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A package delivered in person by Isotta to the IVth Legion's barracks, directed towards Rennik Colmes. A brief letter, a bottle of Modan Port, and a sealed missive...

Sergeant Colmes,

Perhaps the start of something wonderful, this. You've no need to worry of knives in the back or petty squabblings amidst the bellows when it comes to the sacred exchange of coin and contract.  My soldiers are preparing as we speak - set ink to parchment and let us set to glorious, bloody purpose. For the sake of the Citadel, yes?

ISOTTA DELMARE
Balestriere of La Banda Rossa

Delivered with the letter is a sealed Contract...
[hide]
((PM'd))
[/hide]

Id like to suggest the addition of a tattoo artist somewhere in the well. A couple of ideas:

1) Someone in the Souk

2) La Banda Rossa tattoo artist who inks up people of the public for a small fee, and maybe inks up Soldari for doing Cool Things. Maybe Fenick or Antonia could do this depending on the flavor?

Azim,

Look at us - seems we've both managed to survive life as a drudge. When you've a moment, let's catch up over a bottle of Il Modo's finest.  My treat.

We can celebrate, then speak of matters regarding our fair Citadel. I'd offer the Fortress for hospitality, but the other Apothar and her pet seem so anxious when visiting lately, I'll not begrudge you if you prefer warmer locales.

Let me know where, and I'll come with the bottle.

-ISOTTA

Itaja,

I know not if this will reach you. For many days since my arrival I have sought servants of the Divine so that I might refill my Fortune's well with their patron's favour. Many times have I heard of you upon the Bellows. Many times have I heard our guests speak your name in equal parts disgust and fear. My guess is that it was you who left that wine-stained message - that offer, on our doorstep some days ago.

The Assembly gave grave insult in not simply assigning the contract to the Banda Rossa, instead choosing these would-be heroes in some spectacle to bring you in for justice. I would clash steel and words with you, if you've not tired of dancing with the more flowery parts of the Rose. Worry not about aspirations of headhunting, until they realize their error this is a strictly personal matter. Let me know by word or Bellows, and I will come alone.

Isotta Delmare
Recluta of the Banda Rossa

Arterian,

The Banda Rossa are ever available for special contract, should you have need for steel to keep you and your team safe amongst the dunes. Find me within the barracks or when I'm watching the floor, and we can discuss the details of the assignment and whether me or my fellow Recluta would make for a good addition. Some of our talents may surprise you.

Recluta Isotta Delmare

Would like to suggest that cigarettes be given a couple of qol updates:

• Increase rounds for wielding from 50 to 100 or 150. Even playing a chain-smoker it looks a bit silly going through multiple in short conversations lol 
• Reduce/eliminate public chat messages when you actually use the cigarette item. Doesn't seem like a vice that needs public attention like some of the other wild drugs and you get 5 uses per cig.

[APOTHECARY or POISONER]

A few simple postings in popular spots in the Well..

And underneath, a somewhat maintained list of a call for talent or particular things towards this pursuit:

ALSO SEEKING CONTACTS FOR TALENT OR RESOURCES ON PER CONTRACT BASIS:

APOTHECARY or POISONER
DUNE GUIDES
HARPOONERS
BUTCHERS
PRIESTS OF THE WHEEL
SCHOLARS
BEASTS OF BURDEN
BAIT HANDLERS
BAIT
CAPABLE SLAYERS

Ashur the Tutor in Canyon - Caverns offers spells cast in prayer but does not seem to be accurate in price. C/C also didn't seem to do anything (self only spell?)

A worn bookbinding, in which most of the original pages have been ripped out. Various parchments and pamphlets are repurposed and stuffed into the sleeve in roughly chronological order.

"His presence is in the dunes, not with the City."

Darras of Warad offered his God's favor for thirty seven coins and bade me to join him in the dunes beyond the Rose Gate. No obvious guards or associates lurking - I do not suspect an ambush.

Then simply, may Warad the Wanderer bless you Isotta. May you travel the roads with sharp eyes, unblinded by storms.
May you be cleansed of any foul influences, by those of foul nature.
And lastly may these foul forces nay besmirch thy soul.

I watched the dunes beyond as he conjured his prayer - the magicked lights seemed a perfect signal for others to strike.

A cool breeze over the sands instead. Not unpleasant.

"Warad will look upon you favorably if you tend travelers and safeguard the roads while you travel onto glory."

I almost believe him.

A nameless priestess asked to follow my shadow as I bade Darras farewell. Scented smokes. Tobacco pipes. Oils.

I wished to travel the nearby dunes to familiarize myself and needed bait in case ambush awaited so I accept. I don't ask her who or what her God is - they tend to never stop once invited.

She is quiet as we walk the dunes at night. Her only request throughout, to hold my blade and divine some manner of "thread" from it. Scented oils, I assumed, placed upon the steel and ignited with prayer. I dislike the fire.

"That blade nears the end of its tale - its light almost extinguished."

I said "Good" in response. Not certain why I would say so - the oils fumes, perhaps.

Travelers from the Well pass us in number as we continued exploring. Naelin and her "Torchbearers". They offered safety in numbers and guidance if we wanted to follow along, waiving a typical fee. The trap is so obvious, but we are so close to the gate yet that I am curious to see if the people are so bold.

So we follow, behind of course. I suspect I could quickly kill the one "Alejandro" to start, but do not think I could fend off Jhaeros, Naelin, and the others at once. When they stop to prepare their wards and steel, I prepared myself to trip the priestess and sprint for the gate.

They instead bid us farewell and pushed off on their own. No payment demanded. No malice in the eyes.

An odd evening in the sands ended with the priestess declining tithe and inviting me to seek her out at the priory of the Sisterhood if my mind changed regarding my "thread being rewoven". I doubt I will.

[On Ringrunning]

Francine was my first dedicated PC since COR's launch. I came back to see the world had changed quite a bit from what I remember, so I took Daven's advice to play a PC that would allow me to feel out the current state of things and maybe decide what to do afterwards.

She started as a very simple mercenary-type concept: An uneducated peasant with a mother who passsed away and a deadbeat alcoholic father,  Francine was hoping to earn as much groat as possible to pull her numerous siblings out of their life of poverty. I tried to play a bumbling peasant who barely knew how to fight, let alone adventure in the early days and kind of drifted through the day by day as your typical lowbie adventurer.

The Count's influence in the Ward was becoming more solidified around the time I started playing, so I tried to portray Francine as terrified of the known Peers and loyalists, and her mantra was "Keep your head down" around those in power. She was hoping to skate by earning coins and favors through odd jobs to get her sisters the education she never had.

I wanted to leave Francine's love for her siblings as a lever people could pull to influence her on the types of jobs she would do. In those early days, Augustus was her compass and bolstered her lip-service faith to the Lord and Lady to keep her from stepping too far over the line, but she was entangled in Sunpurse affairs very early on and accepted quite a few hefty purses and favors for doing some awful things to people.

[hide=Early weeks]









[/hide]

Even though she was ashamed of herself, she tried to justify these things in her head as eventually her deeds would curry enough favor with the Guild of Lessors to finally see her sisters brought into expensive schooling. Bearic was kind enough to run some events involving Francine's sisters, which really made me invested in how I would portray Francine's motivations going forward.

[hide=What's important]





.





Francine vowed to show all the rings to this doll. She made a point to stop at some point in new rings to pull it out of her pack and show it around. A very flavorful item, courtesy of Bearic. Probably my favorite piece of loot ever received.

[/hide]

Francine was juggling a couple lucrative offers of retainership and squirehood with some houses, and I had actually considered finally making the commitment to joining Sunpurse or Velstra around this time when the event with the Lottery was called. This is probably what I would consider the most pivotal moment of her development, and the sort of thing I point to as the magic of EFU in terms of how drastically things can change through player's choices.

I was actually pretty close when it was all going down, and purely by happenstance came upon the scene. Francine watched and did nothing as Sunpurse retainers and Herald the Knave beat down and humiliated Vivian, someone she had come to call friend and felt she owed a great debt to, because she was simply too afraid of the Peers and wanted to continue keeping her head down. When Lissandra was killed and Vivian was released broken and barely alive, Francine vowed she would never become the monster she saw that day and broke her ties and aspirations of a career in the Ward. She would carry the guilt of her inaction from that day until the very end.

[hide=The burden of guilt]



[/hide]

Not long after, Maksim started making the rounds as an adventurer and expressed interest in forming a Ringrunning crew. I wasn't entirely sure where I wanted to take the character next, so I took the opportunity to see how far we could go since I only got to 92 on my first COR character and pivoted Francine's goal to be to reach the city of Baz'eel to find gainful employment.

Maksim, Ayrvael, Ramin, and Francine started challenging rings as an unnamed company for a time, eventually crossing paths and mingling with members of the Blazing Hearts and other unaffiliated ringrunners. Paddock joined soon after we got started, and once we broke what we considered a monumental ring we started formally calling ourselves "The Avowed".

Francine tried to balance a life of ringrunning with occasional trips home to mingle with friends and seek adventure (thank you Avowed for putting up with me when we got very deep). Francine would eventually reach her goal, and I put serious thought into retiring the character as it was the culmination of the arc that I had envisioned for her. It was around here that Vivian was killed, and Francine rushed back to try and avenge her death. Fate would grant her the opportunity, but it left her with more regret than relief.

[hide=Ringrunner, and other adventures...]
















[/hide]
The final days spent with Odette and the conversations they had made me question what exactly I wanted to do with Francine going forward. When Odette died, Francine lamented coming back to what she had come to view as a wretched ring and resolved herself to push onwards in their memory, to see the burden Francine thought Odette had carried to where it must go. She had to see the truth for herself.

Preparations were made with her fellow Avowed and Francine made those fateful steps towards Ring 1...

---

On Ringrunning

I'm sure many have said so already, but I would encourage everyone to give ringrunning a serious attempt at some point in their time on the server. It can be a grueling, overwhelming and hopeless affair at times, but I think the bonds that were made both IC and OOCly made the triumphs and emotional highs all the greater. The sheer scope of the endeavor and the love and care the staff have put into this one of a kind experience cannot really be expressed in words, it is simply something I feel you must try as blindly as possible.


My thanks

Firstly, to the players of the Avowed. Samo, Loveless, Daven, and Sem. It is an understatement to say they helped pick both me and Francine back up and along, especially when I suffered death after death from my poor handle on NWN gameplay. Their encouragement and support through Francine's journey is something I'll ever be grateful for, and that despite them mostly looking after me... that they would entrust me with such a pivotal moment in their story together is something I can only hope to repay one day. Thank you.

I cannot thank the staff enough for the effort they put into making this world one full of memorable stories and experiences. The evolving 99th is a massive, persistent world story in itself, and that they would also take the time to grant us some of the most memorable moments I've ever had in NWN on the sometimes lonely road Kingward helped push me along and kept me encouraged. Bearic, Abala, Halfbrood, Secutor, Tala, Ironside, Pigadig, Skaghunter – thank you for making an already unforgettable journey all the better by helping me shape Francine's concept into something more, and thank you to everyone who was there at an incredibly emotional end.

Vivian and Odette were such monumental influences on Francine and where she ended up going that I would be remiss in not thanking SeerofLight and Caster again for playing them. If not for these characters, Francine might still be putzing around in 99, sneezing into that filthy scarf...

There are countless other people that I interacted with over the six or so months that I played this character and I wish I could list them all here. I wanted to play incognito for most of the journey, so I apologize to those I might have tried to bamboozle while getting my footing again on the server. Thanks to jollymole, wt, cat, nelly, paintman, warsor, blue41, loops, kiaring, xxrippenheadzxx, dan, wundy, poolson, les abysses, rwg, vp, vlaid, scitus, flagon, treeish,  zytum, writerx, empress, lannister, amon-si, theshadow, cisco, stranger, diabl0, dtw, and so many others. Our interactions, even the small ones, culminated into the journey above.

[hide=Francine's sheet and Treasure!]




Her axe – this was earned through surviving a Skaghunter Trap Hell. A very nostalgic event, as Kobold Trap Hell was the very first DM event I ever participated on when I started EFU back in R.




Secutor spoiled me with this combo. Probably the nicest looking armor any of my PCs to date have worn, acquired by transporting a far out caravaneer back home...


Boots won through a Tala-run heroic struggle through the MUD REALM, after Ayrvael decided to perform a divination next to the tent his companions were sleeping in.

[/hide]

I'd like to suggest adding some sort of timer or vulnerability period to people putting on armor. A couple ideas to start things off:


1) A bar similar to the resting UI appears and your character must remain stationary during it to successfully equip the armor. Perhaps armor category playing a factor in time required.


2) Just making you vulnerable similar to Sanctuary ring teleport while you change. No other changes.

I had a pretty good run on Elaine I think. Accomplished much more than I envisioned when I first made the PC, and I think that's what ultimately lead to burning myself out. Add to that a variety of IRL scheduling complications and it becomes a thing that isn't fair to Agent hopeful PCs to take up that 'slot', so to speak.

Her character arc was a pretty wild ride. Starting as a naïve lackey and eventually becoming a bit of a monster herself. I’ve assembled a few screenshots to help tell the story.
[hide=’Backstory’]
Elaine is the bastard child of some minor nobleman in the kingdom of Cormyr. Her Father managed a good deal of trade with the Crown to supply weapons from their family forges, and she learned early on the basic rules of business and handling their wares. She would have been destined for nothing more than a minor clerical role in the estate if she did not manifest some arcane talent in her teenage years. Since then, she was given tutoring in the hopes she could join the War Wizards and bring some manner of value to the family.
She managed to survive through the countless sacrifices of her household servants, who even with her tainted blood held some degree of loyalty to her in the end times. One by one they died or fled until she was left alone to fend for herself. When she was about to end it all herself, she happened upon a Spellguard portal. To this day she takes it as a sign from Siamorphe that she is destined to survive, tainted as she is. She is not sure if it is a blessing or a curse.
Elaine is a nervous wreck almost 24/7 and constantly deals with survivor's guilt over her fallen family and followers. She has signed up for one of the most cutthroat and brutal organizations in the hopes she can prove to them all she was indeed born to rule and allow them rest in the life beyond. That or at least die trying.
[/hide]

[hide=’Early days’]


It’s hard to tell the story of Elaine without talking about her mentor, Elizabeth Thynne. Elaine believed she was the ideal Spellguard Agent â€" someone who was so sure of themselves and their ability that their will could not be questioned. Following in her footsteps was all she first hoped to accomplish, but over time she would come to grow wary of what her former Master had become. A cautionary tale…





Vyrgil on the other hand was a reminder of what Elaine believed were the ‘false nobility’ above. People who she believed abused their god given right to rule through fear and intimidation. An early encounter struck fear into her heart â€" something she’d not be able to let go until she would eventually don the robes herself and get her revenge…
Elaine would never admit such aloud, but Vyrgil taught her a great many things about what it meant to be an Agent.



Manning the barricade during a Vaults uprising. My first real experience with high stakes mass PVP. A lot of people died, Elaine earned her Adept’s robes for felling a few people like a good lackey.



Meetings…



Musings…




The tournament was a lot of fun. One of the most stressful yet enjoyable pvps I had on the server. I managed to actually win (lol) my bout and felt pretty swell about it afterwards. Elizabeth gloating over the fallen form of the betrayed Vendelstalh ranks as one of the more memorable EFU moments for me.



One of the turning points for the character. During a DM event Elaine was called to duel Skuld to the death so that the party could progress. Elaine lost, but Skuld was the one who ended up dying in the end. That bitter defeat would become a constant reminder in the greatsword Elaine got as loot after that event. A haunted ice blade that could summon the bound spirit of Skuld to fight for her…



Events…



Meeting Ferrigan. One of many such interactions…



A bitter rivalry between two agents blows over in the Petty Chambers. Elaine is used as a hostage to get her master to concede to Shir without a full blown battle. I think Elaine vowed to never allow herself to feel so helpless again, and was the beginnings of her treading down a darker path.
[/hide]

[hide=’Halfbreed Pox Ridden Whore’]


By this time Elaine was used to the constant humiliations and reminders of her tainted heritage. Vyrgil was a constant in her life with his tauntings and educations in the petty chambers, the ‘duels’ usually ended with her on the floor bleeding out. She knew she couldn’t become an Agent if she remained so. Elizabeth provided quite a few challenges to overcome and grow the stronger for it.



Many were brought to the cells in the hopes that Elizabeth could convince Elaine to make the hard calls. The first few were spared through her clingings to her ideals, but there’s a first time for everything..



Clarence was the unfortunate first. A battle for respect and power over the sending system ended up killing the man in the end, gutted in the backrooms of the Tower to appease an ego. I would place this moment as the definitive shredding of innocence for Elaine. The first of many she’d execute in such a fashion, all in the name of Serena Tower.



Elaine would be questioned and tortured about the affair over the following weeks. Those involved in Carlyle’s murder all felt they would soon face judgment for their deed, but in the end they were able to avoid a similar fate by submitting themselves to punishments..



[/hide]

[hide=’Adventuring dreg…’]

There were some rare instance where Elaine got to roam about and adventure, though she’d never admit it to her master…








[/hide]
[hide=’Pride’]
In the end though, even the most unlikely people might end up near their perceived throne..



And catch the favor of their superiors..


… the ones she hated too…


Eventually her nerves would break when some ambassadors thought to embarrass her in the Red Guild Offices. Desperate to make a name for herself and to drop the perception as a mousy individual, she lashed out and attacked both of them. There were declarations of war and a bit of fallout from the ordeal. Eventually the matter was swept under the rug. The ‘misunderstanding’ set aside so that negotiations with the faction could begin anew..




Elizabeth wasn’t in her right mind at this time, and it was a rare instance where she fulfilled the teacher role after the fact. A blunt admission of the truth…




A great many trials would come to pass, and eventually her superiors could no longer ignore the unstable field agents among them..



It was time. Time to seize what was rightfully hers!



Another reminder of her unfortunate birth, even in her greatest moment…



Colleagues now, they have a brief heart to heart. Elaine never forgot her ‘education’ though. She knew she’d never beat Vyrgil in a duel of magefire, and instead called upon her strength â€" her allies, to do most of the heavy lifting. He was goaded into a fight in the petty chambers and brutally beaten down. Elaine felt vindicated. She had overcome her greatest adversary. Proven her strength over him. But she still felt empty..



It felt.. so.. good…


But in the end, to defeat some monsters…



You have to become one yourself.

[/hide]

Thanks to everyone who made playing such a character enjoyable. Those who goaded her, those who tried to cheer her on, and those who fought with her. I can’t think of a single bad experience throughout the months!

Special thanks to Naga, who I never really had a chance to communicate with out of game until now. They taught me so much about how to PvP, and through IC conversations and training to boot. I also felt fortunate enough to see aspects of Elizabeth I doubt any other PC would believe existed.

Also to Pentaxius for playing an incredibly compelling, monstrous, yet at many times believable antagonist. Though I wish we could continue our feud for days to come, in the end I think it’s better off this way.

You may see me on a new PC in the coming weeks, once inspiration hits and I have a more stable schedule.

Cheers, EFU.





----






Bonus Thynne-isms. A collection of my favorite Elizabeth Thynne quotes:
[hide=’THYNNE TIME’]









And my all time favorite….


[/hide]
[hide=’LOOT for ya filthy animals out there I know you wont read the description anyway’]



[/hide]

[.]

I think some of the feats that can only be taken at first level could use a little extra spice to make them more enticing. I've come up with a few ideas, but would welcome input from other players since mechanics is admittedly not my strongest suit.

Luck of Heroes and Strong Soul seem decent enough already, so I've left them out of the list below. If others disagree I welcome ideas below

 New effects are in italics.
  [/HR]

Artist
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level, perform skill (So basically bard only)

Specifics: Character gains a +2 bonus on perform and spot checks. +4 EFUSS Entertainment and Painting

On rest, gain/lose 1d10-3gp.
On rest, small chance to produce a genuine piece of art. A small item that can be sold to a vendor for a pittance, or maybe to a PC if your PC's art is compelling...

Bullheaded
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level

Specifics: The character gains a +2 bonus on resisting taunts, a +1 bonus on will saving throws and an additional +1 bonus vs. mind affecting spells.

On rest, Gain 1d12 temporary hit points that do not expire over time, but are lost upon resting again if not consumed.

Blooded
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level

Specifics: The character gains a +2 bonus on initiative and a +2 bonus on spot checks.

(I honestly don't know what to do with this one as I don't really understand the theme behind the feat in general)

Courteous Magrocracy
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level

Specifics: Specifics: The character gains a +2 bonus on lore, spellcraft and persuade checks.
Characters with this feat who attempt to scribe a scroll gain a slight reduction in cost

Silver Palm
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level

Specifics: The character gains a +2 bonus on appraise and persuade checks.

(I'm aware there's some additional effects for this feat IG already, so might be fine as is.

Snake Blood
Prerequisite: Can only take this feat at 1st-level

Specifics: The character gains a +1 reflex saving throw bonus. Also, any saving throws versus poison gain an additional +2 fortitude bonus.
Character gains the Use Poison feat
If a character with this feat is brought down to 0 hitpoints by a melee attack, the killer is afflicted with a deadly poison

 

I had a lot of fun playing Eileen. What started off as a pretty generic concept that was originally destined for the Aux took an interesting turn when I went with the Lower start for the hell of it. After a lot of deliberation I've decided to retire her, mostly because I've been out of creative steam for awhile now and was losing motivation to log in - that's a good sign to start the slate clean, despite my usual desire to see my characters ends come naturally.
Her backstory is a bit obscure for a lot of reasons, but the short story I submitted does a decent enough job explaining the gist of it.

[hide="Early days"]


Rahum â€" or Jack as Eileen named him, was one of her first teachers. Tough love in a world full of a shit planted the seeds of GRIT in her stomach.



Eileen hardly knew Donald, but he tried to save her life none the less. Died for it. An amazing scene.



Meeting Szul for the first time. A real love/hate relationship with the man over the months. Thought of him like a father in the end.



How naïve they both were


Meeting ghastly necromancers and making deals

[/hide]


[hide="​Who is the man in the mask who is the man in the mask who is the man in the mask who is the maninthemaskwhoisthemaninthema"]

Things went relatively smoothly for a time. Eileen would get on the sending system every now and then to rant about her tinfoil hat theories about the Tower. It caught up with her.





This scene in the Tower is probably the most memorable moment I had on Eileen. She’s hit with the hard truths about her efforts while her mind has been “eased up” by magic.


[/hide]


[hide="​Lower life and general adventure"]




Another interrogation…




Eileen did a lot of adventuring with the Golden Chalice, since she considered herself a knight and all. They mostly just humored her playing at being a real knight.


Terrorist meetings in the Cathedral. Eileen liked to play at being a public menace, but she craved the adoration of the people she supposedly saved so she’d very rarely if ever actually participate in the raids beyond just scouting and supplying the big boys.



Celia was one of Eileen’s only true friends, and even that didn’t last forever. Old times.

Fighting in the hells…





SCRAPPER WISDOM




This screenshot makes me laugh everytime. The enemy is TOO BIG


One of the last conversations between the two


She learns the hard truth eventually. Not even her best pals are beyond using her.

[/hide]


[hide="TRUE CHOSEN"]

Eileen eventually got infected with lycanthrophy while defending her crew. She considered it another trial from Ma, but deep down she loved the power and excuse to go wild. She didn’t feel quite so useless as the beast and wanted to keep the infection.



Last goodbyes to an old friend, now enemy. Also lol Yorrick

[/hide]

I have a lot more screenshots, but most are kinda spoilers for still active characters. Thanks for a wild ride everyone, and I apologize for not seeing it through to the end. I look forward to playing something with a bit of a shorter fuse this go around.

[Melanie Coppertop]

[SIZE="4"]Melanie Coppertop[/SIZE]
[SIZE="2"]Her title changed every week[/SIZE]

I am shaking as I type this. Haha. I know I'm going to miss a lot and just generalize things so forgive me if I overlook something.

I have never had such an exciting and interesting PW experience than what I had with Melanie during my time with her. She was my first character into the world of EFU, and was meant to be more of a probe into the setting than anything. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined just how far this character would take me.

She had a rather generic background. I took the theme of Uncertainty and Guilt to the extreme, even to the end of her days.
[hide="Humble Beginnings"]Before the rise of Dendar, Melanie was an upstanding citizen in Two Stone Hill, a small village within the Western Heartlands. She and her husband were humble wool merchants who traded with the caravans that traveled between the tall folk settlements.

When the darkening happened, Mel survived mostly due to sheer luck and being near more competent people. One by one they fell until the halfling was left alone, hiding in the shadows in hopes she'd never be found. She didn't know where that shimmering portal led to, but at the time she had hoped it'd lead to a quick and painless death. Sanctuary however, was something she'd never expect...[/hide]

I was kind of torn between playing a rogue or a craven barbarian for the concept, but ended up going with rogue instead and just saying she was a coward at heart. A lawful rogue is hard to play though! Someone who used some of the horrible talents she picked up on the surface to do some good in Sanctuary. Early on I also decided it would be fun to try playing a claustrophobic character as well, and I tried to show that with her drinking problem and constant fidgeting (that she never got over)
[hide='Hoot Hoot'][/hide]
I don't have many screenshots of her early days in Sanctuary unfortunately. Since I was just 'trying out' EFU at the time, I decided I would latch onto the first character that showed any interest in using Melanie. It turned out to be RWG's Kalen Viluin. She became an undercover Watcher, spying on Irith and Tydides for her early jobs.  For those who might remember her handle over the messenger girls was "Combustible".

After Kalen vanished, Melanie decided to just sort of quietly walk away. She never officially left or was dismissed from the Watchers, and never collected a single coin of wage. Zsigmond and his crew soon found the halfling and invited her into their merry band of Wayfinder misfits.

[hide="Some early adventures"]

HAHAHA


Debate during the first elections


My first IC and OOC encounter with the stewards. Honestly I was sweating pretty hard here. A really intense and great interaction.
[/hide]

Life was pretty good. She could just (safely) adventure and drink gin and generally not care about too many things. This was around the time she actually met and interacted with Abala, and I decided Melanie would be extremely jealous of the super charismatic Prefect.

Well, Abala fell and Melanie felt pretty awful about it. So she sort of offered herself to service as a clerk in the Red Guild as a penance of sorts, though she lied about it. Serving as a Wayfinder and Clerk was kinda hectic, but it led to some good times.

[hide="DOUBLE WAGE LIFE"]

Trying to get the charter ratified


For some reason people thought Melanie would make a good mentor. A dark sign of things to come.


I actually really liked playing a sidekick/notetaker


Becoming an official institution of Sanctuary


Sanctuary War Council for the Dark Lake War


AYE IT BE MUNT LAD PT. 1


[/hide]

Melanie was being pushed by both Zsigmond and Abala to try and become more of a leader at this point (and to stop being a coward, haha). I even ran for Prefect at one point, but pissed off the wrong Agent who got the whole thing torn up.

Then Zsigmond got his eyes torn out. Some time later, Melanie donned a Lieutenant's Cloak and finally accepted some sort of actual responsibility.

[hide="Lieutenant Coppertop"]

Zsigmond probably made a poor decision here. I've always believed Melanie was a terrible leader who couldn't make the hard calls....


...But I was pretty happy none the less! I felt pretty great.


Dess got turned into a statue.


Meeting the Commune for the first time.


I love this screenshot. I think it shows well how Melanie views the world, not just a dragon.


Funny moment during a surface expedition


Halfling pals after they rescued Melanie from one of her many abductions


Full collared dog of the Spellguard, during a meeting with Narvis


Melanie's angels
[/hide]

Life was pretty great for a time. But Melanie had a very naive vision of Sanctuary that slowly deteriorated over time as she continued to get in scuffles with the Spellguard and watching her friends get manipulated. What began as blind patriotism slowly became a jaded resignation to her duty, and eventually spawned a bunch of paranoid theories about what was REALLY happening in Sanctuary. Fortunately, she had plenty of people to talk her down from it.

[hide="Then Booker died. And Mari. And a bunch of others"][/hide]

This began her slow descent into full blown depression and the loss of the rest of her chipperness. A slap in the face that reminded her just how terrible the world was, and how little everyone actually cared. To make things even better, the whole story with Jarik and the blossoming of her faith in Ibrandul really got started shortly after. You can read about it in his obit thread.

[hide="Fuck this world, praise Ibrandul phase"]

Surface mission! Line up for briefing!


Barkley shows up to jam and give us an inspirational speech.


Substance quest pt. 1


Haha


One must die to save another.


Praise Him.


She tiptoed dangerously close to evil towards the end of her days.
[/hide]

Abala and Melanie had grown pretty close at this point, and Abala was probably the only person left that Melanie could be undyingly loyal to. She dedicated herself to fulfilling Abala's dream, even if she didn't believe in her own anymore.

[hide="Towards the End"]

Rare (Read: Common) sight of Melanie after a PVP. After Nibley defeated and captured her. Really intense and great RP, kudos to HDM.


Melanie confided more in her 'enemies' than she did her own companions at times.


Doubts and Loyalty


You have no idea how right you are, Robert.[/hide]

I'm going to leave things after this out, as much involving Melanie's demise is spoilers and I don't want to give anything away. I will leave with this, though.

[hide="Finally Free"]










[/hide]
Thanks for an amazing ten months, everyone. Special thanks to MaimedGod, Moonlighter, Alpha, Tala, VaultShrike, Ryan, and Jaenas for some stellar interactions and involving my PC in so many different things to show my noobie butt around. Also Caster, who oversaw many of the pivotal parts in Melanie's development.

See you next time, EFU.

[SIZE="2"]Loot later. I'm exhausted.[/SIZE]

As the title says, resting in the Sacred Cave requires food. I'm unsure if this is intentional or not.

Screenshot!

Inspired by a tale told long ago, I wish to bring you the next chapter detailing mankind's struggle to survive.

The year is 2015. The awakening of Dendar has caused all hell to break loose on the surface and unknown aberrant enemies of the Dread Army threaten to overrun the last bastion of mankind. It is up to the forces of the S.A.N.C.T.U.A.R.Y initiative, Lower Industries, and Wildling Co. to fight back.

We are the first (and last) line of defense. This is our story.[/B]


---

[SIZE="5"]CH.1: Hardcore Prelude[/SIZE]


Impossible is fun but missions can get way too long and tedious with how many extra enemies you have to deal with


Ironman is a must. FD everyone always. Also selected in Second Wave: Not Created Equal, Hidden Potential, Angles


hmm aye. You can watch the cinematic here if you want.


First contact is a little boring and you can't customize soldiers before it, so we're just going to skip the details.


The first non-tutorial mission comes up, Operation Empty Spark. After the quest sending is made the following people show up in Freedom Square.


Abala Quickfeet uses Divine Power


Rare footage of Coppertop actually hitting something


Wow! Pretty easy so far. Abala got 3 kills, Coppertop got the last. Clerk Connley and Watcher Flint watched I guess.


Sanctuary recognizes Abala's efforts and promotes her to Prefect support


Clerk Connley was so impressed he even made a medal for her.




Huzzah!

Disclaimer: I'm just adding characters randomly as I see/think of them on EFUSL at the time of play.

THE HONORED FALLEN:

Clerk Aden Connley, killed by a rampaging fire elemental. Rest his soul.