Traveler's Guide to Mistone (v2)// OOC discussion expected

[SteveMaurer]

[SIZE=18]A Traveler’s Guide to Mistone[/SIZE]
   
  [SIZE=16]Introduction[/SIZE]
   
  Dear Reader,
If you have just been given this guide by a merchant who is distributing it because of my recommendations of their store, please do not discard it immediately. I assure you that the information contained herein is of utmost importance, and may prevent your untimely death.
   
  You are interested in living, aren’t you?   Good.    Then read on.   I promise not to waste your time.
  -Lady Z

  [SIZE=16]General Ways to Enhance Your Survival While Traveling[/SIZE]
Travel is dangerous. Layonara may have always been a desperate place, but it is absurdly so now. Likely due to magics from various Gods of entropic predation, all that you meet attacks with suicidal mania. Nothing ever flees, even if badly wounded, and pursues until either you or it are dead. So prepare for travel as you would for war, expecting assaults from the most unlikely quarters: hawks, skunks, rats, deer, shrubbery. See the pretty little butterfly? It’s trying to lick you to death.
   
  To deal with this fact of life, please consider the following suggestions:

• Befriend an experienced companion. Guides can point out dangers better than any book, even this one. Locals can point out who is trustworthy in this regard.
• When traveling alone, stick to the roads. Thanks in large part to the Law Of The Roads, roads are safe. But do not veer off them even the slightest bit. And if a road peters out, so usually does the safety.
• Your greatest advantage is your superior eyesight. When traveling to unfamiliar regions alone, walk slowly and scan the horizon constantly. You will likely see hostile creatures before they see you.
• When doing the above, walk with stealth, even if you believe yourself not to be stealthy. Distance aids your abilities. But do not depend on stealth either: believing yourself undetectable and learning otherwise when too close, is a way many curious travelers die.
• Invisibility is even better than hiding, but it too is not perfect. Spells and potions are time limited, and many actions can cause you to be seen. Further, even being Invisible does not make you undetectable. Highly sensitive enemies can become aware of you, and once they do, they will not lose sight of you. To combat this, you can walk stealthily while invisible, which makes you nearly impossible to detect.
• To help your scanning, stay close to impassable areas: rock walls, tree lines, rivers, etc. That way, as you walk, you need not scan those areas. Work from the edges of a region, in to the center.
• If you encounter a lone beast and it charges you, do not charge in return, for it may have friends in the distance who would welcome your sudden appearance.
• Fleeing is always an option, especially if you are very fleet of foot, but often all this does is give you time to prepare. Sometimes, however, the time to drink an emergency healing potion, is all you need.   However, also remember that by bringing trouble to civilized regions you may be breaking the Law Of The Roads.
• Although they are expensive, a single Potion of Invisibility is often all one needs to successfully flee.   Consider this if you are rich.
• You may think to flee long distances between entire regions, pitting your endurance against that of your pursuers. But often, as you are usually already badly wounded, tracking you is easy, and you will be ambushed as you arrive. Note that this nearly always breaks the Law Of The Roads, and you will be held accountable.
• For inexperienced travelers, purchase an ox as soon as possible. Oxen are not merely useful as pack animals. They can also be a critical distraction while you flee. And do not be surprised when sneaking back to the place of your ambuscade (in vain search for your ox’s pack), you find your animal grazing happily beside the corpses of the creatures that overwhelmed you. Oxen are not to be trifled with. Mine has killed panthers. Please note that ox cannot fight while tied down, and they will charge anything, preventing stealth in retreat as an option.
• If you become injured, heal yourself quickly. Do not be cheap, because you never know where your next blow is coming from, or how hard it will be. Rest often as well, in safe areas.   And purchase healing-essence drenched bandages.   Even by the bundle they are cheap, especially considering that death is the alternative.
• Take care not to assume that simply because you killed some creatures in an area, that more of the same will not arrive unexpectedly. If you have decided to explore a place, remember to account for the difficulty of retreat when judging how far to go.
• Remember, finally, that no one plans to die. Death nearly always comes via underestimation and surprise. So remember: arrogance is entertaining, but it is also a weakness and hallmark of inferiority. Do not be weak, or inferior, and you will be allowed to survive.

[SIZE=16]The Law Of The Roads
[/SIZE]The Law of the Roads, a tradition that stretches back to antiquity, states that no traveler shall ever bring trouble on another, or more generally, upon civilization.  You are a beneficiary of this Law, for it means that you are not subject to sudden ambuscade as you travel.

Many willingly break this law.   But even those who are not predators on civilization may find themselves unintentionally in violation, by fleeing for their lives from some horror which follows them into potential contact with the traveling public.  And, may I say, how dare you consider your own worthless life in higher regard than the law!    Certainly, death is a painful experience, and having a bite taken out of you by the "Soul Mother" even worse, but it is your duty as a Rolfereinite paladin to stand and die, stand and die, repeatedly, so that you may leave a particularly young and good looking corpse, if your manner of death actually allows for it.

In case you are not a Rolferenite paladin, and have cravenly fled towards a civilized area, you are a lawbreaker subject to jailing.   That is, if you don't manage to undo the harm you have done by removing the danger you brought with you.   In this situation (which I assure you is entirely theoretical), you should first and foremost stay nearby to warn travelers.    In addition, consider sending a homing bird to a friend who is known for their battle prowress (and discretion in reporting things to the authorities).   Together, you may be able to clear the danger, or at least lure it away.  I, Lady Z, offer myself as a recipient of such birds, as the case may arise.

I must finally point out that the Law Of The Roads does not only apply where there are large roads, but also to any trail between regions.   If you leave a creature where it might ambush a traveller just arriving to a place, and do so with no warning, then you will be subject to harsh penalties if you are caught.

[SIZE=16]
A Listing of Mistone’s Regions and their Relative Safety[/SIZE]
[to be continued]

[darkstorme]

You may think to flee long distances between entire regions, pitting your endurance against that of your pursuers. But often, as you are usually already badly wounded, tracking you is easy, and you will be ambushed as you arrive. Still, as a desperation move, it can work, especially if the region to which you are moving has an enchanted road that lets you put real distance between you and your pursuers. Note that this nearly always breaks the Law Of The Roads, and you will be held accountable if you are caught.

Nicely written on the whole, but the advice quoted above (emphasis added) gave me pause.  Exploiting game mechanics (such as area transitions) is explicitly against the rules, and was addressed by Dorganath in your earlier post.  Implying that it comes with an in-character punishment suggests that it might be in some way condoned; it is not.  Players who exploit the game engine in this manner are breaking the server rules and will receive warnings or punishment Out of Character, as appropriate.

Too, you might want to reword the "do not charge" bullet, keeping Dorg's reply (linked above) in mind.  Perhaps, "If you encounter a lone beast and it charges you, do not charge in return, for it may have friends in the distance who would welcome your sudden appearance.  Likewise, if you manage to best the beast, it is not wise to press Fortune by advancing further in search of another lone adversary - for with a member missing, any pack of monsters would likely be wary, and prone to attack en masse." or similar.

Other than that, an engaging read.

[Dorganath]

Agreed with darkstorme on his comments.

The only thing I would add is this:

Since this is intended to be an IC guide, it's important to note that the roads are not "magically enchanted" in any way.  The movement speed increase, from an IC perspective, is to simulate the difference between traveling on a road versus traveling through rough and untamed land.  For example, one is generally quicker when running on a road or other improved surface than through thickets and tall grass.

In a similar way, some swamps have movement speed decreases (for PCs only...the denizens of the swamps have adapted and are not slowed by them) to represent the difficulty in moving quickly through such terrain.

Otherwise, nice work.

[miltonyorkcastle]

[LORE]Road and Swamp Travel[/LORE]

That's right, even the environment effects are explained in [LORE]GameSystems[/LORE]!

[SteveMaurer]

Since this is an In-Game guide, I can't mention OOC issues in it.  The best I can do is strongly hint at them, which is what I've done.  The only way I can do better is to have some explicit link to the server rules in an OOC section at the top.   And I'm trying to avoid that.

But I've rewritten most of the sections with your changes, although to my mind that tends to imply that there is no punishment, other than out of character punishment.  ( It sounds like you're saying that in-character and out of character punishments are mutually exclusive, which isn't terribly immersive, but you do what you have to. )

In terms of OOC punishments, I have no idea what you typically do.  A temporary one week ban?   It must be hard, because the more I look at it, the more it seems that a lot of dragging is simply an inadvertent side-effect of overly cramped maps - and that the people doing the dragging aren't even aware that they did it.   Especially when more than one unrelated character is involved.

Often what seems to happen is that a spawn gets pulled just slightly out of position by an invisibility-spell bug blinking it on and off (or something similar).   Then someone else comes running by the road (perhaps going a little off it to take a shortcut on a corner), is perceived by the spawn, and chased without them ever becoming aware of it.   The road speed enhancement makes them lose the spawn within a few seconds, and they don't even see it.    But now it is firmly in the way of the next traveler.

Other ways of inadvertent dragging is having an animal companion, or even an ox, perceive an enemy, and attract its attention by charging - just as you go to a screen transition.    After the ST, the animal companion appears suddenly in the new area, and there is no indication anything is amiss.  But of course, the spawn is now too close in the previous screen.

Regardless, with an IC guide, I can only mention certain things.  I've given a pretty decent writeup focused not about punishment, but more about cleanup - giving the threat of in-game punishment as an incentive.    And honestly, that's probably what 90% of the players care about.   I don't care that some GM has banned someone for dragging (intentionally or not).  I just want not to be ambushed and not to lose a Soul Strand.

[Dorganath]

Guh...we don't ban over such minor offenses.  There's a whole lot of room between looking the other way and temporary bans for a first offense.

OOC adjustments we'd make in such cases would most likely be pulling the player aside for a moment or just communicating in tells requesting an adjustment in behavior.  There's no need to make it sound so sinister. We really don't enjoy banning anyone, temporarily or otherwise.  We want people to play and have fun, not fear random and/or punative actions from over-reacting GMs.

Mixing IC and OOC punishments sends the wrong signals.  We strive to keep IC consequences and rewards as solely the result of character actions. OOC results come from player actions, which is a subtle but important point.

[miltonyorkcastle]

But I've rewritten most of the sections with your changes, although to my mind that tends to imply that there is no punishment, other than out of character punishment. ( It sounds like you're saying that in-character and out of character punishments are mutually exclusive, which isn't terribly immersive, but you do what you have to. )

From the conclusion of [LORE]Player Rules[/LORE] and also found in the policy change announcement (which Dorg wrote, and mimics what he suggests in the above post):

At no point will there be in-character consequences to the breaking any of these rules; no effects, no spawning of creatures, no going to jail or being tersely corrected by NPCs. There will only be out-of-character actions, which can range from simple warnings to banning, the latter being the most severe of course and only at the extreme abuse of the rules. Please do not associate in-character consequences to out-of-character actions as they are completely separate. In-character choices will generate in-character consequences and likewise for out-of-character choices.

So yes, the consequences are separate, and yes, you are pulled out of the immersion if you are subject to said consequences, but we have over the years determined that IC consequences for OOC problems tend to be too subjective and inevitably less fair.

Ultimately, dragging is an OOC offense (even if you can justify the action with IC means, it causes OOC problems), and therefore requires OOC consequences.

As you are finding, it is very difficult to make an IC guide without also noting the OOC aspects for the sheer fact that the mechanics are OOC (even if they might represent an IC action, like swinging a sword) and they are what facilitate the IC interactions. Some of the mechanics just plain don't translate to IC actions in any sort of explainable manner that actually makes sense.

[Alatriel]

Once again, I think the "use common sense" thing works here.  Also, be considerate.  If you pull a creature by accident, seek a gm either by the dm channel or by irc.  That way the problem can be fixed and someone won't stumble across it by accident.  I think you're simply trying to blend mechanics and consideration for others into rp, and really no one ever seemed to have a problem doing this before.  If you get killed by a creature that someone else dragged, that is why the grievance policy exists.  This has been in place even before the new changes, and the new changes only make it more player friendly than ever.  

I sense a lot of policy bashing in the guide, that I'm not overly fond of, but that's just me.

[Leanthar]

I love the idea of a guide like this. But please, no bashing or 'innuendo' bashing on policies. Remember, most that read this will be new players (or players that have not yet established themselves in the community) and thus they will come away with the bashing/innuendo reading...something that is not helpful to anyone in the community.
 
 Guide = Fantastic
 Innuendo's = Not Good
 
 

[SteveMaurer]

As you are finding, it is very difficult to make an IC guide without also noting the OOC aspects for the sheer fact that the mechanics are OOC (even if they might represent an IC action, like swinging a sword) and they are what facilitate the IC interactions.

No kidding!          That's probably the most insightful comment so far.

And I have to say that's the reason why I put this IC guide in the General Discussion thread - so that it can be thoroughly vetted and improved so it's at least not inconsistent with the server rules.

And this first post was just the start.  I'm in the middle of writing up the "region guide", and am treading a fine line between trying to be informative, yet also not giving away any spoilers.   This is really hard because I don't know exactly what would be considered a spoiler.   (Although, I'm sure you will inform me.  

Finally, I'm still at a loss about the defensiveness associated with banning.  I keep meaning to send Leanthar a $20 through the mail to pay for my bandwidth (I refuse to deal with PayPal), but even after I do, I recognize that this is your server, your world design, your code, your effort, your baby, and your rules.   And while I do appreciate your dedication to being fair, if, on the Wild Wild Internet with all sorts of anonymous immature jerks griefing people, you haven't banned someone, you're probably not keeping control.

[SteveMaurer]

Guide = Fantastic
 Innuendo's = Not Good
 
 

Point out anything specific you want changed and I will change it.  Even though this guide accurately reflects my character's dark sense of humor, I don't want anything to be misinterpreted as an OOC bashing of anything.

And speak freely.  Don't worry.  I have a very thick skin.  


p.s.: To be clear, the only "bashing" I see is my PC's "bashing" of a a fake "law" I created out of whole cloth (which will never actually be enforced by the GM team), which provides an excuse to explain how to clean up after yourself (and provides an in-game explanation for why your PC should do so).   I could revisit the section, but I still need some in-game motivation.  Any replacement ideas are very welcome.

[miltonyorkcastle]

And while I do appreciate your dedication to being fair, if, on the Wild Wild Internet with all sorts of anonymous immature jerks griefing people, you haven't banned someone, you're probably not keeping control.

One of our primary goals with Layonara is not just to provide an awesome game and RP environment, but also to engender a living, breathing OOC community. We don't want to control the community, we want to grow the community. The Team wants the folks that visit here to develop relationships not just with their characters and IC interaction, but also with each other, support each other, and generally be a boon to each others lives both in and out of the game.

So for many of us, the word "Ban" is almost an explicative. It's something we hate, and in the sense that we are a community, proves to be much like having to go to your neighborhood buddy and telling that person he/she has to move away and never come back. The few times we have banned someone it is always painful and never good for the community, even if it has to be done.

That said, there are certain things this community's not equipped to handle and at times we have to direct player issues away from the forums and gaming world in order to protect our integrity. We try our absolute best to offer allowances for RL issues and give second, third, and sometimes fourth chances. We would rather offer to help someone through what we can offer in this community instead of immediately ostracizing someone because maybe they had a bad day and blew up on the forums. I have seen many times that Leanthar has been gracious to those who have apologized for a moment of immaturity. Really, everyone comes here at different levels and walks of life, and we are not so exclusive as to say, "Sorry, you didn't figure it out fast enough, so you probably don't belong here."

Finally, apologies if my own opinion blead out a bit too heavily on this post. This is a very important subject, and one of the reasons I have a high respect for Leanthar and the team he has assembled.

[SteveMaurer]

A Traveler’s Guide to Mistone
 
 Introduction
 
  Dear Reader,
If you have just been given this guide by a merchant who is distributing it because of my recommendations of their store, please do not discard it immediately. I assure you that the information contained herein is of utmost importance, and may prevent your untimely death.
 
  You are interested in living, aren’t you?   Good.    Then read on.   I promise not to waste your time.
  -Lady Z
 
 General Ways to Enhance Your Survival While Traveling
Travel is dangerous. Layonara may have always been a desperate place, but it is absurdly so now. Likely due to magics from various Gods of entropic predation, all that you meet attacks with suicidal mania. Nothing ever flees, even if badly wounded, and pursues until either you or it are dead. So prepare for travel as you would for war, expecting assaults from the most unlikely quarters: hawks, skunks, rats, deer, shrubbery. See the pretty little butterfly? It’s trying to lick you to death.
 
  To deal with this fact of life, please consider the following suggestions:

• Befriend an experienced companion. Guides can point out dangers better than any book, even this one. Locals can point out who is trustworthy in this regard.
• When traveling alone, stick to the roads. Thanks in large part to the Law Of The Roads, roads are safe. But do not veer off them even the slightest bit. And if a road peters out, so usually does the safety.
• Your greatest advantage is your superior eyesight. When traveling to unfamiliar regions alone, walk slowly and scan the horizon constantly. You will likely see hostile creatures before they see you.
• When doing the above, walk with stealth, even if you believe yourself not to be stealthy. Distance aids your abilities. But do not depend on stealth either: believing yourself undetectable and learning otherwise when too close, is a way many curious travelers die.
• Walking with stealth is advisable whenever traveling between regions.  If someone has broken the Law of the Roads, you may still not be seen.
• Invisibility is even better than hiding, but it too is not perfect. Spells and potions are time limited, and many actions can cause you to be seen. Further, even being Invisible does not make you undetectable. Highly sensitive enemies can become aware of you, and once they do, they will not lose sight of you. To combat this, you can walk stealthily while invisible, which makes you nearly impossible to detect.
• To help your scanning, stay close to impassable areas: rock walls, tree lines, rivers, etc. That way, as you walk, you need not scan those areas. Work from the edges of a region, in to the center.
• If you encounter a lone beast and it charges you, do not charge in return, for it may have friends in the distance who would welcome your sudden appearance.
• Fleeing is always an option, especially if you are very fleet of foot, but often all this does is give you time to prepare. Sometimes, however, the time to drink an emergency healing potion, is all you need. However, also remember that by bringing trouble to civilized regions you may be breaking the Law Of The Roads.
• Although they are expensive, a single Potion of Invisibility is often all one needs to successfully flee. Consider this if you are rich.
• You may think to flee long distances between entire regions, pitting your endurance against that of your pursuers. But often, as you are usually already badly wounded, tracking you is easy, and you will be ambushed as you arrive. Note that this nearly always breaks the Law Of The Roads, and you will be held accountable.
• For inexperienced travelers, purchase an ox as soon as possible. Oxen are not merely useful as pack animals. They can also be a critical distraction while you flee. And do not be surprised when sneaking back to the place of your ambuscade (in vain search for your ox’s pack), you find your animal grazing happily beside the corpses of the creatures that overwhelmed you. Oxen are not to be trifled with. Mine has killed panthers. Please note that ox cannot fight while tied down, and they will charge anything, preventing stealth in retreat as an option.
• If you become injured, heal yourself quickly. Do not be cheap, because you never know where your next blow is coming from, or how hard it will be. Rest often as well, in safe areas. And purchase healing-essence drenched bandages. Even by the bundle they are cheap, especially considering that death is the alternative.
• Take care not to assume that simply because you killed some creatures in an area, that more of the same will not arrive unexpectedly. If you have decided to explore a place, remember to account for the difficulty of retreat when judging how far to go.
• Remember, finally, that no one plans to die. Death nearly always comes via underestimation and surprise. So remember: arrogance is entertaining, but it is also a weakness and hallmark of inferiority. Do not be weak, or inferior, and you will be allowed to survive.

The Law Of The Roads
 The Law of the Roads, a tradition that stretches back to antiquity, states that no traveler shall ever bring trouble on another, or more generally, upon civilization. You are a beneficiary of this Law, for it means that you are not subject to sudden ambuscade as you travel.
 
Many willingly break this law. But even those who are not predators on civilization may find themselves in violation, by fleeing for their lives from some horror which follows them into potential contact with the traveling public.  You may even find yourself a violator of this law without recognizing it, for instance if your animal companion hunts while you travel to another region; in its haste to follow you, it may leave those it was fighting in a position to attack unwary travelers going the other direction.

Whether caused by fleeing, or by other means, if you have disobeyed the Law of the Roads, it is your responsibility to undo the harm you have done by removing the danger you brought with you.   In this situation, you should first and foremost stay nearby to warn travelers. In addition, consider sending a homing bird to a friend who is known for their battle prowess (and discretion in reporting things to the authorities). Together, you may be able to clear the danger, or at least lure it away. I, Lady Z, offer myself as a recipient of such birds, as the case may arise.
 
I must finally point out that the Law Of The Roads does not only apply where there are large roads, but also to any trail between regions. If you leave a creature where it might ambush a traveler just arriving to a place, and do so with no warning, then you will be subject to harsh penalties if you are caught.
 
 
A Listing of Mistone’s Regions and their Relative Safety
[to be continued]

[Leanthar]

Excellent. I like this latest post. Thank you sir!

[Fidzy]

When you talk about this to me I was thinking you were in character...

Great work.  Thanks.

A newbie.

[SteveMaurer]

A Listing of Mistone’s Regions and their Relative Safety

Port Hempstead - Mostly Safe

If you are reading this within the confines of Port Hempstead, you are relatively safe.   There is pickpocketing, largely by the docks, but very little murderous banditry.   So breathe easy!   Know that any normal traveler will die here only when the Dragon Stealers (who rumor reports have recently sacked Kuhl, taken Nesar, and have an armada sailing in the direction of this fair city), ever really land here and attack with their enslaved dragons.   Again, breathe easy!

In fact, there are only three unnatural ways to die in Port Hempstead:[LIST=1]

• Fail abysmally to tie yourself to the great Bindstone, by the east gate
  
• Enter the disease and rat-infested sewers
• Be a dark elf

I discuss each in turn.

Bindstones - are artifacts of enormous power.  Much like Gods, they bind the souls of the willing, so that when you die you are, body and soul, brought to them.  Unlike Gods, they do not bring you to heaven, but rather directly back to the stone, body intact.  Gods are not jealous of these stones, for many God's champions fall in their quests to do their deeds, and further, the stones are not perfect.    On each death, the Soul Mother may unravel one of the threads binding a champion to the Mortal Coil, and when enough of them are, the champion can never return again.

Binding yourself to a stone, however, carries enormous risk.  The process is magically arduous, and if you fail, you die and cannot be resurrected.   Since, for a sum of money, priests can also call souls back to the Mortal Coil (if a soul strand exists and the body is intact), most don't feel the risk worth it.    But if you fear more than a mere accidental fall - perhaps instead a combat death in places where priests do not normally venture - attempting to bind yourself is something to consider. It is customary to leave some gold with the guards in case your body needs to be buried.

If you are stone bound, know that after being brought back from the dead, you are very weak.  This weakness subsides in a day or two, but you can regain strength by returning to the place you died to contemplate what happened there.   This is dangerous, however.  For the recently returned are not only weak, but their soul is exposed and may be bitten directly by the Soul Mother.   So do not attempt it unless you know it is absolutely safe.

It is also reported that those who are stone bound can still also be raised or resurrected; everyone concerned with dying should purchase and attune a Soul Stone from a merchant of magics to make this process easier.

Sewers- Port Hempstead is actually built on top of older ruins.  These places are not cramped pipes, but have huge rooms that serve as cesspools that drain into the sea.   In addition to the indescribable stench, rats the size of pit bulls live down there.   You can identify the entrance by the gas that issues from it.  I suggest you speak to the citizenry around the area; they can tell you all about it.  (Also, as general advice, speak to the guards everywhere you go - they can often provide directions, other useful tips, and occasional employment.)

Races - Port Hempstead is a discriminating place.  They do not discriminate upon action, or even worship, but rather, race.   If you are a human Corathite, there is no law against you entering the city.  But if you are a Az'attan dark elf, unless you are given special dispensation, your life is forfeit as soon you take even a step inside.   This is because nearly a lifetime ago (some 600 years), Port Hempstead was sacked by dark elf worshippers of the Mother of Darkness, and dragons, and the Hempsteadites cling to their hatred and vengeance in a way that would make the god Baeron Ca'Duz proud.

Incidentally, if you are a dark elf reading this in the city, you are no doubt diguised and thinking how clever and superior you are.   In truth, however, you are like the proverbial cockroach, who dreams she is queen of the spiders because she hasn't been stepped on yet.

[to be continued]

[SteveMaurer]

Dapplegreen Outskirts (north) - Safe on the Road
 
The road from Port Hempstead leading South to Fort Vehl seems shorter than it really is due to the excellent road system that is still set up, and leads though a pretty, yet wild country.  Largely the road and any parts east are simply miles of dense forest, but to the west, glades open up leading to excellent hunting.

You can find deer here, along with small game (beware the skunks), but realize that this place is too inviting not to have attracted road agents.  Styling themselves as "Mercenaries", these desperate riff-raff are too cowardly to venture meeting a patrol.   But they will attack any group that moves away from the road.

Stormcrest Crossroads - Safe
 
Midway on the road south, you will find the Stormcrest Crossroads, and its traveler's inn, the Stormcrest Shack.   This area is lovely and utterly safe.   It is well nigh impossible to find anything to die from here, except perhaps overeating the trout that can be fished from the streams.   The innkeeper Korim Kitleaten is a dwarf, but presses a delicious blueberry juice.

There is also ancient magic here: a plinth portal to Delanthar on Dregar.  If you don't know where that is, don't enter it.  Instead, take the path to the southwest, headed to Fort Vehl.


Dapplegreen Outskirts (south) - Safe on the Road - nowhere else
 
The closer you get to Fort Vehl, the more the character of the passing hamlets change: poorer, seedier, more disorganized.   Road agent "mercenaries" are quite common here, worst of which have occupied an abandoned watchtower to the east of the road.   Many travelers new to Mistone mistake the tower as a place of safety, perhaps even Fort Vehl itself, only to be mobbed and killed.   Don't make that mistake.

To the west lies the Battlehelm Moors.  Do not even think of going there unless you desire combat with all sorts of swamp creatures, including lizard men, and trolls.  Oh, and a the time of this writing, the Dragonstealer cult is rumored to be in this area as well.


Fort Vehl - Mostly Safe

The difference between Port Hempstead and Fort Vehl is as obvious as the front gate.  In Port Hempstead, a meticulous sign tells you what race you must be to enter.   Half-orcs, for instance, are not allowed in by the guards.     In Fort Vehl, a half-orc is the guard.

There are other differences.  Port Hempstead is rich.  Fort Vehl is poor.  Port Hempstead is clean.  Fort Vehl is dirty.   And worst of all, while there are three ways to die in Port Hempstead, sadly, Fort Vehl only offers two.

Oh yes, Fort Vehl tries to kill you.  It possesses a Bindstone, and after the application of some Corathite enchantments, the crypts are terribly dangerous, but that simply doesn't add up to the same variety of death you find in Port Hempstead.  I would even venture to say that if a Dark Elf Az'attan walked out in the open here, the poor of this town would only see if she tossed them them some coin, rather than immediately attempting to form a lynch party to attack her or die.  Fort Vehl simply lacks initiative.

Still, you will find some unique flavor to Fort Vehl that makes this place worth visiting.  The church of Rolferein makes its home here, out by the docks.  Also, despite the seedy nature of the place, discerning customers with coin can find perfectly acceptable merchant, banking, and crafting services.  The inn is out by the docks.   Outside the gate, there are stables, and there are cornfields as well.

[Alatriel]

 This is because nearly a lifetime ago (some 600 years), Port Hempstead was sacked by dark elf Vierdri'ira worshippers and dragons, and the Hempsteadites cling to their hatred and vengeance in a way that would make the god Baeron Ca'Duz proud.

I think it was discussed that no one except the priestesses of Vierdri'ira even know the name of their goddess and certainly it is not even mentioned except in the highest rituals, so it probably shouldn't be mentioned.


http://forums.layonara.com/ask-gamemaster/229802-ask-loremaster-vierdriira.html

[miltonyorkcastle]

Also, [LORE]Vierdri'ira[/LORE].

[cbnicholson]

hmm..I'm getting a 404 error, page not found.
 
 LORE: Vierdri'ira