Thunder Bird Is Go!

gjw Windsday, Disorder Week, Sea Season 1627

Trouble is brewing. With the death of Queen Amalda and Queen and Prince Kallyr at the Battle of the Queens, Sartar has been thrown into chaos. Without leadership and with the Lunar threat pulled back in retreat and its own confusion1, the clans and tribes of Sartar have turned inward upon themselves, remembering old rivalries and igniting new feuds. Nearby Apple Lane, with the Varmandi now firmly in control of Tarkalor’s Tower, Korol Serpent Tongue has moved quickly to raid the Orlevings, resulting in one Orleving man losing a hand. The Lismelder Greydogs, still stinging from the burning of the Greydog Inn, finally had a taste of vengeance by sneaking into Old Man Village and setting the redsmithy on fire. Elsewhere all over Sartar, similar troubles and vendettas were repeated.

Despite the bad omens for the year reflected in these events, Apple Lane managed to pull in a decent harvest. As Sea season opened the gates to warmer weather, Dornal Seven Blessed approached the Thane about opening a school for the local children (the number of which is steadily growing) in the Temple of All Gods, to teach them numbers, letters, and philosophy. The Thane, however, rebuffed the foreigner’s suggestion.

Aeson paid a visit to Dusa and was amply rewarded.

As we all looked to spring repairs after the tough winter, a sudden warning cry went up. Sneak Rastolfsson came running into the village shouting “They’re coming! They’re coming!” and scaring everyone into action. High upon the Ridge where he was tending the shrine of Three New Stars, the Thane could see the dust of an approaching warband, glinting with armor and on horseback, coming up the Vale towards Apple Lane. Mounting his horse, he quickened his horses hooves with magic so he could beat them back to Apple Lane. Aeson, drilling the fyrd in the yard, quickly set the village into the defensive order around the Tin Inn. Obrast, who had been clumsily poking around the ruins of Gringle’s, hid thinking to throw stink-bombs at the strangers given a chance.

The strangers halted at the edge of the village, just beyond the range of the wards the Thane had set out, and waited for the ritual greeting. The Thane gave it, and the strangers revealed themselves to be none other than Asborn Thriceborn and Queen Leika:

“I am Leika called Ballista of the Taraling clan, daughter of Orlkensor, the son of Londros, the son of Kerreneth who fought for Palashee the Axe, twice Queen of the Colymar Tribe. I come bearing Colymar’s Black Spear, the Anmangarn. I call my tribe to war!”

The Thane gave them water and invited the queen and her retinue to the Thane’s Lodge to listen to these important matters of tribal war from the queen. Everyone gathered around to hear what the queen said. She told us of the troubles in both Sartar and Tarsh, and how Kallyr had tried and failed to summon Argrath of Pavis to war before the Battle of Queens2. Had he been there with his raving horde and weird magicians, she bitterly mused, Kallyr would not have died and Sartar would still have its prince, perhaps even its king. Sartar is in turmoil and Argrath is petulantly holed up in Pavis, letting his sacred homeland tear itself apart, while he plays “king” (Leika says with derision) in the desert.

For you see, Argrath is the last known person of the true bloodline of King Sartar3, and, therefore, the last rightful heir of the kingdom. Yet, as long as he dallies in Prax, the tribes of Sartar will bicker and argue and ignore the threat of the Lunar Empire until the Red Emperor musters his vast forces once again and marches upon us. To save Sartar, Leika commands us to take the Black Spear to Pavis and summon Argrath back to Sartar.

Sartar must have its King if Sartar is to survive!

Why would this work? First, Argrath is Colymar and Orlmarth, and thus a kinsman to us (Aeson is an honorary kinsman, if you must nitpick). The Anmangarn is one of the most revered and powerful symbols in all of Sartar, representing the oldest and first Heortling clans to return to Dragon Pass after the Dragonkill. Leika is, by right, Argrath’s tribal queen, and he certainly understands the importance of the Anmangarn: he cannot ignore her direct summons. And if he tries to ignore her, she had a vivid suggestion of how to convince him otherwise.

Time is pressing, the Lunars regather their strength, and the chaos among the tribes must not be allowed to continue. We must travel to Pavis immediately, as quickly as possible, she commanded. For this purpose, Leika had a great plan.

“I am not Kallyr,” she ground out between her teeth, “and I will not repeat Kallyr’s Folly.”

Using the coordinated magic of the entire tribe, the Colymar will summon a magical conveyance to carry us to Pavis in a day (a journey of several hundred miles). Leika and Hastur favor the summoning of the Chariot of Ronance4, whereas Asborn Thriceborn favors summoning Orlanth’s Stormwalkers5. A third choice, proposed to Leika by the Orlmarth Kolating, Stands Aside, as she passed Old Man Village, is to summon the Thunder Bird6.

We choose to follow the advice of the Kolating, and selected the Thunder Bird. As if he knew this would be our choice, the ancient-but-timeless Kolating appeared to conduct the dance and summoning. Leika brought out the barrels of Crazy Black Widebrew she brought for us to drink, to put us in the correct state of mind for the forthcoming heroquest.

The ritual dance began7. Stands Aside spoke to us and the spirits, sending messengers into Prax to find and summon the Thunder Bird. Asborn and the Wind Lords sang throat-songs of wind and storm to assist the spirits and beckon the Great Feathered Rivals. It was fitting, it seemed, that Stands Aside gave a black raven feather to Obrast, a golden hawk feather to Aeson, and silver eagle feather to Berrik. We got smashingly drunk, and danced and sang through the night.

When dawn came, the new Yelm was quickly covered by a massive thunderhead cloud approaching from the east. Then we noticed clouds were coming from all directions, converging over us, crackling with thunder and lighting. A great voice boomed out, asking a question. Stands Aside responded8 and the Thunder Bird, massive enough to carry an elephant in each of its giant bronze claws, swooped down out of clouds, lightning rippling over its body, and landed in the middle of Apple Lane, knocking over people and trees, and cracking the lintels of the Temple of Love.

We clambered up onto the Thunder Bird’s back and the great spirit heaved itself into the air, slowly and clumsily climbing at first until the updrafts over Mount Quivin carried us high into the Middle Air (though still below the Red Moon in the west), where the Thunder Bird could soar freely. We swooped across Sartar’s High Road and circled the Hill of Orlanth Victorious. The Thunder Bird screamed abuse at the Brass Owl of Owlflight Ridge, then spread his wings and set out towards the plains of Prax and distant New Pavis.

We saw many landmarks below us: the great granite dome of Tada’s High Tumulus in the north, and the Block much further to the south, as well as the pale gleam of the alkaline flats of the Dead Place.

Trouble soon came to our journey in the form of a tiny raven, which taunted and teased the great Thunder Bird, infuriating him and baiting him into chase. We veered off-course, up and down, and mostly to the south (and not the east we wanted to go towards). Down we dove, clutching to the Thunder Bird as he recklessly chased after Raven, skimming the Eiritha Hills dangerously. Berrik tried to speak to the Thunder Bird using Bronze Huaan, but he ignored us. Then we saw the great storm, Storm Bull’s Desert Storm, that the Raven was leading Thunder Bird straight into. Ignoring the peril, fixated on his rival, the Thunder Bird plunged headfirst into the dangerous Desert Storm.

Soon, we were wracked by poisonous dust and lightning. Even the great Thunder Bird struggled against the raging, primeval storm. We would have died had not Berrik called upon Anmangarn, using all its magic he could, to bend the winds around us.

But our troubles were not over, for Gargarth’s Wild Hunt rode upon the storm, and those cursed and doomed skeletal warriors and steeds, flying upon the Desert Wind, descended on the Thunder Bird and attacked him, lead by the disfigured and burned ghost of the Gargarthi woman Berrik had killed in Tarkalor’s Tower. The Gargarthi ghost had her revenge on us, as the Hunt concentrated their attacks on the Thunder Bird like bees upon a bear, nipping and nicking at the Great Spirit until it bounced off a mountain in exhaustion. As he tried to escape the Desert Storm and the Wild Hunt, struggling to rise into clear air, the Thunder Bird began to fade beneath us, dissolving back into the spirit world from whence it came.

And then we fell.

Foundry Chat Log

  1. King Pharandros of Tarsh9 has not only taken a beating at the Battle of the Queens, but he has clumsily decided to make an enemy of Fazzur Wideread10, his uncle, by murdering some of his family and close supporters in an effort to weaken Fazzur’s political power in Tarsh. Pharandros still lurks in Alda-Chur with his army, while Fazzur has tried install his own son Onjur11 as King of Wintertop12, an effort that was rejected by the Shaker Priestess, Lalana Tor, who preferred Unstey13. ↩︎

  2. In Fire Season 1625 (just before the Dragonrise), after appointing his ally Belvani as the new ruler of Sun County and cleansing the River of Cradles of the Lunar Grantlands, Argrath led his howling, blood crazed army of Praxians against the New Lunar Temple. Tatius sent a demon that had two arms, and an extra one, against them. The nomads were routed, and Argrath retreated to Pavis. In Sun County, a rival claimant to the office of Sun County emerged and promised to adhere strictly to temple tradition. She forced Argrath’s ally Belvani to retreat to Pavis. Argrath spent the rest of the year gathering a new army. ↩︎

  3. This is not entirely true, and Leika may or may not know it. Dinestan, Berrik’s father, carries the Sartar rune and, by implication, is a direct descendent of Sartar. Which makes Berrik… ↩︎

  4. Ronance is a fertility god who was once the mainstay of the people of Prax in the Golden Age. His mere presence is inspirational to normal humans, and though his immortal chariot never touches the Earth, the ground beneath him is always rich in growing edible things. It is said that an ancient magical road system, now lost, was made by the runnels of his wheels. ↩︎

  5. The Stormwalkers are powerful allies who can be summoned by Asborn Thriceborn. A mixed band of men and spirits, they live at the Old Wind Temple. The men can fly, and the spirits have learned to create physical forms at will, which explains their physical and magical strengths. They also have the ability to summon mighty storms, enough to make rivers rise in flood. ↩︎

  6. Thunder Bird is physically the strongest of the Three Feathered Rivals of Prax. In this role, he is always beaten in contests with crafty Raven, yet always victorious over Sun Hawk, whom Thunder Bird wraps with his great clouds of feathers and smothers. ↩︎

  7. Not just in Apple Lane, but in every tula across the Colymar tribal lands, coordinated by the Storm Voices. This was very big magic. ↩︎

  8. If you must know, the Thunder Bird’s question and the Kolating’s answer were in Spiritspeech and translated were: Thunder Bird: “Why have you summoned us, mortal?”, Stands Aside: “To carry these fools across the Dry Land to the City built from a Giant’s corpse. They seek something greater than themselves.” ↩︎

  9. The King of Tarsh serves as the chief priest, commander-in-chief, and chief judge for the tribes and cities of Tarsh. He also serves as the chief judge and military commander for the Lunar province of Tarsh. The king pays an annual tribute of silver, goods, slaves, and obedience to the Lunar Empire in the person of the Provincial Overseer, whose residence is in Mirin’s Cross, several days down the Oslir River. As a provincial king, his decisions can be appealed to the Provincial Overseer in Mirin’s Cross, although that is an expensive, and thus rare, process.
     
    Since the passing of Phargentes, the king normally appoints deputies to carry out his duties. The king governs Tarsh with the assistance of a small council (or “ring”) of eminent Tarshites, chosen by the king. This council typical includes his advisors, royal companions, important cult leaders, generals, and representatives of the cities. The king is served by royal scribes of the Irrippi Ontor cult (who have marginalized the scribes of the Lhankor Mhy temples).
     
    The lifestyle, language, and customs of the common Tarshite person are Orlanthi in manner. Feuds are common between clans and sometimes result in tribal warfare. Combat by champions is widely recognized as a binding way of resolving disputes, although clans and tradition encourage alternatives to bloodshed, such as compensation or blood price. Disputes between tribes are subject to mediation by the chief judge of the ruling city, and can be appealed to the king’s officials in Furthest.
     
    Tarsh is divided into six regional districts each centered on a city. A deputy of the king, whose title is sometimes translated as “duke”, rules the district. Each district is divided into tribes, federations of clans led by a chief or petty king. These regional districts are responsible for collecting tribute, keeping peace, and levying the militia for the king. The position of regional deputy is often hereditary; for example, King Phargentes appointed Vostor Blacktooth as deputy of Dunstop, and his sons Farrad and Fazzur inherited the position in succession. ↩︎

  10. Until recently, Fazzur Wideread was the most powerful noble in Tarsh and second only to the king. The uncle of King Pharandros, holding the imperial offices of Provincial General and Governor-General of Dragon Pass, Fazzur was a valued counselor and loyal supporter of his nephew. In early 1622, however, the Red Emperor removed Fazzur from his imperial offices. Although Fazzur remained the king’s preeminent general, King Pharandros attempted to assassinate his most powerful supporters in 1625, while Fazzur was fighting in Sartar. The king failed and Fazzur has returned to his family lands on Kordros with many armed supporters. Fazzur now rules much of Kordros Island without regard for decrees coming from Furthest. ↩︎

  11. Onjur of Dunstop, Onjur the Poet, the eldest son of Fazzur and his wife Harama of Bagnot. Onjur is a Rune Lord of Yanafal Tarnils and an initiate of the Red Goddess, the captain of his father’s old cavalry regiment, and a talented poet. Onjur achieved fame throughout Tarsh when he killed the Half-Troll King of the Tusk Riders in 1622. He had twins, Maroflo and Marenpora, with Yenestosa the Wintertop Priestess. Onjur hates his cousin Pharandros. ↩︎

  12. Wintertop is a fortress-town (pop. 3000) on the slopes of Kero Fin and the refuge of the Tarsh Exiles. At 1200 meters high, Wintertop Fort is in a deep valley at the base of Kero Fin. The valley gets over 3 meters of snow each winter. The locals herd cattle and sheep, hunt and raid for a living. What little agriculture they have is mainly dedicated to growing emmer wheat. Sacred shadow cats wander around freely throughout Wintertop valley; it is forbidden to harm these cats. At the base of the valley, the Squat Inn provides accommodations for pilgrims and merchants.
     
    Wintertop Fort itself is a small city ready to provide porters, climbers, and haulers to anyone who pays. The city is best known for its great temple to Orlanth Son of the Mountain Goddess that is regularly visited by Orlanthi pilgrims from as far away as Talastar and Maniria. A group of hot springs right below the temple has curative powers. ↩︎

  13. Unstey has been the king of the Wintertop Exiles since 1625. He was raised by the Shaker Priestesses and is loyal to the High Priestess, but otherwise fiercely independent. Unstey steadfastly opposes both King Pharandros and the Fazzurites. ↩︎

Stories of the … Duel in the Pit Go With the Flow
Sea 1627 Orlmarth
Story Session