Fluff compilation

[Anastasia]

Just getting things into here for sorting. This topic will eventually go bye-bye, but for now it's where I'm going to throw everything fluff-related. Don't expect much organization.

This'll probably end up being a handful of topics when it's all divvied up, most likely.

[Anastasia]

B3 first.

Intro to B3. Probably worth keeping or adapting in some form.

Lifasa. A world where the forces of light and righteousness won. The forces of the Tyrant Bane were routed at the battle of Shaiman's Cliffs over a thousand years ago, his clergy exterminated to the last soul. The sneaking, poisoned whispers of the Adversary were quenched, his worship eradicated at the hands of Fol, King of the Ascended Throne of Heaven.  The haven of the Dark Dwarves was at last found 800 years ago, the vile forest and hills they lived in cleansed and sanctified. He-Of-No-Name was defeated by the metallic dragons, while Grahal the Devourer was bested in single combat by the Cleric-King Darral. Due to centuries of sacrifice from great heroes, Lifasa knew peace. Evil still lived in the heart of men and scattered fiends and abominations were known, but it was clear that Good had triumphed.

Each century life in Lifasa became brighter. Through the blessings of the Heavens and the guidance of the Gods, a world where magic was common and miracles came freely grew. It seemed that a true age of paradise had come to all. Evil was broken and falling back, the people wanted little and the shadow of darkness was being cleansed from mortal hearts. Magical creatures came to life with mortalkind, guiding them along. The fey took elven life in their hands, guiding them to a closer symbiosis with nature. Elementals and Xorn came to the Platinum Dwarves, gifting them with knowledge to bring them close to Moradin and the bones of Lifasa's rocky body. Goblins and orcs were joined by unicorns and blink dogs, who turned them away from savagery and introduced them to the Revel of Life. The tieflings of faraway Janspu were blessed, celestials from above coming to tutor them away from the dark impulses of their cursed heritage. Even a few creatures of pure evil turned to the light, casting aside pride and being reborn in humility. Indeed, the Promised Times had come.

No one knew where it started. Indeed, it seemed to happen everywhere at once. What began as another peaceful day dawned with promise; yet this time the sun across all the world rose a burning blood red. As the people of the world rose to see this terrible omen, reality itself seemed to be gutted apart like a dying fish. Indeed, the seams of reality split. From these gashes they came. Crawling on the ground was an ocean of lamentable things. These things of fat and clawing misery fell on the world first, whilst other things flew through. Giant, midnight black fiends, each one carrying a cursed greatsword and towering over even the tallest man. A single word from them could cause an explosion, a gesture causing lightning to slaughter all on its path. After them came the marching hordes, the bearded soldiers. Each one was filthy and carried only a rusty glaive. With murderous rage they fell on any they came across, killing and destroying everything they could.

The world reeled. In hours civilizations crumbled into dust. Yet many heroes rose that dark day, defending everything. All the people of Lifasa came together, waging a desperate war against the invaders. As worse horrors came through they stood proud and brave, giving their lives to give everyone hope and time. They stood against the great winged beasts, big as houses and with tridents that could gore ten men in a single sweep. The tormentors of chain followed, wearing the faces of lost loves and friends. Creaking, pale faced and horned men-like things came through in great battalions, followed by foul, maggot writhing giants who shot screaming hellfire from their bows. With them came the worst yet - the lords. Each one was tall and fire red, commanding armies of tens of thousands. A single look from them rendered a man comatose with fear, a single swipe of it's claw could disembowel the hardiest foe. Yet despite these odds, many pockets held! Great were the heroics, and in places the forces of Lifasa rallied!

Abigor came. The sky itself split as he passed into this reality. In that one moment all the plants of the world died, all the great rivers and lakes bursting into ever-boiling magma. In a voice that slew thousands through pure terror, he announced that his world was his for the Lord Bel. A vision of fear clad in immaculate armor, Abigor wasted no time in ending any hope of victory. On his dark horned steed did he go, seemingly at every point of resistance in mere hours. Each time he came, his charge shattered all defiance. Mounted knights of nightmares came with him, slaughtering the survivors. In mere hours the great Elven Tree burnt to ashes, a hundred thousand elves crucified and then raised as empty eyed horrors to cry in pain forever. The Castle of the White Swan was sacked for the first time in recorded history, the Ascended Throne of Heaven decorated with the heads of the descendants of Fol. The Mausoleum of Darral melted into black magma, the earth shattering apart for 99 leagues in all directions. Countless souls fell into the broken earth, never to be seen again.

The light lost. No, Lifasa lost. Those that lived through the opening of the nightmare were enslaved to their new masters. The devils of Baator had come! Abigor sat on the Ascended Throne of Heaven as the skies wept. In a voice that was heard to the end of the world and beyond, Lifasa was declared to be the conquest of Bel, Lord of the First. On that day, Lifasa was bound in chains.

Yet all was not lost. In the chaos and confusion, some realized the battle was lost fast enough to take action. Portals were opened, a lucky few able to escape. These fortunate souls scattered to the four winds, cast across the planes as refugees of a defeated land.

Can four heroes find the reason for this hope and bring hope back to Lifasa? Will the four of you rise to become the greatest heroes Lifasa has ever known? Will you let Hell triumph over you and submit to an eternity of misery in chains without hope?

[Anastasia]

Sage Vul'lath's notebook. Will go into whatever misc setting fluff topic there is.

Life Lesson #1

An unknown portal seems like a brand new adventure! In reality, most planar travelers meet a bloody end by this philosophy. You don't know what you're getting into. You may not even be able to survive there or it may be a one way portal or far worse. - From an ancient text on planar travels.

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...have no difficulty engaging in flight. The obvious answer is that magic is involved, but various tests involving dispellation and antimagic have shown no efficacy at inhibiting flight. The exact quality is thus unknown, but it can be ascertained that it is a trait of celestial blood, as half-celestials show inferior flight capability. The exact aerodynamics of celestial and half celestial flight remains a mystery...

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...show that acidic concentrate from an adult black dragon is roughly eight times as potent. Indeed, the primary use of gelatinous cube acids are of it's paralytic properties. By concentrating the acid through distillation, a powerful numbing paralytic can be produced, one that sheds its acidic properties during distillation. Alternately, if higher acidic potency is desired, mixing one ounce of basilisk bile and one part babau slime with ten ounces of gelatinous cube acid greatly amplifies its acidic effect...

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...link between Lathander and the sun. As there are myriad aspects to the Mortal Coil, no consensus exists. Various factions of the Dawnbringer's clergy give differing explanations; there does not seem to be a consistent dogma on this fact. Of course, a God could conceivably be composed of countless suns in unison. Others argue that there is one sun and one Lathander, but that he has the ability to ignore the conceptions of time and space as we understand them.  In essence, this argues that Lathander is in an infinity of places at once...

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...refer to Maxul IV's excellent essay on the numerological aspects. But if 3+3=6 and 3+3+3=9, why are the Heavens not related to 3? This is the major flaw in Maxul IV's theorem, as long as one holds that the celestial planes are correct. To fully appreciate that notion, one must challenge that assertion. The logical flow is that if the Abyss has double-sequential numerological truth, then Baator must have triple-sequential numerological truth. Math teaches us that 3 x 3 is 9. The result of truth and more truth is Baator...

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Every end begets sparks fertile and new
Blessed be the lost child in darklight
One day all will begin once more

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...glazing. Glazing is done in a variety of ways. Glazing is functionally important for earthenware vessels, which would otherwise be unsuitable for holding liquids due to porosity. Glaze is also used on functional and decorative stoneware and porcelain. In addition to the functional aspect of glazes, aesthetic concerns include a variety of surface finishes, including degrees of gloss and matte, variegation and finished color. Glazes may also enhance an underlying design or texture which may be either the "natural" texture of the clay or an inscribed, carved or painted design...

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From a Guidebook to Weapon Selection.

As far as materials go, it must be understood that they are aligned to law and chaos rather than good and evil. The fey, eladrin and demons all fear cold iron. Archons and devils equally find silver repulsive. Remember: Silver shatters law, while cold iron conquers chaos! The exception is Inevitables; robotic bodies require adamantine as a material due to the super-hard construction of Mechanus.

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The accepted flaw of alchemical silver is that it does not hold an edge well. As a result, blows are less effective. Mithral can alleviate these problems, but is often prohibitively expensive. In these experiments, an attempt is made to bond silver with differing alchemical processes or more advanced magical means. The goal is to create a silvered weapon that does not weaken attacks nor is too expensive for practical use.

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Funny graffiti in Fallbach: The best route to Celestia is that of a martyr, sliding off a demon's claws.

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Life Lesson #31

The Prime Material is more important than you may think. It's safe, it's usually stable and outsiders and elementals are rarer there. Don't underestimate those who hail from it and DON'T forget it's a great place to hide out from the heat.

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THE QUESTION? THE QUESTION ISN'T IMPORTANT, ONLY THE ANSWER! HOW DID THEY DO IT!!!????

My best answers were:

1. Worship provides divinity. The argument was rejected, as every egostistical king or rich merchant surrounded by toadies is decidedly mortal.
2. The Gods give them a little of their own power. The argument was rejected, as the Gods have power. By definition, they must be greedy.
3. They slept their way to it. The argument was rejected after much laughing by Master. It's the succubus problem.

I don't know. I'm going to be tested by Master tonight, diary. I'm fucked.

---

The little girl crossed the road
She got caught up in her long hair
A quick knife spilled her blood's load
Now she's walking up Heaven's stair

I'm sorry, Tia. It's just what Daddy had to do.

---

When I talked to him, I thought he was a well mannered frog-man, albeit riddled with clockwork. He was unfailingly polite and had an exquisite sense of propriety. The question of his abandonment of chaos was met with a silence and a smile. He laughed, a happy and carefree sound. Far too happy. I've never heard an Inevitable laugh before.  His answer was that chaos is everything; even law. He then thanked me for visiting and went off, like nothing was wrong.

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I really had no stake in the entire affair. The blonde was really angry, the sort of angry that leads to killin'. I've seen it many times out here, but she didn't have the look of one of Talona's or Malar's type. Those are the only ones that give her brood trouble on those grounds, you know? It didn't make any sense, must be personal. All I know is that I got outta there and an hour later I saw her walking out of the city. Something 'bout her stuck to me. Every once in a great while I see those sort of eyes. Gives me the willies every time.  Glad I didn't try'n'pick her up after all.

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An rare excerpt from the Little Black Book, the unholy texts of Malcanthet.

(Hm? Whatever was here looks like it was blotted out with ink.)

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The key to the portal within the Ashborn Tower is a wooden orb, hollowed out. Within the orb must be the powdered skull of a dire wolf. It is said the portal leads to the 151st layer - what lies there I know not, but only that the demons themselves sealed it. To reach that portal, the Ashborn Tower must be conquered.

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It was not until I uttered the final phrase that I was sure that I had performed the invocation correctly. Even so, I could not help but wonder whether I had erred in my judgment. I quickly put aside the notion. I am rarely wrong and this summons had a great purpose. With the knowledge acquired, I would come closer to uncovering the secret after which I've sought for eons. My goal, of course, was to bring a devil to my realm.  Not just any devil, but a devil god, an arch-devil. The rulers of Hell themselves use no less an appellation, and though I did not seek one of the Nine, I sought a being of similar power. Now, after long searching and endless research, I thought I had uncovered the forbidden magic that would achieve my goal.

A horrendous cry, as if the very gates of Hell were being torn from their hinges, filled my ears. An unspeakable stench choked the air.  Even my sanity was attacked as if coherent thought were some garment that could be rent and torn, leaving me naked to the horrors of the depths below. Were I a weaker man, I would have cried out to the gods for help at that point. But I am not weak nor am I a hypocrite.  I had damned myself long ago in their eyes. It was in my own power, the wards I had woven and strengthened over many long days, that I placed my confidence.

The bedrock that lay within the magic circles sank slightly. A myriad of cracks and scars appeared over the floor's surface, tracing a web-like design that vented sulphorous steam into the otherwise sterile air of my laboratory. In the midst of the hellish vapors I heard a cry of outrage, and...

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Leek, Onion and Potato Soup

4 large leeks
1 medium onion, chopped small
2 potatoes, mashed.
1 oz (25 g) butter
1 1/2 pints (850 ml) stock.
10 fl oz (275 ml) milk
Salt and freshly milled black pepper

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...of matter does not seem to apply. This assumes that the typical flow of matter as we understand it is correct, and that demiplane magic is changing the natural rules of Creation, versus being aspects of Creation that are not understood. Various sages have well established how the building blocks of the Prime Material come from the Elemental Planes. This assertion is not under attack...

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Good advice I got from an angel:

"Friend, it's in bad form to ask about an angel's wings. It's terribly impolite. Asking if we molt and if we get 'pissy' when we molt is simply rude!"

I wish I'd listened. Do you know how hard it is to get a Quest enchantment dispelled?

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The defeat of Zaaman Rul at the Plains of Burnt Dreams was near-complete. His armies lay slaughtered, his aides imprisoned and already bound for Imix's bonfires.  In desperate single combat Zaaman Rul was struck down by Imix and left for dead. His resurrection and subsequent return has softened the impact, but the simple point is that Fire is aligned with Evil. The slaying of Bristis Pel had indeed won Imix the day - Zaaman Rul wasn't capable of defeating his father.

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The tenth circle of magic is incomprehensible to me. I studied the scroll for a month and I've come no closer to unlocking its magic.  The ninth circle is difficult but I have mastered it, yet this height of spellcasting eludes me to the last! I have confirmed these spells exist and I hold proof in my hand! My suspicion is that there is a component to this greater magic than merely mastery. Dweomerheart. I must go to Dweomerheart and find out.

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1+1=2? Why? Why does that equal 2? How do we know, when our senses cannot be trusted? I shall sequester myself and study perfect math, so that I can prove that 1+1=2! - The last words of the Twenty third wiseman of Pandam.

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Mental note: Avoid half-dragon women. Scales down there CHAFE!

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Hyperfertility: Dragons, outsiders.

Hyperfertility can be described as the ability to mate with creatures outside of your species and produce viable offspring.  While hyperfertility is not limited to those examples above, they are the best known examples. Indeed, half dragon and half-fiend/half-celestial children are a fact of life in the Planes and known on the Mortal Coil. It's interesting to think that the wars of good and evil have progressed to the point of breeding with mortals to produce more soldiers. As for dragons? Dragons just seem to enjoy it. Maybe they're all sluts?

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A layman's assumption that demon and devil are just different names for the same creature is partly correct. Both are beings of pure evil, and both are enemies of virtue and morality. Furthermore, both creatures are keenly interested in the affairs of mortals, at least to the extent that they prey on, exploit, and sometimes kill mortals.

But demons and devils do differ in several important ways. Demons are destroyers. They use their abilities to ruin, smash, and end all things. Devils, on the other hand, are deceivers, liars, charlatans, and thieves bent on luring mortals into damnation. A devil will use any trick at its disposal to finagle a mortal into signing over his soul.

Demons want to destroy the world; devils want to conquer it.

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Life Lesson #20

Don't eat Slaad eggs. While often a delicacy, there is a chance of secondary implantation. If you consume slaad eggs anyway, seek proper magic to counter any chance of slaad conversion.

Life Lesson #58

Kill the wizard or cleric first.

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In the ceremony of Prismatic Birth, Renbuu's names must be inscribed in unequal parts of all seven prismatic colors. It further imperative that all of the names are organized in a proper reverse triple-irregular circle pattern, forming a two-dimensional sphere.

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Mint tea soothes injury from anarchic weapons. Red peppers soften the pain from axiomatic weapons.

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Adammal, Perith, Grengale, Bastrilo. All dead names of no meaning. All of the same being, lost like grains of sand on the beach of eternity. I have sought the truth for 10 centuries, but answers elude me. His true name is reckoned to be powerful enough to open the Gate. I must open the gate, and he knows this. I cannot stop now. I feel a reckoning is coming, he no longer bothers to hide his presence. He knows I can stop him. I know that if we come to battle now, he will triumph. I do not run. I consign these last words to this grimoire and consign it to this library.

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Said to be a forbidden spell: Erathaol's Reverse the Flow. Why I don't know, but the book seemed sure of it, from what I could read. The language was some sort of distilled Celestial. Why it's forbidden I don't know or if it's forbidden to use or to know of or something else. Juliel said she hadn't heard of it before, and she's quite well versed in celestial magic. Could be a dead end.

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True names rarely change. They change on the death of a mortal, assuming it's soul is reborn. A spirit's name changes if what it represents changes - a fallen angel, say. As the true name represents a totality of what you are, a change that fundamental results in a new true name. Once lost, an old true name has no power at all. Attempting to use it on the changed entity is folly, and may even get its wrath without any benefit to you. - What I remember of that bard the morning after. She knew a whole lot.

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Two succubi at once doesn't work as well as you'd think. That is, unless you want to see a bloody catfight that only ends once one of them is dead. For future reference - after the succubus kills its competitor, this isn't a good time to mention that you're protected from it sucking out your energy or soul. On the other hand, it took only a single blow to finish her off after that fight.

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Medicant - I know it exists! Sir Medi would not allow it to fall into ruin. The one hiding place no one else can get to - the Deep Ethereal! With the Celestial Key, finding it should be easy. I merely have to convince Galariel to give me the key. The stoic angel is not one to submit easily to words. - The last entry in the journal of a fallen traveler.

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1+4+3=8.
8x2+1=17.
17+4=21.

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(This note isn't a note at all! It looks to be a scroll of cone of cold.)

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Blisswort 1 leaf, powdered and rubbed into the skin, repels lesser baatezu for about an hour. A bearded devil or above won't be anything but annoyed by it.

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Morpheoloths are known as Dream Killers. They attack the mind and kill through massive fright and trauma. If successfully lured into an empty husk of a body and imprisoned there, research could be conducted.

[Anastasia]

Some speak with dead Hanna did on dragons. Probably will discard, but putting them here for now. They're very marginal.


Radiant Dragon

1) Where is your lair?

The fourth mountain, where the fourth mountain rains gold.

2) How do we get there from the place where you died?

The splits between the scales of Creation.

3) How is your lair guarded?

'tis guarded by the drakes of light.

4) Will your loot have been moved after your death?

Ever does treasure elude those who have sinned, yes.

5) What is your most prized possession among your loot?

The gifted heart of Cantasa Alexandria.

6) Can you name any dragons not following Tiamat and Bahamut?

Mayhap I could, indeed.

7) Do you know any devils that showed a personal interest in Lifasa?

Why would a scion of gold know of those of lead and iron?

Pyroclastic dragon

1) Where is your lair?

At this question, the dragon's head turns to Hanna. A woman's rich, throaty laugh fills the room. Thereater there is silence, the rest of the questions drawing no response.

2) How do we get there from the place where you died?
3) How is your lair guarded?
4) Will your loot have been moved after your death?
5) What is your most prized possession among your loot?
6) Can you name any dragons not following Tiamat and Bahamut?
7) Do you know any devils that showed a personal interest in Lifasa?

[Anastasia]

Yuth's info on the Lifasan traitors. Will go in character info eventually in some form.

Harkin: Human. Uses a greathammer the size of a child. Dark paladin and marshal of Bel. Has the ability to smite good, as well as smiting those who dare oppose him. His ability to invoke blood oaths against those who offend him grant him amazing combat abilities, at the price of some of his vitality. Has the ability to create hellfire golems.

Yian's opinion: Arrogant fool, but a powerful one. Underestimates his opponents.

Velasca: Elf. Skilled rogue, quite good at infiltration and able to hide right in plain sight. She has mastered the abilities of her new form, her natural attacks striking with as much deadly grace as a stiletto-blade.

Yian's opinion: Whorish fool who will sleep with anyone to advance her own standing.

Quinn: Dwarf. Scout and warrior of darkness. He specializes in mobile warfare and has aerial mobility to rival an angel. The unholy blessings he has been given guide his strikes and shield his body, granting him preternaturally potent defenses.

Yian's opinion: Dislikes holy grounds and goes out of his way to profane them, no matter the tactical impact or risk.

Mala: Tiefling. Was present via illusion during the attempted invasion of the Aurora, but beside speaking, she did not act against the defenders or cast spells. Capable wizard and diabolist, specializing in vile magic. She has a few tricks of note: Grim Revenge, which wretches your hand off and has it attack you, Utterdark, which blinds all but the evil, and violated spells of all kinds. She is less capable in combat than most, but her magic is overwhelming. She carries the Tome of Forbidden Magic, a gift from the Duke of Destiny.

Yian's opinion: Too physically weak.

Ettan: Goblin. Warchief, able to rally any who serve him into a vicious, all consuming, murderous rage. He never fights alone, always surrounded by deranged helpers that fly into a rage as easily as he orders them into a frenzy. When so influenced, even a mild mannered clerk could hit as hard as an angry giant.

Yian's opinion: Small minded scum grown too large.

Silvber: Orc. Sorcerer and infernal speaker, taught in vile words of the Dark speech. His words can terrorize even the fearless, beguile the weak willed and dominate the unworthy. Further, his brimstone soaked words may summon hellfire to scorch all away who oppose Hell's supremacy. In particular his apotheosis has empowered him, removing all the limitations of his mortal heritage.

Yian's opinion: Too pathetic a fool to rule the Outer Ring Fortresses. Far too consumed in his studies of sorcery.

Yian: Dragon. Martial Artist. Captured & Detained. See interrogation report for more information. Base of operations on the Burning Aeropolis severely damaged or destroyed, his followers are currently in disarray.

Willah: Nymph. Still of some fey blood, as well as a great marshal and leader of soldiers. A bat of her eyes or a single smile can cause men to die for her, infecting them with a zeal unknown. When she and Ettan work together, mere lemures can threaten even balors. Worse, her beauty has been enhanced by the unholy powers of the Pit, so that even looking on her risks the soul of a good creature.   

Yian's opinion: Secretly desires break Ilsenine for her own; one such scheme was found by Yian and used to blackmail her.

Apasa: Catfolk. Duskblade. Very skilled in all things. Duskblade and general, all around warrior of fine skill. He specializes in a little bit of everything, able to fight and cast well both. In particular he has developed his own custom spell, Apasa's Darkstroke, that consumes the righteous and weak in unbearable agonies.

Yian's opinion: Master of none, attempt of all.

Worth noting, Yian expressed fear while under compulsion, stating that holy power is something that the traitors fear.

[Anastasia]

Epic spell creation info. Not quite fluff, not quite rules. Goes here for now.

With epic coming up, creating spells is going to become more common. I'd rather have all the discussion about new spells centralized in one topic, so post 'em here.

First try and writing up a mini-guide to making epic level spells. How is this? Do you guys find it helpful?

Epic spell creation tutorial.

Before anything else, the DMG has a section on creating new magical spells. It's on page 35 and it's not in the SRD, so go find your DMG and read it. Done? Good. Read it again. I'll be waiting. Done? Alright then. Epic magic works largely the same way - the spells continue at 10th level and beyond magic. There's no massive paradigm shift like in ELH epic magic. However, things aren't precisely the same, either.

First of all, each spell level is 'bigger'. Instead of two levels long, spell levels are 3 or 4 levels long, depending on the class. A wizard gets access to a higher level of spells every two levels, right? In epic he gets a new spell level every three levels instead. So what does that mean? There's more room to work with in each spell level. There's stretching room in design to make a concept work. Bear in this mind.

Second is that I make a concerned effort to make epic magic, for lack of a better word, epic. I aim for interesting and distinct magic when possible; things that have a certain style or new angles rather than just another 5d6 damage tossed on top of it. Whenever I make an epic spell, I ask myself on question. That question is: What makes this spell epic? I aim for a certain flare with them, a certain vibe that makes them more than the common fireball.

Third is that balance should be maintained. Some ideas aren't suitable, such as things that mimic the Celerity line of spells. Keep things along the same guidelines as lower levels, this isn't an invitation to do crazy-broken shit. I don't think you guys are likely to do this, but it bears repeating. This all gets filtered through the lens of DM approval, so anything particularly out of line won't make it past that in the first place.

Finally, have fun. Come up with ideas, throw ideas to together and go for it.

Designing a spell.

Once you have a spell in mind, you need to stat it out. I recommend that you at least write a beta version of the spell out first, so you have something to refer to. This isn't required, but I find it to be helpful.

First is the name of the spell. Take some time and come up with a decent name. We don't need literary gold here, but something that doesn't sound too horrible is preferred. If you developed the spell yourself, you may prefix it with your own name. For example, Melf's Acid Arrow. This isn't mandatory and is more akin to asserting your work and ego than anything else.

From here, I recommend that you read down this list and follow it. http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicOverview/spellDescriptions.htm This provides a basic overview and explains what a spell is made of and how it is expressed. I'd recommend keeping a few spells open in another tab so you can refer to them and see how things look in practice.

Once you have all that done, polish up your spell, balance it out and present it to me. Once we get this going, I'll make a topic for spell posting and discussion, so we can keep it all focused in one place. In any case, I'll either accept it, reject it if it is completely out of hand or unsuitable, or offer suggestions on how to revise and clarify the spell and tell you to work on it some more. Most of the time it will be the first or third, I don't foresee having to reject many spells.

[Anastasia]

Tannin's reports. These will be used, they're nice and fun to read.

The Order of the Whirling Fist

Status: Disbanded, most members presumed dead.

So the story is that the Order of the Whirling Fist was an order of warriors who revered Tempus, the God of War.  I did some digging and it looks like most of them managed to get real up close and personal with Tempus as a result of over-exposure to devil claws. At least the lucky ones, hope some of those souls didn't get stuck on Lifasa after what Abigor did! But that's not all. Heard some people flapping about how one of them got away. Heard he goes by Master of the Fists of War now, traveling the planes to fight. Don't know who he was before, but he doesn't hide his affiliation. Calls himself the last of the Order of the Whirling Fist. Watch out - heard he came out on top of a fight with a berserk cornugon, and you don't wanna fight a berserk cornugon!

Fey Survivors of Lifasa

Status: Held as hostages and fuel for an obscene ritual. Several dozen pixies were recovered in a raid.

After Lifasa fell apart, the survivors spread to the four winds. Turns out that you all aren't the only ones. But the digging I did went bad, turns out some 'loths are gathering them up for some dark purpose or another. I don't know entirely why, but I got one out and all of you did the rest. Got more questions than answers here, from the whys to the whos to the hows. Hate dealing with 'loths, but damned if it doesn't make me curious.

Elrisa's friends

Status: Most slain, the remainder imprisoned.

So the story is that the Knights of the Graceful Blow were on the wrong side of the war. In particular, in Elrisa's world, the dwarves and humans banded together against the elves. I poked my nose into it and found most died in battle. The few survivors are held deep underground in Filmoa, a dwarven-human stronghold deep beneath the dwarven capital city of Glitterrock. Look, I've broken into and out of my fair share of prisons in my time, and this one's damned good. You want 'em out, you better be ready for a fight. These dwarves don't fuck around, and the humans are all battle hardened veterans.

Jaela's Mother

Status: Alive and in service to Queen Morwel.

You ever been to the Court of the Stars? I managed to sneak a peek into there when tracking down Hanna. Found a portal and got in. Wandered my way into the palace and found Hanna. Found her helping favored petitioners adapt to their new lives. Got just one look at her before, next thing I know, I'm back in Arborea. That's how those sort of things roll - it's a mystery to solve, and I'm not the one to solve it, I'd bet a thousand marks on it. It's all drama writ large there, and I'm not a star in that particular production.

Evil Green Dragons

Status: Found two potential targets.

One thing you have to understand is that the planes and regular dragons don't mix that much. Sure, you can find some, but most stick to the Primes. Just as well as far as I'm concerned, there's enough fights out here without more dragons. Anyway, the thing is that I did some more digging. There's two green dragons that might be up to your bill.

Telastryiryn - Hides out in Water or the Para-Elemental Plane of Ooze. Word is he has some sort of possible connection to Bwimb, the Archomental of Ooze and Princess(apparently) of Ooze. Word of advice? You don't want to go to Ooze. If you're going to go after this dragon, do it in Water. Trust me.

Comolinahalas - Ever heard of the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Radiance? It's a great place to get a tan, but the catch is that most people don't come back from it. I'm hard up for information on it, but I've found one nugget.  Some crazy green dragon has been raiding over into the Quasi-Elemental Plane of Mineral to make a fortune so obscene that it gets Waukeen all hot and bothered. To do that and hold it and survive in Radiance, he's got to be one of the best of the best. Even if he's the flipping archomental, I'd still rather take him on than go mucking into Ooze.

I can go dig up more information on either of them next time I'm around, if you want.

27's 'Prophecy'

Status: Are you kidding?

I looked, sure enough. I found zero, zilch, zippo, zap, zed, zonk. I'm going to note that my talents are better served than chasing after some deluded slaad's maybe prophecies. I'm worried for Creation if slaad prophets are accurate, since they have an extremely tenuous view of what constitutes reality.

Apples of Idun

Status: Nothing solid but a few possibilities. No real leads.

So you want an Apple of Idun? They're hard as hell to get. No one's really sure exactly where they are, and it is said that they're guarded fiercely. To give you an idea of this, the last guardian was Syala, who is now a Goddess. Yeah, I'd think a few times before trying outright theft. Occasionally Sharess grants them to favored mortal worshipers, and sometimes they aren't used but end up on the market instead. No such luck right now, no easy in. I did find one possible connection. An old legend says that Tempus is the one who gave Sharess the Tree of Idun in the first place. She showed Tempus love or something, I don't know. Maybe that's how old legends say that she seduced the hell out of him, I'm not going to ask. The upshot is that perhaps Tempus has some or knows where another tree is.

The Melding of the Three

Status: Disbanded, most members presumed dead.

Same thing as the Order of the Whirling Fist. A nice order, this one of paladins, who served the Triune Goddess. Long story short and devil claws later, they're all chumming around with the Triune Goddess up close and personal or bound in torment for all time. Got one friend who said he heard of someone like that. Didn't get a name, but she retreated to an obscure monastery deep within Elysium. The Silent Order of Eternal Tranquility is the name. Yes, I asked, and the name means its a group with a vow of silence. Some other things, but I didn't have time to dig too deep. I can look into this later if you want.

Find Merchants!

Status: Found, with complications.

Merchant hunting is harder than you'd think. You have to talk around, find someone who's successful but not so successful that they're not going to switch up, and then sweet talk them into it. Of course the one I find wants one little manuscript from one little world, and the next thing you know you're dodging undead and plagues! Once I finally got that done, he had to cancel his lease, deal with a debtor who wanted to stall and oh yes, then the authorities got involved! The long story short is that Vel has come to Aurora and is opening up a lore shop.

Glitterrock Expedition!

Status: Success, information retrieved.

So there I am, listening to requests for information. Glitterrock, eh? Well, if you've seen one Prime you've really seen them all. Sure, the details always change, but it's usually the same dance to a different tune. Still, you have to know the tune if you want to dance along.  They're prosperous, victorious and not evil. No problems here, Rihel the III is in control and times are good. Really, they're pretty well adjusted folk. The only problem is that the guard's stubborn and persistent, in case you ask the wrong question to the wrong girl you swear was drunk.

The Radiant Green Dragon!

Looking up this Comolinahalas dragon, sounds easy, right? I go talk around in the local non-native hangout, the City of the Blind. Turns out this dragon has a huge - I mean huge like a bag full of pissed off titans huge - green gemstone that drifts around Radiance. His gemstone half dragon maybe children patrol the place with impunity. He's strong enough to mount raids into Mineral and get away with it, which isn't a small feat. I'd watch out for him if I were you - kick him fast and hard instead.

Oh, and I heard one more bit of news. He has a second breath weapon, like the metallic dragons usually have. It's a blast of pure burning light. It literally sears your eyes out and explodes your brain with overwhelming radiance. May want to watch out for that.

The Sherrod Estate and 100 fair recipes!

Status: Success, information retrieved.

So near as I can tell, the Sherrod Estate met a bad end. The last of the lineage wanted to recapture former glories, but met eternal unlife instead. Bad break for them, and afterwards the local authorities liquidated the estate. Near as I can tell, no one had any idea the book was evil. No signs in the books I read or any hints of anything off. This puts Vel in the clear - wonder if the book can play dead or hide itself? Something's up with it, sure enough.

Finding out about the problems in the Infinite Stair.

Status: Success.

So I do some poking, ask some questions and there it is. A happy lillend, willing to help me. I won't belabor this report since you have all the info, all nice and lined up from that meeting.

Nose around Avernus and spy on Tiamat!

Status: Success.

You ever crunched the numbers on the Blood War? Don't, but I'll give you a summary - it's huge. So there I was, spying on Blood War skirmishes and I notice something. There's a whole lot of Tiamat's abishai pitching in. Now that's just queer if you ask me. Sure, Tiamat chips into the Blood War, but the numbers seem high. So I sneak into this pit fiend's war tent and borrow some papers. Turns out that there's been a whole lot of rotations out the last few years and Tiamat's been filling the holes lately, big time. So I do some more digging and pushing, and you know what I find? Well, it wasn't a shallow grave, but some books I shouldn't have been reading. Those blooming things had traps traps traps on them! Had to get creative, but I got past them. Turns out that Bel and his henchy Abigor's been keeping Lifasa garrisoned with Blood War forces and has been drawing more lately. The big part?

Tiamat's gone outta her way to up her contribution and free up more soldiers. It also mentions an increase of true dragons mustered to her realm. Tiamat's pulling resources to keep Lifasa on the ropes. So I'm pissed and about to come back when it hits me. If she's doin' that, then there's going to be more. So I start digging again, give a few devils a bad time, all that. Eventually I get another set of documents. It's about the routine contributions each Lord of the Nine makes in the Blood War. Now the thing is that over the past few months, Belial and Beezlebub have been delaying and stalling reinforcements, as well as recalling other units back. There's also a small uptick of contributions from Dispater and Mephistopheles - it all roughly balances out.

So what all does this mean? So I do some research into diabolical politics. One of the themes of disagreement among those dread figures is the Fallen versus the 'true' devils. Simply put, the devils don't like the Fallen. Bel's a true devil, worked his way up from ignominy, biggest diabolical success story there is. So it's obvious as the night is long to me - the devils are making politics of it. Bel's getting stretched thin by Abigor's venture into Lifasa, so my read is that the Fallen try to put Bel in a bad place. Now I figure Mephisto will counter whatever Beezlebub does, since the two hate each other more than demons hate devils. Mix in typical sentiments and you know what we have? An opportunity.

I figure, we make the situation worse, politics go downhill. Maybe with the right moves we can spur some civil disagreements between devil-kind, end up making things worse for them? Everyone's out of position right now. You want my opinion, I say we find some way to put more pressure on them. Be it at our own hands or some other troublemakers, but stirring the pot could only help us. The more you weaken them, the more you weaken Tiamat who has to marshal resources to fill into the Blood War and the more you destabilize things there. Exactly how's above my say-so. Figure all you smart mages can get together and figure something out on it.

[Anastasia]

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,102314.0.html

Character info archives. Will probably clean these up and add them to the B1 verison or some such. Just a link for now.

[Anastasia]

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,102004.0.html

Dunno if I'll use battle summaries, so just a link for now.

[Anastasia]

Paused at Aurora and the Crusade.

[Anastasia]

http://www.soulriders.net/forum/index.php/topic,102148.0.html Crusade stuff. I'll use this in some form, but I'm not sure how precisely. Just a link for now.

[Anastasia]

DM nagging things start here. Gonna be a long one. This is some pixie crap I'll use for fey info.

For Eb. I can go into more detail in other parts if you like. I wanted to get something out before game start since I've been so busy.

The Seelie and Unseelie Courts rule fey life. The Seelie Court rules the more life giving, positive aspects of nature, whilst the Unseelie Court embodies the negative and deadly aspects of nature. Much like good and evil, they exist as a yin and a yang. However, while strongly associated with them, good and evil do not fully define the Courts. Further, the Courts do not precisely line up with those definitions of good and evil.  While most fey are aligned with a Court, not all are. The nature of fey encourages independence; many fey strike out on their own and pay little to no homage to the Courts. This is generally accepted, as most fey scholars assert that a fey cannot help but advance the agenda of its Court, no matter if it tries to reject it or not.

The Seelie Court is located within Arborea. It is said that it has the capacity to wander the Heavens Above, but the truth of this matter is unclear. It is known that the Seelie Court is ruled by Queen Titania, a figure often conflated with Queen Morwel. In fact, many scholars hold that Queen Morwel and Queen Titania are the same entity. It is true that the fey and the eladrin are closely related, a morsel of truth that is used to bolster this argument. It is known that the Seelie Court and the Court of Stars are closely united and share extremely warm relations as well.

The Unseelie Court realm drifts between the neutral evil and chaotic evil planes. It is ruled by several enigmatic figures, cloaked in anathemic secrecy. It is ruled by the Queen of Air and Darkness. Her true name and identity are unknown, but whispers abound. All the female powers of evil, such as Shar, Aural, Beshaba and Talona have been mentioned as possibilities. A few male powers have been suggested as well, for what would make a better illusion and lie? The Pale Mother is known to have some relevance to the Queen of Air and Darkness, according to ancient texts.

Entry into the Seelie Court can be found in Arborea. Such portals are not found, they find the seekers in their own time. Thus it is with the Unseelie Court, often coming on those that seek it like a nightmare from the depths.

[Anastasia]

Mental note: Move this over to somewhere else eventually.

In essence, once the resurrection roll is made and failed, it's considered failed for all further attempts until the soul passes into its final reward. Different circumstances and chances do not allow a second check, nor does improving the odds past the roll allow a second resurrection work in this manner. For example, once Elrisa failed that first resurrection roll, she can't be revived until her soul passes into the Realms Beyond. This does offer a second chance, albeit at much lower odds. A miracle spell or divine intervention can bypass all of this, but that's rare indeed.

[Anastasia]

Baleruk of the Green: You have heard of this green dragon. He is said to lair deep in Limbo, within a roiling mountain of jellified acid and pitted metal. A reclusive dragon that is said to have dealings with the slaad.

Nosmaynaj: A green wyrm that resides within the quasielemental plane of Ash. Little is known of this wyrm, but it's rumored he hoards vast treasures, even by dragon-kind.

Vyudinasorl: A green dragon that is said to live somewhere within the Infinite Staircase, an obscure planar passageway. It is said to have teeth made of keys to sealed portals within the Staircase.

[Anastasia]

Here's your info from Baleruk. Make of it what you will and prepare and plan. Do note the 'suggestions' at the bottom are in character for Baleruk, if it wasn't obvious enough. This in no way dictates your own strategy.

Arandalhaz has his abode within Air, in a region known as the Earthfalls. Due to planar phenomenon there is an erratic portal that deposits rocks and hunks of earth within this area. Much of it falls away - giving name to the area - but some of it lingers within the Earthfall. Here there is faint gravity and miles and miles of airy caves. Air elementals and various quasi and para elementals live there, as well as other odd things. It's not a well understood region and remote. What makes it worse is that it's currently warded quite extensively. Teleportation, scrying, plane shifting, divinations and other magics are all stopped cold in the entire area. This is a new development according to Baleruk, the work of the dragon gods who wish to deny his rightful place!

What's worse is that servants of Tiamat, Bahamut and other draconic deities have been confirmed there. The presence of competing dragon factions is a grave sign that Arandalhaz is under unified divine protection. Worse yet, Baleruk has divined rumors that several groups of mercenaries have been rumored to have gone to Air and perhaps Earthfall. Arandalhaz is also known to have servitor kobolds, goblins, ogres, dire wolves and other similar creatures.

Planar Traits within Earthfall

As Air with the following changes:

- Weak Objective Gravity. While there is gravity within the Earthfall, it is weak. Jump and Climb checks benefit from a +25 bonus within the Earthfall and creatures suffer only 1 point of falling damage per 30 feet. In addition, weapon ranges are doubled within Earthfall due to minimal resistance. Due to the awkwardness of low gravity, there is a -3 penalty to Balance, Ride, Swim and Tumble checks within Earthfall. This replaces the No Gravity trait of Air.
- Normal Magic. Due to the unusually high concentration of earth and soil within the Earthfall, there are no changes to magic here. This replaces enhanced magic and impeded magic.

Suggestions

I, Baleruk, the first perfect prismatic dragon, shall offer you my wisdom. Listen well, for I have spent long pondering this corundum. You must be wary and understand they expect my glorious presence to attack! To that they have surely dedicated all their strength in places a dragon of my stature would deign to assault. THEY COWER IN THE DARK OPENINGS AND PLACES, HOPING TO STOP MY PRISMATIC MAJESTY! THEY FEAR MY MIGHT AND RESIST ME WITH ALL THEY HAVE!

Fools that they are, surely less obvious means of attack may be possible. The most cowardly and weakest will huddle in fear in the smallest cave entrances, like pathetic gnats before me. Strike them hard, for cowards like them will be soundly scared off with a powerful attack! If you have power WORTHY of my aid, perhaps even a direct assault will fell them! No matter. Once you are inside you must track down Arandalhaz! The feeble dragonling will surely be hiding in the deepest and darkest corner, surrounded by pathetic minions of fearful dragon gods! Strike them down! Strike them all down and scatter them to the four winds! Arandalhaz wastes his potential, take it from him with Val'Finnegan! Show them that the might of a true prismatic dragon is incomprehensible to them.