Exile - Act Five - The Outsider

A strange wind swirls into Sargon from the deep desert.
It curls in over the walls, stirring slumbering soldiers to wakefulness
and banishing rest from the minds of those already alert.
The strange wind flutters across rooftops and whistles down chimneys.
The citizens of Sargon, so recently branded, hear on the wind, a voice.
And as one, they whisper,
“He is coming.”

The wind gathers strength, becoming first a howling, tormenting thing,
built of fitful gusts and angry sighs.
Then it lifts the first grains of sand from the ground.
On the walls, the soldiers, now terrified, stare at the approaching wall of sand,
borne from the north-east on a howling gale. There are faces in the sand. They say.
There are faces in the sand.
In their beds, marked children writhe as a fever takes them. Moaning softly into the night,
“He is coming.”

The gale reaches even to the Temple of Tzipora,
where the oracles sit deep in their readings.
It slips under doorways, howling its displeasure,
flinging cards of augury out of reach.
Only one card remains unmoved by the wind.
It sits baleful, accusing, staring up at each oracle in turn.
The Outsider.
As one, the oracles all mouth in horrified whispers,
“He is coming.”

As the winds surge through the palace of Sargon and burst into the Throne Room,
Princess Ryah and her attendants are buffeted by the gusts.
Artwork is thrown from the walls, braziers of hot coals are tipped and thrown,
setting rich rugs and hanging curtains aflame.
Rising from her place, and tearing her gaze from her father’s vacant throne,
The Green Archon turns to face the wind.
It screams its hatred, and she regards it with eyes of shimmering emerald.
Overhead, the sandstorm breaks ever so slightly,
allowing a patch of sky to be seen.
There, sentinel over her city,
is the brightest green star ever witnessed.
Ryah breathes in. Once.
When she exhales, the gale dies without another whisper.
And all throughout her city,
once again,
Tranquillity.

The Archon grits her teeth and growls,
“He is coming.”
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All across Talos, those inflicted with Ishmael’s mark feel it begin to burn. Many fall into fevers, while others fall deeply asleep and cannot be woken. Answering Princess Ryah’s summons, the Loyalists converge on Sargon from where-ever they are, intent on ending the threat of Ishmael before whatever his mark is doing to their populations runs its course.

Scholars have also reported that the dead no longer rise across the battlefields of the three realms. Most agree that what was done to repair the Cycle of Death in Arlsbug was necessary. However, it has the most unpleasant side effect of increasing the mortality of every Loyalist at the very moment when it may matter most. [OOC - this means that, though resurrection rituals and Night Road encounters may still happen, the overall challenge of these encounters will now be much more severe, as Death is ‘working as intended’].
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We have two new Calls being added to Exile in Act Five. They are as follows:

BLIGHT - You are infected by some dark power which saps away at your strength. This effect lasts until removed. As long as you are under this affect your HP cannot be healed by any means including from Empowered Recovery. You can however be stabilized. Juggernaut does not end this effect.

SMITE - You are struck by a burst of radiant light which penetrates and nullifies most defenses. SMITE functions the same as a SMASH Call, however some entities may become vulnerable to damage only after being struck by this Call.
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This is the fifth weekend event in the Exile LARP campaign. There will be places for 45 players (15 per faction), and 35 crew. Player spots will be opened to existing players for the first month, after which time we will be accepting new submissions, however, there is currently a waiting list. Please email us to be placed on it. Crew tickets will be available at an Early Bird price for the first month. All tickets are first come first served and will be sold via Eventbrite.

The event will begin on Friday 22nd of November at 7pm and will run through the weekend until Sunday 24th of November at 4pm. It is being held at Camp Morley, Clarks Beach, Manukau.

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REFUND POLICY

Illness: If you are unable to attend due to illness, your game fee will be put forward to a future event.

Other Reasons: We will refund a portion of your fees at our discretion.

Transferal: Player tickets are transferable conditional on Game Master approval. Crew tickets are transferable but the Game Masters must be informed so we have an accurate record of who is attending.

Participation Refusal: If the Exile GM team decides to refuse you participation (see below), your ticket costs will be refunded in full.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Exile is a hobby event run by a Game Master team that is volunteering their time. We strive to be inclusive, however, we want to stress that no one has an automatic right to attend our events. The Exile GM team reserves the right to refuse your participation in this event for any reason including but not limited to:

* Behaviour at other events (including online) that contravenes the nzLARPS Code of Conduct, and/or causes other Exile participants unease, discomfort or alarm.

* Behaviour at other events (including online) that lead the GM team to believe that participant will not behave in line with Exile community and artistic values, including negative game play style, bullying or trolling, unsafe combat or role playing practices, or any other behaviour we deem detrimental to the project.

* Lack of communication with the GM team.

* If the GM team and participant cannot reach a compromise on creative differences.

* Annoying the GM team so much that we don't want to spend any more time on you (we're volunteers, after all).

* Bringing the game or larp community into disrepute.

All solo participants must be 16 years of age or older. Minors may be allowed at the GM Team's discretion, however they must be accompanied by a paying parent or guardian at all times during the event.

This venue is usually dry however they have approved a light alcohol policy. Alcohol is only allowed to be consumed in the dining hall in the evenings after the main plot has concluded. There is to be zero participation in any combat after consuming alcohol. Failure to adhere to this policy will result in being asked to leave the event.