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Post by Simey on Mar 9, 2013 13:35:44 GMT -5
Aww, no continuation of the shady goings on at the mages' guild? I really liked all that as well, though granted it was continually mysterious, so by now I can't remember exactly what it was all about.
Aside from the sideshow of chaos creatures having been lobbed into Magnamund, I've not really deviated Simey's path at all, though that's mostly because the only vaguely definite stuff I've got is pretty distant, so all sorts of bimbling about can happen on the way towards that. Such as paranoid villagers. *sigh*
Simey had lost his trust in Armadalus before the break, so it works not having him around for a bit. The dwarf is just a filler companion who I can keep or dispense with as is convenient. I have an idea of reaching Temel and something that happens there. After that the only thing I was thinking of working towards was the old stolen documents plot, but dealt with in Hammerdal rather than Holmgard, which is more suitable anyway.
Have you really made a break from your old plot that you'd not want to go back over? Obviously, more than chuffed to have Simey and Beowuuf adventure together, but there seemed to be so much going on that was unfinished.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 9, 2013 15:38:40 GMT -5
The trouble with the mage plotline is that it was maturing to directly need Beowuuf present. I sometimes write a few posts ahead so I have the next post and a half burning a hole in my HD for some time and Beowuuf featured directly in it because everything had converged in Holmgard. The trouble of course was the concerted effort to unite and simplify the WW meant I had to make the decision in my brain to disconnect from it - for at least for a while. And of course when it looked like I needed to shift to Sahmas and completely break from bulky backstory I really did break from that plot! Plus I always put that plot on the backburner too just because I always wrote for the WW to post with others, and keep to Beowuuf's single plot when there was no other plots to write with I'd like to go back to it, but I've now of course got the 'where is Sahmas' and 'what's happening in Eshnar' stuff to resolve or at least find a way to put on the backburner. For the moment Beowuuf's odd resurrection method means I can have him not distracted by those plots. My thought was one of three things, to a) write it out of WW continuity - I was planning on doing that eventually with Beowuuf dead, b) write it without Beowuuf in it, but then it really is a separate plotline with nothing to do with Beowuuf, or c) write it with Beowuuf in it and have it hanging as a later or earlier set of posts that will slot back in at the end. I was sort of playing it by ear right now as to how to proceed. There's also the corruption in Holmgard/Knights' Council plotline hints that I could play out too. The mage plot was left where Duman and the crew of the New Day had been sailing at Master Andras's behalf, obviously looking for something without all the information, and taking risks doing it. Master Andras and his two closest brothers seemed to be controlled behind closed doors by...something. Something that apparently got to Duman when Duman went back to Toran to question the risks the New Day were taking. Meanwhile, Kollosco was looking to journey for 'Kai's pledge' - whatever that was - with a group of his own brotherhood, a favour for the Nadziran Numanas in return for the Nadzirn teaching the brotherhood the darkest secrets of Right Handed magic. Lol, see, quite a convoluted plot to resurrect, reiterate and continue without some care Hard to do without Beowuuf to at least ground it! For now I'm happy for Beowuuf to travel with Simey, see Temel, and for us to seek to have some form of button on the Chaos stuff before considering anything from the past.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 13, 2013 20:47:53 GMT -5
Interesting, I'm coming up to 150 individual Bepwuuf/Sahmas post in the WW! That includes the very first three 'story of...' posts, but doens't include all the side posts not directly involving one of my characters.
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Post by Simey on Mar 15, 2013 8:53:18 GMT -5
Yikes. I'm on about ninety, I think, and I started - what? - surely over a year before you? You are a writing machine, sir. Not only that, but your story has always had purpose and direction. I am jealous! Have you had a fully laid out plan from the start? Or part of a plan that you've then added to as events have moved along?
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 16, 2013 4:55:34 GMT -5
Whereas I love the posts you tend to do as a distraction from the normal plot ones. It's fun to see a character react to a situation that isn't there for plot reasons, just to see how they behave, and to get insights in to the smaller aspects of their personality.
For my plots, there's certainly been certain story beats I've had the ideas for long term and short term. As soon as I have an idea I tend to imagine bits along the way. While it's always fluid, as an example reuniting with Lord Gralmis was always something I was working towards. It got slotted in where it did when I suddenly realised that if I didn't attempt that story right there, it maybe wouldn't have the same place or opportunity in future. I'm always surprised that the three desperate elements at the time - the Maaken plot, the Tamas plot, and the Eshnar plot - managed to co-exist and work as well as they did. Still confusing and filled to breaking, but I still like how it all tied together and each strand informed the others.
So there is certainly part of a plan. For example, I've had the 'last' Beowuuf post in my head for a good long while, although it doesn't mean I'd go with it (obviously I've deviated from that once already by semi-killing him off). I actually have the start of a post that is the large pay off for the Kai's pledge plot (which is basically the Beowuuf whole story arc as it currently is in my head) on my HD for a while. Speaking of letting parts come, that original post still mentions Dark Walker rather than Karlnos as the third champion. That shift happened organically, as Karlnos became a more interesting - to my mind - character than the simpler zealot of Dark Walker. Karlnos had many unexpected qualities like compassion for his soldiers, a son (that flashed in to my mind as an echo of Beowuuf's own at the time hidden drive when that confrontation post was written!). So it's now odd to think that wasn't always the plan. Karlnos being stripped of all those slowly, and so becoming a far scarier zealot for having active reason to never back away from it, and being immune to being reasoned with in that regard, seems for more logical.
A shame less people are around who write for the West Watch, it would be interesting to know the balance of slavishly sticking to a plotted story versus making it up post by post that goes on. I tend to have the skeleton of the plot in my mind, but it's usually found character beats that latch on to those hooks and actually then properly form the plot.
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Post by Simey on Mar 17, 2013 10:23:47 GMT -5
Whereas I love the posts you tend to do as a distraction from the normal plot ones. Hmm, actually as a distraction from not having a plot. There's an unfortunate difference. Now you see you've made me want to go back and read all of Beowuuf's story again! I remember one of your earliest posts being the creepiest post I've ever seen in the WW - someone (Beowuuf himself?) going into an ancient temple on the coast of the Darklands. I was hooked from there.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 17, 2013 12:13:42 GMT -5
You have a plot...idea. You have several! Documents and independence and so forth! And why go back and read old stuff instead of writing new stuff, that sounds wrong. Write new stuff now! The post about the temple is...umm...20-odd in my notes (Dark Walker and Beowuuf). I'm sure it will be less creepy re-reading it, so go ahead with that writing new posts thing Did Sahmas's existence get hinted at with that temple bit? I forget, I think so as the young boy trying to get Beowuuf's attention. The dream bit before that is interesting because it has the three paths of Beowuuf hinted at - the Helghast mission for clues to the mineral, the Tamas/Gralmis plot, and Sorba's links to Eshnar. Didn't think I'd be playing them out all at once, so it's funny to see the dream actually being a premonition for me not just my character. Anyway, thanks for the kind words - now make more stuff! Oh, and I think I know how to link back to my old plotlines again. Ish. Kinda. Eventually. Also have new post ideas to touch on the Knight's Council corruption again. In case that can ever intersect with or help the Durenese documents one.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 17, 2013 12:29:21 GMT -5
Oh, and of course let's never forget Simey's driving 'is he mad, did he see his commander do something wrong, etc' mental worries. That had a fun refresh at the end of chapter 17!
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 23, 2013 5:05:38 GMT -5
"Already the plan that he didn't have was going wrong."
That made me laugh. Ok, I changed the 'how do we escape fro mthe villagers' situation to something else.
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Post by Simey on Mar 23, 2013 10:09:08 GMT -5
I noticed. ;D
Very glad of it.
So there's a black hole creeping out from where Beowuuf was standing. The villagers feel slowed and can't escape it - I assume this applies to Simey as well.
Was the hut collapse violent enough to suggest that everyone inside it was probably squished?
Apologies by the way for having missed my pledged maximum fortnight response to your previous post - time flies when you're, um, not doing much.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 23, 2013 10:59:47 GMT -5
Lol, I think I missed a promised post by many weeks, so it's all good. Strike when inspiration hits, right? The fast/slow thing was to hint at a new manifestation of the Chaos aura - maybe one hinting at a different type of beast. So the idea of the mind feeling sluggish and slow when they are close, and then suddenly the mind operating too quickly when they are attacking. While a quick mind should be good for a warrior, a normal person suddenly finding their body seeming to react far too slowly would more likely induce echoes of nightmares and just provoke confused terror, right? So it's not that the hole is moving slowly, so much as everyone is actually comprehending what is happening very quickly and appreciates that they're too slow to outrun it. I recall you mentioning you might ditch the poor dwarf (Grolum?) but didn't want to pull the trigger. He and the woman are as squished or not as you like, but the hut has been pulled down by something powerful. So that might hint the chaos things here are more like clean up or simple beasts than the Chaosmaster's normal warriors. Or, the Chaosmaster doesn't care and just sends out whatever he likes, when he likes, and the properties of the Chaos creatures are just a random bonuses if they line up with the target
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Post by Simey on Mar 23, 2013 13:23:35 GMT -5
Oooh, so it's chaos stuff. I thought it was some kind of battle magic. Okay, so a portal for chaos creatures to emerge from. You have me wondering if that's linked to Beowuuf's presence,,,, But don't tell me!
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 23, 2013 13:32:54 GMT -5
I was thinking more a 'natural' series of holes. After all, who says the critters have to be land based and come at us where we can see them
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Post by Simey on Mar 23, 2013 17:36:56 GMT -5
Oookay. If you have a specific idea in mind, you might have to give me a bit more information if you want to avoid me misinterpreting what you intend to be happening. But if you're happy to see what random nonsense I spin from it, I'm happy to run with it from there.
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Post by Beowuuf on Mar 24, 2013 0:05:02 GMT -5
Random seems cool!
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