TerroirNoir's "Cable Channel of AE!" Reviews. Part 2.

[TerroirNoir3]

Araminta's Adventures.

 

Hello gang!  Araminta here.  I generally have a quieter life than Engineria, spending time tinkering with the Bots and attempting to power them better is how I spend many an evening. That and reading through a lot of material salvaged from the ruins of Praetoria.  Some of which can be converted to AE for a virtual experience!  Amazing how that works.  But right now it's Halloween and a call just went out for aid.  Engineria is off helping out Professor Dafriend in Paragon U on something.  No idea what.  I'll find out later no doubt. So I got the girls all polished up and decided to see what the trouble in Paragon was.

 

 

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Revenge of the Undying by @SirArthurIV (@Blazing Pyre on the AE console) 

 

Mission 1: Zombie Invasion.  Azuria sends out a  Code Red for all Paragon heroes to attend!  Atlas Park is being overrun by zombies! City Hall was surrounded and broken into.  So far authorities are unable to discern what they wanted in there.  And a part of me is thinking do they want anything?  Or is there some controlling Master Master Mind in charge of all of these undead people and they want something in there?  

 

Spoiler

@SirArthurIV, The contact is Azuria but she's currently listed as Contact Hologram.

I'd best investigate! 

I don't say it often enough (Shut up, Engineria) but I LOVE my girls.  They can really lay waste to a horde of zombies when you need them to!

 

 

Several more rounds of that sort of thing and me and the girls have made our way to City Hall and forced our way inside. And wouldn't you know it, they DO seem like they have a mission that they're on.  They're heading down the stairs to the hero offices of D.A.T.A., G.I.F.T., E.L.I.T.E., S.E.R.A.P.H. and M.A.G.I.  And there's a lot of valuable and frankly dangerous stuff down there that you wouldn't want a zombie (or its Master) getting their hands on.

 

 

So we do the only thing we can do.  Lock and load and fire until...well, until nothing is moving.

Seems to work.  I do have to jolt the girls with Electrical healing every now and then to keep them going but that is to be expected in a mass firefight like that.

Deadwalker?  Well, the dead bit is definitely correct.  It ain't walking anywhere soon though!

 

 

I follow down the stairwell an lo and behold the throng of undead is gathered around the G.IF.T. doorway.  And that room is one of the entrances to the Hero 1 vault!  If there's anything in there a zombie should not have...well, I don't have high enough clearance to know what's actually in there but neither do these guys, so I'm going to stop them!

 

 

Clearing these guys took a while.  Had to retreat a few times and regroup!  But the bots know their job and do it well so finally I made my way down to the vault door and stepped through, to be attacked by zombies already in there!

Which was not conducive to my peace of mind.  I don't know, you would think that Halloween would be a time that the undead stay away or take a little vacation in Croatoa or something.  I mean, we half expect to see them!

 

 

Now we are getting somewhere!  The Undying King, huh?  My first proper lead and/or clue as to what's behind all this.  Uttered by a Lich too.  Maybe my idea about a Master Mind isn't that far off the mark after all.

 

 

The next few minutes get a little bit frantic for me as the Lich targets me personally, but my girls take aim and leave that guy's undead hide perforated.  You could, if you were weird enough, make a Lich-skin rug out of him now.  Although maybe a small one so as not to have holes in it.

I'll take this nugget of information back to Azuria and see if she's ever heard of an Undying King.

 

 

Azuria is going to look into it, as well as organizing an inventory of anything missing from the vault.

 

[Mission 1= Lots of fun!  @SirArthurIV advised setting Team size to times 8 to really fill out the space with a zombie horde and it does make a difference.  Light intro mission but very enjoyable.]

 

Mission 2: Seeking Knowledge and Wisdom.  Azuria finishes up her inventory checking and comes back to me. Undying King?  No information on him yet beyond what I've discovered, that he's a necromancer.  But the inventory shows a missing tome, the Liber Factotum Exaltatum.  The what?  Azuria does some more 'splaining. You want to know about angels?  It's in that book.  How many of them, their organization, how to summon them and so on.  Plus lots of spells on repelling the undead. Weird.  Why would a necromancer want that?

 

So this Undying King is looking for copies of this book.  There are seven.  And Azuria knows the Council have a copy so she wants me to go and get it from Abyss Towers. 

 

Right, I'm going I'm going.

 

 

I seem to have attracted attention from the get go.  Then again it is VERY hard to sneak around with seven robots clanking along beside you. So I don't really do the stealth thing.  Engineria says it's very handy but, you know, the girls are loud.

 

 

Ok girls, rack it up and get ready!  We're going in hot!

And that's that corridor cleared of Council.

Moving on I wonder does Engineria have more problems because she doesn't have my kind of firepower?  Oh she calls Buddy in for help sometimes but I'm not all cozy with the PPD like that and frankly I don't need to be.

No matter.  On we go.  Somewhere here in Abyss Towers is that book and I'm getting it. I mean what are the Council going to do? Report me to Freedom Corps?

 

 

We move through the Towers hallway by hallway and the Council are pretty insistent on saying I should not be here.  I could argue the point but I'm just going to shoot them until they go away.  Finally I rock up at a door, still no sign of the book, and ...does that person in the middle of those Council guys have wings?  I think they do!  So someone here is already using the book!  

Laura!  Door!

And the door goes down and we're in!

 

 

The Council charge us and we get pushed back into the hallway.  They really do not want me getting near that winged person!  This may take a few minutes to deal with but I'm confident we can handle it.

 

 

And my confidence was paid off.  There's some seriously bruised, shot up and moaning Council members lying nearby.  Some are attempting to crawl away.  I know that because I can here the bots sporadically shooting at them.

So, who are you then? Zagzagel, is it?

 

 

Well, that's not really an answer to my question but ok, sure.  Let's get you out of here.  I'll double back and continue my search for the book once you're safely outside.  Deal?  Good.  Come on then!

Of course it's not that simple.  Somewhere a Council Necromancer is very annoyed!

 

 

Ok, they haven't noticed I don't HAVE the book...unless Zagzagel IS the book?  Could that be...nah.  But we have company!  Lock and load ladies!  Oh, you're already firing.  Ok, then keep doing that!

 

 

So shortly after that, stepping around plenty of bodies, we, that's the angel person and the rest of us, make our way down to the main entrance.  Getting her outside that matrix she spoke of.  I suppose it's some sort of magic force field.  What?  I don't know from angelic stuff!  

 

 

And she drops the hammer with her wisdom.

That. Does. Not. Sound. Good.

 

 

Imagine Good.  See that sign waaaay over there in the distance?  Yeah.  That's where Good is.  We ain't there anymore.

Now with Zagzagel on her way I turn us around and head back into Abyss Towers to find the thing I came here for in the first place.  

Considering the amount of misery and mayhem we've already caused the Council it doesn't take that long this time to find where the book is being kept.

 

 

There we go.  

 

 

Now we retreat all the way back to City Hall to see Azuria and see if she has found anything to add to what I now know about the Undying King.

Azuria informs me that Zagzagel is the patron of wisdom and knowledge.  Perhaps they will aid further in gratitude for their rescue.  I hope so, they were quite useful in there against the Council.

So, Azuria, what now?

 

[Mission 2 = ROFL.  Having forgot to take my difficulty off times 8 from the first mission, this map was FILLED with Council, leading to fight after fight with Galaxies and Darkwolves and guys with grenades.  I had far too many combat pics to choose from!  And the mass ambush after the rescue of Zagzagel was a bit epic!  Good stuff there.]

 

Mission 3: A Tangled Web of Death. Azuria has done some bargaining with Zagzagel (I don't want to know!) and the angel (is she really one?) has given us the location of two more copies of the Liber Factotum Exaltatum.  One of these is in the Rogue Isles.  Arachnos has it!  Typical.  I wonder if it's the Mu or some of Ghost Widow's people?  Whatever.  I've been authorized to assault the base and retrieve it before the "Servants of the One" get their mitts on it. Oh, seems Arachnos may not know its value and it is simply stored in a general arcane depositary.  That's good. Mu play havoc with my Endurance levels.

 

So me and the girls get to the Rogue Isles and head for the depositary. On entering we find, well, it's going to be fun in there. Not.

 

 

A minute or two to load some new bot protocols, get Floaty Keri online to heal and protect us, and we're off.

Ah.  They're still using their novices.  Ok, girls, target the necromancer and the zombies will fall. Let's go!

 

 

Well, that plan seems to hold up under field testing at least!  Now to move further into the depositary and find this book.

 

 

Along the way I run into a Student of Bone.  A former Skull who abandoned his gang to follow the Undying King.  Well, the Skulls have been a little off since their leaders were imprisoned a while back so joining another thing that promises power isn't totally weird I suppose. Up ahead I meet a Lady of Shades who used to be a Death Doll.  Seems this Undying King is picking the Skulls clean of followers!

 

Hmm, what's in here?  Some random mystical stuff but no Liber.  On we go.

 

 

I find a few more of those Arachnos mystical safes along the way, all the same.  Mystical junk - well, to me - but no Liber Factotum Exaltatum.

 

And who might you be?  A Wight Lord?  

 

 

What's a Wight Lord?  I thought Wights were some sort of Undead...or are you a Necromancer who controls Wights?  I don't have time to think about this because a fight starts.

And as you can see, the girls are adept at knowing what their job is!  Take him down!

 

 

Oh my but he's a gloater.  Even when he's been beaten he's lying there gloating at me.  Well, ok then.  You lie there and gloat and I (that's the person who beat you by the way) will carry on my search.

 

 

Spoiler

 

Just a couple more of these safes to check and...blast it.

 

 

Nothing in this entire base.  Looks like the Servants of the One got what they wanted and made their escape.  I reckon these guys I met were actually the clean up crew rather than the initial thieves.

Back to Azuria then.  Time to get a flight home to Paragon City.

 

Once I arrive she swears (Oh!  Not like you, Azuria!) and tells me to get over to the Midnighters pronto because that is where the other copy Zagzagel told us about is located.  You'd think the Midnight Club would have its own protection though!

 

[Mission 3 = More fun sweeping through corridors blasting zombies.  Very good seasonal feel to this entire arc so far.  Liking the little bits of Lore dumped in with the defecting Skulls and so on.  On to the next mission!]

 

Mission 4: The Lich, in the parlor, with necromancy.  Of course there's MORE bad news.  Azuria can't make contact with the Midnighters, so more than likely they're already under attack.  Time to rescue them and if possible get that book.

Up, up and AWAAAY!

Or you know, just go there normally.

 

Oh, I've not been in this part of the Midnighter Club before!  Seems that certain parts are off limits to "regular" members.  

This is very nice.  I bet there's a wine cellar and everything!

 

 

Ok, wine cellar later but for now we find the Midnighters and do some derring do.  Whatever that is.  It sounds heroic.

Ah, there's one.  Prof. Plum?  Why does that sound familiar?

 

 

Well, me and the girls rescue him and he runs off asking if there's going to be a cover up.  Of what?  What the hell are you talking about?

No idea.

Ok, on we go.

 

Then we rescue a Mrs. White, who runs off too!  Phoned your costume in?  What?

Hang on.  Plum and White.  Are you guys dressed like people from Clue?

You are, aren't you?!

Sheesh.

 

 

Although she does leave through a secret door that might have taken me a bit to find.  Useful.  We follow.  Carefully.  Although to be honest rather loudly.  I think I've said it before but it's really hard to be stealthy when you're a Mastermind.

 

Ms. Scarlett now.  Ok, this is getting a bit weird, even for Midnighters.

In your other dress?  I...ok then.

 

 

After that we find a Mr. Green.  And I hope his wife loves him very much or he'll be on the couch tonight.

Then Col. Mustard.

 

Finally we end up at a modern security door.  And in we go!

 

 

Peahen?  Peahen.  Sure, why not?  Peahen.  Yeah, try it on for size, take it for a spin around the block.  What other weird stuff is going on here anyway?

 

 

And finally we see, no not another member of Clue...although who could be left?  The victim?  No, the Lady of Grief.

She's one of those former Death Dolls advanced further along on her worship of the Undying King.

 

 

Of course mass robotic gunfire leaves her in much the same state as everyone else I've met along the way so far.  Well, apart from the Clue Gang because, you know, they weren't trying to kill me!

 

But I do finally get an answer to what the hell was going on here tonight.

 

Spoiler

 

A thing of fun, gone awry.  But now we may have a lead.  Back to you, Azuria.

 

[Mission 4 = ROFL.  Ok, this one caught me off guard.  Liked the entire premise of it.  Good choice of map too for an alternate section of the Midnighter Club.  On to the finale!]

 

Mission 5: All are One. One is All.  Ok, there's seven books.  We have one of them and they have all the others.  And rather than wait for them to come and take it, Azuria has gotten a method of using ours to track theirs.  So I can take the fight to them.  Because if I don't then that's bad.

 

So Azuria performs the ritual of sending me into danger (no, it's not actually called that) and throws a Vaya Con Dios after me as I leave.  Thanks, might need it.

And I think I will.

 

 

WE descend into grim tunnels and take out Students of Bone and their minions along the way.  The folks in here are definitely more powerful than the ones I've met up until now.

Definitely.  An Ancient, huh?  Oh, what's that altar there? I'll get to that in a minute.  Girls, kill that thing.

 

 

And they kill it good.  It's so killed.  Although with all the necromancers around here, is it going to stay dead?  You have to wonder.

So this altar has a book on it.  One of the Libers!  Ok, now we're getting somewhere! That's two for me and five for them.  Let's increase that count on my mini library.

 

 

Go me!  Another one!  Excellent.  Ok, I had to de-alive a few more of those Ancient Servants to get to it but that's a fair exchange, I think. Yeah.  Fair.

 

 

And of course I had to go and get overconfident, didn't I?   Yes I did.  I am beginning to see why Engineria used to stagger into our old apartment reeking of sewer and smoking from damaged armor.  Oh well.  I do have an advantage though.  While I might be Held, the girls are not.  So bye bye Ancient Servant!

 

 

And I trawl through the tunnels and finally, finally I have all of the Libers.  

Of course I then climb some stairs and straight into a waiting ambush (or I was just very unlucky) by the Undying King himself!

Fire!  All guns on that guy!

Like now!

 

 

We force him down the stairs and back through a doorway, hitting him all the time.  He is tough!  And like many of his minions he likes to gloat.  Even when I'm riddling him with holes! Bow?  Me?  Nah, you have the wrong girl to be asking that of!

 

 

And he goes down!  Araminta for the win!  (Great costume on that guy, @SirArthurIV)

Oh, you have got to be kidding me!

Didn't I just say this?  Ok, not about the Undying King in particular, but the whole thing about people staying dead when there's damn necromancers everywhere?  Yeah, I totally did say it.

The Eternal King.

 

 

Ok, he got carried away with himself calling himself "Eternal".  He too went down under a hail of robotic gunfire.  My girls are the best girls.  And you, sir, are looking like an old shower curtain right now!

 

 

And we are done!  He is dead.

I spend a few minutes checking for another king to rise to challenge me, but no sign.  Plus I have all the books.  It's time to return to City Hall and see Azuria.  How do I get out of this place?  Right back to the entrance I came in it seems.  

So we do that, and have some target practice with a few Deadwalkers along the way.

 

Back with Azuria.

 

 

[Mission 5 = Great fun.  Perfect map for this sort of thing and the appearance of the Eternal King worked very well.]

 

Verdict.  An excellent Halloween arc.  Go and play this if you want your fix of necromancers and zombies and a great romp.  Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Signing off of now.  Araminta Levin's Adventures are not so regular as her friend Engineria's.

Edited October 7 by TerroirNoir3

[SirArthurIV]

Heck yeah! Excited to see what this looks like from the perspective of someone who hasn't been playing it 50 times over in the building process.

 

EDIT: lol, by taking angel zaggy to the entrance before getting the book from the safe you were able to leave without fighting a custom boss. I think that one is on me, or I should have just made the book a boss encounter in the same room.

Edited October 7 by SirArthurIV

[TerroirNoir3]

15 hours ago, SirArthurIV said:

Heck yeah! Excited to see what this looks like from the perspective of someone who hasn't been playing it 50 times over in the building process.

 

EDIT: lol, by taking angel zaggy to the entrance before getting the book from the safe you were able to leave without fighting a custom boss. I think that one is on me, or I should have just made the book a boss encounter in the same room.

OR..Sometimes Araminta gets lucky!  HA!

[cranebump]

"See that sign waaaay over there in the distance?  Yeah.  That's where Good is."

 

Hehehehehe...Classic.

[Zhym]

23 hours ago, TerroirNoir3 said:

Revenge of the Undying by @SirArthurIV (@Blazing Pyre on the AE console) 

I've added this one to the "Holiday Specials" section of the TV Guide, given the seasonal feel.  But if @TerroirNoir3 isn't going to do other Halloween arcs, maybe I'll move it down to the Interludes, Side Trips, and One-Offs section.

 

23 hours ago, TerroirNoir3 said:

Then again it is VERY hard to sneak around with seven robots clanking along beside you. So I don't really do the stealth thing.

Just as well, given that it turned out to be an escort mission.  I still had my team size set to x8.  70s Man could handle it.  The angel, however, could not.  (You'd think an angel would be tougher than some guy with guns.  Even if he is an incarnate.  Maybe I'm underestimating the protective power of polyester?)

Edited October 7 by Zhym

[TerroirNoir3]

10 minutes ago, Zhym said:

I've added this one to the "Holiday Specials" section of the TV Guide, given the seasonal feel.  But if @TerroirNoir3 isn't going to do other Halloween arcs, maybe I'll move it down to the Interludes, Side Trips, and One-Offs section.

I dunno. Are there many other Halloween arcs?

[Zhym]

2 minutes ago, TerroirNoir3 said:

I dunno. Are there many other Halloween arcs?

Good question.

 

If not, I could always create a new section for Araminta's Adventures.

[TerroirNoir3]

1 minute ago, Zhym said:

Good question.

 

If not, I could always create a new section for Araminta's Adventures.

Araminta is a bit...random.  Much more so than Engineria! So while her own section would be nice, maybe not needed.

[SirArthurIV]

Some creator commentary:

Mission 2: I tried so hard to get the captive lines to go off at the right time, But I could not find an office map that worked. I figured it wasn't essential, but Here it is for those that missed it.

Mission 3:  Not much to add here. It was meant to be a simple mission here, The battles with arachnos I put in are swinging one way or the other. And yeah, this is definitely cleanup/recruitment.
Mission 4: Oh that's interesting. In the 5 or 6 times I've run that one the hostages never spawned in the first part of the map. I always got the Student of Bone carrying the body bag first. who drops the corresponding clue

 

 

 

In hindsight she should have been assisted by a "Mr. Boddy". I was scratching my head for things for them to say on rescue so I went for movie quotes. But, yeah, I was thinking about what kind of thing the midnighters would do for fun on holiday parties and this was it.

Mission 5: This one was tricky.  You're supposed to face undying in the last room and Eternal in the middle, That's an error on my part that I failed to catch since all the bosses are set to "back"  the wrong one got kicked out. Which is weird since there are four circles in the last room for spawns.

 

Also when you fight him as an AV he's able to revive himself with soul transfer, Maybe he doesn't have enough energy as an EB

 

I will fix what I've seen, but thanks for a super fun review this was nice to read.

Edited October 8 by SirArthurIV

[TerroirNoir3]

10 minutes ago, SirArthurIV said:

I will fix what I've seen, but thanks for a super fun review this was nice to read.

Had fun running it!  Thanks for writing! 

[Jiro Ito]

3 hours ago, TerroirNoir3 said:

I dunno. Are there many other Halloween arcs?

 

Some people may have done a Halloween arc

[TerroirNoir3]

2 hours ago, Jiro Ito said:

 

Some people may have done a Halloween arc

AHA!

Well, we will get to that in a while!  

[TerroirNoir3]

Arc 26 from our first author on "TerroirNoir's Cable Channel of AE" Reviews is @Ankylosaur's All That Glows 2: Nictus Exodus.

 

Mission 1: A Zag in the Zig.  So after finally wrapping up stuff at Paragon U I meet up with Hornet for a coffee.  He seems fine mostly.  A bit tired. The Wyverning is a 23 hour a day job it seems to me.   And that's when I get a phone call from Buddy Bolton. I cover the speaker and whisper to Hornet who it is.  He nods and proceeds to put what appears to be eight sugars in his coffee! How does the man have any teeth left?! 

 

It seems Bolton got a promotion after our last adventure.  He's a captain in the PPD now.  Excellent. Heading up a tiny unit investigating more Nictus activity across the city. He's following up the sole real lead they have though, Stardust, and wants to know if I want a front seat at the interrogation at the Zig with him and Orthas.  Sure.  I'll just have to speak to a Zayas once I get there.

I gesture at Hornet to get the bill but he waves me away, covers the tab and tip and says something about his boss being loaded. Do I want a lift over to the Zig?  Why not.  So we wander over to Hornet's parked Arachnos flyer - honestly, do Arachnos not know you have this?  The Meteors have one too - and we take off.

 

As we approach the radio squawks something about a car ramming the Zig's walls, Council flooding in, prisoners flooding out, and that's not good. I get Hornet to drop me down and while he guards the flyer against escapees I head into the chaos.

 

 

Maestro is free?  That's not what I wanted to hear at all.  Not sure exactly what I wanted to hear but that is definitely not it.

 

 

That's Ascendant Archon De May.  And he gets his comeuppance from me, and some swiftly arriving back up from the PPD's psychic force.  You stay down, you maniac.  Now, I wonder is Maestro here or actually out in the city.  Time to find out.  Well, I should find Bolton and Orthas and Zayas first I suppose.

 

 

Up ahead as we get closer to the sewer entrance, we run into Dark Equinox Archon Breque.  "Dark Equinox"? Honestly, the Council and their fellow fascist Cosplayers, the 5th Column, are so full of overblown titles that I'm amazed they can get their heads through doorways. 

But.. Breque takes a knee to Engineria and her PPD buddies all the same.  Bye bye, Breque.  You came to the Zig, you get to stay for a while, hopefully a long while.

He WAS ranting about Nosferatu being free though.  So Maestro and Nosferatu.  Well rats.  Who's next then?

Ah!  One of Breque's gang transformed into a Darkwolf!

Down!  Does anyone have a rolled up newspaper?  Or some spray?  No?

Rad blast it is then!

 

 

With the Darkwolf dealt with I scoot ahead and into the main sewer entry of the Zig, up a rank tunnel and through a hole in the floor.  It's smoky and grim in here and I run into a Mindstorm called Kaya.

Nope, no idea who she is.  (I may have to peruse my case notes later). Where I go she watches?  That's sweet.  Have some radiation powered blasts!  I don't have time for your fangirling.

 

 

Down she goes.

Up around the corner I find Bolton and Zayas and free them before going looking for Orthas.  And it figures that he would be held by Void Hunters!

 

 

Yeah, I'm here and I'm mad.  You've captured my friends and that does not put you in my good books.  No siree.

You two take a long nap now, y'hear.

You ok in there, Orthas? Good.

Found him, guys.

 

 

Now, let's get out of Dodge and gather the troops, gird our loins and circle the wagons...I'm running out of clichés here so one of you help me out!

I'll be veering into "Fish swim south for the winter", and if you know that reference then kudos!

 

Wait, Raze?  Do I know you? You seem to know me.  Oh hell, I'm still in the wrong time era after that Cimerora thing, am I? Or are they referring to one of my doppelgangers?  Well, whatever it is we're not on the same side now.

 

 

Amazing how all this "forging a new way" involves hurting the innocent, yeah?  Ends justify the means, do they?  Not on my watch, bucko! Not on my watch!

 

 

Raze goes down.  Kinda had to against 4 of us to be honest.  Now to deal with someone mentioned earlier by the Void Hunters, a Suarez.  Haven't seen him or her yet, so I assume they're arriving to pick up their prisoners.  Let's give them a big surprise!

 

There he is!

 

 

Welp, he's noticed us!  Pile on, gang!  Don't let that guy get away!  Orthas!  QB!  You're up!

 

 

Oh, he's tough!  But again there's 4 of us and he takes a beating!  I'm trailing smoke out of my armor and my HP is heading into the red.  Bolton is looking shaky too.  Orthas and Zayas just jeep hitting Suarez though.

 

 

And we all live to tell the tale!  (a) go us!  (b) whew!

The Dark Comet is coming, is it?  Yeah, I've been hearing that for a while now.  And we're gonna be there, my friend.

 

 

And then it's over.

The PPD have regained control of the Zig.  The rest of my little gang stagger out and sit down heavily.  I look across at Bolton and wait for him to speak.

So Maestro and Nosferatu are definitely gone. And so has Stardust.

That's when Zayas chips in with an interesting fact (that might be illegal but this Vig is saying nothing!) It seems that the Zig is in the habit of slipping short life span tracking devices into the inmates' food, and that could help track Stardust at least.

 

[Mission 1 = As usual the Zig yard map is a great map for some excellent encounters and once again @Ankylosaur is doing some deep world building here.  Looking forward to see how this plays out.]

 

Mission 2: Freakout.  Bolton fills me in on details here. The new Council are building up their forces.  Still got the UPA and the Awakened are on board too it seems. Orthas is more interested in the Void Harbinger. Being Kheldian he would be. And at that point Zayas informs us that they found Stardust! He's in the Freaktown part of Crey's Folly.  Well of course he is.  Couldn't just book himself a room in a motel quietly. Looks like I'm off to a run down warehouse in Crey's Folly then.

 

In I go and...hold up!  What in the blue hell are you?  A Shadow Freak?

 

 

That does not bode well.  (Not 100 percent on what boding really is but I feel some boding going on)

On top of the boding I'm having a definite "Running for the bus and watching it pull away" moment here. Offworld to the Dark Comet?  Oh no.

 

 

Dammit!  I got too close trying to listen and was spotted.  

 

 

Yeah, it looks like I'm doing well here.  Well, I had not appreciated his several friends hidden among all the warehouse racks and shelves, who then proceeded to back shoot me.

 

 

Cue the end result of aforesaid back shooting.  Ow.  That's right.  Walk away.  A bit further.  There we go.

 

 

I get up, he goes down and I move to tackle his companions.  And they get a severe radiation burn.  Oh I'm sure their implants will heal them up rapidly but for the meantime them lying there moaning is sweet music to me.

 

 

Now, I know there are smart Freaks, we all do.  But these guys?  You have to wonder.  

 

 

He seems particularly pleased with the new toys the Nictus bestowed on them.  I bet there's a cost to that you don't know about, my friend.  Mind you, you've removed most of your original body to be like that so ...nah, forget the cost.  You don't care, do you?

But while we're here, I need your Endurance.  Why?  Because it refills mine, and because it stops you being able to hit me.  Simple.

 

 

And down he goes.  He lets me know I have just missed Stardust.  I was about to say "And you expect me to believe you?" when I overheard this nugget.

 

 

I come around a corner to find the speaker and some friends clustered around a Shadow Shard.  And promptly take out them and the Shard.  It seemed like the right thing to do.  On we go!

 

Hmm,  someone was working out the Dark Comet's path here.  Maybe smart Freaks?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  Either way part of it has been erased so I don't have the whole picture yet.

 

 

Examining a nearby PC shows me an open account with a blog on one of the tabs.  Lots of it look like conspiracy-speak but there's mention of a thing called a Shadow Rupture. Something bigger, possibly much bigger, than a Shadow Shard.  Oh oh.

 

No Stardust though. He and the others have vamoosed.  Time to leave.

Back with Bolton we go through what I've found.

 

 

And Orthas chips in with the question we've all been thinking about: where did they go?

 

[Mission 2 = Oh, that was surprisingly tough!  Those Shadow Freaks pack a punch!  But like I said above, I missed the bus there and was gathering follow-on clues.  Worked well.  On to part 3!]

 

Mission 3: Radioactive Escapes.  Bolton informs Engineria that Raze is the key here.  They kept talking about Engineria being involved in the evac of Praetoria, saying that they only survived until the evac due to Engineria.  Ah, what in the what now?

 

So we get to Vanguard and talk to Gaussian.  He maintains that the Nictus fled through time to Praetoria before the Fall.  ARGH.  More verdamnt time travel!  Raze's evac records say that they fought off the Devouring Earth with the help of Metronome, Purplies and Engineria.  Everyone thought "purplies" was just some Resistance-speak.  Seems like they were Nictus. 

Yeah. Ok, but me?  I was there?

Apparently it's related to the TUNNEL system, which always transports people to a time before the Fall.  Oh, ok.  Gotcha.  Fixed point Time Travel then. However we are approaching paradox time.  I have to go back because if I don't then we're not having this conversation and...ok I'll go, I'm already getting a migraine.

Trouble is I can only stay 45 minutes due to heightened radioactivity levels, so I had better be good at what I do over there.

 

And then I'm tooled up and crossing over/back/to...one of those.

 

 

Oh thanks a bunch, Stardust!  You're a real piece of work, you know that?

 

 

Oh, I'll help you out with a boot to your ass if you give me any lip!  Right!  Where the hell are you then?

Oh that's nasty.  Very much so!

 

 

And there's Stardust.  Right, you great lummox, let's get going...human free?  What am I, a wasp?  Or them?  You, sir, are not right in the head.  In the meantime however we have that thing behind you to deal with.  Then we find the others.  And I'm on a clock here.  Why? Nunya Bidness!

 

 

Hit it!  Ok, Old Stardust here actually IS good in a fight...well, so far anyway.  Did they get weaker later?  Their later, my earlier.  Whatever.  Hit it again!

 

 

Right, that ...thing, went down hard.  Stay down!  Let's keep moving.  I have 30 minutes left or near enough. No, still Nunya Bidness, Stardust. Just...oh my god.  That does not look like anything I wanted to see. Now or ever.

But we're in combat now so let's go!

Hit him!

 

 

Stardust and Engineria stagger away from that fight leaking blood and my armor is cracked and burned.  Somewhere up ahead is Metronome in a War Walker Body.  We're gonna need him if we want to finish this. Especially me in the limited time I have left.  No winking out of existence due to paradox.

Ah, found him.

There were Kheldians in the Primal Earth forces that ended the Praetorian War but no part of the history mentions this. Interesting. What else has been carefully airbrushed out of the official records?

 

 

We carry on, battling Infected everywhere and Devouring Earth Hamidon beasts.  The streets are full of them.  Then I spot Raze!  Looks like I'm getting the timeline all sorted out!  This is where he remembers me from.

 

 

And we clear the streets.  I heal Resistance fighters with my Kinetics as we pass them and they fight on stronger.  Finally the time has come and I have to go, but I've been successful, at least in what I set out to do. Back to the portal!

 

 

Gaussian congratulates me.  Thanks, all I did was aim and hope!  He's going to confer with Dark Watcher now, while Orthas is going to talk to Sunstorm, the leader of the Peacekeepers on Primal Earth.

 

[Mission 3 = Great street fight!  I didn't have it at times 8, thankfully!  But I can imagine it being crazy.  So that solves part of the time conundrum at least.  On to the next mission!]

 

Mission 4: Surprise Reactions.  Ok, it's still confusing, the time travel I mean.  So Gaussian's people sent a probe through the TUNNEL, and it ended up in the past (their "present") and before the probe was destroyed it collected intel on Metronome. He has control of most of the city's robots and he and the Nictus are holed up in the Keyes reactors.  And the crazy thing is those reactors have been repaired!  Wow.  I read that Anti-Matter destroyed them. Another thing left out of the official records. Only robots and Nictus can survive there and the Devouring Earth, even they cannot enter.

Makes you think.

However Sunstorm wants to negotiate...wait, with who?  Metronome?  Why would he...no, carry on.  I'm listening.

Negotiate to find the position of the Dark Comet so as to prevent the Nictus from returning and attacking us.  Gotcha.

 

And now it gets stranger!  Sunstorm doesn't want non Kheldians going, so Bolton and Orthas are going to merge and accompany him.  Bolton and Orthas?  Borthas? Bolthas?  Orthon?  Hey, I'm not merging with anyone thank you very much!

Oh, I don't have to.  Gaussian is sending me 30 minutes later as "back up", because he's as anxious/paranoid about this as me.  I see you, Gaussian.  I see you.

Orthas is expecting them to be captured and made prisoner.

 

Well, I stare at the clock for another half hour after they leave and then I suit up and get ready to rescue them.

 

 

I make my way down to the reactors and carefully sneak inside the periimeter and who do I see?  Well, not anyone I actually know but a TYPE of person I know!  Hello you!  We've met before, kinda.

 

 

I cut him down and we "catch up".  He's one of a contingent of Neo Tokyo bots here to sort out a Nictus problem it seems.  Well, my bot pal, let's see what we can do about that!

 

 

And then!  And then myself and my new Robo-Friend run into Stardust.  He confuses me here.  You want me to stop you?  Why the hell do you want that?  Ok, I appreciate the gesture but a bit of enlightenment would be helpful, no?  

 

 

He's a bit, what's the word, verbose?  Yeah, amidst trying to take our heads off he tells us that effectively he needs the Dark Comet but only for a short while, otherwise BAD THINGS WILL HAPPEN.  To the Nictus.

That's ...why didn't you just tell us?  We would have helped, you idiot.  Why did you have to make it so damn awkward and complicated?  

 

 

Stardust and then Shadowfall further along.  He's confused by all my actions.  Hey, buddy, I'm living my life in what appears to be the wrong order, so you're not the only one confused here!  I really am going to have to sit down with Araminta and plot exactly how my adventures slot into any sort of coherent pattern.  She's very order orientated like that.  Not that I'm chaotic, it's just getting some outside perspective might be good.  And no, I don't 100 percent trust the Hero Corps therapists!

 

 

We take a breather. Well, I  take a breather, little Robo Friend just waits patiently while I do, before pointing out that someone is ahead,  That someone is Buddy Bolton/Orthas.  We run forward and free them from their bonds.

You're definitely in the running to join the Peacebringer division of the PPD now, Captain Bolton!

 

 

What say we find Sunstorm and get this entire situation dealt with?  Deal?  Good.  C'mon then.  You too, Mecha NC-3000!  Friends are friends, especially in this place.  The noise of the reactors is a constant hum in the back of your head.  I'm surprised people didn't go mad working here.  I don't have Tinnitus but I can imagine it might like that. Then again Praetoria used a lot of Clockwork workers...Clockworkers?  Which one is it?  Doesn't matter.  A lot of mechanical people to do the jobs around here.

 

Another of our "foes". Dark Matter.  Assume the form of a Greater Devoured?  You've never come across the notion that form defines function and idea?  It's one of the theories behind cloning.  Sure, you could clone a fully adult me (and apparently some have!) but it would only be genetically me.  My mind needs to have lived all my experiences to BE me.  That's why there was all that nonsense with mind uploads and so on.  I think Crey was involved.  Or they sued someone for saying they were?  They're always suing someone.  

 

Who arrived to consume you?  That sounds bad.  I've heard mention of that Battalion before.  The Autumn Wards mentioned it.  Well, it ain't happened yet.  Hang on, I'm living my life in a mixed order!  Has it happened and I was elsewhere?  I need to check that pronto when I get back!

 

 

Dark Matter takes a knee/tentacle and is out of the fight.  We still have to find the coordinates though.  Up ahead we see Sunstorm.

Yeah, could have told you that back in Vanguard.  Too close to see, mon ami.

Defer to my judgement?  Ooookay then.  On your head it is! You all heard him say it!

 

 

We're still on a countdown here!  Or rather I am.  Everyone else is a Kheldian or a robot!  I've got about 19 minutes left before everything goes south.  And there is a console!  Excellent! Coordinates found.

Now one thing remains.  Metronome.

He's concerned with winning the fight against Hamidon. See, you don't.  How do I know that?  I honestly have 15 minutes left and that's not enough time to explain all this and you, Mr. Digital Presence, are in our way.  We're going home, capice?

 

 

So we all pile in and while Metronome simply moves his consciousness to another body elsewhere in Praetoria, this particular iteration that was stopping our escape is now a pile of scrap and we make our way to the escape point.

 

 

And we're back!

We have the coordinates and we can prevent an attack.

 

[Mission 4 = Well that was a very enjoyable run around the Keyes reactors!  Plenty of back and forth and being kept on your toes as the fights rolled around!  Loved it.  On to the finale!]

 

Mission 5: The Dark Comet.  The pressure mounts!  After only 30 minutes or so waiting in Vanguard, but it feels like an eternity, Gaussian returns with confirmation of the Dark Comet. It's huge.  And yes, it's a Shadow Rupture.

Yes, Sunstorm confirms that Nictus could definitely invade from there.  Ah rats. So we're going full Armageddon on it.  Controlled detonations to shatter the thing and put it beyond use.  Ok, because that's gonna go well.  I've not been in space since the Galaxian thing and THAT, well that HURT.  Still have scars from that.  

It'll be defended so we have to port to it and do it by hand.  

My life just gets better and better.

 

Right, why not?  I'm in.  I've come this far.  Let's do this. We're gonna land, clear the defenders.  Once that's done the warheads will follow.  We defend them and then get the hell out of Dodge.  Then Vanguard kabooms the entire thing.  What could go wrong?

 

What could go wrong?  I had to ask, didn't I?  Jinxed myself.  Ok, where are the guys?

 

 

Right, that's Captain Bolton freed from the energy.  Sunstorm is probably in the same predicament so let's find him and move on.  Plenty of the Nictus floating around here already!

 

 

Gotcha!  Oh, you don't look the best, Sunstorm.  That energy has fried you a bit.  Well, walk it off.  We're on a deadline here.

 

 

Ah hell.  Now we see the magnitude of what we're up against!  That does not look good.  I'm getting the boding again. Much boding.  Sounds like an old English village.  "Why yes, we vacationed in Much Boding. lovely place."  Ah.  I'm losing my mind!  Space is BIG.!

Get a grip, Engineria!

On we go.

 

 

The three of us proceed to deal with the Dark Comet's Nictus defenders.  Not easy but we're coordinated and we're succeeding.

All to the good I suppose.

 

 

Finally we get to activate the homing beacon.  Now we just have to wait for the warheads to arrive.  It's like calling in an air strike on your own position!  Just not immediate destruction.  But equally dangerous.

 

 

Then the warheads start dropping.  We watch for each drop and run to defend it and beat back the Nictus as they seek to destroy it or render it inoperable.

Finally it looks like we have succeeded.  Time to port out of here and for Gaussian to detonate this death rock!

 

 

We crowd through the portal and stumble back into Vanguard.  There's a brief bit of decontam but we can see the following.

 

 

And it's done.  WHEW!

And I damn well knew it. I damn well knew it. It's not over yet.  However, I don't have to do it immediately.  So I can deal with some outstanding matters I have elsewhere before returning to this.  How?  Time Travel.  Gawdamn Time Travel.

 

 

I need a special sort of calendar to keep track of what day it is anymore.  Oy!

 

[Mission 5 = Excellent space borne finale to this arc.  Map was perfect for it and every spawn fell perfect.  Can't praise this enough.]

 

Verdict. The Ankyverse continues to grow and expand on the known history of Primal/Praetoria...and beyond!  For those who love Kheldians but want a different slant then play this.  Great stuff.

 

 

Next up from @Ankylosaur is All That Glows 3: Nictus Evictus.

And next on the schedule in TerroirNoir's Cable Channel of AE reviews is @cranebump's Fallout 3: Reassembly. 

Edited October 14 by TerroirNoir3

[cranebump]

Is Maestro here? Pft. Maestro is always here. In our hearts! (swoon)

[TheOneTitan]

On 10/2/2025 at 1:47 PM, TerroirNoir3 said:

Verdict.  All round a really great arc.  I feel like I missed a few things here and there because it felt like I had come in part way through a longer story, and that's on me. No reflection on the quality of the writing and presentation.  Tachyon was a great contact and very well developed.  Recommended.

Great review! So to clarify some things which can explain why some stuff was odd here, I started working on this on my laptop, at the time I didn't have access to my PC. I ended up transferring everything I've made to my PC when I got it back, but messed up/forgot to change some things, like the Council showing up in Mission 3 (should've been Apex). There was also another earlier bug where somehow Lord Ectral turned from an Arch-Villain to a Lieutenant, but I managed to patch that up at least! Also I do think I rushed the Lord Ectral stuff a little as I left some clues blank so I could fill them out later, I thought I made some to elaborate on that more but might've forgotten, since at that point I was going to stop playing for a while anyway

 

And yeah this is also Part 3 of a 4-part saga I'm working on, it's definitely part of a larger story (David Drake is a character in these last 2), you don't have to play these last 2 but it does help to get the big picture at play. But yeah thanks for the awesome review I really appreciate it a lot! I didn't expect anyone to play this one especially since no one did my last one, also big shoutout to Jack, Overman and Robo, borrowed some of your characters for this I imagine you'll enjoy the free advertisement lol

[TerroirNoir3]

29 minutes ago, TheOneTitan said:

Great review! So to clarify some things which can explain why some stuff was odd here, I started working on this on my laptop, at the time I didn't have access to my PC. I ended up transferring everything I've made to my PC when I got it back, but messed up/forgot to change some things, like the Council showing up in Mission 3 (should've been Apex). There was also another earlier bug where somehow Lord Ectral turned from an Arch-Villain to a Lieutenant, but I managed to patch that up at least! Also I do think I rushed the Lord Ectral stuff a little as I left some clues blank so I could fill them out later, I thought I made some to elaborate on that more but might've forgotten, since at that point I was going to stop playing for a while anyway

 

And yeah this is also Part 3 of a 4-part saga I'm working on, it's definitely part of a larger story (David Drake is a character in these last 2), you don't have to play these last 2 but it does help to get the big picture at play. But yeah thanks for the awesome review I really appreciate it a lot! I didn't expect anyone to play this one especially since no one did my last one, also big shoutout to Jack, Overman and Robo, borrowed some of your characters for this I imagine you'll enjoy the free advertisement lol

Thanks for sharing, @TheOneTitan!  I can't promise I'll get to the other episodes but now I know they're there I'll stick them on my list.  Alas it's a big list.  And glad to shine some light on your work as well as others'.  I started this entire thing concentrating on, I hope they don't mind me saying this, a kind of "Big Three" of writers, who seem to have somehow (hard work!) gathered a following along the way, but I'm enjoying the branch out into my "Interludes" section very much.  Keep writing!

 

Edit:  And now Tachyon/Prof Dafriend is part of Araminta's and Engineria's back story!  

Edited October 11 by TerroirNoir3

[Darmian]

8 minutes ago, TerroirNoir3 said:

I started this entire thing concentrating on, I hope they don't mind me saying this, a kind of "Big Three" of writers, who seem to have somehow (hard work!) gathered a following along the way,

Well, I hope @Ankylosaur and @cranebump don't mind me saying this, not taking away from their (or my own!) writing, but sometimes you just get lucky and people spot your stuff and then go back to see if you've done more.

[Ankylosaur]

Ah - the daring tale of Engineria and the energy-beings-that-live-on-stars-and-take-the-shape-of-beings-they-have-cohabited continues!

And with such a large serving of boding! Forboding of the dark comet! (And maybe even some backboding because of the ever persnickety time-travel.) 

Tidbits and spoilers and the like. Will add in more as you share more of your tale!

• Spoiler

  • Police vs Aliens Redo - This was quite a departure from the Police vs Alien original story, but the Shadow Freaks were one of those Nictus things in a narrow level range that fit with Bolton's promotions in that series. All the Nictus stuff is pretty spread out - but fortunately, the Nictus themselves are 1-54, so while Stardust in Human form can't show up at these levels, he can in other forms. Bolton and Orthas' story is definitely a main through line, though, that came from that. 
  • The Awakened and the Council and the 5th - The Awakened mention is a nod to All that Glints - the psi/Penny Mayhem story you played. Both these series are about the post-fall of Striga and rebuilding, though that was about The Council primarily; this is more about the Nictus Arakhn/Requiem Council/5th schism. 
  • Raze - in M1 you have not met him yet in your timeline, but he has in his.  <--backshadowing? a "call forward?"
  • Hornet - He does work hard! A nice little device to account for maps with an Arachnos flier as the door. One of my favorite little Hornet encounters someone shared was from @Darmian, who, after spending so much time with Hornet in Glitters was surprised to run into him in the Isles in Glimmers. They took a breather to watch a sunset together while reminiscing... Or that's how it went in my head.🙂 (Hope you don't mind me sharing Darmian)
  • TUNNEL - yet another device - the ole "Tunnel-network-takes-you-back-in-time-because-of-Neo-Tokyo's-wards-preventing-you-getting-to-the-real-present," that explains away why you can get to old Praetoria, but not the post-fall of Praetoria world. At least most of the time. You do visit it occassionally as you know. As with each of these All That G... series you travel to Praetoria at least once - and now for the evacuation! All irradiated because Antimatter blew up the reactors of course.  
  • M3 and 4 are great fun. M3 in particular has so much room to do things with - love that map. Fun to bring all the "Radiation mutated DE"  to use some of the oddities in the mob. These were the finale of the original PvA, and why @Darmian encouraged me to make this a part of the All That Series. Fits in super well. Writing it is where I really started doing a lot of my Praetorian research, since I had not played any of it on live. 
  • M5 was actually kind of reusing a map and mission I had in another arc that I had taken down. Those Warheads falling from the sky when they enter makes it feel really dynamic, and gave me a way to use that kind of "simple" outdoor map. I had used the Neo Shivan map version here originally - and swapped it out after watching Valeyard play through it. The mobs are right on top of each other in that one. Missed the map intro talking about energy fissures though. 🙂 Currently reworking that Shivan arc so one day you may see something similar again.

   

Edited October 15 by Ankylosaur

[cranebump]

20 hours ago, Ankylosaur said:

And with such a large serving of boding! Forboding of the dark comet! (And maybe even some backboding because of the ever persnickety time-travel.) 
 

Reminds me of the Richard Pryor joke about foreplay.

 

"I had time for one or two plays. That was it. Three and four was dead!"

[Darmian]

No issues with sharing, @Ankylosaur.

[Ankylosaur]

Now that you have been through just about all of the All That G... stuff, I thought it might be handy to have a timeline of "when" you "were" in Praetoria and elsewhere because of time travel. This is all from memory so I may miss something 🙂


All That time Travel and the Praetorian trips timeline (Spoilers but not for anyone who has read Engineria's journeys)

 

Spoiler

Before everything

• All That Glows 3 - you head to the past - you'll see

Fall of Praetoria

• All That Glows 2 - you are part of the evacuation and see the reactors rebuilt since the Clockwork just keep fixing everything, Its a place where the Nictus escaped to since high radioactivity is not a problem for an energy being

Post Fall / Reclamation of Praetoria by Neo Tokyo

• All That Glitters 3.2 - you encounter Gold Brickers stealing Paretorian tech and Neo Tokyo Cyber Samurai battling DE
• All That Glints 2 - you encounter Neo Tokyo's Mecha NC robots fighting DE -  you also go to First Ward and the hospital there, and Mr. G and gang escape there
• All That Glimmers 1.2 - you head to the "Vigilante Isles" which are in ruins and controlled by the Praetorian avatar of Merulina

Post Fall Later / Present / Neo Tokyo reclaimed/rebuilt "Cole's City" (<-- the planet and the city having the same name is unfortunate)

• All That Glimmers 3.2 - you go to the present Neo Tokyo controlled city in pursuit of Scirrocco and Ice Mistral, who have gone native, and meet Ma Soong who leads the city. You also encounter just about everyone in this, Cyber Samurai, Ninjas, Storm Monks, Mecha NCs, and even the Praetorian versions of several folk (Pa Soong is Ma Soong, Flower Knight is Thistle Onamusa, Foreshadow is Afterthought, Mirror Spirit is Tirrips Rorrim, etc. Bcause of the order of the wind tie-in, just realizing I should have brought in a Borea and Levatura too - hmmm).
• All That Gleams - you'll see - but recalling all the above helps
• The Neo Praetoria series - a gold-side, parallel series to All That. Part 1 is in night ward and part 2 in first ward - maybe you'll see one day. 🙂 

•  

Edited October 14 by Ankylosaur

[TerroirNoir3]

This player confused me for a moment, @Ankylosaur!

 

[Ankylosaur]

Understandably!

 

Not too far off from my Anky. The original on live was a Spines/Regen Scrapper, and all green, and loads of fun. Simple costume so the Spines could shine in contrast. All tights with the Insect skin. Just happened to be the toon I logged in with when they handed out Globals, and, well, here I am. 🙂

i remade him here, but never took him past level 4 - though I do log in as him to author sometimes. 

 

(P.S. So great to see the run-through of All That Glows 2! All That Glows 3 is a Dev's choice believe it or not - more on that later, but a few tidbits added above now that you are done.)

Edited October 15 by Ankylosaur

[TerroirNoir3]

Araminta's Adventures.

 

Hello gang!  Araminta here.  I generally have a quieter life than Engineria, what with still reading through a lot of material salvaged from Praetoria.  When that that is converted to AE data by Neil over in Steel Canyon then I'm going to have a look at it properly. Having just come back though from checking out a zombie invasion I check my messages to find one from the mayor of Salamanca over in Croatoa, Gordon Bower. I've only been out to Croatoa once or twice so far.  Seems lovely but I tend not to drag the girls around open countryside because I then spend hours scraping dirt out of the metal.  But I won't refuse a call for help.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Headless Huntsman of Salamanca by @Jiro Ito

 

Mission 1: A Call From the Mayor's Office.  So I get the train out to Salamanca and head over to the town hall.  No sign of Gordon Bower though.  I meet Councilman Larry Vaughn instead. He tells me that my services aren't needed and I can just turn around and go home and take my robots with me.  Suspicious much?  I don't like how this is going.  He insists though and I leave.

 

I decide to have a look around Salamanca myself while I'm here.  What's Vaughn gonna do, arrest me?  He's a Councilman, not the police.  He's not even the mayor.  Let's have a wander around.

 

And I'm glad I did!  

 

 

Down one street I can see a Mr. Polk held captive by the Tuatha!  Those creatures look as big as some of the Council Soldiers!  Or the Council Soldiers are on some steroid to make them as big as the Tuatha!  Both are much bigger than me is what I am trying to say!

 

 

Well, I'm going to rescue him.  C'mon ladies!  Everyone lock and load!

Ok, these Tuatha are tough. I was thrown across the street at one point!  But the girls took them down all the same.  Now, Mr. Polk, are you ok?

A headless ghost you say?  That's a new one for me. Just the one headless ghost?  No accompanying ghostless head?  No.  Ok.

 

 

Ok, I've read a lot of the news reports that have come out of Croatoa over the years and I really shouldn't be surprised that a headless ghost would appear here of all places.  Nor should anyone else really.  But there are other citizens in trouble so me and the girls go looking for them.  If this is what Larry Vaughn calls normal then I don't want to live here.

 

Coming around a corner in Salamanca we run into a similar situation as Mr. Polk, except this time it's a Mr. Posner. Ok, girls, you know what to do now.  Let's get to rescuing!

 

 

We free him and he claims that the headless ghost drew all the other creatures here.  Ah.  Well, I don't know what to do about that. Yet!  All I can do right now is save the rest of the citizens currently being terrorized by the Tuatha.

 

Oh hello, who are you?  Scruffy.  And you are?  Oh!  Sorry.  I was just about to offer you a treat.  I keep a small supply in one of Laura's utility boxes.  Oh you still want one?  Ok.  

So Scruffy here is a shapeshifted member of the Midnight Squad.  They heard the commotion and came outside to help.  Nice to meet you, Scruffy.  What say you and me work together here?

 

 

There we go, Scruffy!  Mrs. Kintner is our last rescuee!  And Scruffy, I know you're a professional and all but don't run in front of the girls when they're firing. Hang on Mrs. Kintner, we're coming!

 

 

So yeah.  Mrs. Kintner reaffirms the whole deal about a headless ghost. 

The streets seem clear. For now.  Scruffy vanishes off in the direction of the university. I've been meaning to have a look at their library actually.  They have lots of books that haven't been digitized yet and some that they claim can't be digitized.  

 

I head back into the town hall and Larry Vaughn meets me at the door and once again tries to get rid of me!  Says there no such creature as a headless ghost here and even if there is, well I must have brought it with me!  What?  In some sort of vacuum thermos?  On the train?  You're either hiding something or you're an idiot.  Or...I finish the thought outside.  Or you're really scared and there's more to this than a headless ghost.  Hmm.  C'mon girls, let's go sit at the train station and have a think.

 

[Mission 1 = Simple mission but very well executed.  I really liked the concept of the bait and switch with the contact and having a contact that really doesn't want you there.]

 

Mission 2: Children of the Pumpkin Patch.  So after some thinking I head back to the town hall and Vaughn is almost surprised I'm still in Salamanca. He has some words for me on that! Then he gets frustrated and admits that yes there's rumors of some sort of creature in town. Something without a head. I let the next comment ride because the people here need my help more than Vaughn needs Laura to hang him out the top window by his ankles. And then he tells me again to get lost.

 

I tell him I want to speak to the mayor but apparently Mayor Bower is with the Agricultural Committee and is busy.  Then there's some more hate from Vaughn concerning "city folks".  Whatever. Girls, we're going looking for the mayor.

 

 

Very countryside here.  All seems passably quiet until I see some Fir Bolg over in the pumpkin patch.  Field?  How big is a patch supposed to be anyway?

 

 

They look like they crawled up out around their bigger siblings, and that's a scary thought!  Like the actual pumpkins are sleeping bigger Fir Bolg!

And it turns out that maybe it's exactly as scary as it sounds because Keri makes some beepity noises and I turn around in the pumpkin patch to see....yeah, I am NOT going over there.  Engineria might be mad enough to tackle Eochai by herself but I sure as hell ain't gonna!

Time to do some circling.  Looks like the Agricultural Commission may be on temporary lunch break right now if that monster is stalking the farmlands hereabouts!

 

 

But I've got some company again!  And this time I dig out the treats!  Hey Scruffy, over here!  Let's go find Mayor Bower!

 

 

So Scruffy joins us and fits right in with the girls, and I am really gonna have to dig out the wire brushes and cleaning solution once we get out of this place.  Mud in all the vents.  First up we find a Mr. Walters.  I reckon he's one of the Commissioners.  Yep, you saw the Headless Huntsman.  Did you see the mayor?  Hey, come back here!  He's gone.  

 

 

But that doesn't matter because after carefully navigating my way around the spot where Eochai is standing, doing whatever things like him do - hey, I'm not gonna just go and ask him - we find the mayor.

 

 

We rescue him and he hightails it out of there.  As he leaves he says we have to talk because these attacks all began two weeks ago.  So at the start of the October then. Interesting. There's still more members of the Agricultural Committee to find though.  Can't leave them to the mercies of the Fir Bolg.

 

There's a Mrs. Posner!  Lock and load, girls!  Scruffy, ah...you do you.  Whatever works.  Go Full Mailman on them if that's a thing.

 

 

She's scared as hell and while delighted to be free runs off nearly hysterical.  The Headless Huntsman brought this on us she says.  You know, if it wasn't for the fact that Eochai is standing RIGHT OVER THERE, I'd be thinking there's a Scooby gang ending to all this.  I'd prefer that actually. Easier to get "Old Man Smithers" in prison than a 12 foot incarnation of Halloween that can throw fireballs at you.

 

Finally we rescue Mr. Borwood.  He's adamant that Eochai didn't show up until after all this nonsense started.  

Well, that's the mayor and the committee accounted for.  I want some explanations so I'm going back to the town hall.

 

 

I collect the frightened mayor on the way back.

 

 

[Mission 2 = Atmospheric!  And I gave Eochai a poke AFTER I'd completed the mission and he very nearly one-shotted little Araminta!  So I hit the exit button fast!  Good stuff!]

 

Mission 3: Season of the Witch.  And why am I back talking to this moron Vaughn?  Where's the mayor?  Oh, Vaughn says good job on rescuing those people, but what about the Headless Huntsman?  He doesn't exist probably.  Maybe it's something made up by some outsider to cause panic in the country bumpkins!

(I swear on Keri's shiny little head that I will hide your shoes, you idiot!)

As for all this happening two weeks ago?  Well, two weeks ago some of the land was put up for rezoning as commercial and that caused a fuss, but Vaughn doubts that had anything to do with a Headless Huntsman.

(It's you, isn't it?  You're my Scooby gang ending. Oh, I can't jump to conclusions but I've got a feeling about this.)

I need to talk to the other Council members.

But Salamanca comes under attack from the Cabal of witches!  And those Council members have scattered!

 

 

There's Councilwoman Hooper!  Surrounded by witches of the Cabal too.  I'd better rescue her.  No sign of Scruffy yet.  I'm getting used to him being around.  Which reminds me, I must go find Gloryhound while I'm in Croatoa.  I've always wanted to meet them.

 

 

Right, that's her freed from the witches.

Councilwoman Hooper informs me that a witch told her that the Salamancans had somehow summoned the Headless Huntsman.  She has no idea how though.  Me neither.  I'm still suspicious about Vaughn though.  Anyway Hooper runs off to safety.  I have to find the rest of the Council members now.

 

Up next is Councilman Gardner.  He does not look happy.  And I can't blame him when the cabal are telling him that the pain will stop when he gives them the answer that they want!

 

 

I'm coming, Mr. Gardner!  Ladies, do your thing!  Not you witches!  MY girls!  Boom!

Ok, that's as clear as mud. No real enlightenment there. Maybe the next Council member will have more of a clue as to what's going on.  If indeed they haven't been tortured by the Cabal already.

 

 

And that next Council member is Councilman Brody.  I find him standing alone, but there's dead and injured Cabal nearby and some dead Redcaps.  Looks like another battle happened here before I got to Brody.

Brody says they kept asking him where "it" was.  "You took it, where is it?"

Ok, the plot is thickening.  More like fog than soup though, considering where we are.  You go on home now, Brody.

 

Hey, there's my pal Scruffy!  No, don't say it!  It can't be the dog who is behind all this!  Shapeshifted or not.

Anyway, he looks to be in a spot of trouble so I'm going to help him out.

 

 

Once Scruffy is with me we have a bigger fish to fry!  Because up ahead is Mary Macomber!

Yes, THAT Mary Macomber.

And she, that's right, MARY DAMN MACOMBER, knows who I, ARAMINTA LEVIN, is!

I bet it's some psychic witch power.  No way am I famous enough to be known.  Engineria maybe, me?  Nope. Most I get is "that girl with the robots who hangs out with Engineria."

How am I involved?  Ah, would you believe a phone call from the mayor?  

 

 

Apparently she didn't believe that. There goes the mind reading thing I was betting on.

Summoned by a person here in Salamanca?  I believe you.  I wish you believed it wasn't me though.  And if you're going to keep zapping me with magic I totally AM going to shoot you. 

 

 

So THAT'S what was missing!  That's what they kept asking about!  Mary ports away (or whatever the Cabal version of that is) and I'm left pondering.  Who would have the Huntsman's head? 

 

 

I need to get back to town and have a chat with people.  I'd prefer it to be the mayor but it's probably going to be Vaughn.  Sigh. Especially since he's the only one that has not been killed or terrorized in the last two weeks it's him, isn't it?  What do you think, Scruffy?  Hmm, I have a dog with me.  It's totally a Scooby case.

 

[Mission 3 = Plenty of fun here!  The Cabal vs Redcap fights I backed away from mostly because Redcaps are a total pain with all their tiny arrows!  On we go!]

 

Mission 4: Night of the Huntsman.  Vaughn is there.  And I call him on his BS.  (I have no proof, I'm bluffing!) And he denies it!  Argh.  I need proof.  Ok, I'm gonna find proof, Mr. Big Shot Council Man! Oh yeah.  C'm girls, we're going investigating.

 

Here's the thing though.  I might be wrong.  But we will see, won't we?

Worst that happens is...I don't know actually.  The Huntsman kills everyone?  I was more going with "Araminta goes back to Paragon after a few days in Croatoa", but that's nowhere near what the worst could be now that I actually think about it.  Ok, forget all that! Vaughn or not the Headless Huntsman has to be defeated. Or even found!

 

 

Ah, that's a no from me.  Nuh uh.  Let's go this other way, girls. Down the hill and over there.  It looks nicer over there.

 

 

And on our way down the hill we meet Katie Hannon!  I've heard of you!  You're famous.  Like actually famous.  Not like Mary Macomber who is infamous.  Hey, you haven't seen a dog called Scruffy around have you, Katie?  Well let me know if you do.  He's a friend.

 

 

We have to deal with Redcaps.  I mean they are literally everywhere.  I've heard you see a lot more of them around when Jack in Irons is present.  So maybe that's why.  They're still a total nuisance though.

Hmm, what have we here?  Let's have a look.

 

 

Right.  So there was a binding ritual done here.  And I've been spotted by Vaughn!  He says to wait right there because the police are on the way.  To arrest me for what?  Trailing around a wood in Croatoa?  That's not a crime.  Is it?  There isn't some sort of weird Croatoan HOA is there?  Wait, even if there was I don't live here so...nope, I'm losing it. 

 

Spoiler

 

Ah!  More damn Redcaps!  Well, have some stun grenades!  Enjoy your pressure-induced migraine!  KaBoom!

 

 

And in the middle of all these Redcaps I find Amy Jonnson!  Another famous person that I have totally heard of!  Yay! Still no dog 😞

 

 

Ok, Amy, you and Katie do your witchy thing while me and the girls provide basically artillery, ya?  Cool.  Let's go!

And Mary Macomber?  She's a lot friendlier than the last time I met her!  Might be something to do with her knowing we're on the same side here, might be because Amy and Katie are with me right now so I must be ok, yeah?  Either way I'm not fighting a powerful witch right now and that's good.  What's also good is I now have THREE, count them, THREE powerful witch ladies on my side for whenever I do find the Headless Huntsman.  Nope, I'm still not going near Jack in Irons.

 

 

And then we find SCRUFFY!  Woot!  Excellent news.  

Meanwhile up ahead we can see Larry Vaughn.  He's surrounded by Redcaps and it looks like HE needs a rescue.  Much as it pains me to do it, I'm going to have to do it.  Let's go rescue that guy.

 

And he's thoroughly ungrateful.  Thoroughly so.  

 

 

Spoiler

Yep, we've had him arrested.  He's "Old Man Smithers"!  Totally Scooby gang. Fortunately Scruffy was along to make it work!

 

Now we have a Headless Huntsman to send back to Hell or wherever he's supposed to be.  Wherever it is it isn't here.  Tally ho!

Come on, Witchy ladies!  All girls together!  Oh wait, Scruffy!  Sorry boy!

 

Shortly afterwards we find him.  And with the combined firepower of my girls, plus three powerful witches, and...I actually don't know what Scruffy does but he definitely does something, we force the Headless Huntsman back against a large rock in the stream.  He's mad though! Well, I think he is. It's hard to really tell with someone who has no head.

 

 

But we defeat him!  His body lies cooling(?) in the stream and pretty soon the witches head off in their separate directions.  Me and the girls head back to the town hall, being careful to avoid Jack in Irons along the way.  I was about to say it must be weird living in a place that has Eochai and Jack in Irons just walking around, and then I remember that when I first had an apartment in Paragon it was in Kings Row, and at one point I could see THREE PALADINS from my window.  I didn't leave the apartment that day.  

 

 

So back in the town hall I get to talk to the mayor finally.  Vaughn is definitely off the Council.  The Headless Huntsman is gone...for now!  In the meantime the mayor gifts me the Huntsman's axe for our Super Group trophy case!  Awesome!  (I don't tell him I don't have a trophy case but I know where I'm gonna put it.)

Take care, Croatoa.

 

[Mission 4 = Great little ending to a tight set of missions.  Really fits the seasonal vibe too.  Everyone have fun playing this!]

 

Verdict.  Had so much fun!  Well put together and very spare in the writing, but not missing anything.  That's a skill in itself.  Recommended.

Signing off of now.  Araminta Levin's Adventures are not so regular as her friend Engineria's, but before I do, I do two more things!

 

First of all I went and found Gloryhound and stared out at the forest of Croatoa with them.

 

 

Then me and the girls went home and I had a really good cup of coffee from my new pumpkin-shaped mug.  And yes, that IS an axe on the counter behind me. 🙂

Maybe I'll get a real trophy case some day but this will do for now.

 

Edited October 18 by TerroirNoir3

[cranebump]

Must be the season of the wiiiiiiiiiiiitch!

 

(Yeah, Donovan on the radio earlier this week. Good tune).:-)