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This letter is found after an Ash Storm like driftwood carried in by the wind. There's no trace of a courier or any tracks to indicate the providence of its arrival. It's as if fate itself conspired to deliver the letter directly to Estellise. The envelope is sealed in crimson wax emblazoned with the sigil of an open eye and it reeks all sickly sweet.

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Estellise,

You are dearly missed by your friends and family in Ephia's Well. Your pilgrimage has been long. Let it come to an end. It's time for you to come back to where you belong. Seer Rebecca, Hypatia, and I have been eagerly awaiting your return. I've been cultivating a garden while you've been away. The flowers will be blooming soon. It's inevitable. They're going to be beautiful. Won't you come home and watch them blossom with me?

Selsi

[close]

[Qdim 30 IY7787]

A plain and simple letter sealed with burgundy wax finds its way to the Scribes. It comes with three signatures, two from officers of the Cinquefoil Rose.

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Qdim 30 IY7787

Here below are the splits of our share as agreed upon by representatives of each petal of the Cinquefoil Rose.

• Balladeers of the Lost Hearth: 7500
• Banda Rossa: 7500
• Sisters of the Sibylline Vine: 5000

Acolyte Selsi
Aubrey Domergue
Mirielle Rosseau

[close]

Give the following benefits depending on SF/GSF Evocation to Stellar Blade.
SF Evocation: +4 Astronomy
GSF Evocation: +8 Astronomy

This results in two things.
1.) It pushes characters on the threshold of being able to get an extra magic damage from Stellar Blade over that threshold without guaranteeing they'll pass it unless they have decent attribute points/some investment in Astronomy already.
2.) It makes GSF Evocation Astrologians better at evoking, and means that GSF Illusion isn't the only route for increasing your Astronomy ranks.

Astrologians having a reason to enspell their staves and make them cool and glowy looking is also a just a plus in general I think. I recognize this could be strong in conjunction with GSF Illusion Project Star Chart benefits, but I don't think that's that big of a deal given it's a 4 feat cost on a generally feat starved class.

This one was a lot of fun! Best PC of mine so far this chapter.

Yomar started out with a simple idea: a magical siege engineer committing war crimes. Everything spiraled from there, and he practically wrote himself. Desperation to become both stronger and better at his craft led him down darker and darker routes until his original dreams and goals were distant memories. He started CN and quickly spiraled to irredeemably CE. I invented a Gnomish culture to go along with it all when other people wanted to hop in. It was pretty fun. I wasn't as antagonistic as I hoped and most of the projects fell through, but over all I still think I did a pretty good job!

Pretty proud that I managed to do every kind of Brooking extensively on one PC, too!

The Build

Hide

Astrologian 8, Chaotic Evil Gnome
8 str, 10 dex, 14 con, 16 wis 16->18 int, 10 cha
GSF Illusion, Extend, Empower.

[close]

The Loot

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Telescopic Crossbow
https://prnt.sc/mNt5CfTryPKF
https://prnt.sc/zntKd3C5JLKT

[close]

Screenshots (Unsorted)

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Yomar's last fit:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/978875825086681108/1125931580997779497/CqjQy904QdGJiourQ6KHgg.webp
Yomar, Exiled:
https://prnt.sc/qKclIkTcF1qa
Big Gnome, Big Desk:
https://prnt.sc/ODV5vm-vzuH7
Yomar at Kardesler:
https://prnt.sc/cEocnfQD477d
Yomar and his guests:
https://prnt.sc/O0GL3vM-G0O4
Never alone:
https://prnt.sc/QkQL4jlLQkZ5
House call:
https://prnt.sc/kbFqSF1B4qHE
Yomar's Shadow:
https://prnt.sc/w4zJuCmidMhB
Gold Yomar fit:
https://prnt.sc/tJZA_5G8eqt6
Yomar at Witch's Watch:
https://prnt.sc/xjC-_BMujMAb
Yomar original fit:
https://prnt.sc/sStYTsz9iGcN
Limited edition early Yomar:
https://prnt.sc/pCOITUCjj-vm
Yomar and a pal:
https://prnt.sc/kCxGKHhVeYpD
A meeting in Kha'esh:
https://prnt.sc/U1PwUKTkeMxL
Yomar and the SHADOW COUNCIL:
https://prnt.sc/T1eIB3rJWo_Z
Reflections:
https://prnt.sc/TAAhwRit9UZr
Alchemical mayhem:
https://prnt.sc/dbC6tNhfCK_R
Friendly Gnome:
https://prnt.sc/lBGwyEldwzqZ
Calling meteors snippet:
https://prnt.sc/2B5BEfgnnbjt
Sunmar:
https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/423418761828237323/1125230698832347196/nNjrhFY_R6ytczLM-BUSXg.webp?width=212&height=587
Meteor Madness:
https://prnt.sc/g4V46yf51oLI
???:
https://prnt.sc/rz57sucRH2MY

[close]

Yomar Memes

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YOMAR SWEEP (credit to Bernard):
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/423418761828237323/1125708365033635860/image.png
Fatmar:
https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/423418761828237323/1127041606609027102/l5Gp_Q73S8afkndCt38Q3A.webp?width=327&height=587
YOOOOMAR:
https://prnt.sc/92N9v50XhFU-
Banda Yomar:
https://prnt.sc/mV9c5MpQhHCp
Discombobulated Yomar:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/978875825086681108/1124519851692666900/0e8e75ff4998592e36f795ea69d874f9.png
Taking Both (credit to Vlaid):
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/423418761828237323/1122072861704728616/7qfdv5.png

probably more i'm forgetting LOL

[close]

Can't wait to see you all again on my next!

[Recluta Orlando Otisopse,]

A plain 'letter' arrives at last for Recluta Orlando. When opened it magically unfurls as illusions fall away revealing it to be an ornate catalogue. Small artisanal depictions attach to a list of exotic and expensive weapons.
[hide]
Recluta Orlando Otisopse,

Here is your requested catalogue. I have restricted it to wares that I assess the Banda Rossa will find useful. I have also restricted it to goods relatively easy to produce within the Well with its available resources. It is categorized for your reading pleasure. Prices vary based on size of order, availability of material, and complexity of fulfillment process. These are best discussed in person. You additionally have an apology for the amount of time this took to compile. Translating Gnomish is difficult.

Munitions
Ammunition for existing weaponry.
a.) Hexed Grapeshot
Cursed grapeshot laden with hexes. Each piece of fragmentation carries an individual curse. Curses persist until contact is made. This can be used to create impromptu field hazards to slow enemy advances.
b.) Sunstones
Catapult or cannon ammunition designed to superheat on impact. Becomes hot enough to turn sand into glass.
c.) Seeking Projectiles
Ammunition of all kinds enchanted to adjust course for where your target will be located in the future. Incredible accuracy.

Defensive Installations
Items under this category are generally low mobility or most effective stationed in a specific location. They are inconvenient to move.
a.) Dazzler Arrays
Systems of mirrors, lenses, and enchantments that create artificially bright lights that can be projected in specific directions. Blinding to look at. Compare to trying to look into the sun.
b.) Stellar Accumulators
Pulls starlight down from the skies to the device to recharge itself to fire the next shot. Faster, more accurate, and causes more harm than a arbalest. Requires line of sight behind its targets to the horizon. Notably, this device pulls its projectile to the 'firing' aperture. Excellent for annihilating flying targets.
c.) Solar Incarnation Generator
Device incarnates the power of the Sun. Users marked with standardized protective wards or markings are unharmed, potentially even bolstered by the device. Unauthorized individuals in the field evaporate expeditiously.

Offensive Installations
These items are high mobility and relatively easy to set up out in the field. They are excellent for use in siege or deployed against enemy armies.
a.) Lunar Cannons
Produce focused beam of draining light that penetrates through many warriors. It usually does not directly kill but instead leave numerous crippled who require expensive restorative magics to heal. Requires overnight charging. Full moons additionally required for maximum efficiency.
b.) Flashfields
Compare to traditional hidden explosives embedded in the ground triggered by pressure. These do not burst in a traditional detonation but instead in flensing light that blinds and degloves trespassers. Useful for denying access through canyons or other similar locations.
c.) Portable Warding Projectors
Wheeled or mounted obelisks that project a field warding against curses, including some of those described here.

Deployables
Goods intended for active combat use.
a.) Bindbreakers
Spherical devices that when primed and thrown burst into dismissive magic, annihilating the enchantments that bind conjurations or beckoned creatures, either dismissing them entirely or allowing them to roam free and masterless.
b.) Fatebane Poison
Fumes, traditionally delivered by incendiary canister, that cling to the ground and hexes the timelines of the exposed. Misfortune comes quickly. Everything that can go wrong does. Contamination is persistent until properly cleansed both on region and affected. Usually does not immediately kill, though through bad luck can cause several asphyxiations.
c.) Spatial Length Distortion Devices
Enchanted explosive satchels. Set in a destination and remotely activate. These do not explode in a material fashion and instead 'explode' space, stretching the Disc. Survivors in the radius are unlikely or are quick to die if not put out of their misery. Compare results on terrain and targets to a ball of yarn being unwound and pulled tight. These devices are also called 'stretchers.'

Yomar Kamarya, AG-KA-EM
[/hide]

[1.)]

A mundane and plain letter finds its way to the office of the Lieutenant. Enchantments unravel the moment it's opened exposing golden embellishment and long sprawling text. It reeks of copper and mesquite:
[hide]
Lieutenant Rennik Colmes,

You have my apologies for the delay in providing this requested assessment. Written Common is not well settled in my skillset. I traditionally prepare these in Gnomish; translating this to your language took me no small amount of effort. With the (limited) information on your foe presented and the scarce details on the scenario I have compiled these with some assumptions made. These assumptions are the following:

1.) You will be fighting these foes both from the ground and the air and will need weapons suitable for both theaters.
2.) These dragons are fast enough to evade cannon-fire and bolts launched from arbalests.
3.) Traditional munitions that make contact will not readily penetrate their scales.
4.) They will be relatively immune to traditional forms of weaponized fire.
5.) You are in need of weapons that can operate for a prolonged period of time independent from major logistical concerns.
6.)You are operating on a budget.

You will find attached to this letter detailed schematics of these designs and their operation. The majority of thesupplies to construct these should be cheaply obtainable. I am available to produce these personally if so required. Operation is in most cases self-explanatory. Where operation is not self-explanatory I am available to provide education and lessons to the soldiers assigned to their operation. In this letter you will find brief summaries for ease of reading.

Options:
a.) Dazzler Arrays
You are familiar with the fact that staring into the sun damages your sight. You are familiar with the fact that it will eventually blind you if you continue to do so. Assess the following: how effective will a dragon be navigating the skies if it (and any riders) find their vision compromised? The Dazzler Array (see attached documentation) is a series of lenses and mirrored surfaces that reflects and focuses sunlight. It may be adjusted to produce multiple discrete beams. Multiple Dazzlers in array (hence the name) will effectively render it impossible to look directly at the ground below.  Prolonged observation may cause blindness and pain. Illuminating reagents or magical enchantment can be optionally added to enable night time operation or more potent effect. These may be easily swiveled to directly track and aim at a given position. Additional enchantment may be used to give them the capacity to 'track' and always illuminate a given target. Production and procurement of the materials necessary can be easily outsourced to the Glaziers or Alchemist's Guild.

b.) Stellar Accumulators
Weaponized application of traditional methods of incarnating magic. An apparatus (with hand-crafted customized enchantment) can pull starlight directly from the sky in weaponized magical beams. These penetrate flesh and scale exceptionally well and will presumably penetrate through a dragon.  These devices are essentially pulling power from the stars to power themselves to repeat the process. Anything that gets in the way is typically wholly pierced. Some energy is always lost in this process.  A key benefit of this weapon is that the projectile will come from the direction you are shooting it in. Complement these with assaults from traditional arbalests to assail your opponents from multiple directions limiting opportunities for evasion. They will require an initial source of fuel to begin initial operation and to supplement any unexpected drains. Baublium or other cheap magical fuels will serve. The actual materials in the creation of these is cheap, but the enchanting process is tedious. Production can be outsourced to the Astronomers, the Alchemist's Guild, or potentially the Sisterhood.

c.) Seeking Projectiles
It is feasible (but expensive) to produce ammunition that will guide itself as it travels to where your target will be using a mixture of evocation and divination magics.  These munitions do not directly 'home in' on the target but instead the future location where they will inevitably meet.  The specific use of these is to target locations that a dragon's scales do not cover (such as its eyes and mouth) and guarantee that mundane weapons find a location they can penetrate. These are complicated to produce. The enchantments require expensive reagents for batch production. They are relatively easy to use and require little adaptation or custom craftsmanship beyond this enchanting process. Any sufficiently talented order of arcanists can produce them according to my attached instructions provided they have the talent.

d.) Hexed Grapeshot
Grapeshot can be appropriately hexed to transmute curses on contact shortly after a triggering event (such as the necessary force to launch it from a cannon.) The principle is simple: fill the sky with enough shrapnel that at least some projectiles will make contact no matter how furiously a dragon might dodge. Not every hex will 'stick' on contact, and the shrapnel is unlikely to penetrate dragonscale, but enough curses and everything will die. An added benefit of this is that the shrapnel will litter the ground and remain 'active' for quite some time. You may use this against dragons in flight over an approaching army to weaken your opposition in all its forms. This is relatively cheap to produce. The bulk enchantments necessary are relatively inexpensive. It will however require specialist hands for production.

In addition I have formulated new uses for existing weaponry and munitions for this conflict. These are best discussed in person. Each design can be clarified and elaborated on further. If any of these initial assumptions are incorrect I have additional designs and methods available that may be potentially more lethal.

Yomar Kamarya, AG-KA-EM
[/hide]
Flipped over after reading causes the back of the letter to shift and distort exposing previously concealed exotic schematics. They are pockmarked with Gnomish measurements and annotations hastily scrawled over with Common analogues.

[Problems:]

Hi! I think I'm one of the first to play the new Arcane Mimic rework to 8, and after playing with it for a bit there are some fundamental problems with the perk, but these aren't unfixable. I'm going to point those out and then list suggestions for solutions or improvement.

Problems:
1.) When mimicking other players and creatures that aren't sorcerers of your level, it's very possible to end up with less spells known than your level, and fairly frequent, leaving you with even less versatility than normal sorcerers sometimes. I've for example had spell lists where I have only two first level spells and two second level. This is remarkably unpleasant. It's important to also remember that you can only mimic spells up to what you would normally know maximum as a Sorcerer.
2.) You are heavily dependent on other players. A Arcane Mimic only thrives in comparison to other sorcerers in situations where there are plenty of willing wizards for you to mimic and work with to adjust your spells as needed.  You would be better off duo'ing with a wizard as a sorcerer with a single predetermined list and you would be stronger that way with the same effect, probably.
3.) The process of telling a wizard to prepare specific spells in a way that you get exactly what you need feels very OOC.
4.) You are actively disincentivized from mimicking other players and creatures once you have a good spell list because of the risk of getting dweeb spells or a poor list since it's random what spells you take up to your limit.
5.) While you keep copied spells on reset, you do not keep copied GSFs. Given that they are disincentivized from taking GSFs because of their eighth level benefit, but ultimately end up needing them anyway (even if they may not be able to use them most of the time!!), this is pretty rough.

These are some pretty huge disadvantages. I have actually, in a weird and roundabout way, felt like I have been getting weaker as I level because I lose access to good mimic targets in lower level quests.

Potential solutions that address the problems:
1.) Remove the spells known limit for Arcane Mimics when copying spells, allowing them to copy entire lists without issue. They will rarely exceed their spells known anyway most of the time.
2.) Allow them to revert on demand to a "bookmarked" list of spells somehow. Maybe let them mimic blood vials, alternatively? That, or maybe a single saved spells/element/summon theme combo.
3.) Give them a buff to Spell DCs or CL based off of how recently they mimicked someone, decreasing the longer they go without mimicking until it fades away entirely.
4.) Change it so GSFs mimicked aren't lost on server reset and are only lost when mimicking another player's GSFs.

Buffs that do not directly address the problems but could help make up for these issues:
1.) Give them free a free metamagic or two of their choice to play into the "arcane master" theme originally associated with them and ease feat struggles.
2.) Further reduced or removed Mimic cooldown.
3.) Allow them to mimic neutral NPCs. Please please please there's no save anyway it would make Mimic life so much easier, especially if there's no one on for them to mimic.
4.) Allow Mimics to mimic Gloom properties and become Gloomed themselves.

Obviously, not every single one of these changes should be done, but even just one or three or so of them could really help the perk out.

A crisp sealed letter makes its way to the Eagle's Mount and then promptly to the offices of one Estellise Azimi:
[hide]
Apothar Estellise,

Attached to this letter you'll find the 'mock thesis' you requested. I decided to, as the expression goes, kill two birds with one stone by making use of real polling data I was already gathering. It's proven markedly useful for writing on the topic. While I can't guarantee I'll maintain this field of study later on, it did at least temporarily prompt my interest enough to write this.

Lojir Trajaros

Behind the letter lies a neatly folded piece of papyrus with an almost-exactly one page long rambling essay:

[hide]
https://docs.google.com/document/d/19ZAKzckyU7nNFeFo12ibbfaRMODbDA27vlsC8wTxdDE/edit?usp=sharing
[/hide]

[/hide]

I greatly enjoy Glooms. It's a breath of fresh air and extra variety in quests that makes them less likely to become 'stale' experiences. They are, however, not additionally rewarding as far as I can tell. This means that you can have encounters where the difficulty and supplies spent will far outpace what you would have earned, making certain scenarios self-defeating to do. I don't want to see a future where people walk into quests, see that it has a hard Gloom, and just not do it.

What I propose is potentially simple: each Gloom should have a 'loot modifier' that gets applied to treasure under certain circumstances (I'll go on further on this in a moment) that gives them extra properties based off what the Gloom is. For example, the Wine Gloom could apply Acid DR 2/- to a piece of loot.

This, obviously, shouldn't be on every piece of loot. It also shouldn't be most of it or a percent chance to happen. Instead it should be a reward from beating the final portion of each quest to make it mandatory to clear all of the content before getting it. If these Gloom equipment modifiers were put into place, for example, you could clear all of the Jackals quest and receive a modified piece of equipment from the final boss as extra loot on top of what they would normally drop. It would be an item rolled from any piece of equipment that can be found in that dungeon's loot pool with the Gloom modifier attached.

This gives quests extra replayability, and would make people seek out harder Glooms in combination with specific quests to search out strange and exotic equipment. It would also add another factor to building up equipment.

[The Loot]

Wow, this was a wild one!

Igor started out as a man motivated by spite, taking out his anger at a dying City and a dying Ward on everyone around him. I applied for a Peerage antagonist when there were almost no Peers so that all the Ponds players at the time would have a threat. He grew some as a character, but he never ultimately strayed far from those roots. Almost all of his schemes backfired or turned to ash (fitting for a man who used Yellow Ash as the source of most of his magic) slipping out of his hands. It was honestly pretty tragic: every time he found something or someone to care about he'd promptly lose them/it. A fitting fate for him given that's similar to how all the rest of the Moonspear Retainers he joined the House with went out. It was very fun to roleplay. I made a lot of mistakes (both with the RP and the mechanics) and learned a lot about NWN/EFU gameplay in the process. Playtesting Blood Crafter was a ton of fun, too. This was the most fun I've had with a character on EFU yet! Hope you all had just as much fun. Can't wait to see everyone again on my next.

Now for what you've all been waiting for...

The Loot
[hide]
Hallowed Visage of 'Saint' Donar
https://prnt.sc/HEv92NobKz1w

Cloak of the Golden Moon
https://prnt.sc/NtenC0Y42i2G

Bloody Paint Brush and Palette
https://prnt.sc/OUTfdoByGh1Y
https://prnt.sc/MsHlnJsa5pCg
https://prnt.sc/YjDSM87wPC6a

Ash, Red
https://prnt.sc/Y2ElRlxJgVkB
[/hide]
Miscellaneous Screenshots
[hide]
Fair warning! These are unsorted. There's also a lot I can't post for fear of spoilers. I'm also only posting screenshots I took myself. If I dig up anything else I can share I'll edit it into the post later. Feel free to post whatever else you have, if you have any you took yourself with Igor in the picture! More screenshots to come, maybe?

The old Moonspear squad
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/536311923780878399/1008980601312903218/unknown.png
Igor at Council
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/536311923780878399/1018637964017930240/unknown.png
A Death
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/536311923780878399/1015857316769312778/unknown.png
A Ritual
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/536311923780878399/1031728768122896394/unknown.png
Et tu, Brute?
https://prnt.sc/A3kw2BLm8UhN
More Moonspears
https://prnt.sc/1R5tb3tgX9Nj
Trials and Tribulations
https://prnt.sc/ycVYrKITcDze
Igor dying his cloak
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/978875825086681108/1020069579755630634/unknown.png

The End:
https://prnt.sc/UvMve9h7SB3K
https://prnt.sc/zYwcO4igHxSi

Lastly, a few funny screenshots:
Lockpicking
https://prnt.sc/RX5rJRRwlO5m
Gnipir
https://prnt.sc/LbrFvsSGGCQU

An old Igor meme:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/996167595805909022/1016243462435250197/unknown.png
[/hide]

The Discord was talking about it recently, and it'd be pretty cool to have humanoid bounty targets in the rotation. Gang leaders, notorious thieves, the works. Right now, it's all animals and monsters. It'd be cool to see people on the list too, either given out as a bounty by the Huntsmaster or another appropriate NPC.

[Character Build]

It was a wild ride! Thanks for all the fun and thanks for all the Seams!

The mindset I had going into Aros was I wanted him to be treated with both pity and fear. In the end, he got plenty of both, but mostly he ended up making friends! A character I originally intended to be an antagonist ended up friends with just about everyone. I'm still not quite sure how it happened, but it did. He was my first real character here, and the first one of mine that lasted more than a week. Hope you all had as much fun with him as I did!

Character Build:
[hide]Wizard 9
Str: 10
DEX: 12
CON: 14
INT: 20
WIS: 8
CHA: 10
Spell School: Divination
Feats: GSF Divination, GSF Conjuration, Extend Spell, Empower Spell
Skills: Concentration, Discipline, Lore, Spellcraft, Tumble, Listen, Appraise

DM Loot:
https://prnt.sc/fQyPmZbjM-ju[/hide]

Screenshots below! Only click if you don't mind being spoiled!
[hide]
This is your second warning! Tons of spoilers! You were warned!

The man himself, with a helmet on (the pinnacle of fashion):
https://prnt.sc/7KnuyE1BNQdJ

Aros, fully in the throes of Planar Madness:
https://prnt.sc/jNDme6MKv4Mm

Aros has a Fey vision:
https://prnt.sc/xYS6TQfIKfi5
https://prnt.sc/SElzGfqKB80M

Aros tells a joke:
https://prnt.sc/gedYhA6Nj8Es

Aros in Agartha:
https://prnt.sc/E_2aOvSglgMf

Aros makes a deal with Ruul Velstra:
https://prnt.sc/xiKIDspbiJPW
https://prnt.sc/reMztcoenFPP
https://prnt.sc/elyxGbLNUMrT

Aros sees what shouldn't be seen:
https://prnt.sc/lbsO4YRbCckJ
https://prnt.sc/lWG_6AG4Ftaq
https://prnt.sc/LO5zXrKKd0Aa

Aros partakes in a ritual:
https://prnt.sc/B4dtSr5bMVBI

Aros at the Eye of the Storm:
https://prnt.sc/kIvnRjhOkVxQ

Aros gets what he always wanted:
https://prnt.sc/FFYoYee-LQXj

My one regret is I didn't capture all of the shenanigans! Feel free to contribute if any of you have cool screenshots too![/hide]

Full text of Seamsong. Feel free to use it if you want!
[hide]
Seamsong, singsong, sing the Sewer's Song. Don't wait long, tag along! It's time to sing the Sewer's Song!
We're going for a walk, we're going for a stroll! We're going to pay the wizard's toll!
Singsong, Seamsong, be a dear, sieve away my fear. Tremble not, sieve away all thought!
Sing and sieve the mind away, sieve and sing away your worries! Sing along and hurry!
Nevermind the Weave, it's time to sing! Seamsong, singsong, pluck the threads, worry not where you tread![/hide]