Imperial Cult

Development of the Imperial city of Old Ebonheart on the Eastern Mouth of the Thirr River.

Moderator: Lead Developers

Locked
User avatar
gro-Dhal
Lead Developer
Posts: 985
Joined: Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:32 pm
Location: A charter'd street

Imperial Cult

Post by gro-Dhal »

This thread is for planning the characters and broad storyline of the Old Ebonheart Imperial Cult, with reference to the city concept: http://tamriel-rebuilt.org/old_forum/viewtopic.php?t=24304


I think this city ought to be the headquarters of the Cult in Morrowind, and be home to some equivalent of the regional Bishop.
Test
User avatar
Tondollari
Developer
Posts: 219
Joined: Mon Dec 02, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Louisiana

Post by Tondollari »

*Quest idea: The Devout Telvanni

One of the Chapel's members has unfortunately fallen for a scam. The player is to find out who wrote the letter and (bonus) recover the lost items.


*Letter written Using placeholder titles, names & locations. Name inconsistency intended.




Dear Honest Lucan Viator,

My name is Uldres Nuleno, Oathman of House Telvanni and rightful ruler of Tel Nuleno. I am writing this letter because I know you are a man of superior moral quality and righteous Talos worshiper.

I, too, venerate the Nine. Unfortunately, my Telvanni brethren do not approve of my faith, instead heeding the maniacal ramblings of the false god Sotha Sil. Because of my beliefs, I have been persecuted all my life, but stand resolutely knowing the truth of the Nine.

Through treachery and deceit, Tel Nuleno has been usurped from me, and for the first time in history it is ruled by someone not of my ancient bloodline. My only hope to reclaim it lies in your trustworthy hands.

For my rule to be restored, I need your help in acquiring essential items. These items are needed to complete a magical ritual so that I may grow a hollow root into the tower and easily retake it. The ritual for altering the tower is only known to me and my ancestors.

I require:

* A limeware bowl
* A flawless emerald
* Three-hundred gold pieces

By providing me with this meager assistance you will earn the confidence of the Nuleno family, and I will devote my life to making Tel Nelano a sanctuary for followers of the Nine Divines. Furthermore, the tower's treasury holds 12,000 (Twelve thousand) gold pieces of which 6,000 (Six thousand) I will immediately donate to your esteemed Grand Chapel of Talos.

Do not speak of this matter to anyone else. If my plan is revealed, my treacherous adversaries will have the upper hand and I will be unable to reclaim my glory in the name of Talos. When you have the necessary items, deposit them in _________ where one of my agents will pick them up.

With the Nines' Guidance,

Uldres Nelano
Oathman of House Telvanni
Lawful Ruler of Tel Nelano
Devout Acolyte of Talos




*I am undecided on the deposit location. I'm thinking some chest in the EEC, or a hollowed-out tree stump somewhere, or maybe the perpetrator could pay some chump to accept the goods in person. In any event, the player asks around the relevant locations and eventually finds the Thieves Guild member who wrote the letter. The scammer offers speechcraft training in return for not telling on him.
User avatar
Tyrant
Developer
Posts: 220
Joined: Wed Mar 24, 2010 10:05 pm
Location: Canada

.

Post by Tyrant »

Can there please be a mission where you go door to door trying to convert people? :P
Mourn for us oppressed in fear
Chained and shackled, we are bound
Freedom choked in dread we live
Since Tyrant was enthroned
User avatar
gro-Dhal
Lead Developer
Posts: 985
Joined: Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:32 pm
Location: A charter'd street

Post by gro-Dhal »

I have the bones of a set of quests. Needs considerable fleshing out.

Lay Healer

Deliver potions to another city chapel

Sick cultist Dunmer has been barred from the temple in a Dunmer town- go and heal him

Gather shrooms in the sewers

Shrine Sergeant

Inner sea shipwreck- locate wreck and recover relic
Acquire Dwemer scrap metal (brass)

Tondollari’s The Devout Telvanni

Bust some cultist slaves out of captivity (hush-hush)

Almoner

Sell copies of Mystery Play around the city

Settle Cult debts with the innkeeper, or persuade him to waive the debts

Collect alms in nearby Dunmer towns- might branch into doing small misc quests for the tithees

Prelate

An Ordinator has gone rogue and infiltrated the city to kill the Prelate- find them!

Shake down the OE Dunmer- some are loyal, some are fearful, some are pissed off.

PLOT TWIST: there is no Ordinator, but a Cyrodiilic political enemy of the Prelate sent a DB assassin to the city (non-Dunmer).

(one of the Lay Healer, Shrine Sgt or Almoner should be a Dunmer to attract suspicion)
Test
arvisrend
Lead Developer
Posts: 1971
Joined: Mon Oct 04, 2010 11:39 am
Location: substitutional world

Post by arvisrend »

gro-Dhal wrote:Gather shrooms in the sewers
That doesn't sound very hygienic :P besides, if you mean the OE sewers, I'd rather keep them for the more high-rank and epic missions.
gro-Dhal wrote:Sell copies of Mystery Play around the city
What for? I thought this was an obscure text of no interest for outsiders?
gro-Dhal wrote:An Ordinator has gone rogue and infiltrated the city to kill the Prelate- find them!

Shake down the OE Dunmer- some are loyal, some are fearful, some are pissed off.

PLOT TWIST: there is no Ordinator, but a Cyrodiilic political enemy of the Prelate sent a DB assassin to the city (non-Dunmer).

(one of the Lay Healer, Shrine Sgt or Almoner should be a Dunmer to attract suspicion)
That's an interesting idea, but I'd like some details on how the confusion has arisen in the first place.
User avatar
gro-Dhal
Lead Developer
Posts: 985
Joined: Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:32 pm
Location: A charter'd street

Post by gro-Dhal »

arvisrend wrote: What for? I thought this was an obscure text of no interest for outsiders?
Yeah but it's not being sold to outsiders, it's being sold to people in the city who might want to take part in the festivities.

Re the sewers- I thought the upper levels would be generally accessible with a few hidden areas, and the real hardcore stuff is when you break through the sewers to the tomb.

Confusion about the assassination because the Prelate is paranoid and has seen evidence of people breaking into his chambers etc. He's had a tip-off about the Ordinator from a counterpart in the Temple (they're not always sworn enemies).
Test
User avatar
Yeti
Lead Developer
Posts: 2061
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:50 pm
Location: Minnesota: The Land of 11,842 Lakes

Post by Yeti »

Although I like the idea for the quest involving the prelate, I'd rather not use an Ordinator in it -even as a front for the actual culprit. On average, our quests feature too many Ordinators. They've become generic filler characters who lack personality as individuals -much like Stormtroopers.

Can we use a random religious extremist instead? Or maybe we can make it seem like a Sixth House agent is after the prelate?
-Head of NPCs: [url=http://www.shotn.com/forums/]Skyrim: Home of the Nords[/url]
User avatar
gro-Dhal
Lead Developer
Posts: 985
Joined: Sun Nov 05, 2006 4:32 pm
Location: A charter'd street

Post by gro-Dhal »

Updated quests. Still a WIP.
--------------------------------------

Lay Healer Orelle Faugard (Breton F)

Deliver potions to another city chapel

Gather shrooms in the sewers

Shrine Sergeant Valacca Prontia (Imperial F)

Lost to the Deep: The PC is told about the Vernal Tiger, a ship that sank between Firewatch and Old Ebonheart. On board was the Skull of Iridius, a holy relic. In order to find out what happened you need to retrace the movement of the ship.

You are sent to Firewatch, where people will direct you towards Jeande Beluel at the Excise office- he knows all of the captains who pass through Firewatch. It turns out the captain of the Vernal Tiger was a friend of his, and was boasting of his intention to pass close to the Marog peninsula and shave a little time off his journey.
PC goes to Marog, finds the wreck off the coast (could be quite deep). Skull is inside.

Any Old Brass: The PC is tasked with collecting Dwemer brass in the form of scrap metal, say five pieces. This is to be melted down to create holy symbols, which is a little commercial enterprise the OE shrine runs. It just so happens that this is a legal loophole that allows the export of Dwemer material. PC is pointed towards the nearest Dwemer ruin (not sure which that is).

Tondollari’s The Devout Telvanni

Bust some cultist slaves out of captivity (hush-hush).

Almoner Felmo Ilveroth (Dunmer M)

The Play’s the Thing: You are given maybe 5 copies to sell. Some people already have copies so they’re not interested, some people might need persuading. Return the equivalent amount of cash (250 gold). You could just hand over the money but you might as well sell them, as locals will buy for the full price unlike merchants.

Settling the Tab: If you’ve read the Mystery Play you know that the festivities involve free drinks for all at the local taverns. This is a quid pro quo arrangement- the Cult gives the inns something in exchange. The proprieter of the Moth & Tiger has unexpectedly decided to call in several years’ worth of debts and you need to find a way to avoid paying the large sum. When you get there you discover that the innkeeper actually doesn’t need money, rather he needs a big favour from the powerful Cult. He will waive the debt if you can

Wages of Virtue: You are sent to collect alms from the faithful in nearby towns that don’t have a chapel of their own.

Medures Halvo in Andothren resents paying tithes when he can’t get any chapel services- you have to cure his disease first (or get him a potion) before he pays.

Rinne Vorielle, also in Andothren, would love to pay up but she’s lost the key to her money chest and can’t get it open. It should be fairly well locked but possible to get open if you have high lockpicking or alteration. The key is in one of the Andothren taverns (should be a clue in the dialogue that she might have lost it there) and can be
found by thorough searching or through use of Detect Key.

Eno Salaven lives in Dondril and is being hassled by some of his neighbours for abandoning the Tribunal. The ringleader is a thug named Hlarvys Venim who has threatened to kill him. Eno isn’t worried because he’s used to these threats, but he asks the player to collect his sword from the local blacksmith, who has been repairing it. The blacksmith is a friend of Eno despite their religious differences and asks you to make sure he’s safe, because he’s heard that something bad might happen today. Sure enough, when you return to Eno’s with the sword he is already dead, with Hlarvys and one of his cronies still there (maybe use a dummy interior so it seems like there’s been a fight with furniture toppled over etc). After a brief dialogue the two thugs attack you. Once you kill them you find that they have the money on them. Local village dialogue reflects the difference of opinion over whether Eno was a tragic victim or if he had it coming for disrespecting the Dunmer culture.

All of the people you collect tithes from have a note to make their donation ‘official’. This means you can’t just pay the Almoner your own money, you have to hand in the notes as well. Eno’s is on his body.

Prelate Strixus Sorvilius (Imperial M)

The Prelate is worried. His friends among the Hlaalu have warned him that a fanatic has come to Old Ebonheart in order to assassinate him. This fanatic is a master of disguise. The Prelate himself wouldn’t even see you until you’d completed all the previous quests, because he thought you might be the killer. He asks you to identify the would-be assassin and stop him or her. He suggests you ask around the city’s Dunmer, because one of them must know. The Prelate is paranoid and a bit racist.

You speak to the various Dunmer in OE and get a number or responses: angry, concerned, etc. Dileru Dras, the apothecary’s assistant, says he was robbed by a masked assailant a few nights ago and some of the supplies he lost might be suitable for making a poison that would be undetectable in wine.

Report back to the Prelate and he will mention the fact that he was about to drink some wine- it should be there on the table in his quarters. The wine bottle is an activator- a message to should come up to the extent that you detect the subtle scent of poison when you uncork the bottle. The Prelate is furious, and says the bottle was a gift from Felmo Ilveroth the Almoner. Felmo is immediately thrown in jail. If you visit him he denies everything. People in the Chapel will question what has happened, saying what a good friend Felmo was to them all, especially Orelle Faugard the Healer. She is convinced that he’s innocent, because she’s been treating him for allergies that would have made it impossible for him to handle those particular poison reagents. She has an idea that may unmask the real assassin though. The real assassin would be someone who has been in the chapel (there should be a few generic NPCs around to make it less obvious) and they may have red stains on their fingers from handling the poison. These stains penetrate any kind of hand protection.

You wander around the chapel, asking to see the hands of the various NPCs. All are clean except for an Imperial pilgrim who is wearing gloves. If you ask her to take them off she refuses, and ultimately attacks you. She should be quite a tough fight despite not wearing armour. On her body you find a note from a contact in the Imperial City, detailing the orders to travel to Morrowind and murder the prelate. The Prelate himself realises that the Dunmer aren’t to blame, but rather another faction in the Imperial court. Felmo is released, you are suitably rewarded.
Test
User avatar
Tondollari
Developer
Posts: 219
Joined: Mon Dec 02, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Louisiana

Post by Tondollari »

Quest idea: The Right to Immunity (possible follow-up to busting slaves out?)

The player is sent to the Hostel of Stendarr's Mercy, where runaway slaves are housed. One of the escapees is in a predicament.

A man/mer formerly a servant to Dres Nobility has a trapped slave bracer. If tampered with, the bracer will release a health-draining spell that will kill him/her.

The player has three options:

1.) Disarm the trap and unlock the bracer. (lockpick skill check)

2.) Forcibly remove the bracer and cast healing spells to keep the former slave alive.

3.) Find an experienced enchanter in OE. For a price, they will give you a special scroll that will render the trap harmless.

Once the bracer is removed, report back to the chapel to complete the quest. I'm unsure what the consequences of a failure state (dead slave) would be.
User avatar
Tondollari
Developer
Posts: 219
Joined: Mon Dec 02, 2013 9:42 pm
Location: Louisiana

Post by Tondollari »

Quest Idea: Skin Like a Sload (Lay Healer Orelle Faugard)

A well-to-do OE citizen is having skin problems. At first the Cult thought it was some kind of disease, and the citizen was blessed by a healer, but the symptoms continue: itchy skin with small but painful sores. The player is to go to the citizen's manor with a healing potion (that is not expected to work), but is primarily tasked with figuring out what is causing the strange symptoms. The player should look around the house and find possible health risks, as well as interrogate the citizen to see if s/he admits to unhealthy behavior.

The player might find a few things odd (TBD), but the most important would be chests full of Sload Soap.

The player can ask the citizen why s/he has chests full of Sload Soap, and s/he says something like "Oh, there's nothing like soap to freshen the body. I only get the most expensive soap on the market and right now that's Sload Soap. It has a very complex smell. I think it's from High Rock or something."

The player returns to the Chapel with this information and they promise to correct the citizen's choice of fragrance, saying something along the lines of "Sload Soap is not soap."
arvisrend
Lead Developer
Posts: 1971
Joined: Mon Oct 04, 2010 11:39 am
Location: substitutional world

Post by arvisrend »

gro-Dhal wrote:Lost to the Deep: The PC is told about the Vernal Tiger, a ship that sank between Firewatch and Old Ebonheart. On board was the Skull of Iridius, a holy relic. In order to find out what happened you need to retrace the movement of the ship.

You are sent to Firewatch, where people will direct you towards Jeande Beluel at the Excise office- he knows all of the captains who pass through Firewatch. It turns out the captain of the Vernal Tiger was a friend of his, and was boasting of his intention to pass close to the Marog peninsula and shave a little time off his journey.
PC goes to Marog, finds the wreck off the coast (could be quite deep). Skull is inside.
I am just thinking how fun it would be to put the captain's skull (if possible, give him a name that starts with I and ends with S) in plain sight and hide the skull of Iridius somewhere in the hold, and see how many players will have to make the journey twice.

Damn, probably the corpse is too fresh to have its skull separated, though. And I should go to bed.
gro-Dhal wrote:Any Old Brass: The PC is tasked with collecting Dwemer brass in the form of scrap metal, say five pieces. This is to be melted down to create holy symbols, which is a little commercial enterprise the OE shrine runs. It just so happens that this is a legal loophole that allows the export of Dwemer material. PC is pointed towards the nearest Dwemer ruin (not sure which that is).
Do we want to paint the Imperial Cult in this light? I always figured they are destined to clash with local culture again and again, but they don't go out of their way to make a show of disrespecting the Dunmer. Why exactly do they need their symbols to be made of Dwemer metal?
gro-Dhal wrote:Bust some cultist slaves out of captivity (hush-hush).
Or slash-slash. This is the Cult, not the Thieves Guild!
gro-Dhal wrote:The Play’s the Thing: You are given maybe 5 copies to sell. Some people already have copies so they’re not interested, some people might need persuading. Return the equivalent amount of cash (250 gold). You could just hand over the money but you might as well sell them, as locals will buy for the full price unlike merchants.
Does the play double as an entrance ticket, or why should people be that eager to hand out 50 gold for a piece of paper with some cryptic verse on it? That's a non-rhetorical question; I'm pretty sure that you can come up with some twist to this. Are these plays a get-together for the town's elite?
gro-Dhal wrote:Settling the Tab: If you’ve read the Mystery Play you know that the festivities involve free drinks for all at the local taverns. This is a quid pro quo arrangement- the Cult gives the inns something in exchange. The proprieter of the Moth & Tiger has unexpectedly decided to call in several years’ worth of debts and you need to find a way to avoid paying the large sum. When you get there you discover that the innkeeper actually doesn’t need money, rather he needs a big favour from the powerful Cult. He will waive the debt if you can
...settle your throne as the prince of Bel-Air? Nice start of a quest.
gro-Dhal wrote:Medures Halvo in Andothren resents paying tithes when he can’t get any chapel services- you have to cure his disease first (or get him a potion) before he pays.
Chapels are go-to places for the sick to get their sickness cured. We cannot have story and gameplay diverge that far.
gro-Dhal wrote:Eno Salaven lives in Dondril and is being hassled by some of his neighbours for abandoning the Tribunal. The ringleader is a thug named Hlarvys Venim who has threatened to kill him. Eno isn’t worried because he’s used to these threats, but he asks the player to collect his sword from the local blacksmith, who has been repairing it. The blacksmith is a friend of Eno despite their religious differences and asks you to make sure he’s safe, because he’s heard that something bad might happen today. Sure enough, when you return to Eno’s with the sword he is already dead, with Hlarvys and one of his cronies still there (maybe use a dummy interior so it seems like there’s been a fight with furniture toppled over etc). After a brief dialogue the two thugs attack you. Once you kill them you find that they have the money on them. Local village dialogue reflects the difference of opinion over whether Eno was a tragic victim or if he had it coming for disrespecting the Dunmer culture.
Relate this to the daggerlads tong perhaps?
gro-Dhal wrote:The Prelate is worried. His friends among the Hlaalu have warned him that a fanatic has come to Old Ebonheart in order to assassinate him. This fanatic is a master of disguise. The Prelate himself wouldn’t even see you until you’d completed all the previous quests, because he thought you might be the killer. He asks you to identify the would-be assassin and stop him or her. He suggests you ask around the city’s Dunmer, because one of them must know. The Prelate is paranoid and a bit racist.

You speak to the various Dunmer in OE and get a number or responses: angry, concerned, etc. Dileru Dras, the apothecary’s assistant, says he was robbed by a masked assailant a few nights ago and some of the supplies he lost might be suitable for making a poison that would be undetectable in wine.

Report back to the Prelate and he will mention the fact that he was about to drink some wine- it should be there on the table in his quarters. The wine bottle is an activator- a message to should come up to the extent that you detect the subtle scent of poison when you uncork the bottle. The Prelate is furious, and says the bottle was a gift from Felmo Ilveroth the Almoner. Felmo is immediately thrown in jail. If you visit him he denies everything. People in the Chapel will question what has happened, saying what a good friend Felmo was to them all, especially Orelle Faugard the Healer. She is convinced that he’s innocent, because she’s been treating him for allergies that would have made it impossible for him to handle those particular poison reagents. She has an idea that may unmask the real assassin though. The real assassin would be someone who has been in the chapel (there should be a few generic NPCs around to make it less obvious) and they may have red stains on their fingers from handling the poison. These stains penetrate any kind of hand protection.

You wander around the chapel, asking to see the hands of the various NPCs. All are clean except for an Imperial pilgrim who is wearing gloves. If you ask her to take them off she refuses, and ultimately attacks you. She should be quite a tough fight despite not wearing armour. On her body you find a note from a contact in the Imperial City, detailing the orders to travel to Morrowind and murder the prelate. The Prelate himself realises that the Dunmer aren’t to blame, but rather another faction in the Imperial court. Felmo is released, you are suitably rewarded.
This is a really cool idea, but I'd like some detail on who and why wanted the Prelate murdered. Maybe we can paint a picture of two competing influences from the Empire: one that wants the IC serve as chiefly a vehicle for projecting Imperial power (or, under the rose, projecting the power of a few concrete people at the top) and one that puts religion to the fore.
User avatar
Rats
Lead Developer
Posts: 785
Joined: Tue Jul 03, 2012 8:32 am

Post by Rats »

gro-Dhal wrote:the Skull of Iridius, a holy relic
This inspired me to make this:[spoiler][img]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y417/rats_tr/iridius_skull_preview_zpsrnappdgj.png[/img][/spoiler]
Locked