Who goes there?

All kinds of people coming to Anvil, the best and the brightest - but also people who just want to rest and soak it all in.

Overview

The movers and shakers of the Empire gather at Anvil for the Summer Solstice. Cardinals, generals, Archmages, senators; all come together to discuss recent events and plan for the future. Such gatherings of the rich and powerful always draw others as well - those with goods to sell, secrets to trade, or business of their own to arrange. They may come in secret, or they may be ostentatious in their approach making it clear to everyone their intent to come to the pulsing heart of the Casinean Empire to ply their wares.

A Pouch of Impossible

• A newly ennobled Dawnish enchanter is bringing a magical pouch to Anvil, which they believe will offer great inspiration and challenge to anyone who gazes upon it
• They plan to visit the Glory Square at 9pm on Friday evening to offer this opportunity to whoever wishes to take it

Out-of-character information
The effect of Enchanter de Revoile's peculiar pouch will take the form of a short roleplaying effect on a card handed out by a marshal, who will be able to answer any questions. The effect will include details of a simple way to remove the effect in-character, and it will also be possible to decide to end the effect at any time if it has ceased to be enjoyable.

The tale of enchanter Kay de Revoile and their test of mettle is a topic of some discussion among troubadours aware of it. They were apparently set a seemingly impossible task by a derisive earl, and despite of the challenges involved they have somehow managed to achieve it and earn their nobility. Details are few and far between, but it is generally agreed that they were sent to seek a seemingly non-existent item or possibly an impossible material, and nonetheless managed to complete the test in a way that the earl de Revoile could not disparage.

Enchanter Kay has been seen on the road to Anvil, bearing a finely embroidered pouch which they are keen to show off to anyone who stands still long enough for them to start up a conversation. They believe that anyone present when the pouch is opened will be offered a fascinating experience - change, challenge and new perspective over the hours that follow. All being well they will arrive at the Glory Square in the Dawnish encampment around 9pm on Friday, to reveal what is within Those who know Kay are unsurprised this meeting will happen so late in the day - the newly-minted noble has always been a committed night owl and star-watcher

While the enchanter is planning to open their magical pouch in the Glory Square, they're keen to stress that the gift they want to share is open to and of interest to citizens from any Imperial nation.

Silverlark's Songs Renewed

• Endric of Lepidus is returning to Anvil to hear the arrangements Imperial musicians have prepared using recently discovered lyrics penned by Elayne Silverlark
• They're intending to visit the Song and Story Circle in the Navarr camp around 12.30 on Saturday afternoon

At the Winter Solstice Endric of Lepidus - a Highborn poet, and one of the scholars who support the Lepidean Librarian -brought a recent discovery to Anvil. As a dedicated student of the life and works of Elayne Silverlark, they were excited to have found three sets of lyrics that they believed to have been penned by the exemplar herself. Only the words survived however - and what is a song without a tune? Endric hoped that the great songsmiths of the Empire would be able to breathe life back into Elayne's lyrics.

Endric plans to visit Anvil at the coming summit to meet with musicians working on creating music to set alongside the words, and hear their arrangements. They intend to record the most effective and inspirational tunes and publish them for the benefit of musicians - and pilgrims of Loyalty - across the Empire and perhaps beyond. The Highborn scholar will make their way to the Songs and Stories Circle in the Navarr woods, intending to arrive around half-past twelve on Saturday afternoon. They're also eager to speak to people who share their personal love for Elayne Silverlark, her story, and the mysteries surrounding her life and especially her death.

A Winter Offering from Hahnmark

• A once-famous coven are coming to Anvil to discuss with owners of herb gardens across Hahnmark whether they should use a Winter boon
• They intend to head for the Tree of Names in Wintermark around 4 o'clock on the Saturday afternoon of the Solstice
• They'd also like to meet people who have spent time with Heralds of the Tomb King in the last few years.

The Strengths of the Deeps coven of Gulnar's Deeps was once well known across the 'Mark. Back in the time of Empress Giselle, they would make great use of Sorin's Rite of Agony to enhance their ability to perform battlefield rituals such as Inevitable Collapse into Ruin and the occasional Wind of Mundane Silence. They also boasted several members who had travelled to foreign nations to take part in Trials of the Pallid Charm. After a number of their members died on what they claimed at the time was a badly mishandled battle against the Druj, the coven stopped coming to Anvil, and several of their surviving members apparently left the Empire. Over the past season, however, gossip in the towns of Hahnmark suggests that the coven has returned to their old hall, and begun clearing access to a long neglected regio there, aligned with the realm of Winter.

The rumours seem true. Auden Landen, has approached the civil service to say that the coven have found a gift that the Hungry Wolf made over forty years ago to the old Strengths of the Deeps. Auden believes its use could benefit all of Hahnmark. He expresses concern about the Spring Equinox mandate enacted by Ourania Neofoti of the House of the Wanderer, urging the virtuous to be cautious of ill-advised deals with dark powers. As such, the successors to the old coven want to seek advice before they decide to use it. They wish to meet with all owners of herb gardens and herb related sinecures in Hahnmark, and invite priests and stormcrows who might be able to offer guidance on the matter.

They've apparently sent details of their plans, which include meeting near the Tree of Names in the Wintermark encampment, as well as more information about the boon they have to offer, to the more prominent herbalists of the nation. Auden hopes the coven will also have time to visit Anvil more widely, after their business with herb garden owners is concluded or at other times during the Solstice. He hopes this will allow them to meet those who have dealt with heralds of Empty One in recent years.

Roll up! Roll up!

• Mountebanks invite people to try their luck at a unique kind of tombola, with prices starting as low as 1 ring
• They have a multitude of prizes on offer including 2 wains of White Granite.
• On Sunday morning they'll head directly for the Tree of Names in the Wintermark camp, just after the some of the Nation has headed off to battle.
• Around midday on Sunday morning, you will find them in the League camp, the time will vary a little depending on how business has gone earlier

Ale di Sarvos di Apulian, self-styled "Prince of the Roads", the Mountebank of Unsurpassable Opportunities is coming to Anvil along with several of their compatriots! The flamboyant mountebank is apparently seeking any and all who celebrate Prosperity, and have an appetite for adventure and the unusual. Ale claims to have in their possession a tombola (of all things) unlike any other. It requires a certain bravery of sensation to take part and offers a unique experience to those prepared to take the risks (and possibly sign waivers to that effect depending).

Bearing in mind matters such as Prosperity pricing, and not wanting to miss any chance to separate people from their.... ahem, not wanting anyone chasing risk and excitement to miss out, the mountebanks are presenting a scale of payment opportunities. Tokens for participation are thus available at four different prices - 1 ring, 5 rings, 1 crown and 1 throne. Even those not of a risk-taking disposition might still be interested in attending - there may be some spectacle, and perhaps Ale and their friends can persuade you to take a chance!

Rumours follow in Ale's wake suggest that both "winners" and "losers" alike are reported continuing to act in odd ways for some time after the mountebanks have moved on. Sadly, specifics are very light on the ground.

Lost Lore

• The Lost Lore steading have raised concerns that Vates within the nation are trusted at face value, and should be fairly scrutinised considering the power they wield
• Navarri priests are encouraged to consider taking an oath to advise the vates, and to help ensure their oaths are grounded in virtue
• Interested citizens should approach the egregores for more information

Lost Lore Steading in Miaren is mostly known for the importance it places on Vigilance and Wisdom, especially with regard to the traditional role of the vates. The magicians of the steading are guided closely by their priests, and this has given them something of an odd reputation. They most recently came to prominence a couple of years ago during the discussions around the Witness of Conclave. They endorsed and offered support in the form of a specialised ritual focus called a Thornpath Sash. They expressed significant worries that magicians appointed to hold Imperial titles by the Imperial Conclave risk becoming corrupted by the power of their positions. After that matter was resolved, a number of their members left their home with various stridings to walk the trods. As they travelled, they shared their vision of Navarr as a nation more closely led by the wisdom and vigilance of its priests, and one that keeps a much closer eye on its magicians and especially on its vates. Following on from Ourania Neofoti’s judgement at the Winter Solstice, Lost Lore Steading has sent out a call for their fellow Navarr to give additional thought to their place in the Great Dance, especially as it relates to vates, oaths, and magic.

Wherever they go, they talk about the importance of vates seeking the guidance of priests when considering contact with eternals and heralds. They even go so far as to suggest that vates should be accompanied by a priest when dealing with such powers. Although a vate may enter into conversation with a herald with only good intentions, they argue, without a clear connection to Virtue and the Way it is all too easy for even the most noble of them to be tempted down darker paths. Many such meetings only contain vates, and that also strikes Lost Lore Steading as a matter for concern. One bad fruit, they say, risks that the entire basket will spoil. Lost Lore aren't just talking; they're prepared to show their virtue by action rather than just words. Navarr, they say, is a nation that exists in the shadow of overwhelming hubris. If any nation recognises the danger posed by magicians acting without adequate Wisdom and Vigilance, it should be those who have sworn to correct the terrible mistake made by the magicians of Terunael.

They encourage vates to discuss their oaths openly with others in the nation, but also wish to see a number of priests endorsed by the nation to take on the specific role of advising vates - perhaps similar to the chaplains appointed during the Summer Solstice. They would listen to the vates oaths and help them to keep to them, and assist potential vates to craft oaths which will protect and nurture both the nation and the wider Empire. They've spoken with the egregores, and while they expressed some scepticism, they have agreed to at least assist Lost Lore in starting a discussion. Any Navarr priest interested in this role is encouraged by Lost Lore to speak to the egregores. The artisans of Lost Lore steading have created certain tokens they have asked be provided to priests who take on the role of advising the vates, both to mark them out and to make them more recognisable to Navarr magicians. In the form of an eye surrounded by thorns, it is apparently their hope that Navarr magicians will seek out the aid of these priests to ensure they discharge their oaths with virtue.

The reception of Lost Lore's philosophy has been mixed, to put it mildly. There are plenty of Navarr who feel that vates by their very nature are those who are trusted to deal with eternals and heralds, and they question why Lost Lore would doubt and undermine their peers. Lost Lore retorts that the priests of Navarr are trusted to guide the nation, and they ask that the virtuous consider using statements of principle to encourage a wider discussion about the vates, their role in the nation, and perhaps most importantly, the role they will play when Navarr goes to war with the vallorn. Nobody prospers if the destruction of the vallorn results in another magical disaster because those trusted to deal with eternals acted on what they thought was best for the nation, but made poor bargains due to a failure of virtue.

Mysterious Mystics

• Representatives from the Aviary of Ishal wish to meet with their fellow Mystics at the Tree of Names at 21:45 on Friday.
• They wish to discuss the role of Mystics in Wintermark going forward.

The Aviary of Ishal is not noted for being a very predictable place, largely inhabited as it is by mystics who may or may not be under the influence of heroic quantities of Goosewhisper Infusion at any given moment. In recent seasons it seems to have been even more chaotic than usual. Flitting half-glimpsed heralds of Sung have been seen visiting the aviary, and deep conversations seemed to be happening in every hut and grove. By the start of the Summer, a sense of determination has settled over the area. Like a flock of birds suddenly taking flight, mystics scatter in all directions. The Aviary is not abandoned by any stretch of the imagination; many mystics are not cut out for long-distance travel, and many have families and other responsibilities to take care of. Nonetheless, the fog of Goosewhisper hangs less heavily in the air than once it did.

What the mystics are up to is uncertain at this time, but three of them seem to be heading for Anvil. They've sent a messenger ahead, indicating that they're hoping to meet with people at the Tree of Names the Wintermark camp at around a quarter to ten on Friday evening. They're keen to speak to their fellow mystics, but also with any parties interested in what is going on at Ishal going forward.

Belly of the Whale

• Jackdaw Larksong has been tasked with assembling a team adventurous enough to head inside a gargantuan summer herald to cure what ails him
• Up to 5 people should come to the Hall of Worlds for 2030 on Friday of the summer solstice, ready to make the slippery journey to Archipelago’s upset stomach

During the Winter a herald of Rhianos, Archipelago the Rising Leviathan, also known as Vast Moving Island of the Summer Seas, visited Anvil troubled by savage indigestion. As Summer rolls round, the creature has once again reached out to the Empire. During his previous visit, he was "too small" for a permanent and effective cure to his ongoing ailment. As a consequence, the herald has apparently spent the past six months reverting back to his usual (immense) size... and now he seeks a team of medics adventurous enough to cure his illness by literally heading inside him. One of Rhianos' other heralds brings a message from the massive Summer creature, asking for further assistance.

Archipelago thanks Jackdaw Larksong for escorting him through Anvil during his last visit, and wishes for them to select a group of 4 people to accompany them in treating his unusual ailment. The group should come to the Hall of Worlds at half-past eight on Friday evening. Archipelago is a powerful herald of Rhianos, and if they step through the portal in the Hall of Worlds he is very confident he can swallow them hole and put them in a place where they can (hopefully) cure his sickness once and for all. Archipelago offers effusive reassurance that this expedition will be almost totally safe - suspicious effusive one might say.