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[faderifting]

'Tis The Season...

...To Still Be In The Hinterlands

Maybe the Inquisition sent you, maybe you came seeking the Inquisition. Maybe you fell out of a rift into this world last week and are still just trying to find your feet. However it happened, early fall finds you in the Hinterlands. Tucked between Ferelden's massive Lake Calenhad and the icy Frostback Mountains, the Hinterlands are a hilly region covered in patchy forests and small farms trying to eke out a living between the boulders. Though somewhat remote, the area is rich with game and minerals and home to Redcliffe, a bustling town on a busy trade route.

Lately the Hinterlands have also been full of mages and templars and rifts, all threatening to turn once-peaceful countryside into a dangerous warzone. The Inquisition has set up several camps and sent personnel to try to restore order to the region, unwilling to let it slip into chaos. There's a lot to be done, some of it straightforward killing bad things, some of it weird and nebulous morale-building.

NOW WITH ADDED SNOW.

1. I CAN'T BEAR THE COLD

You have turned the wrong corner in the snow, forded the wrong stream in the snow, crested the wrong hill in the snow, entered the wrong cave in the snow. Maybe you are far from camp, in the snow. Maybe you are in camp, which is also snowy. Whatever has happened, wherever you are: you are being chased through the snow by bears. Did you throw a snowball at the bears? Are they huge and snow-dusted? Babies burrowing through the snow drifts and coming for your ankles? Fade-touched in addition to snow-touched? Controlled by cold mages who are hiding in the snow? Popping up out of the snow like a game of whack-a-mole? What are they chasing you away from in all of this snow? What are they chasing you into, other than more snow? What warm things do you plan to make out of their hide if you kill them in the snow? What do you think they'll craft out of your hide if they kill you in the snow? P.S. It's snowy.

2. GIVE ALL THE TOYS TO THE LITTLE RICH BOYS

Winter came. The villagers are freezing. Recruit Whittle totally saw this coming. Now he might have sent you haring (get it) across the countryside in search of supplies that apostates or bandits may have hidden in caves and crannies. He might have handed you some sticks and told you to build a fire. He might have eyed your nice coat with a contemptful gleam that suggested you'd better find some blankets if you didn't want to have your own clothing requisitioned. Nobody's freezing to death on his watch--except maybe you, if you're really bad at finding hidden caches. In the snow.

3. DON'T SHOOT ME SANTA

The sky is beginning to darken and white snow continues to fall, but you and the supply wagon you're protecting should make it to the little Hinterlands village before sunset. The wagon is laden with food, blankets, and other sundry supplies, and so it's important to stay sharp and alert as you make the trecherous journey. And for good reason: an arrow is fired from the tree line and topples an Inquisition soldier from his horse. Beset by bandits, will you manage to fight them back? Or do they overwhelm your troupe and you are forced to flee? Or, perhaps, you could attempt a negotiation, knowing they could be as hungry as the people you protect.

4. DOES THEDAS HAVE FIGGY PUDDING?

It is not only snowing, it's blizzarding, and the tavern in Redcliffe is the closest and warmest place to duck into to wait it out. Unfortunately, half of the Hinterlands had the same idea. The Gull & Lantern is so packed with thawing visitors that it's hard to walk from one side to the other, the owner has given up on telling these Fereldens they can't bring their dogs inside, and that lady in the corner is almost definitely someone you've tried to kill before, or vice versa. But there's a fire going, and the bartender seems to think that giving everyone half-price drinks might prevent a brawl instead of causing one, and there aren't any demons indoors, so it could be a lot worse.

5. WILDCARD

Hunt game in the snow, kill demons in the snow, dig under the snow for herbs, track bandits through the snow, deal with someone charging extortionist coat prices now that it's snowing, fall off a deceptively tall rock into the snow, 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 in the snow, climb trees or abandoned towers covered in snow, rummage around in empty homes to get out of the snow, run from a dragon in the snow, cry over how cute that fennec fox you just shot in the snow was, set up camp and chat around the fire because it's snowy and cold, knock yourself out (figuratively, or even literally if that's more your speed)-- the Hinterlands are your Frostback Mountain oyster, topped with snow.

Comments

1

[byblow]

A child's shouting got Alistair's attention, and a bear's roaring brought him closer, and now the sight of Morrigan stops him in his tracks, looking down on them from the top of a steeply-banked hill. Feeling relieved and preemptively annoyed at once is a very strange sensation. He needs a moment to process it. Another moment to consider walking away; she seems to have the situation in hand.

But there's a child, too. Alistair eyes the embankment, weighs the time it would take to find another way down, makes it a few upright steps over the edge and then slides the rest of the way. Fortunately he isn't very noisy about it and, hopefully, is less interesting to watch than the lightning-burned bear.

He draws his sword while he approaches her, but he doesn't use it yet. She really does seem to have it under control. "Do you want help, or...?"

[arcaneadvisor]

“Ten years and still you cannot take the initiative?” Battle makes her voice sharp but really, here and now he just appears as she’s trying to shepherd herself and a small boy through the snow. More lightning arcs towards the bear, keeping it angry and on her but fine, she can’t take just the same risks dealing with the wildlife as she did before, there’s more than just her to think about. “Make yourself useful.”

Kieran of course is drawn by the sight of a stranger but one quick glance at his mother and he stays put.

“Of all the places to find you!” But hey, she’s using ice, pointing at the bear’s face to blind it for the moment so Alistair has an opening that doesn’t involve dodging lightning. This absolutely isn’t how she planned her grand journey from Orlais because despite the stories about the Wardens that had filtered through the court, she hadn’t planned on it being Alistair yet there’s almost a smile, or something like it. All they need is a qunari and for Leliana to appear and start singing for this to feel like Lothering.

[byblow]

The insult barely grazes him. Or maybe it wraps around him, more accurately, like a familiar old blanket. A wool one. Scratchy. Kind of funny-smelling. Not exactly pleasant. But familiar. He grins for a split second, but the bear and the boy both keep him from getting too comfortable. He looks at the child, sword still hanging unused in his hand, before Morrigan's ice jerks his attention back to their attacker.

Right.

"I'm from here," he reminds her, which. Doesn't actually negate her point. If His Highness kept Her Majesty from formally exiling Alistair from Ferelden, the general idea that he should keep his distance was at least implied. And there are no darkspawn in these particular snow covered hills. He has no excuse.

But on the other hand, he's from here. And on a third hand, this is not the time to argue about who should be where. The only place Alistair should really be is closer to the bear, cutting it.

He goes to do that. It's busy roaring in pain and confusion, swiping blindly with its claws--Alistair pulls his shield off his back in time to deflect one swinging paw and slash beneath its shoulder.

[arcaneadvisor]

Would you like your blanket to be full of spiders and perhaps even made of and by them? She can certainly oblige once she has a free moment.

"And still a mabari would have more wits," she snaps back and well Kieran, these are your parents, behold how good they are at existing in roughly the same space at the same time, what a marvel. It's rather that there are dark rumours about the Wardens. And just the fact that he's here, right now, before she's even had a chance to make it to Skyhold because what are the odds? "Grey Wardens ought to be where Grey Wardens are required."

Wherever that might be. Which would depend on the rumours though of course Orlais cares far more about the civil war, even above and beyond the aftermath of Halamshiral.

"Do remember, dear Alistair, that you dont' wander into the path of spells, hmm?" Because she doesn't want to have to explain that mess to Kieran. Or have to deal with your corpse. She casts a hex this time, one to make the bear slow and stupid, although the damn thing won't be long for this world because if there's one compliment she could grudgingly give that isn't back-handed, it's that he does know how to fight.