Wish you were here

Wind in Progress
This wind is a roundup of magical events and effects. Normally, this would be one of the last winds to be published because it is heavily dependant on plots that are running at the event. This can be unsatisfying, because it often results in us presenting things that don't leave players enough time to consider them before heading to the event. To try and combat this, we're planning to publish it in an "unfinished" state - and add elements to it as they are developed. Once everything is on here that needs to be on here, we'll remove this box and the tag at the top of the page and let people know that it isn't going to change again.

People come to Anvil for all sorts of reasons. To make money, to see the sights, to take in the many distractions and amusements, to participate in debates and disagreements, to grab a lever with both hands and use it to move the world...

Overview

It is not just the great and the good of the Empire who come to Anvil each equinox and solstice. The tent-city that springs up around the Imperial Senate and the Forge attracts visitors from all over the known world, and beyond. Some are drawn by the promise of wealth, some by the need to find the wisest and the bravest to help them resolve their dilemmas, some seek to influence those who wield true power in the Empire, others come to celebrate and forge new relationships with those drawn to the heart of Imperial power.

Some who plan to visit Anvil are at pains to conceal their arrival, or their intentions. Others, though, make no secret of their intentions - indeed they often choose to send word ahead to ensure that those they hope to make contact with are prepared for them. Here, we talk about some of those who have been most public in their desire to meet those who throng to Anvil, as the new year begins and the old fades into the shadows.

Friday Arrivals

TBC

Saturday Arrivals

The Wise Test What They Know

• A Freeborn Wisdom sect is coming to discuss Judgement 42
• They will be at The Spilled Tea in the Brass Coast from 13:00 on Saturday

A Freeborn sect by the name of Sular's Spyglass are apparently sending representatives to Anvil for the Spring Equinox. Currently based in Feroz, they are known to particularly appreciate the virtue of Wisdom. According to those who have encountered them on the road, they are especially keen to discuss the implications of Judgement 42 in the General Assembly last summit, and its ramifications for the study of so-called "False Virtues". As well as their fellow travellers, they are apparently keen to talk to priests and layfolk alike once they reach the beating heart of the Empire - so long as all are willing to engage with them in the true spirit of Wisdom (however they might define it).

The members of Sular's Spyglass have let it be known that they will be visiting The Spilled Tea, in the Brass Coast camp on Saturday from around one in the afternoon. They welcome anyone who wants to join them for a refreshing drink (ideally purchased on the premises), a sit down, and a discussion on the merits of auras as a tool for understanding the Way of Virtue. They will also be bringing some items of interest to religious scholars, which may be available to study - albeit for an honest price given they are Freeborn through-and-through.

Ketsov Business

• A representative of the Ketsov has remained in Anvil for the past season.
• They intend to address citizens interested in becoming the Burgher of Ketsov on what the position entails.
• They will arrive in the Varushkan camp at 14:30 on Saturday, an hour before the tally of the votes.

Those leaving Anvil in the past season, or arriving early in the coming one might encounter Oligu Predborvana Ketsov who has remained in Casinea over the last two months. Not given to conversation, and a frequent customer of local apothecaries (she explains that the southern air does not agree with her), she only explains her presence when directly asked. This representative of the Ketsov family of Ossium has stayed in Anvil to brief the next of her fellow Varushkans intending to become the next Burgher of Ketsov on the current difficulties her family has been experiencing. She also intends to help any candidates understand the Ketsov's hope for the title going forward. She will make herself known in the Varushkan camp an hour before the Tally of the Votes is due to take place - around half-past two in the afternoon on Saturday - and hopes to speak with those planning to put themselves forward as the one with the responsibility for promoting the Prosperity of her family.

Pretty In Pink

• A number of pink & purple clad orcs from the independent city state of Beoraidh have been wandering the southern Empire between Mareave and Anvil
• They say they are members of the Diamant Drakes, a gladiator and gambling venture who are looking for connections in the Empire
• Some members of the group will be visiting Anvil late Saturday evening, around 9:30pm
• They intend to visit the League, then move on to Dawn, then spend some time visiting the sights of Anvil

The sight of purple-clad orcs within the Empire's borders has become much less common since the end of the Grendel Peace Treaty. It's thus something of a surprise to the citizens of Spiral, Redoubt, and Bastion to see an entourage of orcs in summery purple garb wandering from place to place. When stopped by vigilant citizens, they calmly point out their new pink accessories which they believe make it clear indicate that they are not in fact Grendel. Well not anymore; they are now residents of the independent city of Beoraidh in Mareave, and are looking to establish closer ties with their neighbours to the north.

For all their flamboyant garb, their mission is clearly one of business, not pleasure. The orcs say they are members of a consortium called the "Diamant Drakes", who focus on making money through entertainment. In their terms, that means gambling, gaming, and gladiators, with a healthy dose of luxury sprinkled through. They intimate they have already met some of the "Anvil crowd", and are on their way to the Spring Equinox summit with hopes of conducting some business, and making some connections. They mention to anyone who they encounter along the road that they hope to be "in the League around half-past nine and Dawn around ten on Saturday evening. After that we will see where the night takes us!" They are looking forward to making the acquaintance of anyone who shares their interests, and to seeing the sights of Anvil after their visits to the League and Dawn are completed.

Sunday Arrivals

The Stars, Their Destination

• Several Stargazers are heading to Anvil to debate on the topic of the constellations and other celestial objects.
• They are pursuant of the Astral Arcanist and hope to meet with practitioners of Astronomancy from many nations.
• The eclectic group will arrive in Urizen at 11:30 on Sunday.

A group of Urizeni Stargazers may be encountered as they follow the westward roads down from their arcane spires and put their faces towards Anvil. The somewhat dishevelled group seems unusually gregarious for Urizeni - or at the very least, they seem eager to talk the ears off anyone unfortunate to fall in with them on their journey. Between effusive debates about the nature of the heavens, the group reveal that they are heading to Anvil to discuss a series of revelations they each have divined through their shared research.

The group is not making amazing speed, pausing often to visit intriguing distractions along the road, but they are still keen to catch the end of the festivities. As such they anticipate arriving on Sunday morning at around half past eleven. When they get there, they're hoping to chat with those who look to develop "mastery through the stars" - and intend to make Serenus Starsong, the Astral Arcanist, their first port of call upon arrival at the Urizen encampment.

Enigmatic Arrivals

Dreams from the Deep Woods

• Several owners of herb gardens in the Brass Coast, the League, and Varushka have reported strange dreams of being hunted
• Players whose characters are in one of these three nations and have a herb garden can opt to receive one of these dreams - and an accompanying curse
• There is an enigmatic messenger coming to Anvil to talk about the dreams but their time and place of arrival is not common knowledge

In Varushka, the League, and the Brass Coast a number of people who oversee herb gardens speak of disturbing dreams that have wracked their sleep since shortly after the end of the Winter Solstice. The dreams are different in their specifics, but have several features in common. Those prepared to talk of their odd dreams faintly remember dark forests, and a feeling of profound separation from a place of safety. Even awake, they seem more skittish than usual, and there are a few wise folk and arcane scholars who wonder if they have somehow become cursed with something akin to Dreamscape of the Endless Hunt. As the Spring Equinox draws closer, the dreams escalate and become more vivid, more powerful, and more unsettling.

At the same time, the civil servant Jorgen who often accepts messages from supernaturally inclined beings on behalf of the Empire reports that they’ve found barely legible messages written on scraps of paper turning up on their desk, and in one memorable occasion stuffed into their shoes while they slept, telling them that a messenger is intending to come to Anvil to talk of the "dreams of the wild forest" which presumably are to do with this odd occurrance. it's not clear who this messenger is, and the messages are in a number of different hands and written with different implements. Jorgen tentatively suggests the messenger is probably a herald but he can't be sure, and if they are has no idea who they might represent.

Participation

Any Freeborn, Varushkan, or League character whose personal resource is a herb garden may be one of those who have experienced the dream. If you choose to be one of those suffering, you will need to email plot@profounddecisions.co.uk and request a copy of the dream and the curse that goes with it, along with your CID. The email will need to reach us by midnight on Wednesday 4th June, so the window to participate is short.