Friday 3 October 2003

  • Currently Reading
    Bizhan and Manizha
    Shahnama of Firdausi


    OK, let's see.  Last weekend in gaming Jackson ran his FR 3.0 campaign.  Because we were traveling over Waterdeep, everyone decided to stop down there for a visit.  Delome and Cyrus has some sort of secret plan and left for Skullport before the rest of the team was ferried down by Verdigris and Snowfall.  Zed was careful enough to follow. 


    Skred and Ryllis visited the Watchful Order and updated them on events.  The order chose to continue watching rather than help defeat the undead or the godstorm.  This disappointed them.  I guess they were hoping the order would go against its charter and start meddling in affairs outside Waterdeep. 


    Squigbarm, Ethan, and Kalimba had a discussion about the Dales and their succubus mother.  They both operate under the impression that Delome's fervent desire to destroy her is Squigbarm's idea.  Once again, he had to explain that:


    One:  He was the one who helped rescue the children from the dretches which were chasing their mother. 


    Two:  He was the one who wanted to help her reject her evil ways and convinced her to try the ring of alignment changing.  When her spell resistance caused it to fail, he also offered her the chance to be bottled up. That way her children could visit her bottle in much the same way that mortals visit the graves of their loved ones. 


    Three:  He was the one who took on Shadowstuff to rescue the older Dale.  Shadowstuff's nature is to magnify the evil of those he inhabits.  He does this without intent or malice.  As Dale is a quarter dragon and half fiend who weilds his family's copper cutlas from the Copper Assassins, it seemed imperative to prevent the child from becoming evil. 


    Four:  Eldath's portfolio includes families.  Squigbarm prays for their family every day as part of his morning devotions.  He doesn't want to see the family suffer. 


    Five:  Eldath is a good-aligned diety.  Allowing an evil to not be detained or slain basically allows it to return to doing evil.  Then, that evil is on the allowing party's hands.  As a cleric of good, it is his responsibility to insure that only good influences are kept within families. 


    So, after trying to convert their mother away from evil and failing, and after she refused to be captured or destroyed, it is his duty to try to stop her if she again shows her face.  Otherwise, they are asking that Squig turn away from his goddess.  He reminded them that without his spells, the group would be in worse shape.  That would not best serve the greater family the group had become, nor the smaller family of the Dales, their nurse, and their mother. 


    Apparently, their greatest fear was that she would do what succubuses do best and try to raise an army to destroy Delome and Squig because they had stood against her.  He told them that he did not think that  that was the case, because she and Squig had talked many times in Waterdeep while Delome and Squig tried rescuing her from her evil nature.  He was certain that the succubus knew that it was nothing personal, and that he wished that there were another way.  Ethan and Kalimba seemed somewhat more at ease after this reminder, and promised that she would see her children behind his back. 


    So, now they feel more at ease and he feels less at ease.  Maybe he should have reminded them that he can't allow evil now even more than before, because now Shadowstuff would magnify that within him. 


    Squigbarm also visited the family which maintains the shrine in Waterdeep.  The father pulled him aside and mentioned having troubling dreams which he could not remember.  Squig told him of his vision from Eldath and told him to not worry as they were gathering a force to stop the undead.  He did tell him to pray for their success and to trust in Eldath. 


    I overheard something about Delome, Cyrus, and Zed rescuing a sacrifical cat from the clutches of a cleric of Umberlee and his/her wereshark flock.  They haven't returned from Skullport, so none of the characters know anything about that yet. 


    Saturday we continued to make characters for Trav's modern day Exalted campaign.  Lori and I decided to be twins the week before, so we spent last Saturday working on creating our family.  We have each family member a name, occupation, and brief personality.  It should be fun, should we ever play. 


    Sunday Father Greg announced that he was leaving to become pastor of Saint Maria Goretti parish in Scottsdale.  He sang an appropriate couple of verses from "The Circle of Life" at the end of his homily.  This was doubly appropriate because he opened his first homily as an associate pastor in our parish a few years ago with a different verse from "The Circle of Life."  Maria Goretti is very blessed to have him.  His influence in our parish was definately a godsend.  He is well loved and will be missed. 


    After mass, there was a farewell reception in the hall, along with ballots for the Parish Council.  They'll probably end up with one of their highest turn outs for this election.  The cake and punch were delish, and it was great to be able to say goodbye one-on-one to Father.  We always had a sort of connection because I bicycle to church, while he has a Harley Davidson.  Neither are popular modes of transportation among the majority of the parishoners. 


    Monday Wayne insisted on stopping by to play the new Neopets TCG.  I met him at Dragon Bowl before hand, and we then played a few hands at my place.  He ended up missing his bus, so he crashed on my couch.  Apparently, he suffered in silence during the night as he prefers to sleep with his airconditioner in the 70s.  Plus, my spare bed sheets were to itchy for him.  Oh well.  I tried. 


    Tuesday while riding home on Dunlap Avenue I heard a noise to my right like cascading water.  It turned out to be some stoned guy relieving himself on a palm tree.  Then, a quarter of a mile later I heard a similar noise to my right.  But this time it was the swimming pools draining at Sunnyslope High School.  I love how so many public pools close October 1st here.  All of the city run pools do.  So does the pool here in our mobile home estates.  Most other states wouldn't drain their swimming pools when the highs are still in the triple digits.  Yet, its no longer hot when its in the low 100s to high 90s for us here.  I just love the irony of it all.  Hotels never drain their pools here because while residents are wearing jackets, visitors are going for a swim!