The Fading of the Land Solitaire Game
April 17, 2010
I was enchanted by the game poem The Azone Butterflies. It seemed like it would be very easy to adapt to a solitaire RPG, and so I gave it a go. You can read the Google Doc of my attempt here.
I played through it a couple of times, and here’s what I got.
GAME ONE.
DELUDED. Harid. He carries a favour from the woman he believes loves him.
First Test: 4/6.
SCALED. 15. A snake, coiled and writhing, that speaks with a child’s voice that draws Harid into its watery lair.
Harid is POISONED.
Second Test: 6/4.
BRONZE. 2. A bird, whirring with tiny gears and chirping a music box tune. Harid gently extracts its clockwork heart.
Glory 4. Blood 6.
Third Test: 5/5.
MANY-HEADED. 6. A deer, with one male head and one female head, approaches and nuzzles Harid. Maddened by the poison, Harid strikes it. It tramples Harid into the forest floor.
(For this game, I forgot to describe my battle raiment.)
GAME TWO.
ORPHAN. Amani. Wants to be worthy of her bloodline.
First Test: 4/6.
TALON. 2. A jungle cat, fashioned of clay but with teeth set into its mouth and claws set into its paws. Amani crushes it.
D: Hands, calloused and knotted like a man’s. B: A thick fur coat that changes colour with the coming night; a broach of opal and bone.
Glory 6, Blood 4.
Second Test: 5/5.
CLOTHED. 3. An old woman, cat-eyed and ragged. She invites Amani to rest before facing her next challenge. Amani strikes the woman down and she turns to dust.
D: A monocle pressed from the petals of the glass-flower, through which the truth is seen. B: A carving of the seven elders of the tribe.
Glory 5, Blood 5.
Third Test: 3/7.
BLUE. 6. The waves toss and tumble. Amani spears the mighty leviathan, but it drags her into the deeps. Her body washes up upon the shore. She is blue, but still breathing.
Amani is HALF-DROWNED.
D: A javelin carved from the jawbone of the leviathan’s child. B: A horn of ivory; a chain of gold coins.
The Village:
SILVER. 6.
The man who is always silent takes Amani’s hand. His silver hair shimmers beside her fur coat in the moonlight.
MOURNING. 9. The old woman was a loving mother and talented seamstress before she was possessed by Shanri.
April 18, 2010 at 3:17 am
Wow, that’s awesome! That’s a great expansion of the AzonĂ© mythos – I’m happy that it has grabbed you!