I colour in the pages using some snazzy multi coloured pencils that were a birthday present from @HarrisPS, it’s quite meditative!
At least these guys are in the cold. I can imagine feeling cold while I’m actually melting 
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Super interesting first look! I loved Heart of Battle; I really think you set a standard for Hearts Choice that may have been missing. The ROs are warm (haha) and naturally conversational. You also do such a lovely job with setting the scene without being overly descriptive and flowery. Excited to go on this journey with you and your characters!!
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That’s incredibly kind, thank you! I do sometimes struggle between Too Much Description and Sounds Like You’re In The Void, so it’s great to hear there’s a good balance there!
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I LOVED the first chapter. Heart of Battle is already so so so good (I can’t even guesstimate how many times I’ve replayed it). It’s rare to find a story that feels like the setting is very original, where there’s also enough exposition to make the world make sense without drowning the story’s momentum, and where the characters feel non-derivative and fully-realized. Plus good action scenes + spicy + replayability/variation + meaningful stat checks that are well-integrated into the story. It’s just a very well-rounded game mechanically AND narratively.
Excuse my brief rant about Heart of Battle, I brought all that up because I see all the same stuff in Heart of the Mountain and it makes me insanely excited to see where the story goes!
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Oh thank you so much, it’s absolutely wonderful to hear that you’ve enjoyed the first chapter!
I’ll tell you my secret for not having too much setting exposition…the literary equivalent of Fog of War! (Or a limited draw distance, I suppose. I do have some stuff in my head that doesn’t make it into the games…but not that much.)
I’m feeling really good about Heart of the Mountain, taking great elements of Heart of Battle and really refining them. Of course there are fewer action scenes, but when they do turn up they’ll hopefully be pretty harrowing! 
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Fortnightly Proof Of Life
Pro tip for aspiring writers: don’t get ill 
Progress on Chapter 6 is ongoing, albeit slow, as between our kiddo going back to school, getting ill, and general ADHD tax, my concentration hasn’t been the best.
To cheer us up, here are the characters’ results for the silly quiz How Would You Die On A Polar Expedition. The results work surprisingly well!
Stelare
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Oof. It can be really hard to write while sick. I hope you feel better soon, and take as many breaks as you need.
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Hello everyone, I’m distinctly not @FayI but she’s let me put the updated demo up on cogdemos! The second chapter is now playable!
After learning more about the mystery stranger who showed up at the end of Chapter 1, and settling into your work on the mountain, it’s time for Daysend: the very fun and cheerful Messimeran festival about last year’s remorse and next year’s resolution on the last day of sunlight before polar night. Whose regrets will surface tonight?
In Chapter 2 you may find:
- an interrogation, and revelations
- delicious tea (and a delightfully piquant description of such from Theano)
- yearning and flirting
- hookups!! (very hot and excellently written, I will say)
- magical lights
- unguents
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Great to see this again!
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Yes! I was telling Fay about the Dashingdon-to-cogdemos transfer and was like “what if you put up the next chapter too…? 
and what if I did it for you so you don’t have to worry about it…?”
She is very busy at the moment with various other things so I’m very happy to be a middleperson and pass anything to her 
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Thanks so much for highlighting those errors! They’re fixed now.
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Just now finding out about this because I don’t check the forums often enough but given how much I loved Remi from Heart of Battle I anticipate that I will indeed climb Eleri like a tree
Are hookups possible with all ROs in chapter 2 or just the more…sexually forthcoming ones?
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You can hook up with Theano or Felician in Chapter 2 - things can happen later with the others, though I can’t entirely remember in which chapter that is.
I love Eleri so much… they’re so very sad. If you liked Remi you’ll definitely like them!
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Heart of the Mountain has great atmoshere, suspence and mystery. I really want to explore those caves. I read recently about an arctic expedition so this game expecially suited the mood.
I’ve played different branches with the same MC to spend time with different characters. Eleri is my favourite, Felician slightly behind, they both provoke this “need to be protected and cared for” feeling. Two others are not my type, but they are not hopeless 
It felt odd that no one ever adresses MC by surname, during introduction or in some “official” matters. For example, Eleri says: " Dr Leventis, Engineer Niko and I can do it by ourselves" - Niko is MC’s name, though surname seems more appropriate.
Some typos and inconsistencies:
Chapter 1
He twitches, blinking at you with only their dark eyes visible; you catch a glimpse of tension or pain before he hides behind snow goggles as well.
Theano likes to invent drama where there doesn’t need to be any, and He likes to make assumptions about what’s happened.
A tray is set out in front of them with several parts arrayed neatly within it - Eleri is he
Theano takes the lead as you get in: stomping the snow off his boots and shucking off their cold-weather gear straight onto the floor
When MC stayed to eat with Felician, then went to help Eleri with equipment, after this part:
On the other side of the outpost a door slams, and voices call out: Felician and Theano have returned.
I’ve suddenly moved to different branch (where MC went with Theano):
He shoots you a weary smirk. "Unhygienic, I know, but I assume the lab's in a bit of a state, and they didn't think to give me a proper medical room."
"Is it…"
Felician's voice is loud at first, but trails off when he catches sight of the body on the dining table: whoever this person is, the build must not match Vidali. The disappointment and grief is clear on his face, and he turns to the kitchen to put the kettle on the stove. Eleri follows into the main room after a few moments, a weary and frazzled grimace on his face.
When MC went to eat with Eleri and stayed to help Eleri during emergency, everything was fine.
Chapter 2
Stelare doesn’t need to open up: I can work enough out from their belongings and behavior.
I’ll lie and say we’re in agreement that Stelare will be thrown out to die if they don’t talk. - Stelare is he
You lean back, fake-casual and relaxed. "Stelare had a bag with her, right? - Stelare is he
Though he packed good quality energy seedcakes and bars of shredded mushroom and dried, spiced beef jerky, {ch2_stesuccess the food’s badly wrapped: one of the meat bars has already spoiled, and |} the tent screams amateur in terms of mountaineering.
Even if it’s inert as far as magic goes, it’s the only thing Stelare doesn’t want you touching :He tries to hide it, but the tension in his hands is unmistakable.
He’s noticeably focused on far too focused on Niko: we should be able to use that somehow, moving forward.
“Hey, I can see why she’s so fascinated with me, you know?” - Stelare is he
Felician responds heartily, rolling his shoulders back. he glances over at Stelare, who waves while still lying down on the couch.
Can I borrow your clothes, Captain Man? - If it’s an adress to Felician like “giant man” to Eleri shouldn’t Man be lowercase?
I didn’t spot any live game, but had a little luck with some traps. I checked out that rock slide Niko and I spotted, Felician, and I found something odd. - Eleri always stays inside, so it should be Theano and Felician or Theano and MC, who spotted the rockslide
Like this, in the bright cold, Eleri’s paler olive complexion is flushed pink with exertion and adrenaline. His smile’s brighter, readier to pop out when offering you a hand up to the next ledge. - This text is repeated twice when I choose “I’ll walk the routes with Eleri to make sure everything’s still safe” branch
Eleri nods firmly. “Of course. But we could survive without support, if we had to. It would be uncomfortable, and with a fourth mouth I’m nervous, but it’s technically possible.” - Stelare is the fifth mouth
“Fuck,” Eleri says, He points.
Eleri smiles lopsidedly, though their gaze is distant and distracted. - Eleri is he
I went to the northwest crevasse and I’m sure I saw some kind of cave down there too. I don’t know if it leads anywhere either. But if there are two caves, surely that means we’re looking at some rocky kind of honeycomb in there. - Felician talks about two caves, but in this route MC went hunting with Eleri and they didn’t spot a cave.
I know there’s more that Eleri’s not saying, something that’s worrying them. - Eleri is he
%!{the_they} cracks his knuckles and stretchss outhis slender arms, the sharp lines of his shoulder blades shifting underneath his woolen coat.
Their eyes drift half-closed in focus as he reaches - Theano is he
Theano presses the palm of his open hand against your wrist as a signal to pause…Theano lift his hand so you can resume - MC chose to watch, not to help with his hand
I’ll just nod to them. - Theano is he
His face is the picture of concentration as he arranges you to {ste_their} liking, his nose scrunched up, lips pursed.
If you were less well-trained, if you if you were the nervous sort
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Thank you so much for this! The demo should correct all those typos and issues - the cave confusion is likely because of a variable that wasn’t set on one of the branches.
I will pass on the surname query to Fay! It totally makes sense to me that Eleri would use a surname in that context.
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Well, this demo is excellent. I just played straight through, despite originally having different plans for my evening - but I absolutely could not stop reading! I love a claustrophobic setting, a hostile environment, and People With Issues (so many issues) cooped up together. The reason for the main character being there fits in so well and makes for such a compelling dynamic. Plus the writing is so well balanced, the exposition and dialogue so natural - I could eat it up with a spoon!
I’m also a very big fan of Heart of Battle so I really look forward to playing more of this. Sending good writing vibes!
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