To: Jarl T. Riddick
Brannhiem Penitentiary
Brannhiem JR
Myth Wood
From: Gnome Council
453 Gnominton Street
Old Tickle JE
Myth Wood
Greetings Jarl,
As you requested, we put our best Sigh-N-Tests on the research and discovery of the history as well as past uses of the substance your people call Mythrainum. The following is the paper that will be published in the Journal Mystica later this year by Realms Tree press.
Regards
Gnome Council
As the cold winds of winter continue to blow through the Myth Wood, a ship makes anchorage at the new harbor on Dragon Fall lake. From the ship emerges Jarl Elric, accompanied by ambassador Riven, the Hunter, Morgan Daniels, and Burnie the once rover. They look far older than the few months away can account for. Grim and battle scarred they make their way to King’s Rest.
Elric has his people clean and prepare King’s Rests’ hall for a feast. For it is that time of year again. When the Jarls feast under one roof and hear the problems of the land. Their decisions and laws will shape the course of the future of the Myth Wood. As a special treat Jarl Elric has brought with him a Theater Troupe to entertain at this years feast.
Elric sends his fastest messagers to Hammer’s Hold, Brannheim, Gray Arrow, and Champions Hall. All of the people of the Myth Wood are invited, let none miss the opportunity to feast with the Nobility of the Wood.
I look forward to seeing all who can attend this year. As a reminder the feast is a potluck. The feast will be held at the Rock Creek town hall. Doors will open at 9:00 a.m. Out of character meet and greet will run from 9:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. We will have a storyline meeting of the Jarls starting at 11:30 a.m. After that the play will be performed. We plan to start the actual feasting at 12:30 p.m. Following the feasting we will have the annual awards ceremony with guest presenters Jarl Rokai of Gray Arrow and Constantine of the Helions. Finally, we will go over the changes to the Handbooks. We encourage everyone to come dressed as their characters but it is by no means required.
Click Here for the FaceBook Event
No upcoming events
The Lady’s Tree
Here on this spot five thousand years ago,
A Lady knelt and wept,
Tears soaked the barren ground
Before it started to grow
Wider and taller, twisting and turning
The lady knelt aghast,
Before her stood a regal tree
Deep presence burning.
The tree sighed, shook, then spoke
With a voice akin to hers,
“I know what troubles haunt you so,”
“For I am more than pine, maple, or oak.”
The Lady arose and touched the tree
With a soft and gentle hand,
She found her voice and asked it then
“What are you, bright tree, if more than those you be?”
The tree was warm and answered, voice devoid of scorn
“I am Myth, Weeping One,”
“I feel your want, courage, and despair,”
“But most of all, I feel your grief, by which your heart is torn.”
The lady lowered her head, and nodded to the earth
“You are right, my grief is strong,”
“Although I can’t bear it, I am Alone.”
“I am afraid I will forever be and have been since my Birth.”
The tree was touched by the lady’s words
A decision it had made
To bind themselves together
To free the Lady from her loneliness, to forever live with the tree.
The Lady agreed, stepping closer still
And put her arms around it,
As the bark closed around her.
They grew to a forest, with river and hill.
The earth became rich and pure
The water shone with glee
The birds chirped and sang
The air was filled with magic, strong and sure.
The Myth Wood rose, became a land
Blessed with beauty
Devoid of death
Woe it did not remain, as the sands of time flows by.
Though not as pure, Myth remains Myth,
Now our home, beloved and sacred.
Though like the wood, war torn and scarred.
The people are firm, strong, and brave
This is the tale of the birth of the Myth Wood
Let us not forget its roots.
For through a Maiden’s sorrow
The Lady Tree has stood.
Fen’ Alfar poem
Middle 3rd age
No upcoming events
Dear Denizens of the Myth Wood,
Our Scholarly Sigh-N-Tests have developed a new cutting edge magic that allows the opening of an online Mercantile. We are now able to provide you with a way to purchase official Myth Wood gear including shirts for all ages & sizes, hats, mugs, and even covers for your magical communication devices. Purchase what you would like and our Gnomish delivery services (otherwise known as UPS, USPS, or FedEx) will bring it directly to your home. To get there click the “Shop our Mercantile” link in the top menu of the website.
Sincerely,
Marie Runesmith
Natsra, that’s my name, or at least that’s what I was given, I think. There’s a lot which I’m not sure about; it gets… fuzzy. I always wanted a fuzzy pet, but Auntie didn’t allow it. Calinos is kind of fuzzy; he’s my friend. He knew my dad, or the person that I came from. In biological terms, Arstan might be considered my mother, because technically, I came out of him…? That would make my mommy more like my father. She did kind of screw Arstan and leave him, like a Dick. Also, the she demon she is abandoned me from birth, or construction… maybe conception? But that’s normal for a father, right? Well I have Auntie; she is good to me. She locked me in a Tower to keep me safe for ten years. That takes a lot of patients and she always told me she was losing her patients with me. I’m not sure which ones were the patients, I saw a lot of people in the Tower. I guess she lost all of them now that they are locked away.
Okay, back to my “name”. Sometimes I get sidetracked. Some people tell me it’s called an attention deficit, but then I tell them about a place that has a deficit and it’s still going. Whether or not it works is questionable…
Okay, the rest of the names in my name. Some people have last names and middle names. I guess I have those, too! Most people just call me Natsra. Auntie M calls me “Nephew”. And the Myth children call me “Cousin”. But most people call me Natsra.
The first thing I remember is all of a sudden I appeared in the Myth Wood. I didn’t know it was the Myth Wood, I didn’t know much of anything. There was this old man, he was with me, or maybe I was with him. It’s confusing. Later I recall some things that I guess happened before, but it seems like a broken memory. Almost like I’m not sure what happened first. When I talked to Auntie about it, she helped me understand. So it’s funny that the first thing I remember was after some things that I remember later. But later after that there is a lot more, but that’s in the Myth Wood after the thing that came after the other which was before. Which reminds me of a funny story, there was some guys on this thing in the sky and they were lined up to jump out the back door. One guy was second to last in line to go out, the guy behind him was last. Anyway, they pushed out a boat first (I know, why’s a boat in the sky?) and then the other ones started going out the back door one at a time. The guy who was second to last was follow the guy in front of him, funny looking guy named “George”, red hair, never trust a Ginger, no soul. Anyway, George tried to stop at the door, but the guy second to last pushed him out. George fell funny; it was a long drop. That’s why George stopped. Anyway the guy behind the guy who was second to last, (he was last) he hit his head and fell down. But then he jumped up and out of the thing in the sky. He fell for a long time.
Where was I? Old guy, I’m not sure of his name. In fact, I don’t know if I saw him again, but I think he was in the Wizard’s Tower a few times. I’m not sure, I might have been stuck in Auntie’s darkness. Back to my first memory, I ran away from the old guy. I wasn’t sure why at the time, but I think I was upset about something. Then I found a pretty flower and forgot what I was upset about. Then I was skipping and I came into King’s Rest (I didn’t know it was King’s Rest until later when Auntie told me what places are called what they are called). I was a happy little boy, with a pretty flower in one hand and a dagger in the other. Not sure how I got a dagger, but I had one. That’s when I was introduced to Lord Elric and death, sort of. He put his spear in me… I guess he thought I was dangerous with my flower… and the dagger. I was really confused when I was all of a sudden pulled into Eir’s Garden. I didn’t know what Eir’s Garden was, but I learned later. It’s where you go when you die, sort of. Not sort of where you go, it’s where you go, the ‘sort of’ is referring to death. Because it’s not really death, it’s just sort of death.
So Eir was a nice lady and we chatted. There were other people there, too. That’s where I met Vigo and my other Auntie (I didn’t know she was my auntie at the time, but I felt a strange connection, and later it made sense.) Now that I think of it, Calinos was there, too! They were all looking for Arstan who had just disappeared. I didn’t piece it all together at the time, or I might have told them. Come to think of it, I could probably tell them now, but I’m not sure if I’m allowed. They talked to me until Eir told me it was okay for me to go back into the Myth Wood. I was about five years old. Or at least I looked like I was about five years old. I’m not really sure how old I am. Depending on your perspective, at the time I could have been less than a day old, or potentially, I’m as old as Arstan, considering that I am part of Arstan. It’s also possible that I’m older, but the math gets confusing. I’d have to explain that one, but I’m not sure how. Mommy tricked Daddy and I happened… That about sums it up, perhaps a product of the two, or a division of one or the addition of two minus some of one. There might be a math joke in there somewhere. One time I told some guy about Mommy tricking Daddy and he said it was like poking holes in rubbers, whatever that means. I guess Mommy poked Daddy full of holes and I slipped through. But that was back when I was just a little squirt. The moral of the story is, you can’t get a memory pregnant.
Back to the Myth Wood: I went back in and found some people. They were different then than they are now. I think they were part of the Ordin, I’m not sure, but now they dress in purple. They got married in the Myth Wood! Sometimes we fight, but that day we were nice with each other. I showed her that I could die, sort of, but I wouldn’t be dead. Then I told her to stab me, so she did. Sometimes I ask girls to stab me, I get confused. I think it might be an Oedipus Complex or something since my mom is more like a dead beat dad and my dad is sort of my mom that I sucked the life out of… I might be my dad with the curse of my mother, but I’m not sure. Auntie says it’s complicated. Kind of like their relationship.
So I died again, sort of. When I went back into the Myth Wood again, that’s when I found Auntie. Or maybe she found me? She locked me in the Wizard’s Tower, I don’t think she like that I was taking trips to Eir’s Garden.
Well that almost covers part of the beginning.
I stayed in the Tower for about ten years, I think. The people were nice, I miss them; especially the ladies that played with me. They are all locked inside now. Oh, we haven’t gotten to that part of the story, yet.
Life in the Tower was great! Some people said I was a prisoner; I really liked being a prisoner. It’s a lot of fun. I learned things, lots of things. Things Auntie said I can’t tell people about, like other worlds and how they live. She wanted me to study things and try to figure out if I could stop some curse or something. I think we did stop the Blighted’s curse? That was later. In the Tower I went to class with some other people, mostly young wizards or mages. Tanner was there, but he didn’t get locked in the Tower. There were things we learned about, like skulls and some game that these gods played. And some other boring stuff that Auntie wanted me to pay attention to, but I’m not sure because I wasn’t listening.
Then I escaped from the Tower! What a GLORIOUS day that was. I found out from those tower wenches that a tournament was taking place in the Arena. I wanted to go, and since I couldn’t find Auntie to ask her permission, I decided to find a way out of the Tower. Don’t tell Auntie how I did it, but I snuck out behind Tanner. He didn’t even know and if Auntie knew it was Tanner he’d get in trouble, but since he didn’t know he did it and she doesn’t know how I did it then he won’t get in trouble. No harm, no foul. It was over a year ago anyway, lot of water under the bridge. Speaking of bridges… oh wait, I was talking about Tournament Day! So I fought in the tournament. Auntie wasn’t happy with me; I think it was because I didn’t win. I’ll try again next year. When I saw her that day, she was working in Eir’s Garden. It was a big surprise when she saw me. She wasn’t very happy. Sometimes Auntie is happy, but a lot of times Auntie isn’t very happy. I think I might make her angry sometimes. That’s why she sends me to her darkness. But I can’t go there now; it’s locked in the Tower.
Oh boy, I better focus so we can finish this story.
No upcoming events
It was year one The First King, King McCormick, had just begun his rule of the Myth Wood and had not yet established his laws or taxes. He had reigned in the people of the Myth Wood to crown him King, but had not yet put together the forces that would govern it. Because of this, the soldiers were working for him on faith alone and many were struggling to provide for themselves and their families. Without money to pay the soldiers and to provide the goods for the kingdom it seemed that brigands and mercenaries would soon run wild within the Myth Wood. It was known throughout the kingdom, or at least by the brigands, that the Crown was having troubles filling its treasury. There were two such brigands that sought to take advantage of the situation, but by very different means.
The brigand Vigo gathered his forces and set up a tollway at the Myth Wood’s busiest intersection and would allow no one to pass without paying him for the privilege.
While I, Riven, knew that the King would try to quell this rebellion and work to take back the roads. Because this was an inevitable conflict that I wanted no part of, I tried to stay away from Vigo but without much success. I determined that I must take action to secure my own safety and free passage throughout the Myth Wood.
My dilemma started after having felt the cold steel of Vigo’s blade. I did not wish to continue to challenge his Brigand group for passage in the Myth Wood. I also did not want to run to the King like a simple peasant and beg him to deal with the situation. That would do nothing for my reputation and could undermine my credibility with the other brigands. Having just found my way into the Myth Wood I did not wish to make enemies or strong alliances with anyone before learning more of their motives.
As I worked my way around Vigo’s tollway I considered my options and happened upon an old keep. I did not know it at the time but this was Grey Arrow Keep, previous home of the Grey Elves. I found the structure to be suitable for defense and could be reasonably worked into a shelter for hard times. I considered the other Keeps in the Myth Wood and realized that King’s Rest and High Guard Keep were the only two places that were currently occupied. I saw firsthand how difficult it was for the King to patrol and protect the vast Myth Wood with such few soldiers at his disposal. This was when I started to formulate my plan. One that helps the King, secures my future, and could possibly give me power to influence the Myth Wood as a whole. All while saving face with the Brigands and Mercenaries so that I could use their services in the future if necessary. I knew what I would need to accomplish my goals. I needed the skills of Shaun Sean, the fury of Balin, the might of Grimner, good timing, and every bit of the wealth I had accumulated in my short life within the Myth Wood.
Hiring these brave mercenaries was my first goal. They was easy enough to track down and was more than willing to go along with my plans as it meant no real work for them and hopefully they would not have to kill anyone. Their intrigue was heightened because I hired them anonymously and without details beyond their own strict duties.
Next, I needed to find a time and place that the King would be alone. I came upon this information by loosening the tongue of a down trodden soldier with a few coins and found that the King would be by Hammers Hold later that very day. He would be alone because his soldiers were out collecting the first round of taxes from the Keeps in the Myth Wood. I cannot speak as to how Shaun Sean captured the King other than to remark that the King did not look any worse for wear and that Balin was missing when I met him at Grey Arrow Keep that afternoon.
“Hail to the King!” I exclaimed to Grimner who was guarding Grey Arrow Keep for me as a security measure. I did not want anyone disturbing my meeting with the King. I spiraled my way down the stairs of the keep until I reached the dungeon where Shaun Sean held the king.
“What is this about Riven?” King McCormick boomed at me as I entered the dank chamber. He was keeping his calm but I could see the anger dwelling deeper in his eyes. It was a testament to the man that he could still command such authority when he was tied and captured without any idea of how he might escape.
“I needed to speak with you alone and to give you an idea of how ill equipped the realm is to stop attempts on your life at this time.” I replied. “I have no desire to harm you and your bindings can be removed immediately if you are willing to hear me out.”
“There seems to be no choice in the matter.” McCormick grumbled.
Shaun Sean released the King from his ties and climbed the stairs to guard the door with Grimner as we discussed our private matters.
“It is widely known that the Crown does not have deep coffers and that soldiers are starting to look to more devious and unsavory ways to make some coin.” I began. “It cost me almost nothing to learn of your location and how many guards you would have with you at the time.” “I am not looking to exploit this lack of funds. In fact, I seek to strengthen your rule over the Myth Wood and even offer some of my own services to you.”
King McCormick eyed me suspiciously. He had good reason for this since rumor was already spreading about my hijacking of a caravan and systematic elimination of everyone in the party. I cannot help it if they did not post a rear guard.
“Here is my offer. I will give you the money you need to pay your soldiers until you have accumulated enough money through your tax collection. I will also do my best to keep the brigands and mercenaries under control and stop them from overrunning all of the Keeps within the Myth Wood.”
“Of course they will still need something to do so I will work at making them fight amongst themselves and pit Brigand against Mercenary, using my own coin to bait them.”
I had the Kings attention but I could see that he was waiting for the hammer to drop and learn what I wanted from him for these favors.
“Get to the point!” McCormick demanded. “What do you want?”
“All I ask is that you make me a member of your Court. There is no royalty within the Myth Wood beyond the Royal Family and you are in sore need of someone to guard and maintain some of the many Keeps in the Realm. Make me a Lord. I will call Grey Arrow my home, maintain it, guard it, and supply you with information on what is happening in this side of the Myth Wood.” I remarked.
King McCormick took no more than a minute to make his decision. “I agree to your terms Riven. However, if I find that you are using this title to oppress my people or try to take my throne then I will make you pay with your life.”
Having reached an agreement, I gave the King the necessary funds to continue paying his soldiers and provide some cushion for the treasury in hard time. From my understanding King McCormick never regretted his decision to make me a Lord. His reign in the Myth Wood was one of strength and justice. I was smart enough not to disobey his laws, directly.
Having accomplished my goal and found myself with the newly established title of Lord, I was content to move into Grey Arrow Keep and start to grow my influence throughout the Myth Wood.
This is the first story about me that spread among the denizens of the Myth Wood. It was twisted into something much more sinister than what actually took place. However, I was not quick to correct anyone as it gave the impression that I was able to manipulate the King to my own means. I feel comfortable sharing this information now because we have a new King and I have proven myself to be valuable to him as well. Currently, I am the Steward of King’s Rest in his absence and that is as close to being King as I would like to be.
You can find me in the Wood if you care to hear more of the tales of my adventures in this realm. If persuaded with the right ale or fine wine, I may even tell you about the first interactions with the daemons that resulted in giving them domain over the Graveyard. Or even the tale of my unwitting release of the Ordin into our realm. Until we meet again.
Forever Watching
Lord Riven, Shadow StalkerSteward of King’s Rest
No upcoming events
Greetings people of the Myth Wood. I hope you all enjoyed the 2018 L.A.R.P. season. We are already quite a ways along in the planning stages for 2019. First up is our list of events and their dates, as well as the final copy of the 2018 Myth Times. I hope you enjoy the recap and are thinking up ideas for your characters. I look forward to seeing you all soon.
Ed
No upcoming events
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http://themythwood.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/First-Myth-Wood-Newspaper-Vol1-issue-3.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
Well 2018 is coming to a close and as a final farewell we thought it would be nice to finally get the last stats of 2018 posted. We are happy to say that 16 people leveled up and there is a list of about 8 more that are likely to level up early next year! We had a fantastic season and are so happy you all choose to join our (not so) little world and have so much fun.
See you in 2019!
We now have the photos up for the final event of 2018! Thanks to the Myth Wood Historical Society (Tanner, Nick, Fonzi, and Chelon) for all the great pictures you guys take at each event. It’s awesome to have such a great visual history of our fun.
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http%3A%2F%2Fthemythwood.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FTo_-Jarl-T-Riddick.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
20! Wow! We had a total of 20 characters level up in this event alone. Congrats to all, it was a great day.
As usual, our Myth Wood Battle Photographers did a stellar job of capturing many great moments from the day. Check the memories out here. As always if you happen to have a few photos laying around to add please contact me so I can get them where they need to be.
If you didn’t see our last post make sure to check out the Myth Times Issue 2.
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
In the Myth Wood things never stay the same. Land is gained and land is lost. We have updated the Political Map with the many changes from the August event. The news of the Myth Wood is always interesting. Enjoy the second Volume of the Myth Times. Our next event is set up on Facebook and set for September 15th.
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http%3A%2F%2Fthemythwood.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F08%2FFirst-Myth-Wood-Newspaper-Vol1-issue-2.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
After getting a bunch of feedback and a a ton of suggestions, we have decided to try playtesting a new way of capturing keeps and other locations. Please read these rules and let us know if you have any questions or anything is not clear.
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http%3A%2F%2Fthemythwood.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F08%2FAddendum.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
Ever wonder what happened to Blackstaff and Lilith? What about Arsten? Who is Natsra? Where did he come from? A visit from Agamemnon?
Guess you will have to read this story to see what happened!
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
Coffee pot empty.
Numbers crunched.
Characters updated (ALL 55 OF THEM!).
As promised the statistics are done.
Congratulations to all who leveled up!
Things of Note:
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http%3A%2F%2Fthemythwood.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F07%2FTo_-Jarl-T.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
Riddick the Troll used a magical device that captures images to record a history of some moments from our June event. There are a more videos but these are the ones that seemed to be the most entertaining. Enjoy.
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
With the ineptness of H.W.W.U.S.’s Protection Squads and the retreat tactics of the Cult of H.W.W.U.S. the major military forces of the Blighted have been pushed back and held at Champion’s Hall. The Blighted’s secret weapon, the Lich, appears to only have powers for parade and affirmation of self importance. This weapon has proven ineffectual in the acquisition of land for the Blighted.
The noblemen of West March have found the reprieve from serious physical confrontation a blessing as retaining the lands of West March is difficult from within their walls.
The Merchants of King’s Rest too have enjoyed a holiday from sales and profits as fear of activity has kept patrons off the streets of King’s Rest.
Brannhiem meanwhile has never seen so much activity. The soothing comfort of safe spaces for those plagued by the fear of possible combat, if all others fail, has proven a most lucrative commodity.
Hammers Hold and its people have enjoyed complete safety, and inactivity simply because they are too far away and it would require far to much effort to walk there.
Of course, we the Devils of Old Tickle town find this all quite amusing. For if the Blighted should prove to have a plan or the people of the Wood a backbone. Well then, the other side will simply give us a soul so we can take care of their problems for them. For this reason our usefulness far outweighs our actions of blatant murder.
This is the current atmosphere of the Myth Wood from the prospective of the Devils. But what do the Blighted have planned next? Will the people of the Wood be strong enough to continue to hold them back? Who will receive the next blessing of the Six? We will find out on August 11th.
Set up and breakfast starts at 8:00. Checkin starts at 10:00 a.m. We will have lunch at the end of the first scenario. Burgers and hot dogs will be provided. Feel free to bring a food dish to share.
Things to make sure you bring; water, bug spray, sunscreen, and a belt. Also we strongly encourage everyone to get a full nights sleep before the event as the heat and activity can be very exhausting.
Here is a link to our next event, on August 11
Alright everyone, first as always, thank you guys for being a part of all this. Without the people of the Myth Wood, there would be no Myth Wood. With that in mind, we have updated the Map, and the Political Map. Also thanks to all the wonderful photographers in the Wood we have a bunch of new Pictures of the June event. Finally, the Gnomes of the Myth Wood have taken it upon themselves to create a Myth Wood Newspaper. “Myth Times” Enjoy!.
[pdfjs-viewer url=”http%3A%2F%2Fthemythwood.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F07%2FFirst-Myth-Wood-Newspaper.pdf” viewer_width=100% viewer_height=1360px fullscreen=true download=true print=true]
Almost there! Just a couple more days, and I finally have the stats from May ready to go. The ties in Rank mean that everyone there all got the exact same number of kills. Everyone on the other list leveled up and their new level is listed. Congrats!
We walked through the woods and things are drying up but it’s still pretty muddy and some roads are completely blocked with water. Bring shoes that you don’t mind getting muddy. Bug spray, sunscreen, water, and food to share for lunch. Once again remember a Belt!
See you Saturday.
Here is a link to this weekends event, on June 23: Second LARP of 2018
Season 6 Stories