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(Some poor messenger is given a sealed letter and instructions to seek and deliver it to the King of the Taridut)


Say to Tatu Tul, the King of Taridut, our friend: Thus, Vellyn Lhyrian, the Legate of the Second Seat of Ephia's Well, your friend. For me and my people all goes well. For you, for your wives, for your sons, for your people, your chums, your tents and all lands where you roam, may all go very well.

Let it be known, that our people rejoice. There is the sound of much happiness in the air, for this great victory that we have won together. The people cry out for joy, they sing and dance and make merry in all matter of ways.

But amidst this joyous celebration there is a thing that brings tears to our eyes. Where are our friends, the Big Chums, whom we fought and won a great victory with, and whom we dearly wish to laugh and sing and dance and celebrate alongside?

Many of the children ask me this - Where are the big, rotund bellies, which when slapped in a jovial manner, their shaking brings amusement to all the people such that they smile in glee?

Where are their mounts, who are so mighty and majestic that the land gasps out in excitement with every step?

For this, we cry out - Let us not ask why the Big Chums are not here to celebrate with us, but ask why we are not with the Big Chums! And so we say to you - let us come to you and we shall bring with us gifts of many animals, and much food, and much drink and all sorts of wonderful things! And therefore let us celebrate together in your home in the manner of friends!

And then we shall give gifts, and dance and sing and eat and drink together in much merriment in the manner of friends, such that all people in all lands would look upon us and know that we are friends, and know that neither of us covets nor desires what the other is not willing to give, nor would they take which was not given, nor grasp covetously to when asked to relinquish what is not theirs, for such is not the way of friends.

Tell the messenger whom delivers these joyful words when and where we should devise to meet, and it shall be done!

To the Honorable Ishak, Ferik of the Tutorial Guard,

Written on this, the 24th day of the Month of Tammuz, in the reign of the Mighty Osman VI, may Life, Prosperity and Health be upon him.

From the hand of Zelpha Nesendya al-Faltarnis, Scribe of the Sublime Garden, Apprentice Cartographer of the Lands and Skies, on behalf of Faith Kruehtzer, Absolver of Guilt.

Peaceful Greetings.

A matter of gravity and sacred import compels this writing.

Let it be known that Ephia's Well seeks the earthly remains of three individuals, once held in honorable service, now passed beyond the Four Reeds into the realm of the dead. Their names are written upon the scrolls of the Maqbara and spoken in hushed tones by the Preperators at the House of the Dead, but their earthly bodies have become lost to us and their loved ones cry out for their return.

It is believed - by the will of Kalim, that their bodies may lie within Arslan, their mortal lives lost during the liberation of Arslan from the clutches of jackals. If they may lie there upon your grounds then we implore you - search your resting places and speak with the preparers of the dead. If these honored dead are found, then let them be treated according to the sacred rites and returned with reverence to the Maqbara in Ephia's Well, beneath the gaze of the Palatial Pyramid.

If this is done then our gratitude shall flow like the Mother's tears.


They are as follows:


Dralnu, Recluta of the Banda Rossa - Human, Male. Masculine. Agasian Battle-Chaplain, who did holy worship with his hands. Dressed in heavy armor, black, dark gray and red. Of youthful face, hair of reddish-brown, short.

Qen - Elf, Male. Dressed in green and Sand leather, typical of followers of Kula.

Mansur Amun-Rezhir - Human, Male. Dressed in heavy armor of gray, brown and dusky red. May have had a whip.


Thus, do we sign and mark with our seal,
Zelpha Nesendya al-Faltarnis,
Scribe of the Sublime Garden,
Apprentice Cartographer of the Lands and Skies,
In loyal service to Ephia's Well

Dear Absolver Faith Kruehtzer,

We have received your request concerning the mortal remains of three citizens of Ephia's Well whose lives were presumed to have been lost in service to Ephia's Well during the liberation of Arslan.

We must stress the difficulty of your request - many weeks have passed since their reported demise and we are as of this time uncertain as to what steps the provisional government have taken with regards to the dead. They may have already been buried in a mass grave, they may have been cremated. They may have been dressed and set aside, which is the most ideal outcome.


In order to facilitate their potential discovery and return, we ask that you provide a physical description of the three individuals:

    Mansur Amun-Rezhir

    Qen Wildwalker

    Recluta Dralnu


Once we have been provided with the means of identification we will author a letter to our liaison within the Arslan Provisional Government requesting their investigation into this matter, and if possible, facilitate the return of the bodies so that they may be buried with the appropriate honors.

Again, we politely emphasize the difficulty of the request and ask that you keep your expectations within appropriate limits.


Scribe Zepha Nesendya al-Faltarnis
Tammuz 23, IY 7789

Legates, Deputy Chief Scribe, and all others whom it may concern,


I have here presented for your consideration a draft for a diplomatic correspondence with the Taridut, composed in the Old Bazeelian Formal Written Style For Speaking With Cultured Barbarians. I believe this will serve to convey our request for a meeting of our peoples in an affirmative manner that the Taridut will find satisfying. We still require the proper name of their King. If you need make ammendments or alterations to this I deferentially but politely stress that you keep the first paragraph intact as this is a formalized greeting.


Zepha Nesendya al-Faltarnis
Scribe
Terrestial and Stellar Cartographer, Apprentice




Say to (BIGCHUM), the King of Taridut, our friend: Thus, Vellyn Lhyrian, the Legate of the Second Seat of Ephia's Well, your friend. For me and my people all goes well. For you, for your wives, for your sons, for your people, your chums, your tents and all lands where you roam, may all go very well.

Let it be known, that our people rejoice. There is the sound of much happiness in the air, for this great victory that we have won together. The people cry out for joy, they sing and dance and make merry in all matter of ways.

But amidst this joyous celebration there is a thing that brings tears to our eyes. Where are our friends, the Big Chums, whom we fought and won a great victory with, and whom we dearly wish to laugh and sing and dance and celebrate alongside?

Many of the children ask me this - Where are the big, rotund bellies, which when slapped in a jovial manner, their shaking brings amusement to all the people such that they smile in glee?

Where are their mounts, who are so mighty and majestic that the land gasps out in excitement with every step?

For this, we cry out - Let us not ask why the Big Chums are not here to celebrate with us, but ask why we are not with the Big Chums! And so we say to you - let us come to you, and we shall bring with us gifts of many animals, and much food, and much drink and all sorts of wonderful things! And therefore let us celebrate together in your home in the manner of friends!

And then we shall give gifts, and dance and sing and eat and drink together in much merriment in the manner of friends, such that all people in all lands would look upon us and know that we are friends, and know that neither of us covets nor desires what the other is not willing to give, nor would they take which was not given, nor grasp covetously to when asked to relinquish what is not theirs, for such is not the way of friends.

Tell the messenger whom delivers these joyful words when and where we should devise to meet, and it shall be done!

A collection of letters, tables, maps and personal observations of -

Zepha Nesendya al-Faltarnis
  Apprentice and understudy of
    Akemmakhte al-Ipuy
    Royal Scribe of the Tomb

Narwen was a Spring Elf who left her paradise home because of some troubling portents. Her kinband died as they were exploring the desert for answers and allies, and she arrived at Ephia's Well quite traumatized by this, but determined to move forward.

I played her as very driven by her emotions, but also emotionally walled off until things came to a bursting point. And she was also the sort to make mountains out of molehills. She had a very strong sense of family and loyalty, but was also very sensitive to slights and snubs. And she was willing to go to any lengths to protect her people and home.

She tried to forge a treaty between her home and Ephia's Well, and I guess she was semi-successful at that - but it was only an informal treaty at the end, not something that the Legates at the time seemed willing to sign into law. And in time, it was forgotten.

She joined the Balladeers because she was terribly lonely, then due to some fucked up things, ended up joining the Sisterhood. She went from not really caring about history in lieu of the present, to slowly starting to become interested in the stories of the past - to the point where she was almost a loremaster just by osmosis and the events she had partaken in. She was always torn between two worlds and never really felt like she belonged to any of them.

It's been a wild trip, Narwen accomplished a lot of stuff. She participated in so many permadeath events. Thanks to the dms for letting me throw a magical hero quest play, which resulted in the Ayabassim coming to Ephias Well's aid in Arslan.

Thanks to all the people who interacted with her over these years, who enjoyed her silly stories, poems, songs, paintings and her brand of mysticism. It's been a lovely experience.

Screenies later.

Some gear pron

[close]

I think it would greatly simplify things going forward as player characters die, retire, get their names changed, leave factions etc.

Dear Giver-of-Gifts,

It's Narwen! I am writing to you from Ephia's Well.

The Festival of The First Blooming should be soon upon us.

Should I invite the people of Ephia's Well to the Spring to renew our bonds of friendship through the telling of tales and the singing of songs and the giving of gifts?

I think many of them have forgotten. The man who signed the first friendship pact has perished in the course of this terrible war. These people have such short memories.

Perhaps this can be a time to remind them and to plant more wholesome ideas in their hearts? Ideas of friendship and harmony rather than war and conquest?


Narwen

Dear Exequer,


My fellow acolyte and I currently maintain the Art Gallery of Ephia's Well, which was initially established by Balladeer Niranye.

Under Balladeer Niranye, the Art Gallery was open to the people of Ephia's Well and celebrated the artists and artistic culture of the Well. In addition it features a smaller display of artwork from our neighbors across the Great Dune Sea, but the majority of the space is given to local artists. At one time it displayed some antique art pieces from the Caliphate and from the era of the Giants, but these antique art pieces have been removed due to the new law prohibiting handling of antiques without a license, which the Astronomers of Q'Tolip have denied us.

We have been renovating the Art Gallery in anticipation of opening its doors to the public very soon.

I am hunmbly writing to you in the hopes that your office can help relieve some of the financial burden associated with maintaining the Art Gallery. We currently pay taxes in the amount of 550 dinar per week, much of which we raise through donations and charitable auctions - the proceeds of which are split between paying the dues on the Gallery and donating towards the needs of the refugees and the Drifter's Stockade.


Thank you for your consideration,
Acolyte Narwen Alendiel of Sisterhood of the Sibylline Vine

Beloved Balladeer,

Enclosed with this letter are some of the sacred verses that are known to me. Many were recovered from ancient texts and tablet carvings and translated from their archaic forms with the help of Sister Nebtu. There are many different fragments from many different sources. You will notice some common ideas, symbols and passages among them.

It is my understanding of the Sacred Mysteries, by which these mundane words are given power, that these should serve as guides rather than as unchanging works of scripture to be recited verbatten. They should be adjusted to the situation at hand.

You will note some of the repetitive symbols in them, in particular, the ruins from which the spirit comes and must return to, and the house and the fence. It is thus best to prepare the place before recital. The ground should be made clean and pure and made sacred, separate in an intangible way from the space around it. A threshold should be created, where one can pass from the mundane into this sacred space, and through which the spirits can be forbidden and cast out.

The speaker of rites must describe and name the spirit as best they can. The better they can name and describe the spirit the more authority they can assert upon it.

Remember, the paint brush is but the tool through which the painter expresses themselves, through which they create. Do not mistake the brush for the painter.

These words must come from your spirit, flow through your heart, and exit through your mouth, heavy with sacred purpose. Spoken by a man without virtue, who scorns the sacred and the divine, they are weak and empty sounds. Spoken by a man who is virtuous, whose spirit shines bright with the fire that does not burn, who brings himself to a state of sacralized purpose, and who utters them in a place that has likewise been made sacred and pure, they are thus imbued with a sacred power and purpose and these words echo even in the sacred realm.


Acolyte Narwen Alendiel

With the storm wind they blow,
And cannot be withstood.
Haloed with awful brilliance,
They carry terror far and wide.
They stand in the broad places
And circle round the highways of the land,
In the temples of the gods they exalt themselves,
They pour no libations of oil
Nor offer sacrifices;
Evil is their way.

Whether thou art an evil man,
Or an evil djinn,
Or an evil djinn that hath fallen like a wall
And hath crushed the man,
Or an evil djinn that gibbereth
And bindeth hands and feet,
Or an evil djinn that hath no mouth,
Or an evil djinn that hath no limbs,
Or an evil djinn that cannot hear,
Or an evil djinn that in a goblet flasheth in the sun,
Or an evil djinn that the man hath created
On a bed by night in sleep,
Or an evil djinn stealing sleep away
Ready to carry off the man,
Or an evil djinn that roameth by night,
Whose unclean hands know no reverence,
Or an evil djinn crouching like a wolf,
That lurketh in wait for the man,
Or an evil djinn that knoweth not sacrifice of beasts or herbs,
Or an evil djinn that like a bat dwelleth in caverns by night,
Or an evil djinn that like a bird of night flieth in dark places,
Or an evil djinn that envelopeth the man
As it were with a coverlet,
Or an evil djinn that enshroudeth the man
As it were with a sack,
Or an evil djinn that like night hath no brightness,
Or an evil djinn that by night prowleth in the mud,
O thou evil djinn, turn thee to get hence,
O thou that dwelleth in ruins, get thee to thy ruins,
With fleabane on the lintel of the door I have hung,
Wheatears on the latch I have hung,
Thy body I restrain;
O evil spirit, get thee hence,
Depart, O evil Spirit!
From the body of the man,
O evil Spirit, depart!
O evil Spirit, get thee forth to distant places,
O evil Spirit, hie thee unto the ruins,
Where thou standest is forbidden ground,
A ruined, desolate house is thy home;
Be thou removed from before me!
By the Wheel be thou exorcised!
By the Disc be thou exorcised!

For my life and health follow after me.
A kindly Guardian marcheth on my right,
A kindly Spirit marcheth on my left,
...

Evil Spirit,
Evil Djinn,
Evil Ghost,
Evil Fiend,
Evil are they!

Unto my body may they not draw nigh,
Before me may they wreak no evil.
Nor follow behind me.

Into my house may they not enter.
My fence may they not break through,
Into my chamber may they not enter.

By the Wheel be thou exorcised!
By the Disc be thou exorcised!

O B'aara, Lady of Pure Waters,
I, the supplicant, am thy servant.
I, the priest, am thy servant.
March thou on my right hand,
Be present on my left;
Add thy pure spell unto mine,
Add thy pure voice unto mine,
Add thy pure spittle unto mine,
Add thy pure prayer unto mine,
Make fortunate the utterances of my mouth,
Ordain that my decisions be happy,
Let me be blessed wherever I tread,
Let the man whom I now touch be blessed.
Before me may lucky thoughts be spoken,
After me may a lucky finger be pointed.
Oh that thou wert my guardian Genius,
And my guardian Spirit!
Oh, god that blesseth, B'aara,
Let me be blessed, wherever my path may be!
Thy power shall god and man proclaim;
This man shall do thy service,
And I too, the priest, thy servant.

I am the messenger of IZDU.
To revive the spirit of this sick man
The Great Magi IZDU has sent me;
He hath added his pure spell to mine,
He hath added his pure voice to mine,
He hath added his pure spittle to mine,
He hath added his pure prayer to mine.
Whether thou art an evil Spirit or an evil Djinn,
Or an evil Ghost or an evil Devil,
Or an evil God or an evil fiend,
Be thou removed before me!
By the Wheel be thou exorcised!
By the Disc be thou exorcised!
May the pestilence, fever, pain, sorcery and all evil
Be removed from the body of the wanderer.
Unto my body may they not come nigh,
May they get hence from near me,
May they not follow after me.
By the Great Wheel may they be exorcised!
May he not be held in bondage,
May his fetters be loosened!

Whether thou art an evil Spirit or an evil Djinn,
Or an evil Ghost or an evil Devil,
Or an evil God or an evil Fiend,
Or Hag-demon or Ghoul or Robber Sprite,
Or Phantom of Night or Wraith of Night,
Or Handmaiden of the Phantom,
Or evil pestilence or noisome fever,
Or pain or sorcery or any evil,
Or headache or shivering or shakes or terror,
Or an evil man or evil face.
Or evil spell, or evil tongue, or evil mouth, or sorcery, or any evil,
Be thou removed from before me!
By the Wheel be thou exorcised!
By the Disc be thou exorcised!

Where I sit, there sit thou not!
Where I walk, there walk thou not!
Where I enter, there enter thou not!

It bites with the bite of a wolf
It leaps with the leap of a dog
It enters as animals enter,
It leaves as animal leaves
Get away, maskadu-sickness,
Before the flint,
The scalpel of Kula,
Catches up with you!

Whether thou art a ghost that hath come from the earth,
or a phantom of night that hath no couch...
or one that lieth dead in the desert...
or a ghost unburied...
or a hag-demon,
or a ghoul,
or a robber-sprite,
or a weeping woman that hath died with a babe at the breast...
Whatever thou be
until thou art removed,
until thou departest from the body of this place,
thou shalt have no water to drink.
Thou shalt not stretch forth thy hand...
Into the house enter thou not.
Through the fence break thou not.

They creep like a snake on their bellies,
They make the chamber to stink like mice,
They give tongue like a pack of hounds.

Over the highest wall and through the thickest wall,
Like an ash storm they can pass,
Breaking through from house to house;
No door can shut them out,
No bolt can turn them back,
For through the portal like a snake they creep,
And through the hinges like the wind they blow.

They scour from land to land,
Driving the maid from her chamber,
And the man from his home,
And the son from his father's house.
They hunt the doves from their cotes,
And drive the bird from Its nest,
And chase the martin from Its hole.
...

Dear Quendi, Giver-of-Gifts,

The Ambassador of Qadira has placed a bounty on the ears of Elves of Spring's Gift.

She has stated that a reward of 5,000 dinar will be offered for each ear.

I do not know what was done to anger them so.

While this is probably targeted at the elves living in Ephia's Well, I write to you so that you may be aware of the increased danger.

Let me know if I can help.

With love, always,


Acolyte Narwen Alendiel

As there is currently no means to increase the number of bags a pc can carry, can you make it so that the bag limit only counts bags that have the weight reduction property on them? You could even lower the bag limit to 3 or 4 magical bags.

It would be nice not to slow to a crawl because you get one of those warrior locker bags or something as a reward at the end of a quest, or in my case, I am given a box of stickers to hand out :D

Perhaps it's a little bit of an OCD request but it would be nice if we could store 6 books in a bookshelf as it would fill up the shelf's inventory screen.

Dear Lyrist Aubrey Domergue,

I humbly request a few moments of your precious time to discuss matters relating to my new responsibilities as Cup Bearer.

I will bring some treats - with the aid of my ancestor's songs I have discovered the mystery to making a delicious cake called a "Queen Butter Cake".


With the Mother's grace,
Acolyte Narwen Alendiel

Dear Ernesto Est,

Hello! This is a letter from Narwen Alendiel, the acolyte whom you graciously permitted to attend the scholarly exchange between Ephia's Well and Il Modo many months ago.

I am writing to you in the hopes that you can offer me some guidance.

I hoping to acquire some rare texts from the Orentid period. I would be grateful if you could refer me to any traders or collectors within your fine city who deal in such things.


Thank you,
Acolyte Narwen Alendiel

Lyrist Aubrey,

Hello! It's Narwen. I thought it was strange that most people say who the letter is from at the very bottom - I think its something most people want to know right away?

There may be increased interest in the Singing Stone that our beloved and departed friends Velan Volandis & Lynneth recovered.

I must humbly implore you to restrict all access to the Singing Stone - save for Balladeer Ku-Mepp and those that the Sisters deem safe. This request is made with the full backing of the Sisterhood.

Further, The Necromancer, Oskrul, may attempt to seize it. Please be alert and guard against any attempts.

Do not speak the name associated with the stone.

There is a very real and very terrible danger here which we hope to avert.


Acolyte Narwen Alendiel
QDIM 23 7788

There are many fire spells that are plainly inferior to the other elemental counterparts. Frost Wall has a free slow component to it that Fire Wall lacks. Cold and Thunder have higher level flame weapon counterparts in the form of Herald of Winter and Lightning Avatar. The Elemental Orbs all have additional effects such as slow, blindness - while Fire Orb's additional effect is another damage over time burn effect which I believe doesn't stack with the burn from GSF Evocation Fire. Blast of Flame is a lvl 4 cone of fire spell with no additional effects and the same damage profile as Fireball, while its cold equivilant Frost Blast is a projectile aoe that does the same amount of damage but also adds a save vs frozen effect for 1 round / 2 levels (very strong!), while gas explosion has a save vs 1d4 rounds of daze/sleep/knockdown. Fire spells should be brought up to par to the other elements.

Additionally, GSF Evo Fire's effect is very weak compared to the others. First the enemy has to fail a reflex save, then wait 1 round, then it gets another reflex save, and if it fails that second one it will take 1d4 fire damage. Perhaps the damage can be applied before the 2nd reflex save - make the reflex save the roll to put the fire out but you still take the damage that round?

It would also be nice if we could tone down the number of fire resistant enemies. I get that it's a desert setting and thus it makes some sense that creatures in it would have some hardiness against heat, but if the imputus behind switching some spells from bludgeoning to Earth damage type is that Earth is magical, the same should be said about Fire. It's magical fire. If being tough against being hit by rocks shouldn't protect you from being hit by magical earth-attuned rocks then being tough against heat shouldn't protect you from magical fire-attuned attacks.

Right now anyone can place furniture within a faction base. It retains ownership of whoever placed it.

My suggestion is that anyone in the faction should be considered an owner of the furniture. (Perhaps it can be limited to anyone of officer rank or above?)

This will help with issues of pcs leaving, dying, retiring, having their names changed...

There is something similar for properties - where you can flag an entire faction as being allowed to enter.

Dear Quendi, Beloved Speaker,

I share concerning news. The Thousand Clans have gathered under IAKMES. IAKMES has vowed to bring about an Age of Bronze. He vows to slaughter all the people whom he sees as interlopers in the Great Sea of Ash. He says only through their blood can the land breathe again.

I do not know what IAKMES intentions towards the Spring and our people are. In days past the people of the Well have vowed to me that they would protect the Spring and the Newborn if we ask for it. But their memories are fickle. Their lives short. Their speakers change with the month. Young speakers do not always honor the words and ways of old speakers.

The people of the Well have asked me if the Spring might help in their war. I have told them that nothing sacred grows from ash and blood. I have told them that the gifts of the Spring are for the Newborn and the Newborn alone and these gifts are not for the making of war. I have told them that the Children of the Spring will not fight in this war.

They understand.

It has been suggested that the Kinbands who feel the call to wander the Great Sea may see and hear things that are worth sharing. Tales of things-that-are which may save lives from the axe and fire. They wonder if the Kinbands of Ynys Eilir might share these tales with the people of the Well.

I ask, on their behalf, for your wisdom and the wisdom of the Spring in this matter. Will you hear their request and consider it? If it is your desire to hear them then I can bring Bashir to the Spring so that you may hear their words directly.


With love,
Narwen Alendiel

Dear Quendi, Giver of Gifts,

I am inviting outsiders from Ephia's Well to join us in a celebration of friendship during the Festival of The First Blooming.

I do not know who will wish to join us. I will be inviting several elves of the weary old world. There are many others who will wish to come in friendship or out of curiosity.

I will turn those away whom I believe have done us wrong or who have wicked intentions. There are people who have taken advantage of or harmed or threatened harm against myself, Notos and the Spring itself. Sadly there are such people in the Well.

I will ensure that our guests bring no iron or steel with them.

I also want to bring Ishla back to the Spring. She is sick. She has fallen into a sleep that she does not wake from - but this is different from the sleep that afflicts some of our people. I hope that bringing her home might help her. I do not know if it is safe to move her. If it is safe then I will bring our sister home.

Can you please let the Newborn know that there will be guests?

Your sister,
Narwen