Commentary for 9 September 2006

[The_Universe]

ABANDONED finally begins.

Any questions so far?

 

[The_Universe]

The Letter

This might serve as an interesting jumping-off point for any preliminary discussions, as might the various properties of the underground temple that you happened upon.

Brother,

I cannot sleep without dreaming, so I do not sleep. Borial’s realm has become strange and disordered, as if it is now a battlefield beyond even my understanding. I know not if our lady will win this battle, for shifting, unknowable forces have gathered at the edge of my terrifying dreams. What are they? Whose part will they take?

Though I have been honored by the call to guard this sacred place, this sanctuary, for all these years, I fear that madness is now perilously near to me. Close behind madness, I fear, rides Death. I shall not survive another dream, for already I feel the terrible Eye upon me, Its gaze an uncompromising judgment. The others feel it, as well, and I am not so foolish as to imagine that they are any further from madness than I.

A messenger passed this way, tonight, carrying instructions from Her First Herald. He seemed frightened, and did not stay, though I suspect he had been instructed to do so. I wonder, then, if the stink of insanity from our cursed dreams has grown strong enough for even the uninitiated to detect? Perhaps he has suffered his own crisis of conscience, or is afflicted with his own maddening dreams. Regardless, he assured us that our time has finally come. The 9th Herald comes, to announce the Return of Our Lady..

Before writing this last testament, I sent Simon the Younger to meet our counterparts, out in the wilderness beyond. Our Lady’s most beloved deserve to behold the Herald’s arrival, in all its terror and wonder.

Yet, with the Eye to look into our souls, we must assume that our secrets are no longer safe from its awful gaze, our sanctuaries no longer safe havens. We must do our part to prepare for the Return, we must protect these holy secrets. There is but one way to escape the Eye; we cannot sleep, so we will die. We’ve agreed to go to the temple to make this last sacrifice, leaving this sanctuary unmanned, despite our oaths. Forgive us our weaknesses, Brother, but this is the only way. Though this place will be without its mortal wardens, I swear upon my oath that we shall not leave it unprotected.

FATES PROTECT YOU 'TILL THE RETURN!​

-N

 

[Queen_Dopplepopolis]

What do we know about the Luck goddess?

Do we know what was up with the moons?

 

[NuclearWookiee]

All my Knowledge:Religion check gave me was that the luck goddess' moon was about to come out, and things that she governs. Luck, night, the moon, etc. Past that I didn't get any more information (that I recall).

 

[cuteasaurus]

BTW, Mariel has the letter on her so we can take it to someone (don't know who that would be yet!) and ask them if they have any more info about the paper, ink, possible writer, etc.

 

[The_Universe]

What do we know about the Luck goddess?

Known to Men as Borial, to the Tuatha as Manirisel, and to the Dwarves as Usariel, the Winter Queen is widely regarded to have been the youngest of the Slaver God's children, sister of fallen Sammeal (whom the Tuatha call Azarel, and the Dwarves call Sariel).

In the years after the True Race first crossed the veil, escaping the Slaver God's clutches, as the 9 surviving immortals took it upon themselves to divide Taloran among themselves, Borial was given dominion over the darkness that divides one day from the other, which she named Night. Fearing that Belial's bright fires would blind the 9's adopted children to the magnificent celestial domains that Hephaerial had set to spin about the earth, Borial reached out her hand, drawing all but Belial's sphere into the darkness she ruled. Ever serving her brothers and sisters, she set the 8 Hephaerian Moons in their courses, forever protecting them from Belial's blinding, consuming fire. Thus, the Veilborn sleep with the Jewels of the Gods shining and sparkling in the darkness above their dreams.

In the Tuathan versions of the tale, Atenarel grows jealous of Manirisel's power in darkness, and draws the heat of the Sun away from the earth, cooling the earth, creating the First Winter. However, in dimming the light of his own domain, Atenarel finds himself weakened. In his attempt to punish Manirisel, he has shortened the days, creating longer nights for Manirisel to rule. The two eventually reconcile (at least temporarily), and the continuing cycle of their estrangement and reconciliation creates the seasons as those in the northlands know them (though he never turns his baleful eye from the Tuathan lands for long, in order to ensure that Tethyrel cannot free the Tuatha from their eternal punishment).

In the Human and Dwarven versions, Belial and Borial have a less contentious relationship, and agree to alternate their periods of influence, for just the earth must rest in winter, just as Men and Dwarves rest at Night, renewing them, allowing them to provide for the Veilborn.

This cycle also gives rise to Borial's reputation as a (paradoxically virginal) goddess of Lust. Though she trysts with Belial in Autumn and Spring, she liaises with other gods while the Sun Lord is distant (these other affairs are thought to occur when Borial's moon passes near one of the other god's). Despite these liaisons, her innocence returns with the change of the season, and she remains typically portrayed as a pale, young (but undoubtedly sensuous) girl. Dwarves take a simpler approach to this aspect of her portfolio, simply noting that physical love is a good way to keep warm during the times Usariel rules.

Because Borial is arguably among the most powerful of the 9, despite the widely held belief that her original realm (night) was merely the last choice cast-off that the other gods did not want, she is also a goddess of luck and fortune (last choice ends up being the best choice). "Luckier than Lady Winter" is a common idiom among all the Veilborn, a reputation she maintains in part because her moon glows a pale, precious silver. This makes her a popular goddess among gamblers, thieves, and cutthroats (as well as prostitutes, many of which can be found among the ranks of her priests and priestesses). In addition to having a repuation for the fortunate touch, Borial's darkness is frequently an aid to cheats and liars, furthering her popularity among the less scrupulous.

These are, of course, only the general feature's of Borial's power, as she has many other "sub-portfolios" among these major elements. As a night goddess, for instance, she would hold dominion over both Sleep and Dreams. As a lunar goddess, she holds some dominion over the tides, an influence she shares with Posedrial/Tethyrel/Jordriel. As a sex goddess, she has some influence over physical beauty and sensuality - this she shares with Isirial/Ishtarel/Freyariel. These are not exhaustive, and serve as only a few examples.

Borial is represented among Men as a silver snowflake, juxtaposed over a crescent moon. Among the Tuatha, Manirisel is represented by 8 (sometimes 9) orbs on a field of midnight blue. Among the Dwarves, Usariel is represented by a great, shaggy bear, on a circular field, the bottom of which is white (snow), the top of which is black (Night, Usariel's doman).

This is all common knowledge - though the humans probably don't know the Tuathan versions, etc.

Do we know what was up with the moons?

Can you be more specific? When you entered the house, Borial's moon was about to rise. However, because of the blizzard, you could not see it. Though there have been earthquakes, as far as I can recall, you have not seen anything to suggest that anything is out of the ordinary with the moons.

 

[The_Universe]

BTW, Mariel has the letter on her so we can take it to someone (don't know who that would be yet!) and ask them if they have any more info about the paper, ink, possible writer, etc.

Good idea! Maybe you can check it out when you get to Shadesport.

 

[The_Universe]

Just as a reminder, this is a good way to collate your knowledge - start thinking about what's going on, now; what evidence have you gathered? What mysteries are there, thus far? Can you draw any conclusions as of yet?

As JC and Liz can tell you, I'm not going to hand you the answers to any of these mysteries on a silver platter - however, I can guarantee that the answer to every mystery that will ever be presented in the game lies somewhere in the adventures, and/or your backstories.

 

[Queen_Dopplepopolis]

Things we KNOW:

(1) The Winter Queen's moon has crashed to the earth.
(2) The Winter Queen's moon is made of some awesome cold stuff.
(3) There was a temple under a "common" farm house.
(3) There was a rabid bear (symbol of the Winter Queen).
(4) There was an altar in the temple under the "common" farm house.
(5) The family in the farmhouse died.
(6) There were eyes and madness in the temple/farmhouse.
(7) The island that holds the largest temple for the Winter Queen is on fire (as well as my fraking boat).
(8) We have a priestess with us.
(9) There was an Imp who believed himself to be servant to The Slavery/Destoryer/10th God.

What we assume based on what we know:
(1) That the temple under the farmhouse was a temple to the Destroyer. (How old do we think the temple was?)
(2) That the Winter Queen/Luck Goddess has fallen. (Is she truly a god, then? Is it possible that these being are not divine, but incredibly powerful?)


How do we think the madness/lack of sleep/eyes tie into everything? Was it the Slaver/the Slavers minions possessing the farm family?

Has the Luck Goddess actually fallen? Is it possible that the Slaver managed to hold her/capture her?

Do you think the characters believe that this could happen to ALL of the Gods?

Do any of our characters have a connection with the Luck Goddess?

Speaking of our characters, do you think we should share our motivations, our goals so that we can form some sort of plan? I'm not getting a very "party oriented" feeling... so I think we need to put some effort into giving our characters a REASON to adventure with each other.

I'm done rambling for now... more later!

 

[The_Universe]

(3) There was a rabid bear (symbol of the Winter Queen).

The bear, though foaming at the mouth, did not appear to be rabid. However, it was unusually violent, and apparently bent on your destruction, to the degree that it passed over an easy meal to continue to pursue the party. I believe (correct me if I am wrong) that Aflonse declared this to be a fiendish bear; in this case, not likely to be a bear from one of the infernal planes, but rather a bear possessed by a low-level fiend.

(7) The island that holds the largest temple for the Winter Queen is on fire (as well as my fraking boat).

The Salt Spray, at least as of the last time you looked, is not on fire. However, it could catch fire if the flames spread to the dockworks. While it likely could haul anchor and head out into the harbor in order to avoid this fate, a small fleet of Lord Admiral's ships appear to be blockading Dicer's isle, preventing the few ships that failed to get away early from leaving the docks.

(8) We have a priestess with us.

That you do! However, she seems more than a little spacey - understandable, perhaps, if your hypotheses are correct. Still, it might be work seeking more information about the island from her, at least; she's probably spent more time there than you have.

(9) There was an Imp who believed himself to be servant to The Slaver/Destroyer/10th God.

I think he indicated that he wanted to take advantage of the situation that the apparent 10th god had created, not necessarily that he was a loyal servant. Nevertheless, he's not powerful enough to be a free agent in the infernal planes, so your conclusion certainly could be correct.

What we assume based on what we know:
(1) That the temple under the farmhouse was a temple to the Destroyer. (How old do we think the temple was?)

Someone with some knowledge of architecture or stonework may be able to hazard a guess as to the Temple's age.

(2) That the Winter Queen/Luck Goddess has fallen. (Is she truly a god, then? Is it possible that these being are not divine, but incredibly powerful?)

Anything's possible, but the demon seemed to hint that the Winter Queen (Borial/Manirisel/Usariel) was/is, indeed, a god. Other than her apparent fallibility, you have no reason to suspect otherwise, at least not yet. In any case, this does imply that there beings in the cosmos more powerful than the gods - philosophical questions aside, that must be a sobering thought. That these beings apparently have malign intentions is more disturbing still.

How do we think the madness/lack of sleep/eyes tie into everything? Was it the Slaver/the Slavers minions possessing the farm family?

That's a great question to ask.

Has the Luck Goddess actually fallen? Is it possible that the Slaver managed to hold her/capture her?

Also a very good question. Holding her seems like something the Slaver would do, based on its name, anyway.

Speaking of our characters, do you think we should share our motivations, our goals so that we can form some sort of plan? I'm not getting a very "party oriented" feeling... so I think we need to put some effort into giving our characters a REASON to adventure with each other.

Enhancing the party dynamic is always a good idea. However, not all of your immediate goals align, so it may take a creative, leader-type to try to forge your disparate interests into something that the whole group can work toward. Some of those goals for some of those characters may not be the sorts of things you want to immediately disclose.

I'm done rambling for now... more later!

Very well thought out - definitely hit the high points. I only answered the questions that were fairly DM oriented; the rest I leave to the party to discuss, and then seek further clarification.