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[Well, here I am. And here you are.]

I know I'm digging up a very old thread here, but now that things won't be so spoiler-y, here's the character's ending.


The Nothing sent its champion after Wakefield and, despite Leopold Sobol's best efforts to intervene, it was a pretty simple capture. Down below 99, the champion roused its prey from unconsciousness...

Isenbardus Galot:  Wake, doll of crudest clay...

Cole Wakefield:  He slowly stirs, bloodied and barely able to lift his head. "Nnnh."

Isenbardus Galot:  This is not my home, nor is any place in this walled City... Not for some time at least, but there is hospitality enough here... Eheh...
Isenbardus Galot:  [An uncharacteristic snicker slips free of the Champion.]

Cole Wakefield:  "Ain't... my home... either."

Isenbardus Galot:  My King demanded that you be taken... You have slighted him in the past, long since... when he was but a Prince...
Isenbardus Galot:  My King has told me this. But I would hear it from your own poorly-shod lips...

Cole Wakefield:  "My version's... different. Never said I was a.... a brave fella. Marched with Trystan to stop th' slaver lizards," he groans out, blinking unfocused eyes. "Met their warlord, everyone but three cowards died. I said... we had to leg it... or Trystan would be killed too."
Cole Wakefield:  "Trystan thought we abandoned 'em all. But they were dead.... already. Thought Trystan was... weakened and.... would be killed too. He was too important."

Isenbardus Galot:  [He eyes the man, pacing a moment and then pulls his helm free, taking a long drink from his wineskin. Darkness trickles down his chin, dripping onto the floor.]

Cole Wakefield:  He chuckles weakly. "Heh, Trystan just had to raise... his hand at the... warlord. Told it to kneel. Killed it in a heartbeat. He never.... needed us."
Cole Wakefield:  "Marched with him a second time... into 101. He was a leader to me, even then."
Cole Wakefield:  Wakefield lurches a bit, looking around in weakened confusion. "....It's all... black here..."

DM Ironside :  You spin through black infinities, caught in a warm, welcoming, churning sea...
DM Ironside :  Tumbling in waves and awkward contortions, until you come to ground. A point of anchoring light is ahead, amidst all the dark.

Isenbardus Galot:  Does it not feel like home...?

Tentacle:  [The tentacle stretches out and curls around the two of them lovingly... ]

DM Ironside :  Figures in the umbral gloom reach out to touch you..

Isenbardus Galot:  Friends... it has been so long...

DM Ironside :  Grasping.. not to harm, but to merely experience the feeling of hand upon flesh..

Isenbardus Galot:  That... is you isn't it?

Cole Wakefield:  "Home's... a world away," he replies, battered and embraced. He grits his teeth at the sensations.

Isenbardus Galot:  Father?
Isenbardus Galot:  Not so far as you think, doll..

Cole Wakefield:  Wakefield struggles against the tendrils, too weak to do much more than push a limp hand against them.

Isenbardus Galot:  Though, perhaps not for you...

DM Ironside :  The man who brought you here seems.. less distinct. One more shadow amidst a hundred more, forming and dissolving in the mirk.

Cole Wakefield:  "This ain't anybody's home," he says to the blurry shape. "Corrupted ley bashin' against rings."

DM Ironside : [Tell] Your practiced eye has served you well, old timer... and it ain't stopped in this place. Roll spot.

Cole Wakefield:  [Cole Wakefield's Visual Acuity is Impressive.]

Isenbardus Galot:  Is it?
Isenbardus Galot:  [The shade-man's voice is soft, ethereal amidst the churming mass.]

Cole Wakefield:  Still straining against the black, he says, "You signed on with someone you never met. I met him before and after the Nothing. My soul started here before I was an Awoken."

DM Ironside : [Tell] There's something else here, amid all the dark watery soup. Cuts through like a ray of sunlight in a bleary drunk's eyes. It gives you a headache, but a bit of clarity too.

Cole Wakefield:  Wakefield's eyes search around the bleak area, the pupls locking on something and dilating. "You... nngh... dunno who or what all this is about, right? Do you wanna?"

Isenbardus Galot:  What do you think it is?
Isenbardus Galot:  [The shade kneels, suddenly.]

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  Not, I should think, as much as you do, Detective. [A voice cuts through the churning, making itself heard. A figure of light, smiling sadly, is here now.]

Cole Wakefield:  He sighs a bit, nodding. "Knowing the truth of it all was all I had left. Tryin' to fix what's broken, 'cause nobody else was gonna."
Cole Wakefield:  A weak, self-depricating chuckles spills out of him. "Aimin' big for a guy who crumples like old paper, huh?"
Cole Wakefield:  "We've always had too many other people around to really talk," he says over to Trystan's form. "Always too much battle and war and people who want to be important."

Isenbardus Galot:  [The shaded Knight remains kneeling, floating in the murk with head bowed in reverence.]

Cole Wakefield:  "Now that you're here in this.... place... what do you wanna do with it all? The Nothing wants to destroy it all and reform the energy. But what about you, Prince Moonspear? What about the kingdom that won't be there to rule as your father did?"

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  My Kingdom..
Prince Trystan Moonspear:  In sooth, I always envisioned myself more a hero than a ruler; I am not one to bicker over taxes and de jure..

Cole Wakefield:  "I saw you the same way. Only reason you got an old coward like me to risk his life on your marches."

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  I called you a Coward, once, but I think now that was injust -- men always fear the unknown. Doubly so, men who try to understand it.
Prince Trystan Moonspear:  Without your caution, I would not have come to be.. as I am.

Cole Wakefield:  "Your bloodline's power did the heavy lifting. Wish I could've talked to you about it before.... all this."

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  I know. Words may've triumphed, where action failed us all.
Prince Trystan Moonspear:  It is not so terrible though. We are on the road to recovery, Wakefield.

Cole Wakefield:  "Do you still see this all as sunshine and fields of limegreen?"

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  I do. That is what it means to wake up, Detective.
Prince Trystan Moonspear:  The dreamer must ever dread the morning; if I were to tell you a secret, would you keep it?

Cole Wakefield:  He gives another mirthless chuckle. "I don't expect I'll be able to jaw with anyone ever again, Prince Moonspear. I'll keep it secret."

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  You aren't a mighty magician, or a chivalrous knight, or anything but a man out of his element.
Prince Trystan Moonspear:  But you have the power to lift all of this darkness from the world.

Cole Wakefield:  "I was puttin' my money on one of the king's scions for that job," he says, shaking his head slowly. "All I aimed to do was help one get to the right place at the right time."

Prince Trystan Moonspear:  Well, here I am. And here you are.

Prince Trystan Moonspear : [Tell] Something stirs inside your gut. You suck in a breath..
Prince Trystan Moonspear : [Tell] // Roll fortitude, detective

Cole Wakefield:  [Cole Wakefield's Fortitude is Acceptable.]

Prince Trystan Moonspear : [Tell] You snort with the ferocity of it. Damn, air filling lung - a little brisk.
Prince Trystan Moonspear : [Tell] How long has it been since you took a conscious breath?

Cole Wakefield:  He gives a ragged breath, straining. A cough can't be suppressed from the smoker's lung.

DM Ironside : [Tell] ...your face feels wet.

Cole Wakefield:  Wakefield blinks a few times, shaking off phantom droplets.

DM Ironside : [Tell] You do indeed blink. Wait -- what?
DM Ironside :  The shadow, the Prince, and the madman are gone.
DM Ironside :  You blink out a ray of sunlight through a shaded window.
DM Ironside :  Your face is wet with drool. You've been sawing some thick damn logs...
DM Ironside :  Where are you, anyway?

Cole Wakefield:  He looks around slowly, trying to connect some dots.
Cole Wakefield:  Ever-suspicious, he eyes the dingy joint like he's expecting a shadow to jump him.
Cole Wakefield:  Stooping, he picks up the letter.

DM Ironside :  Your movements feel.. sluggish, but whole. Your heart's beating, you stink like a dog with a tobacco problem..
DM Ironside :  Are you dreaming? Are you living? What about the case, Detective?
DM Ironside :  Who the fuck is Trystan Moonspear, anyway?

Cole Wakefield:  He pats himself down, checking over so many pockets and bags. Too many mementos of a City of Rings.
Cole Wakefield:  "Maggie, Camile..." he says to himself, looking towards the door.

DM Ironside :  You're not certain if it's the drink, the smoke, or the trashy novel.. but something seems "Off" --
DM Ironside : [Tell] Roll will, one more time.

Cole Wakefield:  [Cole Wakefield's Will is Above Average.]

DM Ironside :  -- But you're sure it'll wear off in time.

Cole Wakefield:  "...Now where was I...?" he says, picking up an old case file...

DM Ironside :  Two dead men are slowly turning to mold and wild honey somewhere in a dismal tenement here, in this city. One man with a headache shaking off a nightmare is going to find out why.
DM Ironside :  Somewhere in another place, and another time, the world carries on.. one pipe-smoking soul less.
DM Ironside :  --The End--

Unimaginably big thanks to Ironside for the time he spent closing the character out. It was one of the best things I've been a part of. :)

I'm really, really going to miss Saibhon's influence on CoR. He was an extremely rare force of good in the City, as well as a pitch-perfect example of a faith that doesn't get a lot of press. I'm glad someone of your caliber took the orange and will be running events, but I'll still be happy if you sneak in some secret PCs as well.  ;D

Ailis Weaver Iseabail Cawdor was a pleasure to RP with, same as everything you've played previously. I loved the back-and-forth bluffing, the mingling of lies and truths, and the excellent way she managed to blend in AND stand out in every situation. You repped a faction mightily and nearly destroyed a ring. I'm definitely eager to see more from you going forward.

One month shy of a year, my second character's story has come to an ending. It was insanely fun playing a detective on CoR and tooling around 99 to find clues and secrets. I regret not getting into the Rings earlier, but the tiny bit of them I saw was really well done. I'll be sure to try again on a build that wasn't so focused on just RP.  Originally I was going to do a full plate rogue detective who was kind of like a former town guard, but was repeatedly told by game-savvy people how stupid that would be. They were definitely correct.

Ultimately, I went with a classic hardboiled Raymond Chandler brand detective. His look was inspired by Columbo, another detective I dearly love. Being an annoying, badgering sleuth who was constantly looked down on made the Columbo angle work even better. Wakefield was anti-magic, turning down buffs when he got the chance. He claimed that magic gave him allergies. CoR definitely didn't sit well with him.

I was a pure rogue, zen archer and had the Treasure Hunter, Investigator and Detective perks. Very fun to scan you all and see so much information. Wish it worked on DM NPCs, though!




I'm sad that the Agency couldn't stay as a group, but schedules just didn't work out. Magor Laughingskull, Camile Fairbrace and Arvo were huge influences on Wakefield's actions and later motivations. He was a broken man when they sacrificed themselves to give him an escape. Uncovering the secrets of the rings, the Nothing and how everything tied together consumed the old man to a destructive level.


Here's the highest level I reached:



And my final XP value at level 7.



EFUSL stuff:



His portrait and model:




I've got lots of screenshots and other images to dump in here, but let's start with the fun stuff: loot!
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This is cool semi-loot since others got copies as well:


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And now, tons of screenshots and reminiscing in a vaguely chronological order.
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The detective agency trio didn't get a lot of group shots, but here's the few I had.



Maggie was the muscle and heart of the group:



Camile was the magical expert and reliable scholar / voice of reason:



We spent our early days saving up money to get Merchant Guild Membership, finally paying off a loan for it. That's right, we actually paid money back after borrowing it!



The Agency's biggest group win was helping the Prospectors bring Zelia back from the Hesh Mercenaries. Super cool plot that had lots of lasting impacts later on. It was nice to use diplomacy to get things done, too!




We rented the Hall in Ticker, then the more appropriate leaking, shady Basement. Eventually it got upgraded to full power, but the office was only ever used a single time. Boo.




When he wasn't with Maggie and Camile, Wakefield was off searching for clues to the big mystery of the rings. Like-minded people were met and many, many, MANY hours of conversations were had:




Three big figures got Wakefield the furthest along in things: Saint Outis, Jeor Layman and, inadvertently,  Drusilla Peake. The deaths of Jeor, his drinking buddy, and Outis, the one who set him on the right path originally, hit Wakefield hard.
Wakefield had a drunken downward spiral after Jeor:



He was more collected when he said farewell to Outis (but still drunk):




Drusilla, oh man. All of that player's characters have been treasures, but Drusilla was the first Sunpurse member to hire Wakefield to find Phelan. I loved all the secret meetings and all the plotting.



By the way, four other Sunpurse retainers hired Wakefield to find Phelan, but because none of them talked to each other or made notes, he just kept taking their coin. The Phelan case was successfully closed, by the way. Not that he ever told Sunpurse... ;)

Drusilla did wind up going off the deep end, though.


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Next big thing was all the stuff with Trystan and the march on the lizards. It's all been seen before, but here's what I've got:
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Trystan's arrival.


His ever-dwindling army.


The scumbags he was left with.


Wakefield was a Trystan supporter from the start and even up until the end. The true story never got made public, unfortunately.  Surviving  the permadeath event for the lizards was blind luck and cowardice. I felt bad that no heroes lived to do the powerful battle thing. I couldn't hit any of the enemies at the end and I completely forgot about a bomb I had in my inventory. It might not have worked, but if I could do it over I would've had Wakefield chuck the bomb at the feet of the warlord, hoping to topple the bridge.

Trystan's second march didn't fare much better.



It was the last time the three members of the agency were together. I was a blubbering mess that night, thinking about it all and ugly-crying while trying to talk about all the characters and their stories.


Maggie and Camile stood against the Prince in Shadow to by time for Wakefield, telling him to run back and warn the city about what was to come. People didn't listen too well...

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More recently, Wakefield got to do a fantastic murder mystery case run by YMD. It was lots of work on his end but it'll stick with me forever. I never thought I'd get to do an event like that. Thank you again, YMD!
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Much too late, I started making an effort to get into the rings to fill in the gaps of Wakefield's theories. I didn't get far, but I liked what I got to see.
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And finally, the King of Nothing made a return. He brought some grudges with him.
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Here's some random screenshots I had!
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Vanity shots!
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Wakefield Detective Agency ads / maps:
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(Without dutiful Camile to hold him to a standard, this was what he eventually put up)

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Wakefield Detective Agency Cases:
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Case 1: "No News is Good News"
Case 2: "The Case of the Poisoned Peer"
Case 3: "Maria and the Pumpkin Patch"
Case 4: "The Mended Map"
Case 5: "Flew the Coop"
Case 6: "The Biggest Ever" -> Drusilla and Phelan. <3
Case 7: "Bringing Back Belacq"
Case 8: "Burned Bridges"
Case 9: "The Sundered Sword"
Case 10: "The Man from the Deepest Ring"
Case 11: "The Case of the Missing Mind"
Case 12: "The Lizard Prince in Silver"
Case 13: "The Case of the Beaten 'Biter"  -> Tons of legwork on this one, good god. https://www.efupw.com/forums/index.php?topic=697097.msg719610#msg719610
Case 14: "The Curious Case of Catsby"
Case 15: "The Many Faces of Golfaldus"
Case 16: "Null's Void"
Case 17: "Reaping What's Sown"
Case 18: "Open Door, Closed Casket" -> YMD's event, super cool.


I can't go into too much detail about the people and events involved for others, but they were all a lot of fun to explore. Way too many clients just died within days of hiring Wakefield, though. Y'all are cursed.

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Images that reminded me of the detective:
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Arc's Cipher:
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I made a Google spreadsheet with programming to fill in the spaces, which made it a lot easier to try variations. Simply put, it's a substitution cipher (Z = A, Y = B), but it isn't substituting for English. The entries all substituted Katakana characters from Japanese. The vertical lines represent sounds that are extended, with the dots being periods. Those two were huge hints that I didn't notice until months of effort. It was a nightmare puzzle and I loved how much it kicked my ass.
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Cool art by EFU's talented players!
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I loved these so much. It was very flattering to see people draw Wakefield. Thank you for each of them!

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I can't get into Wakefield's big grand theory on the City of Rings due to all the spoilers, but hopefully he's dropped enough hints and seeds of thought into people who are smarter, braver and (most importantly) alive. I won't get to find out if I was right about all my ideas until the chapter ends, I imagine, but it will be worth the wait. Thanks to everyone who interacted with Wakefield. You guys made for one hell of a year! :D

Special thanks to Easy to Remember, Drink with Me, Drusilla's everchangingly-named player, SFP, Ironside, Arc, Howlando and YMD.  Love you people. I'd buy drinks for you all if we hit a bar some time.


Catch ya on the next.  :)

Wakefield, in memory of Magor Laughingskull, Camile Fairbrace and Arvo.

Just to clarify, this talk stemmed from people who are finding it hard to locate quests while on limited play schedules, like having just an hour after work and between putting the kids down to sleep. I like the randomization EFU has right now a lot, but I do know how it feels to have a free evening and find out that the latest reset turned up with few viable quests to do. It's even worse if you had a tiny window of time to play and spent it searching for quests rather than engaging with them.

I'd be curious if having random quests spawn on, say, Monday and keeping them throughout the week would mess with new explorables opening up. If new ones continued to spawn each daily reset, you'd have a large number of quests available during the weekend. That would probably be fairly welcomed to the same people who are struggling to find quests due to tight schedules. My only worry is that it might wind up clogging quests up on set days or make people not feel like logging in on Mondays to quest or something.

Paha touched on the other suggestion I was going to make- just having a few more guaranteed spawns. Less interesting in terms of variety, but people can certainly blow off steam and romp in a quest that way.

A toast to the Changed Man, his newfound duties and his successes in protecting secrets. One of the ever-growing list of awesome Pondsfolk who are gone too soon. :(

You and your character are practically mascot-status for EFU. Ylla is well-loved and fondly remembered. I'll miss all the fun rumors and articles, but I'm eager to meet your next PC. You're amazing!  ;D

I always liked bumping into Fynn on the few occasions I got to. It was cool seeing you roll with things and shift the character over time based on what happened to him. It's very respectable to bend and evolve like that! We should've made a smoker's club to really pollute our lungs. <3

This day, a hundred thousand frogs croak not in victory, but in mourning. Godspeed, chaos on legs.

Luca was fun to chat with the handful of times I got to. I think our first interaction was just talking about color coordination, but it stuck in my mind as an entertaining bit. Charisma for days. :D

Toot toot!

You crazy son of a bitch. You could've been Mayor and ruled the decaring with a fist like a honey-baked ham.

I gave Ferl a whirl. :(

Easily one of my favorite characters. His death was felt hard. Sitting for ages and ages just talking philosophy or puzzling over the City of Rings was some of my most enjoyable time on the server. Saint Outis was someone I was always excited to see at the campfire. Thanks for playing such an outstanding character and being a super cool dude OOCly! :D

I was gutted that Max fell during the attack on the lizards. I really wanted you to get that last battle and see the payoff for all the time you spent as Moonspear's flagship. He was super complex as a character and slowly finding out more about him in conversations or rumors was constantly rewarding. Between his efforts with the Nine-Faced God and House Moonspear, I feel like you did a ton of heavy lifting for the storyline and server lore. We need more guys like Artfall! When you get a chance, move to a new timezone so we can play together more. <3

Sam was a really cool character to cross paths with. We never got to really do much together or have a lot of opportunities for long talks, but I liked seeing her journey from afar.  :)