380YE Summer Solstice winds of fortune

Their Imperial Majesty, Empress Lisabetta Giacomi von Holberg of the House
of Seven Mirrors, twentieth Throne of the Empire

Overview

Over the past three months, several events have occurred which are of significance to the Empire and may require a response from her champions. You can also read about the progress of the Empire's military campaigns here.

In each case. we've tried to tag the Winds of Fortune entry with the nations, or political bodies, to which it is most relevant. We've done this to help people who are interested only in events that are especially relevant to them. In no way are these tags intended to be exhaustive; the Empire is a complex place and very little happens in isolation.

As always, how much or how little of this information you choose to know in character is up to you. Part of the purpose of Winds of Fortune is to maintain the illusion of the Empire as a living, breathing place where things happen - and to make players aware of things their characters 'should' know based on what their roleplaying says they have been doing for the past three months.

Many winds of fortune open with a short section of in-character text. In all cases, these pieces are intended to help create an atmosphere and provide a little entertainment. Where they contain opinions, those are the opinions of the fictional people depicted - and where they contain information or rumours the assumption is that the reader will create their own context for that information or gossip. They're mostly just a bit of fun and they tend not to contain anything vital to the understanding of the wind of Fortune.

Without further ado then.

A Banner of Thorns

• Navarr

The Black Thorns are in Liathaven, fighting to reclaim the Navarr territory from the Jotun. Their presence suggests certain opportunities for the Navarr, and perhaps for the Empire. You can learn about them here.

Blackest Night

• Imperial Conclave; Varushka; inhabitants of Skarsind, Holberg, Necropolis, Bregasland, and Segura

The nameless red star is getting larger in a deeply worrisome fashion. The Phoenix has faded so badly it is starting to get difficult to remember quite why it was so important; and over Skarsind, Holberg, Bregasland, Segura and Necropolis the stars are going out ... You can learn about these three peculiar celestial phenomena here.

O Rose Thou Art Sick

• Inhabitants of Astolat, Casinea, Tassato, Redoubt

Curses. If you are an inhabitant of Astolat (especially one with a military unit), Tassato (especially a magician), Casinea (especially a farmer), or Redoubt (especially the owner of a massive castle), you probably ought to read this page.

The Other Empress

• the League, Highguard, Imperial Senate

When the Grendel launched their cowardly sneak attack on Sarvos, they looted many priceless treasures. One of their targets was the tomb of Empress Giselle at the Alvetti estates. They robbed the tomb, but the true prize - the body and personal effects of the Empress - were saved by Imperial heroes. Now, on the eve of the coronation of the twentieth Throne, a decision needs to be made about where the sixteenth will be laid to rest. You can learn more about this situation here.

The Prime Colour of the World

• Everyone in the Empire, especially briars and people from Holberg

The Hallow of the Green World has been raised over the Empire by the Sherard Hunters of Wintermark. Its touch is felt through all ten nations, but it has had a particularly profound effect on Holberg. You can learn about it here.

A Question of Provenance

• Imperial Synod, Highguard, Imperial Conclave

In addition to everything else going on in Reikos, decisions about how to deal with the more esoteric plants and fungi growing in the territory need to be made. The onus falls on the Imperial Synod, and you can learn more about the situation here. You can also learn about the general situation in Reikos here, and about the influence of Golan and Yael here.

Raise A Glass

• Imperial Senate, Throne

Traditionally, the coronation of an Empress is followed by Empire-wide celebrations. For many citizens, the most important part of those celebrations are the massive parties held throughout the nations - parties which need to be paid for. But for the more politically savvy, the most significant part of those celebrations is the Throne's celebratory message - the first formal address to the people of the Empire that often sets the tenor of their reign. You can learn more about these celebrations here.

Rebirth in Reikos

• Imperial Synod, Highguard

Yael and Brother Jared come to Reikos to counter the teachings of the heretic Golan, and to speak of the Land Without Tears. Their arrival coincides with what some are hailing as a miracle that potentially has profound implications for the Imperial Synod. You can learn more about this event here. You can learn more about the situation in Reikos here, and here.

A Season of Mushrooms

• Highguard

A wave of transformation is sweeping across Reikos as the eternal Llofir is unleashed. You can learn about some of the extremely peculiar goings on in Reikos this season here. You can learn more about related incidents here and here.

Small Things and Large

• the Marches

After the failure of the Autumn harvest, after the defeat in the Mournwold ... the Spring planting fails as well. The situation is grim in the Marches, but sometimes it is when you are tested the most that your true mettle becomes clear. You can learn about the curses - and opportunities - available to the Marches here.

Spreading the Word

• Imperial Synod, Torchbearers, historians and scholars

A team of Torchbearers led by Livia Cascade, the Seer of the Gateway, has spent the time since the death of the Empress Britta recording accounts of past-life visions witnessed by citizens of the Empire. Recently, these accounts have been published across the Empire for the first time by a publishing-house in Redoubt named the Spider's Vantage Spire. You can learn about these publications here.

Sorrow and Death

• Urizen

The spires of Zenith are in significant danger from two supernatural threats. A former warmage and guest of the Spire of Twisting Shadows - Nazares by name - is binding the spirits of Winter into the corpses of the newely dead as part of a deranged "crusade" that appears to require the "recruitment" of every human on orc in the territory. at the same time, a pall of unendurable sorrow spreads slowly from the ruins of the devastated Spire ... with potentially disastrous consequences. You can learn more about the situation in Zenith here.

Symposium

• Imperial Synod

The question of whether to hold a Symposium has been laid before the Imperial Synod. More than just a meeting, a Symposium could be an opportunity to freely and openly address questions of concern for the faithful, or a chance to reaffirm the orthodoxy of the Imperial Way; it could be a chance to learn more about heathen faiths, or a gathering of like-minded individuals wishing to forge stronger bonds in the face of heterodoxy and heresy. Assuming it takes place at all - and you can learn more about what that might mean here.

Temple of the Bull

• Imperial Synod, Brass Coast

The Imperial Senate has given permission for the Asavean priests of Balo of the Foam and the Black Bull to build a temple in the Empire. Construction is underway, and now the Asaveans wait with interest to see if the Synod will accept their invitation to build a temple in Nemoria. You can learn about this - and about certain opportunities of dubious legality available to the Synod - here.

The Twentieth Empress

• Everyone

There is a new Throne! Empress Lisabetta Giacomi von Holberg was appointed during the Spring Equinox, and will be formally crowned during the Summer Solstice. You can learn more about her, about The Throne, and about the upcoming coronation here.

Ongoing Events and Resolutions

Golden Trumpets

• Imperial Conclave

The eternal Meraud's challenge to the magicians of the Empire (which you can read about here) has ended. The Summer Magician is expected to announce the victor, and deliver the promised boon - a powerful magical staff - during the Summer Solstice. There is also talk of an "enchantment on the Imperial regio" but the details of quite what that will entail are unclear.

The Icy Crag of the Eternal Sun

• Imperial Conclave

Work on The Icy Crag of the Eternal Sun, the Summer college built near Volchitrava in Miekarova has been completed. Infused with the power of the eternal Cathan Canae, who serves as its patron, it has already begun recruiting theorists, scholars, and students from across the Empire. The first Master of Ice and Darkness will almost certainly be selected during the coming summit - any Imperial citizen can present a Declaration of Candidacy to the Imperial Conclave in an attempt to secure the position.

Fog on the Brine

• Brass Coast, Highguard, the League, Urizen, Fleet owners

The eerie fog that clings to the waters of the northern Bay of Catazar persists - save in Sarvos where it has been seared away by potent Day magic.

Veils of Night

• Brass Coast, Urizen, the League

The night skies above Madruga, Zenith, and Tassato have continued to appear strange for the last three months. Magicians agree that this is caused by Drawing the Penumbral Veil. Shortly before the Summer Solstice, however, the eerie effect of the shrouds over Madruga and Zenith begin to fade, with several nights of normal skies until eventually the shrouds have disappeared entirely. The shroud over Tassato persists - for the moment at least.