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There is a time in our darkest hours when all hope fades, when there is no light at the end of the long tunnel and despair closes in. It is during those times that we find we are the most vulnerable, to ourselves and outsiders alike. To those who would seek to prey upon us when we are at our weakest and steal from us. Then there are those who only seek to help, the people whose names will be long lost to history and forgotten. These people are known only as Journeymen, members of an organization that has long since protected us in our olden days.

The Journeymen hunt down creatures which terrorize our villages and seek out the bandits who wish to cripple our trade. Some say they even go so far as to be mediators between nations at war, to have settled peace between them so as to allow the people to flourish and survive. But the Order of the Traveler is a thing of the past, an organization crippled by its own selfless ideologies that it attracted those who do not wish to be quite as upstanding as their masters were. It is in this time that we find we may need the Journeymen the most, in these days that are growing ever darker that we will need their support.

For a winter is brewing quite unlike any we have ever seen, a winter with winds far colder and nights far darker than any before. Some say it is a farce, a tale told by midwives and elders who have grown senile in their time, seeking only to scare the children into submission. But nay, something is awakening far beyond what we can see and it is something far more terrible than any may have ever seen. The creatures of the forests have been disturbed, far more aggressive than ever before and actively seek out our villages. Few say the kings have begun going mad, slowly growing ever more distant from their council as a darkness creeps into their courts. What is coming may be something of legend, something we have never faced before. Perhaps the Order of the Traveler and the Journeymen will return to their former glory. Or perhaps we shall fall into despair once more with naught but darkness all around.
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[hider=History]
In Ages long past, the land of Erith was home only to the long lived Elves and the stout dwarves, a peaceful coexistence between beings more so in tune with nature than those who campe later to Erith. For centuries the two races existed in peace, disputes being settled without any bloodshed or harm between the two. Yet, that all changed when the humans came from across the sea. They were not invaders, nay they were refugees from a land of war, a land so clouded by the fires of burning villages that the lines between combatants and innocents were blurred. It was said that land of Hael sunk beneath the sea, its people and remnants of war lost forever. 

The Humans brought with them a life neither Dwarf nor Elf has ever known before, a life far too short but capable of reaching greater heights by building upon the deeds of others. It wasn’t long before the Humans claimed much of the land of Erith as their own, being allowed as such by the Elves who saw the fledgling race as needing someone to protect them in this new land. But the Elves had underestimated the true desires that lay in the hearts of man, the desire of greed and lust. There were those who sought to take from the Elves and Dwarves what they believed should be rightfully theirs. 

One such man was a human known as King Haedron, a fledgling Lord who had obtained power in the young years of their arrival in Erith. In his old age, he began to believe that there could be no coexistence between the three of them, that they must war for the right to rule over Erith. So it was on the dawn of the Second Era that King Haedron started a war to exterminate the Elves and enslave the dwarves within his land. Many were slaughtered and those who fought back were often tortured or subjected to far worse. Those who did not fight were placed in shackles, chained together to be led into the cities for sale.

During the Chaos, a divide formed between the King and his subjects, between those who saw the Elves as lesser than those who understood the Elves and Dwarves to be equals. Haedron was stricken with betrayal when his own son, Prince Gael, struck out with those who had sided against his Father to the Lands north of the Haedrion Kingdom, settling in a land more hostile and wild than they ever knew which is now known as Gaelia. From there, Gael and his followers built a Kingdom, one with the base idea that humans and Elves may exist peacefully without fear of murder or slavery. 

Come the dawn of the Third Era and the Kingdoms of Haedrion and Gaelia have never once entered a full war to this day, only small skirmishes between each other and their many vassals. Some say it is because neither can risk losing the war, others say it is the binding of blood that keeps the Kings from ripping out the heart of the other. Whatever it may be, the unsteady peace between the two has given rise to many bandits and deserters from the armies, none full wishing to support these worthless battles nor die for a worthless King.
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[hider=The Order of the Traveler and the Journeymen]

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In Ages past, the Order of the Traveler was a beacon to all who were in need of help, no matter their race nor allegiance on Erith. All who were in need simply put up a contract on their town’s board and wait for a Journeyman to find it and answer. But those times have passed and the Order has fallen into distrust and is no longe hailed as a haven full of heroes. No, now it is full of those who seek to steal from others without completing a contract, giving them false hope in form of snake oil and false charms. Even those who uphold the beliefs of the founder, Marcus Fullbright, are seen as liars and deceitful, another rat looking to prey on the weak.

But how did the Order get to this point, well that is a story told to many children when they are young. It is a story of a war that almost was, a story of a man and his seven followers. This story begins with a man, Marcus Fullbright, who hailed from the Gaelia and had been orphaned from a young age, taken in by a small group of Elves on the fringes of the still young nation. The Everwood was a massive forest, home to thousands of Elves even to this day, but the story tells of a specific people inside who worshipped a God long forgotten by the others, the Traveler.

The Traveler was a simple God, one who took the form of a man wearing naught but rags and wandering across the trails of the Elvish forests. He would ask only for a single coin or even some food, those who offered would have their kindness repaid in the form of an issue in their life being mysteriously solved. One’s crops aren’t growing too well this season? Offer a coin to the Traveler and they would mystically grow overnight to fruition. Soon many people would worship him, leaving offerings with notes attached to them outside their doors. Young Marcus was enthralled by the tale of the Traveler and grew up to idolize the God who, to most people, was long dead and gone from this world.

As he grew up, tensions along the borders of Haedrion and Gaelia grew worse and worse, reaching a culmination when the then King of Haedrion, Michalus, blamed his brother Gael’s son- and then King of Gaelia- of kidnapping the princess of Haedrion. Despite all of King Neraus’ pleas, Michalus was adamant that it was Neraus that had stolen his daughter from him. As with all stories, this would later prove untrue but it mattered not as Marcus watched from afar as the peasants on both side were trampled over and attacked by overzealous troops from both sides.

Marcus saw the despair in his fellow Gaelian’s eyes and hearts and sought a way to help them, to give them hope when their lives were falling apart. And so, he decided to become the Traveler, to fix people’s problems for whatever they could spare. Though he went hungry some nights or slept on the cold, hard ground, Marcus stuck true to his beliefs. He soon met those he wanted to do the same as him and thus the Journeymen had formed along side him, performing duties which he could not. Some of them fought for the villagers, some built housing, but all of them did what they could for the people. 

That is, until a mysterious woman approached Marcus with a contract, one with a payment far greater than he could ever have obtained otherwise. The woman who needed his help? Princess Allia of Haedrion who, during the middle of the night many months ago, had fled from her home in the capital of Haedrion to live with a man she had fallen in love with in Gaelia. The man happened to be a noble of the country and could not get audience with King Neraus to explain the situation. But the Traveler surely could for he was a legend, a God, asking to see the King of Gaelia.

So, in the guise of the Traveler, Marcus set out to prevent the brewing war and set right what was wrong. His audience with the King was granted and he explained the situation, though it led to many tense months as Neraus and Michalus spoke of a truce between their nations. Marcus was granted land and a title, should he accept it. Marcus turned down his title and established the Order so that his name may be carried on and the beliefs he held may continue. One could say that, even to this day, Marcus looks down with pride on what he has created.
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If you have made it this far then congratulations, the History and description of the Order weren’t entirely necessary to read as of this moment but I thought it best to provide the information up front for those who would wish to design a character. Now, to get to the point of this interest check. Basically, your characters will be members of the Order, whether they be in it simply for the pay or for the ability to help others does not matter. What will you be doing? Well, that’d spoil too much on what I have planned for the opening post but you will be grouped together as Journeymen typically form groups of eight, mostly due to Marcus and his seven companions.

Of course, should there be more than eight players, I will split the group evenly between two and provide some NPCs to fill the spots where there are not players. But that is a different matter. On to what is going on in the world. Erith has been a land of mysticism ever since the Elves had first begun their lives on it and, even when the Humans came, this did not change. It has been full of creatures of all varying sizes and strengths, from faeries to trolls. Now, whether they have been peaceful is an entirely different matter. To fight them, you will have to be smart otherwise it is entirely possible to die.

Magic is simplistic in this setting, relying entirely on runes for those who are not born with the innate ability to cast magic. These runes physically or mentally tax the user for as long as they are active, with most rune casters only using one for a couple of seconds in order to achieve a feat. For those who are born with the innate ability for magic, which is incredibly rare as only one in one thousand people have it- thus why I’ll limit these spell casters to only one for a party of 8 or 2 for a party of 9 or more- they may simply perform an incantation or ritual in order to perform a similar feat. These are the arcane casters who pull their magical source from beyond Erith to perform magic.

What can you expect from this RP? My intent is to have it last a long period of time and cover many things, you will be expected to post at least once every four days, though I’ll allow some leniency in this if there is an outside or internal source halting the progression. The quality should be High-Casual and you should be able to at least write a few paragraphs in response to a post. Of course, the paragraphs will be open to change as some things will require a lesser response, though anything close to a one liner is definitely not allowed. [b]You may have to create another character at some point, whether it be because your character died or simply because our attention is turning elsewhere.[/b]

Anyway, thank you for reading and hope you have a good time. Below will be a character sheet if you so wish. Questions will be answered as soon as possible. 

[hider=Character Sheet]
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[color=][h2][u]Character Name[/u][/h2][/color][/center]
[.hr][.hr]
[color=][b]Age:[/b][/color] 
[color=][b]Alias(es):[/b][/color] 
[color=][b]Gender:[/b][/color]
[color=][b]Race:[/b][/color] (Elf, Dwarf, Human)
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[color=][b]Appearance:[/b][/color] (Not needed if appearance is included in image)
[color=][b]Personality:[/b][/color] (At least two paragraphs)
[color=][b]Biography:[/b][/color] (At least two paragraphs)
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[color=][b]Equipment:[/b][/color] (Armor, Weapons, Etc.)
[color=][b]Skills:[/b][/color] (Brief descriptions of things your character are trained in or inherited from their race.)
[color=][b]Magic:[/b][/color] (Leave blank if not applicable)
[color=][b]Misc:[/b][/color]
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Simply fill in the color which your set hexedecimal code and remove the period from the hr tags.
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Link to the OOC for more informatin: https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/166600-whispers-of-hope-fire-in-the-night-on-standby/ooc