A week has passed since my AMAZING game of "Thou Art But A Warrior..." at the Portland, OR Indie Hurricane Event, set in Anna Kreider's setting hack for Polaris.

As it says at Anna's website: "the backdrop for Thou Art But A Warrior is the beginning of the Reconquista - the expansion of Christian armies into Muslim Spain at the beginning of the Crusades."

I don't have perfect memory of all the names and details, but what a joy to play! Lukas facilitated the game (and played Omar), Jordan played Faruq, Ogre played (argh! Don't remember!), I played Agapeto.

I love the relentlessness of Polaris, the hungry demons nipping at your heels, your weaknesses constantly laid bare, all your good intentions, because of their naiveté, paving the way to hell stone by stone.

I also personally have a deep respect for the unique culture of Islam that flowered in Muslim Spain before the Reconquista. In many ways, living in the amazing castle towns and tiny kingdoms in those days, more than any other setting, matches what I think of as 'high fantasy', when civic works (sanitation!), literacy, knowledge, and magic all came together. Those muslim guys did amazing things, and with tolerance and openness barely recognizable to our stereotyped perceptions of modern Muslims.

Anna's setting matched perfectly then, the theme of Polaris: the tragic downfall of things too beautiful and wondrous and perfect to last.

She also added a little event meter, where every time someone (anyone!) failed an experience check, we came that much closer to one of (4?) major turning-point events determined by the setting, that we must immediately set a scene for. This worked so well! It seems like a natural part of Polaris, and I think I heard somewhere that Ben wished he had thought of it himself.

Our story had plenty of awesome demon vs. protagonist struggles. Ogre's demon, Sir Godfrey, ended up a worthwhile enough opponent that Ogre's knight could not help but respect and honor him, undermining his own zeal for the world of the taifa. Faruq's disgust at his hash-addicted father, a former knight, now blind and crippled, grew and writhed as the serpent of hate and derision swelled within him, causing him to raise a hand against his own flesh and blood. Slithering out the door, the invisible demon once dwelling in his belly, left a hollow place of despair and shame. Faruq's request to have his father removed from the palace constitued a major plot element, undermining the moral standing of the Emir (who turned a blind eye as his royal son consented to the removal). All of Zaragoza knew their leadership had lost something, when they heard the news of such loss and disrespect for filial piety.

Little time passed before the Emir's son, in such a climate, saw no reason why he should not also evict his own father from the palace...with poison as a tool...

Meanwhile, Ogre's knight met Sir Godfrey in one on one combat, far away from the protective walls of the Emir's city, their paramours filling the role of seconds...

Agapeto, a converted spanish catholic, who always had to work harder to prove himself than the blooded muslims, in secret accepted the nomination to assassinate the Emir's son at the state funeral for the beloved ruler. For who would look further for blame, than the low morality of a foreign convert? Those no muslim would have blood on their hands, and some peace would return....

That day, amidst the sea of black robed mourners, wailing and gnashing teeth, the great procession of nobles and the Emir's coffin, came abreast of Agapeto's position in the crowd lining the street.

Breaking free of the crush, he rushed the Emir, knife flashing...

We couldn't possibly finish the whole story, but at least one person reached Veteran status. Whew! I can't tell you how many ooh's and aaah's I heard around the table. So cool.

Thanks Anna for your fantastic setting! It makes me want to try it out on all my non-story-gamer history-buff friends!

My Character was named Suhail.

I really loved this game.

I'm really excited to hear that the playtest went so well, and happy that there was excitement about the setting.

I got some really great feedback from both Lukas and Willem, so thanks, guys!

~Anna Kreider