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Myth: A New Age CYOA

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Nevill said:
When talking about unaffiliated or loosely affiliated instructors, you said that they get 'a freer hand for good or for ill'. What exactly is implied by 'ill'?

The instructors often teach whatever they want.

That can mean they do a great job and teach their students a lot of useful and important things. However they could also spend the entire year teaching nothing but cantrips or they could teach their students 'flawed' spells that blow up when cast (as a learning exercise of course, the 'good' students will notice the trap and fix the spell on their own), or they could teach the class a spell well above their level just to see what will happen when a bunch of novices open a portal to a demonic battlefield (any survivors get an A in the class of course). :lol:

Like I have said, it is actively against the interests of every mage to create more mages. If left to their own devices they probably wouldn't, but the Circles want an endless supply of mages. The heads of the Circles are powerful enough that most mages (never mind the novices they want trained) are unable to harm them so it is in their interests to create as many loyal followers as they can so that they can stomp out the only real threats to their power (the other Circles/enemy invaders/the government). Also, because the Circles are always trying to grow the unaligned mages also have to teach their secrets to ensure there are enough powerful 'free' mages in the world to oppose the will of the Circles and prevent purges and mass killing of unaligned mages. About the only time you will get unaligned mages of every stripe to work together is when one or more Circles tries to do away with their freedom.

It is not uncommon for the most powerful Circle in any age to try and destroy the smaller Circles or wipe out the unaligned community in an area however they are rarely successful since when they try all the other 'free' mages and Circles dogpile them. It is a great way for a leading Circle to get itself wiped out.

This balance, between the Great Circles, the Lesser Circles and the unaligned mages goes a long way toward avoiding a lot of bloodshed but that does not mean there is no conflict. It is just kept to the shadows as mages blowing up blocks of cities is a great way to have the much more numerous non-magical population and governments interfere, and no Circle, even the Warlocks, could stand up to the full fury of the Emperor himself (I mean, fuck the man can blow up legions with his mind :lol:), his Heron Guard and the military branches of the New Cath Bruig.

All of this is further complicated by the inclusion of demons and magical beings as well as the old archmages which have begun to reappear and throw their weight around. The heads of the Circles are very nervous lately and are extremely unhappy that Mazzarin is back as they have absolutely no way to stop him (or even slow him down for long). They are keenly interested in what happened to Mazzarin and why he has reappeared... It might be a good idea not to go around telling people you are the ones responsible for shaking everything up by reviving three top ten archmages.

A lot of the people that used to consider themselves the 'alphas' of the wizarding community have had their front doors kicked in along with most of their teeth in the last month or so... :lol:
 

Karwelas

Dwarf Taffer
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May 12, 2014
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1,064
Location
"Mostly Harmless" planet
Codex Year of the Donut I helped put crap in Monomyth
So... most of mages are paranoids, shattered and mad people that don't trust anybody - even... or I should say especially their own Circle. They use most of their students as a tools to maintain their position and power. They see every other mage as an enemy. They destroy weaker Circles. And now they shit themselfs becouse strongest wizards of the Universe back and probably will try to get as much as they can. And we are responsible for this.

Why I feel so much happy now? :lol:

And by the way... about Mazzarin. We know from Finn that he wasn't around in the age of Axe (I don't remember that names of places! And ages! :lol: ) ... so how old he can be?
Another thing about Mazz that make me bit my tongue - how he looks after we 'repaired' him?
(By the way, Nev. You are our information master around, so would you give me some links to chapters where I can find some information about Great M?)
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Very little information of actual use could be found about Mazzarin.

We have an entry on him in the section about famous people: Preparations 1 (Great Figures and Artefacts)
We have the Faceless' account of his encounters with the Great Mage in this post.
Finally, he appeared in the following early chapters:
Chapter 13: Hope and Hatred
Chapter 19: Blood for the Blood God?
Chapter 20: The Arrows in Flight

As an extra, we have Albrecht's drunken ramblings about him.
Chapter 53: Detective D

That's probably it.
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Alright, Henry's old contacts by city:

This is the basic list Derry has memorized, if you want specifics on a particular person then ask me about them.

Each entry looks like this:

Name (Male/Female) [Race] {Nationality} - Profession - Status

An asterisk denotes one of Derry's former passions.

The Province:

Madrigal:
Abi (F) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Armourer - Living
Alan (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Bartender/Tavern Owner - Confirmed dead
Aimil (F) [Human] {Provencal} & Eadoin (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Farmers - Missing, presumed dead
Apirka (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Street Illusionist - Missing, Status unknown
Barri (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Mercenary - Missing, Status unknown
Brady (M) [Human] {Provencal} - General Store Owner - Missing, presumed dead
Donn (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Fence - Missing, Status unknown
Ea (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Fellow of the Royal Academy, Chair of Luggite Mentalism - Missing, presumed dead
Felix (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Instructor at Amser's Finishing Academy, Disciple of Ogmios - Missing, Status unknown
Gilling (M) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Baker - Confirmed dead
Iola (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Librarian, The Royal Archives - Confirmed dead
Neil* (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Rake/Thief - Confirmed dead
Owena, 'The Tempestuous Tyrant' (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Headmistress, Llŷr's College - Living
Vevila (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Curio Shop Owner - Confirmed dead

Tyr:
Eóin (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Pickpocket - Confirmed dead
Erc (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Pirate/Smuggler - Living
Garrett (M) [Human] {Imperial} - 'Fixer' - Missing, Status unknown
Margaid (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Free Spellwright - Missing, presumed dead
Moss* (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Bartender/Owner - Missing, presumed dead
Nyle (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Sailor - Living
Proinnséas (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Copper Coin - Missing, Status Unknown
Peadar (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Boatswain - Missing, presumed dead
Ronat (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Watch Captain - Confirmed dead

Covenant:
Aodh (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Soldier/Cavalryman - Confirmed dead
Bret (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Guard - Confirmed dead
Conri (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Hunter - Missing, Status unknown
Don (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Barber Surgeon/Fence - Living
Earl Rylie (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Noble - Confirmed dead
Duke Séamas (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Noble - Confirmed dead
Uaine (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Steward - Confirmed dead

Scales:
Cathbad (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Prostitute/Rumour-monger - Missing, presumed dead
Crofton (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Vintner - Confirmed dead
Dermot (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Jeweler - Missing, presumed dead
Onora (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Prostitute - Confirmed dead
Paili (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Merchant - Confirmed dead
Renny* (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Professor of History - Confirmed dead
Regan (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Thief - Missing, presumed dead
Tadhg (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Ex-Pimp, Information Broker - Missing, presumed dead
Ryann (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Weaver - Confirmed dead
Vanessa, 'Lady of Scales' (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Gentlewoman explorer/adventurer - Missing, Status unknown

Leix:
Merril (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Smuggler - Confirmed dead
Nevan (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Harbour Master - Confirmed dead
Rori (F) [Human] {Leixan} - Innkeeper/'Importer' - Confirmed dead
Ruarc (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Mercenary Spellweaver - Missing, presumed dead

Strand:
Riona (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Town Councilor - Confirmed dead
Sile (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Priestess of Esus - Missing, presumed dead

Comfort:
Naoise* (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Farmhand/Legionaire - Confirmed dead
Rian (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Archivist - Missing, presumed dead
Wynne (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Innkeeper - Missing, presumed dead
Zephan (M) [Human] {Provencal} & Wony (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Farmers - Missing, presumed dead

Avon's Grove:
Meara (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Mayor - Missing, Status unknown
Seán (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Retired Adventurer/Fletcher/Hunter - Missing, Status unknown

Ash:
Quinn* (M) [Human] {Provencal} & Mave (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Blacksmith and Miller respectively - Living

Silvermines:
Feeble (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Mercenary Guard - Missing, presumed dead
Mahon (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Tavernkeeper - Missing, presumed dead
Manus (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Miner - Confirmed dead
Neil (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Miner - Confirmed dead
Quillan (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Shopkeeper - Missing, presumed dead
Uni (F) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Mine Foreman - Confirmed dead

Shoal:
Robin* (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Priestess of the Jack Spring - Missing, Status unknown

The Free Cities of the North:

Tandem:
Brami (M) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Information Broker - Missing, presumed dead
Corey (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Pickpocket - Missing, presumed dead
Crofton (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Senator - Confirmed dead
Devin (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Militiaman - Confirmed dead
Dillon (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Archivist - Confirmed dead
Elatha (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Guard Captain - Confirmed dead
Faoiltiarna (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Innkeeper/Smuggler - Living
Ide, of the Grey Waters (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Court Mage to the Duke of Tandem - Missing, presumed dead
Mouse (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Fence - Missing, Status Unknown
Thumb (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Crime Lord - Confirmed dead
Scratch (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Enforcer - Confirmed dead
Tuila (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Historian - Missing, Status Unknown
Varling (M) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Trader, Wholesale/Smuggler - Confirmed dead

Willow:
Eremon (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Sheriff - Confirmed dead
Payton (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - 'Cunning Woman'/Witch - Living

White Falls:
Saraid* (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Archivist - Missing, Status unknown
Taggart (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Priest of Lenus - Missing, Status unknown
Ultan (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Miller/Smuggler - Confirmed dead

Crow's Bridge:
Robena (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} & Torn (M) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Brewers/free farmers/innkeepers - Confirmed dead

Otter Ferry:
Adara (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Herbalist/Local Historian - Missing, presumed dead

The (East) Empire:

Muirthemne:
Ian (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Retired Adventurer/Armourer/Shopkeeper - Living
Leifnir with Seven Fists (M) [Human] {Dunnish} - Mercenary - Confirmed dead
Madb (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Retired Adventurer/Mage/Shopkeeper - Living
Norling (M) [Dwarf] {Imperial} - Brewer - Confirmed dead
Old Ren (F) [Human] {Clifflander} - Armourer - Living
Scully (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Records Clerk - Missing, Status unknown
Thiazi Widow Maker (M) [Human] {Northman} - Mercenary - Confirmed dead

Willow Creek:
Kerry (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Farmer/Poacher - Missing, presumed dead
Mair (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Midwife/Local Historian - Missing, presumed dead

Brayle:
Gilroy (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Soldier, Captain - Missing, presumed dead
Log (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Farmer/Local Historian - Confirmed dead

Tallow:
Nia (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Hunter/Poacher - Confirmed dead
 
Last edited:

Grimgravy

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Sep 12, 2013
Messages
3,469
Codex 2016 - The Age of Grimoire
Proinnséas (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Copper Coin - Missing, Status Unknown

Was this guy turned into a coin or is that an occupation I don't recognize?
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Karwelas said:
And by the way... about Mazzarin. We know from Finn that he wasn't around in the age of Axe (I don't remember that names of places! And ages! :lol: ) ... so how old he can be?

He was born, at the latest, in the Wind Age so he is over a thousand years old but he is at least a thousand years younger than the Watcher, the Faceless Man, and Culwyeh/Shiver #1.

If you want a rough timeline, here is what it looks like:

The Axe Age (for the Trow this was called the Golden Age): Pre-History all the way up to 570 HC
-the Trow ruled the world
-the dwarves and the ghôls started their war
-the Callieach fought the Trow and created the Great Devoid
-Yer-Ks was founded and flooded
-The Free Cities of the North were founded
-At some point Faceless, the Watcher and Culwyeh/Shiver #1 were all born and rose to power, of the three you believe the Faceless Man is the oldest by far (from what Finn said)
-Tireces is born

The Age of Reason: 570 HC to 430 AE
-Tireces rises and beheads the first known Leveller
-The Old Cath Bruig is founded in Ancient Llancarfan
-Moagim rises and unleashes the Myrkridia ending this age in victory for the Dark

The Wind Age: 431 to 1430 AE
-Moagim marches forth with the Myrkridia and the Watcher's undead legions
-Moagim is drawn and quartered by the Hero of the Light
-The Myrkridia overpower the hero and devour him, the Light loses the war
-Mazzarin is born
-Mazzarin founds an order of archmages to fight the Dark, he names them after an ancient order of mages, the Avatara
-Mazzarin falls to the Watcher and disappears from history
-Connacht is born
-It is likely that at some point Ravanna and Dumas are born, possibly also the Deceiver if he is not from the Wolf Age
-Connacht creates the Tain
-Connacht seals away the Myrkridia
-The Trow Empire collapses into war as the slaves rebel with covert human aid
-Connacht breaks the Trow Empire, sealing the Trow under their own melted temples
-The Leveller (called Moagim Reborn) rises to destroy the Light
-Connacht slays the Leveller and becomes Emperor of the Cath Bruig, he leads the world into a golden age

The Wolf Age: (Also known as the Age of Light): 1431 to 2430 AE
- Connacht begins this Age by destroying the Leveller with arcane fire and mixes his ashes with salt (see above)
- Myrdred joins the Avatara
- Connacht walks into the East, searching for a way to permanently break the cycles of Light and Dark
- The Lurker and Bonesplitter are born at some point in this age
- The name Balor is first whispered in the East in 2181 AE
- Balor strikes a deal with the Myrmidons, granting them immortality in twisted forms, they serve as his shock troops in the war that comes
- Balor recruits the Fallen Lords
- The Twenty Years War: The Empire splits as the Province declares independence in 2330 AE
- The Avatara split in the civil war, some supporting the King and others backing the Emperor
- A treaty is signed, the Kings of the Province swear loyalty to the Emperors of the Cath Bruig but they are also granted autonomy and full recognition by the Empire.
- Sages claim that in 2422 AE a darkness was called into the world by the Leveller, some speculate that it was in this year that Balor trapped and bound the Fetch to his cause
- Alric is born
- Alric surrenders his crown to his younger brother and walks into the East, pursuing ancient knowledge
- Balor provides support for the invasion of the Dwarven Kingdom, solidifying his alliance with the ghôls
- Balor declares war on the Cath Bruig, to ensure his success he frees the Trow and they swear fealty to him
- Balor burns Muirthemne with magical fire, the magical vapors poison the heartland of the Empire creating the Barrier
- Balor kills the Emperor and ends the Cath Bruig in 2431 AE
- The Heron Guard throw down their swords and march into exile, taking on the robes of the Journeymen as punishment for their failure
- Culwyeh and Ravanna are destroyed by Myrdred's ploy, Shiver #2 and Nine are the result
- Balor orders the Fallen Lords over the Cloudspine, they are to destroy the Province within the year
- The Forest Giants send support to the King of the Province.
- The Fallen Lords are pushed back by this coalition of men and giants and for three years (2465-67) the armies of the Province hold the Dark at bay along the Cloudspine.
- On the fourth year the Forest Giants disappear and the Dark pushes into the Province, Shiver leading them, terrible in her full power.
- Ou'Kahn and the fir'Bolg ally with King Caliban of the Province, they come too late to save the King.
- The King of the Province and his nobility ride out to meet the Fallen Lord's armies, outside of Covenant. Hundreds of heavy cavalry churn up the earth as they ride
- The Fallen Lords destroy the Royal Army and shatter the only organized military force in the Province
- Soulblighter famously declares victory, "The Light will be extinguished within the year!"
- The Dark sweeps through the south, sacking Scales (Shiver: 2467), Covenant (Soulblighter: 2468) and Tyr (The Watcher: 2471), only the capital of Madrigal remains
- The Avatara take control of what is left of the Province's military. The remaining conscript armies of the Light are not deemed enough to stop the Fallen Lords, the Nine, on Alric's advice, decide that a different approach is needed. They gather together every veteran, mercenary, poacher, trapper, smuggler and farmer they can find. These recruits are trained to operate in small numbers for deep insertion into enemy territory, they become the new fighting force of the Light, the Legion.
- the Berserks, dwarves and Skrael all reach agreements with the new leadership in the Province and commit resources toward the creation of the Legion
- 2476, the fir'Bolg King Ou'Kahn formally allies with the Nine (through Alric) and lends them the full strength of the fir'Bolg armies, fir'Bolg archers join dwarven grenadiers, Berserk and Bruig warriors and the Journeymen within the Legion. They quickly prove their worth.
- The Berserk Truan under the command of Alric raids Muirthemne and recovers some sort of 'wonder weapon' from the ruins, rumour is that it will win the war
- Rabican, one of the Nine, kills Shiver in single combat outside the walls of Madrigal
- The Legion raids Covenant to recover the Total Codex, they claim it mere hours before the Watcher arrives to secure it
- The combined 'Armies of the North' (the fir'Bolg and men of the Free Cities) cut across the north of the Province to prevent the Deceiver from crossing the Cloudspine. They are joined by Rabican and his army from Madrigal while Maeldun's army moves up from the ruins of Scales to support
- Rabican and Maeldun stop the Deceiver's massive host at Seven Gates and Bagrada respectively. The snow comes on thick and many believe that the archmages have bought the Light time to deal with the isolated Watcher, the sole Fallen Lord trapped in the West. This victory is soured by Alric's failure to return west with his soldiers, none know what has happened to the former King of the Province.
- Rumours spread that Alric has been captured by the Deceiver. A secret misson to free the avatara is undertaken by a select force of champions (from what Albrecht tells you something strange happened in the desert east of the Cloudspine but only Alric knows the full truth of it).
- The Nine order the Legion to recover the Watcher's arm at Silvermines. The Watcher marshals his host to stop the Legion as the Deceiver attempts to claim his rival's arm as well. The Legion wins out, spiriting away the arm from a pair of enraged Fallen Lords.
- Tharsis erupts and melts the snow holding back the Deciever's armies.
- The Watcher attacks Rabican, he destroys the Avatara's army and slays Rabican.
- The Watcher catches the Deceiver working against him, the two come to blows as Maeldun moves to try and defeat the Watcher
- The Legionaries carrying the Watcher's arm flee southward
- The Watcher defeats the Deceiver in single combat but Myrdred's escapes the battle, his army broken
- Maeldun secures Seven Gates, pushing the Watcher's forces to the east of the Cloudspine as the seventeenth year of the war comes to a close.
- Cu Roi and Murgen lead the Legion across the mountains, first thing in the spring. They camp at Forest Heart, hoping to entice the Forest Giants to rejoin their cause.
- They are attacked by Soulblighter and his army, currently scouring the forest for a powerful artefact.
- It is said that Soulblighter found the Tain in Forest Heart and imprisoned the Legion within it.
- Cu Roi and Murgen shatter the Tain, dying in the process
- Soulblighter (despite being the only archmage in the area and clearly outclassing his opponents) decides to flee... :negative: ...loser... :lol:
- Civil War breaks out in the west, there are many theories as to why. Henry believed (and wrote in his book) that the Nine recovered an ancient enemy of Balor's from under the ruins of Muirthemne. Henry believed (and Derry believes) that it was this archmage, known only as 'the Head' that betrayed the Nine and began the civil war. Two of the Nine fall fighting the Head and it disappears from history.
-The Deceiver regroups and attacks Maeldun at Seven Gates, the Avatara loses, suffering mortal wounds as his army is broken.
-The Watcher, still enraged, pursues Myrdred all the way to the Stair of Grief. There the Deceiver is ambushed by the remnants of Meadun's army and they cast him into the churning waters of the Dramus River. His scepter sinks to the bottom of the river and he is carried, alone, deep into the mountains.
-The Dark pours into the weakened west and Alric slips into the east to lead the Legion. The remaining two Avatara vow to buy him as much time as they can.
-A dwarven strike-force parachutes into the ruins of Myrgard and proceeds to slaughter the ghôl occupiers. They destroy Crom Cruach the physical representation of one of the great ghôlish gods. With their god 'dead' the ghôls flee and the commandos seize the capital.
- Alric leads the remaining Legionaries north in the summer of 2481.
- The Watcher and Soulblighter move to intercept, leaving Balor's other generals to finish off the Province
- The Watcher attempts to ambush the Legion in the Dire Marsh but Alric turns the Fallen Lord's trap back on him. Using arrows tipped with the Watcher's own bones the Legion petrifies him and cuts him down, breaking his power.
- July 21, 2481: Madrigal falls and the last two Avatara aside from Alric perish. The Free Cities brace themselves as Balor's armies roll, almost unopposed, into the North. Kings Albrecht and Ou'Kahn lead what is left of their people to aid Tandem. The city falls all the same and the Kings along with what is left of the human armies flee to the Ermine.
- Alric confronts Balor at the Trow fortress of Rhi'anon, 2,200 Legionaires stare down an enemy force numbering over 500,000. Mauriac commands the battle for Alric as the Avatara personally challenges the Leveller
- Alric tricks Balor, instead of dueling the Leveler, a fight the Avatara was certain to lose, Alric instead immobilizes him with an Eblis Stone and allows the Legionaries to cut him down.
- Alric sends a small party of Legionaries through a world knot to near the Great Devoid. Their mission is to cast Balor's head into the chasm and dispose of it that way.
- The Legion succeeds in disposing of Balor though they all die to do so.
- Soulblighter (despite outnumbering Alric's survivors over ten to one) decides to flee... :negative: ...LOSER... :lol:
- With the defeat of the Leveller Alric technically breaks the cycle and ushers in the next age.

The Sword Age?: 2431 to present
- Alric becomes King of the Province and starts rebuilding
- The Legion forms the basis for the Province's military
- Albrecht returns eastward with most of his people and starts to rebuild the Kingdom
- The fir'Bolg, 'Blue Caps' and other allies help purge the remaining undead in the west over the course of decades
- Pockets of undead survive in the wild areas of the West and in the ruins of the Cath Bruig to the north east
- The dwarves develop mortars
- Over the next sixty years Soulblighter builds his forces, he resurrects Shiver or at least something like her (Shiver #3), he locates and enlists the Summoner and he undermines the nobility of the southeast, teaching them the secrets of necromancy.
- In 2540 AE he makes his move... or rather he is discovered by a handful of Legionaries and forced into action before they can warn Alric... They still warn Alric.... :negative: ...LOS- well, you get the idea... :lol:
- Shiver leads Soulblighter's armies across the Cloudspine and she sacks Scales, Covenant, Tyr. The Legion seems powerless to stop her.
- Alric, suitably warned, sends his remaining forces north to Tandem, he stays with his rearguard while Madrigal evacuates.
- Shiver attacks Madrigal with an army of Myrkridia, the King of the Province nearly dies in the fighting
- Alric and the army regroup north of the river Meander and stop Shiver from crossing into the lands of the Free Cities.
- Alric sends the Legion to the Stair of Grief and manages to recruit the Deceiver
- The Deceiver, in turn, recruits the Warlocks
- Shiver's army is broken attempting to force a crossing at White Falls, she returns with a new army of Myrkridia mere weeks later
- The Deceiver meets with Trow representatives in the Twelve Duns and wins their service for one year
- Alric, with his new army, storms the city of Muirthemne, reclaiming it from Soulblighter's minions and traitor lords.
- Alric founds the New Cath Bruig Empire
- The journeymen throw down their burdens and once more pick up their swords as the Heron Guard
- The Deceiver leads an expedition into the Tain to find the Summoner and kill him, cutting off Soulblighter's source of soldiers
- The Deceiver succeeds and launches an impromptu attack on Soulblighter, but Soulblighter summons up some sort of giant elemental beast and defeats Myrdred, capturing him.
- Soulblighter then decides to leave one of his most cunning enemies alive and in a poorly defended cell... yeah... don't even have to say it. :negative:
- Mydred is freed by the Legion and manages to cripple Soulblighter who, in turn, flees.
- Shiver, meanwhile, crushes all resistance in the west and returns east to help Soulblighter deal with Alric and Myrdred.
- Shiver, with the Myrkridia, and Alric, with the Legion, fight in the shadow of the dammed river Ire. Soulblighter attempts to breach the dam as they battle, no doubt realizing that Alric, the Deceiver and Shiver are all much more competent than he is and must be removed... he fails... :lol:
- Shiver and Myrdred duel one another and it is commonly believed that both died in the confrontation. Most mages however are unconvinced. The way they see it, when one of the combatants has already died twice and the other is the Deceiver you can not take anything for granted. ;)
- Alric corners Soulblighter on the slopes of Tharsis, breaks the Fallen Lord's army and then takes his life, casting him into the magma at the heart of the volcano.

A year passed, with Emperor Alric rebuilding the world and that brings us to the start of the CYOA and all the events that have happened within it.

Karwelas said:
Another thing about Mazz that make me bit my tongue - how he looks after we 'repaired' him?

Derry likes to make fun of him and is not the most objective judge when everything is considered, but in truth he is quite attractive.

As far as proportions go he could be a textbook specimen as he is quite handsome but about average when it comes to height, build and the like. He is not a giant of a man like the Watcher or Balor but he is not a 'stick-figure' either like Myrdred. There are a few descriptions of him back when you revived him (in, 'Blood for the Blood God?', I believe).

Grimgravy said:
Proinnséas (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Copper Coin - Missing, Status Unknown

Was this guy turned into a coin or is that an occupation I don't recognize?

He is a mage and the Circle he serves divides its members up into different ranks like most do. He is of junior or 'copper' rank. The Circle is called the 'Keys to the Kingdom' or simply the 'Keys' to their friends, to their enemies they are known as 'those bastards that robbed me!'

They are merchants, thieves and explorers but all are mages and they will sell or do just about everything for the right price. Henry has made use of them several times, Proinnséas was his contact with them. They are quite skilled but not to be trusted, however they are quite 'honest' about how untrustworthy they are so most that deal with them know what they are signing up for.
 
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Karwelas

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By the way, Fangshi. What we may know about 'Jack Spring'? Robin is interesting person. Heh. Maybe in deep future we could send some agents to check who from missing are still alive and contact those who are confirmed.

And, if it isn't too much problem, I would ask for some detalis about those who are alive on list.
 

Nevill

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If Robin isn't Cropper or one of his buddies, I am going to raise an eyebrow.

No wonder Finn is so pushy, his lieutenants get around more than he does. Must be hard on a self-styled womanizer. :lol:

Hm. If we are 'Mazzarin's daughters', does that mean that Cousin Cropper is his nephew? Something tells me the mage didn't think this one through. :lol:
 
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Nevill

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Do I sense a Soulblighter bias? I definitely sense a Soulblighter bias!

Poor old Dummy, he never catches a break.
- Soulblighter (despite being the only archmage in the area and clearly outclassing his opponents) decides to flee... :negative: ...loser... :lol:
There were about four and a half thousands of Legion soldiers trapped in the artefact. That might not be exactly a fight worth having for anyone who is not Mazzarin, and Sally was not Mazzarin by a long shot.

And if 5 thousands soldiers are nothing before an archmage, why does Mazzarin tell us he'll be here for a week and waste an entire day with us instead of flying over to Stoneheim (1 hour), killing the exactly 5 thousands strong army there (1 hour), and then going on his business like usual? I mean, not that there are many archmages there either.

Does he like us that much? :oops:

- Soulblighter then decides to leave one of his most cunning enemies alive and in a poorly defended cell... yeah... don't even have to say it. :negative:
You mean, just like his chap The Deceiver did with Alric after capturing him? If you can be freed by 5 'normal' people, heroes or not, you may as well have been unguarded.

He was no worse than the rest of them, and by the end of it, the only one who amounted to a threat after Balor was gone.

Just look at how hard his bud The Watcher is failing with his 'campaign'. Speaking of which...

- You are trapped. Furious at your rival. You stand in the dark of your cave. You plot, you rage, eventually you begin to chew at your own imprisoned arm.
- "We were two days in that tunnel out of Covenant, The Watcher crossing above us every few hours, shaking the ground in his fury and twice nearly burying us alive."
- The Watcher marshals his host to stop the Legion as the Deceiver attempts to claim his rival's arm as well. The Legion wins out, spiriting away the arm from a pair of enraged Fallen Lords.
- The Watcher, still enraged, pursues Myrdred all the way to the Stair of Grief.
Does the man feel anything other than rage? He must have entered a state of permanent butthurt by now.
 
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Fangshi

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Karwelas said:
By the way, Fangshi. What we may know about 'Jack Spring'?

Next to nothing. There are thousands of little local/regional faiths out there worshiping all sorts of spirits/'gods'/saints and the like along with a whole bunch of people and things pretending to be gods/spirits/etc.

As far as Derryth knows this 'Jack Spring' is only worshiped in that particular village and nowhere else.

She can guess at the details though, that is not difficult. He (or it) is a harvest deity and a fertility deity (the two being fairly close most of the time anyway). The peasants probably pray to him twice a year in spring and autumn (or maybe four times years, that is also a possibility).

Devotions are made through feasting, drinking, dancing and general debauchery.

Derryth doubts that the god actually exists, at least not as a god. In a lot of cases these sorts of religions tend to be started by mortals for their own pleasure and they get perpetuated for much the same reason. The festivals allow the peasants to relax, have fun, break social taboos and blame it all on a god when they wake up the next morning in bed with someone else's wife/husband/etc.

Harmless fun, well, except when it isn't.

Karwelas said:
And, if it isn't too much problem, I would ask for some detalis about those who are alive on list.

Sure:

Abi - Just an Imperial dwarf that Henry would see whenever he needed something made in Madrigal. Need a helmet to protect your head from loose masonry? See Abi. Need some gauntlets to shield your hands from corrosive traps? See Abi. And so on. Her prices are high and she does not offer discounts, she says it would be an insult to the items she makes... she is probably right. Derry and Henry put her armour through absolute hell and though they would inevitably, eventually, break it, it still held up remarkably well.

Owena, 'The Tempestuous Tyrant' - An old colleague of Henry's, or maybe she was a rival, actually, she could have been an enemy of his, hell, maybe she was all three. Henry would always go to see her alone and he never seemed to want to do it, but, she would always give him what he needed. Spell components, information, strange elixirs, you name it. Derry has never met her but from what Derry understands she is fairly powerful, much more powerful than Henry ever was which is why it was so strange that Owena would always help him.

Erc - Leixan have a certain reputation, thieves, scoundrels, smugglers, pirates, general ne'er-do-wells. Erc lived down to all the stereotypes, he would probably knife his own mother if the pay was good enough, or at least he always insisted he would. There are only two things Erc refused to do, the first was an honest day's labour and the second was support the government. You could never trust Erc but if you needed to break the law in or around the Tyrian coast then you could do far worse than him.

Nyle - A sailor. Good man, works hard, makes far too little. He never asked questions and was great with a club. Henry would hire him for a bit of muscle whenever Nyle was between jobs.

Don - In a world where most people can not find a mandrake root, let alone prepare it for a healing spell, there will always be a need for barber surgeons. Don is fairly good at his craft and has a large clientele. He knows a lot of people and he knows the right people. If you need to find a buyer for a stolen artifact, well, he probably knows a guy that knows a guy that can help you out. Provided you pay of course. He also buys and sells more mundane equipment, not all of it acquired honestly.

Quinn & Mave - See my earlier post

Faoiltiarna - One of the few Imperials to take up residence in the Free Cities. She runs the Cock and Hound, a simple, unassuming inn for weary travelers. She is also one of the best smugglers along the northern coast with contacts from the Deep Mire to Madrigal. Henry uses her just like everyone else who knows a thing or two about the 'Free North'. She expects to be paid up front and paid well, she does not bargain but she also rarely fails.

Payton - One of many 'hedge wizards' that dot the Empire. Henry has made use of her magical abilities from time to time. She has a firm grasp of local legends, superstitions and the like and knows the region around Willow like few others. Derry liked her, direct, to the point, not one to dwell on formality as a person might expect form a woman that lives in a thatched hut in the middle of nowhere.

Ian, Madb, Old Ren - You have already met those three.

Nevill said:
Hm. If we are 'Mazzarin's daughters', does that mean that Cousin Cropper is his nephew? Something tells me the mage didn't think this one through. :lol:

More like something half way between slave and dinner actually. ;)

Nevill said:
Do I sense a Soulblighter bias? I definitely sense a Soulblighter bias!

I don't recall ever denying it. :cool:

Nevill said:
There were about four and a half thousands of Legion soldiers trapped in the artefact. That might not be exactly a fight worth having for anyone who is not Mazzarin, and Sally was not Mazzarin by a long shot.

He had an army! He is still a coward. :smug:

Nevill said:
And if 5 thousands soldiers are nothing before an archmage, why does Mazzarin tell us he'll be here for a week and waste an entire day with us instead of flying over to Stoneheim (1 hour), killing the exactly 5 thousands strong army there (1 hour), and then going on his business like usual? I mean, not that there are many archmages there either.

Does he like us that much? :oops:

He can't help himself.

Nevill said:
You mean, just like his chap The Deceiver did with Alric after capturing him? If you can be freed by 5 'normal' people, heroes or not, you may as well have been unguarded.

To which I would reply there is a difference between being having an elite team of heroes break your prisoner out in a daring, once-in-a-lifetime raid on the one hand, and having your own prisoners free themselves, slaughter your minions, break their fellows out of prison (including your rival) and then let them cripple you for good measure on the other.

Both are failures but only one of them is -----> :negative:

Nevill said:
He was no worse than the rest of them, and by the end of it, the only one who amounted to a threat after Balor was gone.

He did not do anything though.

Shiver sacked every city in the West.
The Summoner raised up the Myrkridia.

All Soulblighter did was:
1. Fail to kill a few Legionaries
2. Fail to retake Muirthemne
3. Fail to drown Alric, Myrdred and Shiver
4. Fail to blow up the world

And that was just when he was in charge, when he was working for Balor he:
5. Failed to stop the Legion at Forest Heart
6. Failed to stop the Legion from destroying the Watcher
7. Failed to catch Alric in the east
8. Failed to stop the destruction of Balor


About the only thing he did that you can call a success is that he sacked Covenant once.

Now all of the others failed as well, often in hilarious ways, but only Soulblighter was a complete failure.

Nevill said:
Just look at how hard his bud Watcher is failing with his 'campaign'.

Well, Balor was the brains of the whole operation. :lol:

But alright, how about this, the Watcher will formally challenge D&T to a magical duel! Do you accept?

And no, dad Mazzarin can't do it for you. :smug:

Nevill said:
Does the man feel anything other than rage?

No, of course not. Thousands of years of failure will do that to a person.
 
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Nevill

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He had an army! He is still a coward. :smug:
Oh yeah. He was nothing like us!
You grin at her, "I am being cautious, not paranoid, it is how you stay alive in this business."

"Coward," she hums.

"Coward," Nine chimes in from her cushion, "I would try it dear..."
[...]
You and Thaïs stand there in silence as Nine begins to cackle, "I can't believe you actually did that dear! Are you completely mad, you have no idea what those things do!"
So what if a thousand years old artefact shatters in your hands and releases whatever trapped inside? :lol:

:negative:

To which I would reply there is a difference between being having an elite team of heroes break you prisoner out in a daring, once-in-a-lifetime raid on the one hand, and having your own prisoners free themselves, slaughter your minions, break their fellows out of prison (including your rival) and then let them cripple you for good measure on the other.
By themselves? I distinctly remember them having a bit of help.


And as for crippling, that is what you get for bringing a knife to a gunfight. Don't ever challenge someone who is calling himself The Deceiver to a mage duel when you are a lousy mage, I suppose. :lol:

He did not do anything though.

Shiver sacked every city in the West.
The Summoner raised up the Myrkridia.
Which would not have happened without Sally.

Recovering Shivvy and Sammy are among his successes. You are just attributing all the defeats to him, but never the victories. Bias!

But alright, how about this, the Watcher will formally challenge D&T to a magical duel! Do you accept?
Of course. As soon as he climbs out of his grave and comes to a place of our choosing.

Which would not happen in the near future, I think. :lol:

No, of course not. Thousands of years of failure will do that to a person.
Of failure to do what? What is it that he even tries to achieve?
 

Fangshi

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Nevill said:
So what if a thousand years old artefact shatters in your hands and releases whatever trapped inside? :lol:

Exactly, he was a coward, should have stood his ground like a real man.

Nevill said:
By themselves? I distinctly remember them having a bit of help.

Yeah, Myrdred's minions were everywhere. That just goes to show how little control Soulblighter had over his own army. The man was a figurehead and that is about it.

Nevill said:
Which would not have happened without Sally.

Alright, I stand corrected, he did three things right in his life, impressive. :salute:

Like I said, total failure. :cool:

Nevill said:
Of course. As soon as he climbs out of his grave and comes to a place of our choosing.

Which would not happen in the near future, I think. :lol:

:smug:

Nevill said:
Of failure to do what? What is it that he even tries to achieve?

He is trying to find love annihilate all life on the planet, obviously.
 

Karwelas

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Hmm... Fangshi, I have a kind of weird request. We have a list of our specialists (armour and weapon makers, inventors and people like that), materials, buildings? I know this is a bit long thing to make , but I have big idea and without it... Well. I can't make it. ;)
 

Fangshi

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Karwelas said:
Hmm... Fangshi, I have a kind of weird request. We have a list of our specialists (armour and weapon makers, inventors and people like that), materials, buildings? I know this is a bit long thing to make , but I have big idea and without it... Well. I can't make it. ;)

Hmmm, most of the people you have are soldiers and mercenaries. They have combat skills and survival skills but they do not practice trades.

The only real exception is the Boys mercenary company, they were mostly labourers and tradesmen before they lost everything and became mercenaries. So there will likely be masons, weavers, etc among them but you do not know how many of each you have. Mayer is dealing with that, along with your Blackrock people, so you will need to contact them if you want more information.
 

Nevill

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But alright, how about this, the Watcher will formally challenge D&T to a magical duel! Do you accept?

And no, dad Mazzarin can't do it for you. :smug:
Well, to be honest, we would not accept a duel from Soulblighter either.

Hell, we did not even accept the duel request from TWM. :lol: Duels are stupid.

But I guess I can respect them as a useful tool to weed the old-fashioned archmages out. :smug:
 

Kz3r0

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I realized that Soulblighter is the greatest of them all, though sheer feigned(?) incompetence he managed to annihilate almost all the Archmages around.
 

Nevill

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Why are several people on the list of contacts who are missing are listed as 'presumed dead', while others are at a 'status unkknown'? What is it that makes us think that the former are dead?

Barri (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Mercenary - Missing, Status unknown
Donn (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Fence - Missing, Status unknown
I am interested about these guys. What sort of connection did we have with them?

Generally I am interested in adventurers, mercenaries, smugglers, hawt women and shopkeepers. People who we could hire or otherwise use in our trade. Someone with a certain reputation, the ones we know what to expect of them.

Ea (M) [Human] {Imperial} - Fellow of the Royal Academy, Chair of Luggite Mentalism - Missing, presumed dead
Felix (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Instructor at Amser's Finishing Academy, Disciple of Ogmios - Missing, Status unknown
What are the Royal and Amser's Finishing Academies, what is a 'Chair of Luggite Mentalism', and who is Ogmios?

Who are these guys, former colleagues? Do the magic academies have contact between each other? I mean, it is normal for scientific establishments in real life, but then again, those usually advocate the freedom of knowledge.

How often it is that an academy is affiliated with different magical circles?

Owena, 'The Tempestuous Tyrant' (F) [Human] {Imperial} - Headmistress, Llŷr's College - Living
What is Llŷr's College?

Derry understands she is fairly powerful, much more powerful than Henry ever was which is why it was so strange that Owena would always help him.
How powerful is she? My understanding is that we ourselves are much more powerful than Henry by now.

Erc (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Pirate/Smuggler - Living
[...]
Leixan have a certain reputation, thieves, scoundrels, smugglers, pirates, general ne'er-do-wells.
Wait, Leixans? Is the Isle inhabited for the word to even exist?

Garrett (M) [Human] {Imperial} - 'Fixer' - Missing, Status unknown
What is a fixer? It does not help that I have finished the Shadowrun campaign only recently. :)

Margaid (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Free Spellwright - Missing, presumed dead
What is a 'Spellwright'?

Conri (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Hunter - Missing, Status unknown
Some of these connections baffle me. What would we need from a hunter in Covenant of all places?

Vanessa, 'Lady of Scales' (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Gentlewoman explorer/adventurer - Missing, Status unknown
More details on her would be welcome. How did she get her nickname?

Is she a gentlewoman in the same sense that Ceannard is a gentleman? :lol:

Leix: Harbour Master, Innkeeper/'Importer', Smuggler etc
Wait, it is definitely inhabited to have a harbour or even an inn. But...
That little island in the south west corner of the map is known as Leix and is currently abandoned though it is technically part of the Empire. It was home to the pirates of Leix who were massacred by the Avatara Maeldun around 2458. As far as anyone knows, no one currently inhabits the island.
Do we know something the general populace doesn't? ;)

Ruarc (M) [Human] {Leixan} - Mercenary Spellweaver - Missing,presumed dead
Is 'Spellweaver' a fancy way to say 'mage', or is it something different?

Avon's Grove:
Meara (F) [Human] {Provencal} - Mayor - Missing, Status unknown
Seán (M) [Human] {Provencal} - Retired Adventurer/Fletcher/Hunter - Missing, Status unknown
Anyone in Avon's Grove who had contact with Fir'Bolg or permission to enter Ermine?

The Free Cities of the North:
The death toll is quite high, even if you exclude all the military elements.

Did Tandem fall during the war? I recall no mention of it, though Alric eventually left it for Muirthemne. I was under the impression that Sally and Shivvy followed him there, leaving the Free Cities relatively intact.

Ide, of the Grey Waters (F) [Human] {Blue Cap} - Court Mage to the Duke of Tandem - Missing,presumed dead
What is the government system in the Free Cities, again? Also, where do we know their court mages from?

What are the responsibilities of such a mage?

What is, or are, the 'Grey Waters'?

If one needs to find a certain person in the Empire, how would they go about it short of following their trail manually from their last known location? Is there a population census or something like that, some centralized bureaucratic apparatus that keeps tabs on the citizens?
 
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Nevill

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4. The Countess

The female necromancer you encountered at the Palace.

She headed south with a strong escort weeks ago and has not been seen since. She is likely at the Watcher's main compound wherever that is.
When Finn made his report to the Great Mage, did he mention The Countess? Is the mage aware of her existence, her pregnancy, the Watcher's protectiveness of her, the potential ramifications of all this as well as of the existence of the Watcher's secret hideout/main compound?

I am toying with the idea of Mazzy capturing and/or mindhacking and/or otherwise interrogating the Beast to get the location of the last Watcher's stronghold and have it removed.

We have a whole week! :cool:

Also, it is probably the only thing that the mage might find remotely challenging in the whole campaign.

Supposedly the Sliver is not doing well, it is being opposed by two separate groups.
[...]
Of the second group less is known but they seem to be based out of Gower and have some serious power behind them.
What do we know about Gower and its politics?
 
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Karwelas

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Nev. I think we have the same idea... what you (everyone, not only Nev! Write something, sometimes! Sometimes I feel only Nevill play the game. It really don't hurt and at least I'm always interested in good ideas!) think about making a network of spys and smugglers all around the towns to get information from them?

It would really help us in... every kind of thing. After we deal (or should I say... if) with Watcher we probably will have next big problem - Brannons (Oh, whatever you write that), Spider Queen and god know what more. We should start to make up our own network of informants and spys. We must make ground for game ready to our moves.
 

Azira

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Yeah. Not having strong feelings about these votes, except that I also think we should play this for maximum effect.
I'll back whatever Nevill's voting. :salute:
 

Fangshi

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Karwelas said:
Damn, I forget about Mayer. He is our man for everything involving trade, normal jobs and shit?

He can be, most anything you could want done in the Kingdom he could probably arrange, there may be a cost associated with it though.

Nevill said:
Why are several people on the list of contacts who are missing are listed as 'presumed dead', while others are at a 'status unknown'? What is it that makes us think that the former are dead?

Deduction or judgement.

Some of the people on the list are easy to find (some are even public figures), when Derry made inquiries they could not be easily found and they should be easily found. So she assumes they are mostly dead.

Other people on the list were hard enough to find even before the war, she is not ready to write them off until she sees a body.

Nevill said:
I am interested about these guys. What sort of connection did we have with them?

Barri was a mean little dwarf, refused to talk about his past, refused to go back to the Kingdom, drank a lot too, but, he was fearless and had no problem breaking just about any laws Henry needed broken. Henry would employ him if a job required violence with little subtlety, grave robbing usually though sometime he went after living targets as well.

Donn was quite possibly the most cowardly fence you have ever met. The man would jump at his own shadow and a strong breeze would set him cowering with fear. Donn was also quite greedy and smart enough to pick his partners well. Henry would move a lot of the relics he found in the Madrigal area through Donn, he usually got a good price for them too.

Nevill said:
What are the Royal and Amser's Finishing Academies, what is a 'Chair of Luggite Mentalism', and who is Ogmios?

They are unaffiliated magical academies. The first is state run, the second is privately owned.

It is a position at the academy, the equivalent of a professorship, in this case it relates to mentalism and the teachings of the 'hero'/'god' Lugus.

Ogmios is a god, one dedicated to persuasion and subtler forms of force.

Nevill said:
Who are these guys, former colleagues? Do the magic academies have contact between each other? I mean, it is normal for scientific establishments in real life, but then again, those usually advocate the freedom of knowledge.

Former colleagues, Derry thinks. Henry was not the most open person when it came to that part of his life. They always treated her well when she came into contact with them but she found Ea a bit unsettling and Felix always seemed to be enjoying his own private joke, she often got the idea that it was at her expense.

Yes, magic academies can have contact with each other. Usually in the form of assassination, bribery, theft and the like.

Nevill said:
How often it is that an academy is affiliated with different magical circles?

Depends on the academy, it is about as common as not and any academy that is either affiliated or unaffiliated can have multiple connections with different groups or organizations (50/25/25 : Circle run/Circle affiliated/Unaffiliated).

Nevill said:
What is Llŷr's College?

A magical academy. One affiliate with the Circles, namely with the Sisters of Silent Repose, the Brothers of Steel Striking Stone, the Twice Twisted Chain, the Astromancers of the Winding Wood, and the Crooked Man and his brood.

Nevill said:
How powerful is she? My understanding is that we ourselves are much more powerful than Henry by now.

You don't know, people say powerful and she does run an academy, you have to be strong to do that.

Nevill said:
Wait, Leixans? Is the Isle inhabited for the word to even exist?

Leix was wiped out a generation ago during the Great War for betraying the cause of the Province but there are still descendants of the people of Leix around. Many make up the criminal element along the cost, to few to reestablish their city though.

Nevill said:
What is a fixer? It does not help that I have finished the Shadowrun campaign only recently. :)

A tinkerer of men's lives. Is your wife cheating on you? Is your employee blackmailing you? Have you be robbed? Have you been wronged? Find yourself a fixer and pay the right price, they will fix the problem, fix you, it usually takes a bit of blood to do it though.

He was something between a private investigator, hired muscle and an outright criminal but he always managed to avoid serious run-ins with the law. Henry would use him for investigative work mostly and there were few that were better.

Nevill said:
What is a 'Spellwright'?

A person that builds custom spells. You tell them what you need, they tell you what materials they require and how much time and money it will cost. Then they go from there.

They are not cheap but Henry made use of her services when neccesary, when he needed a scroll or a spell that he could not figure out on his own.

Nevill said:
Some of these connections baffle me. What would we need from a hunter in Covenant of all places?

When you make a living as a grave robber treasure hunter there are times you need to move about without raising suspicions. A great way to do that is to find a person that knows the countryside and get them to lead you through any trouble you may have found. A hunter knows the landscape and knows how to move quietly, often just what Henry needed going to and from rather, ah, private locations.

Nevill said:
More details on her would be welcome. How did she get her nickname?

Is she a gentlewoman in the same sense that Ceannard is a gentleman? :lol:

Quite possibly, yes. :lol:

Her background is the stuff of drunken tales around the tavern fireplace and that is clearly the way she liked to keep it. It is not that she would not talk about her past, it is just that you know for a certainty she was lying every time she did it. Henry and her were kindred spirits, they both like to drink, they both loved adventure and neither of them had much time for rules and the like.

She was something of an 'aunt' to Derry and the two got along quite well on the few jobs they did together.

Of course I know what you really want to know... yes, she was a 9. :negative:

Nevill said:
Wait, it is definitely inhabited to have a harbour or even an inn. But...

Harbour is a nice term for it. A more accurate description would probably be, 'small, hidden bay filled with pirate, smugglers, murderers, fugitives and the cast-offs of human civilization'. Henry knew where it was on the island and so Derry does, the two of them had to hide their once for a month after offending the wrong noble family. The pirate den has a population of maybe two hundred at any given time and the Imperial Navy would love to find out where they are hiding so that they could put an end to Leix all over again.

Nevill said:
Do we know something the general populace doesn't? ;)

You know something that the government of the Province does not know, yes.

Nevill said:
Is 'Spellweaver' a fancy way to say 'mage', or is it something different?

They are mages but they are a special sort of mages. They are something like enchanters only they deal exclusively in cloth. They weave spells into the garments they make and Henry used to stop by Ruarc's place to gossip and gather information on Ruarc's many clients. Ruarc owed no real loyalty to anyone and as long as Henry was discrete, paid well and ensured that none of what Ruarc told him would ever be traced back to the Spellweaver he was more than willing to give Henry leads on powerful artefacts.

Ruarc is considered a mercenary because he left his Circle, he used to take on contracts with other powerful groups to protect him from retribution by the other Spellweavers.

Nevill said:
Anyone in Avon's Grove who had contact with Fir'Bolg or permission to enter Ermine?

Seán has had contact, usually hostile contact since he does not have permission to enter the Ermine.

Other than that, no. Negotiations are always carried out at a level well above that of the peasants of Avon's Grove. And you need to go to Madrigal or Muirthemne to get permission to enter the Ermine.

Nevill said:
Did Tandem fall during the war? I recall no mention of it, though Alric eventually left it for Muirthemne. I was under the impression that Sally and Shivvy followed him there, leaving the Free Cities relatively intact.

Yes, Tandem and all of the Free Cities were sacked by Shiver during Soulblighter's War. She crushed all resistance in the West with her army of Myrkridia before she was recalled by Soulblighter and sent in pursuit of Alric and the Legion.

Nevill said:
What is the government system in the Free Cities, again? Also, where do we know their court mages from?

They are self-governing city states that operate under the protection of the Emperor and pay taxes to him.

Henry knew her from his days as a respected member of the magical community. She seemed nice the two times you met her, very polite, but every now and then, when Henry was not looking, she would give him a look that spoke of pity and sorrow.

Naturally you never did get Henry to tell you what happened to him before he met you, maybe it was simply to embarrassing or too important of a secret, or maybe it had something to do with your 2 CHA... :lol:

Nevill said:
What are the responsibilities of such a mage?

Protect the Ducal throne, and do whatever your employer wants.

Nevill said:
What is, or are, the 'Grey Waters'?

They refer to the constantly stormy waters off the coast to the north of Tandem. Some say that the spirits that drowned when old Yer-Ks sank do not rest, that an entire Kingdom of shadows live on, furious at the mortal world, and that their hate manifests as the storms that wrack the coast.

Nevill said:
If one needs to find a certain person in the Empire, how would they go about it short of following their trail manually from their last known location? Is there a population census or something like that, some centralized bureaucratic apparatus that keeps tabs on the citizens?

There was a population census in the offices at Madrigal but it would not be accurate anymore. It will take an army of bureaucrats and likely several years for the Empire to stabilize and a new census to be taken.

At the moment you need to follow word of mouth and ask around.

Nevill said:
When Finn made his report to the Great Mage, did he mention The Countess? Is the mage aware of her existence, her pregnancy, the Watcher's protectiveness of her, the potential ramifications of all this as well as of the existence of the Watcher's secret hideout/main compound?

Finn simply told him about the enemy armies in the region and that the Beast was besieging Stoneheim, that is all.

Nevill said:
What do we know about Gower and its politics?

Not a lot, most people ignore Gower, it is a poor country, a frontier country. It was founded by settlers and malcontents from the Old Cath Bruig and the Berserk lands, as a result Gowermen are a mixture of Berserk and Bruig in most things.

From what you have read, Gower is dotted with tiny farming villages that cluster around hill forts, when threatened the local peasants flee to the wooden forts of their lord, sometimes this helps them, sometimes it does not.

The country is ruled by a Marcher Lord, all supposedly descended of the same bloodline. The current ruler simply calls herself Tywysoges, it is a title, meaning ruler, not a name. She also rarely receives guests.
 

Nevill

Arcane
Joined
Jun 6, 2009
Messages
11,211
Shadorwun: Hong Kong
Barri was a mean little dwarf, refused to talk about his past, refused to go back to the Kingdom, drank a lot too, but, he was fearless and had no problem breaking just about any laws Henry needed broken. Henry would employ him if a job required violence with little subtlety, grave robbing usually though sometime he went after living targets as well.
Why would Henry need to send someone like that after living targets? Did he have many enemies?

Did we ever get into serious trouble with the law enforcers?

They are unaffiliated magical academies. The first is state run, the second is privately owned.
The unaffiliated state run academy? Now that is interesting.

What does Derry think about it? Why would Alric need them? Or is it not of his doing?

Fellow of the Royal Academy
Is 'fellow' the equivalent of the 'professor', too? What do you need to get professorship status?

A thought occured to me. Who writes the books like the Elemental Tome we have sitting in Mayer's stash, and for what purpose? Mages would not want to create more mages, and the academies do not want their knowledge spread, either.

Yes, magic academies can have contact with each other. Usually in the form of assassination, bribery, theft and the like.
Which is why I find it highly unusual that Henry knows so many people from so many different universities. Did Derry ever suspect that he may be a part of some secret society or something? :lol:

Did we ever open the "Compendium of the Dreaming", or did we not find time for it yet?

Depends on the academy, it is about as common as not and any academy that is either affiliated or unaffiliated can have multiple connections with different groups or organizations (50/25/25 : Circle run/Circle affiliated/Unaffiliated).
How? I mean, how does that work? You have multiple Circles opposing each other, and you have them all teaching in the same academy? How do they prevent class-on-class wars when there is so much conflict of interest?

A person that builds custom spells. You tell them what you need, they tell you what materials they require and how much time and money it will cost. Then they go from there.

They are not cheap but Henry made use of her services when neccesary, when he needed a scroll or a spell that he could not figure out on his own.
How cheap is 'not cheap', exactly? Just an example of the spells Henry ordered and the prices he paid.

How much would it cost to prepare an offensive spell of approximately 5th level, if we go by the earlier classification (a destructive spell on the same level with Greater Bolts)?

How wealthy was Henry on average, and in his better days?

Quite possibly, yes. :lol:
Poor girl. :( :lol:

Of course I know what you really want to know... yes, she was a 9.
Your understanding is appreciated. :salute:

Harbour is a nice term for it. A more accurate description would probably be, 'small, hidden bay filled with pirate, smugglers, murderers, fugitives and the cast-offs of human civilization'. Henry knew where it was on the island and so Derry does, the two of them had to hide their once for a month after offending the wrong noble family.
And how did they ensure their own safety? Is harbour master that high of a position to grant that to a pair of outsiders?

Other than that, no. Negotiations are always carried out at a level well above that of the peasants of Avon's Grove. And you need to go to Madrigal or Muirthemne to get permission to enter the Ermine.
Wait, why would anyone get permission to enter Ermine somewhere that is nowhere near Ermine?

Do Fir'Bolg really not allow anyone in to the point that you have to contact humans to try and enter? That is some new degree of isolationism.

So if we had to guess... are the Fir'Bolg we see in the cities (Letta's, for example) outcasts or something? Can they enter Ermine at will?

Are Fir'Bolg allowed to bring outsiders with them?

They are self-governing city states that operate under the protection of the Emperor and pay taxes to him.
Each ruled by a Duke or are they all different?

What is the history behind them, anyway? Why haven't they become a part of Cath Bruig or Province by now?

From what you have read, Gower is dotted with tiny farming villages that cluster around hill forts, when threatened the local peasants flee to the wooden forts of their lord, sometimes this helps them, sometimes it does not.
What are the usual threats? Ghols? Undead? Myrkridia?

Finn simply told him about the enemy armies in the region and that the Beast was besieging Stoneheim, that is all.
All right, I suppose we should keep that in mind and warn him about it... sometime later. ;)
 

Fangshi

Arcane
Joined
Jan 9, 2014
Messages
1,997
Nevill said:
Why would Henry need to send someone like that after living targets? Did he have many enemies?

He had enough enemies.

Nevill said:
Did we ever get into serious trouble with the law enforcers?

Nothing too serious, had to skip town a few times, go into hiding every now and then.

Nevill said:
The unaffiliated state run academy? Now that is interesting.

What does Derry think about it? Why would Alric need them? Or is it not of his doing?

I suppose it could be interesting.

She does not think much at all about it, just another academy only the Emperor pays the checks.

Maybe Alric wants a few more mages loyal to him? Who knows, Derry certainly doesn't.

He did not found it but he does fund it.

Nevill said:
Is 'fellow' the equivalent of the 'professor', too? What do you need to get professorship status?

More or less, yes.

Know the right people and ask for the job/be asked to take the job.

Nevill said:
Who writes the books like the Elemental Tome we have sitting in Mayer's stash, and for what purpose? Mages would not want to create more mages, and the academies do not want their knowledge spread, either.

Must have been someone who does not agree that knowledge should be horded. You do not know about the history of the book so you can not say beyond that.

Nevill said:
Which is why I find it highly unusual that Henry knows so many people from so many different universities. Did Derry ever suspect that he may be a part of some secret society or something? :lol:

Did we ever open the "Compendium of the Dreaming", or did we not find time for it yet?

Derryth tried to explore Henry's past but, well, 2 CHA. Before you met Taide you pretty much failed every social encounter you wound up in.

Nevill said:
How? I mean, how does that work? You have multiple Circles opposing each other, and you have them all teaching in the same academy? How do they prevent class-on-class wars when there is so much conflict of interest?

None of the Circles are rich enough or powerful enough to have their own school. They can either work together and split the new recruits or they can fight each other and get absolutely no new recruits.

Like all things with Circles they follow their own interests. That does not mean that fights don't occur though, sometimes people disappear, sometimes they die, but the Headmasters of the academies tend to be the most powerful mages in the facilities, if they decide you are causing too much trouble they will remove you and that goes a long way toward maintaining order.

Nevill said:
How cheap is 'not cheap', exactly? Just an example of the spells Henry ordered and the prices he paid.

He wanted a mentalist spell that would only react to the memories of a particular mage, when the active spell came within range of the target it wiped their mind. Serious magic. It cost 1500WPs and six months to make.

Nevill said:
How much would it cost to prepare an offensive spell of approximately 5th level, if we go by the earlier classification (a destructive spell on the same level with Greater Bolts)?

To create something like a greater bolt would probably run you about 350WPs or so, it would depend on the specifics.

Nevill said:
How wealthy was Henry on average, and in his better days?

On his richest day he was worth about 4000WPs all told, most of the time though he owed money, a fair bit of it as well. It never seemed to bother him.

Nevill said:
And how did they ensure their own safety? Is harbour master that high of a position to grant that to a pair of outsiders?

It is if he liked you.

Nevill said:
Wait, why would anyone get permission to enter Ermine somewhere that is nowhere near Ermine?

Do Fir'Bolg really not allow anyone in to the point that you have to contact humans to try and enter? That is some new degree of isolationism.

You need the protection of the Emperor to wander the Ermine, his seal, in theory, will give you the right to go where you please.

Also, keep in mind that up until the Great War the fir'Bolg were at war with all humans...

Nevill said:
So if we had to guess... are the Fir'Bolg we see in the cities (Letta's, for example) outcasts or something? Can they enter Ermine at will?

As a guess, they are probably not outcasts and they probably can return at will.

Nevill said:
Are Fir'Bolg allowed to bring outsiders with them?

You have no idea.

Nevill said:
Each ruled by a Duke or are they all different?

They are all different.

Nevill said:
What is the history behind them, anyway? Why haven't they become a part of Cath Bruig or Province by now?

Well it wasn't for lack of trying but the Blue Caps are notoriously hard to rule and they don't have much that the Emperor or King would actually want. It is easier to just leave them to themselves and collect tribute twice yearly.

Nevill said:
What are the usual threats? Ghols? Undead? Myrkridia?

Throw in Trow, mauls, drought and famine and you would have a good idea of what they deal with.

Gower is a hard land for hard people.
 

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