Posted on by Magnus Seter

The imperfect jigsaw

The accounts of life in Altdorf are many and varied. Taken together they speak of wretched slums and indulgant luxuries, steam powered engineering marvels and mystical winds of magic, of high and low. It’s the imperfect jigsaw of a city seething with life and passions, filled with dreams come true and nightmares come to life, uplifting hope and crushing despair, and I can never hope to paint one true picture of the city. I can offer glimpses, I can lay the puzzle with a myriad of pieces. But I can never paint the whole picture, never show the endless layers of life that lie beneath the surface. So I’m sad to realise that my work will be just one voice in a crowd of others.

Adolphus Altdorfer
Festag, Nachexen 4, 2522 IC

Much like Adolphus, I can only hope to cover bits and pieces of Altdorf. That is one of the reasons I chose a blog as a vehicle for this task, since it is eminent for laying out little pieces one at a time. But I have to limit my scope, I have to decide what goes into my entries, who to describe and what to cover.

At its roots this blog comes from the work I do preparing my own WFRP campaign. So that campaign will be the basis for everything I do. And I have made some … let’s say … non-canon … decisions which will influence this blog. High magic is right out. So I will not cover the colleges as they appear in Realms of Sorcery. I will not cover magic as a common occurrence in Altdorf. If I touch upon magic, it will be as a force unknown and feared. Halflings are gone, they don’t exist. Elves are fantastically rare (rumoured to be a race of vampiric ghosts). Chaos is a threat, but I emphasise an enemy within, rather than a storm of chaos.

So 99% of the NPCs you will see here will be humans. The occasional dwarf, like Krag Jorgensen the famed dwarven weaponsmith, will make appearences and become a part of my jigsaw puzzle. Also, the subplots (of which I already have hinted at) will mostly concern human behaviour and implications of that. With the taint of chaos ever present, of course.

Magnus

Posted on by Magnus Seter

Say hello to Professor Gutbelesen

As I sit down at my makeshift desk I can’t help to wonder how all this is going to turn out. The wind outside the window is harsh and unforgiving, much as I have experienced Altdorf since I came here a scant three days ago. I miss the peace and warmth of Middenheim … or at least the Middenheim that was before the Storm of Chaos broke. Now … not so much. There is filth and despair and war all over the Empire. What will the new year bring? At least now I have a roof over my head. Very close to my head actually. After lugging my suitcases to the University I met with Emeritus Gutbelesen, the Professor of Societal Studies in Altdorf. He was in a mean temper, and very dismayed that I had showed up four days early. He even seemed somewhat discomforted, and when I asked if I could have access to my office even though I was somewhat early, a look of panic passed over his features. I’m not sure what that means, but he told me that the office was being rebuilt after an explosive accident, and that his regards for my safety demanded that I wasn’t allowed until Wellentag 13. That is 10 days from now. I tried to persuade him to let me have a look myself, but he insisted on me waiting for the room to be properly repaired. Instead he showed me up a rickety staircase to one of the myriads of towers that crown the University. Gutbelesen produced a huge keychain from under his velvet cloaks and unlocked a solid door which led to a small and dusty attic. This was to be my home until I could find a more suitable accommodation. He left me there, with an old desk, a handful of candles and a bed with a rock hard mattress for company. I unpacked as much as I could, after hauling my luggage from the bottom floor to the top of the spire all my myself. Actually, I find the University strangely empty and devoid of life. For sure, I startled Gutbelesen when I finally found him, so it seems most staff and stundents are off for holidays. Well, lonely and cramped as my room is, at least the view over Altdorf is unrivalled. I have windows in all four directions, and I hope to spy more of the capital once the sun comes up tomorrow.

Adolphus Altdorfer
Angestag, Nachexen 3, 2522 IC