So my wife's PK's manor is in Winterbourne Stoke. The eastern reaches of the manor are full of tumuli, and encompass the famous Long Barrow Crossroads, just west of Stonehenge. We're eight years into the GPC and I've been wanting to have a little fun with these instead of sending the PK's off as envoys to Malahaut, or wherever, in 493. So I've developed some intrigue around one of the mounds that stands quite apart from all the others, yet lies just a mile and half, as the crow flies, from the manor house.

Basically, the Praetor Syagrius is back in Britain, riding around with a silver mask on and leading a band of brigands. Looks much like this chap:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/marechal-jacques/3349432608/in/pool-reconstruccionhistorica/

No one knows the identity of this "Silver Centurion," except a very few of Uther's less-than-loyal subjects, who provide financing and a hiding place when things get too hot. The PK's brother (whom I'm setting up as a recurring villain) has joined the Praetor's outlaw band and together they defiled Prince Madoc's grave and tried to break into one of the burial chambers, hoping to find some of the rumored gold therein. Well, the plan goes awry when a couple of nasty traps are enough to put the would-be tomb raiders off, but the PK gets wind of it. So he's going to go investigate the mound that they partially broke into to see if he can get any clues as to who these villains are — who's the masked Roman, and why's his brother riding with him? Why are they breaking into the barrows, and failing there, why did they try to kidnap the PK's wife while he was away? (Turns out she was, too — luckily).

I'm thinking of the people that built the mounds, and lo and behold comes this article from The Independent.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/fourthousand-year-old-goldadorned-skeleton-found-near-windsor-8581819.html?origin=internalSearch

4400 years ago! So awesome. Since I can make these mounds be whatever crazy stuff I want them to be, I'm thinking of introducing some of the Cthulhu mythos (my wife's a fan) in the way of "bizarre carvings" on the tomb walls, etc. I have a very simple (three-room) dungeon crawl in mind, and it will be interesting how my wife handles it. Will the PK send in retainers to investigate what happened inside? Will he crawl into the very small entry tunnels himself to have a looksee? Will he seal up the mound when he's done? I don't mean to be heavy handed with the Lovecraft stuff — just a taste. Maybe I'll introduce another glimpse of this long-dead (or is it?) British cult in the future.

Or maybe it's not the Praetor at all, but someone who wants everyone to think it's the Praetor. Don't know yet — that's what keeps this fun, from a GM perspective.


T.

4400 years ago! So awesome. Since I can make these mounds be whatever crazy stuff I want them to be, I'm thinking of introducing some of the Cthulhu mythos (my wife's a fan) in the way of "bizarre carvings" on the tomb walls, etc. I have a very simple (three-room) dungeon crawl in mind, and it will be interesting how my wife handles it. Will the PK send in retainers to investigate what happened inside? Will he crawl into the very small entry tunnels himself to have a looksee? Will he seal up the mound when he's done? I don't mean to be heavy handed with the Lovecraft stuff — just a taste. Maybe I'll introduce another glimpse of this long-dead (or is it?) British cult in the future.



Wonder how long it'll be before somebody starts hypothesizing that Merlin's another half-human spawn of Yog-Sothoth, like Wilbur Whateley (tying that in with his precociousness as a child and his hairiness according to the French Merlin romances - with the possibility that the hairiness is just a cover for more horrible bodily anormalities).

The individual, aged around 40, was buried, wearing a necklace of folded sheet gold, amber and lignite beads, just a century or two after the construction of Stonehenge some 60 miles to the south-west. Even the buttons, thought to have been used to secure the upper part of her now long-vanished burial garment, were made of amber. She also appears to have worn a bracelet of lignite beads.

The existence of "buttons" is much more interesting if true. they were invented for the first time in the world by the Flemish during the 14th century. I really want to see the evidence that they were just not some sort of decorative spangle sewn on. Ty for bring this news up Talien.