Recording Of My First Session

[incidentalCompeer]

I think keeping this log will help me get over everything that keeps happening. Besides it seems as good a place as anywhere to honor my girlfriend's memory.

I just want to clarify that this was not my idea. I’d heard rumors about this game and shit and dear sweet Ifrit I tried to talk the team out of it. But no, they said, it would be fine they said, they would show me the ropes they said. One of my friends, my hacker bro, decided he would send me the file, and then decided to be my server player. Well long story short, half of us failed to make it into the Medium, I think that’s what this world is called. So now I’m down six friends and left with five total strangers. I said this was a bad idea, and I hate it when I’m right.
Of those who remain, here’s what I gathered based on our conversations:
Maid of Heart – growlingCarnivore, Svetlana, she seems pretty nice, very helpful though a tad pessimistic. Pretty decent overall, she’s been the nicest and most helpful to me.
Prince of Space – crucialGodhand, Morgan, arrogant but a decent chap. I’m kinda nervous that there’s stuff he’s keeping from us but there you have it.
Smith of Rage – absoluteAchiever, Nero, if there’s one player that makes me nervous apart from Morgan, it’s this guy. He talks about winning and being the best and I worry about this.
Guard of Blood – elevationDragon, Harun, This guy is unflappable, like his server player bit the dust when entering and he was just chill about it. I’ll keep an eye on him
Sylph of Time – glorifiedPhoenix, as unflappable as ED but decent to talk to. She’s intent on watching over me, which makes me nervous as any of the others, but not as nervous. Hasn't told me her name yet either.
Which brings me to me, I was the first one in, given that my server player bit the dust, as did my client. So yeah, I’m about twenty yards from my home, seated in a world full of swirling green bits and flowers, I’m glad I don’t have allergies or this place would be a nightmare.

11:50:00 growlingCarnivore opened the memo: Structural Reassembly
11:51 GC: We need to reorganize
11:51 GC: New server client setup and basic rundown
11:51 GC: @ic You are good organizer yes?
incidentalCompeer replied to the memo: Structural Reassembly
11:53 IC: Hardly, I don’t even know you people, and my girlfriend is dead.
11:53 IC: I hope you’re happy.
11:54 GC: It will work out, now give us ideas for server client chain. For me?
11:57 IC: Fine…
11:58 IC: Well you’ve been kind to me, and you seem to know what’s going on.
11:58 IC: Would you like to be my server or client?
11:59 GC: Client
CURRENT glorifiedPhoenix replied to the memo: Structural Reassembly
12:00 GP: DIBS ON SERVER PLAYER
12:00 GP: i mean if its cool with you bro
12:03 IC: I don’t see why not.
12:04 IC: @gc Would you consider taking GP as your client?
12:05 GC: Of course.
12:06 GP: just like old times }{
12:06 IC: So that means that AA->ED->CG->
12:06 Or some other combination they can work out amongst themselves.
12:06 @aa @ed @cg Does that work by you?
absoluteAchiever replied to the memo: Structural Reassembly
12:10 SUrre bRRo
12:10 WHateverr floATTS YEErr booooEAT
growlingCarnivore banned absoluteAchiever from replying to the memo
12:11 IC: What.
growlingCarnivore banned incidentalCompeer from replying to the memo
growlingCarnivore banned CURRENT glorifiedPhoenix from replying to the memo
growlingCarnivore closed the memo: Structural Reassembly

--growlingCarnivore began pestering incidentalCompeer—
GC: Sorry for interrupting your plans.
GC: It would seem our coplayer has contracted virus.
GC: Best not to talk to him until it blows over.
IC: What the hell sort of virus makes your computer freak out like that?
GC: Minor physical cold, nothing to worry about.
IC: Now I am worried, what if he’s hurt or sick or something?
GC: You can do nothing for him at present.
GC: Go meditate for few minutes while I build you to first gate.
IC: Uh, okay.
--growlingCarnivore ceased pestering incidentalCompeer--

I’m currently trying to follow her advice and go chill outside. I keep hearing these weird voices every time I try and meditate, and also this weird thing like the sound of grass. I also keep thinking about my dead girlfriend, the grass sort of sounds like her and makes me feel better if that makes any sense. It keeps saying that it was okay and she’s safe and not to blame myself. I think I’ll pause here and take a moment to actually focus my brain. This’d be a lot easier if there wasn’t this weird ghostly version of Lightning from FFXIII looming over me. Seriously what’s her deal?

[stanzicApparati]

Aug 6, 2012 16:18:56 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

He talks about winning and being the best and I worry about this.

You should absolutely be worried about this. It sounds like he has a case of MeGalovania, which can cause a lot of problems. Let the others know he's talking like this and say that you heard it sounds like MeGaLovania - if they've read GG's guide, they'll know what it means. In the meantime, keep an eye on him and talk to him.

Aug 6, 2012 16:18:56 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

Sylph of Time – glorifiedPhoenix, as unflappable as ED but decent to talk to. She’s intent on watching over me, which makes me nervous as any of the others, but not as nervous. Hasn't told me her name yet either.

Don't worry about it. She's a Time player, which means that she's probably just keeping an eye out to make sure you don't make any major mistakes. Listen to her if she's telling you to avoid doing something - or telling you that you really need to do something.

Aug 6, 2012 16:18:56 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

I’m currently trying to follow her advice and go chill outside. I keep hearing these weird voices every time I try and meditate, and also this weird thing like the sound of grass. I also keep thinking about my dead girlfriend, the grass sort of sounds like her and makes me feel better if that makes any sense. It keeps saying that it was okay and she’s safe and not to blame myself. I think I’ll pause here and take a moment to actually focus my brain. This’d be a lot easier if there wasn’t this weird ghostly version of Lightning from FFXIII looming over me. Seriously what’s her deal?

Sounds like your Exile is trying to get in touch with you! Don't worry, you aren't going crazy. Also, "sound of grass" is probably your Whispers - the voice of your Aspect. I'm guessing you're the Something of Life, so in your case, it'd be the Growth; I'm not sure any other Aspect would have Whispers that sound like plants.

The ghostly girl is your sprite. More or less, she's your spirit advisor.

[incidentalCompeer]

First, thank you so much for your help SA! I really appreciate it! I asked my “Sprite” for some more information so here it goes:
Title: Heir of Life
Planet: Land of Flowers and (insert garbled noises)
Strife Specibus: Fistkind

I'm not finding a lot on what the garbled thing could be from my timestamp in the guide. You also mentioned an “Exile”, I talked with them a bit, well more like listened to their shenanigans in my head. I’m not quite sure what they meant by half the stuff they said but I will agree with the getting the move on thing. On the other hand the Growth made way more sense, and stuff. Basically it boiled down to game mechanics that my "Sprite" was too cryptic to tell me.

But I think I have bigger things to fret over than what the garbled noises in my "Land" title and puzzles from my "Sprite". I decided to take a break from meditation and imp fighting and read up on the chapters containing the disease you brought up and the other information. I informed my teammates of this. Harun is talking to him, since apparently they were together when the entry happened and agreed to play and everything. I took a moment to record one of my efforts to talk with Nero about his potential problem.
--incidentalCompeer began pestering absoluteAchiever--
IC: Hi
AA: THe fckkkre yOOu doinssss
IC: I came to talk to you about your current disease.
AA: ShhhiTTy RANgooonz
IC: I meant MeGaLoVania.
AA: fckksss dat?
IC: Apparently it’s a disease that makes you super competitive.
AA: AHAHAHAahahAHaaaahhhhAHAHhaH
AA: YYous oN soMetthin
AA: Its NO DISeasE
AA: ONlY ooone oFF us caN wiNNN
AA: NooW Fckk Off
--absoluteAchiever ceased pestering incidentalCompeer—
From what I’ve read it looks like multiple people can win the game. It wouldn’t be a multiplayer game otherwise. But I’m not going to lie, I damn near pissed myself, and that’s coming from someone who wrestled bears for a living.

Moving on from that depressing nightmare: Svetlana finished building up my house, and I fought my way up, no questions asked. It’s weird, normally bashing something in the face at least causes some sort of bruising after the umpteenth one, but my knuckles look as fresh as ever. I feel like I can see to forever from up here. So it’s off through the “First Gate”. This game really isn't as bad as everyone keeps saying. Maybe this isn’t as bad as everyone keeps saying it is. My house is still fine and it looks like Svetlana’s done her job of building and stuff.
I mean yes my girlfriend is dead and I never got to say good bye and all… and I miss her… and I’m never going to see her again and…
Why couldn’t it have been me?

edit: im going to take over for the moment
the edit button just popped up on my screen.
i also have to make this edit since its predetermined.
look im sorry about this.
wallace just sort of passed in a puddle of tears out from grief or something.
i dont know what hir deal is.
that said lightningsprite is cuddling hir and looking rather irritated about it.
kudos to hir former server player for that tier two prototyping.
dunno if i should tell hir the tier one is hir dead girlfriend.
but it looks like this log needs updating.
most of us were getting ready to wrap up the knell and start in on some denizen quests and other maturity shenanigans.
looks like knight syndrome is already setting in.
i should send this log to svetik and have her read it.
anyway, hi im glorifiedphoenix and im the sylph of time.
veteran of two sessions so far and native scout of void.
nice to meet you all.
if we lose wallace again then ill take over the log cuz i can access it when im supposed to and stuff.
zies not hurt or anything, just sort of takin some time on derse.
the rest of us are all decent and stuff.
running denizen quests and all.
wallace should be back by the next posting thing.
as to the nero problem, its definitely a bad case of megalovania.
ive got my heart and blood pumping some tlc into the asshole.
so um not much else to tell so ill just close this post.

[stanzicApparati]

Aug 8, 2012 0:40:56 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

Planet: Land of Flowers and (insert garbled noises)
Strife Specibus: Fistkind

Okay, the garbled noises? Means you've probably got the Frog Land. The second part is getting garbled because your land's name is actually "Land of Flowers and [Something] and Frogs", but the game tries to make all lands be stated as "X and X" so it forces the game abstractions (like sprites and consorts) to shove the "X and Frogs" part together, making them come out garbled.

I'm not sure which parts of the guide you've got access to - which chapters do you have available at your timestamp right now?

Good news: this means your Land Quest is going to breed the Genesis Frog. This will require getting the Forge up and going, which GG notes is an overriding Duty; the game swaps out the usual Contest stuff for getting the Forge active (which will wake up your Denizen). Don't worry about not knowing anything about how to breed a frog that'll hold the universe - it'll come instinctively.
You're also the only one who won't be required to kill their Denizen at the end of that questline. You lucky, lucky bastard.

Bad news: uh...well, keep the Derse agents the hell away from your land. They do not like frogs, they really really don't, and they'll actively work to sabotage your efforts to breed the Frog if they have a chance. Also, don't let them at anything they state is "Contraband" - this will be frog-related stuff. If you can alchemize some of your weapons with "Contraband" items, they'll (I think) get a bonus against the Dersite royalty, when the time comes; every little bit helps, right?
Also, until your Time player gives the OK, do not let your MeGaLovania'd player anywhere near the Frog. He wants to make things harder for you and (apparently) believes that only one of you can win; throwing as many spanners into the works as possible is going to be his goal for a while here - and one of the easiest ones would be messing up something with the Frog.

Also, try to get hold of a ranged specibus if you can - or at least an alternative to fistkind. It's a good specibus, but there are some things you just shouldn't be punching in the face, you know?

Aug 8, 2012 0:40:56 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

[color=AC72F24I informed my teammates of this. Harun is talking to him, since apparently they were together when the entry happened and agreed to play and everything. I took a moment to record one of my efforts to talk with Nero about his potential problem.
--incidentalCompeer began pestering absoluteAchiever--
IC: Hi
AA: THe fckkkre yOOu doinssss
IC: I came to talk to you about your current disease.
AA: ShhhiTTy RANgooonz
IC: I meant MeGaLoVania.
AA: fckksss dat?
IC: Apparently it’s a disease that makes you super competitive.
AA: AHAHAHAahahAHaaaahhhhAHAHhaH
AA: YYous oN soMetthin
AA: Its NO DISeasE
AA: ONlY ooone oFF us caN wiNNN
AA: NooW Fckk Off
--absoluteAchiever ceased pestering incidentalCompeer—
From what I’ve read it looks like multiple people can win the game. It wouldn’t be a multiplayer game otherwise. But I’m not going to lie, I damn near pissed myself, and that’s coming from someone who wrestled bears for a living.

It is a game everyone can win, yes. How it's supposed to work is, everyone who enters the session survives to the end of the session and gets to go to the new universe they just created once the Black King is defeated and the Genesis Frog is deployed.

You may have guessed, by the existence of a Replayer community and the Glitch FAQ, that this is not how it actually works.

How it actually works is that you take down the Black King, you deploy the Genesis Frog...and then the only option that'll work - the only thing you can do - is hit "Replay", because the damned Ultimate Reward is glitched. The door doesn't open and let you into the new universe you just made. Or at least for us, it doesn't; maybe it works for some people. Maybe you'll be lucky.

From the sounds of it, your co-player's MeGaLovania may be centered around a belief that only one player per session is allowed through to the universe just created and everyone else is forced to replay and try again. Keep talking to him, tell him it isn't so. But be careful if you're anywhere with him in person - it isn't unheard of for someone afflicted with this disease to turn PKer, especially as far advanced as it sounds like his case is.
Once you've got some psy-buffs unlocked, hit him with them and ask your co-players do the same (if they aren't already!) - [Heartlines] would be particularly useful here, I think, but your Maid can probably figure out what'll work best; your Blood player is going to be even more useful - his Aspect is focused on social cohesion, after all, and his psy-buffs will be focused towards that - Guard also means that he's able to use those psy-buffs more effectively than he would if he were, say, a Knight. Your Aspect is good for comforting people and bringing them back from stuff like this - just don't let him show you his stabs, is all.

[TEMPORAL SPOILERS - This is for the Sylph of Time's eyes only!]

I have my doubts about the whole Knight Syndrome thing, what with him being an Heir; it's called Knight Syndrome for a reason, after all (although it does affect Pages, too, I'll admit this). If you aren't having to beat him over the head to get him back to questing, it's probably not Knight Syndrome; he's just grieving for what he lost.

I would advise against telling him what was used for the Tier 1 prototyping of his sprite; it seems like it'd only make matters worse. Bad enough that he'll be facing mobs who look way too much like her. You don't need him getting even more distraught when the sprite eventually leaves.

[End Temporal Spoilers]

[spacetimeCounselor]

The Frogs descriptor is only supposed to show up for the Space player's planet- you'll probably want to coordinate with your Prince of Space to find out whose planet has the Forge, whose Denizen can be skipped, etc, to make sure the game really has given you the frog-breeding quest instead of one of its ever-present player identification bugs.

Also yeah slap that psycho with psybuffs and get him under control before he kills someone.

[stanzicApparati]

Aug 8, 2012 12:13:45 GMT -5 spacetimeCounselor said:

The Frogs descriptor is only supposed to show up for the Space player's planet

Only in cases where there's a Space player. Otherwise, the game assigns "X and X and Frogs" to someone else. I'm reasonably sure that it's never assigned to the Time player (assuming the session has one), but I'm not completely certain.

Edited to add: also, inccom, you're going to have to look around your land and try to figure out what the missing part of the name is - you'll have to say the whole thing, for the Knell.

[incidentalCompeer]

I haven't had the chance to reply for a few days, and I apologize but thank you all for your help. Just got back from “Prospit”, I took council with Morgan and Harun, updating them on the situation. I’ve taken the liberty to jot down our conversation to the best of my abilities for transcription here in the hopes of trying to figure out the next steps.

HARUN: I knew that idiot would do something like this
HARUN: Hes forever trying to prove that hes the rightful hero
HARUN: He has brawn but little in the way of brains
MORGAN: well what’re we gonna do ‘bout his shit?
MORGAN: he could go all PKtastic on our asses.
HARUN: Ill work on talking to him
HARUN: As Svetik is our other best hope and fellow Dersite we should have her confine his dreamself so he doesnt get out of hand
WALLACE: And his “Realself”?
HARUN: Is there any way you can destroy his Portals to your planets
MORGAN: won’t be very fuckin’ easy but if I can see it I can smash it.
HARUN: You two should rendezvous and get to work on Frogs and Forges
HARUN: Ill get GP to send some timeclones to help keep you safe too
WALLACE: Sounds like a plan for right now.
WALLACE: One last question, I’m on the hunt for a new “Strife Specibus” preferably long range in case you know who shows up.
MORGAN: well I got this old slingshotkind card that I never use.
WALLACE: That works.

After that we disbanded and I came back to my “Land” and decided to spend some time questing around finding out what the other part of the name and doing all that other questy stuff. I noticed that the world is also covered in giant public call phone boxes. So I guess it’s the “Land of Flowers and Phones and Frogs”?

LIGHTNINGSPRITE: hey, there’s something I need to tell you
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: and this is really important
WALLACE: Sure, if it’s that urgent.
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: this is the end.
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: remember to sing songs in the light
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: and growth is important to survival
WALLACE: Um, well I guess this is it then… You’re saying goodbye and stuff and all.
WALLACE: Before you go, I guess there’s one thing I want to do…

Is it weird that I kissed my “Sprite” farewell? Like we made out a little, because I was super depressed. First it was my girlfriend and now my “Sprite” who’s been my best friend until this point. This game seems intent on making sure everyone I remotely cares about dies. Oh the irony isn’t lost on me, thinking about it just makes the pain worse. But I’m not going to deal with that right now, because I need to decrypt those last cryptic words. Growth is important to survival; I take it that means I have to make things grow if I want to live. Okay, well food comes from growing things, since I can’t grow water yet and plants can also produce oxygen.

Oh sweet Shiva, I think I just grew a “Crystalanth”. Cool. One last thing before I go off for some quests on “Prospit”. You asked what chapters I had access to in the FAQ, here’s the list so far:

Preface
Introduction to SBurb
Terraforming
Several Aspect Pages (Doom, Fate, Rain)
SBurb Features and Junk [32-36A]
Introduction to Roleplaying
Links and External Resources

I’ve made it a point to read it before going to sleep, I get a chapter or two every time, though nothing terribly useful beyond the stuff I’ve learned about “MeGaLoVania” and the early game sections.

[stanzicApparati]

Aug 8, 2012 21:37:01 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

HARUN: Is there any way you can destroy his Portals to your planets
MORGAN: won’t be very fuckin’ easy but if I can see it I can smash it.

Portals aren't normally things you can destroy. Glitched ones can be destroyed (and should be, for safety's sake), but regular ones? No, those can only be destroyed by the [Red Miles] and by someone who is seriously, heavily corrupted by Others or Angels.

Don't try to isolate him to his planet that way - just...keep talking to him, keep your guard up. Try to avoid questing alone, if you can; that tends to be kind of dangerous anyways.

Aug 8, 2012 21:37:01 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

LIGHTNINGSPRITE: hey, there’s something I need to tell you
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: and this is really important
WALLACE: Sure, if it’s that urgent.
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: this is the end.
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: remember to sing songs in the light
LIGHTNINGSPRITE: and growth is important to survival
WALLACE: Um, well I guess this is it then… You’re saying goodbye and stuff and all.
WALLACE: Before you go, I guess there’s one thing I want to do…

Is it weird that I kissed my “Sprite” farewell? Like we made out a little, because I was super depressed. First it was my girlfriend and now my “Sprite” who’s been my best friend until this point. This game seems intent on making sure everyone I remotely cares about dies. Oh the irony isn’t lost on me, thinking about it just makes the pain worse. But I’m not going to deal with that right now, because I need to decrypt those last cryptic words. Growth is important to survival; I take it that means I have to make things grow if I want to live. Okay, well food comes from growing things, since I can’t grow water yet and plants can also produce oxygen.

Oh sweet Shiva, I think I just grew a “Crystalanth”. Cool. One last thing before I go off for some quests on “Prospit”. You asked what chapters I had access to in the FAQ, here’s the list so far:

Preface
Introduction to SBurb
Terraforming
Several Aspect Pages (Doom, Fate, Rain)
SBurb Features and Junk [32-36A]
Introduction to Roleplaying
Links and External Resources

I’ve made it a point to read it before going to sleep, I get a chapter or two every time, though nothing terribly useful beyond the stuff I’ve learned about “MeGaLoVania” and the early game sections.

Okay. First, I...wouldn't say it's weird that you kissed your sprite. If it felt right at the time, then it was probably the right thing to do. Don't worry about it too much.

Second, check your skills list. You should have a new player command (your first one, in fact): the Song of Light. The whole "sing light into the darkness" is your sprite being cryptically literal. And yes - growing Crystalanths is a thing Life players can do.

Third - well, hopefully the Life chapter will make it to your timestamp soon. In the meantime: your Aspect is the opposite of Doom. Where Doom embraces the inevitability of decay, Life encourages new beginnings and repairs and supports what already exists. Doom's Whisperings (the voice of their Aspect) is called the Blight. Life's Whisperings are the Growth. Listening to your Whisperings is never actually a bad idea; it helps you get more in-tune with your Aspect, which you're going to need.

Two things you need to watch for, with regard to your Aspect: first, [Litrichean Rioghail], the Landshark move? It can drag chunks of Ebonpyres with it and also causes varying degrees of landscape reformation. Be careful with it if you're near an Atomic Ebonypre and try not to do anything that'll require your co-players to have to re-map their lands when you're done.
Second, [Shai'Hulud]. Never seen it in action, but GG's guide mentions it as something that can get pulled for a BT event - which makes it an endgame ability in most cases. From what I can guess and what I've heard in the Life chapter's comments, it's probably Landshark on steroids or something and it's terrible at distinguishing between friend and foe.

One last thing: do you have access to gentlemanlyMannerism's guide? If not, hop on the IRC and let one of us know; we can send you a copy. It's lengthy as hell (seriously - the physical version is huge) but it's very well-written and detailed. Her chapters on Life and appropriate etiquette for Life players are also more helpful, I think, than GG's chapter will be for you if you even see his chapter in this session; he's a little briefer than normal, due to an unfortunate experience with a Life co-player.

[incidentalCompeer]

Thanks again and I will definitely give this new guide a thorough read through before tomorrow’s “Prospit” run. I think I’ve got a handle on this whole situation regarding the “Denizen”. I managed to complete “The Knell” and talked to “Hemera” for a while. She can be skipped as a “Denizen” however I am not the one in charge of breeding of frogs. That duty still falls to Morgan. I wonder if the code glitched upon entry to “The Medium”. "The Growth" seems to tell me that I shall need to travel to Morgan’s “Planet” to continue the quests there.

In the meantime I am partaking in “Alchemic” experimentation to create a better “Slingshotkind” and “Fistkind” for use. The initial results were… less than satisfactory to say the least. Fortunately nothing major as far as structural compromise occurred. At the very least the two stack and creating a weapon of superior firepower and strength than my fists alone.

I am puzzled by my most recent conversation with Morgan, he said I should create scuba gear or something like that. A chapter on underwater lands also appeared in my copy of the FAQ, is this coincidence or is his land really underwater? Is that even possible?

Lastly, about our "MeGaLoVaniac": his "dreamself" is currently locked up securely for right now with Svetlana keeping an eye on him there. Harun is working on reasoning with his "Realself" so he's been fairly quiet.

[stanzicApparati]

Aug 10, 2012 0:36:01 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

Thanks again and I will definitely give this new guide a thorough read through before tomorrow’s “Prospit” run. I think I’ve got a handle on this whole situation regarding the “Denizen”. I managed to complete “The Knell” and talked to “Hemera” for a while. She can be skipped as a “Denizen” however I am not the one in charge of breeding of frogs. That duty still falls to Morgan. I wonder if the code glitched upon entry to “The Medium”. "The Growth" seems to tell me that I shall need to travel to Morgan’s “Planet” to continue the quests there.

It's entirely possible that the code glitched, yeah. Life and Space are both responsible for creation, though, so don't worry about it too much - you'll figure it out.

Aug 10, 2012 0:36:01 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

In the meantime I am partaking in “Alchemic” experimentation to create a better “Slingshotkind” and “Fistkind” for use. The initial results were… less than satisfactory to say the least. Fortunately nothing major as far as structural compromise occurred. At the very least the two stack and creating a weapon of superior firepower and strength than my fists alone.

Try using gloves to combine with Fistkind? Might give you something useful, if you haven't tried it already.

Aug 10, 2012 0:36:01 GMT -5 incidentalCompeer said:

I am puzzled by my most recent conversation with Morgan, he said I should create scuba gear or something like that. A chapter on underwater lands also appeared in my copy of the FAQ, is this coincidence or is his land really underwater? Is that even possible?

Yep, it's possible! Most of my Land was underwater, pre-Terraforming (and a lot of it still is). Some of my co-players have underwater lands, too. Fiddle around with some alchemizations until you find something that'll let you breathe underwater comfortably.

[incidentalCompeer]

Hey, It’s been a few days, and I apologize for not keeping an update going. I successfully alchemized some gear to go swimming around in and cleared my first “Dungeon” on Morgan’s “Planet”. Got my ass handed to me by the “Dungeon Boss” but I cleared it out pretty easily for some decent loot. As near as I can tell most of the “Dungeons” open into oxygen filled caverns and stuff so the scuba gear is mostly for exploring. Also the “Consorts” of this “Land” are “Merpeople” like actual “Merpeople” from a fairy tale sort of thing. They’re sweet and helpful, though I wish that they could be more useful in a fight. I’ve managed to rank up on my “Eccheladder “quite well, in addition to material game wealth.

Our MeGaLoVaniac has contacted me, and the results are concerning…

--absoluteAchiever began pestering incidentalCompeer—
AA: hey dudely type
AA: you breeding the fuckin frog yet
IC: For the time being, until you get your act together, I shall withhold that information from you.
AA: my act is just fine thank you
AA: all you losers are the fucked ones
IC: Did something happen to you previously that is causing you to quite frankly act like a complete and utter douche?
AA: NONE OF YOUR BIZNASS ASS MUNCH
IC: Very well, if you must know, we are all working together. I have multiple reputable sources that tell me multiple people can win the game. Now if you’d be so kind to remove your head from your ass and get with the program, you would be an incredibly valuable asset to the group.
AA: fuck you
AA: imma win this thing and you got no fuckin way to stop me
AA: ill let you in on a secret since you cant
AA: i got powerful ass friends on derse that want your ass dead and your head served on a silver platter
AA: dont make me live up to that
AA: your sorry ass weak heart player is gonna be first for keeping me locked in the crypt
AA and once she and her little blood bro are toast imma come for you
AA: better toughen up
AA: i wanna kill you at your strongest
IC: Oh sweet Ifrit.
--incidentalCompeer ceased pestering absoluteAchiever—

I have never been so scared in my entire life.

I read the “Life” chapter in GM and GG’s guides, I know I have some chance, but this is bad. Really really bad. I’ve been reading up on potential PKs and how to handle them but this… I haven’t heard from Harun or Svetik in a couple of days… Oh Shiva I don’t want to die… But I don’t want to kill him, but I think I may have to, but I don’t know what to do…

Okay, now that I’ve got my panic attack out of my system, I think the best course of action is to find some way to contact the five members of my team, and after ascertaining whether they’re alive, then formulate a plan should he turn PK. On the one hand I don’t want to watch any of my friends die, but I don’t want to kill an innocent man, as that makes me no better than him. I wish I could just subdue him until the Reckoning, or brow beat the sense back into him. I realize death is a natural part of the game, but I’m attempting to keep my sense of morality as long as I can, knowing full well “Sburb” will probably make my efforts in vain.

My current plan: I’m going to level grind some more, then go confront him with Harun and Svetik, provided they’re still alive, and dump every psybuff in our repertoires to try and talk some sense into him. I wish I could do this sooner, and with less physical force, but if he becomes a credible threat to the other players then there’s not really much choice.

I'm just glad he doesn't believe in cooperation and has ignored this place as a means of acquiring information.

[incidentalCompeer]

Once again I apologize for not updating immediately, I’ve been level grinding like crazy. Depending on how my confrontation with our “MeGaLoVaniac” goes this may be the last entry you get from me. I’ve finally climbed high enough to acquire the ability “[Do You Remember Me?]” and if all else fails then I will keep him immobilized while Svetik and Harun work their abilities.

In other game news, just so everyone isn’t worried about just this situation and to leave everyone of a good idea of where we are before this mission:

Harun has lit “The Forge”, while Svetik is working on the “Ectobiological” children. GP is hard at work with the temporal shenanigans while her time clones have aided us as bodyguards. Morgan is nearing completion of breeding the “Genesis Frog”. Most of the larger solo dungeons on the “Land” are cleared; all that is left is the final confrontation with the “Denizen”. Should I survive my face-to-face encounter with Nero, then that’s my next objective.

I wish everyone the best of luck, and if I die then it was a pleasure knowing you all, no matter how brief a time it was. If I haven't replied to any thread within 24 hours of this post by the forum's time stamp, assume me dead.

[incidentalCompeer]

Well it’s over. It wasn’t easy, and I’m still exhausted and sore, but the deed is done. Our whole team is pretty messed up, I’ve done what I can to patch everyone up. Nero built a whole arsenal in preparation for our arrival. I guess “Smith of Rage” means when you build giant robots out of giant trees and string they actually work if you yell at them long enough. He ended up killing Harun and Svetik’s “Realselves". According to GP, who showed up in the middle of the fight, I “Berserk Triggered” and ended up wrecking half of the “Land of Forests and Yarn”. Apparently the ability “[Shai’Hulud]” activated, and well let’s just say that the “Planet” is now renamed the “Land of Dirt and Debris”. GP managed to get a time clone in so, both of my friends are okay with their “Dreamselves".

After hunting through the rubble we found Nero, injured but alive. He’s currently being detained on Harun’s “Planet”. Svetik is currently talking to him, probably doing whatever sorts of weird “Shiny” things “Heart” players do. In the meantime I’ve talked a lot to Harun, and he’s actually a pretty cool guy. I’m standing watch while he’s asleep, I’m a bit concerned by the sleeping with the “Dreamself” now as the “Realself” thing, but everyone says it should be okay. Morgan’s almost completed the “Genesis Frog,” so once we get Nero off of his “MeGaLoVaniac” acid trip, then it’s back to my main quest. Glad the detour and nightmare are over for the time being. I won't say things are looking up, because that would just jinx it. I just pray that whatever comes our way next won't happen for a little while.

[incidentalCompeer]

Out of the fire and into the frying pan as they say, we deal with a “MeGaLoVaniac” and the next thing you know… well let’s just say I’m not keen to talk about what transpired during my absence, at least the first week or so, after that it was pretty standard game fare keeping me away, “Maturity Quests” and shenanigans. The last few days however were due to needing to “Alchemize” a new computer after Nero decided he wanted to test out his “Rage” powers over our chat client. Needless to say that was an irritating experience.

So to catch you guys up with where we are now, I’m almost done with the getting to the “Underworld” part of the game. I had a few questions about that before heading in, mostly from reading a thread here on the forum. First, is the “Underworld” really necessary to game completion? I ask because reading the thread, the “Angels” that exist there remind me of the Weeping Angels of a television show called Doctor Who that was quite popular in my home universe. Are they really like that, worse, better? Hell is it even safe to go down there? Second, while the “Terraforming” process and “Healing the Planet” have worked wonders for the “Land”, it’s still underwater for the most part, and the “Dungeons” have all ascended upwards out of the depths, like going into a mountain at the base and climbing to the peak sort of thing. Does that mean I even have an “Underworld” or is it flooded over? Lastly, since the game glitched and this technically isn’t my “Land”, do I need to go back to the “Land of Flowers and Phones and Frogs” or do I complete it here in the “Land of Seas and Libraries”? I’d consult the guide more, but the “Underworld” chapter still isn’t accessible yet.

Sorry for all the questions and lack of explanation, I'm just not comfortable talking about it right now is all.

[stanzicApparati]

Okay, first? Don't go in alone. Ever.

Second: yes, it's necessary for completion. Believe me, if I could have avoided it, I would have. It's not an option.

Third: you're going to have to do it on your planet. You can't claim the Heart of someone else's planet.

Before you go in, get someone to send you a copy of the Iron Laws and all that, so you've got an idea of what to do and what to avoid.