07-22-2009, 11:47 AM
A moderately epic quest which introduces the player to some of the darker aspects of traditional Argonian culture. If you don't mind, Ibsen, it could also be an introduction to your character Arnaster Marrowmir. If you have other plans for this character, we could use a "rogue argonian shaman" instead.
Not far from the port city of Soulrest is one of the largest plantations remaining in Argonia. It has survived longer than any other due to the cunning of its owner, known only as The Big Boss.
In the old days when slavery was still legal in Morrowind, the Boss would go north and buy up slaves, offering them freedom if only they worked to pay off the money he spent to buy them. It seemed a great deal, but once they got to his estate, the slaves found that they could never pay off the debt, and were forced to work the rest of their lives. So slavery is continued in this part of the Marsh, and all perfectly legal too!
If the player visits the plantation, he finds most of the workers seem dazed and unresponsive, working mindlessly both day and night, not even bothering to sleep. One however does not, and asks for your help to stop him "ending up like the others." It seems the slaves were forced to sign contracts in their own blood, and that if the player can get his contract, then he can destroy it, getting rid of the evidence that he owes the Big Boss money. But he's too scared to get it himself.
The player goes up the house. It is a huge and creepy, half-ruined mansion, guarded during the day by mute but savage guards. At night though, they are gone. The player sneaks in, avoiding patrolling guards on the inside, and makes it to the Boss' Office.
When they get in, the room is pitch black and some giant, inhuman thing attacks them whilst laughing like a maniac. But when you kill it, the thing gives a human scream and scripted lights suddenly come on. You see the dead Boss lying on the floor! You grab the contract and get out of there.
You meet the slave as arranged back at the slave shack, only to find the interior covered with blood, and see the dismembered slave rise up as a zombie in the middle of it all. Standing in the corner is the smiling Boss! He asks if the player is surprised to see him again so soon, and informs him that they are now wanted for the murder of one of the richest and most powerful men in the Marsh. They Royal Court were good friends of his, and now they want the player dead. And to make things more fun for him to watch, he's also going to curse the player to give them the appearance of a zombie to everyone except the player (we use the Vampire script, slightly modified).
The Boss disappears while the player is fighting the zombie, using the LaChance DB script. The player now has a huge bounty on their head, and gets attacked in their sleep by Shadowscale assassins sent by the Royal Court, and also finds it hard to talk to people without them running away screaming. The tribal argonians are not affected, however, but the Shaman refuse to talk to the player, fearful of the extraordinary strength of the curse.
However, somebody (not sure who) mentions the existence of an underworld figure who is said to know a lot about Bhuru magic - Arnaster Marrowmir!
If the player already knows Arnaster, this is easy. Otherwise they will have to track him down. Arnaster says he can do something about this problem for a price. The player offers gold but Arnaster says his smuggling gives him all the gold he needs - he wants the soul of the undead Big Boss, so he can find out how he got his powers.
Arnaster wants a Black Soulgem to hold the soul, then he accompanies the player to the Vaults of Gemin, where you fight your way to the Chamber of Separation. There the Big Boss appears to you, but laughs and says that such amateur efforts won't stop him. He is already acquiring a fresh body to become the new owner of his plantation, he says, then vanishes.
Arnaster says that the Boss is too arrogant, and has given himself away. He must have a physical anchor to the mortal plain, which will have to be destroyed. Arnaster has two jobs for the player - call in a favour from an old Argonian friend of his, and find the spirit anchor at the Boss' mansion. He will wait at the Chamber of Separation to fine-tune his ritual.
The old friend is a disgraced, ancient shaman living alone in a hut in the marsh. He explains that it was he who taught the Boss how to use Bhuru magic, thinking he was a young member of the Mages' Guild and that it would bring their cultures closer together. Little did he know that the man was already a powerful necromancer, and had combined Bhuru with Imperial magic to give his undead servants the appearance of still being alive.
With this warning, the player goes to the mansion, only to find the enchantment is gone, and all the unresponsive slaves are revealed to be zombies! The player fights their way to the basement of the house, where he finds a sinister shrine and removes a staff from it (there is also a copy of the Tome of Unlife, a book written by Mannimarco).
The Boss is now getting desperate, and sends wraiths to attack the player on their way back to the Vaults of Gemin. But the mission is a success, and the Boss' soul is forced out of the staff for Arnaster to capture. But it's not over yet! The soulgem talks to you, remarking that he's still got one trick left up his sleeve, and he's about to give Gideon an event "like they haven't seen in years!"
The player and Arnaster hurry to Gideon, finding the city in chaos. The Boss was about to be buried in the Mausoleum when he revealed his true form as a Lich and attacked, raising an army of undead. The player joins the town guards fighting them, and Arnaster explains that the Boss can only be defeated by sealing him in his coffin. The player kills the Lich and takes its bones, placing them with the soulgem into the coffin, which Arnaster casts a spell on, sealing it for all time.
Arnaster comments that it seems he still has much to learn about Bhuru magic, even after all these years. He invites the player to come and ask him if he finds anything else that might be of interest to him, and that perhaps they can work together again.
The next time the player sleeps, they are woken up as the area is crowded with the spectral Argonians who were freed from the Boss' magic to rejoin with the Hist. They cast a blessing on the player, which tribal argonians will recognise and become much more friendly towards the player.
In know it's fairly long. Comments?
Not far from the port city of Soulrest is one of the largest plantations remaining in Argonia. It has survived longer than any other due to the cunning of its owner, known only as The Big Boss.
In the old days when slavery was still legal in Morrowind, the Boss would go north and buy up slaves, offering them freedom if only they worked to pay off the money he spent to buy them. It seemed a great deal, but once they got to his estate, the slaves found that they could never pay off the debt, and were forced to work the rest of their lives. So slavery is continued in this part of the Marsh, and all perfectly legal too!
If the player visits the plantation, he finds most of the workers seem dazed and unresponsive, working mindlessly both day and night, not even bothering to sleep. One however does not, and asks for your help to stop him "ending up like the others." It seems the slaves were forced to sign contracts in their own blood, and that if the player can get his contract, then he can destroy it, getting rid of the evidence that he owes the Big Boss money. But he's too scared to get it himself.
The player goes up the house. It is a huge and creepy, half-ruined mansion, guarded during the day by mute but savage guards. At night though, they are gone. The player sneaks in, avoiding patrolling guards on the inside, and makes it to the Boss' Office.
When they get in, the room is pitch black and some giant, inhuman thing attacks them whilst laughing like a maniac. But when you kill it, the thing gives a human scream and scripted lights suddenly come on. You see the dead Boss lying on the floor! You grab the contract and get out of there.
You meet the slave as arranged back at the slave shack, only to find the interior covered with blood, and see the dismembered slave rise up as a zombie in the middle of it all. Standing in the corner is the smiling Boss! He asks if the player is surprised to see him again so soon, and informs him that they are now wanted for the murder of one of the richest and most powerful men in the Marsh. They Royal Court were good friends of his, and now they want the player dead. And to make things more fun for him to watch, he's also going to curse the player to give them the appearance of a zombie to everyone except the player (we use the Vampire script, slightly modified).
The Boss disappears while the player is fighting the zombie, using the LaChance DB script. The player now has a huge bounty on their head, and gets attacked in their sleep by Shadowscale assassins sent by the Royal Court, and also finds it hard to talk to people without them running away screaming. The tribal argonians are not affected, however, but the Shaman refuse to talk to the player, fearful of the extraordinary strength of the curse.
However, somebody (not sure who) mentions the existence of an underworld figure who is said to know a lot about Bhuru magic - Arnaster Marrowmir!
If the player already knows Arnaster, this is easy. Otherwise they will have to track him down. Arnaster says he can do something about this problem for a price. The player offers gold but Arnaster says his smuggling gives him all the gold he needs - he wants the soul of the undead Big Boss, so he can find out how he got his powers.
Arnaster wants a Black Soulgem to hold the soul, then he accompanies the player to the Vaults of Gemin, where you fight your way to the Chamber of Separation. There the Big Boss appears to you, but laughs and says that such amateur efforts won't stop him. He is already acquiring a fresh body to become the new owner of his plantation, he says, then vanishes.
Arnaster says that the Boss is too arrogant, and has given himself away. He must have a physical anchor to the mortal plain, which will have to be destroyed. Arnaster has two jobs for the player - call in a favour from an old Argonian friend of his, and find the spirit anchor at the Boss' mansion. He will wait at the Chamber of Separation to fine-tune his ritual.
The old friend is a disgraced, ancient shaman living alone in a hut in the marsh. He explains that it was he who taught the Boss how to use Bhuru magic, thinking he was a young member of the Mages' Guild and that it would bring their cultures closer together. Little did he know that the man was already a powerful necromancer, and had combined Bhuru with Imperial magic to give his undead servants the appearance of still being alive.
With this warning, the player goes to the mansion, only to find the enchantment is gone, and all the unresponsive slaves are revealed to be zombies! The player fights their way to the basement of the house, where he finds a sinister shrine and removes a staff from it (there is also a copy of the Tome of Unlife, a book written by Mannimarco).
The Boss is now getting desperate, and sends wraiths to attack the player on their way back to the Vaults of Gemin. But the mission is a success, and the Boss' soul is forced out of the staff for Arnaster to capture. But it's not over yet! The soulgem talks to you, remarking that he's still got one trick left up his sleeve, and he's about to give Gideon an event "like they haven't seen in years!"
The player and Arnaster hurry to Gideon, finding the city in chaos. The Boss was about to be buried in the Mausoleum when he revealed his true form as a Lich and attacked, raising an army of undead. The player joins the town guards fighting them, and Arnaster explains that the Boss can only be defeated by sealing him in his coffin. The player kills the Lich and takes its bones, placing them with the soulgem into the coffin, which Arnaster casts a spell on, sealing it for all time.
Arnaster comments that it seems he still has much to learn about Bhuru magic, even after all these years. He invites the player to come and ask him if he finds anything else that might be of interest to him, and that perhaps they can work together again.
The next time the player sleeps, they are woken up as the area is crowded with the spectral Argonians who were freed from the Boss' magic to rejoin with the Hist. They cast a blessing on the player, which tribal argonians will recognise and become much more friendly towards the player.
In know it's fairly long. Comments?