Category: background

Vacation in Stormhome: Around Highwash > Rose Ward > Moonstand Academy

Feeling like I need a dose of academics, I head over to Moonstand Academy. I introduce myself and they are very welcoming. They’re also very eager to talk all things Xen’drik. I, on the other hand, want to talk about meteorology and this leads back to Xen’drik oddly enough. Apparently, they have been intending to set up a “Meteorological Datacenter” to observe the “Potential Unique Patterns over the Southern Continent” and that much of their inquiry into the “Southern Hemisphere” has been blocked by zoning issues by the locals. They ask me if there are any particularly high or mountainous…

Background Timeline

 976 Barrakas 4 Brook and Silence are born (it’s a joyous day for the world)  989 Nymm Ascension to Adulthood  989 Nymm – 990 Olarune Interning with various family  990 Olarune – Dravago Interning with Aunts Butterfly and Thunder  990 Therendor Meet Ront d’Tharashk  990 Dravago – 991 Eyre Interning w/ Dad and Trees  990 Lharvion – Barrakas Trip to Titan’s Teeth w/ Dad, Trees, and Khorvairen adventurers  990 Barrakas Meet Jhazaali  990 Barrakas – Rhaan Travel from Stormreach looking for goblins of Yellyark  990 Rhaan – 991 Eyre Live with the Biting Ant tribe of goblins  991 Lharvion –…

Off to Stormhome

Nymm, 1001 YK The airship was great. Once again, the Captain, Captain Ter’ral d’Lyrandar, had met my sister. Apparently, she was on Khorvaire briefly (that reminds me, I really need to write to her). Her great work, and hopefully my semi-sparkling personality, had me eating at the captain’s table for the trip’s duration. A Lyrandar airship over Khorvaire airspace is pretty safe and this trip goes without issue. Well, there was another passenger that I found annoying, but a grumpy Kundarak who thinks everyone on the ship should be there to serve his every whim would likely get on anyone’s…

Time for a Vacation

That’s right! As fun as the trip back with Jhazaali was, there was still some overthinking about the nightmare that is the Wastes going on in my head. MU definitely wanted me to take a position as an Assistant Professor now, but I decided it was time to take some time away from academics and just go experience the real world. Yes, Umbragen, Dhakaani, and Ghaash’kala are very real, but they are not day-to-day Khorvairen or Xen’drikan real. I did take an adjunct professor position and taught one short-session class before I left. Since I’d also made a decent amount…

Back to Sharn, Again & a New Book, Again.

Barrakas, 1000 – Dravago, 1001 YK We made it back to Bloodcliff Bay and got a ride back to Zarash’ak. Our orc escorts had given us a fair amount of gold that they said should help us get back to Sharn. It was plenty, so I was surprised when the tickets Jhazaali got us were for an extended trip on a non-elemental ship. She made some comment about even Dhakaani needing the occasional break and so we had a very pleasant, if I do say so myself, journey back to Sharn. I did spend more than a year with Jhazaali…

Should I Stay or Should I Go

The next day was a full explanation of the trial. It wasn’t really going to take as long as I thought it would since it was a simple set of ritualistic spells of divination and divine fire magic. These would mark us as clean, and we were free to leave, or they would burn our heart out of our chest. Wait! What?!? By the Gods it would be nice to get info like that before you head off on an adventure. I guess that’s what adventuring is about though. Unexpected highs, unexpected lows, and unexpected, tortuously painful death. I guess…

Ghaash Dar: Stronghold of the Clans

The four Ghaash’kala clans normally don’t interact much but Ghaash Daar is an exception. The guardians and priests of the various clans make frequent pilgrimages here as part of their worship of Kalok Shash, the Binding Flame. Due to its importance, Ghaash Dar is also the most populous and best defended of the Ghaash’kala’s enclaves. It is a veritable city unto itself, connected to the Labyrinth by an astonishing number of smaller tunnels. Gort is a member of the Vaanka clan. Vaanka cover their Clan Hold in carvings which tell the story of the Ghaash’kala and extoll the virtues of…

The Creepiest Port on Khorvaire

Bloodcliff Bay. From here the Labyrinth of the Demon Wastes opens up. This is likely the closest thing to a “safe” harbor. The water, however, is tainted with a reddish substance the Ghaash’kala call taarik’urrva, which means “rosy molasses” in their tongue. Fitting because the stuff is viscous and sticky, like syrup, but deceptively dangerous, like a rose. Any creature falling into these waters is certain to exhaust itself and drown. Ships become mired here as if they ran aground, depending on the consistency of the “blood.” Some shipwrecks, decades-old, have not completely sunk, despite their crews being long dead.…

Another Boat Ride – Elemental but Not Lyrandar

Eyre – Barrakas, 1000 YK It’s late by the time the discussion is finished so we spend the night in Wroat and hop the first train back to Sharn in the morning. Gort and Jhazaali make plans for us to get on a ship headed to the Shadow Marches for a supply drop and pickup of dragonshards. I’m am blessed to be traveling with people with the resources for this sort of travel because I know I could never afford it on my own. It turns out to be an elemental galleon but not one owned or operated by House…

Off to Wroat

Gort wants to head out ASAP but I need to get my stuff and tell people I’m going to be gone. I ask him for two days. He’s not thrilled with the timeline but accepts it. Two days later we’re on the lightningrail to Wroat. It’s about a seven-hour trip but Gort had us on the 5 AM, so we get into the capitol early in the afternoon. During the trip, I convinced Gort to teach me a few conversational basics in Orc and I taught him a proper greeting for him to use when meeting this “great smith of…

Orcs? Yeah, I’m Interested

Therendor – Eyre, 1000 YK Gortigoth the Hand is one of the Ghaash’kala, “Ghost Guardians,” of the Demon Wastes. An Orc kala’sha (paladin) of Kalok Shash, the Binding Flame. To the rest of Khorvaire, it is more widely known as the Silver Flame. Gortigoth, or Gort, was looking for a Dhakaani smith who had been shown to him in a vision. He’d been to Darguun but had no luck there as the true Dhakaani were not very open about who and where they were and Lhesh Haruuc’s new nation wasn’t too keen on outsiders poking around to find groups that…

Huh. Guess I Should Find Something to Do

Vult, 999 – Therendor, 1000 YK So, I’ve got a fancy degree and I’m in Sharn. I’m offered a lecturing position at MU but I’d like to do fieldwork. I also want to keep learning new things but am not sure what to do next. After concentrating so long on my thesis and then the lecture tour about the Volaar I’d kinda’ forgotten to plan much further into the future. Luckily, someone showed up to give me a new project.