[Part of the Party Time journal]
Twenty five years have passed with DL becoming a blacksmith in Markarth, Sky becoming a fixer in Rifter, Rose becoming an apothecary in Falkreath and mom taking up a courier job in Hjaalmarch. Now weaker than ever (pretty cool mechanic), they must be extra cautious to avoid the Thalmor patrols on the roads (lousy mechanic) as once again their cover lives are examined by the authorities. Sky gets info from the thieves guild that this round of inquisition is stemming from the unhappy Dunmer refugees from Morrowind who have even concocted a plot to assassinate High King Torygg! Alas, they are too late to warn the king who is slain by Ulfric Stormcloak at Solitude's Blue Palace and instead are drafted into opposing sides of the quickly brewing civil war: DL and Sky for the Stormcloaks, mom and Rose for the Imperials.
When Ulfric's execution is prevented by the arrival of a dragon, each side is tasked with trying to slay the great wyrms but while DL and Sky do that to collect lots of powerful dragon bone artifacts, Rose and mom assist the Imperials in gaining dominance over the province and gaining a windfall in wealth. Despite the head to head, they collectively discover it is actually a cult to Boethiah that is behind the latest events and access their hidden temple through a series of skill checks (super cool) and learn of the cults Dunmer master, Oviron.
While mom is tricked by the daedric prince Sanguine to ransack Windhelm, DL recruits deranged crusader Giara to the cause while Rose and Sky battle the entire graveyard of Morthal where Rose becomes a Thane and makes friends with "Edward" the vampire (we just call him that, but he makes an amazing summon in battle). Their new allies tell them of Oviron's location at Hrothgar, and so the entire team heads there beating down cultists on the way (need to keep their numbers down) and face Oviron and his cronies. Giara dies in battle but Oviron escapes through an oblivion gate. Not willing to let their prey escape, the team jump in to pursue him just as the gate closes in on itself... which is the end of the campaign.
An excellent finale with some great fights. I'm not convinced by the cultists you have to kill / Thalmor you have to evade mechanic though because they always move towards the active player, which means most of the time they're just walking in circles. The random monsters that just show up and go for cities are more fun, and don't hang around like a bad smell like those guys do.
Showing posts with label Riften. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Riften. Show all posts
Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Skyrim: Adventure Game (Board Game) - The Cult
Tuesday, 27 June 2023
Skyrim: Adventure Game (Board Game) - The Traitor
[Part of the Party Time journal]
Now officially on the run, the team decide to split up and go to their various contacts for assistance: DL helps a suicidal bard get through some Hagravens, mom helps the Black Briars torch their opposition in Riften, Rose helps some cannibals defeat some vampires (huh?) and Sky helps some Talos worshippers, now illegal due to the White-Gold Concordat, obtain his helm from a crypt. Each of them indicate that there's a traitor in the Blades, but before they can work out who it is they are invited to a meeting by the local Blade grandmaster. Luckily they arrive late, as they find everyone else dead. By process of elimination, the only one whose body they don't find among the dead is the traitor.
As Thalmor agents begin becoming more and more prevalent, the team split up to go undercover again while still trying to glean information about Moivva's whereabouts. Rose does this by peacefully rebuilding Rorikstead and acting as a healer, mom becomes a performing artist (and pickpocket) in Solitude, and Sky listens to the daedric prince Mephala in trying to assassinate a local Jarl in exchange for information - but he fails in this task. DL goes the completely opposite way and tries to face Mephala on her own plane of Oblivion where she takes his likeness. That does not go well at all and DL ends up trapped in Oblivion for a long, long time (which is a seriously terrible design decision because its basically, on your turn roll 3 "6"s on a 3D6 to continue playing, and that's not fun at all).
Somehow, he manages it eventually while the other three simply keep the random events at bay (its a long session) but at least by that time they have the location of Moivva. The trio fight her, her goons and the traitorous Blade in a pretty easy battle and end up executing her. With sweet vengeance dished out, the four decide to split up again to continue hiding from the Thalmor in semi-retirement.
For some reason all the combats in these particular chapters was really boring / easy. Possibly because we leveled up so much while DL was stuck in Oblivion (can't complete mission without all players being at X location).
Monday, 26 June 2023
Skyrim: Adventure Game (Board Game) - The Blades
[Part of the Party Time journal]
The "Blades", undercover special forces of the Emperor are present everywhere - even during the great war. In the Northern lands of Skyrim, mom (a sneaky Khajiit) eludes a mercenary squad sent after her while Rose (a magus Altmer) barely escapes arrest as DL (sword wielding Imperial) defeats the guardsmen that held her custody (in a really tough fight to solo). Yazish the orc helps them escape to Whiterun where Sky (Me, a sneaky Nord: because I play how I played in the PC game) is helping to defend against some wandering Dremora.
While Yazish is slain in this battle, he asks Rose to help his clan mates near Riften so she and DL go there and free their camp form a Nordic siege but when they decline to assist in helping the Orsimer to attack Riften the pair are thrown into a pit leading to an underground Dwemer City! At the same time Mom and Sky are in a different Dwemer city, laying a trap for those mercenaries still on her tail. Using an unstable dwemer device, Sky explodes them all and they find clues on who is hunting them: a khajiit named Moivva Karnai.
M'aiq thinks you need some skooma.
When all four return top side they meet at their rally point and using the information gained raid Moivva's hideout at Dawnstar for hard evidence of a massive conspiracy which they take to Solitude to present to the High King. Alas, instead of listening to their case he instead delivers the bad news: the war is over. The White-Gold concordat is signed. He tosses them each a bag of gold and tells them to go into hiding.
Pretty cool start with varying degrees of difficulty, though it did take people awhile to get that magic armor only protects against magic, heavy armor only protects against heavy attacks, and light armor only protects against light attacks. Yes, so the little dagger that only does light attacks will cut right through your +5 magical heavy plate of bullshitery. While the higher level enemies stack armor of each type to make them "tough", the players will almost always have at least one weakness.
Sunday, 26 March 2017
TESO: A Boon for my Servant
Adventures of Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Having been sent back to the Rift to deal with the problematic Reachmen who are allied with the Worm Cult, I make a detour to Riften (one of many to unload gear) and while there complete both Mages and Fighter's guild quest lines. For the Mages one, Shalidor uses the tomes to transport us to his missing island of Eyevea which Sheogorath has left littered with dremora. After cleaning those up we get to keep the island though Sheogorath does take the now insane tome decypherer, Valaste, with him back to the Shivering Isles. Shalidor still rewards me with a "library" type function (recall all books / papers through a menu).
Afterwards, I went to track down the murderous Argonian fighters guild master with the Fighters Guild to Coldharbour, where she openly admits to the murder of the previous leader - all because Meridia demanded to get the Fighter's Guild involved against Molag Bal. Conveniently, his "back up" weapon is here and I end up assisting her in destroying it along with a traitorous khajiit who Molag Bal transforms into a Demon Dragon thing.
The murderous Argonian is spared, but stripped of the guild master title which goes to Mr. replacement guy. I'm just happy that's all done and I can go back to exploring!
Having been sent back to the Rift to deal with the problematic Reachmen who are allied with the Worm Cult, I make a detour to Riften (one of many to unload gear) and while there complete both Mages and Fighter's guild quest lines. For the Mages one, Shalidor uses the tomes to transport us to his missing island of Eyevea which Sheogorath has left littered with dremora. After cleaning those up we get to keep the island though Sheogorath does take the now insane tome decypherer, Valaste, with him back to the Shivering Isles. Shalidor still rewards me with a "library" type function (recall all books / papers through a menu).
Afterwards, I went to track down the murderous Argonian fighters guild master with the Fighters Guild to Coldharbour, where she openly admits to the murder of the previous leader - all because Meridia demanded to get the Fighter's Guild involved against Molag Bal. Conveniently, his "back up" weapon is here and I end up assisting her in destroying it along with a traitorous khajiit who Molag Bal transforms into a Demon Dragon thing.
Molag Bal should hand out boons more often - that looks cool!
The murderous Argonian is spared, but stripped of the guild master title which goes to Mr. replacement guy. I'm just happy that's all done and I can go back to exploring!
Wednesday, 1 March 2017
TESO: A Giant Problem
Adventures of Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Despite looking familiar, Riften had definitely changed. Quite possibly due to the recent attack from giants that leveled an entire corner that contained my house! There was no sign of Lucia or Sofie anywhere and the orphanage had been turned into a craft workshop, which as a silver lining sells increased bag space for gold! All the banks do the same too. Good design TESO!
With no leads on the girls I decide to just work on the problems at hand, helping the city put out fires and rebuild then dealing with Mannimarco's Worm Cultists prevalent in the surrounding area. This leads me to slaying a lich, putting pieces of Ysgrammor's axe together and meeting the Jarl King Jorunn, the leader ofthe Ebonheart Pact, laying seige to a Worm Cult stronghold - specifically the one where they raise dead giants! Yes, they were behind the attack on Riften.
I lead the charge and smash our way up to the final giant boss who is an absolute pain to fight, mainly because I've been forgetting to distribute my skill points. Fortunately, Jorunn is a cheater on god mode and with enough shenanigans the giant finally falls. The King, impressed with my skills, then charges me to get the leaders of the other factions to agree to a ceasefire so that we can all team up and attack their main base in Coldharbour. That sounds like a good plan!
Despite looking familiar, Riften had definitely changed. Quite possibly due to the recent attack from giants that leveled an entire corner that contained my house! There was no sign of Lucia or Sofie anywhere and the orphanage had been turned into a craft workshop, which as a silver lining sells increased bag space for gold! All the banks do the same too. Good design TESO!
With no leads on the girls I decide to just work on the problems at hand, helping the city put out fires and rebuild then dealing with Mannimarco's Worm Cultists prevalent in the surrounding area. This leads me to slaying a lich, putting pieces of Ysgrammor's axe together and meeting the Jarl King Jorunn, the leader ofthe Ebonheart Pact, laying seige to a Worm Cult stronghold - specifically the one where they raise dead giants! Yes, they were behind the attack on Riften.
I'm in the right spot, if only I can pull my sword out of my shoulder!
I lead the charge and smash our way up to the final giant boss who is an absolute pain to fight, mainly because I've been forgetting to distribute my skill points. Fortunately, Jorunn is a cheater on god mode and with enough shenanigans the giant finally falls. The King, impressed with my skills, then charges me to get the leaders of the other factions to agree to a ceasefire so that we can all team up and attack their main base in Coldharbour. That sounds like a good plan!
Tuesday, 28 February 2017
TESO: Old Friends
Adventures of Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
With the Covenant halted, I managed to get in touch with the Prophet again. After finding him hiding in a not so nearby cave/hovel, he tells me that Molag Bal's plan to take over Tamriel must be stopped. Well, duh... some mages have low INT I guess? I need allies first though, which makes sense since the local war mage committed semi-suicide, and the first one that pops into his mind is Lyris so once more he opens a portal to Coldharbour and I'm tasked with putting her back together (figuratively, since dremora enjoy mindbending torture). Somehow this involves much slaying of dremora but we escape just fine this time.
Alas, almost as soon as we return the Prophet wants us to go back to rescue someone else! Sigh. Unfortunately this time the region he sends us to keeps crashing me to the desktop so much (GFX overheat?) that I end up abandoning that game-breaking piece of shit mission, telling him to let Lyris handle it. Not happy TESO. Instead I decide to explore a dwemer ruin to look for some lost books for the Mages Guild. I guess it's like working for a library? Anyway, one such book spawns the spirit of Archmage Shalidor who asks my help in retrieving... more lost books. And an island. From Sheogorath.
I found Shalidor's four tomes really easily once I stepped through the gate he opened to the Shivering Isles. The guardian clanfear was really troublesome though, forcing me to learn how to quickslot potions. Of course Sheogorath wasn't going to just let me take all five tomes, instead he let me take one - offering the rest when I earned them. After taking the book back to the Mages guild for decyphering (Sheo cursed the books so that Shalidor couldn't do that), I was free to decide which way to travel so I hopped on my horse and headed North West to Riften! Because I needed to check on my daughters. o_o
With the Covenant halted, I managed to get in touch with the Prophet again. After finding him hiding in a not so nearby cave/hovel, he tells me that Molag Bal's plan to take over Tamriel must be stopped. Well, duh... some mages have low INT I guess? I need allies first though, which makes sense since the local war mage committed semi-suicide, and the first one that pops into his mind is Lyris so once more he opens a portal to Coldharbour and I'm tasked with putting her back together (figuratively, since dremora enjoy mindbending torture). Somehow this involves much slaying of dremora but we escape just fine this time.
Alas, almost as soon as we return the Prophet wants us to go back to rescue someone else! Sigh. Unfortunately this time the region he sends us to keeps crashing me to the desktop so much (GFX overheat?) that I end up abandoning that game-breaking piece of shit mission, telling him to let Lyris handle it. Not happy TESO. Instead I decide to explore a dwemer ruin to look for some lost books for the Mages Guild. I guess it's like working for a library? Anyway, one such book spawns the spirit of Archmage Shalidor who asks my help in retrieving... more lost books. And an island. From Sheogorath.
Seems they have a long standing feud.
I found Shalidor's four tomes really easily once I stepped through the gate he opened to the Shivering Isles. The guardian clanfear was really troublesome though, forcing me to learn how to quickslot potions. Of course Sheogorath wasn't going to just let me take all five tomes, instead he let me take one - offering the rest when I earned them. After taking the book back to the Mages guild for decyphering (Sheo cursed the books so that Shalidor couldn't do that), I was free to decide which way to travel so I hopped on my horse and headed North West to Riften! Because I needed to check on my daughters. o_o
Saturday, 18 February 2017
Skyrim: 30 Days of Skyrim
Might as well be part of my Skyrim Adventure Journal! You can read the whole story here!
Turns out there's this "30 Days of Skyrim" challenge floating about, and since I've raked up hundreds upon hundreds of hours on the game I thought I'd give it a crack. Also rather than spread it out for 30 days I'm just going to hit them all at once. :)
Day One: Which race did you chose?
I always go with Nord. The natives of Skyrim. Which happens to be my character name.
Day Two: Mage, Warrior, Rogue or mixed class?
I always start with Rogue, then eventually mix into Warrior and only at the very end do I pick up magic skills. I don't mind worlds with magic, I just don't like being a magic user.
Day Three: Favorite Quest Line.
The Forgotten City Mod. It's fantastic.
Day Four: Favorite Quest Mission.
To Kill an Empire, and any others that involve directly slaying Thalmor or Imperial people.
Day Five: Favorite Faction.
Dawnguard. Definitely my type of crazies. :)
Day Six: Least Favorite Quest Line.
A Night to Remember (the one you get drunk). Did it for completion but it's ultimately stupid.
Day Seven: Least Favorite Quest.
No Stone Unturned. It's a collection quest. Blergh.
Also, Diplomatic Immunity because I'm not allowed to eradicate all the Thalmor in their estate.
Day Eight: Favourite Companion(s)
Serana from the Dawnguard DLC since she has the most backstory and is easy on the eyes. Brutus Brutalus [from the Summerset Isle Mod] was a real ass kicker though for whatever reason.
Day Nine: Favorite City
Whiterun, it's in the middle of everything and has a nice layout to the place.
Day Ten: Favorite Hold
Again Whiterun. I like the open, rolling, non-snowy plains. I also quite like the wandering giants and mammoths!
Day Eleven: Favorite antagonist.
Samel from the Inferno Mods. The guy just keeps coming back!
Day Twelve: Favorite Shout(s)
For a long time it was Dragonrend, but recent mods have me favoring Slow Time and Become Ethereal.
Day Thirteen: Favorite Spell(s)
None really, since I'm not a mage. I suppose the light ones are useful every now and then.
Day Fourteen: Favorite Weapon(s)
Paralyzing bows and paralyzing knives. Eventually graduated to dragon slaying katana and oblivion sword though (from the Death Mountain Mod).
Day Fifteen: Favorite in game book
Day Sixteen: Least Favourite Creature
Slaughter fish, mainly because they are hard to target and pointless to fight.
Day Seventeen: Horder or no?
Not really items wise, but gold - wow I love gold. Despite having over a hundred thousand coins I still open baskets and nightstands to take all the coins I can find.
Day Eighteen: Favorite House.
Solitude. It's spacious and pretty functional.
Day Nineteen: Mods or no mods?
Definitely Mods. They add so much content to the game!
Day Twenty: What do hate most about Skyrim?
NPCs try to fight me when I'm clearly out of their league. They should either flee in terror at this point or simply surrender immediately.
Day Twenty One: Funniest thing you’ve done.
Chain executed maybe 20-30 enemies from the Sinister Seven Mod as they chased me through a door to a new area.
Day Twenty Two: Funniest glitch you’ve encountered
Dead dragon in Riften. Respawns dead. :P
Day Twenty Three: Favorite Song.
The dragon fighting music!
Day Twenty Four: Stormcloak Rebel, Imperial Legionnaire or neither?
Stormcloaks forever. Imperials are pussies since they lost/had to make peace with a bunch of elves. HUMANS MUST REIGN SUPREME ABOVE ALL OTHERS!
Day Twenty Five: Vampire, Werewolf or Vigilant of Stendarr?
Vigilant of Stendarr I guess, though I never really wear that title. Guess it fits somewhat though. Dislike of magic, slayer of non-humans. *nods*
Day Twenty Six: Favorite Armor set
Mastermind's Armor from the Sinister Seven Mod. The darker it gets, the faster you can move ultimately twice or three times of someone on horseback. Especially useful in dungeons where you can sprint up to an enemy (from the front) in stealth and execute them before they can draw their weapons!
Day Twenty Seven: One thing you would change about Skyrim
Let the game handle thousands of combatants in combat without crashing.
Day Twenty Eight: Who did you marry in game?
Njada, because she's a human Nord. I quite like her scars too. For me they make her look better than the ones who have flawless skin.
Day Twenty Nine: Favourite Deadra
Sheogorath. I'm biased though, since I really liked him in Oblivion and the Shivering Isles too. Still disliked his quest here.
Day Thirty: What do you love most about Skyrim?
The dragons!
Turns out there's this "30 Days of Skyrim" challenge floating about, and since I've raked up hundreds upon hundreds of hours on the game I thought I'd give it a crack. Also rather than spread it out for 30 days I'm just going to hit them all at once. :)
Day One: Which race did you chose?
I always go with Nord. The natives of Skyrim. Which happens to be my character name.
Day Two: Mage, Warrior, Rogue or mixed class?
I always start with Rogue, then eventually mix into Warrior and only at the very end do I pick up magic skills. I don't mind worlds with magic, I just don't like being a magic user.
Day Three: Favorite Quest Line.
The Forgotten City Mod. It's fantastic.
Day Four: Favorite Quest Mission.
To Kill an Empire, and any others that involve directly slaying Thalmor or Imperial people.
Day Five: Favorite Faction.
Dawnguard. Definitely my type of crazies. :)
Day Six: Least Favorite Quest Line.
A Night to Remember (the one you get drunk). Did it for completion but it's ultimately stupid.
Day Seven: Least Favorite Quest.
No Stone Unturned. It's a collection quest. Blergh.
Also, Diplomatic Immunity because I'm not allowed to eradicate all the Thalmor in their estate.
Day Eight: Favourite Companion(s)
Serana from the Dawnguard DLC since she has the most backstory and is easy on the eyes. Brutus Brutalus [from the Summerset Isle Mod] was a real ass kicker though for whatever reason.
Day Nine: Favorite City
Whiterun, it's in the middle of everything and has a nice layout to the place.
Day Ten: Favorite Hold
Again Whiterun. I like the open, rolling, non-snowy plains. I also quite like the wandering giants and mammoths!
Day Eleven: Favorite antagonist.
Samel from the Inferno Mods. The guy just keeps coming back!
Day Twelve: Favorite Shout(s)
For a long time it was Dragonrend, but recent mods have me favoring Slow Time and Become Ethereal.
Day Thirteen: Favorite Spell(s)
None really, since I'm not a mage. I suppose the light ones are useful every now and then.
Day Fourteen: Favorite Weapon(s)
Paralyzing bows and paralyzing knives. Eventually graduated to dragon slaying katana and oblivion sword though (from the Death Mountain Mod).
Day Fifteen: Favorite in game book
This one from the Death Mountain Mod! :P
Day Sixteen: Least Favourite Creature
Slaughter fish, mainly because they are hard to target and pointless to fight.
Day Seventeen: Horder or no?
Not really items wise, but gold - wow I love gold. Despite having over a hundred thousand coins I still open baskets and nightstands to take all the coins I can find.
Day Eighteen: Favorite House.
Solitude. It's spacious and pretty functional.
Day Nineteen: Mods or no mods?
Definitely Mods. They add so much content to the game!
Day Twenty: What do hate most about Skyrim?
NPCs try to fight me when I'm clearly out of their league. They should either flee in terror at this point or simply surrender immediately.
Day Twenty One: Funniest thing you’ve done.
Chain executed maybe 20-30 enemies from the Sinister Seven Mod as they chased me through a door to a new area.
Day Twenty Two: Funniest glitch you’ve encountered
Dead dragon in Riften. Respawns dead. :P
Day Twenty Three: Favorite Song.
The dragon fighting music!
Day Twenty Four: Stormcloak Rebel, Imperial Legionnaire or neither?
Stormcloaks forever. Imperials are pussies since they lost/had to make peace with a bunch of elves. HUMANS MUST REIGN SUPREME ABOVE ALL OTHERS!
Day Twenty Five: Vampire, Werewolf or Vigilant of Stendarr?
Vigilant of Stendarr I guess, though I never really wear that title. Guess it fits somewhat though. Dislike of magic, slayer of non-humans. *nods*
Day Twenty Six: Favorite Armor set
Mastermind's Armor from the Sinister Seven Mod. The darker it gets, the faster you can move ultimately twice or three times of someone on horseback. Especially useful in dungeons where you can sprint up to an enemy (from the front) in stealth and execute them before they can draw their weapons!
Day Twenty Seven: One thing you would change about Skyrim
Let the game handle thousands of combatants in combat without crashing.
Day Twenty Eight: Who did you marry in game?
Njada, because she's a human Nord. I quite like her scars too. For me they make her look better than the ones who have flawless skin.
Day Twenty Nine: Favourite Deadra
Sheogorath. I'm biased though, since I really liked him in Oblivion and the Shivering Isles too. Still disliked his quest here.
Day Thirty: What do you love most about Skyrim?
The dragons!
Saturday, 5 November 2016
Skyrim: Yngvarr's Folly
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
We find Yngvarr and the last of his troops at the temple which holds the Heart of the Gods. Too bad for him, his wizards hadn't yet disabled the magic shield protecting it and so he began trying to stall by giving the longest speeches ever. For some, unfathomable reason he challenges me to a duel right then and there. I laugh at his face and accept, slaying him with the very first strike which he couldn't even react to. I'm guessing that's not what was supposed to happen? Haha.
Shocked by this Yngvarr's remaining men surrendered to Jarl Agnar who then got them to seal the temple. With our work here complete, I teleported my team back to Skyrim (that Asylum spell is fantastic) and spent a night of quiet celebratory dinner at my Riften home. Lucia and Sofie were happy to see us too and enjoyed the the gifts I brought back for them. Sofie apparently tamed a rabbit as well and I let her keep it as a pet.
It was nice to have a short time of not doing anything important, playing tag with the kids and listening to Sofia's stories. A message from Medeliu Hammar ended that though as he had a job for us: to find his son in Blackreach.
Running low on henchmen there Mr. Bad guy.
We find Yngvarr and the last of his troops at the temple which holds the Heart of the Gods. Too bad for him, his wizards hadn't yet disabled the magic shield protecting it and so he began trying to stall by giving the longest speeches ever. For some, unfathomable reason he challenges me to a duel right then and there. I laugh at his face and accept, slaying him with the very first strike which he couldn't even react to. I'm guessing that's not what was supposed to happen? Haha.
Shocked by this Yngvarr's remaining men surrendered to Jarl Agnar who then got them to seal the temple. With our work here complete, I teleported my team back to Skyrim (that Asylum spell is fantastic) and spent a night of quiet celebratory dinner at my Riften home. Lucia and Sofie were happy to see us too and enjoyed the the gifts I brought back for them. Sofie apparently tamed a rabbit as well and I let her keep it as a pet.
I don't remember what the food was, but judging from the empty plates it was good.
It was nice to have a short time of not doing anything important, playing tag with the kids and listening to Sofia's stories. A message from Medeliu Hammar ended that though as he had a job for us: to find his son in Blackreach.
Tuesday, 25 October 2016
Skyrim: Falskaar
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
After our adventurers in Lull-Mor, Sofia and I regrouped with Bandit (who basically missed out on all the fun) and returned to Riften to check on my adopted kids Sofie and Lucia. After giving them gifts and absurd amounts of coin (because I can) we are approached by an old guy who asks us to check on a nearby mine as he saw some never-do-wells nearby. Thinking it would be a quick task, I accepted, only to find a bandit army and their reverend dragon camped out there! Fortunately Riften's Jarl had sent out some guards to assist, while led to another overwhelming victory.
The cave itself has a few more bandits but more interestingly a magic portal! This one way trip sends Bandit, Sofia and myself to another ruin where we are immediately met by a guardsman who asks for help to save someone from bandits further in the cave. We do so easily, and are rewarded with a delivery quest to the nearby town of ... Amber Creek? Where the heck are we?
There's no shortage of things to do when we finally get to the town, as almost everyone has either misplaced or needs something from the surrounding areas. One of the main themes is that the local thugs seem to all be organizing and thanks to a warning given to one of the townsfolk, my team is sent to stop that attack from ever happening.
This leads us to raiding a fortress full of them, and during the attack Bandit (my ally) takes a fatal arrow to the head by a khajiit sniper who won their ranged duel thanks to his superior position up in the ramparts. It takes us awhile to get in there, but when I find him I make sure to separate his head from his shoulders.
After our adventurers in Lull-Mor, Sofia and I regrouped with Bandit (who basically missed out on all the fun) and returned to Riften to check on my adopted kids Sofie and Lucia. After giving them gifts and absurd amounts of coin (because I can) we are approached by an old guy who asks us to check on a nearby mine as he saw some never-do-wells nearby. Thinking it would be a quick task, I accepted, only to find a bandit army and their reverend dragon camped out there! Fortunately Riften's Jarl had sent out some guards to assist, while led to another overwhelming victory.
Strength in numbers!
The cave itself has a few more bandits but more interestingly a magic portal! This one way trip sends Bandit, Sofia and myself to another ruin where we are immediately met by a guardsman who asks for help to save someone from bandits further in the cave. We do so easily, and are rewarded with a delivery quest to the nearby town of ... Amber Creek? Where the heck are we?
There's no shortage of things to do when we finally get to the town, as almost everyone has either misplaced or needs something from the surrounding areas. One of the main themes is that the local thugs seem to all be organizing and thanks to a warning given to one of the townsfolk, my team is sent to stop that attack from ever happening.
This looks like the place.
This leads us to raiding a fortress full of them, and during the attack Bandit (my ally) takes a fatal arrow to the head by a khajiit sniper who won their ranged duel thanks to his superior position up in the ramparts. It takes us awhile to get in there, but when I find him I make sure to separate his head from his shoulders.
Tuesday, 27 September 2016
Skyrim: Crazy Cats
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Turns out the Khajiit's of Elswyr also submitted to the Thalmor after the White Gold Concordat was signed, but this particular group were rebels which made me really happy. After clearing the woods of some mini dinosaurs and huge spiders, Bo, Sofia and I were given an airship whith Khulam the telepath khajiit navigator and Skull Cat the khajiit pirate to stop a small Thalmor incursion (with their Igma, monkey allies) into the jungle which culminates in airborne boarding! Sofia executes their commander in his quarters.
After beating up some argonian pirates we also handle their other problem in the form of a fat Sload who wants to eat everything. He's stupid enough to get us to find food for him though which gives an easy opportunity to poison and subsequently kill him while he is weakened. Oh, and he had some sort of viral bomb which we "disarmed" (by killing an infected dinosaur) too.
With that done and the rebellion trully underway here it's time to bid farewell to my new crazy cat friends and head back to Skyrim. I'm going to miss them.
Our first stop upon getting back was my house where Rayya had made absolutely ZERO progress in decorating it. Where the hell is all my gold going you incompetent steward? Anyway, since that is going nowhere I decide to convert the alchemy lab in my Riften property into some children's bedrooms to adopt two little girls: Sofie the flower seller at Windhelm and Lucia the beggar Whiterun. I think Njada would have liked that. And at least here, they get to play with the other kids at the orphanage.
There's no cat like Skullcat!
Turns out the Khajiit's of Elswyr also submitted to the Thalmor after the White Gold Concordat was signed, but this particular group were rebels which made me really happy. After clearing the woods of some mini dinosaurs and huge spiders, Bo, Sofia and I were given an airship whith Khulam the telepath khajiit navigator and Skull Cat the khajiit pirate to stop a small Thalmor incursion (with their Igma, monkey allies) into the jungle which culminates in airborne boarding! Sofia executes their commander in his quarters.
Airship boarding!
After beating up some argonian pirates we also handle their other problem in the form of a fat Sload who wants to eat everything. He's stupid enough to get us to find food for him though which gives an easy opportunity to poison and subsequently kill him while he is weakened. Oh, and he had some sort of viral bomb which we "disarmed" (by killing an infected dinosaur) too.
Fat bastard.
With that done and the rebellion trully underway here it's time to bid farewell to my new crazy cat friends and head back to Skyrim. I'm going to miss them.
Aww... I'm going to miss them a lot!
Our first stop upon getting back was my house where Rayya had made absolutely ZERO progress in decorating it. Where the hell is all my gold going you incompetent steward? Anyway, since that is going nowhere I decide to convert the alchemy lab in my Riften property into some children's bedrooms to adopt two little girls: Sofie the flower seller at Windhelm and Lucia the beggar Whiterun. I think Njada would have liked that. And at least here, they get to play with the other kids at the orphanage.
So strange. So strange.
Monday, 5 September 2016
Skyrim: The Fall of Solitude
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Frea was having fun traipsing around the mainland with me, collecting taproots from spriggans, briarheart hearts, and random grapes from the local stores. My horse Red Shadow, who isn't allowed on boats due to too much pooping and thus never made it to Solstheim, took a liking to her too. They'd ride around while I'd fly up above on my tamed ancient dragon. Bend will is pretty cool. Pity the dragon goes hostile again after a bit, so that didn't end well for the flying lizard. :P
It was while heading out from Solitude that we chanced upon a huge bandit force coming to attack the town. As in Whiterun and Riften before it, I went to rally all the people in the city but could only muster less than a handful of willing warriors. Since I've been taking a "if they survive on their own, they deserve to live" stance lately I watched the battle play out as townsfolk and guards alike were slaughtered. Frea did her best to rally the defenders but when her allies fell she was surrounded and was pounded to death.
The bandits then stormed the city, slaughtering all in their path. Even the Penitus Occultus losers got taken down more easily than the bards in their college. With total chaos across the city I waited on the throne of the Blue Palace (because that's where the boss would be) and sure enough the bandits came to try take it for themselves. They failed.
Despite their defeat, the number of citizens remaining now could be counted on one hand. The days of Solitude were at an end.
Wish I knew how to pilot this beast...
Frea was having fun traipsing around the mainland with me, collecting taproots from spriggans, briarheart hearts, and random grapes from the local stores. My horse Red Shadow, who isn't allowed on boats due to too much pooping and thus never made it to Solstheim, took a liking to her too. They'd ride around while I'd fly up above on my tamed ancient dragon. Bend will is pretty cool. Pity the dragon goes hostile again after a bit, so that didn't end well for the flying lizard. :P
Gimme your grapes!
It was while heading out from Solitude that we chanced upon a huge bandit force coming to attack the town. As in Whiterun and Riften before it, I went to rally all the people in the city but could only muster less than a handful of willing warriors. Since I've been taking a "if they survive on their own, they deserve to live" stance lately I watched the battle play out as townsfolk and guards alike were slaughtered. Frea did her best to rally the defenders but when her allies fell she was surrounded and was pounded to death.
The bandit mage is right for once!
The bandits then stormed the city, slaughtering all in their path. Even the Penitus Occultus losers got taken down more easily than the bards in their college. With total chaos across the city I waited on the throne of the Blue Palace (because that's where the boss would be) and sure enough the bandits came to try take it for themselves. They failed.
Despite their defeat, the number of citizens remaining now could be counted on one hand. The days of Solitude were at an end.
Monday, 22 August 2016
Skyrim: About Jarling Time
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
After but a few days of Jarling Whiterun (Jarling: Sitting on the throne and pretending to be important), a courier came with interesting news of land being sold at Falkreath that I couldn't pass up, because property is always a good investment! One short trip and 5,000 gold later I had the deed to the land in my hand. B.T. and I also met Rayya, a Redguard housecarl gifted to me by Falkreath's Jarl. She was totally jealous of B.T. though and refused to join.
Before we could even step out of town we were set upon by a pair of odd looking cultists, and after suffering a swift end I discovered that they were sent by something named Miraak from someplace called Solstheim. Probably need to think through what you write down on paper, bad guys! I opted to take a look at my new land first though and found... nothing. I'd have to -construct- a house! Whaaaat?
Instead of doing that I decided to visit Riften first, as I'd also received a letter recommending I try adoption. It was immediately clear that I wasn't a suitable candidate. Fortunately my trip wasn't wasted, as the town came under bandit attack just as we were leaving. Rallying almost the entire town into the battle, the bandits (who were led by two imperial soldiers), were cut down to the last man.
At that point I decided it was time to see where those cultists came from, and hopped on a boat to Solstheim. Guess I should mention that due to my continued absence, the people of Whiterun elected a new Jarl on their own. :P
After but a few days of Jarling Whiterun (Jarling: Sitting on the throne and pretending to be important), a courier came with interesting news of land being sold at Falkreath that I couldn't pass up, because property is always a good investment! One short trip and 5,000 gold later I had the deed to the land in my hand. B.T. and I also met Rayya, a Redguard housecarl gifted to me by Falkreath's Jarl. She was totally jealous of B.T. though and refused to join.
How can they even see?
Before we could even step out of town we were set upon by a pair of odd looking cultists, and after suffering a swift end I discovered that they were sent by something named Miraak from someplace called Solstheim. Probably need to think through what you write down on paper, bad guys! I opted to take a look at my new land first though and found... nothing. I'd have to -construct- a house! Whaaaat?
Instead of doing that I decided to visit Riften first, as I'd also received a letter recommending I try adoption. It was immediately clear that I wasn't a suitable candidate. Fortunately my trip wasn't wasted, as the town came under bandit attack just as we were leaving. Rallying almost the entire town into the battle, the bandits (who were led by two imperial soldiers), were cut down to the last man.
To battle!
At that point I decided it was time to see where those cultists came from, and hopped on a boat to Solstheim. Guess I should mention that due to my continued absence, the people of Whiterun elected a new Jarl on their own. :P
Sunday, 21 August 2016
Skyrim: Non-Starters
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Riften turned out to be a very short stop on my equally short bandit hunting quest. The trail of pushover brigands, some of whom fought each other because one was a werewolf (lol, what was going on there?) I finally found their boss, Fin, beneath the College of Winterhold. It was a short duel, and while he had decent speed I was simply too agile for him.
The surviving mages then told me of the return of the Master Dragons, Alduin's liutenants (who by this tale are a few years too late). Alas compared to the monstrous dragons I've already fought they are but a footnote and were easily hunted and executed. Finally I could get back to Jarling - but upon return to Whiterun I found it under attack by a group of bandits who were soundly being defeated by the guards. I watched with pride as my guardsmen sent them packing. I tailed a few of the good looking survivors back to Riverwood where they agreed to work for me instead of being executed. I got B.T. to join the party while her compatriots Bandit, Marauder and Bo guarded the small village.
Back at Whiterun the guards informed me of some Oblivion Gate opening nearby, but when I went to the spot there was nothing there. Looks like once again, they had everything under control! Finally back in town, Belethor let me take a look a new book in his shop - one that transported me to a modern motel with a horror motif. This asylum was indeed quite creepy, complete with mute people blankly staring into space, but with all the locked doors it soon became boring and I teleported my self back to Whiterun to do some actual work.
Riften turned out to be a very short stop on my equally short bandit hunting quest. The trail of pushover brigands, some of whom fought each other because one was a werewolf (lol, what was going on there?) I finally found their boss, Fin, beneath the College of Winterhold. It was a short duel, and while he had decent speed I was simply too agile for him.
The surviving mages then told me of the return of the Master Dragons, Alduin's liutenants (who by this tale are a few years too late). Alas compared to the monstrous dragons I've already fought they are but a footnote and were easily hunted and executed. Finally I could get back to Jarling - but upon return to Whiterun I found it under attack by a group of bandits who were soundly being defeated by the guards. I watched with pride as my guardsmen sent them packing. I tailed a few of the good looking survivors back to Riverwood where they agreed to work for me instead of being executed. I got B.T. to join the party while her compatriots Bandit, Marauder and Bo guarded the small village.
It seems dragons come in all colors now...
Back at Whiterun the guards informed me of some Oblivion Gate opening nearby, but when I went to the spot there was nothing there. Looks like once again, they had everything under control! Finally back in town, Belethor let me take a look a new book in his shop - one that transported me to a modern motel with a horror motif. This asylum was indeed quite creepy, complete with mute people blankly staring into space, but with all the locked doors it soon became boring and I teleported my self back to Whiterun to do some actual work.
Why anyone would want a painting of that hanging around is a mystery.
Thursday, 18 August 2016
Skyrim: The Bold and the Clueless
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Having survived the ascended shrine I returned to Whiterun for some restful Jarling but that wasn't to be as my old student, Braga Clearwater, met with me just inside the gates. She was investigating a recent spike in banditry and asked if I could help. Of course I said yes! Her clues had led her to the local hall of the dead where indeed we found some strange folk hanging around like "Naura the Clueless" and "Manrik the Bold". I let Braga do her thing and we found further correspondence pointing to the Riften Ratway.
By coincidence a courier found us before we left town with a message from the Jarl of Riften, to investigate the (not so) abandoned Ravensburg Castle as bandits have been kidnapping people around it as of late. Since it's on the way we decide "Sure why not". It's pretty hard to miss, and quite devoid of life. The man we meet in the courtyard sets the tone of the place with just his name: Nikolai Van Hellsing. He's been investigating the castle too but has terrible direction sense and hasn't been able to get anywhere. LOL.
Inside the spacious and dark interior we keep hearing a disembodied voice taunting us. It's also a non-standard map in that the doors teleport you around making the place slightly challenging to navigate and giving Van Hellsing's excuse some weight. Fortunately it isn't very well defended. In the basement we find some giant spiders, skeletons and hell hounds who are all bark and no bite. It's the number of key requiring locked doors that really block our path.
Having survived the ascended shrine I returned to Whiterun for some restful Jarling but that wasn't to be as my old student, Braga Clearwater, met with me just inside the gates. She was investigating a recent spike in banditry and asked if I could help. Of course I said yes! Her clues had led her to the local hall of the dead where indeed we found some strange folk hanging around like "Naura the Clueless" and "Manrik the Bold". I let Braga do her thing and we found further correspondence pointing to the Riften Ratway.
By coincidence a courier found us before we left town with a message from the Jarl of Riften, to investigate the (not so) abandoned Ravensburg Castle as bandits have been kidnapping people around it as of late. Since it's on the way we decide "Sure why not". It's pretty hard to miss, and quite devoid of life. The man we meet in the courtyard sets the tone of the place with just his name: Nikolai Van Hellsing. He's been investigating the castle too but has terrible direction sense and hasn't been able to get anywhere. LOL.
Nothing says sneaking like playing the organ at full blast!
Inside the spacious and dark interior we keep hearing a disembodied voice taunting us. It's also a non-standard map in that the doors teleport you around making the place slightly challenging to navigate and giving Van Hellsing's excuse some weight. Fortunately it isn't very well defended. In the basement we find some giant spiders, skeletons and hell hounds who are all bark and no bite. It's the number of key requiring locked doors that really block our path.
Hell hounds: the original hot dogs.
Saturday, 23 July 2016
Skyrim: Tomb of the Nerevarine
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Mellori was happy with all the trinkets I've been retrieving for her, and the next one was a doozy: a little hammer called Sunder. Supposedly it was buried with the Nerevarine centuries ago, the hero of Morrowind who slew Dagoth Ur in the Red Mountain. It certainly wasn't me because a) I'm still alive and b) I didn't kill Dagoth Ur with a hammer. I just pushed him into a volcano (which was awesome btw :P).
Anyway, Brutus would have to stay behind again because he had to help clean up the town after being caught littering.
The ship to Morrowind was really fast. Pretty much instantaneous even. If I wasn't reading carefully I'd even think the Nerevarine's tomb was IN the ship. A small Imperial party was idling in the tomb when I got there. Apparently they all tried to take the hammer and were deemed unworthy - turning into Hollows (someone certainly watches Bleach) who forever were trapped in the tomb.
While not openly aggressive immediately, I obviously had a conflicting opinion with their captain and ... well. I set them free. Finally I reached the burial chamber myself and who do I find waiting there?
Mellori was happy with all the trinkets I've been retrieving for her, and the next one was a doozy: a little hammer called Sunder. Supposedly it was buried with the Nerevarine centuries ago, the hero of Morrowind who slew Dagoth Ur in the Red Mountain. It certainly wasn't me because a) I'm still alive and b) I didn't kill Dagoth Ur with a hammer. I just pushed him into a volcano (which was awesome btw :P).
Anyway, Brutus would have to stay behind again because he had to help clean up the town after being caught littering.
"But it doesn't fit in any of the bins..."
The ship to Morrowind was really fast. Pretty much instantaneous even. If I wasn't reading carefully I'd even think the Nerevarine's tomb was IN the ship. A small Imperial party was idling in the tomb when I got there. Apparently they all tried to take the hammer and were deemed unworthy - turning into Hollows (someone certainly watches Bleach) who forever were trapped in the tomb.
While not openly aggressive immediately, I obviously had a conflicting opinion with their captain and ... well. I set them free. Finally I reached the burial chamber myself and who do I find waiting there?
Azura, the Daedric Prince(ss) of Dusk and Dawn
Tuesday, 19 July 2016
Skyrim: Mellori's Minions
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
The dreamer wasn't doing anything criminal (I think) so we left him and headed down to the ratway. Fortunately all the thieves I previously killed were still dead, only Galathil the face changer was there. Unfortunately she admitted to having Imperial and Dominion clients which led me to punching her in the face, followed by Brutus running her through.
There was a new weapon shop in town too, "The Iron Lass" run by Mellori who had some tasks for us. First was to help her friend Old Jako clear out a draugr tomb. The veteran didn't have it in him to do in his old comrades so I let Brutus watch over him while I did the deed.
Next we were sent to find a clockwork heart in a dwemer ruin, near Nerelia's house. After briefly dropping in to check that she was ok, we continued on and found a bandit running from a pair of angry giants and their mammoths. We watched as the bandit we splattered, and then one of the mammoths attacked Brutus. Big mistake.
I simply sat back and watched him demolish all the enemies with ease, single handedly.
The dreamer wasn't doing anything criminal (I think) so we left him and headed down to the ratway. Fortunately all the thieves I previously killed were still dead, only Galathil the face changer was there. Unfortunately she admitted to having Imperial and Dominion clients which led me to punching her in the face, followed by Brutus running her through.
There was a new weapon shop in town too, "The Iron Lass" run by Mellori who had some tasks for us. First was to help her friend Old Jako clear out a draugr tomb. The veteran didn't have it in him to do in his old comrades so I let Brutus watch over him while I did the deed.
The Iron Lass needs to make more light sources in her store.
Next we were sent to find a clockwork heart in a dwemer ruin, near Nerelia's house. After briefly dropping in to check that she was ok, we continued on and found a bandit running from a pair of angry giants and their mammoths. We watched as the bandit we splattered, and then one of the mammoths attacked Brutus. Big mistake.
One hit KO, but not the way you'd think.
I simply sat back and watched him demolish all the enemies with ease, single handedly.
Monday, 18 July 2016
Skyrim: Return to Nirn
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
After eight or so maps of falling I finally ended up... on a UFO? What? Someone call XCOM! Haha! The view was amazing though. There were also some really cool shoes that negate falling damage just sitting there, which I figured I'd need - on the way down! LOL! Definitely one of the strangest adventures I've come across so far.
It was back to business when I was back on Nirn, as Brutus told me Njada had been kidnapped (again) by a vampire and his bandit cronies. We made a beeline for the shipwreck that served as their base, and Brutus showed off his talent by killing everything himself. All I did was free Njada. Why do I even give her weapons? *sigh*
Decided to head to Riften to see if there were any rumors about where those bandits came from, and instead I find a more disturbing encounter, a dunmer "dreamer" who keeps talking about his resurrected lord who speaks to him in his dreams: Dagoth Ur.
And you thought Death Mountain was weird!
After eight or so maps of falling I finally ended up... on a UFO? What? Someone call XCOM! Haha! The view was amazing though. There were also some really cool shoes that negate falling damage just sitting there, which I figured I'd need - on the way down! LOL! Definitely one of the strangest adventures I've come across so far.
Prepare for re-entry!
It was back to business when I was back on Nirn, as Brutus told me Njada had been kidnapped (again) by a vampire and his bandit cronies. We made a beeline for the shipwreck that served as their base, and Brutus showed off his talent by killing everything himself. All I did was free Njada. Why do I even give her weapons? *sigh*
Decided to head to Riften to see if there were any rumors about where those bandits came from, and instead I find a more disturbing encounter, a dunmer "dreamer" who keeps talking about his resurrected lord who speaks to him in his dreams: Dagoth Ur.
Not you guys again!
Tuesday, 15 January 2013
A Crushing Victory
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
After the battle I quickly marched back to Jovasskr where I found the traitorous draugr Ria hiding under her bed. After executing her for treason right there, I took a quick casualty list around the town. Those that had died included the sorceress Golda, Fulmine Knight, Kayla Grunzwald, Manya Esperanza, Andurs the priest, Juliette the maid, and Sinchan the Stinky - though his 4 other compatriots and one travelling Blades named Angelica survived the ordeal. Also lost all but four of the guards in town but I knew their numbers would quickly come back given Whiterun's prime location in the scheme of things.
Mounted up alone to do another lure run and headed back to the two orsimer camps. The smaller one had only one soldier left so I took care of him right there, making him a pin cushion. Their main base however still had seven, and as an aside a bunch of Stormcloaks were trying to attack the base from Rorikstead but were intercepted by a small imperial contigent. Their battle ended really quickly when an ancient dragon decided to show up and roast them all. His appearance gave me a change of plans. Instead of luring the orcs I instead helped the dragon to fight them, letting him breathe his fire while I made them run circles.
It chomped only one of the orcs before they finally killed it, but by that stage the rest were really hurt so I called Dummy to distract a pair while I dismounted and slew four in close quarters before hunting down the remaining two. At the end, no more of their clan were breathing. I looted what I could from their camps and set them alight with fires of victory. Doing one last sweep I noticed there was an extra casualty here - Mai'q the liar was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
I wanted to track down the coward Torvar next, and I had a good idea of where he would be. Rode quickly to Riften and snuck into the Ratway where lo and behold, Brynjolf was waiting for me. No longer protected by fate I challenged the conspirator to a duel and ran him through at the center of the little walkway. I then proceeded deeper into the Ratway killing a random vagrant before finally finding the coward Torvar hiding in Esbern's old hole in the wall. I wasted no time beheading the bastard - hopefully this time he will stay dead.
I breathed a sigh of relief with those lose ends tied up and headed back to the surface. Hopefully now this war torn region would know some peace.
After the battle I quickly marched back to Jovasskr where I found the traitorous draugr Ria hiding under her bed. After executing her for treason right there, I took a quick casualty list around the town. Those that had died included the sorceress Golda, Fulmine Knight, Kayla Grunzwald, Manya Esperanza, Andurs the priest, Juliette the maid, and Sinchan the Stinky - though his 4 other compatriots and one travelling Blades named Angelica survived the ordeal. Also lost all but four of the guards in town but I knew their numbers would quickly come back given Whiterun's prime location in the scheme of things.
Mounted up alone to do another lure run and headed back to the two orsimer camps. The smaller one had only one soldier left so I took care of him right there, making him a pin cushion. Their main base however still had seven, and as an aside a bunch of Stormcloaks were trying to attack the base from Rorikstead but were intercepted by a small imperial contigent. Their battle ended really quickly when an ancient dragon decided to show up and roast them all. His appearance gave me a change of plans. Instead of luring the orcs I instead helped the dragon to fight them, letting him breathe his fire while I made them run circles.
It chomped only one of the orcs before they finally killed it, but by that stage the rest were really hurt so I called Dummy to distract a pair while I dismounted and slew four in close quarters before hunting down the remaining two. At the end, no more of their clan were breathing. I looted what I could from their camps and set them alight with fires of victory. Doing one last sweep I noticed there was an extra casualty here - Mai'q the liar was at the wrong place at the wrong time.
I wanted to track down the coward Torvar next, and I had a good idea of where he would be. Rode quickly to Riften and snuck into the Ratway where lo and behold, Brynjolf was waiting for me. No longer protected by fate I challenged the conspirator to a duel and ran him through at the center of the little walkway. I then proceeded deeper into the Ratway killing a random vagrant before finally finding the coward Torvar hiding in Esbern's old hole in the wall. I wasted no time beheading the bastard - hopefully this time he will stay dead.
I breathed a sigh of relief with those lose ends tied up and headed back to the surface. Hopefully now this war torn region would know some peace.
Sunday, 13 January 2013
King of the Hill
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
I had to change my usual visit somewhat in that this time I didn't want to kill any of the guards, if possible, because I was going to need them against those orcs. Fortunately I still had an invisibility potion that let me sprint up all the way into Dragonsreach undetected. There on the throne waited Jarl Bossman, discussing with his court mage how clever his plan was. He was supplying the orcs with free passage and supplies while they run about and decimate as many Stormcloaks as they can while the Imperials rebuild their army to take back the region (following their loss in the civil war). The Riften thieves guild (ie. Brynjolf) was in on it too, providing scouts, maps, intel, and occasionally kidnapping a girl here or there for Jarl Bossman's pleasure. The punk made me so angry I smashed my hand down on a nearby table - and became visible. We all drew our weapons simultaneously and I was surprised to find an ally here - a maid named Juliette who was tired of being Jarl Bossman's toy.
One by one I cut all of his court down but I left Jarl Bossman himself to be executed by his own servant who thanked me profusely after plugging a final arrow into his head. As if on cue more guardsmen came into the castle and between the two of us we tried to explain about what the Jarl had been doing and of the orc threat but they were having none of it so I opted for a diffent route. Since all of these idiots are greedy bastards I simply bribed them to work for me. After all my adventures I could afford it anyway and they easily accepted the sound of gold, swearing their service to me (until there's a better offer ofcourse) but for now, I was King of the Hill. I asked Juliette if she wanted to leave town but she opted to stay, saying there was another slave taken in a few days ago, but not to the castle.
We went to Jovasskr and to our surprise found the draugrs Farkas, Mia and Torvar there. People who were supposed to be DEAD. Furthermore, a slave girl named Kitana was there too which riled me up even more. These bastards were in on the Jarl's plot! I ordered them at once to release her but Farkas refused - and would non stop talk shit at me. My sword through his chest shut him up good, then I tossed his corpse on the fire (again) to hopefully slow down his regeneration. I got Juliette to free Kitana and told the shaken girl to go to Windhelm where Njada would look after her then turned angrily on the remaining two draugr and they surprisingly backed down. I suppose having witnessed Farkas' brutal treatment scared them? Anyway they said they could help me against the orcs, and Torvar even offered to come with me on the "lure" run. I accepted, telling Juliette to head back up to the castle. As the old saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Cats do it all the time.
I did a quick sweep of the town afterwards, finding there were quite a few new adventurers here which was good (and makes sense being the trade capital of the region). I told all of them and the guards what was coming, and to prepare. Then I did something I should have done a long time ago... I bought a horse. :P
I had to change my usual visit somewhat in that this time I didn't want to kill any of the guards, if possible, because I was going to need them against those orcs. Fortunately I still had an invisibility potion that let me sprint up all the way into Dragonsreach undetected. There on the throne waited Jarl Bossman, discussing with his court mage how clever his plan was. He was supplying the orcs with free passage and supplies while they run about and decimate as many Stormcloaks as they can while the Imperials rebuild their army to take back the region (following their loss in the civil war). The Riften thieves guild (ie. Brynjolf) was in on it too, providing scouts, maps, intel, and occasionally kidnapping a girl here or there for Jarl Bossman's pleasure. The punk made me so angry I smashed my hand down on a nearby table - and became visible. We all drew our weapons simultaneously and I was surprised to find an ally here - a maid named Juliette who was tired of being Jarl Bossman's toy.
One by one I cut all of his court down but I left Jarl Bossman himself to be executed by his own servant who thanked me profusely after plugging a final arrow into his head. As if on cue more guardsmen came into the castle and between the two of us we tried to explain about what the Jarl had been doing and of the orc threat but they were having none of it so I opted for a diffent route. Since all of these idiots are greedy bastards I simply bribed them to work for me. After all my adventures I could afford it anyway and they easily accepted the sound of gold, swearing their service to me (until there's a better offer ofcourse) but for now, I was King of the Hill. I asked Juliette if she wanted to leave town but she opted to stay, saying there was another slave taken in a few days ago, but not to the castle.
We went to Jovasskr and to our surprise found the draugrs Farkas, Mia and Torvar there. People who were supposed to be DEAD. Furthermore, a slave girl named Kitana was there too which riled me up even more. These bastards were in on the Jarl's plot! I ordered them at once to release her but Farkas refused - and would non stop talk shit at me. My sword through his chest shut him up good, then I tossed his corpse on the fire (again) to hopefully slow down his regeneration. I got Juliette to free Kitana and told the shaken girl to go to Windhelm where Njada would look after her then turned angrily on the remaining two draugr and they surprisingly backed down. I suppose having witnessed Farkas' brutal treatment scared them? Anyway they said they could help me against the orcs, and Torvar even offered to come with me on the "lure" run. I accepted, telling Juliette to head back up to the castle. As the old saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
Cats do it all the time.
I did a quick sweep of the town afterwards, finding there were quite a few new adventurers here which was good (and makes sense being the trade capital of the region). I told all of them and the guards what was coming, and to prepare. Then I did something I should have done a long time ago... I bought a horse. :P
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Good Help is Hard to Find
Adventures in Skyrim - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!
Having lost the last of my army to the vampires I decided it was time to look for additional aid again since there should be new adventurers in the region since my last recruitment drive (added more mods). To start with I just wanted an extra guard for Njada at our new "Butcher's" house in Windhelm. As an aside, she had found out how "the Butcher" severed the threads of fate on his victims. Turned out it was pretty simple really - a simple incantation (ini file change) that banished the fates from your actions temporarily. Needless to say, I used it because there were quite a few people left alive that really, should not be.
Back to hiring people, I had a quick sneaky look in Riften and Windhelm itself only to find no one. Managed to hire a "master mage" named Sparrow at Winterhold but he was not interested at all in guard duty. Actually the douchebag didn't seem interested in following any of my orders anyway but I took him along anyway. Paid a visit to the newly reopened Sanctuary at Dawnstar. Seems Babette managed to claw her way out of there afterall AND hire a new initiate while she was at it. Sparrow outright refused to kill either of them (what the hell am I paying this LOSER for) so I did it myself - beheading the idiotic initiate and then shoving my flaming daedric blade down that bloodsucking "child's" throat, and now without fate protecting her she died screaming in agony - as she deserved.
Unfortunately there were no new adventurers at the inn there or at Morthal (where the dumb guards had to be slain again since they attacked me). There was a new, pretty girl at Solitude named Jessica though - but she too wasn't interested in guard duty. In fact she was looking for adventure headed out of the region since she had just escaped from some rogueish slavers at Whiterun. Slightly curious when I heard that but I had one more person that needed immediate killing first. Sparrow and I headed up to the Valerica's tower (though Sparrow stayed outside since he's obviously a coward) at the Volkihar Castle and once I got there I wanted to ask her one more time if she wanted to cure herself, to be rid of the disease but she gave me no option, indicating that she would continue her evil vampiric, necromantic ways for all eternity. Not without the threads of fate, bitch! Ran that abomination through, ending her miserable un-life then tossed her corpse back down into the Soul Cairn to be devoured.
Having lost the last of my army to the vampires I decided it was time to look for additional aid again since there should be new adventurers in the region since my last recruitment drive (added more mods). To start with I just wanted an extra guard for Njada at our new "Butcher's" house in Windhelm. As an aside, she had found out how "the Butcher" severed the threads of fate on his victims. Turned out it was pretty simple really - a simple incantation (ini file change) that banished the fates from your actions temporarily. Needless to say, I used it because there were quite a few people left alive that really, should not be.
Back to hiring people, I had a quick sneaky look in Riften and Windhelm itself only to find no one. Managed to hire a "master mage" named Sparrow at Winterhold but he was not interested at all in guard duty. Actually the douchebag didn't seem interested in following any of my orders anyway but I took him along anyway. Paid a visit to the newly reopened Sanctuary at Dawnstar. Seems Babette managed to claw her way out of there afterall AND hire a new initiate while she was at it. Sparrow outright refused to kill either of them (what the hell am I paying this LOSER for) so I did it myself - beheading the idiotic initiate and then shoving my flaming daedric blade down that bloodsucking "child's" throat, and now without fate protecting her she died screaming in agony - as she deserved.
Unfortunately there were no new adventurers at the inn there or at Morthal (where the dumb guards had to be slain again since they attacked me). There was a new, pretty girl at Solitude named Jessica though - but she too wasn't interested in guard duty. In fact she was looking for adventure headed out of the region since she had just escaped from some rogueish slavers at Whiterun. Slightly curious when I heard that but I had one more person that needed immediate killing first. Sparrow and I headed up to the Valerica's tower (though Sparrow stayed outside since he's obviously a coward) at the Volkihar Castle and once I got there I wanted to ask her one more time if she wanted to cure herself, to be rid of the disease but she gave me no option, indicating that she would continue her evil vampiric, necromantic ways for all eternity. Not without the threads of fate, bitch! Ran that abomination through, ending her miserable un-life then tossed her corpse back down into the Soul Cairn to be devoured.
Hey guys! Lunch time!
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