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

[Arrkhon]

Maybe we could help with the A Memory of Light research? Probably not the best use of us even if possible but it could be interesting

 

[Greymere]

I will probably have Update Thoughts later, but for now I thought I'd list out some of the options that people have brought up for our reassigned AP while moratorium is going.

-Steppes Fleeting Opportunity

It's a Fleeting Opportunity, of course people will be interested in it. Unclear benefits or consequences, if any.


-Study Lantern artifact

Gets us +1 Lantern scrap and the ability to use Selene for scrying and (if we ever find a summoning site) summoning MitLs. We have a Lantern AotL currently available to make it more likely to succeed. May also be able to make a bit of progress on the Moth book if we're lucky.


-Find a three-circle ritual site

Either by scrying or physically searching while the SH Influence is active. Lets us use Jade as a scryer without having to disrupt Rarity's work, as well as the ability to summon creatures for All In and general use like MitLs, Windigos, and eventually the Forge Name.


-Call an Influence

Most likely Lantern, for Moth book studying next turn. Could potentially be helpful, but our chance of getting a +30 or +40 Influence isn't great considering our lack of reagent. Could also be SH for our personal Sacrament, but again, bonus not great.


-Find a Level 7 book ourselves

Sure we could ask Jade to do it, but we're just as good in Lantern, we still have our reroll, and we're not going to take it badly if we fail. Considering since Jade only just got pushed out of a downward mental spiral.


-Study the Moth 5 book

Something we can do if we want to make sure we'll finish it next turn so we can have Moth Sacrament lined up for T23. If we're lucky, we could even finish it this turn.


Any others that I might have missed or not thought of?

 

[ses]

-Study Lantern artifact

Gets us +1 Lantern scrap and the ability to use Selene for scrying and (if we ever find a summoning site) summoning MitLs. We have a Lantern AotL currently available to make it more likely to succeed. May also be able to make a bit of progress on the Moth book if we're lucky.

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Surely we'd study the Winter 4 artifact we got from Copper's cult if we went for artifact studying rather than a single decipher roll for 30ish progress?

-Study the Moth 5 book

Something we can do if we want to make sure we'll finish it next turn so we can have Moth Sacrament lined up for T23. If we're lucky, we could even finish it this turn.

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I can't imagine us doing this without a Lantern Influence.

 

[Greymere]

Surely we'd study the Winter 4 artifact we got from Copper's cult if we went for artifact studying rather than a single decipher roll for 30ish progress?

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The Winter artifact doesn't really open up any options for us besides other people doing Windigo summoning, which both needs a summoning site to even be an option and is unlikely to be as useful in the short-term as Moth Sacrament.

I can't imagine us doing this without a Lantern Influence.

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Why? A single study action focused on the Moth book, with AotL + reroll, gets us an 80% chance to finish studying it this turn.

 

[DelightedOne]

Silky Stream has gained her cutie mark: A key, a scroll, a seven-colored colored laurel wreath, all before the backdrop of a faded house-like triangle. Cutie mark interpreters will see all the signs of a diplomat, or a negotiator. And yet, those in the know will see the other signs hidden in plain sight.

This is the first cutie mark ever that makes a clear reference to the Lores. You wonder what this means.

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Awww, Silky takes after her mother. But I wonder if Harmony is aware of this or if the cutie marks tend to be automatically given.

She is so gonna have all lores when she grows up.

-Lapdog: "You are sure it was called that, although it bears no resemblance to a dog at all. Still, this miraculous device, too intricate to be used by anypony but a unicorn, will aid you greatly." (You may produce TWO Lore Manuscripts instead of one, of one level below your current level on the selected Lores. Costs one Forge 1 reagent to use.)

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Uuuu, interesting. We could finally level up the Library at a moderate pace with this, could be useful if the Bureau needs it.

We are going to the Dreamlands next turn.

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Any reason why? Because we are kinda booked for the whole turn if we want more power.

The whole trip was a bust outside of Frangiclave-get. Laptop is kinda useless and we apparently failed to unlock anything from poking at Harmony.

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Or maybe that was what was supposed to happen since we don't really know if we could have had more tiers of success or if that was all there was. Or even if there was more we could have needed to have some Harmony in Velvet to get it to take us seriously instead of a kid who sneaked into backstage of a play and got sent back out.

Maybe we could help with the A Memory of Light research? Probably not the best use of us even if possible but it could be interesting

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Jade has about 55% chance of finishing it in one turn + reroll so we could help. But I'm honestly wanting to just risk it.

 

[Venerable Ro]

-Steppes Fleeting Opportunity

It's a Fleeting Opportunity, of course people will be interested in it. Unclear benefits or consequences, if any.

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Well we simply must invite him to Silky's Cute-Ceanera, it wouldn't be a party without him!

 

[AuthorTransient]

Oh, Axe.... and oh, Velvet...

She needs time to grieve, I think. And considering what we've found this turn, I do believe that narrative-wise it would be good to check with Steppes. But is the faded triangle the House of the Sun or the House of the Moon?

 

[ses]

Well we simply must invite him to Silky's Cute-Ceanera, it wouldn't be a party without him!

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That is an EXCELLENT point.

In unrelated news apparently our chance of winning the Edge sacrament is 62% with one AotL, 75% with two AOTL, and 81% with three. Dang biedde doesn't mess around. Rerolls every odd-numbered roll are brutal.

The only thing I'm sad about is that the Steppes FO isn't going to be done while Velvet is under the effects of [A Resolution]. Because having him show up while Velvet is in Scary Commissioner mode would have been peak comedy.

 

[dcoconeo]

We are going to the Dreamlands next turn.

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Worms though?

 

[Zxzx24]

There are a few signs of damage here and there. Mundane damage, caused by an angry hoof striking against the floor or a wall or a piece of furniture, rather than caused by any eldritch means.

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Ah. Understandable that she would be upset.

I wonder if she is upset over what happened or over losing control like that? Or everything really.

You are already nodding your head that yes, you will do anything she asks you. But as you look down towards your daughter again, you realize she is holding a… a ragdoll. One of her older tows, a small pony-shaped doll made out of cotton.

Or rather, it was a ragdoll. The doll seems to be torn in half, as if angrily ripped apart in a fit of rage.

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Oh thats not good.

"Mom… do you think Axe will be alright?" she asks.

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Yes. She will be. She is tough. And she has you and Selene here.

You lift your other hoof, the one that is not currently wrapped around your daughter, and you softly poke her flank, right on the center of the mark that is now painted on it.

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WOO! GO SILKY!

OH GOD WHAT DO WE TELL OUR BROTHER!?!

This is the first cutie mark ever that makes a clear reference to the Lores. You wonder what this means.

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Probably what we already knew. That peace is possible. And that Harmony is in fact paying attention.

Also that Silky has a very cool and special future ahead of her.

Actually for our last AP.

Why don't we visit the Daughter of Axes in the Mansus?

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That's a wonderful idea honestly. But might be better to give her some time.

I trust Velvet to have good instincts on the matter however.

 

[spiderhellian]

The Daughter-of-Axes has left. She is gone.

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Poor, poor, Axe.

I'm sad we didn't get to see this encounter, but I see why. What a perfect cutie mark for Silky.

…And what does this mean for Pride?

We will visit her this coming month. I have no doubt people will agree with that.

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Do you expect her to still be in the Valley of Keys? I don't.

 

[Earth-Destroyer]

Sigh what a total waste we got nothing useful for that entire trip.

 

[Arrkhon]

Sigh what a total waste we got nothing useful for that entire trip.

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Huh? Silky getting a cutie mark was easily more than worth a full turn of actions

 

[Solace2117]

Sigh what a total waste we got nothing useful for that entire trip.

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We got a Sacrament, we made a major step in Axe's friendship path. We didn't get much extra useful that we can see, depends on what effect fully exploring the space had, if any. At most we wasted one action since we could have finished at 2.

 

[spiderhellian]

Time spent on a snake is never wasted! And neither is the impact on Silky.

Really though, we got the Sacrament. And Axe's story isn't over. We got a tool that simplifies manuscripts immensely. We got… whatever happened from the moment with the sisters, I don't expect that loose end to be dropped.

And we got an immensely fun set of chapters! Plus dozens of pages of exceedingly fruitful discussion, right? Right?

Lapdog: "You are sure it was called that, although it bears no resemblance to a dog at all. Still, this miraculous device, too intricate to be used by anypony but a unicorn, will aid you greatly." (You may produce TWO Lore Manuscripts instead of one, of one level below your current level on the selected Lores. Costs one Forge 1 reagent to use.)

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@OurLadyOfWires, does this still require using an action to make manuscripts? Or are we able to use Level 1 reagents to make manuscripts as a free action..?

 

[Rafuki22]

Sigh what a total waste we got nothing useful for that entire trip.

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It is called build up and set up.

 

[OurLadyOfWires]

@OurLadyOfWires I know you said "Patience. Soon" but I've been waiting for so long now and I thought we'd get it once we returned to reality. The need to know our Knock sacrament is tearing at my sanity, which yes yes yuk it up it's very on-brand but I NEED IT

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Oh right! Thank you. I finished writing this pretty late last night, and I knew I had forgotten something. This was supposed to be added to the final tally of the Sacrament.

I'll make sure to add that in... later.

(Proceeds to forget about it again )

@OurLadyOfWires toys. I also could've sworn there was one typo in the extra but it disappeared from my quotes.

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Thank you! Fixed.

And Velvet is saying she doesn't recall any historical examples?

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And about this.

I know there is no way to tell the difference, and that the "end of update blurbs" are at times reports on how your status changed, a short summary of events, or just an opportunity for me to talk about something.

Still, just to be very clear, this particular blurb was actually WoG that this is the first cutie mark ever to have a direct relationship with the Lores.

Make of that whatever you will.

@OurLadyOfWires What does Velvet think about visiting Axe with her action this turn?

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No comments.

But just to make sure we are on the same page, spending an action to go there would be "spending an action to go to the Valley of Keys". No promises on what you will find there, if anything.

@OurLadyOfWires, does this still require using an action to make manuscripts? Or are we able to use Level 1 reagents to make manuscripts as a free action..?

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Yes, you still need to spend one action on "creating a manuscript".

It's just that now you can either create one manuscript at your maximum Lore level, or two manuscripts at "Lore level minus one", for the cost of one crudely made lithium battery Forge 1 reagent.

But of course, said reagent can be crafted with a free once-per-turn action, and it costs 5 bits. So I see it as a ceremonial cost more than anything.



Anyways, hope you are all doing well. Let me know if you have any questions for the coming vote.

 

[Sveta08]

Any reason why? Because we are kinda booked for the whole turn if we want more power

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Worms though?

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I thought- nevermind. I'll explain using more words.

The Dreamlands are not native to the Manus. They are... Egh, subconscious? Created? Focused? Made? By Harmony. Or rather, when Harmon entered this world, when ponykind began to dream and cutie marks began to function, these things weren't native to this world.

However, you also recall that your Master said that the Dreamlands are a different world. A world made by the dreams of ponykind. A place of its own.

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The light of the Dreamlands invites the worms. Harmony invites this problem because it was unaware of it. That was the whole... Thing, the Master has issues with. What the spoken of problem from Harmony. It invites destruction and slowly, almost subconsciously, ate at the world of the Manus.

She was witness and victim, and her crime was ignorance, both in the past and today. The fate that befell her long ago will be the same that shall befall Equestria if the alicorns keep to their work, but we know now that even the alicorns are young. They were invited into this world, they were borne here, and as it is proper for the law of birth they came without knowledge of wisdom. They are no better than foals when it comes to certain realizations."

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And you knew during that short moment that if the Dreamlands ever had things its own way, one day it would surely turn the Mansus into itself.

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This is blind. This is ignorance. This is blazing a beacon of light to fend off the dark, not knowing it lets others see you. That it lets others look to you. Hunger for you.


The Alicorns are... hands. Pawns. Keepers of Harmony. Immortal bodies bearing the flame of harmony born into this world. They are Harmony in the same way The Master was Moth. They are as much full of it as they are made of it, and reflect it. The Wake and The Crossroads are not separate places in the traditional sense. They aren't reflections so much as they are each other in another light.

A light like a candle now reflecting on Celestia's gaze. A light that has rebuilt and from which Luna was reborn, whom we are granting a formal education on the subject.

"Both of us? Oh, no. Neither of us will wake up, Selene… But she will. And we will be a part of her. We will be a part of her in all the ways that matter. Princess Luna existed in the past, Selene. And you exist in the present."

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Because when Princess Celestia turns towards you, she doesn't just look at you. She stares at you. The alicorn of the sun turns her eyes towards you, and in them you can see the unmistakable light of Lantern

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You say that to a Selene that is surrounded (literally surrounded) by a circle of papers. This all began with you giving her a formal lecture on the Lores, finally putting names and terms to the things you taught her over the last year. But eventually, as she began to take notes, and as you began to write things down as you spoke, it came to the point that you two ended up creating a small pile of papers that is currently all over the floor.

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And what happened?
What happened when, this month and exactly on this month alone Celestia's eyes burnt with another light? When Luna was given name and knowledge and understanding of the things she knew but did not know? This of all months?

Harmony could name the Lores. Could sound them out, every one of nine. Could anchor them in the Manus. And spoke in the way only it could. With a cutie mark.
There are no coincidences.


Something is changing in Dreamland. Something Velvet will not see, her eyes too blinded by GLORY. She would have to look away to see it right now. This is not some we will find out without looking. And as we all know...

"It is the thing that you don't know that kills you," he says.

Click to shrink...

 

[Pittauro]

Furthermore, your thoughts also feel… strange. Because even though you know you did not just wake up, the memories of the place you just left already feel like a dream. The people you spoke to already feel distant, maybe even surreal, and even the thought of using the word "people" already feels alien to you.

Yes, you are finally back to the real world.

Click to shrink...

I'm more convinced than before we were right to not bring Twilight back, just because of this.

EVERYTHING shown so far implies that world is not quite... real. That the Twilight we spoke to and considered bringing back was NOT real either.

I wonder... does this mean Axe's sister fell in love with a dream, someone's that's not real?

...did SHE make HIM real? is his family more real than the other people?

...maybe that world IS real, but its nature makes memories from it less... sticky.

And also the other thing you brought with you.

But that last item is not important right now. In fact, you don't even bother to check if it is broken or damaged, delicate as it is.

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oh, we managed to bring back some tech gizmo? Nice.

is it the printer? the phone?

Or rather, she is looking at one of the items you brought back.

And it isn't the key.



"Ye saed… ye saed ye found her…"



She isn't looking at the key, and she isn't speaking to you. And as she moves towards the book you brought back with you, the thick diary that you brought back from the shrine, you can tell that Axe isn't thinking about anything other than…



"But if ye found her… why isn't she 'ere an'…"

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....yeah... about that... sorry...

But when she reaches the very last page of the diary, and when she reads through its lines once, then twice, then three times, her expression finally turns into something else.

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...I assume she's not taking it well?

You are Silky Stream.

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yeah, she's not.

Everything is fine…



… until it isn't.

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I guessed as much.

well, Silky is now going to make things better. I wonder how Velvet will react to it.

The walls are creaking.

You swear the chair you are sitting on is about to disassemble itself.

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yeah, she's a TINY bit upset!

And even a few parts of your body, the places where you once scraped your knees or hit your flank when you crashed against a tree, start to ache as if your scratches wanted to re-open themselves.

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...surely our ritualed-over scars are fine?

But you aren't afraid, because there is another feeling inside of you that is right now far stronger than your fear.

You aren't afraid, because you are worried.

Because for some reason, for some reason you can't explain, you know what is going on.

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she inherently TRUSTS Axe. it's really cute to see, except that we're talking about a NAME and that also makes it really REALLY scary!

It's a bit like trying to have a real friendship with a Fae, though maybe not quite THAT bad. Axe seems to have a RELATIVELY normal mindset.

"Silky?! Silky, get out of here, now!"
"Mom?!"

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Velvet is about to find out just how CLOSE Silky and Axe have become...

She'll likely have mixed feelings about it.

Your mom is standing on a half-finished circle, that you think is meant to kick guests away.

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ouch. she found us nearly ready to banish Axe away!

and of course such an ENDING would be winter...

You are still looking at Axe, because not only she looks like she is completely absorbed by what she is reading, but also…

…she is crying.

Her expression looks blank, or maybe locked between anger and disbelief. And she is simply sitting on her hind and looking down towards the open page of the notebook.

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such a humanizing moment for Axe... she's right to be upset, really. She just found out her sister chose what was maybe not even a REAL person over her.

That she DOOMED HER to centuries of isolation.

sure, Parsharka might have talked about trust... but that sounds a lot like an excuse, really.

She looks you in the eye, and she sees something there.

And she believes you.

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and just think, how scared understanding that will make her!

What you are really worried about right now, and the reason you are currently pacing back and forth in front of Axe's closed door is…



…well, it's because your daughter is still in there.



And you can't help but hate yourself for how stupid you were.

Are you insane? Did you hit your head? Is your mind perhaps still numbed from the travel through the mirror? You don't know. You have no idea!

But still, why in tartarus would you ever, ever, EVER do what you just did?

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because, if you worry, even if you're so so scared, you KNOW she has the best chance of making things better.

Ironically what would look like child negligence normally is, in this case, a deep sign of respect and trust in Silky.

Axe's door is firmly locked right in front of you, and the fact that nopony has come to the second floor yet makes you think the rest of the house probably did not feel what just happened.

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and that's really luck because how would we explain it otherwise, especially to the bodyguards?

And there is nothing you can do but pace back and forth in front of Axe's door (and you did try to open it several times now) and hope that… whatever your daughter had in her mind worked out.

Well, you can't feel anything strange anymore. So at least Axe's tantrum seems to have stopped.

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I'm half surprised the door to the room COULD be closed when the frangiclave is in there. Since when is Knock able to SEAL things?

There are a few signs of damage here and there. Mundane damage, caused by an angry hoof striking against the floor or a wall or a piece of furniture, rather than caused by any eldritch means.

Click to shrink...

Or rather, it was a ragdoll. The doll seems to be torn in half, as if angrily ripped apart in a fit of rage.

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how... human (equine?) of her...

"Can you… do you know anypony who could fix it? I think… I think she'd appreciate it, if she ever decides to…" your daughter trails off.

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Rarity, duh.

You lift your other hoof, the one that is not currently wrapped around your daughter, and you softly poke her flank, right on the center of the mark that is now painted on it.

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... She got a cutie mark from helping Axe...

This might be one of the most impressive Cutie Mark stories in history. Only ones beyond it would be the one from the princesses I think, and Velvet's, and MAYBE Twilight and/or Dash.

You have gained the skill "Lapdog".

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oh?

Silky Stream has gained her cutie mark: A key, a scroll, a seven-colored colored laurel wreath, all before the backdrop of a faded house-like triangle. Cutie mark interpreters will see all the signs of a diplomat, or a negotiator. And yet, those in the know will see the other signs hidden in plain sight.

This is the first cutie mark ever that makes a clear reference to the Lores. You wonder what this means.

More to follow. Soon.

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technically the second one. the first one would be Velvet's, with the moth-flies and a book referencing Secret History.

ok, maybe it's not as clear, but in hindsight the connection is obvious.

and yeah... turns out, Velvet is just preparing the stage for the TRUE Host of the Name Hotel all this time

I would guess that this is a laptop, but it's clearly called a Lapdog and calling it anything else would simply be wrong.

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it has some potential if we get more "noob" confidants, or actually introduce the lores to the Bureau.

maybe in the post-All-In if the quest is not over though. Otherwise it's not that valuable I think.

I'm guessing we'll have Velvet do the scrying (or Jade maybe? but we don't have a place for HER to do rituals in), and study artifacts... or FO with Steppes.

those seem like the most sensible picks.

 

[spiderhellian]

Y'all have got to give Jade some more credit. I really think we should trust her with this.

 

[DelightedOne]

Something is changing in Dreamland. Something Velvet will not see, her eyes too blinded by GLORY. She would have to look away to see it right now. This is not some we will find out without looking. And as we all know...

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Oooohh, you want to see if the Dreamlands changed with... everything Harmony-related that happened recently to be honest.

I think we had:
-Celestia learning the lores and being at Lantern 1(I really hope we can show off to Midday Dew and give Celestia the rest of her lores. The last thing we need is an unbalanced Alicorn when she is halfway to Daybreaker)
-Selene reaching All-3 and then All-4 with a proper understanding of the lores.
-Velvet going into a Harmony-illuminated world with a max Grail and Secret Histories Influence and apparently managing to get close to its residence? Or at least being noticed again.
-Silky getting the FIRST lore cutie mark in history.

And we will have:
-Selene soothing the night for the first time(Probably how we deal with Daybreaker, if not the path to take us to that solution).
-The first step of Memory of Light(Hopefully something Jade can complete and that we can cast next turn).

Harmony must be very busy, especially if it just discovered the lores instead of just being able to access them now.

 

[Sveta08]

Do you expect her to still be in the Valley of Keys? I don't.

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I... Do not know. But it is a place to start. Take WoG for it.

But just to make sure we are on the same page, spending an action to go there would be "spending an action to go to the Valley of Keys". No promises on what you will find there, if anything.

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Oooohh, you want to see if the Dreamlands changed with... everything Harmony-related that happened recently to be honest

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And, yes. I believe things have happened there. I also want to see Silky's door from the other side.


Now for the action we have...
Gegh. I don't know. I don't know and have to take a leap of faith.

One part of me wants to explore the Manus, to check out the Dreamland and check in on Ax. Because that is either absolutely the right thing to do (The last thing she needs is to be alone right now, witness the breaking of chains forged by an Hour, tracking a snake is difficult) or it is absolutely the wrong thing to do (she wants to not have Velvet there, Grief is a private thing, Velvet tends to be messy with Ax). Add to that that next turn is getting a bit stacked...

So either that exploration or Steps Fleeting Opportunity.
Odds are I'll vote both .

 

[Arrkhon]

Wait, if Harmony actually only realized what Lores are isn't there a chance that the leak from Dreamlands increased massively recently?
I feel that checking Dreamlands out may be important, at worst it will let us check up on the Worms

 

[spiderhellian]

I... Do not know. But it is a place to start. Take WoG for it.

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Hahaha I saw that WoG as explicitly saying there's every likelihood we show up to a valley still filled with keys but empty of the Snake. And there's no promise of much more than that.

Really though, I'd give DoA some time. At least one turn (barring any fleetings, etc.). And we can see from there.

 

[Sveta08]

Really though, I'd give DoA some time. At least one turn (barring any fleetings, etc.). And we can see from there.

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I... Yes I agree but it's...
Gegh. Make me worry for Ax. Being alone and knowing you are alone is... Different.

... We shouldn't go to her with this action. We need to mend Pasharka first.

 

[Pittauro]

The Winter artifact doesn't really open up any options for us besides other people doing Windigo summoning, which both needs a summoning site to even be an option and is unlikely to be as useful in the short-term as Moth Sacrament.

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it's a +40 (or +20? I forget) to winter rolls on expeditions for anyone we send with it. It's also an extra scrap bringing us closer to Winter Sacrament as well (we need 4 scraps. 1 from artifact, potentially up to 2 from influence ritual if we get a tier 4, one more scrap and we could be ready for that sacrament. Also we DON'T need to be 4/4 for that sacrament, so if we wanted to we could start working on it whenever we want... ideally while a winter influence is up though, doing the 3 actions over 2 turns so the influence doesn't expire).

Jade has about 55% chance of finishing it in one turn + reroll so we could help. But I'm honestly wanting to just risk it.

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Memory of Light needs to be worked on by one pony at a time from what we know. At least for the same phase.

That is an EXCELLENT point.

In unrelated news apparently our chance of winning the Edge sacrament is 62% with one AotL, 75% with two AOTL, and 81% with three. Dang biedde doesn't mess around. Rerolls every odd-numbered roll are brutal.

The only thing I'm sad about is that the Steppes FO isn't going to be done while Velvet is under the effects of [A Resolution]. Because having him show up while Velvet is in Scary Commissioner mode would have been peak comedy.

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I suppose we'll go for 3 AotL? it's a fairly dangerous sacrament to us, and we can't really afford to fail it...

We got a Sacrament, we made a major step in Axe's friendship path. We didn't get much extra useful that we can see, depends on what effect fully exploring the space had, if any. At most we wasted one action since we could have finished at 2.

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yeah, the last action was a bit of a waste, the harmony knowledge is not really actionable AND the "lapdog" will ONLY be useful if either we manage to introduce the lores to the bureau quickly, or if the quest goes on AFTER All-In.

Still, just to be very clear, this particular blurb was actually WoG that this is the first cutie mark ever to have a direct relationship with the Lores.

Make of that whatever you will.

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...but what about Velvet's?

Yes, you still need to spend one action on "creating a manuscript".

It's just that now you can either create one manuscript at your maximum Lore level, or two manuscripts at "Lore level minus one", for the cost of one crudely made lithium battery Forge 1 reagent.

But of course, said reagent can be crafted with a free once-per-turn action, and it costs 5 bits. So I see it as a ceremonial cost more than anything.

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and the two lower level books are effectively ALWAYS better in our system, really. There's no situation in which a higher level manuscript is better.

lvl 3 vs 2*2 = 4.
lvl 4 vs 3*2 = 6
lvl 5 vs 4*2 = 8

Oooohh, you want to see if the Dreamlands changed with... everything Harmony-related that happened recently to be honest.

I think we had:
-Celestia learning the lores and being at Lantern 1(I really hope we can show off to Midday Dew and give Celestia the rest of her lores. The last thing we need is an unbalanced Alicorn when she is halfway to Daybreaker)
-Selene reaching All-3 and then All-4 with a proper understanding of the lores.
-Velvet going into a Harmony-illuminated world with a max Grail and Secret Histories Influence and apparently managing to get close to its residence? Or at least being noticed again.

And we will have:
-Selene soothing the night for the first time(Probably how we deal with Daybreaker, if not the path to take us to that solution).
-The first step of Memory of Light(Hopefully something Jade can complete and that we can cast next turn).

Harmony must be very busy, especially if it just discovered the lores instead of just being able to access them now.

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mh...

@OurLadyOfWires could we have Selene "escort us" through the Dreamrealms, to counter the danger of Worms? It could also be used to have her "bring us" to someone's dream door if we want to talk to them directly for any reason.

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As for Axe... I'd say wait. at least until next turn. She needs some time to calm herself.

 

[spiderhellian]

If we do study, what should the second-priority after lantern artefact? Winter artefact? Take a stab at getting on the Moth book?

… Wait, probably the Manehattan expedition book?

 

[Solace2117]

yeah, the last action was a bit of a waste, the harmony knowledge is not really actionable AND the "lapdog" will ONLY be useful if either we manage to introduce the lores to the bureau quickly, or if the quest goes on AFTER All-In.

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In fairness, the Harmony encounter could have some positive effects we can't see yet behind the scenes. Despite pursing the Glory ending, having Harmony aware of Velvet in the background could be positive overall. As it stands in the moment though we have nothing to show for it. We accomplished what we set out to do though and 3 actions spent on a Sacrament feels about average. Could we have got more with pursing something besides Twilight, yeah, but it's hard to be to upset. Honestly, exploring the "dream" was a interesting enough plot thread for us to be tempted to stay no matter what else we had picked.

 

[DelightedOne]

Despite pursing the Glory ending, having Harmony aware of Velvet in the background could be positive overall.

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I think Harmony has been aware of Velvet for a while now.

[You have witnessed something which was both sacred and secret. It is impossible, however, to witness such moments and not be seen yourself, as well.]

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And of course the Rite of the Mother and the Father was also powered by Harmony in some way and Cadance has Velvet as a Love's chosen. Kinda hard for Harmony to not notice Velvet at this point.

 

[ses]

[X] Plan mafia Uncles are Family too
-[X] Uncle Steppes has come to visit! But every time you speak to him, you get the impression he is… unwell. Even though he hides it well from the fillies. Spend some more time with him, and see if you can help him.
-[X] You will have a follower perform a RotT ritual.(Jade Whistle)