Spiders and the wild, wild East

Yesterday started with a small Wendiehunt to kill the time Lafa was sleeping. We cleared the area around the bagsellers hut, where several Nightwendeckas were waiting for us. While i wished for a Morningwendie next, we encountered a Treegiant instead. It took quite some time, but eventually we had chopped enough bits out of him that he couldn´t stand anymore. In the battle Frenzymac once more showed his extraordinary fighting skills.
As soon as Lafa was awake, we headed towards Ardvell. After i had been promised that they wouldn´t let me drown in my small boat, i was still a bit suspicious, but felt secure enough to join. We landed near the portal cave and i started luring one spider after the other in the raised weapons of the group. After a time, we got bored and so bolder and decided to venture inland. We turned west toward the next safe, where we were captured for a while. A treacherous dense fog had appeared where one could nearly not see one's own hands anymore, not to talk of spiders creeping up. Howls of Ch'omaks from the highlands came clearly to our eyes, carried very far by the fog and so we made a picknick in an abandoned hut until the weather cleared up and we could glimpse the stars again. Excellent healing, trapping and luring brought us as far as Burh Fierlen. My heart always gets filled with pity when i visit this town. Its inhabitants have to endure endless rain, and only few houses have roofs solid enough to get dry indoors. On our way back then happened what we had feared all the time. A particularly strong Mammutspider sank its teetch deep in Pit Buls chest, leaving a terrible mess of broken bones, torn flesh and blood that even Frenzy andLafa together couldn´t fix. They even tried to help Pit with 2 potions to stop the blood, but ti didn´t help. But a great chainrun from Falk and some dodging by the rest of us brought us through the spiders to the boats and eventually back home again.

In the evening it was time for another shopping trip. This time an Elithren was the organiser, so as you might guess the destination was a shirt-tailor. The aim was to reach the town in the Noidcaves to buy white shirts. After our start, that was a bit chaotic i called for a leader, knowing that we wouldn´t survive the Noids when everyone acted on his own. After a bit of humming and hawing i took charge and we set out. Quickly we were surrounded by dozens of bulky bodies walking on 8 legs.
It took some time, but with sticking together and eliminating the biggest dangers first we did well enough and eventually reached the dark caves. When we entered, hundreds of facet eyes reflected the light we had brought with us. A fierce stuggle at the entrance began. After regrouping outside our second approach won us the entrance. Luckily Leda remembered pretty well where the town was hidden and so we could keep close to walls or borders and not had to fight every Noid in the caves. They breed incredibly fast in the dark, we would never have approached if we had tried to kill every one of them. At last we made it close to the town. Nasty blue and green Arachnoids were lurking here, making the fight for the narrow path to the city one of our hardest tasks, but in the end we triumphed. Rion Taur'ar bought shirts for everyone who wanted one (and had the money for it) and we headed to the south, were Leda opened a portal back home.

Quite a lot of people still wanted to hunt, so we decided to go nearly the same way again, but this time turn off to the east of the Wastelands, to Ravyn. We entered by climbing down the cliff in a place Gravier and me had discovered a while ago. A bit of chaos was the result, as some people started fighting in the plain, while others were still climbing down or waiting above for their turn. As a result we fell one by one. Well, not quite, bleeding severely i managed to climb up again, but couldn´t lend anyone else a hand. Calling for help made Frenzy and BlackCat aware of our misfortune. After i fetched them, i showed Blacky where to climb down and she fastened long chains on some fallens. Together we pulled them up to us and so after a while everyone was alive again.
We travelled through the plains that are inhabited by bisons and horses as well as some nomads travelling with their covered wagons. Far in the east, on a beautiful clearing in a small forest some of them have established a small settlement, where they rest and offer fights with their Zebras to earn money.
Further east we could see a fiery highplain, but found no place to climb up and explore it. We were busy enough keeping all the animals in Ravyn from stampeding over us as it was. A further addition to the area are treacherous swamps, where one skins in deeply in the mud, causing dozens of Moskitos to rise from their rest and buzz about. Another deadly mistake can be to walk too close to the small holes on the ground for they are a sure sign for a cobras den. At one occasion we angered 4 of them at once, but as they only tried to threaten us away and didn´t bite, we could quickly kill them.

The fighters are arming up

In the last days i´ve had many adventures that i want to tell of now. It all started with a cry for help that came to my ears right after waking up. As it turned out some Arilonians had started another sortie to clear the jungle of Orgahuts and in the meantime a small company of Orgas had evaded this force and made their way to town to build another hut and statue there. These were quickly destryoed again and so i set out to help in the jungle. It was a long, tough battle and although the group was quite big, we didn´t make much advancement. In several hours of labour we could clear just a single snell. This was owed as much to the newly learned skills of the Piratepriests as to our uncoordinatedness. When most of the people left, Dresko and me helped Tofor to get some leather gloves and learn from fights.

The next day was even more exciting. I just sat in town, making scetches of the monsters recently discovered in the lands, when i heard that once more Rion was so curious when discovering a new path that he had to try it - and fell. Now he was on the other end of Tigerland than his group. Luckily the last storm revealed more shortcuts through the northeast, so i arrived quickly at Kashoum and together we made our way to Rions body. I stayed with the group for a while longer, although this time Frenzymac cleary won our skinning duel.

Even more scetches later Gravier, Dresko, Lafa and me went to Wasteland for the first big shopping tour. Dresko had become strong enough to lift a Hatchet and for good measure she purchased an Oakbasher as well. The craftsmen in Dinken were happy to see us and even more so when she paid not only with coins, but also with food.
This trade seemed to wake some bloodthirst in the Nors and so Gravier and Crash persuaded us to try to reach the end of the treacherous snakepass in the Orga Camp mountains. With a queasy feeling i joined the trip. The first surprise was waiting in the tunnel to Camp 2, where two large death vermine tried to stop us early and in return got their fur skinned by us.
We had a very strong group and to my amazement i was able to brick the first cobras coming towards us! We slaid them and an examination showed us that these had been Chamicobras. As these were the only cobras we encountered on our way through the pass, we even survived an ambush by 3 of these snakes without greater difficulty and so reached the cave at the far end. Gravier and Crash unslung their bags and piled several items in front of the inhabitant until he was willing to give each of them a mace.
The way back then held what i had expected of the pass: not only did some Furys help the other Orga, now Forst- and Cavecobras had come out of their den. Halfway back, the combined strength of several cobras and Trotzkis killed everyone but Frenzy. Crash departed and came back to try to chain us out, but both of them fell in the attempt. So the members of the Fast Feet, who lay deepest in the pass, decided to depart as well and help those who stayed.
It was a hard fight, but eventually we rescued them. On the way back i realised something strange. The scared Orga Scout north of Camp 2 stood differently on his island and his alerting cries sounded even more desperate. Did he know what the last storm had caused? I examined the shore and found a place where i could easily jump onto the island. Long had i waited to silence this little guy who always warned the Orgas in the camp of us. I lifted my axe, but as he shrank away shivering i pitied him and let him live. Instead we climbed down the ladder on the island, curious of the underground of the Orga Camp.
A vast cave was stretching out before us, maybe one of their breeding grounds. Lots of Orga Mamas and smaller Orga were trying to stop us, but died quickly. Then we found a fenced off area, several skulls on sticks were smikring at us. Of course our curiousness won and we explored this part too. When i touched one of the stones, they shifted and from the opening a gigantic Orga emerged, the Chief! At first we were still a little stunned by his appearance and so he managed to land several hurting blows. Then we regrouped and with a better tactic could wound him on more and more places, until he was slowed from exhaustion and bloodloss. When he finally died, we found a chest with lots of coins in his posession, a nice ending to a long and interesting hunt.

Founding of the Fast Feet

Yesterday i was sitting around in town and trying to copy a fading map onto the world map, when i noticed that all the people interested in forming a Clan were in the lands. We met at Werrins house to discuss the general setup of the Clan we wanted to form.
When Tofor admitted he goes crazy if someone takes his beer, Dresko must have felt sympathy, because she sponsored a whole keg of Urdarbeer to moisten our mouths during the discussion. We soon found out that we agreed on nearly all the basic aspects of a Clan, so the biggest difficulty proved to be finding a name and a location for the Clanhouse. Finally we agreed on the name Fast Feet. I hope we will have lots of fun together and match our name well by travelling fast and far. The only glitch was Werrin refusing to write down Tofors name on the list, so that it needed quite some rubbing of his head to soothe him again.

Although in the future we want to organise bigger hunts, our first hunt together was a short trip to the Autumn Woods, where Tofor bought some cloth bracers and was busy tagging everything we could lure and brick for him. I am sure soon he will be equipped well and his trainers be proud of him.

On Sunday Gravier had already trained organising big hunts, he had called for a trip to the Mynna Crypt. Under his leadership we first looted 3 more skelettons from the first level and then went down to the 2nd. Quickly we could trade 5 heaps of bones for a sturdier pickaxe to open the coffins in this level.
We were lucky and in the first grave we inspected we found a small paper with the password for the next level: fliuch. But here our luck endet, as the other chambers were really crowded and as some people already had to leave, we couldn´t try to get the second dagger or look into the third level. Still, we gained precious knowledge on this trip that we can hopefully use soon.

The tides turn

As surely as the sun rises each morning the luck is turning again and so the recent hunt have been very successful again. One evening we went to Yaramida with a small group. Thanks to Leda we were able to quickly reach the towers there, as she knows a way to activate the portalstones there. We made our way into the first two cellars without much trouble, killing the minor Orgas and the big mean ones alike!
The second Orga chief had a shiny blue pearl in his pockets and with this we made our way to Ceolsige, the Pirate harbour in Yaramida. Leda was able to trade 4 differently coloured pearls against a bottle of firerum and then we explored the town a little. The pirate´s main trade seems to be slavery, the miserable being are caged everywhere in the village. In one of the houses you can battle an old bear for some coins, while outside the ring someone is offering to trade a chain for the nail of a bear. But even with Leda's magic shield none of us was able to even hit the still agile bear.
We were just on the way back from the forth tower to the next portalstone, when we were ambushed by pirates who killed our healers. With some stops, Leda, Gravier and me made it as far as the beach south of the pirate docks. But when we thought of the narrow way through the caves to the tiny crack leading outside, our hopes dwindled. So i ran there on my own, meeting with Elron, Sindi, Echnaton and Jago. Together we made our way back and everyone could be healed. Thanks again to the rescuers!

In the afternoon of the second day a whole lot of people were around and as the Orgas are camping further and further into the jungle are getting really annoying we set out to teach them a lesson. From Kabana on we clove a way through their ranks, concentrating on destroying the defending statues as well as killing as many defenders as we could.
The further we got to the sea and the ford at Swindlys tower, the more fierce the resistance became and we were always more busy defending against reinforcements rather than advancing further. Still, it was a successful sortie and hopefully we will soon be enough people to be able to destroy the huts too, so that the Dor'Shak is busy defending while we try to get the missing substances for forging a weapon against him.

We had hoped to do exactly this in the evening, but like so many other times, it came differently. There were not that many people around and so we decided to hunt in Hidden Valley. Somehow there were unusually many animals around. We had just jumped over the logs keeping the dragons in the south, when a whole group of big yellow cercops gathered north of the log and made threatening sounds. We didn´t hesitate, but jumped over the log, knives ready and axes above our heads and cut and skinned our way through them.
Then we concentrated on the narrow valleys that are inhabited by Cavern-Cercops and -Dragons. We found an emerald and could kill lots of them. Leyenda even managed to recover a whole armful of Cercopsfurs worth more than 20 coins!
The only foes that overmatched our skills were 2 Mountain Panthers, much larger than their relatives living in our forests, who jumped down on us from the height. None of us had ever seen them in this valley and we wondered if these were just passing through or defending their territory. They fought fiercely, taking small cuts now and then while constantly clawing the group apart. At last, we had to leave them and not only Leyenda and me gave their fur a last regretful view.

Unsatisfying hunts, great prizes and a storm

Although i was not that long awake in the last days i participated in several nice hunts, although nearly all of them ended in desaster.

Some days ago i was on an Aroonahunt with several others. We managed to lure some of the giant Tigris that blocked the stairs from the water to the steady ground away and established a foothold in the area.
We recovered quite a lot of nice furs, among them a most beautiful one worth 30 coins, that Frenzymac stripped with all his skill from the carcass. The agile Panthers were a constant danger to the healers and sadly a pack of them set an end to our hunt, as Lafaborn was not able to heal the others.

Yesterday i was glad to be able to attend Zifers lottery drawing. I had bought one ticket beforehand and another that very day, as Zifer wanted to get rid of the last ones. Then i even won a third one, as i could answer his riddle: "I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I'll make it lighter. What am I?" I was very agitated when the drawing began and even more so when the first numbers were matching those on my tickets! In the end i had a ticket with 2 right numbers and won enough money to buy tickets for the next few drawings :) Sadly i didn´t win anything in the famous Ticketroulette, but the shirt, the red potions and the bottle with white dye were surely premium-prizes for so cheap tickets!

Today a big storm swept over our homeland, altering many things in the lands. We were eager to see the famous Ravyn horses and bisons in their own environment and set out to search for a way into their territory. We were just arriving in the Wastelands, when a call for help for Frenzymac arrived us, he had already run ahead to search a way. What he found was a cave in the southeastern corner of the dangerous Noid-territory. Our group fought towards the south, but the unbelievable number of Noids first scattered our group (and left me no time to make a scetch of the scenery) and then clawed many a hole into us as we made a run for the ominous cave. Gladly we entered it, thinking ourselves safe. But - alas! - a red dragon with golden wings was awaiting us and a ball of flames was greeting us. Being split up and hurt, with nowhere to reatreat, we fell one by one, leaving the cave unexplored and a way to Ravyn yet to be found. Pathfinders should keep their eyes open if they don´t want to run that far and search for a way through the caves. I am sure, though, that there is some other way down to the planes of Ravyn, future explorations will tell.

To compensate for this outcome we decided to go to Aroona once more. After discovering a path that might spare some boattrips in the future we had to try it of course and the result was this:
I decided that hunting was no good today and so i set off to search some paths that the storm had laid open. Indeed i found quite a few and so i meditated happily.

A camping excursion

Yesterday happened so much that i will have to write it down at once, lest the impressions vanish from my head. I started the day with a quick hunt into the Savanna, where i tried to clear some bushes from places likely to have an easy and quick way behind them. Penthka used the trip to do some shopping, while Pit Bull and me were competing about who could recover the most valuable fur of a Maha.

But as soon as a call for an Orga Camp hunt was going through our network of mindcrystals, the shiny little gems on our forehead that allow us to communicate over great distance, we decided to accompany the hunting group. As a pathfinder the way can be travelled in a really short time and so the hutn could start soon after. Our first destination was OC 1, that we quickly took control of, as a Fury was the toughest foe to match.
We made our way north until we struck the river and turned east then. Cries of surprise, dismay and pain arose, as suddenly several member sof our groups burst into flame! The whole area was filled with Orga Shamans, who tried to hide behind trees, where they could safely mumble their spells and cast fireballs upon us. Through all the trip, they should become a bother and in the end, our fate.
After we hadn´t found a cobra in the first parts of the Snakepass, much to Lafas regret, we moved into Camp 2. The Orgas seemed to be alert, but didn´t stand a chance against the groups skills. Not only was every member cunning in his profession, we also worked very well as a unit. On the way to Camp 3 we then burst into a meeting of 5 Furies. Quickly we retreated, knowing we could not engage all at once. We managed to scatter them and kill them seperately. Unfortunately our withdrawal had to go so fast and silent that i couldn´t pause to make a scetch of it. In the end we could clear the Camp and while we were deciding what to do next, some Trotzkis guided by 2 Shamans rushed towards us and claimed a high blood toll amongst the fighters, but the healers did a great job and so the danger was soon over.
We had made up our minds: we would try to fight our way into the Orga Woods. A Large Death Vermine(LDV) guarded the tunnel, but we quickly "convinced" it to let us pass. Our arrival in the Woods meant we had to deal with a deadly combination of foes: we met more Shamans, Furies, Warlocks, a Dredlock and even Large Dark Vermines(LDaV)! I had wished to fight one of them for quite some time, but it something else entirely to fight a lonely vermine somewhere in the open or to fight one beneath big trees where you never know where the next Shaman or big Orga is hiding. But my biggest surprise was that the vermines were much slower than i had expected and i even managed to evade nearly all their bites!
We made it as far as the Tomatoseller and of course this opportunity was used for a small battle with the vegetables.
We just wanted to hunt back, when a LDaVsprung at us at the same time that several Orga were distracting us and fireballs were cast on us. We didn´t retreat fast enough and in an instant all the fighters were fallen. As if it isn´t hard enough for a healer to run among LDaVs, a Dred and lots of other Orga, constantly fearing to burst into flame, stand still and heal other is nearly impossible and so one after the other fell as well. We had to depart, but it had been a great hunt! Don´t miss Graviers view of the events!

A T'roolhunt later Ziyal was gathering us in the OOC-Room to see how we could deal with several monsters. We had to fight yellow Orgas from the Orga Plains, an Ash Wood Giant, Acid Cobras and beasts from the deeps of the BloodDungeon. It was a chaotic and painful experience, but Ziyal nods showed she had learned enough.

The end of the day saw another T'roolhunt, on which i finally found my second stone: that of the Rugumond tribe. Half my search is done, i will have to concentrate on the red Shar'Kin now to be able to trade a ring and a necklace.

Confusing the Orgas

The last days i have made great progress in my search for interesting paths in the landscape. Although searching some areas like the Ursuswoods can be rather painful, i´ve had much fun and discovered quite a lot previously unknown paths.

Because of that i didn´t hunt as much as before, but one of our hunts led to the Orga Camp. Of course i used the opportunity to look into the underbrush for potential ways through the dense vegetation. One of these ways led us quite fast into Camp 3 that we captured easily. I had hoped for more BROs, but it was nevertheless exciting, especially when Gravier spread the rumor that the BRO in one of the huts was a hatred. Of course it was just a fury that was quickly killed, but he had caused some confusion with his statement.

For a change we headed the other way through the OC and by this surprised the watch in Camp 2 by emerging from the hut instead of coming from the north. We took advantage of their confusion and carved through their ranks, quickly securing the place. A bunch of Trotzkis, aTG and a Rage caused some delay on our way home, but in the end we reached Arilon safely.

Another advantage of being a pathfinder is that i´m finally an effective help for a rescue group. While before i always had to watch deedless when discovering a fallen, as i can neither heal nor chain, i am now able to help healers arrive at a fallen much faster. If the healer then uses the technique Camdopi tried on Gravier here, i doubt there´s much left to rescue though:

Another challenging hunt led to Tigers yesterday. Despite nearly only Nors being in the land and their insisting on their superiority the Tigers cut quite some holes in Schmandweg and Mordor. We had some close calls when we encountered whole packs, but Frenzy proved to be the same survivalist as ever and so we were able to recover lots of nice furs and learn from many a fight.

I am a Pathfinder!

Yesterday i finally learned the rest of what Paad Finegrr could teach me about finding paths where there seem to be none. Some weeks after F'rritti had sent me to him, i can now call myself a full pathfinder!In the time to come i´ll search even more thoroughly for paths that might help to shorten ways instead of only discovering them walking by per chance.

Ninja-Fighting

The last days i continued further in my studies, i am confident i will very soon have learned all that Paad Finegrr can teach me. As a sideeffect i´ve discovered several more shortcuts through the lands, nearly every time i go to search in an area i see a crack in a wall, a path through some trees or past looming mountains that will get me to the other side of the obstacle.

Of course there is nothing better to learn from than challenging fights and we had just these on a trip into the Ardvell forest. Right in the first snell we were greeted by 3 Ashursos, who quickly killed the whole group.
Dresko and me were exchanging bloody grins, it seemed we had accomplished to "call" for more healers far faster than we had thought. Together with the help, we managed to kill the bears one after the other and explore deeper into the woods. Several wolflike Lupos and some boars tried to bar the way, but we advanced always further. Deeper in the woods some Thieves thought to empty our pockets while we were eager to keep all the Lupos in view. Most of the unskilled ones didn´t succeed well, but then we met some Ninja-like Ladrons. One was throwing shurikas at us and in the cover of them others clad in woodden brown sneaked up at us to land a hit and disappear again. They forced us to give some ground, but as soon as we had eliminated all other threats we dealt with them and took revenge for many hurting wounds. We made it as far as the river and although i was not overly pleased, we shipped up the river to get back home, because - as the others pointed out, while i remained doubtful - the way there was safer. But we made it back indeed, knowing it will be quite some time until we can challenge the Thieves in the outpost they have erected in the forest.

Another newsworthy hunt lead us to the Glacier. After part of the group (including myself of course) had been beaten unhealable by Grendels while we tried to rescue Dresko there, we were once more reinforced and took revenge on the muddy heaps. Right on the plateau marking the cold Tundra a pack of Tundrawolves were waiting on us with slobbering jaws. We managed to scatter them a little and then killed one after the other. Sadly the densely falling snow made it hard to see where to cut their furs, so we got nearly no coins for them.
Some Wolves, Tigers and Bears later we had arrived at the Glacier. We dared to visit the vermine chamber, but no big ones were around. So we made our way deeper into the Glacier towards the Glaciomyrmchambers. They are tough fighters when challenged in their home, but we brought down a number of Nobles. After some time we left without a diamond, but with the certainity of being able to kill an Ice-Maha, who was waiting for us right at the Tundraentrance. It had been a funny hunt and Leda ported us home quickly.

Precious Scales

It's been some days since i´ve last written here, but as the librarian told me that only on days of advertising more than a handful of people requests this diary to have a look in it, i´ll reduce my writing a little. Having not studied with Harnd Rite it always takes me some time to put down a readable version of my adventures.

In these days i´ve had quite some nice hunts, among them nice hunts with people only recently awakened from a longtime meditation, in places such as Niamphjungle, Sunken Woods or Wendies. Two days ago i was with a group that first hunted a little in Aroona and then searched for the missing Maquas who are supposed to run our postoffice. Although we discovered a few not so well-known things and Leda had made us try some things, we still don´t have a clue how to free them, as there doesn´t seem to be an obvious barrier keeping the Maqua in the cave we found them in.

Yesterday i was invited to a Hidden Valley hunt after i had searched for new paths offering shortcuts for me. Upon arriving i was surprised by only Dolphins and Dresko awaiting me, but we set out nevertheless, determined to hunt as long as possible and if neccessary attract a bigger group by falling. The first Cave Dragons and Cercops fell rather easy to our Axes, as we could kill them right at a barrier only us Arilonians found a way past. When Gravier arrived, we became bolder and ventured further in. While a tour around the lake killing the Tok'Hans proved easier than feared, our venture in a northwestern valley ended with the hoped-for reinforcements. With the additional healers we cleared the whole Valley of foes and could even surprise a Dragon carrying an emerald.
Another unsuccessful T'roolhunt later we gathered for a hunt in Ardvell. While we seemed too few for a spiderhunt there, it turned out that hunting Kajmanos in the swamp was not much of a challenge. Only on the few occasions where we had to deal with several of the bigger ones and the one time we encountered devil leeches proved to be a real challenge. The biggers ones also made up for a nice contest between Jago as the scale-master of the hunt and lucky scale-recoveries by Leda.
We had just decided to change for the spider-plateaus as we were awaiting reinforcements, when we saw an Anaconda wiggling along the shore. Of course we went back to kill the beast, which was less of a problem than some seemed to hope for. The Baby Ogopogo we met on the river was of another category. The group needed just one try, but quite some time to wrestle it down. In the end we were rewarded with several coins for everyone, because Penthka saved some scales from drowning that were worth an amazing 84 coins!
The day ended with the killing of some red spiders. We made our way twice from the landing place to the portal, once to let Leda check wether she could train it and the second time with the newly arrived only to go back home as several others had to leave and hunting in Ardvell would have been too dangerous for the rest. But after all it had been a nice hunt and with the discipline the group showed i may lead such a group to spiders next time.