Last time, on Feral Necromancer Quest: You returned from your meeting with the High Elves to the South-East, and you soon learned that Pernites have been stirring trouble. They had taken Spot hostage, and sent an emissary to mock you. You interrogated the emissary, learning that she was the daughter of Verus, a paladin of good standing with the Pernite nation, and much about the combat capabilities of the new Pernite army. You sent Lathrien to liberate the gnolls, a task he was successful at, but resulted in his capture. In your attempt to free him, you met with Verus, exchanged Lathrien for his daughter, and even arranged talks with the Prophet of Pern. You went to the Pernite camp, and were instructed to wait for the arrival of the Prophet in a tent, Verus watching over you.
The Cast:
Vlad Tepish: You, a necromancer of great power, a cunning diplomat and tactician. You have achieved your goal of immortality by learning to shapeshift into a great black dragon.
Melandie: An experienced elven huntress, scout and berserker, her perception is without peer. She still has significant anger issues, but is less likely to express them through wanton murder than in her early youth.
Verus: A paladin of Pern, and an overall reasonable fellow. You do not know much about the man, excepting that he has shown much integrity and reason for a faithful follower of Pern.
Joan: A junior priest of Pern, he has nonetheless managed to raise to a rank of military leadership of this campaign. You know little of the man, but something in his manner was memorable to you.
Housekeeping:
I have decided that Feral Necromancer Quest shall conclude soon, likely with the fortieth installment. I shall resume running quests, but Vlad's story is coming to a close.
My life makes some little sense for the first time in months, and so it is much more likely that I will be able to keep a regular posting schedule.
I don't know if we're allowed to vote on actions yet, but mine is to start research into how we can channel the forces of hell to make our dragon form bigger. I'm talking "world eater" here.
As you would expect, your time in the Pernite camp feels long and slow. You have nothing but staring at the white canvas of the tent wall and talking to your two companions to pass your time. Your two companions, one of which is not certain that you are not a monster deserving of extermination, and the other seems to be always angry, all the time.
For the first few hours you merely rest. You have been travelling hard, with no sleep for several days now, so a little rest is welcome. You make sure to send a dream to Bathory, so that she knows not to worry, and then you retire to sleep for a while. Not even four hours have passed when you start awake and soon after grow restless from the lack of anything much to do.
You are waiting for the Prophet of Pern. And impressive title, but both in history and in your experience, men with impressive titles often aren't. You know you are ready to face a champion of the god of Light, whether it be on the battlefield or at the negotiating table, but your lack of nervousness only serves to make the time flow more slowly.
>Talk to Melandie. You haven't spoken much for a few years, you being busy with government and family matters, her with- well, you do not even really know how she has been keeping herself busy.
>Talk to Verus. The paladin is your most likely inside ally with the Pernites, and talking to him has been entertaining the few times you've had the chance.
>Invite Verus in and pass time chatting with the both of them. It is less likely you will be able to do anything useful in a casual chat, but it is sure to help you pass the time.
>Leave your body behind and astrally explore the Pernite camp.
>Other
>>46859718
>>46859698
>Other
Even if it's just an evening of working out equations, progress is progress.
>>46859718
>Talk to Verus. The paladin is your most likely inside ally with the Pernites, and talking to him has been entertaining the few times you've had the chance.
>Leave your body behind and astrally explore the Pernite camp.
>>46859718
>>Talk to Verus. The paladin is your most likely inside ally with the Pernites, and talking to him has been entertaining the few times you've had the chance.
>>46859783
The players have been strongly opposed to any demonic influence for the vast majority of this quest. That said, stick around for a few quests, you might get some options that you find favourable.
You stretch out and stand up. You do not sleep much these days, it seems a waste of time for the most part, and now that you are awake you cannot bear the thought of remaining idle without advancing your cause, even if it is in a roundabout way. And besides, the paladin seemed to be a reasonably entertaining partner in conversation.
You exit your tent, and find Verus standing there, ramrod straight. His helmet gives him the appearance of someone that doesn't even blink. You approach him.
'Sir Tepish, is there anything you need?'
>'This might turn out to be a sore topic, but did you know a paladin by the name of Lexius?' Honestly talk about his peer that you bound as a blackguard.
>'Have you been standing guard in that manner all the while since I got here? There is really no need to be so formal, I do not intend to flee. Would you like to share some food with me for a break?'
>'Those priests of yours seemed barely competent. Are you certain those are the sorts of men you want to take orders from?'
>'I have a daughter too, you know. Younger, but I understand the strain I must have put upon you by keeping her captive. I wish to apologize for that if nothing else.'
>Other.
>>46859974
>>'Have you been standing guard in that manner all the while since I got here? There is really no need to be so formal, I do not intend to flee. Would you like to share some food with me for a break?'
>>46859974
>'I have a daughter too, you know. Younger, but I understand the strain I must have put upon you by keeping her captive. I wish to apologize for that if nothing else.'
>'This might turn out to be a sore topic, but did you know a paladin by the name of Lexius?' Honestly talk about his peer that you bound as a blackguard.
'By your god, man, do you ever take a rest?'
'I fear not, Sir Tepish. I must keep with the protocol at all times.'
'I can understand that, somewhat, but surely you can take a break for some food?'
'That, I think, would be acceptable, yes.'
'Good, I have jerked meat and apples, come, join me.'
'I thank you, Sir Tepish,'
'And you can call me Vlad, if you wish. I shall not take offense to it.'
'As you say, Vlad.'
Your face grows less jovial.
'In the name of honesty, there are a few things to discuss.'
'Indeed?'
'First of all, I must apologize for keeping your daughter hostage. I only say this to you because I know you would not use it against me, but I have a daughter too. I know what I would do to any man or god that threatened her. I wish it had not come to that, but it did and so I apologize.'
'Of course, I-' Verus says, and then stops himself, 'No, in the name of honesty, I have to tell you that I was ready to bring divine retribution upon your ass. If talking to you had not been the only sensible way to get her back safely, I would have rained vengeance upon you such that not even you could ignore.'
'I would expect no less,'
'But I accept your apology. I fear that had you sent an envoy to us, they might have fared much worse than taking a slight scare.'
'Now, onto the second and last confession. Are you familiar with the name Lexius?'
'It is a famous name among our people.'
'He was a paladin, he led the previous assault on the Alliance.'
'Ah, I know who you mean. I was a new member of the order when he left, looked up to him. But I cannot say I knew him personally.'
'I see. The confession I have to make is that I have bound his soul to his body, and his will to mine. He serves me as one of my blackguard.'
Verus stands up and half-pulls out his sword from its scabbard.
'Vlad, I must demand you to release my brother from your vile enchantment now, or there shall be justice.'
>'It is done.' do it.
>'It is done.' Lie
>Take his challenge.
>Other
>>46860481
>'It is done.' do it.
>>46860481
>>Take his challenge.
>>46860481
>>'It is done.' do it.
>>46860481
>Take his challenge.
>>46860481
>>'It is done.' do it.
Do you not want the Body?
>>46860481
>>'It is done.' do it.
You raise up your hand in a placating gesture, close your eyes and focus. Finding the one spirit among the hundreds you control is not an instantaneous task. But you find the pale grey spirit of the fallen paladin within less than a minute. You focus- simply releasing him from your control would have dire consequences to anyone near him- and break his body down to a pile of bones. You shall be leaving this detail out of your reply to Verus. Then, when Lexius is little more than a pile of bones with a spirit attached, you release the spirit.
You exhale.
'It is done.'
Verus looks at you for a moment, and then fully sheathes his sword.
'Thank you. What gave you the right to- How can I trust you, knowing what you have done, what you could do to me?'
'Think on it. He was an invader. He had personally killed my allies, and injured a close friend of mine very badly. He had refused surrender even when it was the only reasonable thing to do. I was furious with him.'
'And that is my meaning. When an average man is instilled with fury, there is only so much terror he can wreak. A necromancer enraged, however...'
'And how is it any different from an evoker enraged? Or, hell, how is it any different from that divine justice you were so ready to bring to bear against me?'
'It is- Thank you for the food, Vlad. I shall need to think on this.'
You leave Verus to his considerations. It is quite unlikely that this prophet person shall get here any sooner than tomorrow, even if he has some magical mode of transformation. You certainly have some time on your hands.
>Talk to Melandie.
>Astrally explore the camp.
>There is nothing restraining you but tradition. Walk about and explore the camp personally.
>Call for someone, Joan the priest, or perhaps some other person of interest.
>Other
>>46860863
>>Astrally explore the camp.
>>46860863
>There is nothing restraining you but tradition. Walk about and explore the camp personally.
>>46860863
>>Astrally explore the camp.
Roll 1d20+5 Ritual, DC 18
Rolled 11 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46861106
Rolled 20 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46861106
Rolled 15 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46861106
Nat 20! Critical Success!
Ah. The 'defenses' that these zealots have been talking up so much. As soon as you are about to enter the astral realm you feel several powerful spiritual presences. These turn out to be angelic beings of some description, sentinels set to prevent exactly the sort of thing that you are about to do.
But they are so very loud that they cannot help but fail to notice you once you put in even the slightest effort into hiding yourself. Well, you shouldn't sell yourself short. This is subtle and powerful magic you're working, but truly, it is quite simple to blend into shadows when there is a blinding light casting them.
Then you think about it and go a step further. Changing your shape has been a favourite passtime of yours for years now, and your spiritual presence can rival that of some more minor gods if you set your mind to it.
So, you match your shape to that of an angel, and you make sure to make your spiritual presence as loud as theirs. You find it quite surprising that there is really very little difference between the light you cast and the light of the angelic spirits, but it works in your favour.
>You are now indiscernible from the spiritual protectors of the Pernites.
>Find a priest and talk to him as a messenger from their god.
>Find a priest and talk to him as a messenger from their god, and fuck with him.
>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
>Other
>>46861311
>>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
>>46861311
>>Find a priest and talk to him as a messenger from their god.
time to pull a shit ton of information here.
>>46861311
>>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
Really want to see what happens with this but it would end up bad most likely.
>>Find a priest and talk to him as a messenger from their god, and fuck with him.
>>46861311
>Find a priest and talk to him as a messenger from their god.
>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
>>46861311
>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
Tempting as it is, you have not the slightest idea of the protocol that communion with one of these sacred spirits is supposed to go, or even if the priests actually speak to them at all. It is a shame and a wasted opportunity, but you know you can learn much just from exploring the camp.
>The first point of interest is the command tent. The ones in charge will hold the most relevant information.
>The first point of interest is the barracks. The common soldiers always know more about what is going on than the ones giving orders.
>The first point of interest are the camp followers. They keep in contact with both the soldiers and the priests.
>Other
>>46861533
>The first point of interest is the command tent. The ones in charge will hold the most relevant information.
>>46861533
>>The first point of interest are the camp followers. They keep in contact with both the soldiers and the priests.
>>46861533
>The first point of interest is the command tent. The ones in charge will hold the most relevant information.
>>46861414
>>46861369
This goes beyond being a bad idea.
>>46861311
>>Go about your business, you should be left alone now.
>>46861533
>>The first point of interest is the command tent. The ones in charge will hold the most relevant information.
You will be negotiating with the top brass. and will have to use the information the top brass has against them.
The elder priests are the obvious targets for your investigation. While you might empathize with the common folk more than these stuck-up bastards, you know that they make all the decisions around here.
You float towards the tent, and you hear raised voices as soon as you arrive.
'No! Absolutely not! Have you know honour, you filthy Pern-damned old fool?'
'Joan, you shall speak to your elders with the appropriate amount of respect!'
'I will not! Not while he is spouting heresy and damning the name of our god with his scheming and lies!'
'Yes, yes, perhaps I spoke rashly, but nonetheless, our god demands that this necromancer be dealt with.' [pic related]
'With honour! With righteous conquest! Not with your vile treachery.'
'Joan, I must once more remind you of your place!'
' 'All who worship His name are brothers. The younger shalt respect the eldest, but the eldest shalt be an example to them all' ' Joan says.
'Myes, but are you truly telling me that I am not worthy of setting an example to you?'
'You are not worthy of setting an example to a pack of starving rats.'
'Silence!' says an older priest, one that hasn't spoken to this point, 'We will not have bickering here. And we will most certainly not be killing anyone in their sleep. Nonetheless, this Vlad Tepish may prove more valuable as a hostage than as a diplomat.'
>Keep listening.
>Project your voice as an angel of Pern [write in]
>Whisper as an angel of Pern to Joan.
>Whisper as an angel of Pern to the ratty priest.
>You've heard enough. You are leaving and preparing for war.
>Other
>>46861759
>Whisper as an angel of Pern to Joan
>>46861759
>Project your voice as an angel of Pern [write in]
The girl Child is right. If you do not come in peace, do not dirty your tongue or your hands by lying. Purge the unclean openly, or not at all.
>>46861759
>Nonetheless, this Vlad Tepish may prove more valuable as a hostage than as a diplomat.'
Holyshit these guys think they can detain a dragon/necromancer.
Hahahahahhaaha
>>46861759
>>Project your voice as an angel of Pern [write in]
Just let them know that several angels of Pern are here. While their duty is to watch the individual called Vlad Tepish, they may also watch the followers themsleves. They should consider this a warning not to directly flaunt their disregard for the Pernite doctrine at their earliest convenience (eg, treachery).
>>46861759
>>Keep listening.
I kinda want to go talk to the angels. Pretend Vlad is one of them, let’s see how long we can bullshit our way through. I mean, what are they gonna do when they notice? Vlad can simply return to his body.
This young priest might be of use to you. Perhaps even an ally, if you play your cards right.You focus on his spirit, see the person beneath the flesh, and you manifest to his sigh only.
'Joan. You alone among these men see the truth of My Lord's design. Never falter in your faith, and your efforts will be rewarded.'
The young priest's face goes pale, and his eyes look upon you with true awe.
'Speak not of this apparition to anyone. The corrupt would seek to explain your devotion as madness. Only ever be certain that you act with justice and true empathy in mind.'
With that, Joan returns to his argument.
'My lords, Polonius, our faith dictates that we must deal with honesty first and foremost. I do not believe that deception will serve us in this holiest of our crusades.' he says with a new-found confidence.
'The boy is right, I must admit, lords.'
You speak to the boy directly.
'Remind them who they promised to send for once more.'
He nods, imperceptibly.
'Indeed, I believe we should truly send for the prophet. It is deception most vile to do anything less.'
'Joan, you know very well that if the prophet needed to know this he would be here already.'
'I only know that we must do what is right by Pern's laws, and if we do he may impart wisdom to the Revered Prophet. We should cast a sending unto him, just to be sure.'
You fucking should have known. You'll be here for weeks at this rate.
The eldest priest speaks again. 'Hell and pitch-fire, the boy speaks the truth. I should spend less time with you old bastards and consider the words of our god. Worry not, Joan, I shall cast a sending as soon as this council is over.'
>Wait for the council to end, then follow Joan around.
>You've done what you needed to do here. Return to your body.
>Explore the barracks.
>Manifest yourself as an angel of Pern to the council entire.
>Went with the first reply in this case, as I feel I nee to speed this up a little. It was a good choice too.
>>46862191
>Chat it up with the Angles.
>>46862191
>>You've done what you needed to do here. Return to your body.
>>46862191
>>You've done what you needed to do here. Return to your body.
>>46862191
>You've done what you needed to do here. Return to your body.
I cant remember, do the pernfuckers know we are actually a dragon now?
>>46862292
Nope, not yet.
You are certainly glad you went out of your way to do that. You might have ended up having to make a particularly bloody escape, had you not convinced the priests to actually do what they bloody well told you they would.
But now, you are back in your body, and it might be a long time indeed until this prophet shows up.
>Talk to Melandie.
>See what Verus is up to.
>Wander the camp.
>Go talk to the priests.
>Fuck this shit, you're out.
>They have pissed you off rather severely. Lay waste to this camp to show them who's in charge around these parts.
>Send a few particularly horrific nightmares to this 'Polonius' person.
>Other
>>46862366
>>Talk to Melandie.
>>46862366
>>Talk to Melandie.
>>46862366
>>Talk to Melandie.
You turn your attention to Melandie and find her state to be somewhat disturbing. She seems to be scratching hundreds and hundreds of notches into the wooden support posts of the tent with her hunting knife and a blank look on her face.
'So, hey, Mel, what'cha doing?'
'I an scratching a notch into this post for every minute I have to spend in this shithole.' she says, entirely deadpan.
>'Woah, Mel, it isn't so bad. You could talk to Verus for example. I'm pretty sure you're not banned from moving around the camp either.'
>'Care to take a break from that to catch up a little?'
>'Truthfully, I am somewhat concerned about you. You have a long life ahead of you, and if you let bad mental habits to develop you could do a lot of damage to yourself.'
>Pick up a knife and start making your own notches.
>Other.
>>46862575
>Pick up a knife and start making your own notches.
>>46862575
>>Pick up a knife and start making your own notches.
Discuss what you learned with her.
>>46862575
>>Pick up a knife and start making your own notches.
>>46862575
>>'Care to take a break from that to catch up a little?'
>>46862575
>>Pick up a knife and start making your own notches.
You sigh. You cannot say this waiting hasn't been getting on your own nerves. You pick up a knife and join her, one post over.
Minutes pass.
'You know, if this is a way to make me start a conversation, it's not going to work.' Melandie says.
You count to sixty and make a notch. Melandie drops her knife on the ground and punches you on the shoulder.
'Damn it, Vlad, what the fuck are we doing here? I admit you've made some pretty fucking impossible deals before, but these cunts actually believe in their heart of hearts that you're fucking evil or whatever.'
You count to sixty, make a notch, and say:
'It's worth a shot. I've seen too many stupid things happen from people not talking.'
'You could just make this problem go away. There is a clear and present danger to those you love, fuck, just turn into a dragon, show them your fury, fucking show them who you are and why you are not to be fucked with.'
'It does seem to work for you, I have to admit.'
Melandie just laughs.
'Is there something you'd like to talk about?'
Melandie counts to sixty, picks up her knife and makes a notch.
'Do you know what it's like to be an elf?'
'Not exactly, I suppose.'
'Fuck, I'm not starting this right. You humans, you have this relationship with death. It's like you either want to keep it away, or you want to flip it off any chance you get. Do you know how elves think about death?'
'Please, go ahead and enlighten me.'
'Like the fucking shifting of mountains, that's how. Do you know when an elf gets a blood clot from not moving enough? Fucking never. What happens if an elf loves to smoke the pipe too much? Their voice gets a little raspy in a hundred years or so. Death's a neighbor to you, to us it's a fucking nameless peasant three hundred miles East.'
'What brought this on, Mel?'
'People are going to die, soon, and the only way I can flip death off is by grabbing my fucking axe and chopping some skulls in half. Still not explaining it right.' (cont.)
>>46862877
'I think I am seeing the shape of what you are talking about. You are afraid of death.'
'Fuck no. You know better. I've seen it before, I've seen it a lot. It's just that I can't fucking prove that I don't give a shit about it. If I drank this camp dry, my liver'd probably be fine. If I fucked every man here, I'd have no more chance to die of a disease than if I took a stroll down the front of my home. I cannot call death a cunt. That's why I'm so fucking pissed that it's going to come in here and mess my shit up.'
'A little dour of you, isn't it?'
'Fuck, maybe I'm around humans too much. Feel like I should be getting old, but I'm not. Ignore it.'
'I don't think I should. We are our thoughts, and if you let yourself poison them you could really become fucked up.'
'More fucked up, you mean.'
'No. You are just the right amount of fucked up for a sane woman. Just don't let it get to you too much.'
'Fine, so are we really just sitting here, waiting for this prophet type?'
>'Sure looks like it.'
>'That is the idea. Doesn't mean we shouldn't prepare for things going to shit.'
>'Maybe. What have you really been up to for these past few years?'
>'Maybe. How is Lathrien, really?'
>'Hell no, I wouldn't trust these people further than Spot could throw them. We need to be prepared to burn this place and leave in minutes.'
>Other
>>46862994
>>'Maybe. What have you really been up to for these past few years?'
>>'Maybe. How is Lathrien, really?'
>>46862994
>'Maybe. What have you really been up to for these past few years?'
>'Maybe. How is Lathrien, really?'
>>46862994
>>'That is the idea. Doesn't mean we shouldn't prepare for things going to shit.'
>>46862994
>>'Maybe. What have you really been up to for these past few years?'
'We'll see, in any case I do not think we could do much more to improve our preparedness to face any tricks they may throw at us. We're pretty badass as we are.'
'Damn right we are.'
'How have you been? I cannot say we have had the chance to talk as much as friends should.'
'Oh, you know, well enough.'
'Come now, what have you been up to?'
'Most days I just hunt enough to feed myself, have to get a lot of red meat these days.'
'Why's that?'
'You mean Lathrien hasn't told you? Well, it's not like it's a secret, he pretty much only feeds of me these days.'
'Is that healthy?'
'Didn't I just tell you about the fucking elf bullshit? We heal pretty much everything eventually and he doesn't take much.'
'Alright, aside from that?'
'Well, to be frank, most of your scouts were pretty shit when they started out, so I've been taking them out hunting. The kobolds are too good- boring, and the elves think they know better every fucking time. The humans and the dwarves don't have much of a knack for it, so I've been hanging out with the gnolls a lot.'
'Really? I'm surprised you find things to talk to about.'
'That's the thing. The gnolls know when to shut up, and if they don't it's socially acceptable to kick their ass. We hunt together, eat and drink, and slowly you make friends. And now all of my friends are about to die from old age.'
'There's me, there's Bathory and Lathrien.'
'Lathrien is a part of me. Which is nice in ways I cannot put into words, but it does mean we can be lonely together. You and Bathory are absurdly busy, as you well know. So I hang around gnolls.'
'Well, they're good enough people, I suppose.'
'They're barely people,' she says, 'no, don't look at me like that, I understand them better than you do. They have a powerful intellect, and a sort of a social structure, but really understanding their feelings is fucking impossible.'
(cont.)
>>46862994
>I cannot call death a cunt.
Well you'd certainly throw him for a loop if you managed to get Lath to knock you up. Making life from something that is by all rights dead, now that's how you give death the finger.
>'Maybe. What have you really been up to for these past few years?'
>'Maybe. How is Lathrien, really?'
>>46863277
>'You must know the gnolls well. Any interesting stories about one of your expeditions?'
>'I am somewhat concerned about the habitual drinking of your blood. It is, after all, supposed to be symbolic magic. Would you mind terribly if I examined your spirit a little more closely?'
>'So, about this mess we've gotten ourselves into. What do you think we should do?'
>'I see, good talk, but I really must get on with some business.'
>Other.
>>46863308
>>'You must know the gnolls well. Any interesting stories about one of your expeditions?'
>>46863308
>'You must know the gnolls well. Any interesting stories about one of your expeditions?'
>'I am somewhat concerned about the habitual drinking of your blood. It is, after all, supposed to be symbolic magic. Would you mind terribly if I examined your spirit a little more closely?'
>>46863308
>'You must know the gnolls well. Any interesting stories about one of your expeditions?'
Gnoll's continuing to be best race.
>>46863308
>>'You must know the gnolls well. Any interesting stories about one of your expeditions?'
'Not at all, you seem to understand the Gnolls better than most, I am sure you have some fascinating stories.'
'Not really, I mean we mostly just go out hunting and with my eyes and their noses we never come back empty-handed,'
'There must be something,'
'Oh, there was this one time. Okay, so, there we were, two days away from home, on a really deep fucking hunt. We'd got some small critters, rabbits and such, but only enough to keep the hunt going, nothing to bring home. And with gnolls you have to bring something impressive back every time, or they get their fucking loincloths up their pussies and whine about their pride and honour and such. So, the third day of the hunt I'm getting annoyed enough to match any gnoll bitch in pissyness, so when we stumble upon Karhu, your bear buddy, right. So, the gnolls don't know a bear from a shapeshifter at ten paces, and I'm annoyed enough to let him teach them a lesson. Except, when the gnolls charge him screaming, Karhu just acts like a scaredy little cub and leads them on a merry chase. He backs into a corner, every bit the terrified animal, and turns into his goddamned human form.
So, Spot, not being retarded and all, tells the rest of them to back down, but this young fucking pup just goes red with bloodlust-in his mind the prey just got easier to kill- and charges Karhu. Now, I'm thinking I should intervene, but before I can do anything, Karhu's grabbed the gnoll by the scruff of his neck and is dancing a fucking waltz or whatever with it. So, there I am, a dozen gnolls at my back, and we're all watching a seven foot tall bear man dancing with a four foot non-consenting gnoll. I move to say something, but Spot just tells me that this is punishment enough.
We returned with two hives worth of honey, and that was more impressive than any fucking beast we might have caught. Sort of made friends with Karhu too, though I kind of feel like that fucking bear just makes friends by being around.'
You laugh.
(cont.)
>>46863635
'It is a shame I had to miss something like that.'
'You, hunting? Why don't we just burn the fucking forest down, where's the sport in that?'
'I could avoid using my magic.'
'Yeah, and then you'd scare any animal away a mile off with your fucking human footsteps.'
'I must admit my weaknesses.'
'Hey, you should go remind these priest cunts who the fuck you are.'
>'There is plenty of time. I would rather spend time in friendlier company.'
>'There is plenty of time. I would rather spend time in friendlier company. Speaking of which, have you spoken to Verus much? He is a surprisingly reasonable fellow.'
>'You might just be right. I shall send a request for an audience right away.'
>'You might be right. I shall go over there right away.'
>Other.
>>46863685
>>'You might just be right. I shall send a request for an audience right away.'
>>46863685
>>'There is plenty of time. I would rather spend time in friendlier company. Speaking of which, have you spoken to Verus much? He is a surprisingly reasonable fellow.'
>>'You might just be right. I shall send a request for an audience right away.'
>>46863685
>>'You might just be right. I shall send a request for an audience right away.'
>>46863281
>Melandie's pregnancy scare when?
'You know, you might just be right about that. I shall send a request for audience right now,' you say, 'Verus!'
'Yes, Vlad?'
'Do you think I could get another audience with the priests? Perhaps a little lower on the brimstone and hellfire side?'
'I believe that might be doable, so long as you allow them an hour to gather from their prayers and such.'
'Could you perhaps carry the message of request for me?'
'Certainly,' Verus says, 'And, Vlad, about what you have done. I cannot say I approve, but I cannot say that my side has not done things just as vile. So as far as I am concerned you can consider that particular issue struck.'
'Thank you, Verus.'
>Prepare for your meeting. Make yourself the most necromancery necromancer you can.
>Prepare for your meeting. Make yourself appear as normal and human as you can.
>Prepare for your meeting. Take up some of the Pernite dress-code, and ready yourself to approach them as a peer.
>Just hang around for an hour. You do not need any special apparel to show them who you truly are.
>Go straight to the meeting point, make sure that when they get there you are waiting for them.
>Other
>>46863995
>>Go straight to the meeting point, make sure that when they get there you are waiting for them.
>>46863995
>>Go straight to the meeting point, make sure that when they get there you are waiting for them.
>>46863995
>>Go straight to the meeting point, make sure that when they get there you are waiting for them.
You read in one of your books once that possession is nine tenths of the law, and you intend to own that room. Only leaving enough time for Verus to deliver his messages, you head to the meeting tent and you wait for the priests to arrive. The first is Polonius, just as ratty in his physical body as he was in the spirit realm, and soon after Joan follows, and before the hour is out the full six priests are with you in the tent.
When each of them sees you upon entering the tent, they all seem to lose a little of their pomp and balance, just as you had hoped for.
>'I know that you took your sweet time to send for the prophet. I know that some of you hoped to kill me in my sleep, or otherwise to keep me hostage. I know a great many things. Perhaps you should think twice before trying to deceive me.'
>'I require more of my people to lead an effective negotiation. I must send for [write-in] before any serious talks can begin.'
>'Ah, Joan, Polonius, I hope the day has been treating you right.' Imply arcane knowledge of the situation.
>'I do not appreciate being constrained to my room, and my rather deep well of patience is running dry. When is there going to be any real talks happening.'
>Other
>>46864152
>>'Ah, Joan, Polonius, I hope the day has been treating you right.' Imply arcane knowledge of the situation.
>>46864152
>'I do not appreciate being constrained to my room, and my rather deep well of patience is running dry. When is there going to be any real talks happening.'
>>46864152
>>'I do not appreciate being constrained to my room, and my rather deep well of patience is running dry. When is there going to be any real talks happening.'
>>46864152
>>'Ah, Joan, Polonius, I hope the day has been treating you right.' Imply arcane knowledge of the situation.
>>46864152
>'I know that you took your sweet time to send for the prophet. I know that some of you hoped to kill me in my sleep, or otherwise to keep me hostage. I know a great many things. Perhaps you should think twice before trying to deceive me.'
>>46864152
>>'Ah, Joan, Polonius, I hope the day has been treating you right.' Imply arcane knowledge of the situation.
>>46864152
>>'I do not appreciate being constrained to my room, and my rather deep well of patience is running dry. When is there going to be any real talks happening.'
'I must admit, that when I cam here I did not expect to be constrained to my tent for days upon days,' you say.
'Well, master Tepish, you have to understand that these things take time, of course,' Polonius says.
'Your presence here is an insult to our very god. You can be sure that we are doing what we can to resolve the situation as swiftly as possible,' Joan says.
'My dear Joan. Perhaps you should endeavor to utilize your sense of justice and empathy in this instance. You are, after all, invaders of a non-aggressive Alliance.'
The young man goes pale as a sheet.
'Now, I seriously need to know when the talks are going to happen. Otherwise I shall be forced to leave.'
'And what, pray tell, makes you think that you can leave?' Polonius says.
For a second you try to think of a humble and diplomatic answer. But only for a second. Then, without moving any muscle, except your left eyebrow you slam the ratty priest to the ground.
'The fact that no man here has the power to stop me.' you say.
The old priest speaks.
'You know what, Polonius, get the fuck out of here. You've outstayed your usefulness.'
'But my lord!'
'Did you not hear me fucking swear? I am the leader of your fucking order, and if I'm swearing at you it must be for a good fucking reason, don't you think?' the old man says.
'Y- yes, my lord.'
Polonius leaves.
'Well, priest, I believe you would get along well with my companion. Nonetheless, I need to know when and if this prophet shall arrive.'
'To tell you the truth, if not for young Joan here, we might have tried something rather foolish and not informed the prophet. Now, who knows. It takes weeks to get here on horseback, but the prophet has strange modes of travel. I believe he is approaching, but setting an exact time is impossible.'
>'You better make it possible, or any deal is off the table.'
>'Any estimates, at least?'
>'Do we really need this prophet person to make any deals?'
>Other
>>46864763
>'Any estimates, at least?'
>>46864763
>'Any estimates, at least?'
>>46864763
>'Any estimates, at least?'
>I am glad you saw the wisdom in not doing something foolish, I have not been idle over the years either.
You sigh and let your steely composure slip for a moment.
'Do you have an estimate, at the least?'
'Truly not, Sir Tepish, it is unlikely to take more than a week, but other than that I cannot- '
The priest is interrupted by not a sound nor a sight, but a presence. The entire tent feels serene, as a glade by riverside on a sunlit morning. You can almost feel the reflection of the dew-drops, before she enters the tent.
The prophet arrives, and all is right in the world. She is the Sun. She warms up the entire room, and laughter and summer goes comes with her, not mere concepts but hard truths. You cannot easily tell what she looks like, for you instinctively know to avert your gaze before staring too long, but she is beautiful beyond mortal ken.
Roll discipline 1d20+5 DC 20
Rolled 12 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865023
Rolled 1 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865023
Rolled 18 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865023
>>46865071
HA HA, TIME RANDOM STUPID BULLSHIT!
I fucking hate crit rules
>>46865071
Of course
>>46865071
of fuck this quest i swear.
Before you can find yourself, you are kneeling in front of her.
'My lady,' you feel the words escape your lips, but you do not remember any intent to speak them.
And then, just as suddenly as it begun, the supernatural presence evaporates, and you feel very foolish indeed, to be kneeling in front of you enemy.
The woman in front of you is good looking, but nothing like you believed a scant few moments ago. The priests seem to still be just as awestruck as before, but as the spiritual presence leaves the room, you immediately feel yourself once more.
Certainly, beginning diplomatic talks from your knees is not an ideal place to start from, but now that you have gathered yourself you feel up to talking.
'My lady, I pray that you allow me to give up all that is mine to show my devotion to your-'
You focus. She is messing with your mind. Or perhaps Pern is, but it does not matter.
Definitely not the start of the talks that you had envisioned.
'G- get out of my head,' you say through gritted teeth.
'The light of the sun burns brightest in the dark shadows that have seen it little,'
Her meaningless platitudes just about allow you to maintain your sanity.
'I will not be broken in this absurd manner. Lady Prophet, if you seriously want to talk to me, I would be thankful, if you left magic out of it.'
'Hm? Oh, but I did not even notice that was still on. I must destroy you, you understand.'
>'Why? It accomplishes nothing, I have no quarrel with your god.'
>'Leave my people out of it. There need not be so much death. Let us settle it between us.'
>Curse the prophet's Charisma. If she can use magic here, so can you.
>Other
>>46865258
>>'Why? It accomplishes nothing, I have no quarrel with your god.'
I really really hate crits on d20s, for fucks sake
>>46865258
>>Curse the prophet's Charisma. If she can use magic here, so can you.
>>46865258
Curse the prophet's Charisma. If she can use magic here, so can you
>>46865258
>Curse the prophet's Charisma. If she can use magic here, so can you.
>'Leave my people out of it. There need not be so much death. Let us settle it between us.'
Roll Evocation, 1d20+5 DC 18, DC 22 for something special.
Rolled 17 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865381
Rolled 3 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865381
Rolled 3 + 5 (1d20 + 5)
>>46865381
Time for nat 1s to ruin everything for no reason.
>>46865411
Sleepy you glorious bastard
>>46865465
I know Anon. At least the bastard part.
Rolled 64 (1d100)
22! Great Success!
Unnatural. She is using magic, or some favour of a spirit, or whatever other form of supernatural deception. Every word that comes out of her mouth is a lie, and the least you can do is to ensure that everyone else knows it.
At first you think to curse her. That should be punishment enough. But then you think of a way to gain even more advantage on your side.
You stand up, walk past her, and touch her skin for a slightest moment. With a significant magical effort you draw all of her imbued charisma, and all of her natural charisma too out of her body, with a slightly modified version of your vampiric touch. You feel an incredible power well up inside you.
>Your charisma is Divine for 1d100 hours. You can use any Charisma perks from http://pastebin.com/WwpGdjMJ and should you need to roll a Charisma check against an exceptional individual you shall be rolling at a bonus of +8
As for the prophet, all of a sudden it becomes obvious to everyone in the room that they have put their faith into the hands of a charlatan. She seems to be the most surprised of them all.
>Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>Other
>>46865593
>>Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>>46865593
>>Other
Laugh at them, this is too good
>>46865593
>>Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>>46865593
Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>>46865593
>Other
Laugh at them. Use the "Voice of the Dragon"
"Prophet of Pern? Anyone with a little bit of magic can slap up an enchantment and call themselves that. Real power is shown by those who push the gods away on their own."
>>46865593
>>Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>>46865593
>Other
Mock them a little and then shed the power.
We are better than that.
>>46865880
I personally agree with anon
You laugh, and what you mean as a vicious cackle comes out as a beautiful, deep melody. No one can help but laugh along with you.
'My friends, this woman you call a prophet, by the gods you do know that anyone with a little talent in enchantment could trick men just as well as she has tricked you. No, that is no true power, and she certainly does not speak for your god. And indeed, even if she did, are you not yourselves clever men? Do you truly need gods to steer your morality? Do you not see the foolishness of this endeavor? Let us have peace,' you say.
You notice that it is difficult for most of them to even get the words out of your mouth, and they simply agree with you by nodding and weak words of 'Yes, of course you are right, Lord Tepish.'
Most of them, that is. Joan seems to be struggling a little.
Roll diplomacy, 1d20+8 DC 10
>>46865593
>>Use your new powers to negotiate peace.
>>46865918
Something grates at you in the middle of your speech however, and you soon notice that you are just as enchanted by your words and by your presence as all others around you.
*Proceed with your rolls*
>It matters not. The words you speak are true, so what is the harm in it.
>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
Rolled 11 + 8 (1d20 + 8)
>>46865918
You chucklefucks roll nothing but 1s, I'll handle this.
Rolled 11 + 6 (1d20 + 6)
>>46865918
>>46865990
>>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
Rolled 12 + 6 (1d20 + 6)
>>46865918
>>46865990
>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
Rolled 7 + 8 (1d20 + 8)
>>46865918
>>46865990
>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
>>46865918
>Most of them, that is. Joan seems to be struggling a little.
HIS DEVOTION IS MAXIMUM!
>>46865990
>>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
>>46865990
>>Mastery over others matters not if one cannot even master himself. Focus. Use the power, do not be used by it. (reduce the bonus to the maximum human ability of +6)
>still waiting for some sort of fate point system to deal with the 100+ 1's this quest seems cursed to roll
We've betrayed the waifu twice now, I don't really give a fuck if magic was used to cause it, that's some ol' bullshit.
Rolled 20 + 6 (1d20 + 6)
>>46866089
>>46866179
And the third +6 vote makes me happy
Damn, but you should have thought of this before. The woman that entered this tent was barely human by the time she had the chance to talk to you. Who knows, perhaps if you hadn't gathered yourself you would be happy to take the place of Prophet of Pern and lead a merry crusade against your own friends and allies.
That said, the divine enchantment seems to have done its work. At the very least this camp shall not be attacking your friends.
And then, just as you felt the presence of the sun in the tent mere moments ago, now you feel the presence of absence, nothingness and deep winter cold.
It takes the others a longer while to notice, but soon every man and woman in this tent feels the undeniable presence of death.
Then, comes a communication. Not a sound, but a voice carried through the vibration of your bones.
'Who dares usurp the mantle of the God of Death? Step forth and meet my avatar incarnate!'
>Nope. Messing with the god of Death has brought you nothing but suffering before. Try to suppress your divine ability as much as you are able.
>You double check that this is not your unnatural charisma talking. When you are sure that it is your own idea, you realize that perhaps it is time to deal with some of the more annoying gods once and for all. You have a host of the natural enemy of the god of Death at your beck and call, and you are no longer the puny mortal necromancer you once were. Meet the god of Death on the battlefield.
>Call Melandie. Tell her she finally gets her wish to flip off death. Kill death or die trying with her.
>Other
>>46866229
>You double check that this is not your unnatural charisma talking. When you are sure that it is your own idea, you realize that perhaps it is time to deal with some of the more annoying gods once and for all. You have a host of the natural enemy of the god of Death at your beck and call, and you are no longer the puny mortal necromancer you once were. Meet the god of Death on the battlefield.
>Call Melandie. Tell her she finally gets her wish to flip off death. Kill death or die trying with her.
>>46866229
>You double check that this is not your unnatural charisma talking. When you are sure that it is your own idea, you realize that perhaps it is time to deal with some of the more annoying gods once and for all. You have a host of the natural enemy of the god of Death at your beck and call, and you are no longer the puny mortal necromancer you once were. Meet the god of Death on the battlefield.
>Call Melandie. Tell her she finally gets her wish to flip off death. Kill death or die trying with her.
>>46866229
>>You double check that this is not your unnatural charisma talking. When you are sure that it is your own idea, you realize that perhaps it is time to deal with some of the more annoying gods once and for all. You have a host of the natural enemy of the god of Death at your beck and call, and you are no longer the puny mortal necromancer you once were. Meet the god of Death on the battlefield.
>>Call Melandie. Tell her she finally gets her wish to flip off death. Kill death or die trying with her.
>>46866229
I have no idea what the fuck is going on any more.
Someone more composed make votes.
>>46866229
>>Nope. Messing with the god of Death has brought you nothing but suffering before. Try to suppress your divine ability as much as you are able.
>>46866229
We met Pern in person before, and the death god is probably just as powerful as him. We can totally meet his avatar head on.....
>>46866357
We met the Death god before.
We pissed on his statue.
>>46866381
We saw the death god in a vision, we journeyed into Pern's realm ourselves. There is a slight difference there.
>>46866229
>>Nope. Messing with the god of Death has brought you nothing but suffering before. Try to suppress your divine ability as much as you are able.
You do not exactly know what is going on, but you have a rough idea. While you have never been a direct ally to the god of necromancers and death, you certainly have caused enough of both for those two domains to rub off on you. Now that you have stolen some divine power, it is little surprise that the god of Death would notice someone pushing in on its territory. You doubt it even knows that your power is temporary.
And that is what really does it. You have very limited time to use this opportunity. Within a few days you will just be the immortal dragon that you have always been. Today, you carry the mantle of the sun god on your back, and the armies of Pern will follow you as fanatically as they have been opposing you before.
'You heard it, honoured priests. The ancient enemy of Pern has declared war upon us. Raise your banners. We go to war!'
Then you leave the tent. Melandie is there waiting for you, and she blushes ever so slightly upon seeing you.
'Damn, Vlad, you've been working out?'
'It's magic, Mel. Did you hear it?'
'Hear what?'
And then the air is filled with the absence of sound. It is not mere silence, it feels as if all hearing and noise has been dragged by force out of your ears. You turn South, and you see the figure from your deepest nightmares.
It towers over the forest. Hell, It would tower over some mountains. The thing is huge, but that is not why it is fearsome. The creature is made up of pure necromantic energy. The matter that you use in tiny increments to ressurect the fallen, it is using to make up a body entire.
>There are no clever tactics to bring to bear against this creature. Charge!
>Other
>>46866525
>>Other
Tell Melandie to go home, she probably won't really be that useful in this fight compared to a small army of dudes with sun god backing their powers.
Then make everyone else charge.
>>46866525
Rally the Pernites, try to identify any links to Death we could sever. All non-combatents should retreat.
Is this creature intelligent?
>>46866525
>Tactics
Instruct the priests to send in the angels first and to start chanting up as many holy attack spells as they can, starting from most powerful to least.
Bring our army in.
Bring their army in.
Test to see if our curse/plague spells can even affect the avatar of death.
If there's anything that has gotten us this far, it's planning our fights.
And punching gods in their faces.
>>46866685
And stealing their power when we can. All I'm hearing is a creature made of energy that we are most adept and controlling is standing before us.
>>46866772
>All I'm hearing is a creature made of energy that we are most adept and controlling is standing before us.
So we have to make our own to fight it? So kaiju fight or Row Row Fight Da Powah?
I just hope we don't encounter the situation where our inner dragon gets the chance to take over our mind.
>>46866806
oooh, or we can just pull a spider queen/dracolich on it and start siphoning its powers.
>>46866838
That's what I'm thinking. It is just one giant battery begging to be drained.
Even in this deathly silence, the Voice of the Dragon can be heard. Once the hosts have gathered, you ride atop your faithful skeletal steed and you instruct the armies.
'Followers of Pern! Holy men and women! This beast is darkness incarnate. Unleash the light of Pern upon it! Unleash the angels of Pern to strike at it! Unleash your faith and devotion and strength of arms to strike at it! Today. Is the day. We kill. Death!'
Their shouts are silent. You turn to Melandie.
'I do not think you shall be of much use here. Are you certain you should not retreat?'
Melandie points at her runeblade, focuses, and the sword glows with a red light. Then she shakes her head and shows you her middle finger.
You make sure that you have your own undead at the ready to flank the beast if the need arises. You imagine that using them in battle shall mean matching your wits and magic with a god, but if times grow desperate you might need to give it a shot. Finally, you call the elders of the Alliance to you, all capable men and women, and then, you sound the charge.
>Dragon now and distract it while the army of Pern gets in range.
>Charge with them, dragon when you are close enough to engage.
>Charge with them, see what magics you can use from your human form.
>Other
>>46866903
>Dragon now and distract it while the army of Pern gets in range.
>>46866903
>Other
Let them distract it. Our visit with Pern showed that gods are merely spirits with a shitton of power. We are the most powerful shaman alive. Lets put those two together.
Use the time the Pernites buy us to try to find a way to unravel this spirit and/or start siphoning its powers. It is a wellspring of power, all we have to do is puncture the outside, prevent it from closing itself, and guide the power to us.
>>46866903
>>46867032
This seems like a pretty solid idea.
>>46866903
>Once the hosts have gathered, you ride atop your faithful skeletal steed and you instruct the armies.
No seriously what the fuck is going on? I feel like I'm missing posts. Where the fuck did this come from? Why is it in a camp of Pern's dudes, and where did our undead show up from out of nowhere?
What the fuck is happening?
>>46867032
Our spiritual presence currently is around a minor god level. Although Death is weak due to a lack of followers I still think his definately a step up from the forest god we fought before.
>>46867112
We are the most powerful user of necromantic powers and we stole a minor divine charisma power given to the prophet by Pern.
Death felt someone with a lot of necro gain divine power, so he jumped to the assumption that Vlad is trying to butt into his divine domain.
>>46867032
Supporting.
>>46867129
Death may be a step above from the forest god, but so is Pern, who may actually be more powerful. Hell, we pissed Pern off on purpose, desecrated his most beloved sanctum, and got away with it. We might (depending on rolls) get away with siphoning some of Death's power while he slaughters Pernites.
>>46867167
I got that, but where the fuck is all this other shit coming from?
I feel like a kid with ADD since half of this shit isn't being established it's just "okay big dude wat do? Okay suddenly army rally to fight big dude wat do? Undead here too, wat do?"
Like there should be a lot more text establishing whats going on right now.
>>46867112
You were never more than a day away from your hold, and your undead are somewhere in between the two, y'know preparing for a war that was inevitable barring divine intervention. Also, it is not so much that it is right in front of a Pernite camp, but more that it is just physically large enough to be easily reachable from most plot-significant areas right now. And also, because you picking up some of Pern's power triggered it (in so many ways).
Aight? Aight.
You think that you might be able to use your own magic to drain the avatar's power. The immediate problem you are faced with is that without closer examination it would be akin to trying to swallow the ocean in a single gulp right now. That said, a battle of attrition is unlikely to go your way either, and so you decide to let the Pernites distract it, while you study the magical energies emanating from the creature.
Roll 2d20 1. Channeling +5 DC 21 2. Tactics +6 DC 18
Rolled 17, 11 = 28 (2d20)
>>46867315
Rolled 2, 6 = 8 (2d20)
>>46867315
Rolled 4, 4 = 8 (2d20)
>>46867315
Rolled 7, 9 = 16 (2d20)
>>46867315
here's hoping Vlad the implier doesn't die
>>46867335
>22 and 17
where's sleepyanon when you need him?
>>46867335
>>46867341
>>46867347
channeling success tactics fail
>>46867404
You really expect religious zealots to follow orders?
>>46867443
that's... oddly fitting then
The armies of Pern crash into the primal incarnation of the god of Death, and where life meets death the former ends while the latter remains. They fall like flies, like rodents in a forest fire. In the first minutes of the conflict, a thousand men lie dead on the forest floor.
You refuse to be distracted by it. You look for some weakness in the avatar, and then, you think you have found it. Draining energy from it should not weaken it, not unless you had a hundred necromancers of your power, but while you cannot reasonably drain it all away from this avatar, you can certainly supercharge your own reserves and you can certainly improve many of your attributes through it.
When you turn into your dragon form, you are greater than ever you have been before, both in size and in magical power.
>Dragonbreath that S.O.B.
>Let us see what pure necromancy tastes like. Attack it with fang and claw.
>Other.
>>46867499
>Let us see what pure necromancy tastes like. Attack it with fang and claw.
Intimidate it or Death God! With Beast of Legend we can intimdate anything intelligent and only fail on Nat 1.
>>46867499
>Other.
Well, we've done good so far.
We use necromancy to turn corpses into zombies with small amounts of energy, right? Death is making thousands of corpses. What if we keep siphoning, but we channel the excess into all the corpses around, and bind them to our will?
This shall be a war of attrition against death which we CAN win.
>>46867499
>Let us see what pure necromancy tastes like. Attack it with fang and claw.
LET'S DO THIS GENTS
LEROY JENKINS STYLE!
>>46867499
>>Dragonbreath that S.O.B.
You are a necromancer, and you will be damned if you let some godling raise the dead that have fallen on the battlefield. You make sure to use the abundant necromatic energy on the battlefield to raise the fallen Pernites, and find that you can manage to raise just about all of them. While not a real threat to the avatar, at least you have taken away its ability to kill more of the men on your side by using undead minions.
It doesn't seem to oppose you, relying instead on keeping its own mass coherent. Well, you shall see what the mass of necromancy feels against your tooth and claw. You fly directly towards the center of the creature, and are surprised to find it solid. Biting into it is like tearing into flesh, not the shadow that it looks like, and that works for you just fine.
Soon enough the creature has taken his attention off the Pernite and undead host, and is focusing on you.
>Let it. You have not been outmatched in size in quite some time, but back in the day it was a rare treat to fight a foe of your own stature. You remember well how to fight a larger opponent.
>Retreat for now, strike only when the moment is opportune, let your armies take a few more casualties.
>Go human. You will be a flea on the body of the god, and it will have a hard time indeed squashing you.
>Other
>>46867777
>>Retreat for now, strike only when the moment is opportune, let your armies take a few more casualties.
Hit and Run
>>46867811
>Retreat for now, strike only when the moment is opportune, let your armies take a few more casualties.
We can take a few losses and res them, we should also maybe continue channeling if we can.
>>46867777
>Let it. You have not been outmatched in size in quite some time, but back in the day it was a rare treat to fight a foe of your own stature. You remember well how to fight a larger opponent.
>>46867777
>Retreat for now, strike only when the moment is opportune, let your armies take a few more casualties.
But try to channel Death's power not into ourselves, but into our minions. Lets supercharge our army
Having a giant battery for a foe certainly has its advantages. You keep casting magic without cease, you throw acid at the monstrous figure, you channel more and more power into your undead, and even into the forest around you. While in comparison to the avatar of death, even the treants of the oldest trees are the size of a cat, it all adds up to a significant nuisance to the furious god.
And so, it forms a scythe out of shadow and necromatic power. It sweeps it across the battlefield, and you can only feel a handful of living spirits remaining within a second of the grand, sweeping attack. You check in a panic to see if Melandie is among them, and then you see her grasping onto the scythe itself. What is more, next to her there is a giant bat, that soon turns back into your apprentice.
Lathrien has made it here, long before any of your other reinforcements have a hope of arrival.
It fills you with some hope, but very little of your armies remain. You raise them up from death once more, and once more you redouble their assault.
Lathrien and Melandie follow the scythe on the upswing, and drop down, making sure to land near the face of the avatar, and attack it with magic and steel.
Roll 3d20 1. Vlad Unarmed/Channeling +6 2. Melandie +4 3. Lathrien +5 DC 20
Rolled 11, 2, 2 = 15 (3d20)
>>46868101
Rolled 7, 20, 20 = 47 (3d20)
>>46868101
Rolled 1, 8, 18 = 27 (3d20)
>>46868101
This will be an excellent story to tell later.
>>46868134
>>46868129
1,20,20
thank Pern that Lathrien decided to show up to fix what Vlad is gonna fuck up
>Vlad will never NOT be a jobber
At least when our son possessed by dragon mojo kills us we can blame it on all the 1s we're gonna roll.
>>46868129
0_0
So there we go, then.
The two elves fall in a perfect unison, their attacks fluid and their balance without flaw. They drop onto the face of the god-beast, and both begin tearing at its eyes.
It works. The beast is blinded, though you cannot for the life of you understand why it would choose to see through its eyes alone, for all things about its form are as it wills it.
None the less, it is absolutely blinded, the avatar of Death cannot see as a blessed dwarven runeblade and powerful shamanistic magics of Lathrien tear into the core of its power.
You are, in fact, so struck by the unexpected success of your allies, that you entirely fail to notice one of the creature's flailing arms coming towards you. You are slapped down to the forest floor, and only the fact that you are a dragon at this particular time saves you from instant death. Even so, your wings are broken, as are a few of your ribs, and the bones in your left hind-leg.
You curse. Even with their exceptional success your allies cannot hope to beat the monster alone.
>Have your undead carry you. You can at least help with your magic.
>Leave your body behind, attack the creature on the astral realm.
>Force your body to move with magic. You can fight until you are dead.
>Other
>>46868296
>>Force your body to move with magic. You can fight until you are dead.
Fuck getting carried around like we're old or something.
>>46868296
>Leave your body behind, attack the creature on the astral realm.
this has usually led to good things
>>46868296
>Force your body to move with magic. You can fight until you are dead.
Dragon Breath
>>46868296
>>Leave your body behind, attack the creature on the astral realm.
>>46868296
>Have your undead carry you. You can at least help with your magic.
Sup Dead, you're back
You leave your body behind, deciding that you will not be of much use in the physical realm, but as the god is a spirit first and foremost, you know that you will have the chance to help in the astral.
As soon as you make the shift, you realize that this battle has been observed. By eleven spiritual entities, at the least as great as the avatar that you are fighting.
One of them is Pern, and you recognize him without a doubt. You also see something resembling Grish, though this creature is much greater in power, larger and more densely solid in its spiritual composition. The other nine you do not recognize, but it is quite clear that they are all gods.
An older woman, blindfold on her face, slightly taller than the tallest mountain you have seen speaks up.
'Very good, the point has been made. We shall recover our peer, and we shall leave you alone.'
You look upon the field of a thousand dead and you decide that this is not good enough. If the gods have come here to pull their injured comrade out of the line of fire, you are damn sure going with them to see that he gets what he deserves.
When you try to speak you sense a great spiritual pressure, one that would squash your voice to a weakened squeal were you a mere mortal. You are not, and you shall not let the gods do as they will. You channel the voice of the dragon.
'No. I will be coming with you to make sure that this beast pays for what it has done.'
'So be it,' says the Blind Lady.
And you are sucked into a vortex of darkness along with the avatar of death and eleven other gods.
And that is where the thirty seventh installment of Feral Necromancer Quest shall conclude. You can read the archives by searching DeadQM on suptg, and you can keep up with any updates by following me on twitter @DeadQM.
I am afraid I have a game of 3.5 in six hours, so I cannot stay any longer, but let's just say that character advancement is just about to get a little less relevant in any case.
I haven't seen a thread in months--haven't been around. Whatever happened to that other fellow that was loyal to Vlad? The first (I think) companion.
The last time I was around for a thread was when Vlad led an exotic expedition (rather, a defense--his companions were exotic) into caves where they battled encroaching drow. Bad rolls were had, a minor ally perished, and my memory fails me of the rest.
Anyone (kindly) want to fill me in?
>>46868673
>>46868644
By the way, you do a great job. Meant to tell you that.
>>46868673
Since then, Vlad has managed to achieve immortality, turned into a dragon, fought a few grand battles, and there has been a time-skip of a decade. I recommend you read the archives if you can, because I am finally properly back to (hopefully) regular updates.
>>46868711
I do my best, thanks.
I am sorry for the shorter thread, but since nowadays it takes eight hours to get to 200 posts, when it used to take four to max it out at its peak, I hope you understand that I simply cannot keep playing for the twelve hours it would take to finish.
I hope to see you all next Saturday, for the penultimate chapter of the main story. If all goes as planned, 40 shall be an epilogue, and possibly a little bit of a hangout to talk about the quest after its conclusion.
