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M's Old God Talk Log

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M inclines her head to Pommie. "Appreciated," she drones in her usual near-monotone voice. "As stated, I am M, or Advisor Mindspanner. I will be remaining after the conclusion of my talk to answer any questions."

| "Ywaq maq oou; ywaq maq ssaggh. Ywaq ma shg'fhn." The words sound alien, unintelligible, but somehow translate in thought: They do not live; they do not die. They are outside the cycle.

“The Old Gods, called Shath'Yar in the language of the same name. Once deemed a myth, a spook to keep children in line, proven to be terribly real. What are They? Who are They? What are Their goals? How do They operate?”

“Fair questions, all of them. Noting here that no one's knowledge on this topic is absolute. They are hard to comprehend from a mortal, or even sane, perspective. My own research and experiences are what I am basing this speech on.”

“There are some solid facts, however. There are at present four known, named Old Ones, and likely you are all familiar. C'Thun, Old God of madness and chaos, lord of Ahn'Qiraj. Yogg-Saron, the god of death, in Ulduar. Y'Shaarj, lord of the Black Empire, in Pandaria and, temporarily, Orgrimmar. N'Zoth, the spark of the Nightmare, current location unknown.”

M pauses a moment to let the note takers catch up before she drones on. "That is the end of the absolute, guaranteed hard facts. Continuing into very well educated theories. A very, very long time ago, Azeroth was ruled by the Black Empire."

“The Black Empire might have been Azeroth's first true civilization, long before trolls or tauren. Little has survived this time period. My excursions in Silithus and Ulduar have not revealed much, but what I have been able to deduce is this.”

“The time of the Black Empire was a time of incredible violence. The n'raqi and aqir, led by k'thraxxi generals, and assisted by the elemental lords and their minions, seemed to wage constant warfare across the planet.”

“Presumed Titanic interference ended this mass conflict, also resulting in the imprisonment of Yogg-Saron and C'Thun, the vanishing or at present unknown inprisonment of N'Zoth, and the, at the time, presumed death of Y'Shaarj. Y'Shaarj, of course, did not die. No Old God is alive, and what is not alive cannot be killed. Temporarily destroyed, yes, but their essences live on and will always continue to exist.”

“C'Thun, of course, remained in Ahn'Qiraj and mutated aqir servants, or perhaps another race entirely, into the silithid. Yogg-Saron corrupted Titanic races - iron vrykul, earthen, and mechagnomes - and eventually over generations we became flesh.”

“This is, of course, because mortal, flesh creatures are far easier to influence. The whispers do not reach metal constructs but they do reach the living. Or formerly living.”

“N'Zoth has remained elusive. Whispers speak of a power beneath the oceans, that They might be what turned Highborne into naga. It speaks of a city beneath the waves, Ny'alotha, but no such thing has ever been found.”

M pauses again for note takers to catch up. She presses on after a moment. "...that is the end of well educated theories. We are now advancing into the realm of things learned from personal experience."

“I have walked through the entire complex of Ulduar, have entered silithid tunnels, and have studied the effects of saronite and Old God influence closely. However, I am noting that these experiences and studies have not been peer reviewed.”

“The Old Ones appear to be agents of chaos, perhaps brought into existance to counter the forces of order. These being the Titans, the Light, and even arcane magics. Too much order and there is no free will, no expression, no individuality or creative thought. Too much chaos and there is destruction, violence, and mass uncertainty.”

“The "corruption" of Titanic races afforded the creation of vrykul, human, dwarven, and gnomish civilizations. The Curse of Flesh could be judged, by a mortal perspective, bad, and yet it granted us free will, creative expression beyond our programming.”

“I am not advocating to pick up worship of the Old Ones in some kind of gratitude for our free will, I do not believe They care. They are there to corrupt, to sow chaos, to keep the world from becoming too rigid.”

“There are a few methods to bring about this corruption. The main method, at present, is saronite. Show of hands - how many of you believe saronite is a metal that can be, without any special treatment, worn and used?”

<Several hands were raised>

M shakes her head. "Incorrect. Dangerously incorrect. Saronite, as the name suggests, is related to Yogg-Saron. To clarify, it is Yogg-Saron's blood. The Ashen Verdict has a method, unknown to me at present but it exists, to bend saronite."

“That is to say, to bend saronite to the will of its wearer and user, cutting it off from the will of the Old Gods.”

“If you do not use this method, if you simply smelt and shape the metal itself, you will become corrupted with time. There is no uncertainty to this. You might think you are special. You are not special. Against the willpower of a god, you are not.”

“Your pride might tell you something different. If you are wearing saronite, that 'pride' might not be you, but the influence of Yogg-Saron subtly whispering.”

“The only known beings on this planet who are immune to saronite are undead who have never previously experienced Old God corruption, who have never heard the whispers. The latter is an important point to make. Old God corruption does not work like fel or even shadow corruption. It is mental, involving a massive struggle of will that generally lasts a lifetime.”

“Once you hear the whispers, once the Old Gods have an in into your mind, you will always be vulnerable. Saronite will whisper to you, and unless you take heavy precautions, you might still hear Their voices on the wind.”

“It is a rare thing, to find someone who has endured this corruption and who remains, to some extent at least, sane. In all my research, I only know of a handful who have returned from the deep end, so to speak.”

M pauses again for the note takers. "...which brings me to other known corruption methods. Once a victim begins serving Them, willingly or unwillingly, many begin to try and spread Their chaos."

“Spreading the idea that chaos is the natural state of the world, influencing vulnerable populations like addicts or the disenfranchised. Rarely to the Old Gods act overtly, even through Their minions.

There are also trinkets in the world, willed into existence and location by the Old Ones, that can ensnare the finder. One such example is the Puzzle Box of Yogg-Saron.”

“It is lesser known, generally only spoken of in scholarly circles, but I can assure you that it is real. There are several known to exist, or perhaps it is just one box that travels. It is a puzzle box, made of saronite, that cannot be opened.”

“While the finder is attempting to open it, it begins to influence the victim, first subtly and then more overtly as its mental hooks begin to take. I am obliged to deliver a warning - if you find a puzzle box by the wayside, run.”

M clasps her hands in front of her belt, metallic fingers clicking together. "I must also deliver a second warning. The subject of the Old Ones is fascinating, their ability to sow chaos is both horrific and very interesting."

“I do not wish to discourage interested parties in future research, but I do advise heavy caution. The deeper one gets into this field, the higher the risk is for corruption. You might be unaware of it until it is too late.”

“This was just a brief overview - I could host an entire speech just on Y'shaarj and the Sha, or Yogg-Saron and theories on saronite. I will be ending shortly, but if anyone is interested, I will engage in discussion afterwards.”

M inclines her head. "Your attention and interest has been appreciated. Thank you for your attendance." She nods to Pommie. "And thank -you- for arranging these talks and allowing me the opportunity to give one."

 

“Have a pleasant evening.”

 

((This doesn't include any of the questions or discussion afterwards, but it's at least the macros of her speech!))

 
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