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Sit closer, my friends, and a tale you will hear. A tale of courage and sacrifice. A tale of bravery and skill. Long, long ago, before the world sealed itself away from the bright blue sky and the joy of the open air, there was a small community known as Glendale. This town may have been small in size, but it housed members of all the Namegiver races. They all lived in peace and harmony, enjoying life and letting each person do what he could to contribute to the community.
As the Scourge grew nearer and the first of the Horrors started to roam the lands, the town began to prepare a kaer for the time when the barriers collapsed and the creatures of darkness walked the world unchecked. The dwarves drew up the plan, mapping the corridors and rooms needed to support the people of Glendale. The elves drew upon the power of magic to create the wards needed to keep the kaer safe. The orks and trolls worked mightily, carving the kaer out of a nearby mountain. The humans helped create the interior furniture and equipment needed for the centuries beneath the earth, and the t'skrang travelled far and wide, bringing books, and other items from other communities so that the kaer would have the knowledge needed to emerge into a new world once the Horrors were gone.
As for the windlings, well, they put off doing any work, keeping themselves entertained by flying through the sky and doing other things that would be lost to them once the Scourge began. And the other races looked at the windlings playing at their games and began to wonder what the small folk could do to contribute to the community's safety. Many grumbled that while they worked, the windlings wasted time playing foolish games.
Eventually, the kaer was finished and the folk of Glendale began the long process of moving their lives underground. Still the windlings continued playing, and the others started to grow irate, wondering if they should even allow the small folk to take shelter in a kaer they had not helped construct.
It was then that the first of the Horrors called the Twister of Souls fell upon the town. When this happened, Jegar Twinlance, an ork cavalryman, charged towards the Horror, certain he could destroy it before it could reach the still unsealed kaer. The Horror snapped Jegar's lance in one mighty blow, and snapped poor Jegar's back with the second.
It was then that the dwarven warrior Thorvald the Strong attacked the creature, swinging his mighty axe with all of his strength. But despite his great strength, the axe bounced harmlessly off the Horror's thick hide. The Twister of Souls then turned and devoured the brave dwarf.
Next, the elven nethermancer Narivar cast his powerful spells at the Horror, sending forth great blasts of magic. But even these magics had no effect on the powerful monster. The Horror cast magic of its own, causing Narivar's skin to rip from his body, killing him almost instantly.
Quickly, L'tavik, a t'skrang swordmaster, leapt into the fray. His blades moved with the speed of light and he was soon in the thick of battle. But each blow bounced from the Horror's skin, never even drawing blood. The mighty creature turned and bit poor L'tavik's head off.
Once the t'skrang fell, the human wizard Hemdale struck the Horror with a powerful blast of arcane might. Hemdale struck at the creature again and again, but to no avail. The Twister of Souls grabbed the wizard and tore him limb from limb.
It was then that the townsfolk knew despair. The Horror had killed all of Glendale's bravest defenders and now there was no one to stop the monster from destroying the kaer. But much to the people's amazement, a single windling, a troubadour adept named Neeza flew up to the Horror and started to play her pipes. She played a beautiful song, a song so intricate that all who were present stood open mouthed with awe. Even the mighty Horror stopped its advance to listen to the enchanting music played by the diminutive troubadour.
It was while the Twister of Souls stood listening to Neeza's music that the other windlings flew to the townsfolk and stuffed the people's ears with mud. The windlings had heard the song before when they would spend the time playing and were no longer influenced by it. Once the people could no longer hear the music coming from the pipes, the windlings led them to safety in the kaer.
Once the people were safely in the stronghold, they realized they would have to seal it before the Horror broke loose from Neeza's song. There was no way to bring Neeza into the kaer, for if she stopped playing, the Horror would attack. The folk of Glendale had to seal the kaer with the brave windling still outside.
The Scourge lasted many centuries, and never once did the people of Glendale have complaints about the windlings love of games. The windlings provided amusement for the kaer for all the years of the Scourge, reminding people to keep a light heart and to never fall to despair.
No one knows what happened to Neeza. Some folk say that Neeza died that day when the Horror finally broke free of the song. But my folk have a different belief. We believe that the Passion Astendar heard the beauty of Neeza's song, and was so moved by her skill and bravery, her willingness to sacrifice herself so that her community could survive, that Astendar herself rescued the troubadour, and that she played for the Passions during the long years of the Scourge.
The characters can hear about a set of windling pipes that holds all who hear its music enthralled. A set of pipes that can hold even a Horror with its music could be very useful to adventurers. Of course, to use the pipes, one would have to learn of Neeza and the town of Glendale.
Of course, the pipes could already be in the hands of someone else. Imagine a bandit gang that could subdue caravan guards by playing enchanting music from Neeza's Pipes. Maybe the characters were hired to hunt down these mysterious bandits and bring them to justice.
Neeza's Pipes are indeed magical. They have been blessed by Astendar herself and have many useful powers.
Maximum Threads: 1
Spell Defense: 12
Neeza's Pipes are small, silver pan pipes covered with fine engraving. Neeza's name is worked into the engraving, written in windling.
Thread Ranks
Rank 1 Cost: 200
Key Knowledge: What is the name of the pipes? It is named Neeza's Pipes.
Effect: The pipes give a +1 bonus to the player's Emotion Song, or allows an Emotion Song test at the player's Charisma Step +1.
Rank 2 Cost: 300
Key Knowledge: Who was Neeza? She was a windling troubadour who saved Kaer Glendale.
Effect: The pipes now give a +2 bonus to Emotion Song. They can also be used to play a Song of Sleep, needing to get a Good Success against the target's Spell Defense on an Emotion Song test to put the target to sleep.
Rank 3 Cost: 500
Effect: The pipes can now be used to play a Song of Healing. The person makes an Emotion Song test against the Spell Defense of the person being healed. If successful, the character being healed makes a Recovery Test, adding the pipe player's Emotion Song Rank to his Recovery Step. Include any bonus the pipes give to the Emotion Song.
Rank 4 Cost: 800
Key Knowledge: Who was Neeza a Questor to? She was a Questor to Astendar.
Effect: The song of healing no longer uses a Recovery Test, though a person can only benefit from one Song of Healing a day without using a Recovery Test.
Rank 5 Cost: 1300
Effect: The pipes now add +3 to the player's Emotion Song.
Rank 6 Cost: 2100
Key Knowledge: Who was the Horror Neeza captured with the pipe's song? The Horror was the Twister of Souls.
Effect: The pipes can now play the Song of Holding. This powerful song costs one point of strain to play and per turn. The player makes an Emotion Song test, needing to beat the target's Spell Defense. If it does, the target is held immobile as long as the song can be heard. The song can be used against many targets at the same time, in fact, it works on anyone who's Spell Defense is less than the Emotion Song test result. The only way to avoid the effect is to stuff one's ears with something, or to be deaf.
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