Avaran
Exemplar
<The previous posting has been taken down, and a new one put up in its place. On an OOG note: If you want a copy of the old one for whatever reason, PM me and I'll be happy to provide it!>
Ladies and gentlemen,
After giving the matter a great deal of thought, and after some very good conversations with some people, I'd like to say the following:
If I'm being honest, I have no desire to kill anyone, nor am I looking for reasons to do so. I will kill when necessary, but this...isn't one of those times. Besides, there are fates far worse than death. I'm rescinding my previous note and instead would like everyone to consider the following, regardless of who you are or where you come from:
We adventurers are an impulsive group. We like to charge head-long into things without always thinking about the consequences; we tend to get in the way of dragons, Fae, and vampire griffins, if it serves a particular cause or purpose that we feel strongly about. And, in my case, I put myself between all of you and a small village we know nothing about, full of people who have no real means to defend themselves against, well, most anything. I initial response was to protect them, though my method of doing so was a mistake. I made a mistake, and I ask the indulgence of those reading this; we've all made mistakes, I'm learning all the time that things are different here.
With that in mind, it would do all of us well to remember that we are guests here in Tarndale. A few of us were specifically asked to keep on eye on anyone who came through the portal, whether they be from Andar, Shalduk, or parts unknown, as the locals are ill-equipped to deal with what passes through it.
It is our duty to protect the people of Tarndale - from themselves and from us. We know nothing of this land, we know little of their customs...and to be completely straight-forward, we came here and put up wards and cast circles without even asking if it was okay. I am at fault just as much as most of you (there were exceptions, of course, but not nearly enough). We gave no thought to our hosts and what they might want or expect from us -- their guests. I'm disappointed. Most of us traveled here with not only our belongings, but a great deal of presumption.
Some mistakes are hard to undo -- circles are not easy things to take down. Others are nearly impossible to undo -- teaching someone just enough so that they don't poke themselves with the wrong end of a dagger, only to watch them head into battle and be slaughtered; or teaching First Aid to a friendly merchant, only to see him get cut down on the field because he thought he could help one of his new friends.
As for the teaching, the Elders of Tarndale have indeed asked that we hold off on doing so, until they say otherwise, and I strongly urge everyone to adhere to that request. We don't know enough about this land or the locals to even know if doing so is a good idea. Things here are not as obvious and as straight-forward as they might seem, and caution is definitely warranted. I am sure there will be more talk about this in the future, just try to keep things in perspective. It won't hurt them to wait a few months to learn what we can teach them, but it could kill them to learn what we know. It also gives us time to learn of and from them.
Our actions, here especially, can have far-reaching and unknowable consequences; it can take time to see the err of one's ways.
Speaking of which, for general information purposes:
I'd like to ask that if people want to continue to put up wards, that they at the very least put them up so that they are not visible from the outside. Not only will this be less rude, but it could also serve as a safety measure -- there is a distinct possibility that such things could attract trouble -- the kind we saw Saturday evening the weekend of our arrival. They can cast rituals -- specifically destroy magic -- without the need of a circle, similar to how a dragon manipulates ritual magic (though not exactly; contact me for details).
In Service,
Sir Avaran
Knight of Andar
Ladies and gentlemen,
After giving the matter a great deal of thought, and after some very good conversations with some people, I'd like to say the following:
If I'm being honest, I have no desire to kill anyone, nor am I looking for reasons to do so. I will kill when necessary, but this...isn't one of those times. Besides, there are fates far worse than death. I'm rescinding my previous note and instead would like everyone to consider the following, regardless of who you are or where you come from:
We adventurers are an impulsive group. We like to charge head-long into things without always thinking about the consequences; we tend to get in the way of dragons, Fae, and vampire griffins, if it serves a particular cause or purpose that we feel strongly about. And, in my case, I put myself between all of you and a small village we know nothing about, full of people who have no real means to defend themselves against, well, most anything. I initial response was to protect them, though my method of doing so was a mistake. I made a mistake, and I ask the indulgence of those reading this; we've all made mistakes, I'm learning all the time that things are different here.
With that in mind, it would do all of us well to remember that we are guests here in Tarndale. A few of us were specifically asked to keep on eye on anyone who came through the portal, whether they be from Andar, Shalduk, or parts unknown, as the locals are ill-equipped to deal with what passes through it.
It is our duty to protect the people of Tarndale - from themselves and from us. We know nothing of this land, we know little of their customs...and to be completely straight-forward, we came here and put up wards and cast circles without even asking if it was okay. I am at fault just as much as most of you (there were exceptions, of course, but not nearly enough). We gave no thought to our hosts and what they might want or expect from us -- their guests. I'm disappointed. Most of us traveled here with not only our belongings, but a great deal of presumption.
Some mistakes are hard to undo -- circles are not easy things to take down. Others are nearly impossible to undo -- teaching someone just enough so that they don't poke themselves with the wrong end of a dagger, only to watch them head into battle and be slaughtered; or teaching First Aid to a friendly merchant, only to see him get cut down on the field because he thought he could help one of his new friends.
As for the teaching, the Elders of Tarndale have indeed asked that we hold off on doing so, until they say otherwise, and I strongly urge everyone to adhere to that request. We don't know enough about this land or the locals to even know if doing so is a good idea. Things here are not as obvious and as straight-forward as they might seem, and caution is definitely warranted. I am sure there will be more talk about this in the future, just try to keep things in perspective. It won't hurt them to wait a few months to learn what we can teach them, but it could kill them to learn what we know. It also gives us time to learn of and from them.
Our actions, here especially, can have far-reaching and unknowable consequences; it can take time to see the err of one's ways.
Speaking of which, for general information purposes:
I'd like to ask that if people want to continue to put up wards, that they at the very least put them up so that they are not visible from the outside. Not only will this be less rude, but it could also serve as a safety measure -- there is a distinct possibility that such things could attract trouble -- the kind we saw Saturday evening the weekend of our arrival. They can cast rituals -- specifically destroy magic -- without the need of a circle, similar to how a dragon manipulates ritual magic (though not exactly; contact me for details).
In Service,
Sir Avaran
Knight of Andar
