Season 3, Episode 1: "Welcome to G.O.L.A.R.I.O.N." Report
General Summary
After weeks and weeks of adventure, the weary members of the
Dream Team decided it was time for a light break. With Tesin now in control of Ezorod, Jun Zhao would require ten days to build an Access Beacon, with Abelina assisting and Nib constantly running supplies. A highlight of the team's activities is given below.
- Tesin worked on mastering her control over Ezorod, giving commands to the pyric revenants to make way for modifications, and learning about Carrot and her new "butler", Ilvarti. Of note, she regained a tremendous amount of Sanity Points while slumbering in the Engine of Darkness.
- Mist decided to work on his form, following a grueling training regimen designed by Sensei, aided by Ilvarti. The instructions included new ways to manipulate Mist's Phasecaster, which seemed to attune to the entropic nature of the Ysoki's aura...
- Lockette left for the Burning Archipelago, where she spent the majority of her time refitting gear for her teammates, and making upgrades to the Aga Jain. Of note, she seems to have lost track of one night, during which she completed an extra upgrade to the ship.
- Isra spent her first two days closing the portal to Aucturn, and deciphering a psychic distress call coming from the depths of Mataras. The latter warned of the coming of General Khaim, and was likely the source of the psychic dread that permeated Asanatown. Then, she took some much-needed relaxation time, and helped Tesin organize their newfound home.
- Chad decided to leave the sun entirely, and answer a question burning in the back of his mind -- who was Qwen? After some brief snooping he discovered her home on Verces, but to his dismay, found that she had been kidnapped by the Barathu a few days earlier, and was on her way to Trillidiem for "trial".
- Tesin interrogated Lod Coster and an imprisoned member of Altraeza's Riders, finding only piecemeal information. The duo are currently still under lock and key in the cells of Ezorod.
- The group began drafting plans to augment Ezorod, and hopefully make it a more suitable home for the living.
- The party finally sat down to organize a pile of party treasure, gaining serious upgrades to their gear and a decent amount of money in their bank accounts.
- The group negotiated with Varos Mining Team 1, and agreed to take them on as contractors, working for Jelly Bois LLC. They accepted 600 credits up front to find Qwen, with 600 credits more upon discovery, and pro-bono work from Valentina Terris to remove their remaining sentences.
- The party processed a dogpile of visions from the Dreamer -- see the Content Created section for more details -- which led to an overwhelming number of potential quests.
- Each member of the team was Blessed by another Saint, and cursed by others (see Rewards Granted).
Then, at long last, it was time to access Golarion. The team made their character selections, following the strange limits imposed by the system, and hooked themselves into the pods surrounding the Beacon. Jun Zhao initiated login, and on the digital path to a forgotten planet, the Centurion arrived to greet them.
He came across as a calm and confident being, thanking Chad for accepting his invite -- one that only three others had received, and only one other had accepted. He explained the basics of the system, implying that there were limits to his actions to ensure fairness to all teams, and then opened the floor for questions. Alas, the ghost lost some of his composure upon realizing that the Dreamer had not only shown them a vision each night, but ones that included the Centurion, Maximus Erebus, and Rufus Geldenleaf. He became guarded then, ignoring some questions and dodging others, until at last he revealed the true goal of the game. To free Golarion from its eternal prison, and hopefully pause the end of the universe, currently building due to the planar schism caused by the Gap.
The party was given the World Quest -- to discover the location of nine Ruby Keys in Golarion, recover them outside of the game, and then deliver the set to the Centurion, who would meet them in the
City of Pleated Light. Then the Centurion hurriedly whisked the group away, awarding Chad the Archive Stone, and finishing the login process.
The Dream Team saw their selected characters -- Vivian Orion, Styx and Cerebus, Abdual Aziz Jebradae, Esmerelda, Faker, and Yellenwen Wisteria. But rather than becoming these people, or taking over their forms, the experience was a monstrous blend of consciousness. One mind -- that of the player -- acting as a guiding entity, and the other serving as a character, vessel, and information hub. The result was like an overlay of two people, with neither sure that the thought in their head came from them, or someone else... Worse yet, the characters selected had one thing in common: they had all just perished at the will of the Fates. Although the cause was different for each, the timing was exact, and the sudden connection of minds -- both from the entity and their fellow party members -- made things all the more overwhelming. They met briefly in Ez's home, hoping to make sense of things, before the Dream Team all logged out, leaving their characters to mull over the mystery...
Back on
Ezorod, the Dream Team debated at-length the ramifications of their discoveries, and signaled their distrust of the Centurion. But a separate clock was ticking in the background, meaning the discussion would have to follow them to the Idari, where Tesin was scheduled to stand trial. Arguing all the way to the Burning Archipelago, they arrived in time to see T.R.A.V.I.S. complete his modernization of the hull, revealing their new (and far more inconspicuous ship) -- and set off into the Drift, with their course set for the home of the Kasatha...
Rewards Granted
Tarot Deck
- Balio: Blessing of the Hunter, Card of Hope
- Tesin: Blessing of the Ritualist, Card of Ill Fate
- Chad: Blessing of the Challenge, Card of Ill Fate
- Lockette: Blessing of the Disciple, Card of Ill Fate,
- Isra: Blessing of the Gatekeeper
- Archive Stone (Chad/Faker - GOLARION Only)
Created Content
- Every member of Varos Mining Team 1 was updated to reflect recent events.
- Articles for dreams from over the break, including Ablution, The Price of Defeat, A Cure for Ignorance, Entropy in Ukulam, Signal Lost, A White Bone Mask / Pain and Screams, Lie Down, Little Child, and It Won't Be Long - Season 3.
- An article for the Hunter.
- An updated article for the Gravity Boots and the Phasecaster.
Tesin Movahesh
Thunder in the Mist
Lockette Endrinmaster 12 2.0
Isra
Chad
Report Date
08 Feb 2021
Primary Location
Secondary Location
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