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Monday, June 20, 2011

Tsur - Pitch Session

Wars of Tsur
It has been ten short months since the the last battle of the Unification War was fought outside of the great walled Northern city of Norberth.  The Northern Landowners and their private militias finally surrendered to the King's Army after two years of fierce skirmishing and tireless campaigning.  Many of the same men who fought in the Unification War had fought in the Landowner's War eight years previous, a war which was also waged over taxes demanded of the North by the King in the South.  After more than a decade of turmoil there is peace, but it is an uneasy peace.

Tsurians are united as a result of the Unification Treaty, but the North is still bitter, and the South is still broke from the wars.  The wars have drained the kingdoms coffers completely.  Now the King desperately needs tax revenue from the Landowners and the Guilds of the North to maintain a standing Army to enforce the unstable peace in the kingdom.

History of Tsur
The people of Tsur were not always divided as they are today.  More than 400 years ago the Province of Tsur was uninhabited by men.  The Province was settled in the wake of the Cataclysm, an unnatural explosion that leveled an entire city, killed thousands, and scattered a people.  The refugees of the Cataclysm passed through the mountains and went East towards the coast.  They created new cities, and became Tsurians.

In a valley just West of the rocky spires of the Shadow Peak Mountains, lies the the ruins of the once great city of Eunia.  Eunia was once celebrated by it's populous as a utopia and was often referred to as "the city of worship."  Some say the city was destroyed in the Cataclysm by the god of destruction: Ruin, out of jealously for his brother Alo: the creator.  Others believe that it was magic that was to blame for the blast.  After 400 years it is still unclear.

Regardless of the cause, the people of Eunia turned their backs on magic and their gods as they moved East, determined to distance themselves from the two things they believed were to blame for the disaster.  They named the lands East of the Shadow Peaks Tsur, and called themselves Tsurians.  Over the next few generations people developed new traditions and settled new lands.  Magic was outlawed and quickly disappeared across the land.

Leaders rose as Tsurians created their new homes and identities.  These leaders were the best and strongest of their people, they became paragons in the eyes of their followers.  Their followers lifted these individuals up, and looked to them for guidance.  These men and women became larger than life figures in Tsurian culture, and later became known as the Paragons.  Following their deaths their followers attributed miracles and blessings to the spirit of the deceased Paragon's.  The Paragon's supplanted the old gods (Alo and Ruin) and came to worship themselves instead.

Paragons of Tsur

OBERON – the Paragon of health and healing, he concerns himself with the poor. His colors are black, purple, and brown.
 
BALDRED – the Paragon of storms (rain, fire, thunder, and lightning). He represents passion and fertility.  Farmers and herders seek to appease him. His colors are red and white.

JINX – the trickster. The Paragon of travelers, thieves, and gypsies. He pushes or tricks us beyond the limits of mundane existence, teasing and daring us to greater heights. His colors are black and red.

AVALON – known as “The Man of the White Cloth." The Paragon of mercy, purity and spirituality. One turns to Avalon for ethical guidance. His color is white.

NISSA – the river. Paragon of love, marriage, art, joy, beauty, laughter, abundance, the erotic. Paragon of artists, musicians, and lovers. Her colors are yellow, amber and coral.

DURIN – Paragon of the anvil, labor, and war. A blacksmith, a soldier, and a master guildsmen. He is the eternal worker, never stopping for rest. His followers are militants and craftsmen. His colors are green, red and black.

MABE – Paragon of wisdom, concerned with human destiny. Her followers are historians, scribes, and mystics.  Her colors are green and yellow.

AVERY – Paragon of justice and death. She represents the hunters and Justicars. Her symbol is the rainbow. She represents sudden change, the whirlwind, and revolution.  She is sometimes referred to as “The Huntress.”  Her colors are brown, purple and black.

PANIA – known as "Mother of the Fish." Paragon of sailors, and fishermen.  Concerned with the oceans and seafaring. Pania’s love sustains life. She embodies the endless blue that provides freedom.  Her waves wash away all sorrow. Her colors are blue, and white.

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Session Summaries

GAVIN was roused from a nap in the barracks by his commanding officer Bran.  Bran chided Gavin for being a lay-about and quickly gave him an assignment. The assignment was to escort a visiting Landowner, Lord Ackley, from the Perle back to his estate in the North.  When Gavin complained about the pointlessness of the assignment, Bran explained that the real reason for the escort was to investigate Lord Ackley's estate and determine the Lord's financial situation.  Lord Ackley, like many of his rebellious Northern neighbors, was refusing to pay taxes to the King because he claimed to be broke as a result of the Unification War.

Gavin was told to gather his gear.  Bran assigned a horse to him for the journey, and sent him off to the Black Crow Tavern to meet with the Landowner.  When Gavin arrived at the tavern he found Lord Ackley with a retinue of guards.  The guards made sure that Gavin knew that he was an unwelcome guest on their return trip to the estate.  Before they set off on the road Gavin took notice of Lord Ackley.  He was clutching a book tight to his chest and looked nervous and eager to leave.

ROBIN had just exited the King's Road, traveling South, at Auberge and was prepared to enter the city to get the latest gossip, to eat, and rest before pushing on with her travels.  She met an acquaintance of hers, Amos the toll collector, on the toll bridge that crosses over the Nissa River just outside the city.  Robin didn't have any money on her to pay the toll, but that was hardly a problem for her.  Contacts and seduction are valuable resources to those who know how to use them. A few flirtatious comments directed at Amos and Robin was cleared to cross the bridge free of charge.  

Her luck didn't last long though.  Just as she cleared by Amos she spotted 3 female Bleeding Heart acolytes crossing the bridge and heading right for her.  Robin did her best to avoid the acolytes but Amos blew her cover by calling after her.  Robin was forced to speak with women from the temple.  The acolytes where excited to see Robin alive and urged her to come with them to catch up, and to return to the temple with them.  Thinking quick Robin convinced the women to meet her later that evening at an Inn in the city.  The women agreed and went about their business.  Robin waited from them to clear out and went straight back to the King's Road to head North; away from the ghosts of her past.

TRISTA was heading back to her home, Mirrowood Forest, after a trip to the Bounty Lands to sell salves, herbs, and poultices to the local farmers. One of Trista's regulars, a farmers wife named Carmen, requested a particular rare poultice to heal her sick daughter.  As Trista was looking for a good spot to make her camp for the day she noticed a flower on a rotten log in a nearby bog.  The flower was a key ingredient for the desired poultice, so she waded out into the bog to collect the flower.

Soaking wet Trista returned to the shore and rung out her skirts.  As she dried herself she inadvertently created a small pool of water in one of her footprints in the soft ground.  As Trista looked down at her reflecting in the shallow pool at her feet the water shifted.  Her own reflection was replaced by that of her deceased mother.  Trista's mother spoke to her from the grave, as she had been doing for the past few months following her death.  Trista's mother told her to travel North to find a man who would lead her to her destiny.  She revealed no additional details and was extremely cryptic about the journey.  Before Trista could get any more information her mother faded and Trista's reflection returned to the puddle. Trista gathered her meager belongings and took to the North immediately.

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