Meme Monday

 by the Meme Team

Aeston's Cartography Corner Part 4 - Brick by Brick

Hello everyone. I have only a few things to share today and one question I would like to pose for discussion. First of all, the online map has been updated again. After Leviathan was over I got back to work on adding nations that I could get complete information on. Here, again, is the link: https://www.realmsnet.net/maps

Banecroft, Eagle's Rook, and Voraniss were relatively easy for me to add since I had made versions of all of them for the O'er the Lands of the Realms series from a couple of years ago. Blackavar was something I had never worked on before but thanks to the Knights of the Sable Dragon I was able to get all the information I needed to add it in. So please take a look through the link above.

Again, I plan on getting to everyone, eventually. If you're a nation leader and I haven't reached out to you yet, please be patient. This is slow work but ultimately everyone will be included.

Also I've added some map symbols since the last time I made a post about them. Most of these were suggestions that I received through the #cartography channel on the Realms discord server. If you haven't joined the server to it, I suggest you do so. Lots of good discussion happens there every day. Invite link: https://discord.gg/ZSAKSQwP

Portals are a normal enough occurrence around here that a symbol for them is appropriate. Natural landmarks cover any kinds of environmental features such as special forests, mountain passes, caves... anything that warrants having a name. And a port symbol will be added adjacent to any population center that has a considerable shipping industry or something of the sort.

One thing you might notice is currently missing from the map are historical ruins; the traditional symbol we've used to represent a group that isn't around anymore and that had space on the map. I haven't gone in and added those yet though it is one of the things on my short-list of tasks to get to. Historical landmarks will end up being on their own layer that can be turned on and off. I'm considering using a new symbol for them, however. Right now there are lots of plot-ruins on the map and I think something to differentiate them from historical ruins is appropriate.

Finally the question I want to ask the community to discuss is elevation.

I set up topographical layers on the map as I was building it. I did this to try to represent the mountain ranges that historically have been on the map and also just trying to be generally geologically accurate for how land gradually rises above sea level with respect to the location of the ocean and the large inlets all over the map. But, I never really committed to an exact numeric scale.

For reference, the colors of the topography from lowest to highest on the map look like this: 

Overall, 14 different hight ranges starting at immediately above sea level on the left to the height of the highest mountains on the right.

For further reference, note that the hight of the mountains in the middle area of the Realms hang out around the middle of the scale, like this view of Chimeron and surrounding areas:

And the more extreme edges of the map have the taller mountains, like the Saurabian and Aspis Nor mountain ranges pictured below.

So it's really kind of up to us to decide what scale we are using and how much of an elevation difference there should be between each color level.

Just hitting on some basic facts, Mount Washington is 6,288′ in elevation so if we want to stick with New England geography as our guiding standard then we could have the scale top out around there. If we want to go more epic in scale, the tallest peaks in the Rocky Mountains are all over 14,000' in elevation.

So I leave that to you as a point of discussion. How tall is the right amount of tall for our mountains? What should the different colors of the scale represent. Please comment on Facebook, in the discord #cartography channel, or even just send me a PM to let me know what you think.

Thank you for your continued engagement with this project. It is a lot of fun to put together and I have enjoyed the conversations I've had with nation leaders as we've designed their areas.

In service,
Jason "Aeston" Rosa

Realmsle #1

What's that? You already did today's Wordle? Guess what? We have something else almost as good!

This custom Wordle-adjacent-puzzle features a 5-letter word that is particularly relevant to the Realms.

If the embedded page isn't working below you can click this link to get to the puzzle.

Like regular Wordle you can copy your results, so paste them in the Facebook comments to let us know how you did. But no spoilers!

Never let it be said that the View from Valehaven falls behind on current trends!

Spotlight On: Realms Animals Playing Poker

From Steven Matulewicz:

This is what I wrote for my Father Yule gift swap:

If you could have anything, no matter how absurd, what would it be? (never hurts to dream, am I right?): What I really want for myself is not something you could put easily into a package. That being said, what I treasure most are things that are from the heart that show a piece of the soul of the crafter. What is your craft? Knowing I have been gifted a piece of your self would mean quite a lot.

What does receiving this painting as my swap gift mean to me? Honestly I have been sitting here for over an hour and cannot accurately describe my honor, my humility, my gratitude in this being my gift.    

…I wasn’t expecting anything like this when I made the request. The picture represents an activity I like to do (i.e. poker), it has many different Realms nations in both animals and in tabards.  It is a truly inspired piece.  It in many ways represents multiple levels of the game I love and the friends I cherish. I don’t have the best track record with gifts for the Swap. But this, this in my heart makes up for the many years I did not even get a gift.   I am having it professionally framed and it will have a place of honor in my home.

From Nataliya Kostenko, the artist:

For your viewing enjoyment, I present my masterpiece: Realms Animals Playing Poker! My D&D group came up with this idea for me when I asked them what a good gift for my Cecil’s swap assignment (Steve/Sagart) would be–something to decorate his game room. 

I thought just a re-paint of Dogs Playing Poker with tabards would be boring, so I tried to put in animals that corresponded with each nation (though I still defaulted to dogs for groups that didn’t have a strongly associated animal that I knew of, haha). From left to right, we’ve got: a fancy dog with some whiskey in a Neden tabard, a fluffy wolf with a cigar in an Invictus tabard, a little white bird above him in an Eagle’s Rook tabard, a majestic stag in the Voraniss face paint and tabard, a fashionable lion in a cool hat and Rhiassa colors, below, a small, buff dog in a Grimlock tabard, a gambling-saavy owl in a Blackwood tabard, a cute manatee in an Ashenmark tabard, and a cheerful dog in a Chimeron tabard. 

Though I’m more or less pleased with how it came out, I do wish I’d had more time to touch up some of the messier details and add more nations (sorry to anyone I excluded, it was just a time thing). I paint pretty slowly so it took several days and many, many hours.

Update on the Stacked Deck

Sitting at the table. Ok, today only play good cards. No crap, no button raises just because, let's make it a day where I am the aggressor with just good cards. Then a few rounds of nothing but bad cards, first to act, Ace six, but it's suited, no, today was about just good cards, they go into the muck. A few rounds later, start wishing I had played that Ace six as just getting more bad hands. Finally play a hand, ten jack in the big blind. No raise lets see a flop. Two, three, four and the little blind comes out with a big bet. Throw some more cards away. A while later, six eight, gaped, not suited, maybe? Nope.

Sometimes when you are running cold you have to just keep playing through it. I kind of feel like that is where we are right now. We have several tournaments on the books. but need more. We have to keep playing through it. We have to keep going.

The current plan is to hold the final table event in about a year. It will include any Realms poker tournaments that have happened since the last final table (including the one that happened at that event). As well as any that will happen in the next year. The rules will continue to be the same. Realms legal event, tournament must be advertised at least 2 weeks in advance, at least eight players, must have a gold buy in. None of the rules have changed.

For selecting the 16 we will use the same rules as we have in the past. The 16 highest point earners throughout the [extended] season. If someone does not want to, or can not make it, the next highest point earner will be invited. For the purpose of ranking if two players both have the same point total, the one who played the most tournaments will be considered ranked higher, if that is also a tie, it goes to the player that most recently earned the most points. (This is statistically unlikely).

If there are not sixteen players that have earned points, then the player who has attended the most tournaments without earning points will be selected.

Quick note about why ranks are important. When we are ready to seat the final table. The player that is ranked highest has their first choice of seat, or they can pass. The choice continues to go down the line until someone choses a seat, or it comes to the last ranked person who must take a seat. Then we repeat as many times as necessary until everybody is seated. Some players want to sit at the end of tables, some players want to be strategic on who they are sitting near.

For the final table each player will receive a bonus 100 chips for each tournament they attended in the year.

And at this point if you are still reading you are probably asking yourself, why now, when the final table is a year off? Well, it’s about players understanding how important it is to earn points, attend tournaments to get the most chips and the seat that fits their playing style.

So, let's keep going. See you at the tables.

 

Sir Tao Ya Kang

Knight of the Eternal Flame, Blackwood, and Chaos

Duke of Blackwood

Lord of Clontarf

Current Rankings amongst those who hold points:

Name	Overall Points
Avendar	17
Sagart	17
Daekara	8
Tao	8
Baledor	5
Belle	5
Mathies	5
Phoenix	5
Wil	5
Jayce	4
Lucien	3
Raynor	2
Rose	2
Evie	1
Rillan	1

Meme Monday

 by the Meme Team

An Announcement From the Order of the Lantern

 Order of the Lantern: A place for lore seekers and keepers! 

Hello all! Kersten (OOC)/Ypnn (IC) here wanting to welcome people to a new thing that me and a few others have been working on!

Twice in years past, the Order of the Lantern rose as a place to share wisdom, but due to past circumstances, it got dissolved. Recently, a newbie was made aware of it, and inspired to see if third time’s the charm - that newbie being myself. So, over the past few weeks I have gathered a few closer contacts to discuss this idea, and we are now ready to welcome all lore keepers of the Realms in.

What we are: Lore Keepers - Anyone who works to preserve and share the lore in some way (writers, photographers, cartographers, etc)

Our goals:

History: Ensure history is not lost through documenting current history and digitizing past history.

Information Sources: Improve and add to current information sources, making them more accessible to new lore keepers and adding lore for all to learn.

World-building: Encourage world-building through promoting writing about the lore, and documenting the world of the Realms.

Primary Contacts: Kersten/Ypnn, Sara/Zarine, Pat/Saka 

https://discord.gg/5hATFHmmaA 

We communicate through the Discord - Whether you are interested in joining or just seeing what we make, all are welcome in the server! There are channels for both Order members and passerbys!

From Leviathan - Banana Dragons from the Adventurer's Guild

From the Adventurer's Guild: Contestants were tasked with making a banana look like a dragon, while limited in the supplies they could use to an odd smattering of children’s crafts and office supplies. 

(note, some dragons sustained some damage in transportation to the display area. The Adventurers Guild takes full responsibility for these bruised bananas)

These dragons are B A N A N A S!

Let's take a look at all of the entrants in the challenge. Commentary by View Staff.

Ryu's interpretation of a dragon was very classical. The wings are textbook and the fire drives it home. The scales, in particular, draw the viewer into the illusion of understanding its draconic might.

Laika's dragon has some interesting elements to it. The bulbous eyeball is striking. The scales across the back are a tasteful, muted touch. One's eye is drawn to the eruption of fire from this beast.

Ren's very different interpretation of wings really sets this dragon apart. Also, the extra care put into the front legs is apparent. The eyes of this dragon stare into your very soul and there is also a rare use of splitting the banana itself to make the mouth.

With a bit of a minimalist approach, Toah was able to create wings using a much different mechanism than his competitors. Again the use of fire is a common element (pun intended) and the green legs 

As one would expect from Osric, extra care was put into the wings of this dragon, mirrored by the effort in the tail. The dual color motif really sets this one apart. The head as well is a stunning addition to this beast with the puff-ball eyes and paper making a convincing visage.

Rani's interpretation is very unique. The large puffball between two popsicle-sticks is the most interesting depiction of a head we have seen so far. The wings in particular are massive and whimsical. The touch of a scale pattern is also a very artistic touch.

Tony has some very interesting elements on this dragon. The wings are understated, small in size but the striking use of color makes them stand out. The tail as a puff ball is unique asl well. The head really shines in this model, with the paper eyes and mouth really conveying emotion.

Dani really brought it all out in this model. The use of color, form, distribution of parts. It's like Mardi Gras meets a dragon meets a banana. The use of the colored paper clips, twisted pipe cleaners, puffs, everything about this dragon stands out.

The three dragons below all tied for getting first place points in the competition.

Killian really went bananas on this big lizard. The spine along the back certainly stands out and that along with the drawn scale pattern leave no doubt that you are looking at a dragon. The eye is very expressive as well. The wings and tail are extravagant. Overall a masterpiece.

James Swift really goes next level on this dragon. The limitation was to use children's art supplies and by using the tape holder to make a very convincing head, along with that striking purple eye, he really showed the value of thinking outside the box. A final masterful touch was using a clip to create a pose to the dragon's leg. Well done!

Last but not least we have this entry from Baron Diamond. We see the slicing the banana technique to see several elements of a molded face along with an array of flames erupting forth. The wings are crafted with a lot of fine detail, using strips of paper to create depth, and the final touch of clips in order to represent claws is an important detail.  

What You Missed: Feast of Leviathan XXIII

 

The “What You Missed” articles are weird, right, because you’d think that we would just want you to go experience events for yourself, to learn among the people, the events that occurred. 

But that’s not the case during these times, the”What You Missed” becomes more important, because we know we have friends at home, that are making choices that help them feel safe in these times. 

We know that there are fewer people that are going to come, as an event holder that makes things challenging because we can’t rely on our experience to figure our how many people to plan for, we can only require preregistration, and hope they all show.

So what did you miss? Well for one thing you missed the Leviathan standard, which is just excellence. 

Leviathan is well known at this point for consistently keeping people busy between food, activities, and general business. And despite the smaller crowd this still rang true. With games and fabulous prizes. Puzzles. And simple adventures, that were only slightly humiliating, or so rumor had it. 

The theme of the food this year felt like it was just “Saegan” and that’s me, so that’s a wonderful feeling let me tell you. I’m pretty sure I enjoyed everything. So many delightful meats. Chartcuterie. Sides of wonder. Honestly there was a few that just really felt like they were meant to honor Dave Hayden, and that stirred my tiny heart to think about. For me, Lani and her kitchen folks outdid themselves. I even enjoyed the quiche, and I don’t like eggs, so that’s just magical. 

Since I mentioned honoring Dave, I should note that’s something we did. We had a memorial for him. This was something I helped with. Set up, clean up, and building. It weighed heavily on me for weeks, to be honest. Doing a friend justice in this way is a big deal. I was asked to speak, but I had no words. I was asked to put an item in, but I couldn’t think of anything truly fitting. It had been tearing at me. I’d spent the better part of the week looking through poems and writing my own. Comparing Dave to heroes, and eternal flames. When it came time, I only had the effort I’d put into the build and set up. Which felt like it would have to be enough. I didn’t want to dishonor him with some rant that had no backbone. And I didn’t want to add something, because it seemed the thing to do. 

When Kelly began to speak, and James began to try to get the boat to light it seemed the time had eclypsed. But then the ignition didn’t work. James tried again and Kelly continued perhaps without notice. James gave up on the remote ignition and pulled a lighter from his pocket. I could tell by the sound of him lighting it that the lighter too was struggling. For me I looked to the fires set up for the people attending. Alex had gotten them lit and roaring. So I went and stole from there. Fire that had warmed the community. I brought it over to James, who seemed like he was still struggling, though in all honesty, the lighter may have finally worked by the time I got there. But the fire of the community was still going in my hand, and it caught to the memorial pyre nicely. 

In my mind, Dave wanted me to add the community’s fire to his memorial. True or fairy story, I’m going to hold that in my heart. 

The memorial carried on, with song and words from the crowd. I felt like we did right by Dave. It felt good. As the fires began to cool from the frozen night, people returned to the feast. 

With little delay to warm up we went right into court. There was one piece of business, the Knights of the Realms knighted Tucker “Temorse” Noyes into their ranks. I was fortunate enough to speak to his many great qualities, and I can say sincerely that it is well deserved. So please take the opportunity to congratulate him, if you haven’t already. 

The night carried on into the main courses, and then finally desert. 

After the food and some brief parting words, we cleaned up and slipped off into the night. 

Honestly this was a great event, and I hope my telling of it helps you with what you missed, because dear Realms friends, we miss you too. 

Hopefully soon, 

I’ll see you on the field, 

Keith “Saegan” Cronyn

Photos by Steve “Torolf” Nelson

What You Missed - Feast of the Leviathan XXIII Photos

All photos by Dustin Mack

The vessel sits, early in the day, awaiting it's purpose

The charcuterie board returns

Syruss serving up drinks

Do you know?

The decorated hall

Sling Puck, one of the tabletop games available to play

Banana Dragons, part of the Adventurer's Guild quest

The Moon hangs over the pyre

Congrats Temorse

Meme Monday

 by the Meme Team

Caption This

 Here's a photo from a Realms event lacking any specific context. Go on back to Facebook and comment with the best caption you can think of.

Why I Want To Go: Leviathan

 You have a reason to go to Feast of Leviathan, I might not be able to tell you what it is; as there are so many reasons to be had, but you have a reason to go. 

I’ll tell you why I’m going, and in that maybe you’ll discover your own reasons. I’m going because of the political stage. There are few other occasions that gather so many people, and sometimes I have business. Leviathan is great for business. Come for the business. 

I’m going for the food. Lord Sir Gwen has let me in on some of the secret magics of the kitchen. I’m not going to tell you what they are, but I will tell you she made whisper of one of my very favorite foods; one that even might usurp the famous Croque en Bouche. Which honestly, at this point would be felling a legend. Can I say in my mouth, or does that make it mean something different?

There  one more  reason, beyond any sense of community, or game, or celebration, that I would make sure to be at Leviathan, and that is because we will be memorializing the loss of a dear friend of mine. Of ours. Of mine. Dave “Vawn” Hayden. We will be doing a Viking funeral, with fire and water, and spoken word. And if it would mean something to you, to remember and say goodbye, I would hope you would go. 

KFG

Keith “Saegan” Cronyn

Baptiste Cider Review

It is now 1022, a year has died. It may not be missed, but in many ways, I do not think it was noticed.

My ginger stores are thinner now, the tarrifs have driven the price beyond my profits.

In time, this will come to a end, just like the year did, like time did... but not yet, it can not end yet.

There is more to taste, the people must know, they aren't ready... not yet.

The Birds Of Paradise claim to be a cider. Its can is warm to the touch, even though it has been in days sitting among ice. I flick it over, so the can rolls on its side.

I did not receive mana, not of any color. It was but a deception. A facade, as thin as the paper its wrapped with. 

It calls itself a Moscow Mule Cider. I know nothing of Moscow, but mules are not birds. I do not understand this drink, yet I continue to indulge, hoping beyond hope that there may be a answer in the visions...

They do not come, I remain alone.

And yet... it tastes clean. The lime comes before the Cider, and provides a crispness that is accentuated by the apples own. The tastes meld, and though the drink is dry the alcohol does not linger like a burning grease, as I find many drinks do. It is unsweet, but it doesn't need the sugar.

It does not have to cloak itself in lies, for what it has to say is not hateful to me. Its ginger is faint but used at the back end, to clear up the lime.

It is a good drink, as far as drinks can be drunk.

Good score out of ten score.

Rumors for January 1022

 [Chimeron]

The Silvan Sanctuary Farming Commune has had a lot of activity at their local tavern. Visitors have reported talk about unusual doors, leers, dangerous caves, many fights... And something about ham?

~~~

A small bakery in Chimeron City was reduced to rubble by what appears to be a massive explosion of cookies. Local mages are investigating the source of the bake-tastrophe while local children are thrilled by the doughy deluge.

~~~

River barge traffic on the Rowan continues to increase upstream of Chimeron City. From the north, large shipments of raw stone are delivered to a site on the eastern bank of the river. This site is also receiving smaller shipments of food and various manufactured goods from the south.

Meme Monday

 by the Meme Team

Throwback Thursday - Pictures from 1999

The top two events of pictures below were borrowed from the Southern Wastes homepage. Poke around for lots of amazing historical accounts of our game.

Queen of Hearts

Queen of Hearts

Queen of Hearts

Queen of Hearts

The Ascension War

The Ascension War

The Ascension War

The Ascension War

The Ascension War

Feast of the Leviathan

Feast of the Leviathan

Feast of Rathkeale

Feast of Rathkeale

Feast of Rathkeale

Feast of Rathkeale

Feast of Rathkeale

 North South War

 North South War

 North South War

 North South War

 North South War