Tradegate Cured! Army of Disease Unleashed! Vondus Under Fire!

It appears the great plague of Tradegate has ended, but not without significant cost.

Spiritualists report the energy of the disease began siphoning away to two distinct locations on the 19th of Petalsong—one located on the outskirts of the major city, one within. Though no turbulence has been reported from the location on the outskirts of the city, the one located within Tradegate erupted with danger as a massive abomination of the laughing plague crushed its way from the basement of a dilapidated home on the east end.

Horns blared as the town guard and stationed members of the Irvanshirian army took up arms against the vile creature. Despite fighting valiantly, the armed forces had to retreat shortly after being summoned, overwhelmed by the manifestations of the disease and a cackling band of followers who appeared humanoid. Dozens fell to the disease’s corruption, but no townsfolk were reported deceased.

The violence ended as the abomination crushed its way through an outer wall, its back towards Tradegate as it fled. Scouts report the abomination has manifested thousands of iterations of the disease, its numbers climbing by the day—an army of disease and laughter untamed.

Irvanshirians nervous about the disease began flocking to the Crown’s gates in Point Edgar, demanding answers and reassurances, screaming for an update from the High Inqusitior and Crown. When pressed, Ambrose Glass, Herald of the Crown, House Brighthand, issued a statement about the recent activity:

“The King offers his sincerest sorrow for what has occurred in the great city of Tradegate. His thoughts are with its people and the families of those who have suffered or lost loved ones due to this devastating affliction. . .

The Crown, steadfast in its resolve to keep Irvanshire safe, has been reassured by High Inquisitor Vondus that he will personally oversee that the army of disease, and its abomination, will be dispatched as swiftly as possible without any more loss of human life. Our complete confidence rests within his abilities.”

At last note the army of disease was moving eastward on the coast. Citizens between Tradegate and Bloomingport are urged to take extreme caution and prepare for a potential plague on their doorsteps. 

In the Name of the Crown

In the wake of the quarantine of Tradegate, the Crown calls to officially recognize Lord Vega of House Vondus from the dimension of Mortuan for an incredibly sizable donation of gold, aid, and resources in support of relief efforts to the great city and, thus, Irvanshire. 

Henceforth it be known: in recognition of these deeds; and in recognition of a stalwart resolve against decay and in betterment of humankind; insofar as the rights be extended throughout the kingdom of Irvanshire, the Crown doth decree an inquisition occur with the sole focusing of warding the state against future famine, disease, and plague. 

Effective immediately, the Crown doth decree Lord Vega of House Vondus of Mortuan, with all rights do, as HIGH INQUISITOR of this task force. 

So shall it be known.

Ambrose Glass
Herald of the Crown
House Brighthand 

NEW YEARS CELEBRATION WROUGHT WITH LAUGHING DISEASE! TRADEGATE QUARANTINED!

Thousands gathered in Tradegate for its annual New Year’s celebration. On the tail end of a panel discussion spurning the old gods hosted by the Allegiant and moderated by acting Minster Heartsong, a glorious fireworks display concluded another epic, citywide celebration. The high spirits of the crowd seemed to peak as the audience burst into laughter together.

Little paid any attention first to the giggles gurgling from the frivolity at first—all symptoms of a wonderful time. But then, the laughter increasingly felt forced. As the crowd began noticing that they couldn’t control their own laughter, people’s anxieties grew into panic as they began struggling to breathe. The local town guard was called in to bring the peace and to prevent riots and to force citizens back into their homes, taverns—or really anywhere but the streets. No casualties have yet been reported.

Initial diagnoses from local spiritualists identified that the affliction was of a laughing disease of unknown origins that was spreading like wildfire through Tradegate. Heavily contagious, the disease’s strand was not one ever faced by the spiritualists before. As all cases analyzed were still early in the disease’s incubation, the spiritualists expressed concern about what would happen as the disease progressed in the body. They are still heavily monitoring cases but expressed a lack of magical ability to cure every case of the disease in the city.

Tradegate officials cannot confirm the disease has been contained in the chaos of its onset, stating it was possible parties fled the city with the disease. In an effort to further stop the spread, by order of the king, Tradegate has been officially quarantined. To help maintain order, the Irvanshirian Army has been called to help enforce the entrances and exits of all parties in and out of Tradegate.

Irvanshirian economists are claiming that every day of Tradegate’s quarantine will amount in serious—even catastrophic—consequence to the Irvanshirian economy, with thousands of gold projected to be lost. They are still uncertain of the impact this will have, by consequence, on the rest of Irvanshire, but the outlook at this time appears grim, especially for those most in need who do business with Tradegate frequently.

Should anyone have any information about the disease, a cure, or anything to help in this crisis, they are asked to report to an Irvanshirian soldier outside of Tradegate—who will then direct you to the appropriate avenue depending on area of aid. 

Forgotten Battle Site Desecrated

In late autumn of the year 2004 AoA, one of the lesser known battles of the Partisan War took place just a few miles east of the border between Irvanshire and Tohmshire, along a ridge of hills in The Go-Betweens. An elite force of knights from the Kingdom of Lowex, only 90 strong, attacked an Irvanshirian encampment manned by a company of almost 900 of the kingdom’s soldiers. The battle resulted in a perfect stalemate despite how outmatched the Lowexians should have been. There were heavy casualties; both sides, it is said, were killed to the last man.

The Partisan War, up to that point, had been primarily fought between the kingdoms of Irvanshire and Tohmshire. Lowex had only recently gotten involved, mostly politically, on the side of Tohmshire. Some say the Incarnation of War, weary of all the saber-rattling between Irvanshire and Lowex, had incited the encounter and bestowed upon its battlefield a blessing of great morale under which both sides were affected. So much blood was spilt on that day that when the short-lived battle was over, the very ground upon which it was fought was stained a deep crimson and had remained so for more than a century. It is also said that the spirits of those who were slain during the battle still haunt the site in search of the victory that never came. Truly a forlorn memorial that so few of this generation even know exists.

So why, now, do I teach this little-known lesson in history? I do so because I am not the only one who remembers the Battle of Red Ridge. Recently, others of ill intent have returned to the forgotten battle site under the cover of night and invoked dark and unholy magic upon its crimson soil. Eye witness accounts report of such things as “…ebony fire raining down from the sky” and “…crimson lightning exploding from the ground” and of “…the very earth crying red tears of pain and sorrow” accompanied by “…a cacophony of mournful wails escalating into the chorus of a rage-filled battle roar of an army of the damned.”

But, these were all things scried from afar by old men wearing long white beards and silly conical hats emblazoned with such things as shooting stars or lightning bolts. What was actually discovered by those who were tasked with investigating such colorful claims was far more unsettling. The foregone battlefield was indeed desecrated along with the surrounding hillside on which it was fought. All plant and animal life found there had been drained of all Essence, and the landscape was as barren, as though Death himself dwelled there. Furthermore, all across the battlefield, the earth had been scorched and pockmarked and lay turned over in heaping mounds, and an acrid mist reeking of the grave clung to the ground which no longer maintained its blood-colored tint. Instead, the soil is said to appear as grey and cold as a lifeless corpse.

Further exploration of the site uncovered the tracks of what could only be described as a large force whose numbers could not easily be estimated. More perplexing was the fact that this reputed force divided into three fairly equal squads before marching off in different directions and, when followed, each led to the lands of one of three of Irvanshire’s noble houses… House Brexiano, House Camis, and House Falstoke.

Tricia Ravenhope

Roving Scribe and Historian

Annual Brewers’ Auction to be Held in Elmerton On the 29th of Harvestwane!!!

The Irvanshirian chapter of The Brewers’ Guild will be hosting their world-famous Brewers’ Auction on Wakingday, the 29th of Harvestwane in the Ampitheater in Elmerton in the late afternoon hours. Individuals seeking to bid on lots during the auction should come prepared with their coin on hand so that they may lay claim on a wide assortment of items including, but certainly not limited to:

 

-dinner with nobility!
-luxurious vacations!
-noble steeds!
-treasure maps!
-alchemical components!
-lessons!
-magical artifacts!
-ALCOHOL!
-much much more!

 

For those seeking to auction off lots during the auction, a representative from The Brewer’s Guild will collect information on these lots at the Tavern in Elmerton on the eve before the Auction. Individuals should have the following information prepared on a piece of parchment to ease the process:

 

-what it is
-starting bid
-a description of the lot for the Auctioneer. Try to limit this to 2 or 3 sentences.
See you in Elmerton!

Brewers Beware! Brewer’s Guild Apprentices Disappearing!

As this humid summer trudges towards its inevitable conclusion, the peep-frogs slowly silence their nightly nocturne, and the cold winds slumbering in the north begin to stir anew, the Irvanshirian Brewer’s Guild has been busy at work preparing for the Brewer’s Auction, taking place in Elmerton at the tail-end of Harvestwane.

But something is amiss.

Over the past two weeks, three apprentices have disappeared from across the kingdom, leading both the Brewer’s Guild and the Irvanshirian militia to suspect that something is amiss. When Sturgill Brightstream, a dwarven apprentice in Craftshire known for his laziness, fled, the Guild attributed it to nerves and a heavier workload than he was accustomed. But when the star impish twin-sister apprentices of the Brewer’s Hall in Point Edgar vanished without so much as a whisper, the Guild realized that something was terribly wrong. For now, preparations have slowed as the Guild is taking extra precautions and looking over their collective shoulder a bit more frequently and warily.

Anyone with any information about the missing apprentices is urged to step forward and assist in resolving this affair. A handsome reward is promised for anyone with information leading to the recovery of the apprentices, more so if they are recovered in a timely manner. People closer to the northern end of Irvanshire may reach out to Sgt. Mortimer Thwain of the Irvanshirian Militia, located in Northwatch, or should you find yourselves in the south, speak with me, Juniper Fenn, chronicler and head stewardess of the Brewer’s Guild in Point Edgar.

Be wary, and good luck!

Falstoke Noble Gone Missing!!

Let it be known that Lord Ian Falstoke has vanished! His last known location was the Wining Spirit Tavern in the Fiddlehead Hilltown of Elmerton. Officials at the Lav’Endros Manor House report that he was in the company of five men at the time of his disappearance. The men named were Bram Norvin, Ukobach, Heinrich Lockberg, and two of the house guards of House Acciora. Since Lord Falstoke has not been found, the abovementioned individuals are the prime suspects of an impending investigation into the kidnapping and/or murder of a Noble.

Duke Abner Falstoke III has declared that, from the dawning of the first day of Enlightening, three months will be allowed for the return of Ian Falstoke, during which time he will be considered missing. If he has not returned by the dawning of the first day of Harvestwane, Lord Falstoke will be presumed dead, and all individuals suspected reasonably will be tried for the Murder of a Noble, a most serious crime in the Kingdom of Irvanshire.

Any found guilty of the murder or abetted murder of a noble will face Public Execution. If any of the executed should return from Death, as is rarely the fortune of a Magestan, they will then be magically Excommunicated from Irvanshire unless the patron noble of a given locale takes mercy upon them, in which case they will be subject to permanent magical detention within that locale.

Any information leading to the return of Lord Ian Falstoke will be rewarded by the Most Gracious Duke Falstoke.

Invitation to Smozzenpaunse

You have been cordially invited to participate!

Congratulations! Elmerton has been officially invited to participate in the 300th Annual Irvanshirian Smozzenpaunse Brownie Village Building Tournament! On this monumentous and historic tricentennial, we are inviting non-Ogrelings to participate in this Official Tournament for the very first time, and you Elmertonians have been deemed worthy of entry.

Over the past two years, you have been unknowingly watched and judged by two separate individuals who have witnessed the spirit of Smozzenpaunse within you all and the hard work, patience and dedication required to excel in the village building process. And so, on the words of Morvan Roundtusk of the Roundtusk Ogreling tribe and Gurunk, ogre shaman in good standing to The Furies, you have been judged worthy of entry from this year and stretching on ever-after.

Smozzenpaunse Eve falls upon the 9th of Enlightening — that’s Wakingday to all you people who don’t use calendars — so it is imperative that your village has finished construction be the end of the night on Wakingday so the Brownies can come and have their OWN festival and stay in your village. On the morning of the 10th of Enlightening we, The Brownie Architecture Judging Committee, will arrive in town to listen to your explanation of the village before we head on our way to other places throughout Irvanshire to judge other villages. Ensure that your Foreperson is present to provide names and other information, else your chance to win will be forfeit.

Prizes

1st Place: 10 golden crowns and a secret skill passed down through Ogreling tribes for generations
2nd Place: 5 Golden Crowns and a bottle of Special Reserve Ogreling Enchanted Mead with Brewing Lessons on how to make your own
3rd Place: 2 golden crowns and one random Very Rare component
4th Place: 1 golden crown
5th place: 5 Silver pieces

Remember! Brownies like their villages off the beaten path, usually in a shaded grove with or without water. All construction should be made of natural materials found in the local wood, else the brownies will shun the village itself. Brownies are a secretive, mysterious folk the size of your thumbnail, so do not try to catch one; they WILL outrun you.
So avoid the sweltering Enlightening sun and spend some time in the cool shade performing some calming, peaceful tasks. We look forward to see what you are all made of; we’ve heard nothing but good!

-The Brownie Architecture Judging Committee

Magestic Games Comes to Elmerton

Fortune’s Vanguard is pleased to present a new year for the Magestic Games! Happening in Elmerton on Wakingday, the 12th day of Petalsong, you will be able to find games! Prizes! Songs! and more! Entrance to the whole day of games is 5 silver pieces unless you are a dues-paying member of Fortune’s Vanguard. Sign ups can happen with the treasurer or highest ranking member of Elmerton’s chapter as soon as Gatheringday, the 11th and the Games will begin on Wakingday.

The contests that you will find at this year’s Games include the following:

Duelist Tournament: 1v 1 no spells, potions, toxins, or skills. First to 3 points wins.

Mages Tournament: Teams of 5 compete using only magic missiles.

Capture the Flag: Teams compete to steal the other’s flag 3 times.

Pick Pocket Challenge: an all day challenge to steal point ribbons, but don’t get caught or you will get a curse token.

Stealth Challenge: sneak through the area and steal the treasure fastest.

Grand Melee: anything goes, everyone for themselves, fight.

Bardic Competition: Sing off

Bounty Hunter: Nightime hunt vs. Competitors and monsters.

Join Fortune’s Vanguard in a day designed to test your skill and bravery and perhaps you just may find your Fortune!

Imps Boycott Bloomingport

 
The port city of Bloomingport hasn’t seen an exodus of imps of this magnitude since the “Concession of Concessions” was passed in 1785 AoA. Imps from all walks of life are packing up their homes and businesses and leaving in search of what the common census claims to be, “A safer place to live.”
Many are seeking sanctuary in larger cities like Tradegate and Point Edgar, while others aren’t taking any chances and have made the decision to leave the kingdom of Irvanshire entirely. Some going as far as relocating off Magesta to other dimensions like Ishria, Yefrines, and even Redbaal where they hope to find safety in numbers from the threat of being “Imp-napped”.
For those of you who aren’t an imp or not caught up on the current criminal affairs that have been transpiring in the dark alleys and unsavory parts of the City of Parks and Gardens, over the past year or so hundreds of imps have gone missing without a trace in Bloomingport and the local authorities have done little to nothing to stop it. Rumors abound as to why this is, ranging from incompetence in the ranks of the cityguard to corruption in its leadership and no one seems to know who is responsible or why it is happening.
Whatever the case may be, the criminals involved have been getting away with it for far too long and will continue to do so until someone steps in and takes charge of the situation or there are no more imps left to abduct.