Tread nought upon the sodden moor
Lest Harrow catch ye scent.
For though this keep be thick hard stone,
His claws these walls have wrent.
If shadow falls 'pon seething waves
And thunder shatters sky,
Then know ye well that Harrow hunts
And clinging death is nigh.

Welcome to Cairnhart Castle, on the banks of Loch Assynt in northern Scotland. The year is 1899, the turn of the century ahead. And you? You have been invited to join in an elite salon with the greatest magical minds of the Victorian era.

All you need do is introduce yourself.



Hello Mages! This is now the official sign-up thread for the Epic Quest 2022: Darkwater!

If you haven't read the introduction for this year's Epic Quest yet, find it here!

Below are the steps to signing up and creating your character for this year's Quest:
1. Pick a magic class.
2. Pick a character role.
3. Name your character.
4. Reply to this thread with your character!

STEP ONE: MAGIC CLASS

Below are the magic classes you can choose from, including descriptions on what type of magic they perform. You must choose one of these options! Each class will also have subclasses or special information you'll need to complete the selection of your specialty.

(Please keep in mind that this is a fictional fantasy world. All magics are created based on original rules/laws and will take only general inspiration from any historical/traditional practices. For example, if a Diviner uses cards, they won't be following the rules/practices of real-life tarot).

Conjurer: These mages specialize in the summoning arts. Conjurers can summon all manner of creature, from mundane animals like rabbits or wolves, to magical beasts like dragons and elemental atronachs. Summoned creatures understand and obey commands given by the Conjurer, but are only bound for a limited time. Once the binding runs out, the creature is banished back to where it was summoned from. The more powerful the creature, the less time it has under the binding.

If you choose to be a Conjurer, you must choose the creature you will summon when you cast your spell. This can be anything you'd like, real or mythical, but not human.

Diviner: These mages are gifted in the arts of fortune-telling and prophecy. They can use various tools to predict future events with some degree of accuracy. This skill is mostly used academically, as there has yet to be a case where foreknowledge has been able to change or prevent a predicted event. Diviners are also unable to see context or intent, simply the external situation of the future event, so interpretation is where most inaccuracies are found.

If you choose to be a Diviner, you must choose the tool of your foresight. It can be one of the following:
Runes
Crystal orb
Mirror
Tea leaves
Cards

Evoker: These mages have mastery over the elements. Pyromancers have all manner of flame at their beck and call. Hydromancers command water to take any form and do as they wish. Evokers control all facets of the element they work with, but are restricted one and only one element.

If you choose to be an Evoker, you must choose your element:
Fire (Pyromancy) - control over flame
Water (Hydromancy) - control over water
Air (Aeromancy) - control over air
Earth (Geomancy) - control over the ground/rock/dirt
Nature (Naturomancy) - control over flora

Necromancer: These mages have the ability to see and communicate with the dead. They can summon spirits of the dead back from the afterlife for a short time, but the spirits are not bound to obey or tell the truth unless they enter into a Pact and become the mage's familiar. In order to summon a spirit, the Necromancer must know the spirit's name and have a personal artefact from the spirit's life in their possession. This is a highly regulated form of magic! Only specific roles are allowed to be Necromancers.

If you choose to be a Necromancer, you can only choose from one of the following roles:
Scholar
Battlemage
Councilor

STEP TWO: CHARACTER ROLES

You must pick one of the following roles for you character to fill. Once you've chosen a role, a more specific role description will be assigned to your character privately (you may not be able to pick your specific character role). Roles will determine how you interact with other characters and may affect how you can use your magic.

Scholar: A mage who has dedicated their life to education and/or the pursuit of knowledge. These mages will have a broad collection of theoretical knowledge of many subjects and magic classes, not just their own.

Battlemage: These mages have entered into some sort of military or combative field. They have experience in and/or knowledge of combat and other dangerous situations. They've learned how to weaponize their own magic class better than others.

Councilor: A member of the Council of Mages, Great Britain's political body of mages that works closely with the non-magical branches of government. A councilor can have a broad range of skills, such as diplomacy, deception, or persuasiveness/coerciveness.

Staff: These are the highly skilled and hand picked mages that are employed at Cairnhart Castle. Staff have access to areas and information that guests don't.

Family: A close or distant member of the Archmage's family, either invited or living in the castle. They've either spent too much time in Cairnhart, or have heard enough stories to make them wary of being invited there.

Foreigner: A prestigious collection of mages invited from other countries. Their skills and motives differ, but all of them are unfamiliar to some degree with the specifics of Britain's magical and non-magical government, as well as social customs.

STEPS THREE & FOUR: NAME & SHARE YOUR CHARACTER

All that's left is to give your character a name, first and last!

Once you picked a class, role, and name, you can reply to this thread with the character you created!

If you've already replied to this thread previously with your commitment level, feel free to edit your post to include your character!

Once your character has been posted, message me! Every character will receive specific information on their chosen role, which I will message you privately.

Once you've receive that information, you're free to participate in the Epic Quest!

Have fun! And remember-

Tread naught upon the sodden moor for death on wings is nigh....

MALCOLM MACLEOD says, "An old hag can be seen at the edges of rivers or streams, washing blood from the clothes of those soon to die." (#6 Across)

*jumps up and down*

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

Scarlett MacDonald - Diviner, Tea Leaves - Scholar

"I don't want to set the world on fire.. I just want to start a flame in your heart ❤️‍🔥"

*raises hand*
1. I will definitely be participating this year!

CHARACTER
Name: Lili Findlay
Role: Family
Magic Class: Evoker Water (Hydromancy)

1

Fiona Ferguson, evoker, staff

I will definitely be participating this year!

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

This will be my first quest but it sounds amazing so

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

Character: Evangeline Glen - Conjurer, Staff. And the creature she can summon is of course a wolf. ;)

1

Rosa is awesome, Rosa is fine, Rosa didn't write this...

1! I will be participating 100%  :D

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

Eimear Fraser, Conjurer, Family

3. I'm interested in participating, but may only do a few activities here and there.

Anya Ruzicka - Diviner - Foreigner

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

EDIT: welp may as well repurpose an existing character.

Seph Reid

Necromancer & Scholar

1 

very excited to participate!!

Elsie Ridel - necromancer - battlemage

Replying again for my character that I am probably going way overboard with:

Vincent Myrddin Thorne

Necromancer

Staff

The bastard son of one of England's oldest and purest magical noble families and . He's... very... poorly. In the head. But he works hard and seems to mean well. Widely shunned due to his odd behavior and black mark on his pedigree; his best friends seem to be the centuries old dead in the castle crypts and his little black cat, Dusk. Much to the dismay of everyone working at the castle he is not nearly as introverted as he really aught to be and tends to stick his nose everywhere it doesn't belong. As well as appearing places he has no right to be. 

Link Tree

1. I will definitely be participating this year!

Character

Ioetta Dawnreaver, Conjuruer, Battlemage. Summons a twelve-foot cobra when spell is cast.

Woo, noting everybody down!

@Chao: Throughout the year, I tell a story that Questers get to participate in! There's an activity once a month that ties into the story (usually something different from the usual HP games/activities), and prizes are awarded to everyone who plays. Players also earn XP, and the player who has the most XP at the end of the year earns the grand prize! There's also prizes for participating every month of the year, including an achievement, and this year I'm introducing a prize for the runner-up!

I am so very excited!  Do you need to know if we plan to team up?

If there are activities that require you to team up, or if you plan on working together on everything, that's up to you! (Unless there's an activity where I request you guys keep to yourselves and do it on your own), how you play is up to you!

I would keep in mind, however, that one of the Questers may be the murderer, and it might end in misfortune for you to partner with them >;D

EDIT 8/23/22

Unfortunately, due to the behavior of some players throughout the course of the Quest this year, I've had to amend this comment. See Rule #2 in the official Epic Quest rulebook.

1. I will definitely be participating this year! (even though im not sure what im signing up for lol)

ok here we go

Ethniu Dagon, Evoker, scholar

Any last RSVPs before the quest begins on Sunday?