S story & Speculations

[alhoon]

7. What was S's personality and background in YOUR view?

I've never understood the confusion about whether Our Hero was evil or not. She's evil. She dissects living things for the hell of it. She sacrificed her daughter in an experiment on undead (albeit unintentionally, and as of Sithicus and Keening, is starting to regret it), and then rather than put her out of her misery, tried to use her as a proxy to investigate the Shroud.

She's cold and arrogant, with no time for stupidity or social niceties. She seems to have turned into a borderline alcoholic, which was I think unintentional and moderately amusing. Despite all this, she is quite good at getting people to talk to her. She's driven by curiosity/lust for knowledge. Does this sound like anyone we know yet?

She is the illegitimate daughter of a Darkonese nobleman (erm, that is, the people who raised her are Darkonese nobles--so who is her real father? Go on, it's not that hard). She tried to get in to the Fraternity of Shadows but, being a woman, they wouldn't let her in. For some reason, Azalin is interested in her and holds high hopes for her progress around the Core. This quest (which, knowing Azalin as we do, can only involve an escape attempt from Ravenloft) somehow involves the Gentleman Caller and his children and various dukkars and Vistani outcasts, including the Tribe of Hyskosa who are dedicated to thwarting Azalin's schemes.

For what it's worth, I see the Gentleman Caller's place in Ravenloft as a trap to get Isolde stuck there, and having achieved that but failed to destroy her entirely, he now wants to get the hell out. So that could give you more a clue as to what Azalin plans. Or it may be a red herring.

Plus, Azalin gave her a bracelet that somehow protects her (or rather, her mission). After being killed in Verbrek, she woke up some time later in Valachan in a house that had been recently "cleared" by the Kargat.

I think this relates to Roots of Evil or From the Shadows if anyone wants to go try to work out what's actually going on.

[Willowhugger]

As one of the clones of Azalin, I thought it was a brilliant idea.

Shadowborn Cluster I think her trip to Nidala would have been amusing with the contempt that S has for the Queen of the country radiating from her but no outright malice, meaning that she is judged to be not evil while others are directly judged to being.

Blaustein I think the idea of marrying a local Lord to carry on her studies via shipping might be an extremely amusing story. Especially if she has no interest what he might have in his closet.

[ScS of the Fraternity]

No interest in the closet? S is a medieval investigative reporter - she'd surely be drawn to the closet like a moth to the flame. Though, maybe she'd be smart enough to use a scry spell rather than the key.

And of course, even if she did look in the closet, she probably wouldn't care too much.

"Hey, this looks just like my closet! Except there's no booze."

Then wouldn't it be fun to watch Blue Beard try to make his new addition to the collection. Poor S would have to destroy all of her notes on Blaustein, what with having leveled the whole place.

[Willowhugger]

No interest in the closet? S is a medieval investigative reporter - she'd surely be drawn to the closet like a moth to the flame. Though, maybe she'd be smart enough to use a scry spell rather than the key.

Counterpoint, if you read closely....S is profoundly arrogant and never investigates what she thinks she knows the answer to. We're dealing with a difference in styles of curiousity. The Bluebeard wives always were drawn to the closet because...they're silly young women of a particular style and eager to keep their power over their husbands by knowing all their secrets.

In S's case, I imagine she'd dismiss this important aspect of his character the same way that she dismisses many clues because she holds people in contempt. In Bluebeard's case, she probably thinks its some stupid noble's obsession or perhaps tools.

Heck, she might think he's keeping his wife's bodies there and not care

[Willowhugger]

Hehehe, I see you edited some of my thoughts.

On a related note...

WHAT DOES S stand for!?

Susan? Sarah? Samanatha?

[Catman Jim]

I think 'S' was a letter designation, she was the 19th clone.

[Wiccy of the Fraternity]

I wouldn't be surprised if S was also a bit of an in joke among the Kargatane, as they also released the Book of S netbooks for several years. I always thought it was a link back to that

[cure]

Please remind me, what clones of Azalin? And where?

[Tobias Blackburn]

In an attempt to learn new magic, Azalin created special clones of himself and implanted the fetuses into a bunch of women around Darkon. Some, died, some were hideously deformed, and a select few came out right. In fact, the man that would become Death (Dachine, or something like that) ws one of Azalin's clones.

Needless to say Azalin's plan never panned out, but he kept a close watch on his clones (like Dachine), helping them rise to places where they might be useful.

I doubt that S was to signify the 19th clone, as that would have signified a level of knowledge that Azalin wasn't about to get out. She may have been smart enough to figure out that Azalin was her patron, I doubt that she would have been able to talk about her past in the same way if she were aware that she was a defective clone. S is more likely the first letter in her name.

[Dominique]

I always figured it stood for "Scholar." Sort of a nom-de-plume thing.

Pardon my ignorance, but if she's a clone of Azalin, why is she female? Were his clones not exact "clones" per se? I haven't read whatever mod introduced that idea.

[Willowhugger]

I always figured it stood for "Scholar." Sort of a nom-de-plume thing.

Pardon my ignorance, but if she's a clone of Azalin, why is she female? Were his clones not exact "clones" per se? I haven't read whatever mod introduced that idea.

Azalin no doubt altered them a bit. After all, you know, he's been DEAD for well over four hundred years....

[cure]

The cloning project shows up in what adventure, gazetteer, story? I would like to go back and look at it. Thanx.

[Tobias Blackburn]

I always figured it stood for "Scholar." Sort of a nom-de-plume thing.

Pardon my ignorance, but if she's a clone of Azalin, why is she female? Were his clones not exact "clones" per se? I haven't read whatever mod introduced that idea.

Azalin no doubt altered them a bit. After all, you know, he's been DEAD for well over four hundred years....

Exactly. Of course, most of them were horribly deformed so it wasn't a spell that produced perfect clones. It's more a case of creating fetuses using only his DNA. If there was no change during the growth process all of them would have come out perfect. If some came out with extra appendages and worse, still born or horrifically montrous, one being born female is hardly the worst thing that can happen.

[Brandi]

Blaustein I think the idea of marrying a local Lord to carry on her studies via shipping might be an extremely amusing story.

I'm not sure that S would have EVER been that devoted to her patron, given that she prizes her intelligence and independence and said Lord's idea of an ideal wife seems to be more along the lines of a RealDoll that can do cooking and cleaning...

[Willowhugger]

Blaustein I think the idea of marrying a local Lord to carry on her studies via shipping might be an extremely amusing story.

I'm not sure that S would have EVER been that devoted to her patron, given that she prizes her intelligence and independence and said Lord's idea of an ideal wife seems to be more along the lines of a RealDoll that can do cooking and cleaning...

Largely I meant the humor value and the fact I doubt S honestly cares one way or the other about the institution of marriage and the idea of causally dumping him when done seemed amusing.

Especially with the eventual confrontation.