Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Famous Explorers of Wampus Country, Part One

Many of the most famous explorers of Wampus Country are martial types, quick with a pistol and a blade, the better to survive in the often-dangerous wilderness.  But some get by purely on their wits, or with a little magical aid.

One such is a daring young lady called Izzy of the Gifts; she is so-named for the several enchanted accoutrements she bears which aid her in her travels.  Although young, Izzy has ranged far and wide over the countryside, using her skills to cover ridiculous amounts of ground in a short time.  Plainly dressed and kind of word, Izzy is quite happy to nonviolently aid any who cross her path.  Her surname is unknown, perhaps abandoned in the old country, but rumor has it she hails from a magically talented family.  Indeed, both she and her cousin James are known to possess the power to speak the tongues of animals, and travel in their company.  Izzy's primary traveling companion is a banderlog who enjoys human fashion; James prefers the company of a young spotted wampus-cat.  Like many Wampus Country wanderers, Izzy has had her share of strange adventures, including once being transformed (temporarily) into a mermaid.  Despite being peaceful at heart, Izzy of the Gifts has earned several enemies in her travels, including a larcenous kitsune who has become obsessed with her in a dark and inappropriate way.

This adventurous explorer's magical items are detailed below:

Fortuitous Rucksack - A leather bag, with shoulder-straps, of the sort commonly worn by adventurers; the worn calfskin shows great age, and the wrinkles and folds almost seem to twist into a smiling face.  The fortuitous rucksack has the singular magic ability to produce, once per day, a mundane item which the user either needs immediately, or will need within the next six hours.  The rucksack radiates both conjuration and divination magic, and can additionally function as a normal container of its type.

Fateful Cartographic - The fateful cartographic bears similar divination sorcery to the rucksack; once per day it can alter its appearance so as to become a guide to the requested destination, so long as it is within 24 hours' travel.  The cartographic does not display words, numbers, or distances, instead using primitive petroglyphs to represent obvious landmarks along the journey.

Izzy's cousin James, known to be a druid of some power, is also the bearer of the fantastic metamorph of salvation, a gaily-colored item which can transform from a bag into a means of transportation (canoe, dinghy, bicycle, hang-glider, hot-air balloon, etc) once per day for an hour.  The similarities in form shared by the metamorph and the fortuitous rucksack suggest that James and Izzy's family line may have been wizards specializing in container-related sorcery.

Rumors that these adventurous cousins may have other relatives who share their magical skills, or variants thereof - for example, the ability to speak to inanimate tools - are yet to be confirmed.


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