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Child of the 7th Age · 08-26-2003, 04:22 PM

Regarding the "forest fire" that I first mentioned. True confessions: this wasn't actually an original idea. Has anyone read the Darkover series by Marian Zimmer Bradley? I read this series a long time ago, but if I remember correctly fire was a constant thread in that "primitive" society. (There was some interaction with the more technologically advanced Earth, but machines and such were banned.)

However, I also think things were organized a little differently in Darkover than in Middle-earth. They actually had people watching the forests and a system of fire beacons set up to give advance warnings to the communities. The whole community turned out to battle the blazes. And they had some psi gifted individuals who could communicate with each other, kind of like osanwe. Obviously, most of that wouldn't apply to Bree.

So I'm not an expert on what would actually be feasible within the context of Middle-earth. But I do think we have complete freedom at this point how long the fire and/or rescue would take. We can craft that however we want. It's an interesting idea if it's feasible. Pat, since you have more knowledge in this area, or at least access to knowledge, I'll be curious to see what you say on this. What's reallistic and what's not? Would Annun's idea about rescuing the children and letting the fire burn out work?

********************************************

Regarding the bandits.....

It would seem to me that a lot of people in Rhudaur would have been displaced by the Nazgul's movement in the mountains, not just hobbits, as everything pushed westward. By 1350 that entire kingdom of Rhudaur would fall under the Hillman who were in league with Angmar. Is it possible that some hints of this started as early as 1305, with individual villages in the eastern parts of Rhudaur being wiped out by the Orcs or hillmen or such? That would explain why large groups of people were turned out on the road and became "outlaws" as they headed west. They'd be pretty desperate by the time they reached Bree, especially in a time of dearth.

Is this possibly the kind of phenomenon behind our "bandits"? In this case, we'd be talking about fairly large numbers. Perhaps we should call them "outlaws" instead of bandits to get the right tone across?

I don't want to turn these outlaws into angels, but it does soften the picture a bit. But Tolkien himself does this in his depictions of certain peoples -- i.e. Sam's reaction to the fallen Easterling. I guess I'm asking if we want to paint the baddies only in "black" tones, or to have some "black and grey" mingled together?

(Pio, remember my post on Stoatie's childhood?)

Another question.....do we want these outlaws to be working totally independently, or do we want them to have established any ties at all with the forces of darkness (as the Hillmen did in the next forty years?).

I am really thinking out loud at this point and would appreciate some help in sorting this out as to what is possible and what is not.

So my guess is that whoever writes for the bandits would be representing a small "community" of outlaws, more than just a handful. If they're not professional baddies, but persons driven by circumstance, this would explain why they waited to attack Bree. They themselves might be split as to what to do.

My preference is that the outlaws are not aware that Rangers have picked up on the clues and understand that an attack on Bree might be immiment.

As I think about it, if we were to get one more dedicated character, perhaps it should be an outlaw. We have rangers, hobbits and humans who are dedicated characters. But perhaps we should have an outlaw be in on the planning? They would be pretty critical in directing the story. That person would need to delineate how they'd been forced out on the road, finally made their decision to attack, etc.

If we decide to do this, is there anyone we might ask?

How does all this sound?

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I will adjust the number of characters in the proposal.

Cami

[ August 26, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]

08-26-2003, 04:22 PM	#35
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,135	Regarding the "forest fire" that I first mentioned. True confessions: this wasn't actually an original idea. Has anyone read the Darkover series by Marian Zimmer Bradley? I read this series a long time ago, but if I remember correctly fire was a constant thread in that "primitive" society. (There was some interaction with the more technologically advanced Earth, but machines and such were banned.) However, I also think things were organized a little differently in Darkover than in Middle-earth. They actually had people watching the forests and a system of fire beacons set up to give advance warnings to the communities. The whole community turned out to battle the blazes. And they had some psi gifted individuals who could communicate with each other, kind of like osanwe. Obviously, most of that wouldn't apply to Bree. So I'm not an expert on what would actually be feasible within the context of Middle-earth. But I do think we have complete freedom at this point how long the fire and/or rescue would take. We can craft that however we want. It's an interesting idea if it's feasible. Pat, since you have more knowledge in this area, or at least access to knowledge, I'll be curious to see what you say on this. What's reallistic and what's not? Would Annun's idea about rescuing the children and letting the fire burn out work? ****************************************** Regarding the bandits..... It would seem to me that a lot of people in Rhudaur would have been displaced by the Nazgul's movement in the mountains, not just hobbits, as everything pushed westward. By 1350 that entire kingdom of Rhudaur would fall under the Hillman who were in league with Angmar. Is it possible that some hints of this started as early as 1305, with individual villages in the eastern parts of Rhudaur being wiped out by the Orcs or hillmen or such? That would explain why large groups of people were turned out on the road and became "outlaws" as they headed west. They'd be pretty desperate by the time they reached Bree, especially in a time of dearth. Is this possibly the kind of phenomenon behind our "bandits"? In this case, we'd be talking about fairly large numbers. Perhaps we should call them "outlaws" instead of bandits to get the right tone across? I don't want to turn these outlaws into angels, but it does soften the picture a bit. But Tolkien himself does this in his depictions of certain peoples -- i.e. Sam's reaction to the fallen Easterling. I guess I'm asking if we want to paint the baddies only in "black" tones, or to have some "black and grey" mingled together? (Pio, remember my post on Stoatie's childhood?) Another question.....do we want these outlaws to be working totally independently, or do we want them to have established any ties at all with the forces of darkness (as the Hillmen did in the next forty years?). I am really thinking out loud at this point and would appreciate some help in sorting this out as to what is possible and what is not. So my guess is that whoever writes for the bandits would be representing a small "community" of outlaws, more than just a handful. If they're not professional baddies, but persons driven by circumstance, this would explain why they waited to attack Bree. They themselves might be split as to what to do. My preference is that the outlaws are not aware that Rangers have picked up on the clues and understand that an attack on Bree might be immiment. As I think about it, if we were to get one more dedicated character, perhaps it should be an outlaw. We have rangers, hobbits and humans who are dedicated characters. But perhaps we should have an outlaw be in on the planning? They would be pretty critical in directing the story. That person would need to delineate how they'd been forced out on the road, finally made their decision to attack, etc. If we decide to do this, is there anyone we might ask? How does all this sound? ***************************************** I will adjust the number of characters in the proposal. Cami [ August 26, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ] __________________ Multitasking women are never too busy to vote.