Badass Dragoons of the Highlands - Turn 1 - Avignon (c.1310)

By Neptune’s beard…I haven’t felt this way since…

Never mind. It is clear what I must do. Where is my Parchment of Excel???

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Is this yours? shudders I think it’s full of dark magic.

33 PM

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Aye. Tis magic most foul.

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Pouring himself a generous Metaxa, Demos relaxes back into his chair, the heat from the fire warming his old bones.

He lets his mind wander back through the centuries.

Ah, yes. 1310. He remembers. When it began in earnest.

This is a good place to begin our tale, children.

He beckons you nearer.

At the time, I was living in Thessaly. Then under the nominal control of Istanbul. No - it was Constantinople, not Istanbul. I lived under the guise of a magnate known as Stephen Gabrielopoulos, and was sebastokrator.

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TRAVEL options for Turn 1

  1. The Battle of Bannockburn (1314): "The First war of Scottish Independence broke out at the close of the 13th century and raged through the early part of the 14th. The scuffle was almost certain to draw the curiosity of an Immortal or two."
    Effects: +1 STR
    Factions: England, Scotland
    e.g. travel 1 england or travel 1 scotland

  2. Crimea at the arrival of the Black Death (1343): "The plague initially came to Europe via the Silk Road and from the bustling ports of Sicily. Some say the Immortals may have even carried it with them as they traveled, as they were entirely immune to its effects."
    Factions: n/a
    Effects: +1 END
    e.g. travel 2

  3. The Battle of Crécy (1346): "The medieval era had been a tumultuous time for those who had possessed a sword. For those that possessed a sword and could not die, events were slightly less tumultuous but never dull."
    Factions: England, France, Genoa
    Effects: +1 REF
    e.g travel 3 england or travel 3 france or travel 3 genoa

  4. Lübeck at the Formation of the Hanseatic League (1358): "Meanwhile in the north of Europe, the traders of Lübeck had become wealthy. And as the wealthy do, they decided to band together to protect their economic and diplomatic interests."
    Factions: n/a
    Effects: +1 PER
    e.g.travel 4

  5. The Battle of Lake Poyang (1363): "After suffering through droughts, floods, and famines under the uncaring eye of the Yuan Dynasty, The Red Turban Rebellion rose up throughout China. The siege of Nanchang was one of the turning points of that time."
    Factions: Han, Ming
    Effects: +1 REF
    e.g. travel 5 han or travel 5 ming

  6. The Battle of Kosovo (1389): "The Serbian-Ottoman wars were among the bloodiest of the 14th century. The loss of life on both sides was astonishing, and although the battle itself was inconclusive, it would set the stage of history for what followed."
    Factions: Ottoman, Serbia, Bosnia
    Effects: END+1
    e.g. travel 6 ottoman or travel 6 serbia or travel 6 bosnia

  7. Serve in the court of Louis the Great (1342-1382): "Producing a third of the world’s gold and silver, Hungary enjoyed a century of prosperity during this time and the reign of Louis I represented the zenith of this period. Golden eras of this sort are always a novelty to Immortals and they often delight in experiencing them first hand."
    Factions: n/a
    Effects: PER+1
    e.g. travel 7

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“What will they do next? One wonders.”


    Current status:      Awake and listening
    Order submission:    Available
    Submission deadline: 2017-09-29 23:00:00 -0400
    A strange header:    1f4eab2a45a8259cd7584b4e323400e38e27d513

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Dum dum DUM de DUM DUM de dum de dum…

Even old New York, was once New Amsterdam…

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@archivist is up and listening for order submissions. Orders for this turn should include three things: a TRAVEL order, a TRAIN order, and a STANCES order and will look something like this in your private messages:

The bot still has a few bugs that I’m working out - in particular, if two players submit orders within the same 60s interval, the bot will lock up. If you don’t get a response from @archivist within 5 minutes, PM me for the moment and I’ll unmuck things by hand. Other than that - good luck, for there can be only one.

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It was always challenging for Maple to smuggle herself into the human towns, much less a town full of Catholic pilgrims and courtiers, all watching out the corner of their eye for The Devil to reveal himself, searching perhaps for an excuse to distract those from seeing the demons within their own heart.

It’s not like she didn’t have non-moosekin friends though. She had made friends through the 800+ years of her immortality. A few humans here and there, but rarely city folk. Give her a forest or meadow away from the noisy highways and dangerous brigands.

Even with the Immortals centennial truce, cities were dangerous for a moosekin. Wearing a hood would get her through crowds, but in a conversation there was no hiding her snout, her strange hands and the hair covering her body and face. Being female had its advantages though: no antlers to conceal.

It was easy for Maple to perceive other immortals, as it was them her. There were immortals here in Avignon she had not detected in centuries, along with those she had not detected before. Of course, they could find her, but she could always sneak away, leading her would-be-opponent to an appropriate arena.

Immortals could not innately perceive she was moose-kin, but in combat, when her hood came down and eyes revealed the truth, it did lend an element of surprise, one she had learned to take advantage of. No monologuing for this quiet one.

A nap in a forest was the safest place. Most immortals were humans, well tempered for the farm, city or road. She’d know if they had entered her domain before they could tell the forest apart from the trees.

Meditating before meeting with those who sought her assistance would suffice. Then she would continue travelling through Europe to her destination, wherever that would end up being.

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you are all on my list.

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your kiss is on my list

once i turn out your lights

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Arfarfarfarf aaaaarrrrrrf!

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“Why would you bring me here?” I asked the god of shadow and silence, not the least reason being that it would be the least disturbing when he didn’t answer. “The people are strange and their food is funny. And it stinks.” There was nothing I was used to: no maize, no cuy, no chili or vanilla or cocoa. The city was too large, with too many people, many of them dying and all afraid. That, too, informed my choice of interlocutor: to him were offered the newly dead, lest he come to take more of the living. I figured he could forgive my casualness in the appropriate rituals: for one thing, if the gods cared, they wouldn’t have separated me from all the things that made ritual possible and for another, since I was the only one left to talk to them, they were undoubtedly as lonely as I was.

These people could not have my excuse, however, and I couldn’t help but wonder which of their rituals they had failed their gods… No, god: they made one do all the work of many. Perhaps that was the problem. Their god was too busy and overworked that he forgot to keep this sickness at bay.

“Perhaps you could help these ghost people.” I spoke this time to the god of strength and good health who we used to entreaty when babies were born and bounties were feasted. I doubted our dance to honour him would grant me favour from the locals, however. How could I explain how the bags filled with large rocks were meant to symbolise our strength as we carried them throughout the dance, the men competing to see who could lift the heaviest one, too often outmatched by the women who regularly gathered our firewood. “Drive this sickness away, since their god is too overworked.”

I needed to get away from here. Even unfamiliar trees were still trees, even if they couldn’t provide the way the ones back home could. At least in the forest there would be less ghost people to stare at me.

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Can I bring something? Dessert?

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Dessert?

Well, I suppose it’s cooled enough. There’s plenty for everyone, so no pushing please. And wash your hands first.

I don’t hear any water running in there!

Much better. How big a piece would you like? Ice cream?

My, you certainly all are squinting a lot today. Are you tired? I asked you not to stay up reading all night. We have to stay on schedule for school you know. Goodness you are hungry. How about a second piece?

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*wakes up

Heeder? Whit?
Gonnie hae tae think aboot that fer a bit.

*thinks furiously

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Peasant Pies in SF rules. I eat there kinda often.

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They don’t make a humble pie, do they dearie?

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