December Highlights!

On Saturday morning, Gigi making lots of deals and kicking a goblin out of the Inn for repeatedly offering her a fur with fleas (Gigi really can't imagine much worse than that)! Great job by the goblins - you were all hilarious and Gigi was really tempted to purchase the Jonas Kane privy cover.

IG argument with Burk and trying really hard to not crack up. Failing. Josh, you just make me laugh, I can't help it. Other IG arguments that are RP highlights and having to stomp off at a loss for words this time.

Abby, your Thalia RP continues to amaze me. Making promises about the dark druidess.

A brief discussion about redemption with Bob.

Morwenne’s steely eyed gaze and her ability to make Faila feel like a three year old while only saying about two sentences.

Tsoli’s lessons.

A long discussion with Aleister and others about the nature of the weave, demons, etc. Questions Faila has had for over three years answered.

Thanks to everyone for such a great event.

Oh, most important highlight.

George's horns. Just saying, those were some great looking horns!

Fantastic event, as always. The weather was great (for me, anyway), the RP was better than usual somehow, and Ergos felt super duper useful, albeit kinda bad about being a jerk.

-Did not use a single skill with Haz this weekend, was all RP with him, and damn good RP at that. Thanks to everyone involved, you know who you are.

-Saturday morning, being a tired Ergos made his mean (if you can call it mean) side come out a bit, but once things started rolling he woke up.

-Healer meeting! Ergos didn't have much to say, but he's glad that things are getting started.

-New player goblin mods. Ergos doesn't like goblins and was very very vocal about it. He felt a bit useless since he didn't get to heal things but he got paid so he was fine with it.

-Hearing from Lorelai that people needed help at Ostcliff. Sprinting to Ostcliff and healing a lot of limbs and whatnot.

-New player demon mod with Matt and being one of very few healers out there. Great time out there, thanks to all the NPCs who gave the new players just enough of a hard time to make it super fun and challenging but not impossible.

-Archcaster lessons with Tartaros. Lord Tartaros. Weird time, but a good time. Definitely helped Ergos out way more than just in terms of archcasting.

-FEAST. Thank you so much to everyone involved with the feast, especially with all of the stress about getting everything done on time. Quite honestly the best feast I've had, as anyone who was sitting near me could understand while I gushed on about how delicious it was with a mouthful of food.

-NPC for mainmod was pretty good. Imps are fun. So are mana seekers.

-Coming off of mainmod to play Ergos again. Hanging out, awaiting what was to come. Some good RP. Then an Ostvolk burst through the door.

-Going to Shrike mod as Ergos. Being the only healer on Shrike mod. Without Peaches, there woulda been a lot of limbless people, and maybe some corpses. Craziest fight of Ergos' life so far, definitely glad that I could be there.

-Homunculanius. Thanks Matt.

-Talks with Starling about healer things and exhaustion and stupidity.

-Waking up the next morning and doing not a whole bunch with Haz. Talks with Pluvious and Master Ginyu and some Ostvolk, but thats about it as far as highlights go.

Thanks again to everyone who made this event and this year so great, can't wait til 1217!

Friday night was absolutely enjoyable. Edgefest 1216 ftw!

An interesting exchange between Jed and Caldor on the subject of praying to God for his Sanctuary lesson. Also nice to meet Bear, Caldor's sister.

Stonefall Meet n' Greet! Thanks to Octavia for being a lovely host!
I enjoyed the idea of nyad's blood in the blue cupcakes causing some unrest with an unlikely party. (Don't worry, your secret is safe with me!)

Argyle, you are a shady queen. I was ready to square up with you, twice!

Deep religious conversations with Bob, Kroh and Zelretch. Truly admirable how quickly Bob can wordsmith perfectly a ticklish situation...

Dramatic narratives by the most dramatic tree (per the Seneschal) with Bob, Lois, Kroh, Zelretch and Karkat were unforgettable and filled with mirth, even if it was a terribly serious subject we were trying to discuss. Nothing like putting a little comedy into tragedy to ease the sting of it, right?

"He has until midnight Saturday and then I'm beating him to death."

Ain't no party like a Karkat wraith Vile Will party 'cuz a Karkat wraith Vile Will party don't stop...

Fighting a 45 minute rush of undead in half clothes because of all the screaming when I was trying to go to bed at 5am! Curse your black heart, Tim!!!
Went to bed hurting from laughing so much, though. Sign of a good time!

A sluggish Saturday morning get-ready after that. Happy to meet Trent on the way to see Jed for his ideation, which went beautifully by the way. Judge really becomes the voice of the serpent and captivates his audience with his passion and perceptions. Some good speeches followed him, Duncan, who is always on his A game with his religion and a surprising newcomer, Dr. Kroh, who did remarkably well.
And you, too, Argyle.

A random gathering afterward with Jade, Indigo, Trexler, Octavia and Jed. Discussions of TINY SOCKS! And breaking the scariest man in Travance for a few minutes. (SORRY!)

Actual popcorn break with Amalthea, just as she'd promised! Paladin best friend is best. Next we'll have to do our nails together and talk about boys.

On a serious note, when another Harbinger was discovered (this time of Suffering, so you know, Swyft was like, FREAKING OUT) it was Amalthea who really took the time to calm her and what an emotional exchange it was. I think that was the deepest conversation we have had since the beginning of Swyft's downward spiral. Those tears were real, lady! Love you!

Another unexpected but important conversation with Grimkjell, after Swyft was sure he'd written her off.

New method of Sustaining Lives... folks seem to enjoy it. Almost killed Nalick with it, lol. Love ya', Jeff!

Who's the clown who told Papa Gypsy that Swyft is a dark paladin?! And that the rainbow sword is a specialized dark paladin sword?! Very funny, like I don't have enough trouble as it is! Papa Gypsy on the warpath is scary. Can we not make stuff up like that?!

Drega'Mire land meeting! Fun times, knocking cups over and also being serious. Well, trying to... because... Carlos' hat.

NPC shift with the amazing Ben as a lanius -- pretty neat role. Most hilarious when both Matt (as a homunculus) and I subdued each other at exactly the same time:
"What's your strength?"
"Ten."
"Me too."
"Hmm..."

Cue uncontrollable laughter as we grappled each other and then fell down on the floor in hysterics at the silliness of it all. (Sorry for the immersion break, but I don't think we could help it!)

Sunday morning it was nice to spend quality time with Charlie making breakfast, again. It had been quite some time!

Spending some quality time with Imrahil on Sunday and then learning Strength of the Samurai with the infamous BBTak. Therion and Swyft don't get a lot of time to RP together, and after that lesson, I'm going to make it a point to spend more time with him!

Deviling Annora by sending the (hilarious) Demon Slayer Hell Bent (see what I did there?) on going to the Abyss to fight the demonds to Aleister and telling him Annora sent him.
"Why would she condone sending someone to the Abyss? Why would she think I'd do that?"
"I don't know. She totally did though."
Later, running into her and Belegchand with (an only slightly) miffed Aleister while he lightly scolded her, pointing at her the whole time. When she finally said she didn't do it, I ran away, cackling "evilly" (Because you know, that's what people think now, may as well play the part) while she screamed "SWYYYYYYFT" in her best "KAAAAAAAHN!" impression.
So evil, I am.

A most EXCELLENT conversation with Zelretch and "Charles Livingston."
Curse his impish sudden but inevitable betrayal!
Playing 5 card draw with him and Hasim was kind of the best thing ever, what with this legendary gambler stuff. And you know, both of them having royal flush of diamonds...
Yeeeahhh...


Overall a very pleasant event with very pleasant weather for December! I hope people enjoyed my upped katta game. Amazing what a little weight loss and weather under 90 degrees does for my energy!

A special shout-out to Steve Oros for being a freaking awesome dude to RP with and I finally had the fortune to get to spend a fair amount of time with him. Never a dull moment, my friend. I hope there are more to come! (... I mean, considering our conversation Friday night, I assume there are more shenanigans on the way...)
I'm sure I'm forgetting awesome interactions. I apologize if so, but I love you all, still! I just have a lousy memory!
Until next time!

OH almost forgot!

Meeting Sir Wellington wellington wellington wellington wellington the 89820981095th. "I've heard of you before! You have a cat!"

"YOU HAVE NEWS OF MY CAT?!?!? Wellington wellingtonwellingtonwellington the 15th was stolen by the Rouge club!" (pronounced roooooge like the blush)

".... um...uh... I think T'soli found him foraging in the dumpsters. Nice collar, had his name and everything. You should talk to him about it!"

AHH! My first full event (I may have the strangest track record having come to 2016 awards, and then the 2016 Ball before hitting a full weekend... )!!

Overall note: I really had NO idea what to expect and I had an amazing time. Thank you to EVERYONE who contributed, even if I miss mentioning you here. Everything is kind of a blur!

First, crashing an almost finished New Player meeting b/c Jason and I had the times wrong. SORRY!

Heading off to Jed's to watch her brother Caldor wax philosophical with another preacher-type was incredibly interesting. PLUS she got to meet Swyft!

The New Player mod was incredibly challenging and terrifying -- never having swung a weapon before and jumping right into somehow being one of the stronger fighters in our small group was a bit of a shock. SUPER fun though, once I realized I needed to ditch the cloak (sorry Bill, it took a little rest on the floor!). Some rules were bent, as Alexi said, but we had all the fun learning.

Rasteria, Chimera and Bear getting together after the new player mod to plan for the next day was amazing too. I'm looking forward to LOTS of antics with our little group.

Friday night was filled with Bear meeting Thalia and helping her around in the kitchen til 4 bells. FOUR BELLS.

Bear also met Nalick.... Caldor gave him the eyes and the warnings. Grim gave him the eyes. If only Aella had been there...

(Dara had coffee with hot cocoa. Dara NEVER drinks coffee. This may have contributed to the 4 am existence.)

Saturday morning Bear got to appreciate the marketfair and breakfast, and made lots of plans with other New Players to reconvene with a larger group to take on the Demon at 4 bells. She talked to TONS of people, and hoped that they would all come back to help later that day.

The night before, Thalia had invited Bear to the Healer and Physician meeting at 11, so she arrived in a timely manner for that meeting. She mostly listened, and then shared some strategic ideas from her homeland towards the end of the meeting. These resulted in her being asked to stay on with the group as a Tactical Consultant. She accepted humbly, and promised to help "Do Good" in Travance.

At some point there was an awesome interaction with Chimera and another player who specifically sought her out to meet. That was a super cool thing to witness for both characters and their development.

After that, Chi and Bear took a walk around the grounds to get their bearings, as they had only just arrived to Travance.

Bear also had a TON of fun finding her brothers, Beligor and Grim, and getting their help preparing for the Demon fight in the afternoon. She asked Beligor if he had a chain that he could lend her, and if he had a way to "I don't know, make it Divine or something. I have to tie down a Demon!" Beligor grabbed Grim, who lent Bear a grappling hook, and Beligor ran off with it to "find a friend who could help." He came back minutes before Bear had to leave for the Demon fight, with a Divine Grappling Hook for her to take along... Brothers

Part 2 of the Demon vs New Player mod was EPIC. We had a triple sized party, and we also encountered a much larger enemy when we arrived on-site. The Demon had powered up, and there were a bunch of baby demons too.... At the risk of a really long, rambly reiteration, we fought for a bit, then our party's wild mage went BOOM and had a wave of 3 magical hits that dealt 100 damage each to anyone within earshot. If you didn't take the damage, you took a Stun and a Trip. I popped what I thought were all my defenses (I forgot about Barbarian's racial "Ignore Magic. UGH!"), and stayed up with about 3 of my other party members. Luckily a healer made it through... Thanks Caldor! The baby demons also went down, and so it was the boss Demon and a few of us. He took the damage so we were chasing after him after our stun/trips wore off... The fighters were working hard, the healer (I think Alexi it was you who stayed up? Maybe?) was bringing everyone else back into play, and then... the wild mage boomed again a few minutes later. THIS TIME he turned into a pillar of fire, and the Demon grabbed him and was about to consume him (because Fire Demon)... so Bear decided it was time to try her emergency grappling hook. After a quick clarify, she threw the hook, grabbed her friend, and with the joint strength of a few other fighters, was able to release him from the Demon's grasp. After that though, the Demon was NOT HAPPY and began to swing a bit harder at us... so Bear decided to attempt to grapple the Sword (aka the Artifact they were trying to retrieve, the whole reason they were there) out of the Demon's hands. (After obtaining a spacket from someone else, THANK YOU WHOEVER I FRANTICALLY GRABBED THAT FROM!) Bear hooked the Sword, and with the combined strength of basically EVERYONE STILL STANDING (fighters, healers, bystanders), we were able to yank the Sword out of the Demon's hands, even while sustaining toooons of damage trying to do so. Chimera grabbed it and levitated away, while the rest of us beat up on the now disarmed Demon and his babydemon allies. PHEW. At the close of the mod, Bear advocated for the Rasteria to take the Sword, as she would use it for the defense of everyone. We all also got some awesome loot, thank you to the Marshals for picking cool stuff for us!

Feast with the Heargens was AMAZING. So glad Beligor, Grim and Bear got to eat together.

NPC shift after that was a little stressful, but definitely an important experience. Remind me never to get my hair caught in a bramble bush again, and I'm sorry to whomever got their night vision slashed by us having to take out a light to set me free. >.<

Caldor and Bear were chatting in the Inn later, Caldor mostly introducing Bear all around and letting her get to know his connections. Eventually Caldor was tired so he laid down on Bear's leg... and Jason apparently was tired too, since he straight up took a little nap waiting for his group to get back for some kind of outing.

Late Saturday night was spent with Bear consoling Caldor after he received some tragic news about his close friends.

Late-late Saturday night was spent with Bear keeping Nalick company for the same reasons. PLUS he read her a book. Drunkenly or not, Bear dropped her sarcasm about reading and enjoyed the story about summoning Unicorns. Which she later learned was a real thing that happened in Travance. After seeing Nalick off to bed, Bear slept as well.

Sunday was lots of hugging by Bear and lots of lessons! So much lessoning! Thank you to everyone who taught her things. She's looking forward to broadening her horizons in Travance.

AND THE FASHION PLANS! I can't recall if this was Saturday or Sunday, but I think Sunday... There are so many plans. Thank you to Starling and Peacock and everyone else who is in on this wondrous plan. Bear cannot WAIT to get involved in the Travance economy.

SERIOUSLY THOUGH

Thank you everyone for making this event such a blast. I haven't been a PC in like... a decade. And I've never created my own character and had to develop her. It's thrilling and daunting and a million other things... but I'm so excited to experience it with such an amazing group of people.