Well...I'm looking through the first thread and the first thing I notice is that all the links and images are broken and lost...let's get things a little more availiable, please?

I mostly was checking this out because I was trying to figure out what the symbol on our splash page was on the pyramid...suddenly there's no pyramid...heck, there aren't any old forums either!

But aside from that, it'd be good to bring some attention back to this dusty corner of the story node.

Ok, somebody read the end of the ADML thread and tell me where we left off (I'm sorry I'm being so lazy, but I really don't have time to do all this...writing this thread is killing me).

EDIT: Oh, and let's try to talk about ADML, how it works, how it's pronounced, and it's history. Let's not bring ore into it (besides indirectly), I do have a thread for that =)

Ah, magic, my old chum. As there doesn't seem to have been anything new on it, here's what (in my old-age understanding):

The pyramid is the character-sheet representation of the spells the player has recovered and thus the magic user(s) in the party can cast. Each symbol on the pyramid represents a certain spell - though it certainly isn't a full guide to how to cast the spell (eg. Just saying "fireball" will probably end up with your chest on fire, rather than "fling a fireball at the large ape-thing" which does not) and hence Rheya's involvement in teaching Dell the rest of ADML - the "fling" part, the "at" part and the "target" part.

(Following is linked with ORE)
As you rise up the pyramid, the spells you are casting require more energy, and thus require more/purer ore. More about ore in the thread mentioned above.

(Following is linked with DELL'S CAVE SIDEQUEST)
I propose that Dell already has the pyramid with him in his cave, and is aquired when he joins the party. It is the only thing he needs or wants from his cave - it is the only thing he has of his home, so he keeps it with him. A possible sidequest for the way back would be - Dell's cave is the first of the pyramid temples, we just didn't know it. It's the first point you can aquire a symbol for the pyramid.

One thing we must bear in mind at all times using a structure like this is that some sysmbols will be optional. A player may not enter some pyramids - you could have a player going all the way to the end of Part IV with only the cantrips.

Comments/Questions/Corrections?

Hey Fang, been awhile.

For one thing, ore is now Eumonite, not ore. Second, Eumonite isn't a source, it's a source channeler. The more Eumonite you have, the more energy you can channel, the better ADML spells you can cast.

We live and learn...

By source I meant where the energy is coming from for the spell. That's the Eumonite. Where the Eumonite itself got the energy is open to debate - whether channeled from the things around it or held static, it's of little consequence in ADML terms (as is seen in Dev's description of source) and should really be kept to the "Ore" thread or another thread for that purpose.

Personally, I think that ADML and Eumonite will be too closely related to need separate threads - they're too intertwined that it's impossible to speak of one without the other.

As for gaining new amounts of Eumonite: the finale of the story kinda requires some things for it to work. Mostly, more than one "user" can draw energy from any ore they happen to find. I proposed this be accomplished by having casters "name" the Eumonite, and thus be able to call upon it whenever and wherever they need it. See my rant about clauses in my old ADML post (the source clause). This way, even two enemies can be using the same source of ore as long as i gets replenished. Which leads us to....

How does Eumonite power magic spells? Temp and I eventually settled on something (I think...), where the ore needs to be recharged by magic users from their "natural" reserve (which suggests that a caster's life energy or something is the source). It seemed convenient that Miriel gathered together a virtual army of magic users (Rheya's mage comrades) that might be able to endlessly replenish Pylos Epsilon's massive horde of stolen Eumonite, which will be needed to power all the auto-Rez machines that Kydran will be giving out.

There are a few problems with that, however. Do human "techno-mages" (can we get a movement to change that name please?) have the ability to channel magic energy naturally in order to shunt it to Eumonite? If so, shouldn't they be able to cast very rudimentary spells using that energy, as Antareans can? Also, if this is how Pylos Epsilon's Eumonite gets replenished, why doesn't Miriel's casters simply cease replenishing the ore when Tyrus steals it?

Actually, I might be able to find a way around that last one. Suppose this is how Epsilon gets replenished. Suppose Tyrus goes to attack Serribis, but it only lasts as long as his magic energy does, once Pylos stops powering it. This would mean Tyrus would cease his assault and run away. So, how does he get the energy for casting uber-death on Io? From Dell, using him as a slave, threatening death. Or, perhaps, threatening to kill Ko (though that might alter Ko's vision of Tyrus as his emancipator). Either way, this somewhat alters the contour of Part III, but that needs a lot of altering anyway.

::blinks and checks his watch::

Am I off-topic yet?

Hmm...charged or...crap...charged Eumonite, eh? We can go far with this...a little too far for my head to think right now. Honestly, I was a little stumped while reading your post Dev (before you got off topic =) ). But I THINK what I got was: Eumonite has to be charged and can be charged by casters. When used to cast spells, the charge goes into the spells, leaving the Eumonite a certain amount depending on the necesary charge needed to be taken from the ore...AGH!! DANGGIT TEMP!!!!!

...so how off am I?

So Kydran is using Mako from his reactors to fuel their Eumonite, eh? lol sorry, but at least I understand. That works for me, and it makes perfect sense for Barr...dur, Enna to have another reason to want to destroy Shin...I mean, Pylos.

So...how do the characters recharge their Eumonite? Just letting it sit there? Or performing some ritual involving ripping people's hearts out and lowering them in a cage into a pit of swirling fire and effects?

Also, are we basing Eumonite's potential by their size or by the quantity of them all in one size?

I was under the impression that Eumonite was just a way of getting the energy out of things - soil, rocks, toupees, etc - and into your spell. The amount and purity of the ore you specify dicates how much energy it can "channel" ... kinda like fuse ratings for plugs. The caster specifies how much energy they want in the spell part - each spell needs a certain amount or purity of ore to be cast.

The problem comes with the amazingly pure and plentiful ore on Epsilon. The caster of the spell could channel huge amounts of energy to cast any spell they want - this is where the other limiting factor in spellcasting comes in: ability. A caster's magic ability is a latent thing which grows as they get more powerful (however we decide to work that) and dictates how much energy they can channel without exploding in a big shower of technicolour sparks.

At least, that was my impression. Guess I was wrong :P