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Lady Galaria, Mistress of Dragons, and Daeara the Earth Dragon
Henjin_Quilones posted a topic in Guilds of Historica
Lady Galaria, Mistress of Dragons, and Daeara the Earth Dragon A freebuild for Avalonia Lady Galaria, Mistress of Dragons, is the wife of Henjin Quilones and co-ruler, with her husband, of the Isle of Druidham in the Mystic Isles of Avalonia. She was exiled from the High Elvish kingdom of Hesperia by her father, King Fingolë the Golden, for joining with her fellow guildsmembers in defeating Raavage, rather than sitting back and doing nothing like her father wished. In her exile, she journeyed aboard the Nagra Luca, a swift Elvish ship, far to the west and south, to the city Bandari and the land of Mwamba. There, amongst the equatorial High Elves of that land, she learned much about elemental dragons and how to best raise and train them. In a gesture of unequaled generosity, King Mfalme allowed Galaria and a few of her companions to form soul-bonds with young Mwamban dragons, who then, after a few years of training under Kufunzi, returned all together to Avalonia, where they settled on the Isle of Druidham. Now Galaria and Daeara, her soul-bonded dragon, lead the other dragonriders of Druidham, teaching a new generation of dragonriders how to manage their companions, and protecting Avalonia from elemental threats. They fly here and there, meeting the people of the land and bringing messages, and sometimes passengers, from one corner of the land to the other. _____________________________________ .......................................................................... I had originally built this months ago for the Summer Joust, but never posted it since I wanted to build an all-LEGO scene in which to place Daeara, rather than the stand-alone display base here. I never got around to that all-LEGO scene, however, and decided instead to just post it now as-is. Ah well. Daeara is the same size (frame-wise) as Hewa and Moto, despite being female like Kijani and Maji, due to growing to full stature in earth-magic-rich Avalonia rather than Mwamba. C&C welcome. -
Previously Book III - Challenge II Laesonar's Saga Episode 10 - Bread, Water and Drums The wheel squeaked loudly as Laesonar turned it to pull up the bucket. Armin was in awe looking at the plants all around the well. 'How does the vegetation grow back so quickly in this place, Mr. von Jeff?' 'It's the soil of great Avalonia, master Paladin, as you might've heard.' 'Well, I surely didn't expect such a quick growth! It hasn't been long that the water is back!' 'Speaking of which, my Lords, I don't think I've thanked you enough yet for bringing the water back to the lake.' Having quenched his thirst, Laesonar pulled his face out of the bucket and some water dripped on his neck as he replied to the old man. 'Actually, Mr. von Jeff, you have. Around a thousand times. And it wasn't even necessary, we're happy to help.' 'That's right. We're happy to see the natural balance restored. We should now look into the fish disappearance and...' 'My Lords!' A voice reached them suddenly. 'Sir Humborth, good day. Any news from Albion on this fine day?' 'I do bring news actually, my Lords. Through Albion, directly from Cedrica. The Queen wishes for every Lord in Historica to organise an occasion, with all kind of celebrations. She'll reduce taxes to all those who do while having Avalonian grain brought to all those in need. The costs for the latter covered by the royal treasure.' The unexpected news brought a moment of silence. Jeffrey was the first to break it. "Well, we don't have much to celebrate with. Nor that many people. We've barely just got the water back and Laelariel doesn't even have a lord at the moment!' Armin thought out loud. 'It sounds like a Bread and Circus strategy. It makes me wonder. What do you think, Laesonar?' The half-elf seemed dazed, his eyes closed. 'Laesonar, is everything all right?' 'Hhmmm... yes. I am... remembering something.' He paused. 'The Queen... the red haired, you mean?' Sir Humborth was taken aback by such question. 'Oh, er... yes. That would be her. How do you...' Laesonar lightened up. 'Right. I remember now. What charm! We definitely can't ignore the polite request of such charming lady! Let us get ready for the feast, Gentlemen!' Again, a moment of silence. Again, Jeffrey broke it first. 'Ahem... Master Half-elf, you met the Queen before?' 'I certainly did. Sir Humborth's words brought back memories. I cannot tell how I got there and why, but I definitely remember having a drink with her. She wasn't interested, unfortunately.' This time the moment of silence lasted longer, everyone speechlessly looking at Laesonar, while he plunged his face back into the bucket to drink more. An uncertain smile slowly appeared on Armin's face. 'Laesonar, you... chatted the Queen up?' 'As I said, my friend. But you know my memories aren't exactly.. well.. chronological. But let us not waste any more time, shall we? Mr. von Jeff, isn't a lake full of water a good enough reason to celebrate?' 'It certainly is, my Lord, but..' 'And Sir Humborth, when exactly is that grain to arrive?' 'Oh, er... a cargo from Albion with an escort from Cedrica should be here in two days, but..' Laesonar was walking fast towards the city centre. Everyone snapped out of their astonishment and followed him. 'Where are you going now, my Lord?' 'Back to the city hall. I'm pretty sure I spotted a drum there, the other day.' 'A drum, my Lord?' 'Yes, a drum. No drum, no party; am I not right? It'll be bread, water and drums.' TASK I – Bread 'Well it looks like we got this grain and bread into the right place at the right time, the city was really in need!' 'We did indeed. The Queen will be happy. But where's the captain? I haven't seen him for a while now...' TASK II – Water and Drums 'What's with the facial painting?!' 'I always do that when I drum. It gets me more into the rhythm, if you know what I mean.' 'Oh.. Sure, I guess.' TASK III – Plot? 'So, captain... Are you enjoying your new position?' 'Yes m'Lord. Thank you, m'Lord.' 'Now, let's see. You'll hand this one over to my man in Albion, while this one... This goes to you-know-who directly in Cedrica. Make no mistake.' 'No m'Lord, of course not.' 'You'll make sure not be seen.' 'm'Lord, I've never been, m'Lord.' ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Yesssss! First time ever I manage to meet a deadline here on GoH! I'm glad So there are a couple of things I'm not satisfied with, I'll start with those. I hadn't planned those roofs from the beginning, they turned out to be much bigger than I wanted and almost exactly squared I chose dark tan for the 'beach' as I thought it'd go well with Rb, but it gives the lake a very murky aspect, which wasn't my intention. The water effect can't really be seen in the pic (there are actually 3 types of blue under the trans tiles), I guess I need something bigger for that. Finally, Rb legs aren't a good choice on a Rb terrain... With the rest I'm relatively satisfied with. I was interesting in seeing how I could go from cobblestone to dirt, the result is decent, I reckon. As for the photography, I got myself a soft-light set, which enabled me to take nice shots with a low ISO. Unfortunately it also created quite a lot of shadows, which I didn't know how to avoid and which I had to eliminate manually when editing (it can be seen with a zoom in on the main pic ). Yet I reckon it's been an improvement. In case you're wondering what that link is, Laesonar actually met the Queen It's offcial lore, as you can check here, in particular 'Part VII: At the Grand Griffon Tavern', pages 192-194. Credits to @Henjin_Quilones for the story and @TitusV for the full recap, as you probably already know. C&C most welcome as usual, thanks for reading ^^ NOTE TO THE JUDGES: the build for Task I is on a 18x22 base. The one for Task III is a 16x30. Both are separable from the bigger one, which is 64x64 minus the base of Task III (see extra pic below).
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The Tales of Lady Gwenllian 0. Introduction 1. The arrival of Lady Gwenllian aboard the Cedar Serpent 2. Scouting a Site 3. Early Spring in Prenmôr 4. The Fishery and Shrine at Prenmôr 5. Opening of the Prenmôr Quarry While Lady Gwenllian was helping the villagers of Flewd move to Prenmôr, the last of the winter snows had thawed, freeing the earth for work. The first order of business for construction was to open a quarry for the massive amount of stone needed. The local limestone was ideal for building, and its proximity to the castle site eliminated the need to transport stone from great distances, facilitating construction of the main fortress and necessary outbuildings. Lady Gwenllian hired a number of laborers and a few stonecutters from the areas around Prenmôr. The limestone was hewn in the traditional manner by hand with pickaxes, roughed into blocks, and then shaped by a stonecutter before being broken out with a wedge and trimmed to final shape. The finished stones were loaded onto a horse drawn cart and taken to the building site, while loose gravel was hauled out in baskets on the backs of workers.
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Book III - Chalenge 2 - Cat A : Looking for another cart
Tezclatipoca posted a topic in Guilds of Historica
Book III Challenge 2 - Category A : Bread Looking for another cart Now with Lord Faladrin to be saved from a wreckage in the south and an expedition to prepare, Lady Walaehria had to find horses and carts to charge the needed supplies Faladrin asked her. But it is time when Our Great Queen Ylspeth ordered to redistribute bread to those in need. Lady Walaehria was looking for a cart to rent when she assited to this scene in front of the baker shop in Falahuas : "Sorry ! This cart is full !" Yelled the coachman. - Do you have place for this cask ? Please, just one cask more ? Asked the baker apprentice behind the cart ready to departure. - No ! No ! Sorry ! You'll have to look for another cart !" And the last cart Lady Walaehria could expect to recruit left the city to deliver bread and apples to the needies. "Well, I'll just need to make me build new carts, then." She thought And she headed towards the wheelwright workshop. A little build I have planned for my story and I can use in this challenge. Hope you'll find it nice. -
Note: Didn't have much time, but I just wanted to start this storyline with the build for challenge 2C Bran was summoned by his dad, Narbilu lord of Avalonia, to meet him in the alley of the far east corner of Kashgar... nothing is known what the two talked about, but it will have consequences for the loosing party.
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A mysterious stranger nonchalantly sets down a sack laden with unknown contents. After a few minutes, he walks away, leaving the sack behind. Within moments, another figure appears and, after looking about to see if he is being watched, picks up the sack and moves quickly away. What exchange has just taken place? Historican politics are notoriously secretive…
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Lady Gwenllian gave some thought to the Queen’s decree that all municipalities should participate in some sort of revelry. Prenmôr was still a fledgling community, and practical considerations had to be made. There weren’t enough townsfolk to staff an elaborate fair, jousting tournaments required large prizes and housing for more guests than Prenmôr could accommodate, and there were no traveling circuses at the time on the western coast of Avalonia. Thus, Lady Gwenllian settled on a concert. The stage was relatively simple to build and was adorned with the flags of each Guild. No seats were needed as the grass field served as a suitable seating arrangement while a special raised platform was constructed for invited guests of Lady Gwenllian. There was plenty of room for the crowd to camp on the undeveloped surrounding land, while Lady Gwenllian hosted as many of her invited special guests as she could in homes of her household. Two bands from Nocturnus were hired for the event: a zombie band, the Grateful Undead, opened for the headliners: the famous, ever-touring, centuries-old Rolling Bones. The day of the concert, commonfolk swarmed in from the surrounding countryside in the morning. The crowd swelled with the monstrous horde that followed the Grateful Undead from show to show. As the day wore on, fans from farther away, including Mitgardia, Kaliphlin, Varlyrio, and Nocturnus, began arriving to hear the famous bands play. Many of the lords and ladies of Avalonia made an appearance, and even some from Kaliphlin and Mitgardia as well. A few were flown in via dragon (courtesy of Lady Galaria, the mistress of dragons). The night grew dark and the skeletal band from Nocturnus made their way onto stage to the backdrop of magical fireworks provided by the band’s roadcrew wizards. The crowd was surprisingly large, having drawn from across the land. Lady Gwenllian’s family fortune had been built on brewed drink, and although she was unable to brew her own beer owing to the fact that Prenmôr had not yet seen its first harvest, she picked out the finest local beers, meads, and ciders for the concert, with some special wine in reserve for her invited guests. Some of the ladies of the guilds, Lady Eleanor of Bluevale, Lady Gwenllian, and Lady Galaria mistress of dragons, toasted one another with some spiced wine. Lady Seren poured wine for Lord Faladrin while Conrad the Sly waited patiently in line behind him for more drink. The guard lets Count Julian Arfelan back into the private section with his food. Naill chatted up a member of the local stonecutter's guild for leads on skilled labor for his community. Not all the concert libations were about the drink... Card tricksters hawked their game near the concession stand. A few of the concertgoers got a little wild. Visitors appeared from all over the realms. As the band played on into the night, a good time was had by all! Note: this build is 41x49
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Northgrove is a small hamlet, near the north border of the region. The last destination for Conrad, to visits the hamlets storehouse. The Queen's lieutenant came to the mercenary leader, and took half of the winters stock, without permission. Altho, he left some hefty sacks of gold, as payment. "-And with what should i fed my soldiers? With coins" - Conrad's commentary still haunts his mind. The lieutenant didn't looked back with his answer: "- This is not my problem, you got plenty of storehouses across Deepgarden, solve it!" He still grumbled, while got of the cart,with the workers: - Moron, he thinks, i got time for this... Meanwhile, in the storehouse, the keeper just finished the charts. He heard a cart stoping nerby, then knocking on the window. He opened it, a man stood befor him, black hair and beard, wearing armor, with a wolf insignia. He never met with the defender of this region, but he had a guess who stands befor him. - Greetings good man, I would like to see the stocks in this storehouse. - Sure,amoment please. - answered the keeper, and picked up the keys, and went to the door. Conrad came in, signaling to the workers, to wait outside. The keeper ran back to his desk, took the charts and gave it to Conrad. - Is there a problem my Lord? - asked the keeper humbly. - Yes, there is... But a little reorganization could solve it. - and with that, he gave back the paper, and turned to the workers: - Alright boys, load the cart, with the followings...
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- Welcome ladies and gentlemen to Knight's Quest! - the men announcing the event, on top of the stage. - I'm your host, Rolet de Rivel, and also welcome Syelrehe! - Hi there! - the elf woman waved, and smiled to the crowd. - We got a specal guest here! - Rolet continued. - The last years champion, of Knight's Quest, Lance A'lot! - Just call me Lance. -Smiled, and waved the young knight. - Alright Lance, lets start it. There are so many, who don't know, what is Knight's Quest. Please, tell us more what is it. The knight coughed, to clear his throat. He was expecting, to introduce the race, but he was a bit nervous, in front of so many people, who came to see the entertainment. - Knight's Quest, is a sports entertainment competition. The competitors attempting to complete a series of obstacle courses, similar what a really knight must face during their heroic quest. - Sounds fun! - said Syelrehe, trying to look like, she isnt here, because she looks pretty. - In deed Syelrehe! - noded Rolet. - but there can't be fun, without a little danger, am I right Lance? - Yes, the obstacles are dangerous, but not deadly. If you are unlucky, you will have some bruises. - Don't worry folks, the previous competitor is good hands, But let see, the next one! He is climbing up the ladder, and ready to go! Lance, can you narrate us through the obstacles, as the competitor progress? - Sure Rolet! - and both the knight and the two hosts turned around, to see the show, and narrate it. - The first obstacle is the moat. You must cross it, on the wooden logs, without falling in the water. - Next, you must climb up, to the tower. The wind working againts you, and you have only a hanging vine, on the walls of the tower. - Now, you are inside, the crumbling castle! Make hast and cross the ruined hall, befor the celling falls down! - Watch out! in the courtyard, there are the lackeys of the Black Knight. You must avoide them! - And the all time favorite, the Pendulum of Death! You must get over it, in the right mome... Ugh.. well, that wasn't the right moment... The herald of the race quickly ordered the troll, to stop the mechanism, so the cleaning brigade can clean up the bloody mess, at the end of the race. - And thats all folks! - ended the grievous moments Rolet. - We thank again for Lance, to come up here on the stage, and tell us more about Knight's Quest! - the knight smiled and went down from the stage. Rolet continued: - and we will stay here, for the rest of the month, so if you think, you are brave enough, comeand try out Knight's Quest! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I hope most of you will enjoy it, cause I really liked to creat this gauntlet style entertainment. I was inspired, from the "First Knight" movie, where Richard Gere beats it, for a kiss. Oh, didn't I mentioned, the whole race was designed, to move. So, you don't have to imagine the crumbling halls, or crossing the moat part. Checkthis video out: And also, some pictures too: "What dou you mean, You need to be this tall?" "Do you want a lick Mr. Troll?"
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I did not lost! Just had a really s#@& years end in my workplace,and also tried to build a couple of entries to the CCC, (if any of you interested) I returned, and I will continue Conrad's strory,but first, the Bread and Circuses Challenge! To understand my C category entry, we must look back to that point, when Conrad ordered three of his most trusty generals, in secret missions. (here is the recap: Scarlet's Scarlet Brothel) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is the story of Zan the Black Arrow. Zan was tasked to travell south, to the sandy land of Kaliphlin, with a small company of mercenaries. They traveled in secret across Avalonia. When they crossed the border, they were advised by a merchant, to buy a camel, it will help their journey. - Stuborn animal... Come on! - one of the soldier beging for the camel, while trying to force his will on the animal. - I told you, camelss are different from horses. - the other mercenary tired to caml the other down. - Can you remember the command word? - "Can you remember the command word?" - the mercenary stopped pulling the camels chains and started mimicing the other. - Wanna try it smartass? If Zan didn't arrive, the two soldier surely kill each other. - What are you arguing again morons? We must reach Barqa, as the boss tasked us, and you two thought it woud be a good time, to show which one has a bigger mouth? - he went to the camel, picked up the chains and pulled it. - Hut hut hut! - said the words, and repeated the pulling, and repeated the words again. The camel started to move again, the two soldiers was speechless. Zan gave the end of the chain to one of them, and continued the journey. He looked back: - When this is over, I will advise Conrad, to teach all of you some command words...
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Previously Laesonar's Saga Episode 9 - Much Needed Water Fine water particles tickled Laesonar's nose as he stared at the waterfall flowing down the abyss below him. The ground underneath the riverbed had opened, creating a gorge that was swallowing up all of the water from the river. To Laesonar's left, after the gorge, the former riverbed, now completely dried up. To his right, at his side, Armin was adjusting his cloak on his shoulders. He turned towards Laesonar as the half-elf spoke to him. "So, master Paladin, why are we looking at this?" Armin wasn't too sure whether that question was ironic. "We wanted to investigate why the river stopped flowing into the lake, remember?" "Oh right. Right." The paladin smiled and huddled up in his cloak, observing the waterfall. "This is weird enough, as they told us. It really doesn't seem the result of a normal earthquake and..." He gave a start, as the half-elf at his side suddenly screamed. "You can come out of those bushes, old man, we know you're there!" Armin turned around and looked where his mate was looking. An old man, indeed, with a weird gaze, came out of some bushes, on the other side of the riverbed. The man looked fixedly at Laesonar, who stared back at him. Armin was confused. "Laesonar, what..." They kept looking at each other's eyes, intensely. Armin noticed and fell silent. After a while, the old man moved his arms and the ground trembled. The earth shook violently and Armin struggled to keep his balance as new soil surfaced, completely filling up the gorge where the water was disappearing into. In the blink of an eye, the river started to flow back into its original riverbed. The old man then turned on his feet and peacefully walked away. Rather perplexed, the two warriors watched him disappearing into the bushes. Armin looked at the half-elf, longing for an explanation. "He is an earth-bender." "A... what?" "Well, some sort of wizard, he said." "He said? When?!" "I heard his voice in my mind." "......" Armin was speechless. He wanted to ask whether... "Well that was easy enough, master Paladin. Let us return to Laelariel, shall we?" Laesonar moved and turned back. Still a little confused, Armin smiled, then joined him on the way home. Full build ---> Next Episode -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello everyone ^^ I guess I went a bit ambitious here, as I wanted to portrait a very particular moment and I'm afraid one cannot quite get what's going on, unless they read the story.. Oh well, I wanted to build this for aaages! Let the water finally flow back to Laelariel and Lake Laendir! One thing I do regret, is that I wanted that river to be much bigger, to be consistent with the Avalonian map.. unfortunately that's the extent of my trans-clear 1x1 round as well as 1x2 plates.. I also wanted to try out this type of palette, which I initially chosed because I wanted to use light yellow in the river bed to simulate a sand - turned out, it didn't look that good on RB, so I took it off Finally, I wanted to try my hand for the first time at a snotted base, mixed with stud-up plates, on the right hand side - I'm kind of pleased with how it turned out, though I've got a long way to go. As for photography... oh well... No seriously, this is the first attempt at following @Basiliscus's advice, who is patiently baby-sitting me (luv ya mate!) - I started with lowering the ISO and found out I need better lamps, which will hopefully come in January. So that's the best I could get for now and it's still grainy when zooming in as well as a bit blurred here and there... BUT I promise I'm working on it! Actually, just to try and prove this to @Henjin_Quilones and for everyone else to have a laugh and/or go for a facepalm, I've decided to include a pic (spoiler below) of my upside-down room during the pics-taking phase All C&C most welcome as usual - thanks for reading!
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The Long Discussion A prelude for Challenge II of Book III Word of High Queen Ylspeth's decree has spread far and wide across the four realms. A mixture of excitement, relief, and unease accompanies the decree, depending on the one hearing the message. In Avalonia, the Mistress of Dragons, Lady Galaria of Druidham, has brought together some of her fellow nobles to discuss the news and plan a way forward. Lady Gwenllian of Prenmôr and Lord Arthur are with her today, brought to Druidham by a short ride on dragonback, ready to be brought back home by another short ride with little interruption to daily life. They are walking in the loggia off of one of Druidham's many courtyards in the late morning, conversing. "I am not sure that we can do anything particularly extravagant in Prenmôr, of course," Lady Gwenllian was saying. "We are only just getting the settlement built up a bit more as it is, so coin is tight. And I'm afraid we are still some years away from being profitable with our farming, it being tedious labor just to break new fields, plant, and harvest, let alone shipping it across half of a continent!" "Of course, no one expects you to be selling your grain," Galaria assured her. "We here in Druidham will also not be selling any grain, since we have very little farmland working as of yet. Like Prenmôr, Druidham is a new settlement, too." Lady Gwenllian bit her lip in thought. "But we should still have a sort of mass entertainment, you think?" "Yes," Arthur and Galaria said at the same time. "It need not be extravagant," continued Galaria alone. "What is important is that you show the common people of your land that the High Queen is not so high above them that she does not care about them; that High Queen Ylspeth indeed wants them to be happy and fulfilled. Surely you have musicians and storytellers, yes?" Lord Arthur said, "Everywhere has musicians and storytellers, Lady Galaria, even Nocturnus. I'd reckon even the Drow have musicians and storytellers, though I've never been to one of their underground cities to find out." Lady Gwenllian smiled. "Nor I, Arthur, but yes, we have such professions, and we have cooks to throw a feast; would that be enough?" "Yes, as long as there are stories and songs that praise High Queen Ylspeth and the Unicorn of the royal house of Cedrica. Have your bards come up with something new, have your cooks try something exciting, and pull out all the stops that you can possibly afford to pull out. Here in Druidham, Henjin has already had our musicians begin composing a whole score for a new epic saga, which the poets have been tasked with composing. The events of Raavage's downfall have already been turned into countless ballads and tales, and those should be played and performed, too. Injini and the other gnomes will be putting on a light show with all sorts of explosive powders; the dragonriders will be doing aerial stunts, perhaps with some sort of skills competition; my husband's druids will be doing something with the deep magics to awe and delight; even the children are putting some plays together. This is not Kaliphlin, where we might watch some sort of gladiatorial combat or ostrich race; we have our own ways of having a festival, every city, town, and village of Avalonia knows how to celebrate in its own way. This is the time to do so!" * * * At the same time, the serving folk of Druidham were busying about as usual, doing their daily tasks around the island keep. "Have you heard?" asked Dervin, the steward of the household, as Hylena, the lady's attendant, approached carrying a tray of bowls from the brief luncheon the lady had had with her guests. "Heard what, Dervin?" asked Hylena. "You know I hear everything, same as you. To what are you referring?" "We're having a party, a big one, in the next month or so!" said Dervin triumphantly. "Old news, you know. Old news. Besides, who will be responsible for throwing the party except us, as usual? Nothing changes for a servant; parties are just another occasion for work, except on a bigger scale." "You're no fun," scowled the steward. "We get to have fun, even if there is work before and after the fun. I, for one, am excited. I hear that there will be dragon races around the island, and magic shows. All I have to do is make sure that everyone is fed and housed, and that there is money for it all, which I do all the time anyways, so this is a real treat for me. You should lighten up, Hylena. My son will be over the moon at the news." "I'm sure he will be," the lady's attendant said. "In the meanwhile, I need to bring these bowls to the kitchen to be washed. The party can wait for another day." __________________________________ .....................................................................
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The Tales of Lady Gwenllian 0. Introduction 1. The arrival of Lady Gwenllian aboard the Cedar Serpent 2. Scouting a Site 3. Early Spring in Prenmôr 4a.(Prelude) Restoring the Shrine 4. The Fishery and Shrine at Prenmôr From her high rock outcropping, Lady Gwenllian had a good view of the coast and had watched throughout the spring as the villagers from Flewd had moved to their new home in Prenmôr. Now that it was early summer, Lady Gwenllian wanted to see how the villagers from Flewd were settling into their new life, and wanted to inspect the work that the elves and dwarves had completed on the shrine to Neptune. She and Lady Seren rode their horses the half mile or so to the rocky escarpment that defined the edge of the land, separating it from the beach. She found that the villagers had sailed their boats laden with their meager belongings down the coastline from Flewd, had assembled lean-tos for drying fish and set up a small net repair station on the beach. The dwarves and elves had done an excellent job on the statue to Neptune, which sat overlooking the sea and was already laden with offerings and gifts from the villagers. Lady Gwenllian smiled as she saw the villagers hard at work. Because most of the young men had been lost during the drow raids, the remaining elderly, women, children and the local village idiot all had jobs, from killing and gutting fish to shooing away the seagulls that inundated the fishery. The locals greeted Lady Gwenllian and Lady Seren warmly, happy to have a new home in a safer location. This is the original build that I had envisioned with the shrine that didn’t get completed in time. I think it was a little too ambitious. On the other hand, it’s nice to see the idea finally come to fruition.
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Previously Laesonar's Saga Episode 8 - Laelariel City Hall A veil of sadness crossed Jeffrey's mind as he started to climb up the cobblestone while listening to Sir Humborth's words. "… and after hearing of the unfortunate disappearance of the Lord of Laelariel as well as his heirs, I was sent here from Albion to investigate the possibility of nominating a new Lord for these lands. I've just arrived with a small escort. Unfortunately, the place isn't exactly swarming with life.. " Armin nodded "I understand, Sir Humborth. Which is why you need the last Lord's will and testament and those other documents." Jeffrey pointed to the building above them "Here. This used to be our city hall. We used to have messengers, ravens, horses and so many documents that we had started the plan to build a library... " He sighed "Now there's only my office inside. Not that I've had much to write lately... but we kept the whole building in order as well as all of the documents. You might be able to find what you need here, my Lords." Armin smiled satisfied "Thank you for allowing us too, Mr. Von Jeff. My order is sworn to preserve the natural order of things and it seems to me that this city wasn't meant to end like this, so I'd like to investigate a bit." "It's my pleasure, master Paladin. We shall accept any sort of help that we're offered." "Very well then, first things first: history. Why does the city have an elvish name, for example. Laesonar, aren't you curious?" ….. "Laesonar?" The half-elf was nearby, but... "Ahem... Yes, yes, master Paladin, you lead the way." Full build --> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Here, guys & gals, bigger build, shorter episode ^^ I've started this build before reading the HSS rules, by which a City Hall isn't required for a Hamlet.. oh well, I guess it'll count later on then Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the result, though I'm afraid my horrible photography skills don't make it justice, especially the bigger roof.. I'm still messing up with the lighting and the editing, I've even forgot to crop it! I'm unsure of a few other things, yet my main focus here was the palette.. which I'm also still unsure about But I'll leave the C&C to you guys - thanks for looking! @mccoyed sorry about the central alignement again! I'm afraid I've come to like it.. @Basiliscus @TitusV More blue, as I promised Edit: next episode
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Of Dragons and Druids, Ch. 2: The Library of Druidham [Avalonia Task 1: Part 1]
Henjin_Quilones posted a topic in Guilds of Historica
Of Dragons and Druids, Ch. 2: The Library of Druidham A freebuild for Avalonia Also a build showing part of the army of Druidham, fulfilling Task 1 for Avalonia "I know it is here somewhere," muttered Henjin Quilones as he reached towards the shelf from the narrow wrought-iron ladder. "We have The Book of the Invisible Sun, and it should be somewhere over here." "Try a bit to the right, Henjin," offered Gree helpfully. "Keep it down, Daddy," shushed Emmalie from where she stood near Thorra's chair. "Fangort is telling a story of the Enchanted Forest." "What happened next?" asked Thorra, listening intently to the Grent's story. "How did you escape?" "Well, you would not believe it, but a family of Werecoons came out of the hollow log and began to attack the lumberjacks!" said Fangort excitedly. "And then we came to live here, all of us." "Oooh! How exciting!" clapped Emmalie in delight. Meanwhile, Reyska was talking to Korra, the Kolgari elf who had joined the Druids when she and her twin sister had arrived at Druidham. Keryyna was now a dragonrider, but Korra was explaining to Reyska how the two of them planned to return to the Sunken City someday. "There are very few ways into the Sunken City, all of them guarded closely by the Kolgari. But it is worth the visit, let me tell you. You think the flora around here is vibrant? It is nothing compared to the hidden realm of the Kolgari." "So why did you leave?" asked Reyska. "It sounds lovely!" "Well, it's complicated, but to start..." Kaigar was talking to M'chungaji, the traveling human from Mwamba who had joined them on their journey, by the window. Afternoon light was shining brightly upon the texts upon the table in front of them. "Henjin thinks the lost shrine of the Druids has to be somewhere in this part of the Isles, but Galaria and the other riders say that they have seen no sign of it from the air," Kaigar was saying. "I think we need to go on foot." "Druids are probably better suited to finding the shrine than dragonriders, even if they are all elves," said M'chungaji. He was mistrustful of most elves, having had a bad experience in his youth on the streets of Bandari with a proud elf lord. "Then I suppose we had better arrange for some journeys to be made," responded Kaigar, pushing back his chair. "Let's get going." ________________________________ ................................................................ More pics: I know this is a bit unconventional for a Task 1 entry, but I first took pictures of some figs on a stand and then decided that it was not exciting enough. So I built the "army" of the Druids in a more natural setting. Part 2 of Task 1 will be to show the dragonriders in a room of their own, probably sans-dragons for space reasons. The original picture is here: From left to right we have Reyska, Thorra, Emmalie Quilones, M'chungaji, Henjin Quilones, Kaigar, Gree, Fangort, and Korra. They are the Druids of Druidham, Guardians of the Druidi Temple of Avalonia. C&C welcome. @Kai NRG, I tried to cover up the back, but in a few places light still shone through. Oh well! Maybe next time I'll get it perfect. -
The Isle of Druidham A freebuild for Avalonia Also a build for Avalonia Task III Deep in the midst of the Mystic Isles, beyond the routes normally taken by traders and travelers crossing the mist-shrouded network of islands and channels, lies a small rocky island pocked with caves. When Henjin Quilones and his wife Galaria returned to Avalonia after visiting the land of Mwamba, they needed a place to settle down, as they had been exiled by Galaria's father, King Fingolë the Golden, from the western High Elf kingdom of Hesperia and could not return thither. Also, during their travels they had had two children, Gahlen and Emmalie, and they needed somewhere to raise them and keep them safe. A life spent on the road was not an option for their family. In addition to their children, Henjin and Galaria had companions who had traveled with them, many of them fellow exiles from Hesperia, but others had been picked up along their travels: an orc, named Grisshak, who had been found half-dead in a ditch after a battle; a family of dwarves who had caught wind of a potential job working with stone; a couple of gnomes from Bandari, including the mad genius Injini; a forest Grent who aspired to be a Druid; a family of Werecoons; and a veritable army of others. They needed a place to settle and build, and Henjin had had the idea to search out the ancient Druid shrine that was located, according to legend, somewhere in the center of the Mystic Isles. So to the Mystic Isles the whole crew went, and Henjin had selected this particular island, unsettled by anyone, but bearing the marks of having once been home to Druids in some bygone age. And so they named the island Druidham. Now, there was one other group that was with the various races who made up the new inhabitants of Druidham: the dragons. During their years in Bandari and greater Mwamba, Galaria and several of her elf companions had been privileged to form soul-bonds with freshly hatched dragons. Some of the dragons, including Galaria's own Daeara, had even had hatchlings of their own since then, which was how Gahlen and their youngest daughter, Lycaria, had managed to also form soul-bonds with their very own dragons. It helps if your mother is the Mistress of the Dragons, and your father is the Master of the Druidi Order. For on the island of Druidham, there are two main groups: the nascent Druidi Order, resurrected from the ashes of the old Druids when Henjin appeared from the stars, and the Dragonriders of Avalonia, dedicated to training elves and dragons in the defense of the realm. A third group, no less important, provides the support the other groups need, as farmers, herders, smiths, cooks, housekeepers, stewards, and everything else necessary for sustaining a full settlement. There is no way to the island save by water or air, but for those who visit there is a guesthouse that is always ready to receive visitors of any race or creed. A few of the surrounding islands are used to pasture large herds of sheep and goats, mostly to serve as food for hungry dragons. Oddly, the sheep do not like to live on the island where the dragons themselves live. __________________________________________ .................................................................................... Another micro build from me, slightly less polished than Ovenntrie Castle, perhaps, but more intricate in many ways, with all of the different angles in the rockwork to make the dragon caves. It started as a small vignette-size build for the Summer Joust that I decided to expand into a 48x48 build. I plan to flesh out the island one building at a time, or one section at a time, since most of the "buildings" are in caves hollowed out of the mountain itself. Expect a bunch of interior builds! C&C welcome.
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Casualties of War Chapter I: The Tranquil Meadow Chapter II: Old Bagshaw's Residence Chapter III: The Poacher Chapter IV: Making Camp Chapter V: Solitary Council Chapter VI: Escaping Home Chapter VII: Waylaid Chapter VIII: Archery Practice Chapter IX: Honour the Fallen Chapter X: Casualties of War Bonus Landscape: Avalonian Countryside - 'I don't see why we can't just make camp like usual', Harlon argued. 'Never had anything good coming from meddling with the locals.' - 'That's because you treat common people like dirt', objected Nyle. 'People don't generally want to help anyone that thinks of them as a nuisance. If you could just play nice for once we might even have a shot at some nice homecooked food and some indoor sleeping.' Sir Darby didn't quite share Nyle's optimism. Like Harlon, he preferred to not involve more people than necessary when on the road. But he was also conscious that Nyle might be needing a break from everything, if only for one night. - 'Well, it won't hurt to ask', he stated. 'Why don't I go over and check if anyone's home and if they happen to have some spare food and perhaps someplace to sleep?' - 'I'm coming along', Nyle stated. - 'Fine. I'll just stay here so my unpleasant personality doesn't ruin your prospects', Harlon said wryly. - 'You do as you please', Nyle replied and urged his horse towards the small cottage. Sir Darby sighed. Somehow, getting these two to get along seemed harder than keeping up the morale in a camp full of soldiers. - 'We will be right back', he told Harlon and moved to catch up to Nyle. As Sir Darby and Nyle approached the cottage an old man came out to meet them. Sir Darby could also spot a younger woman in the doorway, peeking out at them with a worried expression. Sir Darby dismounted. - 'Evening sir. We are travellers on our way to Newquay. We were wondering if you might...', Sir Darby started. - 'No, we do not', the old man interrupted. Sir Darby took a moment to recover from being cut off. - 'All we're asking is...', he continued. - 'But you're not asking, are you?', the old man interrupted again. 'You are obviously men of importance, and men of importance never ask men of no consequence like me for anything. You demand and you take.' Sir Darby assessed the situation. There was obviously nothing for them to gain here and they should head back and look for a proper campsite. Still, he felt himself sympathise with this old man. Anger and hurt were no strangers to Sir Darby, though it was long since he had let them touch him - a man in his position could not afford to. Yet these feelings were clearly recognisable on this man's face. This house had experienced loss, most likely on the battlefield in service of Avalonia. Probably the husband of the young woman peering out at them, which would make it the man's son or son-in-law. - 'I'm sorry for your loss', Sir Darby offered. The man's face betrayed a short moment of surprise, before pain and determination again took over. - 'What does that do for us?', he asked sternly. 'Is that going to bring our family back to us? Men like you came and took my son away without warning! One moment we were plowing the fields and the next I watched him march off in a long row of dirty young men.' The man continued. - 'Would that all you did was take something away from us though, but your pack of filthy recruits brought something to us as well. The plague.' The man began to tear up. - 'My wife caught it, but she didn't tell me, and I was too busy making up for my son's absence at the farm to notice. Then one day she showed me her blackened foot and told me she had to leave. I told her she couldn't leave, that we should go see Mr. Oates, that he would help us. She agreed, but the next morning when I woke up, she was gone. Gone, never to come back. In a matter of weeks our family had destroyed, and for what? For you to have one more person to throw away in your little game of war?' The old man sighed, the anger giving way to dejectedness. - 'In the beginning we held out hope that Thom might return, but months turned to years, and we knew he was not coming back. Not that anyone had the decency to tell us, but we knew. When I saw you coming I thought that maybe... maybe we would get word of what had happened. To have confirmed what we already know. But you are just another person here to get something from us. I'm sorry, but all that we could possibly give has already been taken away from us. You took it from us. We have nothing left.' Sir Darby looked at the man for a moment. There was nothing he could do for him. His son might even have been under his own command. Perhaps he had sent him to his death. He had had a number of Thom's serving under him, but there was no way to tell if it had been this man's son. He could not offer him the closure that he needed. One thing he knew though, that he was responsible for this man's suffering. Perhaps not directly in this case, but how many more like him were suffering for the choices he had made as a commander? In this moment, that burden weighed heavier on his shoulders than it had ever done. Sir Darby mounted his horse and started back to Harlon. Nyle followed suit. - 'Life has dealt you a poor hand', he thought to himself. He was not sure whether he was referring to the man or himself. *** Been quite a while since I last built for Avalonia, but the Swedish Lego Maffia gave me an offer I couldn't refuse, so here I am ;) Seriously though, I have had this cottage (minus the roof) standing around for over a year, trying to figure a good way to make thatch for the next episode in this story line. It finally clicked about a month ago, and so here is the finished product. Feeling a bit rusty with the story telling, but whether it's good or not, writing is fun :) Ironically for such an old build, I actually ended up having a deadline for its completion as the LEGO Store in Copenhagen wanted to display it, so a few details that could have used some extra work had to be left as is. Hope you enjoy the build either way :) Happy to be back in any case!
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Equos Valley - The Valley of The Horses A free build for Avalonia Task 3. Front by The Nev, on Flickr The Equos Valley is home to one of the few remaining villages of the Equicius Clan, Vallis. Nestled amongst the rugged cliffs is the river known by locals as the Equos River, the namesake of the valley, and source of one of the valley's landmarks; the Tonitrui Falls. Waterfall by The Nev, on Flickr The other primary landmark is an ancient staircase, carved into the side of the cliffs by the hands of men long past. The stairs serve the village as a useful route to the lush plains upon the plateau where they can foster their herds when feed is scarce among their usual ranges in the plains below. Cliffs & Stairs by The Nev, on Flickr The cliffs are rumoured to support other, less wholesome forms of life as well; legends of old tell of trolls that inhabit the cliff-side caves. Although no one has encountered any such creature to the knowledge of the villagers, there are tales of some brave few who ventured out, seeking the trolls, to never return... As for the village itself, a strong wall surrounds the buildings within, protecting its inhabitants from any external force. These inhabitats are mostly distanced members of families within the Equicius Clan, although there are a few residents foreign to the clan. The village sustains itself on the breeding of horses, regularly engaging in trade down the river, as well as along the roads to the north and south. The local blacksmith forges shoes for the steeds and tools for the farmers, as well as armour and weapons for the troops that guard the gate. The market serves as a place for villages to buy, sell and barter goods amongst themselves, occasionally even hosting a trader or two from downstream who ventured to the valley to sell their wares. labelled village by The Nev, on Flickr River by The Nev, on Flickr Extra views of the whole build: Wide View by The Nev, on Flickr Back by The Nev, on Flickr OOC: Overall I'm pretty happy with this, my first large build. I wanted to draw emphasis to the cliffs and topography of the land, without crowding things with too much busy noise.
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Just a little freebuild in Avalonia that i made as part of the Summer Joust this year - i just remembered that i was intending to post it here! (I have another from the same period too, but i need to swap out figs and take more pics, so that will come later) Hope u have enjoyed my build! C&c welcome.
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Ep. 6 Laesonar's Saga Episode 7 - Laelariel [Part 2] “My my! If that isn’t that ugly faun!” The little group had been descending the path along the empty lake while their noses were slowly getting used to the putrid stench coming out of it. Krisly reacted to Laesonar’s words: “Oh you mean Ogrik? Is he safe then?” “It surely looks that way. He even seems to have found a girlfriend.” “You mean a lady faun? That must be Marielle. What else can you see, Laesonar?” “I can spot an old man. He looks worried." "That must be Jeffrey." "The situation doesn’t look too good in town. They're discussing something with a couple of knights.” The word ‘knights’ awoke Armin’s interest: “Knights? Which colours do they wear? Do they have heraldry of any kind?” “They wear green and have a dragon on their shields.” “Avalonian soldiers? It must be something official then. Let’s hurry and get into town, this place is making me more and more curious!” The situation wasn’t good at all. They passed by dried up fields and abandoned fishing docks before getting into the once-was outer city, now just half-burnt ruins. Closer to the city walls one last house was still standing, right in front of the gateway to the inner city. Judging by its appearance, the city must have been a rich one, in a past not too far in time. The two fauns and the old man called Jeffrey spotted the little group approaching and after a few greetings and hugs, it was the time for introductions. Helga took the word. "Jeffrey, Marielle, please meet Laesonar half-elf and Armin Mainardus. They helped us to fight the bandits and together we managed to finally avenge my brother! And these are Marielle and..." "Jeffrey J. J. von Jeff! For centuries my family has had the honour of serving the Lords of Laelariel, one generation to the next, starting with my ancestor Geoffrey von Jeff, all the way to my father Geoff J. von Jeff! We heard of the defeat of the bandits and Digby the Lunatic's death - I'm glad to make your acquaintance. Please meet my nephew Stan and..." Laesonar, seemingly unaware of the conversation, was looking around. Noticing a dozen eyes staring at him, he turned around quickly. "It is my pleasure to meet you, Mr. von Jeff. I do have however a couple of questions about this place, if you don't mind." Everyone's face grew sad. Jeffrey glanced at the ruins and sighed. "I'll be glad to answer your questions, master half-elf." "So, what's with the blue moss?" Everyone was taken aback by such unexpected question, only Armin smiled. Jeffrey was initially hesitant, but then understood and played along. "It's called Agerat. It's typical of the whole area around Lake Laendir, it mainly grows on rocks and it's one of the symbols of the city of Laelariel. Despite being a moss, it doesn't suffer much from lack of water, as you can see. Some ascribe healing and even magical properties to the plant." "So how is the lake empty?" "There was a weird earthquake a while back. The earth moved only in a particular spot, North from here. A vast chasm opened up underneath the riverbed and the waters of the river now disappear into it before reaching the lake. Changing the course of the river would be very costly and we have barely had any resources ever since the disappearance of the Laendirians." "Laendirians?" "Laendirians are our fishes. Or at least they were. A particular type of fish which, not unlike other species, finds its way up river from the sea, finally stopping in the lake to reproduce. The latter was named after them. Fishing, salting, commerce - Laendirians are the reason why the city thrived in the first place. They mysteriously stopped coming and our explorers downriver never came back, so we do not know what happened. At that point the call to arms arrived, directly from Albion. The wars against the Drow as well as Raaavage took our warriors away, together with our Lord and his sons. They never made it back." He stopped and took a deep breath. "The city was attacked repeatedly, we managed to hold the inner part, the rest was destroyed. The earthquake did the rest, depriving our land of water. The survivors started leaving, now there isn't much left to fight for and..." His voice broke. "And yet, some of us are still here and will always be!" A high-pitched voice suddenly reached the group's ears. "Stop blaming it all on yourself, uncle Jeffrey! We'll never leave our city, even without water!" "Oh. Er... ladies and gentlemen, please allow me to introduce my niece..." "Lola. My name is Lola." ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello everyone ^^ As I mentioned, I've been building very slowly. That wall was actually ready last summer (2017) and I was trying to follow up on the wall style of some Avalonian fellows (HQ, Titus, Maestro) who were then cooperating for the Summer Joust. As you can see, I turned the sand green to medium blue and decided to make it a staple feature of Laelariel by adding some lore in the story. I do like that wall, though I feel it's a bit overtextured, so I'll probably try and find some sort of compromise next time. Not much to say about the house, apart from mentioning @TitusV once again (remember? ) for his 'classic' tudor. Though, a fellow castle builder here in Berlin called it 'neo-classic style', which could open an interesting discussion, I reckon So yes, hope you like it. C&C most welcome as usual ^^ Edit: Ep. 8
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Avalonia Task 1 - Laelarielian Army & Crest The Laelarielian army (or, rather, what's left of it) counts no less than one swordsman and two spearmen! The (self-proclaimed) shield-maiden Lola has lately joined the group, her fighting skills being better than the others', despite her young age. We see them here at the ruins of their former training site, which they still visit regularly. They briefly pay homage each time, quickly getting rid of some weeds and yet always making sure that the full Laelarielian banner is still standing and in good condition – they still proudly display the crest and colours of their city, together with those of their Guild. Hello everyone ^^ Those of you who follow the story will know that Laesonar has only just met Lola.. so I guess you can take it as a small flashforward One question: @Henjin_Quilones's post detailing Avalonian tasks is from 1st August. As I'm just back, I've been looking for posts by fellow Avalonians who completed the task, but couldn't find any - am I the 1st one completing it or has anyone else already? If so, could I please get linked to that/those post/s? Also, not sure if such vignettes can count as freebuild for the Guild? Hope you guys like it, C&C most welcome ^^
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Of Dragons and Druids: Ch. 1 In the Hall of Druidham Henjin Quilones sighed as he looked across the hall at his children. How much they have grown already, he thought wistfully. He could hardly believe that Gahlen was nearing his seventh birthday. Where had the time gone? Surely it was just last year that he and Galaria had been exiled from Hesperia by her father, the king, not even married yet and certainly no children on the way? Surely he had only returned from Bandari a few months back with a small toddler of three and a baby girl, only just turned one? Henjin shook his head wistfully. Emmalie was no baby any more; the five-year-old was the least Elf-like of his children, taking more after her Druid father than her Elf mother, and she followed him wherever he went. She was the only one of the children to study the in the Druidi Order, as Gahlen and the youngest, Lycaria, with her bright blue hair, were dedicated to the dragonriders of their mother and had already entered into a soul-bond with baby dragons. He loved his children deeply, and watching their play brightened his day. The day was already bright, though. The sun streamed through the windows of the hall, reflecting off of the newly varnished table and the brightly polished tiles of the floor. It was new, the hall. It had only been completed a few months back, and already it had been used for important things. The leaders of Avalonia had met here to discuss the opening of Varlyrio to trade, gracing his table with their presence. That was just a few mornings ago, and already Henjin had heard rumblings of fleets being launched to seek the goods and markets of the far western Guild. Henjin would be sending no fleets, however, since he did not have a fleet, only a few small fishing boats that brought in their catch from the straights and channels between the Mystic Isles around Druidham. "We really must finish the guest-house next, Henjin," Galaria was saying, bringing his thoughts back to the present moment. How much had he missed of what she said? "We have beds open here in the main keep, of course, but many who might visit us have higher standards than a simple bed in a shared dormitory or a small, simply furnished chamber. It's not like we can offer them a place in one of the dragon's weyrs, where the riders sleep." Henjin nodded. "This is true, Galaria," he said, stroking his beard. He had let it grow out since returning to Avalonia. "My only concern is that it will take manpower away from delving the storerooms and cellars. And by manpower I really mean Dwarf-power, since aside from Arkuhr none of us humans are much use working with stone, and while you may be soul-bonded to an Earth dragon, Daeara is more attuned to the living things on and in the earth than to the rocks of the earth itself." It was Galaria's turn to nod in agreement. "True, it would take some Dwarf-power from the cellars, and harvest time is nigh upon us, so perhaps we should delay that; but we could at least shift the Gnomes over to building the bridge to the outcropping where we plan to build the guest-house. It will not be cold here for a month or more, I don't think, so getting the geothermal pumps going can wait a little bit. And besides, Injini has nearly completed it anyways. He said our rock formations here are not so different from the ones beneath Bandari, so he did not have to reinvent the wheel, so to speak, to get our system going like the one under the Hatchery or the Dragon Halls there." "Very well," Henjin agreed. "We should get to work on the bridge, using the dragons to lift the slabs of stone in place according to the plan of Injini and Mvumbuzi. My Druids, especially Arkuhr, can assist with the stone shaping, at least the rough hewing, and perhaps we can convince Stenkarlek to shift his brother and wife over to the final shaping of the stones, while he and his father finish up the cellars." Just then Lycaria gave a loud shout of pain and Gahlen came running over to his parents. "I didn't do it, Dad," he said breathlessly. "What did you not do?" asked Henjin suspiciously. Galaria went over to Lycaria to comfort her and see if she was hurt. Emmalie was holding her hands over her sister, muttering some Druidic words of healing. "I didn't push her head into the table when she was chasing after me after I stole her hairclip," said the boy sheepishly. "Mm-hmm," grunted Henjin. "I need you to apologize to your sister for pushing her and stealing her clip. And you need to apologize to me for lying. And finally, I need you to go with Koeden to help Stenkarlek dig out the storerooms. He could use a small Earth dragon and even smaller boy down in the tunnels with him to help dig. And bring him this message that I am going to give you." He turned to the writing desk by the windows and began to write on a scrap of parchment. "Yes, father," said Gahlen with downcast eyes. "I am sorry for lying." "I forgive you," said Henjin, finishing up the message and handing it to his son. "Now go! Get your dragon and find Stenkarlek." ______________________________________ ............................................................................ The first chapter of my Book III story! Not unlike @de Gothia, I have chosen to make the time between the end of Book II and the start of Book III for my story be the span of several years (about 8 in my case). Hence there are now kids involved. My inspiration for the story, at least for the dragon part of things, comes especially from Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern series, one of my all-time favorite reads. I will be tying things in from my previous Chronicles of Hesperia, plus the builds I did for the Safe Haven challenge. And there will be dragons. Lots of dragons. My characters will probably end up in Varlyrio's Sunken City at some point, too. The build itself is the same as the one I used for the Prelude: An Avalonian Council, but the lighting is different this time, with the sole light source now being through the windows. I really like the way that made it look, even better than before. Plus, I adjusted the white balance to look more warm. C&C welcome!
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Introducing Neville Equicius & The Equicius Clan (Avalonia tasks 1 &2)
The_Nev posted a topic in Guilds of Historica
Task One - The Equicius Clan The Equicius Clan of old were once known & respected across the lands for their fine herds of horses. They lived a semi-nomadic life, travelling with their herds across the eastern plains of Avalonia, with some small settlements scattered towards the northern reaches of their ranges. Their lives of peace & prosperity were not to last, however, as raiders from the northern mountains plundered and pillaged the few villages the Equicians had established, taking with them, destroying or scattering much of the herds that were the pride of the clan. Many of our finest warriors and herdsmen's lives were lost in those days, and all the remaining men, women and children were left with no choice but to disperse across the villages and cities of Avalonia, some venturing as far as the lands of other guilds in search of a new home. As the years and generations passed, the great horsemen of old were forgotten by all except legend, their stories passed down to the Equician descendants that remain today. Although the Equicius Clan has never restored their former glory, and remain scattered, some larger families stayed together, and found a life for themselves away from the pastures of their forebearers. One such family is that of my father, Albus Equicius, a direct descendant of the leader of our clan of old, Eorl Equicius I. Equicius Clan by The Nev, on Flickr The Equicians are skilled warriors, both on foot and horseback, fighting with sword, spear and bow. My cousin Eldred is a leader among our men, with the privilege of riding upon a purebred Equician steed, garbed in the colours of our clan. Cousin Eldred by The Nev, on Flickr As for our troops, they are of course small in number as a result of the scattering of our people, but display the strength and determination that stands them equal to some of the best soldiers you can find in Historica, and have often served under the greater banner of Avaloina in times of war past. Equician Troops by The Nev, on Flickr And then there's myself, Neville Equicius, son of Albus Equicius, descendant of Eorl Equicius I. Neville Equicius by The Nev, on Flickr Some of you may have already heard my story, so I will only briefly recount here. Nine years ago, my father set off on a journey to find the tomb of our ancestral leader, in the hope that it would contain the key to reuniting our clan, a step towards the ultimate goal of restoring our former prosperity. Five years after his expected return had not come, my father's uncle, Freca, uncovered a map that leads to Eorl's tomb, and since that day I have travelled across the land, seeking my father so that I can lead him to the tomb and he can reunite the Equicius Clan. Task 2 - My Travels Since I set out, I have often walked alone, other times I have had companions. Uncle Freca and my cousin Eldred often accompany me on my journey, between attending to tasks of their own. Field & Equician Travellers by The Nev, on Flickr Uncle Freca is a wonderful source of knowledge, and was once a great warrior, his career ending when he lost a leg in battle. Uncle Freca by The Nev, on Flickr My cousin, of course, has saved our necks on several occasions, while his faithful steed provides a welcome rest for weary feet and heavy packs. Equician Travellers by The Nev, on Flickr We are a strange sight to other travellers, not that we see too many, often we travel on the smallest, quietest paths through Avalonia, often passing by small pockets of farmland, the land of some solitary farmer making a life for himself off the land. View of Field by The Nev, on Flickr We travel light, venturing from town to town in search of answers that can lead us to my father, with the ever growing concern that he has come by some foul circumstances, as what bodes ill for Albus Equicius bodes ill for the whole Equicius Clan... = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Whew! Sorry for the long post, but I hope it establishes Neville's story well enough for some sort of foundation/background. Hoping to get a real storyline going through some future builds, time will tell what is in store! -
The Tales of Lady Gwenllian 0. Introduction 1. The arrival of Lady Gwenllian aboard the Cedar Serpent 2. Scouting a Site Sailing from the northwest, Lady Gwenllian first sighted land on the coast of the Enchanted Forest of Avalonia. She and her small crew followed the coastline up the channel between the Enchanted Forest and DeVine Isle, stopping to resupply several times from villages, streams, and what resources as were available, all the while scouting potential sites for a new home. The horrible battles of her homeland's civil war taught her difficult lessons on fortifications, and she was determined to find the best possible site to build a castle. Ideally, she desired a site with a nearby quarry, accessible by land and by sea, on high ground, access to timber, and with ample farmland. After scouting several locations without luck, she and her entourage came across a rocky outcropping at the mouth of the Afondraig River on the northeastern coast of the Enchanted Forest. This flat, treeless area boasted steep rocky cliffs on two sides to deter attackers, and a narrow rocky strip along the shallows of the river that would make for a sheltered landing site. The rest of the high rocky area overlooked flat meadows that would be perfect for farms, and these ended about a mile away at the edge of a large forest. Anchoring the Cedar Serpent in the calm flow before the shallows near the mouth of the Afondraig River, Lady Gwenllian and her entourage offloaded supplies and set up a temporary camp. The fall colors were spotted about in the bushes that interspersed with the dried grasses, and made for a rather pretty scene. They could not be distracted by this beauty, however: after inquiring about local claims to the land, they would have to petition Queen Ylspeth for a charter to build, survey the land, and build temporary shelters for the winter. Over the winter, Lady Gwenllian and Seren, her Lady at Arms, would draw up the plans for the castle, whose construction was to begin in the spring. More pictures on Flickr.
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A mercenary's story: Part IV If you missed, here is the previous parts: A mercenary's story: Part I A mercenary's story: Part II A mercenary's story: Part III It was a middle aged man, in a black armor, he greeted the jailor, and started talking. The outside noise was louder, Conrad didn't heard, what was the talk between the mysterious visitor and the jailor. But after that, the jailer took the key from the wall, and opened the door, then escorted the prisoners up, to the courtyard. It was great to feel the sun again, the fresh air too. They were lined up, Conrad noticed, there are others in black armor too. His thoughts was confirmed, mercenaries... Their leader, started walking front of them, and had a speech. He came here, to gave them a second chance, to make things right. His habit, to recruit from prisons, so able arms which can wield weapons, don't wasted. And also, the lords of Historica agreed on that, it's always more expensive to keep up prisons, and to send convicts, to battle, then their own mens. The leader offered them the same: remain here, and die on the next day, or he recruit them, but they must follow his rules. Conrad and some of the criminals accepted the offer, they stepped foward. While they were handcuffed, the leader arranged the paperwork, and they were escorted out from the courtyard. The mercenary camp wasn't too far, they arrived in the afternoon. They were escorted in a large tent, full with other, new recruits, and other soldiers. Conrad sat down in to a corner, hi was tired, he didn't eat well in the last few days. He fell asleep quickly. He was wakedby a soldier. He orderd him, to get up, and go outside, cause the leader wanted him too, to see following event. He went out, and saw the others,gathered. The soldier escorted him in to the front of the crowd. Then he understand whats happening here. He saw the leader, a huge sword, and two, who came with him from the prison. The leader started his speech again: "- Some people don't deserve second chance. It's a shame there is always some one, who think he can outsmart me... Most of you know me, I can't be outsmarted, and most of you know, what will happened next. This is a lesson, for the new commers.-" Then he walked to the trunk, raisedthe sword, and striked down. The hairy head fell to the ground. Conrad wasn't prepared for this. As he saw the sword, raised in the air, he quicky turned his head away. A bad memory came in his mind. A few years ago, he walked in to the barn at the worst time. He saw, as his mother choped down the chickens head. The blood dripped from table and from the blade. On that day he understand it, sometimes where are his favorite chickens... - You there, boy. Come here Conrad becomes pale as a dead, the leader pointed at him. He walked out from the crowd, next to him. He was shaking. - What's your name boy? - Co ... Conrad. - answered. - Here, hold this sword. - the leader tossed the sword,in to Conrads hands. - Can you lift it? Conrad grabed the hilt,and raised it above his head. It was more heavier then the wooden sticks, which served as swords, when he played with his friends. - Not bad kid! I see you aren't a village boy. Where were you raised? - On a farm... - answered the boy, as he lowered the sword. - Tell me, was this your first execution? Your fathr never took you with him to market. - Yes, but he never allowed us to watch it. Killing is wrong. - Your father is a smart men. - the leader walked closer to the boy. - Killing, in deed, is wrong. But there are other things that's wrong. Like the thing, what you commited. The leader stopped, Conrad knowed something bad will happen. - First of all. - started. - This isn't a punishment. I try to help you with this, cause sooner or late, this deed must be done, to become a mercenary. - the leader puted his hand on Conrads shoulder, lowered his voice. - You must kill him. The boy become pale as snow. His heart started beating faster, he felt a knot in his stomach. The leader genty pushed him, towards the tied up ruffian. - Don't worry, only the first one is the hardest. - encouraged him the leader. Conrad tried to not cry. He was sure, if he had some meal, he would throw it up. He stood next to the trunk, raised the sword. He hesitated. - What's the matter farm-boy? -asked him the leader with a smile. - If you have trouble removing his head, imagine him, as a chicken! Chop off the head so your mother can make a good chicken soup! The encouraging words didn't helped him, but caused more discomfort. Bad memories came to his mind. A week later, after the incident, his mother forced him, to chop off the head of a chicken. She told him, he can't have dinner, if he don't do it. The boy hesitated, like now, hi holded the blade, while his mother holded the chicken. "- Come on son, let's get over with. Dinner must be ready, when your father comes home" The situation get even worse, when the other soldiers gets bored, and started taunting him: - Come on! Let's finish him, and we can go to eat! - What are you, a chicken? - one of the soldiers asked him, and start mimicing a chicken, and started clucking. Conrad was wasted. The memory, the words: chicken, soup. The taunting, this situation, all blurred together. He didn't know what is real, and what isn't. His arms was getting tired, holding the sword. He closed his eyes, and start repeating to him: - Just a chicken... Just a chiken... - his vocie become quiter every time. He felt the judging look of the leader, like his mothers. He heard clucking the others, like the rest of the chickens in the barn. He felt the hunger, like on that evening... He didn't wanted to starve longer... He striked. He took one last glimps of the ruffian, befor he decapitated him... ...A chicken... - Not bad kid! - the leader patted Conrads back. - A bit messy, but a little practice will help it. - now, he turned to his men: - All of you it's dinner time, eat well and go to rest. Tomorrow, we de-camp and travel to the next settlement. - now back to the boy. - I advise you, to take a bath before you go to eat too. Oh, and welcome... Conrad didn't heard or felt anything. He was still in the shock. He slowly opened his eyes. The body, head and the blade was already removed from the scene. No one was there either, just he. He felt something warm and wet on his hands. Blood, from the elbows to the tip of his fingers. He look at them, as everything went to black. He fainted... Let the boy rest, cause his adventures isn't ending here!
