let's set d o w n some (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
groundrules) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
westwhere2024-01-13 06:35 pm
groundrules) wrote in westwhere2024-01-13 06:35 pm
Entry tags:
- arcane: caitlyn,
- assassin's creed: ratonhnhake:ton,
- baldur's gate 3: the dark urge,
- blade of the immortal: asano rin,
- doctor who: river song,
- harry potter: hermione granger,
- kingdom of the wicked: emilia,
- kingdom of the wicked: wrath,
- last case of benedict fox: benedict fox,
- mcu: america chavez,
- mcu: carol danvers,
- mcu: kamala khan,
- mcu: natasha romanova,
- oh! my emperor: beitang moran,
- original: red,
- owl house: eda clawthorne,
- penny dreadful: vanessa ives,
- star wars: merrin,
- tian guan ci fu: xie lian,
- umbrella academy: ben,
- umbrella academy: five,
- untamed: lan sizhui,
- warcraft: wrathion,
- wheel of time: elayne trakand
hatthevar | blood rains
Drawn to undead creator Matthias, the party heads into Hatthevar — former wasteland of myth and superstitions, now city of ghosts.
The first log of Hatthevar spans until 31 January.
A small part of the event is open to players both in and out of the game, who can bring dead characters in the bazaar!
The party enters blood-rained Hatthevar during a daily one-hour truce between the citadel and the undead forces that assail it. At the gates is undead Lord Rathakku of the Brotherhood, keen to usurp his distracted maker Matthias; in the skies dart the forces of dead wind lord Anurr, who has no love for the Brotherhood.
Hatthevar’s ghostly champions — including enormous ghosts that consume men and floating spirits that strangle with chains — defend the grounds. Matthias neglects the war, persistently summoning spirits from various worlds and points in time to revive them.
KNOCK, KNOCK
Wispy, shadowy silhouettes closely watch the lone gate of Hatthevar. The party infiltrates at sunrise.
Characters who have died, practise necromancy or are death-touched enter freely. The living must consume Karsa’s foul potions that absorb their shadows and partly mute their powers to pass for dead. Holders of Matthias’ severed limbs or organs, or of dark mirror shards or dark water, are closely watched by the dead and perhaps pursued.
Everyone must create new names and stories covering their identity and circumstances of death. Crafty ghost sellers will try to learn your true name to capture you in slavery.
Spend a few days acquainting Hatthevar, its constant rains, vicious gambling dens, bazaars, oracle halls, wish shops and nests of memory thieves.
Show kindness to the newly revived spirits who struggle to remember themselves and roam in the citadel’s bazaars of curiosities.
Optionally, some characters are struck by misfortune. Capture a crafty, palm-sized spirit rabbit to improve your luck… or stumble upon a larger, dark hopper to ruin it.
Most sleeping quarters are available at downtrodden inns or in lavish gambling dens, for exorbitant prices. You can’t shake the feeling of someone watching through holes in your walls.
MATTHIAS
Three days after arriving, the party receives a note from Matthias that reveals the origins of his pact with the dark water to propagate the dead in Akhuras. Matthias says he has been working to bring the spirit of his dead daughter Cosette through the beacon for revival. She materializes briefly in Hatthevar but disappears before he can find her. Retrieve Cosette, and he will surrender the party his power over the undead.
Full note
| ” Well, hello! Is it nippy beyond the walls? Not cold here, just… the rain. Tried wishing it away, but… waste of money, those wish shops. Not like, what is it you call it? The dark water? It’s ancient. Back in Ellethia, we thought it came from the sea. All began with a mirror shard. That, and constant pressure to race against decades of Taravast research into curing death. We got there first! That’s… my claim to fame: I wished death gone. It was work. Work ate me. Then, the dead woke up, killed everyone, and there wasn’t much of a profession left. Or of Ellethia. The dark water wants flesh, so… I’ve made it death lords and armies, and I’ve left parts of me to anchor it. In return… it gives me revival. But, look. I had a… daughter. Cosette? Blonde and eyes green and blue and like her mother’s, and only five summers old, but she thought she was so clever, kept telling her doll so. That’s all you’re left with. Memories. She died, of course. I’ve been working to resurrect her, and her spirit shows up every few days in Hatthevar. She disappears before I can find her. I’m not… good at bargaining. I’m a magical engineer, really. Tinkerer! But my time’s running short, isn’t it? Just look outside. And all I want is Cosette. You want the beacons? Have them. You can have my power whole. I’ll give it. Some of you will need to help hold the walls up, and others might want to look into the funny business in the lagoon, if it’s linked at all to Cosette, though I doubt it. But, truly. Bring me Cosette, and the deed’s done. You can have everything.” |
The Merchant distrusts Matthias’ proposal, but sees potential leverage and urges the party to investigate the girl and the lagoon. From here onward, everyone heads to their assignment:
COMBAT
Assigned: Bucky Barnes, Carol Danvers, Deimos, Emilia, Jiang Cheng, Luffy, Natasha Romanoff, Nynaeve, Stephen Strange, Wrath, Wrathion, Zoro
The first line of defence against the swarming undead, you must hold off swathes of enemies across three territories:
THE WALLS
Despairingly tall and uncomfortably narrow, overseen by Matthias’ ghostly cannibal titans, who neglect to discern between friend or foe in their broad, relentless strikes. Blood rains pour down thick and nearly blinding. From the skies, you face the frost-breathing 10-15 meter-tall wyrms of undead blizzard lord Anurr, unaffiliated with the Brotherhood. Stick together: when alone, Anurr’s winds speak to you of your deepest doubts and fears, compelling you to surrender — or to let go of restraint, briefly berserk, and attack your own.
■ Serthica survivors may call their dragons to assist. Through Jon Snow, the party can also summon the giant, but slow and poor-sighted frost dragon Irenia to help on three occasions.
THE COLD PLAINS
Just outside of Hatthevar sprawls a desert-like cold plateau, where treacherous dunes shift to swallow you whole and the bestial forces of the Brotherhood’s most capable undead general, Rathakku, hide in wait. Hard-shelled, slippery and sleek his creatures lie buried and thrust up their arm-rows of hundreds of blades that cut into the legs of passers-by, drawing them into sand.
THE UNDERPASS
A series of subterranean tunnels connects Hatthevar with the cold sand outposts. Scour the myriad of dusty, tunnels and purge it of large scorpion-human hybrids that carry multiple weapons and whose sting leave men hallucinating. Oversized serpents abound, their venom prone to paralyzing their prey. You can make or procure antidote potions from Hathevar. Matthias’ ghostly titans are closing off all tunnel entrances to Hatthevar — don’t end up sealed in on the wrong side.
! Collectively, the party must kill at least one frost wyrm, one scorpion/serpent and one sand lurker to keep all three levels safe. Turn in your threads before 28 January… or let the citadel suffer in part II.
EXECUTION
Assigned: Five, Lockwood, Mo Ran, Vanessa, Yelena, Wen Kexing, Zhou Zishu
Your objective is to locate Matthias and secure the beacons that are currently in heavy use. Securing one or more beacons will help you get home.
- ■ Your best bet for intelligence are the treacherous networks of underground memory thieves and slavers, who attempt to steal your freedom or your recollections.
■ Your next option is the gang of Erkul, who ruled over local oracles and Hatthevar whole before Matthias’ arrival. Coarse, slippery but cunning, Erkul sullenly nurses his weight in wine at the gilded Sanctuary, Hatthevar’s foremost gambling den. Street sources say the establishment’s passcode each day this month is a fruit name. Erkul’s crew sell highly potent opiates.
■ Ransack some Whispering houses for information, equipment, poison or arsenal. Small, dusty, cluttered and often creaking, Whispering houses hold a wealth of dangerous artefacts, from haunting poltergeists you might accidentally release by reading out their names from tomes to flying rope that throttles you. Large dread hounds instil blood-curdling fear in anyone who looks into their eyes.
■ The five beacons of Hatthevar are only briefly active each day as Matthias makes his summons. They are guarded by swarms of colossal leonine-shadow creatures that only attack if they feel any fear in your soul (of it, or anything else), pouncing to claw and shred you apart. To claim a beacon, Karsa may provide a cold, coal-like token that must be placed in the middle of the transport dais, within inevitable sight of the shadow lions. You must wait 15 minutes in place for the token to take root. Report your conquest before 28 January!
■ Every six hours, Matthias sends ravens to check on the shadow-lions. You must either trick them, leave the lions alive or capture the ravens.
CARE
Assigned: Allison, Eda, Hermione, Kamala, Lan Sizhui, Sanji, Winnie
Carer’s have the lion’s share of all duties — and the party’s few lingering resources. You must look after the group and the ghosts of Hatthevar: meandering, disoriented and fragile, the spirits who were freshly wrenched from death’s snare become easy prey for the Undead Brotherhood, the elements and the ghost slavers. Rescuing or attending vulnerable spirits can gain you allies.
- ■ comfort ghosts who recover from revival or struggle with their memories. Many are stranded in the Whispering houses or chained into servitude in the gambling dens.
■ rescue spirits from the immense slaver clan of Ras’Kalur, which tricks newly summoned, dazed spirits in the bazaars to sign away their freedom, promising someone to look after them. Ras’Kalur’s people often raid streets and shelters, forcibly dragging spirits back into their camps at the outskirts of Hatthevar.
■ barter to rent or buy abandoned taverns to give the party a resting space during their stay in Hatthevar. You may need to pay locals in favours, from helping them carry out petty acts of revenge to making up with a grudge-bearing wife or paying penance to their ancestors.
■ heal, cook and provide for combatants on the walls, taking care not to fall in the crossfire or frost wyrms or of allied but negligent 12-feet ghostly titans.
■ as the least suspicious party members, negotiate for information or supplies on behalf of the group: make friends with gambling den owners and the two-bit shady crooks who know their daily passcodes to enter, or with the regulars of the Whispering houses.
INVESTIGATION
Assigned: Ben Hargreeves, Benedict, Caitlyn, Cal Kestis, Jon Snow, Merrin, Nami, Rin, River Song, Wei Wuxian, Wen Qing
- ■ You know from Matthias that, as a result of his beacon summons, the spirit of his daughter Cosette appears every fifth day in Hatthevar for a few hours at midday. Despite this, a young girl matching Matthias’ description (5-6 years of age, green-blue eyes, blonde, prone to laughter) is never seen. Matthias alerts you whenever Cosette appears.
■ Day of first appearance: Matthias feels her presence in the bazaar, where the day’s main attraction is a puppet show that draws a heavy crowd. At midday, a chime sounds, and the puppet show performs the sad story of a daughter quarrelling with her father over his absences. The daughter-puppet flees into the woods, while the puppet-father refuses to reconcile and follow her. The girl is killed by animals, and the puppet-father grieves, heartbroken. All the women or girls in the crowd, including you, find they burst into tears.
■ Day of the second appearance: Matthias senses Cosette is in the alley of Whispering Houses. You notice the typical bustle of the alley and shady movements, as discreet, embarrassed, or desperate patrons scuttle. You see no small girls but hear of three trades that took place at the Whispering Houses, carried out by different women: one bought a memory, one sold one, one had a memory replaced. Pay for a memory trade to learn more.
■ Day of the third appearance: Matthias feels Cosette near the Oracle Hall. The hour passes by the time you climb the stairs and are received. The Oracle confirms only one person has visited — a blonde woman — and says to “tell your master that an hourglass keeps track of new time, but can’t give the old one back.”
You get three clue questions/character and should communicate with fellow investigators. Please share key findings by network before 25 January!
EXPLORATION
Assigned: America Chavez, Buggy, Connor, Elayne Trakand, Lan Wangji, Licyn, Red, Wen Ning
The river Liu neatly divides Hatthevar, its clean waters progressively darkening towards the edges of the citadel, where they pour into a vast, serene and heavily misted lagoon. Veterans sense an eerie chill from the familiar dark waters that so often accompany the undead.
Like Matthias, Karsa says a strange power sleeps at the heart of the lagoon.
- ■ travel by raft with a companion through the lethargy-inducing fog, as tar-like people peer up from the waters or swim below, never quite attacking you unless you fall into water. They (and the currents) try to upturn your boat.
■ Scattered lit candles drift on water as you advance. Pick one up, and you find one of the floating creatures of Hatthevar has joined your raft, carrying a rope-chain. It says it and its kind are former oracles and truth-speakers of the citadel — and urges you to speak, pledging to kill the first person who lies before you leave water.
■ Farther out, you discover four half-sunken ships that have crashed into each other over time, their decks now forming a rocky square-like structure. You can carefully navigate your raft to reach this construct, or make your way by hopping onto floating deck parts and the debris of other rafts.
■ Once aboard the square structure, you find all the decks are heavily rotten, creaking and prone to collapse. You hear a maddening, shrill scream that steals control of your now convulsing body, until you find yourself driven closer and closer to the end of a plank or a deck hole against your wishes — unless you are physically detained until the shrieking ends.Sharp-toothed mermaids swim below.
■ Reach and explore the curious ships’ graveyard, to peer into the black well in the middle of the square infrastructure.
NPC INBOX
FUCK THE SECRET IDENTITIES I FORGOT thank god this is somehow ic for him
I expect your calligraphy to be better this time. ( Petty, because he's a bitch, and also because it makes them look more natural. To the bartender he continues. ) He didn't know how to write when we met. You know how it is. But! Vast improvements with the right teacher.
( His ( unwilling ) audience nods, and then seems to let that slide. Wen Kexing knows the calibre of man who deal in drugs, they're not all that sane, his spirited nature fits in. Still, they weave throughout the crowd, towards the group of men most people are giving a wide berth. The bartender leans in to speak to someone, their words lost in the murmur around them before he turns back, tells them someone will come and speak with them soon. Wen Kexing offers a small bow in response, the busies himself with the wine in his arms. To Five, once they've been left. )
Good sign or bad? How long do you think they'll want to leave us squirming?
Five is happy to remind him by saddling him with the worst nickname yvw
Once they're alone, he lets his hands slip into his pockets and shrugs. His posture is relaxed but he never stops assessing everything around them. Including any nearby objects that might make double as a weapon. It's a good thing he's not putting a lot of effort into acting like a kid. ]
...Well, I don't think they're so worried about us that they're calling for reinforcements. If we're lucky, he's drunk enough to tell us everything. [ If not... Five would rather not make this messy. ] Matthias won't stay in one spot even if they know where to find him. Maybe you can offer to join and keep us in the loop.
he'll die a little inside every time he remembers it.
( He sounds cheerful enough still, feathers only a little ruffled. This is just how he operates, he lacks the subtlety for spywork, hides himself behind a ridiculous attitude and far too many words. )
They'll be looking out for ways to stab him in the back, won't they? Hopefully they'll know enough of his habits by now they can point us in the right direction. If not that then possible weaknesses at least. That's how business works.
( And then. )
Do you know how to fight?
RIP Phil
His last remark he gets an honest laugh. So his reputation isn't what it used to be. ]
There was a time that I was the most dangerous assassin in the space-time continuum. [ It's been a while since he said that out loud. Not many people ask. ] All the same, I'd rather they tell us what we need to know without causing a scene. You want to play into their ambitions and agree to go after Matthias, that's hardly a lie.
Just be prepared for it to backfire if they decide they'd rather turn us in to get his favor.
no subject
( A pause, and then. )
Short. I suppose that might be helpful. Easier to squeeze into places, yes? ( He doesn't sound perturbed, either way. Maybe that's because he shares a bed with the Jianghu's most feared assassin and next to him all others pale in comparison. Or maybe that's just the Wen Kexing is. Danger doesn't mean much when you're a lunatic. Still, even though he plays well at coming across uncaring, there's still something in the way his gaze ticks across the room, wary and ready. He opens his mouth but closes it again as someone approaches them, weight shifting from foot to foot. )
Ah, finally. An audience.
( They're lead further, through the throng of crowds and to an area with a wide semi-circle of seats. Wen Kexing smiles, amused, sketching a low bow to the man at the centre who looks at the pair of them with barely concealed disdain. No matter. )
The name's Phil. A pleasure. This is my assistant Xiao Fu.
( And then, winningly. )
We've heard you've been having a little bit of trouble in the area lately. We might have something to smooth that over.
no subject
When they're escorted to an area that seems to have been abandoned just for them, Five remains standing and barely reacts to the name Wen Kexing pushes on him. He doesn't miss the way the 'second in command' is looking him up and down. They're waiting for them to continue, so he helpfully moves this along. ]
We came with some of the best that Ephes has to offer. We'd be willing to barter for information about the man driving you out of business.
no subject
It's always a shame when that happens, some insolent little upstart comes along and takes over something you've worked long and hard for. ( Easy. ) Usually the best way to deal with that is to take a knife to their throat but a man like Matthias needs a little more ... finesse.
( A pause, a glance Five's way, all smiles. ) We could easily take care of that for you. If you point us in the right direction. But, we know trust is hard to come by with a relative stranger, so we're willing to offer you a boon.
( Oh? the man in front of them laughs, And what are you willing to give us? Wen Kexing reaches once again for the pot of powder, leans forward to place it on the table before them. )
And more besides.
no subject
He's silent while he picks up the powder and opens it to evaluate the quality, or pretends to. Five doesn't mess with the stuff, despite having grown up with Klaus. How anyone could tell by looking at it is his guess, but that's soon answered when he rubs some on his gums.
It turns out that the wine wasn't enough to temper his impatience, and it starts to win out the longer he takes to consider their offer. If this doesn't pan out, he's going to have to force the information out of him, and he'd rather not be responsible for adding to the ghosts around here. He looks to Wen Kexing one more time before he pipes up. ]
Do we have a deal?
[ The man looks at him, amused in a way that draws out another one of Five's sharp smiles. He sets the pot back down and looks like he's on the verge of agreeing. ( I'll take everything you have. ) Just as Five is about to give Wen Kexing more credit than he deserves, the man gestures to Five: ( Him too. If they're in good condition, I'll give you your information. )
What the fuck, was he listening earlier? He gives Wen Kexing exactly one second to jump in before he skips to Plan B. ]
What was that? I think we must have misheard you.
no subject
That is not exactly what he wanted to hear. Wen Kexing knows the calibre of men who lurk in places like this and the list of reasons they might want someone like Five is short and decidedly unpleasant. But they need the information if they want to survive all of this, their options are limited. )
Mm. The boy? Ah, he's hardly trained. Look, he doesn't even know when to keep his mouth shut. ( Pointed, because he almost had them thank you very much. And while he doesn't exactly know what the deal is, he'll lean heavily on the apparent lack of age if he has to. ) I haven't managed to beat the brat out of him yet. Unruly, probably not very easy to control. How about instead I source you more of that?
( The drugs are glanced at again, the pot rolled within beefy fingertips. But the silence is too deafening, already Wen Kexing knows they've lost. The boy, he repeats, Or no information. A heaved, heavy sigh. )
Aiya, fine.
( Already the mental plates are spinning. He did say he was an assassin, but it's entirely possible that had been a statement of false bravado. Can Wen Kexing find a way back inside and free him? He'll have to see about that. Maybe it won't be too bad, but a bad decision is a bad decision. ) Xiao Fu, don't fuss. You did say you wanted to be more useful.
no subject
Wen Kexing doesn't break character, or even press the other man with his halfhearted attempt at a counteroffer. Technically, Five should have given in more to their rolls and stayed quiet, but being submissive didn't sit right with how they kept looking his way. It isn't technically a betrayal when he had already hinted that he would do exactly what's happening now, but Five foolishly didn't take that as foreshadowing.
When he agrees to the terms, Five works his jaw as he inhales sharply through his nose. Fine. This isn't anything he can't get out of. An annoyance at most, though his eyes narrow when the man chuckles and tells them they have a deal without any further input from Five. He glares his way, but doesn't object. They aren't equals to anyone sitting here, and it doesn't matter in the end. ]
So be it. [ The large man in the chair is grinning nastily as he pockets the drugs, and two others stand. Despite himself, he takes a step back and speaks lowly to Wen Kexing. ] Aren't you forgetting something?
[ If he wants him to go along with this, he's getting the information too. Right here, in front of both of them. ]
no subject
( There is a moment where he thinks the gang will try and fight them instead, but Wen Kexing holds his gaze, coolly indifferent. The man sighs, and then. The Red Lady, the Headless Dancer, you'll find him in one of those. Though on your own head be it. )
There, isn't that better? ( Finally he gets to his feet, flicking out his sleeves. Briefly he considers merely fighting them off now, providing enough of a distraction to allow Five to get away. There are a lot of people here though, and he doesn't know the calibre of person that he is, it would be a lot of work. Better to take a moment and plan better. He flicks his gaze over, eyebrow lifting slightly. )
Well, Xiao Fu. It's been fun. Be better to your new masters.
no subject
He smiles in warning at Wen Kexing, who sees his easy out and takes it. Fortunately, Five isn't the child he appears to be, though he doesn't think selling him has anything to do with telling him he can fight. The men who stood are already flanking him on either side, and he's left with little choice but to let them usher him over to where their leader is waving. ]
I'll be seeing you, Phil. [ He promises. Either at the Red Lady or the Headless Dancer, he'll find him again. ]