allthisshitisweird | TEST DRIVE MEME!

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He's First Minister of France in the days leading up to the 100 Years War, people rarely rattle him.]

I will always judge witchcraft. It is part of my station in the Church to do such.

The church. Of course. Why am I not surprised?

[It's always the religious sorts. Anders exhales.]

Here. Let me pose a different question, not that I think it will make any progress where you're concerned. How can something someone is born with be evil and deserve judgement?

The issue isn't whether someone is born with an ability or not. It is more whether those abilities are used and how they are used.

If a person is born with the ability to commune with the spiritual world, it is fine, as long as they are not communing with Satan.

I don't know who Satan is. The only person I commune with is Nathaniel. And you didn't start by saying that how they're used matters, you started by questioning working with us, an entire group of people who doesn't have choice in what we are.

I do question working with you. If you use witchcraft, it is the work of the Devil and therefore best to avoid working with you.

You've mentioned this devil before, but I've no idea who you mean. The Maker gave these gifts and while I'd not say I have any particular care for Him, I will do the work of the Maker sometimes and the work of my own at others.

Not loving God is far worse than not knowing who the Devil is.

[What sort of bizarre place has he found himself? He calls out, as if speaking to someone at a great distance.]

All right, You Majesty. It has been a long time since you've played a trick on me, but this is really rather over-doing it. You know better than most that I have a great deal of things I should be doing.

...What?

[The rather British-sounding person sounds very confused as well.]

I... If the Maker gave a damn about his mage children I'd love him in return, but he abandoned us to the likes of you, religious sorts who believe in persecuting groups to build up their own power. None of this is a trick, not your misguided sentiments, not my existence.

I don't care about power, save to protect France from a War that I cannot stop. But I am told I am no longer in France. And that is the trick.

[And he calls out again, clearly not actually talking to the other man.]

Really, Your Majesty, this has gone on long enough.

You believe your ruler has the power to do this, make the crystals, change where you are, have people speak with you through the crystals, and you follow them rather than condemn them? How can that be done through anything except magic?

[A beat.]

And I mean the religious sorts as a whole. There are plenty of individuals who seek power with in it, use it maliciously to those ends, but the Chantry, the Church itself, is what truly gains from oppression.

[The Cardinal's ears perk up at that.]

So you have churches here. I must speak to these religious leaders. If, what you say is true, and they hold malintent for their station, then I must set them upon the right path again.

...What, really?

[That is... not what he'd expected out of any of the possible replies he'd been anticipating. He recovers after a moment, though.]

I still don't see how looking down on an entire group of people counts as a right path.

If I am understanding your implications correctly, then your religious leaders are far more to blame for the state of affairs than the people. Once they are reminded of their place and their responsibility, then the people will be redeemed as well.

[He's not as bad as the Musketeers made him out to be. Oh sure, he could be cruel and vile towards those who opposed France, but then, war is hell.]

And if I'm understanding your implications correctly, you're saying that mages need to be... redeemed. And we don't. We've not done anything wrong as a group. We've been born with the ability to use magic, the gift of it. Yes, our religious leaders are at fault for a great many things. But their responsibility is to treat us as people, as the Maker's children as well, and they've not done that nor does it sound like you would consider us His either.

It is not the the magic that is the problem of itself. It is the use of magic.

So we should waste what we've been given, the ability to heal, to call fire or ice, to protect, and so on? Why would we do that?

Better to let it lie than to encourage the devil into your soul.

It doesn't do anything to a mage's soul to use magic. It's... an act. Like sewing an outfit, or cooking a stew. It's something that's simply done.

No. Nothing is 'simply done'. Cooking and sewing with the wrong intent is just as much from the Devil as magic.

You can't be serious. You've some personification of evil and you think it can make sewing and cooking wrong?

I am deadly serious. People's souls are at stake.

Not because we use magic. Maybe that's the case where you're from, but it isn't here.

You seem very certain of this fact. If your religious leaders have led you astray, how can you be sure of anything where your soul is concerned?

Because I don't commune with evil. At most, I work with the spirit of Mercy.

[Let's not talk about the past.]

You say that, but how do you know. If you have been misled, you have no way to know...

(no subject)

justice_is_blond - 2017-02-28 17:52 (UTC) - Expand

firstminister - 2017-03-01 00:05 (UTC) - Expand