Storylines: Taking Stock

[Young Grimwold]

I thought it might be helpful and/or interesting to compile a list of all the plots, strands, storylines etc. of this year that are currently in progress, be they actively or dormantly so. I've included links to the last relevant thread in each case. If I've left anything out, please add it.

The Serpent Men: King Hydrass and Serpent Karn have withdrawn to the Mines of Gore, their quest to resurrect the Dreaded Kar having been disrupted by Lord Fear, who still has a piece of the staff they seek. Someone is spying on the Serpent Men - but who? (Snakes In A Mine)

Catherine Barter and Marcus Brinkatore's romance. (A Wake Up Call)

Skarkill and Sinstar: The siblings, in spectral form, have Returned home. (Returning Home)

The Watchers, a.k.a. Coriolis and Midnight. (Here be Dragons...)

The Opposition: What will Lord Fear, Sylvester Hands and Shadow Voice do next? Currently, Hands is waiting to be given a spylgass by Lord Fear. (The Trails End)

Kidnapping the Sheikh: Vyrrian Wren, Leytan and the March of Ides are in Warlock, in the thick of a kidnapping scheme. (Bounty Kidnapp)

Raven: Currently talking with Shadow Voice. Her shopping trip is on hold, and plenty of mystery remains. Suh Wok, the trader that Raven threatened and robbed, is still out cold. (Shopping For Answers)

Salamanda: Set up in the marketplace, ready to make his magnifico mark. (Masc Nuevo Trader)

The Crazed Heifer: With its newest staff member, Young Grimwold, the Heifer awaits the next consignment of customers, crisis or chaos. And what is the former job that barmaid Zyssa is so sheepish about? (No thread at present)

Anthony Delgado: Tom Troughton's old adversary is somewhere in Wolfenden. What will happen when their paths cross again? (A Fleeting Glance.)

Lady Mercury: In her room at the Wolf's Howl Inn, waiting to see Leytan again. (Looking for Leytan)

DimensionGirl and PhoenixFlame: Last seen being dropped off at the Wolf's Howl Inn by Tom Troughton, but not heard from directly for several months. (Close But Not Quite) Uliana, not heard from for even longer, is still at the inn.

Zeytan and his pupils: Zeytan and Cassandra are in the Wolf's Howl Inn. They received word that Meliss (a.k.a. GreenDragon) was on her way back to Wolfenden. But that was back in March, and there've been no further developments since. (Returning to a waiting Message)

[Young Grimwold]

With reference to the line at the foot of the previous post: if any of my fellow Mods feels that one of my posts needs to be edited, please could they at least let me know beforehand? Thanks. ;D

Anyway, an update.

Anthony Delgado: Tom Troughton's old adversary is somewhere in Wolfenden. What will happen when their paths cross again? (A Fleeting Glance.)

DimensionGirl: Last seen being dropped off at the Wolf's Howl Inn by Tom Troughton, but not heard from directly for several months. (Close But Not Quite) Uliana, not heard from for even longer, is still at the inn.

No progress.

The Serpent Men: Hordriss cornered Serpent Karn and King Hydrass, and caused a cave-in that has ended their threat forever. Or has it? I don't know. Or do I? OK, I'll stop now. Or will I? (It's a funnier routine when Stewie does it.)

The Opposition: Sylvester Hands has not been heard from for some time. Salamanda made contact with Lord Fear, but their conversation was interrupted by the arrival and departure of the March of Ides. Lord Fear is heading into Wolfenden, disguised as a monk. (Fearward March. As with any lengthy member absence, it's uncertain whether LordF will post again, so unless you make contact with him, please don't depend on his character for any storylines you may be planning.)

Catherine Barter and Marcus Brinkatore's romance. Still flourishing, and still a secret - just. They may be heading to the Dunnfalls soon. (A Wake Up Call)

Skarkill and Sinstar: Now fully resurrected, and ready to greet their mother. (Returning Home)

Madmogsue: A return to Wolfenden and an encounter with Bethsemane the cat. It is unknown whether further adventures await her, but it seems unlikely.

Aranel: A return to Wolfenden and an encounter with Young Grimwold. It is unknown whether further adventures await her, but it seems unlikely.

Leytan's Hanging: The planned execution in Warlock never took place (though news of that has yet to reach Wolfenden). Leytan, his fellow prisoners Jake and Sindy, Vyrrian Wren, Midnight and Coriolis managed to flee, though not all together. Their journey continues. (The Meeting Point) Young Grimwold and Owen Vartern were in Warlock, and will be back in Wolfenden at some future time.

The White Floating Skull: A new character, wandering the Dungeon. The March of Ides appeared before him, then disappeared. (When a Haunting is truly not a Haunting)

Julian Lapis and Ed Kenji: Two newcomers. In the process of running an errand to Catherine Barter for Shadow Voice, after which they plan to seek lodgings. (A room for the night)

Lady Mercury: Pondering her next move, after learning of Leytan's scheduled hanging. She has met Raven, Callimpsest and Drago, who is presently seeking her help. (Looking for Leytan)

PhoenixFlame, Callimpsest: The two former KMBS employees are having a reunion at the Wolf's Howl Inn. (Looking for something)

Wolf's Howl Inn Staff: Ann-Marie and Raggie are chatting. (Never Anything Interesting)

Raven, Tom, Drago: In the midst of helping Raven, Tom Troughton vanished, becoming imprisoned in a 'brick' (though no one's realised that yet). After meeting Callimpsest and Lady Mercury, Raven unwittingly summoned Drago Lestrade and his dragon Lokie with Dragon Nip. Raven is currently unconscious. (Back In Tom's Room)

Robin: Shopping for weaponry at the market stall of Trusty Seldam. (A New Weapon for Robin)

Forkenspoon: A new character. Currently dealing with a confused customer in the marketplace. (You Stupid Man!)

Kully: Back in town. (OUCH!)

Zeytan: In the forest, pondering his half-brother Leytan's impending execution. An intriguing item has been left in the area. No sign of his pupil Cassandra, or prospective pupil GreenDragon. (Inward Reflections)

Zyssa: The Crazed Heifer barmaid's guilty secret is still to be revealed.

[Young Grimwold]

Sorry I haven't updated this like I said I would. It seems fairly obvious which plots and characters are currently active and which aren't, but I may 'take stock' again later this year. Any other member is welcome to do so too.

I will make one observation though. A while ago, this thread marked the dawn of a new Knightmare Realm day. Even though over a year of 'real life' has now passed, it has yet to end. As the saying goes, it's been a long day. ;D

[Coriolis]

Well if it helps, surrounds.proboards20.com/index.cgi?board=path&action=display&thread=60&page=5 is roughly the following morning.

About 20 hours later and 5am. give or take a notch in the sundial.

[Young Grimwold]

Thanks. I looked again and found...

Jun 11, 2008 21:38:40 GMT Coriolis said:

in the early Dawn

Followed by...

Jun 12, 2008 23:26:04 GMT Midnight said:

the air seemign to grow cooler still despite the rising sun coming.

And checking 'Carry On Escaping', the preceding thread, reveals a reference to 'setting up camp for the evening', then a mention of 'darkening sky', followed by one to 'darkened sky'.

However, there's nothing said about night passing in 'Onwards Ever Onwards'. And assuming that the Hellfire Brothers' teleportation from 'Brick or Treat?' to 'Onwards Ever Onwards' was instantaneous, it should be the same time in the latter as it is in the former, i.e. not yet night-time. If any of you had checked with me before Addis & Flaccus crossed between the threads, I could have pointed that out. Shall we say that the Draconians had another of those occasional 'glitches' in their magic, and lost time while teleporting? (If there's an upside to nitpicks, it's being able successfully to explain them away. )

Time discrepancies aren't necessarily a major issue, but often have the potential to make matters confusing. Different plots do unfold at different paces round here, but if possible, we should avoid situations where we have characters from 'today' meeting characters in 'tomorrow', or at least take care when such situations are in the pipeline. We're several centuries too early for jet lag.

[Coriolis]

Hehe, understood.

Once again I offer the explanation that the "Real" Knightmare itself did this on random occasions. Time and Geography seem to be highly elastic and the very nature of the Dungeon/realm itself is that very little is physically tied down in a linear fashion. You could drop through a hatch in a ships hold and land in thick forest. you could travel through a castle courtyard in what appeared to be afternoon, land in a small room at night time then end up somewhere miles away like Winteria another room later. All within the space of around 10 minutes...

The day/night cycle and physical differences between locations and geography are quirks we'll never truly get away from so may as well embrace and maybe even use to our advantage on occasion. The only exception I can think of is having multiple plotlines happening in different timeframes IN THE SAME LOCATION.

Even then, there are ways around it. Coriolis "Rewound" time back in one of the Inns a while ago (inspired by the visualisations you often get in the CSI TV series). To misquote a certain "Morpheus":-

"This world is based on a set of rules. Most can be bent, some can be broken..."

Will keep an eye on things to avoid plotholes but TBH I wouldn't worry about it TOO much.

(Edit for typo)

[Young Grimwold]

Good points - though bear in mind that it's my job to worry. One reason why time discrepancy is more of a factor than it used to be is that Leytan and co's escape from Warlock introduced a specific event at a specific time, creating a 'Main Narrative' and interlinking several threads in a way we tend not to see on Surrounds. Depending on their location and time of day, characters will either know that the planned hanging failed, or they won't, and I've found it important to try and keep track of this.

It's probably fair to say that on the whole, the further away two distinct Surrounds locations are, the less important it is for them to be in sync. On the other hand, it's not necessarily a problem if the same place has two threads in different timeframes. For example, in the Marketplace section, 'Return To Wolfenden' and 'Hunting for Supplies' could be happening not just at different times, but on different days, because the latter thread currently has no firm connection to the timeframe of the Main Narrative, and the former thread only vague connections.

Rather technical perhaps, and I wouldn't want it to spoil members' fun; but as I said, it's my job to worry about these things.

[Young Grimwold]

Another update. This should cover all characters currently in play, without going into too much detail. Let me know if any corrections or additions are called for.

Shadow Voice & Hellfire Brothers: Shadow Voice is currently in the nearly empty marketplace, arranging an assassination with Barom Grimms, his bodyguard and Kessel Xeros (i.e. Addis, Flaccus and Bodakis Hellfire in disguises).

Winteria: In Winteria, Vyrrian Wren and Leytan are guests of his royal half-sister, Daenary's Shar. Less officially, so are Coriolis, Midnight and Lady Mercury: they have been trying to stay undetected, with dwindling success...

Gravefang and The Fire Lilly: Have apparently wandered into Winteria from a wintry land in another realm. After crossing paths with the other 'tourists', the pair were ignored and left to continue their travels.

The Brick: An arduous investigation of the floating brick outside the Wolf's Howl Inn culminated in the object being broken open. This led to an energy release, somehow involving Tom Troughton and the Lurker, which has 'zapped' Young Grimwold, Robin, Meliss, Julian Lapis and Zyssa - to parts as yet unknown. Red and Ed Kenji may also have been zapped in this way (to be confirmed). Still at the investigation site are Zeytan & Malark and PhoenixFlame, but they can't do much until the dust settles.

Wolfram & Jacob: Anton Wolfram, arriving in Wolfenden with deputies Sholto and Zamba on the hunt for Leytan & Wren, has teamed up with Jacob. They are currently outside the Wolf's Howl Inn entrance (the brick investigation is out of sight, round the side of the building), having interrogated inn chambermaid Raggie.

Callimpsest & Dreslin: Involved in the brick investigation, until they retired to their bedchambers in the inn. Currently out of play.

Ursula: In the Dunnfalls and out of hibernation. Tom Troughton is trying to communicate with her via their old telepathic link.

Akira Sasuke: Left the marketplace in search of lodgings.

Jozan Dumarr: Cornered by the Hellfire Brothers at the Knightmare Boarding School, until they abandoned the fight for other business. Jozan may still be hiding at KMBS, or he may have moved elsewhere. If and when the Hellfire Brothers turn their attentions back the hunt, this will be updated.

Lord Fear: Secretly headed out to Wolfenden disguised as a monk, and hasn't been heard from since. Very few people are yet aware that Lord Fear is absent from Marblehead.

Skarkill and Sinstar: When their reunion with their mother Jezabella (not to mention Grippa and Rhark!) is complete, S&S plan to journey from the family home in Kobalt Province to Marblehead, which they've heard from G&R is abandoned, and thus potentially theirs for the taking.

Drago & Stiletta: In the Dungeons, in the midst of a treasure raid. Lokie is parked outside with the meter running.

Note: In most of these threads, it is evening. In Winteria, it appears to be later, but I'm content to assume that it's in a different time-zone from Wolfenden.

If it is your turn to post in any of these threads, but you're suffering from writer's block, please feel free to contact one of the active Mods, so we can try and help. Or if you're happy to be more public about it, you can post here, and invite suggestions and inspiration from fellow roleplayers.

Thanks to everyone who has been 'staying tuned' during this current quiet patch. As Phil Collins once said, and perhaps still does, we wait and we wonder...

[Young Grimwold]

I don't know why I didn't think to do this sooner: active (and potentially active) storylines can now be seen, and clicked to, in the news fader at the top of the front page. Although I expect few or no new members in the future, I'm hoping that this will offer visitors a good entrée to the forum.

Jun 17, 2008 15:08:42 GMT Coriolis said:

Coriolis "Rewound" time back in one of the Inns a while ago (inspired by the visualisations you often get in the CSI TV series). To misquote a certain "Morpheus":-

Could we have guessed that by the following year, 'Morpheus' would be in CSI? ;D

[Coriolis]

Hehehehe... Interesting how that all worked out. ;-)

Putting storylines onto the news banner is a good idea that quite rightly seems obvious now it's up. May I suggest slowing the scroller down a little? On my machine at least, the headlines move so fast it can be difficult to click the highlighted links.

Thanks again.

[Robin]

Great idea! It's about time the news fader was used for something new, as well!

Not to add to your workload unduly, David, but would you mind doing a quick "stock-take" here as well? I'd do it myself, but your ability to distil storylines into a few short sentences is greater than mine.

[Young Grimwold]

Mar 8, 2012 19:35:17 GMT Coriolis said:

May I suggest slowing the scroller down a little?

How could I not accept a comment from you about fading? ;D Agreed: the fader is now slower. Let me know if you think it should be slowed down still further, or indeed sped up a little.

Mar 8, 2012 22:02:59 GMT Robin said:

would you mind doing a quick "stock-take" here as well?

Not at all. I always intended to keep this thread updated. Here, then, is what our currently active and potentially active characters are up to:

Shadow: Has equipped herself for a quest to find Smirkenorff and piece together her past, but has been sidetracked helping Clarity Seldam (NPC) find her missing pig, who may himself have found something interesting. (Where there's a Well...)

Robin: Currently venturing through the Dungeon. (Below Ground)

Callimpsest: In his efforts to save the Knightmare Boarding School library from destruction in the past, he used the secret Tower of Time (a.k.a. Wolfenden's church clock tower) to travel back, but ended up - I may as well call it what it is - quantum-leaping into Grimwold the ogre in the past. It seems 'Callimwold' has a mission, which he is currently (to our eyes) undertaking, to save Young Grimwold from the Dreadnort-gone-haywire. (Journey's End?)

Coriolis, Lady Mercury, Leytan, Midnight: In Winteria, at the hunting lodge of Leytan's royal half-sister. Coriolis and Lady Mercury have escaped from a 'cold room' and are dealing with resistance from the guards; Leytan and his old mentor Aaron (NPC) are slightly outside the fray. Midnight was returned to the cold room and is gravely ill as her body struggles with the Winterian powers that Leytan transfused in a prior encounter. (Family Gatherings)

Vyrrian Wren, Daenary's Shar: Wren is the quarry in the Princess' ritual hunt. (The Hunt)

Young Grimwold (present day): Thought to be somewhere in the Forest of Dunn. (Ogre under, under Dunn)

The March of Ides: After another rebirth, he has abducted Drago Lestrade's dragon Lokie and ridden off to parts unknown. (The Ecstasy Of Treasure)

Dreslin: Still suffering the after-effects of an extended sleep, the elf has gone for a stroll around Wolfenden, presumably still dressed in a monk's habit. (Waking up)

Zyssa (NPC): We've yet to see her return from the light void. (Light Headed)


Any characters not mentioned above yet currently in play, I'm regarding as abandoned unless I hear or see otherwise.

[Shadow]

THERE ARE SO MANY!!!
Over the past few days, I've been reading through some storylines with music blasting through my ears. And once again my dreams have all been related to the Surrounds characters! XDDD

[Robin]

I don't know where to post this, but this is perhaps the most relevant thread in which to do so.

Dec 3, 2017 16:49:36 GMT Young Grimwold said:

[ModNote: There has been no activity from any characters other than mine for well over a year. In these circumstances, it is hard not to class other characters as abandoned.

Thank you for all you have ever done for this forum and what remains of the world of Knightmare rôleplaying, David. I'm sorry that it has come to this and that it's down to you, as the last remaining active Mod for well over a few years, to bring the stories to a close. I have been checking Surrounds almost daily for as long as I can remember, but less and less so as the activity wound down.

I recognised the decline of the forum myself a couple of years back and, although I tend to rôleplay in my head these days, I decided to leave my characters in a way that they could be seen as "departed", but could also be returned if there were a need for their presence, á la earlier adventures like The Brick and Below Ground.

Dinosaur Name's job was to appear randomly, attempt to bite someone and fail with humorous consequences. As such, it isn't necessary to give him an exit storyline. I also handed Treguard over to the Mods, after his re-entry storyline and temporary alliance with Robin; as far as I'm aware, he has made his way back to Dunshelm after a brief visit to Wolfenden.

The major problem I had was what to do with my primary character. I'm very attached to Robin, having played him in various forms since 2002. I eventually decided to have him head off into the woods in directions unknown, so that he could be in his natural habitat and be available for pick-up if needed. I thus ended Straight Shooter:

Dec 27, 2015 15:22:52 GMT Robin said:

*Deciding that he doesn't need to undertake anything particularly taxing right now, the Woodsman heads off into the woods.*

I attempted to return Robin to play in They Seldom Return briefly via one post, concluding another plot thread I considered open-ended - thus freeing Lokie, whose fate I was concerned about (and bringing an end to his storyline if needed or having him return later, healed, at the Mods' discretion), and by extension the March of Ides (hence making the post on the Ides of March and thus being the perfect time for them to vanish). This would have finished the current storyline for both those characters and left Robin sheltering from the rain in the hut (which would be his final appearance). This post, however, has been deleted and therefore Robin is still wherever he has gone to in the forest.

As far as I am aware, most characters have been abandoned and most of their stories have been brought to a close as tidily as possible by some very creative Mod posts by David. Thank you again, David, for doing so: rather than having a state of complete abandonment, it may be more satisfying, if even to the casual reader who stumbles upon this randomly, to start at the beginning and manage to reach "The End".

So, unless anything miraculous happens later in time... from Robin, Dinosaur Name, Treguard, Serena (the sole surviving heir to the Brinkatore estate), Sophie (the floating girl of unexplained value) and the barman who looks like Astérix - and whoever else I have helped to influence throughout the years:

Time Out.

- Pooka