I’m very interested in this recruitment, although I just now discovered it. I suspect that not having been around for the RP at all will likely hurt my chances but I’m going to try to put together an application over the (rest of the) weekend, if I can muster enough time.
If nothing else, you could always just come up with enough to get started with playing the character and hop on in while you figure the rest out. :)
The more the merrier I say!
@Gheri: Ah, I see. Sometimes it's difficult to convey things using just text and, well, in my head it sounded like I was making people uncomfortable just setting something like this up.
@Meg: A thousand apologies. I guess I didn't do well in explaining things, did I?
There are two different sparring events going on. First was the 2v2 match and then the ad hoc tournament bouts. I'm keeping track of them concurrently to save time, but I can see how that might be confusing.
Let's see if this helps.
--Sparring match on the road that got interrupted when Rastaf mentioned that we might want to wait.
--Arrival at the inn
--2v2 sparring match. This is the one I still need an action from both Meg and Kizzy and an initiative roll from Meg before we can proceed to the next round.
--Impromptu Tournament. This is the one where you're sparring 1v1 with Rosella. Meg's currently tied with Rosella and it's the top of the round between them. Meg won initiative. I'm waiting on Kizzy to roll initiative and post her action so we can continue on with that match as well.
--Supper and a show, courtesy of poet extraordinaire and man of a thousand faces, Vindur.
--Getting ready for bed and sleeping.
--Continuing on to Sandpoint and stopping for lunch. (Where we're at right now with GM Euan's narration.)
Hopefully that helps.
As far as the matches go. I went to random.org and randomized the list of characters that were wanting to spar and used that to come up with the initial bracket. It was a spur of the moment thing that popped into my head when I saw Rastaf saying "Let the Tournament begin!" :)
Again, apologies for the confusion.
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She approaches Magnus with a smile and says,"I don't suppose you know where a gal could find a good dance partner, do you?" and throws him a wink.
Magnus raises his arms wide as the young human offers to dance.
"Well, I don't mind if I do!" he exclaims, casting off his staff he had been leaning on. He takes her by the hand and begins an energetic jig, leading the way.
"You know, the fey are quite the dancers. I was usually the worst at the grand ball, but they taught me a trick or three!" he exclaims.
His agility seems to indicate that he doesn't need the staff as much as first impressions imply.
Holding her hand, he begins a simple one-two-three, two-two-three, all the way up to eight and performed in 6/8 time. His soft shoes bounce more up and down more than back and forth, and though he does not travel around the floor as much as some other dances, he seems lively and excited.
"You're not boring at all!" he says with a wink. "Some on this trip have looked down on an old man having fun, but not you! I didn't catch your name--is this your first time to Sandpoint?" he asks while they dance.
If any of the sparring contestants seem to get too far ahead, Magnus casts daze on the leading competitor. He does so with a mischievous grin, almost begging for someone to call him on it.
My dad is an ENFP! You know it's funny cause I'm actually within one letter of every member of my family, but in a different way. Aside from my aforementioned dad, my mom is an INTP and my sister is an INFJ. I used to test as INTJ consistently, but that was before I came out, so it's almost certainly related. I can absolutely see how my wife and I being so similar could cause issues between people, but it just hasn't for us. We were friends for 7 months before we started dating, and we were just sympatico that it was such a no-brainer. Still are! We always joke about the "lesbian mind meld" being real.
And no need to apologize for the tangent about your wife's name! I actually appreciate it as that's how I react to such little coincidences, too, so it's nice to see other people doing the same. Also, my middle name is actually Alexander, so I figured where you were going with it :D
I am similar in that my characters have certain archetypes that they jumble around in a broad sense. The biggest thruline there is a massive fundamental disconnect between the world as it is and the way they wish it was. They are often dreamers, perhaps frustrated or delusional. They always want to change something, and I have yet to make a character that would refuse the "Call to Adventure." I like to start characters in their 30's (or equivalent)+ if possible and one of my favorites is a librarian in her 50s. I grew up with a lot of 90's edginess so I kinda bristle at it and prefer more traditional heroes or anti-heroes.
Thank you for adding the option to opt out of the will save. I think I will, just as I'm not super comfortable with using enchantment type things on fellow players. I've had some Super Bad experiences with that kind of thing so I try to stay away from it. I only did a hypnotic stare above because it doesn't actually control the other person in any way and b/c I wanted to test out how I'm gonna flavor it
Tot spends most of the morning keeping to herself. After all the attention yesterday, she feels a little worn. The excitement growing around her has her curious about just how many people will be coming into Sandpoint. She knows the town is on the smaller side, but to hear some speak, the festival must host thousands. Curiosity gets the better of her, and she slowly slides up to someone she thought she heard say they leaved in Sandpoint.
"G-good day, sir. A-are you from Sandpoint," she asks Magnus.
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The older fellow seems delighted by the invitation to dance and Gheri finds herself being led about the dance floor by a very energetic and talented dance partner. "Well, it seems I was correct in thinking I'd spied the best dance partner in the room," she says with a laugh. "I'm Gherix Vainglory, but you're absolutely welcome to call me Gheri," she says, giving the older man a smile, "and no, I've never been to Sandpoint. I'm hoping to explore the ruins and gather more information on ancient Thassilon. Of course, that will wait until after I enjoy the festival. And what about you, you old charmer, what's your name and have you been to Sandpoint before?"
Sounds like Seamus is using the same site I use: 16Personalities.
I've consistently gotten INFP-T, which they call the Mediator. It's pretty strong too, with most scores at least 75% the last time I took it. I guess it makes sense given that my mom always told me that I am the one that always tries to keep the peace.
I recently took it, but answering as a character I was applying to play as in another game. It was interesting seeing how they differ from me and how they are like me. I'm kinda curious as to what Tot is, but I don't think I'm up for doing that at the moment.
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Please don't take my comments in a negative manner. To each its own - you guys, please keep doing what you feel it's fun! Gherix took the right idea from what I meant - just keep my character out of the rolling side of things, and if you want to interact with me, don't assume I succeed or fail on anything - just let me act how I feel it would. To be honest, the whole exchange here had been entertaining, besides the issues I already mentioned.
I also agree with whoever said that these "RP" parts are rarely realistic - I don't think anyone believe these players will have this kind of activity on the game if chosen, and it's of course very disruptive of the recruitment thread. Yet, I feel people had been very respectful in keeping the RP part at least isolated in spoilers.
From a selection standpoint, I feel our GM already know enough about most players/characters from a couple posts (and, likely, by looking at our history and other characters! I doubt he will select anyone just for quantity of posts here), so from there on it's mostly for fun. Let's keep the negativity out! :)
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At the inn The older fellow seems delighted by the invitation to dance and Gheri finds herself being led about the dance floor by a very energetic and talented dance partner. "Well, it seems I was correct in thinking I'd spied the best dance partner in the room," she says with a laugh. "I'm Gherix Vainglory, but you're absolutely welcome to call me Gheri," she says, giving the older man a smile, "and no, I've never been to Sandpoint. I'm hoping to explore the ruins and gather more information on ancient Thassilon. Of course, that will wait until after I enjoy the festival. And what about you, you old charmer, what's your name and have you been to Sandpoint before?"
With Gheri heaping compliments on him, Magnus beams. "You are keeping up just fine, young Gheri, and I dare say you are the most entertaining companion I've found on a pretty boring trip! This dance alone will reverse years of Bleaching!"
When she questions him about Sandpoint, he responds mid-dance, saying "I'm from Sandpoint, originally, but I've only just recently returned after a hundred years away!" he exclaims.
"Though exploring ruins and long-dead empires could be fun, why do that if we could have dances and parties every night!?"
Shoot... I thought things were coming along pretty well until I just saw that there's already a virtuous bravo application. Worse still, the one I was working up was a female with a longsword (mine was an Erastilian instead of an Iomedaean, at least).
I hate submitting something that someone else already has, so I'll start over tomorrow after work. I have a half-formed idea for a magus and I didn't see any of those, so maybe I'll see if I have time to put that together.
@Giant Halfling: Just keep this in mind:
Do not worry what the others are playing as it doesn’t matter. If we have all halfling bards, we’ll make it work, and likely have a lot of fun along the way. Build what you want to play. I’m more worried about balance between party members than I am balance between the party and your foes. More importantly, I will not be selecting players primarily based on what they’re playing, but rather who.
Wow... didn't expect to have stirred up a controversy. For the record, I have only been trying to showcase my character's personality and abilities. I felt like they are a little atypical and are better illustrated by seeing them in action. I really wasn't making an excuse to PvP... this character isn't meant to be competitive. She's built to help a party to perform at their best, I just wanted to demonstrate how she does that. I'm sure the GM doesn't need any exhibition to know how her build works, it was more for the gathered audience of avid roleplayers. My in character comment about performers can most definitely be applied to me.
For what it's worth, I didn't mean to make anyone uncomfortable or show anyone up. I'm perfectly willing to narrate it out that we had a nice workout and all went our merry way. No competition whatsoever. My apologies for the faux pas.
I have seen such sparing matches and tournaments in a lot of PbP and I've never seen it result in anything more than a friendly match and a talking point for the campaign. *shrugs* =/
My night ran later than expected and this was a little disheartening so I will check back tomorrow. Hope you had a Happy Halloween, if you celebrate it!
Izomandakus stashes the bag contents he was showing to Vilnus and the others around with a smile "Resoundingly memorable"
After breakfast, he gets ready to follow the caravan. At the inn's yard, he collects some flowers and gives them to Pachemu pointing at one of the girls. The pig quickly rushes towards Gherix with a crownflower bouquet in his mouth "Pachemu says you are the most beautiful woman ever. I think your dance caused an impression" He also collects a bunch of crownflower petals and stashes them inside a small pouch at his waist.
During the morning walk, Izomandakus walks close to Rosella, as he noticed already even if not chatty, she is a trustful and dependable person, and the young boy knows to stay by such type of sword while closing the wilderness "So, is the Lady of Valor sending the Knights of Ozem to oversee the festival?" He looks around, expecting an owlbear can jump over the caravan at any moment.
Later, at lunch, the young boy sits by the caravan to eat, bringing from his bag a piece of cheese, a slice of brown bread and some nuts. Seeing the drinks others are having he asks around "That wine seems a real delicacy, could I have some? Master Bhreacher would not let me drink during my training and work days"
@Roselia- Thanks for saying that. I actually hemmed and hawed about just finishing her last night because of that paragraph but our mechanics would be so similar—we had the exact same starting feats and mostly the same skills—and I couldn’t help but feel like there’s a difference between 4 halfling bards who could all be focused on different things and having two characters who fill the exact same rolls in the exact same ways both in and out of combat. And then, I thought (and think) there’s a lot of RP potential there because they’d probably make great friends but there would have to be some element of rivalry with them both trying to do the same things all the time, so that could be interesting. I don’t know... I’ll hem and haw some more at work and maybe try to finish her when I get home?
As the caravan gets moving the next day, Vin makes a point of keeping an eye on Tot as he continues the "protector" role he's taken upon himself. While he's trying to be subtle about it, he's not necessarily the sneakiest fellow.
Keeping an eye on Tot, Vin moves so that he is walking beside Qetsiyah. "Excellent job in the sparring match yesterday," he begins. "That dancing fighting style with the bells accompanying you was most impressive! Wherever did you learn such a wonderfully entertaining style?"
After she and Aros finish enjoying a lovely night's rest in her free room, Gheri rises to prepare for another day's travel. Wanting to make sure she keeps her appearance fresh and alluring for any fellows she may need to manipulate request help from, she looks in the somewhat dirty mirror and styles her hair up in fun buns, but leaves the bangs down. She does have a habit of playing with her hair, so she never pulls it all up. She goes with a white, off-the-shoulder blouse with three quarter sleeves this day and puts on a light brown corseted vest that laces up the front. As always, she wears her light blue scarf. She goes with a darker blue skirt this day; some white, thigh-high socks; and her solid, practical, brown shoes.
Gheri exits the inn and is getting ready to head back out on the road when she suddenly sees a pig coming up to her carrying a bouquet of flowers. Aros eyes the pig suspiciously, looks up to Gheri questioningly, but then seems to relax as she responds with, "Oh, aren't you just so sweet?" As a cute young boy tells her that "the pig" thinks she's the most beautiful woman ever, Gheri smiles at the compliment, takes the bouquet, and offers a response of, "Awww, that's adorable! And isn't he just the most charming little piggy I have ever met," and she pats him affectionately on the head. Looking back up as Izomandakus, she throws him a wink and says, "And thanks to you as well, for being such an articulate translator," and she gives him a smile.
As the caravan is getting ready to start out on the road again, Gheri looks around for Tiasar to see if she can mess with the Elf some more, but instead, her eyes fall on the "stinky cheese man" who fixed the wheel. He's a handy fellow, she thinks. Might not be a bad person to know...despite the smell, she reasons. And with that, the ginger-haired scholar walks up to the uneducated cook and gives him a smile as she says, "Excellent work on the wheel yesterday, good sir. You were quite the knight in shining armor, I must say," she says, giving him a charming smile. "I'm Gherix Vainglory, but feel free to call me Gheri. Have you been to Sandpoint before?"
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That all comes to a crashing halt as Gherix stops him, and pins him with her deep eyes. He freezes in place as the inn spins around him while she makes her demand, her voice wavering just so as to dig deep into his subconscious. Released, he blearily grants her room and board - taking the few silver out of his pocket to keep the till even.
He blunders into the confused page-boy and grabs Gherix’s belongings to take them up to the room. In his absence, people wait, drinks go un-replenished, and problems grow. He’ll spend the evening catching up, and will wonder for days what went wrong that night.
"Um, Ma'am, I have a few coppers, If I help clean up the dinning room, how much would a pallet by the fire cost?"
The woman smiles back, ”The hearth is free dearie, but you may have to contend with the late night drunks you understand. And Walter.” she gestures to an old hound dog sleeping by the fire who lifts his head and gives you a hard look before closing his eyes once again and returning to sleep.
- - -Seamus, you might look for music by Ronn Mcfarlane, a ‘famous’ lutist, and thanks for the heads up on the changes.
Giant Halfling, what Rosella quoted is true, I’m less worried about class collisions than most GMs. I find, with five players, most APs are still well handled by sub-optimal parties. In most cases, I need to beef up the mooks at least (usually with the advanced template) just to keep things challenging.
Marku & pad300, I’ve enjoyed your characters and would enjoy seeing more, but yes - post quantity is not a big factor.
And yes, this recruitment, as many do, got a little crazy (this crazier than most!). The campaign will be saner, mostly…
Hasslo Holt
Seamus Passeri (post)
Kronk the Cook
Tiasar Soseshtian
Qetsiyah Kizzy (post)
Rastaf of Sarenrae
Gherix Vainglory (post)
Margareta ‘Meg’ Alekto
Verona of the Wilds
Toblacane Alemardo
Vindur Minhu (post)
Marku Serbanescu
Titania Olivia Thrune
Magnus the Magnificent
Grimmald Moonwatcher
Chaetris Admeroi
Emerik Albaras
Rosella Marcu
Izomandakus
If you are not on this list and feel you should be, or there is something else, please let me know. Thanks!
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Kronk had to look a bit around, before noticing Gherix was talking to him. His smile came out natural, but even then - underneath all his awkward layers - it still wasn’t really pleasant. Yet, it was obvious he was a kind person; a good soul hidden under decades of labor and commonalities.
You’re... Kind, my dear. Thanks. - he finally replied, a little shy - My name is Kronk. I’ve been living in Sandpoint for most of my life... It’s just that I’m one of those invisible people we barely ever notice when our lives are minimally interesting!
At this point, he chuckled. His tone wasn’t that of spite, but humbleness; and there was a hard truth behind what he was saying. In the life of adventurers, the quests often throw a pity dark shade over the commoners encountered in every town, which several times have faces that are quickly forgotten. His was one of such.
I work at the Hagfish. I’m a cook. Feel free to pass by some day if I may interest you in tasty oysters or good fried cheese.
As Seamus gives the young performer some praise and then offers to help him make some connections in Sandpoint, Vin nods eagerly saying, "Oh, I...of course! That would be very much appreciated, my friend." He then gets a bit of a coy smile as he says, "I was saving the magic display for effect, I'm really glad it went over well." One might get the sense that Vin, despite some of the self-confidence he displays in his performances and the demeanor he typically displays, actually is somewhat desperate for affirmation.
As the serving gal from the night before walks by, she throws a wink in Vin's direction, causing one to wonder if perhaps he got some of that affirmation from her last night. However, he is back "in character" throwing her a wink as he catches the kiss blown his way and brings his fingertips gently to his lips as if kissing her back.
"I can't say I've ever had fried cheese, but perhaps I should try it," she muses. "Oysters, on the other hand, are quite delicious. Did you know that some people say they're an aphrodisiac?" After she asks this, a couple of things run through her mind. The first is, of course, does this common laborer even know what such a word means, and the second thought, would he think she was being suggestive? Ah well. Might as well just let it hang there unclarified. After all, the more attractive I seem, the more easily he can be wrapped around my little finger.
Leaving the previous comment hanging there, she changes the subject saying, "Hagfish is rather a peculiar name. May I ask where your tavern got such a...unique name?"
Yeah friends first is the way to go! We met at the university gay women’s group and just kept running into each other because our schedules lined up. I assumed there was no way they could be interested in me, but we know how that worked out!
That’s interesting about having difficulty making characters above a certain level. I feel like I have the opposite problem, in that I’ll come up with a level 1 character and feel like their story suggests at least a few more levels. I like having that adult history before they go on their adventure.
I also ironically have an easier time writing characters starting young in my non-RPG fiction. But that’s because I’m doing the typical writer thing and working out my shit through writing.
Meg had thought herself at least a little better prepared for a fight, but the outcome of the little tournament leaves her with few illusions to that effect. She had not truly practiced in years, not since her and Sapphira ceased their lessons, but she had not thought it a skill so easily lost. She is quieter than usual as she is put in her place again and again. The others are enjoying themselves at least. Competition never excited her much anyways. She always tends to disappoint and come up short. She spends her time sitting on the sidelines after being knocked out appreciating the other women at play. The quiet bounty huntress is more than competent at her profession, none to surprisingly. Her retiring personality seems not an act, so there certainly must be some baggage there. Rosella has a certain driven yet regal air to her that makes her feel a tad unapproachable. Kizzy fights for someone else, not for herself, and it is a new experience for Meg to witness someone fighting so unselfishly. She honestly has difficulty thinking about Kizzy’s protection of her without a flush coming across her face. No man has ever been able to pull that reaction from her, and she always wrote it off as immaturity that she preferred the friendship of women and felt such friendship much more intensely. She and Sapphira had been saying they love each other since practically the first day they met.
Looking for an excuse to not rest with her own thoughts any longer, she sees Seamus in an animated discussion with the poet and a young man she had not noticed before. The poet’s little performance had been enjoyable, this is true. She is still as cold as ever to his charms, but she can treat with him more amiably for the time being.
”What is all this conspiracy going about here? Is Seamus here already planning an accompanying song for next time?” She smiles, a charming one. ”That indeed was a clever performance, Vin. Though as the little tournament showed, while I may be ‘daring’ at fighting, that does not mean I am good at it.”
Meg turns her attention to the new boy and his pig. She bows—she always thought curtsies looked ridiculous in trousers—with a calm flourish. ”You may call me Meg. What schemes are these two attempting to embroil a nice respectable boy like you in? I could use a good distraction.”
Hasslo watches the commotion at the inn. Instead of going to the inn, the dwarf helps get the caravan ready for the night. He'll chat with one of the other workers, "This is a beautiful horse. What's her name?". Hasslo questions as he brings the mare some hay.
His legs are sore after walking for most of the day. "How long do you think we'll arrive in Sandpoint? From the sounds of it, this festival sounds impressive."
As the dwarf carries some of the boxes around - perhaps food or valuables the proprietors does't want out in the middle of nowhere - Hasslo asks, "Do you mind if I set up camp here? The inn would be nice, but I'd rather not bother the innkeeper. It sounds like Hell in there." He lets out a laugh.
By this time, Hasslo has stripped off his armor and finds a flat part of land. The dwarf starts stretching. His poses initially look normal but by the third or forth pose, his body twists and contorts.
If anyone asks, Hasslo responds, [b]"My neighbors growing up in Magnimar were from Vudra. They taught me this technique they called 'youga'.
If any one wants to learn some 'youga,' Hasslo will teach them a pose or two.
Rosella wasn't sure exactly why Vin was so nice to her, but he seemed like a pleasant person.
The next day she rose at dawn, so she could get some practice in before the caravan got moving again. The sparring session had revealed some things she needed to work on. As she began she recited, "I will learn the weight of my sword. Without my heart to guide it, it is worthless—my strength is not in my sword, but in my heart. If I lose my sword, I have lost a tool. If I betray my heart, I have died."
She practiced her lunges and footwork for an hour, reciting a prayer to Iomedae between each set of exercises. Afterwards she washed up and joined the others for breakfast.
The air was cool as the group got underway for Sandpoint, presaging the coming of autumn. When Izomandakus, walking beside her, mentioned the Knights of Ozem she replied, "No, I don't belong to them yet, although I'd like to one day. A few months ago, Saint Lymirin visited me when I was tending to my sheep. She told me to come to the Swallowtail Festival.
"I need to talk to the Mayor about the militia training, and methods for fighting giants. A couple of them attacked the village near our farm when I was younger, and caused a lot of damage. I need to make sure Sandpoint is prepared."
She turned to the young man and told him, "Something from the past is stirring. Exactly what hasn't been revealed to me yet, but it is my duty to protect Varisia from it." This was an outlandish thing to say, but she said it with deeply held conviction, believing it with all her heart.
I think at this point there's not much sense in trying to keep up with it, so we can just leave the outcomes vague. Tot tends to alternate between sneaky and bold in how she comes at someone in a fight. My plan for the 2v2 match was to get behind Meg and trip her while offering a flanking opportunity to Rosella. Her fight with Kizzy is a little more obvious. She was going for a pin out. I think I will be grabbing some feats to help with this as we level, assuming she gets picked of course.
TL;DR: Don't worry about the sparring matches, it was supposed to be just for fun.
Seeing the spry man move about the dance floor, Tot quirks an eyebrow as she looks at him questioningly. She isn't ready to accept this man is over a hundred years old, not with the way he moves. If he wants to keep secrets, though, that was fine with her. She isn't willing to pry.
She shakes her head and opens her mouth to ask what the town is like, but by then he's danced his way over to the other side of the room.
Tot mostly keeps to herself the next morning. After finding herself the center of attention several times she felt drained. At least the doubts and fears that had been her constant companions almost all of yesterday were quiet.
Still, questions pulled at her, the most pressing being why not one but two people offered their help. Did they want something out of her? Did they pity her? Even in Magnimar, altruism was rarely something she ran across. Most of the mercenaries an bounty hunters she had been with were cutthroat and spared no effort on niceties that didn't earn them coin, and some of them not even then.
Back home, a show of kindness generally meant that someone wanted something from you, or were trying to get you to let your guard down. There were always hidden motives, and rarely were they helpful to you, but here?
She sighs. She doesn't understand this land nor the people living here. Why would someone show kindness to her? She is nobody to them, and if they find out who she is and why she is here, then she would only be a bounty to them. A big fat bounty that they could retire off of.
She looks out over the caravan from the spot she'd settled down in to eat. No one was paying attention to her, and the scene was too nice to pass up. She pulls out her journal, ink, and quills and starts sketching the scene of the caravan enjoying lunch while the beasts of burden rest and nibble the grass around them.
At the sight of the Crownflower Marku leaps down from the back of his cart and strides toward the front door, rubbing his hands in anticipation of a warm fire, a mug of stout, and perhaps a platter of something grilled and well seasoned.
Wiggling his way between the others intent on gaining the common room, he sidles up to the bar, signals to a barmaid with a flash of a silver coin, and orders himself a large mug and enough food to feed a family of temperate halflings.
Platter and mug in hand, he weaves his way between the jostling crowd, and finally, finding nowhere to sit, makes his way outside and back to his wagon, where he hopes up, finds a space amidst the sacks to settle, and lies back to feast and gaze up at the stars.
His heart is full. Tomorrow they arrive in Sandpoint, and his chances of making it big on the stage. Who knows what the future will bring? Drinking deep of his ale, he stares up at the cobalt blue sky and feels gloriously alive, ready for whatever challenges may come his way. Unable to restrain his expansive mood, he sets his food aside, hops up onto the highest sack, and there draws forth his recorder to play a lilting, hauntingly beautiful song, drawing out the plaintive notes, adding flourishes and trills, and playing for the bright, luminous moon as she finally emerges from above the treeline.
The future is glorious, golden, and he knows he's destined for success. What more could a young bard in the prime of his life wish for?
As the caravan stops for lunch, Vin continues to keep an eye on this peculiar, delicate warrior who has captured his attention. As he notices her sitting off away from everyone and pull out some sort of journal, he wanders in her direction. As he draws near he says, "Hello, Tot! Didn't mean to bother you, but I wasn't sure if you'd eaten anything and I just wanted to make sure you kept your strength up," and as he says this, he holds out some dried jerky and an apple for her.
As he does this, he tries to read her reaction, though she has been a hard mystery to solve. Still, he resolves to join her for some conversation if she seems open to it, but resigns himself to depart if she seems to want her space.
But Emerik had been a growing boy who liked his food, and now as a grown man who put in a day of work he liked it just as much. He currently had no partner, and when he did he was often the better cook anyway, so he settled down into making some soup.
The ash-black pot sat easily on the fire, the water turning to a bubble froth as the bones of a chicken went into the water, boiling the flavour out to create a stock. Herbs and spices - thyme, salt, pepper and a few more exotic ones, like cayenne to add just a touch of heat and - went into the water next as Emerik thinly diced various vegetable and the flesh of the chicken whose bones were already in. Most of them had been dried for travel, of course, but the boiling stock, now rich and brown and smelling of warmth, would soon take care of that.
As the mixture bubbled Emerik raised the pot a little, keeping it warming but stopping it from boiling any more, and more importantly burning the bottom of the pan. It was the biggest pot in the world, but it was clear that Emerik had made more than he could eat, if anyone was interested. Some spare sets of tin bowls and wooden spoons also hinted that guests were welcome, if they so wished it.
Putting some traveller's bread into a bowl, Emerik poured the soup over it to let the bread absorb moisture and flavour and began to eat.
Emerik nodded his satisfaction as the pleasant smell wafted out. This one was pretty good.
As Seamus talks up performing opportunities to the impressionable young poet, Vin's smile grows larger and larger. "You are too kind, Master Seamus," he says, giving the Half-Elf a nod of thanks and using a more formal title in an effort to show respect. Having grown up as a duckherd, Vin is kind of just faking it when it comes to social interactions. He is quickly distracted, however, and looks up as he hears a familiar voice.
Vin smiles at Meg as she joins them and is pleasantly surprised when she pays him a compliment. He gives her a nod as he says, "My thanks, m'lady. And as for your sparring performance, I will point out that you were bold enough to step up to participate while the rest of us," he says, gesturing around the table, "were quite content to watch. And besides," he adds, trying to gently reaffirm the gal as she has just shown what he interprets as vulnerability in front of him by admitting to a shortcoming, "you were competing against a highly skilled bounty hunter. Tot can topple raging beasts. I don't doubt she could have taken out over half the members of our caravan far more quickly and easily than she did you. It's a testament to your skill that you held her off as long as you did." He's not sure if he managed to soothe what he perceived as her bruised ego or not, but he at least felt good about himself for trying. Of course, he's also not entirely certain that what he just said about Tot is accurate having never seen her fight outside of the sparring, but he's already allowed his imagination to run wild with images of her slaying dragons and manticores. Then, of course, there are the images of Rosella slaying giants. Quite an interesting group he has fallen in with. Quite interesting indeed.
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I have returned from my busy weekend. I see I've missed...about 114 posts, so I think I will let what roleplay I have done thus far speak for itself. I believe I've adequately represented my character and myself, so I will wait to see what decisions are made. If there are any questions or concerns about myself or my character I am here and following along and happy to answer them.
This is the most competitive recruitment thread I have seen in a few years, I don't envy the decisions GM Euan will have to make. Best of luck everybody!
I have returned from my busy weekend. I see I've missed...about 114 posts, so I think I will let what roleplay I have done thus far speak for itself. I believe I've adequately represented my character and myself, so I will wait to see what decisions are made. If there are any questions or concerns about myself or my character I am here and following along and happy to answer them.
This is the most competitive recruitment thread I have seen in a few years, I don't envy the decisions GM Euan will have to make. Best of luck everybody!
That's a lovely story, I think. I love a good romance. And congratulations on 42 years upcoming! Your story reminds of a couple of my friends that met at a Godzilla convention and stayed in touch despite one living near Chicago and the other in the middle of Ohio. They just got married a couple years ago at the same Godzilla convention!
And yeah, matching the mechanics to the character is a big part of the fun for me as well. I want to make sure that I can mechanically make the character good at the things they should be good at and bad at the things they should be bad at. Meg was a surprise in that I actually had no idea what mechanics I was going to use for her when I wrote her, but that's because I already knew who she was from how I wrote her in my novel.
Meg waves away Seamus and Vindur's kind words. "Oh, you do not need to attend to my pride. I have none to speak of, and I am proud of it." She grins to let everyone know that the paradoxical statement is intentional. "I am just glad that everyone enjoyed themselves." She takes a moment to measure whether what she is about to say will reveal too much and whether she can say it convincingly. "The woman I last worked for was fond of planning parties. She loved bringing people together and giving them a good time for an evening. She could see them being happy." Even if she herself was miserable. It feels odd to talk about herself this way. She is not entirely sure whether she has the fortitude to keep it up for however long she is on the run. However, there is a certain comfort in talking about that period. It actually might make it easier to talk about herself this way.
None of this deliberation is visible on her face, though. She appears the same smiling, content woman she usually does. She pats both Seamus and Vindur on the shoulders. "That step-father of yours sounds like a wise person, Seamus. Sappho always pulls out sayings like that." Her smile takes a wicked edge as she turns to Vindur. "And you, poet, I have a theory that you are either making up stories again or you have gotten the self-effacing Tot to actually say something positive about herself. Which of those is more likely, you think?"
I think Meg has your number. :D
I like Meg, and not just because she shares a nickname with my sister. That last zinger had some sizzle to it and I may have cackled a bit after reading it.
Tot looks up and sees Vindur coming before he calls out to her. She begins to hurriedly pack up the journal and associated accouterments, blotting the page she was working on to dry the ink and keep it from smearing.
She looks up, managing to put everything away just as Vindur starts to speak.
"I-it's fine. It's fine. You're not bothering me at all," she replies before taking the proffered food and thanking him for it with a small smile.
She looks to the food in her hands, and her expression falls.
He wouldn't feel sorry for you if he knew!
He saw how embarrassed you were.
Always letting your feelings show. Pathetic.
"I... I'm sorry about last night," Tot says. "I just... I'm not used to," she frowns at the apple as the words just don't come.
Too dumb to even put a sentence together.
For a long moment, she looks at the apple before speaking again.
"I'm sorry," she says again, quietly before taking a bite of the apple.
Vin can see through the words. She's trying to be polite, but I'm obviously intruding on some time she wanted to have to herself. I should go, he thinks.
However, just as he's turning, he hears he small, soft voice. An apology.
He turns. She begins to say something more, but can't seem to find the words. He gives her time to think. He doesn't rush her. The words don't come and she simply apologizes again.
"No apology needed," he says, trying to appear calm, but absolutely delighted that she's at least speaking to him.
"Tot," he says, trying hard to avoid saying anything that might further spook the poor, lovely gal, "I spent...most of my life living with my grandpa," he begins, not entirely sure where this is going or why he's sharing this. "He was crazy. I'm being literal, by the way, and he insisted that we were duck farmers. Ducks! It was silly, but I took our herd of ducks to the pond every day because he wanted me to. I didn't travel, I didn't experience the world, I hung out with ducks. And then...I got lazy. Distracted. Didn't pay attention. Left the ducks alone at the pond and...monsters. Monsters I hadn't believed existed. Goblins, to be specific, ate our herd. I ran. It wasn't fear of the monsters. It was...I've never been more ashamed of myself."
He was quiet for a moment, and just stayed there beside the soft spoken gal as the gentle breeze toyed with his purple-tipped locks.
"I've never told anyone that," he said, finally. "I'm not entirely sure why I told you now," he adds, "but I guess I'm just trying to say, we all have our stories. We all have our backgrounds, for better or worse, but we also have our futures. I'm trying to have a better future without shame. And if that path can overlap yours for a bit...and if I can exact some vengeance on some Goblins along the way...I'd like that."
And with that said. The young man simply stays there for a moment, waiting to see if the small gal will break the silence, and if she doesn't, he'll leave her to her privacy.
In quite a rare occurrence, even the duck voice from his hood is silent.
Tot blushes as Vindur says he wants to be with her. She sits there for a long moment, trying to think of what to say. It started as soft, delicate chuckle as one things struck her.
Ducks. He, one of the best poets I've ever heard, herded ducks.
She tries to hold back, she really does. She is certain that it's no laughing matter to him, but the absurdity of such a skilled wordsmith being a duckherd is just too funny to her. She shakes as she tries to stifle the giggles, but soon she's leaning on Vindur for support as caves and lets her laughter chime like clear crystal bells.
"I-I'm sorry, Vindur," she apologizes through her snickering as she regains some control from her laughing fit, [b]"I know that it is no laughing matter for you, but it just..." unable to find the words, she smiles sheepishly and shrugs helplessly.
After a few more moments and another bite of apple, she looks to where her swords are laying beside her and sighs.
If he has something to be ashamed of, what does that make you?
Deserter, oath-breaker, and worse!
"I... I can understand that," she says, trying not to reveal too much. "I can understand why you... left."
"D-do you miss your grandfather," she asks, wondering how she would answer if asked the same question about anyone in her family.
She felt a flutter of anxiety in her breast again as she watched Meg face off with Rosella on her own. She did not look confident and Kizzy worried her thumbnail with her teeth as she looked on. Blast it all, I got her into this, didn't I? Well, that's what I get for opening my big mouth. She had just hoped for a little game. Working the body took you out of your head and Meg seemed to have a real need of that.
She winced as Meg lost her match and went into her own disheartened. This was no way to win friends, picking fights for them and then bailing out to leave them to fend for themselves. Berating herself for a fool, she was caught off guard as Tot abandoned her weapon and rushed in to grapple her. Surprised and probably more ticklish than a grown woman had any right to be, she laughed and struggled to get free from Tot's bearhug and went down fast. "Wasn't expecting that!" She exclaimed as she regained her feet, dusting herself off. She put her hand out to shake the petite grappler's hand in congratulations.
Only a little downcast after her loss, Kizzy still ate and drank and laughed with her usual halfling-like enthusiasm. She made a few attempts to draw Meg out again, but felt like she'd done enough meddling in her world for one day. So she left her to down her sorrows in peace for a while.
With so much music to be enjoyed, she joined in the dancing, preferring those that moved in lines and patterns rather than pairing off with anyone. Clapping and stomping with the bells on both boots jingling in time with the rhythm of her dance, she moved efficiently if not precisely gracefully as she twirled and hopped along with the others.
She goggled at Vindur's magical performance, gaping open-mouthed when he suddenly looked like her. She laughed and applauded with the rest.
She thought it odd that Meg asked for spare food but then put out the expense of a private room. She must really value privacy. But it wasn't any business of hers. She followed her up to see she made it to her room safe and again left her in peace.
Keeping an eye on Tot, Vin moves so that he is walking beside Qetsiyah. "Excellent job in the sparring match yesterday," he begins. "That dancing fighting style with the bells accompanying you was most impressive! Wherever did you learn such a wonderfully entertaining style?"
Kizzy shook her head, and barked a laugh, "Ha! That's a reach. Have you ever met a Varisian who could not dance at least a little?" Her smile was wry and she shrugged before answering his questions. "It's kind of you to search out something nice to say, anyway. I was raised by entertainers. You might have heard of them, The Flying Suncatchers ? The bells belonged to my late mother, she was a dancer. I don't have many of her things, but I keep what I have close to me, always."
Later, she took a minute to speak with Tot. "You make good use of surprise tactics on the field of battle. And I daresay you approach things in a more disciplined fashion than I do myself. I wonder, were you ever trained as a soldier?" She asked as they walked along.
After hearing the name of her performing family, Vin looks at Kizzy with an apologetic shrug and says, "I've never heard the name, actually. Apologies."
At first, Vin is a bit confused by Tot's laughter, but then, the more she laughs, the more he wants to join in the laughing. Duckherd. It is rather ridiculous. There's a reason he never shares that story. However, just this once, it felt good to share, and he laughs along. She offers some apologies, but continues to fight the laughter.
Eventually, the laughter dies down and the quiet is restored.
As they stay there together, she breaks the quiet letting him know she understands. He doesn't ask for her story. He doesn't want to spook her. She surprises him by asking him something he usually tries not to think about: does he miss his grandfather.
He looked down, feeling the shame again, and nodded. "I do," he said, softly. "He was a good man. Is a good man. Everyone in town loves him. He never needs or wants for anything. He was a poet. Far better than me. He always said he 'paid his way with verse.' I...guess that's why I'm doing this. I want to do this whole poetry thing for him. Make him proud. Return able to show him I've done something right," and as he says this, he wipes at a tear that he hadn't realized was forming in his eye. "Sorry," he said, "I...I guess I bury things a lot. Emotions, I mean."
He turns and looks at her with a smile, and after a moment of just looking, he says, "Thank you. I...needed this."
Izomandakus notices Seamus tries to recognize him "Perhaps I seem familiar to you because you know my twin sister Aneka Avertin. I have been training and working for some years at Magnimar, so maybe you do not remember me" When the conversation revolves about political satire he strokes his fireworks and is up to say something when a new woman sits by "Hi Meg. I am Izomandakus" the young boy clearly seems satisfied when Meg refers to him as respectable "They are planning for some political satire. I am interested to see how Kendra Deverin will react to that. She will probably laugh at it. If Titus was the Mayor you would not be that lucky though. I fear"
"Oh! Is Cyrdak Drokkus opening the theater? He insisted so many times I should come to one of his shows, perhaps this would be the time..." the young boy slowly drinks one cup of fresh milk he ordered for breakfast "I am most curious about Chelaxian Opperas. I would love to try one of the Westcrown style ones. Do you poets also do opera?"
The boy calls the bartender and pays the breakfast bill for all his table companions proudly making sure they see the big bag of coins he has earned after his graduation.
Izomandakus smiles back at Gherix and also greets the fox following her, while Pachemu shakes his head and seems to smile at the woman "Lovely bangs. My twin sister also likes long bangs. Do you have any sister or brother?"
Not recognizing the name of Saint Lymirin, he says to Rosella "I saw your sword. The cross and hilt are very similar to those of the Knights... so I just guessed. You talk about giants... shall I get concerned? I was hoping for a quiet family visit and perhaps some prospective new business. But giants sound like anathema to good business and warm family meetings" Izomandakus smiles friendly to Rosella "Well, whatever is this danger still not revealed, I hope to have your shield between me and it rather than the other way around"
Izomandakus picks one of Emerik's bowls. He eats carefully making sure no drop spills out of the spoon. Savoring it he nods adding himself to the congratulations on the cooker "I like the flavor the thyme, salt and pepper give to the chicken. But I can feel something else... is it nutmeg perhaps?"
As the lunch finishes, the young boy produces a crystal pot filled with cranberry and cinnamon cookies. He seems to focus on one of the cookies saying Vuela and one of the cookies just flies off, his pig Pachemu jumping to catch it in the air. The pig brings the cookie to the ground, breaks it into parts, and quickly finishes it, then looking back for more. "Leave some for the others my little friend" Izomandakus smiles and offers the cookie pot to the others around.
Opening his pack, the bulky man added, "My name is Emerik. It's nice to meet you." He looked in a waxed bag for a moment, and offered the woman a piece of flatbread. "Here, you can dip some of this in the broth and eat it that until it cools a touch."
As the caravan came to a stop and preparations were being made for lunch, Gheri was curious to see what her new friend, the chef, would do for lunch. However, her nose made her far more curious about what was happening elsewhere.
Gheri followed the smell over to where a strong-featured fellow was tending to a pot of soup and had already gathered some guests including that nice boy who'd complimented her bangs just earlier this morning.
"If you have room for another guest, that soup smells positively wonderful," she says, giving the cook a warm smile.
As she sits carefully, as she is in a short skirt, and begins eating the soup, she is delighted to find it tastes every bit as wonderful as it smells. Young Izomandakus is trying to guess the seasonings involved, but Gheri, who has never cooked for herself, is simply content to accept that whatever is in it is delightful.
After she has daintily taken several spoonfuls and there is a break in the conversation, she looks up at the soupmaker and says, "This is like heaven in a bowl! Truly magnificent work. I'm Gherix Vainglory, by the way. You're welcome to call me Gheri, if you'd like," and she extends her hand in ladylike fashion so he is free to shake it or kiss it as he sees fit.
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She nodded, listening as he answered her question. "Well, it's a big improvement. You must like to cook. My ma, Sasha always says food is better when the cook enjoys making it." She said as she spooned another bite into her mouth and chewed, making wordless sounds of appreciation.
She happily accepted his gift of flatbread, introducing herself in turn. "Qetsiyah, or as you've likely heard others call me, Kizzy. Well met, Emerik."
She glanced over at the fellow who was also enjoying soup and realized she recognized him. "Oh hey! I didn't recognize you at first. You're the baker's d- er.. kid." She stumbled verbally, clearly needing to have corrected her pronouns before speaking. "How's your family?" She asked quickly, remembering her manners. "Are these cookies from their bakery? Yum!" She said, eager to put something else in her mouth before she inserted her boot. The thought occurred to her that this was an excellent group for sharing food and drink. This was going to be a good festival!
@Kizzy: No bigger. While I'm a little bummed about not getting to play it out, I'm more than happy that we got some fun out of it. Besides, the souring wasn't really anyone's fault. Well, except maybe one person, but he wasn't really talking about that anyway.
Tot helps Kizzy to stand and accepts the handshake. She gives Kizzy a grin and a shrug.
"When you're the smallest one, it pays to have a good bag of tricks," she says. "I'd be in real trouble if this were a formal duel."
After her bout with Kizzy, she and Rosella face each other and wait for Rastaf's signal.
Tot nearly trips over her own feet as Kizzy asks her if she was trained as a soldier. Tot's fair skin turns a sickly gray as the color drains from her skin and her fingers and toes grow cold.
"A-a-a-a little," she replies. Her voice quivering as she looks away.
Told you.
Too dumb to survive on your own.
She'll hate you. They'll all hate you.
He would hate you if he knew what you have buried.
Tot takes another bite of the apple Vindur had given her as she waits for the blush in her cheeks to fade some. She isn't used to the attention, to seeing someone else's vulnerabilities and part of her feels like a voyeur for seeing this part of him.
I don't know what to say, she thinks to herself.
Do you ever?
"I-I guess, if you need someone to talk to, I-I could listen, i-if you want," she says slowly.
He won't want to when he learns what you are.
She goes to take another bite of apple, but stops and smells the air.
"Do you smell that," she asks before taking in a deeper whiff. "It smells delicious! C'mon we should see what it is at least," She says as she gets to her feet and gathers her things.
Tot pauses for a moment as Seamus approaches and introduces himself. A brief look of panic crosses her face when she learns others have been talking about her, but it fades away almost as quickly as if comes.
"I-I'm fine, I guess," she answers, not sure what this would lead to, but the aroma of the delicious soup reminds her that she was in the middle of something.
"There's someone over there," she says as she points in the direction she thinks the enticing aroma is coming from, "that smells delicious. Do you want to join us?"
You're too afraid of crowds, so you are inviting more people? You really are stupid.
Why bother with being friends, they'll hate you more for it.
Tot looks unsure for a moment but she takes in a deep breath and seems to settle something in her mind.
Good food should be shared.
Tot's pace picks up as she spies Emerik and his soup pot. Just a couple of moments later, she's slowing to approach at more of a normal walk than the trot she'd taken up.
"Um, H-hello," she says before asking Emerik, "i-is there enough for three more?"
Now that she mentions it, he thinks, something does smell delightful.
No! Must stay on course to slay the beasts! Quack!! comes the duck voice, returning from its hiatus.
In the midst of that happening, Seamus approaches and introduces himself, but Tot quickly has the three of them all moving towards the smell. Vin gives Seamus a smile and a shrug as if to say, "Girl wants some food, I guess."
As they approach the group and the soup, Vin is just about to speak up for them when Tot surprises him by being the spokesperson for their little group.
Seamus quickly declines soup and Vin chimes in with, "If there's not enough for two, I can go without. Wouldn't want to deprive Tot of whatever that wonderful scent is that drew her in like a siren's song," and he gives a smile to the gathered crowd before immediately regretting drawing attention to her. Hope I didn't just screw things up by making her uncomfortable, he thinks, desperately hoping he didn't.
Oh, I know! he thinks, and immediately sets in using his magic trick from the night before to make himself look like each of the individuals he's met as he greets them by name and then morphs through the appearances of those he hasn't met and he says, "And I'm afraid I've not met you yet." He then glances over, hoping that his attention-gathering act drew the focus away from Tot and set her at ease.