BBL Retirement Speeches

[Click here to return to the Blackbird Lake game page.]

An elder dwarf in a red, beefeater costume and an enormous feather coming out of his black cap strides up on Giggling Ghost stage, ringing an enormous bell. "OYEZ!!! OYEZ!!! An announcement, all you gentles! This here party is for the Blackbird Lake Heroes, who have successfully destroyed a lich cabal that was plaguing the continent. In the space of a single day, they killed 3 liches, stole 2 more liches phylacteries, then popped off to another dimension where, stripped of their woldian buff spells, withstood the dimension siphoning effects and killed a demi-lich striving for godhood. For this and many, many other events and actions, the undead slaying heroes are RETIRING!"

"So, first up! The newest member of the Blackbird Lake Heroes is a paladin, a shining knight and force for goodness. Trapped for many years in the dreaded realm of Koshe Marr and the deathtrap castle of Scarwall, he joined the BBL and with lance and unshakable faith has proven himself. Here he is, Sir Joshua and his noble steed, William!" The paladin is urged to the stage to give the other heroes a bit of advice and to tell his retirement plans.

Sir Joshua the Virtuous, Martyr, WardWrecker, and Vanquisher of Liches (Ken M)

Sir Joshua smiles, climbs on the back of William and the two ride to the stage... Luckily the magic infusing the GG ensures that their bulk won't crush the floor beneath them...

Once there, William flares his nostrils and lets out a whinny to get everyone's attention, while rearing back to allow Sir Joshua to show off his riding prowess... After a few minutes of that, Sir Joshua says, "Ladies, gentleman, maidens and others, it is an honor to be here before you this glorious day! I am a man of few words and prefer to let my sword and lance do most of my talking. But let me say this for now. I would like to thank my fellow adventurers for all their bravery and stout resolve in the face of overwhelming evil, and they each are now a life long friend that I will value forever. Second, my plans... I plan on starting up a training academy for young men who wish to be shining knights, and also intend on hosting an annual jousting tournament on the grounds of our new castle. I have no family yet, but plan on finding a sweet maiden and settling down and having children too... My only descendent is a young nephew William the Courageous who's fighting for the Mailed Fist as a wizard... I don't always understand what he's talking about, but he's a good boy and I know he'll make me proud... To the bards and poets who will write about us, make sure you remember my titles, as they were hard earned... I am Sir Joshua the Virtuous, Martyr, WardWrecker, and Vanquisher of Liches. Do not ever forget my loyal, brave mount William the Mighty...."

My one piece of advice is this - Be true to your beliefs and never, ever compromise what's right, moral and true. It may be the harder road, but it's always the right one... Lastly, the rest of the drinks are on me!"

With a great shout, William rears back once more and then the two literally jump over tables, spin around and make it back to their seat, amazingly never hitting anyone or causing a table or drink to be disturbed... Truly a feat of riding that people will speak of for ages...

"Thank you, noble Sir Joshua and William!"

"Now, the stage belongs to the next newest member of the BlackbirdLake Heroes; Jass of Downs! Jass was a wandering sorcerer of the Undead Bloodline from the Southern Continent who was accidentally teleported to Floating City during that continent's Great Migration. He has adventured with the Crimson Shields in the Floating City, fought with the Gray Knights before their retirement as a Dragon Group, and made his way to Blackbird Lake. Let's hear the plans and advice from Jass of Downs!"

Jass (Steve K)

Jass, despite his deathly pallor, knows how to handle a crowd and gives a grin and friendly wave as he makes his way to the stage, high fives and nods of recognition all around. He makes his Stylish Pants of Plenty look like a baggy pair of cotton pants with the words "I Heart Bill" on the rear as he passes Troublefinder. The cadaverous looking sorcerer also stops to give a hug to a huge minotaur who looks to have seen much travel, Machasthai. "I've been missing your calm presense, you big lug, eh?". And then he's on the stage.

"In my travels, I used to be an enchanter, where my luck, my wonderful magic, and my amazing personality solved every problem. Whenever I felt attachment for anything coming on, I kept light feet and quickly left for another amazing adventure. And then, with the Crimson Shields, I died, living for a time as a ghost before being restored to life. My luck had run out. My experience infused me with necromantic energies, and I hated my magic. And people started to only judge me by my appearance and so even the most charismatic speech didn't always work. I think my friends in the BBL were getting pretty worried about me, because I had nothing to believe in, and the negative magic and feelings were eating me up from the inside. Yet they stuck with me, and I found my anchor, eh?"

"So, SOME ADVICE, young heroes. Friendship is an anchor you can hold. Be strong enough to trust others and to form bonds, and don't believe you can do it all yourself. It is not a weakness but among the strongest powers in the Wold."

"As for my PLANS, I love travelling, but finally know a home. So I'm doing a great deal of travelling to see the Wold, but also going to take long spells of rest in Scarwall Castle near Acid City. If anyone wants to get word to me, send it to Scarwall, but I just might see you even sooner just around the corner!"

"Thank you Jass of Downs!"

"The next Retiring Blackbird Lake Hero has had a long road to get here. Beginning his career as the leader of the Chosen of Domi, he moved here to Floating City after they disbanded and joined the Crimson Shields, and THEN travelled to Blackbird Lake! (I hope I didn't leave anything out!). In his career he has enhanced nearly every heroic group in the Wold by his magical discovery of placing magic in tattoos on the skin. Here he is and give him a great hand, the Ranger Captain Brahmah and his bear companion Polo!"

Captain Brahmah of Blackbird Lake (Jay Barber)

Brahmah looks nervous and being very uncomfortable being addressed and then center stage.

"I'm no hero. I'll tell the truth now, in front of everyone. My heart was full of vengeance and hate when I started with the Chosen of Domi. I had one thing on my mind.... destroying the centaur who killed my father during Honorable Kayleb, stabbing him in the back. I'd kill everyone who would hinder that.

I recently implanted a good Heartseed for personal gain, though, under the guise of helping others.

I never expected to be one of the retiring good. Frankly, I expected to have died years ago." He sighs, looks at Polo, then at his drow first mate.

"My plan, now, is to sail with my crew. I'm not retiring. I'm hunting on the sea, for the few who hide there who are evil and seek power and dominance over the weak and insecure. Retirement.... isn't me. I'll be here and I'll be watching." He lets the unease in his voice permeate.

Then with a nod at his BBL friends and the few old friends he recognizes, he turns and walks to the door.

"May I introduce the ladies of the Blackbird Lake!"

"Vauhwyt (that is vow-WEET!), the liontaur from Dirt City, former clerk at the Catacombs, and hero of many talents, not the least of which was keeping the Raven Mookie at least partially in line!"

"Vorelle, human ranger of Dirt City, the first Twilight Ranger of the Wold, and hero who bloomed into a heroine who slain the Great Lich's phylactery!"

"Aztyr, liontaur sorceress who has mastered all the spells of fire and dragonkind, and delved into the abilities of the Fixer and Spellweaver!"

"Ladies! Tell us your plans and wisdom from years of heroic adventures!"

Aztyr of Blackbird Lake (John C)

Aztyr, dressed in what looks like tattered robes with bits of bones, hair, and lots of other little things sewn on them, as well as a leather harness with runic symbols carved and painted on it, stands up from the table where the other Black Bird Lakers are seated. Making her way to the stage she says "hi" to those she knows. She jumps up onto the stage waggles her fingers and a staff appears which she brings down in a thump, catching everyone's attention.

"Those that don't know me, I'm Aztyr, future Witchdoctor for my tribe, Sorcerer for my friends and Priest of Alemi. It may be an odd combination but it is also the truth. Magic permeates the Wold and the greater area around it, I know this is a fact because we, as a group saw the Wold from far far above, so far in fact that it was smaller that the smallest halfling that is seated over there at that table.(she points at the table where the Humbles Ford group is seated)

It was strange to say the least, but so is my dedication to Alemi, where I create magic, even though I'm also a dedicated Fire Mage. Creation and Destruction, what a combination, That is what I want to tell all of you adventures, a very important fact of life which some of you will understand and others won't get until it's far too late.

You need to be flexible, take what life gives you and then use it to your advantage. The only thing you must not take for granted is your friendships. Care for them, strengthen them and don't let anything come between them. Us Blackbirders have our differences and yes we argue and bicker with each other. Some of us even carry Bar-B-Que sauce for a certain bird, but we will defend each other to the death if needed. Which we have done and would do again.

Grab those friendships and fight for them. That's my advice."

She starts to leave the stage and then stops. She seems to tear a hole in reality and her hand vanishes into it and with draws a drop of brownish-red liquid that glows with an inner light. It smells strongly, like fresh garden dirt and blood, combined and concentrated. (everyone who is not a fixer Will save DC15 or dazed for a couple of moments) Everyone also feels the substance pulling upon their soul. She then clenches her hand into a fist and it vanishes and the effects fade away. "For those unfamiliar with it, That was Wold's Blood, it's not something to play around with. I'm unaffected by most of it's properties, but you'll notice that the insides of my hands are stained red and that they currently seem to glow. Both side effects of the Wold's Blood. Under no circumstances should you touch it, trust me, it won't end well, at all.

I guess I gave you two pieces of advice, use them well, or ignore them, it's your choice."

She casts another spell, this one complicated and quite long, and in her other hand appears a mug of Flamming Green, which to the surprise of her friends, she drains in only a few seconds.

She then heads back to her seating area at the table.

Vorelle (Kathy)

Vorelle is a little startled to hear her name called so soon. Hastily, she dashes crumbs from her fingers and wipes her mouth on a napkin. She stands on trembling legs and makes her way toward the stage.

There was a time, not to long ago, when she probably would have bolted at this point. Fled the Giggling Ghost, never to be seen again. All these people.....!

But she is a Hero of the Wold now, and she is capable of talking in front of people for a few minutes. She's pretty sure.

Still walking up to the stage in front of all those people watching is a little more than she can handle. Cursing herself inwardly for her weakness, she nevertheless uses her Ranger ability to blend into the background, making it almost impossible to see her [Hide in Plain Sight.]

To anybody who can't make a DC 50 Perception check, then, Vorelle seems to vanish and then reappear a moment later on the stage.

She looks up, then realizes that was a mistake. She looks at the edge of the stage, which is as high as her eyes want to go. "Um," she says. She is trying to speak up, really she is, but her voice doesn't carry all the way to the edge of the room. "Um. Thank you, everybody, for coming." She shifts awkwardly. "Um. It's really good to see so many people here."

She takes a deep breath. "My name is Vorelle." A slight smile crosses her face. "Years from now, when you're telling people all about the Heroes of Blackbird Lake, mine will be the name you forget. But that's okay. I spend a lot of time being easy to overlook; it's part of my strategy."

She seems to be getting more comfortable as she warms to her topic. "I got to adventure with the best adventurers there are in the whole Wold," she says earnestly. "You don't even know. Sir Joshua is everything a knight should be; he's brave, and strong, and honest, and very kind. And Jass is a really powerful sorcerer who can cast this incredible spell, and then turn around and say something sarcastic that makes everybody laugh. And Aztyr, she's really powerful, too, and she's really smart about magic and strategy and stuff. And, well, everybody knows Captain Brahmah. He's brave and strong, too, and he never gives up, no matter what. And Malgant." Vorelle pauses, as if unsure how to continue. "We don't have an official leader, you know, but Malgant is the one who looks after us. Like, he knows when we're hurt and heals us, and he protects whoever is weakest. Which is usually me, but not always. I don't think we'd be here if it wasn't for Malgant."

She dares to look up, then, straight at her oldest friend. "And then there's Vauhwyt," she says. "Vauhwyt and I started out together, as adventurers, in Dirt City. Remember, Vauhwyt? Remember Ba'Bac, and that horrible book, and the assassination attempt? And the lizardfolk? Vauhwyt's the reason I started adventuring in the first place. And Vauhwyt's the reason I stuck with it, because there were times when I felt like quitting. She's the best, most loyal friend anybody could ever have, and I'm lucky to know her."

Vorelle looks at the edge of the stage again. "So. So, that's us. And me, what I'm going to do now, I'm going back to Dirt City. Because there are good people in Dirt City, and they deserve a little help. I have plans for when I get there, but there are also bad people in Dirt City, lots of them, and they would stop me if they could. So I'd rather not say exactly what I'm doing. Just, stop by, in say a year or so, and see."

She fidgets some more. "Um....um, I guess that's it," she says. And disappears again. [But only a 40 this time, so hey, some people might see her.]

Vauhwyt and Mookie (Cayzle)

Vauhwyt gracefully makes her way through the crowd to the stage. She is a small liontaur with big paws, wearing a crisp white embroidered blouse, a cute bob, and two earrings: a green leaf and a gently glowing scales.

She bows, and launches into her speech.

"You guys should know more about some of the things we did. I think we kind of flew under the notice of most of the Wold. We're not Dragons. We kept a low profile on purpose. Seemed to us like we attracted enough enemies just keepingon keeping on."

"Me and Vorelle were together from the start. We lived in Dirt City. We solved some murders -- it was a monstrologer who made giant mosquitoes. He was not a bad guy, exactly."

"We teamed up with Ashira's group to rout out a bunch of Marteaus cultists and slavers from a floating island on Blackbird Lake. The island sank.

"We gave a cursed artifact to the Prince of Dirt City, who went crazy. We helped get a decent man in there to replace him. That seemed only fair, since we had pretty much broke the old prince."

"We helped a bunch of people in Acid City. Got a curse on the place lifted. Helped people resist the theocrats. Helped refugees from the place. Got the city a little more free of the aisildur yoke than it was. That's not bad, I think."

Vauhwyt looks a little guiltily at Ashira, if her old friend is still there.

"We made friends with a family of silver dragons. We went artifact hunting for them, and ended up freeing a fairy princess from her old prison."

"We ended up enemies with liches who also wanted the artifacts. We kept butting heads with liches, actually. I adopted some babies. Stupid liches killed them."

"Hey! Did anyone here mention yet that we helped destroy the master of Bone Mountain, the grand lich, the big honcho, the one lich to rule them all? That was pretty good."

"So do I have any advice? Well, what worked for us may not work for you. We stayed hard to pin down. We specialized in doing the unexpected. We tried to surprise our enemies, We kept our eyes open."

"When I got my first and only 4th level spell, I picked Detect Scrying. Color me paranoid, but they really were out to get us!"

"But on the other hand, live happy, make a few friends, and hold on to them really tight."

"Thanks!" She takes a bow, and takes her seat.

"Boss, that was byootifull!" caws her raven.

She answers, "Hush Mookie!"

"Thank you, ladies of the Blackbird Lake!"

"And now, Malgant, the Hand and Protector of Domi, the leader if there is a leader of the Blackbird Lake, the minotaur who is a one man army!"

Malgant Winterborn (David Feest)

When his name is called, Malgant gets a full goblet of wine from the bar and heads on up to the stage. He is a big Minotaur, not as big as some but the weight of confidence that he seems to carry somehow makes him bigger. He wears a simple monks robe and a pair of rather stylish pants, whose pattern seems to shift from one viewer to the next, but is always stylish. His exposed black hide, his forearms mostly, are covered with old pale scars, the kind that a swordsman would accumulate over a lifetime. He stands for a moment the shy taur he once was, uncomfortable speaking to people, but them his eye catches glimpses of his friends, and of young heroes just starting out. They want to know something. Something that could one day be the difference between their life and death, between some innocent person's life and death. His face clouds for a moment. Which tidbit will be the right one? He sighs, smiles at the crowd and starts off quietly.

" What makes any of us heroes? Did you wake up this morning and say, 'Goodness, what a hero I am. I should go do something heroic.' I doubt it. Heroes don't think that way. The day I was first called a hero, I stood among the remains of friends and classmates I had trained with for years, wondering how I could have been so foolish to think that we could have taken on so many undead without such terrible losses. But when I told those young priests and militia that we were all that stood between that horde and the people they loved and cared about, not one of them backed down. "

"That is a hero. "

"A hero sees an injustice, a hazard, an evil that he could leave for someone more qualified to handle and says to himself 'But what if I hesitate and the problem grows, and becomes too big even for a hero to handle?' "

" A hero is the line that no evil will cross without challenge." Malgant looks directly at Sir Joshua and raises his goblet.

" A hero is someone that gives of themselves, sometimes ultimately, so that others can be better." Malgant raises his glass to Vorelle's seemingly abandoned onion O's.

" A hero sometimes plans things out, but more often rides on the waves of the moment and snatches victory from the jaws of defeat, or her companions from the edge of death with one simple phrase.' I wish...'." Malgant raises his goblet to Aztyr

" A hero looks past what has always been to what could be and embraces the challenge to bring it about." Malgant looks at Vauhwyt and, nods and raises his goblet.

" A hero passes on living a retirement of leisure the first time in order to help those who ask, no matter that they are asking him to do the impossible. " Malgant raises his goblet to Jass.

" A hero does whatever he can to make his friends prepared for the dangers they will face, and then stands tall beside them and faces them too." Malgant raises his goblet to Brahmah.

" A hero makes everyone around him a little bit better by lifting their spirits and never giving up." Surprisingly, Malgant raises his goblet to Mookie.

" 'But Malgant' you ask, 'How do you know all of this? You are not so old to have gathered all of this knowledge yourself.' But the answer is simple. I have served among heroes, fought with them by my side and even mourned their deaths for the past 10 years of my life. Today I sit not among six or ten or a dozen heroes, I sit in a room, filled to capacity with them. All looking to me to give them some shred of knowledge that will make tomorrow better. But you are all heroes, what can I tell you that will make a difference? Maybe it is just that. That you are all already heroes in your own right. You don't always hear the people whispering as you pass. You don't always have them coming up to you and thanking you. You don't always feel that you made the right decisions. But you are no less of a hero because of that. Every decision you make shapes who you become. "

" Tonight we are here not to honor seven retiring heroes, but for those heroes who have had their day to pass on the wisdom they have gained to the next generation of heroes. That is why you see heroes of old here, heroes that have passed their wisdom on in the past and come to share it again with the Wold. Tonight we pass the torch on to those blessed few that will hold it aloft to the masses and say ' Here, come here and I will protect you from the night. ' You aren't here to honor us. We are here to remind you that you are already heroes."

"Everyone raise your glasses and drink a toast to heroes. Heroes of old. Heroes of today and heroes yet to be realized."

Malgant raises his goblet a final time and drinks deeply. He then steps off of the stage and returns to his friends.

"And now, good gentles, feast, drink, and be merry. Happy has graciously allowed his Giggling Ghost Inn to play host to the heroes of the Wold, and you may continue if you so choose."

"The games and toasts for the Blackbird Lake Heroes will continue until Monday, and then will be at an end."

"Huzzah! Huzzah!! HUZZAH!!!"

The bass roar of the dwarf rings through the tavern, and he rings his bell and steps down.

[Click here to return to the Blackbird Lake game page.]