Part 68: Vahnatai Ruins and Erox
Update 062 – Vahnatai Ruins and Erox
“You know, this isn't a place we've been to yet either.”
“Well, we must be heading in the right direction.”
“This certainly looks like the right way.”
“And most certainly not cursed.”
“wait a minute...”
“Someone's here?”
“Hello.”
You meet a Vahnatai. Very strange considering they rarely ever leave their deep caverns. He looks extremely ill, like being near the surface doesn't agree with him. He pants. “I am Abra. I greet you, Art-Iktah. It is an honor to meet you. Though I wish it were under better circumstances.” “Everyone, relax. What are you doing here?” He looks up at you, eyes glazed over. “I and Bohen do missions for our people.” “What sort of missions? Rentar-Ihrno told me you were up here.” “For many years, she and I have been going from place to place, reviving sleeping Vahnatai, killing Hydras and the such. But this mission has been being the worst.” He has the usual Vahnatai syntax when speaking, and his voice is weak. “What makes this one the worst?” “The surface is awful, no place for one of us. Worse, we want to find what is in these caves, but there are many monsters.” “The surface isn't that bad.” “For humans? And the Nephil? Perhaps not. I will not conjecture for the Slith. But for us, the people? It is the heat! The lack of pressure in the air! The oddness of the air. Every movement is a difficulty for us. We wish to return home.” “Be that as it may, what are the monsters?” “There are Vahnavoi and Hraithes here. Evil undead, though you already know that, Iktah. I speak for the benefit of your companions. They are the undead of the people, and have been in these ruins for many centuries. We don't know who made this place, but we suspect it was as a prison for dark souls. But we can go no further. It is with shame that I must ask for your help, mighty Iktah.” “Laying it on a bit thick there? But fine, we'll help.” “Please, be speaking to Bohen. We cannot fight the monsters ourselves. Not as we are. But you might.” “Delilah, Ni'aurrl, do what you can for him.” “On it.”
Abra also makes reference to the events of Exile 2 for those who never played it. But given that Art was there, doing those things, I skipped that branch of the conversation. “{I greet you, honoured elder.}”
“Please, let us use the language of your people, Honoured Iktah.” You meet a Vahnatai, carefully studying a book written on mica sheets. She stands and bows elaborately to you. “I am being pleased to meet you, honoured Iktah, and to see your companions. Again, I am named Bohen-Ihrno.” “Uh... Ihrno? Iktah?” “Ihrno transliterates as 'sage' or 'wise leader'. There's no real equivalent in Imperial Common. As for the other, I'll explain later.” “Know that is is a mark of honor, one not given lightly. I am being pleased you be having you here. We were knowing Exiles were up here, but not expecting them to visit this site.” “I am glad to know there is cooperation between Exile and the people. How did you find this place?” “We were having much pleasure in knowing our allies were returning to their homes. In fact, it was Exile spies who were detecting this site, and reporting it to us so we could visit.” “Makes sense. We're not the only team up here, nor are you the only Vahnatai we have encountered. What can you tell us about the site?” “It is being a great mystery. It is a Vahnatai ruin, but here, at the surface of the world. Where our people are thought never to have been. It is greatly ancient, and greatly interesting.” “Yes, this is a mystery. My initial theory is that it was an old research outpost on the Surface since before the last Great Sleep.” “Wise, indeed. Such is the thoughts of many Ihrno who were told of this place. But thoughts being not knowing. We of the people are always having a great need to know of our ancestors. For them to have being here is one of the things we are wanting to be knowing. But you have been told of our problems by Abra, yes? I will not ask for your help without offering reward.” “Aside from the undead, what is your problem? “This ruin may be invaluable to us, helping understanding our ancestors and give us incredible new knowledge. We are supposed to report it back to our people, but alas, we can cannot get inside. Please, Iktah, for the people, go in there, kill the undead and find if there is anything of value to us in there.” “Alright.” “You sure this is wise?” “Destroying the undead is always the moral choice.”
“It looks like they put up Fire Barriers to keep the undead contained.” “I don't wanna walk through that!”
“owwie” “So, Iktah?” “Wait! I already explained this, back when we first went into Ghirka! Why are we doing it again?”
“Because she forgot?” “No!” “maybe.”
“I would totally understand that if it hadn't been worn away by time.”
“The style is definitely different here.” “I don't recognize it.”
“I could dig through that in a couple days with the right tools.” “Which we don't have.” “Come on, I see broken walls to the south.”
“Oh. Right. Undead.”
Hilariously overpowered by the party.
“Let's kill zombies!” “I can agree to that.”
“But first, structure damage.”
“Oh, hey, more of them!” Just as outgunned.
“Let's see if anything was left here.”
“This looks important!”
“This appears to be some sort of keying mechanism, to identify those who step on it.” “Harmful?” “No. At least, not directly.”
“Nothing else here, just passages to the south if the magic map is right.” “Which it always is!”
“Anyone else here that?”
“Argh!” “There are lines all through these passages that will trigger defences like this!” There is a safe way through. Not that I bothered to plot it out until much later.
“We just have to be careful.” “And now that we're far enough away, I have to question whether Abra and Bohen are part of Rentar-Ihrno's group.” “Probably not. The group of Vahnatai responsible for investigation of old ruins like this report directly to the Olgai Council, and not to Rentar-Ihrno. For her to corrupt that organization would have resulted in sanctions against her by her people. And she's the kind of person to not need to control everything, trusting in the competency of people – once they've proven they are that.” “When did you first meet Rentar-Ihrno?”
“In the mage-town of Egli. It's the Vahnatai Olgai's version of the Tower of the Magi. I met her after rescuing one of the Bok's from Imperial captivity, and got her aid in rescuing others. Then she helped organize the assassination of Garzhad. Apparently I impressed her with my ability to get the job done.”
“These statues should move out of the way. And what is it with you and gaining the confidence of powerful mages? You're on a first-name basis with the Archmage Redmark, and Rentar-Ihrno is willing to be helpful and informative, when she's not planning genocide.” 
“It's just me, I guess?” To remove these statues, you have to find two hidden switches in the maze. One is in the upper left, here:
And the other is in this loop here:
“The final chambers.”
“I love having the right keys.” 
“Of course there would be more undead.”
Naturally, the game starts out by putting us behind a transparent barrier to allow the enemy spellcasters access to us before we can rush them in melee.
So, naturally, Art rushes ahead. Because she's awesome.
And reached LEVEL 50 in the process! She's reached the level cap! Huzzuh! Except I don't do any training until after this little shopping trip is over.
“I suspect this will be more tedium than excitement.” “I agree.”
“This passage is activated by magic – we cannot pass right now.”
“Not much here.”
“Then I'll just blow down this wall here.” “And there's nothing in these pots either.”
“More undead.”
“Well, there's another glyph here.” “It is the twin to the one we found earlier. Triggering this one now will enable, I believe, that wall to the south to open up.”
“And that should do it.”
“Like that!”
“This isn't a normal resting cell. But we've done what we can here. Let's report back.”
“Hello again, honoured elder. We have completed the mission.” “Thank you! Now that we know something here is truly valuable, it is time for us to report to our people. We must depart. You have done us a good deed, honoured Iktah. You may keep what trinkets you found in this place. But for you, something more important is in order. What being it..?” “Yes! That shall do! I shall teach your companions the Word of Recall spell!” Word of Recall is the same as the Amulet of Returning we already have. It's a nice contingency piece should you never have gotten that in the first place.
“Nice to know that there are non-hostile Vahnatai out here.” “HORSIES!”* * *
Free source of Ember Flowers up here along the north-western coast, should I make Skill Potions. It's almost directly west of the previous dungeon.* * *
This encounter is roughly on a line half-way between the previous two locations, on a tangent to the north about an equal distance. Which means nothing to you guys because I've given up on mapping the overworld. But trust me, it's there.* * *
“There are five of us. Really?” “He says he can. And honestly, it's not like we have to kill him.” “I feel conflicted about this.”
“Die!” “Suddenly, I feel less conflicted.” 
I love specialized tools! That was a one-shot on the Demon by exactly 1 HP over it's max HP!
“We can sell this later.”* * *
“There is a peninsula to the south.”
“And a road!”
“I feel we should visit.” “And at least sleep in a real bed.”
“HELLO?”
“Anyone here?”
“Greetings?”
“Where is everyone?”
“This is wrong. We need to find out what happened here.”
“I think I hear something...”
“RAKSHASA!”
Oh hell no! These guys are a pain, even at the best of times due to their magic immunity. And they love to summon Demons. 
Well, time to drop Anti-magic fields, and let my physical brawlers do their thing.
Drop Anti-magic fields any time now...
No, seriously past me. Antimagic is the best spell in Exile 3 at this point. USE IT MORE!
Much better.
“And that's the last of them.”
“The evil kitties killed everyone!” “Excuse me!” “You're not evil!” “Nor am I a xenocidal Rakshasa!”
I love the implied intensity of combat in this room. Blood, craters, the works!
“I'll be careful.”
“Not much.” “That's enough. This town is dead. Let us leave the dead to their avenged rest.”
“Hey. Unicorns! Can we get them, for old times sake?” “... yeah. Lets.” 
* * *
More Ember Flowers should I make Skill Potions.
This fight really isn't worth it, as the enemy usually won't leave you with enough SP to cast the required Antimagic fields.* * *
“WHAT IS THAT?”
“Incredible...”
“A WALL? It reaches from the Coast to the Mountains!”
“There is no escape.”
“And it even extends along the coast to prevent people from flying around it.”
Behold, the wall at the top of the world. You can't go north from here, as the map simply ends. It's all south from here, and to the east in this particular case. On the right side you can see the path I took, hopping from empty space to empty space in the mountains. There's nothing there that I can find, save a little bypass to reward the persistent and daring. Or those who have a full map cheat on, looking for new things.* * *
“This doesn't look good.”
“It's ominous!”
“NEVER SHALL I BOW TO THE GREMLIN MENACE!”
This little forest is home to three encounters with Gremlins. At this point, they are not a problem, even with Gorgon reinforcements in the last fights.
“Yoink!”* * *
“And now we know it has to be in these mountains!” “After how many detours?”
“We'll have to leave the horses behind, and fly further up.”
“Watch out!”
“Eh, we can take'm.”
“That was a bust.” “Aww... well, let's keep looking then.”
Uh oh. I ... uh ... just screwed myself over. I can't leave this little alcove of mountains. I can't pass by the higher white-capped mountains, and I can't move past or land on the horses! I hate to do this, but I'm going to have to use the Amulet to get back to Fort Remote, and write this set of horses off. Let's land, and do that.
SUNNOVABOTCH! There is a RANGE LIMIT on Word of Recall and The Amulet of Returning. I'm outside that range here. I cannot leave this little area. At all. Unless I cheat. Back to Fort Emergence with me. Oh well. So, just a warning to you all. You can fly away from your horses, but you can't fly back to them.