Let's Play! Mask of the Betrayer! (Image Heavy!)

Once Upon A Time



A great war was fought in the tiny swamp village of West Harbour. A great force of demons and undead led by the mysterious King of Shadows clashed with the forces of Neverwinter, almost wiping out the village until the King of Shadows suddenly disappeared and the remnants of West Harbour's people returned to their homes, stunned and greatly saddened by the loss of so many.

Only one person inside the village survived; a little girl with bright red hair and green eyes, held tightly in the grip of her fallen mother. A great wound was carved into her chest, and the little girl was taken in by the village's only elf, Daeghun Farlong.

West Harbour rebuilt itself from the ruins...



Nineteen years later, the people of West Harbour celebrate their harvest festival with tournaments of skill and aptitude, including archery contests, displays of magic, a brawl and even displays of less savoury skills. All four contests are won by a red-headed Aasimar called Patricia Vetinari, aided by her friends Bevil Starling and Amie Fern. They celebrate their victory, not knowing that with nightfall many of their friends and neighbours will fall.

In the depths of the night, a small army of bladelings and duergar attack West Harbour, and it is only through the united force of Georg's militia, Tarmas' magic, and Daeghun's archers that the town survives the onslaught. During the battles, Amie Fern falls to the spell of an unknown Githyanki mage who appeared to lead the charge.

As the villagers gather their dead and tend to the wounded, Daeghun assigns a secret task to Patricia and Bevil - go deep into the swamp and retrieve a silver shard from an Illfarn Ruin.



Battling through a small army of lizardmen, Patricia and Bevil manage to find the shard without major injury. Patricia's magic is to thank for this minor miracle - she is a Favoured Soul of Oghma, the Lord of Knowledge. Shard in hand, she is told to go to Neverwinter and seek out her adoptive father's half-brother, Duncan. Although she asks Bevil to accompany her, he declines, preferring to remain and defend West Harbour. Disheartened and still in shock over the unexpected death of Amie, Patricia leaves the town of her birth. It is the last time that she shall see most of her friends alive.

On her way to Neverwinter, amongst the many distractions and frustrating delays, Patricia meets some fellow travellers willing to lend her aid.



Khelgar Ironfist, a brawl-loving dwarven with a taste for ale and fine dwarven women...



Neeshka, a tiefling rogue being harassed by amoral members of the Fort Locke garrison...



and Elanee, an elven member of the druidic circle of the Mere, and a preachy pain in the backside.



The town of Highcliff was to be their staging point to the city of Neverwinter, but a few things had to be dealt with first. Like runaway husbands, kids with delusions of adventurerdom, a pack of pissed-off lizardmen with territory on their mind and the loss of the farm of one Shandra Jerro.



Finally, the dysfunctional quartet departed for Neverwinter.



Once land legs were recovered and Khelgar stopped retching, the group sought out Duncan's bar, the Sunken Flagon. They found a barkeep who drunk too much of his own ale and a snarky barman, but most importantly, Patricia finally found a 'family' member who wasn't a complete dick.



After some pleasantries and catching up, Patricia showed her uncle the shard, and he gave her the one he himself had been keeping for many years, as a sad reminder of the deaths in West Harbour. Patricia could feel the strange energy pulsing through them, and it was then that a sarcastic elven mage called Sand decided to pay a visit.



Sand attempted to scry the shards, only to knock everyone in the Sunken Flagon off their feet when the spell backfired. Disgusted, he suggested that the group find a way into the Blacklake district to consult with the well-known sage Aldanon. There was only one problem - the Blacklake district was sealed in the wake of several members of the nobility.

On Duncan's suggestion Patricia allied herself with the Neverwinter Watch and her fellow Harbourman, Marshal Cormick. Cormick was the last person before Patricia herself to win all four events in the harvest festival, trouncing Bevil's brother Lorne. Lorne disappeared afterwards, and Patricia had promised to look for him in Neverwinter. So far, there was no sign of him. That was soon to change.

On patrol one day, Patricia and friends broke up a mage's brawl outside the Flagon, unwillingly recruiting the literal firebrand sorceress, Qara. Expelled from the Neverwinter Academy in disgrace, Qara had little choice but to accept the ultimatum Patricia and Duncan gave her, and so the group acquired themselves a quite possibly insane spellcaster.



After a time, the captain of the watch, Brelaina, sent Patricia and her friends to Old Owl Well to locate and possibly rescue a diplomat from Waterdeep. The gruff commander of Neverwinter's Greycloak forces, Callum, could offer them nothing but information to start them on their search, and a suggestion to seek out a man the orcs there called 'Katalmach' - a man who sought death in battle.



As they sought out the orcish clans, they came across a gnome with a very peculiar style of inventing...



Grobnar Gnomehands, a hyperactive bard full of tales of insane inventions and the mythical Wendersnaven. Despite many protests from her allies, Patricia allowed him to accompany her.

One orcish lair was raided, and a man claiming to be the Waterdhavian diplomat was found in the depths. However, Patricia's questioning and Grobnar's off-hand comments provoked the man into revealing himself as a fake, and so the party prepared to return to Callum. On the way back to the well, they were ambushed by a swarm of orcs, but rescued by the Katalmach and several local warriors.



The Katalmach turned out to be a human paldin called Casavir. He had left Neverwinter under the shadow of rumour and doubt, and dedicated himself to helping the locals drive off the orcs. Casavir invited himself into the group, and led them to the lair of the orcish leader. However, things down there got weird...



A room filled with fallen warriors who had once served by Casavir's side...

Diaries of torture and horrific intent...

The undead...



And someone stupid enough to ask Qara if she wanted to become a spell-casting undead revenant. Fireballs ensued. The true Waterdhavian noble was eventually rescued, Casavir was briefly reunited with Callum, and the paladin decided to return to Neverwinter in Patricia's company.

Finally, the Blacklake district was open to her...

Except that things are never, ever that easy!

Brelaina organised for an escort to the house of Aldanon, a truly bizarre scholar in the service of Neverwinter.



After a little experimentation and a lot of rambling, Aldanon declared the shards were part of a Silver Sword, a vicious weapon made by the Githyanki, extraplanar beings who lived in the wilds of the Astral Plane on the body of a dead god, and who were ruled over by a despotic Lich Queen. And they were hunting her for the shards she bore. Perhaps if they could find the Haven of Ammon Jerro, a long-dead scholar of Neverwinter, they could find out more.

They entered Neverwinter's Archives, only to discover the place being ransacked by the Githyanki. Personally insulted on behalf of her god, Patricia stormed the Archives, slaying every Githyanki who was unfortunate enough to get in the way of her blade or her magic. The ringleaders escaped, but she found out their destination; the farm of Shandra Jerro.



Although they managed to slay the Githyanki and rescue Shandra, the farm was utterly destroyed. They took Shandra back to the Sunken Flagon to both protect her and question her about Ammon Jerro's Haven. Of course, things are never that simple, and during the night a troop of Gith attacked the Flagon, kidnapping Shandra. Duncan knew someone who could help them find her, and called in a favour to get them a special tracker who would help them hunt down the Luskan-bound Gith.



Bishop was a good ranger and an excellent tracker, but... Patricia would have called him a bastard, but that would have been an insult to bastards everywhere, and so Bishop's name became akin to an insult when coming from her lips. To her frustration, he apparently found this to be a turn-on, and much of the trip was spent keeping him from crawling into the bedrolls of female party members.



Depite attempts to slow them down with an ambush in the town of Ember, Patricia and Bishop hunted the Gith relentlessly, eventually finding their stronghold in the mountains. Although their progress was hampered by an unknown stranger and his menagerie of demons and devils, they fought their way to Zeeaerie, the leader of the Githyanki.



Although Zeearie was slaughtered and Shandra freed, Patricia had discovered the truth about the scar on her chest and her miraculous survival. In her was a shard of the silver sword, and it was not 'just any' silver sword... it was the Silver Sword of Gith, the saviour of the Githyanki and the Githzerai, lost with its wielder somewhere deep in the Abyss. How it had come to West Harbour during the battle and how such a powerful blade could have shattered was a mystery only Ammon Jerro could answer.

Unfortunately, other enemies conspired to delay this all-important revelation.



Black Garius, a member of the Hosttower of Luskan, used his pawn Torio to accuse Patricia and her allies of murdering the entirety of Ember. With little choice in the matter, Patricia was squired to one of Lord Nasher's knights, putting her in a position to be tried by the lord of Neverwinter, instead of being taken to Luskan and brutally slaughtered.

Of course, Nasher knew better than to trust the words of a Luskanite, and his right hand man Nevalle made arrangements for Patricia's defense...



Arrangements called Sand.

With Sand's help, evidence was gathered to prove that not only was Patricia innocent, but that a massive man in the employ of Luskan was truly responsible for the destruction of Ember. And so the trial began.



Although Torio was clever with her words, Patricia was cleverer and favoured by the god of knowledge. With quick words, Sand's support and the evidence gathered, Torio's claims were proven eminently false.



Although not before Sand got in some snarky comments of his own.

With her innocence proven, Patricia was free to go. For all of about two minutes. Torio invoked the right of trial by combat, naming an all too familiar warrior as her champion. Lorne Starling, long-lost scion of West Harbour and the brother of her best friend.

Needless to say, Nevalle...



and Nasher...



weren't pleased by the turn of events, but the trial by combat was unassailable.

Although some of her companions visited her during the night before the fight,



Patricia faced Lorne alone on the sands... and won.

With Torio and Lorne defeated and discredited, the party returned to the Sunken Flagon to get thoroughly wasted. Only a few drinks were drunk, however, before Nevalle returned with news. Patricia was now a squire of Neverwinter, after all, and she had duties to perform.

Black Garius had taken possession of Crossroad Keep, kidnapped Aldanon, and was performing some kind of bizarre ritual calling upon the shadows in the depths of the keep. Someone needed to get rid of him, and naturally that someone had to be the woman who had been beaten half to death just a few hours ago. Oh, that wacky Nasher!



And so the party stormed Crossroad Keep with the aid of a few of Neverwinter's mages, rescuing an even more befuddled Aldanon and tearing through the Shadow Priests inhabiting the place like a knife through warm butter. Patricia did not welcome this easy victory with joy, however - she had fought the Shadow Priests before, and they seemed to serve something dark and evil. Any ritual Garius performed with their blessing would end badly for Neverwinter.

Except that Garius fell to her blade without a fight.

And so, having crossed a decent chunk of the Sword Coast,



Patricia Vetinari became the leader of Crossroad Keep. As she rebuilt and sought the ancient pieces of magic that would allow her to destroy the King of Shadows, Aldanon studied, and eventually the location of Ammon Jerro's Haven was revealed. With the last piece of the Shadow-Killing ritual lost to her for the time being and the destruction of West Harbour by the King of Shadows weighing heavily on her mind, the Haven became her next destination.



Shandra at her side and blade ready for any trouble, she lead the way deep into the wilds.



The Haven was filled with bound demons and devils, and in buying their entrance Shanda disappeared. Deep within its walls, the party found the King of Shadows and were thoroughly trounced. Only Shandra's desperate actions saved them, as she shed her own blood to release the bound creatures and weaken the King of Shadows.

The King of Shadows slew her in a rage, and in that tragic moment, the truth was revealed. The master of the Haven was no King of Shadows. He was Ammon Jerro, revealed to be a powerful warlock, and in his foolish actions he had ended the family he had sold his soul to protect.



Although she wanted nothing more than to slay Ammon where he stood, Patricia was forced to spare his life. He had claimed the final part of the ritual she needed to kill the King of Shadows, and with the statue that had held the knowledge destroyed, she needed him alive to have a chance at victory.

The true King of Shadows, now known to be an ancient Illefarn guardian construct warped by shadow magic, had not been resting easy while Patricia and her friends had sought its destruction. With legions of the undead massing in the Mere, she frantically gathered aid from those in the King's path.

Upon her return to Crossroad Keep, Patricia was collected by Nevalle and returned alone to Neverwinter. She helped drive back an attack of undead led by a Shadow Reaver, and Lord Nasher dubbed her both a knight and a member of the Neverwinter Nine, neither of which she appreciated overmuch. She was charged with readying Crossroad Keep for war.



Grobnar repaired an ancient Illefarn construct, and attempted to secure the aid of the Wendersnaven. The first project was successful - the less said about the Wendersnaven and the Wenderkazoo, the better.



After taking out a pack of Fire Giants and slaying a red dragon to recover an ancient relic of their clan, the Ironfist dwarves united under Khelgar and pledged their aid to Crossroad Keep.

An abortive attempt to recruit the Circle of the Mere led to the death of Elanee and many tainted druids. However, Daeghun and Bevil had both survived the destruction of West Harbour, heartening Patricia greatly and giving her a new drive to succeed.

Highcliff and Fort Locke fell.

With the armies of the King of Shadows rapidly approaching, Lord Nasher and the Nine (Patricia excluded) went out to face the tide.



Although they fought bravely, they ultimately failed. Nasher was brought back on the edge of death, and only Nevalle and Patricia were left of the Nine. With no other option, Patricia and her allies fortified the Keep and destroyed the bridges that the armies of the King of Shadows would have to cross.



For a time, the battle went well, and then disaster. Bishop betrayed them all, destroying the portcullis and gate that kept the undead out. He fled during the confusion, and by the time men could be sent to hunt his trecherous hide down, he was long gone.

Crossroad Keep survived the night, and Aldanon revealed a way into the King of Shadows stronghold. Patricia and her allies went through the Illefarn Song Portal, and deep within the ruins at the other end they found Bishop, standing at the side of a powerful undead bearing the face of Garius.



Garius and Bishop tempted her allies in an attempt to sway them. Most refused...



But some accepted. Qara stepped from Patricia's side, as did the Construct, controlled by Bishop. The fight was short, brutal and lethal. At the end, Garius was dead forever, Bishop and Qara were swiftly executed, and Grobnar deactivated the Construct for the last time.

They were too late, and the King of Shadows stepped free of its prison.



Although they eventually defeated the King of Shadows, the Illefarn ruins collapses, burying Patricia and her surviving friends beneath a thousand tons of rock.



Bevil and his Greycloaks defending the Keep in her absence, Bevil frequently venturing into the Mere in search of his lost friend.



Daeghun sought his lost daughter, never resting despite the common belief of the people that she was long dead.



And now, Patricia wakes, faint words echoing in her ears...

For love.

 

Update 1: Pain In Blood And Bone

Normal text is in-game. Italics are Xiao's comments and observations.



: [You struggle to raise your head. A hole has been carved into your flesh, just above your heart, and raggedly stitched by an unskilled hand.]

: [Try to remember what happened to you.]



: Something stirs inside you... a presence, a hunger. It is bound, angry... and it cannot escape...

This game love ellipses like you wouldn't believe.



Oh great, a spellcasting bald guy. This never, ever bodes well. Why can't I wake up to a comfortable bed and a good-looking man? Just once?



: The shard... Where is it?

: Shard? I don't know. I was told to look for you, and that you'd be injured... but nothing about a shard.





Here's our first in-dialogue skill check. These pop up from time to time, and if you have a sufficient score in the skill you choose, you can get dialogue options and even ways around quests that you wouldn't be able to access otherwise. Patricia has a nice high Diplomacy rank, which is pretty much all we need to glide through the game.

: I'm that and more. But I'm no threat. Not to you, at least.

The Red Wizards are basically the power behind the throne in Thay. Oh sure, there are 'official' rulers, but it's the Red Wizards who have all the real power, and the rulers know it. A general rule for surviving in Thay - don't piss off a Red Wizard. Most Red Wizards, like our mysterious friend here, shave their heads and tattoo their scalps. Players of Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate II will no doubt remember Edwin Odesseiron, another Red Wizard. He's far closer to what you should expect from the group than our new friend.

: Disregard whatever rumours you have heard regarding the Red Wizards. I am here to assist you, and I will do just that.

: You said something about spirits? What kind of place is this?



Rasheman is the country next door to Thay, and the two cultures do NOT get along! In Thay, as long as you keep your head down and don't piss off the ruling class, you should be fine. In Rasheman... well, you'll see. Rasheman as depicted in Mask of the Betrayer is a strange combination of barbarian culture, matriarchies, honour, and spirit worship. It's an interesting place, and pretty different from anything depicted in the usual D&D games.

: Rasheman? That's hundreds of miles from the Sword Coast.

The Sword Coast being, of course, where Amn, Baldur's Gate, Luskan and Neverwinter are, amongst other things.



: But that's after we get out. For the moment, haste is all that matters.

: All right. Let's go.



Our new friend, Safiya, is a Transmuter, which means that she has less spells to pick from but gets more spells per day. She's also a Red Wizard, which means more power behind those spells. In order to be a doubly-specialised mage, however, she's had to sacrifice a lot of utility in favour of buffing us instead. There's a fun spell called Mass Fowl in her future if I have anything to say about it!



: Wait! No!









: What was that? What did you see?

: A laughing boy. A woman with golden skin. A wall of screaming souls...

: They're thoughts... or memories. Maybe from within you... maybe from without. The Rashemi claim that these runes can trap dreams... or set them loose. This place is... not right. Everything echoes so strongly. I will be glad to leave this barrow behind.

What did I tell you? Fucking ELLIPSES.



I couldn't quite get the camera to behave itself on this update. I'll try and get a decent shot of lil' Kaji next time. He's... interesting.

: No, Kaji, I sent them to find Lienna, as my mother asked. They could not have returned from the city so soon...

: Your friend has excellent senses. I heard nothing.

: Nor did I. The barrow was silent when we made our way down from above.

Incidentally, for those of you who don't know. A barrow is a special kind of grave. We've just woken up in a fucking GRAVE with a great gaping hole in our chest. Today is not Patricia's day.

: Who is that little creature? Your familiar?

: Kaji, meet Patricia. Patricia, meet Kaji. Kaji's a friend - loyal, clever and eminently charming... in his own way.

I don't remember telling her our name...

: You seem to care for him a great deal.



And the Influence system returns, but in a much better form than in the original campaign. Changes are visible, and as long as you actually pay attention to the way your companions act, it's not hard to get good results. Get influence high enough, and you start to get some nice bonuses out of it too.

: If you create your friends from nothing, you know you can trust them. We should keep going. This barrow may be earth and stone, but it's alive and aware, as much as Kaji... or us.

 

Side Update 1: Patricia and Safiya



Here's Patricia's status screen. Whatever is making her weak and sick has drained all her physical stats. Not much, but enough to be a giant pain in the arse for a little while. Anything that reduces her Dexterity and by extension her Armour Class is a Bad Thing.

Patricia is a fairly typical Favoured Soul build, but she's got two very interesting feats that deseve a mention.



Augmented Healing makes Patricia the straight up best healer in our party for the entire campaign. A couple of other characters will come close, but Patricia will always have a slight edge over them. This is important, because there will be times when our party will be severely... depleted.



Spellcasting prodigy amplifies my spells as if my Wisdom was two points higher. As I need both a high Charisma to learn spells and a high Wisdom to cast them, this feat is simply invaluable. ANYTHING that increases my Wisdom is invaluable!



And now, let's talk about Safiya. First the basics:

Class: Wizard/Red Wizard of Thay
Alignment: Neutral
Race: Human
Ability Scores: 9 STR, 15 DEX, 14 CON, 19 INT, 11 WIS, 14 CHA

"If you enjoy tense situations, my affiliation with the feared magocracy of Thay should prove endlessly amusing."

Her stats are passable, although her Dexterity could use a little boost. Her robes give her an excellent number of buffs and strengthens her spellcasting, although there are some times when she can't wear them for story purposes.

Safiya is unusually laid back for a Red Wizard, and as long as we don't do something obscenely hideous and don't insult her or the Red Wizards too openly, she's fairly easy to gain influence with. Complimenting her knowledge and skills or showing a solid grasp of magic in theory or practice usually earns Influence quickly.

VOTING TIME!

Do we like Safiya or do we want to piss her right off? Being friends earns us bonuses, pissing her off could eventually lead to a fight.

Next Time: Barrows, Ruins and Pissed Off Bears!

EDIT: Dark Elf, did you read the edited last post in the voting thread? the reason is there.

 

Is there a limit on how many people can be in your party?

Befriend her is there isn't a limit, piss her off otherwise.

 

There is a limit on the number of characters that can be in the party with us at once, and typically, it's one higher than the total number of characters we can recruit. So, naturally, I'm going to try and cheat my way past the stupid limit.

 

Update 2: The Trippiest Damn Bear I Have Ever Seen



: I had a feeling we'd be in for a fight... I brought along spare weaponry for you to use. These spirits may prove too resilient for mere swords and arrows. I have my enchanter's satchel and a magical essence... you can use the satchel and the essence to enchant a weapon that can tear through all but the strongest of spirits.

Enchanting in Mask of the Betrayer knocks the socks off the Original Campaign. In the original campaign, you had to loot alchemical components from enemies, turn them into essences, add several different materials that you'd collected and cast a spell and hope that you didn't fuck up the recipes. AND you had to find books to use to recipes in the first bloody place. In MotB, you examine the essences, and they tell you what they can be used for and what spell and caster level you need. If I'd been so inclined, I could have taken the crappy short sword Safiya brought and enchanted it to do 1d6 of cold damage by putting them in the satchel and, with a quick casting of Ice Storm, I'd have had a shiny cold-damage dealing short sword. I decided to wait until I picked up a longsword, though, because Patricia kicks arse with her god's weapon.



A Barrow Guardian. They look like Earth Elementals, but they suck. A quick Flame Strike spell will knock off half their HP, and then I just hit them a few times and they die. Usually they give me Earth or Power Essences.





This campsite doesn't seem important yet, but the book it holds is interesting. It talks about the Wall of the Faithless and an ill-fated campaign to tear it down. I'll talk more about the Wall in a later update after we pick up a character who has plenty to say on the subject.



Up to the next level! This isn't so bad...



This is Nakata, a very powerful Telthor - spirit. The people of Rasheman worship animals and their spirits, and so some powerful animals become Telthor or even gods after they die. Nakata is only a step or two down from... well, you'll see.



: My name is Patricia Vetinari. Return to your sleep, and I'll leave these caves in peace.







: What god? Can I speak to him?









: [Then the groan rises to a scream - you can see nothing, hear nothing - your flesh seems to burst apart in ribbons, the hunger erupting from within...]







:-o

: That wasn't a spell, or a divine invocation... how did you do that?

: It was a hunger... something that welled up inside me...

: And your wounds - they've healed. Whatever you did, you destroyed that spirit... Never mind, we need to keep moving and leave this place.



Whatever the hell that was, it's gotten rid of whatever it was that was draining my stats. And it ate my buffs. *grumble* When I check my inventory, I have a Brilliant Spirit Essence. I can't use it yet, but when I can, it's one of the nicer items to imbue items with. Still... we just wiped a very powerful being off the map without even trying.



I fought off a few Telthor Bears and found this in a chest. Safiya will be wearing this for a long, long time. Shadow Shield is awesome, and the Armour bonus is nothing to sniff at either.



Totems work like the Silver Shards did in the original campaign. As long as you have them in your inventory, you get some nice buffs off them. Most Totems are nice, although a couple of them have disadvantages that make them more trouble than they're worth.



An Orglash, a spirit of ice and air. Notable only for the fact that it looks trippy. If you kill it, you get a Brilliant Water Essence. If you recruit it, you get immune to cold but obscenelyly vulnerable to Fire. Guess which option I always take? Besides, there's a ring around here that gives you resistance to cold along with some fun spells, and you can only get it if you kill the Orglash.





Imaskari Ruins! There's some nice stuff down here, including a longsword for Patricia so she can start doing some actual damage.



Once I kill a few animate weapons. For some reason these guys manage to kick my arse six ways from Sunday every time I play this game. They inflict Poison and Disease and do Acid damage, and will carve Safiya up like Thanksgiving Turkey if you let them past you. If you're playing a mage... you have my condolences.



Much like Safiya will be wearing the Skin of Shadow for a long time, I'll be wearing this for a while. With the acid resistance, I'm cutting everything but Sonic damage in half for a long, long time. Being an Aasimar Favoured Soul has many advantages.



Normally I wouldn't bother screenshotting this thing, but we're going to use it for something kinda cool in the near future.



We can wake up this golem and earn a few more Influence points with Safiya at the same time by asking her to do it. The golem is a nice little meatshield, but it dies when we leave the barrow. Poo.



More ruins further along the barrow.



Both one of the few decent shots I got of Kaji and a good demonstration of why I hate the little bastard with his ego and his mangling of words. He's supposed to be a rogue, but his Homunculus LA is insane, so his Rogue level is only about five or six at this point. The only reason I let Safiya summon him at all is because he's the only Rogue we get for a while - or at all, depending on how certain later votes swing. He can't even do anything in battle beyond die. At least my cat used to make me stealthy.



I like to think that Patricia is smirking here because she knows how much damage this comment is about to do to the little bugger.





: Kaji, let's go - we'll do words later.



Mweeheehee.



: Yes, I can sense a residue of magic in the earth. A powerful spirit - or many of them, perhaps - reshaped the soil to block our way.

: We have this rod we picked up in the Imaskari ruins...

: There are dreams in that rod, or... some nightmare - shaped and bound. It's magic is... familiar.



: Kaji, hush! It's old magic, and unpredictable. It might open the tunnel. It might destroy us.

So, naturally, I'm going to use it. Patricia may be Neutral, but I'm Chaotic.

: How long can the spirits maintain the wall?

: As long as they want. The earth of this barrow is full of spirits - and they will never tire or fade.









:KO: : Impossible. The craftsmanship was perfect, and I would never have dared to bind my essence to a flawed creation.

: And yet, here you are.

:KO: : True. Any damage must have occured after my binding, undoubtedly sabotage by one of my rivals.

: Who are you?

:KO: : I am High Artificer Maric of Inupras, loyal servant of the Purple Emperor. And you, it seems, are a thief.

As far as I know, Inupras was one of the many, many ancient magic-dependant civilisations that got nuked when the King of Netheril tried to bind himself to the Goddess of Magic and wound up nuking all magic on Faerun for a little while. It was the same bastard who made the Illefarn Guardian turn to the Shadow Weave and become the King of Shadows. That bloke was responsible for a lot of the problems faced by NWN protagonists, actually. Ask me about Shadows of Undrentide sometime.

:KO: : Explain yourself, thief. How did one such as you come into possession of the rod? How did you defeat the wards in my tower?

: I am no thief, lich. The rod was lying in the ruins beneath this barrow.

One good thing about MotB is the sheer number of snarky, bitchy responses we can use! There are even a couple of companions who gain influence when you're a bitch! :lol:

:KO: : Ruins? Barrow? Enough of this nonsense. I must return to my tower and resume my work.

: How do you know your tower is still standing?

:KO: : Of course it stands. I built it myself, after all.

I have a feeling we'll be seeing him again.



DING! I got Mass Heal and Storm of Vengeance from that level. I think we're ready for some serious pain, now. Storm of Vengeance is what we call FUN.



A new level, and roots in the ceiling! We're almost out!



: Thank you... but it's nothing. Look, the tunnel's angling upward. We're nearing the exit. I passed through a chamber on my way in. There were bones. Bones of a great bear, atop a carved stone. The Rashemi say a god dwells in this place... an angry bear god who rules the barrow. Rashemi tales are colourful, but they're always true in part. Be on your guard.

And she didn't think to warn us earlier? Thanks a lot, Safiya.



Bear god!

: I am Patricia Vetinari. Who are you?



: I know what you are, little one. I smell the hunger that wakes in you.



: What do you care, Thayan? I know your kind. You love your own lives above all else.

: You don't know me. But I know your kind. I know that your present form, for all it's... colour... is only a shadow of your true self. And I've shaped and bound far greater things than you.

Wow, Safiya is both protective and surprisingly badass. I'd call this Safiya's Crowning Moment of Awesome, actually. She never quite shows this much spine again, more's the pity.



: Enough words! By the oath I swore, neither of you will leave my den!

Rashemi take their oaths, very, very seriously. It's best not to give your word unless you really mean it while in Rasheman. And never, ever let them know that you're a thief, not if you want to walk out of there without a braided necktie, if you follow me.



Okku summons a metric buttload of Telthor here. None of which protects him from a Storm of Vengeance and an enchanted blade in the neck. He dropped shamefully quickly.



FREEDOM!







I swear to Oghma, if there was a bitch answer to this question, I'd take it.

: I can't remember the last time I've been in this much pain.

: We can seek out an inn or flophouse within the city. When you are feeling ready, we should pursue this mystery of yours. I've brought you here to speak with Lienne - she'll hopefully know what happened to you in the barrow - and why.

: I need to know what really happened back in the barrow...

: Hopefully Lienna can answer that. I was instructed by your mother to retrieve you - she told me little else.

: What does your mother have to do with all of this?

: She merely gave me the task to find you - she did not tell me why. As the Headmistress of my Academy she is often... to busy for explanations.

: You mentioned Lienna before. Who is she?

: Lienna is an associate of my mother... or so I've gathered. I've never met her, or even heard of her, until I was tasked to bring you to her.

Skip a whole lot of 'we should go', 'yes, we SHOULD damn it, end the conversation already!!'...



: Don't worry, if some villager wants to give you trouble, I'll handle it.



At this point, Safiya swaps whatever robes she's wearing for craptastic gear called 'Safiya's Disguise'. Needless to say, the Skin of Shadow goes right back on. The reason Safiya needs to disguise herself is simple. Thayans often attack Rasheman for the express purpose of getting themselves slaves. The local Witches and the Red Wizards are deadly enemies, and when I say deadly enemies I mean 'most encounters start (or end) with fireballs.'





This lady is awesome. She gives the best prices on sold items in Mulsantir, and she sells...



THIS. I will find a way to get this sword, I promise you. Anything with attack bonuses and Keen (which expands the critical hit range) on it is officially an evil weapon. I must have it!



Next Time: We enter the Veil in search of the mysterious Lienna!

 

Jaysus Key-rhyst, this update is seriously late. I blame a combination of illness, hangovers and Dragon Age. To make up for it, it's a nice long update with plenty of side info and maybe even a few odd comments from me about a certain character we're about to meet.

Update 3: Red Wizards, Hissy Witches and Hagspawn



The default camera orientation frequently fucks me over in this game. Take this, for instance. This conversation starts literally the INSTANT I step into the Veil, meaning that the chances of getting a nice shot of this room are pretty much nil. More's the pity, because it's surprisingly accurate for a middle ages styled theatre.

: What are you doing here? And what did you do to Ipsit and Sefi?

Case in point: There's a couple of Kaji-clones lying on the floor here, and you can't bloody see them! No goddamn fair!

acman: : We caught them nosing around the theatre. The gnolls toyed with them for a while, before dismembering them... your primitive little creations are no more.

: What is this? How did you get in here?

: He's one of the necromancy students... from the Academy. Probably another pawn in this ridiculous plot to unseat my mother -

Red Wizards fight each other all the bloody time. Those of you who found the Nether Scroll for Edwin in BG2 already have an idea of what I'm talking about - remember Degardan? With eight Zulkirs constantly jockeying for power and influence and a multitude of minions serving each, the only real surprise is that they've managed to survive as a power for as long as they have. Of course, one of the Zulkirs is a Lich, so maybe it's not all that surprising after all. Three guesses which school the Lich represents, and the first two don't count.

acman: : A shame I can't let you walk free, stranger. But you're as likely to warn the Witches as to flee. As for you, Safiya - Araman would have us strangled if we let the headmistress's daughter slip away for a second time...

Remember that name. It's important. You know. Later.



Even Epic-level Gnolls drop quickly under an enchanted longsword wielded by someone with the Focus/Specialisation feats.



:heart: : That Red Wizard wasn't alone... there's more of them, and they've followed Lienna into the back rooms.

: How long ago? And how many of them were there?

:heart: : Not long. I counted three or four Wizards, and a handful of their dog-faced brutes.

: And whatever creatures they may summon to aid them. All for one old woman...

Wrinkly Old Men (or Women) in RPGs are a force to be reckoned with. Even more so in Rasheman, where even the peons are epic level.

:heart: : Lienna is no simple theatre matron. She has a secret - a shadow door that leads to a... a reflection of the Veil. She's fled through the shadow door, I'm sure of it. Still... such tricks won't stop Red Wizards, not for long. Here, take this. As long as you've got this stone, the shadow door will open for you, and you'll be able to follow.

: A black stone? I've never seen it's like... it swallows the light, and reflects none...

:heart: : Yes... it's from that other realm, on the far side of the portal. Like attracts like, I'd guess.

Actually, it's more there as an explanation for non-spellcasters being able to open the Shadow Portals. Still, it could be worse. It could be a chunk of blue crystal that summons portals to different planes by being played like an ocarina. I'm not making this shit up, it's in Baldur's Gate II, and a required quest to keep one of the best characters in the game.

:heart: : Bring it close to a weak spot between the two worlds, and a door opens. At least... that's what Lienna told me. Quickly now... through the door at the back of the stage.





: Something's... not right. I told them not now! Why didn't I - my head!

: Just try and explain what's going on - maybe I can help.

: There's this... ringing in my ears and this... burning, my skin's burning. No, please don't!

Wonderful. Our only ally's acting crazy.

: Don't what? Are you feeling alright?

: I... I thought you were going to try to and help me*... I was just saying, don't bother. I... think the pain is subsiding.

* This isn't me, this is the game. There are far less typos than I'm used to, but some of the ones that do slip through cause me actual physical pain.

: I'll be fine, really.

: If you don't wish to talk about it, I'll understand.



: I sometimes hear voices that are, well, not quite my own. Though this is only the second time that the voices have been accompanied by pain. I keep hoping to find some logic in the whispers, but... They just come and go without reason.

: You said this was the second time the voices brought pain? When was the first?

: It was at the barrow... just before I found you. I thought then it might have been malevolent spirits.

: What are the voices like? What do they say?

: They sound human... familiar, almost. Quite often, the voices are more of a distant haze. But sometimes, whole words come across. During my apprenticeship, I read from the wrong scroll and, not knowing what I was doing, nearly incinerated myself. Before I could finish the chant, a voice in my head cried out and broke my concentration. It saved my life. I've... rambled far too long - we should carry on and find Lienna. If others from the Academy are seeking her, we may not have much time...



I found this backstage. Patricia will be wearing this until right up to the very last part of the endgame, and will only be removing it if you guys want to go for the very best ending possible. It may not look like much, but bonuses to Charisma and Diplomacy are exactly what I need.





Hey look, it's the Plane of Shadows! I fucking HATE the Plane of Shadows. Even with light spells cast and my Darkvision turned on, it's a bitch to navigate and frankly all the monochrome gives me migranes in pretty short order. Still, it's better than the P&P version. In normal D&D, the Plane of Shadows does constant negative energy damage and drains stats. No thank you. Unfortunately, we'll be spending a frustratingly large amount of time here.



onder: : [Your eyes are pulled toward the bloodstained table at the centre of the room... you have lain upon that table... felt those restraints digging into your flesh...]

Welcome to hell. The following actually happens to your character. *shudder*

onder: : [The table is ugly... unadorned... and spattered with old, dried blood. Two heavy restraints are mounted on each end, to bind a person's hands and feet.]

: [Reach out and touch the table.]

onder: : You reach out your hand... touch the tabletop... run your fingers across its smooth, polished surface. Something twists inside you, where the shard once lay... Your ears are ringing, filled with noise. A voice rises through the din... a woman's voice. Or is it two? They sound so much the same. Your vision blurs... dark shapes are standing over you, tightening the straps on your hands and feet, so tight, so tight that your wrists and ankles burn, bleed...]

: [Concentrate on the dark shapes, try to make out their features.]

onder: : [They are women, their faces nearly identical, one garbed in white, and the other in red. Other figures lurk behind, shadowy, and more bestial in form. The cold fingers of the women brush your chest... run a cold blade across your skin. And you cannot move, you cannot scream... you can only watch. The twisting in your chest becomes a burning... an echo of the surging pain, growing and growing in its intensity. The women's arms are red to the elbows, their pale faces spattered in blood.]

: [Constitution][Fight the pain, try to maintain the dream.]

onder: : [Success][One of the women - the one garbed in red - withdraws her hand from inside your chest. She holds a glittering shard... The red woman lowers her eyes, and gazes into yours. "For love." You mouth the words she speaks aloud. And now another set of shadows - the bestial shapes that have been lurking behind - rush forward, lifting you from the table, carrying you to the open door, bearing you into darknes...]



What a wonderful experience message. No, really. :cry:

: You paused... did you see something? A vision - a recollection, perhaps?

: A memory, I think. This woman stood over me - pulled the shard out of my chest and... said it was "for love".

: In the Plane of Shadows, memories are closer to the surface of the mind. Such visions are not uncommon, especially when a memory is strong... or suppressed.

I fucking HATE the Plane of Shadows. The first time I played through that section, I actually wound up having nightmares of having my chest cut open. I was not a fun person to be with in class the next day...



For some reason I can never get a screenshot during the first second or so of a cutscene, so I apologise for this shot and every other one like it. Incidentally, this little bastard of a Red Wizard is voiced by Crispin Freeman. Why does that matter? You'll find out.

: You two know each other?

: This is Khai Khmun, one of the most worthless piles of Sputum to wear the red robes of Thay.

Safiya's voice actress does such an incredible job of that line. I'll see if I can dig up a link for the scene at some point, because it's well worth hearing.

: A rival of yours at the Academy?

: Khai is a snivelling sycophant - my only rivals are magicians of worth. He also happens to be a junior instructor at my academy. I can only wonder why he's strayed so far from his master's leash.



Well FUCK.



Hm. Didn't Safiya mention feeling like she was on fire not that long ago?

: If you murdered an innocent woman, you're going to answer for it.

:broken: : You... Araman warned me of you! Safiya, why would you travel with this... thing?



:broken: : I want no trouble from you - stand aside! My quarrel is with Safiya. I doubt she'll put up nearly as much of a fight as Lienna... or her mother.

: My... mother? Khai Khmun, you had best be mocking me... if you raised your hand against my mother, I will extract a thousand screams from your wretched hide!

:broken: : Oh, she had no idea it was coming. She used every last cantrip she knew, but... her loyal allies - her daughter, even - never arrived to save her.

: And to think you once claimed to care for me...

:broken: : Lienna was wise to destroy herself rather than fight me. I doubt you'll have the old hag's sense to surrender - to make this quick... No matter, let's settle this!

Interesting that he called Lienna a hag. We'll be seeing a lot of them and their spawn over coming updates.



Defensive Casting and Combat Casting make this fight rediculously easy for me. I just kept throwing Storm of Vengeance around, while Safiya walked right into an Erinyes and got eaten. *sigh*



: No matter... he will not be missed.

: Khai mentioned your mother's death. I'm sorry for your loss.



We're gonna skip the next big block of text because it's a.) whiney and boring and b.) stuff I'll be going over later in the LP when it actually becomes relevant. I like Safiya, but there's only so many times I'm willing to type the same chunk of info. Sorry, Safiya fans.







0 : Speak your name, foreigner, and be warned that you address the Wychlaran.

Wychlaran is a fancy way of saying 'Witch'. It also means that we are in SERIOUSLY DEEP SHIT RIGHT HERE.

: I am Patricia Vetinari, and I came to your city to find a woman called Lienna. Unfortunately, it seems I came too late.



0 : Calm, Katya, you are a Witch now, not a farmgirl. You crossed spells with our mortal enemies, foreigner, and drove them from our midst. For that, much may be forgiven.

: Forgiven? I've committed no crime.

0 : But the bear god has marched an army of spirits to our gate, and he roars for your blood. He claims that you have defiled his sacred den, and loosed an evil upon the world.

:evil: : And the bear god does not lie. I can smell the wrongness on you, foreigner, it hangs upon you like a corpse-shroud.

: The dwarf woman, Magda, may know more about Lienna. I must speak with her.

:evil: : How do we know you wouldn't have slain Lienna yourself? How do we know you won't do the same to Magda?

0 : Make your peace with the bear god, foreigner, and we will know you for a friend.

: Then I suppose I have no choice. I will confront Okku, alone if need be.



0 : No Witch may stand against the spirits of the land... but I will honour the debt we owe you, foreigner, for defeating the Red Wizards.

In case you hadn't guessed yet, Rashemani Witches are xenophobic to the point of being rabid. They are bitches of the highest order. However, we did them a service by kicking the Red Wizards into the afterlife, and their honour system won't let them completely abandon us, even though they want to. They're still bitches, though. The rest of Rasheman society tends more towards being cautiously polite to outsiders until they prove themselves. Not the friendliest country in the world, no, but FAR more amiable than Thay...

0 : Go to our prison, on the north edge of town. Any convict willing to stand at your side will be granted a full pardon.

: When this is over, I'll be expecting some answers.

0 : We will watch from our high place, and we recieve you again, if you return alive.

Charming, aren't they? Scary part is, this is them being unusually reasonable.



Oh COCK. I forgot about these guys.



Basically, there's this quartet of rebellious half-celestials running around calling themselves 'The Menagerie', who you only ever see three of anyway because apparently the developers hate them as much as I do. *facepalm* They're looking for their sister, and in true RPG form they can't find the BLINDINGLY OBVIOUS portal to the Shadow Plane, despite having access to all her research and knowing exactly where she was going. I accept their quest to find their sister - Kaelyn the Dove - for the express purpose of being able to get Kaelyn now if you guys want her and recruiting them for extra help in fighting Okku. They're totally not worth the effort, but it's nice to know where to find Kaelyn.

Of course, your typical gamer would find her on their own anyways, because frankly the portal leading to the Plane of Shadows is fucking obvious once you get near it. So really, these two are worthless.

You can tell I don't like the Menagerie, can't you?





:xoldrop: : Help? From this lot? Trust in their 'help' and you'll find yourself alone when trouble comes. But, if you wish to persist in this foolishness, you may speak with the prisoners. Be warned: two you need not fear, but as for the third... guard your thoughts.



This bloke is a Hagspawn. He ain't pretty, is he? He's in here for taking the first swing in a brawl and killing his opponents. He actually wants to be dead, so he's just going to sit here and wait to be executed. He's very, very emo.



Your typical Halfling Thief here. He got caught stealing from a berserker - he's claiming he doesn't know the traditions of Rasheman and isn't responsible for his actions. He's smart/stupid enough to turn us down flat. Twerp.





It's Crispin Freeman again! Being really... really... hot... Excuse me, I'll be in my bunk.

: [Diplomacy] I am not your jailor. But I might be your benefactor.

: [Success] Ah, honeyed words from the other side of the cage. And what tune must I sing in return, I wonder?



: What crime have you been jailed for?

: My crime? It is a serious one - you see, I am too handsome to look upon. It would not be the first time I have had to place myself behind bars to keep admirers at bay. If that's why you're here, you'll have to wait in line like the rest, I'm afraid.

: :roll: So it was your charm and wit that got you jailed, then.

: Ah, a little bite to the usual banter, with just a dash of sarcasm. You must not be from Mulsantir. They have no sense of humour whatsoever.



: I'm looking for recruits to protect Mulsantir. You interested?

: Seeking soldiers, are you? You have come to the wrong cell - I am neither foolhardy nor desperate enough to fight barbarians or Thayans. Go find a poorhouse and scatter a few coppers - that might yield better results.

: I need help fighting a spirit army that gathers outside Mulsantir.

: The army of spirits is at the gates? So... they have arrived. I was wondering when that might take place in the real world.

: What do you mean, "when that might take place in the real world"?



: If I may say, you are rather brave to marshal an army to meet them. That's no 'ordinary' band of spirits out there - that's a hornet's nest of beasts. They're screaming for blood so loudly I can hear them in my dreams... and I am suddenly struck with the suspicion that the blood they seek is yours. Grave robber, are you? Tsk, tsk. One should leave barrows of the ancient bear god alone lest he come for you in his garishly-coloured furry rage.

Cheeky bastard, isn't he?

: So entertain me, brave one. Why would one such as I follow you into such a hopeless battle?



The Diplomacy option is easier to succeed with, but I'm going Charisma because you get a much, much better Influence result from it. Also, because it's a fun answer!



: I admit - both your presence and your request intrigue me. Slightly. But that's a slight more than most.

: I'll take that as a compliment. A slight compliment.



: Very well, you have a willing soldier at your side - shall we be off? And please, let us visit the Witch warden on the way out so I can pay my respects to her gentle, loving soul.

If I had a decent Spellcraft, I'd be able to boost his Influence even higher. But I can make up for that at the beginning of the next update anyways. 29 points in one conversation is pretty damn snazzy, though, and one of the highest gains from a single chain in the entire game.

: Ah, at last my eyes fall again upon your beauty, my matron of the cell.

:xoldrop: : This one is cursed for taking you, Spawn of Hags, and I shall be glad to be rid of you. Nothing but trouble for me, for this city, you are.

: Shall you be glad to be rid of me, beautiful matron? Do not think I did not see the longing eyes you cast at me as you drew your runed circles on the floor of my cell.

:xoldrop: : What lies are these? Eyes of shame are the only eyes I have for you! Shame!

: Now, now - there is no need to mask the feelings I stir in you, and your age but makes you seem wrinkled like a prunefruit. I see what dances in your thoughts as you dream the slow hours of the day here away in this prison. In the golden woods of Urling, you once sang for an hour a hymn to the sun and dreamed that it was a shield carried by a warrior who watched over you. And such passion in that song. Why, it gives you strength even now.

:xoldrop: : You are a dangerous creature, dreamwalker. The tales of you all speak such, and many are those you wound with your arrowflight of words and humour. Do not think us deaf to those who suffer because of your careless footsteps in their thoughts and dreams. Get hence from my thoughts, I warn you!

: Is what she says true?

: Yes, she speaks truly. I am that which all farmers with ripe daughters fear - the masked brigand who dances in the fire of their sweet children's minds and leaves footprints that no wind or time can erase... and old mother, do not think you mind has not laid down such paths for me to stroll. Such thoughts in a woman your age - it would out even a farmer's fiery-loined daughter to shame.

:xoldrop: You are a thief, a twister of words! Go meet the spirit army, then, but you will not have my blessing upon you, now or ever!

Oh dear...

 

Side Update 2: Gann/Gannayev/Gann-of-Dreams and Voting!



"I am emotionally wounded. Deeply, I think. What a curious sensation."

Chaotic Neutral Hagspawn Spirit Shaman

10 STR, 14 DEX, 14 CON, 10 INT, 20 WIS, 14 CHA

Gann is probably the best depiction of Chaotic Neutral I've seen in many a year. He's all about indulging himself, be it his desire to walk through the dreams of others or the occasional bloodlust. He's a funny companion, cheeky as all hell and quite fun to banter with. Remember how I mentioned that there's a companion who you can gain influence with by being a bitch? This is the guy.

Gann's an excellent supporting character. He's like a spontaneously casting druid with some fun special abilities, like the ability to become ethereal or raise the dead several times a day without sacrificing spell slots. He also has a large number of awesome druidic spells and a solid assortment of buffs into the bargain. Between Patricia, Gann and Kaelyn, we will be buff GODS, so Safiya will be able to focus on making things die. His only problem is that he has feats for the Shortbow, when frankly he's much better off using a spear.

A high Influence with Gann will give me much-needed bonuses to my Charisma and to an ability we'll be unlocking later. He's also the only companion I'll be able to take to certain areas, so expect him to be in my party on a permanent basis.

So, here comes the voting options!

Vote 1: Gann
a.) Like
b.) Dislike
c.) Romance (He's the only romance option poor Patricia will ever get who isn't a dull Paladin twice her age or fucking Bishop! Let my girl get some love!)

Vote 2: Ending
a.) Indulge my Hunger
b.) Restrain my Hunger
c.) Perfect Ending

Vote 3: Character Collection
a.) Kaelyn, Bossfight, Okku
b.) Kaelyn, Bossfight, One of Many
c.) Bossfight, Okku, Kaelyn
d.) Bossfight, Kaelyn, One of Many

 

C, C, B

 

C, A, B

 

CCB.