:: Joaquim and the Marid's Lute ::

...or "The Frog Prince"

Once there was a ranai named Joaquim, whose name meant “Lifted by God.” Like his mother before him, he worshipped the marids, beautiful geniuses of the water planes that sometimes blessed mortals with their powers.

When he was young, Joaquim had fallen into a ravine, trapped where his mother could not reach him. Distraught, she invoked the marids on his behalf. Pulling a magical lute from her back, she plucked the strings in a serenade that ebbed and flowed like the waves. Presently, a marid emerged from within the bowl of the lute and asked:

:: Random NPC--Forest Marshal Saturnina ::

Forest Marshal Saturnina (“To Sow”)

by Krista Kubie, 6/27/2015

a ranai bulb-lantern bearer

Race: Ranai

Age: Adult

Gender: Female

Stature: Tall

Physical: Broad shoulders

Outwardly: Exuberant

Inwardly: Joyful

Profession: Marshall

Magic: Wunderkind--Enmity/ Love

Catchphrase: “Heeey! You cut that out you crazy...person!”

As you hack and slash and slash and hack your way through the underbrush, you are suddenly halted mid-slash by a shrill exuberant voice. “Heeey! You cut that out you crazy...person!” A tall, braod-shouldered ranai woman swings in from a neighboring copse of trees, nearly tngled in the vine she’s riding. “You just cut through two snakes and a tree that just had it’s four-thousand-three-hundred-and-sixty-first birthday!”

:: Random Location—Fairgrounds of the Emerald Overlord ::

Fairgrounds of the Emerald Overlord

by Wm Jay Carter III, 6/16/15

Attraction: Maypole

Nation: Ranai

Condition: Barren, Maintained

Weather: Strangely Cold

Color: Emerald Green

Keyword: Overlord

Ignoring the signs that clearly discourage wandering off the path, you leave the well-traveled road behind and plunge into the forest. You abruptly stop short as a piercing pain shoots through your foot—a razor-thin blade of grass has lived up to its once-metaphorical (now literal) description. Looking closer, you see that the blade retains the vibrant green of grass, but now shimmers like a perfectly cut emerald, and—as your foot can now attest—is just as hard.

Proceeding on stilts as you were wisely instructed, you enter a clearing full of such emerald grass. Within the clearing, you see a joyous celebration in progress—children playing field games, maidens dancing around a maypole, and vendors selling sugar crystal candy. At least, you assume it was sugar crystal candy at some point, just as you assume the occasion was joyous… You shiver in your skin; everyone and everything in the clearing has been turned to hard, cold emerald...just like the grass.

:: Random Item—The Sage Sage Bow ::

The Sage Sage Bow

by Wm Jay Carter III, 6/16/15

a ranai bulb-lantern bearer

Weapon: Bow

Culture: Ranai

Condition: Small, Pristine

Color: Sage

Keyword: Splendor

One of the bulb-lantern bearers draws the curtain of willow-branches to the side, permitting you to enter the sanctuary of the legendary Sapo Velho. The venerable ranai elder dendrite seems not to notice you, but continues croaking softly and steadily. Following the instructions you were given, you kneel on the rock nearest Sapo Velho and lay the tiny bow down before the elder. The old frog reaches out, takes the bow, and holds it beside his head—all without breaking his meditative state, it seems, for he continues to snore in froggy fashion.

You wait impatiently for him to get on with it, but it seems the ranai is waiting for something. Then, as quickly as he might have snapped a fly from the air, his fingers pluck the bowstring. The sound resonates throughout the sanctuary, and suddenly a rush of color fills your vision as if every living thing—and perhaps even the earth itself—began giving off its own unique light. The sight is enchanting, and after another moment of drinking in the sight, it fades. You stand, bow, and escort yourself from the sanctuary, feeling that the old frog has given you a great gift indeed.

:: Random Item—Froggy's Fire ::

Froggy’s Fire

by Wm Jay Carter III, 6/12/15

a ranai

Beverages: Muddy Water

Culture: Ranai

Condition: Intact, Small

Color: Pink

Keyword: Wild Fire

The celebrating ranai pull you in for a drink. One of them tosses you a thimble-sized glass bottle stoppered with a tiny bulbed cork. Inside, you see what you assume to be slightly bloody muddy water. As you consider the wisdom of drinking such a gift, the ranai go back to toasting with the stuff, downing the contents of their bottles in a flash. Thinking such a small bottle of anything couldn’t possibly do much harm, you yank off the cork, toast to whatever the Ranai were toasting, and knock back the drink.

Immediately, you feel as though the ground has been lit on fire, the searing pain shooting up toward your head, causing you to jump into the air on impulse. Next, your hands feel as though they have been plunged into acid, the resulting unpleasantness following the searing pain. Just as you begin dreading the idea of what might happen next, the discomfort suddenly stops, and you realize one of your legs has shot out at an embarrassing angle, your hands are curled up in pain, and your face has frozen with a look of horror.

The ranai laugh at you.

:: Random Item—Luz Roxa's Roux of Revelation ::

Luz Roxa’s Roux of Revelation

by Wm Jay Carter III, 6/12/15

a ranai bulb-lantern bearer

Edibles: Peanuts

Culture: Ranai

Condition: Hot, Wet

Color: Violet

Keyword: Paradigm

The ranai exemplar beckons you to sit beside her at the fire. She reaches into her pack and produces a small flat tin. Opening it, she waves it under her nostrils; you see a brown mashed paste and catch a waft of the nutty scent. Satisfied with the smell, she scoops the tin’s contents into the pot on the fire and quickly adds several violet petals, stirring vigorously.
Invoking the name of her patron, the ranai whispers a few words and there is a poof! as a cloud of smoke rises from the pot. Scooping out a spoonful of the nutty roux—now a deep purple—she offers it to you. The moment it touches your tongue, the world lights up with a network of violet lines—the veins of the leaves on the trees, the veins pulsing through the ranai exemplar, and, you notice with a giddy feeling, the veins in your own body.