Part 4: 03.B: A Choice To Make

Sorry for the tardy update, I had a bitch of a weekend.
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: She does according to a handful of us, at least! The results were neck-and-neck between Mae and Gae, but Mae clutched it out in the end.

: You suggest that the stowaway girl’s name is Mae.

: Why, that’s it! My name is Mae! My name is Mae!

: Where I am from they called me Mae the Moon-Touched… but, I guess maybe you don’t have to say that part, because, I didn’t really like it.

: Your fellow exiles decide to bring Mae along, for now. She almost collapses from exhaustion, so you take her in and show her somewhere she can rest.




Gfy
: Music: Through The Valley

: The blackwagon arrives in a somewhat peaceful stretch of Jomuer Valley. Your companions wish to hole up here for the night, to give Mae and all of you a little time to rest.



: This screen is similar to the one before the Rites, but the difference is that the button in the lower-right hand corner of the screen is asking us to ‘consider our options’ instead of beginning the Rite. Rites only happen at nighttime, after all, and it’s the middle of the day.

: Let’s check in on the blackwagon first, though, since we have someone that wants to talk to us, and choosing to ‘consider our options’ will end our pit-stop.



: No new pages; no new little baubles that we’ve picked up; just inquisitive Mae, looking to have a word with us. Let’s see what’s on her mind.

: Mae seems to be recovering well since you found her. She seems fascinated by everything and everyone in the wagon.

: Oh! Hi, Mister! You are the one who knew my name, you guessed it right, you did! Thank you for your hospitality! I’ve just been eating with the imps and talking to the wagon.

: This wagon, he and I are the same age! Almost to the very day. But I am older, by three weeks. So I am giving him a hard time. Little brother, I call him. He is a good wagon isn’t he. He will take us very, very far.

: My little brother, sure, he pulls at my hair at times and I don’t like it very much. But he is family! I am happy to be here with my family.

: I thought that I had lost them all again. I thought that I had lost them all.

: Oh, but we have stopped, now, haven’t we? Then I should go outside, to dance, in case the Scribes are watching! Bye, Mister!

: Smiling back at you, she prances out the door.

: … cute kid.



: With our business in the blackwagon completed, it’s time to kick back for some R and R.



: Best get used to your new life here, Reader. We seldom get such moments of reprieve. Perhaps some further study of that Book shall pass the time.

: You could join me for a little stroll if you’re feeling up to it! Always something to be foraged around here.

: Or you could teach us more of what you know. Prepare us for the next Rite. In any case… we do what we can to stay busy. Keeps the sense of isolation well at bay.




: Whenever we get a moment to ourselves, we’ll have the option to do one of three things: study the book; go for a walk; or tutor a single companion. You can only choose one per sitting, of course.

: Foraging can get us any number of things, including vendor trash for the Slugmarket or equipment that can assist us in the Rites (more on that in a second). Studying the book can grant us a permanent buff to all characters in a single stat. And tutoring a companion will boost their Enlightenment, which can bring them closer to a level up.

: Personally, I was never one for the buffs; the boost you get is so minuscule and you have to choose to study so often for it to matter that it seemed like a waste compared to the other two options.. And foraging, while highly useful later, isn’t too necessary right now when we don’t even know what the Slugmarket is yet. So, right now, I think tutoring someone might be our best option.


Gfy



: We can choose between Hedwyn, Rukey, and Jodariel. Whoever we choose will get an immediate boost in their Enlightenment, and if we choose Hedwyn or Rukey, they’ll gain enough to reach the next level. Hedwyn is closest to the next level, so let’s go with him.

: Sure thing friend, I appreciate the offer. Where to begin?

: You illustrate to Hedwyn some of the intricacies of the Rites, focusing on how all three in a triumvirate can move and act as of one mind. You sense he grasps some of the concepts.

: Or, we could, you know, ask him if he understands instead of trusting our gut.


Gfy

: I think I’m beginning to understand something of all this, my friend.



: With a new level, Hedwyn gains himself a brand-spanking-new perk and gives us access to his perk trees. The first-level perk on the left is Martial Training, which rewards Hedwyn with an additional 50% stamina, and the one on the right is Shared Tenacity, where Hedwyn and his allies regenerate stamina twice as quickly as usual.

: Like with Jodariel, and like with all characters, we should really be focusing on the third-level perks the most, since those are the most blatantly overpowered. The third-level perk on the left is Burning Resolve, wherein our own Pyre recovers energy equal to half of the damage Hedwyn does to his adversaries’ Pyre, and the one on the right is Divine Retribution, where any adversary banished (and not just by Hedwyn!) remain banished for an additional two seconds.

: To me, there are three major arguments for Divine Retribution: the first that Burning Resolve requires that our own Pyre be doused in the first place, and if I’m playing like I should be, that ought to never happen. The second is that Divine Retribution gives a significant buff to everyone in Hedwyn’s party, not just himself (although it does require him be in it, but, you know, that applies to all buffs).

: And the third is that both the second-level perks in the left tree are kinda garbage (Power-Casting, or releasing your Aura with the right timing like I demonstrated in the first video, sends Hedwyn’s Aura in a wider, longer line than usual; and if Hedwyn collides with an enemy in the air, that enemy is banished), at least compared to the ones on the right (any teammate can revive any other teammate by going to where they were banished, and, while bearing the Orb, all allies move faster than usual).

: Basically, it boils down to the left tree giving buffs to only Hedwyn and those buffs only activating in specific situations, while the right tree buffs everyone on Hedwyn’s team for more general purposes. It’s a bit of a no-brainer when you put it that way, so, gimme dat Shared Tenacity.



: Now that we’re done tutoring, we can move on with our journey.

: The path leading further west splits off, and once again your fellow exiles turn the choice of where to go over to you. Mae seems enthusiastic for whichever route you choose.



: Charming names, they really make me want to visit them both.




: The basic question here is, to we want a buff to Glory, or to Quickness? In my opinion, all that strength isn’t going to matter if we don’t have the speed to make it to the enemy’s Pyre, or if we’re too slow to avoid banishment. Also, for as foretelling as a name like ‘Fallflat’ is, I’d still rather not go to a place called ‘Gluehive.’


Gfy

: Mae is behaving stranger than usual as you traverse the dry flats of Fallflat.

: This was the path that Jomuer Many-Mane ran across, so many, many times! Can you not feel his presence, him and all his friends, here in the sand, and in the air, and all about?

: At first you pay it little heed, though later you observe your fellow exiles seem to have more of a lightness in their step. Perhaps it was the previous day’s rest that did everyone good.


Gfy

: And finally, it’s time to move on to the anointed area and prepare for the Rite.

: En route to the Spring of Jomuer you hear all about the roving Slugmarket, which appears to be nearby. Rukey insists you take a look after you settle in.



: And there it is, the oft-mentioned Slugmarket, headed by an actual slug. The Slugmarket will appear at most locations where the Rites take place, to allow you the opportunity to gear up for the upcoming trial. This is where we’ll be spending our hard-earned cash.



: Music: Dirty Deal

: Hey, Ron. It’s going.

: Say, how come you’ve set up shop all the way out here? Isn’t this a little out of the way?

: Oh, well let’s just say you guys, you ain’t my only customers! You see, Dad and I, we know this business pretty good, we been around the block, and so…

: As Ron keeps blathering, Rukey signals to you in a furtive way.

: Here’s the deal, chum. Got an informant says there’s something here connected to this Rites business. See if you can spot it. Should be able to pawn some of our stuff to make the trade.

: And, don’t even worry about Falcon Ron.

: …so anyways, you guys got something for me, or what? That Plain Parcel you got there, I could take it off your paws, if you want.



: First of all, ‘Falcon Ron’ is an awesome name.

: Whenever we have any material goods to our name, we can barter them off to Ron for a bit of extra cash, and in turn use that cash to buy goods back from him. We already have ten coins to our name, and moving the Plain Parcel to Ron’s inventory will trade it for another thirty.

: H, hey, you know, I’ll take it, Mister Greentail, though you drive a pretty hard bargain! Now, you gonna take something off my hands here, or what?



: Whenever you’re in the Slugmarket and browsing its wares, Ron fills the empty air with constant mutterings to himself. It’s just babble; he never actually says words, and I doubt anything he says means anything in whatever language is spoken in Pyre’s universe.

: So, you can click on him to make him shut up, and click him again to allow him to resume. But, anyway, we’re here to purchase something.



: These are called Talismans, and they can be equipped onto your characters to provide them with buffs. Each Talisman is unique, with different properties, and some of them even come with prerequisites and conditions. The Moon Crest is a pretty decent choice, giving whoever holds it a thirty percent chance to return immediately upon banishment-by-adversary.

: Moving from right to left, we also have the Lunar Glass, which allows the bearer of the Orb to move ten percent faster; a Cur Fang, which allows the bearer to do an additional two damage to an enemy’s Pyre; and an Ashen Coal, which provides the bearer’s Pyre with an additional seven HP at the start of a Rite.

: The Cur Fang and the Ashen Coal are both pretty neat, but the real prizes here are the Moon Crest and the Lunar Glass, at least in my opinion. Let’s go ahead and buy that Crest.



: Apparently any one of us bozos can get a little edge out of that thing, during the Rites, I mean. Just a question of who gets to try it out.



: The Moon Crest has no prerequisites or conditions, and can be equipped by anyone. And it’s not a permanent choice: you can un-equip and re-equip Talismans as many times as you want. You’ll even be given the opportunity to change your loadout just before the Rite begins, so if I don’t like my choices now, I can change my mind before game time.

: Since my choice isn’t imperative right this red-hot second, let’s just slap it onto Hedwyn for now.



: …anyways, Dad over here, his feet, you know, we’ve been having some trouble with his feet, getting real something or other from all the hoofing around, and so you see…

: Rukey indicates to you that now would be a good time to depart.

: See you, Mister Greentail! And your friend there too, I like him, seems real nice, you know?

: You know, I don't mind Ron.



: We’re about ready to begin the next Rite, but someone’s got business with us in the blackwagon. We also unlocked a new page recently.



: Hedwyn this time. It’d be rude to start reading a book when he’s clearly trying to get our attention, so, let’s see what’s on his mind.

: Hedwyn motions for you to join him. While his manner is as easygoing as ever, you sense his contemplative mood.

: You were wondering about this wagon. It’s a long story, but I’m going to keep it short.



: One of the crazy things I heard one day is that there’s a group of exiles out there fighting one another for their freedom… under the stars, while wearing masks and dresses.

: Everyone I was with just laughed. But something about the story stuck with me and I started to do some digging. Got in touch with Jodi, who I knew. She got in touch with Rukey. He knew who to ask, and it turned out, I knew how to answer. That’s when we got in touch with our contact. Sandalwood.

: We talked only through messengers. Never met in person. I must have gained his trust. He told me to go search in the Sandfolds. Gave an exact location. Told me to bring my friend…. Then, he said to get a Reader.

: The wagon was almost completely buried when we found it. The minstrel was out cold in the corner, just the way you saw him. The rest, you know.



: One day maybe we’ll meet up with our informant and learn more. But now you know as much as any of us do. So, that’s how we got here. How we met you. Anyway, I’ll leave you to it, see you later on.

: He nods at you, and heads out, leaving you there in the blackwagon.



: Well… alright, then. It wasn’t quite as informative as I hoped it would be, but we learned that the blackwagon belongs to Sandalwood and that we’re all pretty clueless about the wagon and the Rites. Whoever the Nightwings were before now were fairly prolific, going by what Lendel said.

: Anyway, let’s read that next page. Take a look, it’s in a book!


Gfy



: Now that we’ve done everything there is to do, it’s finally time to begin the Rite. It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve had one!



: As you complete preparations for the Rites to commence, you notice Mae approaching.



: We can go home?

: Mae! I thought I made myself quite clear that you were not to touch those robes.

: Oh! I’m sorry, Miss Jodariel, I just thought that maybe you were being funny at the time?

: … Unbelievable.

: Jodi’s right. Imagine her, Jodariel, telling a joke.

: Hey, uh… something’s happening in the sky. I think we’re up.


Gfy


: A Choice To Make – Gameplay
: Music: Glorious Tradition



: Whenever a character doesn’t participate in the Rites, they get Inspiration rather than Enlightenment, as represented by the bit of green in Hedwyn’s Enlightenment bar. Basically, Inspiration is an I.O.U on Enlightenment, and the next time Hedwyn participates in the Rites, he’ll redeem his Inspiration for extra Enlightenment.

: I think you can only redeem one-thousand Inspiration for Enlightenment at a time, so if you have more than that, you need to participate in the Rites again to keep redeeming. Also, obviously, you’d get more Enlightenment by just participating in the first place; this system is just in place to keep any character from falling too far behind, assuming you rotate them semi-regularly.



: Meanwhile, Rukey’s got himself a level up.

: Rukey’s two perk trees rely on his mobility, in the left tree, and his power and perseverance for the right tree. For the most part, I think the tree on the left is the better option, except…



: … this level three perk is way too juicy to pass up. When any participant throws the Orb into the pyre, they aren’t banished, but in order to do full damage, they need some time to charge up their throw. Rukey has the speed to just get the dunk, and he wouldn’t be banished if he has this perk in place.

: For posterity, his left tree perks are: Cloud Jump (gives Rukey a double jump. Dalbert used this to avoid one of Jodariel’s strikes); Lucky Break (gives Rukey a fifty-percent chance to return to play after one second if an adversary banishes him); Lightning Run (increases Rukey’s acceleration and top speed); and Moon Sault (gives Rukey a triple jump).

: His right tree perks are: Glory Dive (Rukey deals an additional 5 damage to an adversary’s Pyre if he dunks in it, putting him up to 20, equal to Hedwyn and Mae); Keen Eye (Rukey’s Aura can be cast 50% further); Explosive Temper (Rukey’s Aura gains an area-of-effect to it when he banishes an adversary, and the blast can catch other adversaries); and, as shown, Guiding Light.

: Glory Dive is really kind of unnecessary, but we need it if we want Guiding Light, so, I’m getting that. I’m thinking of getting Glory Dive, Keen Eye, Guiding Light, and then Cloud Jump, but I might change my mind later.



: This being Mae’s first Rite, she hasn’t gained enough Enlightenment to gain a level up. She’s about halfway to her first level.



: You… you’re one of them. What do you want? Father needs me.

: Oh! I’m sorry, I think that I forgot what I was going to say, I’m so embarrassed, I….

: What is the matter with you…? It is against the Rites for us to even speak like this!

: Um, I did not know that, I don’t think? No one said anything like that to me, but then, all this, it’s very new to me, and so, I thought, maybe…

: You cannot be serious.

: Yes! I mean, I like to laugh, I like to laugh a lot, and you, how about you…?

: … This is a Nightwings trick. Father told me not to speak with any of you.

: But, I just…!

: … I have to go.

: Wait…! Almer, wait, I think that was your name, was that even your name?

: Wait….

: Aw, someone has an unrequited crush


Gfy

: As you return to the wagon after vanquishing the Fate, you notice Jodariel tense up and frown.

: Where did he go.

: Who? Wait… the sleeping guy?

: The minstrel… he’s gone.

: You see it is true. There is no trace of the lone minstrel, who had been lying still in the corner of the wagon all this time. You join the others in search for him outside.



: We’ll worry about the minstrel, my friend. You worry about the stars. Wherever they guide us, we’re going.


Gfy

: Everyone! We’re headed back east, all the way across the valley.

: Towards the Cairn of Ha’ub, then.

: That’s right. We have to risk it.

: What if that minstrel guy doesn’t turn up by then?

: We shall find him. On this night or another.





: Before we set out, someone wants to talk to us in the blackwagon once more. May as well give them a word.



: After having defeated the Fate in the Rite last night, you find Hedwyn off on his own. You sense he wants to talk about your decision to exclude him from conducting the Rite.

: I guess we’ll have some tough choices to make before all this is over, my friend. Just been thinking about that.

: You volunteered to sit out. That was not a difficult decision for me.

: I’m glad you let the others go instead of me during the Rite. I mean that. All the more since we succeeded.

: I don’t know what’s more intense, participating in the Rite, or just watching from the sidelines! Anyway, thank you for checking in, I’m off to go make sure we’re ready to move.

: He departs to check on things outside. You sense that he has no misgivings about what transpired, and is more concerned at present about the missing minstrel.



: Well, at least Hedwyn is in generally good spirits, considering. Onwards, to the Cairn of Ha’ub!