Mayhem Masks
Mayhem masks began appearing in boxes from the treasure system in September 2008. They were off-white theater masks. At first there were several different kinds that did various things when taken from the box. A few masks persisted; most dissipated.
Description
In the wooden box you see an off-white theatre mask.
Smooth and symmetrical, the porcelain mask is off-white in hue with twin ribbons of deep ebon adorning each temple. The features of the mask are divided evenly in half by an invisible line and display extreme suffering on the right and intense joy upon the left. Painted into the space where the eyeholes should be are startling blue hues that ring a dark iris, which flares dramatically with golden striations.
Mask messaging
- One
You lay your hands upon the cold surface of the mask, and withdraw it from the trunk. Spindly arms and legs extend from the mask, and it pulls itself from your grasp to land upon the ground. A quick shake of itself, and the mask is standing, its limbs now supporting it. A torso can soon be seen, and the mask is no longer a simply a mask but a marionette, its strings rising from its appendages to disappear into the air above.
Lifting its mouth wide, the newly formed marionette recites:
"Dame Cirri Strut’s magical Mayhem Troupe!
An extraordinary performance group!
Splendidly famous, it is world renowned.
With magic and wonders that can confound!"
The marionette spontaneously collapses in upon itself and turns to mist which quickly dissipates.
- Two
You lay your hands upon the cold surface of the mask and withdraw it from your strongbox. You turn the piece over only to have it become animated in your hand. One side of the face begins to weep uncontrollably, while the other laughs in fits of hysterics the two sides radically different from the middle. Oddly enough, real tears fall from the porcelain face making your hands slick, and you drop the mask which shatters upon the ground.
Person withdraws a mask from inside of his coffer. As he begins to turn the piece over, the expression drawn upon it becomes grotesquely animated in a strange mixture of deafening, pitiful weeping and blatant, joyous laughter. Person drops the mask which immediately shatters upon the ground.
- Three
You lay your hands upon the cold surface of the mask, and withdraw it from the chest. Spindly arms and legs extend from the mask, and it pulls itself from your grasp to land upon the ground. A quick shake of itself, and the mask is standing, its limbs now supporting it. A torso can soon be seen, and the mask is no longer a simply a mask but a marionette, its strings rising from its appendages to disappear into the air above.
Lifting its mouth wide, the newly formed marionette recites:
"The Mayhem Troupe performs daily with flair!
With jugglers, masks, songs, and magic to spare!
'Ware the Dame or you’ll only know despair!
In crimson, she’ll paint you without even a care!"
Streaking through the bright sky, a bolt of sanguine light obliterates the marionette.
- Four
You lay your hands upon the cold surface of the mask, only to feel it become insubstantial beneath your touch. The mask dissipates into a fine mist of white that rises from your box and travels into the sky.
- Five (permanent)
You lay your hands upon the cold surface of the mask and withdraw it from the strongbox. The startling blue eyes within the face of the mask shift their gaze so that they fall directly upon you.
- Six
Falling from out of thin air, a mask clatters to the ground. Surrounding its face are spindly limbs. Giving itself a quick shake, the mask stands up and slowly a torso develops beneath its chin. Within moments, it is no longer a simple mask but a marionette with its strings rising from its wooden appendages to disappear into the air above.
Lifting its mouth wide, the newly formed marionette recites:
"Dame Cirri Strut, the magician with flair!
Her talents are beyond extraordinaire!
Marionettes that are life-like and real -
Will enchant you with their theatric zeal!"
The marionette spontaneously collapses in upon itself and turns to mist which quickly dissipates.
Official Announcements
There were several official announcements relating to the masks.
Making a magnificent manifestation in a magical method, Mayhem Masks mystically maneuver into monsters' caches. Many may linger, but most will mimic mercurial moods and mystify the masses by breaking. Marvelous, magical masks, what could they be? Make no mistake, the masks maneuver exactly as manufactured to do!
-Posted by GM Thandiwe, 09/07/08
Reports have traveled from abroad about the ebon wagon that is glimpsed amongst the sunset hues of autumn leaves. Riding far and wide, the wagon is that of the legendary family group known as the Magical Mayhem Troupe.
Last seen passing into the Shireland and approaching the Northern Steppes, the legendary troupe has not returned home to the Human Empire in nearly two hundred years. The performance company is formed up of family members who pass on their talents from generation to generation and have gained world notoriety.
Known primarily for their marionette shows, the troupe also holds vast talents in entertainment magics, juggling, jester acts, lively mask creation, and fantastical operettas. Though the troupe has made no stops yet on its return trip, it is highly anticipated that the troupe will once again perform.
-Posted by GM Thandiwe, 09/19/08
Loresong
Unfurling to the rhythm of your song, your vision is filled with the scene of a trail leading through an autumn-kissed glade. Gay laughter rings lightly in your ears, and soon, its source reveals itself to you in the form of two halflings. Their clothing is bright and colorful, that of traveling troubadours, and you instantly feel a kinship to them. You hail them cheerfully, and they return the greeting in kind. Soon the pair is joined by others, and you find that you and your family are amongst kindred spirits. Slowly, your vision fades on the group as they set up a small camp.
Soft and slumbering, a tune rises to meet your song, and it is filled with a deep contentment mingled with a heavy lassitude. The stars spread before your vision through the filter of trees illuminated by moonlight and the quiet sound of laughter and singing. Glimpsed between the trees, you can see the outline of a ger separated by a small camp fire from a wooden wagon and know that two families, both performers, are bridging the gap between the races and enjoying the night. The fire flares brightly for a brief moment, and then, the vision fades.
Strange and eerie, the sound of your song is quickly swallowed in a deafening silence that robs your vision of all light. A strange sense of being disconnected from everything around you falls upon you, and your senses are bereft of anything to feed them. Out of the darkness, a sanguine handprint moves towards you and eclipses your vision with its light for a brief moment before it is gone.
Your vision swims with the passage of trees to your left and right. Glancing around, you find yourself at the forefront of a wagon as it moves down a dirt road towards a set of town gates. At the entrance, children and adults alike swarm to greet you, their excitement at your return clearly defined upon their faces. You move through the streets towards the center of town and hail everyone that greets you as you jump down to set the brake on the wheel. Moments later, the vision fades.
Dropping in cadence, your song is mixed with another that reaches to high arias that are pure and light. Your vision unfolds with the sight of a lovely woman standing beside a stage, her song matching the dance of a pair of marionettes - that of a Troll and a Sprite - dancing through a backdrop of autumn leaves. Perched above the stage, a young girl grins down at the singer and waits for some hidden prompt from her. A wink into the rafters is all the child needs, and she weaves a quick spell that creates a cascade of fiery sparks in the air. The sparks ignite cheers from the surrounding crowd, and your vision fades into their brilliant light.
Your vision flutters with your song, and the swaying of lantern illuminates your vision. Rough walls give definition to the wagon where all but two are sleeping in the bunks that are built into the walls. A raven-haired girl sits in the lap of an older man as he quietly whispers to her some tale of far-off places. The child watches with mesmerized eyes as the man takes up mask after mask to tell his animated tale. His story ends, and he carefully picks her up into his arms and, kissing her brow as he moves, lays her quietly in an empty bunk. As her eyes flutter closed, your vision fades.
Colorful pennants flutter across your vision, the ripple of the cloth moving in cadence with the song you weave. Before you, a crowd stretches out around a cobblestone square where their attention is drawn to a wooden wagon which has a bright purple banner on it that boldly proclaims it as "Dame Cirri Strut's Mayhem Troupe". As your vision begins to fade, the side of the wagon unfolds to create a curtain-shrouded stage.
Blackness steals your vision for the briefest of moments, and your ears ring with the tempo of your song, which quickly dissolves into the sound of clapping hands. Lights come up on a stage set into the side of a wagon, and a pair of marionettes playfully dances upon it in comical fashion. All around you, the crowd laughs, and you feel the merriment and wonder of the performance. The act, as well as your vision, ends with a Maiden marionette in the arms of the Knight marionette.
Dancing in time with your song, a light zephyr briefly obscures your vision. As it clears, you see a cobblestone square littered with loose pennants and streamers. Within the heart of the plaza, a stage begins to fold up into the side of a wagon, and moments later, it quietly makes its way out of town. Shortly after, the wagon is on the main road heading out of town and towards its next theatrical venue.