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Minlister brews the First Mead

A heroquest created by Paul Wade-Williams
Web Adaptation by Nick Eden

 

Note! This is a fan contribution. The information may be contradicted by official material.

Background

Outline

This heroquest is designed for a brewer to recreate one of Minlister's greatest triumphs, the first brewing of golden mead. The quest has seven stations.

1. Entering the God Plane
2. Audience with Orlanth
3. Queen of the Bees
4. Eurmal's Offer
5. Drinking the Mead
6. Seeking the Truth
7. Exiting the God Plane

Quest Requirements

This quest needs a brewer to lead it, and any other participants are just representatives of Minlister's apprentices. The brewer should have a best skill in the range of 15W to 20W before he attempts the quest; the rest should have a best skill in the range of 20 to 5W.

Myth

Orlanth summoned Minlister into his stead, asked him to brew something special for the new tribe, and gifted him the cauldron Karni to assist him, for his previous brews were poor. Scorned though he was, Minlister obeyed and returned to his stead. Minlister returned to his stead and began to gather the ingredients for a drink he would call mead, the main ingredient of which would be sweet honey. 

At first the Queen of the Bees resisted Minlister's approaches and he tried to steal the honey, but her warriors were vigilant and stung him and his apprentices repeatedly, driving them away. But Minlister was conceived by Elmal, who had taken the form of a rare king bee, and asked his father for his aid, stating that the new tribe under Orlanth's rulership needed something special to set them above all others. Elmal agreed and gave Minlister the secret smoke that makes bees drowsy.

So it was that Minlister and his apprentices returned to the Queen of Bees and asked again for her aid. When she refused Minlister drew forth the secret smoke and threatened to take by force what he wanted, so important was his quest. Seeing his great power the Queen sent forward her warriors, but they were defeated. Seeing his power she agreed to his demands and swore that no servant of Minlister would be so harmed if he sought honey for his brew. 

Returning to his stead Minlister began his brew, but Eurmal watched his efforts. Seeing a chance for fun, Eurmal approached Minlister and offered to help if Minlister told him what was happening, but Minlister was no fool and refused the offer, not wishing to share his knowledge, so Eurmal tried again, asking Minlister what a stick was doing in the brew. When Minlister bent over to look, Eurmal tipped him in and ran away laughing, as is his wont.

At that moment Orlanth summoned Minlister to his stead with his brew but Minlister has poured it away fearing it tainted. Out of respect he complied with his stead lord's wishes, bringing in the great cauldron filled only with water. As he placed the first drinking horn in the cauldron the water turned into golden mead and Minlister offered the draught to Orlanth, who supped deep. 

Long was the silence as Orlanth savoured the beverage and finally he asked Minlister the secret that made this brew better than the others. Following Orlanth's code, Minlister spoke with loyalty in his heart but said the secret was not for all, for did not other gods have dominion over areas no others did? Orlanth accepted the words and mead was given to the new tribe, but reserved mainly for nobles and kings.

Quest Details

How the clan support the brewer attempting the quest is up to the individual Narrator, but as good brewers are scarce and the possible benefits to he tribe include an increase in Wealth, virtually all of them will give at least Ordinary Support (and quite possibly Extraordinary).

Preparations for this quest can include the following ritual. The ritual requires a successful simple Mythology of Minlister test in order to gain the bonus and individual ability checks (as noted) to gain specific bonuses. The ritual takes two hours to perform. The ritual must take place on Mead Day (Clay Day, Mobility Week, Storm Season), the high holy day for Minlister (+20). Supporters gather at the local Minlister temple or shrine and accompany the ritual by drinking copious amounts of alcohol.

Minlister Prepares His Brew

• Cauldron called Karni
• Beehive of angry bees 
• Beekeepers hat
• Burning stick of green wood called Drowsy (Beekeeping 14) (+1)
• Fresh honey from a beehive
• Gourd of spring water
• Wild herbs from the tula
• A brewer's apron called Drop Catcher (Brewing ability 20) (+1)
• A large fire
• Stirring stick called Smooth Motion
• A Trickster godtalker or priest to push him into the cauldron
• A drinking horn called Plentiful (Drinking 14) (+1)
• A god talker or priest of Orlanth to accept the first draught of mead (Relationship to King or Chief 14) (+1)
• Acceptance of at least three god talkers or priests to make toasts to the other gods (Worship Storm Pantheon 17) (+1)

The unnumbered elements of this ritual give a collective +1 bonus, for a total benefit of +6

Stations

Station 1: Entering the God Plane

The hero begins the quest in the brewer's shed at Orlanth's Stead.

Cross over to the God Plane [10W3]: Mythology of Minlister
Failure to cross over ends the quest before it has even begun, much to the disappointment of those present.

Station 2: An Audience with Orlanth

Orlanth summoned Minlister into his stead, asked him to brew something special for the new tribe, and gifted him the cauldron Karni to assist him, for his previous brews were poor. Scorned though he was, Minlister obeyed and returned to his stead.

Minlister's previous brews had been rather poor affairs and were not accepted by Orlanth as being worthy of the new tribe. He ordered Minlister to create a special brew, one worthy of the tribe, and to assist him gave him the cauldron Karni, which he had taken from the water gods.

Accept Insult Gracefully [5W]: Good Natured, Relationship to Chieftain or King, Relationship to Clan or Tribe [-3], Diplomacy [-6], Calm [-10]
Should the hero fail the roll, he has refused to obey Orlanth and the quest immediately ends. The character finds himself dumped back in the tula and storm clouds moving over the land. It rains for a month, regardless of the season.

Station 3: The Queen of Bees

Minlister returned to his stead and began to gather the ingredients for a drink he would call mead, the main ingredient of which would be sweet honey. At first the Queen of the Bees resisted Minlister's approaches and he tried to steal the honey, but her warriors were vigilant and stung him and his apprentices repeatedly, driving them away. 

When Minlister first approached the Queen he tried politely to gain the honey he so needed, using words of charming and graciousness. The queen refused and so Minlister and his apprentices tried to steal the honey, but this resulted in him and his apprentices being attacked by her warriors and driven off with numerous painful stings.

Flee Angry Bees [8W]: Run fast, Running -3, Ignore Pain -5, Wind Magics -5, Agile -7, Dodge Blow -10, Tough -12, Beekeeping -15
Any success results in the questers surviving the attack unharmed. Defeat should be treated as normal, with the quester suffering appropriate damage that will stay with him for the remainder of the quest.

Station 4: Elmal's Assistance

But Minlister was conceived by Elmal, who had taken the form of a rare king bee, and asked his father for his aid, stating that the new tribe under Orlanth's rulership needed something special to set them above all others. Elmal agreed and gave Minlister the secret smoke that makes bees drowsy. 

Elmal knew many secrets of bees, including how to craft a special mask that would protect Minlister from their angry stings and a secret smoke that would make them drowsy and passive. Elmal gave Minlister and his apprentices the hoods and burning sticks of green wood, from which poured forth thick smoke.

Convince Elmal to Aid You [15W]: Relationship to Family, Relationship to Clan -3, Diplomacy or other similar ability -7
On any Victory, Elmal hands over the secret of the mask to protect Minlister and the smoke to calm the bees. On a Defeat, he refuses to cooperate and Minlister must fight the bees for their honey.

Station 5: Returning to the Queen

So it was that Minlister and his apprentices returned to the Queen of Bees and asked again for her aid. When she refused Minlister drew forth the secret smoke and threatened to take by force what he wanted, so important was his quest. Seeing his great power the Queen sent forward her warriors, but they were defeated. Seeing his power she agreed to his demands and swore that no servant of Minlister would be so harmed if he sought honey for his brew. 

Armed with the secret smoke and protective hoods Minlister returned to the Queen. Inflamed by his arrogance she sent her warriors to kill him, but the power of the smoke overcame them and she accepted defeat. She promised that followers of Minlister would be safe from her stings if they were collecting honey for brewing mead. A few bees still sting his followers, but they die soon after for breaking their Queen's oath.

Fight Bee Warriors [8W/20 if armed with smoke]: Beekeeping, Close Combat -3 to -20
Characters using a smoking stick can use their Close Combat with an Improvisational modifier of -3 if they have a one-handed weapon speciality (such as sword or mace). Penalties for other forms of Close Combat are left to the individual Narrator to decide.

All characters taking part must fight individually, and the total carryover is taken as an average of their success of failure. Although the penalties for failure are high, it is possible to continue the quest. After all, even a little honey is better than none at all.

Station 6: Eurmal's Offer

Returning to his stead Minlister began his brew, but Eurmal watched his efforts. Seeing a chance for fun, Eurmal approached Minlister and offered to help if Minlister told him what was happening, but Minlister was no fool and refused the offer, not wishing to share his knowledge, so Eurmal tried again, asking Minlister what a stick was doing in the brew. When Minlister bent over to look, Eurmal tipped him in and ran away laughing, as is his wont.

Eurmal is both benefactor and bane to Minlister. His pestering offer of aid forces Minlister to keep his recipe a secret from all, but his act of petty fun also gave Minlister his greatest power. Followers of Eurmal seem to accept Minlister's thanks for this act by drinking as much of his followers' produce as possible as part of their own antics.

Refuse Eurmal's Aid [6W]: Secretive, Stubborn [-3], Loyal [-7], Diplomacy or similar [-10]
Any Victory level results in Eurmal being refused a part in the process and the brewer taking a dunk in the cauldron as payback. Defeat, of any type, means that Eurmal helps Minlister to create the mead and taints the brew, reducing the potency of the mead (see below).

Station 7: Drinking the First Mead

At that moment Orlanth summoned Minlister to his stead with his brew but Minlister has poured it away fearing it tainted. Out of respect he complied with his stead lord's wishes, bringing in the great cauldron filled only with water. As he placed the first drinking horn in the cauldron the water turned into golden mead and Minlister offered the draught to Orlanth, who supped deep. 

Minlister has expected to be scorned for bringing nothing but water to offer his king, but as his hand touched the water in the cauldron it turned into golden mead. Since he fell into the cauldron, Minlister has been able to create what beverage he wishes just by placing his hand in the cauldron.

Create Mead to Please Orlanth [4W2]: Brew Mead, Brewing [-3], Herbalism [-10], modifier from below
If Eurmal did not dunk the brewer in the drink, then the brew is actually not as potent as it could be. Check the result of the above contest on the chart below and apply the results to this test.

 

Marginal Defeat	-6 penalty
Minor Defeat	-12 penalty
Major Defeat	-20 penalty
Complete Defeat	-5W penalty

The roll is a testing of the brewer's skill in the Brewing affinity, which of course is a representation of Minlister's miracle working. It merely changes the quality of the brew, but the station cannot be truly failed as something has been produced - it just may not taste very nice!

Station 8: Seeking the Truth

Long was the silence as Orlanth savoured the beverage and finally he asked Minlister the secret that made this brew better than the others. Following Orlanth's code, Minlister spoke with loyalty in his heart but said the secret was not for all, for did not other gods have dominion over areas no others did? Orlanth accepted the words and mead was given to the new tribe, but mainly reserved for nobles and kings.

Orlanth took great delight in the new brew called mead and wished to know the secret of its making. Realising that he had stumbled upon a great finding, Minlister refused to tell his stead lord, stating that other gods had secret dominions that they passed only onto their worshippers. Orlanth accepted Minlister's words and forever made him his Master Brewer, allowing him to keep his secrets so long as the ales and meads were offered to the gods at festivals and made available for chiefs and kings.

Refuse to Tell the Secret [4W2]: Devotee of Minlister, Secretive, Loyal [-5], Diplomacy [-7], Argumentative [-10]
Defeat is merely an insult to Orlanth, but a minor one given the excellent brew that has just been produced. Alternately, it may represent the hero telling Orlanth the secret, or at least a part of it, so breaking the tradition of Minlister. The difficulty is high, but it is considered improper to refuse a request of your stead lord and tribal king, although no one can make you do anything.

Station 9: Exiting the God Plane

No matter how long the quest seems to take, it will always be completed on Mead Day, counting as a high holy day for the purposes of re-entering the mundane plane. The clan will still be assembled (but more drunk) and will instinctively know whether the quest has failed or succeeded when the questers return.

Exit from the God Plane [10W3]: Mythology of Minlister
The same modifiers relating to Entering the God Plane apply here as well.

Results of the Quest

Carryover Table

Station Benefits

The brewer gains benefits for completing (or penalties for failing) certain Stations. These are permanent changes.

Audience with Orlanth: If this station is failed, the brewer loses his Make Mead feat.

Queen of the Bees: Due to surviving a great number of bee stings, the hero may start an ability called Resist Poison at 12/15/20/5W (or Susceptible to Poison if the station was failed).

Elmal's Assistance: +2 per Victory level to Beekeeping.

Seeking the Truth: +2 per Victory level to Secretive for keeping Minlister's greatest brew a secret.

Individual Benefits

If the quest was undertaken for personal gain, the hero may gain one of the benefits listed below. Should the quest have been a failure, he must still select from the list, but changes all benefits to penalties. All benefits last according to the chart on p.39 of the Narrator's Guide. Followers on the quest simply gain their regular HP allowance.

• Spend HP equal to the final carryover on abilities to become a godtalker (i.e. those in the godtalker occupation). So long as all the godtalker abilities are bought, the hero will be accepted as a godtalker of Minlister. If he fails the quest and chooses this option he must buy down his Devotee to Minlister and Relationship to Clan by as many points as possible.
• Improve Brewing affinity by +2 per Victory level.
• Improve Brewing ability by +2 per Victory level.
• Gain one use of the Minlister Secret, Brew Divine Mead (to be used in the allotted time).

Community Benefits

If the quest was undertaken on behalf of the community, the brewer must select one of the benefits described below. Should the quest have been a failure, he must still select from the list, but changes all benefits to penalties. All benefits last according to the chart on p.39 of the Narrator's Guide. Followers on the quest simply gain their regular HP allowance.

• The clan gains +2 Wealth per Victory level so long as the majority of the clan gave Extraordinary Support. This represents an increase in the trade of ale and mead to other clans and tribes.
• Start an ability called Stay Sober at 12/15/20/5W (or Get Drunk Easily at 12/15/20/5W).