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Esquestria: The House of the Sun - A pony cultist experience

You see opportunity, I see danger. This could backfire. Velvet isn't exactly in a great position at the moment to guide the Bureau away from dangerous conclusions. It would probably be the simpler solution to just Name-nuke Copper.

It would be very interesting to read though.
 
Finally, this was a very complicated update to write and put into place. I would appreciate if any mistakes were pointed out so I can fix them. But given how many mechanical concerns I had, and how many little details are involved, I most likely let several little things pass.

A reroll mechanic that isn't triggered on failed rolls and instead is forced to be used at regular intervals is weird to me. If that was not intentional, then a large part of this update needs to be rewritten.

EDIT: Given how drastically one roll swung circumstances, I'm not sure it's a 'little thing' that can pass.

If it isn't a mistake, then I reiterate how strange it is and express dissatisfaction.
 
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Can RotF heal Wounds? We might want Marinette to unmangle us just so we aren't useless this entire turn.
I don't think so, and we don't want her to do it on us or we lose the memories behind Velvet's trauma!

We'll have to pick actions that don't really require lores this turn... I suppose we can do socials (mostly in house, like teaching Rarity), studying stuff (though we don't get to use Lantern so that's quite the malus to that attempt...

well, the Heart realization was really useful. It quite literally saved our life.


you know what's truly scary? We lost a scrap last turn, and now we're at lvl 3 0/4. IF WE HAD LOST ANOTHER SCRAP, WE WOULD HAVE LOST OUR REALIZATION.

WE'D BE DEAD.


Wow. Fuck. That throws all the planning out the window :V :V :V . Damn I am glad we summoned Biedde.
AND that we had Mareinette on guard duty.

AND that we had the influence up!

I regret pushing for red church though. That fucked us up. FIrst time we were unlucky in the Mansus, and look at how that, combined with Heart and health being our weakness, combined with THIS being the turn we were attacked, all combined to fuck us over!

It literally ALL combined to fuck us over! we could have passed that heart roll, and we'd have been fine.

We could have won this combat without a wound, and we'd be fine!

Coppet could have attacked next turn, and we'd have been fine (probably).

Biedde or Mareinette could have managed to stop the last grunt, or he might have fled, and we'd have been fine.

Now, it's not ALL bad, we STILL had the foresight to summon Biedde and put Mareinette on guard duty, AND we didn't die... but it was too close for comfort.


I wonder if Cadance will visit and/or offer help or support of some kind next turn though.


well, that's a clusterfuck and all our plans are now out of the window.

QM, were there any clues to this being prepared, or we got fucked over by some unlucky roll of the dice?
to be fair we suspected it.

She tried to kill us last turn (or was it two turns ago?) with Winter and we survived. We struck back with PtN and presumably failed, as it came out kinda weak.

Her obvious follow-up was going to be a direct attack this turn.

THAT is why we put Mareinette on guard duty AND accelerated our plans to summon Biedde, who we were otherwise considering doing next turn.

Our enemies don't pull their punches, and Copper hadn't done anything for a few turns. That's warning enough. (And we were pretty prepared! Biedde summoned, Mareinette guarding, what more can you really ask for?)

Got messed up in the Ruined Church, and then, well, you can see the combat rolls. Though that reroll piece is going to haunt me.

Probably the biggest mistake was the Ruined Church, really. Hubris to risk a dangerous expedition when we had a lot of important things coming up. I am filled with regret at not pushing the No-Hubris plans harder.
yeah, I'll accept the blame for taking that risk on Church. it was in hindsight a risk, especially in a turn we sort of expected to be attacked in.

In my defense, I kinda assumed that between Mareinette and Biedde on guard they wouldn't get to Velvet if they attacked this turn!

Acceptable, our plans are all fucked anyway, what is 1 action when we can't do anything.
on the other hoof, it's leaving Velvet with Mareinette when she's at her most vulnerable, without the defense given to her by her eldritch knowledge.

but yeah, probably the least bad option.

Nope. We need all our Artifacts at the moment, it is a shame we did not study the Knock one, it would have been perfect.
To be fair we can use that one to allow followers to summon Mares fairly easily...

Doesn't that mean that we have moth 0? You know, the same level as Celestia?
eh, we also have ALL lores zero, Celestia would have nothing to sense.

And that's if she came to meet us anyway.

The best she could sense is that we're really close to death, I suppose.

And of course Mareinette, I'm definitely in favor of giving her some of our time. We really must thank her after all, she had to fight three windigoes tonight, that deserves appreciation.
I think that was three thugs, Biedde fought ONE Windigo, and Velvet fought the thug leader who was too stupid to decide to leave when Biedde and Mareinette were "distracted".

I'm really surprised Biedde let him pass though. That just seems so... unprofessional of him...

Nope, Lore Level 0 is actually a step above "Nonexistent." We have cratered so hard she could personally examine us and we'd register as a mundane pony. Which is hilarious, frankly.
There's technically the Heart Realization still active, but I could believe she wouldn't sense it. and Heart is kind of the least... apparently malicious lore? She could just assume it's luck, some strange magic, or anything else.

This was kind of an embarrassing showing on Bieddes part. But he still rocked the windigo. Lucky rolls or unlucky.

Cheers for him.

...I'm surprised that she only sent one Windigo honestly.

I assume we didn't get any bodies. Or sacrifices to summon the ash puppies?

Mmm...

All in all I think this is a pretty good outcome? A shock to the system can be... quite helpful.
it went badly, but in a somewhat manageable way.

Basically we're losing Most of the value of Velvet's actions next turn... though not quite ALL of it. We can still likely do the free social, and the free mansus exploration of the ashen wastes (they're not dangerous TO US I think after all), we can PROBABLY teach Rarity and do a social action with our family, an action to speed up healing maybe (gives extra rolls), we can TRY to study books or artifacts (though we don't add lantern, but we still might get lucky)...

We could write Manuscripts, maybe? try to spend time with Pride? We'll find something to do, but next turn Velvet's action are the least valuable they're ever been, which I suppose means we WON'T use "Cover Your Bases" at all.

...which also means we can send the Followers to search for Heart Books in ponyville, maybe, or to add stuff to Jade's house.

There's no chance that this is a purposeful bait on Copper's part to get us to attack her, right? What I'm thinking is that she thought we had Comet defending us and no one else. She wasn't expecting Biedde or Mareinette, which is why she sent so "few" attackers?

EDIT: This reaction is mostly me being surprised she sent four "normal" ponies and only one Windigo. I would have expected a larger group, so I suppose she's keeping more in reserve?
I imagine that in her mind the Windigo was meant to keep the guards (or worst case Comet/Axe) busy, and keep in mind that Comet vs Windigo Comet would actually lose unless Comet is using an high rank influence. as in rank 3 AT LEAST. And in the meantime at least one of the Thugs would get inside and kill us.

and he got really close too.

Edit: That is a good way to introduce her to the lores: as something that saved a pony who promised to not leave her, the thing that made it even possible for that promise to be kept.
And if she wants to learn, our Library is right there.
This is actually a good turn to write Manuscripts, if we want. Assuming we can do that while our lore values are "non-existent" at least. It might be impossible right now... @OurLadyOfWires can we write manuscripts the coming turn?

The other reason is that we could really use the extra guards. We are now in a time of heightened risk, one that we can't sleepwalk through. In a couple days Copper will realized she swung and missed, and that she's now really poked the bear. If we don't substantially strengthen ourselves (in days, with the extra guards), it would be stupid of her not to send an army, everything she's got, before Velvet can properly retaliate. This is war, no? Honestly I'm a little surprised at Copper's hubris at not properly scouting and sending just four stallions and a windigo. (Why not fifteen stallions and three windigos? Manehattan surely has no shortage of muscle.) Having the Constables guarding us will be a huge relief.
keep in mind by expedition mechanics each stallion AND the Windigo likely costed her 25 bits to send.

So she probably spent 150 bits on this attack, in addition to the costs for the edge influences AND the Windigo.

So we're likely talking over 200, maybe even over 300 bits, and probably most of her Edge adepts.

At least she STILL doesn't know about the Ash-ghouls. THAT would have been a nightmare even beyond this...

Adorable, but "the guards are more than enough" will hopefully be enough to calm her, narratively speaking.
There's Biedde and the guards at the very least after all. Though one of her actions on guarding might not be the worst idea either.

Honestly, as annoyed as I am at how this hurts us, I do kinda feel sorry for Copper quest. Like, imagine if we had thrown all this at a Velvet who should, at most, have DoA and Comet protecting her… only for your kill squad to get jumped by not one, but two Names out of fucking nowhere and oh yeah Velvet just happened to be wearing a Resolution and Edge Attention for no fucking reason.
a Windigo, four thugs, with AT LEAST the leader strengthened by what seems to be a tier 2 influence. plus probably 150 bits of expedition costs. And maybe more, if she payed for the kill in advance (like how in CS you can hire temporary followers).

she lost the equivalent of at least 300 bits and many cultist actions altogether. It's quite the loss for her.

WE, on the other hand, we'll recover in a single turn.
 
So could every opportunity be seen that way. This is just one that's a bit of a sharper lesson.
Fitting for A Resolution.
I just think people are a bit too focused on 'the Lunar Bureau will get Lores from this' angle.
If the last update has shown me anything, it's that Our Lady of Wires will absolutely allow us to get Velvet killed, or otherwise maneuvre into a game over.
If the Lunar Bureau is put on Copper's trail, it will be a balance act to keep them from finding stuff we don't want them to, without causing suspicion. I think it's something Velvet could manage, but I thought the same about the Church, so...
 
While I'm hunting for it and drafting, anyone have the rolls that are used for deciphering books or artifacts? Most of the ones I'm finding are negligible or with now depreciated mess.

Actually.... hmm. @OurLadyOfWires Since the "usable level" of Velvet's Lores are 0, will she still benefit from the bonus's they provide? Not for stat wise, but... Still seeing in the dark, hoof reading, reading two books with one action, two manus actions with one, ect?
 
I… should probably remind people that when Bird has talked about how the Dancing works, it's not "almost dead." It's not, "wow, you look like absolute shit, you should probably rest."

Dancing with Death means that Velvet should, by all rights, be actually fucking dead. She looks it, she feels it, her body might as well actually be dead. And she just… isn't. Through sheer fucking determination, and eldritch understanding of Heart, the Lore Unrelenting.
 
looking at Velvet's turn 19 potential action, to see what she can do of value without her lore bonuses.

1)book searches. we can search for Heart books in Ponyville, even without SH that's something not worthless and between followers and multiple Velvet actions we MIGHT be able to find enough lvl 3 heart books for our purposes... Also expedition books.

2)fix Jade's house. Or, well, maybe direct our servants to do a better job with it?

3)write manifests IF we can do it with "nonexistent" lore levels.

4)study books and artifacts (particularly the low level ones), to remove the backlog. low level ones we have a decent chance even without Lantern.

5)spend time with family.

6)social actions. Cherilee, Mayor Mare, teach Rarity (if allowed while lores nonexistent), Spoiled Rich... we CAN make progress on the Moth Sacrament basically, and maybe get more confidants.

I think that's it.

Normally we'd get 4 personal actions. I imagine we get extra from not going to work, though maybe we do the paperwork at home?

No reason to do "Cover your bases". we can sacrifice actions to do more healing.


I'm thinking we do as many social actions as possible between family, friends and acquaintances, we do Manuscripts and teach Rarity only if allowed, and if we still have leftovers we study books and artifacts and hope we get lucky.

If the Lunar Bureau is put on Copper's trail, it will be a balance act to keep them from finding stuff we don't want them to, without causing suspicion. I think it's something Velvet could manage, but I thought the same about the Church, so...
definitely a risk. if we send the Bureau against Copper, we should also start actively going against her with scrying or expeditions.

We should solve the Manuscript problems and maybe even kill Copper BEFORE the bureau gets to her.

We should get at least a turn or two before they get to her. Enough time for us to manage Copper I think, if we go heavy on it.
 
4)study books and artifacts (particularly the low level ones), to remove the backlog. low level ones we have a decent chance even without Lantern.
So we actively need Baldomare for anything? Because a Lantern Influence would still work I believe. The Edge one was doing fine here, anyways. Also a reminder that only the leading Name has to spend their action to do a short expedition.

Just a thought.
 
Well then... I was already excited about the reactions of everyone to us being half dead but now i'm even more excited for the reactions of everyone seeing us as undead/a living corpse.
The description of the Dance with Death is amazing as well, your shaking of the limbs to keep the blood flowing making it look like a dance as the powerful words to keep your heart going being a song is just so cool.

Whilst I do have my concerns about leaving Velvet at basically lower than mortal standards alone with Mareinette (as she has no Health remaining and no Lores) due to her being able to break her bindings at any moment at the cost of health leaving her free to do as she pleases, I don't think there is really much else we can do at the moment, we can't let her bindings go as she might just decide to stay around the estate and feast on us all before going out into the world, we can't just kill her as she has high heart and who knows what traits, and whilst we could give her bits and a holiday that would be allowing a Monster to pursue it's goals in the Wake and thats pretty bad morals wise.

Also I get that Blidde had to focus on the Windigo but still its pretty bad form for a guy whos job is guarding to,
A: Leave a gate unlocked and open so the intruder could actually reach us before the Names fights were finished.
and,
B: Not just slit her throat on the way past to the Windigo as she is still just a mortal with 43 less attack bonus but whatever.
I get that it's game balance or whatever but I would assume that considering they had no Moth or Knock Cultists there, their expedition to kill us would have been to
1. Get past the guards with Edge (which they did ,one got past) and then 2. Get into the mansion grounds (which it seemed like they just got a free pass on), I would have thought Moth or Knock would be needed due to Copper having a Cult with wide Lore variety in its members, but I guess much like how the rivals Mansus climbs are simplified so too are their attacks.

Also seconding the question on if this was a narrative attack or poor dice roll one if it doesn't spoil anything, im kinda curious how stuff in this quest is decided on as interactive fiction like this seems so intensive to make.

This update has been cool and whilst the 1 off dice roll from the Church has kinda thrown the plans of mice and mares outta whack the opportunity to explore Dancing with Death narritively is pretty neat. Good work Birb looking forward to future updates.
 
...hey @OurLadyOfWires , let's say we get to zero health next turn (dancing with death), end of turn we roll to heal, can we heal the damage from the failed ritual as well or can that only be healed the turn after?
You need to make your plans based on how you "start" the turn. So, if you start the turn with one (or in our case, zero) health points, all your options and planings will be done based on that.

If you eventually recover a health point, even if it is in an "immediate way" like through Forge Redemption ritual, it basically takes effect at the "end" of the turn.

Mechanically, because that way we avoid having to triple-plan, or do several if->else plans like "if we get healed, do X".
And narratively, because preparing a healing ritual, or even adjusting yourself to your newly-healed form, takes time. Which, in practice, can be stretched to a full month and a turn.

I can take certain liberties, if they make sense and if they further an interesting story. But these are basically the rules that we will generally follow.

@OurLadyOfWires copyedits:
(Several edit-comments)
There seems to be something unclear happening with the math here - neither of the roll+bonus equations add up, and Biedde's overflow increased by 28, which is neither the difference between the results as written (169-135=34) or as calculated (126-81=45)?
@OurLadyOfWires copyedits:

Thank you! I'll go over these updates as soon as I am done posting this.

@OurLadyOfWires how does siccing the Bureau on one of our enemies work narratively? Like, if right now we pointed them at Copper, would Velvet try and spin it as a suspected link to the changelings or something?
I know you asked "narratively", but let me start by talking about the mechanical aspects.

Mechanically, your Investigators can "investigate a foe", and narratively your constables can "perform an Expedition".

Now, you DO have a general expedition called "assault a foe". But having your constables attack someone (perform that general expedition) "because you said so" is pretty bad PR. So, mechanically, you are supposed to have your investigators scout a foe, and then you sic your constables on them.
Narratively, Velvet will just nudge her investigators into finding a "really bad pony" (your foe) and once they inevitably find something dirty you have all the justification to throw your constables on them.

Here's my tentative plan for next turn. Call it Gambling the Needle.
I truly appreciate this, and I sincerely apologize for the latest developments.

I mean I suppose there is the option of socialling up Mayor Mare or finding a new contact entirely. Or, I suppose we might be able to social Spoiled Rich, as some have suggested. She's not on our contact list right now, but Velvet is presumably aware she exists, so it shouldn't be too meta-y to write in a social action with her? ...I don't know if Mareinette can initiate a contact though (@OurLadyOfWires?), so if we went after Spoiled, we might have to start the contact with our free action and then Mareinette can take it from there.
"If it is a social action Velvet can do, Mareinette can do it instead."

Just go with that and you will be golden.

Granted, there are things VELVET would veto, like "having Velvet Mareinette read Silky a bedtime story". But jokes aside, yes, Mareinette can start a new friendship, invest in an existing friendship, or even do social fleeting opportunities.

Now, this is an important caveat. Mareinette does NOT have access to your personal skills. So, if you had asked Mareinette to talk to Comet Feet, things like "Conscript" would not be available, since that needed your Edge Influence.
But those cases are the exception.

Oh, and also. You do have enough... information, to try and gun for Filthy's wife. You did talk to him enough to learn, in character, that his marriage is rough. That might be a thin thread to grab, but I'm fine with it.

...uh. @OurLadyOfWires is this representative of just how useful the Mirror will be to Eclipse, or can we assume they'll be able to use Lantern for some rolls we had to use other lores on? Can they use the artifact for APPLICATION bonuses? In that case it would also help in understanding the Blank and Branding Doors.
No comment. But more because that whole update is meta-knowledge.

I needed you all to know about Celestia, so that is all I will discuss on that matter.

@OurLadyOfWires question, if we reach turn 21 with Luna still having a single training action to do ((be it winter or general), could we have her do something like

1)something
2)something
diligent: the last training
Velvet: all 4 and general 30
No. Luna's training takes effect at the end of the turn. She would only be "done with her training" at the end of the turn, and Velvet would only be able to teach her starting the following one.

...though... @OurLadyOfWires sorry if I already asked, but can we sacrifice a changeling for lantern 4 personal sacrament, or grail 4 personal, if we capture one?
No. Pony sacrifices only.

That being said, I had a fun idea! Mostly because I remembered that Bird has allowed us to 'multitask' socials before when the multitasking made sense in a narrative context.

So, what if, instead of having Mareinette do a social, we have her give us a Grail Influence, then we do a social with Filthy Rich and Spoiled Rich combined? Considering they're literally, you know, married, I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to combine a Filthy Rich social action with a "get Spoiled Rich into our Contacts" action. Could you comment on this possibility, @OurLadyOfWires?
It wouldn't be as efficient as a focused action. But sure, it makes sense narratively, so that would be allowable.

And a side note. Instead of using Mareinette + Velvet action to get an Influence and do it yourself, you can also ask Mareinette to do it alone. Just reminding that is a possibility.

Or maybe it was just me, idk.
If it was "just you", then it was just the two of us! 😁

On a similar note, @OurLadyOfWires now that we've come to terms with Comet do we know his Lores? Is it solely Edge 4?
Yes. Mono-Lore at Edge 4.

One mechanical piece @OurLadyOfWires — I am really surprised we rerolled here, on the first round?
So, here is the thing.

Combat still needs to be remotely possible for both sides.

So, the re-rolls that you receive with Edge happen at a fixed interval. At your level, you ALWAYS roll twice, every six dice. Of course, you keep the largest number. But if you roll 80, and then 70, you keep the 80. And if you roll a 5, and reroll for a 50, you keep the 50.

But if you instead "kept" the re-roll until you lost a contest, that would make combat orders of magnitude more difficult for the other party. And combat still needs to be risky.

Look at Biedded, for example. The Windigo did manage to put an overflow in. Not enough to wound him, but combat needs to involve putting your life on the line, even when you can casually swing a +80 bonus.

well, that's a clusterfuck and all our plans are now out of the window.

QM, were there any clues to this being prepared, or we got fucked over by some unlucky roll of the dice?
You have known that Copper hates you for months now. And you two already tried to murder each other with rituals. I fail to see how you could need more clues that you two are at war.

Unless... @OurLadyOfWires , are all our Realizations gone with our Lore Levels?
Yes.

I mean, you get them back if you stop dancing with death. But yes, you have nothing.

Doesn't that mean that we have moth 0? You know, the same level as Celestia?
You won't meet her in person while in this state. So don't worry.

Edit: Also, hypothetically speaking, if we die would there be a vote for a regrettable action that basically is "I keep living."?
No.

If a family member dies, you get a wolf-vote (with the alternative being "lose the quest").
If you die, you die. And Soft probably takes over in a continuation-quest, if people are interested.
But, uh, don't die. Even in canon CS cheating death was hard, you won't get a pass here.

This is actually a good turn to write Manuscripts, if we want. Assuming we can do that while our lore values are "non-existent" at least. It might be impossible right now... @OurLadyOfWires can we write manuscripts the coming turn?
No. You have "Nonexistent" on all Lores this turn.

Actually.... hmm. @OurLadyOfWires Since the "usable level" of Velvet's Lores are 0, will she still benefit from the bonus's they provide? Not for stat wise, but... Still seeing in the dark, hoof reading, reading two books with one action, two manus actions with one, ect?
Also no. And this is an important distinction.

You started the quest with "Lore level 0" on all Lores. and even that gave you very marginal bonus (Like, Grail 0 gave you +1, etc).

Right now you have your Lore is "Nonexistent". It's like Rarity's Winter level. Rarity is Grail/Forge, so she has no Winter. That is how you are on all Lores right now.



- - -

Also I get that Blidde had to focus on the Windigo but still its pretty bad form for a guy whos job is guarding to,
A: Leave a gate unlocked and open so the intruder could actually reach us before the Names fights were finished.
and,
B: Not just slit her throat on the way past to the Windigo as she is still just a mortal with 43 less attack bonus but whatever.
I get that it's game balance or whatever but I would assume that considering they had no Moth or Knock Cultists there, their expedition to kill us would have been to
1. Get past the guards with Edge (which they did ,one got past) and then 2. Get into the mansion grounds (which it seemed like they just got a free pass on), I would have thought Moth or Knock would be needed due to Copper having a Cult with wide Lore variety in its members, but I guess much like how the rivals Mansus climbs are simplified so too are their attacks.

Also seconding the question on if this was a narrative attack or poor dice roll one if it doesn't spoil anything, im kinda curious how stuff in this quest is decided on as interactive fiction like this seems so intensive to make.

This update has been cool and whilst the 1 off dice roll from the Church has kinda thrown the plans of mice and mares outta whack the opportunity to explore Dancing with Death narritively is pretty neat. Good work Birb looking forward to future updates.
First of all, thank you kindly! I really appreciate your words.

And second, I'm separating this quote so I can explain a few things better.

First of all. The mechanics of an attack, and of guarding your house.

An attack against you isn't as complex as an attack YOU make against an enemy. Things really are simplified to the extent that the enemies don't really need to sneak around/avoid guards and whatnot. Unless they wish to perform special actions, like stealing artifacts or resources, if that is what your opponent wanted them to do.
So, for a brutal frontal attack, the MECHANICAL aspect is basically open combat. I looked at how many attackers Copper sent (four thugs and a Windigo), I looked at what you had (Velvet, Biedde and Mareinette), and I basically treated it as a brawl in an open room.
Mareinette is Mareinette, so she tackled a group of enemies due to her high health pool and [REDACTED].
Biedde (and this is important) has "Terrifying Opponent", remember? So, mortal enemies will avoid him like the plague. And since he was your main combatant, he decided to face the enemy's strongest combatant.
And numerically, what was left went for Velvet who was also their main opponent.
If anyone finished their combats first, they would move to aid their allies (and Biedde would have stepped into your combat if he had killed his Windigo one turn sooner). Likewise, Velvet would have moved to aid one of the Names if, for example, only three thugs had been sent. (And since only the main combatants hurt each other, she would have been safe on the sidelines).
And... well, that's basically it.

Now, narratively, there is also a layer to it. I wanted to follow those mechanical bones, but I definitely sprinkled some things here and there.
For example, Mareinette fought out of your side (EDIT: )sight.
Why?
And Biedde allowed a combatant to pass him.
Again, why? I see people saying that was incompetent of him, and that is a possible interpretation. But why not, instead, consider that he is not incompetent. What does that tell you?
Names have agency. And they are watching you as much as you are watching them. Or maybe even more closely.
EDIT: Oh, and about Velvet herself. Why would I treat an enemy attack as a "brawl in an open room" instead of making it combat by stages? Well, because Velvet's home is her sanctuary, and her family is sacred. She will, unironically, meet her enemies on the front gate and fight them at the same time rather than risk them stepping a single hoof on her home, and putting her family in danger.

Anyhow, that is what I had to say about the combat itself. Thank you for reading this far.

- - -

Also, this is a reminder that Investigators and Constables only perform one action each per turn.

This is an important thing to consider if you pick the second option. Constables can't guard you and raid the changelings at the same time (and failing to guard you will decrease morale a little). And investigators, if asked to find Copper, won't be able to do anything else.

- - -

Finally, I don't think I missed any pings. Kindly direct me to anything I missed, if I somehow overlooked your post.

I will now go re-edit the update, and maybe check the math for accuracy. For example, I see I gave +50 to Mareinette instead of her +60 for social actions. But none of the final results will change. I'll go figure that out now.

I hope you are all doing well!
 
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Huh!
So were not for fear of death, Velvet might be able to rightfully dream without Selene's help right now. And close her eyes and not see anything.

Fun as that is, still a nightmare of a situation. Especially since it will make some of the soft planning a lot harder.
Thank you for the info though! This is going to be tricky.
 
Well shit. We are a normy little pony in every way. Fuck.

Guess it's Social time.

Also DoA will have to give us a Lesson I guess, since there's no way in hell we'll be Deciphering the Knock Book in time.
 
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Also, very technically speaking, you can all start planning for Turn 20 now.

We will make it in stages, so as to avoid bloat. But there won't be any further votes or surprises before the planning phases.

There is this vote (on how to present the attack, and how to keep Mareinette), then we have followers' phase, then Velvet's phase. And since we know for a fact there will be no Fleeting Opportunities, then there is nothing to think about that.

I am saying this because I know we like to plan a turn on its entirety from the very beginning. Still, right now the main focus is the current decision. This vote will probably remain open for the rest of the week.

Now let me edit the last update and...
 
It's… going to be interesting, seeing a Velvet without Lores. Like… not even a little, aside from the simple fact that she's still alive when she shouldn't be.

No, seriously. Velvet has almost Level Four in everything, normally. We were literally on the edge of getting at least one Sacrament. Her sheer conceptual weight is fucking overwhelming. Everybody's perceptions of her is heavily influenced by that weight of knowledge annd power. And now it's all gone. Just… poof. She is a normal Pony. A normal pony who should be a corpse.

Shit's gonna get wild.
 
If the last update has shown me anything, it's that Our Lady of Wires will absolutely allow us to get Velvet killed, or otherwise maneuvre into a game over.
In case you missed the memo all of the Names could not care less if Velvet up and died. They are only giving Velvet the minimum time and effort required by their summoning contract. If you want more then lackadaisical employees, that only do the bare minimum to not get fired, and spoil their fun vacation in the wake. Velvet needs to earn their friendship. These are names they have the privilege of being at a level of power, where they only ever do what they personally like to do.
 
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First of all, thank you kindly! I really appreciate your words.

And second, I'm separating this quote so I can explain a few things better.

First of all. The mechanics of an attack, and of guarding your house.

An attack against you isn't as complex as an attack YOU make against an enemy. Things really are simplified to the extent that the enemies don't really need to sneak around/avoid guards and whatnot. Unless they wish to perform special actions, like stealing artifacts or resources, if that is what your opponent wanted them to do.
So, for a brutal frontal attack, the MECHANICAL aspect is basically open combat. I looked at how many attackers Copper sent (four thugs and a Windigo), I looked at what you had (Velvet, Biedde and Mareinette), and I basically treated it as a brawl in an open room.
Mareinette is Mareinette, so she tackled a group of enemies due to her high health pool and [REDACTED].
Biedde (and this is important) has "Terrifying Opponent", remember? So, mortal enemies will avoid him like the plague. And since he was your main combatant, he decided to face the enemy's strongest combatant.
And numerically, what was left went for Velvet who was also their main opponent.
If anyone finished their combats first, they would move to aid their allies (and Biedde would have stepped into your combat if he had killed his Windigo one turn sooner). Likewise, Velvet would have moved to aid one of the Names if, for example, only three thugs had been sent. (And since only the main combatants hurt each other, she would have been safe on the sidelines).
And... well, that's basically it.

Now, narratively, there is also a layer to it. I wanted to follow those mechanical bones, but I definitely sprinkled some things here and there.
For example, Mareinette fought out of your side.
Why?
And Biedde allowed a combatant to pass him.
Again, why? I see people saying that was incompetent of him, and that is a possible interpretation. But why not, instead, consider that he is not incompetent. What does that tell you?
Names have agency. And they are watching you as much as you are watching them. Or maybe even more closely.
EDIT: Oh, and about Velvet herself. Why would I treat an enemy attack as a "brawl in an open room" instead of making it combat by stages? Well, because Velvet's home is her sanctuary, and her family is sacred. She will, unironically, meet her enemies on the front gate and fight them at the same time rather than risk them stepping a single hoof on her home, and putting her family in danger.

Anyhow, that is what I had to say about the combat itself. Thank you for reading this far.

- - -


Finally, I don't think I missed any pings. Kindly direct me to anything I missed, if I somehow overlooked your post.

I will now go re-edit the update, and maybe check the math for accuracy. For example, I see I gave +50 to Mareinette instead of her +60 for social actions. But none of the final results will change. I'll go figure that out now.

I hope you are all doing well!
Thanks for that little explanation of how you plan things like this, as I said in my last post how the inner workings of interactive fiction like quests work is really interesting to me.
I do have a question on if by 'Mareinette fought out of your side' you mean she fought away from our side or if it was a typo and you meant out of our sight?
--

Now im going to do some theory crafting in this part of the post not a message/question to Birb if they're still reading after the question above.

I would guess that the reason Mareinette doesn't fight in our sight is
A: She wants to eat her kills ,
B: She wants to continue to hide her full capabilities as part of her M.O as a Monster who has survived the Mansus in it's Glory Days as a Criminal,
and
C: Whilst she does have plans for us it's more of a whim to her so if we just die she can eat a body with all the lores to middling levels which likely hasn't been available to taste for an era.

I have a few theories about Bleidde
A: He wants to test us to see if we are worth serving (second to the Colonel of course)
B: He wants to get a better measure of our combat skills so he knows how best to kill us if he is ever summoned by any enemies we have
C: He is serving the interests of the Colonel to try to allow the death of his summoner within the limits of his bindings due to the Colonel being upset that we stopped Comet Feet from pledging himself to him as a Mortal Servant in the Wake is something he wouldn't have had in eras so a huge leg up on any other surviving Hours.
D: His old age actually has caught up to him :V
 
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It wouldn't be as efficient as a focused action. But sure, it makes sense narratively, so that would be allowable.

And a side note. Instead of using Mareinette + Velvet action to get an Influence and do it yourself, you can also ask Mareinette to do it alone. Just reminding that is a possibility.
on the other end with limited ways to use Velvet actions this coming turn, something like giving her an influence (grail, or lantern, or SH) and sending her to social, study, or search for books/locations is a not-horrible idea.

Yes.

I mean, you get them back if you stop dancing with death. But yes, you have nothing.
Hey, Velvet can, for the first time in MONTHS, not see with her eyes closed and have normal dreams.

...no, wait, probably not normal dreams. She might very well be unable to sleep without dying.


Right now you have your Lore is "Nonexistent". It's like Rarity's Winter level. Rarity is Grail/Forge, so she has no Winter. That is how you are on all Lores right now.
oh, this reminds me, Rarity is no longer a minion as she now has more Grail than us.

Biedde (and this is important) has "Terrifying Opponent", remember? So, mortal enemies will avoid him like the plague. And since he was your main combatant, he decided to face the enemy's strongest combatant.
oh, right, that explains why he couldn't keep multiple opponents there.

If anyone finished their combats first, they would move to aid their allies (and Biedde would have stepped into your combat if he had killed his Windigo one turn sooner). Likewise, Velvet would have moved to aid one of the Names if, for example, only three thugs had been sent. (And since only the main combatants hurt each other, she would have been safe on the sidelines).
another way we were unlucky.

just ONE attacker fewer, and Velvet would have been safe.

Again, why? I see people saying that was incompetent of him, and that is a possible interpretation. But why not, instead, consider that he is not incompetent. What does that tell you?
Names have agency. And they are watching you as much as you are watching them. Or maybe even more closely.
So Biedde was testing us? it has interesting implications.

then again he knows we're interested in the Edge Sacrament, and I suppose that if we couldn't survive a mortal thug, even in our conditions and with his knife at our neck, then what chance did we have to hurt HIM?

Also, very technically speaking, you can all start planning for Turn 20 now.

We will make it in stages, so as to avoid bloat. But there won't be any further votes or surprises before the planning phases.

There is this vote (on how to present the attack, and how to keep Mareinette), then we have followers' phase, then Velvet's phase. And since we know for a fact there will be no Fleeting Opportunities, then there is nothing to think about that.

I am saying this because I know we like to plan a turn on its entirety from the very beginning. Still, right now the main focus is the current decision. This vote will probably remain open for the rest of the week.

Now let me edit the last update and...
best I can think of for Velvet actions is to give her an influence (either Grail or Lantern or SH) and use most of her actions on one category.

Either social and make more friends (Mayor Mare, Cherilee, Filthy Rich, Spoiled Rich, Applejack, maybe Rainbow Dash?)

Or study books and artifacts

or search for books (ponyville heart and expedition books) or... CAN we have Velvet go to Canterlot (with guards maybe) and search for the Outsider? Probably not, I can BARELY imagine people letting her move around Ponyville.

It's… going to be interesting, seeing a Velvet without Lores. Like… not even a little, aside from the simple fact that she's still alive when she shouldn't be.

No, seriously. Velvet has almost Level Four in everything, normally. We were literally on the edge of getting at least one Sacrament. Her sheer conceptual weight is fucking overwhelming. Everybody's perceptions of her is heavily influenced by that weight of knowledge annd power. And now it's all gone. Just… poof. She is a normal Pony. A normal pony who should be a corpse.

Shit's gonna get wild.
As Baldomare once said (sort of)... it doesn't matter how many secrets we have in our head, mortals die when they're killed. Velvet is powerful, but as all mortals she's fragile.
 
Lovely. Well, I'm still not happy with the rerolls, but mechanically I acknowledge it is a sticky wicket.

That being said. What happens, exactly, to Shining Armor's memories now that he's no longer leashed? Or is he still leashed?
 
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on the other end with limited ways to use Velvet actions this coming turn, something like giving her an influence (grail, or lantern, or SH) and sending her to social, study, or search for books/locations is a not-horrible idea.
Wait, would we lose the scraps if we got the remaining Max levels from the Names? Because if that happens it is not worth it.
 
I do have a question on if by 'Mareinette fought out of your side' you mean she fought away from our side or if it was a typo and you meant out of our sight?
Definitely "sight". That post from me was indeed riddled with typos.

on the other end with limited ways to use Velvet actions this coming turn, something like giving her an influence (grail, or lantern, or SH) and sending her to social, study, or search for books/locations is a not-horrible idea.
That actually is a not-bad idea.

Although, anything outside of Ponyville would still be a horrible idea. But slapping an Influence on yourself is a good way to turn one Name action into four "not so useless" Velvet actions, provided you focus all of them on the area of the Influence.

oh, this reminds me, Rarity is no longer a minion as she now has more Grail than us.
Yes.

But you haven't ordered her to do anything horrible, so she won't even notice.

That being said. What happens, exactly, to Shining Armor's memories now that he's no longer leashed?
He hasn't been Leashed for a while now. Ever since the marriage I think?

No, wait, I think the Leash came off when the Master took over his body (it wouldn't affect him anyways), and you didn't pick a new target since.
 
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Alrighty! So, while the planning part for the turn has not yet begun, soft planning has been happening for about half the turn.
This is just to cover what is... I would argue, non-controversial for the purpose of planning.



Bureau
- Detectives: Investigate the attack against the Commissioner (Copper)
- Constables: Guard the Commissioner
- Commissioner: Talks with Shining/ Midnight/ Fair Trial

Explainer: While this doesn't have Velvet dig her hooves in helping the Detectives, that would require her leaving her home (Mechanical and narrative disadvantage) and could be seen as reckless at this point in time. The Constables benefit from guarding the commissioner in a permanent way, and it boosts their loyalty. And without lores to beef up Velvet's abilities, the best she can do here is either socialize, or just call in sick.



Specific Followers
- Rarity: Focus on your work
- Axe: Lesson in Knock
- Mareinette: Talk to XXX as "Not Velvet"
- Selene: Training and Guard Velvet

Explainer: Rarity here is just penciled in for this unless we can think of something better. This will guarantee she succeeds, she has a good chance of success without this, but we just need to see the action breakdown. Axe will help us get the knock scraps so we can work on the expedition/sacrament with her. Mareinette... this is going to be a more social and recovery turn. This reads as an extra Velvet Action for us. One that will work well. Selene wants to guard Velvet, unless we have something better for her to do, let her do it. And, she needs to finish her training.


General Follower Action
- Search for the Outsider
- Expedition: Lonely Grave

Explainer: We need to progress on the Outsider. Period. Scrying is useful, but unless we are scrying for where Windy Flakes went, our Detectives are "scrying" for Copper, and we don't have many artifacts to go around to better plan for expeditions. And, we need the book there for Baldomare at the end of this turn.


Those are the general things. Personally, I would also recommend Baldomare give Velvet a Influence of Lantern so that she can still decipher things on this turn. Books, artifacts, you name it.
 
Wait, would we lose the scraps if we got the remaining Max levels from the Names? Because if that happens it is not worth it.
You know, that's a good point. @OurLadyOfWires , what would happen if we gained a Lore Scrap in our current state? Does it just vanish into the aether, does it get banked until we are no longer dancing, or do we have to experiment to find out?
 
I just realized something.

Has anyone here noticed that Velvet's Heart resolution is extremely blantetly wolf themed?


If a family member dies, you get a wolf-vote (with the alternative being "lose the quest").

Nice to know Wolf Selene is still a possibility.

Constables can't guard you and raid the changelings at the same time (and failing to guard you will decrease morale a little).

You know we could probably have Selene do it. Add in a influence along with her no-holds combat bonus and she'll thrash them.
 

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