I doubt he'd have much choice if push came to shove. On the face of things, we would probably have Iridiel and Domhnall sharing a horse, Olan likely needing a horse as well, and then we still have Angora and Jaelnec, neither of whom will be particularly in the mood to slog through the mud and rain to Zerul City. Three horses, five people.
If someone has to go on foot, it'll probably be one or both of the Eireannach.
You know, there's a bit of irony to be had in the current scene with I'onriyi and Nimbus/Male'dai. That being that Unity Wind isn't _technically_ an enchanted item. It's more like a powerful magical conduit/amplifier/container with a complex structure. Pretty sure it is more durable than it ought to be so there are probably a number of fairly minor enchantments going on within it.
This is, in part a misstep on my part, but I'll just turn it around slightly so it makes sense. Still, just thought I'd share that since it gave me a chuckle.
Oh? But in Ion's CS in the description of the staff, it says
The incredible thing about these runes is that they are usually fueled by the magical power stored in the two full Crystal prisons stored in the weapon.
It's not enchanted, nor did Nimbus think it was enchanted, but if crystal prisons are "full", there's magical energy in them...
After a lot of considerations and looking at the word document to try and type up a post, I've sadly decided that I've lost interest in the RP at this moment in time and must bow out for the time being. A lot of things have happened IRL at this moment in time that needs to take priority and although I'm not leaving RPG forum itself, I need to cut down on RP commitments until I can get my life together. It is a shame as I've been a huge fan of the storyline of the RP since I first joined it nearly 10 years ago. However, I do intend to return once stuff has been sorted out (maybe as Ixion, maybe as a new character).
I wish everyone all the success for the future of the RP and hope to see you guys soon.
I think a wind may very well have caught my sails too, to be entirely honest. I had to move recently (from Florida to Wisconsin) due to extenuating circumstances. It's thrown off my usual posting schedules for every RP I'm in (and I wasn't consistent enough with this one to begin with...sadly). I've been trying to juggle a lot for awhile and I love this world and I love the players in it--ya'll are seriously some fantastic writers. I am often awed by your skill and talent and how you've honed it. It's been a treat even if I haven't gotten to interact directly with most of you ICly (through no real fault of your own or anyone as far as I am concerned).
My thoughts are summed up thusly:
I don't entirely want to leave, but I think I need to have a leave of absence. I feel bad about it because Dark Jack even has a character tied up with I'on. So what I may do is continue that and plan an exit for I'on soon. I don't like leaving loose ends behind and I don't like my characters being misrepresented--though my visions of I'on are...odd at this point, he's become muddled in my mind over the years.
I think I would definitely rejoin at some point if things continue on, but I think I'd do so with a new character and a new vision for said character. I think when I made I'on all those years ago that I was intent on stuffing too much into one person without really considering their characterization enough (and whether it would be more or less enjoyable for me to play them).
So yeah. I will be around, I think I may even hang around the discord for now, but I'm gonna more or less bow out of things. Dark Jack, maybe PM me somewhere and we can figure out a track that lets I'on and Nimbus/Maledai separate to free up that plan for you. I don't want to leave you hanging as I'm sure I already have (sorry again about that, my life is kicking my ass as it hasn't in awhile). Anywho, you guys are great, this is entirely on me, not anyone else, and I will see you around!
Life happens, as they say. As you might've guessed, I'm not going to be chasing off anyone unless they come and bite someone.
Not too much has even happened, except Aemoten/Thaler/Etakar/Beatrice are now somewhere in Zerul City (they got through the gates 4-5 IC hours ago - I decided not to elaborate on what they're been doing after that point until I know what the rest of the folks are up to during the evening), and Olan/Jaelnec/Angora/Iridiel/Domhnall/Claw are actually at the gates to Zerul City, learning about the mess the monster that was once Immanuel created and about some folks who went to seek being cured from the Withering by trekking to the huge squid-monster under the mountain because one guy had insisted it was what cured him. I also introduced another set of two characters (Yanin Glade and Jordan Forthey), but they only exist in tomorrowland for the time being, having already had an encounter of sorts then. I kind of proposed Aemoten/Thaler/Olan/Etakar/Beatrice might be splitting from the rest of the group and going south to pay a visit to some of Aemoten's old friends, given that it didn't seem like Angora and Thaler would be getting along and it might be too much for Thaler to try to convince her otherwise. Seemed like the most logical way to resolve the situation, anyway; up to you now to determine what Thaler feels like doing now that you're back.
And that is all of us and what has happened in the meantime, methinks.
I was sifting through some of my old notes for the RP earlier and came across an old entry for the Deo'iel Guide to Survival that I never actually shared because I wasn't entirely satisfied with it. I decided to just touch it up a little bit and let you see it.
Dreadmaw Too few facts about the phenomenon known most commonly as “dreadmaw” to write a full entry into the Guide to Survival on the subject, but dreadmaw is still important and dangerous enough that the deo’iel deem it necessary present a mention of it. Reports of dreadmaw have occurred infrequently throughout recorded history, for as long as the civilized races have braved the sea, and it has reached mythological status among seafarers, representing the ultimate danger of the ocean. Whether dreadmaw is a single creature living for millennia or simply a species so rare that two of them have never been observed in the same place is unknown. Though there exist many stories of ships encountering dreadmaw, the most credible account available to us is that of Vilhej'deo'calahuneth, documenting her encounter with the monster:
It was the eleventh day of our voyage abound for the lands of Rodoria, and sea was quite calm, with the storm of the previous day having passed during the night. It was well past sunrise when word reached us from the crow’s nest that a ship had appeared, and that it was moving to intercept us. We soon discovered this ship to be of Melenian origin, and we were beset by buccaneers, forcing us to defend ourselves. We retaliated with blade and magic, targeting their ship with fireballs and bolts of lightning, hoping to set it ablaze. We know not whether it was the noise, the heat or something else entirely that lured the beast. All we know was that the sea suddenly grew dark, and a growl rose as if from the pit of Hell itself as inky blackness coalesced beneath the Melenian ship. The beast emerged from the water directly beneath the pirates, so big that the hull of their brig fit easily between its jaws and was carried into the air, held aloft like a hound would hold its prey. It snapped its jaws shut, and the Melenian craft was crushed to splinters by its fearsome might. “Dreadmaw”, the sailors called with primal fear in their eyes, and for truth we have never seen a beast more fitting of such a title. It was a serpent of sorts, only with wings; I counted two pairs in sight, maybe forty feet apart, but no other limbs were visible. It towered at least a hundred and fifty feet into the air, with no way of knowing how grand a body hid beneath the waves. The sheer size of it had veteran sailors cower in fear, placing their fates in the hands of the gods, and even I must confess a sense of horror. The mages pelted the beast with lightning and fire, but it barely seemed to notice. Lightning seemed to do nothing at all, and even our most powerful flames merely singed its scales. Quilsin had more luck striking it with frost, but whether this truly hurt Dreadmaw or simply enraged it is guesswork. Arrows and missiles bounced off its hide, and even liquid fire seemed victim to imperviousness. I cursed the beast for attacking from the water, out of my reach. Something shot out of the creature’s mouth and stuck to Quilsin, like the tongue of a toad to a fly. The penin seemed paralyzed, but we did not realize that Dreadmaw’s tongue conducted electricity until Varnfol seized Quilsin’s arm and fell victim as well. The beast retracted its tongue and Quilsin disappeared into its maw, though Varnfol mercifully lost his grip rather than share his partner’s fate. Dreadmaws tongue shot out swiftly and repeatedly, snatching my companions and the crew of the ship one by one and drawing them into oblivion, until Varnfol managed to get the beast to attach its tongue to a barrel of Quilsin’s finest. The explosion appeared to cause Dreadmaw pain, likely due to it losing or injuring the tip of its tongue, but pain only seemed to intensify its rage. It launched at us directly, opting to aim for the people on deck rather than the ship itself, and scooped up at least several men in one move, dooming them to a fate in its gullet. I saw my chance now that it was finally within range, however, and rushed Dreadmaw’s lowered head with my sword, reaching between its teeth - each the size of a man - and plunging the blade into the floor of its mouth with all of my strength. The blood that spilled forth was as hot as it was pungent, and Dreadmaw retreated violently enough to wrest the weapon from my grasp and sent me tumbling across the deck, nearly consigning me to the waters below. The sea stirred and threw about the ship as Dreadmaw thrashed before us, seemingly frenzied and in the throes of agony from the wound I inflicted. A wing swept by and broke two masts, but otherwise we were mercifully spared the consequences of its rage. I realized after that I must have hit something vulnerable or sensitive with my sword, for even though it was enchanted, the beast must have had wounds and splinters in its mouth already from crushing the other ship. I have long pondered why it chose to attack us the way it did, too, rather than simply wipe us out as it had with the others; with its size and power we would have had no means of defending ourselves. I never found out, however, for Dreadmaw retreated back into the inky darkness of the ocean, and I never saw it again. Beware, my deo’iel, for there is no doubt in my heart that Dreadmaw is the most dangerous beast I have ever faced.
Jaelnec, Thaler, Aemoten and Olan have now earned the title:
Though not even those present for the event know all the details of what happened, word is already spreading of how four travelers on a quest to end the Withering saved a Zerulic border post from not just one, but several sinister threats against the vigilant guardsmen posted there. Not only did they uncover and defeat a treacherous agent of the Death Clan as well as the compliant lieutenant who made the cultist’s work possible, they also discovered a lair of piaan-addicted and trained yths who would have doubtlessly devoured the guardsmen in their sleep in time. Most notable of all, however, was the fact that these travelers faced off against Rilon himself, managing to steal away Black Thorn from him and deliver it to the hands of another god, forcing Rilon into compliance and submission. People are wildly impressed with the feat of besting a life-blessed god and are already predicting their names to become legend, though there are also many who question the decision to give another god control over Rilon’s power, and others yet who swear vengeance on Rilon’s behalf. So it is that these four will henceforth be known as Banes of the Blood God!
"The deal"? Nothing much, really... if you want to join you can just go ahead and (start to) make a character; I'll help with anything you (or any other takers) need help with in making it. Once I have approved of your character, for all intents and purposes, you're in.