Reflections on Saint Marsenen

 

Reflections on Saint Mersenen

By Bishop Iotha of Tawn

“When a raindrop falls the world is brought into sudden realization, a horizon crystallizing into reality. Regardless of where the drop strikes the inexorable downward pull calls it into streaming motion. Joining with others rivulets, collective drops now form a single thread as they race to their destination. For some this journey may be down a rock to a forest puddle, while many will join greater and greater threads until the individual is a mote in the roaring river. Though these paths may vary, eventually all drops will reach their sea.

Our Lady calls each of us down from the skies above, her heart yearning to love each of us. She is the river which bears us, and the calm seas to embrace us. Each drop has a destiny, a moment upon which the inevitable rest greets them. We only know the valley unto which we are called, though even the whole shape of just the valley can never be grasped.

Fear must not consume the heart, trust in our Lady for the journey she has set you upon. Take comfort that in the end we will all know Her and greet Her, and She will deliver us unto the quiet halls and eternal rewards.”

Excerpt from The Frost Sermons, Saint Mersenen

Saint Mersenen the confessor humbles each of us on our path through the world, reminding us of the journey we must each undertake upon the river that our Monarch has placed us upon. It is he who places us each upon our course, and through the love of the Mother Current we are born aloft her back. Mersenen reminds us that the gods are with us always, for The Seer looks ahead to guide us on our course, while Our Lady awaits us with open arms upon our arrival at her sea to return us to the arms of her family.

The saint is perhaps most well known through her oratory work, The Frost Sermons, though her life is well documented within the Green Song [1]. For many her role and teachings are heard through Miserations, which relegate her role to a simple attendant to the passing Echalia. How little we see the depths of her acceptance and absolute forgiveness, the charity of her love even to the one who executed the Winter Sister.

It is said that Saint Mersenen spent seven years with the dwindling Echalia, giving her comfort and council as the goddess passed beyond the veil. The Winter Sister held dearly to life as all living things do, grieving for her sister and followers that she would leave behind. Mersenen councils acceptance of this loss; that of material will not pass into spirit.

“Frost was born unto this world as a tear, shimmering and singing ice that bore a requiem of preservation. Would the world stop for her a moment she would hold eternity in her grasp and within it all she held dear. Yet her companion Mersenen spoke, reminding her that even the blooming rose shall wither, even the finest sculpture is worn down and chip.”

Frost Sermons 3:21

Saint Mersenen reminds us that a fear of death is a natural reaction, to stare into the absolute fact of our oblivion unscathed is beyond all but the most strongly willed. Yet our time on this river is but a brief moment of our eternity, for it is behind this final curtain that our true existence awaits us in the arms of our just fate. Nothing that passes beyond is out of reach forever, for even in death our love is not diminished and in time we will too shall pass to see them once more, born aloft by the currents of love by those we leave behind.

[1] For those studying St Mersenen the holy text of Arthea give the most detailed accounting of this period, particularly the works of Hernen The Lesser.

GLOGtober '23 - 3: Catalogue of 1d6 Cursed Items

  GLOGtober '23 prompts can be found here.

 

1d6 Cursed items recovered by The Watchers of Dawn

1. Growing Daggers

By no means a unique item, several of these have been found throughout the Tvidenwald, usually being sold by a traveling merchant. A team has already been dispatched to locate the merchant, who is described as a middle aged man wearing a purple cap calling himself Harthmann. The daggers sold appear normal until they draw blood, at which point the weapon suddenly doubles in size, often driving it deeper into the wound it caused. Thankfully at some point these daggers become rather unwieldy, however the upper limit of this curse is still being explored.

As a standard dagger, however each time it grows increase it gets +1 damage and increase the dice size by one (1d4→1d6→1d8→etc). It will quickly grow too big to yield after 1d12.

2. The Medusa Fountain

Located high in the Hedanthusian mountains, this ancient and ornately carved life sized statue of a medusa covering her face as she weeps mud slurry. Discovered by a team of explorers when the local village went silent. All life in and surrounding the village was found petrified, even down to the spiders in their webs and the growing crops. The petrification process seems to affect all living things near the fountain, turning them to solid stone over the course of twenty four hours. At the recommendation of the Hedanthusian Dawn Captains the statue has been moved to the deepest cellar of the village and a warning perimeter established. For now the statue remains, and thankfully is difficult to transport, keeping it out of the wrathful hands of heretics.

The Medusa Fountain appears as a human sized statue of a weeping medusa sitting on a stone block, carved in a wonderful life like visage. With her face buried in her hands, a continual trickle of mud slurry drips down the statue. The statue weighs just over a thousand pounds. Anything living within 1 mile of the fountain will slowly turn to stone over the course of 24 hours.

3. Intre Carmian, The Poetry Between

Recovered from the unholy city of Visgarmora, this tome defies efforts to study it. The book apparently has a simple dark azure cover with a title in simple silver letters, and the pages full of disjointed writings regarding ‘the storm’. Our inquisitors believe that the book projects an amnesia field, causing any who approach the tome to forget what happened while they were close to it. When one comes around after this forgetful event, they often find they’ve gained some new and strange wound. Researchers believe that the tome is demon infested, creatures of memory who enjoy inflicting pain and confusion. Once a safe method of disposal has been ascertained the book will be destroyed.

Intre Carmian appears as a simple book, with several texts within alluding to releasing ‘the storm’ and ‘opening the self’. Studying them may reveal untold secrets, but is obviously rather difficult to do. Unfortunately anyone who can perceive the book or is too close to it cannot remember such experiences, usually escaping this effect 1d10 minutes later with a few strange wounds. These wounds deal 2d8 – 1d6 damage (minimum 0).

4. Visage Seeds

Captured in the raid on followers of the Marble Made Flesh, a case of several bone postules was found. In examining them one of the inquisitors made the mistake of touching one, which quickly animated and burrowed into his hand. While proper precautions were taking, the man seemed fine save for the obvious entry wound. Upon awakening the next morning in the quarantine cell however it was discovered his entire form had changed to a younger half elf. This process would occur each morning at dawn, and observers could see the vicissitude of his entire body as bones cracked and reshaped. While surgeons were eventually able to find and remove the visage seed, the curse carries on. Due to the fact that the surgeons found a cluster of multiple visage seeds within, the inquisitor is being take to Viilimond for a cleansing blessing or failing that, execution.

Upon contact of bare flesh with a visage seed the small object burrows into them, dealing 1d6 each round. Once it has dealt 6 damage this way it burrows into their flesh, beyond reach. Forevermore each dawn upon waking the body of the cursed individual bends and twists, taking on the appearance of a random person.

5. Drowning Candles

These dark candles are found among followers of The Kraken. Appearing as deep blue or black candles that always seem wet, they can be deadly to those inexperienced with their dark magic. As the candles burn they draw in the aquatic energies of their benthic master, reversing what one needs to breath. This allows his servants that are usually bound to the water to walk among us to sow their destruction without needing to fear asphyxiation. For most people however, being too close to a drowning candle causes them to choke as their ability to breath air is replaced with a need to draw oxygen from water. Numerous commoners and even nobles have been found dead in the same chamber where a drowning candle was burned. While many of these deaths are accidents, it is also a common assassination technique used by heretics of The Kraken.

Drowning candles appear as normal candles made of a dark wax, though are always damp to the touch. Despite this they are easy to ignite and can even burn under water, giving off a cold white flame. Creatures within 20’ of the candle that breath air begin to suffocate as they must now draw in oxygen via immersion in water. Likewise creatures that normally breathe underwater must now draw in air. Creatures unable to get their new source of oxygen begin to suffocate.

6. Ranelalina, Idol of Lelandandril

One of the many cursed idols that makes their way out of the moon shadowed lands of Lelandandril, idols of Ranelalina are seeds of corruption that must be rooted out. As with all Lelandandrite idols it is possessed by one of their demons, Ranelalina. Touching such idols always curses the trespasser and allows the demon to worm their way into their mind. While the idols themselves are not able to cause much change in the world themselves they quickly turn those who touch them into puppets for their dark ends. It is documented that Ranelalina has a fascination with rot, and her shrines are often adorned with the putrid carcasses of her enemies. Often worshipers will fill her well with rotting flesh and drawing in such foul sickness into their own bodies, claiming that she will bless them. This is not unfounded as her devotees have been witnessed striking an inquisitor and causing their arm to rot off in minutes.

The idol of Ranelalina is made of a dark stone and is the size of a lantern, appearing as a vulture with the head of a jackal. When you touch the idol of Ranelalina a connection is made that only potent purifying magic or Ranelalina may end. Those connected to Ranelalina feel their reflexes slow as atrophy sets in, losing 2 dexterity as long as they are connected. However while holding the idol their body can adapt to overcome rot and disease, gaining 2 constitution. As well, Ranelalina may speak into the mind of the connected, giving them whatever dark advice she holds. Thrice per day they can touch a corpse causing it to rot into a putrid mess as it leaks diseased fluids, reducing all incoming damage by 2. It is said that by making proper offerings to Ranelalina she may grant more power, however she always has a cost.

 

GLOGtober '23 - 4: Theory of P-ooze-tions

 GLOGtober '23 prompts can be found here.

 

Theory of pOozetions

Nicknamed p-ooze-tions by apprentices, this name for Distilled Jellies has unfortunately entered the vernacular. What distinguishes a potion or oil from a distilled jelly are a number of things, namely the use of those creatures commonly categories as Slimes or Oozes in the brewing process. While in a potion ingredients are mixed by hand or with the help of alchemical equipment, distilled jellies use a preexisting natural framework to blend the desired effect, namely the biology of Oozes.

To understand this process we must understand the biology of Oozes. While the common variety of ooze is a simple minded creature focused on survival, one must ensure they work with a proper ooze and not one of the new synthetic spawns. Most oozes, deriving from a prime ooze, slowly consume and grow in size until they split into two or more new oozes, repeating the process. Notes indicate that the form and nature of these creatures can vary over time, leading to new “bloodlines” of these creatures.

It should be noted however that under recent studies published in Kirinth this last century, reliable methods for mixing of oozes has become possible. By slowly blending two oozes together under the right conditions a new hybrid ooze can be created. While the research indicates strong future growth in the field of múxasology, it also has allowed for the spawning of the field of Distilled Jellies.

Via the works of Crivelli of Norn the creation of a neutral vessel ooze are possible, a nearly transparent creature of neutral gelatin. These oozes can be injected with other substances, slowly melding into the gelatin of the creature. If the substance is properly infusing with the ooze then the creature becomes of that material, and as it continues to grow its gelatin continues to produce the injected substance.

Applications of Crivelli’s neutral vessel ooze are vast, though as Crivelli herself claims, “Nothing will surpass the candy ooze, my eternal fountain of sweets”. Reports also indicate a popularity for honey oozes and wine oozes. So long as the ooze is fed, it will continue to produce endless sweet or intoxicating jelly, though for now the growth rate is below sustainable rates. This, combined with the difficulty in creating a neutral vessel ooze and highly volume of acidic byproducts, puts strong limits on the wide spread use of these creatures.

The true pinnacle of this process is however obviously the potion ooze. By injecting a neutral vessel ooze with the indicated potion and several other alchemical blends, the ooze gelatin can take on the properties of the potion. We have finally arrived at the foundations of Distilled Jellies.

While having an ooze that can hypothetically process raw biological matter into healing gelatin is a wonderful prospect, it merely scratches the surface of Distilled Jellies. By carefully blending small portions of oozes in controlled alchemical environments it is possible to create hybrid potions in ways that sidestep several challenges in traditional alchemy when combining potions. Whole new branches of potions and oils are being discovered under the umbrella of Distilled Jellies.

Some alchemists working in this field have even started infusing the oozes themselves with the ingredients for their potions, blending together to make the ooze potions via alchemy rather than injection, claiming it leads to far more potent results.

A small note has been appended by a second author:

With everything Distilled Jellies grants the alchemist, you should still be careful when exposed to this untested science. In case you are not an alchemist, you should be warned about the dangers of mixing potions together. While the processes used often limits or prevents these dangers, they are not impossible. Several people have reportedly melted when drinking from an ill prepared batch. Remember, these are still oozes you are consuming, which is usually safe in small proportions. As well, the oozes used in the process are still oozes, not merely some alchemical concoction. One ooze being used to create greater protection potions broke free and was a nightmare to harm due to the nature of its alchemical enhancement.

1d10 alchemical oozes:

1. Candy ooze: Crivelli’s creation, usually appearing as an ooze made of pastel colors, often with a sweet flavor. Lemon based candies usually work best for this process.

2. Mind Probe Ooze: Only one of these has been found, and appears to be a combination of thought detection and minor illusionary magic. The disturbing little creature will pick up on the surface thoughts of those near it, projecting them via illusions for others to see. No one has claimed ownership of the experiment, though it has already caught the attention of The Magisterium and The Watchers of Dawn.

3. Sunlit Ooze: Injecting enough liquid sunlight into an ooze and you get the perfect creature for destroying vampires. Unfortunately it is also so bright that anyone that looks at these creatures are blinded. Originally they were slaked for destruction before some blind monks took them in.

4. Vacuum Ooze: It’s believed this creature came about by combining a multitude of teleportation and extra dimensional effects within a single ooze. What instead occurred was a small localized planar collapse, a void that continually pulls in matter around it. By the time it was caught and destroyed the creature had learned to open and close this “mouth”, devouring those around it.

5. Mimic ooze: Believed to be the combination of a potion of charm and a potion of disguise self, this ooze has been observed luring in prey with the charm while posing as a person or object. Some theorize this sort of ooze might be the origins of mimics, though likely using a potion of shape changing.

6. Combustion ooze: Someone was clearly trying to make some sort of bomb ooze and we ended up with this monster. A combination of alchemist’s fire and fire resistance elixir, alongside a fireball leads to this jelly which is constantly exploding. Thankfully all escaped specimens have been caught, but it’s dreaded what might occur if a wild population were to set itself up.

7. Saint Ooze: Nicknamed Saint Oozes, these creatures are imbued with as much restorative and healing magic as is safely possible. How exactly they’re made and kept stable is unknown, but current theories involve holy water and angel’s blood. Several churches have decried the use of holy magic within an ooze.

8. Sail Ooze: These slimes were made by mixing a potion of levitation and gust of wind, likely in an attempt to jury rig a flying potion. Unfortunately the oozes quickly learned how to use their new movement and escaped. These Sail Oozes as they’ve been called spread themselves thin like a sheet to catch the wind. They’re quick to spread and are now a fact of life in Kirinth unless some major extermination effort is put in place. They certainly seem to be helping with the pigeon problem at least.

9. Regenerative Ooze: With the potential medical applications of Distilled Jellies being so obvious, some have tried creating regenerative oozes to restore limbs and missing body parts. By concentrating multiple regenerative potions together, this oozes restores missing body mass at an incredible rate. These two parts quickly form independent oozes. Not only does this make it impossible to gather small enough samples for medical application, but given the right circumstances could have an explosion in population.

10. Power Word Ooze: These oozes kept being reported around Kirinth, and analysis indicates they’re a vessel for Power Word Kill. Thankfully none of them can talk – yet.

 

GLOGtober '23 - 2: She Who Sings in Reed and Rush

GLOGtober '23 prompts can be found here.

 

She Who Sings in Reed and Rush

Lake Dallieun is caught in the minds the people of Poltan, sitting right next to the modern capital of Sarcens. Many a painting captures the glimmering surface of lake, appearing in the backgrounds of royal portraits across generations of Poltanish Kings. Numerous castles and villages line the shores, and stories across the world frame the lake as places that heroes rise and villains are slain. Perhaps most famous is The Cathedral Mireaus (Mir-os), dedicated to The Mother Current, Vasobus. Her priests claim Dallieun as her respite, a blessing to mortals for their faith.

Few however remember the old faith that claims the glimmering waters, She Who Sings in Reed & Rush. Her followers are scattered around Lake Dallieun, but are a small faith compared to the churches of the land. While they are often not rooted out and slain, they are a patchwork faith. Many teach of forgiveness and acceptance, and often hold an oath of non-violence. Others teach of the cycles of life, one that one cannot escape no matter how strongly they fight it. Followers can are often found in those whole live on the lake shore, but also in doctors and wise-folk.

1d12 Events & Rumors:

1. A mother has recently lost her son in battle and can’t get over her grief. She needs reeds gathered to weave a basket to carry his sword and helmet into the lake, however bandits are said to patrol the lake’s edge.

2. A bard challenged The Songstress, claiming they were a better singer. When their boat returned from the fog all that was found was a broken violin and a dog sized cricket.

3. This is the third time in a month a fisher has been found hung from a tree, suspended by a long bone hook through their neck. Locals whisper of the vengeance of The Songstress.

4. Rush lamps are the new craze among nobility wanting “to live a simple life, just like the peasants”. Already old beds along Lake Dallieun are being yanked up to fill this need. Followers whisper than unless this stops soon She Who Sings will have her vengeance.

5. A local priest has declared that She Who Sings is but a misinterpretation of The Mother Current and has begun tearing down shrines. This isn’t the first time this has happened, but tensions are already mounting quickly.

6. The village elder has begun to preach that the afterlife The Churches promise is a lie, that all flow on the endless river that circles the cosmos, returning to the world each time born anew. This particular heresy is too much for The Churches to tolerate.

7. A child was found floating in a basket among the reeds. Was this the fault of loveless parents, or the next prophet of The Songstress?

8. They say that if you can catch She Who Sings she will take a memory too painful for you, in exchange for bearing the memory of another.

9. Rumors have spread that if you wander the reeds alone in the dark under the light of the full moon then The Songstress will guide your love from a past life, to reunite again and again. Seems like an easy way to get people out and alone in the dark.

10. After the loss of all seven of his sons in a single battle their father was seen weeping on the lake shore each night, begging for them to come back to him. A week ago a rogue wave suddenly spewed a literal swarm of fish onto shore all around him, worth a small fortune. Now everyone who has ever suffered even a minor inconvenience is down by the water, begging for restitution.

11. A small conclave has formed up, nicknamed The Water Bearers by the locals. Having taken a vow of poverty and non-violence this community works to produce and give out holy water made from the lake in an effort to fight undead.

12. The palace of She Who Sings sits at the bottom of Lake Dallieun, but should one of pure heart sail the lake it shall rise from the deep to greet them.

GLOGtober '23 - 1: Lord of The Deep - The Kraken

Since it's October that means it's GLOGtober! You can find the prompts here.

 

 Lord of The Deep - The Kraken

To many surface dwellers, when they think of the frigid waves and dark depths they think only of The Kraken, the terrible Tyrant Sire, the Sun Drowner, the Lord of Rusted Chains. They know little of the mysteries that lie in those benthic depths, for even fewer can make the journey to report on such a remote and deadly locale.

The Kraken’s Brood

One cannot say that the depths are not home to the children of The Kraken, twisted creatures that swim in waters from the surfaces waves to the abyssal trenches. Here we will not concern ourselves with these monsters of the higher depths, but rather those that reside in the pitch darkness.

Most famous of all is The Imperator Trench, the legendary home of that great demon, The Kraken himself. An immense creature, this wound in the rock is the bed upon which he rests, from which his will is enacted.

Few mortals are invited to visit, making reports of the location vague and contradictory. Many refer to it as “The Garden”, with tales of great forests of tube worms, mosaics of mussels, forests of coral, all illuminated by great swirling bioluminescent spawn of their master. While the ocean basin is often a desert, The Imperator Trench is an oasis in this benthic wasteland.

The Wives

Perhaps the most famous of his brood as The Wives, those surface dwellers who swear themselves to his will. Scholars and storytellers are often know the first stages of this tale, of a man who swears himself to The Lord of Rusted Chains in exchange for revenge. Slowly he hears the call of the sea until he cannot separate from it, eventually disappearing into the crashing. What they know not of is the metamorphosis that occurs as they swim to join their master in the inky darkness below.

To survive in his garden they must adapt to swim in that yawning black abyss, as their eyes stretch and widen, growing into milky dishes to better see their prey. Teeth and nails sharpen as their diet must shift, a raw hunger to consume others fills them, joined by an equal desire to simply cause harm. Not only must they contend with a lack of air, but they must eventually learn to do so under the crushing pressure of the waves. While gills are quick to form out of necessity, as the long journey down begins the lungs themselves begin to atrophy, a vestigial reminder of what once was.

Eventually they will reach their master, called to their new home by his cruel song. In his presence they will twist and change further, taking another step on the path of metamorphosis. For some their eyes will grow out on great stalks as their hands split down the middle as bone emerges, forming great pincers as chitin encases them. Many slowly let their bones slide out of their skin, allowing for a plethora of new possibilities. Some will slowly drift down to the ocean vents, planting themselves in the stone and on the silt, encasing themselves in a long tube of bone as their new tubular form filters nutrients from the water. Others follow in the footsteps of their master, taking his visage of his children as their limbs multiply and beaks form.

Yet in time they will all join with The Lord of Rusted Chains, fusing themselves to his hide as he takes their last offering to his glory. Drained of their soul they are finally freed of service, fulfilling his last commandment. For eons he has continued this horrid cycle, and those who know the dark secret reckon he must be greater than the mountains themselves for all he has taken.

 

Krakenfall

The abominations of The Tyrant Sire are many, in a multitude of twisting shapes of those horrors from beneath. While many are of his lineage, there are also those twisted to his cause. To eat the flesh of The Lord of Rusted Chains or his brood is to invite his wicked power into your heart and soul. Thus when one of his brood fall a seed of evil is planted in an event known as a Krakenfall.

When one of those creatures named after their father and their related ilk are slain their fresh corpse becomes a vile feast for the hungry creatures of the sea. It isn’t long before the sea life around a Krakenfall twist into vicious creatures, a final retribution against those hoping to clear their waters. Many a desperate village has slain a lesser kraken in their bay, only to be overrun by waves of monstrous sea life in the coming months. Professional kraken hunters know better and make sure to slay their quarry over the deep sea, where the body may sink into the quiet abyss below.