People & Places - the Travels of Gabriel MacGuinnessConventions & Related Links
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People |
Gabriel's Traveling CompanionsAlan - an unremarkable fellow in general. He is a human man, but he is not very strong. His battle skills are reasonably good. He does have a gift for healing which is a boon to us. In his own passive way, he serves as a measure of when we are getting out of hand. As a very plain man, he stands as a stark reminder of what is normal when things are very strange. He is like a spiritual lighthouse, which I suppose most clerics and priests endeavor to be. Strangely enough, he is not literate. It seems that the life style he came from was a simple one indeed.Caoilin Browne - she was a fellow pupil of Carwynne after "escaping" from magic school in the elven lands. She had been sent there by her father to straighten her out, according to her account. She was trained as by her grandfather with roguish abilities, much to her father's displeasure. Her Dad was nouveau riche and wanted his daughter to look it; she did not agree. Old story, fresh face. She is something of a brat, but she is a cute brat and I sincerely think that deep down she wants to do the right thing. Hilda - she is not as level-headed as Serena, but is remarkably strong and brave. She can also restrain herself if need be. She is one of the strongest humans I have met, and she is definitely the strongest woman I have ever met. I hear that there is a half-breed cross of orc and human, a half-orc, that is renowned for great strength, but I wager most of them would find Hilda a handful. Her strength is directed through her sword skills. She wields a bastard sword as easily as I would and with greater speed and accuracy. Krieg - he is quite strong for his size, but he is also quite small. The size of his axe is almost comical when compared to his stature, it is a wonder of nature that he can wield it without falling over. I doubt his foes find it humorous, but I most definitely do. I am still waiting for him to topple over some day. That said, I must say that he is a stalwart fighter. His impulse to kill his foe can be a little excessive at times, even by my standards; he might find Krog's philosophy more appealing than he might think. He seems to be a little greedier than I expect a dwarf to be, but I have had little contact with dwarves in general, so I am not well equipped to draw such comparisons. Serena - she is level-headed, brave, and trustworthy;
she is a good companion. She isn't very strong, but she makes
up for it in wits, as much as anyone can. She has a good heart
but she is a little too constrained by her passion for the law at times.
I respect the law and I try hard to obey it, it's part of being civilized.
However, there are times when justice can not bow to the convenience
of the court. I am curious to see how she acts in such a situation.
I suppose being a representative of the law makes it easier for her.
She can mete out justice and comfort herself with her books of law.
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People of His PastAngus MacGuinness - the husband of Heather MacGuinness. He is my father, but not my sire. I was sired by Krog, a minotaur that raped my mother, Heather.Bonnie MacGuinness - my younger sister, eight years my junior. She is my only sibling. Carwynne - An elven warrior mage. He trained Caoilin and me in magic. He was something of a rogue mage that delighted in unusual, infamous, or socially unacceptable pupils. George Barlan - the rightful heir of Barlan, the fief in which my home village is. He is a middle rank Holy Justice in the priesthood of Tyr as well. He seems to be a good man, much like his father Roderick. Helen Westgate secretly murdered his father, attempted to have George killed but failed, and seized Roderick's lands and power. With the help of George, Caoilin, Serena, Alan, Hilda, and Krieg, we restored his power and sent her to prison. Heather MacGuinness - my mother and wife of Angus MacGuinness. As part of an evil plot of Helen Westgate and her lieutenant Smashface, she was raped by Krog, a minotaur, and I was the result of that union. She is a beautiful, kind woman and fortunately was not made barren by Krog's brutality. Helen Westgate - a wicked woman. She seduced Roderick, the goodly lord of Barlan just as he received more lands and power. She then quietly killed him and the entire priesthood of Tyr that was housed in Roderick's temple. She seized control and squeezed the land and the people to finance her own decadence and a large military force to secure her place. She also arranged the rape of my mother, Heather MacGuinness, by my sire, Krog, via her lieutenant, Smashface. I helped George Barlan, along with Caoilin, Serena, Alan, Hilda, and Krieg, to displace Helen and restore power to George, the rightful heir. Helen has been left to the tender mercies of her fellow inmates in a very nasty prison in the capital. Krog - the minotaur that sired me during an arranged rape of my mother, Heather MacGuinness, contrived by an evil woman named Helen and executed by her lieutenant Smashface. He is a savage beast, but cunning enough to respect the danger posed by a big sword and large settlements. He did not roam farther from his cave than necessary, but he would kill anything that cam into his territory. He taught me to speak the minotaur tongue in exchange for freshly killed food. When I last visited him, his age was starting to affect his senses and memory. It will not be long before he falters and is killed by local residents, probably on some blind rampage into a village. I have never learned from whence he came, for he does not know himself. Rock - He is my best friend, always there for me, and willing to share my burdens. He's not much for conversation, but he's still good company. His breed is Clydesdale, a breed common in my homeland; they run on the large side, 17 hands or so, and weigh in at about a ton. His coat is a deep chestnut brown with four white socks to the knees and hocks, and a well-defined blaze upon its face. Roderick Barlan - the goodly lord of Barlan. I have only heard tales of him, but he was known for being a good and fair lord. He was killed by his second wife, Helen Westgate. His only child was George Barlan. Smashface, William
the Red - the evil lieutenant of Helen Westgate
and one *ugly* bugger. His face was mostly one big scar.
It looked like the midwife had dropped him and gnawed on his face to
boot. Among his many crimes, he executed the rape of my mother,
Heather MacGuinness, by my sire,
Krog. He later stole me away from my parents.
When Helen was deposed and George Barlan
restored as rightful ruler of Barlan, Smashface
was turned over to the people of my home town, Briargrove,
for justice. Rumor has it you could hear his screams back at the
castle. |
People He Has Met in His TravelsAlan the Merchant - a merchant in Haranshire that has hired us to escort his barges from Milborne to Thurmaster. He pays decently and has not tried to cheat us out of our money.Andren - A bartender at the Baron of Mutton in Milborne. He is in his middle twenties. He and his brother Bart run the place for their grandfather, Durkaster. He is very concerned because his girlfriend Jelenneth is missing. Barthelew / Bart - A bartender at the Baron of Mutton in Milborne. He is in his mid twenties. He and his brother Andren run the place for their grandfather, Durkaster. Bob the Manservant - the manservant of Darius Carman. Burukkleyet - the shaman of a goblin tribe in the Patchwork Hills, on the edge of the New Mire. His ring was responsible for the formation of the New Mire. We traded it for a magical shield we took from the body of a dead orc, much to his dismay and the delight of his chief, Grendlegek. His tribe is strangely docile and small for goblins. He speaks of travelling for five moons from a distant land before settling in Haranshire. Carlanis - The reputed leader of a rag tag group of thugs that ambushed us on the road from Falcon Glen to Milborne. He was killed in the battle, so we are uncertain of his motivations, although his thugs professed that they were told our cargo was "evil magic." His body and the remaining thugs were turned over to Garyld in Milborne. Count Parlfray - a gracious man that lives in a keep in northwest Haranshire. His keep is built on the face of one of the Halfcut Hills, just at the southeast edge of Howler's Moor. He has but one heir, Lyntern. He hired men to repel a lizardman invasion from the Shrieken Mire and has in general been a force for good for the people of the land, or at least that is how it seems to be. Darius Carman - The patriarch of the Carman family, he owns much of the lands and buildings in and around Milborne. We encountered him at the "trial" of the bandits we brought in, where he was acting as judge and jury. I get the impression that he was a stern man of around 50 years. He has graying hair and piercing eyes. He does not seem very sociable. He lives, with his family, in the Carman mansion in Milborne. Durkaster - the owner of the Barron of Mutton tavern and inn located in Milborne. His grandsons, Bart and Andren, run the place for him. Dutch - Garyld's hunting dog companion. Dutch looks strong and capable. It seems that Garyld takes good care of him and he gets enough exercise. Garyld - A fellow carpenter and the town constable in Milborne. He appears to be in his late forties. His hair is thick and black. He stands about 6 feet tall and is quite lean. He seems like a good enough fellow, but I suspect he is not very strong and I can tell that one of his legs is lame. Serena seems to find him handsome in spite of this. To his credit, he did not over react to me and has treated myself and my companions fairly. He has a proud and sturdy dog friend which he calls Dutch. I found out from Kuiper that he is a Ranger. He is one of only three rangers in Haranshire, the other two are Kuiper and Shiraz. Gordon - A fat, weak little man that hired us in Falcon Glen to deliver a chest of spell components to Thurmaster. The man seemed a little slimy, but my companions' fears were assuaged by gold pieces. Grendlegek - the chief of a goblin tribe in the Patchwork Hills, on the edge of the New Mire. His shaman, Burukkleyet, had a ring was responsible for the formation of the New Mire. We traded it for a magical shield we took from the body of a dead orc, much to his delight and the dismay of Burukkleyet. His tribe is strangely docile and small for goblins. Burukkleyet spoke of travelling for five moons from a distant land before settling in Haranshire. Haldelar - Jelenneth's father, and the town miller of Milborne. He looks like he is in his middle forties. He looks strong, with ruddy cheeks and a barrel chest. He has thinning hair that is starting to show grey, as are his bushy sideburns. Jelenneth - A resident of Milborne and an apprentice of Tauster. Her father is Haldelar and her boyfriend is Andren. She may be missing. Kuiper - a Ranger of Haranshire. He maintains a farm on the north bank of the Churnett River, south of The Great Rock Dale and just west of where the Hogbrook meets the Churnett. He is a competent tracker and warrior. He is only one of three rangers in Haranshire, the other two are Garyld and Shiraz. Lyntern - the sole heir of Count Parlfray. He desperately wants to go adventuring with us. He seems reasonably competent at fighting and is much stronger than average. I told him he could join us if he could beat me at wrestling. He failed. It's for the best I think. The last thing we need is an unknown person holding us back or getting us into trouble. Maxin - a young werebear boy. We helped Kuiper capture him and return him home. Old Grizzler - An old white-haired dwarf we met in Milborne. He seems to like to hear himself talking as much as he likes drinking, a real dwarf. He has lived in Haranshire for a long time. He has a story about most things and an opinion about everything. He is an ex-miner and now spends his time fishing or hanging out at the taverns in Milborne. Oleanne, a.k.a. the Wild Woman of the Woods - a Druid that lives in the Thornwood of Haranshire. She has two wolf companions and had a feral look and manner to her. She seems to only trust Kuiper, and that does not seem to be a great trust. She is competent in battle and there is something about her nature that is oddly very appealing. One-eye - the name I have given to the Priest of Cyric that ambushed us on the Churnett River during our second barge escort mission. He escaped the battle by turning his cloak into large bat wings and flying away trough the forest canopy. Semheis - A young priest of Tyr in the temple in Milborne. No more than 20 years old, he is perhaps a bit overzealous for most of the people of Milborne. Of course, most Holy Justices are a bit overzealous. Shenjurath - a water nixie that lives in the Eelhold of Haranshire. She controls a water elemental that lives there and looks over the population of eels. Her domain falls into the regions patrolled by Shiraz, who communicates with her. Shiraz - A Ranger of Haranshire. She is quite a woman. Self-sufficient, at one with the land, and sturdy. The highlights in her hair strike a stunning contrast to her deeply tanned skin. She has no permanent home and constantly patrols the western half of the shire. She watches over a number of areas in particular: the Blanryde Hills, including Eelhold; the High Moor; the Patchwork Hills; and the southwest portion of the Thornwood. She is only one of three rangers in Haranshire, the other two are Garyld and Kuiper. She also deals with Shenjurath, a water nixie in the Eelhold. Sport - Another canine companion of Garyld's. Sport is a fine dog. I may have to stop by the local kennel some time. Tauster - a fat, bald, weak-looking little man.
I am sure that he must have noteworthy magical skills, provided he has
a chance to bring them to bear. The town he lives in, Thurmaster
is a pit and if he was not formidable, he would likely have been mugged
and killed by his neighbors by now. We were paid to deliver spell
components to him. He commisioned us to deliver a letter to Kuiper
and to find his missing apprentice, Jelenneth.
We are still looking for Jelenneth. He has helped us to identify
a magic ring and help end a watery plague that was claiming the farm
lands in the New Mire. He did the task for free. I secured
a 50 GP letter of credit from Darius Carman, the one that hired us for
the task, and he was happy with that, although is was only half the
cost of the spell components he used on our behalf. I am learning
to respect him. |
Places |
BarlanMy home fief. It is a thriving fief of modest size. It borders elf lands in the forest.
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Falcon GlenFalcon Glen is a cozy little city nestled in a fertile basin. It is surrounded by a temperate forest that is home to many falcons, which give the town its name. The falcons are fine creatures. The town does a good job of remaining in balance with the land around it. I still get strange looks, but now some small amount of the fear the citizens feel towards me has turned to respect for the things I have accomplished. You wouldn't guess from the look of it, but it is a local center of commerce for the region.
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HaranshireA shire, which I am told is similar to a county, about two weeks from Falcon Glen.
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