spellgrinders | [UPDATE POST

Entry tags:

*weekly update

[UPDATE POST - SEPTEMBER 9TH]

OOC NOTES

▢ Before we get into the thick of it, some people have had concerns about posts being a little hard to read SO hopefully with this one that's adjusted accordingly! Also your notes about this will be responded to individually, don't worry.

▢ Now let's get down to what you've all been waiting for: what the fuck happened to the Uvi? As stated in previous info posts, the Uvi primarily target Elto when it comes to the Palai genders, though of course they don't discriminate when it comes down to it. Most of these bodies are brought back to their lair, though not all of them. What separates the Elto from the two other Palai genders is their magic, though this magic comes from a biological component. While this can be deduced since all Elto have the same skin features, there's another difference: a small, bone-like apparatus that resides in the base of their spinal column. It fits neatly into their bone structure so that the spines that anchor it in place aren't felt. Palai aren't one for autopsies, so the source of their own magic, biologically, is a mystery even to them.

The Uvi have been harvesting this structure in large quantities for a very long time, which explains the large number suddenly falling from the sky. The magical energy in these "bones" doesn't fade with death, as characters can tell by touching them. When someone sticks two of them together like a magnet, they connect and the magic energy is multiplied.

Thusly, the Uvi tried to utilize these magical bones for reasons unknown, though you may be able to put two and two together. While they did take back quite a haul the last time they visited Aimintas, they bit off more than they could chew. They connected too many of these structures, causing a massive explosion and tried to utilize this energy which promptly killed them -- they don't have a biological source for their own magic, and thus it died with them. This undid the water magic holding their seaweed habitat in place. The Uvi are, indeed, wiped out.

▢ This obviously still leaves some unanswered questions, like what the Uvi were trying to do with these structures in the first place? Maybe an even better question, what can the coven do with these structures? Multiple structures can be linked together to emit a massive energy output. Just some food for thought. Also, these structures are more powerful outside of an Elto than in one -- inside, these biological structures are linked to survival, and Eltos put out magical energy simply by existing. When the Elto dies, the energy that is used to keep them functioning becomes latent, increasing the power.

▢ In another note related to questions, ask as many as you want in response to this post and they'll be gotten to ASAP! This can include questions about what falls from the sky, the structures or anything related to how these structures can interact with individual magic.

▢ On a nonplot related note, 95% of all the new taken characters have been added to the appropriate list EXCEPT for the AC sheet. If your character isn't on the AC sheet within 24 hours, PM or ping a mod account and you'll be added!

▢ New characters may also be totally lost on all the previous Uvi-related drama. Old characters are encouraged to get them up to speed on the situation, either via threading things out or handwaving.

IC EVENTS

▢ Obviously, see this post.

▢ Shortly after the "rain" stops, the telepathic network will throb fervently. This sort of jolt across the network has never been felt before, and it may make some people go a little...abnormal. Depending on your character's aptitude with magic, this may not phase them and instead will manifest in a migraine headache. For other characters, if you so choose, it may knock them out for several hours into a vegetative-like state. This may cause others to hallucinate OR their powers may suddenly become uncontrollable. This is Qri sending out an alert signal to all coven members. Genette will inform the coven a few hours after the mental jolt wears off that she's received instructions from said space witch to collect as many Elto magic structures as possible. Will your character follow these instructions?

▢ The coven will need to figure out some of the aforementioned OOC information, but once it is confirmed that the entire Uvi colony is gone, the Palai will of course be elated. If you thought you'd seen the Palai party before, they'll truly be going all out on the 12th.

▢ This is also the perfect time for some jovial funny business, since Palai eggs will hatch on the 11th. Say hello to your new baby lizards!

▢ Depending on what players decide to do with all of this information, you may see other player plotting going on throughout the week. Keep your eyes peeled on the OOC comm!

IMPORTANT DATES

▢ Make sure to keep track of the dates listed above on this post! The most important upcoming standard date is probably the TDM which is the 23rd, though it's still a ways away!

▢ Keep track of the calendar here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Question!

I assume the island and barrier, etc. will be unchanged? Would the . . . Elto bones . . . have any effect on the barrier?

The island and the barrier will definitely be unchanged! However, the Elto bones will have an effect on the barrier. Unlike further attempts, this is somewhat an issue of like magic en masse being able to counteract the same amount and type of magic. As an experiment, one structure can be taken up to the barrier and place near to it. The barrier would emit a sort of static visual across the surface, but only at a very low frequency.

In order for the barrier to be completely broken down, there are several stipulations that need to be met:

1. Enough magic structures have to be collected in order to break through the barrier in the first place. This would be a slightly lower number than what the Uvi collected since the structures will be made stronger by those who have greater magic and more magical abilities.

2. The coven members will have to know how to utilize these structures. While using their energy is pretty simple, physically handling these structures will be impossible if they're grouped together in large numbers -- as a rough number, connecting more than 15 together would have the energy to short circuit an average person's brain if they touched the connected chain. Thus they would have to figure out how to transport these materials to the barrier.

3. They would need to figure out how to utilize the magic for an extended period of time -- likely with multiple people swapping out utilizing the magic structures while others explored the island if that's the main goal.

This is all ICly possible, though of course this would require OOC coordination. From here, those interested can get together to figure out what all they can offer to the situation. This will be plurked and you and others interested can discuss who all would be involved in this "mission," and from there messages can be sent about what all this will ICly look like AND Operation: Island Adventure!

I don't think getting the magic centers up will be a problem--they have characters who can build structures to bring them up, insulate/separate them, etc. but at the moment there's no particular plan other than "assemble a bunch near the barrier." Would clusters of 10-15 placed near the barrier have any effect other than more static? What if magic centers were thrown at the barrier? (Yes.) Or would they have to be deliberately manipulated to specifically break the barrier, and if so, how would that work? What effect do the Elto magic centers have on members of the coven? Can they direct that magic, to amplify their own powers or to perform other types of magic? In other words, would a character be able to, provided they had enough power and could manipulate it without going insane, use the magic centers to break down the barrier directly? What if they had help from one or more Eltos? Or would they have to rig some kind of technology for that purpose?

Also, would it be possible to cut a little hole in the barrier (say, large enough for a couple of people to slip through), is the only way to break through it to break it down wholesale?

(Sorry for all the questions!)

(Oops, thought this was replied to last night but someone didn't hit...Post Comment...)

No problem! Ask away and sorry for the untimely response!

Depending on how many clusters of these 10-15 are present, the static would greatly diminish. Being thrown at the barrier would result in the same static, but the harsh contact between the two would cause a small explosion -- neither the bones nor the barrier would be damaged, but characters may be if they get in the way.

Think about the barrier like a huge magnet and the Elto bones like another magnet. They repel each other but don't touch. This is essentially how these two things would interact here EXCEPT they can touch, though there are potential consequences to that connection.

This doesn't mean that touching the barrier with these structures is out of the question at all and can help to amplify the static. However, touching the barrier with a large number of these bones would potentially create another Uvi situation, ie. a very large explosion with the amount of energy they generate. It's essentially about finding the sweet spot number of how many structures can eliminate the barrier through close-range frequency shortage without collecting enough connected energy that creates too much of an explosion.

The Elto bones can be used to amplify other forms of magic as they act as a certain magical conduit on their own. I'll direct you to this response for more details on how that works and what the ramifications of that may be depending on the character in question.

Breaking down the barrier with force is impossible based on the fact that it's essentially a hardened form of magical energy that physical power can't directly affect. The Eltos CAN help to amplify the power of the bones, making it easier to short-circuit the barrier, however. This also applies to cutting a whole in the barrier.

Essentially the task is pretty simple as long as enough bones are collected and they can find a way to handle the bones since it's just an issue of energy outpowering another energy. There are enough bones to make this happen on the island, so once they're collected and a plan is put in place to gather them and bring them to the island location, the barrier will short circuit and poof, disappear.

Hopefully that clears things up, but totally understandable if no!

In that case, what will characters find behind the barrier?

What was said in the original response still rings true! When players have a handle on the mission, like previous island adventures, messages can be sent with the final plan and the full bulk of what's behind the barrier will be revealed in a log once that's settled.

Are the Palai okay with the coven members collecting these fallen magic bones?

Yes and no! Some of the Palai will pick up a few of the structures once they realize they're essentially Elto magic without the concentrate, but they certainly won't say no to coven members collecting them. So you can give yourself some leeway for any ideas of small squabbles over one of the structures, but as a whole they won't be bothered.

I was thinking about the eggs hatching, and I have some questions about that.

1) How do you care for a baby Palai? I assume they don't drink milk, so is it sort of like taking care of a baby lizard?

2) How quickly do Palai age to adulthood? Just a general idea of "they'd be an infant this long, toddler this long, child this long" etc.

1. In the olden days, this would be accurate. However, since the Palai have humanized themselves to their full potential, taking care of a Palai would be almost identical to taking care of a human baby. The only difference would be no, no milk -- but they can eat typical food almost immediately since they are born with teeth.

2. It takes about five months for a Palai to age from their just-hatched form to a bipedal adult at mating age. They'll learn how to travel on two feet at about one month and grow in one month increments from there. Approximately it's like:

hatchling > toddler > young child > older child > "teenager" > mating adult

Would the living Elto among the Palai be able to do anything with the bones, if a coven member chose to bring those to them instead of collecting them for Qri?

Also, are remnants of the Uvi 100% wiped out, or could someone dedicatedly searching still find pieces of their habitat/eggs/any adult stragglers that happened to be out of the seaweed that day?

Edited 2017-09-10 03:12 (UTC)

Yes, they can! They can essentially use these bones to amplify their existing magic, helping to make their barriers stronger, for one. They can also use it to heighten their everyday magic, like using the bones to help them power 10 pieces of electronic technology instead of one. The other two Palai genders won't be able to utilize these magic bones at all.

There are Uvi remnants lying about -- you can find fragments of their weapons at varying degrees of damage falling from the sky, for instance. The Uvi don't lay eggs and are instead live birth creatures, and their habitat is extremely minimalistic. Characters can find small items the Uvi picked up from Palai houses, but nothing especially newfangled -- there will also be ripped fragments of their clothes that didn't disintegrate. As for living stragglers, the Uvi need to spend a lot of their time in their seaweed so it can be assumed that they're all dead. If one or two stragglers are around in the water, they're doing a very good job of hiding, but the possibility isn't completely off the table.

Several questions!

1. This might just be for my OOC clarity, but was there a purpose for the Eltos being brought back to the Uvi stronghold alive? I seem to remember that was a note, but if their bones can be harvested after death it seems easier to just take their bodies home for that part. Am I missing something?

2. How recognizeable are the structures as Eltos bone to the coven's Palai allies? Would they let the coven know that part so the coven could figure out the rest?

3. What is the status of the barrier on the island?

3. Assuming the barrier is still active, how possible would it be to build something to punch through the barrier on the island using these... dead Eltos remains... maybe we can ask the Palai how respectful that would be.

ETA I SEE WE ALL ASKED QUESTIONS AT THE SAME TIME feel free to note if any of mine have been answered already rather than duplicating effort, lol

Edited 2017-09-10 03:11 (UTC)

1. This might be embarrassing on this end, but I personally just went through the notes and scanned the prompt posts and OOC notes and couldn't find anything about Eltos being captured alive. If this was somehow miscommunicated, that's definitely our bad! The Uvi DO take their bodies, but they aren't taking anyone alive (at least that was the intended note). It can still be spun that the Uvi tried to utilize the bones for what they wanted, obviously unsuccessful, so they tried to experiment with the Eltos who would obviously have a better grasp on this magic, though this too was unsuccessful and they ended up harvesting their magic center anyway.

2. The structures themselves aren't exactly easily identified as Palai bones from an anatomical standpoint -- like how you could tell a pelvic bone from a ribcage; these aren't obviously identifiable as "oh yeah, that goes in our spine." However, they do look and feel like bones in texture and density, so the Palai could probably pretty easily reason out it IS a bone and then put two and two together.

3. That's a longer note and these are getting handled simplest first, so keep an eye on the thread from the Jay player and you'll get your answer shortly!

I SIMPLY MAY HAVE REMEMBERED WRONG RE: 1, in which case my bad, not yours! Thank you so much for looking into it and answering the other as well, though. I'll keep my eyes peeled for the response to Ink!

1) Would there be anything else not mentioned to note if a complete idiot goes up there immediately to check it out?
2) Will Genette (OR BRIE) be able to answer what will happen to Aimantis and the Palai if these bones are collected? Look he doesn't want to hurt their new bros.

1. Essentially more of the same. There will be chunks of Uvi remains, seaweed barely hanging on and Elto magic centers floating around in the water. These debris just didn't happen to be at the center of the blast in order to be pushed out.

2. No. At this point, everyone is essentially shrugging wildly because uh what the fuck. It can be assumed nothing bad, logically, because these collected fragments when connected together blew the Uvi to kingdom come, and it's against Qri's goal to blow up people she spent energy bringing to Aimintas in the first place. Those with logical acuity will perhaps reason out that maybe these bones are part of the whole "Qri needs energy" thing, but nothing is confirmed right now.

Since it was brought up to me...

Could these "structures" be used to power that city-wide barrier if collected in great enough numbers, and how would the Palai feel about that? How would Qri respond to that, also?

Yes they could! Not that it appears to be necessary at the moment, but these structures could easily be used to power those barriers, make them better and also make them easier to power without so much concentrated Elto effort. Qri doesn't care about this aspect of life in Aimintas.

Oh, and for added context: she won't be especially mad if she doesn't get all the bones. She'll undoubtedly get enough from those who will listen and there are more than enough to power the barriers and then for other purposes.

Edited 2017-09-11 20:50 (UTC)

Thank you so much for the info!

As one additional question, what size are palai when they first hatch? I saw the information about their development (they sure do grow up fast) but I'm not sure if I might've overlooked anything about their initial size.

A little bit shorter than the length from the crook of your elbow to the tip of your middle finger -- so a bit more than a foot long but not much longer!

Thanks a bunch for the reference, I wanted to be sure any descriptions I made weren't way off the mark, so this gives me a really clear picture.

Ah, I have to add to the flood, I'm gomens.

1. What's the safe threshold for sticking Elto bones together? How many can you stick together before you cause some kind of explosion? I assume it's hard to accidentally Uvi yourself, but covering our bases here.

2. Are there any remnants to the structures the Uvi were trying to create? Were these on the island, in their seaweed habitat, or both? What would the coven be able to glean if they were to investigate either area?

3. Can coven members keep these Elto bone structures? More a point of curiosity, really. Seems like they'd come in handy...

4. Another one for curiosity, what do we know about Palai burial rites? Like, how many non-Uvi raided Elto bones are lying around... accumulating slowly...?

1. Since the Uvi didn't blow up until they connected them together in the thousands, the connected potential is certainly vast. However, there's also an issue of biology and how to handle them. Obviously touching a number of them put together would be detrimental to, uh, living. It could easily overpower a person, so they need to be handled with care.

Also, they appear to be unaffected by water, unlike normal electricity, which is something to note.

2. The Uvi weren't necessarily trying to create structures themselves, and instead "structures" refer to the bone centers since they aren't totally bones like your tibia might be. As of now, what the Uvi were trying to do with these bone structures is unknown.

3. They can! If they'd like to pocket a few of them, that would be fine and there won't be any repercussions for doing so.

4. They essentially bury their dead pretty quickly, so if someone wanted to desecrate an Elto grave, they could. These are few and far between, though, and the Palai wouldn't be too keen on this idea, but that's not assuaging someone from doing it in the context of moderator involvement.

Oops, thank you for the clarification on #2, I think I messed up my wording there. Meant more whether any remnants of the structures the Uvi were connecting would give a clue as to their purpose! Though I guess it sounds like there aren't clues in the usual places then. :0

Additional question though: what would the effect be of using magic while interacting with the bones? Will they power up magic? Will they make magic go haywire or do strange things to existing magical powers? How safely would an Elto be able to interface with these structures compared to coven members?

Sorry ahaha I guess that ended up being a few questions.

In that case, you're correct! Right now they're essentially single stones with no clues as to their purpose.

Yes -- using the magic while in possession of the stone can amplify magic. Whether or not this makes magic go haywire is up to the player and character. Most importantly, the character's magic aptitude will be the deciding factor. For instance, if they aren't going to be able to handle extremely powerful magic because of inexperience, the bones can make their magic go haywire. If they're used to magic or powers, this may not be the case.

You also have the aspect of unfamiliar magic to contend with -- someone used to utilizing magic one way may not find it easy to focus on their magic through an object to amplify it. Eltos would be more able to utilize this because it's their own magic and they're used to it.

Hi! So Jumin has the power to control objects by talking to them. Will the bones be less/more cooperative with him due to their magical nature, or will his magic only be just as effective as it normally is?

They will be more cooperative since his magic will be naturally amplified by their state!

Got it! Thank you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[UPDATE POST - SEPTEMBER 9TH]

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