The Seventh Star Inn - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

piosenniel · 09-29-2005, 04:04 PM

All eyes seemed to glare at the Fordim, or so it seemed to Pio. All except hers. What she wanted to do was finish her game and down the mug of foaming dark ale that sat on a nearby stool.

The tenseness in the room seemed to thicken. It crept up her spine, making her shoulders twitch in irritation. She threw the last of the darts at the board, hitting the outside ‘1’. ‘By the One!’ she muttered, along with a few silent, more guttural imprecations.

‘Hey!’ she said to the grey server that hovered near. ‘Here’s a gold coin. Buy the house a round.’ End over end, the shiny disc arced, falling at the server’s feet. ‘I know, I know. It’s all free here . . . but humor me. I feel generous today.’ She stood back and looked critically at the server. ‘If nothing else, at least buy yourself a pretty scarf and brighten up that . . . uniform.’

She grabbed her dark blue cloak from the peg by the side door and threw it about her shoulders. Perhaps she could catch Cami before she headed out the door . . .

Child of the 7th Age · 09-29-2005, 11:21 PM

Cami stood in the outer hallway, her ear pressed tightly against the wooden door. She was weighing the words that she had just heard from inside the common room and was wondering if it was entirely wise for her to go back there at this time. Earlier, she had wrung the worst of the wet out of her skirt and bright embroidered vest and had decided that she might try to rent some accomodations for the evening. There was no sense trying to head out to her burrow in the middle of the night. Perhaps she should purchase some needed foodstuffs and building supplies at the peddlar's booths in Gondor the very next morning; the shelves in the Shire were still quite sparse on account of that blasted storm. She could even hire a pony to help carry her goods back home. All that had seemed fine and sensible until she'd heard Fordim and the others discussing the possible advent of an old and much dreaded nemesis.

She glanced up with some hesitation only to see Piosenniel's familiar face poking through the half-opened door. "Do you think it's safe?" she whispered to the Elf. "I mean to go back inside the common room for a meal. I thought I heard the word Canonicity . 'Tis enough to make a poor hobbit quake. The last time anyone mentioned that name, I was trapped inside the Books forum for twenty-two days with no possible way to escape. I've a mind to stay at the Inn tonight but if that nasty Canonicity is set on making an appearance, I would as soon sleep outside under the tree. You just can't trust that monstor." Cami gestured towards the outer door and then shook her head in exasperation.

"Now, if we might have a tale or a spot of music round the hearth fire....that would suit me just fine. Those shadowy werewolves should surely have something interesting to say. Or do you think we are doomed to take arms against this Canonicity ?" Cami shuddered slightly and then added, "By any chance, you wouldn't know where I could pick up some good fence pickets, or perhaps hire a pony here in Gondor?

Bêthberry · 10-27-2005, 11:18 AM

Sôông the Easterling ignored the actions of others in the Star and attended closely instead to Fordim's words.

"I understand not your words about teller and tale and listener, for I am not beholding to the law of the One," he replied carefully, not wishing to engender any more hostility, "yet your words are such as will satisfy she who sent me." He bowed formally to the hobbit and looked around to see how he could withdraw from the Inn. No one invited him to stay, nor to share a tankard of ale. At first, none gave way to allow him to leave, but the actions of the cloaked elf and wet, bedraggled hobbit allowed him to manage his egress without incident beyond that of stares. Breathing a sigh of relief and holding his head aside, he repeated Fordim's words to himself until he had them memorised for recital to the lady who sent him.

"“I think that it might be nice to have something with a hooded figure upon it, with the device of a single Ring above, while below him, alleviating the darkness that the figure casts, nine glittering stars, one for each of the gamers who made the tale worth the telling.”

Regaining his horse from the stable master was easy, as the man barely lifted his eyes to the strange figure before him and merely pocketed the coin Sôông handed him. Yet leaving the White City was no easy task, for many in the streets glared at him and more than one soldier guarding the many gates at each circle stopped him, forced him to dismount, and demanded a tariff if not a search of his person for weapons or stolen goods. One even landed a cuff to the back of his head once he was turned on his horse. Still, it was better than a sword or arrow through his back and so Sôông was grateful for that.

There were ragged tents and a rough sort of open market along the walls outside the city, attended by people coarsely clothed, maimed, hobbled, and obviously poor. Some of the traders looked like war veterans who, much like himself, would carry the scars of battle to their grave however their minds might change. Among these people he was the better received, however, with none remarking upon his origin. Here he sought his provisions for his return to Edoras. He filled his bag with foodstuffs, and, as the sun reached midday, began his long trek towards the Western Road. He had been loathe to make the journey, but he needed work and Bethberry was true. He knew she would keep her word.

Fordim Hedgethistle · 11-28-2005, 08:53 AM

A silence had fallen upon the Seventh Star after the departure of Sôông the Easterling. Glasses were emptied, the excitement over the new arrival died down, and dust settled once more on those gathered about the tables. Silence.

There emerged from this silence, at long last, the sound of a pencil scribbling upon parchment. Eyes were drawn toward the corner table where Fordim had established himself and the people of the Star saw that he was hard at work, writing, then crumpling up the parchment, taking out a fresh sheet, and then writing some more. At long last he cried sat back, sighed and stood up. Clearing his throat he addressed the room.

“Greetings,” he began. “I’ve been giving a lot of thought to beginning a new adventure now that I’m here, and I think that at long last I may have found something worthy of the luminaries gathered here.” He bowed deeply to the room. There was no response. He carried on, unaware. “I have a proposal for a new story that I’d like us to tell!” Still, the silence reigned, but again Fordim seemed unconcerned. Striding across to the board he tacked a sign to it. One by one, the people of the Star moved to have a look…

Quote:

A Long Overdue Party

The year is TA 2920 and Gerontius Took is turning 130 years old. Aged but still hale, he has decreed that there is to be no birthday party for him at all this year – as there hasn’t been for the last ten years, not since before the Fell Winter of 2911 when provisions were so scarce that he had felt it improper to squander much needed supplies. Since that date, although times have improved, there are still many hobbits in the Shire, on both sides of the Brandywine, who have not fully recovered from that terrible year and the Thain has made it a point of pride that until every Hobbit can afford to celebrate their birthdays in fine style, neither shall he.

Unbeknownst to Gerontius, however, his vast family – having suffered through a decade without the annual celebration of the Thain (and its attendant days and nights of food and joviality) – has decided that a proper party is long overdue. To get around the decree of the Thain, they have called a secret meeting to discuss a grand party that shall take place on the Thain’s birthday but not necessarily in celebration of his birthday…

------------------------------------------------------------------

The game shall begin with all gamers sneaking into this meeting, which will be held deep in the vast storerooms of the Great Smials. The purpose of the game will be to plan the party, keep it a secret from Old Gerontius, and then to make sure that it comes off.

The game will be open to all gamers in Gondor and perhaps (if numbers are needed) to gamers in the Shire and Rohan on an invitation-only basis. All characters in this game are to be drawn from the genealogical tables found in the Appendices of The Return of the King.

As the game initiator I would ask that anyone interested in playing in this game begin by selecting a Hobbit from the genealogical tables and posting that name to the discussion thread so that everyone will know that this character has been “claimed.” Then begin work on a first post, detailing your character’s trip to and/or arrival at the meeting. When we have enough gamers, I will open a game thread and transfer these first posts there.

As there will be little “action” in this game it will live or die purely by the quality and complexity of the relationships that get established between the characters. Given that most of them will be related to one another, or close friends of the family, they will obviously be very familiar with one another, so I would ask that all gamers work together closely both in the discussion thread and via PM to make sure that the state of relations between their characters are established clearly before the game begins. Ideally, of course, these relations will be strained, change, evolve or even be transformed in game play.

The way I think that this would work best is by asking everyone to post a kind of personality profile for their character, rather than a biography or history. It hardly seems necessary to state this here in Gondor, but I would simply remind people that having a long and elaborate ‘back story’ for your character tends to dampen the spontaneity and creativity of the game. If we could all simply give a sketch of what our character is like, then it would undoubtedly be easier to work out who gets along with whom, or not, as the case may be…

As I have long wanted to play a woman character (and as I am the game initiator) I am going to go ahead and immediately claim Adamanta Took (Gerontius’s wife; née Chubb) as my own. By way of example of the kind of personality profile I am thinking of, here’s what Adamanta is like:

Adamanta, while much younger than her husband, now enjoys the sobriety of age. Formerly possessed of a fiery temper, she is now slow to anger, but quick to hold a grudge against those whom she feels have slighted her or – worse – members of her family. Her sense of familial obligation is such that she would throw herself in front of the Wolves for any one of them…even those whom she is not so fond of. This dedication, which may appear as love, is really born of pride in her vast and accomplished clan. Formerly a Chubb, she is aware of the status that has been conferred upon her by her marriage to the Thain and she guards this status zealously. To her friends she is open, kind, friendly and full of good, sound (although sometimes unsolicited) advice. To those who cross her or earn her ill-will she unabashedly demonstrates contempt and impatience. Her favourite past-time is working in the garden where she has established a formal flower garden known throughout the Shire for its many varieties, some of which she has herself created and named after members of her family. Some of the varieties have, in fact, been renamed as the original honourees fell out of favour with the mercurial and indomitable matriarch of the Tooks.

A murmur went up at this (as did some eyebrows) but again, Fordim seen entirely unaware of these (the eyebrows). He crossed his arms quite magnificently and announced in his best announcing voice: “I have already spoken with some of you about this game, and as thanks for your efforts I’ve given these people the chance to select their roles in advance.

“Esty has said that she would like to write for Donnamira Boffin, daughter of Adamanta and Gerontius and, as it would happen, great-grandmother to Folco, about who Esty knows a bit…

“Pio wishes to create Flambard Took, son of Isembard, grandson of Gerontius.

“Child has said that Belladonna Took is of interest to her.

“AND FINALLY!” he raised his voice at this Announcement, a look of smug self-satisfaction upon his face, “the role of Gerontius Took is to be undertaken by none other than The Barrow Wight himself, to whom I have promised that – as I shall be writing for Gerontius’ wife – that there will be no mushy stuff in this game…at least between the elder Tooks!”

Fordim Hedgethistle · 12-19-2005, 08:01 AM

The door of the Seventh Star blew open and Fordim staggered in, his eyes red and rimmed with fatigue, his shoulders drooping with exertion. His untidy hair and unshaven face reminded several there of the Rangers of the North, who are not known for their cleanliness. And yet for all the haggardness of his appearance there was about the man an air of happiness that spread outward from him like a low fire.

He fell against the bar, hodling it as though without it he would fall down, and indeed for a moment, it appeared as though me might fall asleep where he stood. The barkeep passed him a cup of strong coffee laced with something even stronger and after sucking it down, Fordim was able to speak. Turning to his fellow Gondorians he began a Speech:

"Greetings all! As some of you know I have recently advertised an adventure of an entirely hobbitish sort that I wanted to embark upon and some of you had kindly expressed an interest in it. But I am afraid that at this time I find I must suspend that adventure, and indeed much of my activities in this marvellous realm.

"Back in my own land, my wife, the good Missus Hedgethistle, has just given birth to twins -- this event while, of course, not unexpected, has occured somewhat earlier than we had thought it would. Fortunately for us, the skill of the healers in our land is such that both mother and children are doing well and resting comfortably. But as you can imagine, my energy is now rather in demand and I find that I cannot commit to any long or demanding undertaking here.

"So it is with deep regret that I shall be forced to suspend my proposed adventure for the time being.

"This is not good-bye but only a brief farewell. While I may not be able to visit these lands of the Downs as much as I have formerly I will check in from time to time. Look for me when you least expect me!"

And with a bang and a flash, he was gone.

09-29-2005, 04:04 PM	#1
piosenniel Desultory Dwimmerlaik Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Pickin' flowers with Bill the Cat..... Posts: 7,779	All eyes seemed to glare at the Fordim, or so it seemed to Pio. All except hers. What she wanted to do was finish her game and down the mug of foaming dark ale that sat on a nearby stool. The tenseness in the room seemed to thicken. It crept up her spine, making her shoulders twitch in irritation. She threw the last of the darts at the board, hitting the outside ‘1’. ‘By the One!’ she muttered, along with a few silent, more guttural imprecations. ‘Hey!’ she said to the grey server that hovered near. ‘Here’s a gold coin. Buy the house a round.’ End over end, the shiny disc arced, falling at the server’s feet. ‘I know, I know. It’s all free here . . . but humor me. I feel generous today.’ She stood back and looked critically at the server. ‘If nothing else, at least buy yourself a pretty scarf and brighten up that . . . uniform.’ She grabbed her dark blue cloak from the peg by the side door and threw it about her shoulders. Perhaps she could catch Cami before she headed out the door . . . __________________ Eldest, that’s what I am . . . I knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless - before the Dark Lord came from Outside.

10-27-2005, 11:18 AM	#3
Bêthberry Cryptic Aura Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 6,003	Sôông the Easterling ignored the actions of others in the Star and attended closely instead to Fordim's words. "I understand not your words about teller and tale and listener, for I am not beholding to the law of the One," he replied carefully, not wishing to engender any more hostility, "yet your words are such as will satisfy she who sent me." He bowed formally to the hobbit and looked around to see how he could withdraw from the Inn. No one invited him to stay, nor to share a tankard of ale. At first, none gave way to allow him to leave, but the actions of the cloaked elf and wet, bedraggled hobbit allowed him to manage his egress without incident beyond that of stares. Breathing a sigh of relief and holding his head aside, he repeated Fordim's words to himself until he had them memorised for recital to the lady who sent him. "“I think that it might be nice to have something with a hooded figure upon it, with the device of a single Ring above, while below him, alleviating the darkness that the figure casts, nine glittering stars, one for each of the gamers who made the tale worth the telling.” Regaining his horse from the stable master was easy, as the man barely lifted his eyes to the strange figure before him and merely pocketed the coin Sôông handed him. Yet leaving the White City was no easy task, for many in the streets glared at him and more than one soldier guarding the many gates at each circle stopped him, forced him to dismount, and demanded a tariff if not a search of his person for weapons or stolen goods. One even landed a cuff to the back of his head once he was turned on his horse. Still, it was better than a sword or arrow through his back and so Sôông was grateful for that. There were ragged tents and a rough sort of open market along the walls outside the city, attended by people coarsely clothed, maimed, hobbled, and obviously poor. Some of the traders looked like war veterans who, much like himself, would carry the scars of battle to their grave however their minds might change. Among these people he was the better received, however, with none remarking upon his origin. Here he sought his provisions for his return to Edoras. He filled his bag with foodstuffs, and, as the sun reached midday, began his long trek towards the Western Road. He had been loathe to make the journey, but he needed work and Bethberry was true. He knew she would keep her word. Last edited by Bêthberry; 01-09-2006 at 10:15 PM.

09-29-2005, 11:21 PM	#2
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,133	Cami stood in the outer hallway, her ear pressed tightly against the wooden door. She was weighing the words that she had just heard from inside the common room and was wondering if it was entirely wise for her to go back there at this time. Earlier, she had wrung the worst of the wet out of her skirt and bright embroidered vest and had decided that she might try to rent some accomodations for the evening. There was no sense trying to head out to her burrow in the middle of the night. Perhaps she should purchase some needed foodstuffs and building supplies at the peddlar's booths in Gondor the very next morning; the shelves in the Shire were still quite sparse on account of that blasted storm. She could even hire a pony to help carry her goods back home. All that had seemed fine and sensible until she'd heard Fordim and the others discussing the possible advent of an old and much dreaded nemesis. She glanced up with some hesitation only to see Piosenniel's familiar face poking through the half-opened door. "Do you think it's safe?" she whispered to the Elf. "I mean to go back inside the common room for a meal. I thought I heard the word Canonicity . 'Tis enough to make a poor hobbit quake. The last time anyone mentioned that name, I was trapped inside the Books forum for twenty-two days with no possible way to escape. I've a mind to stay at the Inn tonight but if that nasty Canonicity is set on making an appearance, I would as soon sleep outside under the tree. You just can't trust that monstor." Cami gestured towards the outer door and then shook her head in exasperation. "Now, if we might have a tale or a spot of music round the hearth fire....that would suit me just fine. Those shadowy werewolves should surely have something interesting to say. Or do you think we are doomed to take arms against this Canonicity ?" Cami shuddered slightly and then added, "By any chance, you wouldn't know where I could pick up some good fence pickets, or perhaps hire a pony here in Gondor?

12-19-2005, 08:01 AM	#5
Fordim Hedgethistle Gibbering Gibbet Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Beyond cloud nine Posts: 1,844	The door of the Seventh Star blew open and Fordim staggered in, his eyes red and rimmed with fatigue, his shoulders drooping with exertion. His untidy hair and unshaven face reminded several there of the Rangers of the North, who are not known for their cleanliness. And yet for all the haggardness of his appearance there was about the man an air of happiness that spread outward from him like a low fire. He fell against the bar, hodling it as though without it he would fall down, and indeed for a moment, it appeared as though me might fall asleep where he stood. The barkeep passed him a cup of strong coffee laced with something even stronger and after sucking it down, Fordim was able to speak. Turning to his fellow Gondorians he began a Speech: "Greetings all! As some of you know I have recently advertised an adventure of an entirely hobbitish sort that I wanted to embark upon and some of you had kindly expressed an interest in it. But I am afraid that at this time I find I must suspend that adventure, and indeed much of my activities in this marvellous realm. "Back in my own land, my wife, the good Missus Hedgethistle, has just given birth to twins -- this event while, of course, not unexpected, has occured somewhat earlier than we had thought it would. Fortunately for us, the skill of the healers in our land is such that both mother and children are doing well and resting comfortably. But as you can imagine, my energy is now rather in demand and I find that I cannot commit to any long or demanding undertaking here. "So it is with deep regret that I shall be forced to suspend my proposed adventure for the time being. "This is not good-bye but only a brief farewell. While I may not be able to visit these lands of the Downs as much as I have formerly I will check in from time to time. Look for me when you least expect me!" And with a bang and a flash, he was gone.