Lore Day! #7 – Squire Tamarrion part 2

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She had not even had time to even think, young Lord Eiron took charge straight away, as he always did. In the blink of an eye he had turned her horse around and hit it with the flat of his sword while letting out a yell. Her horse started galloping away in panic. Tears started rushing down her face as he heard his voice cutting through the clash of swords and screams of pain, “run! Warn the others!”

Once she finally managed to slow the horse down, she was almost upon the hunting party. It had been so hard to speak, to say the words. The hunting party formed up immediately and the Lord gave Tamarrion instructions of leading them to the ambush site. The mood was completely changed from the joy that morning. They rode fast and silently.

Tamarrion felt a tear on her cheek as she remembered the sight when they arrived. They had found the bodies of the young lord and the other soldiers escorting him, lying dead on the ground. It had been the first time she had ever seen the horrors of battle. For all the practice and training she had actually never seen real battle. She had not been able to stop thinking of how she should have been there. It had been her responsibility to protect the young Lord. Could she have changed the outcome had she stayed and fought? Now she realised what she as a young girl could not, he had given his life to protect her. She had thought that it was her duty as a squire to protect him, but it had been his duty to protect their princess and future queen.

She had been like many young nobles before that day, too concerned with status and too confident in her own abilities. Losing a close friend and not being able to perform her duty of protecting the young Lord Eiron sparked a fear in her of not being able to help people and being useless in a fight. It was from that fear and sorrow a desire protecting her family and people grew.

Tamarrion thought of how different she was now, so far from the girl she used to be. Deep inside she could still feel the determination she had felt back then. She had started to practice harder than ever before, learning everything she could about weaponry and fighting so that she would never be unable to aid in battle. She would never leave anyone to die for her again.

Lore Day! #6 – Squire Tamarrion part 1

As Tamarrion rode towards the city gates on her way from Turdael, she looked down on the young squire who was escorting her. She saw on his face the pride and excitement that he could barely contain from being given the honour of escorting a real life paladin. She smiled to herself and thought of how young he seemed, she had been too when she was a squire.

In these lands the customs were different; here only nobles’ sons were sent to other noble families to serve as squires in preparation of knighthood. In hers, and the neighbouring kingdoms, even royalty were required to serve as squires and be knighted before being eligible for the throne. Her father had always said it was to knock the arrogance out of them early and to see the world and lives of people outside of the castle walls. Princes and princesses were however usually sent to other members of the royal family.

Tamarrion had been sent to her uncle, Lord Eiron, when she was twelve. The thought of her years in the house of Eiron brought back memories of joy, warmth and safety. As she rode out through the city gates, thanking the squire whose eyes were gleaming, she could smell the scent of the forest, bringing her straight back to that day with a sudden burst of sharp pain.

It had been early fall, the leaves were yellow, some already turning orange or bright red. It was a day of joy and festivities and she was allowed for the first time to join the hunters in the annual deer hunt. At fourteen winters she had been allowed to be part of the escort of Lord Eiron’s youngest. She had been almost as excited and full of pride as her young escort in Turdael. She had always looked up to her older cousin; he was skilled with weapons and a natural leader, showing promise of climbing high in the military ranks.

They had been riding for some time and the sun had risen far above the treelines when a rock fall forced them to take a detour, separating the small group from the hunting party. She remembered how the murmur and soft laughter had suddenly changed into dead silence. For a moment all she could hear was the creaking of leather, the clinging of metal and the horses’ hooves as those in front of her stopped short. She and the young Lord Eiron had been at the rear. Suddenly they could see why, the party had ridden straight into an ambush.

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End of Part 1

Loreday! #5 – Midwinter is Coming

It is almost christmas, parts of our team has already left the island to go home to their families. With this we will take a break from our regular updates and take some time off for the holidays. When we get back early next year we will kick off by releasing a new build to our signed up playtesters, so if you have not signed up yet, go to tamarriongame.com!

On behalf of the team behind Tamarrion, those of us that are still at the office would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and a happy new year with this tale of Tamarrion’s midwinter!

The snow lay heavy on the ground and the stars were glistening in the dark sky. Tamarrion could hear her horse calmly chewing its hay. It was almost midwinter. She sipped at the warmed spiced wine that she had bought earlier that day. The cold air and the smell of the wine that was tradition in her homelands this time of year brought back the memory of past midwinters. Midwinter feasts that she had spent with her family, in her father’s castle.

She remembered the very first time that she had been allowed to stay up all night with the adults and taste that spiced wine, she had been twelve years old and her younger brother had protested loudly that she was allowed to stay up while he had to go to bed. Tamarrion laughed silently to herself while thinking of her mischievous little brother. She loved him dearly and was sure that he would make a good king in her place.

She thought of all the villagers who came to the castle to join the feast. There were many guests arriving even from outlying villages and everyone was welcome in the castle. All children of the village had joined Tamarrion and her brother in snowball fights and other games in the snow. Sometimes even the King and Queen had joined in the snowball fights, though they had to surrender quickly as the children teamed up against them. They had laughed and played until they were completely worn out. Then all of them had been welcomed into the kitchen for rich warm soup and pastries for dessert before being sent out to play again.

In the evening there was always the great banquet that lasted until late at night, with dish after dish being served. Tamarrion thought of her favourite dish, which always had its place on the menu, beef and red wine stew. If there was one thing she missed, other than her family, it was the beef and red wine stew. She felt her mouth watering and tried to think if she would pass a village large enough to have an inn where she could buy some.

Before midnight they would drink more of the spiced wine while singing the ancient songs to the High Lord and thank him for bringing back the sun, after which the children who were still awake would be sent off to bed. After midnight everyone were silent, praying on their own to the High Lord and whichever other gods they followed. For the first time Tamarrion realised that at every midwinter she had not only thought of the High Lord during those prayers. Deep in her mind she had asked Eir to protect her family and people, Aiana to bring prosperity to the kingdom, Verristien to protect them from dark magic and Revenna to guide her sword. She felt warmth in her as she wondered if they had always been with her, guiding her path.

She felt her horse’s breath as it muffled her neck; she knew that she was not alone, although she did not know where the High Lord would take her this midwinter. With a last look at the stars above her before falling asleep she prayed to the gods that they would bring peace and prosperity to her family and her people and that they would find joy in this midwinter even though she was not there.

Lore Day! #4 – The Origin of Paladins

It is said that in the beginning of memory, evil roamed the world. Demons tormented the minds of humans, elves and dwarves alike by spreading fear and turning them against each other, while dragons set the sky on fire. This diminished the power of the gods, as the people lost their faith and stopped praying to them, leaving the people feeling they had been abandoned.

The High Lord, the creator of all and the highest in the Hall of the Gods, used the last of his powers to send light into the hearts of the people, showing them that there is still hope if they only have faith. It was this light that made it possible for them to see the webs that the demons had spun and stand together. All of the known world was at war, when the humans tribes started to ally with each other after centuries of fighting, and were joined by the other races, in order to fight back against wicked creatures that were on the side of evil. Feeling the light made people start praying to the High Lord again as they knew there was no chance for them without his aid.

Through these prayers the High Lord gained the strength to call upon a champion to be his sword. His choice fell upon a self-assured young heir to one of the human tribes who showed a love for fighting but had a compassionate heart.

The High Lord called upon him to seek out and protect those in need, guiding his way and lighting his path. Ascildan was reluctant, he did not understand what the High Lord wanted from him and had only a spark of faith left, but he was afraid not to heed his call. He felt the urge from the High Lord to pledge himself to the light, although he supressed that as he did not fully trust in the High Lord and never took a vow.

After spending some time fighting alone at the High Lord’s requests he realised that he was close to his home. He had missed his family that he loved dearly as he had not seen them since he left. He could feel the resistance in his chest as the High Lord warned him, but he could not resist going there to just see them once again.

His father, mother and siblings were so happy to see him again and they held a great feast in his honour. They sang songs and ate until late at night, before falling asleep, exhausted and happy. The next morning Ascildan’s horse stood waiting for him; he could no longer disobey the call to move on.

After saying goodbye to his family he rode north, towards the mountains. He had just reached the first pass when it seemed as if it started snowing, he soon realised that it was not snow but ashes. As he looked over his shoulder he saw that the sky was black from smoke. He reared his horse around and galloped back as fast as he could.

Once he reached the rubble that used to be his father’s keep, he saw burned bodies scattered on the ground. Now he understood the High Lord’s warning and hated himself for showing his weakness to the very evil he had been chosen to fight. He had not realised that evil had its eyes on him and that he had led it straight to his loved ones, who were helpless without the High Lord’s protection. For the first time Ascildan saw the ways that evil worked and knew that this was meant to break him and leave the High Lord without a champion.

That night, after burying the bodies of his family, he vowed his life to the service of the High Lord and to fight evil wherever he went, in order to protect those who could not defend themselves. His pledge gave the High Lord strength enough to grant him gifts that would make him able to stand against the challenges that he would have to face.

Ascildan was given the power to heal himself and others at the High Lord’s will, the strength to withstand the blows of dragons and the protection from the darkness of demons. He could hear the voice of the High Lord calling; “Be my champion, Paladin”.

Wherever he went, he fought evil and brought hope back to the people, giving them back their faith in the High Lord. Eventually other warriors joined his path, vowing their lives to the High Lord to become paladins. Although most of them perished, they managed to unite the fragmented human tribes and the other races and defeat evil in a series of great battles.

After victory had been won, Ascildan joined the remaining paladins that had been called to fight with him, and formed the very first order of paladins. Their purpose was to train new paladins and aid the helpless wherever and whenever necessary in the name of the High Lord. In memory of what had happened to Ascildan’s family, paladins swore to forsake their names and heritage, pledging their lives to the High Lord’s service.

Lore Day #3 – The Necromancer Part 2

One day a young Lord rode into the village with his army, killing and plundering, leaving no survivors in an endeavour to please his father by expanding their realm. He found the, now fourteen year old, girl watching as three, clearly dead, ravens were killing a wounded villager that had tried to flee. Her laughter was so innocent and her eyes gleamed.

Lord Valac saw an ancient form of magic that he knew would be very useful in his crusade; it was thought to be near extinct. He took her in and gave her a home in his palace. For the first time in her life the girl had plenty of food, fancy clothes, jewellery, anything she wished the Lord would provide. The greatest gift was the laboratory where she was free to experiment on prisoners he brought back for her, dead as well as alive.

He called her “Nihteana” – My Bird of the Night.

Lord Valac brought in a priest of Malchrad, although worshipping him had been forbidden for centuries, to teach her to better control and grow her abilities. The servants were left in charge of teaching her the ways of the Lord’s court. Nihteana was treated like a princess and spent some years training and experimenting in the palace before following her Lord into battle. She would rarely leave his side, he was the only living being that she cared for and her hatred for the villagers grew to extend to all living people. Together they drove each other to new levels of madness and with, a now powerful, necromancer at his side Lord Valac would not only use his own army in his wars but let her raise the fallen enemies to fight for him.

The surrounding nations joined forces in one last desperate attempt to stop the wicked Lord just outside the gates of his palace. They managed to defeat Lord Valac’s army after a long and gruesome battle. The scattered remnants of his forces fled back to the palace with his body and buried him.

When Nihteana, who had stayed in her laboratory in the palace to experiment with an ancient recipe that they had found on a scroll deep in the ruins of a temple of Malchrad, learned that Lord Valac had fallen and the enemy army were near breaching the gates, she gave in to the anger and madness that she had carried for so long. Even though she did not have the time to finish it, she used the potion that was meant to give her tremendous power, knowing its strength would kill her. She was determined to take as many as possible with her, before either resurrecting her Lord or following him to the end. For a moment she managed to raise every fallen soldier to do her bidding, but it was not enough to win the fight; or bring him back. It is said that her laughter echoed over the entire battlefield before the potion took its toll.

When the attacking army found her body in the ruins of the palace they buried it in a crypt in the mountain. Priests of the High Lord who still knew the writings of the paladins sealed their tombs with holy symbols and made sure that the bodies were buried whole so that their souls would not be able to enter the world of the living.

Lore Day #2 – The Necromancer Part 1

More than a lifetime ago, a child was born in a cottage outside a small village. With her father killed while serving in the local Lord’s army and her mother dying from childbirth she entered this world as an orphan. She was taken in by an elder couple that had no children of their own, at the turn of her second birthday the man died from the fever and the village was pestered with illnesses and famine. The lady who still took care of her was also taken by the fever when the little girl was six years old. The villagers had been talking for years, staying away from the cottage where they were sure the little girl was playing with dead animals. After all these years in despair they started blaming the little girl for the diseases and animals dying. They shunned her and did not welcome the poor girl into the village; at the most they would throw out some scraps of food before locking the doors.

The girl stayed alone in the run down cottage just inside the ridge of the forest. She was completely alone and had no one to talk to or care for her, no one to sing her lullabies when she was afraid of the dark. She had no one to play with apart from the dead cat that she hugged tightly at night and by day she would make him dance for her. She had always had that fascination of dead things and they seemed to come alive before her.

Years passed by, the little girl grew but even with the aid of the dead animals that she raised to help her find food she was thin as a stick. The villagers would still have nothing to do with her and deep inside there grew an anger and hatred towards them, a small seed of darkness that grew as she did. The now prosperous village still feared the girl, and rumours were wide spread about dead animals coming to life and her walking around the graveyard at night, they would run away and make warding signs if they saw her, no one even knew her name. She would stay away from them as well; always carrying that anger inside, she liked dead things better anyway. Or watching them die.

One day a young Lord rode into the village with his army…

End of Part 1

Lore Day #1 – Tamarrion

Tamarrion was the firstborn of the King and everyone had great hopes for the young princess to become a great queen one day.

As most young nobles she was sent to other families to serve as a page and then squire, to get the arrogance knocked out of them and train to become knights. It was an event while serving as a squire in the house of Eiron that turned her on the path of a warrior.

Before she was ever crowned queen she received a calling from the gods to be their champion against the evil that is spreading across the lands. As their paladin she now travels around the known world to fight evils that ordinary soldiers cannot stand against.

Love
Cobrabird