The payout  was  2 Gold..1 gold 2 silvers 1 silver  for the  4 Finishers..

  The next  event  was   javelin..a   line was  marked   at the emperors' end.. and   a Dummy was  set  100 yards  away  with   a three ring  , bulls eye.. Distance combined with how close  they  came to the  Dummy would  determine the  winner ..beginf  the 100  yard  dummy  , one another  set at 110...and another behind it, set at 120


 12  throwers  lined up for the first   tosses.

In reply to Luth (msg # 79):

Luthien continues to watch the sporting events. Javelins? He'd never specialized in that, and these people clearly had. He expected to see some impressive long range accuracy.

  The throwers were good, none were  further out then a javlin lenght, from the line. One  fellow, smaller then most   was deadly with the   javeli  hitting the  2nd  deepest, twice out of his three throws.

 He woul Be  the winner in the  end, getting   the  2  Gold.

.......

 the  next  group to try  was  an obstacle  course.. climbing, swing  from a rope,  going  over and Undelr   logs and  walls, a mud pit  at the end, followed by a water   pit, and a  30 yard sprint to the finish...10  runners  would run.

 Men and woman competed  in the advent together, there were 5 of each.

This would be interesting. Making this a co ed event means the differences between men and women must cancel out enough for a co ed event to be fair.

It's interesting to see where the women will have an advantage in the course.

This was also a good time to bring something up...

"Your majesty...I didn't see anything like a joust on the competition list. Have you ever considered adding one?"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:07, Sat 24 Sept 2022.

   The Emperor  turned to Luthien with a bit of a smile.Most of  the Civilized  areas   do not know  about jousts. Some folks have   bow and Javelin  contests from horse back. But you would need to  go towards the  Northlands  for Jousts?. I myself, have never seen a joust, i learned from my teachings, of the world.

 Might be something to have  for....wedding games..Eh?


  ....

  The contestants  were   J running hard, Jumping  climbing  diving.. woman seemed faster and More agile, while the men   used strength  to  propel them when  it  came into play

"That would be an excellent occasion to have one, yes. I meant to ask your majesty for permission to that end."

But...Luthien has had some good times in the lists.

"I remember watching my first joust as a kid. Armored Knights, each sporting plate shined enough to reflect the sun, no way to tell one knight apart from another but the heraldry on his shield, the favors they wore from the ladies they championed...it was exciting times."

But then he really starts to grin...

"But not half as exciting as when my order put ME on the horse. Watching is nice and all, participating is 20 times better. Astride a mighty steed in the lists, shield in one hand, lance in the other, aiming carefully at the other warrior. The crack of a broken lance. What's really fun is if you manage to unhorse the other knight. It almost never happens to the experienced knights, though anyone can get unlucky. Mostly it happens to the younger knights who don't know how to guard against it yet. Most of the time, jousts are won by the broken lance...it's worth twice as much as merely hitting the other guy."

Lutbien is fairly fired up about the idea of bringing a joust here. It would be a fantastic idea, from his point of view.

"More than all that, jousts have entry fees, audience fees, and so on, and you can delegate a decent chunk of that to a charity of choice. Most of the Holy Knight Orders who host one do that, so they can make sure some good happens out of the event. You do have to allow some time to set one up, particularly since Ironmound has never had one and nobody will be expecting it...and the Knights do need time to arrive and so on. Also need to set up the judges and things like that. I think it'd really get the imaginations of the people going, as it once did me."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:23, Sun 25 Sept 2022.

 Nelk Nodded to Luthien,  He then stood    waving his hand  to the top four finishers for them to collect their  coin and   colored  pin ( gold for first..silver..Bronze   and copper. ) for their placement.

   the  next event  was on the  track thaat surround the  sands of the  Arena.  10 runners ( who had  competed during the week to see which  10 would run) lined up.

 Dala spoke,almost as a challenge to the Consort and  Emperor..after this?  I make my  way to the   filed, for archery..

Nelk Frowned.

 The Consort   smiled   a bit and said,May  The Sisters Guild  your  shafts....

 This is but a contest, i will not bother  the  Sisters  for thier aid.. I should  be able to  win it on my own..

For this one...

"I believe in you. Go out there and win it all."

He doesn't mention the Huntress is also a pretty good shot, as she wants to know she did it with her own practice and skill. Still, it's tough not to mention the blessing he wants to add. ...marriage is like that though. Sometimes you gotta zip it.

After she leaves and heads down for the shooting, he tells The Emperor, "I think she's going to win, your Majesty."

Luthien's not far wrong on the first flight...only one of the soldiers actually outshot Dala, and he was known to be the best shot in the army to begin with.

"Probably be between her and that guy, and I think she's got the final round."

As predicted, she easily advances to round 2.

  out of the  15  archers. % were  removed  as thier  points were the loswest.

 Dala   moved on  with  the  others, with the  targets  being carried  bacl 5 yards, and a new  target shet placed on them.

 each archer   had a small  ring of paint to seperate them fro others.. Dala   had a pink stripe.

After the second flight, that top marksman of the guard won the 2nd round too, and one of the other top marksmen got really close to Dala's score, but ultimately fell ever so slightly short.

"It's the third flight where she has to beat him. Your majesty...an idea if you like. If she wins, let her propose the schedule tomorrow. She might have some ideas for what to make all the suitors do."

  The Consort chuckled  at Luthien's  suggestion. The Emperor  smiles a bit,That would  prove interesting?

 below  and behind them, those suitors who heard this, shifted  uncomfortably. Sir Navies  just grinned.

......................

 The  middle butt was moved back     5 yards.  to make the   conterst last a few minutes longer. the last  5  shot at th same target, from lowest to   Highest...The  expert trooper  used  his Military  bow, that was  , by its look, reletively new. The others  had thier Bows, that, again, were  well cared for,

 Dala  stood, with her Black Timber bow that   shone at times, in the sun from the  care she has given it.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:04, Fri 30 Sept 2022.

This time, it wasn't even close. The expert trooper and his number 2...it isn't quite fair to say they had trouble...they were still amazing shots.

But Dala racked up bullseye after bullseye. The bullseye had an outer and an inner ring, and all were in the inner ring. Her second shot was so perfectly placed she could only equal it by splitting her own arrow with the third shot. And that happened. Maybe she'd heard Luthien's idea way down there and was extra inspired to be practically perfect.

"I don't know if she heard us or just really wanted to win, but wow. Easy gold medal for her there." Maybe she saw the looks on the faces of those shifting uncomfortably. That would be really hilarious.

Totally flawless.

  The Emperor  stood  hge  clapped  as  did others  around him, but he was  clapping for his daughter.

 The  awards   were given out ,   Dala raised her  bow to the  Crowds who  screamed out her  name.

 The Consort  says,the next two events  are the horse  races, and the    mounted  Javelin throw...

 Dala  Came Up  Beaming   like a childe  with the winter  gift surprise.

"That last round was totally flawless, Dala. I'm so proud of you." Love. Pride. Respect. These things had different meanings, but right now, she was in the center of all of them, her place in the sun quite secure.

Not forgetting that other thing he'd mentioned to his Majesty.

"Tell her about what she gets to do tomorrow, your Majesty."

He's just as excited for that part!

   The  when by.. the horse  racing  was one lap around the arena. starting and  ending at the Emperor's box.

 The  Coins and medals handed out.

  The  Mounted  Javelin was  interesting.   mounted riders  had a  quiver of 6  Javelins. they rode  hard  as   6 Targets  of  'horses'  and  'riders' were rocked back and  forth  by  arena  workers. One  attack per   rider. if you missed..no points..if you hit the  horse, you lost one, if you hit the Rider, you got  two points.

    The Emperor looked around at those  in the Box.There was still one 'Tou Suitor" in the mix.You lose a point  for hitting the Horse, since it is   deemed  'unchivlrous' 

 The Tous   Suitor said with  some Snark.Perhaps you should  tell your Barbaric  alies in The Timber, that. They seem to bring  down Horse  at the  first volley..

 Dala  snapped,That is because, Tou  riders canot  fight without there horse, nor can the run away!... and.. she  grins at Luthien,..the captain says  Tou Horse meat is a real treat!

 The Suitor  stood his  face  red.

 Axehandle   snorted,sit down, young fool? do you seek to challenge the Princess?

 The   Young Man wanted to say something, when  The Dwarf  said,have you ever  supped on Tou Horse flesh, Sir Luthien?

Luthien thinks back on his travel with the Captain...

It didn't really stand out in his mind for good or ill though. Except...suddenly he remembers!

"Oh, that's right. A few months ago, we were fighting Tou and...yeah, now I remember. It does taste surprisingly good. Thought it would be gamey, considering how much horses are trained, but it was surprisingly tender. I think the Captain has some tricks he uses for cooking too."

It took him a while to recall.

 The  Fellow,   Drest of Tou, a Captain  of  a Horse unit, Stood, pointing at Luthien , he looks at the Emperor.... You allow  a Crimson Arrow to  lay suite to your daughter?

 The Middle  Sister  says,..it is much better then allowing a  Horse....lover... to   lay suite

The Consort speaks up, Nonchalantly , as the Javelin rider began  their  runs  at the  ' Moving ' targets.I think it is a  goodly thought, to have Dala   pick  tasks for the suitors... give us  some form of payment, for the  food and housing you all have taken advantage of over the  last few months.

Many heads  truned at this.

 Then it is settled, Dala will present some tasks  for the suitors and  deliver them to  night at the hall during the dance  and  food. There will be  no  grand  dinner tonight, to observe th Holiday. The dance  and food s their  will suffice.

Luthien is going to have so much fun with this. He figures there's a decent chance the suitor count will be cut in half because they won't be able to unbend their pride long enough to get their hands dirty.

While he put the idea in his Majesty's ear, he also wants to see which of several roads she wants to walk for deciding the activities of tomorrow.

Every startled or frightened looking face among the suitors makes him grin a little wider, as he leans Dala's way.

"The fun you are about to have is beyond measure."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:17, Fri 07 Oct 2022.

  when the   mounted  Javelin ended, The Emperor  stood.It is time to return to the Palace.... the  dance will be  at 8:00... Dala, will have her list ready for those   who still wish to stay  and  give suit  , to my daughters.

   everyone stood. Counting   Luthien there were  still 20 suitors left for  3 princesses...perhaps, it was  time to weed the garden

The garden will be weeded quite a bit, he thinks. He must still escort her back first.

"Shall we?"

He offers his arm, of course, at least till she gets to her horse again. He remembered she didn't want help up.

 Everyone waited  for the Emoeror, Constort  and   two oldest  princesses to   enter the carriage.

  Dala   , playfully slapped  a , well meaning  SGT's  hands  away as he   tried to  use his cupped hands   to aid her  in mounting up. Once in the saddle she looked down at him and giggled,If I cannot   get into the saddle myself? I should not  Ride. But thank you for  your thoughtfulness..

 He was stunned , to say the least.Not being a Palace guard, he knew  very little  about the Princesses..but at that moment, Dala had a new  follower.

  Sir Navies chuckles softly as he says , quietly to  Luthien...she may be the most hard to handle of the  Three Ladies?, He is head strong, to say the least...

"Who said anything about handling? The idea is to encourage her and let her shine. Besides, where else am I gonna find someone who will cheerfully go adventuring with me whenever I feel like it? You just witnessed her beating the best shot in the guard. For the record, that third flight tends to be the range a slaver is when they're running away from the Arrows."

The other two princesses are fine ladies, to be sure, but they wouldn't be caught dead adventuring by choice.

 With  the Carriage out in front  with riders  in front of them, Luthien  and Dala   were  a few  length behind the carriage,  with  suitors behind them... Trops  marched on either side, , mor to keep people from running  out and getting hurt, then crowd  control . There  seemed to  be no  disgruntled   people,  the worst  looks they may have received , were from   the  por folks who just watched the  procession go buy as they  waited  so they could get on , with  whatever  jobs then needed to do.
........

 when the  finally reached the Road Of Kings.. the  City Guard Gave way to the Palace guard  that lined the boulevard  , as the Emperor  returned home.

Luthien does pay attention to the looks of the people around him as it goes by. The fact people mostly seem inconvenienced by the road block at worst was always a good sign. But there's nobody shouting about some wrong that was done to them.

There's also quite a bit of anticipation on his part for what's about to happen to all those suitors trailing behind them.