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Chapter 8: A New Beginning

FrdNwsmFrdNwsm Member Posts: 1,069
MC often wondered what "normal" people's lives were like. Well, OK, his early years at Candlekeep were actually pretty uneventful, but that was long ago and the memories of that time were starting to fade. MC had been looking forward to getting back to Athkatla, having a beer at the Coronet, collecting the back tithes from his Keep, saying Hi to his GF ... and he had a dozen more souveneirs for the wall of the CC! Unfortunately, shortly after leaving Elfville, he and his buds had been waylaid in mid travels by some sort of teleportation spell or device, and were attacked by yet ANOTHER egomaniac Bhaalspawn, whom they had to put down. Don't any of Dad's kids just say "Hi bro, whazzup?" when they meet one of their relatives?

After this, there was a conclave with some chatty stone heads (were these the proverbial "talking heads"?), following which the entire group wound up in a "pocket dimensional plane" ... whatever the heck that was ... that apparently formerly belonged to good old Dad. A private spa for relaxing after a busy day of murdering folks?

There MC had some weird experiences, including encounters with some spirits. A dead killer Bhaalspawn, some Kobold commandos left over from the Nashkel Mines, Jon Irenicus (yet again!), and even good old Sarevok. The big "S" should have been a snake oil salesman in his former life; he actually talked MC into not immediately sending him back to the Abyss. Fine. But you're staying here buddy! Go stand over in the corner. The only other permanent resident of this plane was someone named Casper the Friendly Imp. The little guy was Bhaal's former butler, if you can imagine such a thing. He was also the most ANNOYING second banana MC had ever met; his speech reminded MC of a guy named Jar-Jar, from a dimension long ago and far far away, that he had once had visions about.

"Oooo! Mes'a love shinies!" "Mes'a got recipes!" And on and on and on ... shut it, already, ya git! Admittedly, he did have one use; he was able to construct a few magical items from some of the junk MC had been carrying around. For a hefty fee, of course. Really? Did the little thief try to extort money from Bhaal also, when he wanted something done? MC rather suspected not. And why did the Imp need gold anyway? Not much to spend it on here. Or did he maybe get weekends off, and needed cash for carousing in Hellpubs with his quasit cronies? The answers were not immediately apparent.

Unfortunately, MC was NOT Bhaal, so the only choices were to either pony up the cash, or beat the annoying little twit to death. The party ended up with some more toys, which they really didn't even need, and also close to being bankrupt. Luckily, MC still had some spare stuff he could pawn, whenever they hit a real town.

Speaking of towns, there were several exits from the place, but only one was immediately accessible. Yet another talking head informed MC that he could only go where he was needed, not just anyplace he wanted. And apparently, he and his pals were desperately needed in a town named after some gal's posterior. My, she must have had a fine pair of buttocks, if they named an entire town after them!

Ok, looks like the next stop is the resort town of Sara's Tush. MC hoped they would have a more pleasant stay than the last resort town they visited, Burning Law. But considering the way his luck ran, he wouldn't bet the farm ... sorry, the Keep ... on it, though.
Post edited by FrdNwsm on
lunarGreenWarlockdockaboomskilolien

Comments

  • FrdNwsmFrdNwsm Member Posts: 1,069
    MC arrived in Sara's Tush only to find the place under siege by an army, which included a lot of fire giants. Wonderful; he had delayed having Crom Feyr forged because the last giant type creature the party had encountered was that pathetic ettin back in Sahuagin City. Now that it might come in useful, it appeared that the inept Casper didn't have the "recipe" for that process, and it didn't look like they'd be getting back to Cromwell any time soon. A lesson about procrastination.

    MC also discovered that he now had a new ability; apparently he could teleport back to the pocket plane at need. Well, giving him a new ability to play with is like giving Jason a new hockey mask. He just HAD to try it out right away. Poof! The entire party was back in Dad's rest spa. MC also made an interesting discovery which probably wasn't new but had been overlooked on the first visit. The Talking Heads could summon old friends for any assistance that might be required. Hmm, he could reconstitute the Bad Boyz if a little mayhem was called for. The one person that could not be summoned was Yoshimo. This was a bit disappointing; Yoshi was a great trap setter. Imoen was a nice girl but couldn't set a trap worth a darn. MC wasn't quite sure why this restriction was there; after all, he had killed Sarevok not once but twice, and he STILL kept turning up like the proverbial bad copper piece.

    MC also wondered if there were some reason he shouldn't just summon everybody he could, and leave them there pending the appropriate need. Hmm, if left there too long to their own devices, would they stage a coup and take over the pocket plane? Would the good and evil ones start fighting and kill each other off? Uncertainty won out; they could all stay in Limbo for a while until MC had more data for making a decision.

    There wasn't much else here to do at present, except wish that Dad had hired a different interior decorator, so the party headed back to Sara's Tush. Unfortunately, the "poofing" was only one way; they had to go back the old-fashioned way, and walk.
    Spjuv3rnGreenWarlockdockaboomskilolien
  • JarrakulJarrakul Member Posts: 2,029
    I wouldn't worry too much about missing Crom Feyr here. Obnoxiously, the list of giant-like things it kills instantly does not include any actual giants. It does, however, include ettins, of which there is precisely one in the game, in an area that is made forever inaccessible before it's possible to actually forge Crom Feyr.

    It's a weirdly designed item in some ways, is what I'm saying.
    lolien
  • FrdNwsmFrdNwsm Member Posts: 1,069
    It's a giant-killing device that ... doesn't actually kill giants. Right. Fugeddabout it.
    lolien
  • GallowglassGallowglass Member Posts: 3,356
    FrdNwsm said:

    It's a giant-killing device that ... doesn't actually kill giants. Right. Fugeddabout it.

    Lol! Yes, but it's also a troll-killing device, and it does actually one-shot them, and that's useful because you'll be meeting more trolls.

    However, the main advantage of Crom Faeyr is that it gives you 25 STR, which makes it a terrific off-hand weapon for a dual-wielder!

    It's not at all the end of the world that you failed to make it when you had the chance, but in any run where you have a dual-wielder who can be given Hammer proficiency, it's well worth making it (in spite of the sacrifice of the independently-useful components). Even in a run where you have no such dual-wielders, it's a pretty useful piece of kit for anyone who can wield a Hammer.
  • YannirYannir Member Posts: 595
    Croms most useful function along with the strength, IMO, is it's ability to headshot stone and clay golems. Those guys aren't very threatening at high levels but they ARE pesky, since you can't spellcast them to oblivion, like everything else in the game. In my mind, convenience rules all.
    lolien
  • JarrakulJarrakul Member Posts: 2,029
    Also clay golems, I think. It's a useful ability, make no mistake. Just weird in a number of ways.

    Crom Faeyr's also pretty high-damage by itself, even above average for the endgame TOB weapons before taking the strength boost into account. It's not a weak weapon by any means, although I'd argue that whether it's worth making is highly dependent on party setup.
  • FrdNwsmFrdNwsm Member Posts: 1,069
    edited June 2015
    Well, the group already has more weapons than they can use, so I guess we won't miss another one. The only one with any pips in hammers is Anomen, and one could argue that he doesn't need the strength boost. He's packing 4 casts of DUHM right now and is using the 4 head flail of ages, with the star mace and mace of disruption as back ups. Everybody in the party has at least one +4 weapon, even Neera, although the odds of her actually using it in combat are miniscule at best. Hmm, use a + 4 throwing spike or cast a Comet spell? Close call there.

    MC himself has more weapons than Tiger Woods has golf clubs; he's thinking of hiring a caddy. "Hey Steve, what do you think I should use on this 4 demon lie? Wave? Dragonbreath? Lilarcor? Maybe dual wield Celestial Fury and Hindo's Doom? Does the rod of Domination work on demons?"

    Post edited by FrdNwsm on
    YannirSpjuv3rnlolien
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