Tanuchan

Welcome back, Damon! *hugs* And Game Thread is up - here. Sign-up is open for another 24 hours, or until I assing roles. If you still want to play, hurry! Keep an eye on this OOC thread for any news on extension of deadlines, and also for the scorecards. I'm also including information about the Benedictine Hours below, if someone wants to work them into RP. It was taken from The Name of the Rose. Sun rises around 7:30 am and sets around 4:40 pm. Benedictine Hour Time Matins 2:30~3:00 am Lauds 5:00~6:00 am Prime ~7:30am, shortly before daybreak Terce ~9:00am Sext noon, midday meal in winter Nones 2:00~3:30pm Vespers ~4:30pm, at sunset (the Rule prescribes eating supper before dark Compline ~6:00pm (before 7:00 monks go to bed

"May the Lord grant me the grace to be the transparent witness of the happenings that took place in the abbey whose name it is only right and pious now to omit, toward the end of they year of our Lord 1327, when the Emperor Louis came down into Italy to restore the dignity of the Holy Roman Empire, in keeping with the designs of the Almighty and to the confusion of the wicked usurper, simoniac, and heresiarch who in Avignon brought shame on the holy name of the apostle (I refer to the sinful sould of Jacques of Cahors, whom the imipous revered as Joh XXII)." (The Name of the Rose, U. Eco) At the end of November, in a beautiful morning after a night of snow, some monks and novices arrive at the Abbey. Located at the summit of one of the mountains in an isolated place, it serves its purpose in imposing silence and might. An Abbey of the Benedictines, it features the most important Library of the time; in its secret recesses this Library keeps the knowledge of several peoples of the world, all for the glory of the Lord. "While we toiled up the steep path that wound around the mountain, I saw the abbey. I was amazed, not by the walls that girded it on every side [...] but by the bulk of what I later learned was the Aedificium. This was an octagonal construction that from a distance seemed a tetragon [...], whose southern sides stood on the plateau of the abbey, while the northern ones seemed to grow from the steep side of the mountain, a sheer drop, to which they were bound. [...] Three rows of windows proclaimed the triune rhythm of its elevation [...]. As we came closer, we realized that the quadrangular form included, at each of its corners, a heptagonal tower, five sides of which were visible on the outside." (The Name of the Rose, U. Eco) The group is received by the Abbot, and led to the ample refectory that occupies the eastern half of the ground floor of the Aedificium. From the kitchens, that occupy the other half of the floor, servants bring a light meal. They eat in silence, as recommended by the Benedictine Rule, and some of the novices steal curious glances at the spiral staircase that wounds into the east tower, into the scriptorium on the floor above. And, above the scriptorium, to the Library that houses so many wonders and secrets. After the meal, they visitors are shown to their cells, and exceptionally excused from the services to get acquainted with the Abbey in this first day. The Abbot talks quietly to each of the new monks and novices, and leaves reminding them that, from the next day on, they are already to be present to all services. "After the gate (which was the only opening in the outer walls) a tree-lined avenue led to the abbatial church. To the left of the avenue there stretched a vast area of vegetable gardens and, as I later learned, the botanical garden, around the two buildings of the balneary and the infirmary and herbarium, following the curve of the walls. Behind, to the left of the church, rose the Aedificium, separated from the church by a yard scattered with graves. The north door of the church faced the south tower of the Aedificium, which offered, frontally, its west tower to the arrving visitor's eyes; then, to the left, the building joined the walls and seemed to plunge, from its towers, toward the abyss, over which the north tower, seen obliquely, projected. To the right of the church there were some buildings, sheltering in its lee, and others around the cloister: the dormitory, no coubt, the abbot's house, and the pilgrims's hospice. [...] On the right side, beyond a broad lawn, along the south walls and coninuing esatward bhind the church, a series of peasants' quarters, stables, mills, oil presses, granaries, and cellars [...] and the novice's house. (The Name of the Rose, U. Eco) ~~~~~~~~~~ OOC: You're now in the Abbey; those who are newly-arrived are free to get acquainted with their new surroundings, possibly counting with the assistance of some other monks. Those who live in the Abbey are involved with their daily tasks and the services, but will surely meet the newcomers also. You're free to introduce yourselves and RP for the next 48 hours or until everybody posts at least once, whichever happens first. After that period the special roles will be assigned and the mystery begins .

Welcome to Werewolf XV! This will be loosely based on The Name of the Rose, by Umberto Eco. Everybody is a monk/novice/servant at an Abbey in the XIV century, observing and speculating while a series of murders happen - are they really announcing the Apocalypsis? Our players are: dragonqueen => Brother Alcott of Lilbourne, copyist. Vahktang => Brother Adrian of the Adriatic, Beekeeper Katzaniel => Francis, a 14-year-old servant Sweetcherrie => Brother Gulzar of Babylon, chief Gardener Kasmandre => Good Bennet, a slow 17-year-old Lady Celes => Brother Mathieu of Carcasonne, herbalist and assistant cook Quincunx => Brother Thibault of Limoges, once a skilled maker and restorer of vellum Akallabeth => Brother Rhys of Cwmhir, Cistercian copyist Knight => Brother Thomas, has taken a vow of silence YanYanGanaffi => Brother Joseph, also under vow of silence Gryphon => Brother Caire, a Dominican scholar MTUFoolish =>Brother Phillips Hue, blacksmith Venefyxatu=> Felipe, "The Eternally Punished", novice Cryptomancer => Brother Benedicte, scholar of liturgy and sacraments Damon Inferel => Bernard Farhaven, young scholar Eyremon => Brother Igottafiln, a monk from the inquisition Important Notes the poll/sign-up thread will be used as OOC thread: any OOC and mod comments will be there, except for the accusations; PM alliances are not allowed; PMs to set RP background are okay, but try to do that before the game starts . Wolves are free to PM to choose targets and plan strategies; day phases last 48 hours; night phases, 24 hours. RP is free during night phases, however no accusation/speculation whatsoever; "dead" players: feel free to be a friendly ghost and keep the RP; however, don't influence the living players in any way no stating of the roles OOC; everything is done through RP; Wolves: fanatic monks who think that the secrets of the Library must be destroyed because they harbor the work of Satan. There will be 2 wolves, with a possible 3rd by "turning"; Seer: someone who knows all the secret passages of the Abbey; Baner: someone who has, at some point in life, received Martial Arts training and can protect people; effects of baning: Baned Result wolves' victim no kill wolf if more than one wolf = normal kill; if one wolf = no kill anyone but wolves' victim normal kill Concerning the lynchings/kills when accusing, please add an OOC line clarifying your vote; respect the deadlines... during day phase, if there's not either a clear majority or enough votes after 48 hours, there may be a short extension; however, once that is over, whoever has the most votes will die, majority or not. If there's a tie, the lynchee will be determined through dice; same holds true for night phase: if the targets of wolf/seer/baner aren't PMd me in the 24-hour-period, they are forfeited (that is, there will be no kill/no seeing/no baning); Don't worry about being true to the book, or trying to figure out the layout of the Abbey if you aren't familiar with the book; I will work the flavor text (modding posts) with anything you give me. I'm quoting the book just to help setting the mood. Keep the RP within the reasonable for the XIV century, and have fun! If you have any doubt, don't hesitate in PMing your friendly mod (a.k.a. me ) Game starts next post. ~~~~~~ Edit: Keeper of the Lists (=backup mod): first active player who leaves the game will know who's who... so, if something happens and I disappear, go poke the backup! Edit: The Keeper of the Lists is Vahktang

Lady Celes, as you said you'd be gardener and help with cooking, I "assigned" you as herbalist so you would be responsible for all spices and herbs a cook may use. In this way, Sweetcherry can be responsible for the lawn If you both want to talk and coordinate as you have similar characters, feel free to. Cryptomancer, welcome back!

Okay, so here goes a challenge for you Theme: THE NAME OF THE ROSE (Medieval Abbey, 14th century) Game thread will be up tomorrow afternoon I promise I'll be modding the TV Serials next time What I'll ask of you now is that you decide on your character. I need you to think of : name + city of origin (for example, we had Adso of Melk, William of Baskerville, Nicola of Morimondo...), for the monks. Just the name, if you aren't a monk. position in the Abbey (copyst, smith, glazier, cellarer, cook, herbalist, novice, a servant...) short background Roles restricted to NPCs: Librarian, Assistant Librarian (the only ones who access the Library of the Abbey) If you want to set some specific relationship between your characters, feel free. Strategy PMs (PM alliances) won't be allowed except for wolves. PMs for RP purposes are okay at any time. I'll give a quick background for the story in the opening post of the game thread. I'll leave sign-up open until Tuesday evening, when the first (NPC) death occurs and I send out the roles. If for any reason you don't want a special role, please PM me (*don't* post it here). If you aren't familiar with the setting and need some suggestions, PM me and I'll try to help Current players dragonqueen Vahktang => Brother Adrian of ???, Bee-keeper Katz => 14-year-old servant. (As a servant, just a plain name is okay) Sweetcherrie => Brother Gulzar of Babylon, chief Gardener Kasmandre Lady Celes => Brother Mathieu of ???, herbalist and assistant cook Quincunx Akallabeth Knight => Brother Thomas of ???, has taken a vote of silence YanYan Gryphon MTUFoolish Venefyxatu=> Felipe of ???, novice Cryptomancer => Brother Benedicte of ???, scholar of liturgy and sacraments For those who eventually aren't very familiar with the book, here you have a short summary/review:mysteryguide.com Edit: updating player list.

Quincunx, I'm predicting that I'll love any character you play... And we still have a tie on what we'll play . I'm considering, due to the number of new players, to use the TV Serials theme -- that would make for an easier RP, and besides I know of at least one player who's not very familiar with (or doesn't quite remember) The Name of the Rose. Whatever the theme we decide on, I will surely mod the other one next time I have a chance to! Well, I'll give at least another 24 hours for people to sign up. As weekends in general are a bit slow for RP, I think I'll start the official thread on Sunday evening or Monday around noon EST. I'll post a *big* notice here when the theme is chosen and the thread is up, don't you worry! ~Tanny

I'll need 17 *active* players for a third wolf... But who knows? Maybe we get that number! *prods anyone reading this thread* Come on, it's fun and you will like it! Katzaniel stated very good reasons to like the WW game - I wish I could remember in which thread...

Great!! *hugs Quincunx* And I have a tie... 3 for TNR, 3 for TVS, 3 for whichever... Maybe I'll roll a die, if it keeps so! Or maybe I have other votes - and more players. Yay!

Signed-up so far... (@ Jan 29 noon...) dragonqueen Vahktang Venefyxatu Sweetcherrie Katzaniel Kasmandre Lady Celes Akallabeth Knight Quincunx YanYanGanaffi Gryphon MeThinksUFoolish At least for now, TV serials is winning by a narrow vote... I need to know if any of you will *not* play if the theme you voted for isn't chosen. And sign-up will be open for a couple of days yet.! I'll start the game thread probably on Sunday night, open for free RP on the theme chosen. I'll be assigning the roles 24h after that, and the game starts. Sign up will be possible until roles are assigned. ~~~~~~~~ Edit: updating players

Well, as we've had a break in the series of Werewolf Games due to the Holidays, and also we have several new members... I'm bumping this thread and inviting everyone to join! Sign-up (and more details) is here. We're waiting for you! ~Tanny

Well, after the Holidays break and some time to breathe a bit, how about trying once again to solve the mysteries of a Werewolf Game?? We have also a lot of new members at the Pen, so... basically, the Werewolf game is a short and fast-paced RP where some of you are murderers, some are special characters that protect the innocents, and the majority are innocents - meat for the murderers The objective of the game is finding out the murderers (innocents win) or killing all the innocents (murderers win). Each Werewolf game has a theme... and I'm suggesting two for this next one (see below). The rules can be found here. You can also check the Q+A thread and the 14 previous Werewolf Games (spread through the Conservatory) - you can find a list for most of them in my personal List of RPs at the Piazza of Portraits The only requirement for the game is that you create a character, and that you post once every 48 hours with your accusation... (I tend to 'kill' inactive players... ) The themes proposed: TV serials from the 60's: everyone is involved with the filming/production of a weekly TV serial, SF/fantasy-type -- you know, the "let's fight the monster-of-the-week" kind. There will be actors, mostly, but also technical people. The wolves are people hired by a rival studio to wreck havoc in the show, provoking accidents of all kinds to delay the production. The Seer is someone who has got friends and connections in all studios and the unions also, so can get information easily. The Baner is/was a stuntman, so s/he can easily fool the wolves and escape uninjured. The Name of the Rose, loosely based on the work by Umberto Eco. Everybody is a monk at the Abbey, observing and speculating while Brother William and Adso are investigating. The wolves are fanatic monks who keep the secret to the library, and kill according to the Seven Trumpets of the Apocalypsis (if we need more, we can always use the 10 Plagues of Egypt ). The Seer is someone who knows all the secret passages in the Abbey. I have yet to think about the Baner (suggestions accepted). In this game, all characters have to be male, but there are several roles besides just the religious: Brother smith, glazier, cellarer, cook, herbalist... there are also male servants, who aren't monks. Soo... please, sign up here and vote on your theme! Game will start probably on Monday,depending on how long it takes to get the required number of players. (Minimun 7, but the game is better with more players involved - at least 9-11) Any doubts, please PM me. Remember... if you want to play, you are most welcome, but you do have to post at least once every 48 hours, otherwise the fun is spoiled for everybody. Usually the game runs for 10-20 days, depending on the number of players. Hope to see the vets back, and plenty of new people too! Any doubt, please PM me ~Tanny, your friendly (for now ) moderator ~~~~ Edit: please, can one of the mods of the boards edit my poll to correct those funny characters that weren't supposed to be there?? Stealth Edit: What funny characters? Those up there... ehh... huh... well... nevermind. And thanks!

Grunts and growls make Captain Grashk sigh in exasperation, and he lashes both verbally and with his whip to put some appearance of order in the lower ranks of his raiding party. "Worthless worms! Pick your breakfast and go back to your stations, scum!" As the orcs hastily obey their commander, a scout crashes through the bushes. Captain Grashk's whip promptly curls around the legs of the scout, dropping him to the ground in a louder crash. The smaller orc gulps as the shadow of the commander falls on him. "C-c-cap..." "If you scout as silently as you come back to us, I'll have Bralak use you as an ingredient for his next potion! Now, what did you find out there that made this silent return necessary?" "Humans, my Captain... two of them. One of them must be a mage because he carries a staff, and the other one must be his lackey. That one hardly fits in his cloak, you can see it bulking!", the scout finishes with a sort of scared chuckle. Grashk immediately forgets the scout, who scurries away to get some food before his captain remembers to send him to some other mission. The orc captain, however, has his mind in other matters. "Humans? Or some foul play from those cowardly Nargribs?" Muttering and swearing, he calls for some soldiers and post them behind the trees. Then, he plants himself in the middle of the narrow path his scout has made in his hasty retreat. Tanny, carrying a jug of the Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sweet Lemonoaid™ on her back under her cloak, whispers to Stephen. "About ten of them, ahead of us. I can see the toes or arms of most of them... " Stephen nods, being specially careful about his banging around with his staff in a show of blindness. Under his breath, he comments, "And I can hear their breathing. With all the noise that scout made before and after seeing us, it's a wonder that those Orcs believe we're ready to be ambushed..." As they pass by the first hidden orc, Stephen arcs his staff around him hitting a foot with enough strength to draw a startled yell of pain. He stops and asks loudly, "Who's there?" "It seems we found the brave Orc warriors, Sir!" answers Tanny, also in a loud voice. "Their leader is ahead of us!" "Good! He may be interested in our powerful magical restorative drink for his troops!" Blinking in surprise, Grashk lets out a growl and signals the orcs to let them pass, muttering, "A blind man and a woman trying to hide a jug of water under her cloak! If I get my hands on that worthless scout..." Stephen approaches slowly, swinging his staff this way and that, hitting calfs and shins with enough strength and frequency to clear a path around him. After a few bruises and sore feet the grumbling orcs actually start trying to avoid Stephen's staff. Tanny, keeping a light rapport with earth and ready to weave a spell, walks enough steps behind him to give them both space in case it comes to a fight. Bowing, the Ranger greets the Captain. "Good morning, brave General." He taps the ground in front of him, apparently trying to be sure where the orc stands, and in the process hits Grashk's foot soundly. Swallowing a surprised shout, Grashk considers just bashing the impudent human's head with his iron-gloved fist. However, the words 'powerful magical restorative' stay his hand, and he studies Stephen's face. On his face there's a clear contempt for a blind man, and so intent he is on Stephen and his staff, that he barely notices Tanny ready to take action if something goes wrong. Just to be sure, she makes a negligent movement with her hand and the glint of a sword and knives can be seen among the folds of her cloak. The knives call the attention of Grashk, who finally puts away the idea of having easy preys in front of him. Tired of listening to the human's babbling, he shrugs and barks an order to one of the soldiers. Then, he turns again to Tanny and Stephen. "Talk to our Shaman. He is the one who knows about restorative drinks. I'm just interested in their effects after Bralak blesses its use." He then leaves with his soldiers, leaving just one of them to keep an eye on the humans while they wait for Bralak. Bralak, meanwhile, is in a foul mood and not just because that's a normal state of mind for an orc. No, Bralak is starting to realize that if this war continues for much longer he will run out of gold! True, he'll have enough blood and bones to make potions and salves for the rest of his lifetime if it continues, but gold is essential for not only his potions but for his personal treasure as well. "Shaman, Captain Grashk is here and says he has news." The orc guarding Bralak's tent quickly withdraws his head as the shaman grunts irritably to show him in. With a "good-luck-you'll-need-it" wave of his hand the guard motions Grashk into the tent. The captain enters, hoping that he'll leave it with his shape intact and all his limbs still there. "Well, Grashk?" The Shaman had never needed many words to get the orcs to tell him everything they knew and still fear he'd think they were holding back on him. It never failed, not even with the powerful Captain Grashk. "Shaman, we have captured two humans..." Bralak interrupts him. "Good, kill them and bring me their bodies. I was just in need of some human flesh to add to this potion." He gestures to a bubbling cauldron that emits such a foul smell that even Grashk can barely stand it. Gathering all his courage, he continues talking, even though it is obvious that Bralak wants to be rid of him. "Shaman, you might wish to listen to what they have to say. They have a magic potion that could turn the war in our favor!" "A potion? Then what are you waiting for, Grashk? Bring that as well!", the Shaman roars. Just as Grashk is about to flee the tent the Shaman stops him, regaining control of himself. "No, wait ... gather the entire tribe. I shall see them personally, then set an example on how we deal with humans. Tell me when you're ready!" Thinking it wiser not to tell his Shaman that he didn't bring the humans to their camp Grashk bows and leaves, immediately sending some of his orcs to pick up the humans. By the time they come back the entire tribe is gathered in an open space just next to the tents. Some of the orcs, the ones with bruised shins and sore feet, look at Stephen angrily. Some of the others quickly learn that they need to stay away from the blind man's tapping staff and the ones who learn the hard way add their angry glares to the lot. When they stop in front of the Shaman, Stephen stops swinging his staff around. Sensing the Shaman's foul mood, he realizes that injuring the orc would do nothing to improve it. "I believe I'm talking to the powerful and wise Shaman of the tribe?" asks Stephen in a mild voice. "Tell me about the potion, human!" Stephen signals Tanny, and she lowers the jug carefully to the ground. Having agreed that she is probably better with words than Stephen, she starts speaking. "This is a rare potion, made with secret ingredients that came down from father to son until reaching the skilled one who mixed this sample, Shaman. It will refresh the one who drinks it, giving new strength and motivation to pursue its goal." Stephen half-listens to Tanny, keeping his acute senses open to everything around them. He sighs inwardly, thinking she could have chosen any word other than "pursue". "A single sip will prove surprising, and a whole glass will undoubtedly fill your body with such different sensations that you may not even believe they exist in this world." Stephen lets his thoughts wander a bit. True.... the taste will be surprising and the sensations incredibly bad. No one would believe they could feel that bad after a lemonade... "After a few moments, you will feel your body and mind suffused with energy and strength to achieve your goals, and you will stop at nothing until getting your heart's desire." That will be, of course, finding a way to revenge yourself on whoever gave you the drink... but they don't need to know that. Now, did I hear some feet stealing away? Stephen frowns slightly, intent on locating the direction of the soft shuffling feet. What he doesn't see, but can sense, is a orc in the edge of the crowd leaving unobtrusively and heading to the forest, looking around warily as to be certain that he isn't being observed. "So you see that what we offer..." "You don't offer anything. Get that!" At a gesture from Bralak, three of the biggest warriors step towards Tanny and Stephen. For the briefest of moments, Stephen is surprised in spite of both of them having suspected something like this. It doesn't take long though, and he does his best to try and keep up the act. Swinging around with his staff as if trying to feel what's happening, he yells to make himself heard over the growling and jeering orcs. "Hey, what are you doing? That's not what we had in mind! Some of the crawling plants that carpet the ground around them suddenly seem to be alive, reaching out with vines and stems that wrap themselves around the orcs' feet and ankles; dead branches fall from the trees, distracting most of the other warriors. The ones closest to Stephen, bruised as they are, are trying to use the confusion to get back at him but somehow his staff always seems to be making a sweep for them whenever they come too close. The water in the jug glows a brilliant baleful green for a moment. Green? It shouldn't be green! The thought crosses Tanny's mind as she takes a moment from her manipulation of earth to throw two knives into one of the orcs, which stick with a nice precision on his throat and eye. Stephen doesn't notice the green glow coming from the jug, but he does hear the orc dying. "What's going on? What are you all doing??" With some more "searching" sweeps he manages to keep the orcs away from him long enough to say what he hopes will restore some resemblance of order. "If you kill us, you won't have more than that jug! But if we negotiate, you can have a life supply of the potion!" Kneeling on the ground to avoid both Stephen's quarterstaff and the Orcs' axes, Tanny quickly weaves energy to form a shield around them when she notices some orcs grabbing javelins and bows. "You will never find the ingredients by yourself!", she adds as she sees the Shaman hesitating. Bralak nods grudgingly, and stops the warriors. Grashk balefully stops trying to increase the confusion by giving some of the orcs contradictory commands, as it looks like the Shaman won't be screwing up just yet. "You are pretty smart for a human sorcerer." Stephen hears Tanny's sigh of relief, and lets himself relax just a little. He stands still again, more or less facing the Shaman as if he'd lost his position in the confusion. "So, it seems we must negotiate." The malicious smile that spreads on the Shaman's face makes makes Tanny almost groan. Grashk mutters in an unctuous voice, "Shaman, if you allow me to speak of these matters... we don't know if they're not here to poison us. The Nargribs..." "Do you take me for an idiot like you, Grashk?" The Shaman ignores the Captain's glare, intent on both humans. Tanny holds his searching gaze until he lets out a chuckle. "Drink your potion and fight with Grashk." Tanny blinks and pales slightly, while Grashk shouts some orkish curse at Bralak. The Shaman just smiles. "If what you say is true, you can defeat Grashk. If you are lying, Grashk will have his wish and kill you." "Shaman, there are some rituals that must be completed before drinking the Potion. If you excuse us for a moment..." Stephen pulls Tanny to the side and starts talking to her urgently in the language of wolves. "We have never tried the Lemonoaid™! It could well kill us!" "Well, we can choose between being killed by Wyvern's concoction or by the Orcs. Sincerely, I think that we have more chances with the Orcs... but we are honor-bound to at least try to sell that stuff!" "You manipulate water energy... can you be sure that it at least isn't poisonous?" Tanny remembers the unexpected greenish tint of the Lemonoaid™ during her previous channeling, and hesitates. Stephen's hand closes on her wrist, conveying strength and support. "Yes... normally... yeah... " Tanny sighs. "I have no idea what else Wyv put in there, but... okay, you said there's a final ritual... I'll try to guarantee that it doesn't give me more than a... hangover." "Not you. Me." "Stephen!" "What would be better to prove the efficiency of the potion, than make a blind man defeat the Orc captain?" "Stephen, that's crazy! You can't possibly..." Stephen's sudden release of her wrist makes Tanny swallow her words and breathe deeply. "Sorry, Stephen... it's not what I really meant." "It was. I know it. What are the chances of a blind man against an orc warrior?" Tanny blushes deeply, biting her lower lip. Then, she rests her hand lightly on his arm. "I am sorry, Stephen. But isn't that what anyone would think? I've never seen you fight; I don't know your skills. I know that I may have a chance against the captain if Wyv's 'refreshment' doesn't bring me down first." "If I remember well, you aren't skilled enough with a sword, and you can't prove our point through an archery combat. You fight as a wolf. I have seen wolves attacking, and even fought with them on occasion, and I know how deadly they can be even in single combat. But I don't think it wise to show them that you're a shapechanger, Wolf-Lady." Tanny bites back a retort, something on Stephen making her think for several seconds before answering with just a sigh. "So, may I take that as a sign that you agree?" "I will kill Wyvern," mutters her angrily. "Only if we survive long enough to get back to The Pen. Then I will gladly help you in this next mission." He grins in such a charming way that Tanny can't avoid a chuckle. "Trust me, Wolf-Lady. And just make sure that the Lemonoaid™ doesn't kill me." "I will. And I will also set a shield so that there are no surprises... like a 'stray' arrow. But I won't be able to hold it for long if we come under any heavy attack." "I understand." Some time later a small clearing is made, and Stephen and Grashk stand with their weapons ready. Tanny whispers, "Good luck, Stephen... it's not poisonous, and I think I got out all possible harm from it." "I'll be happy enough with that." Tanny sits down outside the fighting clearing, leaning her back against a group of trees and making certain that there's no orc near her and that her knives are at hand. She links herself to earth, letting its energy fill her, and waits. Bralak hands Stephen a cup of Almost Dragonic Brand Semi-Sweet Lemonoaid™. Holding his breath, Stephen swallows the whole content in one gulp. There's an immediate sickening feeling that makes him gag and stagger, shivering. However, within seconds Stephen feels a gentle and refreshing touch that washes away the ghastly taste and memory of the 'miraculous potion'. He has the fleeting sensation of soft fur against him, and later he would learn that that was how his mind reacted to Tanny's healing touch. He straightens and shifts his grip on his staff, holding it in both hands with the sharp end to his right. Concentrating, he can hear Grashk moving softly sidewards, giving his axe a few test swings before coming in for what he hopes will be a surprise attack. Dodging at the last moment, Stephen makes a roll and raises his staff to block the orc's next swing. The wood of his staff crashes against the wooden shaft of Grashk's axe and before the orc has a chance to push through Stephen reverses his staff's motion, bringing it around for an overhead swing at the orc's skull. Grashk, having expected this to be a very brief fight, is too slow to dodge and gets a sound thump on the head. Bralak notices with interest that it doesn't sound as hollow as he'd always thought it would ... The orc's skull is thick, though, and he comes at Stephen again, a little more careful this time. They continue in this way for a little while, Stephen dodging and deflecting blows and getting in a few hits at Grashk, realizing that the distrustful orcs will suspect trickery if the fight is over too quickly. However, once he is almost too late to dodge the swinging axe, he decides to put an end to it. With a loud battlecry, as if the potion finally took effect, Stephen rains a rapid succession of blows onto Grashk, who doesn't know where to block first. Stephen's staff moves in a blur, hitting the orc just about everywhere, including a few veru painful spots. When he falls to the ground, Stephen puts the sharp end of his staff on Grashk's chest, drily stating, "I won." Bralak ignores Grashk's furious glares and grunts as he comes forward to confirm it. The rest of the tribe watches in amazed silence as their defeated Captain leaves the battlefield, shooting angry glares over his shoulder. He stalks past Tanny, who gets up with a relieved sigh, and goes back to his tent. "You have fought well, human," Bralak says. "This potion truly is powerful! I will offer you ... five gold pieces for this jug, and another four for every other jug you can bring to my tribe!" Stephen shakes his head. "Twenty for this one, at least, and for every next jug as well." Bralak grunts. "You drive a hard bargain, human... twenty is a lot more than I can afford, with the battle having drained m... the tribes' gold. Let us go back to my tent to discuss this." Together with Tanny they enter the Shaman's tent. By the time they emerge again, carrying a pouch with fewer gold coins than they'd hoped for but more than Bralak wanted, it is almost dark. Avoiding Bralak's offer to spend the night in the orc encampment by stating that they have other business they manage to leave the camp. But it isn't until they have put quite some distance between it and them that they stop for the night... "Defeated by a human, and a blind one at that! Hah!" Grashk paces, or rather limps, up and down in his tent, muttering to himself in outrage. One plan after another forms in his mind to doom the humans but he discards all of them as too complicated or taking too much time. Suddenly he raises his head, a wicked grin spreading across his face. "Yess... " he whispers. An orc comes running through the darkness, panting the password to the guard's query. He barely slows down, dashing to his Shaman's tent with what seems to be his last strength after the long run. "Shaman! News ... the Grushkahns ... magic potion... humans ... selling ... strength ... " In spite of the fact that he is barely coherent, the Nargrib Shaman lets the orc enter his tent, calmly listening and trying to make sense of his breathless babblings.

Hmm... just made a quick test... apparently, that hyperlink exists just in the blue skin. No link in either tan or black. That for both Firefox 1.0 and IE 6 *puzzled*

Yeah, I mean the word "Posted". For me it's a hyperlink, when you click on it it opens a script with the URL for the post...

Well... I use Firefox 1.0 ... and there's the Hyperlink at "Posted:" at the header of the posts, where it gives the date/time posted. I also use the Blue skin. I tested in IE 6.0 ... the hyperlink is there (blue skin). However, if you aren't logged in, there's no hyperlink. (At least not in the default skin). Hmm... can this be something that happens in individual cases? I know that there's something funny at the PM function... some people seem not to have the carbon copy box, and some do. I remember Katz talking about that in a thread somewhere. Wondering, ~Tanny

.... I've *never* noticed the "Posted" hyperlink... *slaps her forehead* Thanks for teaching the simplest method of all, rev! *hugs* ~Tanny ~~~~ Edit: grammar

Yay! Welcome back, MeThinks!!! *tacklehugs* Yeah, game's over. We haven't had one after that, people were busy for the holidays... but maybe it's time to restart, if we have enough interested people. I may be starting a game... I still have several ideas ~Tanny

lol Peredhil the Practical! Yeah, much simpler indeed... I guess I just hate dozens of open windows...

Hi You need to find out the post number of the post you're trying to link to. The easiest way it to pass the mouse over the "quote" button - the last number that appear in the status bar (at the bottom of your page) is the post number (check for this post - the number is 97260). Or, simply click the "quote" button and locate the last group of numbers that appear in the url box. Hitting the "quote" button for this post brings this... (the post number is in red) www.patrickdurham.net/themightypen/index.php?act=Post&CODE=06&f=2&t=13040&p=97260 Then, you add that number to the end of the link to the thread preceded by #entry. So, the code (without the spaces) is [ url= copy/paste the thread link #entryYYYY ] text you want [ / url] If you want all links to open in the same new window (instead of a separate window for each link), use the code [ staticurl= xxxxxxx ]text[ /staticurl] (without the spaces) To see an example, quote this post; the text is opened (at the bottom of the page, "Original Post to Quote") and you can see the codes. Hope to have helped! ~Tanny

This is a beautiful poem, and has a flow and feeling that completely involves me. Thanks for pointing this out to me, Reverie... and I don't think mine will ever compare to this.

*hugs* Just believe in yourself and don't forget that you'll always have true friends to support you, even if they're not physically right at your side. You're a true friend, who always tried to support even amid your own trouble. For that, I value you a lot. I'm glad to have met you, and I'm sure we'll still have chance to talk and laugh about lots of things. Take good care of yourself, and when you need us, you know where to find us. At any time you come back, you'll be welcome. Best wishes to you, Jason. ~Tanny

OOC: I think our Riddle-Master has been snatched away by RL... but hopefully he'll be back soon ~Tanny

The black wolf looks at the Green mage leaving as suddenly as he arrived, and goes after him without paying attention to Katzaniel's startled look. Once out of the Conservatory, the wolf quicly locates the newcomer's scent, following him quietly until he stops in the middle of the Tavern, looking somewhat lost. Silently, she pads to him and coughs softly to call his attention. Unfortunately, that cough sounds more like a growl, and the mage steps back startled and raises hands with a ready defensive spell. Realizing her mistake, Tanny immediately shimmers back to her human form, with an apologetic face. "Sorry, I forgot that you're new here... nice to meet you, my name's Tanny." "A... shapechanger?" "Yeah... tell me, you seem a little bit lost... maybe I can help you? It's always a pleasure to show our Keep to new visitors" She smiles, leading the Green mage through the many sections of The Pen. ~~~~ OOC: Sorry for interrupting the flow of the Auction Just to remind the people, the last valid bid was 60 geld, from Nuncio ~Tanny

Yay! *takclehugs the kitty, laughing happily* Congrats, Mynx!! ~Tanny

A black wolf raises her tail, with a soft "Yap". "Ah, so I have 10 from the wolf in the back row. Did I hear another bid?"