Elf bows; Peaceful Cut

From: Neil Smith <NSMITH_at_dmu.ac.uk>
Date: Thu, 30 May 1996 13:15:47 GMT


Ian Gorlick posted some details of how elf bows are grown -- I like it. Also, I think that the bow string is similar to a muscle. Normally, it is long so the bow is relaxed. But when commanded, the string shortens and this curls the bow, effectively "stringing" it.

And keep the Morokanth stuff coming!

But on to the main point. As I'm starting a Praxian campaign soon, I got to wondering how the Peaceful Cut ceremony is actually performed. These are my thoughts.

The owner of the animal to be slaughtered (normally a woman) selects the animal from her herd. She approaches the animal and starts to sing a special song to it, to tell the animal what a good beast it is and how all the clan is greatful for its sacrifice to the people. This song calms the animal and the woman leads it away to the waiting butcher.

Meanwhile, the butcher has selected the spot where the animal will be killed. This should be out of site of the rest of the herds (a gully is ideal) and preferably is somewhere devoid of plants. The butcher has assembled the tools he needs: the hobble-strap, the razor, the bowl, the hoe, and the axe [1]. He takes the animal from the woman at the point where the animal can no longer see the herd. At this point, the animal is considered dead by the woman and the rest of the clan.

The butcher takes the animal to the place of slaughter, singing a calming song. He hobbles the animal so that it cannot move and then chants to the animal to prepare it for its journey back to Mother Erithra [2]. When the time is right, the butcher says, "The Covenant of Waha is that some must die so others may live. You will die and I will live!" and slits the animal's throat with the razor [3]. The blood is allowed to spill to the ground, to provide the sustenance that will allow plants to grow in this spot in the future, to feed more animals.

After a few seconds [4], the animal is pushed onto its side and its neck placed over the bowl to collect the rest of the blood (it may be emptied periodically into a pitcher). As the blood drains away, the animal's spirit becomes concentrated in its tail. Once the bleeding has stopped, the butcher uses the hoe to dig a pit in the blood-soaked earth and cuts off its tail with a single stroke of the axe. The tail is buried with a prayer to speed the animal's spirit to Mother Erithra. Once this is done, the butchering of the carcass can start.

[1] These tools of death are some of a Praxian man's most precious
posessions. Good ones are passed down from father to son.

[2] Rules note: this singing counts as Ceremony time to increase the
butcher's Craft: Butchery skill, at a rate of one minute per increment.

[3] Rules note: this is the casting of the Peaceful Cut spell.

[4] The longer the animal is allowed to bleed onto the ground, the
better luck the tribe will have, but the less food is obtained from the animal. In times of extreme distress, all the animal's blood is allowed to drain away.

Comments? A better version of the Words of Butchery would be nice.

Neil.


Neil Smith                           E-mail:   nsmith_at_dmu.ac.uk
Junior Research Fellow, Computer Sci. Tel: (01908) 695511 x4145 De Montfort University, Milton Keynes Fax: (01908) 834948  http://www.mk.dmu.ac.uk/depts/dcis/research/res_rep/ken.htm

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