Inspiration in the 24th Century

Fourplay

Little David tagged me with the latest meme making its rounds in the gay blogosphere, so here goes nothin’:

Four jobs I have had in my life

dishwasher
telemarketer
messenger
paralegal (and still am. I think this is my life’s calling.)

Four movies I could watch over and over

All About Eve
Witness for the Prosecution (the one with Marlene Dietrich and Charles Laughton)
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Big Night

Four places I have lived

Manila, the Philippines
Wyreka, California
Jersey City, New Jersey
Bayonne, New Jersey

Four TV shows that I watch*

*since I don’t watch TV, this is going to be difficult. thank god for iTunes and Youtube though.

Project Runway
Top Chef
Classic Star Trek
Star Trek: The Next Generation

Four places that I have visited

San Francisco
Tokyo
Honolulu
Cape Cod (but not Provincetown….not yet, anyway)

Four people who e-mail me regularly

Richard
Derek
Gautam
Donovan

Four favorite foods

Good barbecue

Lobster roll at Tides

Pasta, preferably homemade

Brussel sprouts

Four places I would like to be right now

San Francisco (if only I could move there)
London
Paris
Lyon

Four things I’m looking forward to this year

Summer
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Quantum of Solace
GBNYC5

Four people who should post about four things

I’ll refrain from tagging people, unless they want to participate.

The Cream of the Crop

I run three weekly online D&D games on OpenRPG. This is an excerpt from a Forgotten Realms campaign that occurred about a year or so ago. I still get a kick whenever I read the log. Enjoy.

* * *

** (1) Vadania takes her sword and cuts a deep gash in the belly of the Hobgoblin after removing the armor and morning star **
** (3) Amreth steps across the intersection, and graps the handle of the north door, cracking it open to get a look inside. **
** (29) Joryn glances at the bird calls. “Those aren’t exactly common around here, I’d wager. Keep ‘em down.” **
** (20) Ruth carefully creeps through the door into the next room to avoid the soon-to-be-waking ape. She waits next to the wall near the door and lets those stealthier handle recon. **
** (3) Amreth frowns down at Fildin, whispering, “Got one down the hall there, sweeping the floor. I’ll see what I can do, his back’s to me,” he says, opening the door just enough to slip through. **
** (1) Vadania finishes up and drags the armor though the door and closes it almost all the way, leaving a small crack for her to look through **
** ( Olbernath quietly speaks, “If we come accross a live hobgoblin, I may be able to charm him. It might get us some useful information, assuming he can speak the common tongue.” **
** (6) Fildin nods to Amreth as he takes off again, and keeps everyone else quiet as they come through the door. **
** (3) Amreth slips through, and, back to the wall, he creeps along behind the hobgoblin, trying to get close enough without alerting him. **
(6) Fildin: *whispers* “Well, I think it’s too late for that ne Amreth just saw, but there is at least one in this room,” he says as he points to the double doors.
** Grinkle mutters to himself. **
(19) Grinkle: “Me hab to sweep dis flor. Hmph. Grrr.”
** (3) Amreth swallows hard as the bastards turns around, and holds for a moment, cursing himself for not acting instead of telling the hin first. **
** Grinkle looks up and sneezes, then continues sweeping. “Dis no fun.” **
(19) Grinkle: “Me neber hab time to play hob gamez. Grumble grumble.”
** Grinkle looks up and sneezes again, and then drops the broom, saying “HAY! I GIB UP!” **
(19) Grinkle: “Dun hurtz me!” (throws up his hands and quivers as he looks at Amreth)
** Grinkle covers his face with his hands, raising a finger to peek out, cringing. **
** ( Olbernath mutters to himself, “Hmph… this would be a waste of an enchantment…” **
** Grinkle sees Amreth charging and drops to the floor, fainting. **
** (3) Amreth blinks once, then motions the hobgoblin close, flashing one of his blade, whispering, “Don’t want to kill you, mate. But I will have if you don’t come here,” he says, sticking a pair of fingers into a pouch and producing a single gold coin, “No tricks, I’ll give you this if you give me a word or.. Nevermind.” **
** (3) Amreth shrugs to himself, and walks over to the fainted hobgoblin, and thinks a moment, “Now why’d you have to do and do that?” **
** (3) Amreth slips his sword away, and draws his last dager, cutting free a strip of leather from his armor to gag him, before trying to drag his sorry ass back the way he came, to the others, and the pit where he’s of a mind to dump him. **
** Grinkle wakes up after being dragged roughly through the door and gags. “Mmmph!” **
** (29) Joryn holds a hammer threateningly. “Quiet!” he hisses at the bound hobgoblin. **
(19) DM: Amreth comes back the way he came, dragging a hobgoblin that’s been gagged with a strip of leather. The hobgoblin is vainly trying to talk.
(19) Grinkle: “Mmmph! Grak! Mppmph!”
** (3) Amreth drags him into the beast’s pen and gently props him against the wall, pointing a finger at his nose, “Now you be quiet, I don’t want to hurt you.” **
** (6) Fildin looks from Amreth to Olbernath. “Then again….” **
** Grinkle sighs. **
** ( Olbernath arches an eyebrow. **
** (3) Amreth picks out the coin again, and places it in the hobgoblin’s hand, before drawing a dagger and leveling it at his adam’s apple, “Gonna take that out of your mouth, and if you yell, this here goes through your throat, understand?” **
(19) Grinkle: “Plsssmph dmpph hmmmph mpmmmph!”
** (6) Fildin follows Amreth back into the pit room to see what the prisoner has to say. **
(3) Amreth: “Well, I’ll take that as an agreement,” and with that, he pulls the gag, “Now you be quiet, except to tell us how many of your kin are here. How many?”
(19) Grinkle: “Lotz. Nub hurtz me!”
(29) Joryn: “Speak quietly, too!” He glares at the prisoner, glancing around he room for any threats.
(3) Amreth: “Not gonna hurt you, I’m gonna let you go. We’re going to let you go. Show me how many are here, on your fingers.”
** Grinkle whines, “Okay.” **
** ( Olbernath smirks, “You really grabbed the cream o’ the crop.” **
** Grinkle holds up both hands. **
** (1) Hile walks up with Vadania on his back **
** (3) Amreth waits a moment, wondering if that’s the whole count he’s going to give. **
** Grinkle holds up nine more fingers. **
(3) Amreth: “Nineteen, huh.”
(19) Grinkle: “Lotz.” (nodding)
(6) Fildin: “That will keep us busy…” Fildin mutters.
** ( Olbernath looks dubious of Grinkle’s counting ability. **
(3) Amreth: “Hope that’s accurate, for your sake. So, what’s your name?”
(19) Grinkle: “Big cheez in da bed place.”
(19) Grinkle: “Him Julla.”
(19) Grinkle: “Me Grinkle.”
(1) Vadania: “You complain about me trying to save an animal and you are going to let one of them go free?”
(3) Amreth: “Julla, that’s good. Alright, Grinkle, you see this?” he asks, picking another lion out of his pouch, “This is yours, too. No more rat piss ale for Grinkle.”
** (20) Ruth keeps watch outside the interrogation, listening quietly by the door. **
(3) Amreth: “He’s of no threat to us, the beast was.”
(19) Grinkle: “Okay.”
** Grinkle stares at the lion like a small child. **
** (3) Amreth places that coin, too, in Grinkle’s hand, “Anyone got some rope?” **
** (1) Vadania snorts but says nothing **
** (6) Fildin shakes his head no. **
(19) Grinkle: “Yub tak me wid yub?”
(3) Amreth: “Well, cut that leather armor up, will you, and tie this sucker up?” he tries to plug Grinkle’s mouth with the gag again, “Don’t worry, big fella.”
(19) Grinkle: “Smut an’ Cheff in da boo…da boo…da smartz place.”
** (3) Amreth withdraws the gag, “Oh, one more thing, where’s this bed place?” **
** Grinkle points back where you found him. **
(1) Vadania: “You willin to help us kill the others?”
(19) Grinkle: “Me nub gud killin. Me bedder at foodin.”
** (29) Joryn narrows his eyes at the hobgoblin. “Books?” **
** (3) Amreth cocks a brow at the hobgoblin, “Down the hall where you came from?” **
(19) Grinkle: “Yub. Da boo…da boo…da smartz place.”
(19) Grinkle: “Um, near dere. Down dere.”
(3) Amreth: “Well, we know what we need to, generally. Numbers and locations of important kin of his,” he says, stuffing the gag back in his mouth while he’s speaking, “You stay quiet, and stay put, and I’ll personally treat you to roast boar once we’re done here and we come back to set you off on your own.”
(6) Fildin: “Yep, a layout would definately have helped us…”
** (29) Joryn raises a brow at the others. “D’yeh think these idiots would be able t’ learn wizardry?” **
** (3) Amreth tries to help the hobber up first, “I doubt it, but anything’s possible I guess. Stupidity isn’t universal among any of the intelligent critters. Might be whoever this Smut is, isn’t one of his kin.” **
** ( Olbernath grunts, “Be surprised if this one could tie his own bootlaces.” **
(6) Fildin: “Well, are we ready to go then? It appears we have a lot more to remove.”
** (29) Joryn growls. “Might be… we should be careful anyway” **
** (3) Amreth lookds to Vadania, “And do you think he can be trusted to comply? He’s more likely to be emboldened in proximity to his more capable kin, and set them on us.” **
** (1) Vadania nods “Would be a fun game for him to play” **
(1) Vadania: “Grinkle do you like games?”
** (3) Amreth removes the gag for the moment. **
** (20) Ruth peeks in from the door to add, “If one of them is smart enough to use wizardry, yet is not big cheez, Julla must be pretty capable as well.” **
** Grinkle nods. **
(19) Grinkle: “Yub.”
(3) Amreth: “How ’bout games that earn you a whole heap of shinies?”
(19) Grinkle: “Me nub inter…inter….lik shinies.”
(19) Grinkle: “Me lik fud.”
(3) Amreth: “Yeah, and how’s your kin feed ya? I bet they give you scraps, don’t they?”
(19) Grinkle: “Yub.” (frown)
(19) Grinkle: “Oooo who dere?”
** Grinkle looks this way and that. **
(19) Grinkle: “Sumwun tak in hed.”
** (3) Amreth waits for Vanadia to relay her idea to him. **
** (3) Amreth points to the hin druid, for his edification. **
** (1) Vadania smiles “Sorry Grinkle that was me. So would you be willing to help us get rid of the others?” **
(19) Grinkle: “Me wan fud. Me lik fud. Me hungry.”
(19) Grinkle: “Um okay.”
(19) Grinkle: “Me bedder foodin, nub killin.”
(1) Vadania: “Do you think you could get the others to come down here one at a time?”
** (3) Amreth chews his inner cheek a moment, then hides his dagger away, and drops his pack to the floor, picking his way through its contents, and dropping a bundle of salted pork and hardtack buscuits in his lap, “This’ll have to do for the moment.” **
** (3) Amreth stands to his feet, and wanders over to where the guttered hobgoblin lay to collect his other dagger he’d forgotten about. **
** (1) Vadania waits quietly for Grinkle’s response **
(19) Grinkle: “Hm. Some onyuns, an leebs an….hm.” (thinks)
(19) Grinkle: “Okay.”
** (1) Vadania digs into her Herb pouch and pulls out some Oregano, Asparagus Root, and Chives. “These may be good to cook with” **
(19) Grinkle: “Yub.” (takes the herbs)
(1) Vadania: “Ok now before you can do any cooking, We need you to get one of the others down here without telling him we are down here”
(19) Grinkle: “Um, okay. But…but…you wan big cheez too?”
(1) Vadania: “Not right away, just one of his cornies for now”
(19) Grinkle: “Okay.”
** Grinkle gets up shakily, then looks out the doorway. “Me go gets Lucky now.” **
** (3) Amreth retrieves his dagger, and walks back over to crouch next to Grinkle, “Look, mate. I don’t really care if you’re goblin kin, or if you’re a dwarf. I don’t want to kill you unless I have to. I’d personally rather you go on livin’ and eatin’, since you’re nub good at the killin’. You’ve not harmed me, so I won’t harm you. But if you cross us in this, that changes the rules. You can die with your kin, or you can go on living and stuffing your belly. Your choice.” **
(19) Grinkle: “Huh?”
** Grinkle looks dumbly at Amreth. “Lotz…lotz…lotza words.” **
(1) Vadania: “Ok Grinkle, after you gets Lucky you can cook all of some food”
(3) Amreth: “Never mind, Grinkle. Just get to it, and don’t cross us, will you?”
(19) Grinkle: “Um, okay.” (sets out the door shakily then walks up the wooden stairs)
(3) Amreth: “This’ll never work.”
** (1) Vadania looks around the room for a place that Hile can hide **
(3) Amreth: “Even if he’s meaning to do what we ask, he’s about to piss his pants.”
(6) Fildin: “Then why send him off?” Fildin just shakes his head slightly.
** (3) Amreth shrugs, “Don’t really feel like arguing, and it wasn’t my idea anyway. **
(1) Vadania: “Lets just setup the ambush”
(6) Fildin: “Spokes, rim, axles… spokes, rims axles…” he mutters a few times.
** (1) Vadania mews to hile points to a dark corner **
** (3) Amreth shrugs, and positions himself near the door, back against the wall, swords drawn, and whispers a quiet prayer to Tymora for heaping helping of sheer, dumb luck. **
** (6) Fildin moves back across the pit to the relative safety of the far side. **
** (1) Vadania quickly finds some place to hide and wait **
** (20) Ruth comes back to the room suppressing laughter, “I can hardly wait to find out what he will bring back.” **
** (6) Fildin tries to find something to hide behind over there, where he can still watch what happens. **
(20) Ruth: “Julla probably would not believe him if he told the truth anyway.”
** (3) Amreth frowns at her, “Hopefully not a whole host of his kin. I’d hate to kill ‘em. Far as hobgoblins go, he’s a right nice fellow. An you know, he was cleanin’. You could have yourself your first indentured servant, if he survives.” **

“Histories”, Part 5

Toward the end of the Thaecian Empire, the weak Adepts relied markedly on diabolic aid. This process was greatly accelerated by the decline of the Empire, as demonstrated by a new series of setbacks on its frontiers. Invasions from the Omai were becoming more frequent and more debilitating. Rather than ceding the territories outright to these invaders, the Emperors undertook a massive series of administrative reforms. Yet despite these efforts, the withdrawal of the Imperial armies spelt inexorable doom for the Empire.

In -240, the Empire was divided into two halves, the Northlands and the Imperium, each ruled by a co-emperor. This was a fairly desperate attempt to reorganize. It bought the Northlands at most an extra century or two of life. Of the two halves, the Imperium was clearly more powerful. Troops were steadily removed from the Northlands to the Imperium, where they were needed to quell internal dissension. Those mercenary troops that remained in the Northlands were usually underfunded, ill-equipped, and badly trained. Thus the pressing demand for more and more powerful magicka.

By this point the Adepts were almost totally dependent upon the power of extra-planar creatures, and were increasingly calling upon vile things for assistance. Fell and terrible fiends, eager to extend their influence on the plane of Sularin, and always desirous of corrupting mortals, were only too glad to fight for the Empire. The Dark Host of the Nine in particular heeded the Adepts’ summonings, and were infamous for their ability to twist the wording of pacts to their own infernal benefit.

It soon became unclear who was master of whom. Many Adepts were destroyed by things which were ostensibly their servants. Some Adepts turned to fiend-worship, and became demonolaters in order to gain powerful magicka. Other Adepts bargained with their own souls in dark and unsavory rituals. In at least one instance, an Adept was forced to call up fiends to rectify a botched summoning. The Adept Androntitus of Larium summoned an abyssal prince, but the infernal burst his confinement and wrought havoc. Desperate, Androntitus conjured three powerful devils to combat the menace. Between these unholy forces, Larium was utterly leveled in one horrific night, and Androntitus dragged wailing down to the pits.

Despite such disasters, the use of diabolic aid was undeniably effective, and sustained the Northlands unnaturally for many years after the Empire by rights should have fallen. Foul and terrible fiends shattered wildmen and Omai alike, and struck horror into all who beheld them.

Worship of the goddess of magicka which never took root in the Imperium soon found fertile ground in the Northlands despite the efforts of the Empire to eradicate what was considered a subversive movement. In fact, despite the persecutions, the faithful of Hurishta flourished in the Northlands. A century before the Invoked Devastation, the Northlands had declared official toleration of her worship (and also that of Oneiros, Almaril, Elantra and Tevesh). The Hurishtii, however, were not appeased. They viewed the continued summoning of fiends as but one more sign of the Empire’s irredeemable condition.

(to be continued)

Previous installments can be seen here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4.

“Histories”, Part 4

Increasingly, the Emperors dispatched mercenary sorcerers to the frontier. By the reign of Perius (over 1500 years before the Invoked Devastation) sorcerers were freely welcomed into the emperor’s own palace; from then on no wizard feared plying the trade within Thae.

The assassination of Perius initiated a terrible period of turmoil within the Empire. At this time Thae’s borders were overextended, and for several centuries, its frontiers had slowly retreated before barbarian invaders. The economic strain of maintaining the sprawling Empire proved extremely burdensome. High taxes and a series of economic crises led to famines, labor strikes, and general internal unrest. A gnollish revolt broke out in the east which demanded sudden and massive redeployment of Imperial troops.

During this period, the succession of Emperors, never painless, became especially contentious; the Emperor was more-or-less made by the military. The most powerful amongst the Legion vied amongst themselves for their own chosen candidates. These internecine struggles occasionally approached civil war. At one time no less than five different Emperors were declared.

It was out of this period of crisis that the Imperial Adepts were born. The emperor Lineaus, fearing for his life, appointed his personal wizard Octavian as the first Adept. Within a decade twelve other wizards had been so named, and the next, another dozen. The Adepts were charged with upholding the rule of the Emperor. They swore solemn oaths of loyalty to him. They originally attended exclusively to the Emperor; their spells were to shield him from harm or spies. The deranged Emperor Corontitus insisted that no less than three dozen such protective spells were to be constantly in effect on his person; the Adepts wove spells day and night to fulfill this command. None of these spells seemed able to prevent his assassination. History records that Corontitus reigned for a scant eight months before being murdered.

Despite this inexplicable lapse, the Adepts soon came to serve not only the Emperor and his family, but Senators, generals, governors, and other important figures. Their ranks were swiftly expanded. Each new Emperor seemed eager to create positions for new Adepts. Harried Champions amongst the Legion soon considered the Adepts invaluable in their numerous wars. Although the common soldiers generally hated all sorcerers, they at least came to respect (and fear) the offensive capabilities of the Adepts.

When the period of turmoil was finally over, the Adepts were at the height of their influence—more than six hundred years after their inception. The Adepts had played a decisive role in stabilizing the Empire, and shoring up its borders against encroaching barbarian and monster tribes. At their apogee the Adepts were formidable wizards, with considerable sorcerous power and learning at their disposal. It is sometimes said that the Adepts had knowledge of over a thousand different spells.

It was during this time that the Adepts unleashed their most famed achievement, the Nine Colossi of the Limites. These were nine 50-foot tall bronze statues, formed in the image of Marnes, Thaecian protector and god of war. The Adepts were able to animate these monstrosities. It is said they bound a powerful spirit within each metal housing. The Colossi were placed at the limits of the empire, and were able to fight and defend their posts. In Arator (in what is now southern Calabria), the wildmen were terrified of the Colossus that towered over Demerian’s Wall.

The Adepts were originally accomplished abjurers and diviners. They used these and other magicka to protect the Emperor. Despite their triumph with the Colossi and lesser automata, the Adepts were not especially skilled enchanters. Such skill was never deemed really necessary; Thae’s numerous victories had brought a wealth of wondrous items into the Empire, as well as foreign wizards who could always be commanded to produce more such devices. Many Adepts were accomplished transmuters. In late antiquity, a large and esoteric body of writings was exclusively devoted to alteration magic.

The Adepts rapidly developed an abiding interest in the school of conjuration/summoning. Many of these spells entered into Thae by way of ancient Pyrrha. These spells came to dominate the Adepts’ repertoire, while the other schools of magic fell into disuse. Conjuration spells appealed to a distinctly Thaecian quality. The Adepts, like any Thaecian citizen, were accustomed to having the entire world at their beck and call. Using magicka to compel other beings to fight and toil for them seemed a natural and desirable development. The Adepts used their sorcerous might to impose their will on monsters, both terrestrial and extra-planar, and a tangled series of pacts and bindings were soon formed.

As the Empire neared its twilight, the Adepts became increasingly corrupted and ineffectual. Many neglected their oaths of loyalty to the Empire, and were more interested in promoting their own personal fortunes. And the Adepts’ Art, always derivative, suffered a steady decline; there were fewer and fewer magical innovations, and more dependence on the legacies of the past. Many Adepts devoted their limited abilities to composing pedantic commentaries and pursuing esoteric theories. As the Adepts’ personal abilities waned, they increasingly called on extra-planar powers to buttress their depleted magics. Increasingly, these powers originated from the lower planes, from fell denizens of Andurin such as the abomination Dagon, and from a dark and nameless evil known only to its hidden worshippers as the Faceless Lord.

(to be continued)

Positive Outlook

Four years of being poz. November 2003 was when I was diagnosed and at the time, my only thought was “How long do I have to live?”

I still don’t know the answer to that question. I’m hoping it’s for a good long time. I haven’t had very many complications to deal with, apart from the occasional MRSA outbreak. Staph is no joke, people. It makes going to the gym a chancy scenario sometimes.

My numbers are quite good. My last test was 900 something T-cells with an undetectable vload and a total CD4 count of 36%. I’m due for a test soon and I’m hoping that it puts me near or over the 1000 mark. While these things are ephemeral, they do provide a psychological boost. I might be afflicted with a disease that has no cure but for the moment, all is right with the world.

Thank you all who have wished me well on this blog and elsewhere on the internet. Your support means a great deal to me. Some of you are friends who I have known for many years both online and in real life. Others are acquaintances who I hope to meet some day. I appreciate your kind words and look forward to getting to know you all in the years to come.

Here’s to a great 2008!

With that in mind, here was the year in pictures:

One shot of many. Unfortunately I was having computer problems last week and in a moment of stupidity, reverted my system back to a factory-mint condition. While some installed programs maintained their integrity, it meant that the thousands of photographs and videos on my system were wiped from memory. Oops.

Fava bean tortelli, fava beans, white asparagus, Gulf shrimp and tarragon.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) at the Pride parade.

Seared hamachi, black radish, celery, Granny Smith apple.

Wonder Woman and Supergirl, 10 years together saved.

Interior of a greenhouse at Blue Hill Stone Barns.

Yes Shirley, that’s a miniature “burger” except that the “meat” is a slice of heirloom tomato sandwiched between two layers of pastry. Next to it is a shot glass filled with tomato “water”.

This picture needs no introduction.

Green beans, chives, nasturtium flowers, gazpacho viniagrette.

Food at the pass at Hearth. In the background are their famous Sunday meatballs.

A late October afternoon at Union Square Greenmarket.

This photo dedicated to T and C.

Atari_Age. Love those ears (and the rest of him).

Ignore the hobbit in the corner.

“Histories”, Part 3

After the Republic was abolished, the Thaecian Empire increasingly tolerated wizardry. Despite the reservations of the Imperial Legion and the antipathy of common soldiers, mercenary sorcerers were frequently deployed on the frontiers, and proved invaluable in campaigns on Naranduil and Aramin. More and more, Thae accepted and relied upon magicka; this eventually allowed for the creation of a wizardly institution sanctioned by the Empire: the famed Imperial Adepts.

Much of the old Thaecian distrust for magic resurfaced in the earliest years of the Empire. Emperor Coriolanus had something like 2,000 magical scrolls destroyed in just one year alone. Both the Emperors and the Legion feared the power of alien wizards, and not without reason. In the reactionary spirit of the early Empire, all sorcerers were frequently driven from Thae, accused of harming the land or Emperor with their evil spells. The most famous example was probably the expulsion of Nestorides and all his apprentices by Emperor Marius. Nocturnal ceremonies to invoke the infernal deities, the making of wax images and the tying of knots to cause pain, death, or sexual impotence, and of course the manufacture of poisons (employed to speed up the supernatural processes) were offenses punished by crucifixion or being thrown to wild beasts.

The Emperors almost always reserved the right to exclude their own personal sorcerers from expulsion or persecution. Even Coriolanus was known to consult astrologers. As the Empire grew older and even more powerful, its influence extended across half the known world—which included the sorcery-steeped east. A series of inconclusive wars with Xarsh had demonstrated the sorcerous power of the Magi. Slaves from other lands, in particular those brought from the wilderness of Aramin and Vathar had already brought a considerable body of magic learning into the Republic, but the annexation of several eastern kingdoms introduced into Thae numerous mystery cults, the art of astrology, and new and exotic magical traditions.

It was the conquest of Pyrrha, however, which marked the single most significant shift in Thaecian wizardry. Pyrrha the old, with its nighted pyramids and sphinxes, was an ancient land that boasted the earliest recorded use of magicka by Men. Centuries before the rise of Tarquinus, the sorcerers of Pyrrha were indisputably the most powerful wizards on Andurin. But by the time of the conquest, the pharaohs were all dead, and the glories of ancient Pyrrha had faded; it had not produced a truly great mage for centuries.

Nonetheless, Pyrrha proved a seemingly inexhaustible storehouse of magicka; knowledge of sorcery and sorcerers themselves flooded the Empire. The old and cosmopolitan city of Alexandretta was a crossroads of eastern and western magic traditions, and was soon established as the center of sorcery in Thaecia. Pyrrhic books on magicka (both genuine and fraudulent) were quickly translated and made readily available to eager readers. Magicka soon became a fashionable, if nervy, pastime for many citizens.

At the height of its power the Thaecian Empire enjoyed an unprecedented level of prosperity—which had its downside. Despite the incessant warnings from the priestly class, traditional Thaecian values of duty and reverence lapsed in favor of new and exotic ways. As the aristocratic families of Thae decayed, the Imperial court became more and more decadent. The mad emperor Jurianus tolerated a wife who openly practiced sorcery, among other vices. Such was the folly that provoked his assassination.

(to be continued)

“Histories”, Part 2

The Tarquinians of antiquity were renowned for their command of magics. Legend has it that a Tarquinian farmer was plowing his fields one day when a tall man miraculously arose out of the ground from one of the furrows. This man then proceeded to teach the farmer the very first wizard spells. The Tarquinian wizards assembled an early demonology, and were said to be able to call up spirits and bind them to service. Tarquinian wizards were famed for their use of familiars. Tarquinian wizards were also good at divination. They could foretell the future from examining animal entrails (haruspicy) or observing lightning strikes. In fact, divination in general was sometimes described as “the Tarquinian Art.”

The early Thaecians, in contrast, had little aptitude for and almost no tradition of wizardry. They distrusted and hated the Art and all its practitioners. These people were extremely religious by nature, and like other Men of their time, relied on priests, druids and shamans exclusively for any magicka. Their antipathy toward magicka is reflected in an ancient Thaecian term, veneficium, which had two meanings; first, use of the magical arts, especially sorcery employed to harmful ends; and second, the act of poisoning.

* * *

From the beginning of its history, Thae was ruled by the distant Tarquinian kings. While the Tarquinians were not particularly repressive, they naturally had poor reputations because of their fondness for sorcery. When Thae finally gained its independence, many of the Tarquinian magicians were killed or driven off.

After the founding of the Republic [in what is now northeastern Naranduil], Thae underwent a dramatic period of political expansion within the ancient world. As Thaecian power and imperialism grew, many foreign influences were brought into the region—including foreign sorcery. Most free wizards in the Republic maintained low profiles. Magicka and its practices was a punishable offense and still viewed unfavorably by more conservative citizens. Under the laws of the Republic, necromancy was occasionally practiced in secret, but it had no place in the religious life and was subject to severe legal penalties.

Many Thaecian citizens slowly acquired a taste for sorcery, and would pay handsomely for new and exotic trinkets or exciting magic spectacles. It became rather fashionable among the aristocratic classes to have a slave who knew some amusing or helpful magic. During the Republic, most wizards were foreign-born and of low station. Few Thaecian citizens actually performed magicka themselves. Free wizards were presumed to have had some foreign or Tarquinian blood in their veins. Female wizards were rare and especially hated. There were nonetheless some powerful witches in those days, perhaps most notably Veranis of Nura.

(to be continued)

“Histories”, Part 1

Wherein an accounting of the origin of magicka on Andurin is given so that it will not be forgotten…

According to legend, the drakes were the first race in Andurin. They slept in cold caverns, swam in still oceans, and flew in dark skies long before the advent of Men. It is natural, therefore, to conclude that drakes were the first wizards in Andurin; their considerable talent for magic is well known. Drakkari commonspeech is extremely close to the Elder Tongue. It is said that the drakes overheard the gods as they formed and shaped all of creation. This explains in part why drakes and their ilk are so adept at wizardry. The Elder Tongue binds all mortal creatures to speak true—except for the drakes. They alone have the cunning to lie in the True Speech…or so the legends say.

The Seelie Court (who are also known as the Sidhe and the Fae) also have great aptitude for the Elder Tongue. They were probably the second wizards in Andurin. Only the drakes know what the land was like before the coming of the Ffolk. A Fae presence predates human existence in what is now Damrosil (in southwestern Telluria), in Arator and in Silmataurea by several dozen millennia. It is said that in the ancient times, the fairies once lived openly, visible to all.

Fae love magicka and have an uncanny affinity for enchantments. They take great delight in unusual or elegantly-wrought spells and artifacts. The most powerful magical items now in Andurin were undoubtedly wrought by the Fae in ages past—those that survived the Sundering in any event. Their enchanted swords are still prized above all others, save for the Twelve. It is said that the fabulous blade of King Falconedge, for instance, was made by an ancient prince of the Seelie Court, and given to him by a Ffolk maiden.

The Fae are also masters of illusion. Faerie glamour, it is said, is almost impossible for mortals—even magicians—to recognize. There are countless tales of the Fae using their glamour to disguise themselves or trick hapless mortals.

* * *

Long ago, before the birth of the elves, it is said that the Lords of Faerie withdrew from Andurin and the visible world. Why they left and just where they went is unclear. There are many stories of the Fae sailing into the west, or withdrawing deep into the woods and far beneath the ancient hills. The realm of Faerie is now largely inaccessable to mortal men, and the Fae only rarely venture forth. Those mortals who have claimed to visted this place tell fantastic tales of a strange land where time has no meaning and of a realm filled with unending wonders.

A governor from Brynnel named Halius once attempted to invade a Faerie wood. Each time his troops entered the trees, they would march barely a bow-shot before finding themselves back where they started from. Few men since have repeated the governor’s folly.

Of the Fae, only the lesser faeries have remained behind in the mortal world, and it is said that their time here is waning. The faeries here are wilder and are more neutral than their nobler cousins. In addition, they are extremely reticent, and have rarely had direct contact with people. They use their magic to dazzle and frighten all those with whom they are unfamiliar. The great faery queen Titania and her court kept the ebon drake Noxostratos at bay for centuries, and was later feared by Fhaardi barbarian raiders who ventured into what is now northwestern Damrosil.

* * *

It is not clear who had dwelt in southwestern Telluria before the coming of Men, nor how long they had been there. Some evidence remains of a primitive pre-human society. A dark and furtive race built the prehistoric dolmens, cairns, barrows, and stones which still dot the landscape. Contrary to popular belief, druids did not build these things—though they did venerate these places. It is not known what magics these pre-human races used, if any. Little is known of them as they seem to have been fairly primitive. Some have suggested a great human kingdom existed alongside the Fae, although there is little evidence to support this.

Traditionally, Men had little experience with wizardly magic; they relied exclusively on priests and shamans for all sorcery. The rare wizards that were encountered were greatly feared and of considerable power. In general, though, wizardly magicka was the domain of non-humans, such as the dread hags which prowled the Barren Wastes and the depths of the Shadowed Wood in eastern Silmataurea. The enchantments of the Sidhe were held in awe and often feared by others—although relations between the Fae and mortal races, particularly those of Men were not always hostile. Sometimes, a Sidhe and a human would mate. Those few born with a talent for magicka usually had some faerie blood in their veins.

(to be continued)

Chess

The chess raid encounter in Karazhan. Where else but in an MMORPG built by geeks are you going to find a stereotypically geek-ish game?