ZEITGEIST [ZEITGEIST] The Continuing Adventures of Korrigan & Co.

[gideonpepys]

Session 208, Part Three - Loose Ends in Seobriga

Leon could not rid himself of the tongue-rot Larkins had imposed on him. Uriel and Korrigan worked together to reverse the condition.

Emergency over, Glaucia finished her report (most of which she had delivered while they were fighting):

“Executore Salome Nieves is one of my enforcers. Loyal, and a foolish novice. But I am forced to work with who I have left. She’s the second woman I sent to Ursaliña. The first reported an ambush on the road outside the city by ‘tiny pink dragons’ that killed her porter. She sounded addled, and never contacted me again.

“Salome managed to enter the city and send to me once. ‘City unusually docile. Perfectly polite, but melancholic. Feigned joviality during ‘festivities’. Except merchant Flida. Says she saw something glowing, flying over city days after starfall.’

“I sent her with two sending scrolls because she couldn’t cast it herself. As I said, she’s a novice. We had an Executores Lodge in Ursaliña, but who knows what’s actually there? Not a single other word has come out of that city in weeks. The Bruse only cares because he cannot launch attacks on your west coast from its port. But if our friendly new world rulers are harming the people of Ursaliña, it might convince him to delay his invasion. Risur has, after all, been a great ally this past year.”

She went on to tell them that she was perhaps the only high-ranking Executores remaining – the rest having been assassinated by the Ob in recent weeks. Uriel made a note to grill Larkins on the subject, and wondered if it was connected to the apparent ‘suicide’ of the senior priests in Crisillyir.

Gupta was keen to look in on Melissa Amerie before they left. Enquiries suggested that her old publications were towing the party-line, seeming in favour of the new world order. But columns by Melissa had ceased. However, these expert investigators were able to establish that she had gone into hiding and tracked her down to a safe house. Gupta and Leon went to avoid drawing attention. They found the half-giant, Roderigo Loderoso in hiding with her, acting as her guardian. Melissa was overjoyed to see them, but turned down their offer to come with. Now that she knew they were working on it, she was even more determined to ride this nonsense out. Gupta gave her a hug, and left Roderigo with the Mace of Disruption, in case any ghosts came looking for them.

Now it was time to go. Most of the unit would teleport onto the Coaltongue, which was already partway to Ursalina. But Uru would go ahead, using his newfound link to the Anthras Mountains to travel there in an instant. It was suggested that he should take some muscle with him just in case. Leon thought he could show Uru how to teleport others – but not to many, just in case! They decided on Rumdoom and Quratulain. Hildegaard insisted on coming too. Uru told them they needed to put the soil of the mountains in their mouths for the teleport to work. When it was pointed out that they didn’t have any soil from the mountains, Uru said that any soil would do. They gathered some up and did as they were told. Uru concentrated, chanted (no soil for him, of course), and instantaneously, they found themselves in the westernmost foothills of the Anthras, just a few miles from Ursalina. Rumdoom and Quratulain spat out the soil. Hildegaard glowered at Uru. “I didn’t put the soil in my mouth,” she said, revealing her handful. “And I’m still here.”

End of Session

 

[gideonpepys]

Session 209, Part One - Matters Amidships

Leon spirited them aboard the Coaltongue, which was already partway to Ursalina. Then he became very serious and told Korrigan that he needed to depart once again. He would not be long, but there were still some matters left over from his previous absence. Korrigan had become used to Leon’s habits by now and bid him farewell. When he asked him idly where he would be going, Leon “It’s not so much somewhere, as somewhen.”

Thurgid, Rumdoom’s bagman, was sorry to have been left behind - almost distraught. The other, newer members of Rumdoom’s entourage took him to his quarters for a lie down. Brakken said he would like to get some rest too. Expending mental energy was taxing! Before he went he said he hoped he might see Feroz again in Ursalina. The unit remembered that when he had visited Flint, he had brought his dire bear companion with him, but they had not seen it during their time in Seobriga. Brakken explained that they had been separated when he was arrested and in any case, when he decided to become involved in espionage, he decided that Feroz needed somewhere else to stay. No one else could control Feroz like Brakken, so he sent him to live with his cousin Gordash in Ursalina, where dire bears were quite common, and he wouldn’t frighten anyone. Gordash was one of the Triunfo Vida, travelling minotaur bards, but he was getting too old for the road and had recently settled down.

Gupta asked Brakken what he knew of Ursalina. This (in paraphrase) is what he told her:

Named after its traditional bear fights, Ursaliña lies along the rocky northwestern coast of Ber, where the sea meets the Anthras Mountains. Those peaks once made it a prize domain for the dragon tyrants, and like every Beran city their influence persists in the architecture. The city rises and falls in steep terraces on four main hills, each crowned by a major civic building. Poorer neighborhoods weave through the low ‘troughs’ between hills, and imposing bridges connect the terraces in labyrinthine combinations.

Fanciful fountains thread mountain streams along the terraces and bridges, and fierce gusts of winds in the troughs kick up mist that cools the cramped streets and alleys. The hills fall sharply near the coast, where ornately-carved staircases link the harbor to the different levels of the city.

Similar areas of steep hills and valleys dot the landscape around Ursaliña, and for centuries servants of the dragon tyrants bred and domesticated megafauna in these natural paddocks. Countless caves provided lairs for the famed local dire bears, allowing the predators to hide and survive despite fervent attempts to exterminate them.

Today, two centuries since the dragon tyrants fell, Ursaliña proudly claims a two-headed dire bear as the city sigil. Many of the civic buildings have been restored to their original splendour, straddling a line between glorifying a brutal past and patriotism for what the Beran people managed to build.

The population is majority orc, with minotaurs and half-giants the next most common races.

Uriel dealt with Shuman Larkins. Larkins was able to confirm that high-level targets who might resist the brave new world had indeed been taken out. His team had been responsible for assassinating the Executores. Another had dealt with the clergy. As for Ursaliña, Shuman was sincerely unaware of any special Obscurati operations there, (though now he would be sure to mention the oddity to his superiors once he reached the ghost council). Korrigan wanted to know who had replaced Vicemi Terio as head of the ghost council – was it Lya Jierre? Larkins said that the ghost council needed a leader because so many of its members had become almost mindless over the centuries. But there were sufficient recent, new members (he said pointedly) to mean that replacing Terio wasn’t deemed necessary.

At the thought of returning, Larkins displayed an emotion rare for the undead – genuine fear. He said that Nicodemus was furious at their repeated setbacks, and he dreaded the mastermind’s rage for failing to thwart the party. “You don’t need to worry about that,” said Uriel, to Larkin’s astonishment. “You’ll be staying with me for the time being.” They discussed the potential risk, weighing up the ghost council’s ability to track Larkins against the power of El Extrano’s obscuring wards, and decided it was worth taking the chance just to mess with Nicodemus.

Uru reported in. Or, rather, he replied to Uriel’s sending. They had jaunted out of the Anthras (as far as the eye could see) and then taken Rumdoom’s clockwork carriage to the outskirts of Ursalina. Uru could not ‘read’ the city from the outskirts and proposed to head further in. He asked for a couple of hours more and Uriel said he would get back to him then.

One of the officers aboard the Coaltongue came with word that an official channel had requested permission for Lauryn Cyneburg to come aboard. It had been granted, and she was already waiting for the king in the galley. Harkover had sent her, she said. Then she brought out a mithral lockbox of sturdy design, big enough to hold a few books. Ornate carvings depicted the fey titans of Risur: The box had belonged to the Risuri ambassador to Drakr, and technically had already been on Risuri soil since the Great Eclipse, which is how Cyneburg assumed it had been possible to teleport it ‘home’. She went on to explain that Harkover had set up a teleportation interdiction to protect the king, and this item arrived just this morning. It had been opened, checked and found to be secure. “It was sent by Vlendham Heid,” said Cyneburg. “It’s urgent enough for me to be roped in.”

The lock-box contained the following items:

• A letter from Vlendam Heid begging for aid: the city of Bhad Ryzhavdut was surrounded and besieged by an apocalyptic army, led by Grandis Komanov. At her command were the gigantic, reanimated bodies of five ancient warlords.
• A map of the city of Bhad Ryzhavdut and its surroundings.
• A brochure for a museum exhibit and a holiday tour of the history of the Lost Riders.

A wood carving on the tower’s original drawbridge was depicted in the brochure. It showed five warriors on rampant steeds, with some sort of knot pattern in the background. Each rider’s head was turned upward as if to look at something, but that piece of the carving was rotted away.

Uriel remembered that old texts contained illuminations of that door, and the top was a serpent’s head. The same style of knot was used in depictions of the Voice of Rot in Risuri art. This would tie in with what Rumdoom’s cult had learned – that the Five Lost Riders were said to have offered souls of the defeated to their patron, known as Speaker of Snow, Heart of Black Ice, and the Warden of the Bleak Gate, who it was said had an eye torn out by an ancient hero.

This was indeed urgent – urgent enough to take precedence over their promise to Morgan Cippiano. But they would press on to Ursalina and investigate there first. It was a good job Rumdoom wasn’t on board, as it would have been hard to dissuade him from heading for Drakr immediately!

 

[RangerWickett]

Amusingly, I'd forgotten that for my Pathfinder paladin game I plagiarized myself by turning Ursalina into a drow city beset by a psychic monster. But I tweaked it from Mexi-Spain to New Orleans.

I wonder how spooky your players will find the city.

 

[gideonpepys]

Session 209, Part Two - Aerial Dogfight

I wonder how spooky your players will find the city.

We will have to wait until the New Year to find out! Meanwhile, here's the final session report of 2018, featuring an encounter not found in the published adventure:

Amielle, on permanent lookout, reported unusual activity up ahead in the darkness. They were over the Anthras by now – about a thousand feet up. She could see flashing blue lights and erratic movement. They joined her at the prow and agreed that this should be investigated, suggesting to Admiral Smith that he slow the vessel for now, while they launched the dragon fliers.

There was by now a cadre of pilots who had been put through their paces in these new-fangled craft. They would fly, leaving Gupta, Uriel and Korrigan free to respond to anything they encountered. (A fourth flier would be occupied by two airmen.) The king addressed them all with a rousing speech before they embarked, and they responded with enthusiasm. It was suggested that Smith charge the brand, just in case.

Out they went. For a while they couldn’t see anything, then all of a sudden there was movement - a crackling, powder-blue and white streak that came out of nowhere, clipped the fourth flier in a shower of sparks, and sped on in the direction of the Coaltongue. The pilot was stunned and slumped at the controls, but Uriel held the craft in the air with his mental powers. They had fitted each flier with a radio, and let the ship know something had got past them.

Another electric blue form appeared, and Korrigan shouted a warning to his pilot, who steered clear in the nick of time. Gupta thought she saw a shape within it – something like an animal, maybe. Two more could be seen up ahead, moving in tight corkscrews, as if they were fleeing something. And there it was – a translucent blob just behind them: a hivemind! This one was comprised of hysterical laughter. Gupta urged her pilot closer than he might have liked and thought it solid.

Uriel couldn’t get close enough to the fourth flier to help the pilot so he came up with a plan for some telekinetic juggling which he explained to the ‘spotter’ in the rear – he was about to be promoted! He let go of the flier for long enough to lift up the recumbent pilot so the spotter could wriggle into his place and take the controls. Then he lowered the pilot into the rear seat and let go. “Get him back to the Coaltongue,” he said. “And watch out for more hiveminds.”

By now Korrigan had got his flier into position to open fire on the hivemind. Solid, the autocannon tore into it, and it assailed their minds in response. He told the pilot to fire again, and this time he tore the thing to shreds.

A report from the Coaltongue: they could see the two lightning things closing in on them. They were being pursued by a second hivemind. Fearing what they might do if they came into contact with a metal ship, Amielle shot at one of them and it fizzled out. The hivemind grabbed the other and absorbed it. Gupta veered back to help. The hivemind loomed over the deck. Marines fired at it uselessly. In their midst – Brakken, shielding them.

Then a third hivemind rose from below, catching the fliers unawares. This one was much larger, and it pulsated with fear. Gupta tried to think it solid and failed – this one was much more powerful than the others. It grabbed Uriel’s flier with a tendril, but he whispered a prayer and ‘undid’ this, slipping out of its grasp after all. Things were getting desperate. “Xambria,” he urged. “A little help here?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” she said.

With Xambria’s aid, Uriel felt that he could deal with the large hivemind and lure it away from the Coaltongue. He used telepathy to get its attention and it followed.

Gupta and Korrigan closed on the smaller hivemind. Korrigan thought it solid as he flew past and it fell onto the deck, where it thrashed about under heavy carbine fire. Keen to deal with it quickly, Korrigan jumped off his flier and fell towards it. Gupta turned her flier in a tight, risky arc and was suddenly clipped by one of the electric blue things that were still spiralling around the Coaltongue. It exploded when it hit and vanished, but both she and her pilot were knocked out cold. Seeing this, Korrigan transformed into a bolt of Avilona (or should that be Perlocus?), grabbed the pilot (who he realised was dead) and pulled him out of his seat, taking control of the flier himself.

The huge hivemind had caught up with Uriel’s dragon-flier and absorbed it entirely. Uriel thought it solid and it began to plummet with him inside it! All the while it assailed him and his pilot with terror. His pilot soon succumbed, his mind collapsing in on itself, but with Xambria’s help, Uriel resisted. Unable to swing his sword, he unleashed the power of the Staff of the Hierophant, and a beam of radiant light burst out of the flank of amorphous mass. He fired again, but was overcome by fear. He was exhausted too, so drew on the staff again to bolster himself and again thought the hivemind solid, keeping it like that as they fell. The Anthras mountains loomed large below. Still, Uriel fended off the power of the hivemind and held his nerve in more ways than one. Then, in the very nick of time, he became insubstantial himself, and flew out of the hivemind, leaving it to smash into the mountainside. They were down one dragon-flier (and two pilots) but at least the hivemind was no more.

Korrigan flew back to the ship, where Amielle and Matunaaga’s children (trained in psionic combat by the gith, and capable of thinking it solid, like the unit had been) had joined the fight against the smaller hivemind. Korrigan shouted back to Gupta and roused her. She could see that the hivemind had been more or less dealt with and so looked around for one of the electric blue forms. There was still one left, flitting about chaotically. She Stood in Wonder and realised that it was some kind of air spirit, with a child-like level of intelligence. Within the hazy blue-white light was a translucent form, with a head and front quarters something like a cross between a dog and a horse, though becoming indistinct, comet-like, to the rear. Korrigan spoke to it telepathically (he was becoming something of a dab hand at this now), and told it to be calm, that there was no more danger. But it continued to flit about haphazardly, until Kai came on deck and held out his hand. It drew slowly closer.

“It is lost,” said Kai. “And now it is alone. It is afraid, and very sorry to have lost its friends.”

Uriel rejoined the ship. To his astonishment (and everyone else’s) he could not identify this creature. It must have been entirely new to Lanjyr. He asked it how it came to be here, but it couldn’t answer questions like that. Kai asked if they could keep it, as it had nowhere else to go. Admiral Smith said that the ship needed a mascot. The Impossible had had Silky, a sea spirit. But what would they call this? Cloudy? Sparky?

Korrigan asked the creature what it ate. The reply came, rainbows. Uriel was about to summon a storm to produce one, until Xambria gave a slightly impatient cough and suggested he use a prism. So he conjured one (this was a far better idea, after all) and used it to split magical light. Sure enough, the air spirit played about in the beams and absorbed them!

Back to more serious matters. Korrigan wanted to send the other fliers down to look for wreckage or bodies, but was told that it was futile at this height. They would hold a funeral service for the fallen.

Over the next few hours, they spotted more hiveminds in the distance. One or two drifted close enough to pose a threat and were dealt with at range by Amielle and others. They seemed to be drifting on a current of some sort, but they wouldn’t be buffeted by winds, would they? There were insubstantial. All seemed to be heading westwards. “Towards Ursalina?” Uriel pondered aloud. (After all, Ashima Shimtu had sensed an ‘alien presence’ there, and the same beneath the Cold Claw Sea, and that had turned out to be a hivemind powerful enough to subsume the deep ones.)

Time would tell. Meantime, they dispatched a sending to Vlendham Heid, requesting an update. There was no reply.

More disturbing still, there was also no reply from Uru!

End of Session

Only three players in this week. This encounter filled the gap, advanced the story - forshadowing a turn of events I plan to use to up the ante in Ursalina - and gave the players the chance to dust off the dragon-fliers. Fun times.

Have a great Christmas, y'all!

 

[gideonpepys]

A few weeks back we had a mini-session, to mark the divide between adventures 10 and 11. Instead of spending all of our time gaming, we got together for a meal instead - joking that the unit was joining Admiral Smith at the captain's table, on the flight back to Slate.

We used the time to briefly stitch up some loose ends (and give Leon the opportunity to reveal what he'd been up to off-stage) - all of which I reported here a few weeks ago - and then spent the rest of the time chatting and reminsicing.

During our conversation, one of the players suggested we redo the questionnaires I sent out just before we kicked off adventure 5 - all the way back in October 2013 - to see how things had changed. We all thought this was a great idea and the players' reponses have been coming in over the past month or so. (If you want to check out the original Q&As, you'll find them on page 32 of this thread, posts 312+.)

I'll post the new reponses here over the next few days.

 

[gideonpepys]

Questionnaire Redux - Uru


Briefly describe your character's personality (as you see it) emphasizing any changes or developments since the start of the campaign (and/or the reboot).

More sophisticated and less tribal. He’s grown both physically and intellectually but certainly in an alien way. He gave up his memories of being alive to the Stone of Not as a method of achieving something beyond. Half in and out of the shadows and though more solid still disappearing into the brickwork. His Garden has died with the changes to the world but he has seen a great deal more of it. He’s very pragmatic but certainly still sinister. He’s gotten more intellectual and reflective, but its getting to be more like apocalypse now. He is fiercely loyal to Korrigan. He’s whispering in the dark with strange creatures and ghost half glimpsed and his loyalty to Korrigan is more personal than political.

Role within the unit. What's your specialty?

Infiltration & assassination. A highly efficient removal of threats. The more alien he gets the more distant from normality. He’s morphing into something else like a chrysalis. In the borderlands he’s engaged in ruthless bush war. He’s a bringer of death and absolutes. He’s literally in the shadows and listening to people.

Outline your relationship with other unit members.

(Largely the same as prior update – with revisions.)

Korrigan – The rightful King of Risur. A force for good and a keen negotiator. Uru thinks Korrigan is taking Risur in the right direction and views threat to him personally. After the discussion about split personalities and the strangeness of time he wonders if all of Korrigan’s darker thoughts and ruthlessness were spawned in the pit back in the Islands.

Rumdoom – tragic story but also a person well placed for the strange times we live in. Utterly ruthless and driven. Philosophically interesting and unkillable.

Leon – He’s so far down the rabbit hole Uru just accepts him as a fundamental force of the universe. He is just part and parcel of the dreaming and weirdness at this point. Nothing Leon said to Uru would be shocking at this point and he treats Leon as a Fey creature. Maybe he always has been.

Quratulain – Cool, practical and unnerving. Person Uru most likely to get an after work drink with. ‘so murdered anyone interesting lately?’

Uriel – Which one? I know that this final version is an aggregate of total lives but since I’ve seen the individual personalities via the memory events its more confused. Like the ingredients for a soup before you do the prep. Pretty impressive with the miracles and seems like he’s on the path to being a Bodhisattva.

Gupta – She is a tragic weretiger from a people increasingly dying on the fringes. The writers of this setting must really hate elves. It’s fun to watch her interactions and despite her condition is perhaps the most ‘human’ in terms of relationships and ties with the world alongside Rumdoom.

What is your biggest achievement to date?

Killing Granny Allswell. What a sense of achievement.

What event in the campaign has had the most impact on your character?

The disappearance of the sun & the revelations as to just how complex the world was. Uru sees the Universe as an incredibly complex clockwork mechanism and feels like the Obscurity are trying to fix a missing gear with a sledge hammer. He’s also very worried on talks about ‘improving the world’. The removal of the spirits is worrying and threats to existence multiplying.

Do you have a treasured possession and, if so, what is it?

Black Needle. It’s an artefact and the greatest weakness of another titan. Plus it holds a spell. How cool is that. Little Jack’s also been an amazing part of my mental landscape.

Describe your favourite moment(s) from the campaign so far.

I don’t have a particular moment. The Fey Titan combats and negotiations were absolutely Rock and Roll. Seeing the world’s history reveal itself and the unveiling of the depth of the story were all so tied together one moment does not stand out.

Who is the most memorable NPC and why?

Pemberton. He’s a dragon with stock options and a bunch of Gnolls.

Whose name is on your Vendetta Bullet?

My own, if we cannot save the world.

What are your character's primary goals and priorities from this point on?

1. Kill Voice or Rot / return world back to what it was
2. Become a Fey Titan for a Modern Age

 

[Andrew Moreton]

I think I may use something similar before my group return to Zeitgesit after our star wars game

 

[RangerWickett]

Pemberton. He’s a dragon with stock options and a bunch of Gnolls.

This warms my heart.

 

[gideonpepys]

Questionnaire Redux - Korrigan

I think I may use something similar before my group return to Zeitgesit after our star wars game

I can highly recommend it - for all the reasons I gave back in post 323!

This warms my heart.

I thought it might. Now, Korrigan's response:

Briefly describe your character's personality (as you see it) emphasizing any changes or developments since the start of the campaign (and/or the reboot).
I guess the core personality is well familiar to everybody, so I'll skip to the development part. I think Korrigan has undergone a huge personal journey which may not be so outwardly apparent. Having started out as a vet somewhat struggling to adapt to civilian life, torn between his family and the dedication to RHC, and often frustrated by his own limitations when dealing with complex situations and threats, he has grown in confidence, conviction and vision. Now he is a man who knows where he stands and what he has to do. Rather than feeling overwhelmed after being named the new king Korrigan feels he is in the right place at the right time. No longer merely trying to thwart Ob operations as an officer of RHC, Korrigan is preparing to offer an ideological alternative.

Role within the unit. What's your specialty?
Do we still call it a unit? We are not even part of RHC anymore. It's more like an alliance. Alliance of powerful individuals with their own goals and agendas but united by a common goal (and I hope even more importantly ties of friendship and respect). And Korrigan is there to hold everything together and make sure our efforts are focused and achieve the best results.

Outline your relationship with other unit members.
I love you all ^.^

I think the relationship with the original members of the team has not changed much with the exception that they have all become more independent. In the beginning Korrigan was a sort of mentor figure for everyone (except Malthusius maybe), but now everyone has grown as much if not more than himself and do not need his mentoring. Now Korrigan is just proud of how much everyone have been able to achieve individually and as a team. Perhaps he still feels more responsible for the newer members though.

Gupta – in the very beginning Korrigan was sceptical of her abilities and lack of experience, but quickly realised that despite her youth she often demonstrated exceptional insight. This and her ability to empathise with people of very different origins and walks of life has earned his respect. He can also relate keenly to her search of identity and meaning, which has compelled him to try and keep her close, involve her in different things and quite openly share his thoughts with her. To tell the truth she also reminds him of his younger self, which at times can be a bit bittersweet as these things usually are.

Quratulain – ever since giving her a promise that he will not betray her and leave her in the vault, Korrigan has felt responsible and protective towards her. He was very moved by her tragic story and really wishes he could somehow give her another chance to have a normal life. He also really appreciates how dedicated she is to protecting Kai, it does help him sleep better at night.

What is your biggest achievement to date?
Still having a team

What event in the campaign has had the most impact on your character?
First learning the masterplan of the Ob at the convocation and then learning the backstory of Nicodemus and Kasvarina through the flashbacks. It solidified Korrigan's own views and ideas and helped him understand his mission.

Describe your favourite moment(s) from the campaign so far.
Seeing Nicodemus losing it. First in Methia, and now again at the forward symposium. So satisfying

Do you have a treasured possession and, if so, what is it?
Not sure I'd call it treasured as Korrigan is not the kind of person who gets attached to material possessions much, but the humble Hook has become integral to the character. He does not revere it as a sacred relic. And even the actual properties are not the most important thing about it. Its value to Korrigan is mainly as a reminder. A reminder of Nicodemus – a man Korrigan feels very much alike in many respects – of what he has become and why Korrigan is opposing him. A reminder to stay vigilant and constantly examine his own actions and motives, to stay true to his principles and values.

Who is the most memorable NPC and why?

Nicodemus. Hands down the best villain ever. For all the times he makes us question our own motives and ideals. And for the human and sympathetic background. And for still being a step ahead and out of reach despite us spending so much time and effort pursuing him and foiling his plans (even though I more and more often feel our party has become OP, somehow Nic still remains a challenge that makes me feel powerless).

Lya Jerre is another of my favourite adversaries. Failing to prevent her death is perhaps one of my biggest regrets in this game. Yeah, I know she's still around as a ghost, but still... Gone too soon.

Ah yes, also Ashima Shimtu. I find her very intriguing and would love to learn more about her. If Zeitgeist had a spinoff I'd like it to be centered around her.

Should I mention someone from among our allies too? I'd say Gale. Again I think she has a great story and potential. Liked her even when she was still officially a public enemy. I wish we could involve her more in our storyline.

Whose name is on your Vendetta Bullet?
The concept itself does not appeal to Korrigan. Neither vengeance as a driving force for someone's actions nor a weapon predetermined to kill someone as this implies that all other ways of resolving the conflict have already been rejected.

Perhaps the real question is whom he considers to be his main enemy in which case Nicodimus would be the obvious answer. Although he considers him more as an opponent rather than an enemy. Yes, opponent that more likely than not will have to be fought until one of them is dead, but even so Korrigan would prefer not to kill him. Definitely not just shoot him down with a vendetta bullet.

That said, there are two beings that are perhaps outside the scope of any moral considerations - Sijhen and The Voice of Rot. Both are wholly inhuman and hostile, threats to be eliminated by any means available.

What are your character's primary goals and priorities from this point on?

Cleaning up the mess the Ob have created and putting an end to their conspiracy (hopefully avoiding as many casualties as possible).

Ensuring gidim is not a threat anymore one way or another.

Finding out what on earth (or wherever he may be) The Voice of Rot is up to and sending him after Granny Allswell.

Enacting reforms in Risur.

More personally – raising Kai, finishing Korrigan's philosophy writings. And a long list of other things o.o'

 

[gideonpepys]

Questionnaire Redux - Rumdoom

Briefly describe your character's personality (as you see it) emphasizing any changes or developments since the start of the campaign (and/or the reboot).
The encounter with the Kraken started Rumdoom on a journey that has led him to become an invincible cult leader. For much of this journey, Rumdoom was an unwilling participant but he has now found a kind of peace with this destiny and has fully embraced the fact that he literally cannot be killed.
For a long time he was desperate to spawn a new religion and he fought hard to achieve this so when his attempts failed in such spectacular style Rumdooms heart hardened against the idea only for the religion to blossom and take on a life of its own but with Rumdooms ongoing involvement with the unit he has become a near mythical figure to his own believers.

Role within the unit. What's your specialty?
Rumdoom is not particularly flashy in a fight but as the fight goes on and those around him weaken, Rumdoom simply gets stronger and stronger. He has learnt to be more patient and to wait for his enemies to weaken as he gradually turns the screw ever tighter.

Outline your relationship with other unit members.
Each member of the unit has Rumdooms respect for their unique contributions to the unit but without being seflish, Rumdoom is very much at the centre of Rumdoom's universe; which is probably not unusual for a cult leader!

What is your biggest achievement to date?
Becoming immortal and being at the centre of a new religion

What event in the campaign has had the most impact on your character?
Surviving the Kraken

Do you have a treasured possession and, if so, what is it?
The Stone of Not; Rumdoom still sees the item as central to his religion. He just doesnt actually have it!

Describe your favourite moment(s) from the campaign so far.
So many....

Who is the most memorable NPC and why?
Still Lorcan Kell

Whose name is on your Vendetta Bullet?
Grandis Kamanov

What are your character's primary goals and priorities from this point on?
The focus of Rumdooms religion has altered subtly from endings to the control of all things
This has led Rumdoom to wondering, idealogically, how different his beliefs are from the Obscurati
Somehow Rumdoom needs to reconcile this in his head for the his wellbeing and the wellbeing of his beleivers and possibly even for the fate of the world.