Part 34: Update XXXII - Goondalf the G(lacial)

Part XXXII - Goondalf the G(lacial)

While we... learned much from the wizard Glaucus last time, including where to find the Muir and its ancient knowledge, there is yet more we knowledge we can seek from him.





Have the Sha'ahoul or Naga entered this plane?

I know nothing of these Sha'ahoul you speak of, but I have encountered the Naga on my journeys across the planes. They seem to be of an ancient race that has fallen from the greatest heights of glory. Likely, their alliance with the Sha'ahoul is an attempt to revive their once-massive empire. They are potent foes, who will strike without mercy at every opportunity.

What do you know of this Astral Guardian?

The Astral Guardian has watched over the Astral Plane for untold ages, preventing ambitious individuals or groups from exploiting this crucial nexus. I imagine it would take a tremendous amount of power to overcome her; so much, in fact, that I see no way that mortals of your world could ever do so. The amount of energy is simply too great. Somehow, your enemies must have tapped an incredible power source.

What do you know about the Naga?

Whatever world they inhabit now, I doubt it is their original home. Once, according to tales that have spread across the planes, they ruled over several worlds; at some point, however, they suffered such a blow that they almost became extinct. Since then, they have sought to reclaim their glory through innumerable acts of deceit.

Thank you, Glaucus -- I always prefer to know as much about my enemies as I can. Farewell.

Oh, but we're not done here yet. Surely the old man won't mind if we... peruse some of his tomes.







What the book we already have does for Fireball, this spell does for Frost (i.e. makes the projectiles bigger, and do more damage too I guess). Not super useful here since everything has huge Cold resistance, but perhaps some day in the future!

Anyway, we were told last time to look for a cave, so let's borrow this book and then start searching.



Almost forgot to post this transition image, since they were removed in the patches for some reason.



They attacked us.



The Training Points from killing them are incidental.



Huh, these yetis look a bit different from the ogre-sprite one. Don't worry though, they still hit just as hard.



Of course, hitting hard requires them to run up to us before the Flames of G burn them to ash.







Sometimes the local wildlife fight each other as well.



This looks promising. Are yetis intelligent enough to guard entrances...?



It's just about the only place left to go, the south bit is a dead end. (That section in the upper left is actually the training room we went to last update.)



Ooo, shiny.







Ugh, wraiths. Or rather, "Doomfrosts" on this plane.



Like all wraiths, they love casting Deflect, using our own flames against us. Deflect doesn't help them against Wyatt's arrows though.



Also, a whole new material to make golems out of! Shit golems nearly confirmed.

I hotkeyed our fancy Great Wolf spell mainly to deal with wraiths and their Deflections, but no reason we can't use it on golems too.



It literally summons a giant ghostly wolf head that initiates a bite on the enemy. I guess that's not... technically a projectile.



A bunch of them can be stacked on the same enemy by clicking the spell multiple times.



Once they finish the nom, the golem crumbles.



Fire is still our friend though.



Sometimes we get lucky and the Doomfrosts don't cast Deflect... but sometimes we also get unlucky and they Hold us instead. But, with the power of time on our side, such minor setbacks lose us a few minutes of progress at worst!



Wish the wolf head was easier to see, it's pretty badass looking. It would be even harder to see outside in the snow fields though, so I'll have to remember to try to show it off later.

And don't forget to check bodies even now. Despite the fact that nothing else in this plane has any loot, one random Doomfrost on the map has an artifact.







It's not incredibly good or anything, but damned if Goondalf isn't completing his Items of Power collection.



Oh yeah. Despite Great Wolf being an Indirect spell, that only matters for the purposes of not being deflected. If we don't have line of sight to the target it will still get blocked, such as by this ice formation.

A few reloads later from Doomfrost bullshit, we finally reach our destination.



Well, uh. It's... definitely making this place its own.





Before I ask my question, I would know of your history.

I have existed since the first spark of life, absorbing all knowledge gathered by the senses of living beings. I have taken root in this remote location so that my knowledge is not abused for frivolous or harmful purposes. Within my rings are the histories of untold civilizations. Power and tragedy, love and loss, courage and treachery -- all this do I remember, and so much more. I can see into your heart, and I know that your motives are pure, so ask what you will of me.

I have several questions for you, wise one.



Do you know how the Astral Guardian can be freed from her imprisonment?



What do I need to pass through the portal to Infernus?

I will provide you with an item to pierce the veil between worlds and enter the land of Infernus. [Branches part, and a medallion falls into your hands.] The Pyre medallion will activate the portal each time you wish to pass through it. Please accept it along with my best wishes for your success.

What dangers exist in the fiery world of Infernus?

Infernus is among the most inhospitable lands. There are no civilized people in all its realms, only ravenous bands of monsters wandering the blasted landscape. The fires are so great that most non-native beings must wrap themselves in potent enchantments to avoid being consumed.

HINT HINT

What do you know of the world of the Naga?

'Tis a dreary and dank swamp that the Naga call home. This is not their original land, but actually where they were forced to retreat to, following the fall of their massive empire ages ago. The Naga have kept themselves quiet in Notsuoh for several generations, biding their time until they could find their means to reclaim their glory.

What is the mage Glaucus's story?

Glaucus has resided in this valley for quite some time now -- at least on the scale of time you mortals use. He once wielded great power across the planes, but grew weary of the unending number of assaults from power-hungry rivals. Now he serves as an unofficial guardian against those who would misuse my knowledge.

Thank you so much, great Muir. I will journey to Infernus now. Farewell.



Truly the face of wisdom.



Cave is mostly explored, no hidden treasures, just some monsters to clean up. Let's beat it.





Sorry again buddy.



Now it's time to swap our Cold protection stuff for Heat protection stuff.



Then head back to the Nexus and get ready for things to heat up!! Sorry.





Hey, a welcoming committee!



Hey stop casting stuff!



These guys cast really fast, so we have to move around to avoid the Fireballs they sling.



Sometimes we can avoid triggering their aggression and unleash a volley of snowballs at them before they start casting. And mercifully they don't know the Deflect spell.



Though our powers of ice are so strong now that it only takes one sometimes.



Depending on where we are on the screen in relation to the enemy, we can get in quite a few Frost castings before they can even react.



Good thing too, because this is how much health we lose if the Elementals manage to get off some spells and we don't juke them.



Up to five! Can we get six iceballs on screen at once?



Ugh, lava golems too?





These guys are much less threatening than the Fire Elementals, at least, since they're purely melee.



The Song of Ice and Fire continues.





Argh, my attention was focused elsewhere and I didn't notice this guy right in front of us! Only two iceballs this time.



Even worse is when they hang out in the lava fields, camouflaging themselves well and becoming unreachable for melee characters.



Duckin' and divin'.



And killin'.



Oh, what's up non-monster friendos



Whatchya guys casting on that lava geyser?







You ain't goin' nowhere punk.



Even better, we cross another 10 point threshold of Mysticism using the resulting TP!



And break 100 modified! Truly epic power.



At least the Elementals get an outline when the cursor is actually over them.



Oh, and here's the Blizzard spell. It's not nearly as impressive as Frost, though it can help with crowds sometimes.



And speaking of crowds... Yikes.



I guess Blizzard might have helped here, but it is not a glorious enough spell for Goondalf the G!!





Somehow during this mess, Icharas gets chased by a single bug all the way to this offscreen peninsula, where his AI was trying to swing at it with the dagger.



Once I switched over to him, a single Frost cast killed it. Icharas



Doing good. Now, with our wayward companion rescued, we can continue deeper into the caves.



Hopefully it will be less hot there.



Golem chumps try to fade us, but they ain't shit.



Goondalf decides to live dangerously (and explore the map more efficiently) by skirting the edge outside the cave.



Also to avoid aggroing a ton of these dudes, feasting on dead crabs.



Need to call an exterminator for this plane, it is gross.



LAVA CRABS



Even bigger lava crabs!





Are these human bones?





Oh wow, a prize! Somehow this chest hasn't burned up.







This wouldn't be good even if we were a Fighter, but eh. Toss it on the magic junk pile!



The plane has been fully explored, and the Sha'men on it have been dealt with, so we can go back to the Astral Guardian and see if anything has changed there. Next time, anyway, for the usual pacing reasons. I promise it will be worth the wait! We're nearing the finale of Chapter Five!


AVALON FASHION SHOW



Yes, there have been other outfits with the hood of infinite darkness.



But this one combines it with studded leather and gloves to make a nice night camouflage pack that doesn't rely on bulky cloaks!



The pants may be a bit blocky, but that's a small price to pay for going unnoticed. And unkilled too, I suppose.