An Aesthetic shows you to a small reading room.

Stories of Ansalon from the view of Gruuk.

A little gully dwarf runs by and says 'Wordwrap is at 65. You change? Off 65 80.'
The gully continues 'Eyes hurt? Turn Color OFF!! (regular story dates)

Astinus says 'Enter the main library here to view only the author list.'
Astinus gently places a large tome gilt in gold on the table in front of you.
You note the spine bears the word 'Gruuk' scribed in brilliant purple ink.

Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Fri Nov 13
19:06:24 2009
Subject     Harsh Beginings

Gruuk was
born in a tribe who's name roughly translated into common
means
'Bloody Hand'. When your born into a tribe of green skinned
Goblins with
orange skin your in for a rough time, so it was with
Gruuk.He had almost
been killed countless times before the age of
ten, but some how he had
managed to survive. At the age of ten he
was accused of killing the tribal
chief, though many said he
couldn't have. Truth be told, Gruuk doesn't know
himself, because
he was so drunk at the time of the muder he can't remember.
His
punishment was banishment from the tribe forever, Gruuk made it
three
quarters of the way through 'The Gauntlet of Banishment'
before collapsing,
at which time the tribe finished beating him
to a bloody pulp then left him
for dead. After the tribe moved
on, he was found on the verge of death by
the reclusive Goblin
only known as 'The Mad Ancient, who was feared by all
in the
area. Using leechcraft and magic the Ancient brought Gruuk back
from
the brink of death. In return for his life the aged Goblin
made Gruuk his
slave. Gruuk's master was quite harsh in the
treatment of his slave, but
compaired to his previous existance,
the young Goblin was living well. Thus,
under the lash, in a dark
and secluded cave near a lonely moutaintop, began
Gruuk's study
of magic. Gruuk's chance for escape came suddenly one day, as
a
group of warriors from three different tribes, who banded
together for the
purpose mad an assassination attempt on the
Ancient. As the warriors stormed
into the cave, Gruuk hid in one
of its dark corners. Deciding it was now or
never he made a run
for the door, dispatching a warrior with a blade in the
back on
the way. Once outside he ran for two full days without
stopping,
finally falling into a deep sleep of weariness. Gruuk
was awakened by the
sound of clanking metal and the tromp of
heavy footstrps. Hiding behind a
tree, he watched as a band of
Marauders passed on the road. Out of fear he
did not make his
presence known. After they had passed on he started
travelling
down the road the way they had come, eventually
arrivingat
Neraka. During his short stay in the city, he tended
to stay in the shadows
and avoided everyone. One day while
outside the gates looking for small
creatures to terrorize, he
stumbled across a band of Marauders and found
himself conscripted
into their ranks. Listening to the talk of the members
of the
band, Gruuk learned of the great war and of the Dragon Army.
Looking
to him, like he was going to live in sevitude his whole
life, Gruuk decided
he would find a way to join the Dragon Army.
If he was going to live in
sevitude his whole life anyway, why
not serve the greatest power in the
land. 

Author:   
Gruuk          
Date:      Sat Nov 14 07:06:25
2009
Subject     The Search is On

When I awoke in the
dim cave I didn't stir. I just lay there with my eyes
closed
thinking. I had decided to join the Dragon Army, the question
was
how. Knowing of the temple in Neraka, so I decided to start
there. Someone
there would be able to point me in the right
direction. Then my thoughts
move on to the arcane, stay Renagade
or join the Conclave. I had noticed my
studdies had gotten bogged
down of late. So I figured I'd check it out. If I
liked what I
saw I'd join. If I didn't being on the run wouldn't be so
bad.

My mind made up I arose, and staying in the shadows crept
out of the cave. I
made it out without getting put on some menial
job some ogre or Hobgoblin
were to lazy to do. "Thank you
Nuitari." I prayed as I reached Neraka's
gates. For standing
there as if waiting for me was one of the few people I
had met in
the city, Ayasana An officer of the Dragon Army. Walking up
to
her I said, "I want to join the Army." "I wanted to talk to
you about that,"
she replied. Then suggested we go to Palanthas.
During the trip, I asked her
many questions about the Dragon
Army, and she answered them all.

Once at the center of Palanthas
the Baroness told me, "Rest." Then walked
off soon returning with
some usefull equipment. While putting it on I
suddenly noticed an
imposing figure standing before us. He handed me a
globe, and I
replied, "Thanks." Suddenly Ayasana wacked me in the back of
the
head sending me sprawling. "Bow before the leader of the Dragon
Army!"
she commanded. Climbing to my knees I bow low. When I
finally look up, the
Emperor was gone. As I climb to my feet
Ayasana walks off, "Don't get
killed", she said over her shoulder
and was gone.

to be continued 

Author:    Gruuk      
   
Date:      Sat Nov 14 07:46:44 2009
Subject     The
Search is On (Part 2)

After my encounter with The Emperor
I wasn't sure what had happened. Was
I in or not? Well at least I
had made the connections. The rest could wait,
I had another
connection to make. So, I made my way to The Tower of
High
Sorcery. Once there I was barred entry by the guard, so I
tried to sneak in.
That failing I decided direct confrentation
was needed, big mistake. I got
the beat down of my life and sent
on my way.

I was pretty discouraged at this point so I made my
way back to the center
of Palanthas. When I got there I saw a
female elf wearing a white robe. I
wanted to ask her about
joining the Conclave, but she was an Elf and a white
robe no
less. Even though I was trying to hide she spotted me. Then
walked
right up to me and said, "Do you want to join the
Conclave?" "Yes!" I
replied. "Then follow me," she said as she
cast a spell creating a gate. I
followed and found myself at the
Conclave.

To my surprise I found out she was the leader of the
Order. Even more
surprising she accepted me into the order and
gave me a grand tour of the
Conclave grounds. Bringing me back to
Palanthas through another gate, she
told me, "Your mentor will be
contacting you soon." Then she vanished into
thin air.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Sun Nov
15 07:03:08 2009
Subject     The Outcast Accepted

When
Gruuk met his new mentor, High Archmage Lynx, the meeting went
about
how he expected. He did get one surprise though, his first
lessons were to
be in weapons combat, not the arcane. Gruuk spent
days working hard on his
dagger training. Toward the evening of
the second day sweating and thirsty
he decided to take a quick
break and go get a drink by the hot spring. As
per his usual
practice he stayed in the shadows, old habits die hard.
While
relaxing near the pool but out of sight, he over heard one
of the higher
level members if the Order demanding he be expelled
for being a Goblin.
Gruuk snuck back to the practice area and
tried to get some more practice
time in, but he was very upset.
After all the years of frustration he
thought he have finally
found a home, some place he was accepted. It was
starting to look
like he might be wrong.

Later he talked with a few other
conclave members, and they all said they
were all on his side, a
Mage was a Mage no matter the race. His spirits
raised by such
overwelming support, Gruuk went back to his practice, and
doubled
his efforts.

For the next two days Gruuk worked extra hard not
only on his dagger skills
but on all the spells he had learned
before entering the Conclave. He wanted
to impress his Master and
prove he was worthy to be a member of the Order of
Mages.

On the
following day Gruuk went to see his mentor, and was told by
his
secretary, that High Archmage Lynx would not see him until a
decision was
made on whether he could stay.

The next day Gruuk
tried to go back to his practice, but his stress level
was just
to high. So he decided he would go soak in the hot spring to
try
and relax. When he opened the door to leave the Tower of
Knowledge he was
surprised to see a scroll floating before him.
He reached out and grabbed
it, and upon examination found it was
addressed to him. Breaking the seal
and reading it, he found it
was and order for him to report to the Hall of
Mages.

Gruuk ran
there and was shown to a bench just outside the doors to the
Great
Hall. Not a sound pasted the doors, and the longer Gruuk
sat there the more
uptight he became, magic was the only thing he
had ever love in his whole
life. If he was expelled from the
order he didn't know what he was going to
do.

Finally unable to
contain himself any longer, he rose and barged into the
Hall,
interupting a mage in mid sentance, "...The Three Moons..."
Standing
before the twenty-one representatives Gruuk said, "I
will leave." When a
voice answered, "I was going to let you stay,
but you may leave if you
wish." 

Author:    Gruuk     
    
Date:      Thu Nov 19 15:36:37 2009
Subject    
Conclave, Fractured?

 Though the Moons had spoken, the
controversy had not died down. Many in
the Order are still
determined to have me expelled.

The leader and most out spoken
of the get rid of the beast crowd is Khyldes.
Not only does he
speak out openly against my presence, he has done much
research
of ancient laws and writs to back his position.

Staying in the
shadows as always, I have also noticed that those who
openly
support my presence, get evil looks from those who don't.
I can only guess
at the arguments that must be going on behind
closed doors. It seems to me
that the spirit of the vow to
promote and protect magic is dead in those
against me. If it
wasn't for my love of magic I wouldn't even care.

I have
redoubled my efforts of study and practice, not for any crazy
notion
of proving myself worthy of the Conclave, that is clearly
a hopeless cause.
Many will never accept me no matter what I do.
I do it because I crave power
and wealth, and my arcane powers
can bring me both. 

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Thu Nov 26 08:08:13 2009
Subject     Joy and
Frustrations

I was over joyed, report after report kept
coming in about one Dragon Army victory after another. Palanthas
had fallen and Sanction was holding her own. 
What a great time
to be a Goblin in Krynn.
 
As happy as the news was, and as much
I wished to take part in the great war, I had more important
things to do.
And things were not going well.
Goblins are natural
born skulkers not wizards, and I think its starting to
show.
Though my magic studies are going fine, my first Conclave
test is proving disasterous.
Time after time I have failed and
the frustration is building.

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Sun Dec  6 12:13:42 2009
Subject     Small
Victories

As I sat in the Conclave library studying an
ancient tome on my latest
spell, I sat back and sighed. Though I
was tired it wasn't a sigh of
weariness, but of relief. I had
passed my first test. Though it was actually
more of a rite of
passage than an official test. A small victory but one
none the
less, so I decided to celebrate.

Closing the book on the table
before me, I rose and put it back on the
shelf, then headed to
the coutyard to see if anyone cared to share a drink
with me. On
the way down I heard someone working out with Liam, but
decided
it would be better not to disturb whoever it was. When I
got to the
courtyard it was empty, looked like I was drinking
alone.

I walked over to the lake and sat down, taking out the
wine skin in my pack.
It was a rare vintage I had procured from a
merchant in Palanthas and had
saved just for such an time.
Drinking most of the skin I finally passed out
next to the still
water and woke slightly hung over the next day.

I worked and
studied spells for the next two days. I even managed to learn
a
new one. From what I have heard and read, the teleport spell is
quite
fickle, and can leave you just about anywhere, I searched
for information
oon it's combat uses, but couldn't find
anything.

Figuring I was as ready as I would ever be, I casted
the spell. Beginners
luck took effect and it worked on the first
try, landing me in Lemish.
Though I had heard of the city, this
was my first visit there, a dark and
forboding place my visit
there was pleasant. After buying a few commodities
available
there I decided I should be moving on, but promiced myself I
would
visit it again in the future.

My next attempt at teleport
was not quite as successful as the first and
took numerous tries
to work. It landed me in Palanthas, an as I roamed the
city, the
head of the Conclave caught up with me and officially made me
a
Conclave Apprentice. I was so over joyed that I walked down to
the seaside
and got drunk off my wine skin in celebration,
passing out next to the
watchfire.

Now I wait for the summons of
my mentor, to find out what's required of me
next.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Sat Dec
12 14:14:10 2009
Subject     Hidden Secrets

Unchained
from the fetters of conventional travel, I have been popping
up
all over Krynn. Due to the randomness of Teleportation this is
not always a
good thin. As my last trip showed, when I popped up
in a place I didn't
belong and took a particularly brutal beat
down. Making my way back to the
Conclave, forlorn and irritated,
I went immediately back to my studies.

While in the combat
section of the library looking for a tome on uses of
Fireballs, I
found a scroll hidden behind a row of books on a top shelf.
It
was highly magical and once I started studying the scroll I
could not stop,
spending hours in that dark corner of the
library. The scroll was like an
epiphany, pointing me in
directions I had never thought of, and unlocking
magical doors I
never knew were there.

Once I understood the magical text
completely, mystical words came to my
mind unbidden. I whispered
the words through no will of my own, and in a
horrifying flash of
bright light the scroll crumbled into dust.

The flash was
noticed by everyone in the library, but being used to such
things
few paid it any attention. Ophelia did walk over and asked,
"Is
everything OK?" With a grin I replied, "Everything is just
fine." 

Author:    Gruuk          
Date:     
Fri Dec 18 14:54:44 2009
Subject     Gruuk Gets
Bored

When the Dragonarmy took Palanthas, I was thrilled
and used the impending
chaos to reek plenty of havoc of my own.
But eventually the city grew stale,
with the kender always under
foot and the holy guard cramping my style (why
the emperor let
them live is beyond me). So I decided to find a new
playground.
Using Teleport was not working out to well, everywhere I went
to
I got serious beat downs. Each time making my way back to the
Conclave to
lick my wounds. Things were looking pretty bad,
especially when I lost all
my gear.

During this time I did not
forget my studies and mastered Fireballs among
others
spells.

Finally I Teleported into a gate of a strange city. At
first look I saw that
this city held potential, since the gate
guards were sleeping on the job. I
also found that there was an
underground temple to the dark gods, where I
could hide from the
sun during the day. It was looking more and more like
this was a
place where a goblin could have some fun. Staying in the
shadows,
naked as a jay bird I went on the hunt. It was like
shooting ducks in a
barrel, it was just to easy. I quickly
procured enough money to buy a nice
sturdy staff from one of the
magic shops then started enjoying a little rest
and relaxation,
ie. killing and pillaging. Eventually I ran afoul of the
city
guard, but managed to escape and hid in the dark temple as I
healed. At
this point I really needed a drink, but could not find
one antwhere in the
city. Needless to say I was in a foul mood
and decided to take it out on the
guards of the city. After a few
kills I was feeling better, but getting edgy
for a drink, when to
my surprise while looting a guard commander's body, low
and
behold a fith if Cap'n Morgan's.

After going on a bender and
waking up some what hung over, I decided it was
about time to get
back to my studies and made my way back to the Conclave.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Mon Dec
21 05:00:01 2009
Subject     Hanging at the
Conclave

Once I got back to the Conclave, I jumped on my
studies. After a while I
decided to take a break and went down to
the courtyard. When I got there two
of my brother mages looked at
me in surprise, and asked me what happened to
my equipment. With
a quick explaination they understood completely, then
told me I
couldn't go around streaking through the Conclave, and hunted
me
up some new cloths. Though I was doing fine, it did feel good
to have some
physical protection again and I thanked them whole
heartedly. I even offered
them a drink off my bottle, but they
declined.

I then went back to the library and continued my
studies. On my next break
while I was relaxing in the courtyard,
the Highmage popped in. At this point
I was glad of my new
equipment, since the last time I saw him he gave me
money for
just that and it was already gone. Getting up my courage I
asked
him if he would like a drink of my Capt'n, but he declined
being busy with
important affairs. Then our white robed Archmage
popped in, but she was gone
so fast I didn't get the chance to
offer her a drink from my bottle.

After studying long and hard I
learned a few new spells, the most important
one being Gate. I
practiced it for a couple of days in the libraries
controlled
environment, then decided to try a real world test. It
worked
great, took me right where I wanted to go.

Getting back
to the Conclave was much more problematic. I had just learned
a
recall spell but hadn't practiced it, so I was having trouble
remembering
its intricies. I could have probably made it there on
foot, but I figured
I'm a mage, so I have to learn to travel like
one. Failing to get the spell
to work for more than a week and a
half, I decided to try Teleporting. The
spell had served me well
in the past and I was hoping to get closer to the
towers. Gating
was out, because I knew of no safe landing spot.
Unfortunately I
teleported into the middle of the ocean.

I finally made it back
to the Conclave but now my stuff was at the bottom of
the sea,
and I had been spending all my time on my studies and practice,
so
I was broke. Not only did I lose my precious bottle of Capt'n
Morgan's, but
five flasks of Icewine which is as good if not
better.

Not wanting to run around the Conclave naked again I
gated to Palanthas and
raided the pit, putting a few swords I had
collected and beefed up on the
way in return. I also grabbed a
skin of wine... oh well, back to the cheap
stuff.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Tue Dec
22 09:18:19 2009
Subject     A Party on Noble St. (a.k.a. Gruuk
Finds a Drinking Buddy)

I since I was in Palanthas, I
decided to hunt a few nobles and pull
together some coin. While
playing frieball toss I ran into a young mage who
was having
trouble with her mule, namely it was dead. I gave her a few
tips
on mage survival, then she ran off quickly about her
business. I didn't even
get the chance to find out her name.
Anyway I went back to my business,
having fun.

Hunting nobles is
great fun and I was quite enjoying myself, when suddenly I
found
a man standing in front of me smiling. He seemed like he would
feel
more comfortable in the wilderness than a noble
neighborhood, so instead of
a fireball I offered him a drink of
my cheap wine. Which he declined, oh
well more for me I though
and took a couple of hits off the skin. Then to my
surprise he
broke out a flagon of ale and started drinking it. I just
so
happened to have procured some beer in my resent travels and I
offered him
some, and he tried it. Then he got out a flask of
good old Beny wine, and we
proceeded to get drunk. I don't
remember to much after that, until I woke up
with a hangover. I
didn't even get his name.

Now don't be fooled, just because I
was enjoying a little R&R don't think
I've been letting my
studies slip. In fact after the recall incident I have
been
working even harder at perfecting the arcane arts. For instance,
don't
be fooled by the way an item looks. It can be highly
magical and look
normal.

After an extended period of study and
practice, I decided to visit one of my
old haunts; neraka. While
there I ran into my buddy from Noble Street. I
happened to have a
flask of rum so we started drinking. We were having a
high old
time passing around flask and flagon, I even through a fly spell
on
us, two drunks floating on air we must have been a sight. The
last thing I
remember is a brawl breaking out, I think I killed
an Ogre, but I can't
exactly remember. The next thing I do
remember is waking up at the towers
wondering how I got there. I
was hung over but still had my stuff. 

Author:   
Gruuk          
Date:      Sat Dec 26 00:41:41
2009
Subject     The Newest Adept

The wonderful chaos
in Palanthas hasn't abated, thanks to the
Dragonarmy's long
standing and correct policy of supression through
violence. I
even hear the emperor has been dropping in for a little fun.

Not
much to tell on my end, since as soon as I found out I was about
to be
promoted to Adept I imediately went into seclusion at The
Ivory Tower to
prepare for 'The Test'. Only leaving to pick up
needed supplies for my on
going studies and research. Though I
keep my wine skin close, I have been
making sure it doesn't get
in the way of my ongoing test preparations.
Although I did run
into my drinking buddy Clide at the Palanthas Pit and we
did
share a round or four. When I woke up, I went back to my studies
and
came across a question on an aspect of Nuitari's history and
decided to
visit the Palanthas Library to ask about it. Asking
around there, all I was
getting was the run around so I slipped
into the back rooms and started
making my queries at knife point.
Which proved to be the correct corse of
action for not only did I
get the information I was seeking, but an
Aesthetic pointed me in
the direction of two new spells in an attempt to
save his life.
Just as I was finishing up my questioning, our black
robed
Highmage appeared and officially made me an Adept. Then
just as suddenly
disappeared. I immediately dispatched the
quivering bag of tears I was
interrogating, and returned to my
studies. 

Author:    Gruuk          
Date:     
Sat Dec 26 11:21:58 2009
Subject     Not Again

After an
extended period of research and study, I began to
notice
sometimes my mind would soak up the arcane knowledge and
at other times my
mind would seem muddled by it all. During one
of the darker times, I decided
to take a break from my studies
and do a little exploring. Experimenting
with my gate spell I
found myself in a strange camp, which I eventually
found out goes
by the name Trigol. Stumbling upon the 'Ogre's Den' I went in
and
hit it off with Cleft right off the bat. So much so that I sold
him
almost all of my alcohol collection, which was considerable.
I'm not sure
how long I sat at the bar, but I know I drank till I
passed out then woke up
and did it again numerous times (I'm not
sure how many, I lost track after
three). Finally I stumbled out
of the bar and down the street, winding up
somewhere in the
desert, then the sand storm hit. It's ironic that after
losing my
gear to the sea bottom before, this time I lost it in the
dry
sands of the desert. 

The worst part is, not only can I not
afford a retrieval, but I can't
remember how I gated there in the
first place. I pray the waxing Dark Moon
will guide me back
there, for I'm sure the storm will pass, then I could
just walk
out and get my stuff back. Otherwise it will be lost in
the
shifting sands forever. 

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Wed Dec 30 20:48:24 2009
Subject     Gruuk
the Assassin

I'm afraid this time I have no fanciful
stories of drunken escapades,
I've been to emersed in
preparations for my upcoming test. Not to say I
haven't gotten
mildly drunk on occassion, I have to relax sometime after
all.
But I have mostly just stayed in seclusion at The Ivory Tower
only
leaving for supplies. Why the Ivory and not my beloved
Conclave you ask.
Because at the time it served my practice
purposes a little better.

I not only have been studying and
practicing, but have continued with
various arcane experiments.
Experiments with my Gate spell have been
particularly
fruitful.

On one successful gate experiment I foud myself in a
very strange city. It
is a trerrible place, full of light,
gleaming towers, and Elves. Though the
place is not to my liking,
I searched it in hopes of finding something
useful. During my
search, staying in what little shadows I could find, I
noticed
the city's Senators roamed the streets freely and without
escort.
This gave me an idea. So, I started assassinating any
Senator foolish enough
to be about. It is my hope that I can
destablize the cities government, then
the great Emperor of the
Queens army can become ruler of not only Palanthas,
but of
Qualinost too.

Unfortunately my armor woes continue, but not
along the same vein as usual.
For some reason I have not been
able to figure out, I can't get my armor
enchantment to stick. I
can enchant weapons all day without even breaking a
sweat, yet
both spells are at the same level of mastery.

Anyway, my current
studies at the Ivory are finished for now, so I'm heading
back to
the Conclave. The library there has certain unique texts not
found
anywhere else on Krynn, which I need to examine as I
continue preparing for
the Test. 

Author:    Gruuk    
     
Date:      Sat Jan  2 06:56:48 2010
Subject    
What Happened?

Once I returned to the Conlave to continue
my studies, I was summoned to
my master's office. The Archmage
told me I still wasn't ready for the test;
I needed to gain a
better mastery of my spells. So I put away my books and
began
what would become many long days of practicing.

Over the days
that followed I made sure to not drink overly much, as was
my
habit since my test preperations began. Then I got a gift from
the gods. The
White Moon to be exact, a bottle of fine Vodka. I
toasted the god of white
magic and took a couple of drinks from
the bottle as a show of my
appreciation. Then put it away until I
had a special ocassion to enjoy it,
and continued my practice. I
had forgotten all about it until a few days
later, when taking a
break and going through my inventory I noticed it. On
spotting it
I said out loud, "Another bottle of that stuff sure would
be
nice." And by the grace of Solinari another bottle appeared.
Now that was
just a little to much for this Goblin to resist and
I started drinking
Solinari's 151 straight from the bottle.

I
woke up days later with only vague recollections of stumbling
around the
Conclave grounds alone and then a wild party.
Noticably not hung over I
jumped right back in to my practicing.
Strangely the spells I've been
working on are much easier to cast
now than before I started hitting the
bottle. 

Hopefully I'll be
tested soon, wish me luck. 

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Sun Jan  3 05:44:47 2010
Subject    
Memories

While sitting in the hot springs alone, Gruuk
found himself thinking back
on his life.

One of his first
memories was when a draught hit the tribe. Having orange
skin the
tribe would not share even a few precious drops water with
him.
Being on the edge of literally dieing of thurst, Gruuk stole
a large glass
of water from a sleeping tribe member when no one
was looking. Then found a
safe place to hide, to drink it.
Downing the whole glass at once, he found
out only afterwards
that it was not a glass of water but of Vodka. Being a
very young
Goblin, he passed out in his hiding place and woke hours
later
very hung over. After that night he began drinking any
alcohal he could get
his hands on, finding it helped him forget
his sorrows.

As his mind wondered, he began to think about his
days as a slave. His
master and first mentor of the arcane 'The
Mad Ancient', seldom drank and
when he did he never shared it
with his slave. During this time of his life
Gruuk never had even
one drink.

After finally escaping from what seemed like never
ending years of slavery,
Gruuk made his way to Neraka. Once
there, he started drinking like he was
trying to make up for lost
time.

The only thing Gruuk loves more than getting drunk is
magic. Which is why
about the only time you can find him not
drinking, is when he is working at
mastering the arcane arts.


When Gruuk awoke from his reverie, he decided he would take a
break from his
practice and go for a walk to clear his head. Then
the Highmage appeared and
made him a full fledged Magus.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Mon Jan 
4 19:23:51 2010
Subject     Memories (cont.)

As the new
Magus walked through town his thoughts returned to the past
once
again.

As long as he could remember all he ever dreamed of was
becoming a Magus.
Even the Goblins knew of the legendary Wizards
of the Conclave. Gruuk knew
the only way a little Goblin was ever
going to get power, was to get power.

As a youngling anytime
Gruuk got to get the chance to see the tribal shaman
use magic,
he would watch very closely. Then he would go to his
secret
hiding place and try to memic every thing he say, he
wanted to make his own
magic. This never worked of course, but he
kept on trying.

One day the dragonarmy found the nomadic village
of Bloody Hand and sent in
a conscript squad. Staying hidden,
Gruuk followed the Human officer wearing
the black robes of the
Conclave. He noticed how the Draconian troops showed
him great
respect, and had a front row seat when the Mage killed
a
troublesome new recruit with a wave of his hand. That was the
day he decided
he wanted to join the Dragonarmy. Being a Magus
might be impossible, but
climbing through the ranks to gain power
was not.

Then after the gauntlet (The survival of which was a
source of pride to him,
to his knowledge no other Goblin had ever
lived through it.), and his
slavery to the one who saved his
life. Gruuk counted his bondage as a token
of good luck, more
than a curse. Especially when for reasons known only to
the
Ancient, his master started teaching him the rudiments of magic.
Then he
remembered the day he asked his master, why he wasn't a
Conclave wizard. The
Ancient snickered, then told him Goblins
were not allowed there. Under his
breath Gruuk said, "I will be
one day." The old Renegade laughed at him
scornfully, then gave
him a sound beating for thinking such foolishness when
there was
work to be done.

Then he remembered his escape from slavery,
more of a life saving tactic
than anything he had planned, and
his first days of freedom in Neraka. He
continued working on the
few weak spells he had, and even taught himself a
few new ones.
Finally getting up the courage he tried to gain entrance to
the
Mage school. The storm of controversy that erupted was
hardly
unexpected, and Gruuk fought for the privlage (malevolent
little Goblins are
not accepted into the Conclave after all). In
the end it took an act of the
gods, but he got in.

Coming back
to the present, Gruuk walked down the street in a state of shock,
he had done it, he was a full fledged Magus.

Author:  
 Gruuk          
Date:      Wed Jan  6 09:35:19
2010
Subject     Gruuk the New Recruit

Since before I
gained acceptance into the Conclave I've been an
unofficial
member of the Dragonarmy. And have stayed in covert
communication
with the emperor through out my magic school
training. Upon making Magus,
and hearing the emperor was stepping
down, I decided it was time to make it
official.

Going down to
the Queens Temple in Neraka, I found Ayasana (the only
other
Dragonarmy member to know of my unofficial capacity) and
told her it was
time to make it official. She agreed and after an
official inspection by
Queen Takhisis herself it was made
official.

On my way to the induction with the other new
recruits, I was feeling pretty
good. Most of the other recruits
were conscripts and you could smell the
fear in the air, it was
wonderful. After induction and my assignment under
an Aurak
draconian, I went back to the Conclave to continue my
studies.
After induction and my assignment under an Aurak
Draconian named Rog, I went
back to the Conclave to continue my
studies. My studies have been going well
and I learned a new
spell, so I went to check in with Rog and he gave me my
first
mission. It was pretty basic really, just patrol Neraka and make
sure
no one was out after curfew. The patrol was uneventful, but
it was quite fun
dropping anything not a Draconian foolish to be
out after dark, and wound
being drunk through half of it. When I
reported back to rog I was pretty
drunk, but I didn't let him
know that, and he sent me to the armory to help
with the weapons.
The job was very boring and the only way I got through it
was by
sneaking a drink now and then. That job done I reported back to
Rog
and informed him I needed time to return to my studies, but
he said he had
something for me to do first.

Since there have
been a lot of insirection in Palanthas of late, he needed
me to
escort a contengent of Draconian soldiers to the city square,
then
report back when it was done.

When I reported back, a Bozak
named Gloth was assigned over me and ordered
to keep a close eye
on me. Gloth complained bitterly to Rog about it, and
got Colour
Sprayed for his trouble. When we were alone for the first
time,
we pitted magical skills, now he knows who's really in
charge.

Now me and Gloth are headed to the Conclave, so I can
continue working to
make Master. 

Author:    Gruuk    
     
Date:      Sat Jan 16 22:01:08 2010
Subject    
Gruuk the Grunt

I've been pretty busy lately. After a few
weeks of doing night patrol in
Neraka, Rog moved us to doing
curfew patrols in Palanthas. Which worked out
good for me, it
gave me plenty of practice with my new spell. After a
lenthy
explaination on what I was doing before I joined the
Dragonarmy, and a long
discussion, I finally talked Rog into
letting me continue my senatorial
assassinations in Qualinos. Not
one to pass up opportunity, Rog assigned two
Sivaks to the
mission and broadened it to weakening the military there
also.

I
almost lost Gloth while infiltrating the Sun Guard barraks. One
of the
Sivaks in the form of an Elven female, was approached but
a guard that knew
the form. The Sivak tried to fake it, but the
cat was out of the bag. The
Sivak agent was struck down and the
alarm was sounded. Even then it might
have been alright, except
Gloth attacked the guard breaking his invisibility
spell. Once he
became visible all hell broke loose. The other Sivak was
cut
down, and I only saved me and Gloth thanks to my trusty wand.
Gloth took a
serious magical beating for that one, and we were
sent to the battlefront.
After endless days and nights of trying
to suvive on the battlefield I was
called back from the front
lines for a special mission.

Thanks to my Conclave membership, I
was given permission by the Sea Queen to
visit Urione on
diplomatic business. After charming one of the queen's
handmadens
for an air tight alibi, I completed my mission killing the
royal
metalsmith. Though accusations flew, thanks to the
handmaiden nothing could
be proved. The handmaiden died in an
unfortunate 'accident', before she
could be spell checked. I was
allowed to take my leave, but I doubt I'll be
getting invited
back there anytime soon.

Once back home Rog called Gloth back
from the front lines and sent us on a
mission to scout Kurmost.
The mission did not go well. While we were
silently taking out a
guard, a lieutenant snuck up behind Gloth killing him.
Luckily I
managed to escape and make a report. With the information
I
brought back, the Dragonarmy has started sending raiding
parties into the
city on a regular basis.

I was put back on
night patrol in Palanthas and enchanting weapons in the
armory
during the day. I have to be a lot more careful now, with my
puppet
Gloth gone I'm incharge if the curfew squad and I've seen
what happens when
Rog is displeased.

Even with all this going on
I have still been able to stay on top of my
studies in the
arcane, and have even learned a couple of new spells. It's
been
slow going though, the harder the spells the more intricate
the
incantations and such become, after all. My Conclave mentor
has been busy of
late so I'm still waiting to become a master.
During a little free time, I
was combing through the library and
found an ancient tome on Draconian magic
hiding in a dark corner
on a back shelf. I am deciphering it as we speak,
I'm hoping to
add them to my spell list. 

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Mon Jan 18 23:16:27 2010
Subject     A Secret
Lab?!

While wandering around the Conclave wasted my
favorite, Absinthe, I found
myself stumbling through the Black
tower. A hissing voice kept whispering to
me, I tried to ignore
it, since there was no one around I figured it was
just the green
stuff. But it just wouldn't go away. At first I couldn't make
out
what it was saying, but over time the words became clearer. The
clearer
the words became the colder the air around me seemed to
get. Finally, I
realized it was giving me directions. I tried to
follow where the voice said
to go, but I was so drunk I kept
stumbling the wrong way. I turned a corner,
and with a loud hiss
the voice stopped. At the end of the hall from me I
could see a
glowing outline of what looked like a door. Taking a drink out
of
my trusty bottle, I then made my way towards the darkly glowing
light.
Using the wall for support as I moved closer, I still
wasn't sure it wasn't
the alcohol playing tricks on me. A few
steps away from the glowing outline,
I tripped and stumbled
toward it. I was expecting to slam into the wall,
like I have so
many times before, when the secret door swung wide and I
fell
sprawling on the floor of a long forgotten lab. As I passed
the thresh hold
my lantern went out and all was black, except for
a book glowing on a table
in a corner. I crawled to the table and
examined the book. Under its faint
glow I could read the cover;
Spellbook of Axz Valkilrakas. Opening the stone
cover I began to
read it, mostly spells and notes from Axz, all of the
spells I
already knew until I came to the last page. The spell there
was
untitled and the incantation was new to me, so taking another
drink I gave
it a try. 

Author:    Gruuk         

Date:      Wed Jan 20 00:12:55 2010
Subject    
Ostracized Once Again

Once again I find myself cast out
to the fringes of society.

This time by the Goblin members of
the Dragonarmy. Most of the recruits show
me a good measure of
respect, since a Goblin Magus is a rare thing indeed,
so at first
I didn't notice. Then while walking through camp to deliver
my
latest report to Rog, as I passed a troop of Goblins, one of
them said
"Sikkei'hul' under his breath and the rest of the crowd
snickered. I froze
in mid step, then slowly turned to face the
group, the snickering stopped
immediately and I could smell fear
in the air. A largest Goblin in the group
who was obviously the
leader, stood there towering over me with a smirk on
his
face.

Quick as a flash of lightning the leader drew his sword
and slashed me
across the chest. "Dard" I growled, then blasted
him with a bolt of
lightning, sending the leader stagering
backward, but he didn't fall. With a
roar the leader chaged,
sword held high for a devistating stroke. Suddenly
my wolf
familiar, who had been sniffing around the camp, came out of
nowhere
biting deeply into the Goblin leader's sword arm. The
large Goblin howled in
surprise and rage, then an arrow from
behind the leader pierced my wolf
dropping him lifeless to the
ground. My fury aroused by pain and the loss of
a friend, I sent
a bolt of chain lightning into the Leader once again
sending him
stagering backward. The bolt then passed through the rest of
the
pack, killing two out right, and dropping half of the others
unconscious. I
could tell the last bolt had hurt the leader
badly, but he refused to be
daunted. Shaking his head to clear
the cobwebs, he then charged again.
Deciding I had had enough and
that an example needed to be set, I hit him
with my most powerful
spell. Just as I spit acid into his face, I heard
someone shout,
'Blyxtshok!'

As I was standing over the troop's leader, watching
him howl as the acid was
slowly was turning him to goo, I was hit
from behind by an icy blast
knocking me unconscious. When I awoke
still shivering from the cold, I found
myself lashed to a pole,
my Magus robes ripped from my body and laying in a
heap. A large
Ogre grinned as he noticed I was awake, and brandishing a
firey
whip gave me twenty lashes.

How I survived the agony of cold
mingled with fire to tell this tale I can
not say.


Author:    Gruuk          
Date:      Fri Jan
22 10:28:23 2010
Subject     Harsh Times

Things have
been rough lately.

First I took 20 lashes for killing a
superior, I expect the only reason they
didn't kill me was my
Magus status. Then I took a tongue lashing from Master
Lynx, my
Conclave mentor, for bringing a long dead Archmage back from
the
grave. That hurt more than the Ogre's whip, I thought he
would be proud of
me, that's some pretty powerful magic.

Now the
Conclave is actively joining the war between the Dragonarmy and
the
Solamnic Knights. Against the Queens army! Strangely, it
desturbs me
watching my brother and sister Mages preparing to
fight and die in a battle
they have no business in. I of course
had to sent a secret message to my
superiors, warning of the new
turn of events, can't have the queens host
caught by
surprise.

There was one good thing though I got to watch a
Solamnic knight get shamed
and beaten, quite entertaining.

My
test is eminent, wish me luck. 

Author:    Gruuk      
   
Date:      Tue Feb  2 23:50:14 2010
Subject     The
Door is Found, Again

When not on curfew patrol in
Palanthas, running midnight raids for the
Dragonarmy, or hard at
work at my studies, I was at the Black Tower hunting
for Axc's
lost lab. But Master Lynx had done cast his spells well, and
for
many months my search was fruitless. But others than Lunitari
hold sway in
the Dark Tower of Wayreth.

On the Night of the
Eyes, while walking the dark corridors in drunken
celebration,
the whispering that lead me to the dark lab came to my
ears
again. Except this time instead of one voice it was many.
Following the
direction they were coming from, I once more stood
before the secret
entrance. The whisperers seemed to be speaking
in many different languages,
and were all vieing for my
attention, so understanding them was impossible.
Try as I might I
could not get the door to open, and though I'm sure some of
the
voices were trying to tell me the secret, many more were
determined to
be heard.

So. now the doorway is found, all that's
left is to gain entrance and claim
it as my own. I have tried
every spell I know and every trick I have
learned, but thus far
nothing has worked.

Now whenever I walk the tower of the Black
Robes, the whispers cotinue
unabaited, and I have noticed and
found out through desceet questions, that
no others seem to hear
them. I shall find the key, the lab is mine, that was
the deal,
and soon I shall claim my right. 

Author:    Gruuk    
     
Date:      Wed Feb  3 04:24:17 2010
Subject     An
Awsome Sight

Got called off boring armory duty for a
special assignment. A hidden
encampment of Solamnic Knights had
been found, and my Mage detatchment had
been assigned to help
root them out. Our job was to sneak into the camp
before the main
attack force and quietly put anyone on night watch to sleep,
then
regroup on the camps flank to prevent any retreat. Our passage
through
the camp went completely unnoticed, and our motley crew
of mages, of both
Conclave black robes and Renegades of various
races reformed and waited for
the main attack. We didn't have to
wait long.

It is quite an awsome sight to see a Red Dragon swoop
out of the night sky
and cause utter destuction with it's firey
breath. In just one airborne
pass, all but one tent was set
ablaze, and most of the defenders were
roasted. Then the great
dragon landed on the edge of camp and began biting.
clawing,
bashing and crushing his way into the camp. Right on his heels,
a
troop of Sivaks flew in and started helping kill any that
remained, taking
the form of those they killed, causing even more
confusion in the defenders
ranks. As I watched the Dragon reached
the one tent left unscathed, and with
one sweep of his claw sent
it flying into the night, leaving only what it
concealed behind.
Sweeping up the three large chests into his mighty arms he
let
out a roar of victory. Then it took to the air, leaving
the
battlefield.

As I watched awstruck, suddenly a Solamnic
Knight came charging toward me,
desperate to make his escape. He
must have had protections from magic, for I
hit him with a
lightning bolt and it didn't phase him. As he came
barreling
towards me other spells hit him, but also to no avail.
Though he was
protected from magic, it must not have been so for
weapons of steel. For as
he raised his sword to cut me down, the
lone Dwarf Mage of our troop buried
his axe in the knight's back,
dropping him dead instantly. 

Author:    Gruuk        
 
Date:      Sat Feb 20 14:42:41 2010
Subject     In
Seclusion

I tried to get in the secret lab for days, in
vane. Then I decided to go
to the archive and do a little
research on Axc, but his his records were
sealed. Trying to sneak
a look was out of the question, that is until Master
Lynx's
disapearace caused such an uproar in the Conclave. Using
the
destraction, misdirection, deceit and a pawn I managed to
sneak a peek.
Though I took a few notes, I found nothing hinting
at how to gain entrance
into the lab.

Then one night I was
sitting against the wall from the secret door listening
to the
whisperings, when a voice gave a command in a language I don't
know
and the whisperings stopped. The lone voice then told me the
secret of the
door, it was so simple I never even had considered
it.

Once inside I found Axc's spellbook right where it was left
on the table.
Checking the last page it was blank, so I put it on
the bookshelf, since the
other spells in it were minor. The other
whisperings slowly returned and
continue, when ever I am in the
Black Tower. Now that I'm finally in the
lab, I have gone into
seclusion there, working on various new spells and
conducting
experiments. 

The Storytellers of Ansalon, The DragonLance MUD

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