[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Spiritmon]

Then it's gonna be 3 to 4 Heal Pulses. Let's patch all those wounds.

[Lord Windos]

Nathan would also inquire how everyone else's encounters went to determine if any more healing is required before we move on.

Terra's answer/report was simple but thorough, just like himself: "Moved across Shallow Ground place. Had Oinari scout it out, and found it was trapped. Heavily. So got Angie to fly us across area instead here. Angie got sprayed with Acid and powder while flying over stinky pits. Acid nearly melted her Sharp Beak, and powder Blinded her. Was able to wash it out, but it was tough. Then I landed here, and waited for everyone else. Both my partners got hurt, but not badly. That is all."

In short, Terra's/Cosh's path was a trap bonanza, but they made it out okay all things considering.

He's ready to break down the door at anytime, and then have Solomon scout out the place himself with his senses/scholarly Knowledge/FLASH. If anyone else has alternative plans to get in, though, he'll wait and listen to them before acting.

But that not all that the sagely monk had to tell his scholarly friend, however. He lowered his voice to a whisper as he spoke the rest of what he want to tell them, eyes flicking off to Cosh first to make sure they were not listening.

".....Nathan, I got some news about Valder. It is not very good."

He then proceeds to fully recount from memory what Cosh told him about them/the Water Scimitars/the Crocawnomicon , as well as his own suspicious about it (IE: He thinks either Valder was a traitor, or something bad happened to him that force him to give over the spellbook to the Water Scims), then finishes off by telling them the rest of the info he managed to glean from their conversations. He also tells them he also agree to the master magician cast some Spells on them, and they turned out to be purely beneficial (Making him feel tougher), so they could trust the Earth Scimitars to support them that way to an extent (IE: Use your own judgement to decide if your partner is trustworthy enough to do that).

Once he finishes, he gives the boy an questioning, uneasy look, and simply asked this: ".....What should we do about this? Now, and in the future?"

[Dragonstrike]

Spoiler

But that not all that the sagely monk had to tell his scholarly friend, however. He lowered his voice to a whisper as he spoke the rest of what he want to tell them, eyes flicking off to Cosh first to make sure they were not listening.

".....Nathan, I got some news about Valder. It is not very good."

He then proceeds to fully recount from memory what Cosh told him about them/the Water Scimitars/the Crocawnomicon , as well as his own suspicious about it (IE: He thinks either Valder was a traitor, or something bad happened to him that force him to give over the spellbook to the Water Scims), then finishes off by telling them the rest of the info he managed to glean from their conversations. He also tells them he also agree to the master magician cast some Spells on them, and they turned out to be purely beneficial (Making him feel tougher), so they could trust the Earth Scimitars to support them that way to an extent (IE: Use your own judgement to decide if your partner is trustworthy enough to do that).

Once he finishes, he gives the boy an questioning, uneasy look, and simply asked this: ".....What should we do about this? Now, and in the future?"

"...Croconawmicon?  Retrieved from the depths of Mt. Sentry?  Valder, a traitor?  What?"

Nathan shakes his head in disbelief.

"...no no no...that can't be right...Valder HATES the Scims...but..."

Nathan has to think for a good minute about everything Terra just said to properly process it.

"...the books aren't supposed to leave Atheneum...the Scims probably don't care, though...but they would have needed to get in there...we stopped them, though...how would they have...?"

...and then it dawns on Nathan.

"...oh.  Back when we were headed to Atheneum...I...I had a chat with Valder.  He...he said the Scims took something precious from him...I wonder if...maybe it was a ransom of some kind or something...get us that book if you want it back..."

Nathan hangs his head and sighs, his arms crossed.

"...he never told me what they took from him, though.  I told him I'd help, but...maybe he needed more than just a little reassurance...maybe he needed the certainty..."

Another sigh, followed by Nathan looking at Gallade, then back at Terra.  "...well, nothing we can do about it now.  Whatever they took from Valder, if it was important enough to him to risk stealing a book from a royal library...well, I can understand his reasoning somewhat.  Our job is going to be to make sure that nothing bad comes of it.  Nothing more complex than that needs to be said.  I don't think Valder had any bad intentions, and neither does Gallade.  We should definitely warn Shiva, Heart, and Spira later about the Scims' plans at least, though.  I have a bad feeling about this..."



At Terra's mention of Cosh buffing him, Gallade frowns heavily (mostly because he doesn't trust Cosh in any capacity), and Nathan mirrors it.  Nathan only has one thing to say about it.

"...and he buffed you instead of your pokemon, yeah?  Look, that sounds nice and all, but unless they're able and willing to spread that support to those who are the most likely to need it, that sounds really situational at best for us.  We don't get directly involved in combat.  They do."

[Lord Windos]

Spoiler

(...)

"...he never told me what they took from him, though.  I told him I'd help, but...maybe he needed more than just a little reassurance...maybe he needed the certainty..."

Another sigh, followed by Nathan looking at Gallade, then back at Terra.  "...well, nothing we can do about it now.  Whatever they took from Valder, if it was important enough to him to risk stealing a book from a royal library...well, I can understand his reasoning somewhat.  Our job is going to be to make sure that nothing bad comes of it.  Nothing more complex than that needs to be said.  I don't think Valder had any bad intentions, and neither does Gallade.  We should definitely warn Shiva, Heart, and Spira later about the Scims' plans at least, though.  I have a bad feeling about this..."


At Terra's mention of Cosh buffing him, Gallade frowns heavily (mostly because he doesn't trust Cosh in any capacity), and Nathan mirrors it.  Nathan only has one thing to say about it.

"...and he buffed you instead of your pokemon, yeah?  Look, that sounds nice and all, but unless they're able and willing to spread that support to those who are the most likely to need it, that sounds really situational at best for us.  We don't get directly involved in combat.  They do."

The steely brawler frowned thoughtfully as the young intellectual rationalized and explained how Ven's former merc was not a traitor, but someone that was strong armed into giving up that dark arcane tome, before he slowly nodded.

"Yes. Sound more.....possible than him being a bad guy. He was very loyal to Ven and you, and helped group out when he could, so.....now I don't think he could......backstab us. Was strong too, so not.....not likely Water Scimitars could steal Croconawmicon from him too."

He then let out a small *sigh*, a worried frown quickly take shape as he stared down at the ground, fists clenched.

"Hope he is okay. Do not know him well, but.....think he is a good guy. No one deserves to be threaten with ransom, to do what they would not do by themselves."

That being said, he returns to his stoic disposition and nods to his brilliant friend's plan, keeping both them and Gallade in his line of sight.

"Sad, bad, but true. Can understand now too, thanks to you. *Nods again* Agreed. Will tell rest of friends later tonight. They need to know this too, I believe. Once we are done with Skull Ruins and......it, we'll start putting a stop to Water Scimitar plans too, and avenge Valder. Promise."

In regards to Nathan's and Gallade's less than stellar reception to him being buff and the boy's generalization, Terra frown slightly, but not unkindly.

"....I do. Not a lot, but I do Fight with my Pokemon sometimes. Cosh's buffs would allow me to do that more often and safely, so they can still help me. Have good point, though. Will ask him later if he could buff our Pokemon too, or only humans."

And that's the end of that, Nathan wants to comment further!

[Mikaruge108]

Spoiler

"Shiva, found and caught a Mismagius earlier that you might be interested in seeing, and maybe even keeping, careful though, pokeball's hot." He describes it as best as possible, as he doesn't wanna risk it causing a ruckus.

????? Shiva's confused at first why she in particular is supposed to be interested in a Mismagius, that's a scary Pokemon if mistreated. She musters that Pokeball, then gives Spira a σ(￣、￣〃) - expression. "W...why IS that Ball so red and freakin' hot, what's wrong with that Mismagius??"

However, upon being told that this exemplar is very very witchy, even more witchy and arcane than normal exemplars, Shiva's state drastically changes, now she's so delighted over that offer that she immediately pulls Spira into a close and dear hug that she this time  doesn't break right away. Her 'senpai noticed me'-feelings are very strong. :>

"But... But are you sure you are fine with letting me have it? For real now?? You're into ghosts after all, you're more experienced not only breeding but also in battling."

Spira, not sure what to do when Shiva hugs him, awkwardly returns the hug, "Yeah, I'm sure you can have this Mismagius, it might be a bit more ornery than a normal Mismagius, but I'm sure you can handle it," he then whispers this next part, "after all, it seems like you have a similar fire and spirit to her." "As for why its hot, I think its some sort of Mystical Fire type thing that was doing when I accidentally disturbed the group of Mismagius." She'd hear more about what happens if she's listening when Spira explains what more or less happened with them to Nathan.
____________________________________________________________________________________________

Spoiler

As soon as being out of that blackness, Shiva takes a deeeeeep breath, recalls Whimsicott + Raphael and summons Yena again (he snarls at the darkness as a farewell), then gets ready to find the others along with Arachna. "Come on, they can't have wandered away too far." Whoever the two run into first, Shiva's relieved and delighted to meet, and reassures that her wounds are less bad than they look. She'll still kindly ask for a Heal Pulse from Gallade or Gustav before continuing. "Please? All these rats got me and Arachna quite badly either way... *nervous laughing*"

Nope, I'm fine with that AFTER Shiva's healed up to at least 7/9hp (currently 2/9hp) with that requested Heal Pulse (@Spirit or Dragonstrike, can you help out with that please?) or Scimitar Spells and AFTER she has investigated the stone door herself, which includes letting Yena sniff on it and Azu placing an ear onto it. "Is there anything particular you two are picking up, something that could be a threat...?"

Arachnautilus shall heal herself as part of the deal to catch jet-black Delta Raichu, but I'd like for her to not lack more than 3hp. (Don't know how many she has in total)

Nathan does look a little worried when Shiva and Arachnautilus wander over looking obviously in bad shape.  You can bet that he asked what the heck happened, and is rather...unnerved when Shiva explains that it was a large swarm of rat pokemon that did that.  I imagine any clothing that was near their feet is starting to look like it's in tatters, given the nature of the swarm's big attack.  

Spirit, Gustav's assistance for such a large amount of healing would be good.  Gallade's Heal Pulse isn't exactly strong enough on its own to heal such a large amount of damage.

Or Spira (@Mika) could have Ditto Transform into Gustav and have it use a Mega Launcher boosted Heal Pulses on damaged characters.  That's one of the main reasons I recommended we bring Ditto in the first place, after all.

Nathan would also inquire how everyone else's encounters went to determine if any more healing is required before we move on.

"Just a sec, Nate," Spira lets Ditto/Grumpig out of its ball, and has it transform back to a Ditto then to Gustav. Spira also lets Nubi out to get healed as well. Spira relates what happened with the Mismagius coven (minus the part about Darkrai), and the Stone circle to Nathan, being sure to tell him what happened with the strange, purple, always-staring eye. Specifically the part about it filling him with fighting spirit. He doesn't mention how he activated the eye, though.

[Dragonstrike]

Spoiler

"Just a sec, Nate," Spira lets Ditto/Grumpig out of its ball, and has it transform back to a Ditto then to Gustav. Spira also lets Nubi out to get healed as well. Spira relates what happened with the Mismagius coven (minus the part about Darkrai), and the Stone circle to Nathan, being sure to tell him what happened with the strange, purple, always-staring eye. Specifically the part about it filling him with fighting spirit. He doesn't mention how he activated the eye, though.

In the past, Nathan's been very picky about who does and doesn't get to call him Nate.  His dad used to be the only one with that privilege.

Now, though, after everything that's happened...

...well, Nathan is a little less strict about it (but only a little!), so Spira's free to call Nathan by that nickname if he wishes.

Now then, as for Spira's summary of what happened...

Nathan frowns worriedly.  "Oof.  Sounds like you had it pretty rough too.  Well, that's the Skull Ruins for ya.  Full of all sorts of nasty Ghosts that even the best Ghost specialists have trouble controlling.  That, and any number of traps left behind by Sarimanok, often repurposed by the Ghosts.  Ya got any Revives for Toya?  I have a few, but not enough to Revive every pokemon if they're being fainted constantly.  We need to try and minimize how often our pokemon faint, and try to make sure they're conscious by the end of the day if at all possible so they can recover more energy overnight."

[Iron]

(...) Azu hears muttering inside.

INSIDE? As in, 'inside the door'?? This layer of the Ruins is full of illogical stuff even Shiva's dreamy mind can't progress. ''....Muttering? Azu, please let me try once too." The fae rabbit happily lets her listen at the door alongside her. Can Shiva determine whether these sounds are coming from Pokemon or from lost souls/ghosts?

Now that Azu's outside already, she can surely display her Huge Power and help smashing that door into pieces.

Inside the area guarded by the door.

You're not sure how to tell the difference between lost souls and Ghost Pokemon.

[Iron]

The group reunites at the Barrow Down, where Cosh reminds you that we need to get through these doors and down into the tunnels.

https://pokemonuranium.co/forum/showthre...4#pid62394

The Barrow takes the form of a large earthen dome with many names marked on stones in ancient scripts. 

Is anyone opposed to Terra's plan of just Rock Smashing the gates? Cosh is fine with that. There doesn't seem to be any handles or puzzles capable of opening the doors. They are intended to be sealed forever.

There's a missing wall as well, right?  Does Calam sense any danger from crossing the wall that might differ from opening the door?

Calam is growling at the Barrow as soon as he's released. He's not growling at the door, doorway, or the ruined wall. He's growling at the Barrow in general.

[Iron]

Heal Pulses on Shiva:
(4)(6)(2)(1)(6)(3)
(2)(2)(6)(5)(1)(6) Shiva is now at 8/9hp.

on Nubi:
(3)(6)(4)(5)(3)(2)
(5)(1)(2)(3)(1)(4) Nubi heals 4 hp total.

Was there anyone else who needed it?




Solomon uses his Hidden Power on the arch, causing it to sway dangerously. The message revealed in Elder Unown reads:

K E Y S T O N E.




@PhantomUnderTheDesk Let's add Mystic Fire to Mismagius' known moves, BUT she can only use it in special/powerful locations.

[Mikaruge108]

Spoiler

Spoiler

"Just a sec, Nate," Spira lets Ditto/Grumpig out of its ball, and has it transform back to a Ditto then to Gustav. Spira also lets Nubi out to get healed as well. Spira relates what happened with the Mismagius coven (minus the part about Darkrai), and the Stone circle to Nathan, being sure to tell him what happened with the strange, purple, always-staring eye. Specifically the part about it filling him with fighting spirit. He doesn't mention how he activated the eye, though.

In the past, Nathan's been very picky about who does and doesn't get to call him Nate.  His dad used to be the only one with that privilege.

Now, though, after everything that's happened...

...well, Nathan is a little less strict about it (but only a little!), so Spira's free to call Nathan by that nickname if he wishes.

Now then, as for Spira's summary of what happened...

Nathan frowns worriedly.  "Oof.  Sounds like you had it pretty rough too.  Well, that's the Skull Ruins for ya.  Full of all sorts of nasty Ghosts that even the best Ghost specialists have trouble controlling.  That, and any number of traps left behind by Sarimanok, often repurposed by the Ghosts.  Ya got any Revives for Toya?  I have a few, but not enough to Revive every pokemon if they're being fainted constantly.  We need to try and minimize how often our pokemon faint, and try to make sure they're conscious by the end of the day if at all possible so they can recover more energy overnight."

"I actually just ran out of Revives healing Toya. He should be okay for now, unless we run into some more nasties before he can fully recover."