Elemental Connection Interlude
You spend the rest of the day of your arrival considering how you can most effectively use your time at Razor Hill. You have three upcoming issues. Firstly, whether you'll be permitted to remain in the clan after you return to Orgrimmar. You don't think you'll be exiled as you're at least a competent fighter which any clan would be foolish to turn away, but your return is linked to the second issue, whether you'll be permitted to remain in your current position as your father's heir. The last issue is the least important, the Flamebender's Tome and the question of who'll possess it in future.
The most important thing to avoid exile, retain your position, and finally to keep hold of the Tome is to impress your father. Having decided that the question becomes how to do this as you father is unlike other orcs in several respects. Firstly, he's fairly young for a clan chief, and he's also a warlock, though he wasn't among the Shadow Council. He values strength like all orcs do, but he values strength in unusual places, magical strength and hidden knowledge. He's not a scholar, if there is such a thing among your people, but he knows the value of learning.
You immediately discount your skill with weapons, though impressive for your age it's not significantly better than other trained warriors. You have a few other skills but none of them particularly impressive, leaving your connection to the Elements.
The connection is weak at the moment, too weak to be chosen by the Shaman of the Valley of Trials for further training, and you'd managed to insult the Darkspear when you tried to learn shamanism from them. You got the distinct impression what other shaman were being taught was different from that which you'd begun to pick up from the Flamebender's Tome, but then again the Tome originated from another world so differences were to be expected.
You have enough reagents to craft two Saptas, one of Fire and the other of Earth. You know you need to drink them in a holy place, or at least one strong in elemental energy, and then battle the Elemental spirit of that place to claim some token from it. After that you'll need to fashion a totem to hold the bound spiritual energy of the defeated Elemental. If you accomplish all of that you'll have to spend some time mastering the new bond with the bound Elemental to more easily draw on its power, and the power of its native place on the Elemental Plane.
Finding accoutrements for the Sapta is easy, Orcs almost without fail respect shaman and after a brief explanation you're furnished with a small cauldron, mortar, pestle and other items. Durotar is a dry land of canyons and broken mountains and you know this will affect the Elementals you might encounter. No doubt an island, snowy tundra, or jungle would have different types of Elementals than here.
The Spirit of Fire
For the Sapta of Fire you take a stoppered clay bottle of a black tar, gunpowder and charcoal and brew it steadily, mediating over the vapours, calling on the Spirit of Fire as the Flamebender's Tome directs. After hours the potion has reduced and you ceremonially pour it out over the fire, stir the coals and wait for other mixture to burn off, then before the fire dies you take one of the coals quickly and grind it in the mortar before mixing them with a weak beer (which was the only alcohol you could find at short notice). After the grains have dissolved the Sapta of Fire is ready.
In which holy place do you consume the Sapta of Fire and open your soul to the Elements? Each place will have an Elemental spirit of its own and the character, constitution and power of the Elemental will be determined by its dwelling place.
[ ] The town's central firepit
[ ] Near the braziers of the gate guards
[ ] Atop a local mountain
[ ] On the plains of southern Durotar
[ ] By the main forge of Razor Hill
[ ] Beneath a lightning-struck tree
[ ] By the town's wood store
[Write in] You decide to seek out another holy place
If you overcome the Fire Elemental you must bind its essence into a totem, this totem will both grant you a measure of the bound Fire Elemental's power, as well as enhancing your natural connection to the Elementals of Azeroth, meaning with your totem you'll be able to sense the Spirit of Fire more readily and call on Fire Elementals in other places.
What item will you fashion this totem into? You've read of metal Earth totems such as the storied Doomhammer, worn items like a feathered cloak for Air, as well as knowing about your own sword which you've determined has a lesser Fire Elemental bound to it.
[ ] Enhance your sword, you could perhaps fashion a pommel out of the totem which you think would further strengthen the sword's enchantment.
[ ] Carry the totem itself, unaltered for the moment.
[ ] Create a ring to house the totem.
[ ] A staff, you've certainly seen a few Shaman with such items.
[ ] Fashion the totem into a larger stone or metal item to be used in rituals.
[Write in] You think of something else to do with the totem.
Finally after acquiring your totem and choosing what to do with it you'll meditate and perhaps train to better wield your connection with the bound Elemental and the Firelands. You know there are various aspects of the Spirit of Fire, which do you concentrate on during your meditation?
[ ] Destruction, fire is a burning force that consumes
[ ] Transformation, fire transforms fuel into energy
[ ] Light, fire illuminates the darkness
[ ] Safety, fire represents safety and succour for yourself and others
[ ] Power, fire is a tool to be harnessed
[ ] Desire, fire is the hound that consumes
[ ] Balance, fire is a perfect balance between destruction and creation, forces in opposition, yet interdependent
[Write in] You meditate on a different aspect of Fire.
The Spirit of Earth
The Sapta of Earth has a similar recipe as that of Fire, though this time the reagents and some of the processes are different. This time you crack and powder the large hoof among the reagents, as well as mixing in several shells and small pebbles, again powdered. You mix these with a seed oil without the involvement of the cauldron and finally spread the sticky substance over another small stone, the Sapta of Earth which you must then swallow.
In which holy place do you consume the Sapta of Earth and open your soul to the Elements? Each place will have an Elemental spirit of its own and the character, constitution and power of the Elemental will be determined by its dwelling place.
[ ] The canyons of Norther Durotar
[ ] In one of the caves nearby
[ ] At the base of the town's walls
[ ] Atop a local mountain
[ ] By the main forge of Razor Hill
[ ] On a crossroads south of Razor Hill
[ ] By a large standing stone near the town
[Write in] You decide to seek out another holy place
If you overcome the Earth Elemental you must bind its essence into a totem, this totem will both grant you a measure of the bound Earth Elemental's power, as well as enhancing your natural connection to the Elementals of Azeroth, meaning with your totem you'll be able to sense the Spirit of Fire more readily and call on Earth Elementals in other places.
What item will you fashion this totem into? You've read of metal Earth totems such as the storied Doomhammer, worn items like a feathered cloak for Air, as well as knowing about your own sword which you've determined has a lesser Fire Elemental bound to it.
[ ] Enhance your sword, you could perhaps fashion a pommel out of the totem which you think would further strengthen the sword's enchantment.
[ ] Carry the totem itself, unaltered for the moment.
[ ] Create a ring to house the totem.
[ ] A staff, you've certainly seen a few Shaman with such items.
[ ] Fashion the totem into a larger stone or metal item to be used in rituals.
[Write in] You think of something else to do with the totem.
Finally after acquiring your totem and choosing what to do with it you'll meditate and perhaps train to better wield your connection with the bound Earth Elemental and Deepholm. You know there are various aspects of the Spirit of Earth, which do you concentrate on during your meditation?
[ ] Strength, earth represents the foundation of all things and is able to endure the weight of all things
[ ] Unity, a single pebble is feeble, but among its fellows it becomes a landslide
[ ] Patience, earth is the most solid of the Elements and ever-patient
[ ] Upheaval, the earth sometimes moves violently, seemingly still but actually in motion, even when you don't perceive it
[ ] Life, earth provides the conditions for life from seed to prey to hunter
[ ] Rebirth, earth represents the end of all things and their renewal
[ ] Safety, earth shelters and protects from natural caves to mighty walls
[Write in] You meditate on a different aspect of Earth.
Downtime activity
Finally after you've finished with your project, and in between when you're not actively pursuing your Shamanistic studies, what will you do? You don't intent to try out anything serious as you'll be relaxing and tired from your project.
CHOOSE 1
[ ] Socialise with the Burning Blade clan members in Razor Hill.
[ ] Socialise with the warriors of Razor Hill.
[ ] Alchemy: There are few true alchemists among the Horde, but there's apparently a human alchemist at Razor Hill. More suprisingly he's a walking corpse, could this be one of the Forsaken you've heard about?
[ ] Riding: There are wolf riders in the town. Could they be persuaded to teach you how to ride such warbeasts?
[ ] Meditate: While you can try to strengthen your precognitive abilities, you felt much closer to the Spirit of the Wild when you were fighting against the Kul Tirans, and as such you aren't sure more time mediating on your own without a teacher will help.
[ ] Flameseeing: Meditate before a fire and try and strengthen your ability to see through the flames as you had when you looked into the Kul Tiran fort.
[Write in] You relax in some other way.
Note, there are no right or even optimal answers for the elemental connection section, there are certainly more obvious paths to power, but equally more obscure ones may present interesting possibilities. I've written an infopost on shamanism so consult that or ask questions if you want to know something. I've intentionally not given all the information for the options, feel free to speculate, I may or may not answer depending on the issue. Write ins are highly encouraged as this is as much about different perspectives as it is about choosing the 'right' option. Voting is open now, and will remain so for a few days.
As ever, reasoning required for first time plans. Draft plans recommended for thread discussion. You're likely to be stuck with whatever you've got as your combat and utility magics for the next arc so perhaps write something about how you think your plan will be helpful when you get to Orgrimmar and for the ensuing chapters of the Orgimmar arc.
Oh also, to everyone who reads and leaves likes, firstly welcome, nice to have you, but do leave a comment and get involved in the story. This both improves the quality of the quest by adding to the discussion, but also bumps the thread which attracts more readers.
