The spring sunlight has finally burnt away the last of winter’s snow and cleared the path through the mountains to Aers Tomur. The 'Womb of Silver' is full of dwarves eager to shake off the dull chill of winter, but the caravan is only here for a short while to make some gold and stock up on a few supplies – there will be plenty of fresher bounties on the roads ahead, passing through farms and homesteads eager to sell their crops without the trouble of travelling to market. Once you have left the city, you will be in the Fertile Valley, fed by mountain snowmelt and eager to eat up the spring sunlight.
The road should be easy, now, and good time is sure to be made – the only thing that could stop fresh near-city roads as the caravan cuts through the byways and down the gentle slopes of the mountain would be another roadblock.
With the first blush of spring, expect your fellow caravaneers to be full of energy and eager to make some miles – the spark of romance, the chime of birdsong, and the budding of flowers will be a heady mix for the excited adventurers you keep company with. Once you’ve left the city, you’ll be heading down into fertile valleys and past wild orchards – the local inhabitants will be just as eager for distraction and the environment will be an invigorating one.
The road has been cut into the mountains by dwarven hands and maintained over centuries. It is winding along the slopes of the valley, sometimes crossing it in enormous arched bridges or covering heights in serpentine roads. Some of the mountain faces have been turned into giant monuments of dwarven elders. Some of them allready forgotten and covered by moss and trees again.
Water is going down the mountains as well, melting from snow and glaciers and thus travelling the same direction as the Caravan. Some of it's bed have been cut into the stone by the pure force of the elements. But there are other canals and aqueducts created for the needs of the dwarfs under the mountains.
The road leaves this environment of stone and water often enough to travel through lush forests on paved roads or over green mountain pastures. Even here the horizon always shows the peaks of Aers Tomur. Even if they are getting smaller, foothills really compared to the giants whose back you've allready climbed.
Scenes during this step can be set in any environment fitting the description above. Be it sunlit maedows or shadowy forests clinging to the side of a slope. The landscape is varied enough that the caravan could travel each of those landscapes multiple times and change from one type to another within a day.
It is assumed that we had a short stay at the dwarfhold of Aers Tomur and are travelling on. So feel free to make references to that.
Activities in the Fertile Vale
Travel! Get yourself prepped in the dwarfhold, and then get going on the open road. We finally get to stop making camp and being stuck around lumber or halflings or snow or dryad-shaped roadblocks, and actually GO places! Remember how we used to do that? Its going to be awesome~!
Spanking in the Vale
-This is still Dwarven land, so don’t forget that their spankings are often sharply disciplinary in nature. Now that everyone’s all energized with the weather, you might actually start getting in trouble! (A dwarven primer:
http://animeotk.com/forum/showpost.p...92&postcount=1)
-Also we're on the road again so caravan rules apply, listen to your betters. There are no innkeepers or lumberbarons to lord over the travellers. (The primer for the caravan on the road:
http://animeotk.com/forum/showthread...van-16549.html)
- It is spring for real now and will only get warmer as the caravan travels on. This might mean some amount of spring cleaning being done, at least for those really living in their wagons and making them homes. It also means trees growing and fresh switches to be cut easily available to be cut.
Adventures in the Vale
-There are rumors of mountain Roc which love to cause trouble, pestering travelers and even trying to pick off livestock and such – keep an eye on the skies for a feathery prize!
-Spring means flowers, and flowers mean bees, and bees mean honey! Dwarven honey from the vale is very sweet and there’s sure to be some already being made once you get going, so keep an eye out for orchards, and remember that stealing will get you a lot more than a couple of bee-stings!
-Bees mean honey, and honey means bears! Hibernation is over. If you’re travelling alone, you’ll be in trouble if one of these creatures catches you, but they’re wary of groups --- don’t wander off!
-Of course the dwarfhold probably had plenty of adventures, too. If you want to request a flashback scene in those hallowed halls, just ask!
The road ahead:
-Is going to be awesome! We’ll head through the mountains and make some real progress! Be optimistic, a little rain now and then won’t hurt, and definitely won’t slow us down! The road is going downwards most of the time, only ascending when the caravan has to cross a range of foothills. Still the plains on the foot of the mountain range are not yet visible from the valleys.
The road before:
-Was slow and icy, followed by snug but stuck – now that we’re away from the Snow Maiden inn, its time to break loose! There was a short stay in the dwarfhold of Aers Tomur, but no time was wasted travelling on.
The Seventh Step: Sunlit Vale
