>>805243
A slime that can read is a slime who isn't spending her every moment jumping a person for attention.

Plus smart minions are better than not.

Before we even consider teaching alkaline (and ourselves) how to read, we make sure that alkaline can handle stuff without staining it or worse.

(She is a liquid, after all!)

>>805304

A slime is a terrible thing to waste.

>>805234
Talk to Kallia. Offer her one of the satiation potions in thanks.

Knowing what I do of Kallia, telling her the tragic tale of the satiation potions and how tragically unusuable they are in public would all but guarantee that she will return someday. I just have this strange feeling that she would want to hear more stories like that...

Start with Kallia anyway, you should have plenty of time with Izzy while going ofer the mushroom instructions.

When you talk to Izakkik, mention Hin's persistent cough. A "toxic jungle" where people wear filter masks full-time seems like exactly the kind of place where every competent doctor would know a lot about respiratory problems.

1/2 Deem 2017/06/01(Thu)07:22 No. 805408 ID: fa8c1a
File 149632692299.png - (20.07KB , 800x550 , consult_your_doctor_first.png )

>Reading and writing are important and useful skills to have!
>But you wouldn't know anything about that, would you little Miss Illiterate?
I don't care for your tone!

>A slime that can read is a slime who isn't spending her every moment jumping a person for attention.
So now you're saying I should leave her alone with naught but ink stained paper for company?

>A slime that can entertain itself when your not around so you don't have to worry about her getting into things she shouldn't out of boredom. Also there's no real downside to having her knowing how to read either.
Hmm, I suppose.

>Before we even consider teaching Alkaline (and ourselves) how to read, we make sure that Alkaline can handle stuff without staining it or worse.
If she's struggling I think she should be able to use her toxic shroud like gloves. It's less permeable than regular slime.

>Now that you have a forge and a smith, why don't you make you make a gold plug for your heart? It might hold mana better. Also, would it be possible to make a plug out of many layers of thin, specially shaped gold sheets? Each layer could have artificial mana channels etched in, perhaps improving your magical capabilities and further reducing leakage.
Gold won't insulate it. I picked clay because it's porous and fairly non-reactive - it'll leech it away slowly instead of letting it sit and fester. It might be worth examining gold threads and sheets to try to complete some of my damaged mana channels at some point, but it'd have to be embedded in a matrix of something else.

>Kallia first. You actually know her, and you owe her some gratitude for helping arrange this.
I find her in the thaumatorium.

"Hey Deem, you guys get a swimming pool? I'm jealous!"

It was definitely the right thing to build, everyone seems to be impressed by it! "Oh, it hasn't even been used yet. I only put just put it in."

"Maybe I should give it a whirl then. First in the dungeon pool, yeah. Anyway, how's things? Merud keeping his hands to himself?"

I might take the chance to tease her back for once. "He's been very gentle."

She pauses a fraction of a second too long and then decides that it was a joke. "Yeah, loves his work old Merud does. I hear you've been busy too. Running around the woods, picking fights with bears and taming evil pots. Must be exciting huh?"

"There's frogs too. They're a little easier to handle. We're still setting up really, I'll be much happier once things have settled down a little."

>By the by, you have a potion she absolutely must try. The first one's free.
I suppose I might as well get some use out of these potions. She's got the sort of dirty mind that would be attracted to these things.

"I'm not sure if you want it, but I thought I might give you this as thanks." I hold out the satiation potion. "It's not much and it's a little flawed, but it's the first thing to come out of my dungeon."

Kallia accepts it. "Oh yeah I heard about these."

I'm about to ask who from but she drinks the potion on the spot, yawns and then burps genteelly. Then she pats her chest expectantly. Well, she's reliable at least.

"How is it?"

"Delicious! How'd you get it to taste like that, Deem?"

"Luck of the draw."

2/2 Deem 2017/06/01(Thu)07:25 No. 805409 ID: fa8c1a
File 149632712721.png - (21.46KB , 800x600 , real_talk.png )

>Also, you can find a little more out about Izakikk. What was he like on the trip over?
"So how about yourself? How's the life of a caravan guard? Getting along with Izakikk? What are they like?"

"Eh, he's OK. Good shot. Can't speak the language very well yet. Keeps to himself. Spends a lot of time tending to his 'shrooms. Eats alone. Sleeps in this weird little tent. I tried to peek on him to see what he looks like under the mask, but the air in the tent was bad. Eyes were watering all night. Seems he knows his potions though, Seleni's real happy to have him around."

"Anyway, trip here wasn't too bad. No bears. I volunteered myself to run the golem-horse. Merud didn't want to dawdle in town too much so him and that tall lady left once he'd organised everything."

Kallia pauses a moment and then looks at me more seriously.

"Hey look Deem. About Merud. That stuff with finding those bones. It's bugging him more than he's letting on. He's the type who thinks all problems have got to have solutions. That's why the little girl's here. She's a medium. To see if those old bones hold any answers to why they're here."

Why does Merud have to keep acting like this is any of his business? And he just had to bring that wretched priest here too!

Kallia folds her arms over her chest and looks back conspiratorially at me. "Look, when he asks just say yes, OK? Don't tell him I told you. He was going to try and talk you into it and he was sure you'd get mad."

I don't know. I still don't like it. I don't think anything good's going to come out of it. The best conditions are here, where they died, but it's old and they died violently so the answers are going to be garbled. Maybe its worth it just to quiet down Merud's concerns.

"And are you selling these potions?"

Hmm, well I have seven satiation potions left and Liana was selling potions for just over 8G a bottle. These are less useful than healing potions though.

As an unlicensed seller, sell them at 6G a bottle. A fair discount, but the value of a potion that replaces a whole meal is not to be underestimated.
You should come up with a catchy name for these things. Maybe, Swollent Green?

Tease by asking her if there's someone she wants to impress.

Besides that... hmm. I don't suppose you have any guess what a meal is worth, do you? It's not exactly high cuisine so it's worth on that level would be about equal to rations. But it also serves as a cosmetic item/marital aid/confidence booster which might be worth more. You probably don't know the market value for those. You could ask her.

It's probably not worth that much, really.

You may not like the sky-magic, but like the resurrection amulets this seance is another useful function that is commonplace and doesn't cause you any harm so it's best to tolerate its presence. Besides, aren't you curious what these old bones have to say? There's still a little mystery surrounding the origins of this cave.

...Wait, should a little girl be performing medium duties on a dead adventurer? Will she be conscious of what goes on during the ritual?

>>805411
Never underestimate what a perverted noble might be willing to pay for something like this.

And I guess we can probably part with a couple of satiation potions, I assume she intends to study the side effect? How many samples would she need for research?

>>805409
Some may see the chest swelling as a benefit, Deem. Don't undersell your potions!

15g each. Haggle if she thinks that's too much.

>>805409
>Bones
Admit to Kallia you handled that poorly.

It doesn't matter if the bones are important or if we can really do anything for whoever they once were. You minions feelings matter, or at least they should, if you want their loyalty.

Let Merud try to make a difference.

>Are you selling these?
Illicitly, perhaps, as you lack a proper licence. Why, you want more?

Deem ask around to see if there is anyone in the dungeon who you can commission for a series of paintings of Alkaline one now one when she grows to teenage slime and one for when she is all grown up into a big slime girl.

Offer to sell a few. Have her make you an offer.

Also, yeah Merud has been continuing to show signs of emotional distress.

His business or not he's only human, and at this stage it's terribly important to nip moral issues in the bud.

Let them do their little ritual.
At the very least it will help put Merud's mind at ease. Besides that who knows? Perhaps a story or even secrets will come of it.

It seems likely that there will be heroes who use sky magic, some of whome might even perform involved rituals of some sort within you. Things like protecting a campsite or breaking a curse or something...

Unless there is a way to completely prevent the magic in your body you are going to need to learn to endure it. Even if you could it would risk giving you a dangerous reputation, these mortals do love their churches... You may as well start with something that doesn't relate to you directly and just try to keep it out of your own influence.

Finally, all of these invaders, with the possible exception of Izakikk, seem to be vulnerable to cuteness. DEPLOY THE SLIME CHILD!

Sell the potions for TWENTY GOLD. Do you realize how ludicrously rare effective breast expansion potions are in the MULTIVERSE, let alone your world? AND you're giving her a 33% discount because she's your friend, sell the rest for thirty a bottle and jack up the prices when you get your license.

Let them see the damn skeleton, but be sure to place it in a secure location. Like two feet above the forge.

>>805409
Grumble about being an old dungeon and not used to TALKING to the humans. Also, ask her what she thinks the potions are worth and sell her for 25% less cuz unlicensed. Goodwill is more important than small change.

>>805409
Five or six gold per bottle. She's a friend, they're joke potions of dubious usefulness, and we're unlicensed weirdos living in a hole in a mountain; we're not exactly going to get a better offer anytime soon.

And perhaps more importantly, we don't want to insult her by listing some outlandish price.

Keep at least one of 'em around, but otherwise sell as many as possible.

Mention to Kallia that while you appreciate the humour of a few odd sideeffects here and there, that you would like to be thought of as a, umm, grand and portentious challenge against the ages where heroes of courage and cunning pit themselves against the grinding stone and terrifying depths? Rather than a joke-vendor of embarrassing and lewd products... If she could possibly manage to avoid spreading too many lewd rumours I am sure it would be appreciated.

Also bear in mind that we can't promise to make any more of any of our current potions. Belphejar is extremely useful, but not someone that you go to when you want to perform the same action over and over again while expecting the same outcome...

Merud wants to get this skeleton issue sorted out so badly, he's willing to cut deals with sky-power users behind your back. Don't give him a reason to do any more of that kind of thing. Issuing an order you know won't be obeyed just undermines your own authority.

Wait for him to ask, then magnanimously permit the seance before he can even get warmed up for an argument. Furthermore, volunteer to do everything you can to make sure the ceremony goes smoothly, whether in terms of setup, raw power, or simply staying respectfully out of the way. Prove the totality of your control over this situation by handling it delicately, with discipline.

Afterward, once the guests have left, icily remind Merud that he's working for you, and this is your dungeon. Establish an official policy that any significant contact with priests should be reported promptly rather than left as a "surprise." Respect is a two-way street: now that you've proven how willing you are to respect his feelings about the dead, he needs to respect your feelings about hugs and the sky-power by, at minimum, giving fair warning, instead of conspiring to sneak up and try to "help" you even worse than Hin did.

>>805566
This is the best idea on how to handle the situation.

In fact, might as well gather everyone else for a quick staff meeting about surprise inviting over the sky power clergy.

And if they ask WHY, just tell them the story of when you first woke up. (Don't forget to mention the explosion!)

>>805567
What explosion?

(Deem does not remember the explosion, or any incidents like it.)

You could consider giving Kallia a tour. She didn't get much chance to see your heart last time and you hadn't properly expanded into a dungeon at the time so she never got to see you use rooms to complete your channels. Your golem totem is probably very interesting to a golemeter too, even if you are still constructing it. Even the thaumatorium is relevant to her interests.
You could even consider a sparring match. You may have learned something since you last fought her, you did defeat a devilbear since then afterall! (Devilbear wanted meat, devilbear did not get meat. Deem wanted denizens, Deem retained denizens. Deem: 1; Bear: 0)

>>805429
>Illicitly, perhaps, as you lack a proper licence. Why, you want more?
Deem selling the potions privately is perfectly, legal, she just can't supply them to someone to resell.

>Potions
If she doesn't suggest a price 5 or 6 gold makes sense, as a ~25% reduction from official potions. (If we sell them all, we do have regular food for the minions to last us until the mushroom farm is running, right?)

>>805566
Yep. Humor him this time, but when the guests are gone make sure he knows not to do this sort of thing again without your permission.

>>805826
>Yep. Humor him this time, but when the guests are gone make sure he knows not to do this sort of thing again without your permission.
Probably the best thing to do is to explain how Earth Pulse and Sky Power don't mix very well.

>>805834
Verily, secrets have hurt you before. Make it clear to everyone that you have personal issues with Sky-Power. And try to be polite about it, even the acolyte is probably an otherwise decent person, aside from their hereditary hugging impulse. Watch your back around Liana too, she clearly wanted a hug back when you first met.

Definitely sell as many sketchy potions as you can, 5-6G apiece sounds pretty good.

You should definitely explain to Merud after they are gone. Go ahead and let the thing happen. Maybe the skeleton can give us some useful info? Too bad it can't walk around and spook people.

>>805408
>>805503
Oh, and ye, let her in the pool if she wants.

Maybe even have a weird cave pool party.

>>806999
Grills pool party

I don't think that Deem would benefit from a pool party. It would make her golem soggy and water is evil, so she can't even enjoy being the bathwater...

>>807008
Hey, Water isn't evil! It's somewhat close to Earth, even.

>>807009
Have you ever heard of CLOUDS?

1/5 Deem 2017/06/13(Tue)02:52 No. 807623 ID: b27cac
File 149734752220.png - (26.71KB , 800x600 , no_not_ever.png )

>Probably the best thing to do is to explain how Earth Pulse and Sky Power don't mix very well.
...

>Verily, secrets have hurt you before. Make it clear to everyone that you have personal issues with Sky-Power. And try to be polite about it, even the acolyte is probably an otherwise decent person, aside from their hereditary hugging impulse.
No. They don't have to know, no-one has to know.

>Watch your back around Liana too, she clearly wanted a hug back when you first met.
I knew I had felt that sense of danger before!

>You may not like the sky-magic, but like the resurrection amulets this seance is another useful function that is commonplace and doesn't cause you any harm so it's best to tolerate its presence. Besides, aren't you curious what these old bones have to say? There's still a little mystery surrounding the origins of this cave.
I don't think anything good is going to come of trying to dig up the past.

>It doesn't matter if the bones are important or if we can really do anything for whoever they once were. You minions feelings matter, or at least they should, if you want their loyalty.
>Let Merud try to make a difference.
Hrrrrm. I suppose it can't hurt to let him try.

>Also, yeah Merud has been continuing to show signs of emotional distress.
>His business or not he's only human, and at this stage it's terribly important to nip moral issues in the bud.
Fine then. For him.

>...Wait, should a little girl be performing medium duties on a dead adventurer? Will she be conscious of what goes on during the ritual?
It's just necromancy.

2/5 Deem 2017/06/13(Tue)02:54 No. 807624 ID: b27cac
File 149734768576.png - (18.04KB , 800x550 , seriously_why_the_food_question.png )

>Never underestimate what a perverted noble might be willing to pay for something like this.
>Some may see the chest swelling as a benefit, Deem. Don't undersell your potions!
Yes and they'd buy cosmetic potions actually intended to do that.

>Five or six gold per bottle. She's a friend, they're joke potions of dubious usefulness, and we're unlicensed weirdos living in a hole in a mountain; we're not exactly going to get a better offer any-time soon.
>And perhaps more importantly, we don't want to insult her by listing some outlandish price.
"I'll sell you all seven I have left for 40 gold." I tell the visiting golemeter.

Kallia looks undecided. "I have a question. Do they still work if you put them in food?"

"They're a simple potion, so they shouldn't degrade if you insist on adulterating them like that. They probably would take longer to have an effect though." Magical meals can be effective, but there's usually more to it than pouring a potion all over it.

That apparently clinched the deal. "I'll take 'em."

"Do I want to know why you wanted to know that?"

"Some day, Deem, I'll have to teach you about the fine art of pranking."

It's none of my concern. I turn to go fetch them.

>Admit to Kallia you handled that poorly.
I pause. "Oh, and thanks Kallia. About Merud. I didn't handle that well the first time, and I don't think anyone wants a repeat performance."

"No problem. Just keep him out of trouble, OK?"

>Oh, and ye, let her in the pool if she wants.
"Oh and feel free to go swimming if you want."

3/5 Deem 2017/06/13(Tue)02:58 No. 807625 ID: b27cac
File 149734790761.png - (23.16KB , 800x500 , cool_pool.png )

>You could consider giving Kallia a tour.
>You could even consider a sparring match.
Kallia never seemed as interested in the theory side of things as Merud. And she looked more likely to take a nap than get in a fight. By the time I return she's shed her golemeter robes and is lazily paddling around. Well she's extra buoyant at least.

She makes her way to the edge. "Yeah just leave them there's good."

>Tease by asking her if there's someone she wants to impress.
Strange Kallia normally wears such concealing clothes then. "Trying to impress someone?"

She looks up at me and wiggles her eyebrows. "You've stolen my heart with your swimming pool, sass and sketchy potions. Jump in so I can explore your architecture, if you know what I mean." It's followed by splashing some water at me.

I adroitly sidestep the water. "I'm fine here. And don't use them all at once. They're meant to be a satiation potion."

"Sometimes you gotta go a week without eating, Deem."

>Mention to Kallia that while you appreciate the humour of a few odd side-effects here and there, that you would like to be thought of as a, umm, grand and portentious challenge against the ages where heroes of courage and cunning pit themselves against the grinding stone and terrifying depths? Rather than a joke-vendor of embarrassing and lewd products... If she could possibly manage to avoid spreading too many lewd rumours I am sure it would be appreciated.
I sigh. "Well, whatever you think is best. Just... please don't tell anyone where you got them. I want my dungeon to stand on its own merits, not be known as that boob dungeon."

"Now now Deem, a chest is something to be treasured in a dungeon." She grins. "But sure, my lips are sealed. I will talk about the pool though."

"That's fine. Feel free to mention the giant eel too."

Kallia twitches but does not start looking for a transformed Stargazer or any other hypothetical aquatic monsters. Instead she squints at me and smirks. "Giant eels in your cavern huh? You dirty soul." It's like I'm back in town again.

>You should come up with a catchy name for these things. Maybe, Swollent Green?
They might never exist again. Enjoy your Swollent Green, Kallia.

"Just the one. I'll leave you to it. I need to see a man about a mushroom."

4/5 Deem 2017/06/13(Tue)03:00 No. 807627 ID: b27cac
File 149734801836.png - (23.00KB , 800x600 , the_verdict_is_guilty.png )

I seek Izakikk and Merud intercepts me instead.

>Merud wants to get this skeleton issue sorted out so badly, he's willing to cut deals with sky-power users behind your back. Don't give him a reason to do any more of that kind of thing. Issuing an order you know won't be obeyed just undermines your own authority.
>Wait for him to ask, then magnanimously permit the seance before he can even get warmed up for an argument. Furthermore, volunteer to do everything you can to make sure the ceremony goes smoothly, whether in terms of setup, raw power, or simply staying respectfully out of the way. Prove the totality of your control over this situation by handling it delicately, with discipline.
"Deem," he says, "I need to talk to you about something. About those bones..."

"You asked that," I resist the urge to slip in 'wretched', "priest to come along to try for a seance?"

He stares at me in shock. "There wasn't a chance to ask-"

"I'll allow it."

>Afterward, once the guests have left, icily remind Merud that he's working for you, and this is your dungeon. Establish an official policy that any significant contact with priests should be reported promptly rather than left as a "surprise." Respect is a two-way street: now that you've proven how willing you are to respect his feelings about the dead, he needs to respect your feelings about hugs and the sky-power by, at minimum, giving fair warning, instead of conspiring to sneak up and try to "help" you even worse than Hin did.
I start walking towards my Heart Chamber, towards somewhere more private. "But Merud, this is my dungeon. I should know if you're going to do these things. We're in a precarious state right now and there's things I need to consider that you might not know about. Don't go and decide for yourself that it's better to seek forgiveness than permission." I sigh. "I set those bones aside when I dug out the thaumatorium so we could bury them properly because I knew you were concerned about them. And I'll help with this seance too. Try to show me the same respect."

He's silent. Maybe he's trying to figure out what the best thing to say is with that big wizard brain of his, or maybe it's a sign of a guilty conscience.

"Kallia's in the thaumatorium." I say. "You two should catch up while you have the chance."

He takes the dismissal for what it is.

Now back to mushrooms.

5/5 Deem 2017/06/13(Tue)03:02 No. 807628 ID: b27cac
File 149734817722.png - (32.83KB , 800x550 , ask_me_anything_about_mushrooms.png )

I locate the tray of exotic mushrooms and with it in hand I go on to locate Izakikk.

"Hello I'm Deem. You're Izakikk, right?"

"Yes, yes! Hah-llo!"

I set the mushrooms down. "I understand you were going to give some guidance on how best to use these?"

Izakikk clenches their fists in excitement and squats next to the tray. "Mushyrooms, it is very good mushyrooms! Health-full and life-providing! Even grow of the mushyrooms for soaking the magic. Many use. Biggen of man. Is help for small man too. Up of strong-ness. Again of growth. See of things. And for rupture of wizard."

I blink. Did I hear that right. "Rupture?"

"Yes. Of rupture! To make the magics comes out." Some sort of magical aid?

"First, I tell you. How is care of mushyrooms." Izakikk gently prods one of the mushrooms. "Very important. It is not tree, it is fruit!"

Izakikk looks at me and I wait for Izakikk to explain this.

Izakikk taps their fingers together then pokes in the dirt with one gloved finger. "Mushyrooms is fruit of the... mycelium, what is word? The soil-tree! Breed of soil-tree is special, to make many of the fruits!"

I nod. Right, the mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the fungus which is in the ground.

"This soil is the grind-up of tree! Grow in log, in rot of tree, with wetness." Izakikk cups their hands and then squeezes them together. "Big grow for eating but to squeeze the magic-ness, the soil-tree, it must struggle! It have right food and the struggle to squeeze in the magic-ness!"

I nod, slower. I think that means they're not going to concentrate much magic if they're not forced to?

Izakikk mutters something quickly under their breath. "Am I talking to a wall? Little rocky-headed child, does she have stones for a brain? Bah!" I don't know if I should let that pass.

Izakikk straightens up and holds out both hands, fingers pointed up. "I try again. You tell me of potion and I tell you of the preparation?"

Well Izakikk already gave me a vague description of some uses. I guess I need to ask some more specific uses.

>>807628

Specific questions, alright.
Is it a white rot fungus? Or will less lignocellulosic biomass also work for the fungus?

And you need to keep them starved and slow-growing if you just want them to produce whatever alchemical compounds it might produce, likely a mechanic to ensure survival in adverse times rather than attempting to proliferate when there's an abundance of nutrients?
Sort of like an inverse crabtree effect.

I'd suggest at least two plots for the fungus then, one for food, and one for alchemical fuckery.


With regards to potions, a more reliable healing potion would be useful to have around, and perhaps something to cure illness.

Ask about the biggening of man, and hope it's some sort of giant growth potion, rather than a... let's say, partial giant growth potion.

Didn't you say something about maybe speaking his language? Might be better than him trying to speak in the local one.

>>807628
They're obviously not very good at speaking in the common tongue or whatever this is. Ask them to speak in their native language. You said you could understand it, right? Heck, I think the muttering was in their native language, so you do appear to understand it.
You should probably explain you're familiar with alchemy and plant growth.

Alright, obviously we'd like to make bog standard mana potions with these things. What about potions that increase the strength of spells, though? Or a potion that recovers mana but not all at once? Or... maybe something offensive? Like, a potion that can be thrown to explode upon an enemy caster to nullify their casting ability? What about a potion that nullifies magic effects on the drinker- either a one-time dispel or a continuous antimagic buff.

I wonder if we could enhance the effect of potions on everyone if we used some of Hin's blood to make them. ...Blood in general might be what we're missing to make healing potions of our own! Just try not to get Doyle hooked on the stuff.

Well, size reinforcement potions that don't mute the user would be good. Health potions and potions to boost magic strength would be good too. Let's just get specifics on a few and then general guidelines for how to attune for a particular stat in the future, as we won't have too many mushrooms to start with.

That's another good question: What growth pattern is most conducive to growing a lot more mushroom stock quickly?

>>807628
tell him to speak in his native tongue, his accent is attrocious and you'll still be able to understand him

>Biggen of man. Is help for small man too. Up of strong-ness.

REISARF GETS MUSCLES POTION
ask if it shrinks his balls tho

>seriously_why_the_food_question
As a trap, Deem! She intends to drug someone unawares. Like a spike pit in a dungeon, except boobs in food.

>"Am I talking to a wall? Little rocky-headed child, does she have stones for a brain? Bah!" I don't know if I should let that pass.
In his defense, you've just been nodding so he has no idea if you get what he's saying. Plus, the language barrier and never having met an intelligent golem before would bring added doubt.

Short, not a child. I'm the oldest person here, actually.

...silly thought, but you're old. Any chance you might have encountered or know his native tongue from your past? It's a moment's awkwardness to try, but a big bonus if he can speak naturally to you.

>Biggen of man. Is help for small man too. Up of strong-ness. Again of growth. See of things. And for rupture of wizard.
Might as well ask about all the varients so we can choose how to grow them later. We may change things up as our needs change and/or we get other resources. Or when we can afford to maintain more than one plot of mushrooms.

So, we can breed mushrooms for enlargement, strengthening, sight, and wizard-boost.

Might want to ask what kind of sight enhancement is offered. Prophetic trances? Darksight? Seeing through illusions?

"I know what the word 'mycelium' means. If you could just go ahead and explain things in your native language, this will be easier for both of us. As for specific potion effects, I'm interested in a full spread of combat-relevant effects - strength, speed, mana recovery, all that sort of thing - but the most immediate issue on my mind is that my blacksmith has a mild but persistent cough which hasn't cleared up even under powerful healing magic."

>>807623
>No. They don't have to know, no-one has to know.
So you want another repeat of what happened with Hin and your heart? Wow, I thought you were supposed to be smart. You've gotta tell them, otherwise it's going to keep happening again and again and again.....

By magic come out of wizard does he mean come out and be stronger or come out and be gone?

>>807677
In fact, you'd better address this Earth Pulse hates Sky Power thing now, otherwise next time you send someone to town, they might come back with a new recruit that specializes in only Sky Power stuff!

Or before your dungeon dwellers try to invite Ophelia to join the dungeon!

>I don't think anything good is going to come of trying to dig up the past.
snrrk. Oh irony, how I love thee

but yeah anyways, as for mushrooms. Ask how to make healing and magic potions from them as those will probably see the most use by both your own team and wondering adventures.

>>807628
Green-on-green Mushroom wallpaper! We now know what your farm's walls must look like!

There may be some advantage in allowing Izakikk to continue to believe that you can't understand their monologue...
Then again, you are here for knowledge, and their terrible translation is harming that. There is unlikely to be any great secrets that you can exploit and there is a sore dearth of people recognising how amazing your are.

Could a mage-rupture be referring to the same phenomena as your cleavage? If there are treatments that could improve your cleavage issues then you need to pursue that!

Does Izakikk know anything about combining mushrooms with living cauldrons? It seems liek a bit of a niche field but is relevant to your situation.

Are there potions which could enhance one's receptiveness to magical influences? It might backfire against magical heroes but if you could bolster the effects of boss-mode against muscle-brains...

Can potions help with smithing? Can they imbue magic into a material?

How do mushrooms respond to other materials? Especially slime-products and what you know of locally grown materials and reagets that you believe could be acquired and cultivated. Are there any elements that they shouldn't be mixed with?

Can toxins be extracted from these mushrooms? What of hallucinogens? Those can be marvellously subtle...

Is there any way to breed ambulatory mushroom monsters?

Do the mushrooms possess any combat potential in their curren state? Never overlook the hazard of a plume of spores...

Would mushrooms gain any properties from beign grown in the corpse of a demon-bear?

>>807627
As long as you don't tell him, he has no idea sky powers are bad. Is it really his fault he's been lied to his whole life? Stupid pervasive sky power propaganda.

>>807623
>I don't think anything good is going to come of trying to dig up the past.
Digging up the past could be a description of your entire existence, Deem. If lying to your minions is bad, lying to yourself is even worse, just dont do it.

Mushroom spores: how should we cultivate them within closed spaces or dense walls?

I don't understand what conditions are required to force mana collection. Do you need to starve them or something? Throw them next to a magic-based weather condition and wait for them to adapt?

Ask for instructions to cultivate healing shrooms and poisonous shrooms of the same color. Get adventurers to trust the shrooms at the start, then laugh as they eat the instant-death shrooms right next to the treasure room.

Also ask about mushroom cooking. You never know when there will be too many things to do and all your denizens wil be busy or incapacitated. Your most important work is, of course, performed from your heart, leaving your golem somewhat free to perform low-intenisty tasks such as watching some mushrooms boil and being nearby in case an injured denizen requires assistance.

1/2 Deem 2017/07/11(Tue)05:27 No. 814788 ID: b27cac
File 149977606116.png - (22.10KB , 600x800 , awkwardness.png )

>Digging up the past could be a description of your entire existence, Deem. If lying to your minions is bad, lying to yourself is even worse, just don't do it.
Bah.

>>No. They don't have to know, no-one has to know.
>So you want another repeat of what happened with Hin and your heart? Wow, I thought you were supposed to be smart. You've gotta tell them, otherwise it's going to keep happening again and again and again.....
I don't care, I will not.

>As long as you don't tell him, he has no idea sky powers are bad. Is it really his fault he's been lied to his whole life? Stupid pervasive sky power propaganda.
Words are weak. It's always personal tragedy that moves someone to rebellion.

>Didn't you say something about maybe speaking his language? Might be better than him trying to speak in the local one.
"I am not a child, a wall, nor do I have rocks for brains."

Izakikk freezes. "You, you understood that?"

I nod.

Izakikk grabs me in a bear-hug. "Uwah, you know a real tongue. The barbarians here, they are a sea of nonsense! They chatter like dragon-flies! You, have you felt the shade of the pillar trees, felt the breath of-"

I pat Izakikk's back. This is the only way I'm getting out of this. "There, there. I just have a gift for languages. I tell you what, before you leave I'll see if I can teach you a few more words at least."

"Thank you, thank you!"

Once Izakikk settles down, they explain their mushrooms in earnest.

"Mushrooms may seem to just spring up overnight," Iakikk says, "but we who dwell in the Rotwood know all too well that such sudden growth is the end result of long preparation. The mushrooms are the fruiting bodies of the carefully spread and extended mycelium living in the ground and other material it has infiltrated.

"These specific mushrooms, we call them kindly mushrooms, have been carefully chosen and cultivated for their benign nature and their ability to decompose dangerous material without becoming tainted by it. Mushrooms feed upon decay, they're very useful for breaking down substances that are rich in magic but possessed of an undesirable nature. Cursed ground, the viscera of monsters, such things can be decomposed by them. As I have said, they are kindly, they must be protected from pests and hazards for they have little ability to defend themselves.

"The process will be much slower and their mushrooms will only have little magical power if easier food is available. That is why scarcity brings out the best in them: they will scavenge from harder to decompose material and concentrate power to wait for conditions to improve."

Simple enough - they need material that is rich in mana and should not be provided with material that is easier to break down so they absorb as much mana as possible.
In a pinch they could simply be starved to make them spore less often but with more potent mushrooms.

>Can potions help with smithing? Can they imbue magic into a material?
Well, yes, various alchemical substances are often used to prepare materials to be fashioned into a magical item.

>Do the mushrooms possess any combat potential in their current state? Never overlook the hazard of a plume of spores...
They're not puffballs and they're not toxic. So no. Perhaps someone might stand on one and slip over. Or punch one and have it collapse on them if it was especially large.

>Is there any way to breed ambulatory mushroom monsters?
Well, yes. I would usually start by finding an ambulatory mushroom monster and then encouraging it to spread its spores around.

>That's another good question: What growth pattern is most conducive to growing a lot more mushroom stock quickly?
They're usually cultivated in stacks of damp logs out of direct sunlight. I'd just have to let them spore without harvesting them.

2/2 Deem 2017/07/11(Tue)05:31 No. 814790 ID: b27cac
File 149977626844.png - (38.09KB , 800x600 , mushroom_mushroom_mushroom.png )

I sit down to absorb as much as I can of Izakikk's knowledge of mushroomy potions.

>With regards to potions, a more reliable healing potion would be useful to have around, and perhaps something to cure illness.
To be clear I should quickly explain that for injuries and minor illnesses, there's two types of healing potion. The first is for emergencies. It heals wounds and gives a quick burst of energy at the coast of depleting the body's resources. The second is to help recovery. It helps the user replenish their reserves, assists long term regrowth and accelerates recovery. It's sometimes called a potion of regeneration, though it often confused with potions intended to give a sustained burst of healing ability.

According to Izakikk the mushrooms would be suitable for such a recovery potion.

A general purpose curse removing potion could be made by processing some of the mycelium but that will reduce mushroom yields until it regrows. Dealing with stronger curses or diseases typically needs a tailored potion however.

>Ask about the biggening of man, and hope it's some sort of giant growth potion, rather than a... let's say, partial giant growth potion.
It's a potion that enlarges the drinker. Sudden growth is a very basic property of mushrooms so it's simple to make. And yes, there is also a medicine can that be made to treat impotence.

>Combat-relevant effects - strength, speed, mana recovery, all that sort of thing
Unfortunately it's not well suited to mana recovery. The mushrooms absorb magical power fine but it's mostly expressed in a few specialised effects.

The first combat-relevant potion gives a boost of strength and speed. Izakikk calls it a bloodrush potion as it improves circulation. It makes the drinker slightly more vulnerable to injury as a result. The second gives a large boost to strength and causes some increase to muscular bulk so it may not be a good idea with some armour.

>REISARF GETS MUSCLES POTION
>ask if it shrinks his balls tho
I think Izakikk's thankful to me for offering the language lessons, since they ask me to not spread this outside my dungeon. There's a special rite involving an extended period of synchronisation and purification followed by several days of performing feats of strength and consuming a special mushroom broth based on the previous potions to permanently increase physical prowess.

I don't know if that'd be the best fit for Reisarf though. Someone who has cultivated personal power still only has a limited number of mana channels. Wizards keep most untethered to be twisted into spells while warriors have those channels bound tightly into their mind, body and tools to reinforce them.

He is physically underdeveloped though.

>Potions to boost magic strength would be good too.
The potion for 'rupture of wizard' (as Izakikk previously called it) is a magical accelerant. It forces more mana to be cycled through mana channels faster, increasing the casting speed and strength of spells. The downsides are it stresses the channels, lowers the mana efficiency and the small tears it causes can develop into something worse if overused.

>A potion that can be thrown to explode upon an enemy caster to nullify their casting ability? What about a potion that nullifies magic effects on the drinker- either a one-time dispel or a continuous antimagic buff.
It might be possible to modify the rupture potion to cause, well, ruptures. I'd have to experiment to make it take effect on being splashed with it instead of drinking it. The others won't be possible with just these mushrooms, even if I use the mycelium. It's simply not voracious enough.

>Might want to ask what kind of sight enhancement is offered. Prophetic trances? Darksight? Seeing through illusions?
This one's quite difficult to make. It requires the mushrooms, the mycelium and samples of the feedstock. It always to you see spiritual contamination - traces left behind by others on anything they have interacted with. Normally unseen lines of influence and connection. It's very useful for investigating an area and for the study of metaphysical phenomena.

>Are there potions which could enhance one's receptiveness to magical influences? It might backfire against magical heroes but if you could bolster the effects of boss-mode against muscle-brains...
That would be a potion of vulnerability. Perhaps by modifying some of the other potions I might be able to do something there. Alkaline's slime might be a useful ingredient too, dissolution of boundaries. Hmmmm. Izakikk doesn't know any recipes for it.

I think I might turn into a mushroom after listening to all of this.

Is there anything else I should ask Izakikk? And secondly, should I ask anyone along for Izakikk's language lesson? A conversational partner would be useful and I might need a chaperone to protect me from these grabby strangers.

yes, get alkaline to join in, she can practice her words too.

>>814790
Yeah, bring alkaline. And ask how long Izakikk is going to be in the area. He should swing by again to check on our progress later. Also, ask himif hes seen Any interesting monsters in the area, we might want to try and capture them, for the dungeon, or to feed the mushrooms.

Does damage to a person's mana channels outlast 'resurrection' by the earth pulse? Could it even interfere with the process if it progressed drastically enough?

Thirding Alkaline! She'll make sure those grabby hands stick to one place.

Alkaline might... dominate the lesson. It would be a wonderful experience, but Izakikk doesn't have an abundance of time. Perhaps it might be good to prepare a distraction if the lessons become too unfocused? Maybe a test to determine if additional honey and pancakes will have additional benefits to Alkaline's abilities? Perhaps Hin and/or Merud could handle the experiment?

Moriko probably has experience with multiple languages, so would be a good escort for you. The merchant likely has some experience of Izakikk's language, and might continue to interact with him, so there could be a lot of benefit there for Izakikk and some familiarity might help the lessons, so long as she doesn't butcher his language constantly. But she may bring her pet sky-priest along, and they both look like the physically affectionate sort, so do bring a bodyguard.

Kallia and Merud are both somewhat scholarly, so they might, potentially, be interested in languages, but probably in more of an academic sense than a practical sense, except when it comes to practical jokes, Kallia would probably love to know if there are any inter-language innuendoes that she could use to make Izakikk uncomfortable while theoretically speaking normally in her own language...

>anything else I should ask Izakikk?
Get Hin's persistent cough checked out. Any doctor who wears a gas mask full-time and sleeps in a pressurized tent full of noxious chemicals would have to know a thing or two about respiratory problems.

>>814948
Worth a shot.

>>814790
... could we use the mycelium to make golems? Like, either as the main material in place of clay, or as the rock accents? It's like half dirt, so it might work?

It'd maybe keep deem's leaky mana under control a bit more, or do other wonky and cool things with spell channels?

We could easily feed this kindly mushrooms with the leakage of our dungeon core. This could become pretty important, should the corebleed increase with more income.

>>814790
>language lessons
i want Alkaline in there.

>>815384
I feel like that might eventually turn Deem into a walking biohazard as the fungus continues to grow, and mushrooms appear. It could perhaps also encroach on the channels in the shard over time? I probably worry too much.

I agree with James that it wouldn't hurt to ask Kikk about Hin's condition, even if he's more mad mycologist than doctor.

>>815693
You say that like Acquired True Body: Mushroom Golem Deem is a danger rather than a goal.

>>816193
No matter how much I look, I just can't see how a mushroom golem can fit as much innuendo inside itself as a dungeon can...

1/3 Deem 2017/09/12(Tue)04:29 No. 830069 ID: 673643
File 150521577253.png - (23.32KB , 800x550 , throat_poke.png )

>We could easily feed this kindly mushrooms with the leakage of our dungeon core. This could become pretty important, should the corebleed increase with more income.
Yes that would be pragmatic.

>Does damage to a person's mana channels outlast 'resurrection' by the earth pulse? Could it even interfere with the process if it progressed drastically enough?
Somewhat. Resurrection depletes the body's resources so while they'd show temporary recovery they'd be more vulnerable to damage and long term effects from repeated use.

>Get Hin's persistent cough checked out. Any doctor who wears a gas mask full-time and sleeps in a pressurised tent full of noxious chemicals would have to know a thing or two about respiratory problems.

"Hmm." Izakikk pronounces.

"Hmmm?" I say.

"Is bug."

"Bug as in sickness," Hin says, "or-"

"No, bug! Gristleworm! Wrapping throat!"

I've never heard of those.

Izakikk flaps their hands like fins. "Swims through flesh. Like fishie. Is found in fishie!"

"Maybe you should explain this to me in your own language."

Hin leans forward. "Hey, I want to hear this."

"Hin, do you want accurate information or needlessly alarming pidgin?"

While Hin is looking conflicted, I abscond with our temporary doctor.

It turns out a gristleworm is an aquatic parasite that can phase through flesh. They're most commonly found in deep sea fish. They can't survive long out of a host and generally have to keep it weakened to stop it forcing them out. They don't normally migrate into humans. They can't survive well in them. It's taken up residence around her throat, the irritation is making it harder for Hin to eat and it's probably stealing some food. So the good news is I was right: it's an exotic illness but Hin really does just need bed rest and to eat properly to recover. And maybe to have a big rock ready when it's forced out.

I don't think Hin would appreciate me putting it to her that way.

The biggest unsolved mystery is how Hin caught it off Doyle. Maybe that final curse just left her more vulnerable to it? But I very much doubt Hin's been eating some bad seafood. Spontaneous generation? Maybe Doyle ate something weird. Can it get in frogs?

2/3 Deem 2017/09/12(Tue)04:33 No. 830070 ID: 673643
File 150521601788.png - (31.28KB , 800x550 , final_form_deem_discourse.png )

>Yeah, bring Alkaline. And ask how long Izakikk is going to be in the area. He should swing by again to check on our progress later. Also, ask him if hes seen Any interesting monsters in the area, we might want to try and capture them, for the dungeon, or to feed the mushrooms.
>Thirding Alkaline! She'll make sure those grabby hands stick to one place.
I find Alkaline. She was with that priest child so it's good I could remove her from bad influences.

Izakikk is startled when I show up, royal jelly in tow. They shy back when I come around the corner, seeing Alkaline suddenly so close.

"Is something the matter?"

"Oh. Yes. You see, the slimies in my home. They have danger. No shape, the thinking is taken up by poison. Talk is chemical, very toxins. The slimies that look like a thing, they are the most danger!"

I think I followed that. Maybe. Alchemical and toxic slimes are common in Izakikk's homeland but they trade off that specialisation for being very dumb. The smarter and more complex ones are very dangerous

I wave a hand in my approximate vicinity a step behind and find Alkaline. I pat her shoulder. "Well you have nothing to worry about from Alkaline here."

"Yes, is good pet."

"Pet?" Alkaline says. She seems a little put out.

"If we're to have language lessons, perhaps you should talk in your own language most of the time and I can say it back to you translated." Hmm, I just realised I don't know what anyone calls the local tongue. I shall have to ask Merud later.

"Ah, yes. I was going to say that such beast taming is a useful skill for someone of your profession. I started at a young age. I remember when I was a child my first pet was a bumblemoth. Beautiful insects they are, they collect nectar from the night blooming flowers."

I have to concentrate here to say it right. I repeat Izakikk's word back to them. Izakikk nods along as I do. "Have you seen any creatures that've caught your interest here?"

"No, we were attacked by frogs and I thought I saw an interesting beetle but I couldn't leave the caravan to investigate it."

Alkaline's looking between me and Izakikk in confusion.

"Hello Alkaline. Do you want to say something?" Izakikk says.

"Blonguhr?" Alkaline says.

"No, hello." I say.

"Blon-"

"Hello." Izkikk says.

"Hello!"

"Yes, very good!"

I decide to focus building up some of Izakikk's technical vocabulary next - mushyrooms are mushrooms and the mycelium is mycelium, that sort of thing and general conversational words. Alkaline seems a little bored by the vocabulary work but enjoys the store acting.

Izakikk's very appreciative but thankfully seems still nervous about getting too close while I have Alkaline with me.

>... could we use the mycelium to make golems? Like, either as the main material in place of clay, or as the rock accents? It's like half dirt, so it might work?
On the topic of mycelium, golems cannot be made out of living things.

There's something that rarely happens with old, abandoned golems in natural settings. These overgrown golems keep functioning long after they should have worn out and broken down and frequently deviate from their original tasks. It seems they somehow refine one of the higher tiers of golemetry on their own and create a symbiosis with their surroundings.

Attempts to recreate the conditions haven't been particularly successful.

>It'd maybe keep Deem's leaky mana under control a bit more, or do other wonky and cool things with spell channels?
>I feel like that might eventually turn Deem into a walking biohazard as the fungus continues to grow, and mushrooms appear. It could perhaps also encroach on the channels in the shard over time? I probably worry too much.
I don't think I want to infest this body with mushrooms. I'm already not happy that it may have a non-zero amount of will of its own.

3/3 Deem 2017/09/12(Tue)04:35 No. 830071 ID: 673643
File 150521613722.png - (19.90KB , 600x750 , tell_me_your_secrets.png )

Once that's concluded, a select group has to wait up until the middle of the night so that the séance can be conducted. I still don't think this is a good idea but this is my dungeon so I'm going to be here. I entrust the remains to Ophelia and she sequesters herself with the bones in a circle of salt.

"I think I'm almost ready. There won't be much time to discuss during the channelling so just remember you must not, under any circumstances, cross the circle."

"We just need to know who they were and what they were doing here." Merud says.

Merud, I'm doing this for your sake. Come up with some proper questions. He's not approaching this correctly at all.

I don't especially care for this, but perhaps I should give him some guidance.

Interrogation of the dead is troublesome at the best of times. The soul is long departed so in this case Lianna's clerical daughter will be feeding whatever scraps of spirit were trapped within the corpse with her own energy. This will make its own uniqueness coarsen and degrade so with such old remains we've only got one attempt at this.

Any spirit she raises will not be rational and will be traumatised by its death. Questions about its death are unlikely to be coherent. If there was anything it was attempting to hide in life it'll still attempt to hide them in death. Ghosts are trapped in the past and easy to deceive however. Something to help remind them is often useful too.

Okaaay, Doyle's going to need some de-lousing before anyone drinks from him again. When it's time for the phase-shifting parasite to come out, try putting Hin to sleep again with a fresh batch of 'satiation' potions. The only question is, which end does it leave through?
Here are five questions for the dead:
1. Why did you enter this cave?
2. Who gave you the plaque, Esra?
3. Do you have any friends that I could hire as spooky ghosts?
4. Why were you running around naked except for a charm?
5. Chocolate or vanilla?

>>830069
Careful, Deem. Parasites do things to their hosts, things that can make them more susceptible to disease if the parasites are purged. Or it could alter her brain chemistry, introduce further viral diseases, lay its eggs in her throat which can then spread to the lungs and eat as they grow from vocal stimulation, etc.

Doesn't matter how stupid a species is, give them an easy programming language and they will evolve a way to exploit it, often in ugly but creative ways.

I suggest you take it out immediately, followed by small doses of its venom and pheromones to wean her off the stuff in case it was doing something to her.

>>830071
Great. Try to bluff your way into getting intel - find out what the spirit sees as inconsequential, trivial, or good means of healthy gossip. Work on these things and keep an ear out for anything that seems like a security code - if they know anything, just tell them its been hundreds of years and those codes are stale by now, but they make for funny jokes so you'd really like to hear how stupid people get when nobody judges their private passphrases. Once the seance reaches the halfway mark, begin the fun part of interrogation and move towards an uncomfortable subject. Write down every word as the skull goes from nervous to incoherent insanity, then stay silent and let them talk to themselves about all the things they don't want you to hear but are too freaked to remember you are listening.

the magic token should have been their's so they will recognize it.

>>830071
>reminder
Well there's the pendant and the chest.

Ask it if it got the loot. C'mon man did you get the chest open or what? The boss is waiting.
Who's their next of kin?

>>830080
Hey, yeah! It WAS naked, we didn't even find any scraps of cloth! "Why are you naked?!"

Squee!! They will likely resist an interrogation. What do we know? The chest certainly seems to have been hidden, and rather excessively at that. This seems to be the middle of nowhere and it was in the back of a cave, on a raised platform, that almost certainly required some competent swimming to get to. We do not know if they were coming or going, they could have been retrieving the chest or storing it, but the plaque suggest that they were going to do something with the chest, or rocks, rather than just retrieving or storing a single ring. They may have been attempting to open the gap that they were crushed by.
We could potentially "loosen" the spirit using the plaque... "Ersa, may this token help you shed your burdens and fly far from here" Perhaps ask it if it knows any anagrams of "Ersa"? I mean, I wouldn't want to be named "sear", but then it could be a keepsake and mocking would be traumatic and shut it down...

Try to portray yourself as the companion it always wanted...
"What does that inscription mean anyway?" It sounds pretty ominous, as though they were running away from a bad life, and a friend gifted it to them before they departed, likely to never meet again. Or it could be some sort of in-joke, or they took it off of a corpse...
"You never talk about you home?" If one assumes that their home-life was too restrictive for their tastes...
"Is it really worth all this just to hide some ring?" Perhaps they will explain their grand plans for the ring that will make this chest gauntlet sensible outside of a dungeon.
"Where are you heading to after all this is done?" May tell us who they are and where they are going, what places they know, names of acquaintances...

Flesh-phasing is a useful ability. If we kill the parasite, then we should probably feed it to alkaline. Alternatively we could try to get it into a monster, like one of those giant frogs or something. Or... Can Deem just whammy it like she did with her chickens? Or maybe it already is whammied considering that it was revived by the "denizens only" process... It doesn't seem like an overly complex organisms, and we certainly aren't going to let it continue to weaken our blacksmith so plan be is extermination and it is hardly in a position to escape, so the old carrot and stick comes with a big stick and it is probably worth getting ahold of a carrot in exchange for a particularly unusual curse, especially if we can mutate it to be more capable of infecting challengers. Also, this might be an opportunity to practise detection skills and magics. Given that there is a noticeable-sized critter than nobody has sensed, our awareness could use some tweaking.

>And maybe to have a big rock ready when it's forced out.
Why kill it, when you can capture it and inflict it and its spawn on adventurers?

>I'm already not happy that it may have a non-zero amount of will of its own.
If you consider it a part of you, maybe you won't be so bothered by it? It's only appropriate you should have will, after all.

>I still don't think this is a good idea but this is my dungeon so I'm going to be here.
Sign of a good boss.

>Come up with some proper questions. He's not approaching this correctly at all.
>I don't especially care for this, but perhaps I should give him some guidance.
Seems the smart thing to do. If he's only got one shot at this, laying out some clear rules / guidelines to work off of might help.

Just one question: "In the event of your untimely and abrupt demise, how would you like your remains to be dealt with? A traditional burial, burned on a pyre, interment in a tomb or something else?"

>>830071
Okay so.

Step 1: Ask (both the merchantlady and clericface) if we can use the pendant to make the ghoasty man remember things better.
Step 2: Try to avoid letting the ghost become aware that it is dead. People tend to not react well to being dead. Just like, converse with it like it's a normal (but dazed and confused) person.
Step 3: Introduce ourselves (in a very general way - "hello I am Deem and these are my friends", not "hello I am Deem the Dungeon and these are my murderlackeys") and ask goast who it is.
Step 4: Show the ghost the pendant. Say we found it, ask if it is theirs.
Step 5: Ask the ghost how/why it got here - we are quite a ways from town, after all.
Step 6: ?????

And maybe we can just reinforce Hin to force the worm out? But like, specifically reinforce deem while excluding the worm. If it piggybacked the resurrect, it might just piggyback the reinforcement and make bad things happen. Ask Izakikk about it.

>Why kill it, when you can capture it and inflict it and its spawn on adventurers?
No. People don't come to dungeons to get parasites. Dungeons thrive on popularity. We don't want people telling other people about the gnarly flesh-crawling throat parasite they got at our dungeon. That's not okay.

>>830312
Fame, infamy, whatever gets their attention. I think it'd fit right in with the shadow dungeon theme. We should be a responsible dungeon, however, and ensure that its children are sterile and short-lived so it doesn't leave with adventurers that leave the dungeon's confines. Maybe up-size it a little with the earth pulse's wild magics. A totally responsible mad science experiment!
The creature isn't really flesh-crawling either, it's flesh-phasing. Is there a spell that would let us phase through flesh too and grab the interdimensional parasite?

We should see if we can feed the worms to Alkaline.
Phase Slime!
Both useful and terrifying!

>>830328
How about that curse of formlessness experiment?

Alkaline's body is inherently, umm, digestive? So the formlessness experiment might make it very difficult for a parasite to persist within the resultant gestalt...

1/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:20 No. 831444 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582365614.png - (26.48KB , 800x550 , seance_advice.png )

>Here are five questions for the dead:
>1. Why did you enter this cave?
>2. Who gave you the plaque, Esra?
>3. Do you have any friends that I could hire as spooky ghosts?
>4. Why were you running around naked except for a charm?
>5. Chocolate or vanilla?
Why are you so useless?

>Try to portray yourself as the companion it always wanted...
No. Its presence here is an entirely unwanted intrusion.

>Who's their next of kin?
Just one question: "In the event of your untimely and abrupt demise, how would you like your remains to be dealt with? A traditional burial, burned on a pyre, interment in a tomb or something else?"
If you want coherent answers out of a ghost you don't want to be confronting it with thoughts of its death.

>Well there's the pendant and the chest.
>Ask it if it got the loot. C'mon man did you get the chest open or what? The boss is waiting.
>What do we know? The chest certainly seems to have been hidden, and rather excessively at that. This seems to be the middle of nowhere and it was in the back of a cave, on a raised platform, that almost certainly required some competent swimming to get to. We do not know if they were coming or going, they could have been retrieving the chest or storing it, but the plaque suggest that they were going to do something with the chest, or rocks, rather than just retrieving or storing a single ring. They may have been attempting to open the gap that they were crushed by.
Right. The inscription said "Esra, may this token help you shed your burdens and fly far from here" and it's possible this person was Esra. They were definitely equipped to move the chest but it's puzzling there was no key with it. In addition to that, it was filled with rocks aside from that one ring. Were they deceived somehow?

We no longer have the chest, but I ask Liana if we can borrow the plaque and I call up Chakarchelou so we have the Covetous Ring. I keep the ring attached to the quasidragon, of course. With Chakarchelou, that brings our séance witnesses to five: myself, Merud, Moriko, Liana and Chakarchelou. Hin and Kallia both said they were tired, I put Alkaline to bed hours ago and Izakikk wasn't interested. Doyle is a pot. I think Reisarf and Stargazer are off doing their own thing.

>"What does that inscription mean anyway?" It sounds pretty ominous, as though they were running away from a bad life, and a friend gifted it to them before they departed, likely to never meet again. Or it could be some sort of in-joke, or they took it off of a corpse...
That's a good question, I entrust it to Merud to ask along with the plaque itself.

>"Is it really worth all this just to hide some ring?" Perhaps they will explain their grand plans for the ring that will make this chest gauntlet sensible outside of a dungeon.
>"Where are you heading to after all this is done?" May tell us who they are and where they are going, what places they know, names of acquaintances...
>Show the ghost the pendant. Say we found it, ask if it is theirs.
>Ask the ghost how/why it got here - we are quite a ways from town, after all.
I pass those along to Merud to ask as well.

Well I've done all I will, I wash my hands of this. Merud's looking very serious. Good luck Merud.

2/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:22 No. 831445 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582375065.png - (35.27KB , 800x550 , worm_actual_size.png )

That priest girl is starting. There's an annoying chant involved. She seems to be struggling - these are old bones after all. I said I'll witness this but I'm not going to speak up unless I absolutely have to. I have other important matters to think about anyway.

>Okaaay, Doyle's going to need some de-lousing before anyone drinks from him again. When it's time for the phase-shifting parasite to come out, try putting Hin to sleep again with a fresh batch of 'satiation' potions. The only question is, which end does it leave through?
I'm not making up a batch of potions just for that and it can travel through flesh, it doesn't does need to go through any ends.

>Maybe we can just reinforce Hin to force the worm out? But like, specifically reinforce Deem while excluding the worm. If it piggybacked the resurrect, it might just piggyback the reinforcement and make bad things happen.
If parasites were easy to separate from their hosts' bodies, they wouldn't be particularly successful parasites. I said it'll come out on its own.

>How about that curse of formlessness experiment?
>Alkaline's body is inherently, umm, digestive? So the formlessness experiment might make it very difficult for a parasite to persist within the resultant gestalt...
That might work but all Hin needs is to eat properly and get some bed rest.

>Why kill it, when you can capture it and inflict it and its spawn on adventurers?
Why would I do that when it does nothing particularly inconvenient within the span of time they'd be in my dungeon?

>No. People don't come to dungeons to get parasites. Dungeons thrive on popularity. We don't want people telling other people about the gnarly flesh-crawling throat parasite they got at our dungeon. That's not okay.
Yes, it seems it'd only be counter-productive.

>The creature isn't really flesh-crawling either, it's flesh-phasing. Is there a spell that would let us phase through flesh too and grab the interdimensional parasite?
Not one I can cast.

>We should see if we can feed the worms to Alkaline.
>Phase Slime! Both useful and terrifying!
I don't know if it'd do that, but I might as well.

3/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:24 No. 831446 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582385267.png - (38.27KB , 800x550 , deem_toes_confirmed.png )

The séance is not going well at all.

I haven't been paying too much attention but so far it seems all we know is this person was called Esra and they were after that chest.

On this side of the salt circle normality reigns but on the other the borders of life and death are blurred. Colour's muted, sound's distorted, breezes search uncertainly around the edge of this intrusion from another world.

There's muffled whispers and interrogations as Ophelia attempts to make sense out of the remains, touching the candle of her life to old ashes in the hopes of drawing out an ember. Merud's right at the edge of the circle too, voice raised as he repeats the questions as Ophelia wrestles with making the dead speak. Idiot. I'm standing here to make sure he doesn't take so much as a single absent minded half a step closer and breach the circle.

Trust a priest to mangle basic necromancy.

Wait...

Something isn't right.

4/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:25 No. 831448 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582392740.png - (28.92KB , 800x550 , normal_interrogation_procedure.png )

Something is very wrong.

There's something else nesting in those old bones. The wind howls as something fastens greedily on to the link of warmth and motion and life Ophelia's unwittingly held out to it.
What is it? Some succubus? A night hag boiled down into a curse? Is this what really killed Esra? How has it held on to such strength for so long? Did I make it stir, waking the earth-pulse as I have?

Before he can do anything, I shove Merud back. Liana cries out in alarm but Chakarchelou moves between her and her daughter, growling at the new threat. Moriko raises her hammer but wavers, clearly uncertain of what to do.

Ophelia is the only one in danger right now. A spirit can't cross the circle. I don't owe her anything. I didn't invite her here, I didn't ask her to do this, I knew raising up these old bones was a bad idea!

5/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:26 No. 831449 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582397376.png - (29.83KB , 800x500 , crossing_the_circle.png )

This cannot continue.

I break into the circle.

The wind howls. The air thickens as my own spiritual pressure invades. I tear away the link between Ophelia and that abdead thing and toss her outside. My grip tightens on the interloper. Maybe I should tear you to pieces, huh?

It squirms desperately and tosses something from deep inside itself at me.

6/6 Deem 2017/09/19(Tue)05:26 No. 831450 ID: 72a4bf
File 150582401077.png - (18.08KB , 800x550 , hiiiiiii.png )

A thick darkness stinking of delirium washes over everything.

END CHAPTER THREE

whathaveyoudone

Oh my god, they killed Alice! Those dirty bastards!

Somehow, I get the feeling saying, "I told you this wasn't a good idea!" just doesn't quite say it.

>>831450
Excellent! A new monster to recruit! Pummel it into submission, Deem.

Cast in the name of deem, ye guilty.

>Trust a priest to mangle basic necromancy.
She is a child, Deem. They can't all be slimey wunderkinds.

>I knew raising up these old bones was a bad idea!
Deem's first words on waking up gets to be a very satisfied "I told you so".

>>831563
Actually, her first words should be used to check if everyone is ok. In case they are, then Deem can truly say it. If not, then it is time for damage control