In Progress [LP CYOA] Tower

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

If they are actually astras, I think the boots would help with our current impaired mobility, and in the long run, boost our Hunter abilities really well. Similar goes for the eyeglasses - we are not exactly a talker and scouting related abilities should serve us very well

On the other hand, a book would play to our strengths, given that we have a higher level wisdom and intelligence than average.

 

[Esquilax]

Baltika9 still wish we would have stayed home, done the laundry and tried to breastfeed Rain?

Well, I have the sneaking suspicion that our laundry basket is more likely to be an Astra than any of these three items are.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

Baltika9 still wish we would have stayed home, done the laundry and tried to breastfeed Rain?

Well, I have the sneaking suspicion that our laundry basket is more likely to be an Astra than any of these three items are.

Because you just leave useless items in what is likely the (or a) center chamber of the ruins on their own pedestals?

Bro, these are clearly highly important items. The only way they wouldn't be is if Indiana Jones made a trip here before us and put those items there randomly to avoid some pressure plate trap.

 

[Tigranes]

Um, they're not exactly on their own pedestals displayed as important items.

The room is round and not much larger than the classroom at school. Large metal blocks line it at regular intervals, circling the center of the room. There stands an ornate a dais, upon which a crystal ball rests. Catching the light of your lantern, the crystal ball’s core sparkles brilliantly with the colours of the rainbow.

“Hey, over here!” whispers Elizabeth suddenly. “We found something!”

You go over to the girls, who are looking at the base of one of the blocks. Three compartments have opened up in the blocks, revealing a trio of items.

There's an ornate dais with a crystal ball - and then, after some looking around, we spot three compartments that have 'opened up'.

I assume that the lantern activated the crystal ball, which acts as some kind of identifier / scanner, and based on that, the structure has yielded three appropriate astras to the three of us.

So, actually, that still makes Esquilax advice the most sage - whereupon we allow fate to determine our choice.

Flop to DB > BB > CB.

 

[Absinthe]

Looks good. As I thought, away from the larger group dynamics, people like Elizabeth are less likely to be dipshits to the freak. Sophie, too, is largely afraid to be seen as too related to us. Going with the girls has been alright so far.

BB > CB for me.

If they are actually astras, I think the boots would help with our current impaired mobility, and in the long run, boost our Hunter abilities really well. Similar goes for the eyeglasses - we are not exactly a talker and scouting related abilities should serve us very well, as well as any ability to observe and find information without socialising. I can't imagine the book being anywehre as helpful.

Seriously? You can't imagine a learning opportunity this early on as being helpful in the long run? If anything the book is the best item from the long-term view. Learning opportunities are hard to come by, while whatever items we find in the starter dungeon aren't going to be too hot in the scheme of things.

If someone can show that these probably aren't astras, then the book may rise in priority

We have no proof they are astras in the first place. If they are astras, the book could just as well be one too. If they're not astras, the book is easily the best item.

 

[Nevill]

I assume that the lantern activated the crystal ball, which acts as some kind of identifier / scanner, and based on that, the structure has yielded three appropriate astras to the three of us.

Does it mean if we brought Rain along we'd have four?

DAMMIT!

 

[Baltika9]

I was going to make a big rebuttal to this Astra-chasing, but Esquilax beat me to it and summarized the nonsensical nature of the argument quite well:

What makes you so sure that this isn't a regular old book, pair of boots, or set of eyeglasses? Since an Astra could be any old object, and we wouldn't know how to distinguish one item that might be an Astra from an identical item that might be completely mundane, how would we know the difference?

The only Astras we currently know of are all fashioned as weapons: our former guardian's bow astra and Andrew's sword astra. Never mind, astras come in all shapes and sizes.

Could these be astras? Certainly. Can we assume they are astras just because they are in a fancy room? Certainly not. These could be the relics of an important personage, or just a pair of fancy boots, a nice book and a good pair of glasses. They are in what seems to be a storage room, not a super-secret reliquary:

The room is round and not much larger than the classroom at school. Large metal blocks line it at regular intervals, circling the center of the room. There stands an ornate a dais, upon which a crystal ball rests. Catching the light of your lantern, the crystal ball’s core sparkles brilliantly with the colours of the rainbow.

“Hey, over here!” whispers Elizabeth suddenly. “We found something!”

You go over to the girls, who are looking at the base of one of the blocks. Three compartments have opened up in the blocks, revealing a trio of items.

Baltika9 still wish we would have stayed home, done the laundry and tried to breastfeed Rain?

Maybe. Let's see how this turns out first, yeah? And btw, sleeping on dirty linens is fucking gross, no matter what happens on this excursion. I will say this, though: the girls are p. chill without Andrew around and I am down with building a familial relationship with Sophie. Next step: set her up with a date with Andrew.

We're not abandoning Rain. Getting conscripted is a pretty bad idea.

 

[Absinthe]

Hey, the way codex votes go, sometimes people are totally serious about that kind of thing.

 

[Baltika9]

Hey, the way codex votes go, sometimes people are totally serious about that kind of thing.

2A won't win anyway, so I feel no need to censor my curiosity. I find the setup with the knightly orders to be p. cool, but of course Rain takes priority. On the other hand, she could become the mascot to a regiment of jaded, grumpy cossacks who would raise her and us as one of their own.

 

[Azira]

DB>AB, it seems fitting for Wrinkly to let the girls choose potential astra first, and then choose the sensible option of hiding.

 

[Nevill]

You know, in ye olde RPGs like Might and Magic, you come across a chest in a dungeon spaceship, and find inside a potion, a rusty plate mail, and a Necklace of Navelgazing +15?
Maybe these ruins had the same level designer.

 

[Baltika9]

You know, in ye olde RPGs like Might and Magic, you come to a chest in a dungeon spaceship, and find inside a potion, a rusty plate mail, and a Necklace of Navelgazing +15?
Maybe these ruins had the same level designer.

No, those level designs are a case of art imitating life, since the creator of the first Might and Magic will be inspired by our adventures.

I am being completely serious here.

 

[Tigranes]

Didn't you know that treave actually wrote Might and Magic I

 

[Nevill]

“That is an Astra airship. Only the Council of Orders are allowed to operate them within the Tower, so there must be knights on board. What are they doing all the way up here on the 20th floor?”

I didn't pay attention to it the first time, but... what is an Astra airship? Could an entire airship be an Astra? Or is it an airship they send when they catch a whiff of a new ruins with potential Astras in them?

 

[Baltika9]

I am going to go on a somewhat wacky tangent here; I'm going to speculate that Astras, being that they seem to be the soul's link to the heavens (Astra, as in celestial body), also have a lot to do with destiny and crucial moments in one's life. These objects by their nature are linked to your soul via something resembling destiny - I'm not sure that you can say "oh hey, I want that [sword/book/dildo] to be my Astra". Basically, you don't pick the Astra - the Astra picks you.

Gentlemen, we must let fate decide this one.

I dunno, this seems exactly like wacky speculation to me, given that we know very little of astras.

treave: Based on the loredump, I'm guessing that an Astra is a physical object linked to its owner's soul that allows them to perform feats that or enhance themselves beyond normal human limits?

Pretty much, yes. Your affinity with the Astra dictates how many 'ranks' of their feats you can unlock, and you can own more than one. They can be found in shapes as varied as swords, to eyepieces, to pendants. It is also possible to reforge them physically to a certain extent, though it will not change the powers they give. Usually.

So we can link our souls to them, but nothing that suggests sentience on their part or some greater destiny being at play here.

I think the best thing to do here is to vote for what we want. And I want book.

Edit:

Didn't you know that treave actually wrote Might and Magic I

I thought he wrote the Harlequin Romance novels.

 

[ItsChon]

A. Book. As cool as the other options might be (Eye Glasses might shoot lasers or give us X-Ray vision, or tell us information about the person across from us, Boots might make us fast or invisible, etc), the upside of the Book is far too much to pass up. I can live in a world where we get a book that is useless and the girls get some cool magic items, versus us getting some decent magic item but the girls get some crazy awesome book.

B. Zero downside to hiding. If it's the kids we'll pop out of the pillar, scare them, and laugh about it, further increasing our status in the group. If it's the knights, we can get a reading on the cut of their jib, and show ourselves if it suits us.

Although, I shall add in the caveat, that it would be wise to assess what kind of Astra (Dynamism, Mutability, Fixation) each item can fit into. The Boots can be Fixation and make us fast,or they can be Mutability and transform us, the Eye Glasses could also fit into different categories, but I can't really figure out what the hell kind of Astra the Book would be.

 

[Zerafall]

A. B.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

Although, I shall add in the caveat, that it would be wise to assess what kind of Astra (Dynamism, Mutability, Fixation) each item can fit into. The Boots can be Fixation and make us fast,or they can be Mutability and transform us, the Eye Glasses could also fit into different categories, but I can't really figure out what the hell kind of Astra the Book would be.

Didn't treave just tell us that it would be some kind of magical martial arts manual or was that a joke?

Regardless, I think our higher level INT and WIS would be able to put it to great use.

Books tend to be overpowered in these sorts of settings. A spellbook, a loredump that will lead us to greater power, anything.

The civilization that built this place may have build the tower itself. A book written by them could be Nether Scrolls level shit.

Plus I think that it would go along with our character's current focus on education and learning. We've recently discovered we have an aptitude and love for reading. It would be fitting roleplaying-wise if that were developed into a greater power.

 

[Tigranes]

What exactly are we hoping the book gives us? A loredump, right? Which is pretty interesting for us, but is that really the way to blow what might be the one truly powerful item that our character can get their hands on for the foreseeable future?

If this is an Astra, then we're essentially picking not only our primary weapon proficiency, but also the only useful thing we might have with us to solve challenges ahead of us for years. It seems far more probable that a boots of stealth or augmented mobility (e.g. ceiling climbing, jumping, striding), or some kind of magical vision, is going to provide the kind of ability we can use in many different sticky situations.

If it really was a martial arts manual, I can probably get on board that, but I strongly doubt treave would actively spoil just one of the three items for us like that.

 

[Kz3r0]

AB

 

[CappenVarra]

If those really are boots of stealth, we want someone else to be wearing them, not us. We already have a rank of stealth so we're covered on that front. It's the rest of our party that needs stealth badly if we want to move undetected. You're not planning on abandoning the girls, are you?

nigga please, we both know the girls will start screaming the moment we snuff the light and spoil any chance for quiet observation and get shot by over-zealous knights shouting 'clear' and 'reloading, cover me' to each other (while masturbating furiously)

it doesn't matter, because:
1) we just adequately handled two girls
2) you don't choose the stealth option, in soviet russia stealth chooses YOU

 

[Baltika9]

this is an Astra, then we're essentially picking not only our primary weapon proficiency, but also the only useful thing we might have with us to solve challenges ahead of us for years.

I don't think boots, spectacles or a book would make very good weapons. Unless you are John Wick.

It just so happens that it's one of the directions I want to develop our character in. I agree with you that our choice of item is important, be they astras or not, but I also agree with Absinthe on this one:

Seriously? You can't imagine a learning opportunity this early on as being helpful in the long run? If anything the book is the best item from the long-term view. Learning opportunities are hard to come by,

What exactly are we hoping the book gives us? A loredump, right?

The means to enslave nations with necromancy. Elvish martial arts. The diary of Rain's mom. There's no way of knowing what it is, but even if it's a coloring book, it can at least offer us insights into the elves that built this place. And protect us from big guys like Ernest, if it comes to that.

but I strongly doubt treave would actively spoil just one of the three items for us like that.

That's exactly what treave wants you to think. Reverse psychology is something he has employed in the past.

Edit:

nigga please, we both know the girls will start screaming the moment we snuff the light

Sophie, maybe. Elizabeth is a G.

 

[Tigranes]

It's no surprise that people will chase after every book and philosophy breadcrumb on offer, given the popularity of Scholar. But this isn't exactly like the kid in an isolated village with his only chance of grabbing Karl Popper or Francis Bacon. It could be a kung fu manual, but it could equally be, hell, a book in an old language that only Tower scholars even know how to read, for example.

OTOH, if the book is an astra, then it's not supposed to just be a book with interesting stuff written in it, so sure, it might be a spellbook to cast Cowkill. But that's a lot of ifs involved. Just seems to me that there's a tendency to bandwagon "books magic information" whatever the situation.

 

[Nevill]

People love their mystery boxes, and the book could contain anything. Some of us explicitly have this as a motivation, i.e. not being able to pass what may be our ticket to Unlimited Power!

I, too, would happily shill for a chance at a soul-bound book. Even if it turns out it was an elven dancing manual... we could use some smooth moves!

Edit: now where was this video... oh, here it is!

Spoiler

 

[Absinthe]

What exactly are we hoping the book gives us? A loredump, right? Which is pretty interesting for us, but is that really the way to blow what might be the one truly powerful item that our character can get their hands on for the foreseeable future?

Skill book, some special ability, extra skill levels, a stat boost, a rare lore dump, a spellbook, who knows. All I know is that this kind of knowledge is going to come in handy and that this sort of opportunity is damn hard for us to come by, whereas regular astras seem to be fairly common. Don't look down on learning opportunities, especially this early. The book is by far the most likely to benefit us in the long run.

If this is an Astra, then we're essentially picking not only our primary weapon proficiency, but also the only useful thing we might have with us to solve challenges ahead of us for years. It seems far more probable that a boots of stealth or augmented mobility (e.g. ceiling climbing, jumping, striding), or some kind of magical vision, is going to provide the kind of ability we can use in many different sticky situations.

No, we can have multiple astras. See: Character sheet, where astras are listed in the plural. And I'm pretty sure if we were picking our primary weapon right now, our choices would be more... weapon-like. If it really is going to be a vote on our primary weapon as astra, then I'd still call dibs on the book as the book will probably be some kind of spellbook. Plain old astras should be attainable even without ruins diving anyway.

If it really was a martial arts manual, I can probably get on board that, but I strongly doubt treave would actively spoil just one of the three items for us like that.

It wouldn't surprise me if treave's initial intention was to automatically give us the book but then he decided to give us an option since some voters expressed reservations about going with a martial arts book.