Prisoner of Númenor Planning/Discussion Thread

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Okay...our to do list in order to tie up loose ends:

• finish beat up guards
• meet back up with Abarzadan?
• meet back up with Tarik
• clean up mess a little (maybe stuff the bodies in the cell?)
• find Kathaani, Tiru, Marsillion (I think this should come before Mabalar, but that's up for debate)
• find Mabalar
• escape Sauron's dungeons
• meeting with Tar Miriel (LMP's got it covered)
• Abarzadan's city search thing (up to Himaran how and when)
• find the kariborim again (assuming we've got to search the dungeons for Tiru's, Kath's, Marsillion's, AND Mabalar's?)
• ride like heck to Romenna
• avoid getting hurt by the crazy weather patterns
• That Guy has to die, so does Tarik
• Herugor sneaks onto the boat?

What have I forgotten? Mind you, none of this is in order, but is more of a general check list. Must Mabalar and Inzi wait until perhaps being on the boat before their joyous reunion? When will he wake up, approximately, LMP?

Who is writing the part of Elendil? Or is he actually going to have one?

[littlemanpoet]

My latest post clarifies a few things, I hope, as brought up in your list, Feanor. Regin's post, preceding mine, should contain connectors to make it work.

It looks like I ought to edit my most recent post so that Míriel knows of Moizandû. That would not be a stretch. Everybody who needs to know of him, does. Put it this way: Míriel is going to have Moizandu keep the party safe in his underground "catacombs" until she can bring the palantir to them. You don't need me for that piece of writing, and you don't need Mabalar to be awake for it. Feanor, I'd love to see you write the post of Miriel meeting Inzillomi for the first time, because they know about each other, and Mabalar has told Inzi of Miriel and his aborted future with her. That would be interesting. Miriel would give the palantir to Inzi, since Mabalar is unable to receive it.

After receiving the palantir, and leaving the underground of Moizandu, I foresee Herugor surprising everybody by showing up with a sufficient amount of guards to stop the group in their tracks, and really put the pressure on. Sauron is not there, because Herugor wants the glory of their capture for himself, to impress his master.

That could come either before they leave the city, or just before they get to Romenna. I don't know, I lean toward before leaving the city. That's probably where Moizandu sacrifices his life for the sake of the group and palantir. It'd be great to make that poignant. Okay, there's all my ideas. Run with them or change them. I look forward to seeing how this story has progressed three weeks from now.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Gotcha.

[Regin Hardhammer]

Littlemanpoet-

Please check your pms.

I'm sorry for not filling in my save. I sent Lmp a pm with some clarifications I need. Plus I have a physics test on Tuesday. I don't want to erase the save since we may need it as a connector.

************************************************** ***************
My save is filled in. I hope it is okay. If anyone has any problems, let me know so I will edit. Again, sorry for taking so long.

- Regin

[Himaran]

Perhaps I could craft a quick ending, since no one has posted for over a week now:



Elendil watched the magnificient storm approaching. "It is time, we must sail," he said. One by one, the ships left the harbor, bearing the Faithful away...

Hundreds of guards poured into the cell block, and Abarzadan watched in horror as the leaders of the party drew back their bows...

Then the comet came, hitting the northern side of the island and scimming southward, leveling everything in its path...

And none of them lived.




Or perhaps we could get Abarpanaru, rescue our friends and leave this darn city once and for all.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Lol.

Point taken. It's been that kind of week. Fea curses those that complained about the amount of work, which then got the load augmented by an extra six pages of writing each week. Where are we, what needs to be done, and who's going to do it?

Pretty much each of us should answer these questions, preferably on this thread so we can get organized and not have to rewrite:

What loose ends need tying to complete [my] character's story?

Have all of the side plots been closed yet?

Who wants to narrate the official rescue?

Who wants to narrate the trip through the catacombs?

Who wants to narrate the breakneck kariborim trip to Romenna?

Who narrates us sailing away?

Other questions:

Should we wait for LMP to officially end this? Should we try again to get in touch with Soph or TB12?

In order for Inzillomi's story to be complete, her family must be reunited. Which means that we have to save Abarpanaru, find Kathaani and Co., and get to Romenna where Elendil waits. Also to complete her role, she has to meet Miriel and receive the palantir, since Mabalar is otherwise... engaged. She will take on the responsibilities that they would normally share until he is all better (which doubtlessly will be on the trip to ME after the story ends). Basically, as long as we meet up with Mirel in the catacombs while escaping (with help from That Guy who will die in the process), and get Inzi's family to the ships, everything else has been taken care of. She will, of course, need to make sure everyone else has completed all things, because as a prominent leader of the Faithful, that's sort of her job.

Any how... Side points: the shopkeeper must show up to lead them to relative safety. Tarik must be there for the last battle in the catacombs (which is AFTER Inzi gets the palantir and Miriel leaves). Once leaving the catacombs, our party must discover Kath, Marsillion, and Tiru and save them. Maybe they will be brought in just as we are leaving? Pick them up, ride like heck.

Final point for whoever closes the game, slide in a piece about Heregor sneaking onto a ship.

If somebody else will narrate the rest of the battle in the main dungeon and get us to a point with a bunch of dead guards, an unconscious Mabalar, and the sounds of running footsteps with the obligatory nowhere to hide, I will take over and have Tarik come and lead them through a secret way into the catacombs. I need to narrate the Inzi-meets-Mirel, so I might as well take care of it all at once.

What say you?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I've begun an escape-into-the-catacombs post, but due to a bit of time misjudgement, I'll have to wait until tonight or tomorrow morning to finish it. Rest assured my SAVE gets filled within the next day or so.

[piosenniel]

Sophia and TB12 have abandoned the game. I sent them PM's and an email to Sophia a long while ago and have received no answer.

littlemanpoet is more or less unavailable until early October - having too much fun, I think!

Regin lives @ one of the areas that is evacuating today in the impending threat of Hurricane Rita. He may be able to join in to the game once he gets settled somewhere to ride out the storm. He can of course always post to the discussion thread if need be at a later time and I'll place it for him.

So . . . that leaves Himaran, Fëa, and Menel to carry on . . . and if need be, you can bring this well written game to a satisfactory close.

~*~ Pio, Game Moderator

[Regin Hardhammer]

Yeah. I have been kind of busy lately trying to evacuate. Unfortunately, the traffic was so heavy that I ran out of gas before long. All the stations around the city are completely sold out. So I'm going to settle down in my house and wait. I will post tomorrow before the storm hits if I can. I don't know how long power will be out after that.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Luck be with you, Regin. No worries about the game. It can wait, or we can finish it without you, if need arises.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I've deleted my SAVE. I'm too busy right now to fill it in and I didn't think I should ought to leave it around for as long as it might have been there. Sunday... I'll have time Sunday.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I've posted the escape from the dungeon and into the catacombs scene where Inzi gets the palantir.

I've left Abarzadan's presence ambiguous. He isn't not there, I just don't see him. So effectively, he could be anywhere. Him, if you want to go off on a little mini-adventure to complete your character's story, now is the time.

Also, would somebody be kind enough to pick up with Moizandu getting the group OUT of the catacombs and back into the city? It's then that Tarik will turn up with the kariborim and get killed.

[Himaran]

Woah... I'm gone for a few days and so much happened. I will try to catch up and post as soon as possible. Just to clear it up before hand, Abarzadan did return to the company and got out with them.

- Himaran

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Okay. I can make sure to spot him when I fill in my save. Which I promise will be soon. Probably tomorrow morning (actually, given that I'll be out tonight late... tomorrow afternoon).

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Okay, I've gotten us up to:

Herugor and 24 of the King's Men are waiting for the Faithful to come out of the catacombs with blades drawn.

Tarik has the kariborim of Mabalar, Kath, Marsillion, and Tiru. We still need to get the rest before we leave.

The Faithful are with That Guy, though not Miriel, and are about to come out into the city, which is currently besieged with bad weather, though the rain hasn't yet started.

Would somebody be so kind as to continue?

[Himaran]

Wait - when the group leaves the catacombs, will they be inside the city? Because I would really like to tie up Abarzadan's story and to do so I need him in the city. Perhaps he could lose them in the escape and end up on the streets?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Originally Posted by Himaran

Wait - when the group leaves the catacombs, will they be inside the city? Because I would really like to tie up Abarzadan's story and to do so I need him in the city. Perhaps he could lose them in the escape and end up on the streets?

I envisioned them in the city. Perhaps in an unused alley way, as the entrance/exit wouldn't be too public, but still certainly there. It won't be hard to disappear in the fray... this is the battle where Tarik dies, so it's likely going to be a pretty eventful one. I wish LMP was back, but poor boy's still in London, last I heard. Let's finish it up without him, yeah? So he's got a nice story to come back to.

[Regin Hardhammer]

I put up a save. Is there anything special that I need to mention in my post, or should I just say that we saw the gaurds and started to fight. Also, should the rescuers take the Kariborim from Tarik before or after the battle? Any other suggestions/requests are appreciated.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I'd rather like the kariborim to join the battle, since they're so loyal and intelligent. If you could, please have Tarik's head leave his body some time during the battle? And I think Abarzadan needs to get separated?

[littlemanpoet]

I'm back. Since Tuesday. Been catching up on 3 weeks worth of BD posting, one thread at a time. I really did need to find out who the three werewolves of IX were, you know? Anyway, on topic now: I see there's a battle about to happen. I see Mabalar being unceremoniously dropped, and being thus started into wakefulness, weaponless. How shall we make this battle happen?

By the way, Feanor and Regin: excellent writing, both of you! I'd rep you too Feanor, but I gotta spread it around.

[Meneltarmacil]

I'll be out of town until Monday, but next week I'll probably be able to get a post in. Thought you might want to know.

[littlemanpoet]

Regin, how about you take over Marsillion?

Feanor, how about you take over Kathaani?

Menel, how about you take over Herugor?

LMP, how about you take over Tiru? Uh, okay, if it's all right with the others.

Himaran, I think I've run out of suggested take-overs. Besides, I'd like to see you devote your full attention to Abarzadan anyway.

All these requests having been made, one final: how about we feel free to allow these abandoned characters (obviously excluding Herugor) to die?

[Regin Hardhammer]

My save is filled. Sorry about the delay.

LMP Marsillion is fine with me. I had already written my last post when I saw your note but will add him in next time. As far as killing him, could I wait to see how the storyline goes and make that decision when writing?

[littlemanpoet]

Originally Posted by Regin Hardhammer

My save is filled. Sorry about the delay.

LMP Marsillion is fine with me. I had already written my last post when I saw your note but will add him in next time. As far as killing him, could I wait to see how the storyline goes and make that decision when writing?

That was precisely the approach I had in mind when I made the request: not that the character must be killed off. We all know that Mabalar, Azarmano, Inzillomi, and Abarzadan are going to survive. I just would like to see it be that all bets are off regarding the others; could make everything more interesting, and suspenseful, for us writers as well as any readers (what a conceit, eh?).

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I can take over Kathaani. I feel like giving her some good old fashioned real life experience related depression at this point. After all, she was pretty darned sheltered and now she's had her dad arrested, a rescue party and all of that to be involved in, been in battles, been arrested, probably treated roughly and rudely... and now she's only just been saved herself and has had a reality check. So she'll be more pensieve than active, if you don't think that's too out of character.

Now... I must go see Regin's fill. I love coming back to find filled-in saves. Yay. PS: good to have you back, LMP. Responsibility was making me feel too in control. I much prefer to have no idea what's going on.

[Child of the 7th Age]

You do have at least one reader! Child raises her hand in the air and then slinks off.

[piosenniel]

Me, too!

~*~ Pio

[Firefoot]

And me - this has been a fantastically written game.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Oh my... I never even suspected we had readers besides those that we forced to do it...That's just plain exciting. I take it you guys read the boring discussion, based on your responses to it... I ♥ it!

[littlemanpoet]

I like your take on Kathaani, Feanor. My thoughts on Tiru is that there is a special bond between him and Mabalar, and that has yet to be written about. Could be fun.

So, who's up to write next? That without having yet read Regin's fill-in, so I may be back to edit this post.

[littlemanpoet]

Well. Not the best post I've ever done. I'm willing to edit, modify, etc. Anyway, I'm thinking that neither Sauron nor Herugor are foolish enough not to have enough guards around to quash a minor rebellion. Our little party does not even amount to that. So it's time for that Tolkienian wonder, the eucatastrophe; or everybody's dead. The obvious one is the Valar-imposed cataclysm. Too obvious? Can anyone think of a better? The question is, how can the cataclysm be made to help the party when it has no eyes to see who it hits, and no will to differentiate good from bad? Or do we want a literal dei ex machina such that, say, the Valar hear the prayers of Miriel to spare the group? Or is there something Abarzadan can pull out of his hat?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

The Eagles could always come.

[littlemanpoet]

Ha! I'm not surprised to get that from you, Feanor! But no dice. No set up for it so far. Maybe the palantir!??

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Depends on who's on the other end of the p[hone]alantir. Who's got the other ones at this point? Anyone that could jump in to help out? Or at least be like "I have swarms of soldiers at my disposal. I think I'll order them to attack the King's Men and save the Faithful so that most of them can get off this blasted island before it sinks."?
Or there could be a villager uprising... or a really big earthquake that just so happens to, incredible as it may seem, drop all of the bad guys through a mysterious fault line that opens up beneath their feet, leaving the good guys just far enough away not to get crushed into some new style Numenorian Fertilizer as the fault line closes back up in the next tremor?

Or we could stick with "Run away, run away!" and trust in the speed of the kariborim and the tremors to keep any arrows from finding deadly purchase as we escape.

Or... I kind of like the Valar hearing Miriel's prayer. I just don't want to write the scene. Now that you're back, LMP, that means I can foist her back off on you, right?

The most realistic sounding is to try and run away and trust in the earthquakes to screw up the soldier's aim. Surely a few arrows will land, and maybe there will be a nice depressing death just as the ships sail away and they'll have to toss the body into the churning sea...

Don't mind me. I'm just annoyed that high schoolers get the day off to celebrate a genocidal fraud and I'm stuck in classes. It's got me in a cynical, pessimistic, and fantastically fun mood.

[littlemanpoet]

Yeah, I thought of the deus ex machina earthquake too, and I don't like it anymore. Too cheap and easy. The "run away" tack with earthquakes, hail, wind, and all sorts of other nasty meteorological (sp?) phenomena seems reasonable.

Herugor will have one last nasty surprise closer to Romenna anyway. At that point we can have the eucatastrophe, I guess.

Hey Himaran! Where are you? Are you gonna post some kind of amazing thing for Abarzadan? I keep hoping.

I still like the p[hone]alantir idea though. The others are in the possession of Elendil, so it would be quite plausible for Miriel to use it to keep Elendil informed, don't you think?

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

Miriel could use it if she had it. She gave it to Inzillomi already, remember? So there's a palantir right here, right now. And I concur about Himaran. I want to see Abarzadan finish his story!

[littlemanpoet]

Silly, Miriel could have already used it before she gave it up, unbeknownst to Inzillomi and the group.

[Himaran]

Aha! I'm still here - I was camping all weekend, and a lot has happened in my absence.

I've been looking at the posts, and I think I have an idea. Here's what we'll do - Abarzadan entered the catacombs with the group, but got separated and ended up tumbling out a sewer in a dark alleyway in the city. I will write a post for this, and it can be placed in the appropriate spot.

The group, after they get out, perhaps realizes he is gone, and is merciful enough to leave him a kariborim. After he makes his way through the city and finds what he may, he will need to get out in a hurry, and will remember the meeting spot they talked about. Either that, or we can make it a great tragedy and have him realize his folly right as the island goes under.

Either way, I will get cracking on those two posts.

[littlemanpoet]

Good to hear from you, Himaran. I'd prefer that you tell us what you want to happen to your character, be it reconciliation or tragedy. I'll be interested and most gratified with your participation in either case.

[Feanor of the Peredhil]

I love LMP being back because all I have to say to convey my opinion is "ditto".