Current Training: Giayl's Guide to Hidden Ways.

Circle test this week: Fini.

Donations: Helping Cassia Allin build fortifications.

Exploration: Foothills Expedition.

Lundi, day 31 of Autumn, 551.

It's been a slow period after the big Foothills trip. I have mainly been hunting for furs and scooping up what ore I can find in the Passes.

I am just about to finish the first Chapter in Giayl's Guide, and will have to start training something else. I am considering just hoarding up experience so I can finish Chapter 2 quickly on the next upcoming trip so I can immediately start learning Chapter 3, assuming the trip is successful. If I can stand ignoring the urge to stat training another skill until then, it would save me a third trip later. We'll see.

I took some time from my usual wanderings to visit the Grape Gatsby, who recently set up his vineyard as part of at Balingal's farm near the Lake. He generously let me try a few of his ripe grapes, and I found them quite tasty. We'll see how the wine turns out.

With Mujin-kun, I have done some hunting inside Kizmia's Island, since the Cloud Portal was leading to the hut at the South Beach of that Isle. Thankfully, there was no interference from any self-appointed Portal Police, and we could hunt until our time ran out without worrying about having to gather tar or drop down separated trees or make rafts.

I never use the Portal anymore until I see someone else safely use it, and definitively know where it is leading. Too much of the time it leads to rather dire places as exiles fight over it.

I have long noticed that oddball pair called Attache wandering about town together. They always seemed inseparable, wandering from pub to pub together, and stumbling about bumping into things.

Those two seem to know how to party, out-drinking even the dwarves.

I think they must have had a terrible row awhile back, because over the past couple of Zodiacs the Tall one seems to always be hiding from the Short one.

Over the past days I have seen the Short one moping about outside the Mystic pub, rat towers, Knight's guild and Monastery, while the Tall one hid inside these buldings.

Perhaps they should now change their names to De-ttache.

Sombdi, day 77 of Summer, 551.

I joined Fundin's Foothills expedition in hopes of reaching Giayl's pathfinding lesson book within the ruins of Trillbane's Library in the Pitch Arachnoid caverns.

I was not alone. Almost 60 exiles joined us! An awesome group for an oversize expedition.

We met at the West town docks, because we were going the really easy way.

Generally, I have heard of folks teleporting from the Trainer Grotto cave past Hatred Hollow to the Foothills near Katpus' cave. Not today. Nearly everyone was directed to fall here to the Surf, and we were chained en masse to the Meadow.

In the Meadow, Zorton undertook a feat of teleportation on a scale I had never seen or heard tell of before, but which brought to my mind the teleport ring ferry service from Adytum back to Puddleby early in the Ripture War. I can only imagine that he has achieved a new high training level that lets him attempt such a distance and such a scale.

The five designated chainers, each bearing about a dozen fallen exiles, did a slow and meticulous ballet to orient themselves just so around Zorton without preventing their fellow chainers from doing the same. Fallen exiles stretched away from me farther than I could see from my vantage point on the ground. Zorton took us all from the Meadow to the Foothills in an eyeblink, cutting at least 2 hours and a lot of hassle off our journey.

I was very impressed, to say the least.

With a very difficult and time consuming part of our journey done with so easily, after a quick heal, we set out through the Foothill passes with high hopes. We rushed through all resistance and fairly quickly reached the Waterfall and the Malachite Arachnoid lair within. Entering this safely proved to be a significant challenge, but with repeated fighter runs and kudzu plantings, we gained a safe foothold and then quickly conquered the first cavern. This was repeated for the second cavern as well.

Before us loomed the Pitch Arachnoid Cavern, the final hurdle between us and the ruins of Trillbane's Library and it's invaluable books. Yor outlined a strategy where runners drew the Arachnoids to the far southern reaches of the cavern where they could be held in place by Kudzu walls, and selected folks rushed in and made it happen. The mob ran in to find a clear center area and all the Arachnoids nicely trapped. Now it remained to kill those trapped between us and our goal. A second kudzu wall was arranged to allow the safe luring of but a single Arachnoid at a time, and all was going smoothly.

The first Arachnoid through the gate was an Albino. A powerful beast it was too. Still is, likely. For while we managed to wound it severely, it's sticky webs and direct attack felled a great number of weaker exiles, and the fallens and webs kept stronger fighters from finishing it off. We ran it around for a time while trying to regain health, but then something happened that I still don't understand. The other arachnoids broke free of their kudzu prison and the cavern became a bloodbath. Whether the wall tenders were forced back by the Albino and the kudzu died naturally, or someone cut through it in haste, I do not know.

From that moment, the expedition became a rescue operation, and an extremely dangerous one at that.

Many, many times a runner was sent in to distract the Arachnoids away from the entry so that chainers could gather what fallens they could. And most often, many fallens were lost again to sticky webs on their way to safety, and many chainers as well. The runners almost never came back, but added to the count of exiles to be rescued.

On one chain run, I saw that I could not make it back to the upper cavern, so I decided to help anyone I could by distracting the Arachnoids to the South. I knew the general whereabouts of the entrance to Trillbane's Library, and headed that way with a host of beasts close behind. I dodged their blows and webs as best i could, and at last came to a fallen pile of rubble. With no time to inspect it closely, I headed for what seemed the most likely spot for a path beyond.

I guessed wrong. After I was felled by the Crimson Arachnoids chasing me, I saw the elusive path just a short distance to my South. So close! I vowed to try again for it if I got the chance.

The rescue limped interminably on, and exiles were tiring and tempers were flaring. It reached apoint where many exiles started clamouring for a retreat with what ashes we had won.

I spoke up and insisted that whatever the main group did, I was going to try again to reach that Library, even if it meant certain doom. Many pathfinders then expressed the same determination, and the group split into two: those who would try for the prize (over a dozen of us!), and those who would do one last chain run then make for home.

We asked for a last runner volunteer, and Kalian accepted that dubious honor. Everyone rushed into the cavern one last time after him, the chainers to chain and the pathfinders to reach that path.

Amazingly, this mad rush worked, and well over a dozen pathfinders made it safely into Trillbane's ruined library.

Success!

And many fallen exiles were rescued by the other contingent, too, thankfully.

We pathfinders then rushed in to gape at Giayl's Guide and learn what we could.

The number of pathfinders in here was so high that room could scarcely contain us all, and we had to jostle about for position in line to reach the book for ourselves.

I signed on happily, not caring what else might happen that day.

And the most lighthearted moment came, when with 14 "full" pathfinders here, most of us could not even exit the room!

Because we were so quick in our success, the main group waited for us, and we rushed back to the upper cave in hopes of safety.

Many made it, but not all, I'm afraid.

Sagramor determined to remain in the Library itself, until he learned all he could from the book through forgeting some use of his Fell Blade. Now THAT'S dedication!

Having rejoined the main group, our goal was one final chain effort before setting out for home and hearth. Since I had acheived all I wanted on this trip, I was happy to volunteer to be the final runner in hopes others could be rescued. I ran like mad to the east with a huge mob of Arachnoid chomping and spewing webs behind me, until at last I ran straight into an Albino Arachnoid. I fell, hopeful that others were being rescued, and visited Purgatory for the first time in a long long time. I do hope my effort helped, and that the main group came home safely at last.

Despite all the hardships and the loss of many exiles, I (and undoubtedly the many other pathfinders) count this expedition as a complete success. Never before have so many pathfinders reached the book. I am especially thankful to Fundin for organizing the trip, Yor and Gurgi and Wedilen for leading the unruly mob at various points, Zorton for his tremendous demonstration of the power of teleporting, and the mob itself for showing commitment to a goal even if it was not theirs. Beer!

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