Hail, Sapience.

As promised, you will find the submission criteria for the Living Chronicles of Achaea below, along with an example of what one may look like.

[ SUBMISSION CRITERIA ]
1. Select a topic (or topics) and convey it/them to myself for recordkeeping. You do not need to worry about overlapping topics with others, though I will inform you if that is the case. Everyone experiences or understands an event differently. Myriad perspectives often provide fuller insight.

2. The goal is to make history accessible and understood by as wide an audience as possible. As such, language and format should be relatively straightforward - simple prose will suffice.

3. The script should be created with an expectation to perform the story, but it must also form a cohesive narrative without the presentation elements. As such, you should submit two (2) versions: one with the presentation elements from the audience's perspective, the other with just the story.

4. The story must focus on the happenings of the event itself, and be told through the neutral perspective of a scholar. While I expect some element of bias is inevitable, submissions with overt tones of proselytisation or misrepresentation will be rejected.

5. You must choose a relevant location to perform the story at. The Aalen, for instance, for the Dun Fortress plot to murder King La'ramhis. Or Jaru, for the assassination of Lord Makarta. So on and so forth.

6. I will not be overly strict on length, but the story cannot be overlong. Suitable examples are any of the white marble tablets you see at Sutter's Gap on Meropis or the Shrine of Ascension in the Siroccian Mountains, though they are not hard rules. You can also use the example below as reference. If in doubt, the story can be edited later.

The Asterian Restoration reserves the right to edit all stories as needed for length and/or accuracy.

[ EXAMPLE SUBMISSION - STORY FORMAT ]
Travel to the map coordinates 5467 and read the white marble tablet placed there. Now, compare it to the presentation below.

[ EXAMPLE SUBMISSION - PRESENTATION FORMAT ]
Jurixe says in a low, silken voice, "The Shrine of Ascension is where it all began and ended for the divine being once known as Bal'met."

Hands clasped behind her back, Jurixe continues, "The ormyrr and Dala'myrr, progenitors and slavemasters of the modern Xoran race, entered Sapience from a distant world known as Krenindala through a portal created by their desperate Xorani prisoners."

"Mortal enemies of the dragons," she explains, "the Dala'myrr slew the great white dragon Ashaxei, and ormyrr priests offered her essence in a ritual to summon Bal'met, their Divine and Lord of Krenindala, into existence."

An oily black mist springs up into existence around Jurixe's slight frame, half-obscuring her as she says, "When Bal'met arrived, He tricked, captured and slew many Divine of the Garden on a scale unprecedented in history, consuming their essence and growing in strength."

Above her, the consuming blackness coalesces into a vaguely humanoid form that leaps upon the shining silhouette of an enormous skeletal Dragon as it swoops past. Jurixe's grey eyes track it closely as she says, "The long-dead Father of Dragons, Sycaerunax, was even summoned beyond death to become His undead steed."

The image dissipates, only for oily blackness to rise once more behind Jurixe - thicker and denser than ever before, nearly engulfing her completely - as she says, "After He became too great a threat, the Garden imprisoned Him and His Krenindalan minions on the age-old battlefield of Nishnatoba. However, the otherworldly Divinity had corrupted and leeched off the power of the Fire behind the Flame, that which powers existence itself. He was too strong to slay."

Jurixe says in a low, silken voice, "Finally, Lord Agatheis succeeded, at the cost of His life, in severing those ties."

With a wave of her hand, the mist retreats to reveal Jurixe in full once more. She turns to regard the mountainside she stands upon for a moment, before turning back to you to say, "With Lord Sarapis the only being capable of purging the Fire of its corruption, Maya, the Creatrix, assembled the adventurers of Sapience here at the Shrine of Ascension."

Gesturing with a gloved hand, Jurixe says in a low, silken voice, "As they watched, the Great Mother gave up Her powers to return the mantle of Supreme Creator to Lord Sarapis. As He departed to restore the Flame, Lady Maya imbued every adventurer who would fight with a portion of Her essence as Divine and mortal set forth to do battle with the forces of Bal'met. Here is where they stepped into a pool that would change them in ways indescribable, emerging upon Nishnatoba as a demigod."

The clash and clamour of furious battle resounds through the air around you. Images of mighty Demigods, throwing themselves against reptilian ormyrr, Dala'myrr and great shades of fallen Divine, appear and disappear at will as Jurixe says, "Upon Nishnatoba, the demigods had to contend with the shades of the twelve slain Gods and Goddesses, all still powerful in Their own right, as well as the legions of ormyrr and Dala'myrr."

Jurixe says resolutely in a low, silken voice, "Ignoring race, creed and faith, the demigods laboured together to fell the shades and send the Gods to Their final rest, along with uncountable scores of ormyrr and Dala'myrr."

One by one, the images of Divine-borne weapons materialise in the air, each angled towards the churning darkness representing Bal'met. They strike at the blackness without cease, meeting furious black riposte each time, while Jurixe continues, "In the distance, the majority of the remaining Garden waged war upon Bal'met Himself upon a towering plateau at the heart of Nishnatoba."

Jurixe says in a low, silken voice, "Battle raged furiously as Lord Sarapis toiled to free the Fire of its corruption. The death of Lord Oneiros, God of Peace, spurred Them to redouble Their efforts."

Overhead, one brilliant sword finally lunges free of the plethora of weapons. "Finally," Jurixe declares, eyes on the sword, "Lady Aurora, the Lightbringer, protected by Her Bloodsworn Lord Deucalion, came close enough to Bal'met to strike Him down with the Sword of Dunamis." At the conclusion of the sentence, the sword plunges deep into the heart of the darkness.

An unearthly scream, ear-shattering in its intensity, reverberates in multitude off the stone of the mountain. The concentrated blackness breaks violently apart and dissipates into nothing, leaving only Jurixe to conclude, "And that is how, ultimately, the Worldreaver met His end. But we should never forget this saga, for it marked a moment in time where our world was dangerously close to annihilation. Only by sheer collective effort was that fate avoided, and we would do well to remember what it cost us."

[ Deadline ]
Entries should be sent to myself from now till the

= 1st of Sarapin, 1001 AF =

Again, if you seek to participate in the Chronicles - regardless of whether you can confirm that commitment yet or not - you may seek myself out for an invitation to the Asterian Restoration. To preempt some common questions, no, there is no expectation or requirement of work beyond what you are willing to contribute, which is presumably why you sought us out in the first place.

I wish also to emphasise that anyone can tell a story; it need not be the province of scholars and historians alone. Do not be intimidated by the public nature of this endeavour. If you have a tale to tell, then it deserves to be told - and if not you, who? I am available for consultation for those who require more guidance and/or refinement; my singular goal is to ensure these stories see the light of day.

I know from the Asterian Festival of History the depth of storytelling talent contained in these realms. I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together once more for this momentous occasion.

Regards,

Jurixe S. Nithilar
representing the Asterian Restoration

Penned by my hand on the 22nd of Valnuary, in the year 996 AF.