Chanson

Chanson Cast Margo – Raymond Hugh – Robert Kevin – Martain Kris – Orella Tony – Gael Season/Year – Summer 793 Date: 9/16/2006 Knight Errant A man appears at the covenant gate. He has heard of the covenant, though is not aware of its exact nature. He wants to talk to the people in charge. He has a proposition for them. He is aware they are looking for information about a creature, which he can help them with. In return, he wants them to aid him in a quest. He wants to recover and bury some bodies. His father was involved in Charlemagne’s campaign in the south, and was responsible for guarding the bodies of the fallen. His position was overrun, and so he failed in the task. The knight wants to right this. Basilisk Traveling through the woods heading west, they see a number of ravens circling. When they reach that point, they find a body. No obvious marks. Clearly a villager. Later, they encounter a spring that has been poisoned. Basilisk is nearby and comes out. They run. They try some clever things to slow it down. On the Road As they travel, some of the men are waking very cold. The morning doesn’t seem too cold, but the night must have been. As time passes, some will awaken with long term fatigue gone. A Friendly Little Village Villagers try to poison them and steal their goods. Robert uncovers some suspicious items in a barn (wealth they should not have). Villagers intend to kill and rob them. They try them and kill all but the children. Breche They come to the Breche of Roland. The knight seems to not ever have heard of this. Here they enter the Basque lands. Poisoned Spring As they ride down the pass they can see the spring Roland threw his sword into. It is different than Robert recalls. It can now be approached, whereas before it could not. No sword. Encountering the Locals Guerilla style attacks by the Basques. A troop of 10-12 with clever ambushes, quick strikes, and a little magical support attacks them. The terrain helps support the basques (narrow defiles, good cover). Try to take them unawares and attack their camp at night to keep them from getting good sleep.. Robert estimates 2 or 3 days to get out of the good areas for ambushes. The players counter attack at night and rout the basques. Familiar Ground As they get into the area where the battle took place and the bodies were guarded, the knight recognizes the surroundings. They do some searching, find the cave they holed up in, but no bodies. This area has an Angry aura of +5 which adds to the strength of the ghosts. It also affects people so they are on edge and ready to fight with each other Raymond uses Dominion skills to alter conditions. As they camp in the area, they are attacked at night by the ghosts of the dead soldiers and the basques killed in the attack. They win the encounter (i.e., don’t run), the angry aura increases by 1. The men with them are properly freaked by this. After the battle, at about midnight, the moonbridge can be seen. Moonbridge A scintillating, translucent bridge leads from the area they are in up to the cave where the bones should have been. It clearly leads into a regio. The bridge shimmers and disappears as clouds pass over the face of the moon. The regio is a humpy heath covered in fog. The mist is opalescent in the moonlight. There is movement in the fog. The illuminated tips of spears and edges of swords can occasionally be seen in the mists. There is an army out there. This is an Infernal Aura of +3 (+ level of Angry aura). The knight recognizes the layout. It is where the battle was fought. He wants to turn the tide this time. He recognizes the sword that the opposing general carries: Durendal. There are Franks and Basques on opposite sides of the field. The Basques outnumber the Franks by 5 to 1 (50 to 10) initially. Keeping the Franks from breaking is what matters. This is why they lost the first time. The battle is won, they awaken in the cave. It is dawn, the bones are there, and so is Durendal. The Angry aura has been broken.

Lore Chanson is a term used for a song. In this context it carries the connotation of a lyric saga depicting noble actions and notable events; a song about heroes and their deeds. Inrisor departed for Perpignan in late fall of 792. Ostensibly he went to see what he could find out about Basilisks. Those cynical members of the covenant thought it probably had as much to do with filling his belly over the winter as it did with any actual research. He went with the party sent to get more foodstuffs for the winter and stayed behind to see what he could find (and eat). He pursued two avenues of inquiry. By contacting Martain, he made some connections with local scholars and had a chance to peruse a few books regarding legends, lore, and mythical beasts. He also pursued contacts of a more dubious nature through Stefano the Bruise (a criminal contact in the city). This led to some eccentric characters who fancied themselves “scholars of ancient mysteries”. Between these two connections, he found the following: The basilisk (also called Regulus) gets its name from the Greeks. Literally translated it is “the little king”. The basilisk is referred to as “the king of creeping things”. Typically basilisks are associated with desert climes. Tales say the gaze of the basilisk is deadly and looking one in the eye will be fatal. They are also reputed to be extremely poisonous. One tale tells of one of Alexander’s men stabbing one with a sword and perishing due to a poison so virulent it traveled up the blade. Basilisks have a reputation for being able to breathe fire as well. Physically, they are described as moderate sized (1-2 feet) snakes. Some tales tell of basilisks drinking from a stream and the stream causing “dog-madness” (rabies) in all subsequent drinkers. It is also said that the only animal able to stand against a basilisk is a weasel. The weasel must first eat the herb rue so that he will be immune to the poison. Gael spent the winter trying to get information from the Abbey. This proved somewhat difficult as both Raymond and the Abbot were gone for the first bit of winter returning only after Twelfth Night. Prior Veritious was not very accommodating. With the return of Raymond and the Abbot, things went more smoothly. There were no texts on legendary beasts, but in reading a Greek text by Pliny, Gael found the following: The poison of the basilisk is deadly, and has only one known cure: the tears of a Phoenix. The creature can be identified by its peculiar coloring. It is a snake of two hand-spans in length with stripes running lengthwise down its body which is covered in white spots. It is found in the desert and dislikes colder climes. It is known to sleep in a burrow during the winter, or during very cold nights. Alexander once saved his men from a basilisk by causing the creature to gaze at a polished shield. The rays from its eyes were turned about and killed it. Birds are its natural enemy, but can rarely harm it as the basilisk will breathe fire as they fly over and then swallow them where they fall. The text continued with a description of all the ways a basilisk can kill. It has a deadly glance, a poisonous bite, and even touching it can be fatal. Pliny tells of a soldier who lanced one with a spear and was killed when the poison traveled up the shaft. Pliny implied the gaze could be used at a considerable distance and claimed he saw one kill a man who was facing away from the snake. Albus had a breakthrough in translations of the Bonisagus’ texts. He has identified the magic items you have: Magic Items Light Stone Arts: Creo Ignem Level: 25 (Base 5, +2 Sun, +2 Room) Effect: Bright as a clear day for 30 feet on any side Activation: Say “Lumos” 1 Use per day Penetration: 0 Total Level: 25 Fire Stone (Lost in Icon) Arts: Creo Ignem Level: 5 (Base 4[Ignites flammable items (dry wood)], +1 Touch) Effect: Sets fire to flammable items 1 Use per day Penetration: 0 Total Level: 5 Puissant Plow Arts: Rego Terram Level: 4 (Base 2, +1 Touch, +1 Concentration) Effect: Moves dirt and stone aside to make plowing easy Activation: Say “Hup, ya, hup” (as if coaxing a horse) 2 Uses per day (+1) Penetration: 0 Total Level: 5 Mason’s Trowel Arts: Muto Terram Level: 5 (Base 3, +1 Touch, +1 Concentration) Activation: Say “Teres” Effect: A whole stone becomes as soft and pliable as clay Unlimited Uses (+10) Penetration: 0 Total Level: 15 Additionally, Albus uncovered references to another stash of magic items (and possibly other things). This reference was more obscure, and in a different code. The man must have been paranoid. This reference makes it clear that not everything you have has been discovered, but does make specific reference to the Creo and Herbam sources in the covenant and how to harvest them. It recommends against freeing the prisoner located where the vis is (a reference to Jon Lane). With the lack of foodstuffs, work on the chapel has been postponed. A partial structure has been erected, but without the ability to feed men, further progress will be difficult. The winter and spring did not pass without event. The druid who unleashed the Basilisk was busy, if sporadic, in his actions against the covenant. The forest to the south of the covenant (toward the mountains) is no longer passable. The trees have become gnarled and twisted. Nothing but ravens and boar have been seen in the woods, and neither is edible (one hunting trip brought back a boar, and all who ate it got sick). Additionally, there are fogs in the wood that disorient and frighten, and occasionally wispy patches will swirl up and engulf men. The men are changed by this (one man became a snake, another became a raven). The change seems to be permanent (or at least has lasted until summer). The grogs are beginning to murmur. The spring has been colder than usual, and blooming was quite late, not occurring until nearly summer. With the tales of the basilisk sleeping in cold weather, this has been considered a mixed blessing. Orella and crew returned in the middle of spring. They brought tales of Orella’s destruction of two villages and the recovery of some unusual, and old, scrolls and items. They also told of a place that could use some further research. At the end of spring Vittano of House Mercere returned. He brought with him welcome tales from the road and songs and stories to raise spirits. More importantly, he brought a list of known hedge wizards in the area. None of them have been contacted, and it is not clear what their disposition to the Order might be, but it is a place to start. Name Location Power/Realm Raven Foothills several days west Dreams Thibaut Basque lands over the Pyrenees due South Summoning Animals Ahriman Last known was 1 week west of Girona in Catalonia Necromancy Old Meg Woods west of Nohedes Healing Briand Woods 1 week west of Nohedes Druidic magic Clemens North of Salses Mental magics Abraham On the coast between Ceret and Perpignan Kaballah At the end of spring Filius has completed his “druid whacking” spell. He spends a couple of days casting it on the stone. He seems confident that the druid should be finished. As summer moved nearer, Nohedes lost more people. Some village hunting parties sent into the western forest have not returned. The small village is steadily getting smaller, and food seems to be a difficulty for them as well. The snow stopped falling as of the vernal equinox, and no rain has fallen since. The crops are withering, animals are weakening due to lack of good pasturage, and the summer looks grim. At the onset of summer, Robert son of Terryn arrives with his mother (and a whole new band of men) in tow. She is here for the wedding. You know, her wedding to Terryn… Robert Lore Monies promised (Glaciea es Flammae, the church loot) were delivered. You shared it out among the men, and they were, of course, thrilled. Too thrilled. Nothing but problems. Most of them left to pursue their leisure. One was killed in a bar brawl over the money. You also lost the man you sent to guide the covenant to the weird place you stumbled across. Supposedly killed by some big rock creature. So, you have to start almost from scratch finding new men. Fortunately, that is not too difficult for you. Make a leadership roll (leadership + either Com or Prs + stress die/2 = number of men you recruit; use the provided template with customizations). At least your mom is healthy again. You have safely escorted her to the covenant so she can at last marry your dad.