with Renee "Mouse" Booke
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| photo by: Angie Gray |
1) How long have you been playing?
I began playing on October 14th, 2006 at an event titled “Reflections on a Distant Land.” I guess I’m coming up on twelve years pretty soon.
2) How has the game changed since you've been playing?
The spell system is what has changed the most, I think. As many oldbies will tell you, back in our day the length of the weapon you wielded determined how quickly you could learn your spells. I’ve personally seen our system go from that, to two cost buy downs, to one cost buy downs, and finally to no cost buy downs! On top of that, we now have spell mastery and the ability to learn multiple spells per event. It was quite the shift. I’ve also had the pleasure of seeing the changes in weapon construction first hand, and the phases of PVC, fiber glass, and bamboo cores.
3) Who have you learned the most from?
I’m one of those people that considers myself to be a lifelong student. I don’t ever want to stop learning from everyone and anyone. That being said, I think Lord Sir Aven’Dar had a very big part to play in my Realms education. He taught me how to make weapons, how to analyze situations and not get bystander syndrome, how to lead, and he introduced me to Vandor to name a few of his contributions.
4) What was your best moment IC?
I hate picking favorites. I owe all of these moments to amazing Event-Holders from over the years. If I absolutely had to pick a favorite though, it would be Clan Defender’s last stand when adventurers of the Realms were attempting to escape from Wayland’s fortress. The inky blackness of Bedlam was coming fast down the hall, and the Church of Vandor decided to stay and fight so that others could get away. It was such an emotionally intense moment. I’m crying, I’m stabbing, I’m giving it my all while I’m surrounded by the Lords of two nations (Aven’Dar & Malaki) and some of my best friends, while thinking that we’re all about to bite it. Aven’dar, who was the leader of the Church at the time, had given us all the chance to leave and save ourselves but we had unanimously agreed to stay and fight together. That event was also the first, and only, time I received a tick…albeit a voluntary one. I had agreed to represent the Church and sacrifice a part of myself to restore the magic of the weakened adventurers around us.
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| photo by Eren Pils-Martin |
5) What was your best moment as a NPC/EH/Player?
This past year my OOC husband (Derek Booke), my friends, and I started a nation together. Voraniss has been a culmination of everything I’ve learned in my years in the Realms, and it is one of the things I am most proud of contributing towards. It is rich in lore, spirituality, and creativity, and has forced me to take on a more public role in the Realms. I will never forget the look of pride on everyone’s faces when we won Best New and Upcoming Nation at Feast of Leviathan that year, and the sense of accomplishment when I, Gavin, and Hygar swept the category of Best Role-Playing of Magic by a Spell caster. Hopefully I’ll have my own good EHing stories once the very first Feast of Voraniss comes around next April!
6) What would you like to see changed or developed more in game?
I would love to see a more immersive experience happen at events. I think you’ve seen a big push for it on the EHing side like with what the Folkewood Initiative has been doing, and how the quality of props just keeps going up in our community. On the player side, I love what groups have been doing to create identities for themselves: Northern Alliance and their epic camp, Gau Dring and their unique ways of displaying heraldry beyond a tabard. I want more people to feel comfortable trying that stuff out. We can only benefit from it, and I know ya’ll a really creative bunch of people because you inspire me daily. Secondly? I want continuity between events. We have to figure out a way to get more of this into our community from a story-telling perspective.
7) What advice would you give new players?
Learn from everyone, and never approach the game like you have it all figured out. Things are always changing, so there are always opportunities to learn…even when you’re learning what not to do. There are some of us that have had a really long time to make mistakes and we could save you a boat-load of trouble! Ask questions, get involved. If you’re not sure how to get involved…then ask that question! Are you seeing the pattern here?
8) What do you love most about the game?
My absolute favorite thing about the Realms is the level of creativity people have. So many of you are insanely talented artists, writers, musicians, event-holders, leatherworkers, seamstresses, chefs, actors, etc. I love seeing what you create, and it pushes me to want to do better. On top of all of that, most of you are incredibly charitable with your time. Without you, a lot of these wonderful memories and experiences wouldn’t exist. You’re the real heroes of the Realms.
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| photo by Michelle LaPlant |
Craig Blais (Stewhart of Voraniss, and Squire Bohis of Creathorne)
10) Anything else you'd like to take the opportunity to put into print?
If you’re bored, check out the Voraniss website for lore and other goodies at https://voraniss.wordpress.com/.