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Showing posts from February, 2022

The Contests of Might and Marksmanship

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  Ricmo carefully checked his pistols, one by one. You could never be too careful with your powder. He normally carried four in the bandolier across his chest, good quality but nothing special.  It was the bandolier that was the true prize.  He had found it, along with some other treasures, when he and his companions had taken possession of the Lady Jezebel , their ship. The bandolier was of Annish make and had to be at least five hundred years old, though you'd never know by looking at it. It was magic, any pistol drawn from the bandolier would inherit the magic, for a short period of time, and would be more accurate and deadly as a result.  The bandolier would give him a small advantage in the contest he was about to take part in, but only a small one.  The Solstice Festival had turned out to offer more then just the extensive marketplace and the upcoming auctions. The pirates of the pirate haven had taken the large gathering as an opportunity to demonstrate their prowess by org

Entering The Pirate Market

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  The entrance to  The Pirate Market  was packed with all manner of festival goers, so much so that getting through the narrow chokepoint was difficult. Hundreds of attendees tried to cram through the relatively narrow space between the   Cathedral of Mithras the Risen  and the  Port Authority   . The crush was not helped by a circus procession, complete with jugglers, fire breathers, musicians, and other performers that seems intent on making use of the same entrance. After navigating the entrance, the party was relieved to see that the fairgrounds opened up somewhat as the crowd spilled out into the larger space. The smell was overpowering, the pungent scent of unwashed creatures of several races mixed with the flowering palm trees, tropical fruits, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sour wine from that permeated the fairground. The din was even more overpowering then the smells, as hundreds of voices conversed, yelling and swearing at one another, competing to be heard in dozens of languages.