Nue Quest 3rd Impact: A Z-Machine Adventure

[E-Nazrin]

>How thick is the canopy? Would flying above where the path is supposed to go lead to anything useful?
>Do we have anything expendable and easily visible to mark our current location and/or path to where we found the bear in case we get lost?

[Hello Purvis]

> "If it hadn't noticed us, probably. I'd only need a few minutes. Actually, do you think it's worth trying that now? That path was our only thing even close to a directional lead out here."

>"Mmm, maybe," says Mystia. "Do you think it'll work? I just use a spellcard on them when they get to be a problem, but it'd be nice not to hurt it."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Begin the process of increasing our height.
> "I can get pretty big, and being bigger and acting intimidating tends to get them to leave you alone. Unless that one is defending kids, in which case we're probably have to fly around it through the canopy and hope we guess correctly on our way back down."

[Hello Purvis]

>How thick is the canopy? Would flying above where the path is supposed to go lead to anything useful?
>Do we have anything expendable and easily visible to mark our current location and/or path to where we found the bear in case we get lost?

>It's too thick to follow a path like that.
>Depends on how you qualify these factors, and how use them to mark anything.

> Begin the process of increasing our height.
> "I can get pretty big, and being bigger and acting intimidating tends to get them to leave you alone. Unless that one is defending kids, in which case we're probably have to fly around it through the canopy and hope we guess correctly on our way back down."

>You start making yourself taller. It's a fairly intensive activity, but you can still speak. The trick is know when you can just stretch, when you have to expand in all the dimensions, and when you have to add a bit more muscle here or there. Thankfully, it's not terribly tricky work at lower levels, compared to messing with your eyes to make them better, but it has it's own perils if you're not careful.
>"Yeah," says Mystia, screwing up her lips as she watches you.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Oh."
> Stop the growth process.
> "Forgot something."
> Pull the spare skirt out and put it on.

[Hello Purvis]

> "Oh."
> Stop the growth process.
> "Forgot something."
> Pull the spare skirt out and put it on.

>You put on the skirt. It looks a bit silly right , being designed for someone with larger stature than you tend to have, and fits loosely.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Resume the growth process.
> "Talking's kinda limited. Still thinking about the bear. How loud can you be?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Resume the growth process.
> "Talking's kinda limited. Still thinking about the bear. How loud can you be?"

>You get back to work.
>"Um...I can make my voice carry pretty well," says Mystia. "but loud? I guess I can screech pretty good."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Did we ever apologize to Mystia for causing a ruckus at her stand with Aya and Iku a couple of months back?
> "Screeching is good. Loud noises should help scare it off too. Especially in conjunction with the size intimidation."

[Hello Purvis]

> Did we ever apologize to Mystia for causing a ruckus at her stand with Aya and Iku a couple of months back?
> "Screeching is good. Loud noises should help scare it off too. Especially in conjunction with the size intimidation."

>Not really. It's not as though anything were hurt.
>She nods. "Well, okay then."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> She did seem pretty aggravated at the time, though.
> "Yes. Though it should only probably be done as a last resort. Now that I think some more, a screech would probably alert those who do not need to know we are coming. So only if necessary."
> How much have we put on so far?

[Hello Purvis]

> She did seem pretty aggravated at the time, though.
> "Yes. Though it should only probably be done as a last resort. Now that I think some more, a screech would probably alert those who do not need to know we are coming. So only if necessary."
> How much have we put on so far?

>She did, but you've grown used to people being aggravated over little things.
>"Right," says Mystia.
>You've made yourself a few inches taller. It's becoming a bit more concentration intensive now.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> What we can do with ourselves isn't teachable or transferable, correct? This is presumably why the seeds are so handy?
> "Can't talk much longer. You have ideas? I can listen."

[Hello Purvis]

> What we can do with ourselves isn't teachable or transferable, correct? This is presumably why the seeds are so handy?
> "Can't talk much longer. You have ideas? I can listen."

>You have never encountered another person able to change shape like you can, and you wouldn't have any idea how to identify the potential. But you've spoken with knowledgeable people about it in the past, and tried to teach it to a few old friends from long ago, and had no luck. You're pretty sure your talent is unique, or close to it. You'd expect that anyone who had it would discover it on their own as you did.
>"Um, let me think..." says Mystia.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Sacrifice the breast expansion as necessary to further the growth process.
> "Okay. If you like, you can talk about you too. Don't know lots. Sing, run that stand, have your helper, hate what Aya does. Not much else."

[Hello Purvis]

> Sacrifice the breast expansion as necessary to further the growth process.
> "Okay. If you like, you can talk about you too. Don't know lots. Sing, run that stand, have your helper, hate what Aya does. Not much else."

>You let your chest return to normal, which does aid things a little bit.
>"Well, uh. I sell grilled lamprey, and other things. It's something I enjoy, cooking's nice, you know? And I get to meet a lot of people, and make really good money."
>How large are you planning to get?

>_

[DracoOmega]

>About how large is our theoretical comfortable max size?
>About how large is our classic chimera form?
>Can we still fly in that form?

[Hello Purvis]

>About how large is our theoretical comfortable max size?
>About how large is our classic chimera form?
>Can we still fly in that form?

>Comfortable has a few definitions: Without having to make any special adjustments, you can add about a foot to your height. Past that, you have to make little adjustments here and there. You can get a couple inches past tall while still appearing as yourself. If you cannibalize your wings, you can get close to ten feet tall, but this takes time and quite a few adjustments. It's also draining.
>Your Chimera shape is close to your full mass limit, it's about as far as you can push yourself in every direction at once. It is a bit larger than a bull, and bulkier. You can't really fly with it, but you can make short hops, so to speak, and break a fall. It takes a fair deal out of you, as well, and is really more impressive-looking than powerful.

>_

>_

[DracoOmega]

>In terms of taking a great deal out of us, is that only a power limiter while the transformation is active, or would it actually have been fairly exhausting by the time we turn back?
>Could we theoretically do a smaller version of that, small enough that it could remain airborne?
>How much headroom is there along the trail, before you start to be among the branches? Is there enough to stay comfortably out of the bear's reach (without also being close enough to a tree it could just scamper up?
>Can seeds of non-identification trick non-visual senses as well? Such as, say, scent?

[Hello Purvis]

>In terms of taking a great deal out of us, is that only a power limiter while the transformation is active, or would it actually have been fairly exhausting by the time we turn back?
>Could we theoretically do a smaller version of that, small enough that it could remain airborne?
>How much headroom is there along the trail, before you start to be among the branches? Is there enough to stay comfortably out of the bear's reach (without also being close enough to a tree it could just scamper up?
>Can seeds of non-identification trick non-visual senses as well? Such as, say, scent?

>Upon returning to normal, you would not be at one hundred percent, but you'd be quite a bit better off than while transformed.
>You've tried and never hit upon combination that would allow for flight while transformed. But you can do a smaller version that allows some brief hovering, and some fairly large jumps.
>There's a few feet worth of headroom before things get tangled. You don't know if you can get far enough from trees to be out of it's reach.
>Seeds of Nonidentification can fool any of the five senses and many forms of magical detection, though you have no idea what the limits on the latter are. Touch is the hardest to fool, you're limited to changing textures; making parts of the disguise that aren't realistically there can be passed through if they deviate too much from the original object.

>_

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Make our way toward that additional foot.
> With the foot tacked on, would we be taller than the bear while it's on its hind legs?

[Hello Purvis]

> Make our way toward that additional foot.
> With the foot tacked on, would we be taller than the bear while it's on its hind legs?

>You work toward making yourself larger. You're about halfway there now; the skirt is a rather needed addition now.
>You'd be a little taller than the bear, but still heavily muscled.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> And presumably adding the look of muscle once we hit that foot would require wing cannibalization? Or could we get away with it while keeping them out?
> "I see. Continue. If you like."

[Hello Purvis]

> And presumably adding the look of muscle once we hit that foot would require wing cannibalization? Or could we get away with it while keeping them out?
> "I see. Continue. If you like."

>It would help.
>"Right, sorry. Hard to pay attention, you know? Um. I guess selling food is most of what I do. Oh, sometimes I make deliveries. Usually to Rinnosuke, since he's close by. Since I'm in the forest, animals sometimes get a little close. Not bears, usually. But the smell sometimes attract them. Then I have to drive them off. Oh, I have probably the best house in the forest, if you ask me. Built it myself. Well, I had some help but it was mostly me!"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "It's fine. Who helped? Friends?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "It's fine. Who helped? Friends?"

>"Yeah, Wriggle helped out a lot. She's pretty decent at that sort of thing. She's an old friend, from back before I opened up the stand."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Nod, if we can spare the effort.
> "Your house. How big?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod, if we can spare the effort.
> "Your house. How big?"

>You've not gotten to the hard part yet, so you can spare a few words.
>"Oh, it's pretty big," says Mystia. "I have a kitchen and a bedroom and a guest room, and a nice sitting room. Oh, and a bit attic, though I don't really use it. There's even a nice little hallway. And a big pantry, of course. I have to keep all my wares somewhere."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "That large? In the forest?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "That large? In the forest?"

>"Yep," says Mystia. "Maybe it's a bit much, but I think I've earned it."
>You're getting to the point where you're going to need to concentrate. Mystia would probably be a distraction at this point. You'll also need to focus on what you're final goal is.

>_