So today, I did it, folks (both of you ). I did the deed. I upgraded to Xbox territory! I watched some videos on YouTube showing how the Kinect thingie works, and HAD to have this too. I'm surprised that actually works, but it does!

This is the answer to the stupid, clunky favorites system, console players. No more pausing the game over and over to go into the favorites menu...all you gotta do is say "Equip Axe", and it's done. I know some of you could care less, but this is a HUGE jump in technology for ol' Renee.

I'm noticing little diffferences here and there. Saving takes seconds less than it does on the PS3. Navigating the menu (without Kinect) is also quicker.


Anyways, to commemorate this historic moment in Renee G's world, I started a new character (kind of), even though it's not raining.

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Sundas, 1:03 PM, 17th of Last Seed, 4th ERA, Year: 201

As Gunter, Son of Talos followed an Imperial to safety from the dragon, he spied a group of Stormcloaks off to his right.

"You! Where are you going?"

yelled the Imperial soldier.

Gunter paid him no heed. He must stick together, stick together with his brothers.

He ran into some sort of keep, while the Stormcloak soldier suggested Gunter put on some armor. Gunter does not think this a good idea. Yes, he's a brute. Yes, he's a fighter, but there's no way he's putting on a man's last wardrobe.

He does take the man's axe, though. A standard iron axe, it will do well to protect Gunter.

"Come, follow me!" says the Stormcloak.

Gunter did as he was told. There were a couple melees, and Gunter did his best, although he did accidentally hit his Stormcloak brother once during his final blow!

But it was no problem. His brother didn't even flinch.

"We've got to get moving!"

But as Gunter spies some actual FOOD hanging near a fireplace, he can't but help himself!!! There's some roasted pheasant, and raw rabbit's leg. Gunter goes ahead and eats the pheasant ravenously!

MMMMNOMM NOMM HNOMMMMM NOMMM

He eats like a pig. Just like a pig. But it's worth it.

He also spies some wine! Before he's even checked what sort it is, half of it is gone in a huge gulp.

*URRRRP!!*

"Ahhh, that's much better....MUCH better!!! I am sorry brother, but I just had to get me belly full."

"Done? Let's get moving!"

Gunter, Son of Talos now follows his brother, whose name he doesn't even know yet, down a dark corridor.

This post has been edited by Lady Saga: May 25 2012, 01:03 AM

My characters have been hanging out in the Stormcloak camps for a long time now. Not only can you trade with their quartermasters, but they typically have alchemy and smithing stations you can use. You can even sleep in their tents.

None of the my characters ever go near the Imperial camps though. The way they tried to cut their heads off at the beginning of the game kind of cools their desire to be anywhere around the Imperial Legion.

Some of those Nord camps are not as friendly, though. That's what I've witnessed with Beth. They won't up and just attack her, but they'll draw their weapons sometimes.

Anyways, now for another Son of Talos update. He's made it to Riverwood, and is staying with Hod and Gerdur.

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Morndas, 6:19 AM, 18th of Last Seed, Year 201

Gunter couldn't believe it when Gerdur handed him the key.

"But...but I ...I..."

He didn't know what to say. She also offered him some food and alcohol. What more can a Nord ask for?

Ah....'tis a dangerous question! 'tis a dangerous question indeed!....

As the hours passed and the man of house, who goes by the name of Hod, stayed up drinking on his bed, Gunter, Son of Talos grew tired. He had eaten more than his fill of bread, meat, and a few apples, and had several bottles of standard Nordic mead.

Hod made no sign of moving off the single he was sitting upon, so finally Gunter goes to talk to the man. The two had met briefly before, but now the talk broadens out a little.

"So. You saw a dragon up in Helgen? Tell me about it!"

"I do not really want to talk about that," says Gunter, truthfully, not because he's traumatized, though. He really wants to just fall asleep on the spot.

"Ah...well that's okay then..." says Hod.

Gunter sees Hod, then he sees two Hods. Then three Hods. He shakes his head in an effort to clear it. Damn mead!

As Gunter grabs and swallows down yet another bottle of Nord Mead, he's finally just a bit too drunk to care. He walks over to the double bed where Gerdur, the Lady of the house, is sleeping. And before he knows it, he's asleep beside her. Normally he would try to sweet talk such a woman (even if her husband were present! That never stopped him in the past), but he's too drunk and too tired to even make a move.

He sleeps for an unknown amount of time, and wakes up with what we on Earth call a "blinding hangover". But before he gets out of bed, he can't help but snuggle up a little closer to the Lady of the house. What is her name?? Gerbil? Something like that.

Then he hears something.

He gets up out of bed in a flash! But it's okay. It's just the Man of the house (Nod? Bod? Something like that...) Both Bod and the man Gunter escaped Helgen with are still awake, and both are drinking mead. They've apparently been drinking all night.

Gunter goes to speak to Nod, now. No BOD! His name is Bod!

"I ...I ah...." although Gunter will sleep, fight, and sweetalk almost anything with two legs when he's drunk, when he's sober he always regrets such actions. But, of course, he can't help them either.

He wants to make amends with Bod for sleeping next to Gerbil, the Lady of the house...

"I was drunk, me lord. Excuse me"..

But Hod pays him no mind.

"Got business here in Riverwood eh? There are worse villages". Hod says.

"Well no...I need to go outside, excuse me!"

Gunter runs outside, runs towards the river he saw the day before. Ahh!!!! He dives STRAIGHT IN.

"I'm spoken for, so don't get any ideas"...says a snotty woman. Gunter could care less, at the moment. This water feels GREAT! And it looks great under the waves, as well. Gunter can't help but think he's never seen such an underwater before!

..But it's also COLD.

But...if there's any cure for a hangover, a fresh, cold Skyrim river will often do the trick!

.

This post has been edited by Lady Saga: May 25 2012, 02:44 AM

Started a Ghenghis Khan style Khajiit character today to try out the new mounted combat. Got about as far as Helgen keep before bugs meant half the thing didn't appear. Boo!

Going to try that again later, then ride around shooting things with a bow.

Duralekh gro-Bulsakh has taken down the Dark Brotherhood. The whole process was a spoiler-fest that will go unremarked upon, except to say that he survived. Afterward he just stood under the trees for a little while. I was really worried about this escapade. The roadside assassins are pretty much just a nuisance, but D couldn’t stop imagining one of them standing over his sleeping wife. No more.

Now he’s taking a much deserved vacation in his favorite place: home. He picked up Erik the Slayer on his way back to Riften.

Erik was happy to see him. “Hello, friend,” he said. “Are we going on another adventure?”

“Sure, kid,” said the Bulsakh. “But first we’re going fishing.”



While Big D takes a break, I started a new character. Meet Shuvesse: Khajiit stealth archer, skooma addict, Dovahkiin. The gods must have a sense of humor.

Shuvesse was caught coming over the border with a quantity of high-grade skooma. Escaping back to Cyrodiil without the coin or the goods meant certain death at the hands of her associates, so she decided to ride it out with the captured Stormcloaks. About the time she realized she had made a big mistake, there was mayhem. She escaped with her life and some assorted goods.

Skyrim felt like a fresh start. She had been clean for a month before they trusted her with the cargo. Now she could just keep going. But first she had to warn the Jarl.

On her way into Whiterun, she met a Khajiit caravan. They had skooma for sale. She paused for a smoke before heading into the city.

I’m managing Shuvesse’s habit by making a note every game day on paper. She needs one vial of skooma per day while she’s addicted. If she runs out, she’ll have to put 300 gold per day into a respawning container in a hold capital to simulate buying from another addict. She is an alchemist, so she can cook her own from nightshade and moon sugar. I’m thinking one each per day eaten together to substitute for a vial. Last thing, she can get clean at a temple for 5,000 Septims. The catch is that the next time she meets someone with skooma for sale (or finds some), she’s hooked again. I may tweak the terms of her habit as we go. I want it to be a major motivator without making all other goals completely unreachable.

Her addiction means that before she undertakes a mission like the pilgrimage to High Hrothgar, she’ll either have to get clean or lay in a good supply. Also she will not be able to keep a follower while she’s using. That means those roadside dealers will cause her to dismiss her follower, loot and all.

Shuvesse has been known to trade a piece of tail for one more hit, so the Thieves Guild sounds like an improvement. If she gets thrown in jail while she’s addicted, she’ll have to attempt an escape. I’ve never done that before, so it should be interesting. She uses light armor, archery, and claws plus the Gloves of the Pugilist for melee. She’ll also put some perks in sneak and alchemy.

Her armor is unimproved Thieves Guild gear, so she is very fragile. She hasn’t found anything with resistance charms yet. I’ve never had a character almost die in the first dragon fight before, but Shuvesse was nearly crisped while hiding in the tower. (The guard standing in front of her fell over dead.) Her need for cover and an escape route makes every place new. She took the Ritual Stone power for a panic button, but she hasn’t used it yet.

Here’s a little report:



24 Last Seed, 4E 201

Shuvesse stood outside the Whiterun stable looking west. The road was empty, no sign of the Khajiit caravan. She felt both relieved and disappointed.

It had taken four days to save up enough gold for the blessing that cleaned her blood. Four days of fear and pain while she scrambled to earn, her pile of coins growing as her supply dwindled. Four nights of bliss entwined with that sweet, white smoke. No one would ever love her the way skooma did. It was a lie, but the loss when it was gone felt real enough.

But now hope was back in her heart, and she needed something even more than another high. This new power made her greater than just flesh and bones. The dragon at the watchtower had called her name. Dovahkiin. It knew her. The Greybeards knew her. And now she could answer their call.

If Lydia ever managed to catch up. Shuvesse glanced irritably back toward the gate. She would need the big Nord’s brawn when another dragon found her, or if a storm came up on the mountain, or if a hundred other dangers surprised her with steel, spell, and fang. Skyrim was a hungry land with too few shadows. Shuvesse was a city Khajiit, but if she lived long enough, she could learn some new ways.

Lydia jogged up and halted a few paces behind her. She scanned the sky, then turned to watch their backs. Good, thought Shuvesse. She started down the road to Ivarstead.

Welcome Shuv! She is a cutie. What is she wearing? It looks like leather, but when I compare it to Tanit's leather armor, the straps and plates are different. Ahh, I should have read further before asking. It is Thieves Guild armor. I should make a mod that makes that craftable, since I doubt any of my characters will ever do the TG questline. I was thinking about it with Tanit, but I don't like the things it makes you do, starting with framing that merchant in Riften, and then shaking people down for money.




there was mayhem.
Have you ever noticed that we never hear about aprilhem? or junehem? What is it about may that makes people think about chaos? I am weird, I actually think about these things, and how our words evolved.

Grits: wow, simulating a drug habit. That's intense! Not sure I could go that far, it would hit too close for me. Skyrim skooma sucks, anyways. I've heard sleeping tree sap is the way to go!



aww that sucks.

How did I miss this? Tell us how it goes! I have been intensely curious to hear about how the new mounted combat really works. I just know that it is only for melee weapons and bows, but not magic. I am still running 1.4. If the mounted combat actually works, I might give upgrading to 1.6 a try.




Yeah, Skyrim skooma is just a stamina potion. Very underwhelming. Does that mean regular stamina potions are all addictive and mind-altering too?



As those of you who follow my video/pic topic know, I started a new character a few days ago. Hera is an Altmer barbarian. She never knew her biological parents. Instead she was raised by a mountain man named Alp-Öhi (yes, I am totally ripping off Heidi), who lived in relative seclusion in the Jerall Mountains. Aside from Alp, her only contact with people was with those who lived in the nearest village, which they only visited sparingly, and when absolutely necessary.

When Alp finally died of old age, Hera could no longer bear to live in the same house alone. Everywhere she looked, she saw her beloved adoptive father. So she dug out his ancient suit of armor, resewed the linen parts to fit herself, and made her way down the mountain to see the big wide world she had only heard of in rumor and legends.

It was an eye-opener to say the least. The first people she met took her prisoner and tried to lop her head off. Then a dragon appeared and rescued her. The only people nice to her were the Stormcloaks who had been taken prisoner with her. Especially the one named Ralof. He said Hera should go to some place named Windhelm to join the rebellion against the Empire. But Hera did not even know what the Empire was. So she said she'd think about it, and went her own way. She soon found that the lowlands were filled with people itching to kill her and take her belongings. The nicer folk called them bandits. A word she had never heard before.

When she finally met other people who were tall, and had golden skin and pointed ears like her own, Hera was jubilant. She ran up to them, hoping to learn more of who they were and what it meant that they looked like her. She wondered if they might be of the mythical race called "elves" she had heard about from Alp and the villagers back home. Everyone there had called her an "elf", although she had never known just what that meant. Perhaps these strangers could tell her.

Well, they turned out to be no more friendly than the "bandits". When one asked if she worshiped Talos, she said "of course!" After all, who did not say their prayers every night to Mighty Talos? Things got ugly then. But afterward Hera found that the armor the "elves" had worn fit her perfectly. In fact, it was very pretty. Even prettier than her ancient Nord armor. Now she is in a quandry, does she keep wearing her Nordic Armor, or wear the Elven Armor? Perhaps she will wear the Nordic suit in the warmer climes, and the Elven where it is colder?

This post has been edited by SubRosa: May 28 2012, 04:55 PM

I get the sense that Skyrim skooma is watered-down or something. It doesn't look as if it really does anything. Compare 1970's era pot to today's pot for instance. The THC levels back then were much weaker than they are now.

With Cyrodiilic skooma, for some reason I got the sense that it was doing something for the user: and had both negative and eurphoric consequences.

And welcome Hera. Hope you enjoy these forums. I would vote Elven armor for her, instead of Nordic.

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I should just preface this entry by saying I'm going to be retiring Crystal Beth pretty soon; she'll retire to Solitude, that is. It's gonna be hard, because she FINALLY attained Master-level Illusion spells (which means Invisibility). But she's a PS3 character, and I'm going to do an overall switch to Xbox, now that I've got the Kinect system. Using magic commands via voice (instead of buttons) is going to be way too much fun!

Beth actually died the other day, but I granted her life be returned (she is writing a story, that's my excuse ).


Morndas, 7:08 PM, 6th of Rain's Hand

"And this is Windhelm, Jordis. A suitable place; I think I do like it here, although not quite as much as I like Solitude Solitude has the sun's light to cheer it up, does it not?"

Crystal Beth and Jordis the Sword-Maiden just arrived in Windhelm. There's a variety of quests they're going to accomplish here before making their historic journey back to Solitude.

Quest 1: The Jarl of Winterhold wants Beth & Jordis to take down some "bandits on the wreck of Winter War". Really? This is like the third time bandits have inhabited the ship. Is it really that hot of a spot to dwell in? Beth wonders.

Quest 2: The pair are to find a shrine devoted to Boethiah. Good thing she's got Clairvoyance; otherwise she'd probably never find this place!

Quest 3: Beth and Jordis will then be off to Riften. She's not really sure why, but she wrote it down in her journal to go there and meet up with somebody named "Vekel". Something like that.

It will be Beth's first journey to Riften. She has no idea what to expect there, but I kinda do.

We’re going with what the game world shows us about skooma, rather than what happens when the PC uses it. I suppose it’s one of those imagination mods.

I’d go with both armors for Hera. Perhaps she is fascinated by a new connection with the Elven, but reluctant to abandon her upbringing. Also she might get a chill up her skirt in the Nordic.

Shuvesse got some new Words from her mountain adventure. Now she’s headed north on an errand. Still clean, still dragging Lydia along behind her.


***


Added an update from Shuvesse:


27 Last Seed, 4E 201

“Tools and wares of all kinds, and all can be yours,” called the Khajiit trader.

Shuvesse stood in the snow outside Windhelm with Lydia at her back. The Nord had proven her worth against the sabre cats along the road from Riften. Now Shuvesse feared to leave her. She turned to her companion.

“I’m still here,” said Lydia.

“Khajiit will walk alone for a time,” murmured Shuvesse.

Lydia nodded. “As you wish, my Thane. I’ll head back home. You can find me there if you need me.”

Shuvesse waited until her Housecarl had walked a fair distance before she approached the caravan tents. The temple blessing had taken away her body’s need for skooma, but there was no cure for the wanting.

The trader’s eyes were hard and knowing. “This one needs something?”

Shuvesse made the trade and quickly slipped away past the stables. She didn’t have enough gold for a horse. It would be a long, cold walk to Hjaalmarch. Her fingers found the shape of the pipe tucked under her jacket. At least she would not lack company.

After a smoke under the bridge, she found her confidence. Her claws were sharper than a wolf’s, and her Sprint was faster than a sabre cat’s. If her Thu’um could match a draugr’s, she would soon know it. Shuvesse kept an eye on the sky and another on the trees as she walked. Perhaps she would even find some more nightshade in the marshes of Hjaalmarch.








This post has been edited by Grits: May 28 2012, 04:22 PM

ha ha Grits. you must have the day off, too.

Loved the little story, and the in-game dialogue. And the fact that she was too embarassed to puff on some skooma in the presence of her housecarl.

Imagination mods.

OK, so when Shuvesse said her Sprint was faster than a sabre cat's, that was the skooma talking. Holy crap! On the road north she ditched her temporary quest-related follower so that she could smoke. Out in the dark in a snowstorm she got jumped by a snowy sabre cat. She made it through by guzzling the potions she had saved for the upcoming dragon hunt. Also she ate far more cheese than one mortal should in a single sitting. She really needs to buy a horse.

The dragon fight went well. There were a bunch of dead soldiers lying around, so she used her Ritual Stone power to make some dragon bait. Now she’s about to enter Windhelm to warm up and make a plan. She has a good supply of skooma and very little gold. Even if she steals the whole place blind, she doesn’t have a fence here. What to do…

Shuvesse needs an intervention. I have the number for SA: Skooma Anonymous, in case things really get bad.


Turdas, 4:57 PM, 9th of Rain's Hand

Today is the day. The final day of Crystal Beth's game, maybe for good. She has decided to retire to Solitude, and has quit adventuring. Yeah, I'm as shocked as you are. Here's what happened.

She and her Housecarl, Jordis the Sword-Maiden, were off to Riften, a place neither of them had ever been. Beth got antsy (as usual) and wanted to do some dungeon-diving.

She found a network of paths going up a mountainside. These paths went multiple directions. She found a place she didn't want to mess with right now: a Dwemer ruin, actually. She had waited all this time to finally find something Dwemer, hoping it might be like Cyrodiil's Ayleid ruins. But as she neared the place, she decided "now is not the time".

She found a cave with a single bandit standing outside. She Calmed the bandit, but while investigating, forgot to re-calm him. Jordis took him down. Gosh darnit.

They went inside the cave despite Jordis's reluctance. Jordis had said "I don't like where this is going". She had said this several times in the past. Sometimes, Beth would honor this request, but this time Beth really wanted to press inside.

Long story short: Beth wound up killing her friend. She knows it now; she and Jordis had become friends. This was Beth's first Nordic friend, basically, yet she managed to kill Jordis with a poorly-aimed ice storm. She should have seen the signs, but did not, and now Jordis is gone.

Jordis and the leader of the ruffians had been going at it. Both of them had fallen (literally, both were showing signs of weakness), but Beth was in the heat of the moment, standing off to the side un-hurt, and waiting for the moment to get a good shot on the leader. She saw the leader fall, and saw Jordis fall, and then reacted too quickly. Before she knew it,

Anyways, Crystal Beth, whose real name I still don't know, is now in Solitude's Proudspire Manor. She may just stay there for a very long time.

Oh no, Jordis! Beth must feel awful.


Shuvesse has been trying to save up enough gold to buy a horse. She spent some time in Windhelm helping the guards do their job, and at the end she got no pay at all! Rather than test the theory that they would now look the other when she misbehaved (perhaps by fatally clawing one of them), she stalked out to the stable to see about Plan B, liberating a horse.

That did not work out. For one thing, there were eyes everywhere. She also realized that she needed her horse to loyally fight by her side possibly defending her to its very death rather than trotting off to report her misdeeds the first time she dismounted. (She sometimes gives other tailed creatures too much credit for initiative.) The second problem was the Khajiit caravan camped right beside the stable. Shuvesse abandoned the horse plan in favor of shoring up her stash.

The time in Windhelm was not an utter waste, however. She did have some hot merchandise in her pack. That meant a moonlit walk back to Riften. She feels more comfortable in the dark. Except for the vampires. Note to Shuvesse: buy another Cure Disease potion.

In Riften she managed to scrape together enough gold for a horse, with the help of the salvage she peeled from three dead thugs. The thugs ambled up right outside the city gate, saying they were going to teach her a lesson. Apparently the lesson was “Riften Guards Will Happily Watch You Die.” Now she needs to spend some time swatting butterflies for new potions.

After she unloaded the thugs’ gear, she closed the deal with the horse trader. She got a great big dapple grey that she named Speck. What adventures they would have! Starting with a trip to Riverwood by way of High Hrothgar. Shuvesse emptied out her drawer in the Ratway and the two of them hit the road.

About ten steps outside of Riften, Shuvesse decided to cut through the woods around Fort Greenwall. That led to a spider encounter. Shuvesse hopped off to get some practice dealing with a threat alongside Speck before something serious occurred like a dragon attack. That’s when she saw the second spider. Speck’s furious horse-yelling must have attracted attention, because while Shuvesse was targeting spider #2, a bear tackled her from behind. During the tail-over-nose scramble with the bear, she saw Speck fall over dead and spider #3 approaching.

So, we’re done with horses.

Oh that is terrible news for Crystal Beth. On a brighter note, how as the Kinect been working? I was more than a little dubious over how well it would recognize people's voices, especially in the heat of the gaming moment. Is it working out for you?

For Shuv too. I never bother with horses in ES games. That is one reason why. The really sad thing is you consolers should be getting the patch that allows mounted combat in about a week or so.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: May 30 2012, 01:03 AM

Beth is pretty down. She's been brooding, all alone in her big, new house. She might just write chapters for her book, but not adventure anymore. That'll be okay, then.



Oh yea, it's working out! The Kinect that is. Well worth the money...I spend a lot less time menu-diving, it's awesome. You have to manually put stuff into Favorites, but once they're in there, everything is voice-commanded. You can also quick-save and quick-load without having to press a button, pause the game, and all the other general menu commands.

When Gunter went to his latest dungeon, I did get to test it a bit more in the heat of the moment. It was a pretty easy dungeon, thank goodness: novice necromancers. He was fighting with his burning sword and steel shield, and occasionally I would say "Equip Healing Potion" (this is how you drink a potion) and ...slurp... goes the potion!

Without Kinect, drinking a simple potion could take several seconds if it wasn't hotkeyed. I mean, anywhere from 3 seconds on up....And we only get 2 hotkeys on consoles, so there were times when I was spending more time in the menus than in the actual fight! No more of that.

I'm going to make a spellsword type character next time it rains, which means a lot of spells mixed (duh) with swordplay. That'll be the true test. I'll let you know how it works out.


This post has been edited by Lady Saga: May 30 2012, 03:43 AM

Shuvesse is clean and traveling with Vorstag. She is following the Way of the Voice as much as she can. They found a Word of Power and have a map marker for another one.

Alchemy is a lot of fun. Right now Shuvesse is hoping for a frost-breathing dragon so she can try out her new Weakness to Fire poison on her Imperial Bow of Smells Like Something’s Burning. (I forget what it’s really called.)

Vorstag is also a lot of fun. Since Shuvesse does no smithing, he just picks what he wants from all of the loot she gives him without her trying to manipulate him with improvements. Right now he’s looking rough and greasy in banded iron and plain old iron boots. Why did he equip those boots? No idea. He also loves to resurrect things with his staff. My favorite recent battle involved a zombie mudcrab. Vorstag was howling his usual death threats to the sky, a blue-misted mudcrab was scuttling along behind him, and Shuvesse was helpless with laughter.

The two of them are presently in Riften. After they conclude their business, they will leave for the Markarth area again. They came in the South Gate, so we don’t know if the caravan is here. They will likely go back the way they came, since Shuvesse needs to drop some things off in Riverwood. However, a big part of her wants the caravan to be there. As good as things are right now, skooma makes her feel better. It’s likely that she’ll need to check. I’m a little worried about what will happen. She’s level 15, and we’ve been seeing a lot of trolls.

Shuvesse and Vorstag had a fun and productive trip across the volcanic tundra. Shuvesse picked up another Word of Power, and Vorstag got some more bones to carry. The dragon fight produced a very close call. Shuvesse had chosen high ground where the dragon couldn’t bite her, and she was shooting blind into its fire. Something else started biting her, and she couldn’t see where to run away. It was two skeevers. Damned things cost her some potions and completely failed to burn to death. They were in the same fire bath as she.

After the dragon gave up its soul, Shuvesse looked around for Vorstag. Nothing. Then she took a second look at the riled up mammoth down in a valley. Something was shooting a stream of frost at it. Like from the staff Vorstag was carrying. Dammit, Vorstag! Shuvesse resolved that situation again from high ground. The two of them headed toward the far northern mountains.

Somewhere they took a wrong turn. They found themselves carrying more bones after a fight outside Dragonbridge. They decided to walk up to Solitude and lighten the load. They never made it inside the city. Ma’dran’s caravan was outside the gate.

I felt kind of sick watching Vorstag walk away. So did Shuvesse. She let her pipe deal with it.

So the rest of this update concerns the errand that the Greybeards had sent Shuvesse upon. Even without Vorstag, she was determined to go forward. Sneaking through the mountains changes everything. There are a lot of bears, sabre cats, and Foresworn up there. None of them knew Shuvesse was passing. She arrived at a very intimidating tomb that shall remain nameless. Draugr outside confirmed that she was in the right place. (I disable quest markers and such, so sometimes we assault the wrong ruin. Not this time.)

Inside were traps and a puzzle that would require multiple keys. Shuvesse found them. Predictably, each one was guarded by a, well, guardian. Shuvesse had spent the time to make an exit plan. She handled those fights by successfully running away.

Now, many people would realize that whatever creature was bad enough to need such security might be best left alone. Shuvesse knew that strong locks safeguard valuable treasures, or in this case great power. It was a dragon priest. She never had a chance.

RIP, Shuvesse. Those Greybeards could have given you a little more warning.

Sad news for Shuv. Was she a DiD character? Or are you just done playing with her?

Shuv and Big D are DiD. That's why D is presently on a fishing trip. I was getting overconfident with him. I was not done with Shuvesse!