Linus Fredrick's Lair? (lore spoilers)

[Orlacktherof]

While you guys have been perfecting your combat, I've been reading lore. Here's what I got.


So, All of us that have beaten level one have read "The Life of Linus Fredrick" by now, yes? The powerful Thaturmage turned Necromancer. He seems to be hell bent on making his family live once again. The book seems to imply that he is doing everything to bring them back, including kidnappings. It is unknown why he would need living people as he is trying to raise the dead. Perhaps for ransom, but he seems to also already have wealth? The author of the book is anonymous, and the story is fiction? It is said to be a story told to children by their mothers.

Now, where Exanima happens. This city-dungeon-stronghold place seems to be heavily associated with thaturmagics and other similar things. First level seems consist of defense structure workshops, a puzzle area for some reason, and then a Laboratory, Prisons, Infirmary and a Ward for the Insane(?). All things that Linus would utilize in his quest to rise the dead.

A book can be found in one of the "Surgery" rooms. It is titled "Binding of the Dead" and written by Linus Fredrick. The book is unreadable due to blood(Perhaps I has been used extensively and recently if it hasn't rotted away by now). A dead body(probably a former test subject) is not too far away, and a desk nearby has a parchment where a unknown scientist wishes his assistant was still there to help him with his work.

Elsewhere near the Ward/Infirmary area, two metal tables(for experimenting on?) are found, and a work desk with a book by Aldair Hanks. It seems to be an anatomy book for dissections on people and how the brain functions. This could be used to research about how one can learn to raise the dead a zombies or Linus' goal of sentient people back from the dead. Next to this book on the same table is a scroll describing an unnamed scientist that has seemingly tried to transfer souls? Has he tried to move consciousnesses from one body to another? However, It seems that he has failed as the "Souls" are very connected to their mortal forms. They would not leave intact. Is this a reason why Fredrick failed?

The two recently added Labs seem to be only vaguely connected. One is for plants, perhaps the scientists/mages were trying to make a potion? As for the other, It seems to be some animal study. What appears to be a femur, hip bone and a skull of some kind of monster are found. Several restraints and cages are found. Were there many of these creatures held here before? And for what purpose?

Combine these many things. It would seem to make sense that either this was the lair of Linus Fredrick(perhaps immortal?) or someone with very very similar interests and/or goals as him. Prisons and a Ward would seem to be for finding people suitable to taking bodies and removing minds. Laboratory to study, research and experiment. Defense workshops to keep unwanted things out? Level 2 seems to be more of a Barracks? Level 3 seems to be for more civilian(?) people to live. The vicinity of the things in this game, and how it's all laid out is quite confusing, but this is what I got.

 

[Orlacktherof]

Anyone else have anything to add?

 

[ZaratanCho]

It's Linus Fendrick ;d

I don't think Fendrick has ever been there, his story has probably happened much longer ago but someone that is indeed trying to do what he tried or something similar(i guess its possible that he lived for very, very long but i doubt it). The area itself doesn't connect to the experiments like that, surely it was build in say ancient times and became abandoned at some point for whatever reason. Could have been used by many different people for different things over time. It wasn't build for the things currently happening that are very recent. It's obvious there used to be some sort of war going on there long ago. Perhaps they were dissecting and interrogating the creatures they were fighting in that area you find the skull etc. i dunno.

As far as the experiments itself, transferring consciousness or soul from one body to another is possible but what Fendrick was trying to do doesn't seem possible(i guess it is in rare cases) unless the person has just died and you do what needs to be done instantly after or trap the soul upon death.

I guess the whole Fendrick thing and current experiments are connected to how/why the character you play in SG comes back after death in a new body(poor guy ;d). Which is also unique to that character.

 

[NewsMuffin]

Madoc said in a stream that your character in Exanima dies by going through the blue portal, but also how they're working on other content after the portal as well.
This makes me think that the player character in Exanima is the same as the one in Sui Generis, or someone else with the same condition (though the rarity of such a thing and the fact that we're the player in Exanima supports the former).
The scroll you start with really intrigues me as well, especially the last bit "there is another way out". At first I thought it just meant the portal, but I think it also may be connected to Fendrick and his necromantic works.

 

[Don Kanaille]

What I think makes the dungeon lore really contrived is that, in my opinion, this place was not simply built/used at one time by one group, but was seemingly inhabited by various groups of people at different times, and likely for different purposes. Experimenting and necromancy is seemling one, being a stronghold against an mighty thread seems to be another (just look at all the barricades, military equipment, the hospital which treats wounds which seem to be caused by large animals mostly, and the maze area which is pretty much one giant death trap to trap attackers in during your reatreat). And maybe it was a bandit hideout at some point.

You can find diary entries from people in lower levels who are refered to as some kind of old legend in scrolls from higher levels: As in finding a casual note written by Whatshisname and later another note stating "Maybe the legendary Whatshisname Spellbinder was here?". Unraveling this surely is no minor task.

 

[Avramovic]

Anyone else have anything to add?

I just want to add that I want you in my party. Fireballs and Chain lightning trump swords.

 

[Greenbrog]

Not necessarily. You assume you have time to make either of the things happen, and you know it's coming. Don't choke. The only absolute is there are no absolutes.

 

[Orlacktherof]

Not necessarily. You assume you have time to make either of the things happen, and you know it's coming. Don't choke. The only absolute is there are no absolutes.

???

 

[Greenbrog]

Wait.... Are we already roleplaying? I passed my move silently check, and my hide in shadows.

 

[Orlacktherof]

Wait.... Are we already roleplaying? I passed my move silently check, and my hide in shadows.

The hell are you talking about?

 

[Mowglia]

Anyone else have anything to add?

Your original post is along the lines of what I was thinking when I first saw this area. My ideas have changed a bit since then, what happened in the past explains some of the stuff, and Thaven/Papin are probably responsible for a lot of what's been going on.

Nevertheless, I still think there's an outside chance that a third party is involved (although it's unlikely given Thaven appears to have been in charge of more recent events). It's hard to be sure without going through everything very carefully, and even then probably impossible to be certain.

Someone needs to learn thaumaturgists to sign their scrolls

What confuses me most about this situation is that some prisoners were definitely either taken against their will or duped into entering Thaven's lair, whereas others appear to be patients (there of their own volition). If these are all contemporary events it is tricky to explain. I suspect that it's related to what Thaven is doing and/or that circumstances changed at some point. It's possible Thaven required two types of individual for his work.

But Fendrick, I think he's dead and gone, presumably failed in his attempts. The bit about souls is very interesting, and could well be why Fendrick failed - I need to spend some time thinking about that. This appears to be directly related to what Thaven is/was doing.

I doubt Fendrick is immortal. Assuming I got this right then the name Sui Generis translates to "One of a kind", which refers specifically to us (the 'adventurer'), and our ability to 'return'. Except this is where things get really interesting since an ability of this order could somehow be related to or conferred by the Guardian. I say "could" because the origin of the original note is ambiguous, can we even remember? And the contextual stuff about memory and immortality...even ghosts.

Somehow this all has to fit together, if only to preserve my own sanity. The combat and physics in Exanima are great, but the story is right up there too.

I need to get a few more adventurers (or should I say 'Investigators'?) to the Portal and do another complete playthrough, then I'll try to get my head around this properly. I may fail. Just saying