Okay.  We've been a little fast and loose with this wandering around in the open, but now that we're about to head into a dunge... er, cave that theoretically holds a temple, I'd like to know the marching order.  Who soaks the poison darts, who falls into the pit traps first, who is exposed by the flanking monsters, etc.

Yes - the concern is a nice piece of RP.

Old people have to be treacherous.

I mean, that's why we have a rogue, right?

<.<

>.>

Hang on....

To be very precise - you've found the track that leads to the caves.  You haven't foudn the cave entrance yet.

Re: sneaking - Kithran is a sneaky rogue, able to be shockingly silent.  Nobody else specifically has the skill. 

Ch'dau, being a Kazari, is naturally quiet in his movements, and has no clanky metal armor to give him away.  Likewise, Garn is pretty quiet for a boorish human.  Cidals are known for being light on their feet, so Midge is largely as quiet as Ch'dau.  Davena is similar to Garn - not "skilled" sneaky, but pretty quiet.

Cedric's gear is not particularly loud, but he is not particularly quiet.  Gib sounds like a stereotypical solider tromping around. 

Re: light - no lanterns, torches only. 

Aranwen, Ch'dau, Kithran have infravision to some degree, and Davena claims the ability to see in the dark to a point (magic?).  Gib, Cedric, Midge, Garn have no ability to see in the dark.

Davena nods.  "I, too, have the ability to see some in the darkness, so I may be of some assistance there.  That said, when we encounter trouble, I would be better use behind the stout blades, not in front of them.  I am accustomed to Garn filling that role for me."

The big warrior grunts.

Midge pipes up.  "I'm blind as a proverbial bat, so I'm fine keeping muscle between me and any enemies.  That said, I say we check the entrance carefully before we proceed - I know that any halfwit stout would have a bell or somesuch to alert him to unsuspecting visitors.  I can't imagine a cult looking for secrecy wouldn't have as much sense."  Looking very pleased with himself, the cidal continues.  "I should probably cast a magic detection spell too, just to be sure, don't you think?"

Garn uncharacteristically speaks.  "Caves are treacherous.  A misstep can put you down a deep drop, where you'd never be heard from again.  Stay close.  Wandering off can mean death."

So, you're skeered.  That's okay.  Just say you're skeered.

I expect that Kazari holiday are awesome.  Something like Klingon holidays.

If nobody leaves bleeding, it's been boring!

What the hell am I doing here? 

I don't belong here...


Now I want to grab my guitar.  I suck, but I can strum those chords. 

You're missing out on awesome stuff from me.  Such as... classic jokes like "how do you fix a pumpkin?  with a pumpkin patch!" done as the laughing husky meme. 

Oh, and the tortoise thing with the babies in TMNT masks. 

Hmm... and a newspapaer pic of my graduating senior high school class.  My GOD, I am a dork!

A video of my five year old exclaiming over bunnies when she was... two?

Haha... and a pretty hilarious photo of a couples costume that makes a subtle dirty joke.


How are you surviving?

I was excited to see that you had posted... I see that I wasn't let down. 

Nice job, Brom. 

Man, every post is a treat to read.

Hey folks.

I have reached out privately to a couple of you, and then realized that this really deserves to be more of a group announcement.

I've made joking references to the ick factor ramping up heavily in the near future, which is absolutely the case.  The final act of this story takes the plot into incredibly disturbing, dark places.  You've seen the "silver screen" posts that look into some of the dark forces and their activites, so you know at least some of what is going on.

As anyone with any sense of plot can tell, the party is about to find themselves in the middle of these goings-on.  This is some very dark, twisted, horrific, adult-oriented territory we are about to travel.  And yes, I've warned about it from the beginning.

With that said, this is a game.  The entire point of playing a game is to have fun. 

Therefore, if things get too dark or out of hand, please feel free to reach out to me privately, and I will edit or tone things down.   The base plot is here, but I don't want to trigger anyone, to cause anyone to feel uncomfortable - I don't want to kill anyone's fun.  You are playing heros who stop evil, so I don't want to focus on the evil so much as to legitimately bother anyone. 

I'm of the mindset that we truly see the light when it is contrasted with the darkness, so my intention is to delve into that darkness.  But again, this is a game - I do not want to cause offense or hurt feelings in any of you.  If it goes too far, do not hesitate to reach out.

I...

Er...

Well, shucks.  So it is.

Dang, what a great gif!

The Inn started on Angelfire, not Geocities. 

Peasant.

Just wanted to point out what a superb "fluff" post Reralae just made.  Really breathed life into the character, I absolutely LOVED it.

To be fair, I've left some of the worst details out for him.  And he's still got some more kid-oriented details in mind... but he helped me figure out the framework that works. 

That said, one of his ideas - while perhaps not as horrible as what I had in mind - was a pretty direct "screw you guys, you're gonna die" type thing.   

My boy!

So, I've had to change the plot up a bit in Hidden Corruption.  I hated for the game to end in a TPK in the woods like that, so I pulled a bit of a deus ex machina.  Davena and Garn were not supposed to be there, but it was the only plausible way I could come up with to save you guys.

It did throw a big monkeywrench into the plot, though.  I've been floating here, trying to figure out how to get there from here. 

Last night, I talked it through with Noah (my twelve year old son), who has been following the game in update form through me.  I know what's going to happen, now. 

It's going to bring in a new wrinkle to the main plotline, something I had never planned to do... but really, really does make sense.  It's also going to ramp up the horror/ick factor to somewhere between eleven and... forty-three? 

That... that is one of the nicest things anyone has ever told me, as a GM.

Thank you! 

Creepier?  This one didn't even have talons sticking out of the doomed mother's abdomen.  I thought it was pretty tame, myself. 

Maybe she's more resistant and just failed a save?  Maybe it's all dumb luck?  Who knows? 

Glad you've enjoyed the latest chapter of "Silver Screen Moments of the Damned".

The sylvari maid was pale - somehow paler than her normal milky complexion.  More of a gray cast, come to think of it; a pallor that suggested deep rooted unwellness. 

And my, was she frail.  More often than not, young mothers developed a "glow" about them once thier bellies began to firm into roundness, but such had not been the case for this flaxen-haired lass.  The violent morning sickness had never truly subsided, even though her second trimester was well underway.  She stayed utterly exhausted, able to walk not more than a score of paces before needing a rest, it seemed.  Her breath stayed shallow, she felt lightheaded all of the time.

Barely a woman, just past her first century, the maid should have been strong, vibrant.  Instead, it seemed as though a stiff breeze would cast her down at any moment. 

A look of disquiet crossed her features... her smallclothes were suddenly damp.  Reaching a hand down, she recoiled at the copious blood that coated her fingertips.

Her eyes went wide, and she called frantically for help.

The midwife arrived quickly, accompanied by a priest... but there was little help to give.  The maid collapsed with a groan, her violet eyes rolled back into her head, and momentarily, the convulsions started.  She writhed in obvious agony for several long minutes before falling perfectly still in a growing pool of blood.

As the midwife tsked over the corpse, the priest frowned.  The Mistress was apparently correct - the sylvari and their cursed connection to life seemed to reject the babies, no matter what.  The hope had been that the greater brightness of their life force would enable them to survive better, to support them though the birth and infancy... but the opposite had proved to be true.  Rather than being more suited than humans, sylvari apparently were completely unable to serve as conduits to bring the anchor into the world. 

They would just have to keep trying with other subjects. 

Even knowing that he was confirming her theory, the priest was loathe to share news of the latest failure with the Mistress.  She was certain to not be pleased.

Sylvari are resistant to ghoul paralysis.  Aranwen has been injured several times by them, but has never been paralyzed.

Boo!  Hiss!  Come back!

All fair points.