16394 replies to this topic

[Blackraven]

Congrats Grond0, break a leg in Amn!
And I respect your decision not to hunt after 'missing' (randomized) items. My problem when playing with Item Randomization was that I always ended up doing lots of extra quests in hopes of finding items, especially the tomes.

[Blackraven]

Glorydd, Dwarven Fighter/Thief, 4th update
 

Glorydd didn't stay long in Beregost. One of the townspeople had told her of riches, be they of academic or commercial import, to be found in the Firewine ruins to the east. She dediced to follow that lead.

 

The Dwarf's exploration of the Firewine Plains that stretched southeast of Beregost all the way to the Troll Mountains, was not without incident. She ran into different species of Ogrekind that were after her metal, for apparently their weapons kept breaking. Glorydd was aware of the impact of the mysterious iron crisis on trade and the economy, but it had never really affected her because a high quality enchanted blade had been one of her first investments (Sound Defense +2 short sword, which gives +1 AC and +1 Saves vs Death bonuses), and she had secured a second enchanted blade from one of the Hobgoblins that had unwisely attacked her in the Red Canyons (Zargal's Short Sword +2). These weapons were of true, untarnished steel. Glorydd wasn't prepared to relinquish said weapons to the Ogres. She slew the monsters, ironically doing most of the work with her bow, as if to teach them that one may get by without steel.

 

As a pseudo-Ranger she didn't hesitate to slay a pack of Xvarts for farmer Hulrik, before the critters could kill his cow Arabella. Glorydd seems to be evolving into a Good-aligned character. She does tend to work on a quid pro quo basis, which is perfect for a Neutral character, but she also sympathizes with the plights of the needy and helps many of them without requiring payment. I might change her alignment at some point. Be that as it may, three bandits that wanted to rob Glorydd and, judging by their dirty comments, perhaps even force themselves upon her, discovered that the Dwarf could be merciless as well.

When she finally reached the Firewine Ruins, she found them heavily guarded by Kobolds, and decided not to bother with the place. She had learnt in Candlekeep that the yelping vermin clot together in great masses, and she really didn't care about fighting hordes of Kobolds. Much more interesting she considered a duel with Meilum, self-proclaimed 'most skilled swordsman of the Sword Coast'. She challenged him and he accepted. Glorydd soon discovered that he took the duel much more seriously then she did. Meilum struck fast and precisely and clearly he tried to hurt her. Many blows were exchanged, but he wouldn't relent. Eventually Glorydd's dual-wielded short blades prevailed over Meilum's katana. A pair of Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise she removed from his hands, partly explained why he had been such a skilled fighter. She kept the gloves, and traveled to Nashkel.

 

In that town she accepted three new commissions that would take her into the wilds again: to investigate the Nashkel mines, a day's travel south of the town, to deliver ex-captain of the Guard Captain Brage dead or alive, and to retrieve two stolen emeralds from a Thief named Prism. Having recently acquainted herself with the dry, barren lands east of the Coast Way, Glorydd decided to go westward to see if she could find Brage or Prism, and to get to know the lands west of the Coast Way a bit better. 

 

There's more to tell but I've got too much RL work to do

So this is all for now.

[Grimwald the Wise]

Good to hear that the wrecking crew made it to Amn.

 

The Gnasty Gnomes went as fast as they could away from the ambush site. They helped the widow who was being plagued by her undead husband and a priestess whose mother had been murdered by some fishermen,

 

They then headed south, calming down Marl and delivering a tome on the way, got healing ability and Lord Foreshadows ring as well as a pair of bracers. They also turned down a reward in Nashkel. Current reputation 12.

[Blind_Visionary]

Fenton died to a poisoned arrow from a Kobold Chieftain in the Nashkel Mines... He had just reached level 6. Kivan, Imoen and Viconia carried his body back to the temple of Helm in Nashkel and buried him next to countless other failed no-reload aspirants to the Throne.... The omnipresent authority figure clearly needs more practice

[Blind_Visionary]

Entering Grace. Elven mage-thief. Shameless metagamer. Key mods = SCS, randomizer. Some other stuff including unfinished business. (Her first memorized spell was find familiar... thus she's starting with slightly boosted HP.)

 

 

To the Throne! (or certain death...)

[Alesia_BH]

Hey there, hi there Blind visionary. It's good to see you back in action! Good luck!

 

Best,

 

A.

[Alaestr]

Alesia, still lurking around, huh?

 

 

Blind Visionary, good luck to Grace!

[Alesia_BH]

Alesia, still lurking around, huh?

 

Lurking isn't quite the right word- it's more like lingering on the outer outskirts. Every few weeks I think: "Huh? I wonder what's goin' on over at the No Reload Challenge." I then stop by, skim a few posts, and take note of the participants more than anything else. If I see old friends, that makes me happy. If I see new faces, that makes me happy too. I guess I'm just glad to see the challenge alive and well.

 

Yesterday I actually thought about starting a run. I even rolled up a character. Unfortunately this crushing sense of laziness and fear kicked in before I got out of Candlekeep. I'm pretty rusty now.

 

Anyhoo. Best of luck everyone!

 

Cheers,

 

A.

[Blind_Visionary]

Hey there, hi there Blind visionary. It's good to see you back in action! Good luck!

 

Best,

 

A.

 

Thanks Alesia! I may never actually succeed at this, but for some reason the idea of it is completely fascinating. "Everything's possible. Nothing's certain." Glad to see you're still keeping an eye on things.

 

And thanks for the luck Alaestr!  I think I'm probably the rustiest of anyone here. A single *kobold* (granted an SCS smart one with a poisoned arrow), killed my last sorceror. Odds aren't so good for Grace. But ... past performance is no guarantee of future results? Ha ha, onward!

[Grimwald the Wise]

Diary of the Gnasty Gnomes

 

Upon returning to Beregost, Bloodaxe the Mighty lured the spiders towards Algernon. Little Bully charmed him and the spiders killed Algernon, thus giving us the ability to charm an unlimited number of people. (Not going to abuse that ability, but wanted to charm all those servants of Lathander in Beregost)

 

Having charmed them, there was CARNAGE as the spiders killed them all.

 

This is a fraction of the bodies!!

 

Cyric was delighted with the fact that I had used my brain. I killed his foes without losing reputation . What is more many highly saleable items. We then lured Karlat outside and together Silke and the spiders killed him. We then charmed the spiders and used them against Silke. We werer hoping that Silke would do her own dirty work and kill those that she wanted murdering. Instead she killed herself!! Lost a bit of experience, but it was SO satisfactory.

 

 

 

We then charmed her victims and got them to attack the spiders. They didn't win.

 

We then killed the spiders. Bodies everywhere.

 

After arriving at the FAI, we charmed a caravan guard and got him to attack Tarnesh. Tarnesh panicked and ran inside. We finished him off.

 

We charmed some more guards and got them to kill each other.

 

By doing this, Little Bully acquired some mithril armour. It doesn't stop spell casting.

 

Bloodaxe the Mighty got a Returning Throwing Axe +2 (Free) Battleaxe +3 (The decapitator) (ALSO FREE) No icon when wielded!!

 

(Can anyone tell me how to give it an icon?)

 

More importantly, why didn't it have one? Is this a known bug?

[Aasim]

 

(Can anyone tell me how to give it an icon?)

 

You'd need either DLTCEP or NearInfinity for that  (edit the item file, then you see a little window named "icon" and then you set it to your preference). You could also try downloading and using LOLFixer.

[Grimwald the Wise]

You'd need either DLTCEP or NearInfinity for that  (edit the item file, then you see a little window named "icon" and then you set it to your preference). You could also try downloading and using LOLFixer.

 

Nearinfinity did it. Wasn't at all sure whether I was doing it correctly, but it now looks correct. Inventory icon now the same as the missing one. 

 

Discovered that a throwing axe +3 from one of the other caravan guards is making the game crash.

 

I think that unless somebody can tell me how to solve that one, I will exchange it for  a throwing axe +2 as the +3 weapon is probably overpowered anyway.

 

The alternative that I thought of was to exchange it for Azureedge, but I think that would be even more overpowered than an ordinary +3 throwing axe.

[Grimwald the Wise]

Diary of the Gnasty Gnomes

 

In a dream Cyric told us that it would be far more beneficial in the long term to behave as if we were heroes and not as selfish as we are in fact. He was certainly right as because of our status as heroes, goods are much cheaper. I bought a helm of charm protection which will help us a lot.

 

We have cleared the caves of the Sirene, helped Charleston and Brage, and as a result we are now heroes. People are actually calling us the Gnice Gnomes now, but I am quite sure that will not last. We then helped prism, got the reward for the emeralds before charming Oublek and getting him to fight the baby wyvern. We were neither surprised nor disappointed when he failed as the spoils were considerable. We killed the baby wyvern ourselves, but then had to sort out some issues with the guard because the boy lied.

 

Having done that we went Ankheg hunting and wiped them out completely. We are beginning to get quite powerful. I am beginning to wonder when Cyric will guide us to the thief that he told us about as we are beginning to feel the time is right for entering the mines..

 

After disposing of the basilisks, medusae, Mutamin, Tristan and Isolde, It was indeed time to meet up with Tiax, another follower of Cyric. He is a bit on the mad side. (Correction: A lot on the mad side) he is a multi-classed "priest of cyric/thief." Apart from needing a decent staff, we have been able to equip him well. Cyric chose him well, for he also is a gnome, pity he is not svirfneblin as well. 

 

We bought him a wand of the heavens and a staff+3 and whilst about it, some spells for Little Bully. he mines were next and didn't cause many problems, though the enemy was quite strong. (The enemy was stronger than in previous games, probably because I had a stronger team)

 

To keep both Little Bully and Tiax happy, we killed Firebead. That by itself would have been OK if we hadn't accidentally killed Aoln when fighting some assassins. It made us disliked.

 

It took all our effort to raise our reputation back to 9. Helping cows etc. It looks like we will have to be generous to a temple.

 

We killed Tazok easily and then went into his tent without fighting until we got inside. It was a tough battle but not excessively so.

 

Going outside we were met by a horde of bandits which we were able to defeat.

 

 

Then killed Tranzig.

We finished off at the camp after visiting the temple at the FAI to get our reputation up to 11.

 

We returned to the FAI and killed some paladins who had been deceived into thinking we were murderers of innocents. Murederers, perhaps, but we had not committed the crimes that we were accused of. Still, we got some useful experience and some weapons which are not useful to us so will have to be sold.

 

[Alesia_BH]

Arcadia, Half-Elven Fighter/Mage

 

I'd like to begin by saying: OMG there are way too many ads on Photobucket.

 

Now that that's out of my system, it's time to do this. It's time to get back into the action. Enter Arcadia, half-elven fighter/mage.

 

Proficiencies: Long Sword x 2, Darts, Shortbows

 

Character Description: When asked about Arcadia, Imoen shoots you a deeply serious stare, paired with a incongruous lopsided smirk. She huffs though her nostrils as if to say, "let's get this over with." You sense deep affection, deep ambivalence, deep confusion. You can tell she hasn't the slightest idea what to say, and that she'd rather say nothing at all. After a pause long enough to fit an ale into, Imoen can sense that you won't be disuaded. She begins to speak, hesistantly. She wants to be somewhere else. "I don't want to call her buffleheaded, because she's my friend and all, but the girl- the girl isn't all there...You know her face isn't really blue, right? She does spend a lot of time indoors -her face is pale. But she rubs crushed violets and buttermilk on it like all the time: I mean non-stop. And she chants with her eyes closed when she does it- like she's in a trance...And then there's the thing with the cat..." You raise a curious eybrow at the mention of the cat- you've heard about this cat. Another ale length pause. The last one was a pint, this one is almost a quart. "Captain Swarmi- that's what she calls it..." Imoen looks over her shoulder nervously, as if The Captain might pounce. "She dresses it up in a tiara and a cloak. She has tea with it. She asks it for advice- a lot of advice, about important stuff.." Another pause (shot glass). "It was cute when she was a kid. Gorion figured she'd grow out of it. I figured the cat would die eventually- I mean it's old. But now I'm thinking it's not- not going to die I mean. That cat is going to live forever..." Now you're confused. You ask why the cat is going to live forever. Imoen turns pale. "I can't- I just can't," she says. "Can we talk about something else?" Grudgingly, you accept that that is all you are going to learn about Arcadia. For now.        

 

Familiar: Captain Swarmi, cat

 

Gaming Expectations: Right now, some clever bunny out there in Interwebia is thinking: "I get it! Alesia is all rusty. She was in the woods for four months, and then she spent six months watching The Love Boat, playing console cames, and eating soy ice cream. Her brains are mush. She doesn't know how to play Baldur's Gate anymore- she doesn't know where to go or what to do. And when she does something stupid -which she will- she's going to blame the cat." 

 

If that clever bunny is you, then all I can say is: Eat up- you deserve it.

 

Arcadia's adventure will begin soon.

 

Best,

 

A.  

[Grimwald the Wise]

Certainly a different post.

[Blind_Visionary]

You ask why the cat is going to live forever. Imoen turns pale. "I can't- I just can't," she says. "Can we talk about something else?" Grudgingly, you accept that that is all you are going to learn about Arcadia. For now.        

 

Oooh, this is going to be fun!  Here's to Arcadia and the Captain!

[Serg BlackStrider]

Love cats, love the portrait and happy to see you back in action, Alesia   I'm pretty sure you shouldn't be too hard on yourself with all that *rustiness*  if any. Those skills you are in possession  aren't so easy to disperse - pretty much just like cycling skills. Looking forward eagerly to follow Arcadia's run and wish her safe travels!

[Grond0]

Grudgingly, you accept that that is all you are going to learn about Arcadia. For now.        

Very grudgingly .

p.s. you could use AdBlock if you don't want to see the adverts ...

[Grimwald the Wise]

Diary of the Gnasty Gnomes

 

We headed through Cloakwood ending up at the mines where we defeated Drasus easily, killing a dragon on the way. Admitedly it is not as fearsome as some, but even killing one this size is worthy of a poem or two I think.

 

[Blackraven]

Hey a new run by Alesia! I was hoping to see this happen... Best of luck with Arcadia and Captain Swarmi! 
Lovely character description and portrait btw.

[Alesia_BH]

Thanks everyone. It feels good to be back in action, though I'm not sure whether I'll have time to finish this run or keep the planned narrative going.

 

There is a hard deadline on this run: April 4th. On that day, I'll be flying to Tampa to catch the WCBB Final Four. And after that I'll be doing another long hike in North America, followed by yet another in New Zealand. So, basically, I'll have about a month to play and then -if all goes as planned- 10 months without a computer.

 

Anyhoo. I'm looking forward to playing, posting and reading. It'll be fun while it lasts.

 

Best,

 

A.

[Alesia_BH]

Arcadia, Half-Elven Fighter/Mage: Entry 1

 

Captain Swarmi is resting on a bed of violets, sipping chamomile tea with buttermilk. Studying the scene, idly caressing your chin, you ask yourself what kind of cat drinks tea. “The buttermilk,” you think, rationalizing. And it isn't as though he's lifting Calimshamite porcelain with a proper paw: he's lapping it- just as a cat should. You're nearly convinced. And yet still... You look into his eyes. You can tell that a mind is scrutinizing you, judging you, measuring your worth. You are less than an ounce of chamomile, it thinks. Or at least you think it thinks: you are still not sure. Frozen in thought, vaguely troubled, you release the tension with a forced laugh: “It's just a cat,” you say. But the moment those words leave your lips, your consciousness is flooded with images: death and destruction. And love. There is a temple, shattered- the sky pours in through the roof. You hear screams: the cries of the bleeding and butchered. There are babies left in mud. Axes of red. Broken dreams. People are running, but running only to death: there is no escape. And all the while you hear the chants: the violet chants. Where do they come from? Amidst the terror -the pools of blood -the entrails, you see a rivulet of buttermilk. A broken dish. A paw print. The vision ends. You walk away. You try to forget.

 

Captain Swarmi has set plans in motion. Captain Swarmi sees. He will have his revenge.

 

**

 

The time has come: the time to leave- the time to make a home on the road. There was nothing tangible that led Arcadia to believe that exodus and life on the run were on her horizon, yet she always knew. And so when Gorion spoke those fateful words, it was as though they had already been said, as though they had already been heard. And as Arcadia packed her helmet and her blade, her scrolls and her violets, she felt neither exhilaration nor fear: only destiny. She had been waiting for this.

 

Once her bag was packed and lifted over her shoulders, Arcadia unsheathed her sword. It made a satisfying swish as it left the hilt. It was a good blade: polished and sharp. Arcadia could see herself within it- see her reflection. She noticed the violet above her right ear. She moved it to the left. She slid the sword back into the hilt, pleased. For a moment, she wondered whether she was ready to leave. But when Captain Swarmi leapt onto her shoulder, she knew the hour had come. Fate awaits them. They will not be late.

 

 

Best,

 

A.

 

Btw: Just a little addendum to the character description, really. I'll add the first proper entry soon.

[Alesia_BH]

Diary of the Gnasty Gnomes

 

We headed through Cloakwood ending up at the mines where we defeated Drasus easily, killing a dragon on the way. Admitedly it is not as fearsome as some, but even killing one this size is worthy of a poem or two I think.

 

Where'd the dragon come from? Which mod?

 

Best,

 

A.

[Grimwald the Wise]

Where'd the dragon come from? Which mod?

 

Best,

 

A.

 

It is Dark Horizons. Apparently there used to be a more fearsome dragon, but it was toned down. In my opinion that is a shame as the dragon that they have replaced it with is a bit too easy.

 

In another mod there is a green dragon south of Nashkel. That was much more dangerous. (Dark Side of the Sword Coast) I may be wrong, but I don't think that the two mods are compatible.

 

Diary of the Gnasty Gnomes

 

Cloakwood mines cleared. More assassins cleared south of the Friendly Arms. There was a key on one of them. I wonder if I should investigate that or go straight to the Gate? Popular again.

[Alesia_BH]

Arcadia, Half Elven Fighter/Mage: Entry 2

 

Footsteps and flames. And then a race to freedom, to another day. That's all Arcadia could remember. And yet somehow the night had ended- somehow it was morning. Footsteps again. Imoen approached.

 

“I'm...I'm sorry about Gorion,” Imoen stammered. “I followed you from the shadows. I saw the whole thing.” Arcadia hadn't known about Gorion- at least not for certain. But she could feel the truth of Imoen's words: they were heavy- the way truth always is. There was a moment of silence between them. Arcadia gazed at the earth, the dust and stones, the unwelcoming roots. Imoen spoke again. Arcadia looked up- her eyes widened, hopefully, receptively: she listened. “I know...I know we haven't always gotten along. And I know you don't want me around. Or at least you'll say you don't want me around. But I've been thinking about it all night, and I can't let...” The words continued, but something had changed: Arcadia wasn't listening anymore. She was tilting her head- leaning it toward her shoulder and the perched Captain Swarmi. She squinted into the distance, or at nothing in particular- like she was trying to hear something -or see something- infinitely far away. Imoen's words kept coming, but Arcadia interrupted. “No. You can't come. You're not supposed to come. You're supposed to stay here.” Silence.

 

“Supposed to? What...” A pregnant pause. “It's the cat, isn't it? He doesn't want me to come. He told you and you listened. You always listen- at least to him, not to me. I came too late.”

 

Arcadia's eyes sharpened. She shifted her weight to her right foot, and then crossed her arms. It was a contrived pose, meant to project condescension. It was a weapon Arcadia used against Imoen all the time. Imoen shouldn't have brought up the cat.

 

“Has it ever occurred to you, Imoen, that I just don't like you. That I'm mean to you to keep you away. And that I blame the cat -or that you blame the cat- just so you don't have to be angry with me?”

 

Imoen leapt to answer. “Have I ever thought that? Ever? Are you kidding? I used to think that all the time. And it made me want to break your neck instead of the cats. But now I know that isn't true. I understand now.”

 

Arcadia smirked: “Imoen, you're always telling me that I pay too much attention to the cat, but you're the one who's obsessed with it. I'm just playing with it: I'm always just playing. You're the one who takes it all seriously. It's just a cat.” Captain Swarmi purred approvingly.

 

“It's not- it's not just a cat...It...It casts spells,” Imoen hadn't meant to say it, but now it was out there. She looked embarrassed. Arcadia froze and starred at her, judging whether she was serious. She was- she really was. Arcadia laughed, and then spoke with pedantic superiority. “Imoen: it's just a cat. It can't even speak. How can it cast spells?” Imoen knew she was making a fool of herself -that the evidence wasn't there yet- but there was no turning back. “I don't have to hear the spells. Or see them. I can feel them. Remember the training, the training with Gorion- when he was teaching us how to resist spells? The enchantment spells: they all felt the same- like something pushing into your brain. It's like that all around him. It's like a field. You have to feel it, too- it has to be inside you. You spend too much time with it. You didn't used to be like this- at least not all the time. It has to be...”

 

“It has to be what?” Arcadia said, starring at her incredulously- goading her into saying what Arcadia knew was on her mind.

 

“Look, Arcadia, I'll stay here- I won't go with you. But...But you have to leave the cat. Not with me- I don't want it. You could leave it in the woods, but I don't think it would stay. It has to go back to Candlekeep. It can't get over the walls. Remember? It used to try all the time: it couldn't get out. It has to stay behind the walls. It...”

 

“It's my pet, Imoen, I'm not abandoning it -not in the woods, not at Candlekeep, not anywhere- it's staying with me. You, on the other hand...”

 

“But it can't: it can't leave...I think you're just the way that it gets out...”

 

Captain Swarmi's hairs stood on end, but it was Arcadia who bristled. “I've got a better idea. Why don't you go back to Candlekeep. Why don't you stay behind the walls. Winthrop needs the beds turned. Or maybe more of the guests need a turn. That's all you're good for. Well...that's what Captain Swarmi thinks: I'd never say such a thing...”

 

Imoen felt wounded, deflated. Arcadia could always make her feel that way. But Imoen's will remained. Softly she said, “No. No. That was you, Arcadia. I don't know why it was you, but it was you. And it's not going to work. I'm leaving now, but I'm not going away. You need me. You can't stop it alone. In the end it'll be me. You'll see. Goodbye, Arcadia.”

 

And with that, Imoen turned and started walking away to the west, but with no certain destination. Arcadia didn't say a word- not at first at least. Her gaze turned to the stones again- as it had been when she heard of Gorion's fall. The stones seemed to remember- or at least they helped Arcadia remember. Something changed. A sudden wave of urgent compassion overcame Arcadia. She cried, “Imoen wait,” and then raced toward Imoen. Captain Swarmi leapt off Arcadia's shoulder as he felt her body lurch forward. He landed ungracefully for a cat, and then started circling -seemingly angry- before settling in to stare, to concentrate. His eyes honed in on Arcadia- even as she receded farther away. Imoen turned and faced Arcadia, frightened but hopeful. When Arcadia reached Imoen, Arcadia gazed at her warmly, lovingly, and then hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, and stroked her hair. They embraced for a long time. Then, still holding Imoen, Arcadia leaned back, and starred into Imoen's eyes with deep affection. She smiled sympathetically and then spoke: “Now, I'm not going to say I'm sorry, because I mean everything I say- especially about you.” Arcadia nodded sincerely, smiling- almost laughing, cupping Imoen's head with her hand- trying to make Imoen nod with her. Imoen shrunk away -wounded and baffled- but the stronger Arcadia was still grasping her around the waist. Arcadia pulled Imoen closer. Arcadia smiled again, ran her fingers through Imoen's hair one last time, and then reached for the violet behind her left ear. She placed it in Imoen's hand, and said: “Here, take this flower. Give it back to me someday- someday when I'll really need it.” Imoen wanted nothing from Arcadia at that moment, other than to be let go. But for some reason, the flower felt important. Imoen agreed. Arcadia released her, smiling angelically- seemingly unaware of any offense.

 

Imoen stepped back from Arcadia, dazed, confused- deeply ambivalent. Did Arcadia even know what she had said? How that felt? That it didn't fit? It didn't seem like it. Arcadia just smiled and waved: “Remember the flower,” were her last words. Captain Swarmi approached and leapt back onto his perch. Imoen walked briskly away.

 

Arcadia seemed pleased. But there were calculations on Arcadia's shoulder- and not inside of her head. They were machinations that reached across time. There was no unique answer, but the implication was clear: Danger. Danger! It was a thought that overtook Arcadia like a hidden dagger: it tore her apart, and yet she didn't know where it came from. A moment of panic overtook her -she couldn't say why. She staggered, unsure of what to do. She turned violently in Imoen's direction, peering at her diminishing form- for some reason Imoen was running now. Arcadia reached for her bow, but something stayed her hand. She thought of running, but Imoen was too far away. Frustrated, perplexed, Arcadia lurched toward Imoen and screamed: “Go! Go! Run! Get thee to Winthrop's! You little hag!”

 

Arcadia wasn't sure why she had said that- she just knew it had to be said, knew it was the right thing to do. She felt satisfied. Proud. She reached for her sword, swishing it from the hilt. She studied her blade again, and studied herself within it. She noticed her flower was missing. Where had it gone? She searched for an answer; she couldn't find one. Lost in confusion, contemplating her reflected image, a single word pressed into Arcadia's mind: Preparations. Preparations: that was the word. It was a word of steel- a word as heavy as a thousand stars: it was a word of Truth. Preparations it would be.

 

Arcadia slid her blade back into its hilt. She then reached up over her shoulder and scratched Captain Swarmi under the chin. “We should take tea today, my Captain. Shall we say noon?” Captain Swarmi purred.

 

 

Best,

 

A.

 

 

NW. No Reloading the trilogy has always struck me as a worthy challenge, but another challenge that has always fascinated me is roleplaying chaotic neutral. I was thinking of the chaotic neutral problem when I first saw what was to become Arcadia's portrait, and I thought: “ What if a sweet and sincere young warrior were possessed by a psychotic empathic cat?” That's Arcadia. I find writing Arcadia interesting, but I'm aware that others might not enjoy reading about her: she may just be too weird. If there is interest, I'll keep sharing her narrative. If not, I'll revert to a more conventional posting format. Bear in mind that the now, in the back-story phase, I've gone heavy on narrative, with virtually no gaming content. Going forward, I intend to rebalance, starting with the next post.