Domhnall Guivarch, Washout

[Erudiche]

SUBAT 7892

*Music plays*
Hello, this is your host Mikaal al-Dakhil coming to you live from the BBC, and welcome to Revolutions. Episode 3.8: the Short Tenure of Domhnall Guivarch.

Where last we left off, Constantine Diakos had just assassinated much-beloved Legate John Syter. Purple Legate Zarat had vanished into the undercity, and in the wake of the chaos Sol Auk and his interim interlocutor, Rashid al-Rashid had laid the groundwork for the coming Ephian liquidity crisis. The election of Tabbah 7787 was tense indeed, then, in the salons of Palm Heights, where metropolitan aristocrats sought to prevent the much-detested nouveau-riche from debasing the Pyramid any further. Across the Well from them was the League of White, still reeling from the stain of Diakos and the narrow defeat of then-Balladeer Lynneth Llyrwarch.

The League of White, in the throes of an identity crisis, nominated a prominent Apothar of Q'tolip, Estellise Azimi. Estellise was known as a League radical with tentative backing from the Glazier Union and an... interesting relationship with the Cinquefoil Rose. Her campaign is noted in Ephian history for being quite possibly the least successful candidacy in the history of Asterabadian democracy, with her campaign receiving not a single vote. Rumors, of course, abounded and still do abound that she was some manner of paid saboteur, on whose behalf few can say.

Arising to prominence during the campaign of Estellise Azimi was a new refugee to the Well, a worminger by trade, Domhnall Guivarch. During the complete collapse of the League of White's campaign efforts, Guivarch was said to have led an internal coup against Estellise and stormed into the Purple headquarters demanding negotiations on policy, in exchange for a tactical endorsement. The sight of an outlander dressed in a dirty caravaneer's tunic was too much to bear for the Purples, who promptly laughed him out of the headquarters. But the resultant tumult and Guivarch's strong personality and eloquence immediately struck observers and put his name on the map.

There is a lot one could say about Domhnall Guivarch, and indeed historians have puzzled over this curious character. Over the course of his life he came to betray more or less every oath, banner, and individual he ever swore fealty to. The same traits which made him an appealing firebrand: his conviction, his eloquence, his volatile temperament, his refusal to tolerate what he perceived as incompetence, and perhaps a touch of megalomania, served to make him a deeply erratic, paradoxical, and some would say... insane figure of the period.

We don't have time to discuss some of the more lurid, likely exaggerated stories which circulate around his two terms as Legate, such as the Glop Crisis, wherein it is alleged under the influence of a Sibylline psychic construct or, alternatively, a dead Pra'raji wizard, the Legate fled the First Patrol company under invisibility and rescued a stranded caravan of children from what is now the Red Hill Exclusion Zone. Other controversies include his alleged judicial murder of Mari Blacke, his close association with the exiled Janissary Averroes Tashfhin, and a strange incident involving a cigar and a Balladeer...

It is, in fact, very difficult to separate fact from fiction regarding the Legate. He was a man with few friends and many enemies. Known for grappling from rooftop to rooftop, gambling away his wages, a vicious Scorch addiction, and appointing known criminals and convicts to position of state power, some have even doubted his existence at all, presuming the Mad White Legate, presiding over the chaotic First White Monochromancy was, instead, something between folklore and allegory. His mysterious disappearance in his last dress, indeed, is like something out of a fairy tale.

Regrettably, however, we don't have that much time to spend on this strange figure of the Ephian story, since next time will begin on a far more important topic: the Glop War. Stay tuned, everyone.

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So! First PC, huh?
I had tried playing EFU a few times before and both times I bounced pretty hard, within the day I made the PC. Astra really begged me to play EFU and so, on a lark, I made the PC during the summer and resolved to give it a go and see where I ended up. Suffice to say, V6 really clicked with me, and I've enjoyed myself a lot on this PC! I've met some really nice people and had some fun moments I will remember for a long time. I am still quite bad at actually playing NWN and EFU, but I learned a lot of lessons about the RP and so on I think are pretty valuable.

Domhnall was initially meant to be somewhat more of a calculating cutthroat, someone who would try to play the Purple and Gold Leagues against each other in an attempt to secure power for himself, in the mould of Julius Caesar and similar individuals. As I played him, however, he developed a mind of his own, evolving into more of a tortured radical limited by the institutions he found himself bound in. His transition from moderate to radical, and gentleman to lunatic, was fun to trace.

Some PCs I would like to give shoutouts to for their participation in Domhnall's story include, in no particular order: Estellise Azimi, Mirielle Rosseau, Oscar Kreutz, Mae Stern, Hypatia Kometou, Nebtu Xeonlyta, Alejandro Benjazar, Odmaus Squeev, Ferric Aseph, Connor Bootpolisher, Aubrey Domergue, Isabella de Veend, Selsi Draskovic, Averroes Tashfhin, Salvatore de Ravioci, Radislav Ludovich, Khalid al-Hayim, Lucrecia Allaire, Cosine Mevura, Echemmon Telemanus, Mari Blacke (sorry!), Mencius Zi, and, his nemesis, Qari Alriyh.

Without the support of other PCs, and without their wonderful, interesting, fun characters, I would not have been able to get nearly this much done, and I would not have had a reason to keep logging in to four months of meeting CBT. Thank you guys so much for being so awesome.

I would also like to thank the DMs for the patient indulgence of my schedule, for the investment of time, support, and reassurance they gave me, and for their immense help in getting me oriented. I have nothing but effusive praise for the DM team, but I would like to extend my really personal gratitude to: Abala, Roxy, DangerousDan, Ironside, Halfbrood, Bearic (I'm sorry I didn't realize you were spicing the Ghoul Catacomb quest and tried to run away and leave my loot behind, I didn't know what spicing was at the time), and Secutor. If I missed anyone, I likely didn't know it was you possessing the NPC stopping me from sticking a fork into a light socket.

Now, time for tacky loot screenies (I really appreciated the cloak early one when I was being eaten by asps) as well as some certified classic moments:

Loot

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Certified Classics Part 1

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Certified Classics Part 2

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Certified Classics Part 3, final cut

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Looking forward to the next PC!

[Astra]

I'm so so so happy you clicked with EFU so much! Domhnall is such a fave and I think it's really awesome that you were able to make such an impact with this silly guy.

[BigCook]

goodbye to a real one

you will receive a revenge blurm in the mail in the next 3-5 business days

[Moonlighter]

I want this twink elected.

[Phoebe]

10/10 would get fired in public again

[Fabulous Secret Powers]

Domhnall was a fantastic character, and each day with him present at the Pyramid was eventful, fun and hilarious! Good job! I've tried to scrounge my screenshot folder for images featuring him that aren't too spoilery.

A million images

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[LiAlH4]

Great work!

[Random_White_Guy]

Your forum books are a delight, and the last one was a true treat of political science and rhetoric on the landscape from a very IC perspective.

Though we never met much on Sol it was wild to become such a figment of your rhetoric, and it was great on Gausim to have our little passing moments of "I hate you, I hate you to, let's hate together all of them".

As far as first PCs go, truly amazing job. Watching you grow and understand more of the political game and similar was an absolute delight. And how sometimes on EFU the best choice isn't always the "Right one" but the one that engages the most people, and moves the tale along to force people to react to.

When your next PC gets murdered 3 days in for something that feels pointless, just revel in it, that's showbiz baby.

[Bearic]

You forgot the best loot:

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[Qari]

Legitimately the best enemy I've ever had on any of my pcs on EFU, Ever.


All without a single PVP.  Amazing.

[Ironside]

rest in worms sweet prince

[Don Nadie]

Just an amazing, incredibly fun PC. A high bar of Legatorial Chaos and insanity. His evolution, his manipulation, his betrayals... Just a lot of excellent work! I mostly just lamment our schedules kept me from seeing the madness more often XD

Going through my screenshots, tho, here are a couple from the "let's dodge the Jannisaries and recklessly go travel" times!

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Twink 4 Legate!

[Doofus]

my son, my boy

[CoffeeBean]

Great PC! And bonus points for having the mental strength to deal with all those meetings at the start- I remember standing in that office for five hours straight. Good times lol.

[AsheandCinders]

An Absolute Blast to have interacted with Guivarch from Start to Finish, I am not sure any other PC infuriated me quite as much. I only wish our timezones had matched up a little better.