Underdark General Discussion Thread

[Cel'Daren]

Just read DM Asgorath's plot post. Dear lord, if Nawiel wasn't completely shattered before I bet she is now. Sussuri to. I wouldn't even know how to have a character come back from that, that's the kind of thing that utterly breaks a person, you know?

[DM Asgorath]

Just read DM Asgorath's plot post. Dear lord, if Nawiel wasn't completely shattered before I bet she is now. Sussuri to. I wouldn't even know how to have a character come back from that, that's the kind of thing that utterly breaks a person, you know?

To my defense, I say that Lolth is one of the most active deities in the Forgotten Realms canon, and that trying to snatch a sacrifice meant to her by opening a portal inside one of her temples may not be a really good idea. There was a way to emerge from the situation completely victorious (I always give one, as a rule of thumb), but it wasn't that easy to figure out.

At any rate, people, I always say this: a DM can give you players the ingredients, but it is up to you to do the cooking. When I first quested Nawiel with my alu-fiend npc, I surely was not expecting her to set so much roleplay in motion.

I have to say, I am positively surprised, and what Nawiel has tried to accomplish is, depite its failure, a good demonstration of the kind of machine that a player can start. As for her failure...I firmly believe that there is no such a thing as "losing" an event. Even if the outcome is bad, your character can still garner enormous amounts of experience from it, albeit in the hard way.

So follow empoweredfan' example: start laying out plots and set the underdark roleplay in motion, and a DM will be far more likely to follow you all and bring life to the place.

[Empoweredfan]

It shocked her brain into a working order again. She has started scheming in her old fashion (that is, 'Goodness for all' sort of plan), but this time with more care and thought involved. . . the occasional metaphor will be sprouted though.

[Cel'Daren]

If Nawiel managed to come back from that, may I say she is made of far sterner stuff than I myself am. If I came to realize that I was responsible for the damnation of an innocent child over my own desire for revenge, my mind would snap like a twig!

@ Asgorath. I was not meaning to try and chastise you or put you down in any way here, just to be clear. I'm loving that the UD has a DM that is putting in the time and effort to run these kind of life-altering events, and to let us players run with our plots as just evidenced. Kudos to you Asgorath, and for the rest of the staff team as well.

[DM Asgorath]

If Nawiel managed to come back from that, may I say she is made of far sterner stuff than I myself am. If I came to realize that I was responsible for the damnation of an innocent child over my own desire for revenge, my mind would snap like a twig!

@ Asgorath. I was not meaning to try and chastise you or put you down in any way here, just to be clear. I'm loving that the UD has a DM that is putting in the time and effort to run these kind of life-altering events, and to let us players run with our plots as just evidenced. Kudos to you Asgorath, and for the rest of the staff team as well.

to think that it all started as a simple attempt at performing a divination....

[Empoweredfan]

I agree with Cel'Daren. It really is the best thing that have happened all year that you are with us DM Asgorath.

As for Nawiel and snapping. . . that happened a long time ago. And since they thought the divination only needed Nawiel's blood, she was prepared to try. When the stakes changed, and the arrangement became a 'bad deal', things got very desperate. As she sees it, they tried to save the child, but failed, and it will haunt her. Now, what is left is to try and make it so that it doesn't happen again. . . .

As it stands, she believes that the temple brought in the child just out of spite. So, she has learned that Lolthlites are still the most evil people around. That they are the equivalents of the worst traders, tainting their wares, creating impossible deals. And that the conclave really need to do something about it (She is still a deluded believer in the Conclave. . . so she is far from well in the head).

That said, she will want to atone for what has been done, so what she might try next, I have no clue.

(Large goals, impossible to achieve, but someone's got to try)

[Servin]

[Celduil]

http://bgtscc.net/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=18957

- The Temple of Lolth is raided by unknown forces. The acting priestesses at the time go into self-imposed exile to minimize the Temple's loss of face in S'shamath's politics. Expansion of the Temple's influence in S'shamath comes to an abrupt halt while the hunt for the perpetrators is on. The Schools of Magic use their majority in the Conclave to officially and publically offer the Temple a security arrangement, seeking to draw further attention to its insecurity and perceived weakness.

What the hell.

[Empoweredfan]

Better and better. =)

[Servin]

There's been a huge commotion over this blunder. Mainly over promoting powergamers and not adhering to the lore at all by the staff. I don't want to go through all that again, let's just say the community regressed to 3 players in the UD at the same time over that and a lot of stones were thrown at the particular person in charge back then *leans over his catapult*

[Celduil]

There's been a huge commotion over this blunder. Mainly over promoting powergamers and not adhering to the lore at all by the staff. I don't want to go through all that again, let's just say the community regressed to 3 players in the UD at the same time over that and a lot of stones were thrown at the particular person in charge back then *leans over his catapult*

It's this bit I'm worried about.

The acting priestesses at the time go into self-imposed exile to minimize the Temple's loss of face in S'shamath's politics. Expansion of the Temple's influence in S'shamath comes to an abrupt halt while the hunt for the perpetrators is on. The Schools of Magic use their majority in the Conclave to officially and publically offer the Temple a security arrangement, seeking to draw further attention to its insecurity and perceived weakness.

The priestesses didn't exile themselves, nor would they ever admit defeat. I was one of the ones who let "the community regress to three players" because of simply finding no way for my Priestess of Lolth to conceive of what happened so I moved on.

I wasn't aware the Temple's Influence was coming to an abrupt halt, either.

As for the Priestesses accepting help from the School of Magic... lol?

[Servin]

You are not allowed to god-mode. The same doesn't work with DM's, who said in PM's they have complete power over everyone's character if they wish, just... just like the guild you guys used to run it seems.

[Storm Munin]

I for one find the current plot simply delicious as it is pretty much openended, down to earth, dark and I really have no idea where it is going or how this will end.
In a way I have gotten the kind of plot I requested earlier this fall, thank you.
Actions having consequences on a personal level is a treat, however fair or unfair they may seem in the present.

It is a bit like Nawiel and Sussuri are a paired beacon of vengeful light rolling between the rock and the petrified mushroom between punches while swamped in liars, sadists and the ruthless on all fronts. Sure there are some friendly souls around but..its Sshamath.
Hmm, sounds like good aligned elves on the surface doesnt it?

So far Nawiel seem to be on a selfappointed path of pain through her choices and actions. Sussuri has mostly been stuck with picking up the pieces if you discount that unfortunate abyssal incident and the stay at Sshamath's detention centre.
The latter is better left unvisited by everyone but devotees of Loviatar I suppose.



A big thank you from me to DM Asgorath, Rainbow Prism, Haladan, Cel'Daren, Fashionisdanger and all the others for the roleplay so far (You are not forgotten Servin, just not around much).

Looking forward to see the hurts spread over more victims..ehm.. toons before this is finished. I would rather keep all the body parts he has left thank you very much.


Edit:
@Servin
Everything the Temple as an organisation did was sanctioned by the DM:s at the time.
Celduil and I shared the workload of administrating the guild during the latest revival, I have yet to be notified by any DM about any transgressions on the guild's part beyond 1 or 2 stupid PvP situations. Meanwhile the Temple ran a lot of political intrigue, had a more or less open war going on with the Baleful Maw for a time (mostly appreciated by both sides, they loved the demon lord we summoned to hunt them according to TheSpaniard) and raised the overall roleplaying efforts in the tunnels by some 1.000% at the time, give or take.
If you feel like the DM:s godmoded on our behalf fine, but that is between you and the DM:s.

As for the individual player(s) this obviously wasnt so since the DM:s do not police the server 24/7, but that is no different than in any other guild that I am aware of.
As an example Cazna and Kar'Myr was up to some pretty wild things at times, but wasnt it just them trying to roleplay extremely chaotic characters more or less well? We all have our moments of shame dont we?
Besides their moments I loved what those toons brought to Sshamath. Toons not surly, darkmooded, constantly drinking or having bodyparts rott off.
Sometimes what is roleplayed simply is not appreciated by everyone for one, some or many reasons. This cannot be avoided I fear unless we change the server to center on a Borg cube and restrained Borg characters while refusing access to anyone not being a professor in english and literature with 20/20 eyesight and no need of sleep, but thatd kill the fun for sure?

[Servin]

You misunderstand Storm. I have asked the similar question to what Celudil said above, at a time (about how the hell was a raid like that possible and how comes the Lolthites were left out of the equation) and that was the answer I have received. It is not my personal opinion, merely an extract of the correspondence I was sent.

If you feel like the DM:s godmoded on our behalf fine, but that is between you and the DM:s.

OK so how am I to understand that? Clearly there is a contradiction here...

The acting priestesses at the time go into self-imposed exile to minimize the Temple's loss of face in S'shamath's politics. Expansion of the Temple's influence in S'shamath comes to an abrupt halt while the hunt for the perpetrators is on. The Schools of Magic use their majority in the Conclave to officially and publically offer the Temple a security arrangement, seeking to draw further attention to its insecurity and perceived weakness.

The priestesses didn't exile themselves, nor would they ever admit defeat. I was one of the ones who let "the community regress to three players" because of simply finding no way for my Priestess of Lolth to conceive of what happened so I moved on.

I wasn't aware the Temple's Influence was coming to an abrupt halt, either.

As for the Priestesses accepting help from the School of Magic... lol?

If it's not a decision made without player's input regarding their characters then you guys are posting in plot mode - meaning I need to get engaged in the debates to see the whole story, which at this point is shrouded in mystery and not everything is what it seems If that's the case I would like to call Celduil a liar and demand him to tell me where did he hide the bodies

Also, I thought I'd mention, I have nothing to do with it. I was not part of the temple at that time.

(You are not forgotten Servin, just not around much).

And it will keep up until May 2014, maybe longer, who knows No, I have not been banned. Just ultra-busy and avoiding distractions.

[Celduil]

I'm not really keen on dragging out old debates at this point. What is done is done, that is what the DMs want us to think and that is what I 100% accept. It had consequences - many players left the UD, or at least our characters, the debasing of the Lolthite "Players" guild, but they are already done, accepted as lore, and we should all move on.

What my question above refers to, however, is the way the scribes have written down the history. Clearly someone from the Conclave wrote that bit in our server's History

Something I feel many do not understand is that our PCs do not make up 100% of the Lolthite Temple. There are many more Lolthites: Be'lira Sshamath, Gel'dala, the entirety of House Sshamath follow Lolth, so "Lolth worship" is very little disrupted when a few (admittedly) high-ranking Priestesses suddenly vanish off the underside of the earth. How it is written in the History suggests once the Player guild (Arach-Tinilith) fell, the rest of the Lolthite influence on the City went with them, which I feel is incorrect.

The other event, the School of Magic offering the Lolthites a security arrangement, assuming it is right to place all of the blame on the Lolthites for something they did not do (which is precisely why I continue to keep away), is less of an issue, except I am not aware of this event IG and I'm curious to see how the Temple handled it.