as we travel should be fine, just keep it to the mostly harmless and less necromantic looking necromancy, just in case. This way if someone spot us doing it, it won't cause a mob to immediately form after us.
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monk12

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-7
« Reply #1288 on: November 25, 2012, 10:41:28 pm »

IT'S ALIVE!

Oh well, the village seems to potentially be in danger of an attack. Get some information about the whole deal, try to discover what exactly is going on and if they expect to be attacked in less than a day. If so, we should consider carrying on to somewhere else, even if we don't get to sleep. If they are to be attacked we can't really make any difference or be of any help except possibly by using necromancy itself, which not only is not even close of being certain to help, can easily lead on to the villagers turning onto us and getting the word out of us as a necromancer. That would suck. Hard.

After looking around for a moment, you decide to take the direct approach and ask one of the nearby villagers what is going on. Seeing an older man standing by himself, you walk over to introduce yourself.

"Hello! What's all the commotion?"
He regards you in surprise, stroking his chin. "Haven't you heard? Zombies attacked some of the outlying farms last night! We're waiting to hear what happened- some folks are still missing, and we don't know if the village is in danger." His eyes narrow as he examines you more closely. "You aren't from around here, are you? Who are you?"
"We're looking for relatives from ours- they would have been from a nearby villager." Omo interjects quickly.
The man shakes his head. "I can't say as we've had any refugees come our way- most of them are running back toward the city. I had friends in Stickover, though- looking for anyone I know?"
"Uh..."
"Revereorder. Luki Revereorder, would be the head of the family."
The man scratches his chin. "Never heard of him, but then again, I don't get out of Bedscaled very often these days. I don't know of anyone else coming here, but you could ask Eko Cleanvise- he's the priest here." He spit off to the side, grimacing sourly. "Not much of a priest, but he's all we got."
"Not much of a priest?"
"He's never been the most pious man, but he's always got the job done- before now. Rumors are going around that several of the farmhouses that were destroyed were ones near Aloclesno- farmhouses that were supposed to be warded against the undead!"

Interested to hear him mention Aloclesno, you begin to question him further, but a sudden shout from the front of the crowd draws your attention. Waving for attention atop the temple steps stands a heavyset balding man wearing a coarse brown robe. Hanging around his neck is a medallion, a simple iron square divided into four even quadrants. You recognize the symbol from the religious motifs you saw at the Temple of Larathor. The crowd huddles around him, calling for attention.

"What's the word, Eko?"
"What's happened to the Scarletdaubs?"
"Where are the zombies? Are we safe here?"
"Why didn't your wards work, Eko?"
"That's enough! Quiet down so I can tell you right!" the priest shouted in a deep, gravelly voice, holding his arms up. After a moment, the crowd quieted enough for him to continue. "Here's what we know. Last night, a large force of the undead struck four farmhouses to the east. The Trimsockets and the Overblushes managed to escape, and made their way back here to warn the rest of us. The Drunkenstumbles fought with what weapons they had, and drove the zombies off. Jal and Zego were killed, though, and Ado is in a bad way. The Scarletdaubs fought too, but they were overcome. We found Cikul's body mangled in the house, but everyone else is missing."
"Where did they come from?" a worried voice called out.
"Somewhere to the east. We don't know more than that, however- we found bloody, child-sized footprints outside the Scarletdaubs farmstead, and there is a search on to see whether the kids might have escaped the attack."
"How come they could even attack the Scarletdaub place?" another angry voice shouted. "They're right by the forest! You were supposed to have warded them from zombies!"
"If I knew, I'd tell you." Eko said curtly. "All we know is that somehow, they can overcome the wards. I urge everyone to stay within the village until we know more. It doesn't seem likely that we'll be attacked again, but we will have a watch kept throughout the night. If you have nowhere to sleep, the Temple of Atal is open to all. We have already sent a rider to inform the Imperial Forces of our situation- all that can be done has been done! Either help with the defenses, or return to your homes!"

Ignoring further calls for his attention, Eko steps back inside the temple, shutting the door behind himself. A couple villagers, undeterred, follow him inside. A half dozen men and women walk down the road to where the ditch is being dug, determined to help out. Most of the crowd, however, disperses to their homes, muttering uneasily to one another.

Rubbing your arm, you consider the situation thoughtfully. "What do you think, Omo? I don't think we can be much help here, and the Imperials should come soon enough. Maybe we should go the long way around the forest."
"Maybe." Omo says, his voice grave. He slings his quarterstaff behind his shoulders, pensively holding it between his wrists and the back of his neck.
"Maybe?" You quirk an eyebrow.
Omo stand with his head down for a moment, then nods. "He said they think the kids from that farm survived. Do you think any of these farmers can track as well as an Elven Ranger?"
"You want to help them find the survivors?"
Omo nods again, more firmly. He lazily twirls his staff before grounding it in the dirt. "A Ranger like me? I won't even be gone the whole night."

You consider Omo's plan. It has its merits- he's probably right that a trained woodsman will stand a better chance of finding the missing humans, and it's not like you're on a tight schedule. On the other hand, you aren't sure where this would leave you- should you stay behind in the village, and try to learn more about Aloclesno and the priest's wards against the undead? Or should you accompany Omo? If he runs into zombie trouble, your presence could be a great help. Then again, maybe you should just leave the humans to their own devices, and set off immediately- there are bigger forces loose in the world, and time spent here is less time spent harnessing your powers.

Spoiler: You (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Spells (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Omo Thunderjaw (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Notable Figures (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Planned Experiments (click to show/hide)
Spoiler: Maps (click to show/hide)


also, should we work through some of the experiment backlog while we travel next time?
Experimenting as we travel should be fine, just keep it to the mostly harmless and less necromantic looking necromancy, just in case. This way if someone spot us doing it, it won't cause a mob to immediately form after us.

Duly noted. For future reference, is there a threshold at which you would want to stop experimenting? "Don't deplete Mana less than half" or anything like that? I'll assume travel experiments are only the ones that don't involve carrying around zombies/golems for a prolonged time, unless you otherwise specify. Hopefully future travel segments will give me the opportunity to poll the thread about which experiments you want to see performed.

Felius

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Re: You are a Necromancer! Chapter 2-7
« Reply #1289 on: November 25, 2012, 10:50:55 pm »

Hmm, I need to sleep over it to really propose a new plan, but so far, I'd say, yeah, let's try to find the kids, but don't take too many risks. We are not used to dealing with Undead yet, so we might as well just make ourselves victims instead of actually helping anyone. Some investigation on those wards might as well be merited. It might actually be a thing, but too weak against the undeads that attacked or they might not work at all for a number of different reasons, from he's well intentioned but deluded, passing through he making fake wards to gain power to him being in collusion with the necromancer. Remember to be careful either way.

About the experiments, at our current mana, expend maybe 4 points, and the rest when just before we go to sleep. Alternatively, if in specially dangerous areas, expend it only before bed, and possibly not expend it all.
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"Yes, but that rather hinges on doing certain things and not doing others." - Paraphrased from Discworld.
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