Today In Skyrim (Spoilerific), Like the other one, but with added spoilers!!! Options

[Acadian]

SubRosa – How fun to see Serana as an NPC. You’re right in that she does look pretty good in most things. I agree that, for business, the Nordic Carved, Ancient or Elven all look greats (sans helmets of course). Serana the cook? I’m nervous about what might be in her recipe book.

Lopov - What a nicely done update! There’s even tributes to Lydia’s magic quill from Buffy and to Jerric popping Delphine in the face! How delightful that, after adamantly declining a haircut, Lucius ends up cutting his hair – for Lydia. That said, I hope it grows back quickly, as the longer hairstyle really does more justice to how handsome he is.

[Renee]

Ha, so Lucius cut his hair for no reason! .. Women, I tell ya. ....

I love it when the story goes from story to journal, back and forth. That's like your signature style of writing right there.

[Grits]

Woo, Serana DOES look great in everything! The blacksmith outfit is my favorite on her. Good grief, she looks hot! The Ancient Nord armor looks unexpectedly awesome on her, too. I wonder if after all of the quests Valdi will ever take the ancient princess out to play, true Nord style.

Lydia puts her magical quill down and makes a sip of Honningbrew mead which Lucius bought for her this morning. A smile appears on her face as she remembers what she heard a while ago:"Some Nord supposedly punched Delphine in her face once. If I ever meet this man, I will gladly buy him a drink."

Oh my gosh, Lucius cut his hair for nothing! Well, not for nothing if Lydia likes it that way. He does look quite the badass with his shaved head.

[SubRosa]

Poor Samson Lucius cut his hair for nothing! Well, at least Delilah likes it better this way...

[Acadian]

Buffy and Superian rode into Riverwood as the afternoon shadows were about as long as the trees are tall. Frodnar, the young lad that hangs out in front of the tavern admired Buffy's robes and asked if she could make him invisible.

Now, this is not the first time she's heard that request. But is is the first time she's had the ability to grant it. That is due to the spell Fade Other - this spell is in the game but only available via the command console. It turns the target invisible for 30 seconds.

Anyway, Buffy turned Frodnar invisible and he was ecstatic. By the time he ran over to his friend Dorthe, the spell had worn off, but he didn't seem to care as he stood behind Dorthe making ghostly noises trying to scare her. He gleefully then ran off to yell 'Boo!' at several of Riverwood's residents. Buffy had great fun following him around. Everyone else in the town ignored his impression of a scary illusionist however.

As ever, Buffy is quite entranced by the simplest things. . . .

[Grits]

That’s so neat! I’ve had a kid ask that before, but never with a character who could oblige. It was fun to imagine that scene!

[Renee]

Wow that's quite awesome, Acadian. That actually happened? That's pretty cool that there are some hidden game commands like this. Can't wait to make a wizard-ish character.

Claire Voyance has been making her way back and forth across Skyrim. She beat the baddies at Hraggstad with some help from Farkas and Aela the Huntress, found the Jagged Crown and delivered to Solitude, and so she's now headed toward Whiterun to let the Jarl know about some possible threat from the Stormcloaks. Pretty excited about this.

As a cleric, her combat patterns are divided roughly in half between attacking enemies with her mace, and restoring health to her comrades. Really fun stuff. Unlike my Xbox games, I've kept her game on Adept the entire time, I haven't had to move this down to Apprentice.

This post has been edited by Renee Gade IV: Jan 30 2015, 04:24 PM

[SubRosa]

How neat! I have had characters cast Calm spells on kids (and adults), but making them invisible is brilliant!

He gleefully then ran off to yell 'Boo!' at several of Riverwood's residents.

He was looking for his giant miniature space hamster! "Butt-kicking for Goodness!"

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Jan 30 2015, 06:26 PM

[Acadian]

Thanks, all!

Heh, Renee, Buffy really does have a vivid imagination but all that happened just as described. The game is scripted for you to tell the kid he is invisible (when he's not) and I imagine he'd do the same thing. This was just really neat because of that command console accessible spell, Buffy actually was able to grant his wish - albeit only for 30 seconds. I imagine they dumped the spell from normal access because it is of such limited use for practical 'beat the game' types. Sure is fun for RP stuff though.

What Buffy really wants is a spell to turn someone into a chicken for a few minutes. She threatens folks who tease her with that all the time but is unable to actually pull it off.

[Lopov]

That's a neat story, Acadian, it's little things like this that make Skyrim so great. Buffy for sure made Frodnar happy because not many interesting things happen to kids in Riverwood. It made me laugh when I read that he was still trying to scare people when he was already visible.

He was looking for his giant miniature space hamster! biggrin.gif "Butt-kicking for Goodness!"

My thoughts exactly.

and so she's now headed toward Whiterun to let the Jarl know about some possible threat from the Stormcloaks. Pretty excited about this.

That's where the MQ gets initiated, right? How will she tackle dragons, maybe disable them via Timing is Everything?

This post has been edited by Lopov: Jan 30 2015, 06:38 PM

[Grits]

Claire Voyance sounds like fun, Renee. I’m a fan of healers, and you don’t often hear about a character who uses a mace.


Lildereth and Jerric (in Lil’s game) covered some familiar ground today. They went to White River Watch on behalf of a neighbor. Lil slipped through the whole place by herself and only got spotted once. Then she got Jerric’s help before she went outside since they knew the boss would be out there. (I love it when the game gives you little tips like this. ) Lil shot the bandit boss and started to get a sweet kill cam, then Jerric stepped up and took her arrow in his back as he knocked Hajvarr off the cliff with his firebolt. On the one hand I’m pleased to see NPC Jerric using fire against Nords, but dammit! Here’s where Hajvarr landed.

They made it back to town in time to return Amren’s sword and spend some time with Amren’s family before it was time to go to the pub. Here Lil is listening to Braith talk about Lars. Funnily enough Lil has a soft spot for Braith.

Before White River Watch they were out on the volcanic tundra collecting jazbay grapes to make Jerric’s Juice. It was raining so they spent the night in the Eldergleam Sanctuary rather than naked with the hot springs hunters or passed out in a random tent at Darkwater Crossing. Here Ulfe helps Lil set up their camp.

In this game the gang lives in Breezehome via Alternate Start. Their NPC selves all have schedules throughout Whiterun when they’re not following. It was neat to see NPCs Abiene and Darnand doing what they were supposed to be doing. Abiene was cooking when they walked in the door. Probably why they decided to go out. Abiene is not much of a cook!

[ghastley]

What Buffy really wants is a spell to turn someone into a chicken for a few minutes. She threatens folks who tease her with that all the time but is unable to actually pull it off.

I note from its wiki page that the Wabbajack can do that, so there must be an existing magic effect in the game. I''ll see what can be done with it.

Am I remembering correctly that there was a spell to do that in Baldur's Gate? I'm pretty sure that somebody gets turned back from a talking chicken into a person, but don't remember if you can get the spell that caused it.

This post has been edited by ghastley: Jan 30 2015, 07:53 PM

[Acadian]

Renee, I’m so glad that Claire’s doing well. The cleric play, with mace and healing, sounds like great fun.

Grits, Yikes! The good news is Jerric jumped in to help; the bad news is his timing sucks! And landing their quarry amidst a pair of necrodudes? Wow, that shot of Lil as she is listening to Braith is stunning! Lil is so darn exotically attractive! How neat that you have the whole gang in whichever character’s game you want to play!

ghastley, where the spell to ‘turn someone into a chicken’ comes from (for me anyway) is indeed Baldur’s Gate II. Specifically, Aerie (the wingless avariel elf who is a cleric/mage) asks you something about her magic, and one of the replies you can chose is something like, “Fine, just don’t turn me into a chicken.” For some reason that always stuck with me as just cute as a button. Buffy’s first use of it was a jokingly made thread to Vigge the Cautious when she woke up to discover him leering over her as she was in bed at the guild hall. A spell like that in Skyrim is probably not too far fetched. If you help Brelyna at the College with her research, she ends up briefly turning you into several farm animals.

[SubRosa]

Wow that's quite awesome, Acadian. That actually happened? That's pretty cool that there are some hidden game commands like this. Can't wait to make a wizard-ish character.

Claire Voyance has been making her way back and forth across Skyrim. She beat the baddies at Hraggstad with some help from Farkas and Aela the Huntress, found the Jagged Crown and delivered to Solitude, and so she's now headed toward Whiterun to let the Jarl know about some possible threat from the Stormcloaks. Pretty excited about this.

As a cleric, her combat patterns are divided roughly in half between attacking enemies with her mace, and restoring health to her comrades. Really fun stuff. Unlike my Xbox games, I've kept her game on Adept the entire time, I haven't had to move this down to Apprentice.

Claire brings back memories of the old days of playing D&D, and playing clerics. Come to think of it, the last character I ever played in D&D (it was 3rd edition by then) was a Cleric/Thief.

Claire Voyance sounds like fun, Renee. I’m a fan of healers, and you don’t often hear about a character who uses a mace.


Lildereth and Jerric (in Lil’s game) covered some familiar ground today. They went to White River Watch on behalf of a neighbor. Lil slipped through the whole place by herself and only got spotted once. Then she got Jerric’s help before she went outside since they knew the boss would be out there. (I love it when the game gives you little tips like this. ) Lil shot the bandit boss and started to get a sweet kill cam, then Jerric stepped up and took her arrow in his back as he knocked Hajvarr off the cliff with his firebolt. On the one hand I’m pleased to see NPC Jerric using fire against Nords, but dammit! Here’s where Hajvarr landed.

They made it back to town in time to return Amren’s sword and spend some time with Amren’s family before it was time to go to the pub. Here Lil is listening to Braith talk about Lars. Funnily enough Lil has a soft spot for Braith.

Before White River Watch they were out on the volcanic tundra collecting jazbay grapes to make Jerric’s Juice. It was raining so they spent the night in the Eldergleam Sanctuary rather than naked with the hot springs hunters or passed out in a random tent at Darkwater Crossing. Here Ulfe helps Lil set up their camp.

In this game the gang lives in Breezehome via Alternate Start. Their NPC selves all have schedules throughout Whiterun when they’re not following. It was neat to see NPCs Abiene and Darnand doing what they were supposed to be doing. Abiene was cooking when they walked in the door. Probably why they decided to go out. Abiene is not much of a cook!

Wow, that is Lil and Jerric in the black robes? They look like necromancers!

Lil looks amused by Braith.

I love Ulfe's 'help'! Just like when I pull out a carryout menu and Freya 'helps' me decide what to order.

[Lopov]

Acadian, I hope that Buffy masters the "Doom of a chicken" one day, turns Nazeem to one and then asks him whether he goes to the Cloud District very often.

Neat story, Grits, I hope that Hajvarr was still alive when falling because his demise is well-deserved.

Lil looks very good - as always - nice to read about them spending some time at Amren's.

I love Ulfe lying on a bedroll, great shot! The Eldergleam Sanctuary is a good place to relax, it's so soothing and makes one forget about the dangerous world outside.

--

Today we discovered one of the most majestic places in Skyrim - Arcwind Point. I heard much about this ruin, until today I only knew that it's hidden somewhere in the south. Coincidentally, we discovered it today but alas, its keeper, a powerful frost dragon, didn't like us treading on his grounds. This dragon must have been ancient for it has been one of the most powerful dragons we ever encountered, and for the first time since traveling with Lucius, I was not sure whether we will survive the battle or not. And after successfully defeating it, Dragonborn Miraak appeared right in front of us and stole the dragon's soul that should have rightfully been Lucius'! I do not know how this feels but Lucius tells me that he feels a huge pain in his chest whenever a soul is stolen from him. We underestimated Miraak and we should travel back to Solstheim to finish our battle against him but Lucius insists that we have more important matters to do in Skyrim. If I have managed to convince him to cut his hair, perhaps I can convince him to return to Solstheim earlier than intended.

Lydia, Autumnwatch Tower,

3rd of Morning Star 4€202

This post has been edited by Lopov: Jan 30 2015, 10:33 PM

[Grits]

Doom of a Chicken!

Aww, thanks, Acadian! I thought she looked sweet in that picture, with a little smile for bratty Braith.

Those necromancers must have spawned at that spot by the tree and gotten bored waiting for the player to show up. They strolled along while Lil was searching for Hajvarr’s body, much to her surprise. You can see her crouched up in the rocks (ready to dual-cast Fury). She had been using Detect Dead, not Detect Life! Oh, and that deer skull in the front is the one by the bridge that everyone stubs their toes on. At that moment she was both ticked off at and impressed by Jerric, which is not unusual among those who encounter him.

If I have managed to convince him to cut his hair, perhaps I can convince him to return to Solstheim earlier than intended.

Lucius has a manager! Arcwind Point is such a neat location. Lots to do there!

[Renee]

Wow, we're all playing Skyrim. This is fun having us all here. All we need now is some pizza and beverages

That's where the MQ gets initiated, right? How will she tackle dragons, maybe disable them via Timing is Everything?

Yes, I've got Timing is Everything in Claire's game. I've got it way dumbed-down though: 5% chance of dragon every 25 days. That's pretty rare. I've seen a couple dragons in her game though, but they were way in the distance.

Claire Voyance sounds like fun, Renee. I’m a fan of healers, and you don’t often hear about a character who uses a mace.

Clerics traditionally used blunt weapons in table-games, and there's been some debate about why this is. Some people say that back in the middle ages, members of clergy sometimes carried around blunt weapons instead of swords, and that there was some actual reason for this, but I forget what this reason is supposed to be. Other people say this is hogwash.

I like to think there is some sort of connection between real-life and fantasy here, but really, clerics like Claire are pure table-gaming imagination.

Fighting that final boss of White River Watch is pretty funny sometimes. Half the time, he falls right down the side of the mountain, and we can hear him saying "Is that it? Is that all you got?" as he is completely unable to attack! :lhehe:

What is Jerric's Juice?

Claire brings back memories of the old days of playing D&D, and playing clerics. Come to think of it, the last character I ever played in D&D (it was 3rd edition by then) was a Cleric/Thief.

Nice!

[Acadian]

Lopov - Nice glimpse into Lydia and her Thane at Arcwind Point. Emboldened by her haircutting succses, she's now working on hauling back to Mirak it seems.

Grits - I'm glad you mentioned Lil crouching and watching the necropair in that screenshot. I missed it the first time I looked.

Renee - I'm sort of like you in that my impression of the term cleric comes from D&D - Baldur's Gate I and II in fact. So I tend to associate them with a church affiliation, unbladed weaponry (like maces), some form of 'body magic' and comfortable with casting while wearing armor. I suppose Vigilants of Stendarr come pretty close to this in Skyrim. I hope Grits will forgive me answering for her, but 'Jerric Juice' is restore magicka potion. Jerric was born under the (Oblivion) atronach birthsign so he doesn't regenerate magicka without help. His Jerric Juice brew is coarse, laden with pulp and he makes it in big batches. In fact he needs a waterskin to carry it in instead of prissy little potion vials.

[Lopov]

Thanks all. Not so joyful story for today but life consists of ups and downs.
--
It is difficult to keep up with a man on an eternal quest.

As of today, 5th of Morning Star 4€202, Lucius continues his journey without me. I have stayed at Breezehome, too tired to continue. The battle against dragons has taken its toll on me. On both of us. But it's not just dragons. From cave to cave, from dungeon to dungeon, on roads and deep below - we have faced death at every step.

But Lucius - he is unstoppable. He is not the one to rest, to relax. I understand him. Being Dragonborn is a gift but a curse as well. But I need to slow down, I need to rest. What hurt me is that he did not show any feelings when I told him that I can't continue anymore. He said nothing, just nodded, like he still serves in the Legion and I'm one of his soldiers. Feelings are secondary for Lucius.

I wish you luck on your travels, my Thane, and let the Divines watch over your battles.

Lydia, Breezehome

5th of Morning Star 4€202

The sun hasn't risen yet when Lucius
left Solitude. He arrived to the capital of Skyrim the previous day with a carriage from Whiterun, to tell Jarl Elisif that her late husband's war horn has been placed at the Shrine of Talos. He has been offered to buy a spacious manor in Solitude which he accepted though he didn't really know why. Perhaps he will live there once...once in the future when times will change. As he walks down the road, he feels an uncomfortable pain in his chest. It's been months since he traveled alone. He's waiting to hear footsteps behind him but there aren't any. His thoughts shift to Lydia but he drives them away. His goal is clear, and to successfully complete it, one must be prepared for sacrifices. Whoever can not keep up with him...too bad. Because Lucius Caro is a man on an eternal quest.

This post has been edited by Lopov: Feb 1 2015, 06:40 PM

[Renee]

Aww, well that's so sad! He's imagining the footsteps of his ... uh girlfriend. I do feel bad for Lydia, but maybe they need to just chillax from one another.

I hope Grits will forgive me answering for her, but 'Jerric Juice' is restore magicka potion. Jerric was born under the (Oblivion) atronach birthsign so he doesn't regenerate magicka without help. His Jerric Juice brew is coarse, laden with pulp and he makes it in big batches. In fact he needs a waterskin to carry it in instead of prissy little potion vials.

Nice, I think I have the same mod as Grits there.