The Balican Crier, Issue 18

About the Crier
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Jostus made his way through an unusually crowded Balican Common on this sweltering day. Having just returned from a long caravan trip to Tyr, including an extended stay to negotiate prices for iron, Jostus was more than happy to return to his beloved home city again. The only change he noticed in the common was two extra vendors, one selling cembric-spiced meats and another selling orange flavored water, a rarity in the city due to the scarcity of citrus fruit.

Taking his place at the north end of the Common, he began.

"Greetings, friends!" he shouted, getting the crowd's attention. A few in the crowd raised their hand in greeting to him. "As always, it is good to be home. First of all, I probably do not need to announce the start of Orenasenfest, but I will nevertheless. The festival begins tomorrow and, as always, it will be opened with a ceremonial breaking of the beast head at the arena, so bring the children. And of course, Aldanstat will be returning to defend is title of Spearmaster."

"Next, an announcement, the release of a new batch of Silver Brew by House Stenethes is now available. A tasting party will be held tonight at the Golden Cup to allow you to sample, in my opinion, the finest brew in Balic." A voice called out "Here, here!", and Jostus smiled as he saw the source of the shout was the owner of the Golden Cup.

"Finally, the Angry Mekillot is ready to depart for ports north of Balic, and they are still taking cargo and passengers if you are in need of passage. Contact Captain Kohvlees if you have interest."

"And with a hearty thank you, I depart," Jostus concluded. With his speech finished, he entered the Balican Common dining area to visit the new vendors and converse with old friends.

Behind the Scenes

Orenasenfest is a festival to commemorate Orenasen, a templar hero who led a successful campaign against a beast head giant tribe 400 years ago. The festival is celebrated with combat in the arena, contests, and a variety of foods inspired by those eaten by the giants on the islands to the east of the city. The concluding event, and the most prestigious contest of the festival, is the javelin throw. The javelins are hurled at a wood and cloth beast head, the exact animal which is used as the model changing from year to year. The winner of this contest is known as the Spearmaster and wins 200 ceramics.