Completed Play-by-Post: In Search of the Sorcerer

[ERYFKRAD]

OOC

Great. We're on the wrong side, or someone's corrupted Blaidd Mawr for their own purposes.

Spoiler

Someone's using the Blaidd Mawr in a lottery to kill Picts, likely the culprit doesn't want to die.

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

Because it's easy for the details to get lost when they are spread out over dozens of pages of posts and long months . . .

A quick recap of what is known at this point about Blaidd Mawr legend and the legend of Ulfheonar:
-Attacks on the village of Crannógmere began about 5 or 6 months ago. Almost nightly, villagers started turning up dead or missing; always a single victim and no extant cause was known.
-During the second month of attacks, Brule and a few other men managed to catch the great wolf with the eyes and mouth of green flame in the act of its nightly murder. The village Drune (A pictish version of a Druid) Eogan named the beast for what it was and suggested that some great sin had been commited by Crannógmere, but the portents were unclear what.
-Brule and a few men set a trap a couple of nights later and managed to "slay" Blaidd Mawr, who dissolved into an oily black mist that then gathered itself and flew back across the moors south of the lake. Three night later the attacks began again in earnest.
-Three months ago King Talorc banishes Eogan for stirring up dissent among the tribe. Shortly thereafter he declares a lottery, where a victim is selected at random and left as a sacrifice at the ring of menhirs in the hills above the village. The lottery occurs during every new moon of Phobos (7 days). For as long as the lottery has been held the village has been left alone, at least until Oona was freed from her bonds.
-Legends about Blaidd Mawr suggest he is freed from the Otherworld to punish by The Morrighan. This "punishment" is sometimes seen as a test - a weak victim will succumb and be destroyed, while a virtuous (i.e. strong, brave, cunning, etc.) target will overcome. In no case has The Morrighan ever been known to call off Blaidd Mawr out of pity or mercy - the weak perish, the strong endure.
-The particulars of who Ulfheonar was in life are very hazy -- no one remembers where he came from or why Blaidd Mawr had been sent forth, only that he banished the spirit back to Otherworld.
-Uvan having a "wolfish" appearance when viewed through the magic hand-mirror that Rhenmyr has been carrying, suggests that his human appearance is an illusion or glamour of some kind. The significance of this is unknown.
-Natural wolves and Blaidd Mawr aren't explicitly linked in any legends or stories; why natural wolves would attack a Druidic/Drune grove is baffling to Ker, Mab, Marcán and Cormac.

 

[nikolokolus]

So you stand assembled in the small niche before the supposed remains of Ulfheonar. The prospect of taking the broken spear daunts you and fills those of you with any supposed religious and spiritual training with a sense of trepidation.

Between Ker, Cormac, Mab, and Marcán you are a cadre of novices and initiates. Much of what you understand about your traditions are not as deep as you might hope -- in short the notion of disturbing a grave of a mythic hero is something you'd all much rather defer to a high ranking priest if you could. That said, there are several instances where heroes have returned from beyond the veil to save their people from some grave threat. There are not any specific taboos against using found objects and in fact there are several tales where a hero descended into the underworld to retrieve a legendary item of a bygone age in a time of great need.

In short: there are no guarantees, but if one were to swear solemn oaths before taking such an item, it might ameliorate any curse or powerful geas that you could be worried about -- bearing in mind that oaths are sacred and have real spiritual consequences in this world.

 

[Grimgravy]

"I'll defer to those of you with more local and spiritual knowledge than myself. But from what I've heard of Ulfheonar, putting an end to this lottery and indiscriminate killing in Crannógmere is something he would do if he were able. So I think we are justified in retrieving using his spear to do so. Then we could handle who or whatever brought on the attacks in the first place. That said, how do we safely and respectfully retrieve the spear? Once we do retrieve it, perhaps Brule as champion of Crannógmere would be best suited to wielding it in the coming battle."

 

[Siveon]

Marcán nods. "Would there be such a spirit left in these bones, I believe he would understand our plight. Perhaps some sort prayer, or offering could stave off any harm that may come upon us." He turns to the strange Pictish Druid. "Mab, correct? Would you mind translating anything we say to Ulfheonar into Pictish?"

 

[Wayward Son]

Mab sighs and begins to say, "If you lived a good life filled with virtue and happiness, then may your souls go to whichever Heaven you would choose for them. May your step be silent, your arrow swift and the hunt good, O Fallen One," and then continues under his breath, "Damn, I've never been good at final rites. Just let us take this, please. It's... important."

 

[nikolokolus]

Mab completes his invocation. As his voice trails off, the utter silence of the tomb returns.

EDIT: So . . . Anything else?

 

[Siveon]

Spoiler

Sorry, I was waiting for someone else to chime in.

"Well said. I'll try and say something as well." Marcán bows to the remains and looks up to it. "Ulfheonar, if you can hear me. My group have been sent to your lands with a purpose, and in doing so we found your people in disarray. It seems the wolf you banished all those years ago has returned. For the purpose of what, we do not know, but we fear something more evil and conniving is behind it. If it be your will, let us use your tools to drive back the wolf once more so that no one will fall prey to the fangs of that beast. I, Marcán Macc Fionnghal, Bard of the Kelts promise that your arms will only be used to aid us in our fight against the wolf - and not for our own selfish gain. Should we succeed, we shall return these artifacts to where they belong. Forgive us, as outsiders, for defiling your resting place."

Marcán stands and reaches for the spear, grasping it cautiously.

 

[Wayward Son]

Mab turns to the others, "I do not know you. I do not know what you have done. I know not what your stake in this is. But what I do know, is that I was sent to investigate these rumors of Blaidd Mawr. What I do know is that I, Mab Ystyfnig of the Northern Tribes will help you in this fight. Wolves have attacked my Circle, Blaidd Mawr himself has attacked Crannógmere. I will help protect these people as long as their transgression goes unproven. I will go with you and help you on your quest, if you will so allow."

Spoiler

So was I, Siveon I figured that my guy had no right to take your quest from you.

 

[Grimgravy]

Spoiler

I was giving people a chance to chime in too.

"Well said! Ulfheonar, with your blessing, with your spear we will battle your ancient foe and restore peace to Crannógmere." Rhenmyr pauses the continues. "And I do appologize for the pillar room. I meant no disrespect."

 

[L'ennui]

Urash, who had been listening intently to the various invocations, pleas and other pious displays, tenses as Marcán finally reaches out for the artifact.

Already in his mind, he is plotting the fastest way back down the chute and out of the gloomy tomb.

 

[nikolokolus]

Ulfheonar's dessicated corpse sits stolidly in the gloomy chamber. As the last of the voices trails off, Urash impulsively reaches out and snatches the broken spear and wrenches it free of the mummy's grasp.

Nothing.

With bated breath the gathered members of the troupe grit their teeth and clench their fists in anticipation but the feared cataclysm never comes.

The spear is yours.

 

[Grimgravy]

"Let's get going. We have an ancient spirit to fight." Rhenmyr leads the way out.

 

[Wayward Son]

Mab says, "Indeed. Let us fight for people's safety. Do you have any other tasks or leads? What's next?"

 

[nikolokolus]

Spoiler

So was I, Siveon I figured that my guy had no right to take your quest from you.

OOC

It's not a big deal, but this sort of caught my eye. The notion of a quest is really not a thing in most PnP games and this game in particular -- at least not in the CRPG/MMO sense of the word.

All characters that participate in the game get equally distributed experience awards for overcoming whatever challenges and obstacles you all are faced with -- You don't have to worry about poaching somebody's experience points by taking action. the only thing you ever have to worry about are the in-world consequences (if there are any).

The only time I hand out individual experience awards are those instances where a single character takes on all of the risk (like Rhenmyr in the collapsing room with the pillar).

Anyway. Like I said it's not a big deal, but it's something I figured I should clarify.

 

[Wayward Son]

Spoiler

So was I, Siveon I figured that my guy had no right to take your quest from you.

OOC

It's not a big deal, but this sort of caught my eye. The notion of a quest is really not a thing in most PnP games and this game in particular -- at least not in the CRPG/MMO sense of the word.

All characters that participate in the game get equally distributed experience awards for overcoming whatever challenges and obstacles you all are faced with -- You don't have to worry about poaching somebody's experience points by taking action. the only thing you ever have to worry about are the in-world consequences (if there are any).

The only time I hand out individual experience awards are those instances where a single character takes on all of the risk (like Rhenmyr in the collapsing room with the pillar).

Anyway. Like I said it's not a big deal, but it's something I figured I should clarify.

Spoiler

I didn't mean it quite like the traditional idea of a quest, just their, like, job. Y'know. For all Mab knew, they had been tracking this for months. It would have been plain rude to take their moment from them imo.

 

[nikolokolus]

The band retreats from the tomb one-by-one and exits into the late afternoon sun. On the western horizon dark clouds can be seen gathering where sun breaks illuminate sheets of rain that have begun to fall on the vast woods that stretch to the south and west of the moors.

Brule, Fidach and Oona look on in awe as Urash exits with the broken spear of Ulfheonar held firmly at his side. Beads of sweat run down his forehead and his features look wan and strained.

"By Beira's frozen tits! You found it!" exclaims Fidach. Oona fidgets nervously at the hem of her woolen skirts and flashes a concerned look at Marcán out of the corner of her eye (which Marcán notices). Brule frowns and stoops to rouse the badly wounded, but now conscious Uvan. "We'd best get a move on if we're going to find shelter for the night. I know of a small hunter's cabin about a couple of leagues south of here."

 

[Siveon]

"Aye, let's be quick, else Ulfheonar changes his mind. Who wants to drag the wolf-man along?"

 

[L'ennui]

"Yes... we've found it..." Urash looks very weary and concerned since he grabbed the spear.

Staring down at the weapon with worried eyes, he asks the Picts:

"In your legends, is there any mention of the spear's... sinister nature? I can't shake the feeling it is very dangerous to wield. Something came over me as I took hold of it... a bloodlust, almost. Thankfully my mental barriers resisted it, I'll have to thank my teachers for that if I ever get back to the academy in Kor..."

Urash addresses the rest of the group:
"Friends, I would advise the utmost caution when handling this thing... it is filled with a mysterious rage, and if any of us were to touch it and succumb... well, I doubt that would end well."

 

[Wayward Son]

Mab says to Urash in Keltic, "Perhaps put the broken spear into some kind of cloth or other material to see if that dampens the power it may wield. I have not heard, as far as I can recall, anything terrible about the spear from my childhood, but in my village, we were told a tale of Ulfheonar that may have been changed so much by the time it reached our remote corner, that it may well have not been the same story. On top of which, it's been about nine years since I've been to my village or any that tells the tale on any regular basis while I was present."

 

[Grimgravy]

"If you deem it too late to go after the spirit, lead on. I'll prod our prisoner along. I wonder if we should attempt to repair the spear? Being broken may be causing the issue, but then again if it were to be made whole its effect could be stronger."

 

[Wayward Son]

"I say we find someone who may know more about the artifact. There has to be someone who knows the legends well enough to tell us what this may be somewhere."

 

[nikolokolus]

Fidach and Brule listen to Urash with concern. Brule speaks, "Ulfheonar was said to possess the ferocity of a cave lion. As for his spear being imbued with some kind of . . . sinister nature . . . that was never told to us."

Fidach turns to Rhenmyr as he looks at the broken haft of the spear, "At the hunters cabin I'm sure there will be extra spears, it would be no great feat to swap its shaft with another . . . I think?"

 

[nikolokolus]

Fidach turns and speaks to Mab, "Eogan would have known. Also the witch woman Ymae back in Crannógmere is well versed in clan lore . . . but Talorc isn't likely to let us back in without a fight."

 

[Wayward Son]

To Fidach, Mab says, "Why would Talorc not let you back in? If Eogan is our only option, I say that's what we do. But this is up to you people, just my advice."