Part 109: Welcome to Yuthul Gor

Chapter 80 - Welcome to Yuthul Gor

Music - "Scorching Wind"
Download (Thanks to Grawl)


I suggest you listen to this music. It's quite different from anything heard in lush Ferol, and it's really appropriate.


Date: Unknown






I didn't know how long I lay there, drifting in and out of consciousness, but it was long enough for the sun to set.




Eventually though, I heard footsteps approaching. Two sets, heavy and light. They stopped several meters away.









There ain't no dragons 'round here Garth.
I saw!
They're speaking in orcish, not common! I... I can understand that now? I guess that makes sense, a good skill for the Divine One to have.
I'm sure you saw something, but I'm also sure it wasn't a dragon.
You not know. You were running from imps. I stay, killing imps.
Since when does a brave orc shaman run from mere imps, eh? I was simply covering your back.
Ha! Brave orc shaman smell of piss after fight.
You insolent dog! I should...

I had a sudden flash of pain and groaned.

Aaahhh! What was that? Garth! Protect me!

I heard the lighter footsteps running off, and the heavier ones approached me.




The orc roared, and if you've never heard an orc roaring in your ear, let me tell you that it's better than triple-strength coffee when it comes to instant wake-ups.

I groaned, blinked and figured out how to stand up again.




He was speaking in common instead of orcish, now.

Do I look like a dragon?
You look human. But dragon fool Garth before. You dragon or not?
Is he thinking of a Dragon Knight? Has he seen one?
No, I'm not a dragon. What are you doing here?
Me escort Drox. Drox not brave... he pee in pants a lot when danger comes. Do you have money?

I blinked. I was still dazed, and having a bit of trouble keeping up with the sudden topic shifts. "Why do you ask?" I inquired warily, hoping this wasn't about to turn into an attempted robbery.

You have money... I have goodies. We trade, yes? Drox not pay good.
What can you tell me about this place?
Bad place be this. Used to be good place. Me not good with words... you ask Drox, he good with words.
Tell me about your pee prone friend.
He Drox. He be my boss. He not pay good though... not good boss. He always pee pants when fighting start. Too scared even to cast spell. Always Garth clean up mess. He my only friend... and my boss. Me not allowed to talk about him.
I think I saw some houses from the air... but that might just have been something else.
Do you know of any village nearby? Any civilization in this wasteland?
Ask Drox! Garth not sure he supposed to tell you!
Alright, then take me to Drox.

He walked off.









Garth roared to indicate that it was safe.

Drox can come back now. Is not dragon.




Is only big rock up there.
Yes... yes of course it is. I see you've never heard of rock demons, have you? Very dangerous creatures. You have to be on your guard.
All Garth know is you smell of piss again. Garth think Drox should go change loincloth. Piss-filled pants get itchy, so Garth hear once.
Shut up! SHUT UP!




I looked in my pack and retrieved my shield, dagger and helmet. I strapped on my weapon and shield, but the helmet was badly dented and unwearable. Apparently I had landed on it. It would need the expert service of a blacksmith with a hammer and anvil.




Sheloi! Figures. I've never even worn it in combat. Where the hell am I going to find a blacksmith in this area?



I approached Garth and Drox.




Why are you so worried about dragons? Are there any around here?
I've heard some very dragon-like noises of late, but I've never actually seen one, to tell you the truth.
Do you have a map of this area?
Yes, I've got a very good map... Here, you can have it. My wandering days are over.

I forgot to breathe through my mouth and not my nose.

What is that awful smell?
Hmmpf... You must have been talking to Garth. I have a medical condition... er... You see, I suffer from stress incontinence - especially in combat. It's rather embarrassing, actually.
Do you know of a village nearby? Any civilization nearby?
Me and Garth come from village, but village was destroyed! Drox and Garth had to flee village, now they are here!
Can you show me where this village is?
I will show you location of valley. Valley leads to village of Drox and Garth! But why go there? It was destroyed!
Well then where else can I go then? How far away is Ferol?
Ferol? Why would you go there? It's madness! And it's weeks of walking anyway. Without food or water, you'd never make it. It's to the northwest if you insist, but you'd have to scale the cliffs to get out of the valley.




I examined the cliffs. There were plenty of handholds, but the rock was soft and crumbled at the touch. I'd also have to discard my armor and gear to scale those. And even then I only just might be able to climb them. Might.

I think you're supposed to travel the desert at night, and rest during the day. I guess part of that is to navigate by the stars.




I took a few steps away from the orcs, and then I stopped and looked up at the sky.

Navigating by the stars is all well and good if you know where you are and where you're going. I know neither and can't see very well. Too bad there isn't a moon up. ... wait... wasn't a moon almost full just before the ritual?

I shook the confusion off.

No, I'm not going to wander off at night, with who knows what out there, not even knowing where the hell I'm going.

As I lowered my gaze from the stars, I saw something shoot by overhead in my peripheral vision. I looked back up, but it was moving too fast to identify. I had a nagging feeling of familiarity, though.

I went back to Drox.

Do you have anything to trade? Especially water. I have a feeling that I will be needing a lot of water.




Let us trade, then.
I have some water, but in the desert, you should look for the cacti with the yellow flowers. Those ones should give you the strength to keep going. If you're injured, the ones with red and white flowers have healing properties.
But do not eat ones with green flowers. They make Garth's stomach very unhappy.
Yes, thank you Garth. He's right. The cacti with green flowers are highly toxic!






Thanks for the advice. I think it's time to sleep. I'll take the first watch.
That very generous of you, human. Garth needs his beauty sleep.

The night passed uneventfully.





Date: Unknown + 1

The harsh light of dawn broke early. The landscape was bleak and oppressive. There was hard-packed sand and wind-worn rocks as far as I could see. The cliffs continued on all sides but east. It would be a tiring journey; even this early, the sun was making things hot, and there was little shade, save the cliffs.

But I had not returned without some new talents.






I bolstered all my abilities, making me stronger and more resilient. I instantly felt the effects of the heat lessen. I set off looking for the canyon which would lead to the orc village which had been attacked. I hoped to find survivors who could help me, or supplies. Ferol was a long way off, and the growling in my stomach told me that I would probably need food for the journey.

Unfortunately, I was spotted. A gang of red-skinned imps showed up to confront me.




Dark Mistresses tell us we can kill whoever we find out here. Flix Flax. Time to die, human!

Indeed, I could sense that the Imp Chieftain was a very powerful enemy. But I had just gained a some of the powers wielded by the Gods themselves. And after watching my friends and allies die, I was in no mood to negotiate.

I'm going to give you until the count of zero to run.
Wait, what do you -
Too late!

I casually waved my hand. My thoughts became reality; I no longer needed to speak the words.




The single cast of my spell killed their powerful chief instantly.

"Run! Run!" shrieked the now-terrified imps. They ran, and I continued picking them off for emphasis.




One or two of the faster ones actually got away. Hopefully, they'll warn their buddies that it's not a good idea to bother a demigod.






In the shelter of some long-dead trees I found a recently abandoned camp. Probably the one Drox and Garth had abandoned because of the imps.

I continued on.




Not all the imps had learned that I was not to be trifled with.




I was not going to waste more words convincing them. If they wanted to commit mass suicide, I didn't care.




I found the canyon Drox had mentioned and I followed it, keeping an eye on the clifftops for more imps. I was prepared for an ambush, but not what I saw after emerging from the valley.




I-It can't be! My eyes must be fooling me!


Next Time: This Can't Be True!





Behind the Scenes

A HUGE Behind the Scenes update today.

Let's start off with the traditional map. Behold:






Some parts of the map can be seen from the start, presumably while Jeremiah was falling back to the ground.

This is the final "Act" of the game. It's extremely short. I said that we were done with side questing? It's true. There are no side quests in this act, just the main quest. There are only a few NPC's as well. Most of the act consists of fighting monsters. This is the act which suffered when the publishers told Larian to just finish the game off already.

My helmet is not actually damaged, I just want to go bare-headed for the moment for *reasons*. But if you think about it, the helmet was the one piece which Grisha never repaired and reinforced. That's just a coincidence, but I like it.


Ferol? The Teleporter Stones?

We can't go back to Ferol anymore.



Any quests we didn't resolve are considered failed. I do not understand why the game thinks I failed the teleporter activation scrolls quest, because I have all six.

Before I left, I went to Sir Patrick and borrowed 10,000 gold. Oh dear, it seems that I cannot repay him (with interest) now. What a shame.

But what about the teleporter stones? What happens if you have left one or both behind? Not to worry. On the map above, I marked "Teleporter Stones"




They're hidden behind this cactus at a spot just a short way northeast of the start. If you had one or both of your teleporter stones out of your inventory, this is where they inexplicably appear. If you have both in your inventory already, they're still there and not in the desert.

You will seriously want to have these in the desert because it's a long walk back to the traders if you do not have them.


Alternate replies to Garth

You dragon?
Yes!! I am Dantefrex the red dragon. I temporarily polymorphed myself into the form you see before you... bow down to my might!
Hmm... you not dragon. Dragon not waste words when fight. Garth not stupid. Garth think you is human. Human always have money... do you have money?

You dragon?
Die foolish orc!
Dragon!!! You not scare Garth... you scare Drox but Garth not scared. Garth will be good fight.


Additional conversation between Garth and Drox

If you wander a screen away from Garth and Drox, they talk when you come back.




The Axe of a Hundred Crusades

In the center of the eastern part of the map is an imp who carries the super-unique Axe of a Hundred Crusades.



If you have 5 points into Know Creature, you can identify him because he is an Imp Shaman whose stats you can't see. He is above level 50. If you don't have Know Creature 5, he just seems like an extraordinarily tough imp.



Once he's dead, he drops the super-unique axe.



It isn't even the only super-unique axe in the act, but if you've been using them, it's a welcome addition to your arsenal.


Divine Skills



All the Divine skills have no level requirements, and they all cost 20/21/22/23/24 mana at Ranks 1 through 5. I will be discussing these skills from most useful to least useful. For the purposes of the narrative, you can assume that Jeremiah knows all of them but Spirit Form (and possibly Teleport).


Heaven's Blessing
- This skill is the only self-buff in the Divine skill set, and it's probably the best Divine skill of them all. At Rank 1, it boosts all your attributes and resistances by 20% for 30 seconds. At Rank 5, it boosts all your attributes and resistances by 40% for 150 seconds.


Divine Death
- Kill your target, no questions asked. This instantly kills anything with a spiritual resistance below 10/20/30/40/50. Unfortunately, despite the damage it says it does (100-210 at rank 1, 100-250 at Rank 5), it doesn't do any damage if the enemy has a high enough resistance. That's probably because the damage it would do is the highest in the game and would be tremendously overpowered if it hurt enemies who resisted the instant death effect..

It's got an average mana cost for a Rank 5 skill, which makes sense because it's got a limited utility: only the imps and  stone gargoyles  are affected by this by default. Even then, the Imp shamans and Imp mages have 100 Spiritual Resistance and are thus immune.

However, there are plenty of mini-bosses with 2000+ health, and this is the fastest way to take them down. Hit them 3 times with Rank 5 Curse, and that lowers the enemies resistance to below 50, then this skill will finish them in one shot for a grand total of about 84 mana or so, which is much cheaper than trying to whittle their health down with spells that do damage.

This is one of the most worthwhile Divine skills, so go ahead and max this after Heaven's Blessing. This doesn't work on the bosses, even once you take their spiritual resistance below the line.

This is what Zandalor used on the Dragon Rider way back at the end of Act 1. After 600 years, he had picked up a few very special tricks.


Temporal Storm
- This skill is basically an area-effect Limbs of Lead spell. It automatically hits all the enemies on screen, slowing them tremendously for 6/8/10/12/14 seconds, which makes Limbs of Lead worthless to use after this. If you're having trouble this might be helpful, but if you're not, then it's not that useful. It can affect enemies through walls.


Lightning Cascade
- An area-effect spray of lightning. It does 20-50 damage at Rank 1, and 40-130 damage at Rank 5. This is a bit less than Lightning, but the advantages are that it can cast through walls and automatically hits all the targets. There are floating/flying enemies which tend to avoid Burning Wall. When you're facing a single lightning-weak target, use Lightning, but if you're facing a group of lightning-weak targets, then spamming this spell can clear them out fast.


Scorch
- The area-effect fire spell. It creates a patch of fire on the ground that does 20-80 damage at Rank 1, and 44-144 damage at Rank 5. It's finicky about how it hits, and it's not generally effective unless you spam it. It's probably better to use Rank 5 Meteorstrike instead, although you could combine this with Temporal Storm to increase its effectiveness.


Spirit Form
- This is similar to Necroshift and the spider/beetle statuettes. It switches your alignment to enemy, you appear as a ghost which floats around. Don't put any points into this, it's not worth it. (main quest spoilers)  This spell is required for the main quest, but you can find a free rank in it.  This skill falls under "Awesome Divine Power with little gameplay utility."


Translocate
- Teleport anywhere within line of sight. IF you have your teleporter stones, then this skill is pretty pointless, although you can go a long way with just one point by using the technique of scrolling the screen. If you missed finding the teleporter stones, or you have a lot of free points, you could use this to save time walking, but I started the act with 35 free skill points and most of my desired skills already maxed, so I doubt that you'll ever have enough free points to make this your best investment.

If there's a wall in the way, though, you can't go any further. This skill is not useful at all, don't waste a point into this. If Divine Eye worked, this might possibly be useful for safely crossing long distances and bypassing the hordes of enemies. Maybe. This skill falls under "Awesome Divine Power with little gameplay utility."


Divine Eye
- Send a magical eye scouting ahead to see hidden areas. In the CD-version of the game, this skill is actually broken and beyond worthless. The eye does not remove the fog of war, so you cannot actually see anything unless you have already been there. That is the ONE PURPOSE OF THE SKILL and it was never fixed until the GoG version re-release. But it's still a worthless waste of skill points, because at this point you should be able to handle everything you'll face anyway. This skill falls under "Awesome Divine Power with little gameplay utility."



What's fake in this update?

•  As soon as the animation of Jeremiah landing ends, he automatically gets back up. I decided to have him lie there for a while instead, so all the images of him lying on the ground were fake. 
•  I also tweaked the images of Jeremiah at night to remove most of the glow around him. 
•  I faked giving the helmet 0 Durability. It is in fact in perfect condition. 
•  The shots with the imp chieftain were faked. Specifically, the additional imps. The conversation was also fake.