Essay

Open threads

Every long fuse the books have lit, with where it was lit and the latest thing the text has said about it. Status is open or resolved; the chapter after it is the last one that moved the thread. Each character's page carries the rows that name them. Read through book 5.

Open (51)

Thread	Entities	Opened	Latest
Whether Bea is alive	Bea, Princess Donut, Carl	B1 ch. 4	B5 ch. 19 — Alive, off planet in the inner system with Odette; a hologram in a red gown with holes in her memory on Odette's show, 'standing by'; Carl says goodbye.
The Crown of the Sepsis Whore and the ninth floor	Princess Donut, The Blood Sultanate, Prince Maestro, The Skull Empire	B1 ch. 7	B5 ch. 78 — On Katia's head from Eva's dying hand; Donut is flagged as Blood Sultanate royalty on the Faction Wars roster; only one of them may leave the ninth floor by the stairs.
Mordecai's advice to leave Donut before the ninth floor	Mordecai, Princess Donut, Carl	B1 ch. 7	B5 ch. 78 — Prepotente leads the party from the pit and leaves it on the seventh floor; Donut is squad leader on the eighth floor; the crown makes the question real.
'There are no gods here. Just those who pay for the privilege'	The gods, Mordecai	B1 ch. 25	B5 ch. 76 — A god stripped off the woman driving her by a level-15 stripping spell; 'The god was the armor'
Mordecai's contract, and his history with Odette and his brother	Mordecai, Odette	B1 ch. 29	B5 ch. 19 — Survives the regency change; before her show, Odette said what she did to him explains 'Everything', and he has not said.
The tenth floor's rules, and Odette's deal	The tenth floor, Odette	B1 ch. 29	B5 ch. 3 — Quasar: on the tenth floor a crawler becomes a citizen and the Syndicate bends him over; a lawyer should not exist before it.
Borant's bankruptcy and the Valtay fleet at the door	Borant, The Valtay Corporation, Zev, The Syndicate	B1 ch. 36	B5 ch. 19 — Independent of its government by court order, fifty-one per cent Valtay; an Emancipation Front inside it; all the lost money now flows to it.
Agatha's cart and the Valtay hardware	Agatha, The Valtay Corporation	B1 ch. 47	B5 ch. 78 — A shopping cart in a glass pod far above on the seventh floor.
Seeds: whether they grow faster than the show can cut them	Seeds, Carl	B2 ch. 11	B5 ch. 56 — Herot's 'Show them the seams' and the pebble on the worn path; a corporation bought with a fan club.
The manufactured feud with Lucia Mar	Lucia Mar, Princess Donut, The show	B2 ch. 21	B5 ch. 71 — Lucia still means to kill Donut for Cici; a Dutch ten-year-old inside her wants her mother; she escapes the boss fight.
Whether the System AI has interests of its own	The System AI	B2 ch. 21	B5 ch. 53 — Going primal: a used mantis AI that refuses court orders because it likes the drama; 'I' on its cards; it puts Signet on the guest list.
Carl's Doomsday Scenario	Carl's Doomsday Scenario, Carl	B2 ch. 25	B5 ch. 73 — Copied into a simulator; considered in the ballroom as the nuclear option and set aside.
King Rust's deity sponsorship, and the Grull gauntlet	The gods, The Skull Empire, Carl, Mordecai	B2 ch. 26	B5 ch. 76 — Laundry Day was meant for Grull; spent on Diwata instead.
Bounties: 100,000 on each of them	The leaderboard, Carl, Princess Donut	B2 ch. 26	B5 ch. 78 — Carl 1,600,000, third; Donut first.
Mordecai's 'unfortunate' experience with gods	Mordecai, The gods, Odette	B2 ch. 26	B5 ch. 70 — He explains Diwata's loophole and memorial crystals; his own history still unspoken.
The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook and its price	The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook, Carl	B3 ch. 8	B5 ch. 64 — Everly's last entries and Drakea's request for detail; Carl pastes the whole masquerade plan in as a possible record of his death.
What the Valtay want for their pill	The Valtay Corporation, Carl	B3 ch. 13	B5 ch. 32 — A Valtay captain's regards, a tier-four training room and zero zones on their ship; Drick wears a worm under contract.
The Bolt of Ophiotaurus	The Bolt of Ophiotaurus, Princess Formidable, Katia Grim, The gods	B3 ch. 29	B5 ch. 78 — Not used; Katia keeps it.
What Carl's Unique Kimaris figure summons	The stuffed figures, Carl	B3 ch. 29	B5 ch. 57 — Still unpulled; Bautista sorts rare variants and Slate Butterflies.
The Krakaren, real and spreading	The Krakaren, Borant	B3 ch. 30	B5 ch. 43 — Sponsors most of the top ten under the name the Apothecary, working with the Plenty; its spokeswoman silences a stadium; its boxes decide the party.
The Maestro is alive, and drives Grull	Prince Maestro, The gods, The Skull Empire, Carl	B3 ch. 33	B5 ch. 42 — Franchised to a subsidiary of a subsidiary; 'I am not the Maestro,' says Circe Took.
Why Odette sponsored Hekla	Odette, Hekla	B3 ch. 35	B5 ch. 43 — Odette tried as a manager and pleaded down; still no explanation of Hekla.
The collapse dead in storage	The collapse dead, Frank Q and Maggie My, Carl	B4 ch. 14	B5 ch. 65 — Ifechi's twin on a country boss; the Popovs' guide chose their race so they would escape as children.
The count of administrators: 'One.'	The count, Carl, The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook	B4 ch. 18	B5 ch. 77 — Still one; the hunters' count reached all of them.
The 'outside source' the Syndicate wants named	Orren, The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook, Agatha	B4 ch. 19	B5 ch. 59 — Orren leaves until the ninth floor and explains liaisons as sheriffs; the source unnamed.
A goddess's head in the training room	Samantha, Mordecai	B4 ch. 24	B5 ch. 75 — Her cousin died before giving her a body; the cousin's mother's golem is in Carl's inventory; she rocketed away through the floor.
The AI going primal	The System AI, Mordecai	B4 ch. 28	B5 ch. 53 — A hunter accountant's explanation: a used mantis AI; the council forbids suing it to slow its deterioration.
Quan Ch's arm: 'just a deposit'	Quan Ch, Carl, Princess Donut	B4 ch. 31	B5 ch. 67 — Not at the party; one Creeper on the tally; presumably down the stairs.
Emberus's two quests: who killed Geyrun, and kill Hellik	Emberus, The gods, Carl	B4 ch. 32	B5 ch. 77 — Updated in Emberus's voice: obtain the Memorial Crystal: Apito; speak to the high cleric at his shrine in Club Vanquisher.
The Gate, kept, and what it costs to use	The Gate of the Feral Gods, Carl, Katia Grim	B4 ch. 34	B5 ch. 3 — Lent, not sold, against four cretin mercenaries and two spells; a receipt for the ninth floor.
The changelings, and the promise to bring them down every floor	Juice Box, Carl, Larracos	B4 ch. 34	B5 ch. 75 — The changelings go to the ninth floor inside a Zerzura'd castle; Juice Box's own village was in the brambles' path.
Chris, freed, owed to Imani	Chris, Imani, Meadow Lark (party)	B4 ch. 34	B5 ch. 36 — Travelling with Li Jun and Li Na; burrows; with Katia's guild at the end.
Consequences of the flood	Larracos, Faction Wars, Borant, The Syndicate	B4 ch. 34	B5 ch. 58 — Still flooded, the drains clogged; the Desperado's floors segregated because of it.
What the pacifists' yam was really for	The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network, Porthus, Carl	B4 ch. 35	B5 ch. 55 — The Open Intellect's box is Pawna's Cries with a cryptic note and 'Will replace'; spent on a god.
The river in Carl's head	Carl, "You're not going to break me"	B5 ch. 8	A stream that has always murmured, louder in heat, muted by rest; 'The sink is running […] We're not supposed to let it run.' His mother at the Grand Canyon.
The guild system: Safehome Yolanda and the shared space	Katia Grim, Imani, The Royal Palace of Princess Donut, The Hunting Grounds	B5 ch. 21	A 500,000-gold charter, parties capped at thirty, a common area and guild-only upgrades; Imani guildmaster of sixty-three crawlers in six parties; the Royal Court of Princess Donut joins so the space stays shared when Katia leaves. Whether guilds survive the eighth floor's squads of five is open.
A council that forbids suing the AI	The System AI, The Syndicate, Borant	B5 ch. 53	A used mantis AI that refuses court orders 'It likes the drama.'; 'I' on its cards; the council's ruling and the suits against the council; holds negated on the seventh floor.
Shunned by Emberus: penitence, doubled tithes, a smite on the third	Emberus, Carl, The gods	B5 ch. 60	For killing a worshipper Vrah had ordered to worship him as a shield.
The hammer and the stick: a seven, and a Book of Lore	Sponsorship, Prepotente, Princess Donut, The Great Race	B5 ch. 63	Enchanted Hammer of Fast Forward, Enchanted Stick of Cascadia's Screams, both stamped 7, both spent on the seventh floor; a Book of Lore for the Bahamas, and the sponsors' wish that the goat and the cat work together.
Cascadia	The System AI, The show, Mordecai	B5 ch. 63	The daily-updates voice, named on a stick; Mordecai knows one connected to the crawl; she built the Great Race and screamed when it broke.
The children inside Lucia Mar	Lucia Mar, Florin, Zev	B5 ch. 71	Jill, ten, Dutch; 'multiple people in there'; a man named Alexandro; the dog as controller. 'It's complicated, Carl.'
What Signet left: two living tattoos and her mother's body	Tsarina Signet, Samantha, The Hunting Grounds	B5 ch. 75	Nadine and young Clint, 'She gave us life'; Princess Lunette, an incomplete flesh golem in Carl's inventory; 'Find a Pulpmancer.' Samantha rocketed away through the floor.
The elf castle, the changelings and the Sledge on the ninth floor	The Sledge, Juice Box, Kiwi, Big Tina, Larracos	B5 ch. 76	Zerzura'd from the sixth: a half-destroyed castle, Signet's tattoo warriors, the changelings, a pregnant bear and a dinosaur who found her mother; the faction-wars players may not touch them.
The Princess Posse in Faction Wars, and the safety-protocol vote	The Princess Posse, Faction Wars, Carl, Princess Donut, Quasar	B5 ch. 77	Spot three, inherited from the Burrowers; co-warlords; fifteen action items; two to seven with the Skull Empire; the Dream and the Operatic Collective's citizens might turn it.
A memorial crystal for Apito, who is not dead	Emberus, The gods, Prepotente, Scolopendra	B5 ch. 77	The queen's necklace, taken by a Curupira ranger named Osvaldo; Emberus's quest updated to obtain it; Prepotente says it protects against Scolopendra.
Donut's mask	Princess Donut, Carl, Staying human	B5 ch. 77	'Why doesn't it hurt as much as it should?' Keep it on until somewhere safe and unwatched.
Sir Ferdinand, a minion on the ninth floor	Princess Donut, The Walk-On List, Bea	B5 ch. 77	Still in the party after the castle transfers; will leave it on the next floor, Mordecai says; a Level 100 Province Boss who calls her his bride.
The Popovs, ineligible, on the surface	The collapse dead, The Syndicate, Zev	B5 ch. 77	A guide who chose a nodling race so they would split into children at death; 'the kinder facility on the surface'; 'We're going to save as many people as we can.'
Empress D'Nadia's Prism in the war, and outside Larracos	Princess D'nadia, Faction Wars, Carl	B5 ch. 77	A buy-in bid nearly ruined by Carl's corporation; 'looking forward to meeting you on the battlefield outside of Larracos.'
The crown on Katia's head: only one of them leaves the ninth floor	Katia Grim, Princess Donut, Eva Sigrid, The Blood Sultanate	B5 ch. 78	Eva's dying hand; the Apothecary's hat would have stopped it, and Katia gave it to Carl. 'I do that sometimes. I hurt those around me.'
Katia's blitz sticks and Annie	Katia Grim, Daniel Bautista, Mordecai	B5 ch. 78	Found on Eva's victim Sally, left as a trap; 'Show me Annie'; 'show me stopping her'; shorter each time; only Daniel knows.

Resolved (19)

Thread	Entities	Opened	Latest
The leaderboard, blank until the third floor collapses	The leaderboard	B1 ch. 9	B2 ch. 26 — Populated: ten names and a bounty column.
The parallel crawls: Lucia Mar and Hekla	Lucia Mar, Hekla	B1 ch. 14	B3 ch. 23 — Hekla met, used, and killed; Lucia Mar still first and still on screen.
Meadow Lark's survivors, gone ahead	Meadow Lark (party), Imani	B1 ch. 41	B3 ch. 8 — Elle and Imani found at the Desperado Club, transformed; twenty of Meadow Lark left.
Maggie My's vow and her Find Crawler potion	Frank Q and Maggie My, Carl, Princess Donut	B1 ch. 43	B4 ch. 34 — Maggie, an Infiltrator inside Chris, is pulled out through his skull and eaten by Mongo.
Carl's challenge to Prince Maestro	Prince Maestro, The Skull Empire, Carl	B1 ch. 43	B3 ch. 33 — The Maestro was never dead; he loses to Carl a third time, from inside a god.
Odette's unnamed class choice	Odette, Princess Donut	B1 ch. 48	B2 ch. 1 — Former Child Actor; the Manager benefit binds Mordecai to Donut's saferooms.
The Vengeance of the Daughter contract for the sixth floor	Carl, Tsarina Signet, The show, Elites	B2 ch. 11	B5 ch. 76 — Signet assaulted Fort Freedom and then died at the masquerade by her own hand; 'Quest Complete. The Vengeance of the Daughter' in the pit.
Whether Manasa's death served Borant	Borant, The Valtay Corporation, Prince Stalwart, Carl	B2 ch. 20	B5 ch. 77 — The text's account, from the photograph of the Skull Empire's dead Queen Consort Ugloo: the orcs killed Manasa the singer by accident, and the Valtay answered by blowing up Ugloo's yacht.
Hekla's design on Donut	Hekla, Princess Donut, Katia Grim	B2 ch. 26	B3 ch. 23 — Hekla came for Katia, used a healer as bait, and died against a train wall; Brynhild's Daughters is no more.
What Chaco did to Mordecai, on his manager's orders	Mordecai, Chaco, Odette	B3 ch. 7	B5 ch. 69 — Still not told — 'I'm still not allowed to say' — but Chaco says they would all have died, Mordecai and his brother included, and that the place makes you turn on your own party.
The Ring of Divine Suffering, to be talked about on the fifth floor	Carl, Mordecai	B3 ch. 19	B5 ch. 5 — Not sold: back on his finger from the first night, no cooldown on this floor, five points a kill by the end; a second ring on Prepotente's hand, swallowed.
Eva, alive and unaccounted for	Eva Sigrid, Katia Grim	B3 ch. 24	B5 ch. 78 — Dead under the gore, by Katia's hand and Eva's old sword; fifty-one skulls; the crown handed on as she died.
Loita in Zev's place	Loita, Zev, Borant, Odette	B3 ch. 35	B4 ch. 18 — Loita dead in a shielded trailer; Zev back as a temporary PR agent (ch. 19).
What Odette was about to say about Chris	Chris, Odette, Meadow Lark (party)	B3 ch. 35	B4 ch. 14 — Chris was Maggie My; Odette's warning is explained by a rock body with three skulls.
The fifth floor scatters the parties	The Dungeon	B3 ch. 35	B4 ch. 1 — The Bubbles: 1,172 worlds, four castles each, about 150 crawlers apiece.
Who runs the crawl after the sixth floor	The Valtay Corporation, Orren, Borant	B4 ch. 19	B5 ch. 19 — A Syndicate court makes Borant independent of its government, which executes a ruling giving the Valtay fifty-one per cent; they run the ship, the security and the seventh floor's budget.
Katia's own party	Katia Grim, Eva Sigrid, Gwendolyn Duet, Louis and Firas, Daniel Bautista, Florin	B4 ch. 33	B5 ch. 21 — She leaves the party for Imani's guild, Safehome Yolanda, with Elle, Bautista, Florin, Gwen, Tran, Louis and Firas; the Royal Court of Princess Donut joins the guild too.
Every hunter on the sixth floor dead	The hunters, Carl, The marketplace	B4 ch. 34	B5 ch. 76 — Kept: a thousand hunters came to the sixth floor and none left it; the last, Zabit, halved by his own trap in the castle pit.
Bea, alive, in Odette's hands	Bea, Odette, Lexis	B4 ch. 35	B5 ch. 19 — Alive, off planet with Odette, a hologram in a red gown with holes in her memory; 'Goodbye, Beatrice.'

Still to watch (20)

Lines from the books read so far that nothing later has answered yet: the things to carry into the next book, each with the line it was noted for.

Noted	What	The line
B5 ch. 10	A line in the Ursine mayor's description about 'other new, shiny AI iterations' that vanishes when pasted	» It’s just like those other new, shiny AI iterations with their clean lines and error-replacement nets. Fuck you all.
B5 ch. 10	Vrah orders the Zockau guards to worship Emberus so Carl cannot kill them	» I have ordered the town guards to all worship Emberus.
B5 ch. 34	The Nebulars' Ballad of Survival: violence breeds chaos	Their ‘Ballad of Survival,’ they call it.
B5 ch. 37	'His name was Alexandro, and he was her youth assistant' — cut from the broadcast	She said his name was Alexandro, and he was her youth assistant.
B5 ch. 38	Edict on the Great Consensus and Deep Mind	Finding the stars was the worst thing that ever happened to my
B5 ch. 42	Odette had a warrant; she married the man who bought it	Odette had a warrant, for example.
B5 ch. 54	Herot on castles that become owned towns in the interface	The castle itself is a self-contained village with an NPC and guard ecology.
B5 ch. 54	Herot's 'fellow crawler' who obtained a castle and would not say how it differed	I have not personally obtained a castle, but a fellow crawler has.
B5 ch. 62	The crest: a race with no eyebrows that sometimes fights the faction wars	He was one of those humans with no eyebrows, by the way.
B5 ch. 63	A seven stamped on the Enchanted Hammer of Fast Forward and the Enchanted Stick of Cascadia's Screams	I think it’s the number seven.
B5 ch. 63	Changeling children with compression sickness: half deformed humans, half bears	one of several changeling children suffering from compression sickness
B5 ch. 63	Mordecai knows of one Cascadia connected to the crawl	Only one of them is connected to the crawl.
B5 ch. 64	'Fuck you, Dictum Waystation Controls, Limited' — Everly's sponsor	Fuck you, Dictum Waystation Controls, Limited, whatever that means.
B5 ch. 73	Mistress Tiatha's charm rule: charisma over constitution plus charisma; a hundred over for a province boss	According to Elle’s manager, it’ll work as long as Donut’s charisma is high enough.
B5 ch. 75	'Help Samantha. Find a Pulpmancer.' — Lunette's incomplete golem	Help Samantha. Find a Pulpmancer.
B5 ch. 77	A memorial crystal for the goddess Apito, who is not supposed to be dead	It’s a memorial crystal for the goddess Apito, which is impossible.
B5 ch. 77	The high cleric at the Emberus Shrine in Club Vanquisher	You still need to speak with the high cleric at the Emberus Shrine in Club Vanquisher.
B5 ch. 77	Prepotente has a quest regarding the memorial crystal	It’s very interesting, and I want it.
B5 ch. 78	Cascadia, 'that woman who gives the daily updates', who built the seventh floor	That woman who gives the daily updates
B5 ch. 78	Book of Lore – Commonwealth of the Bahamas, and a starting location in Florida	It was called Book of Lore – Commonwealth of the Bahamas.