Oh no! Sympathy and sweetrolls to poor Maxical.

Trey finished helping his doggie companion reconcile with his master. Said master tried to get Trey to kill the dog. He felt that was a bit rude and refused.

Found out the Jarl of Falkreath needs to be shortened by a head- and is wondering if there is a way to do that.

Wulff and J'Zargo went back to see the Chief Hugh of Hugh Heffner only to be sent off to another place where there be Word 'o' Powerrrr!!!™...Unfortunately...This word wall appears to be broken...Having not found it the first time Wulff was there, it seems to have glitched...Meaning Wulff cannot get the word, which means (and he checked) Chief Hugh will not give him another word to find... ...Wulff is okay as he has a divine guide with a book...But still, add this as another reminder that it's a game not a second life... ...

Killed several dragons...Bit passe now... ...

Trey (the Nord version) decided to try and take care of 2 quests at a certain overlook.

He "overlooked" the dragon which- um well--- grabbed him in its mouth and threw him down the mountainside.

Although I am not playing Dead is Dead- it seemed a good moment to nuke the hated 1.2 patch and begin again.

Meet Trey- Breton light armor and stealth specialist, who does a bit of alchemy and smithing on the side. This Trey REALLY hopes the dragon that burned Helgen ALSO managed to kill the hateful "kill him anyway" Imperial captain. If not- he will stop back by there and give her a present... a sharp, pointy IRON present- just under the short ribs.

After the game crashed at the site of the knackered wall, after uttering some cross-words I decided to abandon the Word-search...Heh, you see what I did there?...

...

Aaamywho, went back to Hugh Heffner got meself an audience with the top dog hisself...

Met me lurvely Pantyslacks!!...Bless him...Awwww...*Tickles under his chin...*...

Then Wulff fell off a cliff...So I re-did the previous half hour again...

Thermos... ...

Rowan had a similar end fighting alongside Whiterun guards. Cinematic clip of the dragon shaking someone like a dog with a chew toy. "Ha!" crows Grits. "Look at that poor bas-- Oh, that's you."

Meet Derelas of Skyrim, in his new permanent armor. (No, its not Dark Brotherhood, but that's all I will say about it).

Just had an excellent nighttime stroll through Helgen, thought I'd share the tale.

Leaving his horse a safe distance away from the bandit-infested village, a quick flick of the tumblers on the gate offered easy entry. From there, the first bandit was seen, clad in steel. A second showed his face soon after, a hedge wizard. Since Dere had no intention of dealing with a warrior and a mage at the same time, the first order of business was to separate the two... this was accomplished by deliberately allowing the warrior an ever-so-brief glimpse of himself before a quickly-quaffed invisibility potion made sure he would not be found. Quietly trailing her footsteps, Dere waited until she dropped her guard, dismissing him as a flicker of shadow or something like that. For extra satisfaction, he swiped the bandit's coinpurse before slitting her throat.

Next up was the mage, and as his Aura Whisper revealed, three additional bandits in the southern courtyard, and one more acting as lookout at the tower. The mage was wandering back and forth between the entrances to Helgen's underground fortress, a small piece of crumbling wall was perfectly positioned at the end of his patrol path closest to Dere, who quickly and silently made his way to hide behind it. After carefully gauging when he would stop and when he would turn to leave, the second move was made. Again, the coinpurse and a couple valuables were pocketed before the throat was cut.

Two down, four to go. The next bandit was wandering the ruined inn, alone. He was felled like the previous two. The next part was a bit tougher... the next patrol of bandits was a two-man group, so up-close-and-personal would only end in detection. For that reason, Dere left those two alone... for now. His next target was the lookout in the tower. After waiting for the patrol to get some distance between them and the tower, Dere infiltrated, made his way up the stairs, quaffed another invisibility potion just to be safe, and made easy work of the fourth bandit atop the tower.

Up next... a bit of misdirection. Being a Bosmer, sure-footedness comes naturally to Dere, so he carefully climbed atop the battlements, waited for the patrol to exit the tower again, and sighted in on the bandit in the rear. One shot, one kill. This left one very confused bandit wondering why, supposedly, his lookout killed one of his own men. After waiting a bit for him to calm down a bit, Dere shifted positions, hiding beside the doorframe into the tower. And when the final bandit entered... down he went.

Six kills, and Dere remained a ghost through the entire gauntlet.

That was some real fun there.

One thing I thought was great in New Vegas was the ability to don an enemy's uniform/armor and "fool" them into thinking you were one of them. It is disappointing that we can't do that in this game, but would be livable if the NPC's didn't have instant ESP when you have killed one of their number - and where you are hiding in sneak. I honestly don't know how the Dark Brotherhood or Thieves Guild work in these conditions.

So Trey.2 or The Treytrix- Reloaded or... OK I will stop now.

Escaped Helgen- and spent a bit more time paying attention in Riverwood. Did some work for Alvor in exchange for the kindnesses he showed.

Got to Whiterun and debated whether he really wanted to see the Jarl or not.

Ended up taking a (slightly improved) sword from the War-Maiden to Dragonsreach.

Also found himself embroiled in the factional struggle between two families. He decided that he could go smack the Thalmor around all by himself, rather than with a group of loud, smelly Nords clanking around disturbing every sentient being within 20 miles. He will probably regret that choice.

Meanwhile- off to a bandit camp to collect a bounty- along with as many loose valuables as he can carry.

Farkas hates orcs. Let me explain:

My current character, Shakh gro-Largum, is level three and just tough enough to handle the wolves or the odd bandit encountered on the road. He heads toward Whiterun to do a favor for Gerdur who did him a solid back in Riverwood (just loooove that Honningbrew Mead). While on the road, he encounters a trio of Companions taking down a giant infesting one of the farms. Being an orc, he decides to lend an axe to their efforts. Apparently his single swing is impressive enough to get the saucy Aela to comment that he should join the Companions. It sounds like a good gig, especially after he walks into Jorrvaskr just in time to see Njada Stonearm put the beatdown on a culturally confused dunmer named Athis (ostensibly for talking like a cockney boot salesman . . . or maybe for not having the sense to sit somewhere other than right next to the archery targets when people are practicing).

After enduring the insults of a one-eyed Companion named Skjor (who sounds suspiciously like Michael Ironside), Shakh is kicked downstairs to get the approval of the Companions Harbinger (who, I must stress, is not their leader), Kodlak Whitemane. Kodlak gives Shakh the once over and decides to test him by having him spar with one of the Inner Circle, a Companion named Vilkas. Vilkas is surly, condescending, and in desperate need of iris pigmentation (not to mention a bath, a shave, and a retouch of his eye makeup warpaint). After another single swing impresses Vilkas enough to call him a whelp, Shakh spends the rest of the afternoon thinking about how good he must be with his axe while running swords and shields to and from the Skyforge. He is also kicked over to Vilkas’ twin brother Farkas (who is equally challenged where eye color and hygiene are concerned) for work.

Farkas sizes up the new victim recruit and, because he hates orcs, decides to send Shakh to clear out the ‘bandits’ in Shimmermist Cave. Those 'bandits' turn out to be more than a dozen Falmer (complete with the usual loadout of Chaurus and Frostbite spiders). They were not impressed with Shakh’s axe-swinging. I haven’t had my a$$ kicked this hard in a Bethesda game since I made a wrong turn in a Morrowind dungeon and wound up behind the Ghostfence at level two! Sometimes Radiant Story really hurts!

Finished the MQ...*Sigh*...It's quite sad at the end... ...Aaamywho...Don't have to deal with a bunch of chars that I don't like anymore...So that's all good...

Not sure what to do now...

Oh, I did go and kick the Goldur ghosts ar$es...They caused the original giving up by fus-ing me about like a rag-doll till I died...Well, I still got fus-sed but you can't go wrong with several bottles of Ultimate Magicka...Me wins!!!... ...

Said goodbye to J'Zargo...Went home to the wife...Put her in her Forsworn armour...Job done...

Think I'll give up now...

ARGH !!! URK !!!

Here's an update from J'Shanji.



J’Shanji and Belrand the spellsword stepped down from the smithy and into Riverwood’s main street.

“Sigrid seemed upset,” Belrand remarked. The Nord’s face creased in a grin as he hefted his share of their coin.

“It is not a good trade unless the merchant’s spouse weeps,” said J’Shanji. He held a Staff of Sparks in his hand, part of his share from their last barrow raid. When they reached the middle of the road, he extended it to his companion. “Khajiit would make of this a gift to Belrand.”

“Aw, really? I get to keep it?” Belrand looked even more pleased. “Let’s go to the Sleeping Giant. All the ale you can drink, it’s on me.”

“This one still does not have a taste for your dog piss.” J’Shanji made his face solemn and folded his hands. “It is time for us to part ways, friend Belrand.”

Belrand looked surprised for a moment. “Uh, all right. I guess I’ll head back home then. If you ever need a hand, you know where to find me. Tell you what, cat, we had so much fun this time, next time it’s no charge. Just a fair split of the loot.”

J’Shanji inclined his head and started toward the bridge.

Belrand had been an excellent partner these past months. J’Shanji could count on his bow, his blade, and especially his spells. After a fight the Nord could laugh with the death stench still on him. Though his demeanor was uncouth, J’Shanji found much to admire in him.

But something occurred while they were fighting bandits in the hills above Riverwood. When his blood is up, a man will sometimes shout what he would otherwise not speak. J’Shanji knows this. Skyrim is for the Nords! Belrand cried. His hate was for the Bretons they fought, but it pierced J’Shanji.

Khajiit will make a home here. It is J’Shanji’s will, made stronger by the thoughtless words of a friend.

Now J’Shanji is alone in a hungry land. He will learn the spells that Belrand used to keep them alive. His steps turn north, toward Winterhold.

Aww... perhaps J'Shanji will find another friend to travel with.

Poor J'Shanji, next time he needs to get a non-Nord companion. If they say it too, things are wierd.

Oh, poor J'Shanji !! Maxical has run across the same statement - even from a couple of the men (one of them a Jarl) trying to marry her. She takes that as a clear indication marriage with them would not be a happy one.

I spent a little time with Jensa this weekend. Here she is with her new look. We were both pretty disappointed to discover that the male Forsworn “armor” is NOT the shirtless version you see on the Briarhearts. Oh well. I’m taking a little liberty with the game and allowing for more than one Dragonborn. Really, what were the gods thinking when they didn’t make themselves some spares? Or maybe they did…

Here’s the first page from Jensa’s journal:




Dragons are real. I know because I saw one. It stopped my execution. Then it burned Helgen to the ground. I hope it got that Imperial captain who decided we should all lose our heads. My mouth was still sore from when that bald sergeant punched me, so I made sure I spit some blood in her eye when I passed her. Imperial dog humper. I hope she got a taste of that dragon’s fire.

There were a lot of folk in the wagons with me, and not all of them were Stormcloaks. I wonder how many made it out? That Khajiit looked half-dead, but she got lively as soon as the dying started. At least I think it was a she. And I know the Breton made it. I saw him with one of the Stormcloaks.

I would have been dead if not for one of the Imperial soldiers. He got me past the dragon. Then I saw a Stormcloak with a sword, and I ran. We got away, and now the Legion needs to do some more recruiting. They should have just let us go.

That Stormcloak has kin in Riverwood. I won’t say who, in case someone finds my journal and it gets them in trouble. They gave us supplies and let us rest up for awhile. My first night in a real bed with a man who’s not my cousin, and both of us too tired to even wink. Another reason to be mad at the damned Imperials. I should have spent a few days with those two red-headed traders in the valley. Then I would have crossed the Darkwater somewhere up river, stayed out of this whole mess. Jarl of Windhelm, High King, or Emperor, I’m not likely to bend my knee.

So now I’m traveling with Sven, a bard from Riverwood. He’s quiet enough when he needs to be, and handy with a blade when he gives away our position. I wish he wasn’t so mournful, though. He got jilted by his girl in Riverwood, and all he wants to do is moan about it.

We’re loaded down with things we don’t need, and running out of things we do. Sven says we’ll head for Whiterun in the morning. Another town with walls, I’m not too sure about it. Imperial walls didn’t help against that dragon. I’d rather go back to Riverwood. That Stormcloak’s sister was kind to me, and her boy made me laugh. She even gave me this journal.

How in the world can you make such a pretty girl with the vanilla sliders? She is beautiful !! Great background story!

Great character and story!

Last night in Skyrim, Maxical bought a horse and rode up to the Throat of the World, just to look around. There was a wall of words up there, but it was dead as a doornail, just a block of ice. However, when she climbed to the highest peak she did find a fancy pick, which she promptly improved and now uses to the exclusion of any other.

Unfortunately, the horse seems to like her too much - following her even into dangerous situations when she tries to hurry somewhere. She has found it safest for her horse if she stops in at nearby towns or homes and travels on foot to any place dangerous. The horse does not like Winterhold, stamps his feet and whinnies loudly in the cold. Maxical would like to sell him to some nice stables in a warmer climate, but can't find a buyer.

Maxical also summoned and tamed a Dremora Lord, who in his beaten state gave her a sigil stone. A hunter gave her a reward for killing off seven giant ghostly beasts - lucky for her there were plenty of high ledges around to range attack them from.

She also joined the Bard's College long enough to help them get permission for their burning of King Olaf's effigy back from the Jarl. She even helped them fill in some great lyrics that were missing from the original pages. Unfortunately, after hearing her sing she was no longer welcome in their midst in spite of the fact that she had found several special musical instruments they were seeking. They wouldn't even take these from her. Now she is stuck carrying them, as a magic enchantment keeps them locked in her backpack, they cannot be removed.

A note was delivered to her to meet with a small boy who was very troubled. He wanted her to kill someone for him. Maxical went home to her house in Solitude to think about what to do, and although she slept on her decision for a full night she did not wake feeling even rested. (A bug perhaps? Or maybe a noisy new housecarl?)

Maxical tried to use magic to summon Quaranir to her side so they could be wed, but he never showed up. In her disappointment, Maxical has decided she will become a dragon slayer for hire. She turned down several offers of marriage, (the only tempting one being from her new female housecarl - that was the only one she could stand to wake up to or look at first thing in the morning) - however, the Jarl of Winterhold has renewed his suit in earnest now. Maxical is too heartbroken over Quaranir's defection to think about it right now.

Maxical went to bed early to prepare for her new job as a dragon slayer...unless something better comes up between now and then.

Uh oh, isn't the Jarl of Winterhold married to that scarecrow looking lady who says her family is the only one left that cares about Winterhold? There could be something sinister afoot!! Or maybe she died.

It sounds like Maxical is well prepared for her new career. Maybe she could take Jordis out on an adventure and see how they get along.

That is if Jordis lets her sleep through the night. I was rolling over the fried chicken!!

Poor Maxical, been a bad last few days for her. *hugs*

Last night, Ryoko made her way to Riften and found an appriciation for horses for more then dinner. A dragon dropped down almost right in front of the North gate (for the third game in a row) and while the Orc, her housecarl and four guard fought it, a pair of horses also charged in and made much with the laying about of hooves.

Following the beasts defeat, and Ryoko's soul sucking snack, she then had to deal with one of the guards demanding a tax for entering Riften. The Orc politly questioned if he remembered what her war hammer had done to the dragons skull, if not, she was happy to demonstrate it once again on his.

After concidering her offer, the guard unlocked the gate.

Dear gods, no wonder he's hitting up so hard on Maxical! Looking for some fur to warm him after basking under that Ice Maiden's glare - plus he has a brat child !! And most of his flirting has been done completely under the nose of his wife (who despite his lofty position needs to work at the inn day and night).

Well, looks like Jordis is still leading the field then, ROFL !!!

Maxical was beginning to wonder if (by some clumsy accident at mealtime) a leg of fried chicken had fallen and become attached to (and was now dangling from in an enticing way) her Amulet of Mara.

The sudden surge of persistant suiters was quite overwhelming for a few hours, but a good bath seemed to solve the issue. No more marriage proposals for a full day afterwards. These Nords may think the smell of sweat (combined with dried blood) is an aphrodisiac or something.

Maxical is now bathing several times a day (and hoping for a soap mod to come along) trying to weed out the riff-raff among the suiters. She'll see which of these hungry suiters is still following her when she hasn't just returned from a nasty dungeon crawl!





Maxical is very grateful for the hug, and thanks you - she needed that !!

ROFL on the horses for dinner !!!

If Maxical can be patient, I'm sure in less than a month Quaranir will be more readily available.


I think Aravi met the same boy under slightly different circumstances. The boy is going to be disappointed. Aravi is no murderer.

Does this mean Quaranir returns in a different quest or does it mean after the Creation Kit comes out? Lol.

Creation Kit!

I forgot to mention the good news/bad news that happened awhile ago.

The good news: Found some shirtless armor for gratuitous displays of man candy! The bikini looking fur armor is topless for the boys. Yay.

The bad news: It was J’Shanji who made this discovery by handing over a bunch of loot for Belrand to carry. Belrand immediately equipped the fur armor, which had the effect of ripping off his shirt right in J’Shanji’s face. This was startling and troublesome for J’Shanji. Here’s why.

1. J’Shanji finds clothing made out of fur to be disquieting. Leather is fine, cloth is better. But he has had too many Nords tell him that he would make a fine rug to feel comfortable around men wearing fur.

2. J’Shanji is modest. He does not approve of exposing the torso. He sometimes finds himself looking too long at furless skin, especially at Ysolda’s. Just to make sure that he still does not approve.

3. J’Shanji would never say anything that would hurt a friend’s feelings. He will tease endlessly, but only to annoy. Cultural differences between himself and Belrand make J’Shanji careful with his words. He could not think of a way to address this shirtless situation.

So J’Shanji had to stay ahead of Belrand all the way to the next merchant and not cringe visibly when Belrand kept running into the back of him. That Nord has no brakes. Now I’m on a mission to find some of that armor for Jensa to slap onto Sven before she levels up too much and it gets him killed.

This is what I’m reduced to in a game without dragons. Grits needs a patch!!

You can remove all patches by doing a hard drive maintenance - your game will be just as it was before any patches were applied - same saves, etc. Then play till they fix the issues.

J’Shanji just doesn't get a break does he?

Could be worse. Beth could've made the greeves show up as a da-da-dan-dat (bananna hamock).

ROFL !!! Where is AlienSlof when you need her, ROFL !!

I vote for a feather thong with dangling bones. For decoration. Heavily enchanted, of course.

Speaking of under dressed, here's an update from Jensa's journal.


(There's a discussion of the beginning of the main quest, and the player's first approach to Whiterun.)

I also vote for it, except without the dangling bones or the feather.

Soap is a lie! A LIE I SAY!!!
Silly people don't understand what true manliness is xD

Either way, not much in my end, playing as my Altmer Necromancer, I'm trying to remember where the Alchemist shack is. Having fun so far with him, using the zombie and the summon familiar spell as my main weapons, and of course I got the ritual stone, because it's ability fits so perfectly with a Necromancer
Wonder what else could fit with the Necromancer's theme. Any suggestions? You know for home decorations, attacks ect ect?

I've been playing a lot before the calendar explodes for a few days. Here's an update from J'Shanji.


(There's a discussion of a favor done for a mage associate at the College of Winterhold.)




*
ETA: Fawkes, how about Lund's Hut for your Altmer? I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just say that there is something inside that would appeal to a necromancer. Plus a chest and endtable for safe storage, at least it's been safe for me.

Lol on the soap/lie !!

I can't remember what dungeon I delved in to get it, but I somehow have half of a bloody head stuck in my inventory (says it is a quest item, so can't be removed - and IS adding weight !!). Helvd's Bloody Head or something. I'm sure it is a great thing to have around, just wish it wasn't stuck in my inventory with no quest person to give it to! URK !!

@ Grits - I just love that last chapter! I have been carrying around the cloaks afraid to trust/use them, now I guess I will have to, lol.

*

Having seen the men of Skyrim, I'd say by your definition, they all do know what true manliness is then.




Well, that could be a good thing, or a very bad thing. Prank wars with mages can get... flashy.

mALX, when you're tired of playing with Habd's remains, I put a suggestion in the Spoiler section (new thread).

If it's half of someone else's bloody head, uh, good luck.


I should also mention that J'Zargo does not offer to re-grow whiskers in the game.



Two young man cats on the loose, I can't imagine that will be trouble!

I'm happy things have worked out for J’Shanji. I really liked his interaction with J'Zargo.

J’Zargo is awesome. He has a great voice, a positive attitude, and he’s very fast with the shock spells. The only problem is that his kills tend to go flying. It’s funny when they crash into walls, not so much when you have to chase a dead bandit down the mountain for its loot. I am endlessly grateful to Maxical and Aravi for inspiring me to try a Khajiit character, and then double the fun!


Jensa is not cooperating with the mystic archer plan. She is more of a, hmm, barbarian. Mystic barbarian? I doubt it. Still, I’m putting some points into magicka in the hope that she’ll warm up to the higher level spells. Or maybe it’s just Illusion that she dislikes. She has the archer part covered, though. A nearly naked archer who likes to finish the fight with four feet of steel. Yeah, she’s going to need some perks in Alteration.

Ka D'argo is in Skyrim? Most excellent!

Hence why I had him follow me for most of my game...I love J'Zargo....My best bud...I miss him...*Pouts*...

He misses you too, McB. He's all alone in his box. He wants to come back out and play!

I read this in my email box and immediately thought you were talking about Jerric!

Jerric is running out of patience with me, but at least he's not all alone. It's Lildereth who worries me. If she gives me the eye, you'll see an update within days. She's scary!!





Here's a page from Jensa's journal.


(There's a discussion of the player's first entrance into Solitude.)

Lildereth will put an arrow where it will do the most good if you neglect her, lol.






Very powerful rendition of the scene - even more so Jensa's inner thoughts afterward. I did have to laugh at her inner thoughts about Sven though - Maxical saw that weak chin from a mile away and avoided him like the plague.

An arrow to the knee?

That seems to be quite a big issue in Skyrim! Surprisingly, I have seen arrows sticking out of Maxical's head, but she manages to keep going. So all these Nord men griping about their poor knee need to look elsewhere for a bride, ROFL !!!

Main Quest is done.

Now, until Bethesda gets some of these bugs wrung out, I am returning to Cyrodiil. See all you Skyrimmers later!

WOO HOO !!! I may join you once I've done everything that isn't glitching at least once, lol.

An update from Jensa:

Edited: Sorry, I should have said there's a reference to a quest, Missing in Action.