Cheers to that, then. I read Lendren's play first because it is going to go on production -- I simply cannot wait to be able to go see it in Seren's theater. Will someone in Glomdoring be writing a play that goes by straight fact? That'd be some fun juxtaposition!

I was sure Shorlen wasn't alive at that time...I wasn't that experienced at the time, and I know Shorlen came a ways after me 'cause I "mentored" him. Oh well.

I had been thinking of one that goes by Glom-"fact", which would be a bit more fun. Straight fact wouldn't be quite as fun, since they'd be very close in this case.

I also don't really remember Shorlen, and I don't know if I even had pinleg then (I sure as heck couldn't get it on Murphy if I did at that time). I was also kind of surprised that Elryn wasn't included. Though if people thought I was a plant-- I do find that rather amusing. I was too new to be anybody's. We had that dreamweaver-fellow plant, though, who was harassing us. Forget his name.

Glad to hear you think so. The standard I hold myself to is this: if my history plays are as accurate to history as Shakespeare's, I'm doing all right. I think I can safely say that, for all the changes I make to timing and sequence and characters, mine are a lot closer than his were.

In plays I will take all the different viewpoints and personalities in a group and try to boil them down to just a few people, both to keep the cast size feasible for production, and to help the audience focus in just a few lines on a bunch of stuff that was going on over a long time. That means that people tend to have exaggerated characteristics to help them play off one another so as to focus on the story and theme, and it means people who were "a little of everything" just get left out. Not because they weren't important -- they were probably the most important in making things really happen -- but because they don't play as well as someone with a strong, striking character.

So in Nifilhema's Tear Gregori is exaggerated into the cool, collected leader, more than he really was. And Laysus is exaggerated into being the creative one who thinks outside the box, more than he was, just to let them play off one another. I try to choose the person closest to what's needed, and then exaggerate; Laysus was prone to creative thought and Gregori was cool and focused, just not as much as the play shows, and not as single-mindedly.

So too in this play Shorlen appears as the unrelenting swaggering confidence of the Summer Court, while Cronnacht is the troubled agony of having odd ideas that no one else seems to quite understand, with Jasper caught in between representing the "everyman" position, the struggle between determination and the sense of futility. Elryn got left out mostly because he would have duplicated what Jasper already covered (and I feel so bad about leaving him out, but I'm sure Avaer will see why). As were so many others. (A few people got included not because they were important in this play, so much as because they will become important in following plays. Xenthos and Gwynevere, notably, though Gwynevere also got to depict something no one else did in the last scene.)

The second play in the series, Shards of Autumn, will focus mostly on the fight against Kethuru, but the third one, Winter's Gloom, will be a lot more about Glomdoring's founding. That's where being true to history is going to be harder, and no matter what I do, half the people out there will swear I'm wrong. And, of course, I'll have to focus on Serenwilde's side. (I wouldn't mind not doing that, because Lendren doesn't think that he has to play propogandist to inspire, the truth will do just fine. But it's nearly impossible to get the other side of the story told to him.)


Shorlen also appears earlier in the play than he was really in the story simply because putting anyone else into the interview scene would have required increasing the size of the cast without really changing anything; plus his enthusiasm more accurately represented that early feeling of "anything is possible" and thus contrasts better with the grinding agony of the following scene where nothing has been accomplished in over a decade.


It's amazing what people can get themselves around to believing, but yes, almost everyone thought that at the time, I confirmed this with a number of people. It seems so ridiculous to me, and I tried to cast it in that light in the play.

See, you guys shouldn't get me started! There's so much that goes into these things behind the scenes...

Been thinking about this a bit, and I've also had, for quite some time now, the notion of writing the story from Xenthos' POV for publication. Not sure if that'd be what you're looking for "for the other side of the story," but if it is-- I could use a project right now (well, over the coming couple of weeks). It'd be up to Lendren to sort out what's Glom-propaganda and what's Seren-propaganda, and I'm not sure what kind of a timeframe he has for the last part of his series, but it is a possibility.

Though I probably would throw it at Druken when I'm done with it and say, "Here, make something out of this, playwise."

If it ends up in the library system, it's sure to be consulted, but how much I can use it is pretty limited both for IC reasons and because I can't really tell where the propaganda is so I can't trust any of it.

I had come up with an extremely cool idea where a bunch of us would kidnap Elryn temporarily, then using illusions, stage glamours, costumes, and dreamweaving, convince him to tell us his side of the story truthfully, thinking he was actually telling it to the now-dormant members of the Summer Court, who were really gone into hiding to await the right moment. It would conclude with an ineffectual attempt to convince him to become a "mole" in Glomdoring, at which point he'd realize he was duped and escape. The play would then end up being framed by this scheme: the scheme would be in the play and the events would be flashbacks narrated by Elryn.

I'd cleared it with Elryn's player, but Lisaera kiboshed it while I was still trying to recruit people to help, by saying that using illusions for trickery was inappropriate for the Serenwilde ("more suited to the Dark Forest" were Her words, I think). So I tabled the whole thing. Also kind of damning to my guild, considering illusions are the linchpin of our skills and fighting, and 95% of us use them. Not that I think Lisaera meant to be slamming us as not really belonging in Serenwilde, but that's still how it came out. (Used to be more bothered by stuff like that, but I've become resigned to the idea that we'll never be more than the red-headed stepchildren of Serenwilde, only existing because a few of us are too stubborn to surrender and become Moondancers. The struggle to make the guild grow was making me bitter: now I'm just enjoying things as they are.)

The moment I saw Shorlen I started asking myself what was wrong there!

But then I realized that he was just there to help flesh out the story. It was a really good piece, I thought. I was glad to help Lendren get the needed information, but I am really sorry I didn't remember that much!

Aww thank you! I wish I got better photos of it, so I didn't have to squish them down so small... But I wasn't going too well for time, darn clay drying times.

You know... The Harbingers have no such rule...






(Not that I ever expect you to leave the 'Singers, but you can't blame me for trying! )

I would actually go on with it anyway. Lady Lisaera IC-ly has a lot of authority, but she doesn't always reflect the truth. When she speaks, it's just her own opinion. I've disagreed with her several times and still made it away alright. I would also disagree that using illusions to deceive is inherently bad; I'm sure I could even come up with examples in nature to support my case.

My end point is that if you have an idea that is that cool and would be fun for everyone involved, don't give up so easily.

Deception is just another tool, another weapon. Many insects deceive, to escape or capture prey. Chameleons. Generals hold hidden reserve forces or secret weapons, keep their communications secret. Warriors will feint to throw their enemies off guard. Heck, Yesod is deception.

I never could understand the whole 'deception is wrong' morality portrayed in various games. Perhaps in theory, but it would be hard to see how such a belief would stand up in practice or even in reasoned debate except against a zealot.

Maybe it's the Fain incident talking.

Are you sure Shorlen wasn't around back then? 'cause I can remember even I was around right when Glom was founded, and I am one of the youngest "old guard".

Back when? If you mean when Glom was founded, Shorlen was around then. He was around for awhile before that; Gwynevere was his mentor, which is why he always RPd hating her for betraying the guild and so on.

Just saw the last few posts saying that they don't think Shorlen was around for the founding of Glom. or at least that's what I understood.

Was just saying that I didn't remember him-- nowhere near as much as Elryn, for example, though I had forgotten he was a Moony before Hartstone.

It's a little too late to pull off the Elryn plan, seeing as the play's already been written and performed!

I agree that trickery is just a technique. And furthermore, I think Lisaera ought to support it when used towards the cause if for no other reason than that the fae are historically practitioners of trickery. But if this is how Lisaera's playing it, that's fine. I'm sure She has Her reasons. It's not for me to say how she should be played. I think I'll play out what happens when Lendren tries to adjust to the "changes" in attitude caused by Lisaera's pronouncements; it's just more roleplay fodder, after all. (Amarysse: there's no guild rule, it's just Her disapproval affecting one in her order... but I'll keep in mind that your guild won't mind if I trick Elryn into becoming a mole for our side! )

Shorlen was in the Summer Court during the events of the play. Just not from the very beginning, as the play implies. He came in later, near the time when it was becoming public. Part of what the play is meant to convey is that every story everyone's heard about the Court is actually only talking about the last year or so, of an effort that had been going on quietly for almost twelve years by that point. That's why those who were around from the start (like Jasper) see things very differently from those who came in only at the end (like Ibaesha), and one could argue, more accurately.

Don't even dare joke about stealing Lendren away!!!

Now that you mention it, I was involved in the Summer Court in the very early period, but then I got excluded from the later parts for some reason that I don't think was anyone's fault (someone missed me from a list of communiques, I didn't care enough to notice and they trundled on without me.)

And now that you mention it I do remember Gwynevere being Shorlen's mentor. I still don't remember him being involved with all that though. Fuzzy memory is grr.

Okay, finally got around to reading all the bardics!

I'm going to go from top to bottom. And, like last time, these may be a little vague, so I'm sorry. And I don't mean to offend anyone, these are just my opinions!

Sthai - Not a big poem fanatic, but these were well done. I really liked the setup you did and that it didn't rhyme, so it was very easy for me to follow. It was lovely to read. My favorite part was, 'take the mask from my face, the laces from my corset.' There was a lot of really good imagery.

Vashner - Little to say on it, aside of -- excellent viewpoint! You must done done a bit of research for all that information, and I appreciate your hard work very much. It was fun to read and understand my skills a little more.

Rika - those stupid smart quotes got in the way, but it was a flowing poem nonetheless. The ending is sad, but the rest of the poem was good - certainly an excellent excerpt to what Ayridion's order must have felt like.

Numidian - I appeared to have missed the first section of this story, but the second is quite compelling. I'll have to read the first to catch up. I especially liked that he dyed himself and disfigured himself to go unnoticed. But where will it lead!

Alban - I especially liked the idea of taking another's memories. That concept was just plain cool. The ending was a bit surprising, but is this the rest of the story? If not, I can't wait for the next installment. I especially like the plot. He is literally trying to be a different man for this woman!

Aramel - Plays are always a fun read, so thank you, again, for writing one! I especially enjoyed the beginning. I thought it was somewhat playful and fun to read. The turn it takes in the second Act is compelling, too. This was a cute little play, with a good message, I thought. I couldn't help but see some of the humor in it, especially in Vroshnak. It is too bad about Elloy's case, but their brother is safe now!

Linaeve - Lovely poems. I can see you playing them quite easily. They are very imaginative, and I especially love the rhyming, it was very fitting and not forced. Good job!

Zia - I am unsure if this is non-fiction for Serenwilde's history, but if it is, then I learned a lot. I enjoyed the read; it was very well written, as always.

Oh no, that is part of an effort I've been making to create children's stories and fables, kind of like Just So stories. It also makes me happy to use some of the traditional achetypes and ideas put forth in fairy tales. I had Tom Thumb firmly in mind with this one.