# [Scarred Lands] Ashes & Wormwood



## SSS-Druid (Jul 10, 2002)

Greetings.

I am currently running a Scarred Lands game based out of Hollowfaust, titled _Ashes & Wormwood_. Now, operating under the assumption that I will have the time to update it often enough, I am going to detail what occurs in the game in this story hour.

I can't make any promises about how frequently I will be able to update, as my production schedule can get kind of hectic. But, for the moment, I've got plenty to tell and the willingness to do so.

Next Post: The player characters.


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 10, 2002)

*Player Characters*

*Anjelika Cass (human female, Rog1/Sor2, CN)*

Anjelika was born in Hollowfaust, to a very successful merchant prince. Unfortunately, he was a bit too successful, and the Guilds made it clear that his wealth gave him a social influence that simply wasn’t welcome in Hollowfaust. So, he moved his residence – keeping a small piece of property in the City of Necromancers – to the nation of Zathiske.

Anjelika grew up learning her father’s trade. She was always a bit strange, with a wandering gaze and a large birthmark in the shape of raven’s wings on her back. Unfortunately, when she was a young woman, her parents were killed by bandits; at nearly the same time, several rival merchant houses descended on poor Anjelika, brandishing legal documents that claimed that her parents were deeply in debt to them and seized much of what belonged to her parents. One of them, Jahanar, a swarthy, fat spice merchant always surrounded by the bitter smell of julka weed, intimated that if she joined his harem, she might continue to live in the splendor to which she was accustomed. She turned him down flatly.

That evening, masked men broke into her home, obviously with violent intent. She fled them and something in her mind seemed to snap. Something seemed to draw her on, and she fled to the cemetery, hiding in a mausoleum, hoping that the men wouldn’t dare to follow her there. She was wrong and they found her.
Suddenly, the strange susurrus in the back of her mind clarified into the whispers and wailing of the dead, and she snatched up a thigh bone. Black energy crackled and it transformed into a sword. She plunged it through the stomach of one man while the other fled from his single glimpse at her abyss-black eyes. She stumbled back out into the night of the cemetery, which seemed to be alive with speech, but she could see no one. She cried out for help, and a raven settled on her shoulder, its mind somehow touching and soothing hers.

Anjelika warily returned to her home and gathered up her things. Among her father’s old books, she found a deed to property in Hollowfaust, and she set out, fleeing into the Heteronomy of Virduk. From there, she traveled with a merchant caravan whose master was an old friend of her father’s into the City of Necromancers. 

_DM's Notes_

This character is being played by Deird'Re Brooks.

The spell that she cast as part of her backstory above was _bone weapon_, a Sor1/Wiz1 Necromancy spell found in the Scarred Lands sourcebook *Hollowfaust: City of Necromancers*.

Effectively, Anjelika was tainted at birth by the necromantic energies around Hollowfaust. She constantly hears a susurrus of voices in her head, the voices of the dead. When she wishes to cast spells, she focuses in those voices that speak their arcane secrets to her and she casts the spells, in ancient Sumaran, the language of the civilization that existed on the site of Hollowfaust before the Divine War. She doesn’t actually speak this language and has no idea what she is saying.

Deird’Re wanted her raven familiar, Drendos, to have come to her in response to a mental call for help, rather than through the standard summoning methods. I decided I was okay by that, as long as she paid the money to do so from her starting funds.


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## Harp (Jul 10, 2002)

Great start, definitely looking forward to more.


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## Barastrondo (Jul 10, 2002)

*Rock. On.*

I am very much looking forward to this, for so many reasons that they cannot possibly be enumerated at this point.


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 10, 2002)

*Player Characters*

*Sallia (human female, Nec3, LN)*

Orphaned at a young age, Sallia might have spent her life in the care of loving foster parents were it not for one thing – she showed the metaphysical signs that denoted the potential to be a strong necromancer. So, she was taken in by the Guilds and given to one of the many necromancer-families of the Underfaust to raise. She grew up among the animated, polished bones of Hollowfaust’s undead servitors. Her play areas were the forgotten twists of tunnel unused by the Guilds; her friends were the children and apprentices of other necromancers. When she was very young, she was taught the arts of reading. Shortly thereafter, she set to work learning to manipulate the dark energies that surrounded Hollowfaust, casting her first cantrip at a very tender age, indeed.

From that point, she left her surrogate family and chose to become one of the Animators Guild, fascinated as she was by the precise and neat workings of the undead form. She was given to the Animator Amanfar Darsinthe, and brought to live with him in his household.

Sallia has been very sheltered in her lifetime; she is intimately acquainted with the ins and outs of the Underfaust, but the upper city – to say nothing of the world beyond the First Gate – still fascinate her. As a reward for her diligence and progress in her learning, her mentor gifted her with a spell scroll. Scribed upon the vellum was the power-bearing runes of the spell _greater familiar_. He also presented her with a caged adolescent flense drake for her to cast the spell upon. She did so, naming him Tanner.

Sallia has become quite attached to those around her. She looks to Amanfar for guidance and approval in nearly everything she does. Tanner is her boon companion, and Rua is the closest thing she has to a friend.

_DM’s Notes_

This character is played by Burt Jackson.

Sallia is inspired by and named for Sally, the doll in _A Nightmare Before Christmas_, and she is played as being often caught up in the wonder of the world around her. She possess a wide-eyed and somewhat naive outlook.

Sallia is well on her way towards picking up a level in the Animator prestige class, found in *Hollowfaust: City of Necromancers*. Flense drakes can also be found in that sourcebook.


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## Nightfall (Jul 11, 2002)

Well I hope that they find what they are looking for! Just remember though Joseph, go easy on them if they get into the Hornsaw. Not a nice place! But my favorite nonetheless!


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 12, 2002)

You have my word, I will be the kindest of gentlemen if they ever come across the Hornsaw. I will even weep with them for fallen characters.

I cannot, however, make any guarantees about the denizens of the Hornsaw. They are, as a rule, an uncouth and generally untidy rabble, filled with meanness and vitriol.

And pokey sticks. Yeah, pokey sticks.


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## Nightfall (Jul 12, 2002)

LOTS of pokey sticks!


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## madriel (Jul 12, 2002)

I prefer pointed sticks myself, but whatever floats yer boat. 

The characters sound very cool so far.


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## Lars Frehse (Jul 13, 2002)

Intriguing characters so far.
Rock on, brother!


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## Phaedyme (Jul 14, 2002)

SSS-Druid said:
			
		

> *You have my word, I will be the kindest of gentlemen if they ever come across the Hornsaw. I will even weep with them for fallen characters.
> 
> I cannot, however, make any guarantees about the denizens of the Hornsaw. They are, as a rule, an uncouth and generally untidy rabble, filled with meanness and vitriol.
> *




Of course, you forgot that the stats for the mock dragon override those of the Hornsaw Unicorn.


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 20, 2002)

*Player Characters*

*Rua Woodsdatter (human female, Rog3, CG)*

The young half wood-elf Rua grew up on the streets of Hollowfaust. Though she avoided the underground elements of the city’s streets (such as the Brotherhood of the Shade), she did manage to survive by stealing. Her nimble fingers served her well, at least until she tried to cut the coin purse of a darkly dressed man.

Unfortunately, this slightly drunken man turned out to be a Guildsman and the decorative skeletal hand hanging from his belt turned out to be all too animated, seizing her hand as she put blade to purse. He quickly subdued her with the help of a nearby trio of skeletons and she was taken into the court system of Hollowfaust.

The guildsman, Amanfar Darsinthe, brought his apprentice, Sallia, to the court proceedings so that she might watch Hollowfaust justice in action. Because she stole nothing, Rua was not fined, but she was sentenced to the single lash given to petty thieves.
The night before her sentence, Sallia snuck into the holding cell and the two talked long into the night. Sallia was found there the next morning, and she begged her mentor and the justiciaries to withhold punishment, for she wished to make Rua a retainer.
Amanfar congratulated her on her excellent choice in retainer and then bade her move aside so that the punishment might be carried out. Not even retainers – ultimately, not even Guildsmen – are immune to the laws of Hollowfaust, and a good retainer would understand the reasons why the punishment must be carried out.

For reasons that Rua to this day isn’t entirely sure of, she agreed to go quietly to the lashing, and then accepted her retainer’s token.

_DM’s Notes_

This character is played by Jenna Lovelady.

Rua is the tough, street-smart one of the group; despite the difficulties and tragedies the others may have lived through, none of them have ever had to figure out how to survive on the streets. She is also the only one that knows her way around the Hollowfaust topside.


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 20, 2002)

*Some NPCs of Ashes & Wormwood*

*Amanfar Darsinthe* (_human male, Nec5/Ani6, NG_) is a master of the Animator’s Guild. A shaven-headed, goateed man of middle years, Amanfar is genteel and studious, giving visitors the impression of a man of culture and sophistication. He is, however, fond of leather garb that fastens with tiny animated mouse hands that clasp buckles. Amafar is known to enjoy the occasional glass of Spectral Jade, the absinthe that he and a few other Guildsmen create in their spare time, brewed with the potent wormwood that grows in the Ghost’s Quarter in the ashes of the dead.

*Clemana Darsinthe* (_human female, Nec10, N_), the wife of Amanfar is a Disciple of the Abyss, a woman of dark black hair and pale white skin. She is known to imbibe small amounts of poison to keep herself fashionably wan. Clemana keeps her nails lacquered black, but that is mainly to cover the strange grey-black tint that they have taken, due to her abundant use and experimentation with the negative energies of necromancy. Clemana is also fond of the leather and mouse-paw-buckle ensembles of Amanfar, which she often wears on her nights out to the Baths and the Theatre Sepulchural.

*Toltaris* (_human male Ftr7/Unf3, LN_) is Amanfar’s Unfailing guardian, a position that he takes very seriously. He has served Amanfar for a number of years; indeed, he nearly died when Amanfar was assigned to outrider patrol. Attacked by a narleth of the Hornsaw, Toltaris’ spine was horribly shattered. Thanks to Amanfar’s contacts in the Anatomist’s Guild, however, the spine was braced with the animated bones of a wyvern’s shoulder-blades and then regenerated magically. The articulated bones which originally served as the wings of the beast were strengthened and now fold close to the warrior’s back, springing forth at his command to savage enemies with the serrated blades along their length. Toltaris has developed a fierce fighting style using these blades. Toltaris has a goatee and close-shaven head, and often wears a long cloak of cold-weave over his breastplate, which aids in concealing his animated blade-arms.

*Branlin Voraxis* (_human male, Ftr4/Rog2/Unf1, NG_) is Toltaris’ lover and apprentice in the arts of the Unfailing. Branlin first let his feelings for the older, wiser warrior be known when he thought that Toltaris might die from the narleth-inflicted wounds. He did not, in fact, die and when he recovered, Toltaris hesitatingly acknowledged Branlin’s declarations. The two have been together ever since. Where Toltaris is dark and brooding, the blonde, long-haired Branlin is much cheerier, enjoying the parties and soirees that his charge, Clemana often attends, and capably defending her with his daggers.

*Briath Sinn* (_half-elf male, Nec6, CN_) is probably the foremost leader and role model in Hollowfaust’s rebellious youth element. An older journeyman, Briath is a creature that denies the silly divisions within the Sowers of Fear, insisting that mockery, subtlety and viscera work best together, rather than in some kind of ridiculous divison. He is tall, thin and androgynous, highly decorated with piercings and tattoos. He is given to all manner of sexual deviancy and skirts the edge of Hollowfaust law with his pain-giving perversions.

_DM's Notes_

The Animator prestige class (Ani) is found in *Hollowfaust: City of Necromancers*, as is the Unfailing prestige class (Unf).


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## Nightfall (Jul 23, 2002)

Briath Sinn, sounds like one of the more interesting fellows. I wonder how someone like Malhadra Demos reacts to him. After all, doesn't sound like he and Briath would get along...but then who knows with a Master of fear like Demos?


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 24, 2002)

Honestly, Malhadra's opinion could probably be best summed up thusly:

"Sinn? A fool who is too busy shocking people to genuinely frighten them."


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## Ruined (Jul 24, 2002)

Ahh, another tasty story hour for me to follow. And as I'm gearing up for a Scarred Lands campaign, it's all the better. 

The characters and NPCs sound great. I'm anxious to see how it works out.


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## Nightfall (Jul 24, 2002)

LOL!  That definately sounds like Demos! I have to say I love guy. 

Btw, what's the deal with Amanfar Darsinthe then? Is he one of Danar's favorites or is he just working his way up the ranks?


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 26, 2002)

*Ashes & Wormwood*
_Chapter One: Of Jade & Ghouls_

*Scene One – Sovereign Council Chambers*
The air was heavy in the small room; Anjelika had really thought that these chambers would be somehow...bigger. More opulent perhaps, like her father had said the pasha’s palace was.

But no, the room was just inside the ominous Third Gate, the entry in the Underfaust. It sat beneath a low ceiling and was draped in white tapestries. At a black table sat four men, two women and a seventh slim figure that might have been male or female beneath its shroudings.

She shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other under the weight of their gaze as one of the men, a pudgy man wearing the greatcoat and scarf that marked the necromancers of Hollowfaust appraised her. The small flense drake – its small black eyes regarding Anjelika intensely – shifted as the man turned from speaking with the older woman that didn’t walk but rather rode in a strange animated contraption made up of skeletal hands that bore her gently when she needed to move.

“We have considered your petition closely, Anjelika Cass. We have some small concerns about your...manifested powers,” he said, a frown creasing his brow where his hairline had already retreated far past. “Our first concern is the safety of our populace, as I’m sure you understand.”

“Tell us again how these powers came to be,” the older woman next to him said, encouragingly, smiling a smile that understood Anjelika’s frustration at having to tell the story of the night her parents died yet again. Anjelika told the story nearly by rote, watching the faces of the gathered necromancers (at least, the face of those she could see, looking quickly away from the darkness in the hood of the seventh necromancer).

She finished her story yet again, and the pudgy man and older woman looked to the second woman, an attractive lady in fine black lace and velvet. She pulled her intense gaze away from Anjelika’s face and looked towards the others at the table with her, nodding slightly.

“Understand,” came a chill voice, issuing from the dark hood of the seventh necromancer. “Your father was asked to depart the city because his wealth – and thus, his influence – within the city grew great. None may threaten the balance of power in Hollowfaust. This is our first goal.

“The powers that you wield are unique, Cass. All of the children in Hollowfaust who show such strong signs as those you bear are claimed early,” he said, referring she knew to the large outspread birthmark that looked like nothing so much as a pair of outstretched raven’s wings. “The powers that have come upon you suddenly would have been harnessed and trained carefully had your family remained in Hollowfaust.

“It is, then, the decision of this council that you be permitted to take possession of the property owned by your parents within the city of Hollowfaust.” It looked down at the notes littering the table before it. “A medium-sized dwelling consisting of two street-level rooms, a second floor room and a roof-top garden, as well as myriad household furnishings and effects. All these we return to your family.” Anjelika smiled. This was much easier than she’d anticipated it might be.

“However, we must ascertain whether or not you will be a threat to the populace of this city. Therefore, you are hereby remanded to the care of the Disciples of the Abyss, the guild that oversees projects dealing with the energies of entropy and death, energies which you seem to have manifestly learned to control. These are dangerous energies, not just to the wielder, but to those around her, and we would be remiss in permitting you to dwell among our citizenry without the assurance that you held proper control over those powers.

“As such, you shall be placed in the Darsinthe household within the Underfaust.” He gestured, and a beautiful woman stepped forward, with long black hair and pale skin. Her hands, with the nails lacquered black, were folded primly and deferentially before her. She smiled a quick, reassuring smile at Anjelika before directing her gaze at the Sovereign Council.

“Master Baryoi, I have already discussed this with my husband. He is in full agreement. Our household already harbors one apprentice; we welcome another who is looking to master her talents.”

“It is settled, then,” sighed the man on the far left, a man with his head shaven save for a long queue that chimed merrily with small silver bells woven into the braid. “Welcome to Hollowfaust, Anjelika.”

Anjelika just barely remembered to bow as her father had taught her before being whisked off by the well-dressed woman and the man with long blonde hair that accompanied her.

The trio left the confines of the Sovereign Council Chambers and entered the hallways that led deeper into the Underfaust. The walls were rough-hewn stone, with occasional clay pipes running along their base. Condensation formed along the ceiling and occasionally dripped onto Anjelika’s head, much to the mischievous delight of Drendos, her raven familiar perched on her shoulder.

_Quiet, you_ she chided him mentally, and was rewarded with a squawk and mental chuckle for her efforts.

“Well, my dear. I am truly glad to have you among us. I didn’t get to hear much from the Council about you, though old Baryoi said he’d send along a detailed report. My name is Clemana Darsinthe, and this is Branlin Voraxis, my guardian.” She spoke quite quickly and with some measure of distraction – she was obviously in a hurry to get home and only barely murmured greetings to those necromancers they passed in the halls.

She stopped at a door crafted of nightwood and set with silver accents. From around his neck, Branlin drew a silver key on a chain and unlocked the door, holding it open and standing aside. Clemana placed one hand on Anjelika’s shoulder, and gestured into the darkness beyond the door with the other.

“Welcome to the Darsinthe household, Anjelika. I’m sure you’ll be very happy here.”


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## Barastrondo (Jul 26, 2002)

*I Am Filled with Giddiness.*

First the ENnies nominations for Hollowfaust. Now this. 

Words... do something. Fail someone. This is just so cool.

Thanks, Joe! I'm giggling like an anime schoolgirl here.


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## madriel (Jul 26, 2002)

Excellent, very atmospheric.


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## Nightfall (Jul 26, 2002)

Ah an audience with the Soverign Council of Hollowfaust!  Definately just as I would pictured it, secretively and dark! Joseph my friend, you SINCERELY rock!  This is going to be the basis for my Hollowfaust campaign...well at least the ATMOSPHERE!


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## SSS-Druid (Jul 27, 2002)

*Re: I Am Filled with Giddiness.*



			
				Barastrondo said:
			
		

> *Thanks, Joe! I'm giggling like an anime schoolgirl here. *




Man, save that for GenCon.

This I gotta hear. 

Seriously, though - thanks for giving us some pretty damned amazing things to work with in *Hollowfaust*. Good stories are built on good foundations, and the work that you, Geoff and Chris did is amazing.


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## Nightfall (Jul 29, 2002)

Yeah I have to say, without Hollowfaust, the Scarred Lands just WOULDN'T quite be the Scarred Lands. Not to mention it's just SOO fun to imagine stuff in there.


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## SSS-Druid (Aug 4, 2002)

*Scene Two – The Darsinthe Household and Underfaust*

She stepped into the lavishly appointed room. It was paneled in Hornsaw nightwood, with the natural stone floor – sanded smooth – polished and covered with various woven rugs. Beside the brazier sat a man of middling years, with a shaven head and meticulously trimmed goatee. He wore a long set of robes with a tight-fitting black vest, crafted of leather. As he rose and neared them, Anjelika saw that the white clasps on the front of the vest were bone; indeed, they were tiny paws – those of mice, perhaps – animated to cling tenaciously to the D-ring loops opposite them. She looked back up from his vest quickly as he spoke.

“Welcome. You must be the prodigal!” he chuckled warmly, despite his somewhat sinister appearance. “Be welcome in our home.”

The sound of voices drew several people out of the deeper reaches of the household. Two young women, one wearing the dark robes of a necromancer and the other a half-elf in leathers and simple clothing, emerged from one room. From another chamber came a tall, muscled man with close-shorn hair and a goatee. At first Anjelika took him for possibly hunchbacked, but the lump in is cloak made it clear that he bore something – possibly armor – under the cloak, rather than any kind of natural deformity.

“This is Sallia, my apprentice,” said the bald necromancer, stepping up beside Clemana. “That is Rua Woodsdatter, Sallia’s companion and retainer, and this is Toltaris, my own guardian. I myself am Amanfar Darsinthe.”

* * *

Clemana watched Anjelika out of the corner of her eye. The young woman seemed to be doing well here. She, Rua and Sallia were seated next to one another at the table that the Darsinthe household had claimed in the great Underfaust dining hall that served the necromancers.

“Is your stew all right, my dear?” asked Amanfar. Clemana turned and smiled at him, and then looked down at her platter. A large halved acorn squash was hollowed and filled with a spicy stew made from goat’s meat, the pulp of the squash itself and various other nuts and diced vegetables. A small saucer held several sliced pieces of fruit, slathered in honey and several wheat rolls sat in a basket nearby. Taking up her glass of rich, sweet wine, she smiled back at him.

“Everything is wonderful, Amanfar.” She turned her attention back to the conversation between the young ladies at the table.

“You don’t have to keep him here at the table if you don’t want to, you know,” Sallia was saying. “See that alcove over there, behind the beaded curtain? The chefs put out things that the familiars like to eat there, and there are perches and the like back there. You know, sometimes I’m pretty sure that the familiars have their community or something going on back there. Tanner, my flense drake, is back there right now.”

Anjelika chuckled and eyed the back alcove doubtfully.

“Well, as long as no one minds, I think I’ll keep Drendos right here.” She looked up at the raven perched on her shoulder and fed him some more of the goat’s meat from her stew. The raven eyed it warily and plucked it from her proffered hand.

“After meal, Sallia, you and Rua might show Anjelika around the Underfaust. I’m sure she’s interested in seeing what else lies beneath the city,” Amanfar suggested. The three nodded and continued eating, talking amongst themselves all the while.

* * *


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## Nightfall (Aug 5, 2002)

Mmm man this keeps getting better and better!


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## Horacio (Aug 5, 2002)

Hollowfaust made me begin to buy Scarred Lands. 
IMHO, Hollowfaust is the most imaginative setting since Planescape. In fact, it reminds me of Planescape, I don't not fully understand why. 

So, as I said, I love Hollowfaust. And now you're giving me a Story Hour there! Thanks!

More soon, please...


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## Peskara (Aug 5, 2002)

Hey Joe, thanks for the update! I was figuring there wouldn't be any more until after GenCon.

So far it's made me say that I could maybe play a SL game as long as it was set in Hollowfaust. The Scarred Lands are okay but parts of it just aren't my cup of tea (and I'm pretty much addicted to Ethan's homebrew campaign world). 

It also made me wonder what sort of trouble these three nice young ladies will get into in the city of necromancers.

It's cool. Right now it reminds me of Harry Potter meets the Adams Family with a more mature take on both.

Looking forward to more!


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## Ruined (Aug 5, 2002)

Horacio said:
			
		

> *Hollowfaust made me begin to buy Scarred Lands.
> IMHO, Hollowfaust is the most imaginative setting since Planescape. In fact, it reminds me of Planescape, I don't not fully understand why.
> *




I know what you mean, Horacio. I think of the Dustman when I read about the cool Necromancers and the grande city they have created.

Funny that you would say that, though. I have set down Planescape for a while so that  I might try out this Scarred Lands. I hope mine will be as good as this story hour. =)


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## SSS-Druid (Aug 5, 2002)

Hey, thanks for the kind words, folks. 

_Horacio:_ My pleasure. As Peskara indicated, I doubt that I'll be able to post any more until a good while after GenCon (as I'm hitting Texas for a working vacation in between GenCon and DragonCon). As soon as I get back, though, I should be ready with another update. So bear with me.

See, I know I've arrived when the great Horacio is reading my Story Hour. 

_Peskara:_ Thanks for the kind words.  And I know what you mean about being addicted to the "home game." Fortunately, I've gotten so much out of (and put so much into) the Scarred Lands that I have to sometimes remind myself that I did not, in fact, create the place.

And as for its feel - Harry Potter meets the Addams Family is precisely what I was going for. In fact, I only barely resisted giving the Darsinthe family a flesh golem butler. 

_theRuinedOne:_ Glad to hear you're giving us a try.  Do let us know how your game goes!


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## Nightfall (Aug 5, 2002)

*knows how Joseph feels when he talks about how much he put in...even though he himself is just a Pr-man.  *


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## Horacio (Aug 5, 2002)

SSS-Druid said:
			
		

> *
> See, I know I've arrived when the great Horacio is reading my Story Hour.
> *




Wow! I'm blushing now 

Thanks for the compliment! You have gained a faithful bumper for your story


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## Ashy (Aug 6, 2002)

Horacio, you bump everybody!  


Waitaminute - was zat a bump?


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## Horacio (Aug 6, 2002)

Ashy said:
			
		

> *Horacio, you bump everybody!
> *




Not, I don't bump everybody!
And this is not a bump!


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## Ruined (Aug 29, 2002)

... come back....

... come back to us...

The spirits of HollowFaust made me do it!  I swear!

*BUMP*


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## shouit (Aug 31, 2002)

SSS-Druid is away from his computer, he be on vacation.  Just an FYI.


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## SSS-Druid (Sep 24, 2002)

Sorry for the extended absence, folks.

I have another session of _Ashes & Wormwood_  this Wednesday, the first since GenCon.

So, bear with me and I should have something presentable by week-end.


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## Horacio (Sep 24, 2002)

Cool!

That are good news! I want more Hollowfaust!


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## Ruined (Sep 24, 2002)

Great news! Looking forward to it.


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## linnorm (Sep 26, 2002)

Hey, cool story so far.  I'm looking forward to seeing more of it.

BUMP

Linnorm


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## linnorm (Oct 4, 2002)

*MORE MORE!*

MORE! MORE!  Don't let this excellent story die a horrible death!

Linnorm


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## SSS-Druid (Oct 5, 2002)

*Scene Three - The Upperfaust*

After dinner, Rua and Sallia gave Anjelika a tour of the Underfaust near the Darsinthe household, showing her the huge library and the subterranean gardens where the children and apprentices of necromancers were at play around the spun-wire trees and the singing, clockwork songbirds.

“Clemana suggested that we go Above and bring back your belongings,” said Sallia as they left the Nightsong Park. The three headed for the Third Gate, which served as the Underfaust’s entry to the city of Hollowfaust proper, stopping off at the Ossuary so that Sallia might requisition a trio of skeletons to aid with the move.

In short order, the three were leaving the Underfaust, stepping into the waning daylight. Above, thick cloud cover reflected the roiling red light of the active volcano that sat above the city of Hollowfaust, lending the entire city a bloody cast in the dusk. The inns were already rollicking, providing entertainment aplenty so that visitors to the city might have no reason to venture out in search of diversions – it could be deadly for those without tokens.

The trio walked the distance to the Cass home, Sallia and Anjelika both marveling at the sights of the city, while Rua led the way. They turned a corner and were nearly run down by a patrol of marrow knights, massive centaur-like skeletons that towered over the three slight young women. The marrow knights came to rapid halt, however, and made way for the young necromancer and her compatriots. Sallia smiled and continued on while Anjelika gaped at the massive undead soldiery.

Reaching the proper street, the three were met with the sound of a haunting melody, a popular Hollowfaust love song, the tragic tale of a man who loved a woman but died in an accident, and was now cursed to follow her, begging for her to see him when she could not. The young women rounded the corner as the music stopped.

Leaning against the trelliswork that supported the grape vines growing up the wall of Anjelika’s house was a woman wearing smoky gray robes, with a dark green-dyed leather pouch-belt and matching scarf. It was obvious that she played a finely crafted lute-harp, in the Veshian style, but she had just stopped performing. As the folk on the streets scurried back to their homes or the night’s entertainment, she packed up her gear and the small hat with a respectable collection of worn guilders and groats within. She looked up and nodded, then paused as she saw Anjelika.

“Pardon me,” she said, as she scooped up the hat and emptied its contents into a pouch at her side. “Are you the ward at the Darsinthe residence?”

“I...I am. Who asks?” the young sorceress eyed this strange bard warily, her hand straying to a bone that hung from her belt. Sallia and Rua stepped closer as well, more curious than cautious.

“Forgive my forthrightness,” she said with an apologetic smile. “Master Aubranthor has always said that I’ve the manners of a ghoul. I am Vaelthia Uthmar, of the Chorus of the Banshee.” At Sallia’s smile, Anjelika relaxed, though she was still wary. The young bard obviously didn’t notice.]

“I’ve heard interesting tales and rumors about your...abilities. Is it true that you hear voices? Voices speaking in Sumaran?” Anjelika’s brow furrowed as she nodded.

“It is, though I’ve only come to know what it is recently. For quite a time I thought...well, I thought I was perhaps going mad.”

“When did it begin?” the young bard asked, leaning against the trellis-covered wall behind her, though obviously deeply interested. Sallia, too, leaned in to listen, interested in the unfolding story. Anjelika sighed.

“After most of my parent’s possessions were claimed by their so-called debtors. One of them, a fat, vile man by the name of Jahanar offered me a place in his harem. I refused. That night, a pair of men – men whom I’m more than convinced are in Jahanar’s employ – broke into my home that night. I fled, and ended up in the cemetary. I hid in a mausoleum and grabbed a bone, the only thing I could find to defend myself.

“They found me and I began hearing the whispers. I raised the bone to defend myself, and I was able to make out one...string of words. It became so loud, I found myself shouting the words just to make the pressure in my head ease. I felt a sudden chill in the air and the bone changed into a sword. I killed one of them. The other got away. From that point on, the voices have been with me.” Her audience stared at her in rapt fascination, somewhere between enchantment and horror. She turned her gaze away, uncomfortable with all the attention. Drendos crooned comfortingly in her ear, nuzzling her cheek with its velvet-soft head.

Rua cleared her throat and Vaelthia let out the breath she’d been unconsciously holding with something like a small laugh.

“That is quite a tale. I thank you for sharing it, Anjelika. I hope that we might become friends, since you are going to be in the Underfaust for at least the next year or so. But I should be running.” She smiled at them all, gathered up her things and sprinted down the street in the direction they had just come from, towards the Third Gate.

“Well, let’s get these things packed and the skeletons back to the Underfaust, shall we?” suggested Sallia.


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## linnorm (Oct 5, 2002)

Good update!

Linnorm


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## Ashy (Oct 6, 2002)

Excellent stuff!!!


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## NiTessine (Oct 6, 2002)

Ooo... Hollowfaust...
Very well-written. Very interesting. You've got yourself a reader... Who knows? Maybe I can get some interesting information useful in Nightfall's campaign...


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## Horacio (Oct 7, 2002)

Bumping!

We still want an update...


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## Graf (Oct 12, 2002)

*mm*

Took a break from writing my own plot summaries. This is good stuff. A few more sessions and I'll be able to have my PCs for an audience in HF in confidence.

Its neat to see the figures detailed in the books come to life like this. 

Looking forward to more.

[edit: I can't help but notice that the thread title is also related to Master Darsinthe's favorite tipple.... concidence, or something more?]


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## SSS-Druid (Oct 19, 2002)

Okay.

I am a wicked, wicked Story Hour writer, not having updated in absolutely forever.

The campaign has progressed apace; heck, we even got ourselves a fourth player, who is playing Aven Montrose, a cleric of Nemorga (wave hello, Josh!).

But I've been working overtime to get *Creature Collection Revised* and *The Player's Guide to Wizards, Bards and Sorcerers*  into the hands of Production, so you have to understand that what free time I've had lately has just _not_ been devoted to writing up the story hour.

I promise an update soon.


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## Ruined (Oct 19, 2002)

I'm not complaining, SSS-Druid. Either you write a cool Story Hour I can get flavor and style from, or you produce good books that I will definitely buy. Either way, I (and my players) win.


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## Horacio (Oct 19, 2002)

I agree with Ruined, it's a win-win situation for us...

but please, update soon


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