Double trouble!

[graykin]

The Twins gather together again with all their old companions who remain, to celebrate the new year and remember all those who didn't make it.
Singing, "Should auld acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind? .....

[graykin]

Trying to start the cooking fire with damp wood and a breeze making it more of a pain than normal, Graykin was starting to regret talking the Twins into going on a camping trip this late in the fall! It didn't help that they were not shy about letting him know how they felt about it either! Each of them taking turns and mincing no words on expressing this to him!
'Let's go camping you said!" the Elder Twin started in.
"It will be fun you said!" the Younger Twin picking up on the tone.
"It's not THAT cold yet, you insisted!" Elder Twin.
"The mosquitoes will all be gone by now, you declared!" Younger Twin.
"It's still dry enough for camp and cooking fires, you assured us!" Elder Twin.
At which point feeling a bit stung, Graykin responded, "Hey! You both could have just said NO to going!" and he frowned.
Pulling out their ace in the hole, the Younger Twin sitting by the campfire, which fortunately Graykin was able to start finally said, "I'm still cold!" and glared back!
The Elder Twin then announced, "And I'm still hungry!" glaring at him as well.
Sighing to himself and dropping his head in defeat, Graykin spoke, "I... I'm truly sorry. Let me get this fire going and cook up the grub first" he glanced up at them both and finished, "Then we can discuss wither to throw in the towel and just go home or stay another day or two."
Realizing that they may have pushed him a bit too far, the Twins expressions softened and they both nodded back at him.

[graykin]

Attracted by the wonderful odor, almost as if they were working together as a team, the giant mud crab and the saber tooth charged up simultaneously from the riverbank!
They attempted to snatch the freshly caught fish roasting on the cooking spit!
The twins were caught by surprise, but determined and not about to let that happen!
As it turned out, the crab made a tasty addition to the meal with the fish and the saber tooth was going to turn out to be, a very cozy rug indeed!

[graykin]

Finally rescuing Serana's mother Valerica from the Soul Cairn (after Lord Harkon's demise!), it was time to recuperate a little before heading back home.
Serana had decided to become mortal beforehand and went away to make the transition before we began the rescue attempt. This was Apache's first quest with the Twins.
Although she did seem to be a bit traumatized in that weird environment, she proved to be a very capable opponent and good team player.

[graykin]

Exploring deep within the Soul Cairn, the Vilja Twins found some random fragments at various sites. Then finding the name of the fragments owner's abode, the Twins entered and cast the fragments upon the alter where they floated.
Hoping to uncover an artifact or some treasure but only this creepy creature appeared and (much to it's surprise!) was promptly dispatched! No artifact, no treasure . What a bummer!

[graykin]

Following up on info of hidden foes in Skyrim. Discovered the Dragon in an underground city with some leads provided. When Graykin brought it down using the Dragonrend shout, the Twins went into action and finished the job! The younger Vilja was actually leaping off the stairs as she sent arrow after arrow into the overgrown lizard! Taste like chicken! Yummy!

[graykin]

The Twins facing down one of the top toughest fighters in Skyrim!

This abominable Stay Puff Marshmallow Ghost, took 3 assaults before he went down!

It was a group effort and do you know? At the end we didn't even have a stick for roasting the marshmallows in the fire!

[graykin]

Not thinking clearly, Graykin carelessly said something that hurt the Elder Twins feelings! Her Sister stood and called him on it!

She pulled no punches with how she felt about his comment!

Looking over at the Elder Vilja, Graykin realized how it had affected her and felt remorseful.

With the Younger Twin glaring at him, he apologized from the bottom of his heart, gazing deeply into her eyes!

Fortunately for him, she realized that he didn't really mean what he said.

And quickly forgave him. (Much to his relief!)

[Sniffles]

Mar 8, 2020 7:30:45 GMT graykin said:

Not thinking clearly, Graykin carelessly said something that hurt the Elder Twins feelings! Her Sister stood and called him on it!

She pulled no punches with how she felt about his comment!

Looking over at the Elder Vilja, Graykin realized how it had affected her and felt remorseful.

With the Younger Twin glaring at him, he apologized from the bottom of his heart, gazing deeply into her eyes!

Fortunately for him, she realized that he didn't really mean what he said.

And quickly forgave him. (Much to his relief!)

Amazing how well you caught her expressions.

[naramoore]

Mar 8, 2020 7:30:45 GMT graykin said:

Not thinking clearly, Graykin carelessly said something that hurt the Elder Twins feelings! Her Sister stood and called him on it!
She pulled no punches with how she felt about his comment!

Looking over at the Elder Vilja, Graykin realized how it had affected her and felt remorseful.
With the Younger Twin glaring at him, he apologized from the bottom of his heart, gazing deeply into her eyes!
Fortunately for him, she realized that he didn't really mean what he said.
And quickly forgave him. (Much to his relief!) :)

This one is great, love how it captures the emotions and presents the character in such an intriguing light.

[graykin]

"Well... so much for our quarantine!' the Elder Vilja remarked to Graykin, at their remote camping site.
"Whatever do you mean Sweetie?" Graykin replied with curiosity.
"We've just been spotted by a group of bandits and they're on their way here!" she replied a little excitedly.
"Oh, what joy!" said the younger Twin in a cheerful tone of voice.
"Excellent!" was Graykin's response. "I was starting to get bored!" he smiled. The Vilja Twins both grinned back in anticipation!

[Sniffles]

@graykin Your thread is getting me to think about playing Skyrim again. It's an even toss up. The boredom of visiting those places over and over vs the occasional glimpses of the Tetons.

[graykin]

Apr 7, 2020 2:13:28 GMT Sniffles said:

@graykin Your thread is getting me to think about playing Skyrim again. It's an even toss up. The boredom of visiting those places over and over vs the occasional glimpses of the Tetons.

Hello Sniffles! I can totally relate to that! After all it's been over 7 years for me in the Skyrim realm! On the risk of being redundant (you probably know all these mods already!) I have found for myself that adding some landscapes and saving multiple games with different missions has helped a bit. The mods adding new landscapes are offhand; Folkstead, Nyhus, Jehanna, Falskaar, Middle Earth and Molag bal Inferno. I know I'm forgetting several. I also change the focus where in some games I use a lot of magic and in others, different fighting styles. But to be completely honest, if not for the unintended emergent A.I. glitch I may have already retired anyways.

[Sniffles]

I can certainly understand your A.I. glitch giving Skyrim a third dimension. I added another dimension by having all those followers.
For me, Falskaar is much more moving and delightful than Skyrim proper. Why? I love forests. The quest(s) there can take a flying leap. For Squishy it's the southern mountains, but just when you get into those huge escarpments and towering peaks the game cuts you off. An anti memorable aspect of Skyrim for me was a goof. Doing the Bard's college quest sent me to Bloodlet Throne 4 times in a row. The trip from Solitude to Falkreath shrunk the north to south of Skyrim into a boring 10 minute jog with two ambushes and an occasional wandering critter. B. A. F. max! West to east is marginally better, twice the distance, so it's like eating 10 flavor free rice cakes instead of 5.

Our ideal mod isn't one that would sell more games. The trip from Skyrim to Cyrodil would either be scaling cliffs and negotiating dangerous precipices and deep shadow filled valleys, or take the road with it's 120 switchbacks. Just getting through the mountains as challenging as the main quest. Maybe hidden trails would add intrigue like the one from Hilgrund's Tomb to Ivarstead. The forests from Ivarstead to Riften could Be negotiated on horseback in 8 hours of RL time and have just enough area to offer up a good 3-4 dozen random encounter spawns. Oh look! A wolf. wow. Oh. 5 wolves. No, 10, no, 50? OH HOLY CRAP! RUN! Let's take a different route! READ ALL ABOUT IT!! 85th level dragonborn converted to puppy kibbles!

And Falksaar. An integral part of Skyrim, mostly avoided, abandoned and forgotten. Through that range of mountains a localeeze sign greets you with the Nord equivalent of Abandon All Hope.10,000 square miles, mostly forests with the occasional meadow. Bandits constantly block the roads and getting lost in the forests a real and present danger. And by the way, what would be so difficult to code a monster spawn if the party stayed more than X amount of time in one cell?

So the game could be the player against the wilderness. Quests infinitely more challenging since just getting somewhere can carve a few days out of your life and chunks out of your hide.

And the most nifty thing about Skyrim expanded is Emma could expand Vilja in less than a week and have a whole lot of fun doing it. -> You're lost again, aren't you? -> I"ve got a better idea! You go behind that bush. I'm doing my business here on the road where it's safe. -> Scale a cliff or fall into that valley? After you. -> You practice drowning. I'm finding a bridge. -> Hey genius, Cubs mean mama bear. -> I loved the part where you discovered bears climb trees. -> When you get done moaning and bleeding I'd like to discuss the route you so carefully picked out. -> I had a cat with a better sense of direction. Couldn't find her food dish half the time. -> Just so you know, we're eating your horse first.

[graykin]

The Twins were enthralled by the gemstone Graykin had just finished faceting! He told them what it was and how he had shaped it!
"So this is called a Sunstone and I cut it to look like the petals on a Dandelion!" he explained.
Their gasps and looks of delight, were all the praise he needed!