"Who knew that I would be
So unexpectedly, undeniably happier,
Sitting with you right here, right here next to me?"
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HPHM Cardverse developed by @ariparri // Jacob's outfit // Duncan's outfit (plus a coat and sash)
x~x~x~x
The Best Ideas Jacob Cromwell's Ever Come Up With
(according to the "Counselor" of Spades, Duncan Ashe)
A new variation of steam-powered engine powered by a combination of hydroelectric and solar energy. (This would be tested successfully both on the royal zepplin and to power the entire palace and its surrounding buildings, cutting the overall cost of energy production in the Country of Spades by a good twenty percent.)
Several new vaccines, many of which adapted into oral supplements so as to make it easier to vaccinate small children. (Jacob specifically wanted to make something that people who are afraid of needles would be able to take safely, as his little sister Carewyn got very teary as a toddler, when getting her first shots.)
Mecha suits specifically designed to protect coal miners in treacherous underground conditions. (This idea would sadly be "co-opted" by the Tyrant of Spades Patricia Rakepick and repurposed into weapons of war. Fortunately the Joker called the "Escape Artist" destroyed every last one of them before they could be used to attack other parts of Cinderhaven.)
"We could just lock old Madam Ace in her office for a night. Then maybe you could force the army to cut their spending." (Sadly this idea, however tempting and amusing it might've been, was one Duncan couldn't go along with.)
A close-to-unbreakable puzzle lock, perfect for small drawers or boxes. (Jacob put this on Duncan's desk as a belated birthday gift, after he suspected Rakepick was sending spies around to try to rifle through his papers. The Spades technological expert took it upon himself to take out ten different books on locking mechanism and even consult with a locksmith for two weeks when constructing it, and it's thanks to this undertaking that Jacob became very, very proficient at picking locks himself.)
A record player that could be powered through pressing a pedal, rather than being plugged in with electricity. (Jacob put this on the desk in his workshop so that he could play music with his foot, while working on other projects. Duncan actually gifted Jacob several records to play on it, including Sitting on Top of the World, which is one of his favorite songs.)
"Let me come with you, Ashe. Rakepick's stooges will think twice about messing with you, if I'm there." (They didn't, at first. Fortunately Jacob ended up shutting up one particularly mouthy bloke, after he had the audacity to suggest Duncan only ever tapped people for positions at court if he was sleeping with them. Clearly a mean-spirited, untrue dig at his BFF Coby and both obvious and oblivious OTL Jacob. Jacob punched the guy so hard in the face that he nursed a bruised jaw for a solid three weeks. After that, no one dared say a single bad word about Duncan in Jacob's earshot.)
A prototype of a dirigible shaped like a dragon, powered by both wind and hydroelectric power, which uses giant wings to steer. (This also was eyed by Rakepick as something that she could modify into a weapon of war. Fortunately none of her subordinates were sharp enough to figure out how to give such an "air dragon" the ability to breathe fire without damaging the modified prototypes.)
A set of sparkling silver cuff links that, when the sides are squeezed, expanded into very sharp hatpins. (Inspired by the hatpins women sometimes wore in their hats for self-defense, Jacob made these as yet another birthday gift for Duncan, with the idea of them being helpful for self-defense. Duncan personally found them a little gaudy, but wore them anyway.)
"Come on, Ashe...you sing the next line!" (The night that Jacob finally encouraged Duncan to come over to the Cromwell house for dinner, he encouraged Duncan to sing along with him and Carewyn the way they always did, whenever they rode the trolley home together. Duncan actually did hold his own incredibly well alongside the two trained singers, and soon he, Carewyn, and Jacob were all singing together. It was one of the few times in Duncan's life -- alongside his times with Veruca and Coby -- that Duncan felt the way he imagined other people felt, with their families.)
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Well, I'm starting anew in Faerûn, so I think I will try and share the journey here this time around :) I'm still trying to get the hang of the cam to get nice screens, but I'm playing with mods on a Dark Urge playthrough and quite like her.
I've adapted an old one-shot character of mine because I never got the chance to play her in a campaign setting. For now, I want to build her story anew, as a Redemption Durge, because I feel that arc will suit her really well :)
This is Dysnomia Mossgrove (Nomi for short), who I had built as a lvl 7 shadowcaster back in the day. Her clan had expected the birth of a half-elf girl who was to be named Amber and then become archdruid someday. Instead, they found themselves with a tiefling babe who cast no shadow, and they did not welcome her. Her and her mother were cast out and, by the time she was 4, her mother passed from an unknown illness. The local Inkeeper, an old dwarven woman who called herself Ma Flora raised her then. No one ever got used to the kid who moved about the tavern unnaturally silently and seemed to cast no shadow, yet moved like one herself.
Of course, that was before. Or maybe it was a dream. Ever since she got out of that Nautiloid she's had really strange dreams. Some involving a life where she helped smuggle people to safety under the cover of shadows, where the night lent her the power to control the shadows that surrounded her in this distant land. But most of her dreams are of a much more violent nature. Bloody. Not quiet like shadows, but drowning in screams of agony. Not hers- others' agony. And in the dreams she relishes the sound, wants more of it. More warm blood on her hands.
When she wakes, she feels sick. These urges are vile, but something in the depth of that depravity calls out to her like an old familiar friend. It takes her considerable effort not to give in to the urge to slash, maim, kill when she first meets Astarion. Granted, he did attempt to hold a blade to her throat, so. Well, at least she's not the only one who seems blade-happy around here.
Meeting Gale went much better (than it could've). Despite the condition of her memory, Nomi was certain even wizards were supposed to be a bit better at controlling magic and their portals. Thankfully, she'd suppressed the urge to slice his hand clean off when he first reached out to her for help. He seemed friendly, even a touch too friendly. And, as is typical for wizards, believed his ties to magic better than those of a sorcerer born to it.
They found Lae'zel a short ways from Gale's malfunctioning portal, hanging from a cage and staring daggers at a pair of tieflings below. Luckily, they fell for a quick lie and went on their way (much to Lae'zel's displeasure). The githyanki is too hungry for battle, and the last thing Dysnomia wants is another voice urging her to kill. It might not be the wisest thing, to keep her company. But until they have a better lead than her creche for a cure, it might just be the best choice regardless.
Thankfully, they came across a few crypt-thieves before long who gave them no choice but to fight, and they were the perfect target for her shadow and death magic. She could only hope her companions didn't notice the twinkle in her eye each time she struck true, each time the thieves winced, each time another fell lifeless to the ground.
While fighting scribes of undeath didn't satisfy the sick urges within her, Nomi was glad for the opportunity to test her skills without battling the constant whispers in her mind as well. Unfortunately, nothing in the crypt brought them any closer to finding a cure, or to her lost past. She still couldn't understand why she seemed the only one among the group with such particular symptoms.
Oh, and an elderly undead was about as cryptic as you'd expect before he shuffled along his merry way.
At camp, she wasn't quite certain if Astarion was making fun of her, or if he genuinely wanted to discuss what she thought the best way to be killed was. A quick blade, to be sure, painless. Though her hands ached as necromantic magic threatened to surge and show him a different way during the conversation.
Should she be wary of Astarion? Should he be wary of her (he probably should)? Or were they actually getting along?
Well, at least they seem to get along well enough.
Gale, too. Though she could do without the wizard's typical displays of hubris. It was bad enough to keep from slicing things open at every other turn, but this petty rivalry between wizards and sorcerers would turn to more than simple bickering if she lost control of her own unsightly urges. But by the gods, he does realize he has a mirror right in front of him, does he not? he set up the tent himself, Night's sake.
Oh, and the elder undead from earlier joined them at camp tonight. Seems he will be joining the crew. No, not Astarion (though his complexion is nearly as pale as Withers', but that's besides the point).
___
Whoo, ok that's what I got for the first session of play, lol. Not certain if I want to do these updates for every session or find a different way to tell the story as it evolves. I want a way to flex my atrophied writing muscle as well so we will have to see how this turns out.
BUT here's some extra fun bits:
Her name comes from the greek deity of lawlessness and chaos, a daughter of Eris (and Dysnomia is now one of Eris's moons too!). In her original backstory she had no knowledge of the source of her powers, or why she has no shadow of her own, but can control any shadows near her. Her powers lean towards darkness and death (necromancy) but she strives to help others even though they often fear her. She was a smuggler in a time of war, helping civilians relocate safely and ferrying goods between and behind enemy lines.
I also love the fact that another meaning for the word Dysnomia relates to anomic aphasia, though! This is, in tldr, a memory issue affecting word retrieval and problems recalling words, names, numbers and nouns in general. So the memory tie-in seemed perfect for a Durge playthrough! :)
You guys I'm even more excited for this playthrough than my first one.
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