TEST DRIVE MEME!

[faderifting]

I ROLL TO SEDUCE THE BEAR

Tucked between the massive Lake Calenhad and the icy Frostback Mountains in Ferelden’s chilly, hilly south, the Hinterlands are a region covered in patchy forests, small farms, and a bustling fishing village called Redcliffe. The region was recently the frontline of a war between mages and Templars, but the Inquisition’s military presence has restored order and is now focused on helping the locals and influx of refugees rebuild their lives. Whether you’re a recent recruit or a hardened veteran, a Fereldan local or someone who recently fell out of a rift from another world, you may be asked to go lend a hand.

I. FLOODS

A burst of unseasonably warm weather (in no way inspired by real life events) is initially greeted with relief, gloves discarded and scarves unwrapped—but followed within the week by severe flooding across the region. Maybe you’re sent out to help debris from a road or collect the bodies of those swept away. Or maybe you’re less lucky and instead there when the waters come, shepherding refugees to higher ground, or caught riding in the flow on a dislodged roof or log. Maybe there’s a bear on the roof with you.

II. TREASURE HUNTS

Given the lack of banks and lockboxes, when the people here have something they value, they often hide it—under the ground, in a tree, behind a waterfall. So here you are, with a sketch of some landmarks found on a body, trying to find… something. If you find it, it might be useful: weapons, runes, a stash of supplies. Or it might be someone’s box of racy letters and a request to deliver them to a now-married woman who will slap you on delivery.

III. BEARS

You have turned the wrong corner, forded the wrong stream, crested the wrong hill, entered the wrong cave. Maybe you are far from camp. Maybe you are in camp. Whatever has happened, wherever you are: you are being chased by bears. Did you provoke the bears? Are they huge? Babies? Fade-touched? Mage-controlled? What are they chasing you away from? What are they chasing you into? What do you plan to make out of their hide if you kill them? What do you think they'll craft out of your hide if they kill you?

IV. CRYSTALS

Members and trusted agents of the Inquisition are given access to one of the Inquisition's stores of ancient, mysterious sending crystals, allowing them to communicate instantaneously by voice. It's magic. And a magical excuse to ask everyone what their favorite constellation is in the middle of the night.

Or to call for help because you've been treed by bears.

Either way.

V. MISCELLANEOUS

Choose your own adventure! Hunt game, kill demons, gather herbs, track bandits, haggle over the price of armor, fall off a deceptively tall rock, get lost circling the same hill ten times trying to find a way up to the weird glowing skull on a stick you can see is up there, climb trees or abandoned towers, rummage around in empty homes, run from a dragon, cry over how cute that fennec fox you just shot was, set up camp and chat around the fire, knock yourself out (figuratively, or even literally if that's more your speed)—the Hinterlands are your Frostback Mountain oyster.

Comments

V

[meds4sale]

[Yeah the Medicine Seller is just going to let nature take its course there. Who is he to deny gravity its latest victim?]

My goodness, that was quite a tumble.

[He sounds *so* concerned.]

[meds4sale]

Ohh? Slavers come from Tevinter do they not?

[They were awfully far south if that were the case and this man wasn't just snooping through someone's dirty letters.]

[Not that the Medicine Seller was one to judge as he knelt down by the box, uninvited, to do some snooping of his own. Dirty correspondences were always a treat.]

Here is one addressing a 'Sylvia'. Oh my...

[romanticamnesiac]

[He draws back after a moment, giving Adric a wide, pleased smile as he does so.]

You know me, always like to stand out in a crowd. Now, come look at this, I want to see what you think!

[And with that he's grabbing Adric's hand and tugging him towards the part of the garden he'd been so interested in earlier. It's not a terribly impressive patch and the part the Doctor is most pleased with is apparently a rather scraggly looking tomato plant which he points out to Adric just in case he's missed it.]

See? Impressive, isn't it?

[pawpatrol]

[ Cerise blinks from the mark to Gervais. Only the second time now, and she still isn't used to it, how quickly magic sets things to mending. Her hand withdraws. ]

Thanks. [ She rubs at the palm, flexes her fingers. Cerise marvels silently a moment, recollects. ] Um.

[ Locals, he says. Like some noble and a dying Dalish girl are any more reasonable. But he knows of them, and if anyone she knows is going to know — ]

You don't think they're, you know. You don't figure it means anything, right? That we've got these, same as them?

[ is the crazy part contagious, help ]

[timeforgotten]

Have you been trying to do that often?

[ he should probably sound disapproving or concerned, but Adric mostly just sounds curious about whether or not it means anything especially interesting here. ]

[not_the_question]

Adric, It's how I see things. It's not like a tap. I can't just turn it off.

[Well, he can ignore it. But he's billions of years old now. He either ignores everything or nothing these days.]

[timeforgotten]

Me and Nyssa? Of course, we're friends. She's terribly nice. I suppose you could say that about almost anyone who came from Traken.

It's not really the same as traveling with you and the Doctor was, of course.

[romana2]

Well that's very good then.

Well, I don't suppose travelling with two Time Lords would be comparable to anything else. Especially when one was a renegade and the other destined to lead Gallifrey.

[To be fair, the Doctor had been president as well, however briefly. But, well... point stands, not the same.]

[timeforgotten]

[ He's got a different sort of enthusiasm than the faces Adric's gotten to know, that's for sure. Like all the cheer of the one with the scarf mixed into the faster pace of the next.

And as for the plant, the best word to describe Adric's reaction would be along the lines of "bemused." He bends down a bit to give it a closer look, though. ]

I don't know if I could call it marvelous, but it's certainly there. It might do better for a little more watering, of course.

[ When the planet you grew up on only really had farming or education as far as career options turn out, you learn a bit about both sides of the field. Ah, who is he kidding. He learned everything about everything that he possibly could on Alzarius. ]

[timeforgotten]

[ Cue a vague, wordless noise of acknowledgement. ]

Just asking. You never know what to expect with a new regeneration, after all.

[not_the_question]

Some things are there no matter the regeneration.

[Like, well, he's king of all of him now.]

[lyriumcarved]

Coins are fine.

[Mostly because he travels light and generally only keeps as much on him as he needs. He's still uneasy about the other man, watching him very closely. He's sure of it, he must be from Tevinter, there are enough signs for it to be unmistakable. He doesn't think he's met him directly, but that hardly matters. Already, his eyes are casually straying to the door, watching for trouble, wanting to be ready to hurry out of here if he needs to.]

[No, don't be foolish... Danarius is dead... Hadriana is dead, they're gone... there is no one left who would be hunting me... Yet still the feelings are resurfacing anyway.]

Indeed. We come from all over Thedas... not to mention the rifters from other worlds entirely. [A pause.] I didn't catch your name yet.

[lyriumcarved]

[That's fine by him. Better than fine. Fenris can appreciate someone who seems to know what they're doing. It's odd, though, he can't place her armor or her accent, even. Usually he has a good knack for picking up that sort of thing. She's definitely a rifter. As if the shard weren't enough of a giveaway... but a few natives do have them too.]

I would appreciate that. [Why not? He may not be fond of most strangers, but one offering assistance is fairly ok in his mind. He too is already doing similar, exchanging his sword for a knife as well.] That's a fine axe you have. What is it called?

[lyriumcarved]

[That's also reasonable. He'll never admit this to anyone, but in a way the crystals are far better than exchanging letters would ever be, for a variety of reasons for him in particular. He'll still remain a bit cautious, though.]

I appreciate the immediacy of it, if nothing else. That could make a strategic difference. Though, if we're so spread out across Thedas... I hope that doesn't mean our forces have been drawn too thin.

[lyriumcarved]

You have been busy.

[Fenris takes another sip of wine, finding it somewhat amusing that the Inquisition will now be charging in on gigantic overgrown nugs with horns. It seems vert fitting all things considered.]

It's also about time all of those nobles sorted their business out... [He would roll his eyes at the thought of Orlesian politics as a whole, but, well, there's a strategic importance to having that war over and done with.] And I'll raise the bet. [He tosses in a couple more coins.]

[lyriumcarved]

Yes, but lately some of them have gotten far too overconfident for their own good. You'd be surprised at how far they'd go.

[Whoever the man had been, he couldn't have been always a slave. Which suggests they'd only just newly captured him. That they were in this general location... it's troubling, to say the least. But there are plenty of other problems alongside of that to be faced. There are new enemies everywhere, it would seem.]

Dare I ask? No, never mind, I'm sure I don't want to know.

[meds4sale]

Perhaps I would. It is fortunate they've been done away with then.

[The Medicine Seller wasn't a killer - at least not of those already alive. But he'd be hard pressed to express remorse over the death of slavers.]

You may read it for yourself if you like. It is quite lewd.

[He passed the letter towards Fenris. No sense in depriving him the pleasure.]

[firstminister]

[With a nod of his head, he reaches into his pouch and places one silver coin on the table it's a show of good-faith. The ante. He sits across from the elf.]

Armand Richelieu.

[Which was not his name, of course, it was one he made up just for this trip.]

And you?

[circleprodigy]

Well, the civil war in Orlais has ended, so we now have their forces in addition to our own. That is a significant boon.

[...even if it is Orlais.]

We don't have a significant presence in the north, yet, but perhaps that will change in time.

...if my order comes to their senses.

[gatheringstorm]

Living dangerously, I see. Good, it's no fun otherwise.

[She smirks, fairly confident about her hand but the Angel of Death card hasn't been revealed yet. There's still time for it to improve further.]

It'll be a cold day in hell when those fucking nobles let go of their stupid Game, but at least now it's not interfering with important shit. The worst part? Once shit went down, I had to help guard the most whiny, pampered idiots in Orlais. One nearly ran into the Red Templars even though I told the idiot to stay close.

[romanticamnesiac]

Is that all they try to do? Destroy places? Has anyone tried to reason with them, or is it just straight to the killing?

[romanticamnesiac]

Has it? Curious, in my memory it's been moments since we last spoke. Perhaps we should compare notes as well.

The garden, perhaps?

[romana2]

[Ohhhh, oops.]

The garden is a lovely idea. I'll be there in about ten minutes.

......


[Romana was standing in the garden waiting to see the Doctor. At least by his voice, she knew which Doctor to look for. She smiled when she saw him.]

Doctor. It is good to see you again.

[romanticamnesiac]

That's probably a good point, don't want to end up in the lake, as interesting as that might be. Safer to go sailing in an actual boat. Now...

[The Doctor stands cautiously, rocking the whole section unnervingly so.]

There looks like there's a few trees close to the water up ahead. If we can get close enough we might be able to get a hold of them.

[romanticamnesiac]

It's marvellous because it's here! Look, tomatoes are native to Earth, yet here it is, but over here--

[And now the Doctor's darting over to a different part of the garden.]

Here! I don't recognise this at all, it's something new, maybe native to this planet.