In Game annoucment:
A faint tingle centers itself on your temples, and you hear a monotone voice inside your head: "My good brethren, the Decree of Krovath Dardanus Faendryl, Patriarch XXXIX of House Faendryl has come at last. Couriers from the Basilica Tower have arrived to the library in the local guilds in all recognized towns and cities bringing with them the excerpt copies of the Enchiridion Valentia. They also have brought with them an assortment of pre-crafted runes for sale in the guild shops. Please seek out the nearest guild for your copies of the excerpted Enchiridion Valentia."
11/20/2003 MINOR SUMMONING NOT RELEASED WITH GS4
Minor Summoning will not be released with the rest of GS4 because it is the feeling of the staff that such a major roleplaying change to the world of Elanthia should not suddenly just happen out of nowhere. The release will be ushered in with a roleplaying event to take place over the next few weeks. Keep your eyes peeled.
12/4/2003 QUEEN MYASARA OF HOUSE ILLISTIM SPEAKS!
I address my people, the guests within our lands, and the Nations as a whole this day with a heavy heart. As most of you know, a horde of demonic creatures was unleashed upon our Shining City, Ta'Illistim. But who is to blame for these atrocities visited upon us? The answer is obvious -- the Faendryl. Long have we warned them against these heinous practices of magic, and long have we been content to let them be in their city in the Wastes, far away from our ancestral homelands. This time is no longer -- the Faendryl must answer for their crimes against House Illistim's sovereignty and the horror inflicted upon the innocents who call the Shining City their home. Their careless inquiries into the demonic valences have once again brought great tragedy unto the world.
We have in our custody he who is responsible for this -- one Rhythus Veranthe of the Faendryl. He has pleaded the innocence of his 'nation' and takes sole responsibility for what occurred -- but we are not satisfied with this. For what is one rotten pomegranate if the tree that bore it still flowers and spreads its tainted fruit amongst us? We expect the Faendryl as a whole to answer for this, for it was in their academies this boy was educated, it was their culture which formed his reckless and dangerous attitude, and it was their studies of the abominable and forbidden magic that allowed him to rip open a portal and shed the blood of our people.
We of House Illistim demand reparations from the Faendryl in apology, and we insist that they detail the practices this boy went through to Illistim's royal scholars so that it might never occur within our provinces again. Know that we will not be hesitant in retaliation for these crimes against our people if they do not cooperate forthwith.
Know that we will dispense justice upon this boy; a trial shall be conducted in the private courts of our fair city. I ask those who were witness to this event first-hand to aid in our quest for a just and swift trial -- inquisitors shall soon be walking the streets, looking for any information regarding what occurred. Your statements will help us bring this boy to justice cleanly and efficiently.
- Queen Myasara of House Illistim.
12/15/2003: DELIVERY OF THE ENCHIRIDION VALENTIA EXCERPTS
By the time this notice reaches your eyes, the couriers sent out from the Basilica Tower will undoubtedly have already delivered the excerpts of the Enchiridion Valentia to all recognized towns and cities. A new era, then, has been ushered into our, the people of Elanith, history.
Perhaps Rhythus Veranthe Faendryl, in the end, achieved what he sought to: a common understanding for everyone on the safety, and capability of summoning. His means, however, did not justify the effects. His sentence to death was a justified measure by the Illistim courts.
I, and my people, stand behind our centuries of experience. If procedures and safety are taken into consideration first and foremost when summoning, the experience is absolutely safe. The propaganda Illistim spouts is one of fear, and misunderstanding.
Let us watch, together, as this new era in magic unfolds. The potential in the excerpts of knowledge from the Enchiridion Valentia has to offer is vast. It is up to the wielder of the knowledge to understand, grasp, and fully use that potential.
By my hand,
Korvath Dardanus Faendryl, Patriarch XXXIX of House Faendryl
Dateline 12/15/2003: LAW ENFORCEMENT DISTURBED
In light of the recent release by the Faendryl of knowledge of Minor Summoning, the law enforcement of all towns are extremely disturbed by the foreboding sense of demons running around their towns.
Therefore, all town officials are meeting in secret to determine their towns laws and regulations in regards to Minor Summoning.
Also, increased troops have been deployed by the respective governments of Ta'Vaalor, Ta'Illistim, and Solhaven to patrol their borders and to keep demons out with the resurgence of this information.
In the meantime, towns will not take legal action against demons as officials deliberate the course of action. Once a decision has been made, it will be made available to the public.
12/23/2003 ROLEPLAYING TIP: DEMONS
What are those strange creatures and how should I react to them?
Now that Minor Summoning has been released, demons are no longer just part of the history documents or something about which vague tales are told. Minor demons are now walking city streets and popping up everywhere sorcerers gather. To understand the place demons have in the world of Elanthia it is a good idea to do a bit of reading, especially about the Ur-Daemon wars, the era of Despana, and the Faendryl elves.
How individual characters view demons should be based in part on history and culture, but should also take the individual's personal past and current attitudes into account. A Vaalor warrior will likely think demons are foul beasts that should be eradicated. A Faendryl elf, especially a sorcerer, will likely think they are an interesting area of study and tools to be used. Most Elanthians, even a hardened giantkin warrior, would experience some amount of fear when encountering demons.
When dealing with something new in the game, like minor demons, it is an excellent idea to take some time and think about how your character feels about it and how they would react in a way that fits with who they are. Then you can take that information and use it to make your character more real as you interact with other characters and the world.
More information can be found in these places:
http://www.play.net/gs4/info/tomes/official-elanthian-history.asp
http://www.play.net/gs4/info/tomes/dark_elf_history/faendryl.asp
12/26/2003 TOWNS TERRORIZED BY DEMONS, LAW STRIKES BACK!
Several terrorizing demons have forced the justice keepers of the various townships and baronies to convene and rule that evil spirits will no longer be welcome inside town borders. Those who summon them or attempt to bring their demons within reach of the law will find themselves the subject of an arrest. There is some talk of future licensing that would allow demons to wander in town limits, but a decision has yet to be reached.
Dateline 12/28/2003: CONSTABLES OVERWHELMED!
Local law enforcement recently began charging those who bring the vile art of Demonic Summoning into their towns. They then realized just how prevalent the Art of Sorcery was within their borders, and were quickly overwhelmed by sorcerers and their demonic beings, resulting in a large loss of limbs. In response to this, local law enforcement has ceased enforcing the crime of demonic summoning for the time being, until they can train new guardsmen and deputies.
(If you were arrested or charged for Demonic Summoning please ASSIST to have your arrest record wiped clean and to have any fines levied returned to you by a GM. Icemule and Pinefar should not charge for Demonic Summoning when other towns begin to do so. Anyone with an outstanding warrant may still get arrested if they do not see a GM before the constable finds you. We apologize for the inconvenience but there is no way to turn off existing warrants. No further charges should be issued.)
Dateline 12/28/2003: ICEMULE LOCAL GOVERNMENT SPEAKS!
The Icemule government issued the following declaration late this evening: "We are perplexed by our law enforcement charging people with the crime of Demonic Summoning within our borders. When this issue arose we decided to allow sorcerers to legally bring demons into our fair town. Unfortunately, we met in secret and our herald decided to spend his eve at the Inn rather than notify the deputy.
Demonic Summoning should be legal within our walls although we acknowledge that our ancestors left their beloved home to start our fair town because they were distraught over the Faendryl summonings at Maelshyve. We also acknowledge that they wished to create a town accepting of all walks of life. Guild Master Stark has assured us that these demons pose no threat to us or our children and has given us his word that he will personally keep watch on planar studies within our city along with the normal routine monitoring that the Faendryl Basillica undertakes.
We give great thanks to Queen Myasara for her warning, but we also realize that we must deal with demons in our own way. We have seen the dangers of sorceric magic run amuck, but we have also seen the merits of well-practiced sorcery -- for, without the aid of the sorcerer Pheyrmerrin Azlantor and Guild Master Stark, Icemule might readily have been destroyed this past summer by the invading v'reen morphs. While demons are certainly not welcomed, we will accept them within our snowy walls as an honor to those who have aided us in the past. Be forewarned, though, that we do not hesitate to change our mind should these beings prove troublesome. Guild Master Stark has pledged to be the first to help us rid ourselves of our demonic problem should these beings not be responsibly controlled. It is with this understanding that we hope Icemule will move into a new era of magic and arcane research with the help of our local sorcerer guild