Lady Sabine
Member
We lay our scene at a typical, if nice, inn along the road named the Argent Willow. For generations, it's been run by a family of witches, primarily due to its location. Just half a league down the road is an ancient circle of stones which provides an easy crossing point between the mortal and Fae realms, making the Argent Willow a favorite stopping point for men and immortals alike. It's right next to the sleepy little village of Stonebridge, which, as its name suggests, has an ancient stone bridge which is one of the few reliable crossings over the river for two days' ride either way. It also lies along the Kingsroad, one of the few reliable roads running so far north, and has no other settlements worth noting within a day's ride, isolated in the misty Silvershroud woods. There are bandits, from time to time, or the odd murderous fae beast on a rampage, but the area has largely been peaceful. Largely.
Four nights ago, the innkeeper was murdered.
Our RP will focus on the events taking place the evening & night after her funeral, and possibly later as well. What will those events be? Glad you asked. From here, everything is character-driven. It's up to us to make these events fall into place.
Rules:
- Please don't go more than one day in a row without posting. I might modify this rule if enough people request, so if this bothers you speak up. Majority rules.
- One paragraph per character. A paragraph means more than two lines. If you know your grammar and spelling aren't great, run it through spell-check. Third person, past tense. I'm not going to be harsh about this, but show me that you care at least a little.
- All character additions and fantasy elements need to be discussed with me. All characters will be involved in the plot and all fantasy elements will fit into the canon without contradictions or excessive power. This should be a pretty fun process, since it makes you more involved in the RP and gives you an opportunity to flesh things out!
- Be nice. Don't whine. Generally be a decent person, follow the site rules, all of that jazz. Pretty much, I'd like the OoC to be a friendly, drama-free zone... that way the IC can be dramatic and dark and bloody and all that fun stuff.
World Lore
Setting:
Early summer in the northern part of the kingdom of Terra Caligae, in the Argenthyne province.
The Argent Willow Inn: Two stories tall; the bottom with stone walls, the top with wood. Has around a dozen guest rooms, all upstairs. Bottom floor contains a greatroom, a kitchen, and the family quarters. Outbuildings include a one-room bathouse and a stable. There's also a hand-crank stone well and several apple trees, currently fruiting with small, sweet, yellow apples.
Stonebridge: The village just down the road half a league (about three minutes' walk) from the inn. Home to around two thousand people, a small chapel, a forge, a mill, a cider press, and a midwife, among other similar small businesses. Most villagers make their living through agriculture along the river. Notable for the ancient stone bridge linking the west (where the village is) to the east; the most common crossing point for those headed to the mountains to the northeast. And, of course, for those crossing between the mortal and Fae realms.
Silvershroud Woods: Covering most of Argenthyne, the woods are made predominantly of ancient black pine trees and, as the name suggests, usually shrouded in mist. The Silverblood river runs through the woods, fed by snowmelt and natural springs, at this point still gentle enough to be navigable. The woods are mostly wild and primeval, filled with dangerous beast fantastical and mundane alike.
Argenthyne: The northernmost and largest province of Terra Caligae, it is also one of the poorest and least populated, with only logging and iron mining as major industries and most of the population subsistence farmers. Thanks to this, it has largely been ignored by secular law and the church alike. The lord over all of Argenthyne is currently unnamed.
Terra Caligae: A fairly large feudal kingdom with a weak monarch, the lords largely keep their own justice and squabble often among one another. Argenthyne is largely left out of these feuds, if only because it is too poor and cannot foot enough soldiers to truly matter. Terra Caligae is currently not under direct threat from any of its neighbors. In the capital and larger cities magic has all but disappeared under the church's watchful eye, to the point where the less educated believe it all myth.
The Fae Realm: Unconstrained by the laws of nature, the Fae realm is home to thousands of places and peoples and creatures, most of it dangerous and insane by any mortal measure. The only two notable organizations are the Seelie and Unseelie courts, but even under their domain it is largely a chaotic place.
Miscellaneous:
Fae: A catch-all term for all creatures, sapient and bestial, who rely upon magic for their very lives; few can leave the Fae realm for longer than a year without serious consequences to their health. This includes everything from Faeries to Pookas to Dryads, but does not include witches, werewolves, vampires, or other humans with magical characteristics. Note: the word "Fae" is used for both the singular and plural, and in spite of the word "mortal" referring to non-Fae creatures, the Fae are not immortal, though many live centuries-long lives.
Humans: Naturally without magic, all humans who use magic in some way have either a non-human ancestor or have been purposefully altered. They are in practically all ways identical to Earth's own Homo sapiens sapiens.
Witches: Capable of accessing magic through spells, rituals, and potions, all witches share descent from a demigoddess known as the Enchantress. The branches of the family tree are fairly distant, and the only one prevalent in Argenthyne is the Silvertongues, who inherit both power and grey eyes from her, marking them as her heirs. In very rare cases men may inherit the magic, but the vast majority are women. In addition to spells and rituals, witches each have one, and only one, innate power. Examples include pyrokinesis, telekinesis, prophetic dreams, and the ability to bond with an animal familiar; most powers are very weak and, without years of training, are the only magic a witch will ever manifest.
Familiar: An animal, almost invariably mortal, that has formed a bond to a witch. This bond makes the animal more intelligent, usually of an equal with a human child, and allows for it to communicate easily with its master. Familiars often function as second sets of eyes, defense, or even sources of magical power for the witch who possesses one, although learning to work in tandem with one often takes decades.
The Seelie Court: Dubbing themselves "Light Fae", the Seelie court is ruled by Queen Titania and her King-Consort Oberon, both Greater Faeries. As a general rule Seelie Fae are more attuned to the sun than moon and gain power during spring and summer, and consider themselves more civilized and kind, with fewer beasts and more humanoid features, with notable exceptions including most unicorns and phoenixes. However, these claims are largely arbitrary since Fae are, by their nature, arbitrary creatures.
The Unseelie Court: Ruled by the bachelor Prince of The Forest, a demigod (and brother of the Enchantress) Oethiah, the Unseelie Fae are generally more attuned to moon, autumn and winter, and tend to be more bestial and less welcoming to outsiders. However, this claim is also quite arbitrary.
Greater Faeries: Of near-human stature and appearance and without wings, they are the prototypical "fair folk" of myth and legend, with great beauty and magic, and very childlike demeanors.
Demigod: Natural children of the World Goddess Gaea and a variety of fathers, of greater power than mortals but not powerful enough to be considered gods in their own right. Have not been very involved in mortal affairs for several centuries, though in ages past were the main focus of worship.
The Church: Mostly parallel to the Catholic church in medieval Europe, the Church has a central High Father and numerous other levels beneath him. Sunday mass, no divorce, and a low tolerance for magic and polytheism drive a wedge between the church and fringe communities who still honor Demigods and practice magic.
The Common Tongue: For all practical purposes English, just in a world where the whole sequence of events forming the English language don't exist. The language officially spoken by the humans of Terra Caligae and anyone who wants to be understood there, in other words, the language your character should speak.
The Old Tongue: Similar to the above, but Latin. Why? So that Latinate jargon works for old toponyms and magic, mostly. Most spells are in the Old Tongue, but so is the church's mass and most other ancient books and sayings.
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