Book 6: Act 2 - Men-I-Naurgrim

It is the year 2946 of the Third Age, and the lands east of the Misty Mountains are astir. From the cloud-shrouded peaks above the High Pass to the spider-infested gloom of the forest of Mirkwood, paths long-deserted are trodden once again. Busy merchants carry their wares to new markets, messengers bring tidings from foreign realms, and kings send forth armed men to extend their influence and the rule of law. Some say that a new age of freedom has begun, a time for adventure and great deeds to reclaim glories lost in long centuries of oppression and decline.

But adventures are not really things that people go out and look for. They are dangerous and rarely end well. While it is true that a handful of valiant individuals set out to make their mark on the world, for others it seems that adventure chooses them, as though it is the path they are fated to tread. They are restless warriors, curious scholars and wanderers, always eager to seek what was lost or explore what was forgotten. Ordinary people call them adventurers, and when they return successful, they call them heroes. But if they fail, no one will even remember their names...

Run by the Loremaster Vardaen
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Blubbo_Baggins
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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Blubbo_Baggins » Tue May 23, 2017 12:56 am

"What he really means, Rathar" quips Finn, "is that it will actually take forever to complete the repairs. It's taken 1000 years, to get here," he chuckles.

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Vardaen » Tue May 23, 2017 2:04 pm

Tom is a big smile and blushes when Finn gives him so many compliments. "I'm trying my best sir."

Bofri has been standing just looking at the road a long while as you are paused.

Varuthil is kneeling on the road, reading the signs, listening to the stone, the wind, the trees, the birds. She is long gone, far away, and hardly hears those around her as she listens to Mirkwood.

The debate on how long the road might actually last bandies about, smiles and good will. Nalir cuts in, "This is going to take forever! Look at these damn weeds! Stupid trees everyplace, darn nettles, I don't care for this one bit! Not one bit!" His shouting sends a small flock of black birds up out of the trees into the sky you know must be up there above the foliage.
"He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." - Gandalf
J.R.R. Tolkien, Council of Elrond, The Fellowship of the Ring

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Muskrat » Tue May 23, 2017 4:42 pm

Varuthil stands up, brushing dirt from her knees, and says quietly, "We should be cautious from here on out. The stones are ... on edge. There is a darkness further up the road--how far, the stones can't tell me, but we should be wary. It may or may not be what has kept the road in repair, but I doubt it will appreciate our efforts."

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Blubbo_Baggins » Wed May 24, 2017 4:55 pm

Tom shrugs and seems to indicate he never had felt comfortable here in the Forest.

"Thank you for the warning, Varuthil," says Finn. He looks back at Bofri, "Well, unless we have need for one to scout ahead, please lead on."

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Shurijo » Fri May 26, 2017 12:50 pm

Borir stands around listening to the others, when the lady elf speaks, the dwarf's interest piques. Holding his axe in hand, he nods and says, "We'll be alright. Whatever's ahead, if there's trouble, will be without a head soon 'nough."

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Muskrat » Fri May 26, 2017 5:37 pm

"If it has a head we can cut off," says Varuthil somberly. "Remember that nightmare we were caught in? It could be some evil enchantment like that. But there's only way to find out--keep moving forward. And if we have any chance of destroying this thing of Shadow, I for one want to." Her voice takes on some of its old coldness.

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Shurijo » Wed May 31, 2017 1:22 am

"Aye," Borir agrees with the lady elf. "Hatin' things without heads messing with our heads."

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Vardaen » Thu Jun 01, 2017 4:50 pm

Shipwreck appears incognito for now, not sure why, I emailed him
Rathar the Wood-goer have been silent, he moves slowly up to Varuthil, "I sense more than danger ahead." His voice is low, and he looks to Borir and then to Borir's axe. Nearly at a whisper he hisses, "We are being watched."
"He that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." - Gandalf
J.R.R. Tolkien, Council of Elrond, The Fellowship of the Ring

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by shipwreck » Sat Jun 03, 2017 10:41 am

Rathar has been preoccupied. A growing shadow of fear has been on his mind and so he has been abnormally quiet. When he says "We are we being watched" he has no explanation, just his intuition...and fear.

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Men-I-Naurgrim: First Week

Post by Muskrat » Sat Jun 03, 2017 11:10 pm

Varuthil nods, takes out her bow and knocks an arrow. "Well, let us move forward then with an abundance of caution."

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