The Ambassador's Son Discussion Thread

[Himaran]

I will post for Graring and Jurex tomorrow.

Very busy today, but had to let you know.

Himaran.

[Earendil Halfelven]

ALL BATTLING NEEDS TO BE OVER BY THURSDAY MAY 27, SO DO NOT PROCRASTINATE IF YOU CAN HELP IT!!!!!!

Voting has confirmed that Devon is going to die in the fighting, so do I have any volunteers to post for Maika until Devon gets it? He'll die in a desperate fight with Doran, so I'll post the death scene. Of course, if Maika happens to show up, then he'll more than possibly survive. Any volunteers to include Devon in their character's posts?


DON'T FORGET-ALL BATTLING ENDS THIS THURDAY. THAT GIVES US FOUR DAYS TO FINISH IT UP. HURRY!!!!!!!!

[Nuranar]

Well, I was all ready to post a nice housekeeping discussion entry, but my brain short-circuited and I managed to lose it. Never mind how.

Earendil, as far as posting for Devon goes, we're all supposed to be carrying his character along. Do you mean specifically to write from his point of view, leading into the duel? Or do you just want to make sure that he's included in the battle posts before you finish him off? If so, I'll make sure to at least do that; depending on what develops and when I get in on the battle I can have him trying to find Doran during the fight.

Two things that came up:

The Gondorians come in on the end of the battle and save the day, right? Well, I had a nice line of reasoning written out for how they're going to be at the right place at the right time, but I lost it. Here's what I remember:

* Telson sent a message to Faramir, way back on 12-21-03; in response, a Gondorian fleet, complete with troops, has arrived at and subdued Umbar.
* They figure out pretty quick where Doran has gone, and most of the fleet sets out and finishes off the corsairs.
* From prisoners, etc., they hear about the North Wind. Adding together pointers I'm not going to list, they figure out where to go and arrive on the island in the nick of time.

This is only a proposal. Any thoughts?

The other thing is, once more, the question of Who's Going To Last The Night. I assume you corsair players will handle your particular characters, as will Aman, Arvedui, and myself. We've already decided Devon's going to buy it, so here's the rest:

Avershire
Loliway
Sedal
Rilgari
Orda
Rakein

We must assume Avershire and Loliway are up for grabs, too, unless Maika comes back and says otherwise. Now, how serious is this battle, and what corresponding casualties should be inflict? Remember, the corsairs have real weapons and the Gondorians have few. I say, out of 10 Gondorians, we ought to have minimum 2 or 3 die; that means 1 or 2 out of that list (unless Aman, Arvedui, or myself volunteer for annihilation). Anyone have some ideas?

My only thoughts concern Sedal: With a couple broken ribs, he can either be immobilized and probably be unnoticed until the end, or he can insist on fighting when he sees what they're up against. I assume that, as a surgeon, he knows what he can handle - or that he can't handle it and has decided to be heroic.

Oh, and Orda has been pretty protective of him, so that may work into an out for the youngster. Poignant death scene, anyone? Or maybe it'll get too heavy with Devon going out in a blaze of glory.

And as far as my character goes, I'd really prefer it if he survived the game. I'm rather fond of him and may use him again; also, he's my first successfully played character. I'm not averse to him being wounded again, though. Anything short of the seriously crippling - like losing a leg or something - and I'm taking suggestions.

Not trying to slow the game down - anything but that, believe me! - but I would like to have a few things sorted out first. This is the last battle, and as such ought to be a little more scripted, to ensure that it makes sense and we don't lose our continuity. Please keep up the good work - I'd appreciate some feedback here.

Carrying on,
Nuranar

[Himaran]

Important:

Corsairs spotted the sentry
Sentry ran
Corsairs followed the sentry

Whoever posts next needs to bring the corsairs to the campsite for the final battle.

Then the gondorian army arrives....... in the middle? I will post again tomorrow, or later today if others do so.

Himaran

[Amanaduial the archer]

*Itching to start the battle*

I actually would very much like to keep Sedal and Orda - please?! I thought maybe at some point Callath could spot them and, thinking them dead (maybe unconcious etc?), he would feel even more jazzed off and attack all the more fervently But...if he must go, take...Orda? Also, I would still suggest chopping off Avershire - I think it would make a rather poignant scene...

Wait - would this change plans too much?: Say Avershire faces Doran in single combat, and Doran, playing dirty, manages to defeat Avershire, giving him a fatal blow. Devon leaps forward, spending Avershire's last moments with him, before he rises and fights Doran in Avershire's place...killing Doran? Would that be too drastically changed? I just think it would make quite a nice peak...

[Nuranar]

Thanks for your clear instructions, Himaran! It's nice to know where to pick up the story as all the threads come together.

Aman, I don't have a problem with keeping Sedal and Orda. I like 'em too! I especially like the idea about Avershire. It'd be a nice touch, especially after his defeat of - what was the corsair captain's name? - emphasizing just how deadly a enemy Doran really is. He's kinda had a small part in this later bit. How's that with you, Earendil?

Assuming there are no objections, would you be able to handle Avershire's death, Aman? Then Earendil can pick it up and finish off Doran and Devon. Assuming Arvedui won't post in the next few hours, then, I'll go ahead and take us into action sometime tonight, setting it up for you.

But we still need to ax at least one other character. Let's leave Maika Loliway; no point in killing all her people. So will it be Rilgari, or Rakein? I like both, but I'd hate for Callath to lose another friend. So, Durelin, can Rakein go down in a blaze of glory, a lá Marx?

~ Nuranar

[Nuranar]

My post is up. I'm sorry for the delay; the time that I was going to use to write kind of evaporated, and I had to go to work earlier today. It's not the best, but we're well into the battle. The end is either lame or conventional, but I've run out of ideas and I wanted to give you an opening, Aman. You can handle the duel(s) however you like.

I haven't specified much else, though, so if you want to play your character please go ahead. Remember, the light is dim and you won't be able to see at a glance everything that's going on in the fight. There's also a lot of people in a fairly small clear space. The area is surrounded by sand dunes, lots of brush, trees, and broken, rocky ground - you pretty much have your pick if you want to mention the situation.

A bit of explanation: Himaran, I must confess that I - or Calnan - have just killed Jurex. I was trying to integrate the story, to avoid having lots of isolated posts. You had said that Jurex was going to die, so I thought "Great! Then I'll have Calnan kill him!" So I did. Only just now I realized that I had killed another player's character without getting that player's permission. I didn't even think about how you wanted Jurex to end. I am so sorry for doing that. I've left it up, though, because I want you too see. If you prefer it, I'll change him immediately to a random corsair; or if you have other ideas, just let me know. I want to assure you I didn't intend to be high-handed about this; I was thinking about the story as a whole. I'm very sorry!
One day more!

Carrying on,
Nuranar

[Durelin]

So, Durelin, can Rakein go down in a blaze of glory

I was planning on that. I have not had a chance to read your post yet, but I wished to post for Rakein in the battle, having him killed so that we get some Gondorian deaths (and also because a good death is always nice... ), but I just haven't had the time. I will tomorrow, though. I will do a post wrapping up Adeline's situation (mostly), and killing Rakein.

Does that sound all right? With or without word or direction, I will post tomorrow, and make changes later. We're keeping things moving! I think everyone deserves a pat on the back...

-Durelin

[Earendil Halfelven]

Ok, well, I killed Avershire and now Doran is going to have at it with Devon. Don't forget everyone-the corsairs win this fight but are beaten by the Gondorian forces that show up.

THE GONDORIANS SHOW UP WHEN DORAN IS PREPARING TO TAKE HIS PRISONERS TO HIS SHIPS FROM THE BEACH. THE CORSAIRS WIN TOMORROW.

For me, it doesn't matter who posts the scene stated above.

All battle posts need to be up and finished by tomorrow night. I want Doran and corsairs to be captured and on their way to Umbar for trial by tomorrow night at midnight. That should give us enough time to get everyone killed who is going to die. I'll control when Devon dies but I'm not sure when that will happen.

But here is what's going on after my post-
Avershire is dead or mortally wounded. I left that part open so that way you Gondorians can post some closure scene with, say Avershire and Loliway, if you get my meaning. You know, like some sad farewell scene. Doran is now facing Devon. Doran will win but I don't know when Devon bites it.

The corsairs are winning it. Let's say that its almost dawn and the Gondorians need to fall back and regroup or they'll lose totally.

SO thats where we are. Come on folks! We're almost done!

[Nuranar]

Very... violent, Earendil. Good post, and thanks! A couple things:

You have Avershire killing the corsair who teams up with Doran against him. In my post, that corsair is Jurex, and I have Calnan killing him. If you read my discussion post above, there's more about that, and I may change his identity when Himaran checks in, but as it stands we still have one corsair being killed two different ways!

Oh, and I wasn't aware that Doran was once more going to take the Gondorians prisoner. Looking back over the discussion, I don't see it stated anyway; but I had assumed that the forces of Gondor are going to arrive mid-fight. First, why would Doran go to all the trouble of taking them prisoner - again? He's done it before, and they've certainly caused him a lot of trouble. I would think he'd be all too eager to get rid of them. Second, he hasn't told his corsairs not to be killing, which I think is their default "Fight" setting. Third, he's about to kill Devon, and if anyone would be taken prisoner, it would be Devon. The others are only incidental, and prisoners are a heck of a lot of trouble. Fourth, I was hoping the Gondorians would arrive so we could minimize our casualties; as it stands, we're already losing 3 dead out of 10, and who knows how many wounded.

So if you could explain a little of your reasoning I'd appreciate it. I'm a bit confused at the moment!

[Durelin]

I just posted, and I hope it's alright. I think I took perhaps too much creative freedom in moving the the situation between Doran and Devon near the shore, but...it is a small island, right?

Well, I am prepared to change anything. Just let me know.

[piosenniel]

* Heads up on a new game starting soon - with Durelin as owner *

Discussion Thread opens on June 5th.

~*~ Pio

[Himaran]

Important - Game could end here!!

Yes, Jurex can die Nuranor. Now I am saved the trouble of posting about him.

Graring just saw the Gondorian fleet arriving - is that ok? They could come in Just as Devon is mortally wounded - and he could die... in his father's arms?

Anyway, Graring ran off into the forest. His is gone. Forever.

The game could be over in a few posts...... !!!

Himaran

[Earendil Halfelven]

GAME ENDS THE EVENING OF SATURDAY MAY 30.

Ok, Devon is dead and the corsairs are captured. You guys who still have characters can post after-battle posts. Tomorrow I'll post of the fleet returning to Umbar to try Doran and the surviving corsairs for treason, murder, etc.
We can end on this saturday.

This is the last stretch, guys. Only two days left.

Nuranar, I've always been under the impression that the corsairs capture everyone before being beaten by the arriving gondorians. But oh well, I've posted that the Gondorians capture Doran while the battle is finishing up. I'll fix my post where Jurex dies in two different ways.

Pio-I'll pm you when we're finished.

[piosenniel]

Thanks, Earendil!

I'll close the game then and leave the Discussion Thread open for a few days to catch any farewells.

~*~ Pio

[Nuranar]

Wow, I go away for the day and see what happens! I've really enjoyed writing this story, but frankly, it'll be quite a relief when it's done.

Himaran, I'm so glad the death of Jurex is fine with you. And thanks for sighting the Gondorians; it helps to tie the story together.

Earendil, terrific work! Thanks for moving it along so swiftly. And I'm glad that the confusion has sort of... resolved itself. Your posts are great.

Durelin and Aman, marvelous job! I haven't read many death scenes from the protagonist's side. And both of you, your writing is incredibly vivid and graphic (in a good way, of course ). I enjoyed your posts very much.

I'll get up at least one more post for Calnan. One thing, though: How many loose ends do we tie up? We've got Meri without Avershire, of course; I'd hate to just leave the girl on the beach like that. Then there's Devon himself; do we drag Ambassador Thrann back in? Or can he just stay fallen out of the story?

Then there's our "fellowship," if you will. I suppose Telson (if Arvedui can post for him one last time) will get back to his duties. He seems the loner type. Adeline has a family in Umbar; I'm fuzzy on the details now, but she does have a life she can get back to. As for Callath and Calnan, they were pretty close to Devon and it'll hit them hard. Aman, you've shown pretty well how this is for Callath, even for the "new" friends he's made and lost. Calnan was rethinking his political career earlier in the story anyway, so he'll be returning to Gondor, at least en route to someplace else. If he asks Callath to go with him, would Callath be interested?

Finally, our secondary characters. After taking such good care of Sedal and Orda (way to go, Callath! er, Aman), I wouldn't like them to have to fend for themselves in the struggles of restoring Umbar to tranquility. Plus there's Callath's friend Rilgari, a seaman without a captain. I know in real life things don't just end neatly, but also in real life people are forced to make decisions and do something with the rest of their lives, even after a major crisis of these proportions.

Do you think I'm going into too much detail here? I plead guilty by reason of perfectionism.

The end is in sight!
~ Nuranar

[Earendil Halfelven]

Nuranar , you bring up good points that probably should be resolved, either in a negative or positive way so that we just don't leave any loose ends hanging. Calnan, Callath, and Adeline can take out everything at Doran's trial where I plan on having him executed by hanging. They can testify against him and be present at his execution. That would be the most realistic end, IMHO.

As for Acacia, I don't think that it would be likely that she would be executed. She wasn't seen by any Gondorians while in Umbar. The only person to really have anything against her would be Adeline. Acacia was mostly working behind the scenes. But we'll let Acacia decide her fate!

Jurex is dead and so is Devon. I think Ambassador Thrann should only be mentioned in like a post about Devon's funeral, which Calnan, Callath, and Adeline would probably have for him. I think, realisticly, that Ambassador Thrann would have been removed for being so blind and naive with Doran and letting him take so much control.

Secondary characters-everyone just tie up whoever they control. I don't know all the personal stories for each one because of the length of this game. Sound good, Nuranar?

Earendil, terrific work!

Thanks, Nuranar, and right back at ya!

[Himaran]

Ok - I will put in a final post for Graring this afternoon.

Himaran

[Earendil Halfelven]

I just noticed that I posted that the game ends on Saturday May 30th. Well, today is Saturday but its the 29th. Tomorrow is the 30th. So, if we can end today, GREAT! If you guys need to post end posts tomorrow, than GREAT! But I'm going to post Doran's end today and let the Gondorians play off of the execution scene.

EDIT: I guess I should wait for others to post after me until I post, so that way I don't post after me.

[Himaran]

Professional:

Ok, I will post about Graring coming to the shore the next day and finding the Gondorian fleet gone.

Nuranor/Durelin/Piosenniel:

I think that Nuranor's post should be moved in front of Durelin's preceding post; it is slightly off chronologically.

Personal:

Guys, this has been a great RPG. It had a great backstory and was well directed. I am extremely sad that Maikafanawen has disappeared; she was probably the most enthusiastic Barrowdowner I know.

However, I am extremely happy that we followed her last request. We pulled it together, started posting, and finished the game on schedule in an professional fashion. Thanks for being great co-writers and overall, a fun group.

Umbar, Umbar, Umbar!

The happiest Barrowdowner,
Himaran

[Nuranar]

I started working on my post before Durelin posted; that's why it's out of sequence. I had to leave immediately, too, so that's why I didn't have anything up here (I hadn't even finished revising the post). If you don't mind, Durelin or Earnedil, would one of you cut and paste mine into the beginning / end of your post? Then I'll delete mine. Sorry for the cross-posting! And Durelin, I liked your post a lot. Terrific lead-in for Calnan; I'll try to post again this evening to keep things together.

Himaran, it's been great writing with you, too. Thanks so much for keeping it going, and especially for creating Graring like that on the spur of the moment. That last post for him was great!

Carrying on,
Nuranar

[Durelin]

I have moved your post, Nuranar, to the beginning of mine. If you don't like how it works there, I can always edit.

And I'm glad my post was alright. I meant to ask to make sure that it was alright that I jumped to the trial, but I had to leave immediately after posting, as well.

-Durelin

[Nuranar]

Thanks so much, Durelin! I've written a follow-up to your post, so instead of deleting my post I've just replaced it. That way Himaran's isn't between ours; they go pretty well one after the other. Oh, and I hope mine's all right; it was a pretty emotionally charged atmosphere but wasn't too hard to write. Go figure.

Oh, and I'm not sure exactly what Earendil had in mind for us Gondorians to post; looking back, it sounds more as if he wanted us to use the execution. Oh well; he can move us along to that, and Aman and whoever else can write from there, if they like.

We're so close! Carry on,

Nuranar

[Durelin]

Of course it's alright! Very nice indeed! Adeline would not have had anything to say, and all that Calnan said was perfect. Yes, very nicely done! And yes, I think leaving that as my last post might be best. Anymore would be overdoing it, I think. Adeline would of course go to the execution, but I think this time she would do no more than watch, and not as happily as she thought.

-Durelin

[Nuranar]

Good, I'm glad that went over well. I'm a little surprised no one has posted in the meantime. Aren't we trying for this to be the last day? Or do will still have Monday?

Regardless, I won't be able to post for the rest of the day. We have a Memorial Day picnic in a few hours, and it will last until late. (I don't know what we're doing tomorrow, either - usually we visit relatives.) So Aman, if it works out, please feel free to include Calnan in your post. He'll be going back to Gondor, as I said somewhere above, and he wouldn't mind it if Callath wanted to join him ... but that's totally up to you, of course. Just please don't be afraid to use Calnan - that goes for everyone who's going to post - because logistics may make it very difficult to get anything up before the thread closes.

Carrying on,
Nuranar

[piosenniel]

Monday is still available - I'd like to see this wrapped up by Monday the 31st, midnight, Pacific Time . . . if possible . . .

~*~ Pio

[Amanaduial the archer]

I've posted - Nuranar, if you want me to edit anything, just PM me, I'm easy with changes Hope it's alright.

[Earendil Halfelven]

Well, I'm done with Doran's last post. Sorry that its up late but it is memorial day after all...

Anyways, I've finished up posting in the game. I don't know if anyone else is done but for the gondorians, you can go ahead and post what your characters felt at doran's execution, if you'd like.

IF YOU ARE COMPLETELY DONE POSTING IN THE GAME THREAD, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PM ME OR POST IN HERE AND TELL ME SO I CAN PM PIO.

[Nuranar]

Excellent, Aman! Exactly what I had in mind. Very, very good! That takes care of Calnan for me, and I assume you're done, too. With Durelin finished as well, I guess that's it for the Gondorians, unless Arvedui returns beyond hope. As for the corsairs, Earendil and Himaran are done, and Arien has been missing for a long time, unfortunately.

So then, Pio, I'd say we're done. If possible, though, would you wait until the last moment to close the thread? Just in case one of our missing members tries to make an eleventh-hour appearance.

Carrying on,
Nuranar

[piosenniel]

I won't close the thread until I return from work tonight - a little after midnight, Pacific time, U.S.

So - there's plenty of time for those last posts.

~*~ Pio

[Amanaduial the archer]

Yes, I'm done now. The last few posts, like so many which have graced this thread, have been excellent - Earendil, that last post was especially excellent. Is everyone done now? If not, can I suggest that the last few posts are placed before Earendil's last one - it seems an excellent ending point, an excellent last line to the whole game. What do you think? Pio, would this be possible?

Thank you so much for this game, all of you. Maybe we stopped and started a few times, and sure there were breaks, but that doesn't stop the writing collectively here from being immensely enjoyable. Callath was one of my favourite creations when I first 'wrote' him, ("who wrote this character? Did you write these characters? Ah, well, you found a proper character writer to do yours..." ), but you allowed me to play him to an even fuller potential than I could have guessed. As for me, well, several of you have helped me learn a few more things about role-playing, so cheers. You have been a joy and a delight to work with, all of you.

Thanks.

- Amanaduial, a.k.a. Callath Harres.

[piosenniel]

That would be fine . . . if anyone else posts - Earendil can move his post after theirs or I will move posts as needed when I get home from work tonight.

~*~ Pio

[piosenniel]

I have closed the game to further posting - Arvedui's post seemed a good conclusion.

Well done game, everyone!

~*~ Pio

[Durelin]

I think everyone deserves a pat on the back, and a round of applause!

Excellent game, everyone! It was lots of fun, for the time I was a part of it. And I'm very glad I was able to be a part of it.

-Durelin

[Arvedui III]

Indeed. Twas an honor, and I really hope to see all of you in future games.
Arvedui

[Earendil Halfelven]

Well, everyone, it was a long road, but we finally finished it, despite losing a few people along the way.
Good game though. I enjoyed gaming with you all and killing people and then being executed. My character's always seem to die...oh well.
This will probably be my last game though, for a long while. I don't know if I have the time to join a new one, but we'll see.

And a big thank you to Pio. You've shown us the nearly infinite depth of your patience. Thank you! *bows in humble adoration*

Anyways, good job everyone! Time to just sit back and relax.

[piosenniel]

~*~ To Elvenhome ~*~