November Marginalia

<BODY BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#C0C0C0" LINK="#FFFF00" VLINK="#808080"> <TABLE WIDTH="400" BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><IMG SRC="../../images/mhb1.jpg" ALT="Magic Horizons Title Graphic" ALIGN="BOTTOM" WIDTH="398" HEIGHT="162"></P> <H2>Port Mahon Marginalia </H2> <H4>Humans Join IBGW</H4> <P>The IBGW Goblins were back in town again this month, gaining members among the residents that have had little experience with goblin depredations. They were also attempting to garner support by holding a rally and passing out handbills that read:</P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER">Hear Ye, Hear Ye<BR> Is Anyone Safe in Port Mahon?</P> <P>Last Mad Moon, a poor defenseless little goblin girl was viciously assaulted by the blackhearted Allister. Where was the guard when this happened?</P> <P>A human Philosopher of the Light was fined by the guard for helping the goblins defend their homes on Goblin Ridge. Why wasn't Allister accorded the same treatment for an unprovoked attack in the town?</P> <P>Who cares what happens to a goblin? They are just little and green. Whom is he going to attack next? A dwarf because they have facial hair? A human because they don't have pointy ears? Hum-orcs because they are slow?</P> <P>If Port Mahon is to grow and prosper, the guard must insure that all peaceful creatures, large and small, pink and green, must have safe access to the town.</P> <P>Come to the rally at 1:00. We will have a peaceful sit-in to protest the unequal treatment. We have to let the Allisters of this world know that we will not put up with bullies.</P> <P>Cookies will be served.</P> <P><CITE>Mother Jones of the IBGW</CITE></P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <P>The rally never took place, as the goblins who were going to be holding it, as well as the promised cookies, fell into a pit when the earthquake occurred.</P> <P>During the September Mad Moon, Allister did attack a goblin in town. According to garrison records, Tertullian, as acting garrison commander, fined Vyctor for assaulting a farmer who was complaining about goblins overrunning his farm. The fine was contributed to the Imperial Widows and Orphans Fund.</P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="+2">Darial the Spellbinder</FONT><BR> Enchanter, Papermaker, and Scholar,</P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <H4>Orcs Raid Farms</H4> <P>Several different Orc raids were successfully beaten off by teams of citizen adventurers from Port Mahon. Because of their willingness to fight to defend the farms surrounding town, the harvest should be successful again this year.</P> <HR> <H4>Townspeople Missing</H4> <P>The occupants of Duncan Irongrip's new building, Irongrip, Bruno, Raven, Phoenix, and Sylaphis have gone missing, along with Sir Nickoles Darathien, Turuth, and Rantual. They were last seen leaving town with Jack Trades on the second day of the last Mad Moon. They gave no indication to anyone in town that they were planning on being gone for so long, nor did they pack for a extended absence.</P> <P>Jack Trades reappeared later outside of town, accompanied by several shades. It is unknown if he is responsible for the townspeoples' disappearance, and if there is any linkage between the missing people and the shades.</P> <HR> <H4>Earthquake Shakes Town</H4> <P>Two earthquakes rattled Port Mahon during the October Mad Moon. Fortunatly, no one was injured, however the planned goblin rally in town was canceled as some of the goblins fell into a pit during the earthquake.</P> <P>The damage to the town was minor, consisting mostly of crockery broken by falling from its shelves. Outside of town, the earthquake exposed some additional Hellenic ruins, including a crypt.</P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="+2">Hunger For The Finer Things In Life?</FONT><BR> <FONT SIZE="+1">The Inn of the Masque d'Or</FONT><BR> specializes in fine comestibles,<BR> fine Nikkelen vintages<BR> and fresh brewed ales</P> <P ALIGN="CENTER">For a small fee, you can also get your scholarly questions answered by Madame Melanthe, armor repaired (or created) by our master armorer, Vladimir, and pick up a few weapons tips from M'sieur Henri. Try our all-you-can-eat special!</P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <H4>Margin Notes: an Editorial </H4> <H4>Garrison Relief Arrives</H4> <P>The garrison in Port Mahon is up to full strength for the first time since the insurrection during the August Mad Moon decimated the ranks. Tertullian Monocles was relieved of his temporary command by the arrival of additional men and officers in September, The October Imperial packet brought the remainder needed to restore the garrison to full strength.</P> <HR> <H4>Disagreement Leads to Killings on Goblin Ridge</H4> <P>Early on the second day of the last Mad Moon, the Cuisinart Corps planned to attack the Stonedigger Goblin lair, which occupied Hellenic ruins that were guarded with a door trap that had stymied all previous attempts to enter. Human members of the IBGW; Rantual, Silvas, and Sir Nickoles Darathien, discovered this and followed the CC out to Goblin Ridge. From a distance, the IBGW members promised that they would not allow the CC to continue, as the Stonedigger Goblins might someday become members of the IBGW.</P> <P>As members of the Cuisinart Corps were attempting to solve the door puzzle, Silvas confronted the remaining directly. Fekesh killed him, and when Rantual ran forward to either attack Fekesh or aid Silvas, Olaf blocked his way. The CC then paid for a resurrection for Silvas, and two remaining IBGW members retreated with the body of their comrade and all of his belongings.</P> <P>While in town, Sir Nickoles, and the newly revived Silvas spread their version of the story of Fekesh's deed, and returned to Goblin Ridge with several other people intent on killing Fekesh. Rantual had not returned to town, instead he contacted the IBGW goblins and gained their support for an attack on the Cuisinart Corps.</P> <P>The Stonedigger Goblins proved to be something other than typical goblins, as once they were killed they regenerated similar to trolls. However, continuing to hack on the body did not prevent the regeneration, nor did burning the bodies. While the CC was occupied with the abnormal goblins, the combined forces of IBGW goblins and goblin sympathizers attacked from behind, managing to kill both Fekesh and Quintus. Fekesh's weapon was stolen by the goblin sympathizers and broken up. The pieces, and Fekesh's body were held for ransom.</P> <P>Rantual maintains that all of the actions of the people who attacked the Cuisinart Corps were justified by Fekesh's killing of Silvas. Fekesh has refused to comment on the events.</P> <P>It is unknown if the unusual abilities of the Stonedigger goblins is the result of prolonged exposure to the Hellenic ruins where they lived, or a disease, or some other effect. </P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="+2">Hercule Korphyros</FONT><BR> <FONT SIZE="+1">Scholar, Chemist, Enchanter</FONT></P> <P ALIGN="CENTER">Lore Questions answered for 2 SS apiece.<BR> Light Philosophy spells cast at 3 CP per spell point<BR> Magic Items identified for 10 CP<BR> Chemist products sold at Reasonable Rates</P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <H4>New Feature in Marginalia</H4> <P>This issue introduces "Letters to the Editor", a feature that will run, space permitting, whenever a letter is recieved. This month, three letters were sent for inclusion in the November issue of the Marginalia. As each of them is about a significant event of the last Mad Moon, they have been printed in their entirety.</P> <HR> <H4>Allister Removes Items From Irongrip's Shop </H4> <P>On the second day of the last Mad Moon, Allister of the Black Company entered Irongrip's new shop, looking for the owner. Opening the door set off a poisoned trap, which could easily have killed someone. Fortunately, Allister was only wounded by it.</P> <P>He removed the contents of the shop, which included Irongrip's weaponssmithy and Phoenix's animals. He then announced to everyone in town that he was not stealing the items, merely keeping them until restitution was made for the damage done by the trap. As Irongrip's shop is a place of business and the door was closed, but not locked, and there was no "Closed" sign posted, Allister believed that it was not wrong to enter the shop, therefore the trap was unjustified.</P> <P>Shortly before Mad Moonset, Jack Trades appeared out in the wilderness with several hooded shadow figures. He accused Allister of thievery, and had the shadows attack Allister and anyone who fought beside him. As soon as one of the shadows was defeated, another sprang into being. The battle ended with the Mad Moon.</P> <P>The occupants of Irongrip's shop could not explain why they had set a trap, or even if they had set it, as they have not been seen since the middle of the second day of the Mad Moon.</P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER" WIDTH="396"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="+6"><STRONG>IDM</STRONG></FONT></P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <H4>"Executions" in Port Mahon</H4> <P>Last Mad Moon, a group of citizen adventurers defeated a band of great orcs and ogres, but were disappointed with the value of the goods recovered from the bodies of the slain monsters. Based on little evidence, Silvas was suspected of withholding treasure. The mob, that had fought beside him only a few minutes earlier, murdered him before he knew what was happening. Turuth cast a Bind Spirit to enslave Silvas and learn the truth -- rather than a large sum of money, he had concealed only one copper piece.</P> <P>Gringur and Bulgrog of Clan Gast hired Pho T. On of the Cuisinart Corps to cast a divination for them to determine who the true culprit was. Greymalkin withheld a sizable amount from his companions. When confronted, he claimed innocence, as he did not have the silver. He had turned it over to Joe "Fix-it" for safekeeping.</P> <P>Greymalkin was killed for his deception, and the silver recovered and divided among the monster hunters.</P> <TABLE BORDER="BORDER"> <TR> <TD> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT SIZE="+1">Advertise your Goods and Services<BR> in Port Mahon's premier newspaper,</FONT> <BR> <FONT SIZE="+3">The Port Mahon Marginalia</FONT> <BR> Single issue, seasonal, or yearly rates</P></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <H4>Margin Notes<BR> an Editorial</H4> <P>There is no law in Port Mahon, beyond what the garrison chooses to enforce -- don't attack the garrison, don't commit treason, and don't interfere with the kern pod trade. Therefore, justice in Port Mahon is outside the existing law.</P> <P>Justice. Fair dealings. Treating others as you wish to be treated. Have we forgotten such basic concepts?</P> <P>Everyone is entitled to personal security. Everyone who takes equal risk in an endeavor is entitled to equal share of all gains from that endeavor. Everyone is entitled to their belongings, unless they give over possession of their own will. Everyone is entitled to pursue their own endeavors, so long as they do not harm another person. These concepts are fundamental to a society that is based on something other than "Might is always right."</P> <P>To secure justice in Port Mahon, a person must be either very skilled with sword or spells, or have or buy friends who are; or else silver-tongued and able to sway a mob to action. Who can extract justice from those people?</P> <P>Last month in Port Mahon, there were several cases of injustice. Greymalkin took far more than his share after a battle. A mob slaughtered Silvas because they believed he had commited the injustice Greymalkin was actually responsible for. Fekesh killed Silvas for threatening him. Fekesh was killed in turn, and his weapon stolen and destroyed. A potentially lethal trap was set where someone could innocently trip it. Allister removed all the belongings in a shop, and demanded recompense for setting off the trap.</P> <P>Has justice been served in all of those cases? Are they finished, or will events escalate? Without some means of settling disputes -- dispensing Justice -- we could very well see the conflict between the sides deepen and spread further.</P> <P>Most of those events occurred far outside of Port Mahon. Should they be the concern of everyone in town, or should they be of concern only to the two sides, so long as no violence spreads to town? As we all spend most of our time here in Port Mahon, and there are certainly enough threats from outside of town, it is in everyone's best interest that conflicts are settled, rapidly, and to the satisfaction of all involved.</P> <HR> <H2>Letters to the Editor</H2> <H4>Bullies in Port Mahon</H4> <P>It's probably public knowledge that Fekesh killed a person last Mad Moon. What's probably not public knowledge is that the person was being a bully and tried to force his desires on the CC until Fekesh had got fed up and killed him.</P> <P>Tell me, if someone got into your face, told you you couldn't do something because 'he and his group' didn't like it, and was waving his sword around for emphasis, what are you going to do about it? We tried talking to them, and then we tried ignoring them (that's when one of them got into Fekesh's face).</P> <P>In the end Fekesh let his annoyance and irritation get the better of him when he attacked the bully. But he did not back down or roll over and play dead.</P> <P>As a reward for not backing down, Fekesh got killed from behind while fighting monsters, his possessions looted, his weapons broken, and some of his stuff held for ransom. Of course, the bullies felt they were being 'reasonable' and 'morally superior' when, in fact, they did the same thing Fekesh did, and then some.</P> <P>Fekesh may not have acted correctly when he killed the bully, but at least he had the integrity to not loot the body and even paid for the resurrection.</P> <P>So if you going outside of the town, or just outside, watch out for any of the Bully Bunch (Rantual, Turuth, Silvas, or Sir Nickoles Darathien) following you. You might be less lucky than Fekesh.</P> <P>Pho T. On</P> <HR> <H4>Warning to all brave adventurers</H4> <P>Beware of the Cuisinart Corp. for they are nothing but blood thirsty animals. These so called warriors are putrid scum. If you should have the unfortunate opportunity to see these savages, draw your sword, watch your back, and prepare to defend your life. Do not take this information lightly, the Cuisinart Corp. have murdered a fellow townsfolk in cold blood.</P> <P>On the last moon, I had overheard that the Cuisinart Corp. were going to head up to the Stone Digger Goblin lair. As a member of the IBGW union, I felt that I should follow them to ensure no ruthless killing of goblins. So as the Cuisinart Corp. headed up towards the Stone Digger lair, Sir Nickolos, Silvas, and myself followed along. </P> <P>Upon the Cuisinart Corp. arriving at the Stone Digger lair, they spoke of trading with the goblins. The goblins were not too sure about dealing with the Cuisinart Corp.. So as a friend to goblins, Silvas walked up to the cave opening to speak to the them. No sooner than three words out of his mouth, Fekesh murdered Silvas in cold blood. After witnessing this atrocity, I rushed forward to heal my fellow adventurer. Olaf, swords drawn, blocked the path to aid the bloodied body.</P> <P>At the same time, Fekesh started a killing blow and finished off his sadistic act. Thankfully, Sir Nickolos was able to retrieve the body and return to town to get him resurrected. The Cuisinart Corp., then continued to break down the door of the goblins and continued their bloodthirsty rampage. </P> <P>Apparently, greater spirits disapproved of this senseless murdering and resparked the lifeless goblin corpses to reattack the Cuisinart Corp. The outcome was unfortunate, the Cuisnart Corp. lived. </P> <P>The IBGW Union is greatly disappointed with the senseless act that occurred, and have therefore banned the Cuisnart Corp. from TRESPASSING on goblin ridge. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if only true IBGW members were allowed to enter goblin ridge. If trade seems down, thank the Cuisinart Corp. for screwing everything up. Even though they killed a fellow townsperson, they will be the ultimate demise of everyone in Port Mahon.</P> <P>Keep in mind, as you adventure, watch your back for the Cuissy Corp. They are nothing more than ruthless barbaric bandits. You have been warned.</P> <P>May the spirits be good to you.</P> <P><CITE>- Rantual -</CITE></P> <H4>Greetings citizens of Port Mahon!</H4> <P>I'm Allister Cullen of the Black Company, and I have a few things to say about the last Mad Moon and our town, in general. </P> <P>After the events of last month, I think it's terribly obvious we need a town council or some form of town government to bring law and order to Port Mahon. We will never be a true civilization without one. </P> <P>I heard a story of an elf being executed for an alleged theft right in our town. Was it justice or murder, who knows? </P> <P>My own experience with the "so called" vampire I was protecting leads me to another point. Everyone was wrong. All the town's folk were wrong because they were involved with lynch mob justice. I was wrong, for how can one man(elf) have the right to balk a whole town's action with only the point of being a Paladin of Light and trying to do the right thing. Think back on that night, remember the chaos? Anything could have happened...it could have blown up to full-scale battle between people who were friends just moments before. </P> <P>We need some kind of law. We need government. One more example (and this was definitely a lynch mob!)....the new chemist in town who I only know as Jack accused me of stealing from some shop owners.</P> <P>(To keep this letter brief, I'm not going to discuss my guilt or innocence. If you have any questions for me on that subject, feel free to come and ask me. Besides, guilt or innocence is quite beyond the point I'm trying to make.)</P> <OL> <LI>Jack, the chemist, confronted me in the middle of a huge battle against 300 Orcs. They physically stopped me from going back to the battle for a time, putting the lives of many people in that much more danger.</LI> <LI>The shop owners in question were NOT present.</LI> <LI>Jack said he was representing the shop owners which means whatever actions he took, they are also responsible for.</LI> <LI>Jack had twelve very suspicious, shadowy minions with him who, when killed, rose of their own accord to fight some more.</LI> <LI>After accusing me of stealing, I started to explain and he cut me off. I tried to explain again, and he cut me short again. So I asked him if he was going to allow me to speak in my defense....his answer was NO! So I turned my back on him and began walking away.</LI> <LI>After declaring ME the "bully", he ordered his twelve minions to kill me.</LI> </OL> <P>I would have died swiftly and quite easily if it hadn't been for the instant reactions from the B.C. and all the citizens who were witnessing this. They saved my life. Then ALL of us would have been killed if it wasn't for John (The MAN who everyone wanted to kill the night before), who saved us with an escape spell. This is deplorable!</P> <P>I made these points to strengthen my first point. We need Law and Government. Also a warning......who is this new chemist named Jack and his seemingly unkillable shadow minions? (What I say now is not a boast, simply a fact.) On the first Mad Moon, I killed five Orcs single-handedly and then later that night I killed an Ogre by myself. I only mention this because Jack and his friends could have easily killed the Black Company and six other tough citizens. Beware if Jack decides you're a thief!</P> <P>Allister Cullen, B.C.<BR> Paladin of Light </P> <P>P.S. Thank you much to everyone who came to my aid.</P> <HR> <H4>Out of Game </H4> <P>January and Febuary game dates: To Be Announced. Watch the <I>Until Such Times</I> for information on game dates and locations. March game date: March 21, at St. Pius. Game starts at noon. <BR> Game dates for next summer: April 18th, May 9th, June 20th, July 18th, August 15th, September 19th, and October 17th. <EM>(All dates are tentative)</EM><BR> Winter games check-in opens at 10:30am. The game starts at noon, and ends at 6:00pm.</P> <P><STRONG>LOST</STRONG><BR> Two way radio (chapter walkie-talkie). Last seen in Monster Central. If it accidentally wound up in your possession, call Brett Fuller at (414) 536-9258.<BR> Grey cloth covered foam shield on last game day at Wowitan. If found, please call Jayson Gralawicz at (414) 878-0618.</P> <P><STRONG>FOUND</STRONG><BR> Contact lens case. Call Dana Erlandsen at (608) 251-2869</P> <P ALIGN="CENTER"><A HREF="97_oct.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/prev_g.jpg" ALT="[Previous]" BORDER="0" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="24"></A><A HREF="../events_98/98_jan.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/next_g.jpg" ALT="[Next]" BORDER="0" WIDTH="110" HEIGHT="24"></A></P> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0"> <TR> <TD><A><IMG SRC="../../images/left_h.jpg" ALT="Left End Of Scroll Bar" WIDTH="32" HEIGHT="116"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../info/info_toc.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/info_h_n.jpg" ALT="[Logistics]" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" WIDTH="45" HEIGHT="116" NAME="info"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../game/game_toc.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/game_h_n.jpg" ALT="[Game Info]" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" WIDTH="60" HEIGHT="116" NAME="game"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../misc/misc_toc.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/misc_h_n.jpg" ALT="[Miscellaneous Information]" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" WIDTH="62" HEIGHT="116" NAME="misc"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../faq.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/faq_h_n.jpg" ALT="[Frequently Asked Questions]" BORDER="0" WIDTH="58" HEIGHT="116" NAME="faq"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../new.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/new_h_n.jpg" ALT="[What's New]" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" WIDTH="52" HEIGHT="116" NAME="whatsNew"></A></TD> <TD><A HREF="../../index.html" TARGET="_top"><IMG SRC="../../images/home_h_n.jpg" ALT="[Magic Horizons Home Page]" ALIGN="BOTTOM" BORDER="0" WIDTH="59" HEIGHT="116" NAME="home"></A></TD> <TD><IMG SRC="../../images/right_h.jpg" ALT="Right End Of Scroll Bar" WIDTH="22" HEIGHT="116"></TD> </TR> </TABLE> <P>Problems with the page? 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