Blessed Whip

New Talk Topic => "Whip" (Unlocked after trying out the body purification ritual once.)

You point at the side alcove, near the altar, where [Gargoyle] performed the body purifying ritual on you earlier and inquire about the pristine looking bullwhip hanging from the wall.

"Oh? The whip?" [Gargoyle] perks up at your question. "What about it master?"

[if corruption>50] You scratch your chin in thought and give it a vary look, before saying that something about it feels... off.

or

[if intelligence>50] You mention how out of place it looks here, compared to the torn up and decayed surroundings of the Cathedral's interior, almost like it was left here by someone recently. + [if you learned about the gargoyle's master] Was it something that her previous master brought with her?

or

You ask if there is anything special about it. It's one of the few things that were still left intact here after all.

She blinks once, briefly looking confused, before letting out a small smile and nodding. "You are correct master. This is not just a regular whip. It was blessed by the holy men who built this structure. It was soaked in holy water and various sacred rituals were performed upon it. That’s why it stood the test of time so well and wasn't looted throughout the years, I imagine. Imps cannot even touch it without burning their hands."

[if beautiful sword is equipped] That sounds familiar, you realize, as you partly pull your weapon out of it's sheathe and briefly examine it before sliding it back in.

So it hurts those who are corrupt? You can certainly find a use for something like that in your travels around Mareth. And you know from experience that getting struck by this is not a laughing matter (if corruption<10), even if you are pure.

You ask if you may have it, but [gargoyle] seems to hesitate at that.  “Of course master, you can take it if you wish, it was never mine to begin with, but I am afraid this is the only one left here and if you take it away, I will be unable to perform the body purifying ritual anymore.”

>Take

You can live with that, there are always other options for purging corruption from your body. You walk over to the alcove and take the whip down from it’s hanging place. The handle feels rough and firm in your hand, giving you a solid grip on it. You uncoil it’s length, letting it fall on the floor around you and grab it with both hands to test it’s tensile strength, marveling at it’s quality [if int>50] and feeling a subtle surge of magic passing through the weapon.

Satisfied with your inspection, you then raise the handle over your head and begin to spin it, quickly pulling the whip’s length airborne.

You look around, trying to find a suitable target to practice on and notice an unlit torch set on a nearby wall. With a quick twist, you pull your arm back and swing the whip forward in an overhead, vertical slashing motion.

The whip’s tip flies straight into the torch and with a deafening crack shatters it, sending pieces of wood and embers flying everywhere [if silly mode is on], as well as a lone, bright red, cartoony looking heart.  You smirk and pull the whip back, already anticipating the moment when you will get to use it again.

[gargoyle] looks at the remains of the torch sadly [if corruption<10], suddenly making you feel a little bad about what you did and sighs. “Master, would you please stop breaking the furnishings. There is almost nothing left as is.”

You let out an awkward chuckle and excuse yourself, returning to your camp with your new weapon in tow. [Give B.Whip and return to camp. Body purification ritual grayed out]

>Nevermind

You are not exactly a fan of flagellation [if history is paladin], unless you deserve it, [if history is masochist], unless it’s done for fun, but you can never be too careful with keeping your body free of taint, so you would rather let her keep it, just in case.

You shake your head and tell [Gargoyle] that you won’t take it in that case. That ritual is too valuable to give up. She lights up at that and nods enthusiastically. “Of course Master! You can count on me!”

With your curiosity sated, you decide to head back to your camp when [gargoyle] suddenly speak out. “Umm, master? You know, if you would like a weapon like that, I believe I could make something similar for you.”

You perk up at that and turn around, asking what she means exactly.

She unfolds one of her wings, using it to point at the alcove behind her, where the whip is hanging on the wall. “Just like when I was present during the body and mind purification rituals, I also saw how the clergy produced the tools required for said rituals. If you would bring me something similar to it, that hasn’t yet been tainted with corruption, I believe I could bless it for you in a similar manner.”

You scratch your chin in thought, pondering where one would be able to find a leather whip around Mareth. [if farm was visited] Perhaps Whitney might have one? You don’t remember seeing any there though. [if Teladre was visited] You could try hitting the stores in Tel’adre for starters.

You say that you’ll think about it and after saying goodbye, return to your camp. [Return to camp]


New Talk topic =>Bless [Must have a regular whip in your inventory and completed the Whip talk topic, grayed out otherwise]

You approach [gargoyle] with a wave and pull out the whip that you bought, presenting it to her.

“Oh! Master, you found one. Does this mean you would like me to bless it for you?”

You nod and the gargoyle gingerly takes it from your hands, like it’s the most precious thing in the world. “I forgot to mention it earlier, but this might take some time, Master. Perhaps you would like to come pick it up later?’

>Later

You didn’t think about it, but it makes sense. It’s probably not something as simple as the regular rituals, so you say that you’ll come back for it later and excuse yourself, quickly returning to your camp. [Return to camp]

[Upon returning to the cathedral automatic event]

“Master!” [gargoyle] Happily exclaims almost as soon as you set foot inside the building and rushes towards you, looking excited and holding the whip that you gave her earlier in her hands. “It’s finished! I was a little worried that I wouldn’t be able to do it at first since the ritual requires...” Her eyes dash back and forth a few times before settling on looking away from you in what appears to be embarrassment. “Anyway, here you go! I think it turned out really well!”

You smile back at her, thanking her for her hard work and take the weapon from her. The handle feels rough and firm in your hand, giving you a solid grip on it. You uncoil it’s length, letting it fall on the floor around you and grab it with both hands to test it’s tensile strength, marveling at it’s quality [if int>50] and feeling a subtle surge of magic passing through the weapon.

Satisfied with your inspection, you then raise the handle over your head and begin to spin it, quickly pulling the whip’s length airborne.

You look around, trying to find a suitable target to practice on and notice an unlit torch set on a nearby wall. With a quick twist, you pull your arm back and swing the whip forward in an overhead, vertical slashing motion.

The whip’s tip flies straight into the torch and with a deafening crack shatters it, sending pieces of wood and embers flying everywhere [if silly mode is on], as well as a lone, bright red, cartoony looking heart.  You smirk and pull the whip back, already anticipating the moment when you will get to use it again.

[gargoyle] looks at the remains of the torch sadly [if corruption<10], suddenly making you feel a little bad about what you did and sighs. “Master, would you please stop breaking the furnishings. There is almost nothing left as is.”

You let out an awkward chuckle and excuse yourself, returning to your camp with your new weapon in tow. [Give B.Whip and return to camp.]

>No rush

You are not exactly in a big hurry, so you don’t mind waiting until it’s done. You let [gargoyle] know that and casually lay back on one of the intact pews, spreading your arms out and crossing your legs.

“Are you sure?” She asks hesitantly. “V-very well. If it’s no trouble for you, then please make yourself comfortable. I would love to bring you some food and refreshments but...” She smiles sadly and spreads her wings and hands out around her for emphasis, to show the decadent state of the Cathedral.

You assure her that it’s fine. The surroundings and the service might not be up to your standards, but the lovely company well makes up for it.

She blushes at that, her ruby red eyes shooting downwards at the floor and mumbles something in response, before descending into the basement. You make a mental note that you should check that part of the Cathedral later. It is unlikely that there is anything worth scavenging there, but your curiosity could be sated at least.

You sit on the bench for a few minutes, enjoying the silence and the calm atmosphere of the building, that it still retains, even after all that happened. After pondering on your recent escapades some more, you hear movement coming from the stairs and glance at the basement entrance with a smile, expecting to see [gargoyle] again. Instead, you gape at the sight.

The gray-skinned woman emerges from the stairs holding a stack of candles, a few books and other miscellaneous items that you couldn’t care less about, as your eyes are instantly glued to her form, fully clothed in a modest nun’s habit. You’ve long since grown used to her casual nudity, so seeing her fully dressed creates a bizarre sense of perverse cognitive dissonance that you can’t quite explain. [lust+5]

[gargoyle] starts to fidget in place uncomfortably, as you keep staring at her with your mouth open. Her cheeks slowly start to redden. “I know it’s strange for a creature such as I to get dressed, but I am not certain if the ritual that I am about to perform actually requires it or not. The nuns who participated, always wore these and the scriptures that the priests read spoke of presenting yourself in a chaste manner, so I thought that-” She glances around nervously. “Master, would you please stop looking at me like that, it makes me feel funny, I won’t be able to work if you keep it up.”

You close your mouth shut with an audible snap and bow your head in apology, gesturing her to proceed.

She lets out an audible sigh and walks toward the altar in the center, setting the objects in her hands down. She turns around in the process, making your eyes bulge out again, as you instinctively clench the edges of your seat with your hands. The back part of the habit is completely missing. This makes sense, since she would be unable to wear it otherwise, with her wings and all, but still, this is too much for your poor heart and you quickly wipe some loose sweat off your brow, [if history is paladin] trying to keep these sudden, vile, heretical thoughts at bay.

Thankfully, the gargoyle remains blissfully unaware of your distress and proceeds to set everything up with what appears to be practiced ease. You peek over her shoulder while she works, noting the whip that had been set near the bowl used for the mind purification ritual, as well as a small tree growing from a clay pot.

“The plant is to establish connection with Mareth.” [gargoyle] turns head head around and explains before you can ask. “However small, it’s still enough to draw her power from the earth, as long as you know the proper ways.”

You nod and sit back down, quietly observing as she finishes setting everything up. Besides the tree on the altar, a few other objects are now neatly lined up. A small cloth sack of some powdery substance, a clay bowl and a jug, with your whip folded up tightly in a bundle near the edge of the altar.

The gargoyle straightens up, nodding to herself before gently picking up the small cloth sack and holding it before the small tree. She begins to speak slowly and firmly, each word holding a surprising amount of weight.

“The blessing of the mother be upon this salt, let all malignity and hindrance be cast forth hence from, and let all good enter herein, for without it men cannot live, therefore I bless you and invoke you, that you may aid me."

[if intelligence>50] You almost jump up from your seat when you feel a strange, otherworldly motion in the air, that makes your hair stand out, soon after [gargoyle] begins to speak. Nothing visible appears to be happening around you, but you can sense something being drawn from the ground below you and into the walls of the building, focusing on the small plant set on the altar.

Or

You feel a sense of calmness and serenity fill the building as [gargoyle] quietly recites the consecrating words.

The gargoyle finishes reading the prayer and bows to the plant on the altar, before reaching into the small cloth sack and taking out a pinch of what turns out to be salt. With her other hand, she grabs the jug of water on the altar and pours it’s contents into one of the empty bowls. After filling it up, she casts the salt into it, the powdery substance quickly dissolving within. She begins to speak again then, her gentle voice echoing throughout the building.

“I exorcise you, creature of water, by the will of her who has created you and gathered you together into one place, so that the dry land appeared, so that you may uncover all the deceits of the enemy, and that you may cast out from you all the impurities and uncleanness of the spirits of the world of evil, so they may harm me not, through the virtue of goddess almighty.”

After she finishes reciting the second prayer, she gently picks up the whip and sets it into the bowl of holy water placed before the small tree. After blessing herself, she kneels before the altar, closing her eyes and clasping her hands on her chest before lowering her head. She begins to speak again, much quieter this time.

“I bind you, o blessed creature of water in holy union with this weapon. May it protect the weak and keep the body of the virtuous pure and of the wicked in agony. Through the grace of our lady Mareth, let her kindness imbue you with the power to resist evil and strike against it with justice and mercy. Through pain, may you bring salvation to those who lost their way, so they may find it again and to those who shun and defy all that is good, may you return to them the pain they caused tenfold. Amen.”

As she finishes reciting what you assume to be the final prayer, the water in the bowl begins to ripple, then steam up and finally boiling before your very eyes before suddenly bursting into white flames.

You jump out of your seat but [Gargoyle] raises her hand to stop you. You observe, as the water in the bowl quickly evaporates and the flames dancing over the length of the whip quickly die down, leaving it unscathed.

[gargoyle] stands back up and takes the whip from the bowl, before turning around and handing it to you with a smile, while breathing in and out heavily. “It is done master. Here.”

You smile back at her, thanking her for her hard work and take the weapon from her. The handle feels rough and firm in your hand, giving you a solid grip on it. You uncoil it’s length, letting it fall on the floor around you and grab it with both hands to test it’s tensile strength, marveling at it’s quality [if int>50] and feeling a subtle surge of magic passing through the weapon.

Satisfied with your inspection, you then raise the handle over your head and begin to spin it, quickly pulling the whip’s length airborne.

You look around, trying to find a suitable target to practice on and notice an unlit torch set on a nearby wall. With a quick twist, you pull your arm back and swing the whip forward in an overhead, vertical slashing motion.

The whip’s tip flies straight into the torch and with a deafening crack shatters it, sending pieces of wood and embers flying everywhere [if silly mode is on], as well as a lone, bright red, cartoony looking heart.  You smirk and pull the whip back, already anticipating the moment when you will get to use it again.

[gargoyle] looks at the remains of the torch sadly [if corruption<10], suddenly making you feel a little bad about what you did and sighs. “Master, would you please stop breaking the furnishings. There is almost nothing left as is.”

You let out an awkward chuckle and excuse yourself, returning to your camp with your new weapon in tow. [Give B.Whip and return to camp.]


---

You obtained the Blessed Whip (B.Whip)

Description: A whip that has been soaked in holy water and infused with the prayers of a purehearted maiden through a series of holy rituals.

:Stats:
Attack: 10
Value: 500
Special Effect: Agonizing blow. Critical hits stun targets.
Critical hit chance multiplier formula: Enemy corruption/50 (1.0 at 50 corruption 2.0 at 100 corruption)
Can’t equip if cor>50

Attack description: (Not sure if that’s a thing.) You spin your blessed whip above you and lash at the  [enemy] wildly!

Critical Hit! The whip surges with holy power as you strike! The [enemy] collapses on the ground writhing in agony! [Stun]