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The Primordial Age

2018-07-15T20:35:21Z

Epweissengruber:

I rolled a 6 and a 4.

A deity planned this world but it didn't work out.

The strata of 8 epochs lie under the surface of the Panic Realms

And they look like this:

[[File:Primordialage.jpg]]

Back to Main Page [[PanicRealm]]

The Primordial Age

2018-07-15T20:33:53Z

Epweissengruber:

I rolled a 6 and a 4.

A deity planned this world but it didn't work out.

The strata of 8 epochs lie under the surface of the Panic Realms

And they look like this:

[[File:Primordialage.jpg]]

The Primordial Age

2018-07-15T20:32:07Z

Epweissengruber:

File:Primordialage.jpg

2018-07-15T20:29:24Z

Epweissengruber: 1st map

1st map

The Primordial Age

2018-07-15T20:28:10Z

Epweissengruber: Created page with "I rolled a 6 and a 4. A deity planned this world but it didn't work out. The strata of 8 epochs lie under the surface of the Panic Realms And they look like this: File:E..."

I rolled a 6 and a 4.

A deity planned this world but it didn't work out.

The strata of 8 epochs lie under the surface of the Panic Realms

And they look like this:

[[File:Example.jpg]]

PanicRealm

2018-07-15T20:18:09Z

Epweissengruber:

Welcome to the Panic Realm.

The human realms reached an agreement. They would put aside war and reclaim their lands. Order was restored and unclean things confined to their dungeons.

And then things started going wrong.

Now the forces of the Witch King sweep over the human realms.

A few wise immortals are gleaning the greatest treasures and heroes humanity has to offer, to give them refuge until they are ready for the final battle against the Witch King.

In 13 seasons a fleet will set sail from the Harbour of the West for the Havens of the Immortal.

Those who can brave the flood of the Witch King's minions may have a chance to sail on that fleet. But they must prove their worth.

Bands of adventurers set out into the dungeons of the land to slay, neutralize, or turn the unclean things hiding there. They must never be allowed to swell the Witch King's legions. The dungeons are filled with fabulous treasures and potent charms. If the Witch King gets his hands on those, not even the Havens of the Immortal will be safe.

Your task is to raid the dungeons, deal with their inhabitants, and send the treasures on to the last redoubt of humanity in the land. Glory and salvation will be your if you succeed. Ignominy and death if you fail.

Dare you enter the Panic Realms?

[[The Primordial Age]]

PanicRealm

2018-07-15T20:17:29Z

Epweissengruber: Opening page.

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:32:01Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

* The Bazaar
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

* Farmers and Nomads (lifted from Bruce Chatwin, ''The Songlines'')
: "The farmers say they are the oldest people in the land. They plant wheat, flax, and melons. They have long, resigned faces and exhaust themselves in tending irrigation ditches. They keep fighting partridges and do not know how to look after horses.
: In the valleys above the villages, nomads make camp. Their yurts have domed white roofs, and the sides are painted with lozenges, scrolls, and cheques in every colour. Horses graze in cornflower meadows, near a willow-guarded stream. Fat tailed sheep graze too. The women card their wool in the noonday sun.
: This is the time of year when farmers and nomads, after a season of acrimony, are suddenly the best of friends. The harvest is in. The nomads buy grain for winter. The villagers buy cheese and hides and meat. They welcome the sheep onto their fields: to break up the stubble and manure it for planting."
* The Nomad's Contempt For the Sedentary
:: I do not have a mill with willow trees
:: I have a horse and a whip
:: I will kill you and go
::::(Yomut Turkoman)

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

* Rituals of Hospitality
- Only after a guest has drunk tea to you begin inquiries into who he is or what his business may be. "Take may bread and salt and tell me the whole truth," is the local saying.

- "Be attentive and receptive to guests. A true man expresses his dignity not only in combat, but in how he treats his fellow humans. You can be dying from fatigue but never let it show to a guest. always be modest about yourself and curious about your guest" (Khazak saying).

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:27:31Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

* The Bazaar
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

* Farmers and Nomads (lifted from Bruce Chatwin, ''The Songlines'')
: "The farmers say they are the oldest people in the land. They plant wheat, flax, and melons. They have long, resigned faces and exhaust themselves in tending irrigation ditches. They keep fighting partridges and do not know how to look after horses.
: In the valleys above the villages, nomads make camp. Their yurts have domed white roofs, and the sides are painted with lozenges, scrolls, and cheques in every colour. Horses graze in cornflower meadows, near a willow-guarded stream. Fat tailed sheep graze too. The women card their wool in the noonday sun.
: This is the time of year when farmers and nomads, after a season of acrimony, are suddenly the best of friends. The harvest is in. The nomads buy grain for winter. The villagers buy cheese and hides and meat. They welcome the sheep onto their fields: to break up the stubble and manure it for planting."

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

* Rituals of Hospitality
- Only after a guest has drunk tea to you begin inquiries into who he is or what his business may be. "Take may bread and salt and tell me the whole truth," is the local saying.

- "Be attentive and receptive to guests. A true man expresses his dignity not only in combat, but in how he treats his fellow humans. You can be dying from fatigue but never let it show to a guest. always be modest about yourself and curious about your guest" (Khazak saying).

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:20:16Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

* The Bazaar
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

* Rituals of Hospitality
- Only after a guest has drunk tea to you begin inquiries into who he is or what his business may be. "Take may bread and salt and tell me the whole truth," is the local saying.

- "Be attentive and receptive to guests. A true man expresses his dignity not only in combat, but in how he treats his fellow humans. You can be dying from fatigue but never let it show to a guest. always be modest about yourself and curious about your guest" (Khazak saying).

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:19:47Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

* The Bazaar
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

* Rituals of Hospitality
- Only after a guest has drunk tea to you begin inquiries into who he is or what his business may be. "Take may bread and salt and tell me the whole truth," is the local saying.
- "Be attentive and receptive to guests. A true man expresses his dignity not only in combat, but in how he treats his fellow humans. You can be dying from fatigue but never let it show to a guest. always be modest about yourself and curious about your guest" (Khazak saying).

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:17:05Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

* The Bazaar
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:16:28Z

Epweissengruber: /* Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town */

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

==== The Bazaar ====
Here you can find a cornucopia of exotic fruits and spices, meat, fine sweetmeats and fresh almonds and walnuts, vendors selling herb fritters and kabobs. It is not uncommon to see Pushto Gypsies, Industani money changers, Helenic or Han traders from the west or the east selling their wares. Amid the teeming energy you can hear lute music or see puppet shows. But at sundown on Friday the bazaar is deserted -- all are expected to be readying themselves for evening devotions and the Sabbath.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

Avramistan

2009-03-05T16:12:45Z

Epweissengruber:

== '''Avramistan''': a setting for ''Storming the Wizard's Tower'' ==

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars swinging scimitars and riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Trease Geoffrey Trease] out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

The basic concept: a Turkic people who have converted to Judaism within the lifetime of the player characters' grandparents. The kingdom is only gradually moving towards a "state" structure, but is a prosperous and strong region, sandwiched between the great Christian and Muslim empires to the south, the fierce Kiev Rus to the north, Magyars and Bulgars to the west and wilder Tartar hordes to the East.

=== Map 1 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/avramistan1st.jpg

=== Paragraph 1: What Is It Like? ===
Bayati Altanjin ("Rich in Gold") is a prosperous town in the centre of the land of Avramistan. It has much in common with the huge expanse of territory covered by the Tartars: a broad expanse of plain covered with grasses, with the flatness broken by hilly uplands and the occasional mountain in whose valleys the Nomads find shelter. It has a large walled-in bazaar, making it the centre of commerce for the region. It is protected by the hordes of the Bek, the military ruler of the land, who is in service to the Khagan, or spiritual king, a descendant of King David himself, and grandson of the Khan who took the name Avram on his conversion to Judaism. It is a comfortable, prosperous town, one valued by Khagan and Bek, nomad and farmer, alike.

=== Map 2 ===
http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa253/epweissengruber/bayantialtanjin.jpg

=== Paragraph 2: Backbone of the Town ===
The backbone of the town is trade. The local farming community links the kingdom's religious, military and mercantile power with the local semi- and fully nomadic groups. Semi-nomads provide sheep and goats, nomads horses, and local farmers grain, melons, apples, walnuts and almonds, flax, and cotton. These are converted into coin in the bazaar, or excanged for exotic goods from the Spice Road, salt fish and other sea products, or learning at the synagogue.

=== Paragraph 3: The Town's Neighbours ===
The town faces no immediate threat against itself in particular but it is liable to the same sudden threats to which all of the towns of the plain are subject: raiders. the Rus ply the great rivers in their longships and sometimes make depredations inland. The Magyars and Eastern Tartars will send hordes into Avramistan and towns like Bayantai are the target. The fort is regularly visited by the hordes of the Bek but is little more than a resting stop for the mounted couriers that keep the kingdom together. Local Khan Natan-ben-Edrene has only a small horsetroop to keep order for the Bek. Spring and summer see increased tension between Nomads and Farmers which breaks into violence. Disreputable characters make their way down from the Spice Road. Two ancient places of power predate the Covenant and are avoided by those who follow the Law and the Prophets: an open-air burial ground of the Eastern Tartars ("Khan's Grave") and "The Mounds," huge burial sites of a people who predate the coming of the Tartars to this region.

=== Paragraph 4: How Does the Town's Society Work? ===
The town is under the protection of Khan Natan-ben-Edrene and all subject clans pay tribute to him. The bazaar is under his sponsorship and all who break its peace will be treated as if they had defamed his own yurt. Local farmers have village or clan hetmen but they are, essentially, subject to all members of the Khan's horde: their lands may be used as horse pasturage and their stores used to supply his warriors -- but the Khan is wise enough not to incommode his prosperous farmers in any way. The Khan allows the hetmen (and women) of the Farmers and the Nomads to sort out any disagreements between them. This is a tribal society: consensus, compromise, and coalition are the way. But blood feuds between families still break out. The fort is maintained at the Bek's expense and the synagoge at the Khagan's. The local Khan passes some of his tribute to both monarchs but the tax burden is light. The Khan is a Jew as are most of the region's inhabitants. But remnants of the fire worship of the Aryans, the ethics of the Han, the ancient Tartar worship of Earth and Sky, persist covertly, and in some places overtly. Missionaries of the Crescent and the Cross are sometimes seen, as the Khagan wishes reciprocal tolerance to be shown to the Israelites in the Caliphate and the Hellenic Empire. The synagogue is home to several scholar/teachers who are trying to build the populace's understanding of the Law, their ability to read the Scrolls, and to bring proper rabbinical jurisprudence into the lives of the Tartars.

Avramistan

2009-03-05T15:52:47Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T15:33:39Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T15:27:47Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T15:16:56Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T14:57:42Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T14:50:23Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan

2009-03-05T14:49:03Z

Epweissengruber:

Avramistan: a setting for Storming the Wizard's Tower

This setting was inspired by Michael Chabon's Gentlemen of the Road and other writings about the Jewish kingdom of the Khazars. And my interest in Central Asian food. And my affection for the music of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road project and a CD of Afghan Rubab music that I really like. And the fact that scimitars are cool. And the concept of Jewish Tartars riding fierce ponies under the banner of the menorah and fighting weird monsters is cool. So take the juvenile historical fiction of Geoffrey Treece out of its Anglo/Celtic setting and move it to Central Asia and you will have the feel of this setting.

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-15T20:53:20Z

Epweissengruber: /* Set Up */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

STRATEGY 
There is a tactical side to this game. I chose 1 cluster of letters to do my followup entry and 1 cluster of letters to do my latest original contribution. There is nothing in the rules to compel me to do so. I could have done both in the same cluster, say, 2 enries is UVW. On the next round I could not have come back to that cluster. By spreading out my entries to 2 different clusters I have limited the range of future contributions in order to make diverse contributions now. I had fun doing it, but it might mean that I get stuck with XYZ later. I like the fact that there is some strategic thinking involved with this exercise and that it is not just free association. It has more in common with rule-bound theatrical improv than it does with a pure creative writing exercise. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
Why can't the fathers of today be like their great-great-grandfathers?
 A little too much "political correctness" and "secular humanism" have cut off today's men from the warrior spirit of their ancestors! Every other town in Gilead has a statue to Ukaiah Heap, or a plaque in its temple saying "Heap preached here." Today, we are supposed to be ashamed of Heap for his "insensitivity" to the Mountain Peo--- ... oops, I forgot: the university professors of Bridal Falls (whose university, I recall, was set up as a seminary!) don't want us to use that phrase (or "Indian") anymore. I say to you men of Gilead, KEEP HEAP ALIVE! Don't let the left-wing cultural elite, and the "Native" activists tear down those statues.
 Recall that Heap learned his guerilla tactics from Kenebune warriors, warriors who had converted to the Faith. Heap and his Dogs are supposedly guilty of "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide." Well, Heap and his organization kept up negotiations with native tribes even after the Mertonville Massacre. But when the truly genocidal Ghost Who Walks Through Doors began stirring up the tribes near Bethanay, Heap had no choice but to strike first. And let us not forget that the scout on that mission was one Jacob King, a converted Kenebune. There was a politically correct man for you! He cared more for the souls of those who shared his morals and his religion than he did for those with the same skin colour.
 I say to you, men of Gilead, don't let them tear down the monument to the Heroes of Bethany and build yourself a monument to those men in your hearts.

 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Publications, 1992.

 
See also: Bethanay Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==
===Mertonville Massacre===

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a-meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-07T11:56:01Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
Why can't the fathers of today be like their great-great-grandfathers?
 A little too much "political correctness" and "secular humanism" have cut off today's men from the warrior spirit of their ancestors! Every other town in Gilead has a statue to Ukaiah Heap, or a plaque in its temple saying "Heap preached here." Today, we are supposed to be ashamed of Heap for his "insensitivity" to the Mountain Peo--- ... oops, I forgot: the university professors of Bridal Falls (whose university, I recall, was set up as a seminary!) don't want us to use that phrase (or "Indian") anymore. I say to you men of Gilead, KEEP HEAP ALIVE! Don't let the left-wing cultural elite, and the "Native" activists tear down those statues.
 Recall that Heap learned his guerilla tactics from Kenebune warriors, warriors who had converted to the Faith. Heap and his Dogs are supposedly guilty of "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide." Well, Heap and his organization kept up negotiations with native tribes even after the Mertonville Massacre. But when the truly genocidal Ghost Who Walks Through Doors began stirring up the tribes near Bethanay, Heap had no choice but to strike first. And let us not forget that the scout on that mission was one Jacob King, a converted Kenebune. There was a politically correct man for you! He cared more for the souls of those who shared his morals and his religion than he did for those with the same skin colour.
 I say to you, men of Gilead, don't let them tear down the monument to the Heroes of Bethany and build yourself a monument to those men in your hearts.

 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Publications, 1992.

 
See also: Bethanay Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==
===Mertonville Massacre===

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a-meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:46:09Z

Epweissengruber: /* (LMN) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
Why can't the fathers of today be like their great-great-grandfathers?
 A little too much "political correctness" and "secular humanism" have cut off today's men from the warrior spirit of their ancestors! Every other town in Gilead has a statue to Ukaiah Heap, or a plaque in its temple saying "Heap preached here." Today, we are supposed to be ashamed of Heap for his "insensitivity" to the Mountain Peo--- ... oops, I forgot: the university professors of Bridal Falls (whose university, I recall, was set up as a seminary!) don't want us to use that phrase (or "Indian") anymore. I say to you men of Gilead, KEEP HEAP ALIVE! Don't let the left-wing cultural elite, and the "Native" activists tear down those statues.
 Recall that Heap learned his guerilla tactics from Kenebune warriors, warriors who had converted to the Faith. Heap and his Dogs are supposedly guilty of "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide." Well, Heap and his organization kept up negotiations with native tribes even after the Mertonville Massacre. But when the truly genocidal Ghost Who Walks Through Walls began stirring up the tribes near Bethanay, Heap had no choice but to strike first. And let us not forget that the scout on that mission was one Joseph King, a converted Kenebune. There was a politically correct man for you! He cared more for the souls of those who shared his morals and his religion than he did for those with the same skin colour.
 I say to you, men of Gilead, don't let them tear down the monument to the Heroes of Bethany and build yourself a monument to those men in your hearts.

 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Publications, 1992.

 
See also: Bethanay Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==
===Mertonville Massacre===

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:37:15Z

Epweissengruber: /* Dogs of Gilead */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
Why can't the fathers of today be like their great-great-grandfathers?
 A little too much "political correctness" and "secular humanism" have cut off today's men from the warrior spirit of their ancestors! Every other town in Gilead has a statue to Ukaiah Heap, or a plaque in its temple saying "Heap preached here." Today, we are supposed to be ashamed of Heap for his "insensitivity" to the Mountain Peo--- ... oops, I forgot: the university professors of Bridal Falls (whose university, I recall, was set up as a seminary!) don't want us to use that phrase (or "Indian") anymore. I say to you men of Gilead, KEEP HEAP ALIVE! Don't let the left-wing cultural elite, and the "Native" activists tear down those statues.
 Recall that Heap learned his guerilla tactics from Kenebune warriors, warriors who had converted to the Faith. Heap and his Dogs are supposedly guilty of "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide." Well, Heap and his organization kept up negotiations with native tribes even after the Mertonville Massacre. But when the truly genocidal Ghost Who Walks Through Walls began stirring up the tribes near Bethanay, Heap had no choice but to strike first. And let us not forget that the scout on that mission was one Joseph King, a converted Kenebune. There was a politically correct man for you! He cared more for the souls of those who shared his morals and his religion than he did for those with the same skin colour.
 I say to you, men of Gilead, don't let them tear down the monument to the Heroes of Bethany and build yourself a monument to those men in your hearts.

 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Publications, 1992.

 
See also: Bethanay Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:36:50Z

Epweissengruber: /* Dogs of Gilead */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
Why can't the fathers of today be like their great-great-grandfathers?
 A little too much "political correctness" and "secular humanism" have cut off today's men from the warrior spirit of their ancestors! Every other town in Gilead has a statue to Ukaiah Heap, or a plaque in its temple saying "Heap preached here." Today, we are supposed to be ashamed of Heap for his "insensitivity" to the Mountain Peo--- ... oops, I forgot: the university professors of Bridal Falls (whose university, I recall, was set up as a seminary!) don't want us to use that phrase (or "Indian") anymore. I say to you men of Gilead, KEEP HEAP ALIVE! Don't let the left-wing cultural elite, and the "Native" activists tear down those statues.
 Recall that Heap learned his guerilla tactics from Kenebune warriors, warriors who had converted to the Faith. Heap and his Dogs are supposedly guilty of "ethnic cleansing" or "genocide." Well, Heap and his organization kept up negotiations with native tribes even after the Mertonville Massacre. But when the truly genocidal Ghost Who Walks Through Walls began stirring up the tribes near Bethany, Heap had no choice but to strike first. And let us not forget that the scout on that mission was one Joseph King, a converted Kenebune. There was a politically correct man for you! He cared more for the souls of those who shared his morals and his religion than he did for those with the same skin colour.
 I say to you, men of Gilead, don't let them tear down the monument to the Heroes of Bethany and build yourself a monument to those men in your hearts.

 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Publications, 1992.

 
See also: Bethany Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:21:57Z

Epweissengruber: /* Dogs of Gilead */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
 
- Bishop Oran Kupfelmeier, ''Build a City on a Hill: Rebirthing the Pioneer Spirit in Today's Faithful Families'', Bridal Falls: Focus on Faithful Families Press, 1992.
 
See also: Bethany Creek, Mertonville Massacre.

===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:14:39Z

Epweissengruber: /* (XYZ) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:14:22Z

Epweissengruber: /* (XYZ) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:14:03Z

Epweissengruber: /* (XYZ) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
Dr. Howard Jenkins, "Damn Your Eyes!: Curses and Blasphemy in 19th Century Children's Folksongs," ''Journal of Western Folklore'', June 1987.

See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:11:30Z

Epweissengruber: /* (DEF) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===
===Folk Songs===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:10:48Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin:

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!
 
 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!
 
 
Take them to the lake!!!
 
 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:08:10Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin.

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take! 
Papa get ornery? He will take! 
Sister get married? He will take! 
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right! 
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket. 
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake! 
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake! 
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!

Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take! 
Watamaket take!

Take them to the lake!!!

See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T10:00:11Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin.

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take!
Papa get ornery? He will take!
Sister get married? He will take!
The Dead and the Buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right!
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my Sister? Sleeping in the lake!
The Dead and the Buried? Watamaket take!

Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!

Take them to the lake!!!

See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T09:58:43Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin.

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take!
Papa get ornery? He will take!
Sister get married? He will take!
The dead and the buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right!
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my sister? Sleeping in the lake!
The dead and the buried? Watamaket take!

Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!

Take them to the lake!!!

See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T09:58:00Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===

This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin.

Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take!
Papa get ornery? He will take!
Sister get married? He will take!
The dead and the buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right!
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my sister? Sleeping in the lake!
The dead and the buried? Watamaket take!

Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!

Take them to the lake!!!"

 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-06T09:57:09Z

Epweissengruber: /* Watamaket (Under-the-Mud) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
This is another entry in the diary of Brother Nimrod McAuslin.
 
"Once again I had to chastise a passel of recreants in this morn's Sunday School. It is my fear that Brothers and Sisters up in the massiffs are allowing their waifs too much time in the company of unredeemed Mountain People. My hand hesitates to write these words:

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, sleeping in the lake!

Granny get angry? He will take!
Papa get ornery? He will take!
Sister get married? He will take!
The dead and the buried? He will take!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, waking up tonight!

Why the waters stirring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the black cat purring? 'Cause the stars are right!
Why the drums a beatin'? 'Cause the stars are right!
Departed Ones a meetin'? 'Cause the stars are right!

Watamaket, maket, maket.
Watamaket, going back to sleep!

Where's my Granny? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my Papa? Sleeping in the lake!
Where's my sister? Sleeping in the lake!
The dead and the buried? Watamaket take!

Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!
Watamaket take!

Take them to the lake!!!"

 
See: Departed Ones, Folk Songs

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Talk:Main Page

2005-07-06T09:42:37Z

Epweissengruber:

Some tips,

I don't like the amount of space the wiki gives for a space, like between this and the "Some tips,"

So I've started using double spaces, they look a bit big, but I think looking too big is better then looking to small.

--[[User:Elliot|Elliot]] 08:38, 20 May 2005 (PDT)

----
How do I delete images that I don't want any more? I don't want to hog space.

--[[User:Epweissengruber|Epweissengruber]] 02:42, 6 Jul 2005 (PDT)

User talk:Epweissengruber

2005-07-06T01:17:36Z

Epweissengruber:

=Talk Page=

--[[User:Epweissengruber|Epweissengruber]] 18:17, 5 Jul 2005 (PDT)Erik
Yes, this is where the talk happens! Cool!

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-03T12:17:19Z

Epweissengruber: /* Set Up */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.

ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-03T12:15:03Z

Epweissengruber: /* Set Up */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead." 

TIMEFRAME 
Let us assume that our games take place before the American Civil War. If we decide to incorporate that war into our gameworld, then let us imagine what it would be how and why the states to the East would become involved in this remote and inhospitable territory. 
ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.
ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Maps

2005-07-03T12:02:34Z

Epweissengruber:

This is my first map of The Territory. As we adventure and as we expand the Lexicon, I will alter the map.

[[Image:Territory_b.JPG]]

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

File:Territory b.JPG

2005-07-03T11:57:12Z

Epweissengruber: Updated after our 1st adventure

Updated after our 1st adventure

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-01T19:19:24Z

Epweissengruber: /* Set Up */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead."

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.
ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* thanks for the contribution Mark -- feel free to make your round 2 contribution at any time

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-01T19:10:59Z

Epweissengruber: /* (RST) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead."

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.
ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===
===Twisted Wood Ranch===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-01T19:05:39Z

Epweissengruber: /* (GHI) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead."

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.
ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Geller, Solomon===

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Lexicon

2005-07-01T19:03:54Z

Epweissengruber: /* (ABC) */

Lexicon is a group setting creation strategy. Players take the role of scholars and historians describing the setting where the players enact their adventures.

The rules for the creation of a Lexicon follow at the end of these entries.

Thanks to Neel Krishnaswami for inventing this game.

= Set Up =

"You are American historians from the late 20th century writing the 'real' history of the growth of your nation in the New World. Your focus is on the Territories, now called the State of Gilead, a prosperous and religiously conservative member of the United States of America. Some of you are conspiracy theorists writing revisionist histories of the fantastic events that took place in the mid-nineteenth century. Some of you are religious scholars recounting the birth and growth of a new religion in a new land. Some of you are skeptical or critical historians offering "rational" explanations of the fantastic legends that have been handed down in Gilead."

ROUND 1
 So, Mark, Shawn and any other Indie RPGers.
* create a new entry under "ABC" that is followed up by citations of two other entries
* on the second round, pick up one of the citations created by someone else and fill out the details, and create a new entry that has 2 other citations
* let's say that round one is over.
ROUND 2
 Let's say that the 1st round is over. Now, let's pick up the threads that have been dropped in round 1.
* create a new entry under any of the headings. This is a NEW entry. Incorporate a citation of a previous entry and create an ambiguous citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.
* fill in an OLD entry. Conclude with a citation of a previous entry and create a citation of a new entry that someone will fill in later.

 
 

= Lexicon Entries =
 

== (ABC)==

=== The Abominations ===
The first settlers of this land encountered severe resistance from the native tribes. The "Mountain People," as the religious colonists called the Kenebune, presented a hospitable front. But, secretly, a number of shamans and warrior societies conducted a fearsome campaign of terror. Mysterious disappearances, bloody sacrifices on the altars of the Departed Ones, and attacks in frightening disguises led to the creation of folk tales regarding the "Abominations." Members of the Faith spread stories of inuman monsters like fanged and tentacled demons, pale fish-eyed people, or sparkling clouds of deadly fog. These "Abominations" were used a pretext for strict measures by the Dogs for enforcing doctrinal adherence or punishing wrongdoers. Some of the tales of the Abominations have entered the folksongs of the region.

- Dr. Claude Henry Smoot, Professor of American History, University
of Gilead (Bridal Falls Campus)

See also "Departed Ones," "Warrior Societies," & "Sacrificial Sites."

=== Anahiwa ===

At the time of contact, Anahiwa (his name means "Cut Arm") was the leader of the Drumhead band of Kenebune, whose traditional range included much of the central valley, including Bridal Falls City. Initially, the Drumhead welcomed the early pioneers and assisted them during the first deadly winter. However, as the Faithful began to plant Bridal Falls City and build permanent dwellings, Anahiwa came under increasing pressure to drive them from the ancestral lands. Although Anahiwa preached peace, there were a series of vicious raids against the Faithful sponsored by rival Tall Pine warriors, in which two men were killed and a woman - Patience Steese - was abducted. In reprisal, the Faithful razed two unguarded encampments of Drumhead and later killed seven braves. Even after this, Anahiwa approached the Elders and Ancients to seek a solution. He was immediately imprisoned, which sent his people on the warpath at last. Monish, Anahiwa's chief rival among the Drumhead and a formidable shaman, assumed command of the band. Word soon spread that the Tenskwatawa, the "Ghost Who Walks Through Doors" had arrived to assist them in driving out the Faithful, and many Mountain People rallied to their cause. Anahiwa converted to the Faith in prison. His son, Jacob King, was called to be a Dog and served in that capacity with distinction.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Monish," "Steese, Patience," and "Tenskwatawa."

===Bethany Creek===

A few years after the capture of Anahiwa, Bethany Creek was the scene of a bloody massacre. A new settlement was planned for the site but the first group of settlers found a group of the nomadic Kenebune, whom the settlers called the "Mountain People," already occupying the area. The Elders decided to remove the Kenebune by force and the Dogs of Gilead were called to action. This early Pack was comprised of only ten members, but they accounted for more than 50 dead men, women, and children that night. The Dogs apparently slipped into the campsite under the cover of darkness and slit the throats of the sleeping natives. Many were killed before the alarm was raised. Once the camp was awake and armed, the fight became more frantic. Three Dogs, including Ukaiah Heap, were killed before the fighting was over. Only a handful of Kenebune survivors escaped to tell the true tale of this atrocity. As the settlement at Bethany Creek grew, tales of that original battle grew into a monument to the bravery of the three perished Dogs. They became "The Heroes of Bethany."

- Dr. A. Emme Haron, Professor of Native Studies, Bridal Falls College

See also "Dogs of Gilead," "Heroes of Bethany," and "Kenebune"

===Bristlecone Lake===

===Campbell, Elijah (1810 - 1822)===
The Campbell family were the original homesteaders of the Twisted Wood Ranch, near Bridal Falls. The area has since acquired a rather sinister reputation dating back to the death of Elijah Campbell. There are, of course, claims of supernatural happenings predating the Campbell homestead. However, these are unsubstantiated and likely superstitious stories invented in the wake of the Elijah's death.

The journals of Solomon Geller are the only record available which detail the events leading up to the boy's illness and eventual death. Geller was a prominent member of the so-called Dogs of Gilead, who were active at that time. While it is not my place to call into question Geller's integrity, his religious convictions coloured his judgements, to say the least, and further he did not exercise the utmost care in differentiating between what he personally observed and what was related to him by a third party.

Elijah Cambell was the youngest son of Ruth and and Joseph Campbell. He had from his early childhood been an unruly and overly imaginative child. He was known to have played with the children of the nearby savage tribes, and it is quite possible that he learned from them some of their more beastly superstitions and behaviours. As he grew older, his behaviour grew increasingly erratic, and he became the focus of a number of strange occurences. Inexplicable rappings or voices were often heard in his proximity. He occasionally fell to the ground and had fits of frightening violence. He was reported to have exhibited remarkable strength, and spoken in unknown languages, or in multiple voices while in the grip of one of these convulsions. The incidents increased and in 1822, Elijah fell to an unidentified illness. He was at this point given to the care of Solomon Geller.
Geller diagnosed Elijah as possessed of a demon and began an exorcism. The exorcism lasted many days, and Geller records behaviour on the part of the child too horrific to detail here. It was ultimately a failure and the boy died while in Geller's care.

Elijah was one of the many unfortunates who fell victim to the religious zeal of the Dogs of Gilead.
The grave ministrations Geller subjected upon a sickened and unruly child extend well into the realm
of the criminal, and were if not the direct cause, most certainly hastened his death.

-Joseph Fish, Associate Proffessor of History, Bridal Falls University

See also: Geller, Solomon, Twisted Wood Ranch

===Cold River, Battle of===

The Faithful did have to fight a few pitched battles when they moved into the Territory. Sometimes it was bootleggers who were dealing alcohol to the natives. Sometimes is was outlaws who were determined to lord it over a few towns. And sometimes, as in the Battle of Cold Creek, it was hard-bitten miners. Cold River was a town set up by a group of such miners. After they pushed off some Mountain People and some non-Faithful settlers, the stakes some claims (with the collusion of a bribe-friendly Territorial official.) Their township was recognized by honest but incompetent Territory officials. However, the town was near a very small Temple that served some small villages. One night a group of miners tried to burn the Temple. Ukaiah Heap and 5 other noted Dogs organized the villagers and fought off the heavily armed miners. Cold River was abandoned by the thugs and taken over by a community of the Faithful.

- Smith, Harry "God, Guns, and Gold -- the Secret History of the Territories."

See also "Bethanay," "Heap, Ukaiah" and "Miners"

==(DEF)==
=== Departed Ones ===
Universal among the various Kenebune bands were the Departed Ones, powerful shamen who oversaw mystery cults and exercised prodigious secular power among the warrior societies. The name stems from the widely-held belief that the souls of each of these elite shamen left for an extended trip for the duration of his life, reuniting only in death. The Departed Ones seemed to form a loose network crossing the boundaries of band and kinship, and they often worked together. Early Faithful accounts ascribe colorful acts of sorcery to the Departed Ones, including the summoning of demons and "strange winds". The long conflict between Tall Pine Kenebune and the Bristlecone Lake Faithful includes many descriptions of Departed Ones summoning "demons" from the lake.

- Dr. Carsten Lundegaard, Associate Professor of Anthropology, UG - Wahanish

See also "Warrior Societies", "Bristlecone Lake", "Watamaket"

===Dogs of Gilead===

==(GHI)==

===Heroes of Bethany===

===Heap, Ukaiah===

==(JKI)==

===Kenebune===

==(LMN)==

===Miners===

===Monish, or Elk Standing===

==(OPQ)==

==(RST)==
=== Sacrificial Sites ===
===Steese, Patience===
===Tenskwatawa, the Ghost Who Walks Through Doors===

==(UVW)==
=== Warrior Societies ===

==(XYZ)==
===Watamaket (Under-the-Mud)===
 
 

= Rules =

"You are cranky, opinionated, prejudiced and eccentric. You are also collaborating with a number of your peers -- the other players -- on the construction of an encyclopedia describing some historical period (possibly of a fantastic world)."

The game is played in 9 turns, one for each button of a push-button phone.
1 (ABC)
2 (DEF)
3 (GHI)
4 (JKI)
5 (LMN)
6 (OPQ)
7 (RST)
8 (UVW)
9 (XYZ)

1. On the first turn, each player writes an entry for any of the letters 'ABC'. You come up with the name of the entry, and you write 50-100 words on the subject. At the end of the article, you sign your name, and make two citations to other entries in the encyclopedia. These citations will be phantoms -- their names exist, but their content will get filled in only on the appropriate turn.

2. On the second and subsequent turns, you continue to write entries for DEF, GHI, KLM and so on. However, you need to make two citations. One must be a full explanation of an already-written entry, and one must a completely new, un-cited entry. (On the 9th turn, you can cite no phantom entries)

It's an academic sin to cite yourself, you can never cite an entry you've written. (OOC, this forces the players to intertwingle their entries, so that everybody depends on everyone else's facts.) Incidentally, once you run out of empty slots, obviously you can only cite the phantom slots.

3. Despite the fact that your peers are self-important, narrow-minded dunderheads, they are honest scholars. No matter how strained their interpretations are, their facts are accurate as historical research can make them. So if you cite an entry, you have to treat its factual content as true! (Though you can argue vociferously with the interpretation and introduce new facts that shade the interpretation.)

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Inspirations

2005-07-01T11:55:34Z

Epweissengruber: /* My Agenda */

=My Agenda=
By your referee, Erik Weissengruber

I have been running Sorcerer and HeroQuest pretty heavily. The latter game I have run with a boodthirsty, Conanesqe slant and the former I have been running as a dark horror game in the manner of Clive Barker.

I have had enough darkness.

So I was looking for a game that would have honest-to-god heroes in it. Dogs in the Vineyard (DitV) is this game. You are like the early Moslems or the Mormons: you have been given a revelation and must build a godly community strong enough to resist the assaults of the outer world and to spread the gospel.

An athiest and a pragmatist, I have never had to wrestle with the burden of bringing an absolute morality into the world. It's easy to sneer at the the religious and the devout, but harder to understand their trials. Do I want to be a Jesuit, or a Samurai trying to live by the code of Bushido, or a Mafioso trying to live up to the code? No. But I wonder what it would be like. Is there are way to stay humane while serving the Absolute? That is the question I hope to explore.

'''Player Agendas'''
* Mark signalled his interest in the work of H.P. Lovecraft. So I will include a few dark conspiracies and supra-human horrors in the mix
* Shawn wanted more opportunity to explore the setting and control player actions rather than following the referee's agenda. That's the style of gaming that I seek to encourage.
* I want to tackle the myth of the New World. The American frontier has been depicted as a "tabula rasa" where the American people were to create a new society, free from the corruptions of old Europe. But anthropologists, pulp fiction writers, and intellectuals alike have pointed out that the Americas are not a "virgin land" but a land marked by history, some of which is pretty bloody and horrible by anyone's standards. So our community of the Faithful will have to deal with the legacies of the ancient history that preceeded them.

'''New World or Old World?''' 

William S. Burroughs, ''Naked Lunch'' 
- a bit of the old darkness coming in ...

"Chicago: invisible hierarchy of decorticated cops, smell of atrophied gangsters, earthbound ghost hits you at North and Halstead, Cicero, Lincoln Park, panhandler of dreams, past invading the present, rancid magic of slot machines and roadhouses.

Into the Interior: a vast subdivision, antennae of television to the meaningless sky. In lifeproof houses they hover over the young, sop up a little of what they shut out. Only the young bring anything in, and they are not young very long. (Through the bars of East St Louis lies the dead frontier, riverboat days.) Illinois and Missouri, miasma of mound-building peoples, groveling worship of the Food Source, cruel and ugly festivals, dead-end horror of the Centipede God reaches from Moundville to the lunar deserts of coastal Peru.

America is not a young land: it is old and dirty and evil before the settlers, before the Indians. The evil is there waiting.

And always cops: smooth college-trained state cops, practised, apologetic patter, electronic eyes weigh your car and luggage, clothes and face; snarling big city dicks, soft-spoken country sheriffs with something black and menacing in old eyes color of a faded grey flannel shirt....

And the U.S. drag closes around us like no other drag in the world, worse than the Andes, high mountain towns, cold wind down from postcard mountains, thin air like death in the throat, river towns of Ecuador, malaria grey as junk under black Stetson, muzzle loading shotguns, vultures pecking through the mud streets -."

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Inspirations

2005-07-01T11:53:07Z

Epweissengruber: /* My Agenda */

=My Agenda=
By your referee, Erik Weissengruber

I have been running Sorcerer and HeroQuest pretty heavily. The latter game I have run with a boodthirsty, Conanesqe slant and the former I have been running as a dark horror game in the manner of Clive Barker.

I have had enough darkness.

So I was looking for a game that would have honest-to-god heroes in it. Dogs in the Vineyard (DitV) is this game. You are like the early Moslems or the Mormons: you have been given a revelation and must build a godly community strong enough to resist the assaults of the outer world and to spread the gospel.

An athiest and a pragmatist, I have never had to wrestle with the burden of bringing an absolute morality into the world. It's easy to sneer at the the religious and the devout, but harder to understand their trials. Do I want to be a Jesuit, or a Samurai trying to live by the code of Bushido, or a Mafioso trying to live up to the code? No. But I wonder what it would be like. Is there are way to stay humane while serving the Absolute? That is the question I hope to explore.

'''Player Agendas'''
* Mark signalled his interest in the work of H.P. Lovecraft. So I will include a few dark conspiracies and supra-human horrors in the mix
* Shawn wanted more opportunity to explore the setting and control player actions rather than following the referee's agenda. That's the style of gaming that I seek to encourage.
* I want to tackle the myth of the New World. The American frontier has been depicted as a "tabula rasa" where the American people were to create a new society, free from the corruptions of old Europe. But anthropologists, pulp fiction writers, and intellectuals alike have pointed out that the Americas are not a "virgin land" but a land marked by history, some of which is pretty bloody and horrible by anyone's standards. So our community of the Faithful will have to deal with the legacies of the ancient history that preceeded them.

'''New World or Old World?''' 

William S. Burroughs, ''Naked Lunch'' 
- a bit of the old darkness coming in ...

"Chicago: invisible hierarchy of decorticated cops, smell of atrophied gangsters, earthbound ghost hits you at North and Halstead, Cicero, Lincoln Park, panhandler of dreams, past invading the present, rancid magic of slot machines and roadhouses.

Into the Interior: a vast subdivision, antennae of television to the meaningless sky. In lifeproof houses they hover over the young, sop up a little of what they shut out. Only the young bring anything in, and they are not young very long. (Through the bars of East St Louis lies the dead frontier, riverboat days.) Illinois and Missouri, miasma of mound-building peoples, groveling worship of the Food Source, cruel and ugly festivals, dead-end horror of the Centipede God reaches from Moundville to the lunar deserts of coastal Peru.

America is not a young land: it is old and dirty and evil before the settlers, before the Indians. The evil is there waiting.

And always cops: smooth college-trained state cops, practised, apologetic patter, electronic eyes weigh your car and luggage, clothes and face; snarling big city dicks, soft-spoken country sheriffs with something black and menacing in old eyes color of a faded grey flannel shirt...."

[http://wiki.rpg.net/index.php/Toronto_Dogs_In_The_Vineyard:Main_Page Back to Main Page]

Toronto Dogs In The Vineyard:Inspirations

2005-07-01T11:40:58Z

Epweissengruber: /* My Agenda */