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Voting closed: November 04, 2022, 09:24:51 am

[Maloy]

Mythical Ruin

Source: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/JvO98D


What is it that makes an item cursed? Is it some strange magical force that harms others around it? Perhaps it is when an item doesn't perform as it was intended to? Or perhaps its simple superstition in our more primitive ancestors who read spirits and forces into every mundane occurrence?

Today, we consider those questions as we view one of history's most important cursed weapons: Blunthelms the Mythical Ruin

The weapon was created in year 48 of the Age of the Bronze Colossus and Swamp Titan by Atir Rapiddoors. He was one of the greatest smiths in dwarven history and his new axe reflected this.

It not only shined with dwarven wealth, but glowed with power and Atir offered the piece to the legendary warrior king: Stinthad Jawlanced.

Yet, the king upon picking it up was said to have been "rejected" by the piece. Accounts say it was as if a great force threw the king back and force him to drop the axe.
Other dwarves attempted as well and some were thrown, others had their minds assailed by horrors until they dropped the axe, and others simply couldn't lift it off the ground.

The axe denied them all. With no one able to wield it and it having the audacity to defy a dwarf king, the axe was taken by its owner and stored in the vault of cursed relics in Oarpassionate.
This was a great shame to Atir, but it was only due to the dwarf's status as a legendary smith that he did not suffer greater consequences for having a weapon humiliate a king.


It sat in a vault with other cursed treasures and languished. From afar many forces conspired to take it:
The demon lords of both the Elder Hell and the Plagues of Forking. Even Tumam the first necromancer and bane of the elf lands craved the axe for himself!

It languished for 59 years until year 107, in the age of the Swamp Titan, that Oarpassionate was broken.

The armies of Cor marched on Oarpassionate. Ral Ivoryink dueled king Tholtig and slew him and the defenders who were not butchered by the undead forces that surged in after words laid down their arms. Some carried away to be prisoners across the new undead empire and others being allowed to remain as citizens in the city.

It was the taking of the vault of Oarpassionate that stood out the most though.
A vault with all of the world's most cursed items in it and the cursed Cold Hunters cracked it open.



Stolen from the vault was:

Glacialfins the Glorious Accident - A bronze Sword looted and wielded by the demon lord Uzin who led the armies of hell to nearly conquer the entire world
Rightbeguiler the Purity of Tars - A copper sword, cursed both for the paltry material it was made from and its murderous intent it radiated
Hateprice - An Elf Bone grate made by Kadol Pickhelm in a fell mood. He murdered the son of an elven princess and used his bones to construct it
The Fleas of Hell - A dwarf bone bin. Made by Athel Wheelgolds when she murdered the four year old girl, Adil Dyeknife, and was taken by a fell mood
Blunthelm the Mythical Ruin

Blunthelm was taken by Iteb Gorgeships. The legendary dwarf warrior was living in elven lands fostering peace and goodwill between the two peoples and aiding in their endless war against the Elder Hell when the armies of Cor invaded. She was surrounded by armies of living mercenaries and the mindless dead until, in an act of unprecedented cruelty, the invaders loosed a team of undead dogs that would maul and savage her to death.
She was then raised as a Cold Hunter and would become the most powerful warrior of ancient history.

When she reached Oarpassionate and took up Blunthelm it sought to deny her as it did all others, but in that moment a great battle of wills came:
The pseudo-sapient axe with its unknown motives fought against an ancient dwarf warrior whose heart had been twisted by hatred of all life and the room shook and swirled with supernatural energies.

In the end Iteb won and the axe acknowledged her as master.

Cold Hunters were the strongest, swiftest, and most durable creations in the entire world's history. They rarely used weapons and armor as they struck with such ferocious strength that it would shatter whatever they wielded.
Iteb was the exception and was the only Cold Hunter who refused to abandon her old ways as a warrior. She now had an axe that would not break from her mighty strength and armor to stop the blows of her enemies.

She became the most feared fighter in the world in the years to come as she fought in duels, destroyed uprisings, and slew upstart heroes who sought to stop the ceaseless advance of the would be goddess.

Even after Cor's empire fell she continued to hunt and kill. Every kingdom in the world put a bounty on her as she became the worlds most wanted and yet very few took up the bounty. And none who took up finding her ever returned.

Her days, and that of the Mythical Ruin, came to an end in Mergedjackal. Perhaps she led the other Cold Hunters to do one last act of hateful murder against her own kin or perhaps time had returned to her the same sense of duty that her living counterparts had. Maybe it was as simple as she recognized the existential threat of a new demonic invasion, but regardless she stood in battle against the forces of hell.

She slew many and was famously recorded for beheading a great fire breathing tortoise devil that had slain many dwarves. She would later be depicted in a oil painting by the artist Nebo pictured cloaked in crimson and descending from on high with her axe raised against the tortoise devil who snarls below her.

[kesperan]

Freaking epic Maloy!

[neblime]

Elk men cannot gore, as they do not have a defined horn attack.

Nooooo well i guess its shields only then, maybe a kick or two

[King Zultan]

I always like these lore dumps.

[Maloy]

Appreciate you guys! Got a few more in mind just catching up on some other stuff!


I'm finishing setting up. Got held up by things like moving, but back on course!

[Maloy]

A strange merchant smelling of death came to Inkyrouts. He admitted to Kanil that he was a scavenger and recently dug through the ruins of a dead civilization

He brought back the many large daggers of that fallen people, whose spirits cry out for vengeance through the knives.

Kanil decided to take them at a bargain and so I'll be running him as a dual wielding dagger build with martial arts as secondary pursuit

[Maloy]

I have not been missing or forgotten!

I started a discord for this particular "campaign" adventure or whatever word we prefer!


I've been hard at work pulling invisible populations and being sure enemies aren't just easy to kill half naked peasants lol

Here is the discord link: https://discord.gg/mNhAX4dJ

I'll start on everyones characters shortly and we will get rolling!

[Maloy]

I'm doing some finishing touches and while doing so I found that someone had wiped out one of the three goblin civilizations




A human girl named Naspa grabbed Pamud, Kanil's elephant, and led it on a rampage to destroy the Blue Curses



Literally, she failed strategically in every way in the records, but by having an elephant she just won it all!
Didn't bring anyone else with her just sailed in with Pamud who dueled each person in Leapbodice

the battle is apparently on going, but regardless the Blue Curses are officially knocked out of the game

[King Zultan]

More proof that elephants are one of the most dangerous creatures in Dwarf Fortress.

[Maloy]

An Accord of Axes

For most of it's history the Notched Union was in a constant state of rivalry against the elves of the jungles to their north-west.

Humanity was expanding and needing land and as they cleared forests closer and closer to the elves this always led to violence.

Things came to a boil twice in human history:

Once in year 19 in the age of the swamp titan and bronze colossus when the elves declared war. It would be dubbed by humanity as "The War of Savages" with just reason.

The elves pillaged human territories and would devour the bodies of their victims after words. The Notched Union offered peace and promised to halt their aggressive expansion into elven lands.

This could only be held in check so well though as the structure of human government led to the expansions being more spontaneous as human settlements sprung up by free citizens and the Union itself had trouble reigning in its own people. It had fought a civil war only a decade before the War of Savages.

The elves were not entirely satisfied either and this was many years before the Rise of Tumam would cull their numbers greatly. 13 years later in year 32 the other elven kingdom, for at the time they were still separate nations, declared war on humanity.

Instead of elven guerrilla fighters raiding human towns it was armies of wild beasts: bears, bobcats, and wolverines! Giant moths filled the night picking humans off the ground to tear them to pieces! All led by a gigantic panda that was large enough to climb the walls of any human castle with ease! This would come to be known as "The Crazy War"
The Notched Union once again sued for peace and promised to halt their expansion.

Even if the Union were able to put down these beasts, or their terrifying cannibalistic handlers, humans at the south-western border were being endlessly harassed by goblin raiders from the Plagues of Forking.

This culminated in another war two years later against these goblins. Despite being at war with both the two dwarven kingdoms and the human confederacy, the skink devil, Gogol, would lead a massive army to pillage the human town of Foggypeaks. The battle lasted an entire month and although nearly twice as many goblins died as humans, the goblins had the population to spare and the Union forces were left terrified of these monsters.

They sued for peace with Gogol, but he rejected it. Instead, he sent them a counter-offer demanding that they stay out of the wars he was waging against the Union's other neighbors in exchange for a cease to raiding. The Union, feeling surrounded by dangerous enemies, accepted.


This would also be an act of deception though as "mercenary" forces of the Union would march against the Plagues of Forking later. That would also set the tone of the Union's foreign policy for many decades to come. Any form of proactive aggression had resulted in severe damage to society and thus they preferred to act through intermediaries such as mercenaries, knights, heroes and other forces that allowed them to be officially "hands off"

5 decades would pass as wars would wage across the land against the Plagues of Forking, Tumam, and even the Elder Hell to the artic north that would weaken the elves further. The Union maintained its position and officially stayed out of the conflict in the south between the confederacy and the growing army of the dead of the would-be-goddess Cor

Finally, things came to a head at the end of the world.

In year 86 an unnamed dwarven miner found the greatest treasure the world had ever seen, and as he struck it with his pickaxe to secure eternal glory for his people he instead unleashed hell itself on the world. In a single night the entire capital city was massacred. Those not gruesomely murdered were crucified on its battlements. It cannot be exaggerated how terrifying the forces of hell were to the world: One demon united hordes of goblins and threatened the world, but now an entire army of demons ravaged the surface world.

In the four decades it would take to defeat the demons the entire world would see its population dip tremendously and the Union surrendered its policy of official non-intervention.

Law-Giver Xaki Whisksilks, who dreamed of a world at peace, met with two elven queens to discuss terms. Thus an accord was reached: An Accord of Axes

The Union would officially be allies of the elves and be permitted to expand north-west into elven jungles on two conditions:

1. Fight alongside the elves until the demons were wiped out
2. Forbid the creation and ownership of axes by Union citizens

The terms were accepted.
One must understand human longevity as well. It is rare for a human soldier to fight even 10 years before their bodies are too worn and the mantle of war must be passed to the next. This apocalyptic war lasted 4 decades. At least four separate generations of soldiers were deployed and fought alongside the elves.

Source: https://wallhere.com/en/wallpaper/1447171
Demons flying at supernatural speeds through the jungles to massacre human regiments were, in years to come, caught unawares as elven guerrilla fighters trained humans in their ways.

The Union even reclaimed an elven forest from a demon horde and settled it in their own name!

Xika would die of old age 5 years before the demons were finally wiped out in climatic battle that left all sides devastated. His last sight of the world was of a ceaseless advance of the dead to the south into his own territory, the implacable demons massacring, and of elves dwarves and men fighting side by side against all these evils.

[King Zultan]

Huzza more lore!

[Maloy]

Introduction:

In Search of Fairy Tales - The Final Tales


We prepare to launch off on our great quest! Let's introduce our characters

Owe Spoonthief
Brewerbob

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

First we have Owe - An owlman of the elven forests played by Brewerbob. Owe fights using two artifact books and is joining the party as a chronicler of events! He is notably incredibly cowardly and fearful, hopefully he doesn't accidentally flee into more danger! He is a lover of the arts and knowledge and with his high strength and indestructible books he may get some very impressive kills as well! He also has a couple of magical pets to help keep his spirits high!

Burt Lakematched The Honest Banks
King Zultan

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

A returning character, Burt is one of the heroes of the Notched Union. He is a quiet, but dutiful deer man who uses his impressive stature to win many great battles. He fights with a silver longsword and has a divine shield of clear blue metal from a battle against angelic forces that almost killed he and his friends! He still bears the spear of Ral Ivoryink who slew one of Burt's friends(Previously played by Salmeuk) Burt is played by King Zultan!

Astan Gladeshield
Kesperan

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Next is Astan. Also from the Amethyst Confederacy; This human specializes both in crossbow and the sword! He is a cheerful, yet dutiful character who loves merriment, nature and learning!  He spent years in the castle of Overentry and so likely was both trapped by the constant press of undead advance and the desperate situation of humanity and so this is his big opportunity to explore the many places of the world! He hasn't forgotten his duty to humanity though he still dreams of many things such as visiting the slain swamp titan's shrine, seeing an angel and being blessed with the chosen weapons of a god! He is joined by his beloved hunting dog, Aquos. Played by Kesperan

Mubo Lemonstyles
Otto_K

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Mubo, a human mercenary of the Amethyst Confederacy. He knows how to fight and he knows that he is good at it and is making a living out of it! He hopes to reintroduce trade to the world of humanity and is very interested in exploring dwarven ruins if the opportunity arises! Played by Otto_K

Como Bearplait
Neblime

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Como  is an elk man who gives off the demeanor of a berserker in his excitement for violence, which is his whole purpose of joining this crew! He dreams of becoming a warrior of legend and fights with two shields! Como loves a good brawl and a good challenge! He should get along well with some of our other team members. Played by Neblime  He also has a pet hamster!

Kanil Inchwhip the Humorous Belly of Bites
Maloy

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Kanil is a returning character from two different adventures in Adelaathira. Kanil used to be the muscle-brained protector of a tribe in the plains, but the years of battle and experiences gained have made him much more thoughtful and considerate of his role in the world. Following the destruction of the dwarven kingdoms Kanil led the orphaned dwarf children to Inkyrouts to live there. He picks up extra work as a bounty hunter both to bring stability to the land and to financially support the many children. He has put away Cloudfought and now wields daggers said to come from a slain civilization that never found justice. His clothes and armor are ragged, but there are few stores left in the world and he doesn't find many humans to loot these days either!

Honorable Mention: Pamud Breachedancient the Toe of calamities
AI

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Pamud is possibly the most successful war beast in the world's history. The elephant has fought hordes of undead, goblins, dwarves, and just about anything the world threw at him. He is covered head to toe in scars and still has blades jutting from his skin that he will not even allow Kanil to remove. The elephant was only recently just stolen from Kanil by a starry eyed young warrior who took the elephant and used him to finish off the Blue Curses, a demon worshiping goblin cult in the ruins of Leapbodice!

A Humble Beginning
The team gathers together, for one reason or another, and is sent to hunt a threat to the land! Bandits! Brigands have set up along the only road leaving Inkyrout, the last human city. The bandits attack and rob passing travelers making life more difficult in an already desperate world. The team begins their hunt just north of the city




As the game goes along we will gather the conversations and actions of the players in-game and tell a narrative with it. It will play out a lot like a tabletop campaign in some ways! If someone decides they want to join later they can!