The Let's Play Archive

Divinity II: The Dragon Knight Saga

by Stabbey_the_Clown

Part 39: Harbour of Insanity





Chapter 27 – Harbour of Insanity



The Hermit and the Fisherman
The Dragon Elf and the Wyverns
Mister Shiny and the Two Sisters


Yara’s Current Auras



Level 17

New questing area, so I figured I should show what my base stats are right now. I had 8 points to distribute after Orobas Fjords and Mind-reading the island. I went 1/1/6 Vitality/Spirit/Strength. I had two skill points, I put one into Lockpick to max it out at 5, and I’m saving the second one for Level 18 (Life Tap and Thousand Strikes rank 2)

Vitality = 29->30 (Health = 378->385)
Spirit = 23->24 (Mana = 349->356)
Strength = 43->49
Dexterity = 2
Intelligence = 4

Unarmed Damage = 45-56
Thousand Strikes Damage = 270-336
Battle Rage Damage = 62-76
Thousand Strikes (Battle Rage) = 372-456





Music: The Island (Unused Track)


Music: Sentinel Island



Video: The Hermit and the Fisherman


Nearby was a cave which was inhabited.




(Hermit) What? Who are… How did you… Er, back off now, I’m warning you! I know magic! DE GUSTIBUS ET COLORIBUS!
(Yara) …
What? No fireball? Wait… an ice storm! Hahaa! SIC TRANSIT GLORIA MUNDI!
Uh…
No, that one doesn’t work either… ALEA IACTA EST! FLUCTUAT NEC MERGITUR! COGITO ERGO SUM!
…
Eh, I think I had better run now…

The hermit ran off deeper into his cave. Yara followed.

No! Stand back, Drakeling! APPARENT RARI NANTES IN G…
All right, all right, you can stop your mighty magic now: I have no intention of hurting you!
A trick I say! You’ll steal my eardrums as I sleep!



Divine grant me patience!
Ha. “The Divine” can’t help you or anyone else!
Ha, yes! The Dragon yields before my power! I am invincible! I am the walrus!
Who are you, exactly?
Although the last, not least! No no no, but I want my soup!
I was wondering what that big cauldron was for.
Wyvern! Ah, delicious wyvern soup! But I want the ultimate! Bring me a wyvern-mother egg, lizard king, and I’ll give you Mister Shiny! Yes, yes! Hehehe! Up the big spire you go!
(-700 XP, 25% Discount) Beneath the doggy with the arrow by the sea! Hehe, he ate it, silly doggy! Hehehe!




Again, who are you, exactly?
The slave of the master, the master of the mouse! He’s up in his tower all day, but left without poor me. The other threw me out, though I bit at his ankles!
Are you telling me you actually served Maxos?
Maxos! The great one! A long life he gave me…
Who’s Mister Shiny?
He’s a smart one, he is! Click and chest is open, clock and chest is closed! Made him with my own teeth! They were shiny! Now all old and yellow, hehehe!
Up the big spire… Could you be more specific?
The wyvern pin! What a view, but fire rains down! Do you have a water umbrella?
Is there anything useful you can sell me, perhaps?
Most certainly! If you pay with spoons!

Yes, this nameless lunatic is a merchant. He doesn’t have much gold, but he does have a few unique items.



His cave also has the first harvestable Earth Root. It’s annoying that the vital mana potion component can’t be found until here. It also has Venom Stone Ore, the vital components for Poison enchantments and all Rank 4+ Armour enchantments.


Recipe Book



Stay put while I go search for a butterfly net.
I’ll guard my cave with the vigilance of a bunny!

From Soup to Nuts
A simple fetch quest.




This is the Beach Teleporter shrine, because it’s on the Sea Side of the island. The Seaside Teleporter shrine is by a Beach on the channel side of the island. That’s how things work on Sentinel Island.




The enemies here are almost entirely these things called Dragon Elves. You’ll find out what they are later this update. I’m currently looking to find one of their heads to use for my creature. They start at level 16, so all my levelling in Broken Valley was only really enough to keep pace.




Thousand Strikes one-shots them. The only reason I don’t use it on every one is because of cooldown and mana limitations.




Mister Shiny is a key. It opens this chest. I want what’s inside quite a lot.





There’s some unique music for this conversation which I couldn’t find in the game files.




(???) Have you come to mock me again, Laiken, old corpse idolater?
Calling me Laiken is not something I appreciate.
Oh, forgive me, stranger. I have seen none other than him for as long as it takes the wind to carve new designs in the rocks.
Who are you?
(Jonah) My name is Jonah and I am a fisherman.
Why would Laiken mock you?
A long time ago, my crew and I were attacked by Mocha Dick: the biggest, most vicious whale ever to have terrorised the waves. He sunk our ship and ate us all like we were mackerel, but my spirit made it back to shoew and I have been sitting here fishing for him ever since. Laiken sometimes comes to ridicule me, but I care not. I shall not rest until I have caught my whale.



I don’t think that hunting for a whale with a line will have much effect.
He’ll bite some day! He must, stranger. He simply must.
(-700 XP) I wonder what it is Laiken dropped when he last came here. That Vacca fellow took it to his cave. Probably lies there by his books.
How did you end up on this island?
When my ghost escaped from the stomach of the whale I wandered the ocean for a long time. I saw vast wastes and mountain ranges, cities long lost and civilizations gone. One day, I ventured upon and enormous mountain that arose from the bottom of the ocean. I climbed and climbed until I reached the end of endless waters. Here I was, on Sentinel Island: source of Dragon magic, playground of a psychotic necromancer.
Why “must” the whale bite?
He… he took something… I lost… No, I don’t like to talk about it. I’m sorry. But I must have it back. I’ll have it back!
Have you met a strange lady by any chance?
I have seen her, but she does not visit me. I am dead after all, and none of her concern.
I must go now. Good luck!
And good luck to you, friend, whatever your quest may be.

The Old Ghost and the Sea
This quest is very vague, my journal only suggests we try and find someone else who might shed some light on this mystery.

The thing Vacca took back to his cave is there whether you mind-read this ghost or not.


Video: Vacca and the Wyverns


I think I see a marker at the top of that hill.

The air was calm at the bottom of the hill, but at the top it was inexplicably an unceasing gale.




What’s with the wind? What’s with the candles? Hmm…






The wind quickly blew the flame out.

The tombstone reads: Here I lie in windswept grave
While temperate skies are all I crave.
(Talana) This grave is important; I can sense it. Be on the lookout for magic that may leash the wind.
I think I see another cave over there.

Candles in the Wind
Talana used to badger us a lot when were questing in Broken Valley, but once we entered Maxos Temple, the badgering stops, even once we start side-questing again. This grave is very important, and we need to deal with the wind to advance the main plot.




What is that SMELL?




(Vacca) Do not attack me, human. I wish you no harm – unlike the rest of my kin.
What are you and your kin exactly?
We are known as the Dragon Elves, an artificially-engineered race created by the Dragons themselves. They wanted their island to be protected by beings that were to be strong and fearsome like themselves, but not as intelligent. The race of Elves, at that time still newfangled, was deemed suitable and soon the crossbreed was established.
I REALLY didn’t need that image in my head.
They not only seem to be less intelligent, they are downright savage.
It was not always so. Laiken’s cruel reign defiled their very being. But I saw what was happening and withdrew to my cave, where I found solitude and knowledge in books. So let me assure you again: I pose no danger. I’m not like the other Dragon Elves.
I mean no offense, but you seem to be the root of a rather peculiar aroma.
Ah yes, I do apologize. It is my wyvern salve you smell.
Does it attract or repulse them?
Neither, it just dampens their hostility by convincing them I’m one of the flock. I apply the salve before every egg hunt. I very much enjoy a wyvern omelette in the morning.
Well, I’m trying to get my hands on a wyvern mother egg, so some of that salve would come in handy.
I’ll gladly give you a modicum if you do me a small favour.
(-700 XP) It’s been a long time since that crazy hermit went wyvern shooting. I guess his bow is still in his chest with the secret compartment. What a waste.
Fair enough. Tell me.
I reside in a small cave here, but for one reason or the other some ghosts have begun to haunt it. I’ll admit they frighten me. Please destroy them and the balm is yours.
Can you tell me something more about the wyverns?
They moved in after our Dragon Lords had left. Very territorial – that’s one of their trademarks. They’ll attack anyone who approaches their nests. That’s why I have the salve of course. They also tend to collect anything they can find, especially things that glitter in the sun. I bet they have amassed a whole treasure-trove of items by now. Riches for the taking – if you could reach them!
I’ll be going now.
Goodbye, human!

Ghostbuster
Simple enough. Kill about 10 ghosts or so. Vacca’s cave has pretty much the only Fossil Ore deposits that I can recall in the entire game. You can fail this quest before you get it by being rude about his smell repeatedly. Do it enough and he gets enraged and you have to kill him.






By a chest is this gemstone shaped like a square doughnut. It is Vacca’s prize possession. It’s the only thing in the game which it is considered stealing to take, and Vacca will insist on taking the gem back if you talk to him with it in your possession. If you say no, he tries to kill you. If you leave it there and finish the quest, Vacca picks it up and you can’t take it.

It’s worth 5000 gold, and gold is about to become very important at the start of Act III, so you might want to consider taking it and selling before finishing Vacca’s quest.








In another chest in Vacca’s cave is the first part of one of the Act III sets, in this case the ranger set. The other Act III sets are the Scorpion and Aleroth Archmage sets.




Those all-encompassing sets were in a different spot in ED. All pieces of the sets used to be located in one of the massive dungeons, making finding them was too easy. Now they’re scattered around all over, making it harder, but more satisfying to track them all down.

A LOT of people who went from ED to DKS or who looked at the old maps from ED missed finding these, thinking that they were still in the same places they were before. U.T. Raptor is a good example.




You return! The ghosts are gone? From the closet, from under my bed?
They shall trouble you no longer.
Well done! Finally I’ll be able to get some rest. Here’s the wyvern salve as promised. Good luck!
“Ghostbuster” complete! Quest Rewards: 1800 XP, 500 Gold, Wyvern Salve Bonus Chosen: 800 XP




Well, I’d better get this over with.




If you’re a ranger, you can actually hit the Wyverns with your arrows. It’s hard, and it takes a while, but it’s possible. As a ranger I usually skip the salve so I can get them to attack me. Mages can use Magic Blast, which is even more difficult. They do give experience, of course. I’m not going to bother, though. The wyvern salve will wear off after a while, but this doesn’t take very long, so you’re likely to be well across the island by that time.



There’s some more tense music for climbing the spire which I also couldn’t find in the game files.




Picking up the egg makes three more spawn, which only matters if you aren’t wearing the salve.


Video: Mister Shiny and the Two Sisters


(Hermit) Kneel before your true king!
Here you go, good king: one wyvern mother egg!
My precious! I’ll never go hungry again! Here’s Mister Shiny, Dragon! Treat him well and remember: he doesn’t like chicken!
“From Soup to Nuts” complete Quest Rewards: 1800 XP, 500 Gold, Mister Shiny Bonus Chosen: 800 XP












This is the set I’ll be putting together for Yara in Act III. You saw a preview of it in Chapter 17.




Maybe a swim would help wash this crap off.




Wait, what’s that?




Interesting…

Music: Black Garden







A Dragon Elf and a Walking Armour were fighting. The Dragon Elf smashed the Walking Armour before succumbing to its own fatal wounds.




(Mahalath) Such a close call! You could tell my Walking Armours had the upper hand, little sister!




(Adah) Ha! You wish, Mahalath! My Dragon Elves would have won, were it not for… the unfavourable terrain!
We have waged our little wars here for as long as Laiken, praise be His name, has been the master of the tower. So don’t blame the terrain!
I’ll blame what I will, my sassy sibling, you… But what is this? A spectator?
You are both trying really hard to get on daddy’s good side, aren’t you?
He’s not our father, ignoramus! We fight for the favour of our lord and I shall…




Hush, Adah. I will do the talking. We, stranger, are sisters who humbly serve Laiken, the immortal. It is our task to create for him an army that will one day rival the Black Ring’s so that he, not the followers of the Divine, nor Damian, will be the ultimate ruler of Rivellon. But we are in disagreement. Obviously, my Walking Armours are the most powerful soldiers to have trod the earth, But…
Nonsense, my Dragon Elves are superior in every way! I will win this contest!
So what now? I choose sides?
Sides? If you wish. Though the choice is so obvious!
So it is, sis!

Reader Participation time!






The Hermit and the Fisherman
The Dragon Elf and the Wyverns
Mister Shiny and the Two Sisters




Black Garden



The Maps



Here’s Sentinel Island in relation to the rest of the world.



Here’s a map showing the north-western part of Sentinel Island.







Over to the southwest is another climbable wyvern spire.



You need to swim to reach it.



At the top is a small treasure chest of random loot.



Yara’s Current Auras



The Hermit’s Magic

DE GUSTIBUS ET COLORIBUS = “Of tastes and colours”. Part of the phrase: de gustibus et coloribis non est disputandum: “Of tastes and colours there is nothing to be disputed” or “There’s no accounting for taste”.

SIC TRANSIT GLORIA MUNDI = “Thus passes the glory of the world”. Or “Worldly things are fleeting” Used in papal coronation ceremonies.

ALEA IACTA EST = “The die has been cast”. Quote from Julius Caesar.

FLUCTUAT NEC MERGITUR = “It is tossed by the waves, but does not sink”. The mottof of Paris, France.

COGITO ERGO SUM = “I think, therefore I am.”

APPARENT RARI NANTES IN GURGITE VASTO = “Here and there they are seen swimming in the vast flood.” A quote from Virgil’s The Aeneid.

“I am the walrus!” – A song by “The Beatles”.




As I noted at the start, some conversations have longer paths which lead to the same end. I manged to pick the shorter path in all three of the conversations this update. Oh well.




The slave of the master, the master of the mouse! He’s up in his tower all day, but left without poor me. The other threw me out, though I bit at his ankles!
You bit at Laiken’s ankles…
Ha! Tossed me off the tower, but the green lady sent a pillow-cloud. He’s not like the master, not like master! Maxos! The great one! A long life he gave me…




Don’t you think Mocha Dick is probably long dead by now?
He’s more demon than whale, and probably lives as long as those abominations! He’ll bite some day! He must, stranger. He simply must.




We are known as the Dragon Elves, an artificially-engineered race created by the Dragons themselves. They wanted their island to be protected by beings that were to be strong and fearsome like themselves, but not as intelligent. The race of Elves, at that time still newfangled, was deemed suitable and soon the crossbreed was established.
The experiment was a success?
Oh yes, we served the Dragons well, and Maxos also. But now most of us have become ferocious beasts. It was not always so. Laiken’s cruel reign defiled their very being.






Reader Participation

1.How should the Dragon Knight respond to this little drama? Two choices will lead to a quest, the other won’t, but might give more total experience.

a) “I must say those Walking Armours look like fierce opponents.”
b) “I have met wild Dragon Elves and they poised quite the challenge.”
c) “Obvious indeed! I am the strongest force here and I shall show you both.”

Voting closes in 24 hours (sooner if there’s a firm consensus).