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lostcompass2021-08-07 08:03 pm
groundrules) wrote in lostcompass2021-08-07 08:03 pm
arc ii: taravast | arrival
Welcome to Taravast! Spend some quality time with the the brief of the citadel locations & team assignments. The below events should keep characters busy until around 31 August. Feel free to make your own posts and logs, though some mod-led log posts will be put on for certain events. Don't forget to share your character plans here!
The Story So Far page has been updated with a summary of the Stairs of Sighs interlude happenings, and a new NPC inbox featuring Taravast's who's who is now up. You can find a link to the old inbox and all your threads there.
Lastly: questions.
Mazyar leads the caravan into Taravast in the footsteps of a grandiose convoy of large animals, carts of gold, artefacts and spices — the retinue of the foreign princess Odile, come to persuade young Macaluso to pick her among the dozens vying to become his consort.
- ■ Yes, characters are effectively Odile’s back-up dancers when Macaluso receives her in the main piazza of Taravast. Characters will receive local garments, their upgraded communicators and masks, as per Taravast custom. Anurr and his undead go mysteriously missing.
■ Earn an ally by supporting Odile's marital cause. Macaluso enjoys gifts and exotic act performances, and he might think better of Odile for an exceptional offering. Alternatively, there’s good old-fashioned wingmanery. Let Odile be your muse.
OBJECTIVE: Figure out three gifts or hustles to raise Odile in Macaluso's graces. Or she can go back to swiping right. Masks will keep Macaluso from recognising you later...!
Pride once tattered, the party falls in the sticky hands of eccentric and influential Lady Rigarda, a friend of the Merchant who reveals the game:
- ■ Macaluso and his cousin Vannozza will soon begin their electoral campaign to win the Conclave's support to succeed their grandfather Bonaccorso as Doxe.
■ Bonaccorso cautiously refuses to restart the ancient beacon of Taravast, but gratitude could compel his heir. To cover all bases, characters have been divided to support both contenders, but those assigned to Macaluso have been told to discreetly sabotage him so Vannozza triumphs.
■ Rigarda allocates characters their Taravast identities, introducing them to key noblemen and their benefactors. For good or ill, many in Taravast have already heard of their reputations. Characters will be put in Macaluso or Vannozza’s wing of the Palace of the Doxe. Rigarda will warn them against public contact that betrays their collaboration. The communicator channel is private to the party.
■ Bonaccorso’s kin will prove scarce: Macaluso busily receives his suitors, flaunting his marriage as a recourse to strengthen Taravast's foreign ties. Vannozza hunts or visits the healing and necromantic districts. Gossips say she is often indisposed.
■ Attaryl witches will be apprehensive distant from fire magic practitioners, while Bessis adepts will lure them into their fold, or begrudge them the liberal use of 'their' arts.
■ Over three-four days, characters can roam Taravast, explore court, start befriending the districts or poke and prod at various magical and art institutions. 'Borrow' local garments and guard uniforms to infiltrate the academies, the inner areas of the healers' district, or the reception rooms of Macaluso and Vannozza. Careful of curious glances: you may find yourselves followed by invisible eyes, amid a fleeting sinking feeling.
■ On day three, demonstrators will invade the gardens of the Palace of the Doxe, objecting to Macaluso for 'selling out' Taravast with his marriage plans. Macaluso sends guards out, escalating the largely peaceful demonstration to violent clashes. Help the poorly armed protestors escape — discreetly, if you work for Macaluso — seize them, or watch on. The floor is yours.
■ Some protestors (...or even characters) will end up imprisoned with shackles and magical wards in the jailhouse of the Rooms of Justice. You could break these folks out.
OBJECTIVE: figure out your stance on the protesters, set up base and explore. You'll need it.
Macaluso will welcome his visiting royal suitors at a masquerade ball, with beloved cousin Vannozza and her allies also in attendance.
- ■ The pair's electoral champions — that's you! — will receive top seats at two separate tables, with Macaluso even bringing a delicate celebratory confection to his guests.
■ Enjoy that sweet tooth while you have it. Those who consume the confection will find their senses and their strength gradually sapped, threatening to kill them within three days. The poisoning, which will not affect characters assigned to Vannoza, will be blamed on a protestor found dead in the kitchens.
■ Macaluso will bring in healers to address the sickness. Stumped, one of them will suggest a superstitious all-cure: the feathers of a magical owl, whose kind was last seen in the Spina hunting grounds. Alas, only the lady Vannozza enters the site freely, keeping the ground keys in her quarters. Another healer will recommend the necromantic district and its underground 'potions' brewers.
OBJECTIVE: ...stay alive?
NOTE: Sign up your character to get poisoned here, with caution: unless characters work to find an antidote, one might not be discovered.
Any member of either team can look for the cure, though Vannozza’s people should be discreet in their pursuit or package their attempts to save the enemy as somehow benefitting the lady.
Some pre-discussed quests or custom plot opportunities emerging from previous involvement:
Beitang Moran
His main goal will be to establish himself as some sort of Court Prophet. he will never be seen without a mask dripping with silver and amethyst gems and likewise grandiose robes when in the palace. The mask, however, leaves his forehead visible so his glowing Aquarius mark can be seen. Any visitation to ask for his talent is by appointment only, although it won't stop people from lining at his door hoping to be granted the grace to be allowed in and hear from their future.
Moran will then use his status for a few pronouncements regarding the future of the city, namely how it will prosper under a lady's firm hand, all to influence things towards Vannozza's victory. He will keep those fairly rare and cryptic, and sometimes restrained to only a few ears, trusting that gossip will carry the news far and wide.
He might also throw some shade on some of Macaluso's marriage prospects.
Regarding the Attaryl, he will at first outwardly treat them a bit coldly, leaning on the fact that his visions are a gift from the stars and as such they cannot be taught and they cannot be granted to others, so there is nothing they can teach him nor that he can teach them. Divination techniques such as reading animal entrails will leave him skeptical and slightly disgusted. He will, however, keep the door open as he is sill curious about Hatisse and hoping to learn more. Also, books. Give him all the books.
Moran's actual power will for once cooperate with him and allow him enough actual visions to cement his reputation, but this will come at a physical cost, as any use of power consumes life force. As such, he will soon gain a reputation for being frail and sickly (lol).
Regarding protestors, Moran will publicly criticize the decision to be violent with them as misguided and the sign of a ruler who is incapable of hearing different opinions. He might trip a guard or two but who would believe their poor, sickly, frail court magician to be able to fight? (Yes, he totally will knock some people out).
Moran will not be poisoned, but he will have a vested interest in the cure because Xunxian. He probably can open a a few doors or alert to the best way to avoid patrols and guards for the people looking for the owl, and he can act as a distraction.... the guards might be spooked by the weird, soothsaying mage walking around at night in dark corridors.
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Also Xunxian will likely not look it but he will totally drink Moran with his eyes whenever they are in the same public space tyvm. His majestic and perfect lord.
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If they do get to a point where Moran says that or something to that effect, he can see something that hasn't happened in like a decade: flustered Xunxian.
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How can this conversation go wrong.
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Moran's first prompt on his log has a thing with people in the party being signaled as allowed queue jumpers, and of couse Moran would explain he can't command visions and he might not get one and then get one.
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But this from about 14:13 until 25:22- which is quite long for a vision, so feel free to condense it down ICly to just the important bits? And it's pretty thinky stuff so let me know how you think it might go!
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