Dragonskeep Recess Summary

[Vanadius]

“We’ll begin the Hunt on the Summer Solstice as planned, Jome.” Count Joris Drakedoder intoned as he walked the broad walls of the keep, flanked by the Seneschal on one side and Marshall Lockwood on the other.

“Very good lord.” Amah replied softly, not wanting to intrude too much on the conversation that was sure to follow.

“So, Nathan…” The Count began almost on cue as Amah silently predicted, “… Looks you have a fine new crop of recruits, including a number of desert people as well. Should be an effective Hunt this yahren. Is there aught you need from me?”

“No sir, I don’t think so. We’ve been gathering supplies, and even making some of our own. The Warden has been working with the men on their weapons training, and Denbar has been showing them a thing or two about survival in the wilderness.”

The Count nodded his approval. “Good. Has the Bishop been meddling at all with your affairs?”

“No sir. He left a note tacked to the barracks door offering salvation for the wayward and for souls to be shriven. To the best of my knowledge, no one has taken him up on his offer. Ren Magliorre has had a few attempts at recruiting for the Order of Paladins as well, but gave up a day or two after their arrival.”

“Ren…” The Count spat over the edge of the wall to the dust below. “Never much cared for his politics or his God, but he was a good soldier.”

“Aye, he always was a good soldier. He’s offered to join us this yahren. Says he’s missed the Hunt and the camaraderie.”

The Count chuckled softly. “I’m sure he has.” The Lord of Dragonskeep whirled about and tapped on the sheaf of parchment that Jome Amah carried. “I just remembered. We need to make certain Phelissia has everything she needs for her trip. She’s a clever girl and knows what she needs as necessities, but I’d like for her to have a few non-essential things from home as well. Nathan, can you spare a squad to escort her?”

The Marshall narrowed his eyes in thought for a few flickers before responding. “I can probably send over a half dozen, just to make sure she’s well guarded.”

The Count nodded his assent, and tapped on the parchment once more as a prompt for Amah to write it down, which the Seneschal immediately did.

“Now let’s see. What’s next?”

“What about our preparations here at the Keep my Lord?”

The Count stopped his walk, and rested against the battlements, looking down into the courtyard below. He was silent for a few flickers, contemplating and evaluating.

“Yes, we’ll need to do a few things around here. Let’s make sure all of our ballistae and catapults are in good working order. We haven’t had the need to use them for a while, so let’s make sure the ropes are all new and not brittle. Let’s stockpile foodstuffs and water in case there is any retaliation. We’ll need new buckets for fire brigades, and I want all the gates and locks cleaned, tested, and secure. We’ll use the catacombs for storage, and let’s salt a few sides of beef just in case.” The count fell silent.

“What of the Reaches?” Lockwood asked.

“Franza has been notified that we will be commencing the Hunt on the Solstice and one of his birds returned yesterday to inform us that his preparations are underway. Grael will be returning to the South Reach on the morrow to prepare as well.” The Count replied.

The Seneschal finished his copious scribbling and looked up at the other two men.

“Is that all my lord?”

The Count looked to Marshall Lockwood who shrugged noncommittally. The Count turned to stare out across the West towards King’s Court. His eyes searched the horizon and his thoughts were far away for a few heartbeats before he shook himself from his reverie.

“I suppose so. Let us be off. We’ve got a great deal of spears and arrows to make, and a stronghold to secure.”

The three men walked down the broad stone steps into the causeway and continued to make their preparations and plans.

~~~

The days of the Keep passed quickly in the hustle and bustle of the many measures from the Count that were undertaken to fortify and strengthen the Keep. The entire Stronghold was caught up in preparing for the annual Dragon Hunt, which meant not only sending it’s favored sons, the Dragon Knights out into harm’s way, but also organizing and arranging the inhabitants in case of retaliation from the great drakes of the desert. Escape routes were mapped out, evacuation plans were drawn up, and great stores of food, water, weapons and supplies were assembled, cataloged, and stockpiled.

The Dragon Knights continued to train and prepare themselves under the careful supervision of Marshall Lockwood and Denbar the Red. Bishop Thures led many prayer vigils for the Knights, and Captain Dunevain kept the entire fortress moving until the Summer Solstice arrived.

The day of the Solstice arrived, and the Knights gathered in the causeway under the violet sky of pre-dawn. Midge had their many horses at the ready, and assisted any who needed help with a stray buckle or strap. Bishop Thures asked all who had assembled to bow their heads in prayer, and although many of the Knights and inhabitants of the Keep kept to different Gods, they acquiesced anyway, hoping for any blessing that might help protect them from harm. Tearful goodbyes were said, at long last, Denbar blew his great horn, the mighty gates of the Keep swung open, and the Hunt was finally underway.

[Vanadius]

Please Post your Character Recess Write Ups here for approval and skilling!

The period covered in the recess is Chyril 28th 1225 to Jygust 29th 1225.

[H`saan Alai]

Train. Study. Eat. Sleep. Wake up, rinse and repeat.

This is the way that H'saan spent the rest of the spring.

It seemed as though every man and woman in the Keep had something to contribute to the preparations for the Dragon Hunt, and the half-giant was no exception. He spoke with the Warden about joining the Hunt and it was agreed that he could accompany the Knights on the expedition that year. It was not long before he began training intensively with the troops, although he did not go so far as to join their ranks. It was simply a crash course in self-defense against the large reptilian beasts. H'saan had a suit of partial plate armour made up and eventually got used to moving around in it. He also picked up on the use of javelins, figuring that they would be more damaging than a crossbow bolt if he ever needed to pick off a dragon at a distance.

Unfortunately this left little time for other commitments and the healer's intention to learn his letters was left by the wayside. Even his medical training with Sir Sterling and Bishop Thures stalled. He would know more first aid than the average Knight in the field, but if the healer ever had to manage the a severely wounded man, he would mostly have luck and theory to fall back upon, and rather than a wealth of experience.

The days passed with a pleasant monotony and before he knew it, the Summer Solstice was upon them.

New Skills
***** to Armour [partial plate]
***** to Throwing Weapons


Approved - Skills added. - V. 7-21-08

[Malakhai Qinua]

To say that he'd underestimated the difficulty of becoming a Dragon Knight was an understatement. Training to become a knight was far less glamorous, less magical, less intuitive, and most of all less easy than Malakhai had anticipated. The young tribesman found himself drawn into a routine of training the like of which he'd never previously experienced. Mal could be very self-disciplined - when he wanted to be. But learning to fight as part of a unit, alongside other recruits and more experienced warriors, in a formal training programme, required a type of steady, continuous discipline that the mercurial Malakhai totally lacked. He soon realised that if he wanted to be the best - and he did - he would have to make a lot of sacrifices. Womanising, smoking, disappearing for days on end on wild forays into the mountains; all these would have to stop if he wanted to make it as a Knight.

He nearly didn't make it. By the end of Chyril his morale was as low as it had ever been. It wasn't that he felt isolated at Dragonskeep; quite the contrary. Malakhai was an open, sociable soul, and soon made quite a few friends among the settlement's inhabitants as well as among the other trainees. He kept in touch with Larson, and with H'saan when their busy schedules allowed it, although they saw each other most often during training exercises. What was getting him down was the realisation that he'd signed up for something that wasn't going to be quick or easy, and that he'd really have to work at it. Persistence wasn't Mal's strong suite, and he long considered giving up and returning to the desert.

Two things stopped him doing so. First, what was there to go back to? He couldn't simply return to his father. Given the terms they'd parted on, the older man would either receive him with downright antipathy, or, worse, with serene forgiveness, which would be a fatal blow to Malakhai's ego. His mother, his only real confidante, was out of the picture. No, there was very little still remaining for him in the sands.

The second and most important factor was his pride. This replaced any sense of duty or commitment in waging war against his flightiness. Two personality traits were at war, and neither was able to win out. So a third factor came into play: the principle of least effort. The easier option was to stay at the keep, since there he had food, lodgings and friends, and so that was what he did.

And, surprisingly, he found that during Jaym it became less of a chore with each passing day. By the end of the month he'd already been training for longer than he'd ever spent concentrating on one task before, and his hard work was beginning to pay off. He'd come to Dragonskeep with much natural talent in swordsmanship, but little formal training. With the help of Warden Blacktree and others he was soon able to remedy this, and with a month's practice behind him he was at least as confident with a broadsword as he'd ever been with his curved desert blade. Swordsmanship was the part of his training that Malakhai enjoyed the most, and he soon developed a reputation as an instinctive and capable duellist, no longer quite as hindered by armour and shield as he had been when he started.

With Jygust came Dragon Hunt mania, and this spurred Malakhai on to learn to ride properly. He sold his camel, Chagatai, and began to save up, in the hope of one day being able to afford his own warhorse. In the meantime he practised writing on one he borrowed from the keep's stables. Horses, he found, were far less temperamental than camels, which made them slightly less interesting but rather more trustworthy. Horses, because of their sure-footedness, were also far more suited to mountain trails, which was certain to come in useful if they were to ride out on the Dragon Hunt. By the time of the Summer Solstice he wasn't an expert by any means, but could at least manage to stay on a well-trained horse's back.

The Hunt itself was a thrilling prospect. Not only did it promise to break the routine of the last months, it also promised to bring him one step closer to his ambition: getting even with dragonkind. Of course, he was under no illusions about his own preparedness. He still hadn't had a chance to get to grips with the lance, that staple weapon of mounted knights, or even with mounted combat in general. He still had a fair way to go before he could hope to become a fully fledged knight himself. Nevertheless, Mal was getting pretty psyched up about the Hunt. The tribesman-turned-squire was finally going to get an opportunity to put his training into practice.

Skills:
***** - Ride [Horse] ~ Basic
*** - Swords, One-handed (to Apprentice)
* - Armor [Jazeraint] (to Basic+*)
* - Shield (to Basic+*)


Approved - Skills added. - V. 7-21-08

[Vanadius]

H'Saan and Malakhai:

Your recess posts have been approved, and your skills have been added!

As we begin the hunt, please assume the Keep has outfitted you with armor, a weapon, a mount and other basic survival gear for the expedition (a tent, a waterskin, some basic foodstuffs etc...). I will be adding these to your sheets as we go. If there are specific items you're looking for, just let me know.

Either of you can start the new Dragon Hunt thread on Jygust 30, or if you rather I do it, just let me know. I'm assuming I'll speak with both of you in chat before long, and we can make that decision. The last I heard, H'saan wanted to start it, so perhaps we'll just go with that.

All others:

I'm eagerly awaiting the recesses of the other players in DK so if you have any questions or need any assistance with your recess posts, feel free to contact me and I'll do what I can to help.

Thanks!

V.

[Phuong Quang Huu]

For the rest of Chyril, Huu devoted himself to his studies and worked hard to unlearn his former life. His respect for the Kami grew and Huu learned the power that came with humility. When the wise Rioja came to speak of the imbalance of the Tether, Huu could not help but be moved by her sincerity. He wished her well in her endeavors and espoused her arguments when called upon in debate. Yet, he did nothing himself. After all, he was a student. These were matters for his betters.

Then came the flood and the earthquake. Huu came to believe that the Kami punished them for their indolence and unconcern of the wider world. Huu worked hard in the fishing villages. He repaired huts and boats, said prayers for the dead, and placated the Kami to be merciful on the living. He sought out the shipwrecked strangers and practiced their strange tongue. He sought out Rioja and proclaimed his intention to travel into the world as she did. In conversations with her, Huu recoiled in horror as she described the practice of the Dragon Hunt in the Western Kingdom. Surely, that was where they had to start.

The month of Jygust was spent aboard ships the plied the wide sea and then the bays and rivers of the Western Kingdom. Then a dusty trek overland brought Huu to his destination. He tried to speak to the Kami of these distant lands as he traveled. Huu arrived at Dragon's Keep just a day before this Hunt was to begin. Hopefully, he would find those that had come here before him and together they would show these wayward children the errors of their way.

Stats:

Four stars to Manipulation of Energy:Faith to Basic ****
Four stars to Language [Human] to Basic ****
Two stars to Meditation to Apprentice

I also ask that my Wealth be reduced to Basic to reflect his distance from family monies and reduced desire for material possessions.



Approved - Skills added. - V. 8-05-08