The Chosen
Meta Plot Links
Tales from the North event - August 2012 (1796)
Fearful stories about Wolves begin to arrive from the North, brought to Sunderland by travelers and traders. The stories are unreliable, inconsistent, and clearly distorted by hearsay, however, so most Sunderlanders dismiss them as superstitious fabrications.
Samhain event - October 2012 (1796)
A girl is found dead outside a small town in northern Sunderland called Heathwold. Her body is torn apart, and the man who found her describes seeing giant Wolf prints surrounding the corpse. A sense of apprehension begins to creep into Sunderland society, but most continue to deny the existence of Wolves.
Winter solstice event - December 2012 (1796)
Winter arrives unusually harsh and cold. Though travel is hindered by the weather, there is news of people vanishing near Sunderland's northern border.
Guardians Awaken and the Wolves Return- January 2013 (1797)
Guardians begin to awaken, and the Wolves have returned! People whisper that the Wolves are not alone, that something else leads them...
Other updates:
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You do not need a pet to roleplay in Wardwood, and everyone can participate in the meta!
Something strange is happening in Sunderland: rooks are flying across the country, delivering sealed letters from the crown to any chosen and hedge witch they encounter. You are invited, the letters begin, to a masquerade ball in Oldcastle on the twentieth of March. The elegant script goes on to acknowledge that this past winter has been a difficult one; the Wolves, long thought merely a legend, are proven real and very dangerous indeed. Now, Sunderland must turn to other legends—those of the Wardens, and hedge witches—to defend herself from harm. The crown hereby recognizes all men and women chosen by the Wood as Wardens once again; the legitimacy of hedgecraft, too, is recognized, and its practitioners are no longer to be scorned as charlatans by the public. Those who are able to attend the ball will witness the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Warden grounds, to be rebuilt upon the old ruins of the Oldcastle palace, and to function as a future place of housing and training for Wardens and hedge witches alike.
Strange rumors surround the young Queen Anne. A great black awakened stag has been glimpsed wandering the palace grounds, and gossip suggests the Queen herself may have been chosen (or even forced a choosing, suggest quieter whispers still). Moreover, she has taken on a new advisor, a peculiar man called only Llyr with unnatural violet eyes. Could the Queen have sought the aid of the spirits in the desperation of this past winter—and could she have succeeded?
How the meta works
Though this meta event will span two weeks or more OOC, the main action is centered around the masquerade ball on March 20th. Most of the meta updates in the form of RP prompts will take place on that day IC, so while your meta RPs can cover anything and everything related to the event (such as arriving in Oldcastle the day before and spending the night), we strongly encourage you to begin roleplaying as if it is already the morning or early afternoon of the 20th and your character is currently attending the ball.
Meta updates
When meta updates occur, they will be clearly announced in-thread and links to them will be posted here. If you get behind in your threads, feel free to play fast and loose with your RP timelines and skip ahead—although you will be able to continue finishing up your roleplays for as long as you want after the event is over. Each meta update will move time forward on March 20th, so please do not progress to late afternoon or evening in your RPs until we have indicated that those times have been reached.
Location
The ball itself is being held within the ruins of the old palace courtyard about half a mile outside of Oldcastle proper. The open-air setting allows guardians and familiars to freely mingle with their bonded humans, and the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Warden grounds will take place here at midnight. The courtyard has been examined and deemed structurally safe, and is decorated with lanterns, silk streamers, and flower garlands. A number of soldiers are present to maintain security, including the Queen's personal guard.
Housing, costumes, & other considerations
The letter of invitation states that chosen (now referred to as Wardens) and hedge witches are each permitted to bring one adult guest. The inns in Oldcastle have been booked for housing the nights of the 19th, 20th, and 21st, and with the understanding that not everyone can afford a costume, the letter can presented to any costumer in Sunderland for a free costume paid for fully by the crown. Attendees are only responsible for the cost of their travel, if any.
Non-chosen characters
You are welcome to roleplay non-chosen characters in the meta. Though they will not have been invited to the ball unless they are a member of the nobility or a military officer, they can be attending as the guest of someone who has been, as a personal servant or guard... or they can just happen to stumble across the event and sneak in!
Major plot points
A lot is happening in this meta! Keep in mind that up until very recently (specifically until the reappearance of the Wolves this past winter), few people believed in things like spirits, guardians and hedge magic. Witches were dismissed as fakers and frauds, and chosen had to shoulder the burden of raising a guardian in a world that mostly didn't acknowledge their existence. The letter's proclamation represents a huge turnaround for many of your characters, which may be something you want to consider discussing in your RPs!
IT IS CURRENTLY: MIDNIGHT MARCH 20
Please tag all meta-related RPs with "M" (ex, M-PRP, M-ORP)
Meta RPs MUST take place in Oldcastle either prior to, during, or—in the future—immediately after the masquerade ball.
UPDATE ONE
The Queen's Arrival
UPDATE TWO
Garden of Delights
UPDATE THREE
Dreams to Nightmares
UPDATE FOUR
Gwyn, of the House of Winter
Please tag all meta-related RPs with "M" (ex, M-PRP, M-ORP)
Meta RPs MUST take place in Oldcastle either prior to, during, or—in the future—immediately after the masquerade ball.
UPDATE ONE
The Queen's Arrival
UPDATE TWO
Garden of Delights
UPDATE THREE
Dreams to Nightmares
UPDATE FOUR
Gwyn, of the House of Winter
All posts contain a link to the full character page.
