Friends At The Table

This episode carries content warnings for insect infestation, detailed description of insect infestation of an enclosed space, detailed description of insects on skin.  A day in the market can be a joy for even those who do not aim to barter. The sights and sounds, the smells, the tastes! A reprieve from travel, even if just from travel through life. But also, it is a way to see the passions of others made material, and of course an opportunity for chance encounters to reshape one’s day, week, even life. What wonders will the oldest marketplace in Sangfielle, the wallside town of Cantbank, offer the Blackwick group? And where will they go next. This week on Sangfielle: Passage on the Jade Moon Pt. 3 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Cantbank: A long time ago, the story goes, Aldnomina set its sights on the heartland. Conquest, colonization, and consolidation. Well, turns out that the Heartland has many a mighty thing inside of it. And one such thing had many a favorite place. And it set out, so it is

This episode carries content warnings for injury that affects mobility, aggressive animals, animal consumption of human flesh, insect infestation, bodily infection, and a description of a gory transformation. The Jade Moon’s trip from the sea of Sapodilla back upriver towards Blackwick has a set schedule. 14 days, all accounted for. Meals prepared. Entertainment provided. A small number of stops for shopping, religious needs, and the general stretching of legs. And yet it is the case that some days are longer than others, no matter that they count one each. The day that most of the Blackwick Group, and a new companion, stepped out of the Jade Moon and into the Triadic Pyre’s Bridge Cathedral is one such day. This week on Sangfielle: Passage on the Jade Moon Pt. 2 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places The Bridge Cathedral: In the hierarchy of all trains--or is it perhaps capitalized, I do not recall--there is one engine that storms ahead of the others. "The Burning God Among Iron Trains" is its name, but t

This episode carries content warnings for description of a burn injury, injury causing limited motor skills, lack of access to medical care, insect infestation, bodily infection.  Among Sangfielle’s self-proclaimed adventuring class, the idea of retiring to a riverboat ride is something of an old canard. Everyone says they’ll do it one day, but very few ever speak of actually completing such a post-venture vacation. Something always comes up. A scheduling error, or a last minute change in ticket pricing, or another job crossing the desk. Perhaps none have been as lucky as the Blackwick Group. Perhaps none have had friends in such high places.  This week on Sangfielle: Passage on the Jade Moon Pt. 1 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful

This episode carries content warnings for gun violence, forced human experimentation, imprisonment, the implied separation of mentally/spiritually joined people, description of human bones. Oh, our Blackwick Group. They move below even "the depths of Sapodilla" now, to a place where cold stone floors drift apart, revealing muck and raw emptiness where mortar should be. And beyond that, a clockwork device like none they've ever seen. Yet even as they draw closer to their goals, she watches and waits for her opportunity to strike: the tangled madame of the House of Puppets, Mabriella du Feza... This week on Sangfielle: Hark! The Citadel Beneath Pt. 4 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organization called the Glim Macu

This episode carries content warnings for forced human experimentation, teeth, chemical burns, forced bodily transformation. The Blackwick Group moves with hound-like swiftness through the Interred Citadel towards their quarry. But between the dog and the fox, a dozen-dozen things move. A mumbling stream. A twirl of dried leaves. Shadows on grass. So much to see. And some of the things in between? They hunt too. This week on Sangfielle: Hark! The Citadel Beneath Pt. 3 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organization called the Glim Macula has grown in power there, owing to the city’s focus on furthering “civilization.” Objects of Interest Notes On the Paradise Medicine: A collection of research notes from Hollowfiel

This episode carries content warnings for imprisonment, forced starvation, human body parts used as tools, bones breaking through skin, unwilling bodily transformation, and bodily disfigurement. With the party of Open Gates off to a start above, the Blackwick Group’s Es, Marn, and Pickman begin to delve into the Interred Citadel of Callix, The Aquiline Marquis. Somewhere, there in the dark, Chine claws their way towards freedom.  But before he can be free, and before anyone can return home to Blackwick, there is much work to be done in the decrepit ruins below… This week on Sangfielle: Hark! The Citadel Beneath Pt. 2 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organization called the Glim Macula has grown in power there, owi

This episode carries content warnings for imprisonment, gun violence, kidnapping, blindfolding, binding, blood, branding, and the cutting of skin. Once a year, people gather across Sapodilla to celebrate the day, hundreds of years ago, that the Citadel of Callix, The Aquiline Marquis, was brought low and the doors to the city were thrown open, welcoming in refugees from the panic. It is called The Open Gates, and all day and night, music, meter, and meal fill the day and night with merriment. Held breaths are released, rivalries relaxed, and a common pride blossoms. A fitting occasion for a jail break, don’t you think? This week on Sangfielle: Hark! The Citadel Beneath Pt. 1 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organizati

This episode carries content warnings for insect infestation of a human body, death, injury that affects motor skills, self-inflicted knife wound, blood, flesh eating creature, human sacrifice, and detailed integration of human and machine parts. In the dark acreage under Pledge House, Duvall, Lyke, and Virtue confront the unthinkable. But like all unthinkable things, it begs to be thought through, to be considered, to be turned around in one’s mind. There, it lashes and grows and reaches, wooing and harming in equal part. Until, finally, the unthinkable isn’t. It is instead all that can be thought. It is an identifying scar. It is raw opportunity. It is the only thing that matters.  This week on Sangfielle: The Perpetual Oratorio of Davia Pledge Pt. 5 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of cul

This episode content warnings for insect infestation of a human body, death, murder, human sacrifice, surgery, detailed integration of human and machine parts. A concert hall shakes with rage and burns with fire's echo as just yards away, steeling themselves for what is to come, Duvall, Lyke, and Virtue descend below the haunted framework of Pledge House. But how could they ever be prepared for what they'd find, and what it would compel them to do? This week on Sangfielle: The Perpetual Oratorio of Davia Pledge Pt. 4 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organization called the Glim Macula has grown in power there, owing to the city’s focus on furthering “civilization.” Pledge House: A mysterious manor in Sapodilla’s Hibis

This episode content warnings for insect infestation of a human body, hallucinations, destructive fire, people trapped during fire, implied death. Across every district of Sapodilla, the Glim Macula's crackdown continues, "justifying" their increased presence with the recent deaths of two customs guards. Heritrixes and other's touched by the Heartland's truth continue to go missing. The moon grows ever longer. This city is a held breath. But for those with the wealth or connections to attend Davia Pledge's return to public performance, release seems only nights away. And they are half-right: The grand re-opening of the Pledge House Concert Hall will certainly be an exhalation, of a sort. This week on Sangfielle: The Perpetual Oratorio of Davia Pledge Pt. 3 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of

This episode content warnings for insect infestation of a human body, involuntary unconsciousness caused by violence, restraints, police violence, death, flesh-eating creature, and blood. It wasn't supposed to go like this. It was just a quick stop at the Night Library to research a few topics of interest, a little legwork before the real action begins. But the gates of the Glim Macula are not opened by intent alone. Thus it is that Duvall, Lyke, and Virtue must now face down a quintet of the Macula's most fearsome investigators with the wall to their backs, a deep pit of knowledge below, and light itself turned against them. This week on Sangfielle: The Perpetual Oratorio of Davia Pledge Pt. 2 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witc

This episode content warnings for insect infestation of a human body, knives, fire, police violence, the mention of blood, and mention of mass death by fire.  Sapodilla shutters early today. The Macula is in the street, looking for even more blood than usual. And yet three of those they’re looking for—the vampire Virtue Mondegreen, the newly waxen Duvall, and the associatively guilty Lye Lyken—are prowling the city in their own hunt, in search of a secretive library. Can they find their way towards the knowledge they seek, or will they stumble into view of their pursuers first? This week on Sangfielle: The Perpetual Oratorio of Davia Pledge Pt. 1 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields. In recent years, the powerful witch hunting organization called the Glim Macula has

This episode content warnings for skin wounds, body transformation, insect infestation of a a human body, disappearances of members of a marginalized group, imprisonment, physical restraint, torture, aggressive interrogation, psychological abuse, mind control, impersonation/memory manipulation, direct touching of brain, interior probing via ear. On the other side of Sapodilla’s grand colonial wall, the Blackwick Group filter out into the streets and alleys of the heartland’s largest city. A few investigators seek healing, others guidance. One finds a new bodily self altogether.  And one, of course, has not made it through the walls at all. Or at least not entirely. No. They’ve found themself in the perilous dark, in the glutches (or at least under the gaze) of the Glim Macula. Yes. Chine knows things. And they know he knows things. It is only a matter of time before they open him up. This week on Sangfielle: Whispers in the City by the Sea The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not th

This episode carries content warnings for aggressive interrogation, psychological abuse, physical detention, discussion of drowning, blood, death, loss of bodily control, mind control, and insect infestation of a human body.  Sapodilla has always been the sort of city that finds its way into the heart of a story. A place in touch with its seaside bearing, colored by the sun’s reflection against the water. A place where high towers rise at the corners of high walls, cutting the metropolis into little puzzle pieces. And centuries ago, during the panic, when the petty local lords who’d conquered Sangfielle fled and left behind those they’d chained, Sapodilla became the best kind of place: a refuge. It’s ancient gates opened, its people overruled the rulers and waved banners of welcome from the parapets and invited in all kinds of folk to escape calamity, to recover, and to rebuild.  What they built was new: A social cornucopia by the shore. Unfortunately, that Sapodilla ain’t with us anymore.  So proud of what w

This episode carries content warnings for death, experimentation on a person, loss of consciousness and bodily control, magical captivity, and forced bodily transformation. In Sangfielle, it’s rare enough to find an answer to a mystery, and rarer still to find one with the clarity and quality needed to convince someone else that it is, in fact, an answer at all. Such is the case with Lye Lychen, Pickman, and Duvall here in Bell Metal Station. Yes, they have a truth—a Truth even, with a capital T—but to those on the outside, it looks and feels like something else. Too impossible, too painful, too volatile to be the truth. But it always is. And it is in this moment of volatility that, for the first time, the Blackwick Group can see something larger take shape. Something with the sort of fatal and formative force that transforms pleasant parts into uneasy wholes. This week on Sangfielle: What Happened at Bell Metal Station Pt. 4 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Bell Metal Station: The broad, 10 story ta

This episode carries content warnings for description of corpses and death by burning, the discussion of mind control, serious bruising, and the loss of motor skills.    Welcomed into Bell Metal Station, Lye Lychen finds himself separated from his compatriots by miles, but it is a gap in information that makes him truly distant. While the junk mage tries to complete a puzzle despite a missing piece, Duvall and Pickman instead find themselves looking at an unexpected extra. As the sun begins to rise in the plains north of Sapodilla, things begin to come into focus. But sometimes, the light only brings more questions. This week on Sangfielle: What Happened at Bell Metal Station Pt. 3 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Bell Metal Station: The broad, 10 story tall station that the Bell Metal Band operates out of. Hard, metal-reinforced stonework. Scaffolding on scaffolding. Wood and leather and old picture frames. A middle space between laboratory, bunker,  and den. Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest c

This episode carries content warnings for insect infestation of a human, bodily transformation, description of organs and interior of a body, serious bruising, loss of motor skills, vomit, temporal disorientation, and death. So far, so good. Lyke, Duvall, and Pickman navigated a skeletal riddle, drove away some uncanny engineers, and connected with a monster hunter who veers towards the monstrous herself. Normal, at least in so far as this particular tale of the abnormal goes, anyway. But now they’ve turned south towards Bell Metal station, and soon enough the strange will get stranger. Things could have gone differently here, stayed on script, so to speak. But the Blackwick Group is never happier than when taking things from an unpredictable angle. Ain’t that what makes them so charming? This week on Sangfielle: What Happened at Bell Metal Station Pt. 2 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Bell Metal Station: The broad, 10 story tall station that the Bell Metal Band operates out of. Hard, metal-reinforc

This episode carries content warnings for insects and the insect infestation of a human, the depiction of a supernaturally bubbling and oil-like skin, and a mention of blood. To say that this particular story starts off in a strange way would be the underselling of a lifetime. But that’s how things are sometimes. Sometimes, in pursuit of a missing eggsac--which we know isn’t even in this direction--an unlikely trio sets off towards an abandoned town, and on the way finds themselves at the wrong end of blade and riddle. Yet by the end of it all, in stories like this, they find themselves confronted with horrors physical and existential. So it goes in Sangfielle. So it goes. Today on Sangfielle: What Happened at Bell Metal Station The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Sapodilla: One of, if not the, largest city inside of the walls of Concentus. Sapodilla rests on the western shore of the vast lake that takes up much of southeastern Sangfielle, and prizes itself as the rare hub of culture in the bloodfields.

This episode contains content warnings for violence, eye and bodily transformation, bodily experimentation, mind control, and the eating of glass (without harm). Sometimes you think you've got it all figured out, and rightly so. You've done your due dilligence, crossed your T's and dotted your I's, asked all the right questions to all the right people. And its these specific cases when you are most taken by surprise with the truth of the thing. It goes without saying that the case Yellowfield Candle Company is one such endeavor. The truth slips through the fingers, and only one thing’s for sure: it’s a wax house, baby—we all just live in it. This week on Sangfielle: The Candle Factory Pt. 3 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Yellowfield: Before the Panic this little valley of yellow flowers was the territory of a petty wizard and the subjects he frightened or beguiled. He called it his Xanthic Demesne, but these days we just call it Yellowfield. In the center of the valley, there’s a candle factory, an

This episode carries content warnings for discussion of a missing person, depiction of a bound and wounded person, and brief depiction of torture. From the heights of the stilted shrine of Kitankro, the valley of Yellowfield is a soporific refuge from the rest of Sangfielle. Absent are the dustorms, the chimeric creatures, and sharp shapes of bonewashed geology. Instead, the wind blows through and endless field of yellow. Little figures move to and fro, between factory and farmhouse. Even the trains arrive at an easy glide below, predictable and safe. Yes, from the heights of the stilted shrine of Kitankro, the valley of Yellowfield looks quite nice indeed. This week on Sangfielle: The Candle Factory Pt. 2 The Almanac of the Heartland Rider Places Yellowfield: Before the Panic this little valley of yellow flowers was the territory of a petty wizard and the subjects he frightened or beguiled. He called it his Xanthic Demesne, but these days we just call it Yellowfield. In the center of the valley, there’s a ca