An aMAZEing story

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 12:53 am

Prologue - (Turn 0)

A long time ago, on an island far, far away, there lived a mountain people who called themselves the Kabobs. They were skilled in the art of mining, experts at finding the rarest of gems in the hills and in building marvelous stone houses in which to live. They had schools devoted to mining and construction which only the best and brightest students were allowed to attend. The greatest honor that could be bestowed on a gradute was selection to The Castle Guild which designed the great castles which, it is rumored, reached to the Heavens.

In addition to the wealth that the great gems brought through trade by sea, a very secretive group of alchemists had learned to create powerful spells from the gems. All of their magic was used publicly to the benefit of the land, but there were those who believed that the mages had far more sinister spells at their disposal. There were few who would suggest such publicly, but woe to those who the mages discovered spreading such rumors.

Other than some sea trade through a small port, the Kabobs had no contact with other people. A great wall had been built around the lands of the empire by the Ancients, which none could penetrate in either direction. The Kabobs had no interest in maritime matters and it is believed that they could not swim a lick. The records indicate that they could survive on very little water. Too much water, in fact, was lethal to them. This does not appear to be true for distilled liquids, as vast quantities of "alcohol" were consumed at virtually every public event. Some have made the claim that this indicates the Celts may be their descendants, but no genetic link has been confirmed. They may be more like the dwarves of Middle Earth.

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 1:12 am

There were those who lived on the edges of the mountains, near the walls. These were the outcasts, those who would not or could not work in the mines. In spite of their lower status, they appeared to be eating better than the mountain dwellers. A detailed accounting of the main crop of the land, MAZE, found that the outcasts actually had more MAZE in storage they they had been alloted. Where were they getting it? Most of the food consumed by the Kabobs came from the mages, as crops were notoriously difficult to cultivate. The mages began to suspect the outcasts were trading gems for food with outlanders and that the walls were not as solid as they appeared.

If there was knowledge to be gained beyond the walls, the mages were intent upon acquiring it. They approached the Great King with their information and requested that an expedition be mounted to seek a way through the walls. It took much persuasion. Like most of his subjects, the King had long believed that the walls were impenetrable. The mages were not to be denied, and after much discussion which was probably augmented with bribes and a bit of minor magic, the King agreed to lead the Kabobian army on an expedition beyond the mountains.

This is the story of their great quest beyond the mountain.
The aMAZEing Quest of the King of Diamonds, the man with the Axe.

Post by **korexus** » Thu Sep 04, 2003 2:40 pm

Sorry to break the narative, but this seemed like the best place to post.

I was curious about the people who built these walls. Did they build them all the way down one side of the province or did they build up to the edge of their neighbours. So for example if people in province 10 built a wall between them and the people in province 8, would this wall be continued all the way down, thus blocking them off from province 9 too, or could that bit be illusionary. Or do you not want to tell us, Egbert?

(Of course, I know that the people in 8 could build the wall and this problem wouldn't come up. But later in the game it could make a difference...)

Or maybe I'm spending too much time staring at this map!

korexus.

Post by **Egbert** » Thu Sep 04, 2003 2:47 pm

The walls can be in pieces. So, the border between 10 and 8 is not necessarily the same type of border between 10 and 9.

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Thu Sep 04, 2003 5:15 pm

Chapter 1 (Turn 1) "The Shimmering at the End of the World"

The King of Diamonds led the army out of the citadel with few observers. Very few Kabobs cared for anything outside of the mines. Those few that had ventured to the Great Wall could only confirm the legends that spoke of it as "The End of the World." Even most of those who had signed up for the six month expedition expected to return soon.

The Great Wall is visible from quite a distance. The mountain men could move quite quickly in the terrain, but it still took about a month to reach the base of it. It was not the solid wall that most expected, but a MAZE of canyons that turned back upon each other. Scouts were sent into the canyons as each was encountered. In all cases these scouting parties would return reporting that there was no way forward, or they would encounter other parties who had entered at other points. Even with their exceptional mountaineering skills, all reported that the Great Wall was impossible to scale.

Early into the fourth month of the expedition, one scouting party returned after dark with an unusual report. They had been inspecting a box canyon when the setting sun cast some light at a low angle into a dark corner. This light produced a "shimmering" on the wall that they investigated with some trepidation. Much to their surprise, they found that they could actually enter the Great Wall at that point! They did not pass through, as darkness was near and they were not sure they would be able to return.

The next day all forces were dispatched to this canyon. The engineers, and just about every Kabob thought of themself as an engineer, inspected the wall. It was revealed that some geological event, an earthquake perhaps, had caused the wall to weaken at this point. While the wall was impenetrabely thick at most points, this was one place where magic had been used to conceal a weak point in the wall. A shortage of building material? Perhaps. It is equally possible that someone was pilfering supplies or behind schedule and just cut some corners. They used magic to cover the weak spot in the wall.

The combination of geological events and the passage of time to weaken the spell had caused an opening to appear in the Great Wall. The King of Diamonds discovered that men and material could pass through the Great Wall in either direction at this point. Most of the day and especially at night this weakness was invisible to all, but once discovered it presented no impediment to movement.

It was time to see what wonders lay beyond "The End of the World".

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Fri Sep 05, 2003 3:05 am

Chapter 1 - Part 2 - "An aMAZEing World"

The Great Wall proved to be even more astounding than any of the legends that spoke of it. They now saw things no Kabob had seen in countless generations. As they decamped from the mountain wall they found that the Great Wall continued on to the East for as far as the eye could see. There was a second shimmering detected almost immediately and they discovered that there was not one, but two great new lands that presented themselves. To their right, an endless plain, with crops growing in great quantity. To their left, a great forest. They knew of trees, as many grew in the mountains of ErstWind. The trees that grew here were thick, almost too good to use for shoring up the mines of ErstWind. They would certainly make fine stocks for their weapons.

They were also surprised to find that those who populated these lands were as different from each other as they were from the Kabobs of ErstWind. The forest folk were noticeably taller and more agile than the mountain men. Better for climbing the trees where they often made their homes. The plains people were of more average build, but certainly had much endurance. This came from their long days in the fields, sowing and reaping.

Neither of them offered much resistance to the incursion of the Kabobs, although the forest folk were much more wary in their dealings with them.

There was a significant language barrier that had to be bridged for the King of Diamonds to effectively treat with these peoples. It took almost a month to learn enough of each others language (and creating a few new terms all three could understand) for the three parties to parley. The people of the forest called themselves the Sej. The people of the plains called themselves the Nyr. To the Kabobs, the northeren forest became known as the SejWotch Forest and to the South stretched the Great NyrWotch Plain. While the forest led to the Great Sea, quite probably the same Sea known to the Kabobs, the Great NyrWotch Plain was bounded on all four sides by the Great Wall. Like the Kabobs, they had no knowledge of life beyond the Great Walls.

An agreement was reached for each of the three people to trade their resources for the benefit of all. A trading post was established near the opening in the wall to facilitate this trade. The King of Diamonds also arranged to outfit military units from the new lands to assist in further searches of the Great Wall. If some recent geological event had caused these cracks to appear, then it would be best if theKing found them before whoever, or whatever, lived on the other side of the Great Wall found him.

One questions the legends of the Great Wall never answered was the obvious one. Was the Great Wall there to keep them in, or to keep something else out?

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Tue Sep 09, 2003 1:51 pm

Chapter 1 - Part 3 - "The Rain of Terror"

The Nyr were eager to join the campaign and embarked upon it with an eagerness only those who have spent a lifetime "Down on the farm" could understand. The plains can be a bit boring and a chance to explore the Great Wall with their new allies offered an adventure many of the Nyr were grateful for.

The Sej, on the other hand, were more reluctant to join. The King of Diamonds could understand this. Many of his troops were already a bit homesick for the mountains they had always known. It was to be expected that those who had spent time in the Great Forest would be a bit reluctant to leave. Even after they broke camp and headed for another section of the wall, the Sej kept their distance from the other parties.

Like the King of Diamonds, the leader of the Sej also carried a large axe. He was a bit larger than the average Sej, and about as strong as an average Kabob. He wielded this Axe with great skill and care in the forest, only cutting the deadwood and what timber was needed for their needs. All were impressed with his love of the woods and his skill with the axe. None could pronounce his name, but as those who managed the trees and lumber in ErstWind were known as "Jacks", he was called the Jack of Hearts.

Unknown to the King, not long before the arrival of the Kabobs, the Sej had experienced what some thought to be a natural disaster, others considered it an attack from an outside source and still others the acts of an angry God. Many of their warriors had been killed by "Stones from the sky". None knew their origin, nor how such an event could occur. It was called the "Rain of Terror".

The Jack of Hearts and a band of scouts had come across an answer deep in the forest. There, buried in the ground, was a large projectile. It was like nothing that the Forest Folk had ever seen. It was filled with the same type of stones that had felled their warriors. It seems that it was to release these stones high above the trees and leave no trace of their origin. This one had obviously misfired. While it might be possible in some foreign land to create such a thing, this particular projectile had the markings of something that was produced not by hands, by magical means.

There were other markings on the Projectile. Strange markings that made no sense to the Sej. When they had first met the others there was concern that they were the source of this projectiles. It took several months before the Sej believed that these people were not the source of the Rain of Terror. None of their banners or shields bore the mark seen on the object in the forest.

The Jack of Hearts and his fellow scouts recruited many Sej to join this expedition and see if they could find the source of the Rain of Terror. To seek a mark that had a name unknown to their ancestors, but well known to their descendants. The mark they called "Vayuna".

Post by **Egbert** » Tue Sep 09, 2003 2:53 pm

Very good, Bjorn! You figured it out.

Post by **korexus** » Tue Sep 09, 2003 3:35 pm

Does anyone else feel like their missing something here?

Post by **Egbert** » Tue Sep 09, 2003 4:23 pm

Sorry, it was something that happened on Bjorn's turnsheet, and he had to figure it out. It is basically meaningless in the scheme of the game, but his story shows that he figured out what happened. If he wants to enlighten the rest of the players, I'll leave it to him. In the meantime, turn 2 has just been sent out.

Post by **Duke** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 6:13 am

Now this guy from Long Island can write. I am starting to feel bad for not picking up here. Good one Bjorn.

Post by **Duke** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 7:52 am

Wrapped in a wriddle - By Duke

West, you say. Should I go.
Could this be right? Is it so?

North, East and South fits too.
I wouldnt be sure if I were you.

South feels right. I should head South.
If I be wrong then I will shut my mouth.

North is where the ends all be.
East is closed, you shall see.

Nope South is where the action is.
Then I turn North, I can not miss.

Really? South? How can you be sure?
Why not West? Is this a lure?

Take any path, do feel free,
but remember, last turn I took three.

Saladin · Post by **Saladin** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 10:05 am

We sure have some fine writers here in WoK!

Looking forward to reading the rest of the story Bjorn.

And more poetry would also be welcome oh great clan leader.

Post by **gm_al** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 4:31 pm

I STRONGLY urge you to pick up on one of the threads I used to create in the 'WOK background stories' section of the boards. There evn is the 'WOK stories pack' on the files page, just waiting to be picked up....

We have so many good talents here that it is a SHAME not to use it to come up with a WOK background storyline. Shame on all of you good writers !

I know Nick had the task to pick a few fellows and start something in this regard, PLEASE make it happen !

Who can I count on ?

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Wed Sep 10, 2003 8:20 pm

Chapter 2 - Part 1 - "World without ends"

The Great Wall gave a different appearance along the borders of the Great Plain. Most likely, this was due to the nature of the terrain. The mountains of Erstwind provided some material for the wall and the Wall itself blended into the hills so well it was sometimes difficult to know if you were actually within the MAZE of the wall or still in the mountains. The miners knew, as the Great Wall itself was quite impenetrable.

Along the Great Plain, the Great Wall was exactly that, a great, soaring, wall. There was a some slope to it, but it was not possible to climb the face of it. There appeared to be no point in trying, as it soared into the clouds. Because of the great distance you could see in the plains and the heat given off by the sun scorched earth, the Wall often appeared as a mirage. One could only imagine the scope of the effort required to build it, which is why many believed it was the work of Magic.

It was almost another three months before the next opening in the wall was discovered. This time it was not really a weak spot but an actual mirage. The land near the wall was generally not fertile enough to interest the Nyr in working it. In some spots the land was a virtual wasteland and none ever went there. The wall appeared solid enough from a distance, as it always did. But some enterprising scouts found that in the extreme Southwest corner what looked to be a mirage really WAS a mirage. Material or magic, whatever force held the Great Wall together was weakening after several centuries. Much like the other passageways, although the wall appeared solid men could walk right through it. There were two such openings into two very different lands. One was very much like the Kabob homeland, while the other was another vast plain.

Unlike the Sej and Nyr, the residents of these areas put up some stiff resistance when the armies began to pour forth from the wall. While the attack of the alliance was unexpected, of course, these people knew something about combat and many an allied solider was lost in the early combats. Seeing the vastness of the invading horde, the occupants of these new lands offered to treat with the King of Diamonds and a pact was quickly signed. Earlier negotiations with the Nyr and the Sej had taught the King much about negotiation and communication with the outsiders. The King's advisors had started to detect the commonalities in the different languages and were working on a common language all could work with.

Those from the mountains called themselves the Elrex. Their mining skills were good, but their architecture was crude. They were very interested in what the Kabobs could teach them and as a "quid pro quo" offered to assist in the King of Diamonds Quest.

The Plains people called themselves the Wyr, which the King and his advisors found quite interesting. They had found two plains people, one called the Nyr and now another calling themselves the Wyr. The similarities in name and language were striking. It was as if someone had built the Great Wall directly across a single plain and split it and the people who inhabited it in twain. With this new information, messengers were sent back to the Great Castle with instructions to the mages there to research the "Legends of Old" and see if they might find new insight into the old world, the world of the Ancients.

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Thu Sep 11, 2003 1:36 am

** A Spy infiltrates your Province #17 ! [-1% EFF]
>> You have a 10% chance to detect the source.
++ You did it ! [+2% EFF] The Spy came from #20 !

Chapter 2 - Part 2 - "The Terror has a face"

As the King of Diamonds, "The man with the Axe", trained the new recruits, the Jack of Hearts was escorting the messengers back to Erstwind. Many of the Sej joined him, as they longed to see the great trees of the forest once again. The trees of Elrex were few and far between and paled next to those of the Sejwotch Forest.

Eventually they approached the trading town that had been set up near the border of the three lands. There was a great commotion as they arrived and the Jack of Hearts, as leader of the Sej in that area, was asked to intervene and render a decision.

At this time there was no written law. There was a code of conduct and each community regulated their affairs in a way to not cause undue concern to their neighbors. Once a people joined the alliance, they were expected to support it , both with men, arms and supplies. The demands of the alliance were not onerous and each people they had encountered so far had found enough volunteers and surplus material that they could both support the army and a good home life.

They also knew that the agents of the mages of Erstwind were all about, keeping their eye on everyone and everything. One of the mages was in the trading town and he and his minions had a prisoner chained to a tree. While the captives appearance was similar to a Kabob, the mage insisted that the man was not from Erstwind and had been caught with detailed information about the province on him. The man was clearly a spy, but where could he have come from?

To the Sej and the Nyr, one Kabob looked just like another. They were unsure about all this and suspected that the mage may just be using the prisoner as a scapegoat to teach them some sort of lesson. It was against the code of the land to falsely accuse someone, so they asked the Jack of Hearts to investigate the mage's claim.

One look at the tatoo on the prisoners forearm and the Jack of Hearts knew the accusation was true. The prisoner bore the mark of Vayuna, the same mark he and his guard knew as the source of the "Rain of Terror".

The Jack of Hearts consulted with the mage and insisted that the prisoner be turned over to his guards immedately. Once the mage heard the story of their discovery in the forest, he agreed. There was little more knowledge he could gain from this prisoner, as the ways of the mage can gain knowledge even the prisoner does not know he has revealed. It would do no harm to let the Sej have their way with this one, as he suspected more would soon follow. The messages that the Jack of Hearts brought back from beyond the Great Wall were even more valuable. The Mage escorted the messengers back to Erstwind, while the Sej escorted the prisoner back to the Sejwotch Forest.

For the Mages had very good spies of their own. They had found the way to dispatch their spies to areas beyond the Great Wall, to places they could not visit themselves, but could "see" through other means. They added the information from the messangers to their Tomes of Knowledge and with each new bit of data their "World View" expanded a bit more.

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Fri Sep 12, 2003 10:55 pm

Chapter 3 - Part 1 - "The Way of the Maze"

The King continued to train his new recruits and look for the way forward. In the last two months, his scouts had been unable to find a way forward from their current position. He took the time to refit his men and train the new recruits. As much as he looked forward to continuing his advance, he welcomed the delay in that it allowed his administrators time to stablize their expanding population and economy. More people needed to be put to work and the ranks of the army needed to be expanded.

As important as this was, he was even more interested in what the mages had discerned from the ever increasing amount of information they were gathering. The Queen of Diamonds, the Mistress mage, was on her way to the military camp with information that she felt must be delivered in person. There were rumors that local militia in Erstwind had found another opening in the wall and annexed a province to the West of the citadel.

But then, an unanticipated although perhaps not entirely unexpected event. A scouting force from the East end of the province sent a report.

** Your Province #16 is under attack from Lord Fredo.

Ordering the army to prepare to march, the King of Diamonds raced forward with his personal retainer to lead the defense. As it happened, it was only an exploration force that had been scouting the opposite side of the Great Wall. The force was quickly defeated and the King's scouts determined where they had breached the wall. The King brought forward the bulk of his army and prepared to advance.

The shields of the enemy bore the mark of Vayuna and they had sworn fealty to Lord Fredo. They, too, were marching from their homes to find their way through the MAZE. So it was confirmed that the King of Diamonds was not alone in this quest. There were others, with similar intentions involved. They would have to be confronted, and better on their territory than his.

But this did not conform to the Legends of Old! Was there something else he needed to know? Rather than rush forward, he waited for the arrival of the Mistress mage. Perhaps she had new knowledge which would guide him through the MAZE.

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Sun Sep 14, 2003 2:37 am

Chapter 3 - Part 2 - "The Legend"

The military camp the alliance had established was know as "Nyr End". It was a fair distance from the citadel as the crow flies, but due to the nature of the MAZE the Great Wall presented, the distance by road was over twice as far.

It was not know how the Mistress Mage made her way to the camp from Erstwind so quickly. Some suggested there was magic in her arrival, but she rode in on a piebald mare accompanied by her escort sooner than expected. She was known to be a very capable rider, as she often traveled the mountains to acquire rare gems for her collection.

When he heard of her arrival, the King of Diamonds hastened from his preparations for war to parley with the Queen. If the Legend were about to be fulfilled, he must learn what new knowledge she had of it.

The Legend, as told, went back to the time of the Ancients. In their time the island had been united and a great Empire had existed. The gems on the island were known to have special powers. In those days a great trade had flourished with other lands, lands long forgotten and of little note. They called this place the Island of Amazement because of the magical aura it projected.

But then came the Great Sundering. It is told that a stone of immense magical power was unearthed. Darker than even the powerful Black Gems, it was known as the Dark Stone. To this day the fate of the Dark Stone remains unknown. What is known is that the people of that time began the construction of the Great Wall to isolate themselves from one another. Some believe it was a madness induced by the stone, others that they sought to protect themselves from the aura of the stone, still others in an effort to control it. The Ancients put all of their labor and magic to work to isolate themselves from each other and the Dark Stone. In time, other lands learned to shun the island and soon its very existance was virtually forgotten.

The fate of the Ancients is also a mystery. Most believe that the Ancients fled the island, taking much of their knowledge of magic with them. Perhaps they just died off, unwilling or unable to pass on their knowledge.

But the Legend says that a time will come when the stone and magic that hold the Great Wall together will fail. A time when the various people of the island, so long separted, will be united. A leader will arise to renew the land and it restore it to its former glory.

A Time fortold as "The Rise of the Kaomarian".

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Sun Sep 14, 2003 3:13 am

Chapter 3 - Part 3 - "The Mystery Revealed"

After the usual formalities, the Queen of Diamonds met with the King and his closest advisors. Several of those in attendace later recorded what was discussed there and all of their journals agree. Here is a summary of what the QoD had to say.

"The Legend, as told, is accurate. We know that this is the time of the Rise of the Kaomarian. What is missing from the Legends is any clear idea of how we recognize the Kaomarian. There are many riddles, many clues, but attempting to decipher them all has frustrated even the greatest minds of our age. With the capture of the spy from Vayuna we gained a new insight into the riddles. Once revealed, the answer is so simple that we can only deduce there was some residual magic in Great Wall that prevented us from discovering it."

"I know your question even before you ask it. Are you, the King of Erstwind, the Man with the Axe, the Kaomarian? The answer is not what you expect."

"We now believe that most of the Ancients left this land and took their magic with them. Recall the bees from which we gather the honey. When the hive becomes overcrowded they will eventually form a great swarm and the queen will lead most of the bees to find a new home. But before doing so, she leaves behind a special cell which the remaining bees will tend. This is the queen cell, which will give rise to the new queen to rebuild the hive."

"However, to ensure the survival of the hive she will leave more than one such cell. When these new queens come into the world, only one can be the queen of the hive. They will fight to the death and root out any other queen cells they find."

"The reason we have so many stories on the nature of the Kaomarian is that there is not one, but many. Yes, my lord, you are a Kaomarian. However, there are others who also bear this title. The one we now know as "Lord Fredo" is also a Kaomarian. There may even be others, how many I cannot say. Some will be strong and well organized. Others may perish before you are even aware of their existance. Like the queen bees from the hive, you must seek out the remaining Kaomarians and expel them from the island."

Bjorn · Post by **Bjorn** » Tue Sep 16, 2003 11:44 pm

Chapter 4 - Part 1 - "Call to Battle"

Having heard what the Queen of Diamonds had to say, the King was now resolved to do what every Kaomarian must do. He must drive the others from the land and claim it for himself.

He knew at once that he would not be returning to his old home in the mountains. There was only one way to proceed now. Forward, ever forward. He would no longer use the title "King of Diamonds", as that was reserved for a diamond master from the mountains of Erstwind. The Mistress Mage was well versed in the magic of the gems and would serve her role well. Henceforth he would be "Bjorn of Toulouse", the man with the axe. The shields of his retinue were emblazoned with his new coat of arms.

He marched his mighty host to the opening of the great wall. His oratory skills did not fail him, as he exhorted his well trained army to drive into the foe from Vayuna. The troops roared their approval. Bjorn knew that the Queen of Diamonds was working her spell upon the troops as he spoke.

++ You cast the Spell #90-PUSHER [0.3 LEV] on Province #16.

The Queen had promised more magic. As Bjorn completed his call to battle, he called on the queen to summon a mighty warrior to lead them. She called forth a warrior so fearsome that all those assembled were sure of their ultimate victory.

++ You use the Potion and #8- White Golem [+0.2] ...appears in Province #16 !

The Queen had informed Bjorn that this was just minor magic and more powerful help would arrive soon. While doubtful that this was true, Bjorn did not want to doubt the ever improving skills of the Diamond Queen.

Confident of victory, the host passed through the Great Wall with a mighty roar.