#zone of truth

[zoneofsmites]

Im of the full (possibly delusional) belief that Durge is not the species that they physically appear to be.

You’re telling me this being crafted from nothing but bhaal’s flesh and his blood - this demigod - is actually a dragonborn/tiefling/human/elf/etc.

No. This thing is bhaal’s flesh and it just happens to look like that. They’re an imitation of a species, they’re not truly a (full)mortal being, they have no heritage aside from bhaal.

As a result I’m sure there’s some…oddities.

For example, a demigod child, not fully mortal. I doubt they adhere to the lifespan of whatever species they look like. Looking younger than they should. (less so perhaps with long lived races like elfs and half-elves where that is par for the course).

A dragonborn durge that by all accounts looks like a blue dragonborn but their breathweapon is acid. A tiefling durge that seems to be a Mephistopheles tiefling but they cannot cast mage hand, instead smiting like a zariel bloodline tiefling.

An elf or tiefling durge that doesn’t read as fey or infernal trough identification spells. Because they aren’t either of those things. Perhaps they could read as divine but not quite.

Members of a race that durge is supposed to be looking at them and sometimes when making eye contact they read as wrong. And some kind of uncanny effect triggers in their brain.

Give me more freaky durge who isn’t really what they appear to be at all. Just a little murder demigod crafted from dead god flesh to be the shape of something else.

[elonaswrath]

“the average taz balance character has cast 3 zones of truth” factoid is actually just statistical error. the average ipre agent casts 0 zone of truths. Personal Pan Pizza lover Merle, i choose joy, Highchurch is an outlier adn should not have been counted

[critterfloozy]

Critter Gen Week WIP Wednesday - Zone of Truth

I've obviously finished my Wildflowers fic (you can read them all here), but I'm still trying to keep my momentum going by posting a WIP related to Gen Week until the week rolls around.

Critter Gen Week is August 17-23rd, you can check out more info here. This one is for Day 4: Zone of Truth. It's still pretty sketchy, but I like it:

“Will you state your name for the record?”

“Taskhand Verin Thelyss, youngest child of the Umavi Deirta Theylss, current commander of the forces at Bazzoxan and protector from the Deeps. But you can call me Verin.”

The subject is young. Charming. Obviously rich in the way that those who are Den-born are.

“Now, can you try to say that your name is Leylas Kryn?”

The subject tries. He cannot. The Zone of Truth is apparently in effect.

“Good. We can begin.” My partner nods to me to watch closely. “What is your relation to the former Shadowhand Essek, formerly of Den Thelyss?”

“He was my brother.”

“Not is?”

“He was reported dead six months ago, after a failed expedition to Aeor with Caleb Widogast.”

“What do you believe he was doing during that expedition?”

“It was reported that he was investigating the ruins to bring back holy relics that had been discovered within.”

“That was not the question. Do you believe that he was bringing back holy relics?”

He sighs. “No. He probably saw something weird and dangerous and decided to poke at it with a stick so he could study its reactions.”

“Can you elaborate?”

“Essek had always been easily sidetracked. Dangle a problem in front of him and he’d want to dissect it until it was completely flayed. Chances are he was investigating something and forgot that he was in a wizard-killing wasteland.”

“The person he was with. Caleb Widogast, was an Empire mage, yes?”

“Yes.”

“Do you think that any research he might have had would have passed to the Empire through Mr. Widogast?”

“From what I’ve heard, since returning the beacon, Mr. Widogast has killed one member of the Cerberus Assembly, imprisoned another, and is angling to take down a third. It’s amazing that they’re allowing him to walk freely, but I doubt that they’ll be going to him for advice any time soon.”

“Fair enough. You said that his death was reported. Do you believe that your brother is dead?”

“Who put you up to this? Is this Den Tasithar? Are they angry that they got busted and need to take it out on the whole Den?”

“Please answer the question or specify that you are refusing to answer.”

“Look - ask anyone, I’m not the politics guy in the family. If I was, I’d probably shut up and know the best way to answer your questions. But even I can tell this is a hit job. And you know why?”

“Please tell us.” My partner says, dryly.

“If this is true, there is no win condition for the Umavi. Either she distances herself from her son and looks heartless or she defends her son and looks like either a fool or a traitor. And the Umavi is a perfect soul, one who chose Essek to be part of her Den. Who approved of all of the responsibilities he was given. How can a perfect soul react to such a situation? The only correct course of action would have been to anticipate such an occurrence in the first place - not given him access to do such a thing.”

“Nobody is denying that this looks bad for your family. However, this doesn’t answer the question. Any further stalling will be noted as a refusal to answer.”

“Yes, I believe that my brother is dead, because he is. He took a sabbatical right next to a deadly evil mystery city, and this was the man who spent his breaks trying to solve Novych’s theorem. That was unsolvable. Until he solved it. I believe someone is using his death as a convenient weapon to harm my Den, in part because Essek would have known what the outcome would have been, and I do not believe him capable of wishing so much harm on all of us.”

We had reports of Essek Thelyss's movements in Uthodurn that were less than a week old.

[sirgidget]

i don't know what's more insane: the fact that i wrote a law for a dnd campaign, or the fact that i wrote a law for a dnd campaign that i'm not a part of

[zekekaiju]

Nerd things: DND and what I learned

So I learned how to change fonts in the Tumblr app in case you didn't notice the header. But my inability to fully utilize this site is not what I wanna talk about. No what I wanna talk about is how to mess with people in DND. Sometimes the things I say will be more applicable to the dm side and others better suited to the player. Just remember no matter what side of the table you're on if someone else does something then you are free to try doing the same.

Today I want to talk about zone of truth. It's a second level enchantment spell, available to bards, clerics and paladins. What it does is create a circle where people cannot lie. In the parties I've played with and the parties I dm'ed for someone always had it for interrogation purposes. That's the correct use and it should be used for that and the dm should respect that for the most part. There are three things that dm's and players should take advantage of with the zone of truth.

First, it only makes you tell the truth as you know it. This is more useful for a dm as it is a great source of misinformation. Say your party is investigating a gang and they think a nobleman is involved. They track down a guy in the know and start questioning him about whose been coming and going in the gang's territory and all that good stuff and it looks like nobleman gus is the culprit. But it turns out he just has family in the area and no one knows this.

Second, you can choose not to answer. Now in many cases that will be seen as an admission of guilt but this is still useful for keeping the interrogator from discovering something new based on your answer. This is better for players being interrogated as thier silence doesn't slow down the plot.

Third, you can be as evasive as possible as long as you stay in the bounds of truth. This is huge, it allows your more intelligent villains to be interrogated and leave with the party convinced of their innocence. Let me run a scenario to show you

A party has gone to interrogate a merchant friend named Fred. They found evidence that Fred might be a member of the cult doing bad things. They've put him under zone of truth and are ready to interrogate him.

"Fred are you part of the cult?" Asks the rogue

Fred sighs " I was. When I was younger things were hard I didn't always have enough to eat and they promised change. I probably would have joined anyone who helped me get back on my feet. Recently they've changed it's a very different organization then it was when I joined."

"One of them had a list of members in the area, your name was on it"

"well it's not like I submitted a formal resignation. People who leave tend to not live very long" responded Fred cheerlessly.

Now at this point most new parties will think Fred is in the clear, but if not you can keep this going for awhile. The trick is to be honest but vague enough that the party fills in the gaps. Try to avoid answering yes or no questions directly. I'll give you an example.

"did you pass on any information about us to the cult?"

"there were some new people helping with the unloading at Winstons who asked a lot of questions about you. You don't think they could be part of the cult?"

If you must answer a yes or no question with a yes or no immediately explain it to complicate things

"did you pass on any information about us to the cult?"

"yes, but what was I supposed to do. They had swords and there were a lot of em"

This can work for players to. You may be captured by an evil bard and he is questioning you. You can use the same tactics it works both ways.

[syb-rooks]

The bad kids are an incredibly healthy and supportive friend group BUT OH MY GOD THEY SUCK AT COMMUNICATING!

Half of their problems would be solved if they talked to each other.

Fabian would GLADLY pay for Adaine's components and for Riz's tuition if they asked. He would even get his papa to change his trust fund conditions to include them. Or he would declare Riz and Adaine his nemesis.

They would figure out the reason for Fig's misfortune in a week max. They would march into hell, probably accompanied by both Gorthalax and Sandra Lynn, and demand to break whatever deal she made with whichever demon involved.

If Fabian even suggested he was lonely, the bad kids would organise sleepovers every night. He would circle between the Thistlesprings, the Gukgaks and the Mordred Manor. Lydia would pack him his own lunch.

Fig would immediately start promoting Cassandra's religion on all social media, and get her to thousand followers in a week. The rest of the bad kids would join without hesitation.

If Riz would finally admit the HUGE stress he is under, everyone, even Fig, would stop piling all the work on him and happily write their 10 page essays. They would convince him to see Jawbone, and enjoy his last years in high school. They would band together to find the rogue teacher within a day. They would make sure that Riz's resume is the most impressive CV that the universities have ever received.

They would all gather together to come up with music for Fig and Gorgug's new album. Fabian would choreograph their music videos, Adaine would come up with rhymes, Riz would bring a list of all their adventures, including motifs and connections made, to give her inspiration, Kristen would suggest to make parodies of classic camp songs from her old church.

Adaine would contact Aelwyn immediately to get dirt on Porter, to blackmail him. Gorgug would get permission for his MCAT exams by the end of the week.

And if she would stay on the phone a little longer and admitted how much she is struggling, Aelwyn would immediately return home along with her cats. Then she would drag her sister to Jawbone's door, and force her to give him the components list.

The problem is that even after all those years, after all those adventures, even after the forest of the nightmare king, they still each think of themselves as the weak link. As the person in the group that isn't allowed, doesnt deserve to take space, ask for help. Because they should be able to handle it on their own. Isn't that what adulthood is like?

They would abandon anything and everything to help someone else, as long as that person isn't themselves. As long as they dont have to show their amazing, incredible, powerful, and oh so compassionate friends how weak and imperfect they are in comparison.

[spooksier]

check out tears of the kingdom when you get a chance, dress up game of the summer

[into-the-clintoris]

The opposite of the Mercer Effect (where people listen to critical role and have unrealistically high expectations for the immersiveness of a campaign and expect Matt Mercer's energy and skill) is what I experienced, the Mcelroy effect, where you listen to TAZ and expect there to be way less rules and a lot more fucking around

[biggest-gaudiest-patronuses]

This election day, I'm thinking of my Nana.

I'm thinking of how as a young woman, she fled political violence in her native Colombia to build a new home in a more stable country. I'm thinking about how she lived a long life, but not long enough to see her home country elect its first ever progressive president (just a few months ago!).

Coincidentally, I was living in Colombia at that time (in the very city she grew up in), and I was able to witness what felt like a miracle. A very conservative country, suffering from the violent inheritance of colonization and catholic invasion and the war on drugs, against a backdrop of the dangerous global rise of the far right--this unlikely country managed to elect one of the most progressive heads of state in the world, in 2022. That's a pretty big deal.

And I'm thinking about this, this election day, because that election was won by a very thin margin. I'm thinking about how it almost didn't happen. I'm thinking about how it was only possible thanks to the highest voter turnout in 20 year. And I am thinking about the countless number of voters who chose to vote for the first time. I am thinking of the poorest and most disenfranchised citizens who showed up at the polls. I am thinking of the indigenous women who rode 12 hours on public buses to vote at the 'nearest' polling stations. I am thinking of all the money and corruption that went into preventing minority citizens from voting, and I'm thinking about how they showed up in the millions and voted anyway.

I am thinking that I would like to see a miracle like that in my own home country.

So if you're on the fence about waiting in line today to cast your vote, I hope that you will think--about the country you want to live in, the future you hope will unfold, and about all of the people it takes to make a miracle.

Because history may deem us nameless and faceless, but when we show up en masse, we are the ones who make history happen.

And yes, maybe also spare a thought for my Nana. Who was in fact a very angry and judgemental woman who supported the republican party for 50+ years, and who would be turning in her grave right now (if the family hadn't had her cremated). Think about the mean angry ghost of my Colombian grandmother, who very much wants you to not show up at the polls to support abortion and other sinful progressive values. Think about her. Do it for her. Do it for Nana.

[starlitflowers]

the reason essek is only mentioned twice in eots is not because he's not with caleb anymore, it's because they both refuse to acknowledge that theyre dating (yes they have kissed in front of the rest of tm9. yes they did call each other just friends 5 minutes later.) its been almost a decade theyre too far into the bit to stop now

[zoneofsmites]

i'm not going to explain myself, just take this.

[mango-sideburns]

My fav thing about TAZ is that any aspect out of context sounds fucking bonkers.

Like, in the balance finale there's a scene in which Garfield (who is very specifically never described visually bc most people imagine him as like. The Lasagna Cat. Who in this universe is the most powerful warlock in the realm and also has a hobby of cloning people, which is great for the one character that got forced into haunting a mannequin) is summoned by an alien spaceship that runs on the power of friendship so he could beat up some flashing balls. In D&D.

And that was just. Such a normal scene in the narrative. No one blinked an eye. I would like to bow down to Griffins clear unmatched talent for making me feel such big emotions over ridiculous shit like a goddamned umbrella or a regular ass pair of jeans or the idea of a taco recipe.

[shuploc]

I just wanted to say really quick, you have no idea how much I love your Miguel drawings, they're so awesome!! Please never stop drawing him! 🥺

Haha, thank you, I'm really glad you like them! 😊 I'm not planning on stopping anytime soon either, it feels so wonderful to finally just allow myself to be inspired and draw whatever I feel like in the moment!

I will say, I am a little afraid it might turn stale pretty soon though, the ideas I'm coming up with are starting to kinda... feel very familiar, if that makes sense. I'm not sure how many times I can keep "serving" when it's just another drawing of Miguel looking slightly annoyed, y'know 😅 I'm sure ya'll will let me know when it's gets boring though. But thank you for the ask!

[news4dzhozhar]

[avephelis]

firm believer in the "chip is a great cook" agenda partly because he rolls really well for it and also because i like to think he's probably got a lot of experience with making scavenged/limited ingredients into something edible. and maybe he picked something up from chey after all.

[umbraastaff]

Answers presented alphabetically. If you feel equally strong about multiple answers, you can choose randomly, or choose as if you're voting to guarantee at least that character will be trans in a good fic that you'll like.