BUMP!
Clockwork Expeditions: Ancient Artefacts of the Cradle!
I think the OP meant "artifact" instead of artefact, I think that the....
Oh well this is a year old
Look up the word "artifact." Artefact is merely the English spelling of the word. Both are accepted. Think Color/Colour Armor/Armour.
People still tell me I spelled "armor" wrong in-game. I wish to throttle them and watch the life drain from their eyes. :p
*Connection Reestablished*
--and vanished. This certainly explains why the entire area was filled with candles and Molten Globule generators.
Knowing how to deal with Mega-Kats now, and feeling a bit less jumpy, I see one of the golden key monoliths Avlein mentioned within this sanctuary. Figuring I'd need it ahead, I abscond with it into the gloom.
Forging ahead, making sure to light any candles I saw on the way, I met many enemies I had seen before in the Clockworks. I can only be incredibly thankful I had not ran into them before the Mega-Kat. Dispatching them was simple enough if I stayed in the light.
Much to my surprise, the orange-lit candles are fickle and go out after a limited amount of time. They have a bizarre tendency to go out at the least opportune moment possible.
Finally making it to the elevator, I let out a sigh of relief. These areas are absolutely taxing. While there certainly seems to be books aplenty around the place and much knowledge to be had, this area is completely inhospitable. Advise avoiding if at all possible. Well, until we make floodlights standard issue, that is.
I turn my weary gaze at the monitor on the elevator and see... A pawn. With a teal, shock theme background.
Oh, for fu--
*End Transmission*
Addendum: Though my report may be grim for this area, know that even in the very heart of darkness, love still burns bright. Friendship is your greatest ally, and it possesses a magical quality in these depths. Treasure it.
While wandering through this deathtrap we call a planet, I've come across a few strange gates that seem to hum with energy. There appears to be no way of opening it in a conventional manner. Golden monoliths do not effect them, nor silver or shadow keys. Not even kicking, screaming, begging, or summoning dark gods to assist you will make the gate budge. (Side note; don't try the latter in a graveyard. It doesn't end well.)
Rather, you must overcharge the gate using a bit of your own energy. The lock will short out, and you can get in at whatever lies beyond. Sometimes it's a few boxes. Other times it's a whirling torrent of pain and misery. And then some boxes. It all goes back to boxes, is what I'm saying. So at least they appear to be entirely optional.
Observant knights will observe observantly that I appear to have some horrible abomination growing out of my back. That is the result of a botched test concerning a toxilargo, a can of spray paint, and an advanced genetic resplicer module. It's purely a growth on my armour, so thankfully I am not physically effected. At any rate, it appears benign and hasn't, if fact, tried to consume my brain yet. I am a bit worried about psychological issues since it seems to respond to my thoughts and "flap" at my command. A shame the thing would need to be about five times bigger to allow one with my body structure and mass to fly. Maybe there's a way to accelerate the growth of this thing?
...For science, of course. Certainly not for flying around gleefully, no siree.
*End Transmission*
Spirotech Powered Armour Mk XLII is the current issue of the CBRN exoskeletal suit the Order has used for countless years.
The innermost layer, the Neural Interface, is fused directly to the dermal layer and wired into our nervous system. Once attached, it is never removed, even in death. Due to the advanced nanites we have coursing through our bodies, we don't need to worry about breathing or eating since they take care of all organic needs as long as energy is supplied. This allows there to be no breaks in the Interface, making it completely sealed and self-contained, isolating the body to the outside world and all dangers therein. Its functions are mainly so we can wade into nearly any environmental condition without harm to our squishy, organic bodies and to allow us to use the Exoframe. Envirnmental protecytion extends to a wide range of thermal, pressure, radiological, and toxic threats. Mind you, it alone still won't stop a good blade going through it or a powerful shockwave from liquefying your organs. that's what the Overarmour is for. But we'll get to that.
The next layer is the Exoframe. This is the exoskeletal framework we use to bolster our physical strength and to generally make wearing our armour possible. It is attached to anchor points in the Neural Interface to receive input from our nervous system. This makes the entire assembly move with us as an extension of our body, rather than as some dead weight we must force to move about. Combat modules and vitapods improve the Exoframe, whether through enhancing how hard sword strikes hit/your ability to aim, or by improving how well the entire assembly uses energy. However the Exoframe tends to be rather susceptible to damage since it's the most complicated bit of the assembly.
Last is the Overarmour. This last bit is entirely modular depending on what the knight has on hand or wishes to use. Nameless Hat, Vog Cub Coat, frilly dress, whatever. This is the layer that is the actual armour rather than just a mechanical extension of our bodies. There are also interfaces in Overarmour to extend the sensation of touch through certain parts of it, such as the gloves or face. This is mainly to enhance fine motor skills; it's far easier to tell if you're gonna be crushing an egg or not if you're getting tactile feedback. Any defensive modules are also run through Overarmour, such as so called "wetstone" or "laurel" modules.
When we fall in battle, it's usually because the Exoframe has taken extensive damage and has shut down to prevent further damage to it. Since we certainly don't have the strength on our own to move about in our heavy-as-sin armour, we're completely disabled and rely on our fellow knights to rescue us. Thankfully, the inhabitants of this planet seem to abide by rules of combat, as established during the Third Galactic War, to not destroy any enemy that isn't a threat (Have you ever killed a Love Puppy or Mewkat that wasn't barring your way? You will be decommissioned and executed for war crimes, you monster). As such, we're pretty safe when downed. However, we can override this shutdown by having an ally devote half of their on hand Exoframe energy to us. This kicks on the frame's self-repair matrix and allows us to push on. Alternatively, we can route crystalline/mist energy directly into the matrix to activate it (though the amount of c/m energy needed to reactivate the matrix after each fall grows exponentially).
Poison in the Clockworks actually isn't poison in the traditional sense, but some kind of horrific multidimensional microbe that plays hell with the neural interfaces we use to operate our suit assembly. As such, it's less a poison and more of an infection that interferes with everything, whether mechanical or organic, corporeal or incorporeal. Thankfully, it burns itself out rather quickly and leaves no lasting effects once purged.
Health capsules aren't capsules we eat. We cannot eat anymore. The only reason we can still taste is with a neural addon, and even then, the only reason we have *that* is so we know what'll be valuable as spices and flavouring for trading. Rather, capsules (of health and remedy variants) contain an advanced series of repair nanites that patch up any damage done to, or flush out any ongoing issues with, the Exoframe. Why do the monsters have these things, you ask? Why, it's because our entire stock of the things were ejected from the Skylark before crashing and manged to rain down across this world. Turned out to be a bit of a blessing in disguise, even though we now have none to use in Haven, or to ship to Subtown vendors.
I mentioned vitapods a bit earlier. They merely work by improving how well the Exoframe functions under duress. Being able to route power more effectively through other lines, or just better energy management throughout the system means the Exoframe can take more punishment before being knocked offline while leaving you as a useless weight for the rest of your team to carry. Why don't we make vitapods standard issue instead of forcing you to scrape a new one out of somewhere every run, you ask? Because shut the hell up, that's why.
I think I've prattled on enough. As a random digression, turns out that not only can love be found in the dark eye of terror, but also in the depths of hell itself.
*End Transmission*
/*
Original Post Date: Sat, 02/18/2012 - 10:46
Revision 1: Tweaking some areas to better communicate what I wanted to. Thought of a far better name for the second layer of the suit assembly (seems like an obvious choice now). Added relevant images.
*/
Believe it or not, we don't, in fact, pull our weapons/shields/armour out of our butts. No, rather we pull them out of the Spirotech Trans-dimensional Hypermatter Spacial Disruptor.
Since it's rather unwieldy to carry around our unused weapons and armour on hand, we store everything in null-space and pull what we need out of it. However, a distinction must be made.
All knights of the Spiral Order are issued two different Disruptor units. One is the Arsenal Disruptor, while the other is the Field Disruptor
The Arsenal one is where we store all our unused gear. Since it must store so much, it's rather unstable, in that if you interrupt the process of using it you're liable to suck yourself and several blocks of the surrounding area into null-space. As such, no knight is permitted to use it unless they are in a secured location. That's subtowns, special arsenal stations, or Clockwork Terminals.
The second, Field, one is far more stable since it only stores (at standard) two items at a time. You can upgrade the Field module with extra slots to hold up to four items at a time, though these slots must be maintained. This module is used to store any weapons we aren't using on our current expedition or campaign. The Field module is further improved by being wired into our neural interface, so we can switch weapons at a thought. Merely dropping a weapon will decompose it's molecular structure and shift it into null-space, while whatever we want out of the module is shifted back into realspace right into our hands.
However, since the Field module interfaces with our nervous system (which is unique to every individual), once a blank weapon is attuned to a knight, it cannot be used by any other knight. In a sense, it is bound to us. Armour and combat modules work similarly, since they must be wired into the Neural Interface to operate too. So stop complaining about the unbinding process. They exist for a reason. Resetting a weapons neural signature is a massive pain and a delicate process, and trying to use something that isn't tailored to you is idiotic at best. None of our engineers could be spared to solely do this task, so we got lucky finding that Gremlin to do it for you all.
What's prompted me into explaining all of this is that I'm pretty sure something is wrong with my Field module. It seems at points my shield and weapons will dramatically change in size/shape or reassemble in the wrong proportions; probably an issue with pulling the item out of null-space. At any rate, it needs to be looked at. Hell, even Avelin's notes mention this, so it's not a new development.
*End Transmission*
/*
Side note; This glitch is easily reproducible. If you're moving while shielding, then stop shielding but keep moving, the shield will stay larger than normal (why does the shield become larger when you raise it anyway? I know that's intentional, maybe to make the shield stand out more, but we got the bubble to tell us all about the status of our shield). For weapons, you can do this by switching weapons while you're taking down the shield, though it's somewhat tricky to do. Both glitches stay until you stop moving, though I've had special instances where the glitch stays even if you're still. It might have to do with taking shield damage when the bubble is up or something, I dunno. Might want to look into this, devs.
Other note: Hurr, I forgot to put the URL into the link code. Go me.
*/
Late transmission due to having to help the Tech Knights reconstruct much of our administrative database. It seems some snipes built a nest inside the mainframe. Cleaned them out and now everything should be working again, though they ruined many of our data blocks. Of particular note, ranking data on most of the knights has been lost.
We also managed to bring the deployment subsystems online at long last. Should be able to send knights out on proper missions now. Too bad the aforementioned loss of rank data means everyone must start at the bottom. The administrative branch has no clue who our elite knights are and who's just a greenhorn. As if crashing on this hellscape wasn't bad enough.
I managed to iron things out (and by iron out, I mean I had to smash a few desks with a tire iron) regarding my own rank, though. Least I'm Loremaster again and not a bloody recruit.
Anyway, there are places in the Clockworks that have strange crystalline formations which differ from the minerals we use to power the gates. These structures are incredibly durable, easily able to withstand blows from a Lumber. This great strength comes at a great cost though; they're highly susceptible to resonant frequencies. When exposed to the right frequency, the entire crystalline matrix collapses into dust, no matter how large or strangely shaped it is.
Interestingly, our weapons cause these crystals to resonate when struck. As such, we can cut through them with ease. Note, however, that this only destabilizes matching, contiguous structures. Each colour resonates at a different frequency, after all.
Another interesting type of block is the pan-dimensional warp cube. Upon activation, it sucks any structure in contact with it into null-space. Thankfully, it only does so to masses along the horizontal plane, else it would suck up the entire Geo-Globe and probably all of Cradle.
Note to self; work on reverse engineering this. Might be useful for a doomsday weapon. Hahaha! Hahahahaha!
Oh crap, this thing is still on.
*End Transmission*
It has come to my attention that my fellow knights are in dire need of reeducation concerning something known as the "treasure box."
Emblazoned on the crown with what they contain, there are three distinct varieties. Green, which contains but a few items. Red, though rarer, makes up for it with usually being packed with goodies. Last is red/white, which contain pure energy. These containers rupture rather easily, exploding with a pleasant pop and showering confetti and things everywhere.
But don't be fooled! This suspicious generosity is merely to lull you into a false sense of security, which is exactly what this horrible deathtrap of a planet wants! Some day you're gonna pop one of these boxes and then end up with your fancy hat on fire because the box was prepped with an incendiary device. I'd know.
Mark my words, booby-trapped boxes will become common, and when you run into one, it might be deadly. As such, I rechristen them as "horrible deathtrap boxes" until further notice. Advise avoiding if your armour subsystems are in disrepair. Including, no, *especially* if it's an energy box; they'd be exactly the kind of thing that would be rigged to kill.
If you're feeling sociopathic however, I suppose you could let one of your squadmates burst all the boxes instead and pick up all the goodies off his charred, immobilized body. You monster.
*End Transmission*
Hey wait one moment, I politely ask in my fan comic thread, something which I put quite a bit of work into and has large number of people following, to have the shadow copy left in the general discussion yet it still gets removed, how come this thread (I'm not criticizing this, I quite enjoy it) gets to be put there while mine one isn't?
In some ways I'm depressed that the only comments this thing gets is from people posting about technical issues with the thread rather than more people adding their own take on things (or even their opinions). But I digress...
ETD was moved completely to TV? That explains why I haven't seen it around General. I totally thought yours would stay due to this thing being allowed, though I could try to pull a grandfather clause to keep the shadow copy (which I'll totally try to use if it comes to that, and I suspect is the true reason this thing is still allowed in General). Another issue the mods might have with ETD is that it looks like it's gonna span across many separate threads; after all, it's merely part 1 of who the hell knows how many. If you can convince them that you'll keep the entire thing to one thread, they might be a bit more lenient.
If we're being frank however, the heart of this little dispute lies with us trying to keep high quality works in General (not my work, heavens no, I mean Avlein's; dude's a genius and goddamn hilarious). However, we only do that due to how people have to paw through a zillion things to find the true gems (it's 99% of the reason I don't really visit TV any), so no one ever sees the good stuff. As such, we need some kind of user rating system that's quick and easy that anyone can do. A Karma system for threads in TV, if you will. Only that will solve our problem.
Greetings Loremaster. This is Ranger Class, Knight #[CONFIDENTIAL], Codename: Windsickle.
Here is a simple tactic to this new problem that you mentioned in Pt10 Log that I believe will solve this safely. Simply open the suspect containers from of a distance of more than a sword's length. I realize that this might be a bit more difficult as a Sword specialist Knight with nothing other than melee Weapons, but I believe that rupturing the containers with the release of a shock-wave consisting of large amounts of the residual force from a high-speed swing of a Sword from slightly more than a sword's length distance should accomplish this similarly though I cannot guarantee a burn-free opening. It is possible I've confirmed, to do this similarly with Explodium containers. I currently have no proof however, but may post some at a later date. If you do not feel capable of pulling of this feat safely and have no Bombs or Handguns, I'd suggest carrying a Sword with a medium range Charge Attack such as a Spur (and well, practically any non-Calibur Sword now with the recent standard issue Chain Ground Combuster units). Keep a helmet handy, huh?
*End Transmission*
@Guyinshinyarmour (and Eurydice I guess)
Well I do plan to keep the story to one thread, the two supporting threads (role casting and story design) are okay to only appear in the TV.
That'll work wonderfully for IEDs and the like. But then you pop open a box and a half dozen greavers swarm out because a monster crate was concealed inside. NOT THE GREAVERS! NOT THE GREAVERS! AAARGABULARRRG MY OPTICAL VISOR! MY OPTICAL VISOR! AAAAAAAAAA! AAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
There's reason I called them "horrible deathtrap boxes" and not "minor inconvenience crates." A horrible, terrible reason that you now know and that we shall never speak of again.
*End transmission*
Energy. Just about everything we use routes back to energy. Hell, the entire reason we're stuck here is that our primary source of power for the Skylark is trashed. Energy forges our gear, and powers it.
A freshly forged weapon is still rather weak. It is infirm and requires further power to reach its true potential. Sadly, we cannot use the energy we use in the alchemic process for this purpose. Rather, it requires a highly volatile form of energy, what we've taken to calling heat.
Heat is generated by things that "die" in high-intensity situations. Most sentient and spectral things heat comes from their spirit being given form, while constructs just release any energy they had left. As such, I suspect horrible deathtrap boxes contain some kind of creature or construct that is instantly slain upon their opening. That, or the boxes are actually a type of monster. All the more reason to give the boxes a wide berth, if this is so.
As heat builds, weapons become better able at causing damage, while armour gets better at stopping it. Also, some of the more advanced alchemical processes require gear to be heated up to be further worked on, so it's always a good idea to collect as much as you can.
Remember that heat is incredibly volatile, so trying to alter the item in any way results in all the heat being lost; sometimes in a cataclysmic manner. How do you think the Haven Gremlins shop got leveled? For that reason, screwing around with the neural signature of your gear results in a total loss.
As a bit of an aside, I've been combing this infernal world for months and haven't found so much as a trace as to what happened to Avlein. I'm beginning to suspect that I'll never find any physical evidence as to what happened. All I seem to do is run in circles, chasing dead ends. My secondary mission is looking to be more and more of a hopeless prospect. As far as I can tell, he and his team dropped off the face of Cradle.
*End Transmission*
I'd like to think that they sufferred the same fate as the alpha squad; reaching the core and chased by the horrible darkness which seeks to destroy those who dare trespass, forcing them into the core, where they'll likely disintegrate by the pure massive energy(?) which is contained inside.
After merrily mashing many murderous monsters, I've come to find strange flasks on some of the corpses. Different from our health or revitalizing caps, they are apparently not meant for use on ourselves. Rather, they make excellent grenades. Pitch them in the direction of your enemies and watch as they become stupefied or frozen to the ground.
On a somewhat unrelated note, Spiral command called me insane when I spoke of the Mega-Kat. I'm beginning to think they might be right. I can hear the monsters talking to me now. I need to take a holiday or something.
*End Transmission*
OPERATIVE: Kozynimity
RANK: Field Engineer
Kozy reporting in, it seems we've found portion of forest not reported previously. The air is this with a murderous intent and it's been increasingly difficult to get to know some of my squad what with HQ throwing me every which way. But I digress, minutes after entering the forest we met a new strain of beastly monster which our team has dubbed "Mr. Thornyton". Aside the amusing name, it was precariously prodding us along a path through the woods towards what I suspect is it's lair. this is a new behavioral pattern for things found in the clockworks, and requires more study if possible.
Along the path we have noted a new artifact which resembles a bell. After one of our squad accidentally struck it, it caused a very high pitched sound that seemed to stun any wolvers within a certain range, after which it would retract into its base and would stay idle for a short period. We were unable to detach any parts of these units to bring back for further study.
At its lair it finally came out of the woods to fight us and, thanks to the lucky discovery of the bells, we were able to defeat Mr. Thornyton. the number of footprints similar to the now quite dead Mr. Thornyton leads me to believe there are more of those beasts in these woods and should be avoided in further expeditions by newer recruits.
Now, about my reassignment to my old uni-
*transmission lost*
I'm bumping this. It needs to be. It's epic.
Name: Owao
Codename: Kitty (It's a long time joke)
After about a week's training from Loremaster Guy I've decided to venture on my own for scoops.
The horror of having found something disturbing is something one does not forget easily. And this was exactly what I've found- A horrifying coliseum that pits our very knights AGAINST each other.
The funny thing is that the gear used in it are, apart from our own gear, Spiral Order's class modules, namely the Strike Booster used by Strikers, the Recon Cloak used by Recon Knights and the Guardian Shield, used by Guardians.
Apart from having to beat up other knights (my trusty hammer <3) and getting thrashed myself, I've come to realise there's more to this than meets the eye.
Apparently, they are trying to make us feel awesome! [note: names edited out][note: totally NOT for bragging purposes]
Of course, I'm sure there's more to this... I should try that other door in that coliseum... A sign reads: "Blast Network. Current connection level: 1 bar. Chance of winning a match: low." Oh boy, this is gonna be...
*transmission interrupted by Barracks music*
*transmission reestablished*
...hell. Apparently I wasn't ready to face the impending doom which I have already faced. Of course, I'm not too happy about standing in front and getting hit by a vertical explosion behind me. Especially when I fell, seconds BEFORE the explosion occurred. Cue last place for the game, anyhow.
Though admittedly I wasn't giving my all. A sight, a terrible one, got my attention. Zombies and Devilites and wretched Kats, oh my. Horrible dark creatures from the clockworks, are now cheering as they watch us blow our own allies to bits. What dark ritual... I mean, what conspiracy did King Krogmo had with the Spiral Order?! I almost feel cheated by the very Order which assigned me the missions I have now, witnessing the horrible things they are doing, no matter how "optional" they are.
I have to find the cause of all this. Maybe, it's one of those cursed Dark Cities, or the horrible Devilish Drudgeries...
*end transmission*
As I mentioned in my last transmission, I went out to find the cause for all that. While I certainly did not find anything about King Krogmo, it seems my guess was right- Devilish Drudgeries. Only, why were there confetti everywhere...
As I traveled along, taking numerous staplers, suitcases and even TVs to my face, I stumbled upon what seems to have been a party which I just crashed.
After I mercilessly slaughtered their bosses before they could create more disaster, I figured I'd better leave this party less they throw more stuff in my face. Sometimes I wish I had never done this, but hey, at least now we know more stuff. Or I know more stuff. But I digress.
So they seemed to be having a party. I managed, somehow, to take one or two of the papers as I fled for dear life (actually, I couldn't bear to take more bruises to my cute little face). While these are written in devilish, I'm pretty sure those good devilites in the arcade can help me out. Now, time to take a break...
*end transmission*
I was reading another post when I got a link to this post. I decided to read it and hola, I can't stop. If Christopher Alvein have return to haven (after killing some gunnus), I am ready to be his assistant (that's okay alvein, I won't kill any eroticly design gunnus shooting erotically design hearts)
I do apologise for the delay. I had went in search of Loremaster Guy in an attempt to locate him, but it seems my efforts were futile. Guess I'm back to studying the so called devilish note.
...Or the now spiralish note. I managed to get those devilites to help me out in translating (but not without King Krogmo smacking me on the head for "using" his workers) that note and it says...
"The great burning lord of flames shall crush the spirals and burn them knights!"
Lord of Flames, King of Ashes, the so called Lord Vanaduke. Well, I went to search for him in his burning citadel fighting a few slags here and there. Then I stumbled upon a particularly scared zombie who ended up locking himself up in order to avoid me. Well then I decided to be kind and let it go. (Nah, he pleaded and gave me a reaper rib, some heat embers and a few crowns before I let him go)
Afterwards I went down to face Vaynaydiewk with my friends and guildmates, who were happy to beat him up and get some Almirian seals. Well then he turned to ash (ironic :3) and left his mace behind, which suddenly grew to HUGE proportions and floated in air.
As a digression, I wonder why we can't get a mini version of his mace. I mean we got a mini rocket hammer, so why not...
Back on topic, I still have no clue. So now I'm gonna do random things in havens and clockworks and whatever-place-that-is-fun-to-play-or-fight-in (that's also a technical term, look it up).
*end transmission*
EDIT 1: I reread my post and realised how many times I repeated "well then". I laughed. :c
The Aurora Isles. An idyllic setting, in a place such as this. Sunny skies, open plains, an artificial breeze, and lush trees to doze under. If not for the wolvers and other beasts, it would be a perfect place to do some reflection or to just unwind. Thankfully, these geo-globes take time to rearm themselves with monsters once cleared, and I'm gonna be heading to one I've previously murdered my way through.
Programing elevators to take you wherever you want is a simple task if you actually know where you're headed. And manage to not get electrocuted while messing around with their innards. And are well versed in high-level electromechanical engineering. Ok, maybe it's not so simple. Either way, after jury-rigging an elevator, I'm off. My trials as of late have been rather taxing, and seeing as the elevator will take a while to get to its destination, I figure I'll just sit down, bow my head, and...
~*~*~*~
The elevator shudders to a violent stop, knocking me out of my trance. Looking up I see... Well, crap. This would pass for the Isles if they became overgrown and malevolent. Assuming I haven't gone through some time portal and have been flung into an even more dystopic future, this is clearly not where I wanted to go. My thoughts are broken as the elevator trembles once more. I leap off it just as it explodes and the remains plummet down the shaft. Bloody great. Now I'm stuck here. So much for a vacation.
The air here is cloying, and precious little light penetrates the dense forests of this area; you can't even see the far side of the geo-globe. Shadows are cast long and deep here. Anything could be hiding in the underbrush. Along with an assortment of beasts, there's hordes of undead about. From their presence, I can surmise that many have fallen prey to this place befoWHATTHEHELLISTHAT? I know I saw something! Something big and black and green and evil and and and... I'm really going out of my mind, seeing things in the dark now.
Further into the woods I find what is clearly a Beast Bell. Where normal bells work by having a clapper or mallet strike the bell body to produce a tone, these particular bells haven't been machined for musical lamentations. Rather, when struck, they send an electrical impulse down into the base of the bell. This triggers a mechanism in the base that emits an incredibly powerful low-frequency tone that, while inaudible to us, we've found able to cause nausea in all biological beings. Our suits block out the shockwave, so we're unaffected. The tone you hear is just a little something we've built into the suit to emit into your comset if it's picked up a bell being struck. Always best to know as much about the battlefield as possible. Also, since the bell requires a fair amount of power for it to emit the right frequency, it takes a bit for the main capacitor in the thing to recharge. So no permanently incapacitating everything around you. But I digress.
What's strange is that these bells, while obviously a technology of the Spiral Order, were clearly manufactured by something else entirely. Reverse-engineering and tampering of our equipment is impossible due to the safeguards we've put in place (mostly of the destructive sort), and yet these ones look like they've been here for decades. Not to mention that these bells bear the exact same serial codes as bells we've got deployed elsewhere... This is a worrying development.
Just past the bell, I find a big clearing with a massive button in the center. Yep. This isn't foreboding or anything. Well, fastest way forward is to get on with oh god zombie swarm with kat/howlitzer bullet hell and invincible rabid monstrosity chasing me around blarrr--
*Transmission Interrupted*
...BZZT...BZZT...BZZT
cmon...COME ON!... incomprehensible grumbling...
...BZZT...BZZT...*CLICK* "Connection established*
Aha! Yes a connection! Finally! I have a connection whew. If you are listening to this, that means this crappy piece of tech given to me actually works. *ahem* My name is Varsian, I have been assigned by an officer of the spiral order to investicate the disappearance of Avlein.
From a personal view of this situation, I believe that this mission is LONG over due, hopefully my exploits will bring light to the sudden disappearance of such a wonderful knight. My mission does not stop there though. I have also been assigned to investigate the Aurora Isles to figure out how those metal bio "spheres" actually work. After that, I will travel to one of the Royal Jelly Palaces to learn more (and hopefully send back information) about the reclusive Jellies that reside there. My hope is that more light will be shed on the communication system between jellies and the feudal system that they supposably answer to. I suspect telepathy, but I digress.
After taking my time exploring the clockworks there I will fully search for Avlein as hard as I can. I cannot guess where he went to and death is obviously out of the question. If he met his faith we would have seen the distress beacons coming from his Exoframe; and what of the rest of his squad? I believe that this is a mystery that I must solve.
This has been a solo mission, which I believe is because the Order does not wish for too many people to know about it. Even so, I will be sending these transmissions to Haven so people can know about my findings.
Loremaster I come to you requesting that you may upload my transmissions to the data base that you inherited from Avlein. It would be my honor to contribute my findings.
As I travel to Moorcraft Manor to begin my journey, I question whether this was the right call on my part. Even so, it is my honor to be assigned this mission.
This is Varsian, defender elite, swordsmaster, and hopeful information giver, hoping for the best.
Goodbye...BZZT...BZZT...*CLICK*
-Transmission End-
While I was in Firestorm Citadel a while back I discovered a cool portal which created mecha knights. As fun as it sounds, they didn't particularly seem happy to be "summoned", and promptly knocked me unconscious.
Despite that, I tried to "control" them after an energy blast and voila, seemed to reprogram them nicely. As a matter of fact, I got carried away and made them follow me everywhere and do my bidding. That said, I ended up destroying a few and in the end I got left with only two.
Those two were loyal enough, and I ended up taking *great* care of them. Or at least I think I did. So not to ruin the mood, this is my recent accomplishment with my new buddies.
As for why I'm sitting in that throne, I'll cover that in a follow up log.
*end transmission*
NOTE: Also dubbed, Kitty's log, screenie galore
*Connection Reestablished*
--ked. Like, really sucked. At least after managing to murder (or re-murder as the case may be) everything, the shadow beast up and left. Also got a good look at the black monster from before (I'm not going mad, yay). It's some giant rabid beast covered in some shadowy mass. The mass deflects all attacks to the creature, so damaging it is impossible. All that can be done is to try and avoid the thing.
After another (though less terrible) gauntlet, I've finally reached the elevator. Given what happened to the last elevator I tampered with, I figure I'd better just power through this strange stratum and just come out the other side. Since stratums only get tougher the farther down you go, I'm a bit apprehensive about what lies ahead.
~*~*~*~
Well, that was rather uneventful. I can see the elevator just past this gate, and I haven't run into anything nearly as difficult as that first gauntlet room. Best to just get on the button and AAARGH NOT YOU AGAIN! Least there are bells around this time. This beastie may be impervious to harm, but I'd bet my bottom crown that it'll still be thrown for a loop by the bell.
After forcing the thing back to a bell like some new age lion tamer, I strike the bell, which activates and, strangely, blows away the shadowy mass from the monster. Underneath the inky shroud, the monster is just a normal brown like your average wolver. The beast, sensing its vulnerability, flees. Now I know how to keep it away.
The shadow beast comes back once more during the fight, and I scare it off with another application of the bell. The way to the elevator is clear. Now I need only to descend.
This appears to be a den of some sort. Probably of my shadowy stalker. It's got nowhere else to run now. The elevator is at the far end of the clearing, so I'm gonna have to face the thing. I figure the second I set foot in the clearing, it'll attack. Least the den appears to have a beast bell in the middle of it. The beast probably liked how the bell was shiny and built the den around it. Said bell will be its undoing.
I step forth from my hiding spot and my stalker emerges from the underbrush...along with an exact duplicate of the thing. Seems I've been dealing with a pair of these things; the lord and lady of this forest. To complicate the matter, some kind of black and purp--
*Transmission Interrupted*
/*
Imgur refused to work for me yesterday. Lovely.
I'd rather save chatter until this multi-parter is done, but Varsian's post heavily implies they need my permission to contribute. Know this; no one needs permission. All I hope you do is keep the tone mostly silly and the conclusions you draw convoluted and counterintuitive. Don't outright contradict things that have been said, but build on them.
*/
Name: Aveond, of the TETRA recon.
Occupation: Defending Haven with Kora, trying to locate the alpha squad.
~*~*~*~*~
BZZZT...BZZT...come on, anybody there-BZZZT...BZZT...Oh you gotta be kidding me!...*womans voice in the background* I know that Kora, I'm trying!...BZZT
*Connection established*
Oh lord FINALLY! Aveond here, I'm part of the TETRA recon, and apperantly the elevators that you used are now 100% broken, we can't bring you back, but its too dangerous down there! I have found High fluctuations of heat down there, higher than the Golem Puppies in septemer, 3596! *Kora in the background* What? No, I can't go down there alone! *Kora trying to convice Aveond to locate you all and bring you back up* Thats impossible! My gear isn't ready for that amount of heat! My armor could crack just from the air in there! *Kora giving him other options* Well... I guess that I could try to locate them on the TETRA sensor... Oh god.. You have to get-
*CLICK*.
*End transmission*
BZZT...CRRRZZT...just connect...BZZT...ZZZT..BLZZ-
*CLICK*
*Begin Transmission*
The TETRA sensor was destroyed from the amount of heat just flowing out of there. I won't be able to locate you as this..BZZT... is barely being transmitted, the heat is manipulating your neural transmittors...BZZZT...strange things that dont actually exist...BZZT... But dont give up hope, just don't believe that anything happening down there exists...BZZT... I am trying to look for te cause of the interferance. When I find it I wan't for you to...CRZZT... got it?! Good...BZZT... I am sending you a program that should allow your visor to know the difference before reality and illusion...BZZT... wont work because of the...BZZT... and keep in-.CRRRZZZT...
*there is just static...*
TETRA Radio V12.08 MKVI
*begin transmission*
Apperantly all of that heat was from the pizza that I burned, sorry 'bout that. According to Kora the Alpha Squad still exists... I still can't track them down though, they seem to be near the core somewhere... As well as the rest of the teams. Kitty, Loremaster, I'm counting on you two to help us out here, the program that I've installed is actually a TETRA heat sensor, when you can(if you can) please place a heat beacon wherever they are and I'll use the ICFTTTPDWBWDKFS(Intercontinental Cobalt Flavored TETRA Teleprompter That Probably Doesn't Work But We Don't Know For Sure) to teleport you all out *kora in the background* Wait... Whaddaya mean it doesn't work!? I though*Kora scolding Aveond* huh? oh... OH! nevermind about that idea, I'll just use the washing machine to teleport you guys out. Now get to it!
And you, Slinky, please clean up the exploded pizza, thanks.
Aveond, over and out
*CLICK*
*End Transmission*
*Connection Reestablished*
--eems to interfere with communications. Will need to boost output to keep com lines open. Anyway.
The lord and lady are no more. What a pain. As I was saying before, just as the fight commenced, a black and purple anomaly rose out of the ground and started to spread some kind of mass not unlike what was covering my stalkers. Striking at the core on the anomaly caused the mass to retreat into itself. The mass wasn't effected by the beast bell in any way. This leads me to believe that the mass covering the stalkers has attuned itself to beasts in general and inherited their weakness to sonic attacks.
At any rate, the route to the elevator is now clear. All that remains is to--
Never in all my wandering through this planet have I seen or even heard about whatever symbol that is currently displayed on this monitor. Given that it matches the colour scheme of the anomaly I saw before, it's only gonna get worse as I go. Into uncharted waters I sail.
~*~*~*~
This place is... strange. Perfect black squares blink in and out of existence, flitting about and giving this place an unsettling air. However, I've not been waylaid while down here. It seems to just be a normal platform like what we've seen in standard geo-globes. No monsters, no sound of grinding gears, just this cloud of pixels and the ground periodically trembling. Though it seems the way forward is barred with a gate--has sprung up behind me!
A trap! YAAAAH!
>Rerouting auxiliary power to Exoframe subroutines
*Transmission Interrupted*
*Connection Reestablished*
--d've rewired that elevator anyway. Routing crystalline energy to keep this line transmitting. It is imperative to get word of this out, since escape is seeming less and less likely.
These monsters ooze out of the the black "seed" and are limitless. Strike one down, and another rises out of the writhing mass. This is made all the more horrifying by my observetions; every monster that rose out of the seed was identical to the previously slain one, down to the scars or wear and tear on their body. I suspect that whatever is pumping them out is flat-out copying them from some template. What fate that implies for me if I fall, I'd rather not dwell on. Staying in one area is a bad idea at any rate.
The forward gates eventually lowered, but this seed is now everywhere and impairs progress. It tries to trip you up and slow you down. Wading through it is like moving through tar. Unsurprisingly, these monsters can maneuver through it easily. Also, some kind of turrets fire glowing globules of stuff at me to add to the frustration. Thankfully, they slowly fire single shells instead of the barrage gun puppies would do at this depth. Or what I assume is this depth. Frankly, I have no clue where I am anymore, and neither does my locator. Ahead, I can see an area that I just know is another trap. I'd turn back and take another fork, but the pixel cloud I mentioned before has thickened and closed behind me. I don't feel like seeing if I'd live through getting swallowed by it.
~*~*~*~
Finally! The gates are down! Anywhere is better than here, fighting off a swarm of unending monsters.
As I pelt down the corridor, the ground begins to change. It washes from cold beaten metal to a brilliant white material. There is nothing behind but the Swarm, and forward, this bright unknown. The further into it I go, the further away everything else becomes, as everything falls away into the light. It dominates all senses and is all I know. I can't even feel my body anymore. Maybe I've been struck in the back and am dying. Perhaps the Swarm has caught up to me and this is merely the assimilation process. I do not know.
Name: Copper Pent, of the Citrus clan
Occupation:supervisor of troop morale and chef
CZZCKT...LLO? HELLO DOES THIS COM UNIT STILL WORK? WHAT? LOWER MY VOLUME? OH! Apologies about that everyone. well, straight to business then. If you didn't already know, this is Knight Copper, also know as the Blade-Of-Citrus to those who knew me back home. I was originally trained to be a part of a bomb squad, that is, diffuse them, not set them. some mix up in the paper work caused me to be a part of the PR department for the crystal mining facility, run by the birdsong mining Co., and funded by the lesser known "Three Ovals" organization. as a part of the PR department, I was given a mandatory 1-year service in the morale sector. and being a complete noob in the company, I also have to cover for the chefs when they take a day off. which is every day. my job is not fun.
...yes boss, I am working. No boss those pants do not make you look fat. Its at the cleaners sir. It will be back by noon. We're out of blaze peppers sir. right away sir. Sorry about that, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this meeting short, The boss wants me to go hunt for some blaze peppers. Ill be sure to give you the full tour If i get back.
as any knight who has stepped foot out of their escape pod will know, all helmets approved by the Spiral Order have a built in surround sound system for personal use. unfortunately, most of you forgot to pack some sort of music playing device. As such it was put in the hands of the Three Ovals(c) to produce music for public use. Why do we need music, you ask? It's simple really; studies have shown that knights that go into the depths of the clockworks without any sort of music have returned extremely paranoid and unable to speak coherently. something about the never ending grinding of gears and the cry of dying creatures messing with their heads. As such, a selection of tracks are available to knights, these tracks cycle through according to the situation.
If your built in radar detects high amounts of hostile activity, it will play one of the various tracks designated for battle scenarios. these tracks are meant to increase a knight's adrenaline levels to keep them on their toes and instill a sense of action. There are also various tracks that play according to the temperature or type of monster that is most common on any given floor. certain Creatures designated as "ohdearIsorawhatisthat" are given a special track that makes you regret ever messing with them.
While you do have the option of muting these tracks, along with any other noise that might be around you, it is not recommended unless you have somehow managed to find an alternate source of noise. Seriously, Its damn creepy walking those paths in absolute silence.
Knight Copper, signing off.
The brilliance pulls away and I feel my body return. I'm standing on a rocky platform, suspended in a geo-globe. The light being radiated here, while no longer blinding, is still far brighter than what I'm used to in the dank depths of this world. The entire place hums with energy; the air is practically saturated with it. Upon a nearby platform constructed of some white material lies what looks to be part of the hide of the forest rulers with shadowy mass intact. Should be helpful for finding further weaknesses if ever I run into similar monsters.
I have found a strange monolith suspended over a pool of water further into the plain. It reminds me of our alchemy machines back in Haven. Contact with the water is rather... odd. While in contact with it, a rush of alchemy recipes flowed into my head, giving me the knowledge of how to forge some strange armour sets. However, it is clearly evident that these pieces may only be forged at this place. Most of the pieces use some kind of catalyzer I've yet to find too, though two use the scrap of hide I found at the beginning of this place.
Next to the pool is a glowing orb. Gazing into it, I...
I appear to be holding a stone now. I know concentrating on it will replicate what just happened. How I know this, I am not certain.
A-at any rate, here is as good a place as any for a bit of a vacation. Lush grass, decent lighting, fresh air, and plenty of energy to sustain me. Wouldn't be too bad of an idea to explore this area a bit longer. It is clear that I am safe here, perhaps even safer than I would be at Haven.
~*~*~*~
Whatever transported me to that white plane has dumped me right at the Core Observation platform. Vaelyn still hasn't managed to open the thing. At this rate, we might just have to try to cut through the door, consequences be damned. If only we could get a sensor of some sort through the cracks where light... pours... out...
No. That cannot possibly be. Back from vacation and I'm already losing my mind again.
*End Transmission*
Oh my god... why didn't I see this earlier???
...
THAT PERSON MUST COME BACK! D:
Haha there's some good writing here. It's really interesting re-experiencing the SK game world in a reading format. Awesome idea, wish the OP hadn't left but I like the stuff other people have contributed ;D
Name: Reaum Wingblade
Occupation: Transdimensional and Temporal specialist
*click* *fffzt* wha-*crackle*-requency... ah, that should do it.
As a bit of foreword, yes I crossed a wormhole and lived, no I'm not willing to do it again, yes I can bridge fourth dimensional time perceptions, no I'm not willing to do it again, was almost killed on both accounts.
Where to star... well, when I arrived here I, shamelessly, looted a dead gremlin outside Haven, to my surprise its corpse contained a small card like object with the standard energy insignia on it, after much contemplation, I discovered a small slot in the elevators themselves that appeared to accept the card, bypassing the energy requirement displayed on the monitor, this must be how the Gremlins ascend to the surface so readily. The possibilities of this card will be more than useful, regardless of its fragility. Speaking of fragility, it seems my Exoform's occular recording device was critically damaged upon landing, the particular location of the destroyed relay is a rather annoying one to get to, and as such is trivial in these matters. I have decided to take it upon myself too to search for Avlein and his intrepid team (or was it her?)
There's only one obstacle. Four Star Clearance. I understand Spiral HQ takes it upon themselves to evaluate the effectiveness of one's equipment to assess whether or not they can handle a situation, but when your main tactic is not getting hit, what then is the point? I digress however, there are still depths unknown to be explored *waves elevator pass* and I'll definitely be exploring them a lot
Reaum Wingblade, signing out
[end transmission]
*crackling staic*
Expedition Log 001
after a few days of straight delving into the depths of the clockworks, I've finally gotten enough gear to take on more deadly missions, HQ sent me with a small squad deep into the clockworks to assault some Royal Jello or something... seriously how could slimes have a monarch? much less a government...
Needless to say though, it was a tough run, all our suits were nearly wrecked by the time we'd traversed the garden and castle proper, wrecked, and thoroughly coated in a thick layer of exploded slime. guh.
as it so happened however, on the elevator down, one of the less experienced members leaned too far over on the rail and fell to his irrepairable death, his body was decimated on one of the towering spires of minerals, to this day I have an aversion to the sight of Crimsonite.
during this escapade I noticed something intriguing, it seems slimes are quite vunerable to negative resonance, their flesh splitting apart just trying to get away from what smells like a mix of rotten meat and burrito farts slathered onto a sword. Noticing my remaining two squad members were equipped with such swords, I valiantly offered to be a reserve of nanites to heal them when they were fallen, luckily, after reviving them several times, the overgrown mass of slime finally died, as my teammates rushed eagerly to a nearby chest filled with globs of goo, I spent time surveying the chamber. I can confirm undoubtably that these creatures do in fact have a structured system of government, and currency, though what they buy with it I am unsure. I can only attest that they use the most delicious currency I've ever tasted. I'll just spend some time down here... assessing their... treasure vault...
...
thank god they have elevators to get out.
[end transmission]
Man I remember seeing this thread back in the day Dogrock showed me such a good time in Sk I have to admit the old group of players that vanished from Sk thats the biggest mystery of all...where did they all go =(