Im of the full (possibly delusional) belief that Durge is not the species that they physically appear to be.
You’re telling me this being crafted from nothing but bhaal’s flesh and his blood - this demigod - is actually a dragonborn/tiefling/human/elf/etc.
No. This thing is bhaal’s flesh and it just happens to look like that. They’re an imitation of a species, they’re not truly a (full)mortal being, they have no heritage aside from bhaal.
As a result I’m sure there’s some…oddities.
For example, a demigod child, not fully mortal. I doubt they adhere to the lifespan of whatever species they look like. Looking younger than they should. (less so perhaps with long lived races like elfs and half-elves where that is par for the course).
A dragonborn durge that by all accounts looks like a blue dragonborn but their breathweapon is acid. A tiefling durge that seems to be a Mephistopheles tiefling but they cannot cast mage hand, instead smiting like a zariel bloodline tiefling.
An elf or tiefling durge that doesn’t read as fey or infernal trough identification spells. Because they aren’t either of those things. Perhaps they could read as divine but not quite.
Members of a race that durge is supposed to be looking at them and sometimes when making eye contact they read as wrong. And some kind of uncanny effect triggers in their brain.
Give me more freaky durge who isn’t really what they appear to be at all. Just a little murder demigod crafted from dead god flesh to be the shape of something else.
Another re-watch because I cannot stop picking at that big spotlight with Primus at the meeting.
Yanessa supposedly casts a Zone of Truth on him. Zone of Truth can be cast by bards, clerics, paladins, and druids. Yanessa is none of these. Even if she secretly were, the following means she either faked the casting, or simply held her tongue about Primus not actually submitting to it.
“It was never my intention to slaughter any who sit now at this table.” Past tense. And there are more ways to kill than a slaughter. Questionable.
“The window has closed. We were running out of time. […] It is no longer a threat.” Tannesar has been gathering sand and dust for ages. Tansul made it in his ancient lifetime. What tight schedule was your undead angel project possibly on, Primus? Lie.
Lore drop about the Royal House of Obridai, to which all the currently Sundered Houses once knelt as vassals. The ancestors of Einfasen, Cormoray and Royce only acquired the lands they did because their ancestors knelt to the kings of Obridimia and the Shapers, despite being of more ancient magic lineage to Aramán. A historical point that none of the houses can refute. Truth.
‘Royce quarrels with Einfasen, Einfasen with Cormoray.’ Aranessa went to Otto as an ally. Otto said his house had friends with House Cormoray who they’d speak to about commending Murray. Primus is trying to tilt a narrative that doesn’t align with his speech. Lie/Questionable.
“Seventy years ago, we had an emperor.” More history. There was an emperor still ruling at the time of Tansul’s slaying. Truth.
“I speak truth to you now. My plan with the Deva Vindicta was the same as always.” Cue a reveal of broad real estate plans with the other Sundered Houses’ names staked out on them. “Western Telmora to the Einfasen. Eastern Telmora to the Cormoray. The Golden Orchard moved from its proximity to the closed doors of Faerie into the Tenebral Reaches for use by my family, and Yanessa, the razing of Telmora’s druid groves. Plenty of real estate to build cathedrals. We are true allies to all of you here. The Deva Vindicta was not meant to slaughter you. It was meant to make you kneel. […] The Vindicta would’ve been our winning gambit in the game that we all play here.” House Tachonis is not playing the same game, full stop. They don’t care about the Material Plane or its politics except as an obstacle prior to dying away to their growing empire in the Tenebral Reaches, where all souls bow to them. The Sepulchral Lord business with Grandpa Nullus is sign enough. The Deva Vindicta might have an extra use of making other lords bow to the Tachonis in life, but that’s secondary. The focus is on an existential scale, not a mortal one. It’s believable that the Golden Orchard is a coveted target. It’s believable that they’d want the druids to lose some of their foothold. It’s a shrug as to whether Tachonis cares enough about living Aramán to divvy it up to fellow lords or not. Lie/Questionable.
“Lord Einfasen, how goes the search for the Jotunøks? My Lord Cormoray, I understand that your grant at the Pentevral has gone through. Congratulations. I heard there was some celebration at the old Kalystra quarries? And I’m glad you’re well, Lady Halovar. Terrible case of bellows fever going around, wouldn’t you say? And of course, your wonderful Aspirants. How exceptional that these demons are here because they have been…saved.” Translation: Tachonis has eyes and ears aware of all the other Sundered Houses’ secret projects. Those same Sundered Houses had only guesswork to go off of with Tachonis, if that. It took all our heroes risking their lives and working overtime to dredge up enough evidence to reveal a fraction of what Tachonis, the house that works in shadow, was actually working on. Primus was caught off guard at the meeting’s start because he was shocked that any secret of his house could leak at all, let alone through the mystery of the reconstituted candle. Even so. Tachonis knows much more about the other houses than any of them even suspect of Tachonis. Truth.
[INSERT ARISTO ASSHOLE CLASSIST SPIEL HERE.] Part sales pitch. Part earnest shitty belief. It means nothing for House Tachonis to kneel to another house in life when they still rule in death. Questionable.
When questioned, Primus insists his push to have Thjazi Fang executed was only to bait Aranessa and her company to rush into range. Mentions the Candle of Slaughter requires noble blood to be spilled for it to work. The former is a good cover, entirely leaving out the significance of the Tachonis scar on Thjazi, intended to force him into servitude in death. The latter is a unique confession to make about how the spell components of your murder candle work in a room full of nobles. An admission so unflattering it would be taken for a grudging truth by his audience. (And possibly a good protection for later, if or when the second Tachandle is lit and used to kill off a bunch of nobodies for another slaughter.) Lie and a (Questionable) Truth.
“That is the sum total of it. I’ve told you all I can.” LIE. LIE. LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE.
Petra and Ryah, behind him: “We have much to discuss, my lords and lady, of the Revolutionary Council and its weakness following the assassination attempt on the Timmonish king and the Photarch.” An assassination attempt they knew was coming. Possibly all of them knew it and/or had a hand in it. They all wanted King Gus dead and the Council weakened. “There have been heated words exchanged. We need not make a decision tonight. Let us calm ourselves and let cooler heads prevail.” That the same line you sold to Amadah before you went hunting for Occtis on Altradler? “Come. We have laid a feast for you as a token of our apologies.”
Ma’ams. Ladies. My heroin chic skeletal gals. I know the “Zone of Truth” wasn’t “”cast”” on you, but come on. Your dad spent half his time here openly lying to everyone’s face about the Royce and Occtis killing and had to have his apology*** dragged out of him like pulling teeth. That Fantasy Doordash buffet was not laid for any apology. Either you’re up to some Red Wedding poisoning shit—thanks for mentioning the need for noble blood to spill, Primus!—or House Tachonis is simply incapable of opening its mouths and telling the truth at the same time.
And what a surprise. Primus and Yanessa want a private ‘just us priestly houses~’ chat while the other houses (plus a Termina!) get herded to the dinner table. Shocking.
Azune called it in the Overture without even knowing it. He thought he was seeding something unique, kicking up old embers of grudges and alliances by scheming to turn the priestly houses against the former rebels. But it isn’t anything new at all. Even if Yanessa doesn’t know the full scale of what Primus and his family are up to, they are the closest allies of the houses. We just saw the Photarch have his back during the whole truth*-telling speech in order to bullshit the other houses. Have to wonder what they’re planning next.
I've obviously finished my Wildflowers fic (you can read them all here), but I'm still trying to keep my momentum going by posting a WIP related to Gen Week until the week rolls around.
Critter Gen Week is August 17-23rd, you can check out more info here.
This one is for Day 4: Zone of Truth. It's still pretty sketchy, but I like it:
“Will you state your name for the record?”
“Taskhand Verin Thelyss, youngest child of the Umavi Deirta Theylss, current commander of the forces at Bazzoxan and protector from the Deeps. But you can call me Verin.”
The subject is young. Charming. Obviously rich in the way that those who are Den-born are.
“Now, can you try to say that your name is Leylas Kryn?”
The subject tries. He cannot. The Zone of Truth is apparently in effect.
“Good. We can begin.” My partner nods to me to watch closely. “What is your relation to the former Shadowhand Essek, formerly of Den Thelyss?”
“He was my brother.”
“Not is?”
“He was reported dead six months ago, after a failed expedition to Aeor with Caleb Widogast.”
“What do you believe he was doing during that expedition?”
“It was reported that he was investigating the ruins to bring back holy relics that had been discovered within.”
“That was not the question. Do you believe that he was bringing back holy relics?”
He sighs. “No. He probably saw something weird and dangerous and decided to poke at it with a stick so he could study its reactions.”
“Can you elaborate?”
“Essek had always been easily sidetracked. Dangle a problem in front of him and he’d want to dissect it until it was completely flayed. Chances are he was investigating something and forgot that he was in a wizard-killing wasteland.”
“The person he was with. Caleb Widogast, was an Empire mage, yes?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think that any research he might have had would have passed to the Empire through Mr. Widogast?”
“From what I’ve heard, since returning the beacon, Mr. Widogast has killed one member of the Cerberus Assembly, imprisoned another, and is angling to take down a third. It’s amazing that they’re allowing him to walk freely, but I doubt that they’ll be going to him for advice any time soon.”
“Fair enough. You said that his death was reported. Do you believe that your brother is dead?”
“Who put you up to this? Is this Den Tasithar? Are they angry that they got busted and need to take it out on the whole Den?”
“Please answer the question or specify that you are refusing to answer.”
“Look - ask anyone, I’m not the politics guy in the family. If I was, I’d probably shut up and know the best way to answer your questions. But even I can tell this is a hit job. And you know why?”
“Please tell us.” My partner says, dryly.
“If this is true, there is no win condition for the Umavi. Either she distances herself from her son and looks heartless or she defends her son and looks like either a fool or a traitor. And the Umavi is a perfect soul, one who chose Essek to be part of her Den. Who approved of all of the responsibilities he was given. How can a perfect soul react to such a situation? The only correct course of action would have been to anticipate such an occurrence in the first place - not given him access to do such a thing.”
“Nobody is denying that this looks bad for your family. However, this doesn’t answer the question. Any further stalling will be noted as a refusal to answer.”
“Yes, I believe that my brother is dead, because he is. He took a sabbatical right next to a deadly evil mystery city, and this was the man who spent his breaks trying to solve Novych’s theorem. That was unsolvable. Until he solved it. I believe someone is using his death as a convenient weapon to harm my Den, in part because Essek would have known what the outcome would have been, and I do not believe him capable of wishing so much harm on all of us.”
We had reports of Essek Thelyss's movements in Uthodurn that were less than a week old.
i don't know what's more insane: the fact that i wrote a law for a dnd campaign, or the fact that i wrote a law for a dnd campaign that i'm not a part of
