5 AM: The Quill, the Ink, and the Covenant Date: Sunday, December 7, 2025 Time: 5:00 AM Location: The Cabin, Shreveport, LA
The rain is easing now, turning into a low, pervasive mist. An hour ago, I was struggling to anchor the shifting coastlines of the Tygerian Isles onto paper. Now, I'm thinking about the tools of the trade itself.
It's National Letter Writing Day. We honor the medium.
People ask why I don't use a laptop—why I rely on quills, parchment, and ink made from swamp ingredients. The reason is simple: magic requires a covenant.
In the vast, chaotic multiverse connected by the Ether Dragons, digital words are fleeting. They are just light and shadow. But when you dip a feather into the dark, heavy ink and scratch a word onto cured hide, you are creating permanence. You are binding the information to the material.
The Hedge Wizard's job is not just to cast spells, but to keep track of the spells and the history. The grimoire, the journal, the hastily written warning—these are not just records; they are anchors for reality.
As the swamp mist outside my window starts to glow faintly with pre-dawn light, I pick up my favorite quill. I'm ready to write the day's updates.
Bonus Content: Tools of the Scrivener
Here are three specialized magical tools used by chroniclers and scholars in Zimrala to bind their thoughts to the page.
1. The Quill of the Quick Hand
A quill made from the feather of a perpetually nervous raven.
Effect: When used to copy a spell or write a document, the time required is reduced by half. For Wizards, this means memorizing a spell takes half the time.
Cost: 200 Gold Pieces.
2. Ink of the Permanent Witness
A heavy, viscous ink often carried by diplomats on the Western Coast of Zimrala.
Effect: Once dried, this ink cannot be altered, copied (by non-magical means), or destroyed by non-magical fire or water. Any magical attempt to alter the text requires a Saving Roll on WIZ at Level 5.
Cost: 50 Gold Pieces per vial.
3. The Scholar's Crystal (Memory Stone)
A small, palm-sized crystal kept near a writer’s workspace.
Effect: The writer can instantly store 1D6 pages of text or diagrams into the crystal mentally, clearing their mind for new thoughts. The stored information can be retrieved instantly with a touch.
Limitation: The crystal only holds 100 pages total before it must be transcribed.
Cost: 850 Gold Pieces.
Product Identity & Legal
The following items are designated Product Identity of Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. / The Adventures of Captain Hedges:
The world of Zimrala
The Tygerian Isles
The Ether Dragons
The Tiger Force Shadow Saga
The specific "Hedge Wizard of the Shreveport Cabin" persona
The "Royal Cartographer" archetype and the character "Emperor Rajah"
Unique Items:
The Quill of the Quick Hand
Ink of the Permanent Witness
The Scholar's Crystal (Memory Stone)
Monsters! Monsters! and Humans, Humans (1st Edition) are trademarks of Ken St. Andre and Troll Godfather Press and are used with permission. The statistics and game mechanics provided herein are designated as unofficial playtest material for the Tygerian Isles campaign setting.
© 2025 Arthur Earl C. Hedges Jr. All rights reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment