Volourn

Time to fulfill Baley's wet dream of Danger In Dwarfland! Expect a long read, and history lesson. Anyway, here we go... Area: Holderheim Stronghold Location: Great Desert (formerly the Weslen Mountains...) Origins: The dwarven stronghold is ancient even by dwarven standards having been build 20k+ years ago. It was originally used by a single dwarf family simply known as the Holderheims as an outpost for the Metal Empire of the Great Mother (yes, that was the name of the empire) to guard against the Northern Tribes who consisted of the 'Race We Do Not Speak Of'. The Holderheims eventually convinced the king to send more soldiers to help guard the Empire Gates. The Holderheims did well in defending the then relatively small fort. However, the Northern Tribes for some reason decided to commit themselves to a full frontal attack. Outnumbered nearly 1000 to 1, the soldiers were nearly wiped out, and would have been if not for some unexpected allies in the form of dwarves from the depths of mountainous caves who showed up. With their new allies, the Holderheims managed to win the day. Of course, when all was said and done only three family members, and a handful of soldiers survived. When the deep dwarves took off their helms, Lord Rurrik was shocked to see they were duergar - normally, the hated and hateful dark cousins of surface dwarves. Cooler heads prevailed, and Rurrik asked their leader why they helped. The answer was simple, curt, and to the point: "We hate the Northern Tribes more than we hate you." With that, the dark dwarves just marched back into the deep recesses of the the then almost unknown Underdark. Meanwhile, with the enemy defeated, Lord Rurrik's troops were left with not much to do; but be bored so they took to exploring the mountainous caves in the reasons. One of these explorers, a scout and skilled miner simply known as The Axle struck it.... mithril of all things. When this was reported back to Lord Rurrik, he sent word to the king who sent word straight back asking him to make a permenant base there to mind the mithril. The Rise: Having a mithril mine is the quickest way to attract miners, and other workers. Many dwarves made their way to the once small Outpost. Several hundred years went by, and the population of the now named Holderheim Stronghold was easily into the thousands. The mass of mithril reins seemed endless, and unlimited. So much so, the two major mines themselves were known as either Mithril Mass or River of Mithril. At this time, duergar who had helped them centuries before returned, and were pleasantly surprised about the turn of events. Their leader, now a Genereko (General in their tongue), demanded some of the profit. Through some tough negotiations it was said, in honour of their help, the dueragr were to be given a portion of the mithril veins to mine for their people. From that day, a small duergar subsection of the now burgeoning city stronghold, was carved out. Amazingly enough, the duergar and surface dwarves managed to live side by side in relative peace. High Lord (his new official title) Rurrik, being really old at this time at a rapidly aging 554 years of age (when the typical dwarf lives to about 400-450 years old) needed to name a successor to his throne. That was to be his grandson Oskar who seemed to be most capable. The duergar leader at this time - as the General had passed away a century before - one Lord Veito Blacktrunn wanted to assure the future of his people no matter who would rule the stronghold made two simple request. The first was that the new High Lord would actually become the King. The second would be that he would take a Queen - a Duergar Queen to be exact, and specifically his daughter. High Lord Rurrik pondered this... He grudgingly agreed to the first even though knowing this would anger the King of the Empire. Veito agreed to go ask the king hiimself for permission. Sadly, by the time returned High Lord Rurrik had passed away in his sleep before even deciding on the second request. Meanwhile, Veito claimed, and had the proof in the form of a signed Royal Empire Document that the king approved of both his requests. The new High Lord, and now King Oskar Holderheim agreed to take Veito's daughter as wife. She became Queen Lirtrassa, the first duergar queen to sit side by side with a surface dwarf. Luckily enough, the two seemed a great fit, and worked well together. Sadly, it didn't take long for the truth of Vieto's lies to come into the light. The Empire had sent an army to the stronghold to punish the murderers, and wipe out the treasonous. A battle ensued, and many lives were lost needlessly on both side. Finally, Queen Lirtassa used her charms to call for a truce, and the parties started to negotiate. These negotiations were long, and hard; but worked out. It waa found that Vieto was actually a dark sorceror who used the shadows themselves to murder the Empire's King and made it look like King Oskar was the one who gave the order. Obviously, Vieto faked the document. Vieto, after a struggle that destroyed half the palace, and killed nearly a hundred royal guards, was captured. He was sentenced to death, and the order was carried out 10 days later. Just before the Executioner cut off his head, Vieto made one last threat - he cursed the stronghold, and warned that he hoped they enjoyed their Desert Kingdom. Queen Lirtrassa was sadden by her obviously mad father's demise; but knew it had to be done. She was never the same afterwards.. That sad tale aside, thousands of years went by with the stronhold become larger than ever - numbering in the hundreds of thousands with still no end in sight for the flow of mithril. The Royal couple were blessed with many children, and the lives of the dwarves were filled with nothing; but joy. Many smaller strongholds popped up all alla round, and it slowly became a kingdom in its own right. That, of course, would eventually come to an end... The Fall: Many years had gone by. Many happy years. However, whispers started to spread about an odd gray cloud to the south of the mounatins headed their way and how this cloud was literally turning the area surrounding the still relatively young kingdom by dwarven standards into a desert - much like the Accursed Veito threatened... This was a slow process, however, and eventually the cloud just vanished. However, when all was said and done, all around the stronghold was a large desert where once there were mountains. Shocked, the current King Libirill turned to the Dwarven Scholars College as well as the wisest of humans and elves to try to determine where the cloud came from, and what exactly happened. No solid leads turned up, and eventually the dwarves had to just move on. Things were still going well so it wasn't all bad news... Exactly a century later, the mithril strains seemingly started to dry up. It seemed almost unexplainable. Some just shrugged their shoulds and said it was bound to happens, and others felt it was another sign of the rumoured Doomsday of the Dwarves myth. Irrevocably, all this led to a revolt by a young upstart warrioress called Hilda Hammerlin who blame the royal family for poor planning. After 5 years of bloody fighting on the streets of the City Stronghold as well as the various caves this uprising was brought to a stop. Hilda, even when given the option to surrender, fought to the bitter end even when her former followers realizing the hopelessness, and the mistakes they made in joining her foolishness dropped their weapons. The obviously quite mad Hammerlin even had the gall to scream out, "I WILL KILL YOU ALL!" even as the killing blow struck her right between the eyes. It was said by those closest to her that the young dwarf's change started to become apparant after she had spent a weak 'exploring' an abandoned mithril mine in the closed off South Tunnels, and came back covered in tattoos of all sorts... This led the king to decide, grudgingly, to lead an expedition himself to find out the possible cause of this disaster. Whatever they saw, who is to say; but whatever it was is unknown since nothing or no one has been heard out of Holderheim since... The Present: Holderheim Stronghold is often referred to as the Strangled Mithril amongst dwarves, and not referred to at all by other races who have sadly forgotten it completely outside of scholars, and other know-it-alls. It is not even really known where the stronghold exactly is except the fact that it is somewhere hidden in the Great Desert. Some adventurers have claimed to have been there; but the tales they share seem to be too farfetched to be believed. Golems made of gems, creatures from other planes, and sentient weapons and armour are just some of the rumours mentioned. Not to mention gold, gems, and powerful weapons as well. More recently, some also say that duergar have some sort of camp set up, and thrreaten to kill any who dare to loot the ancient stronghold. What secrets are hidden inside this Fortress in the Sands? What terrors lurk there that have yet to reveal themselves? Exactly what cause the kingdom's final downfall, and worse yet, does it remain? Only those who dare to explore, and discover this stronghold may find out the answers; but they may not be pleased with having their questions answered with such finality... WOWSERS! Way too long, and that's the short version without spoilers... <_< NEXT TIME: To rap up the series on a trio of henchmen portfolios; I will share a write up for one from part 3... That is all.

Don't rule out E7-9 yet. And, there might even be a prequel to the prequels...

Source found here: http://www.cinescape.com/0/editorial.asp?a...38&obj_id=48836 Improtant Stuff Below: (Lucas) said, no question about it, prior to PHANTOM MENACE. He said, that if he did ever do another storyline.... that he would do when the Jedi regained control of the universe from the Dark Lords (there were many of them) 800 years before PHANTOM MENACE. And a young Jedi named Yoda was instrumental in the effort. Of course, this is gossip right now; but when it comes to such a gaurnateed successful franchise like this and the fact that Lucas is rightly proud of the Universe he's created; i surely wouldn't really rule out any more movies. Though; I'd rather have an E7-9 series; this prequel to the prequel may be workable...

Maybe the Phantom Menace prequel that Lucas is planning might answer that question.... "

"Yeah..it really seems darker than the OC" He's just the start....

"like him... Was he rejected by a lot of women during his life time?" No. He was quite shy. In fact, his wife was/is his one, and only in every way. Such a horrible experience it seems... "A place with lots of dwarfs..." Heh. Ok. "Or a danger to come" I could include this with the suggestion above. "

"Hmm..what level would you rate the gods?" Beyond the reach of humans. They simply do not enter mortal lands. Now, for the details of the chapter one character... Character Name: Hykul Witcheta the Third Race: Ghast (formerly human) Sex: Male Age: Unknown Class: Fighter/Blackguard/Cleric (formerly worshipped Herotus; now worships Karvlar) Personality: He is hateful of the living, exstremely violent, and espicially women who he feels are beneath contempt. Dedicated to cretaing as many ghouls as possible in honour of his new god. Combat Style: Aggressive, and while quite intelligent espicically for a ghast;Hykul is quite forward in his method of attack. He claws his opponet sin hopes of turning them as well as in a counter-productive matter cutting them in half with his negatively charged bastard sword. The ghast has no problem using any of his abilities to his advantages. Skills of Note: Causing death, and transforming the living into undead ghoul servants during elabortae ceremonies are the only skills of note he possesses now. What he did in life; he will not say.. Hometown: Unknown and unimportant Goals: As above, his only current goal is to create as many ghouls as possible and to cause as much pain as posisble espciially to those of the opposite sex. Description: Hykul is a ghast, and he looks the part except for the dark armour he wears and the bastards word he carries. Noteworthy Equipment: Hyrkul wears Blackguard armour cursed by Karvlar, and wields a negatively charged bastrad sword that takes the energy from its victim to the sword's weilder. Using the sword corrupts the user's soul in a never ending process. Hyrkul also wears the unholy sumbol of his diety which he proudly shows to all - just before the ghast murders them.... Background: Not much is known about Hyrkul's life before the turn except that he was raised as all Witchetas usually are - pampered beyond belief. He was said to be a quiet boy with dark, sad eyes almost like he was mournful of what the future held for him. Eventually, the boy turned into a man and was married to a wonderful girl. The first few years of their marriage was supposedly happy until he snapped, and started brutalizing her. This awful, unforgivable behavious first led him to locking her in the Mansion Basement and evntually killing her and a servant in a jelaous rage when he thought he saw them together. A few days later he was found hanging in the very spot he had murdered his wife. Such a sad ending to a sad life. Or so it was thought. It is unknown how it hapopened; but happened; but now Hyrkul is doomed to a life as a ghast. He is always on the look out for someone - anyone - to take his pain from him. How the PC meets with the ghast, or how the PC deals with him is a mystery. Alas, this is one story that will likely not have a happy ending... Next Update: I shall let you decide what iw ill write about next. Will it be about a character? A place? A magical trinket? A particluar summon? Dangers to come? Anything is up for grabs; but nothing about chapter 4...

The gods would slaughter you. Slaughter you, they would. All the while they'd be sipping hot chocolate, skateboarding across lava, balancing 4 nuclear bombs with their toes, and in a deep sleep of 10 years.

"Q: You can't ascend into godhood right?" Likely not. It's for levels 4-8. (w00t) And, the later mods, I surely haven't done that much b/g to even worry about it.. "And does becoming a god in this world work the same way as in Toril ? " No real way to do so. Only two of the current gods were once mortal - Trinity, and Vikkra. And, that a long time ago... The others have always been gods..

"Could the henchwoman abandon you because of the story?..and not failed romance..." Yes. There's lots of things that can end up happening story wise with her (and the majority of henchmen). Any possible romance (though not all hench people can be romances) is just one of many occurances... Your interaction with her is just part of what determines what she'll do.

"She's a GOD she has to make it there..." Oops. :"> My bad. I thguht you were talking about the dwarven henchwoman. LOL :D Yeah, the Goddess will be around in all chapters. That said, PCs tend not to interact directly with gods for obvious reasons..

"Not the dwarven lady tho,right?" Eh? Where this come from? LOL "I'm expecting to see a glorious view of her in ch 2-3" Only if she makes it to ch3...

1. Possible. depending how you interact with them. 2. Maybe. It would only be fair. Might even be a neutral god. Mystary.

"Do you get any special treatment for following Herotus?" No. That said, Herotus is one of the most followed gods so his church has a lot of power. "Can you change deity alliegences during ch1?" Yes. there's at least 2 chances to do so; but it's a risky proposition as it has huge side results...

I agree about the lack of quality roel-playing games. "A LG deity Hmm...are they fakeing their allegiance?" No; but let's just say that not all the Witchetas worship him, and some who claim to really don't follow all his tenents nor does he approve of their actions... <_<

Twice? Solo? And, peopel call me a fanboy. I only completed any of the three NWN cmapaigns twice because I played eahc of 'em in MP. Otherwise, just once in SP. Another tidbit that you playtesters would know: The Witcheta family's Official Diety is Herotus, and he's one of only two religions that actually play an active part in any quests in this first part..

Millions, ya hope. And, aye, I like the OC; but it coulda been better. I hoipe you like the game. If not, you've spent a lot of time in the thread about a mod for it for some odd reason then. :D

Well, yeah. That's part of interactions. There'll be religion specifc rewards. remember, by the time you finish ch3 there'd have been at least one temple or shrine for each of the good which will contain quests, npcs, treasures, and the like both as rewards for both normal worshippers and specifically for priests/paladins/druids...

You get nothing at the start; but it can help or hurt you while playing the game depending on interactions. Being a priest gives you no powers outside of the normal priestly powers. This may change though depending on the time line of mod development...

But, that particular sect does. They just didn't appreciate seeing others forgive an enemy just to be killed so now they have hardened their hearts to that aspect of the goddess' portfolio. They're still about love, life, and happiness. It's just felt that there is no room for second chances... The irony, of course, is that while they break their Goddess' code; she still looks out for them in hopes of them realizing the errors of their ways. Such a tragedy...

"Yeah I know..I'll probably choose Mylissia " You gonna be one of those who abuse her powers, huh? Unforgiving. "sounds promising...I'm rather curious about the secret ones" Isn't everyone? Well.. except me, of course. No worries though since they won't be avilable to like the 2nd or 3rd module since those spells are rather high level, anyways.

"Yeah I like 'em..." "I miss a really interesting NG god for all...." That's ok. NG characters can worship the other gods - you don't have to share the same alignment as your god. "Tho I'm sure I'll play a dwarf or somethin' like that " Dwarves rule. "I like Mother Graystone best" Heh. Bias towards dwarves? That's good. " "Did I hear something about a new NPC bio? " No; but you did read something about a new NPC bio.. Question: What did you think of the undead and planar summons? <_< P.S. When Smilies Attack! (w00t)

I will post the world's gods. The gods, their names, and their portfolios aren't really anything unique; but the effect they have on players in ther actual game world does. Don't really expect the list to wow you... DIETIES OF DURNLA ------------------------- Name: Herotus, God of Heroes (LG, Male) Domains/Portfolios: Heroes, heroics, loyalty, goodness, bravery, & justice Symbol: Golden Statue of Man in Prayer Preferred Followers: Any race, any class (except evil ones), all alignments but evil Background: Herotus is a shining beacon of Truth, Justice, & Honour. He dislikes weakness and cowardice. Followers of this god are the bravest of the brave, and the majority of paladins follow him. Many commoners also worship or pay homage to Herotus due to the fact that his servants are always helping them in one way, or another. While seemingly the most powerful of the gods, Herotus' star seems to be fading as often the people see his followers being way too rigid in their views of 'good versus evil'. Name: Karvlar (CE, Male) Domains/Portfolios: Death, dying, disease, undead, undeath, & corruption Symbol: Black Wreath Preferred Followers: Any race but elf, any class but paladin, all evil ones Background: Karvlar is shunned by the masses in public; but in private many whisper small prayers to him in a neffort to appease the vile god. His greatest achievement to him is being hated yet worshipped at the same time. He absolutely enjoys corrupting the pure, and numbers quite a few former paladins amongst his followers since his corrupting persuasive powers can be quite impressive. Wherever there is there is undead there is sure to be a wizard or a cleric who prays to Karvlar on bended knee nearby. Name: Trinity the Great Trader (N, Female) Domains/Portfolios: Gold, gems, treasure, trading, merchants, the poor, the desperate, travel, exploration, caves, dungeons, & adventurers. Symbol: An Open Palm Balancing a Gold Coin, A Stone, & A Map Preferred Followers: Any Background: Long ago, Trinity was actually three human mortal women from different walks of life - a rich noble named Guinevere, a poor streetwalker known simply as Tulip, and a reknown adventureress called Alasha - who due to a then unfortunate incident actually had their souls combined into one. Times have changed, and now they work as one and are completely unseperable personality wise. Most mortals don't even know the story of how Trinity became to be. That said, the three sides of Trinity is the rich, the poor, and the free. Trinity preaches that nobles should use their power to better the lives of the poor, and the poor should respect the standing of the rich. Adventurers should also use their great skill in their chosen field to make sure this respect is kept; but should never overstep their boundaries lest they allow the foundations of society to collapse into total anarchy. Name: Bloody Lady Vikkra (NE, Female) Domains/Portfolios: War, blood, hatred, domination, conquest, fear, contempt, slavery & anger Symbol: Battlefield Littered With Corpses Preferred Followers: Anyone willing to shed blood for a cause Background: The War Mistress loves battles. She relishes in the free flowing of blood, and the hate, fear, and anger that such actions usually come with. Vikkra loves to dominate her foes, and if one vows to bow to her she willaloow them to serve her either as a minion or for those beneath her contempt; as a slave. The barbarians of the Wastelands, and the Dark Knights of Lecroll are the majority of her followers; but many people give her power unwillingly by simply feeling anger, fear, or hatred in their hearts for any reason. This makes the Blood Lady a major enemy of Herotus as even his most honourable worshippers fuel Vikkra's strength. Name: Mylissia (CG, Female) Domains/Portfolios: Love, warmth, life, children, the soul, romance, forgivance & sacrifice Symbol: Red Heart Preferred Followers: Any accepted; but evil rarely turn to the Loving Mother Background: The Wonderful Flower has such a warming embrace; it is difficult to turn one's back to her. One exmaple of this is that while violent barbarians tend not to directly worship her they respect her for the children she bestows upon them, and admire her followers' willingness to die for their beliefs. Mylissa believes in the power of forgiveness, and its a sad day for the goddess if someone hardens their ehart so much that they cannot to do. Sadly, the faith's many enemies often use this knowledge to their advantage and so many of the faithful have die just minutes after forgiving an enemy. This had led to a small offshoot of Mylissa that doesn't forgive anyone's transgressions. They aren't very popular as they cna be very violent when prvoked. That said, even now, the group's priests still recieves power from their Goddess as she still holds out hope they will see the error of their ways... Name: Bouthar Greengrynd (N, Male) Domains/Portfolios: Nature, animals, time, cycles Symbol: A Circle of Aging Deers Preferred Followers: Those who love nature, druids, rangers, & respect the passage of time as a part of life's cycle Background: Bouthar is a typical of most worlds' major Nature gods. He's about protecting nature even before 'man'. He understands fully, however, that 'man' has a part to play in the Grand Cycle and will take steps to protect civilization if need be. He wants his followers to enjoy a good hunt even as they work to protect the animals of over killing. There is a dark side to Bouthar's love of nature as he does allow a battle of sorts between the hunter and hunted to see who is really more fit to rule the world. The Lord Nature is content to watch the cycle continue as a passive viewer to see how mortals will act when left to their own devices. Name: Mother Graystone (NG, Female) Domains/Portfolios: Dwarves, gnomes, halflings, mining, metalsmithing, battle preparedness & racial pride Symbol: A Stone Mountain Preferred Followers: Dwarves. Dwarves. Dwarves. Gnomes, and halfings are also acceptable due to their close ties to the dwarven past as well as the mutual disrespect that humans and elves seem to have for the race's collective short height which they usually regret. Background: Mother Graystone still dreams of the ancient past when dwarves were the dominate race in the world. She feels the encroachment of others' into the Realm of the Dwarves inside the mountains is a threat to the dwarven race's existence even though dwarven numbers are on the increase and they still hold a lot of influence. Dwarven weapons, and armour are second to none and the other races - even elves - pay top gold for anything crafted from dwarven mithril and hands. The Mother pities the little people (gnomes & halflings) as they are relatively new to the world and are treated with no respect by others. Yes, this seem to be a contradiction in her dwarfcentric view; but there is likely a reason dealing with this in thier first appearances... While, Graystone is all about dwarves; she or her followers are not violently opposing other races unless they directly threaten them or their livelihoods. Name: Quarion Siannodel (CG, Male) Domains/Portfolios: Elves, freedom, poetry, swordplay, archery, swimming & trees Symbol: Longbow & Sword Preferred Followers: Elves, musicians of any race, & anyone who hates undead Background: The Elven Protector loves peace; but is always ready to protect his charges. He abhors the undead, and has his clerics work feverlishly to end their unlifes no matter what. Swordplay, and archery are favorite activities as he enjoys the beauty of their work. Poetry - no matter how poor - is music to his ears as it fills his heart with joy. He even numbers a few odd dwarven bards amongst his worshippers much to the chagrin of Mother Graystone. Elves are a free race prone to rash decision making in spite of their long lifes. They, and their god believe in 'living in the moment'. There ya go. Like I said, the gods aren't truly unique; but I think they are intertesting nontheless. What ya think? Next Update: Since I shared a Character Bio of an NPC from part 2; I'm going to share one from part 1 next. Thank you.

I hated PST's spelle ffects. They were too over the top, too FFish, and for the most part felt blaiise. Did like the Hammer one; though. The character models were awesome though, and definbitely better than the other IE games. Background wise, BG2/TOB/IWD2 are tied with PST right behind...

"So how can you be a complete fanboi over Jade Empire while whining your lungs out about Bloodlines?" Nah. I'd rather let you continue trolling and whining about how I'm a fanboy. Let's also ignore the fact that I like BL. I'm not gonna waste time expalinin' myself to someone whose already made up their mind. Keep up the good work, troll.