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[TRAILHEAD?] Zetria Atrian and the Sparrow-Clam
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		It's been awhile since I've checked this thread, so, please excuse me if this is an old question... but going back to the main page on http://www.exilearchive.com/ ...could the flashing images of three and one hexagons be Morse code or binary? Perhaps the the static looking image is the word break? It goes by too fast for me to get the raw data. Could someone grab the swf and slow it down?

Thanks

Woot! 1000th post Pony?!

PostPosted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:09 am
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		[UPDATE] New blog entry
There's a new entry on the blog....
http://www.exilearchive.com/blogs.php

Quote:
Pallantar Akarat - Threshold

A threshold is an important concept in conjuration. The line where one thing changes to another, where solid melts to liquid, where one day turns into the next, where outside becomes inside. These are all important. I hear there is an important threshold occuring today in your culture; the turning of the year?

Mon, 31 Dec 07 02:09:37 -0500 - 0 REPLIES


This story is intriguing. I hope that others find or return to it.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 01, 2008 10:49 pm
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EMTFIRE
Boot

Joined: 06 Jun 2007
Posts: 68
Location: Westminster, MD

 		Hello all
I have not had the time to spend ARGing lately. So I owe all an Apology. I recieved a postcard and set it aside because I just did not have time to get involved. I assumed that any postcards sent out at the time would have been the same. Anyway, I will try and track it down this evening. If, that is, it would help. I am now going to go through and read this whole thread, and try to see what I've missed.
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:50 pm
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EMTFIRE
Boot

Joined: 06 Jun 2007
Posts: 68
Location: Westminster, MD

 		Well, Being about half-way through the forum, I see that you recieved copies of all postcards. Glad to hear it. But I'm gonna keep reading. Seems like a good game so far. Is anyone still active? I notice that two posts above mine are from a couple of weeks ago.
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 1:41 pm
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thebruce
Dances With Wikis


Joined: 16 Aug 2004
Posts: 6899
Location: Kitchener, Ontario

 		I think it's at the point now that when something interesting happens, it may get posted, but active working on puzzles has kind of dwindled Confused
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PostPosted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 2:07 pm
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drizjr
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Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		Well, I've started a small exchange with Keriwen Edrekar on the blogs. link

I don't know if the mention of using "the calendar of those cultures we interact with." is meant to be a hint to one of the puzzles. Is that an avenue that anyone's explored?

PostPosted: Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:43 pm
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		staccatoseebackcabal
a lead to the ssc
Thinking of STACCATO SEEBACK CABAL (wiki link, just as a refresher),
brought to mind what Jedditor wrote, here
Quote:
interesting thing about the term ssc...its an acronym but no one knows what it stands for, or else it stands for many different things, or nothing at all. there have been several "expansions" proposed; they all are formed with two words beginning with sibilants, then the last with a velar plosive...so you see it translates easily into your language as ssc. aside from the letters they use a lion as a symbol.

"two words beginning with sibilants" ----> staccato seeback(?)
"then the last with a velar plosive" -----> cabal

Using staccato on the query page gives us "QUERYRESULTssc>>NOT FOUND"

I'm wondering if the seeback part is a play on words.
And hoping that finding the ssc will move us forward.

PostPosted: Sun Jan 13, 2008 7:05 pm
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drizjr
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Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		staccato seeback(?) cabal and spams on Jedd's blog
Sorry 'bout these consecutive posts, but I want to bump the thread for those still following along.
I left a message on the blogs about "staccato seeback cabal", and got a little nudge from Jedd. ...
Quote:
KAH...n -by Jedditor Lebbisun at Tue, 15 Jan 08 01:59:53 -0500
that sounds right. s, s, k or c. wait, whats a seeback? are you sure you have that word correct?
and while im at it, whos been spamming my blog?

I went back to look for a different reference page for the R-type ships, and found this, a different page of the site that's used on the wiki. Listed there...
Spoiler (Rollover to View):
"48. TX-T Eclipse". (note: that's a T. The 1 on the other page must be a typo.)
That gives us, "STACCATO SETBACK CABAL".

Inputting that into the query page ---->"QUERYRESULTssc>>NOT FOUND"
I haven't found a url for that phrase. Maybe it's a play on words? Something like short reversal club....dunno.
Anyway, we're that much closer.

Oh, and Jedd's mention of "who's been spamming my blog"; I think refers to these:
Quote:
... - by <anonymous> at Wed, 14 Nov 07 19:29:36 -0500
zetria atrian's cramming/of knowledge related to clamming/delivered to players/by mail relayers/immortalized always as sqbopnvt-011235813
Quote:
... - by <anonymous> at Wed, 05 Dec 07 17:45:49 -0500
all your insane tree foxglove equatorial daemon 12 oculus are belong to ssc
p-3=?
Are those posted by players? If not, are they some kind of hints? Either way, they are very clever. Smile

PostPosted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 10:03 pm
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		[solve] Lockstone
unlocked
Code:

Mokushi kushimo,         1 + Ragnarok + 1          [R90]     
          Kallomar       3 + Eclipse - 2          [TX-T]       
        Ridditum's       4 + Future World        [R-11A]   
          lectures       7 + Leo                  [R9-Leo]   
    sent listeners       1 + Strike Bomber        [R-9S]     
spinning in rings.       8 + Claw Claw            [B-5A]   
          What did       9 + Midnight Eye + 1     [R-9E]     
      old Kallomar       7 + Andromalius + 1      [R-9F]       
    unhesitatingly       6 + Ampibian             [B-1C]     
        value more       3 + Sunday Strike        [R-9K]     
       highly than       9 + Albatross              [RX-10]   
  all other things       2 + Tropical Angel - 2  [R-11S] 

The method is similiar to how staccatosetbackcabal was found.
Solve:
Spoiler (Rollover to View):


1+ (O+1=P) = Q
3+ (T-2=R) = U
4+ A = E
7+ L = S
1+ S = T
8+ A = I
9+ (E+1=F) = O
7+ (F+1=G) = N
6+ C = I
3+ K = N
9+ X = G
2+ (S-2=Q) = S
questionings


P.S. If someone would like to tell the exiles, please do! It's way past my time for sleep. Drool

edit: to line up the letters used in the ship's names.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 3:12 am
Last edited by drizjr on Thu Jan 17, 2008 12:04 am; edited 1 time in total
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thebruce
Dances With Wikis


Joined: 16 Aug 2004
Posts: 6899
Location: Kitchener, Ontario

 		dude! Surprised

Worshippy

finally!

We now have the next puzzle here (query questionings)

looks like the lockstone background (of the puzzle just solved) is broken now and needs to be pieced together. We may be looking to the 'empty space' as the next answer. Use the tile background and rotate the pieces so they line up, then find the closest positions... it's 3am so I'm not going to do it tonight Razz tried in a paint program, too tedious. A print out would be easier to work with.
lockstoneapart.png
 Description   
 Filesize   431.91KB
 Viewed   142 Time(s)

lockstoneapart.png
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PostPosted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 3:20 am
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Kender
Decorated


Joined: 09 Aug 2004
Posts: 264
Location: The Netherlands

 		lockstone apart
I'm suspecting a cross-eyed 3D image in the re-assembled picture.

Which I can only seldom see. So I found a tool to view them: http://www.c14sw.de/132.html

There also seem to be some kind of empty bar encoded in the transparency. Which you can see with TweakPNG (http://entropymine.com/jason/tweakpng/)

I'm no good at cutting and rotating and such but I'll ask a friend who is later today if she can re-assemble the pic (if no-one here has done that yet by then Smile)

*Edit: My graphic designer friend claims to be too busy so I'll have another go myself later. The pieces don't quite fit however.
I highlighted the 'faultlines' in the original lockstone below:

*Edit2: Frankaaargh found some time to help out after all. The result is also attached.
lockstone2.png
 Description   
 Filesize   434.91KB
 Viewed   132 Time(s)

lockstone2.png
lockstonealmostcomplete.png
 Description   
 Filesize   762.78KB
 Viewed   145 Time(s)

lockstonealmostcomplete.png

PostPosted: Tue Jan 22, 2008 4:39 am
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		I asked Jedditor about staccato setback cabal, (blog link)
Quote:
not seeback- by drizjr at Fri, 25 Jan 08 13:03:05 -0500
ssc = staccato setback cabal. Is that right, Jedditor? What does it mean? As for who has been sqbopnvt your blog; could it be the ssc?

and here was his speedy reply:
Quote:
i see what you did there- by Jedditor Lebbisun at Fri, 25 Jan 08 14:50:04 -0500
well i dont know what it means...but it does sort of seem like it fits. like i said in the original post, pranks and protests, setbacks that cause little disruptions in our daily routine. i guess staccato setback cabal might be as good an expansion as any. hm, did you come across them doing something other than just the lockstone?


Have we come across them anywhere else, other than finding the name on the email?

Jedd keeps calling "staccato setback cabal" an "expansion". Expansion...hmm. What if we were to condense it. Only nine letters make up those three words: STACOEBKL.... anagram...maybe.
I tried a few: beastlock, lockbeast, and even stacoebkl in the query, with no results. Maybe "expansion" in the mathematical sense of the word?

PostPosted: Fri Jan 25, 2008 5:42 pm
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Rekidk
Entrenched


Joined: 19 Dec 2006
Posts: 992
Location: Indiana, USA

 		Checked my mail today and found this. I'll be excited if this is coming back! (I'll be even more excited if we can solve the puzzles this time. LOL)

Quote:
From: "Jumping Spider" <spiderjumping>
Date: 2008/03/15 Sat PM 11:05:06 CDT
To: spiderjumpingSPLATgmail.com
Subject: The Hand of Darkness, by Hommeret Auricon

CMProtocol@@JStart: Ready
VJRUBCJAC&lt;&lt;
ORUNUXJM&lt;&lt;
The Hand of Darkness

by Hommeret Auricon

=====

It was in the ninth month of the last year that I sat in my atelier,
staring at my work table.
There was a dark lump of metal, resting on the scarred and stained wooden
surface.
There was a sliver of bright and lustrous metal, resting in a small glass
dish, submerged in a thin layer of oil.
There was a shimmering pool of silvery liquid metal, filling another glass
dish.
And there was a single coin. Even worn, chipped and clipped the perfect
noble luster shone through.
These four objects were quite mundane. While they varied in rarity, they
were each precisely physical and solid. The episode about which I am writing
was marked in my memory by a profusion of heavy, stultifying presences that
constricted me on every side, yet had nothing of the physical about them.
But I well recall this one moment of contemplation, alone with these very
physical specimens against which I had set my intellect, free of any mental
burdens.
The door opened, arresting my attention. Through it entered Aleat, my
most trusted colleague and confidant. A strange fellow; my discourse will
illuminate this in time. For all that, or perhaps because of it, he was a
great help in my work and likely the only one in the city talented enough to
keep up with me. He stood barely a step away from the door and held it ajar,
gazing at me with a customary half-grin tugging at his mouth, slightly hunched
as if hiding something near to his chest. "Visitors," he said, granting me a
nod.
I sighed. "I have no time for idle conversation," I replied. "You know
I am tied up with this work for Vekitin. I can't talk with anyone. Your
visitor will have to leave."
"Your dedication is commendable!" The door was pushed open fully by a
withered claw of a hand. I felt an upsurge of nausea and a knot in my stomach
as I gazed upon the apparition that stalked forth. Bent even farther into a
hunch than Aleat was a creature who had long since left behind middle age. Of
my own race he was, yet I struggled to recognize kinship in the twisted
limbs and darkened eyes. I stood, fighting the urge to step back as a clawed
hand reached for me, golden knots of jewelry sparkling among the cracked and
spotted skin.
"Lord Vekitin," I said, calmly as I could. "Pleased I am to see you--"
"No you aren't." Vekitin's cackle made my skin crawl anew. "No one ever
is." His hand grasped my shirt and yanked forward with absurd strength, the
strength of insanity, of dead and hardened wood. I found myself staring into
those cold, gleaming yellow eyes. "You are the best, Hommeret," he hissed.
My instincts warred within me, wanting to pull away from this decrepit
monster, wanting to abase myself and cower before him; it did not matter, for
still he clutched me in his grasp. "You are the best, and so I shall ask of
you a favor."
"Of course, my lord, anything--"
"Gold." He yanked again on my collar, cutting off my words. "Gold. In
three days."
"My lord?" My throat closes even now as I recall the desperate fight for
air.
"In three days, you will turn lead into gold." Suddenly he thrust his arm
forward, throwing me back into my chair. "Or perhaps iron," he said, a
bizarre lightness in his tone. "I am not a slave to caprice."
"My lord!" I protested. "We've made progress, but we cannot solve the
Great Work itself in--"
"Of course I would not bid you do this alone," he continued, as though he
had never ceased speaking. "I have something here that might help." One of
his bodyguards stepped forward and tossed a large book onto my workbench,
scattering the elemental specimens.
I reached out my hand to it, clenching my fingers around the edge. Bound
in tree bark, as was traditional, cured and bound in many layers to form a
tough cover. The book was remarkable only for its size--and for the symbol
marked on its cover, one all mages knew by rumor if nothing else. "Ilsanya's
Bark?"
"A new translation," Vekitin commented. "More complete, we hope, than any
currently extant. Copies will be published soon, to rare dealers and such. I
figured you might find it useful before the official release. Of course I
need hardly remind you of your contractual obligations to secrecy..."
In truth I hardly remember what Vekitin was saying, so affected was I by
this moment. Before that time I had never studied more than specific sections
of the Bark, copied out more or less painstakingly to create folios treating
specific topics. A copy of my own, or at least exclusive access to one, was
more than I had ever dared hope for. I took the cover in hand and opened it.
At that moment agony struck me. An intense pain exploded in the back of
my head and worked down my spine, as if an invisible assailant were dragging
a jagged blade...In truth I do not wish to recall in detail; let me say simply
that it was pain enough to block out thought and bring forth pleas for mercy.
I fell back and stared at Vekitin, panting from the cries I must have given
forth, thankful the pain had lasted only moments.
He stood there with a slight smile marking his features. One finger was
extended; from it danged a leather strap and a small cloth bag below it. "To
focus your attention," he said. "Failure is...inadvisable."
Vekitin struck his staff against the floor and turned, hobbling out of the
darkened room. The guards followed him closely, closing the door behind...
Leaving me alone with the book. And Aleat.
"What, by all the gods, was that?" I said finally, rubbing the back of my
head.
"I believe I know," Aleat replied. He was looking down at the Bark,
though he glanced at me every now and then. "A spell of legend, mostly
forgotten by our people...but of course we are not the only people in this
city. Among others I've most recently heard it called a 'hairlock spell'.
With you working in this lab, he could have found part of your body--a nail,
even a fleck of skin--and enchant it to create an arcane connection to your
physical being."
"A hairlock spell," I said, letting out a sigh. "That's old, dark magic."
I flexed my fingers, a nervous habit to which I must confess. "Is there any
counter to it?"
Aleat gave me a searching look. Only then did I realize that I had just
suggested disobeying my patron. But I defy any who have experienced that
agony not to search for such a way to avoid it. "There is," he replied.
"There always is. However, I believe it depends upon you outclassing the
caster in either arcane knowledge or sheer will...or, ideally, both."
"And we would be hard-pressed to find one in this city with more skill or
willpower than he."
"Even so."
"Still." My gaze had landed upon the Bark once more. "I wonder. With
such a tome as a guide..."
"I do not believe the answer will simply be found here," Aleat said. At
the time I did not wonder why he chose his words so carefully.
"True," I admitted. "Or else Vekitin and everyone else would already know
of it." As I touched the book I could not help flinching, as if fearing the
stab of the hairlock spell again. But this time, nothing stopped me from
opening the tome.

=====

It was late into the night when I departed the lab. I did not wish to
start all-nighters yet; I knew I would need all the sleep I could scrape
together. So I dragged myself from the Bark and stumbled through the streets
of the Ivory City.
Rarely had I traveled the city at night, for it always was a strange
experience. Though darkness fell it was never complete, as the proud towers
were perennially speckled with lights and lanterns of every description, as if
it were the roosting place of a thousand thousand crawling fireflies. Never
had I seen the streets empty, even at the darkest of hours (just before the
dawn, naturally). As I wended my way through the labyrinthine avenues I
passed all manner of beings; here the squamous Sarnath haggled at a dockside
market, there a pair of Ikatak climbed up a wall to avoid me...
In truth my steps did not lead straight home. I stopped at a small chapel
frequented by my kind. To my relief, the lady Aedria was still on duty.
"I must confess to surprise that you are, ah, working this late," I said
once we had moved to a private room.
"You shouldn't be," she replied with a smile. "Our faith guides each of
us to our proper ends, does it not?"
Over the years knowing the lady I had arrived at a method of interpreting
her words. In truth she was merely speaking of the skill for divination that
all of us possessed; it was foolish of me to have forgotten. "Even so," I
said. "But that's what has brought me here tonight..."
"Your strain is obvious," she said. Her hand reached out to knot her
fingers into mine. I could already feel the warmth of her being touching me.
"You must recall that we are all connected. Each of us must learn to share
our burdens with those who care for us. Thus, together we have the strength
to overcome any obstacle."

=====

Eventually I made my way back home. My dwelling at the time was an
apartment in a rickety old tower at the base of a high cliff, an ancient fault
in the earth. From my window I had a wonderful view of a bit of scrub
clinging to the sheer rock, and every morning I had a few minutes of sunlight
when the rays slanted down at just the right angle.
The tower had originally been built by the Ikatak and given only the
barest modification to allow habitation by other races. There was a locked
gate that allowed access to a series of poles and platforms by which one could
climb up to any of the apartments (each of which had its own individual lock,
of course). The spider-beings probably gave the climb barely a thought; I
looked at it as a source of daily exercise and a justification for low rent.
Just as I was unlocking the gate I felt a constriction around my throat.
A cord wrapped around my neck, drawing into a tight knot, cutting off my
breath. I clawed at it, but my feeble scratchings were useless. Something
pressed into my back even as the cord pulled from behind, holding me in an
impossible position, unable to move forward or back.
"Do not fulfill Vekitin's request." I believe I croaked something in
reply, but it did not matter. "Vekitin's power is waning. He will soon fall.
If you assist him, the fall will be delayed, plans will be upset. You will
feel the consequences. Assisting him is...inadvisable."
Suddenly the knot loosened and slipped away. I tumbled forward against
the gate, gasping for breath. The stones felt cool and comforting beneath me
as I drew in air. It was long moments before I regained my senses enough to
consider what had just happened.
I did not recognize the voice that had addressed me; it had been flat and
nearly emotionless, though certainly masculine. No one was visible nearby,
not even passers-by; perhaps they were smart enough to mind their own
business.
I did not get much sleep that night after all.

=====
ORUNLUXBN&gt;&gt;
LXMN&gt;&gt;
2ICC1XRE4EIM
CAJWBONANAAXA&gt;&gt;
CMProtocolError@@@@@@t: Datacross
pxxmnfibbxuerwpkyvcdcxarjujkfevwxfgviyrgjhxdtrefxatflkjwxcqnaglqqcv
VJRUNWM&gt;&gt;
CMProtocol@@HEnd: Ready

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PostPosted: Sun Mar 16, 2008 12:16 am
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Kender
Decorated


Joined: 09 Aug 2004
Posts: 264
Location: The Netherlands

 		I got the same one (codes and all)

pxxmnfibbxuerwpkyvcdcxarjujkfevwxfgviyrgjhxdtrefxatflkjwxcqnaglqqcv can be read by alternating ROT-17 and ROT-9:

"good work solving the tutorial stone now perhaps you can work on another puzzle"

PostPosted: Sun Mar 16, 2008 3:21 pm
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drizjr
Unfictologist


Joined: 28 Nov 2003
Posts: 1700

 		I'm glad our exiles are still active, though it doesn't make the puzzles any easier to crack. Smile

There have been several updates to the blogs in the past weeks since the release of the Book of Hommeret. Have a look. (link)
Of note:
* Jedditor hasn't been seen by his cohorts. (link)
* Shipment 256 has gone missing. (link)
* An explanation of logistics of the community, including that the System tracks shipments. (link)
* Keriwen talks about taking some students on field trips to the Whisper Rocks and then about water supply being used for "more important projects".(link)

Which raise the questions:
1- What has happened to Jedditor?
2- If the system can track shipments, is there a way to query it about them?
3- Is the mention of the water supply somehow related to the whisper rock puzzle? http://www.exilearchive.com/whispers_0.php

I'll be hanging out in chat at #exilearchive when I can. If anyone cares to join me.

PostPosted: Sun Mar 30, 2008 2:42 pm
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