View source for Voices of the Dead

{{Infobox Tip
|demo=1
|name=Voices of the Dead
|sub=Dark Astoria
|image=badge_tourism_hazard.png
|type=Tour Guide
|place=[[Dark Astoria]]
|available=Herovigrog
|levelfrom=1
|levelto=50
}}{{TOCleft}}
{{clrl}}
== Overview ==
'''Voices of the Dead''' is a tip contact that offers [[Tour Guide Missions]] in [[Dark Astoria]].

===Introduction===
'''Free Among the Dead'''

''Exploration Mission''

As you spend time within the dense fog, your very soul itself begins to feel the weight of the shadows. The tendrils of the dark god Mot extend to all corners of this doomed city. 

Those whose regrets remain whisper in your ears, bidding you forward. You sense no malice within their cries, only unending anguish and a gripping despair that chills you to the bone. Theirs are the lamentations of the lost, perhaps you can find meaning in their pleas? 

*{{green|Heed the callings of the grave.}}
*{{green|Pay the dead no ear.}}

=== Too Busy ===
With how busy you are with all these tasks, maybe now is not the best time to go sightseeing.

=== No More Missions ===
You have come to understand the nature of this profane place. Having followed the restless dead's guidance and explored the realm under the influence of Mot's shadow, the icy chill continues to grip you, but the dead have no more words. 

== Accolade ==
{{BadgeBox|Free Among the Dead}}

== Missions ==
=== <u>Folly's Victim</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

The spectral presences in this hollow have seen the benefit of some most unexpected aid. The Circle of Thorns maintain a sizeable presence in Dark Astoria, and surprisingly, not to advantage of the dark power here. 

Whispering phantoms make it known to you that the Circle's mages have sought to bind Mot here for far longer than you possibly could have known. If you are to grasp the entirety of the circumstances regarding what is happening in this place, '''you will need to familiarize yourself with its history.''' 

*{{green|Know of Folly's Victim.}}

The Oranbegan mages played a crucial role in opposing Mot, making sacrifices that would give pause to even the most stalwart hero. 

While this does not excuse the other evils they have wrought, the debt to those who answered the call and ensured the survival of your world cannot be forgotten.

'''Mission Objective'''
*Learn of the Circle of Thorns role
{{BadgeBox|Folly's Victim}}

=== <u>Palace of Stone Leaves</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

Heeding the words of the fallen, you begin to gain an understanding of the workings of the souls within Dark Astoria. Even before Mot stirred, each death resulted in a spirit trapped within the city. These spirits were eventually rallied and centralized within a specific structure. 

Their lifeless hands point you '''towards the place where this dead community has gathered.''' 

*{{green|Visit the Palace of Stone Leaves}}

It seems the Tsoo had a helping hand in providing these ghosts refuge. Their respect for the departed and various spiritualist practices have proven a great boon in aiding the lost souls of Astoria in maintaining clarity. 

Even with Mot's tendrils stretching forth like a festering cancer, the Tsoo have remained as spirit guardians, ever vigilant in their task. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Seek out the refuge of wandering souls
{{BadgeBox|Palace of Stone Leaves}}

=== <u>Auspice Avernus</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

While traveling through the warped and distorted land, you are cautioned by a ghostly presence on your shoulders. Throughout Mot's vile domain, his peristaltic flesh has birthed foul pools, their composition undetermined. 

This thick mucus-like fluid born of the dark god's wretched pustulating mass defies all logic. To accidentally find yourself exposed to such horrid ichor would surely be your undoing. '''It would be best to see one of these incomprehensible fonts for yourself.''' 

*{{green|Heed caution of Auspice Avernus.}}

While the notion of these pools terrifies you, to Mot's adherents they are wellsprings of the divine brought forth by their god. 

What effects this must have on the minds of the devote who offer themselves, you dare not to imagine. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Note the danger within the pools of Mot
{{BadgeBox|Auspice Avernus}}

=== <u>Death's Head Supplicant</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

The wandering dead warn you of the great maw of Mot. His tenebrous malice given physical form, its enormous shadow looms over the city and is visible from almost anywhere within this cursed place. 

The void within consumes all things the living hold dear: warmth, emotion, even the very wills that encompass our being. Mot will stop at nothing until everything beneath his darkness is one, united within his writhing, fetid existence. '''You must stand between him and his warped ambitions.''' 

*{{green|Approach the Head of Death.}}

To stand before the vile manifestation of Mot will take great courage. The gnawing insanity of his power takes its toll on all of those who remain under its influence. 

It begets a pallor in those under its yoke, siphoning the very will to live into its hungering maw. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Behold the visage of Mot
{{BadgeBox|Death's Head Supplicant}}

=== <u>Walker on the Profane Ascent</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

The spirits cast a dark foreboding over you. They lament the loss of the memories of those whose deaths will never be accounted for, never remembered... lost forever. 

With the emergence of Mot, what constituted Moth Cemetery was almost entirely annihilated; not much remains that was not destroyed outright or pulled below the loamy, tainted soil. There will be no further flowers placed upon the graves beneath Mot's writhing hellscape. It would be best to '''survey the enemy's realm as you plan your next move.''' 

*{{green|Be a Walker on the Profane Ascent.}}

This wretched realm gnaws at your sanity. The blood-red sky, the horrifying landscapes, the legions of profane acolytes. This truly is a nightmare made manifest. 

Keep your wits about you, there can be no underestimating this place, lest you forfeit your soul to Mot's endless hunger. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Explore what remains of Moth Cemetery
{{BadgeBox|Walker on the Profane Ascent}}

=== <u>Witness of Oaths</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

The vengeance of this place is palpable in the air. With every breath you can feel the weight of broken promises and empty words, like shackles closing in around your chest. There are many who do not easily forgive those who have broken an oath. 

You are bidden to '''seek the monument representing these false heroes and reflect upon their folly.''' 

*{{green|Inspect the flag atop City Hall.}}

The hero world is rife with fame-seekers, con-artists, and fakes. Corruption runs deep within the system, and the justification employed by those who do good but for only their own ends is all too common. 

Beneath the shadow of Dark Astoria, such callous acts bring cold retribution. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Crown the oath-breaker's monument
{{BadgeBox|Witness of Oaths}}

=== <u>Life out of Death</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

The whispering departed make their lingering wills known; within the writhing darkness, there yet remains the faint warmth that emanates from those surviving beacons of salvation. These places must be protected at all costs if the forces of the living are to oppose the threat of Mot's all-consuming maw.

Guidance from beyond points you '''towards a sanctuary where life yet blooms amongst the cold death surrounding this profane city.''' 

*{{green|Find Life out of Death.}}

Even within this distorted darkness, the hands of those bent on saving lives yet work tirelessly, busy aiding the wounded and mending the broken. 

You come to comprehend what the spirit's guidance meant and will ensure the protection and survival of the places where these life-givers toil. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Seek where life blooms amongst death
{{BadgeBox|Life out of Death}}

=== <u>Of Things Unclean</u> ===
'''Briefing'''

As you move through the streets of this foul and unnatural landscape, the sentiments of the dead reach your ears. Nothing in this city should be trusted. '''Nothing.''' 

The dirt, the stones, the very air itself cannot be relied upon, as they have all been stained by Mot's foul malevolence. This stagnant violation runs thoroughly through every facet of this corrupt realm. '''Is there nowhere that remains untainted?''' 

*{{green|Be wary Of Things Unclean.}}

You proceed, now keenly aware of the fetid influence that has seeped into every aspect that constitutes Dark Astoria. Even should Mot somehow be banished, how could this place possibly be redeemed? 

Is there any such power that could truly cleanse this degree of malevolent corruption? You honestly cannot say. 

'''Mission Objective'''
*Find anywhere untainted by Mot
{{BadgeBox|Of Things Unclean}}

[[Category:Tour Guide Missions]]