Mordheim

How the Gray Sage got his name
By Gray Sage aka Lex" <[email protected]>

Some of the youngsters in the audience gathered in the tap-room of the Twisted Goat had been badgering him for a story (or two). And whereas he was not gonna tell him where he actually lived, or how old he was, this night both Iala and the young priest Kerry had overheard Omikhee calling him Ivan. Eventually Iala, after some Cups of Courage, had come over and asked him "Why does everybody call you the Gray Sage, when your name is Ivan ?".

"Well" the elderly looking scholar had replied "that is a something from my youth. And yes, young man, at one point even I have been young, although it has become hard to remember that period of my live". Then he had set his mug on the table and gathered his voice. Nearby conversations had died down, as the patrons picked up on the start of another story. "So much harder, it must be, for you all who see me here today, to ever fathom the Sage as a young boy. Still this story goes back to those days. So, sit all back, and hear this tale, of

How the Gray Sage got his name".

Ivan lived and studied at a small bardic college in a faraway place, somewhere near the Edge of the World. The Lonely Tower actually stood in a small town called Mountains Edge. Still it was one of the finest establishments of its kind. It was not a gentle life, the harsh climate and sometimes even harder taskmasters at the college took their toll, but as a side effect that created a bonding between the students at the institute that was to have its effects later on.

The classes at the college where aimed at not only ingraining the finer points of laws and customs of the Old World into the students, sometimes reluctant, brains. The practical appliance of such knowledge was also trained by having small groups of students working on specific assignments. Now the normal workings of that set-up would combine the efforts of the four fields of expertise, a Singer, a Speaker, a Champion and a Sage. Of course, all students went to the rigours of extensive cross training to determine who was best suited to what roll. And eventually where picked and trained by a Master of their Trade.

In one such exercise Ivan was teamed up with Angriff, Legus Gris and Ivanova. Now, whilst Ivan was an average student at best in any discipline, his peers were all well set upon the path of their destiny. Angriff's great voice and skill at the lute already made him a well sought after entertainer at the college's functions. Legus was well known for his oratory skills and led the debating team to many a victory and Ivanova's skills with weapons where at a level where Ivan could never hope to compete. Ivan's exploits into a varied field of competencies left him with the nickname Soulseeker. Still this diverse group found much in common. And soon their discussions and interaction led them way beyond the original assignment. They found themselves creating their own rules to simulate realities to vary the exercises. Now normally that might have led to expulsion, as no break from the established traditions was allowed. The foursome however got away with posing their anarchistic ideas, as a harmless form of pastime, a simple game called Taeg, the taking on of different roles to facilitate the training of the mind.

During their college years (and after), the group became used to regularly come together to play the Alter Ego Game. And even at college more often then not it was Ivan who took the roll of creator and moderator. And through his research into aspects of life to incorporate in their gaming, he did find his calling and became a Sage, a vessel of knowledge, a purchaser of facts and an arbitrator. Functioning as Lex he was obliged to wear the grey robes. And as he saw his role as the impartial observer foremost, he adopted that dress code as his own.

Now it came to pass in their most senior year at college, at a game led by Ivanova, that a visiting freshman student (whom they on occasion would let play), in writing down some of the information accidentally misspelled Ivan's chosen character-name `Grey Mage'. Thus the Gray Mage was born. And as the others of his group loved to tease him on his chosen style of clothes, soon after he became know as the Gray Sage.

"and that ends the story of how Ivan Soulseeker came to be known as the Gray Sage.".

At that, he had grabbed his staff, and headed for the door. Nodding at familiar faces in the room, with a friendly word here and there and waving his goodbyes to Ser Tachyon in his corner, he finally slipped into the darkness shrouded streets of Mordheim. He chuckled.. It was a good thing that he did not have to walk far, just some corners would do and take him out of sight of the Inn and most stray encounters. And then it was a small step that would take him to his familiar study in the Lonely Tower, and the fine meal his loving wife would probably have ready for him..

And of course the scolding he would get for hanging around in the tavern to long... It was a good thing that Ivy did not know the situations that his fieldtrips where taking him into, nowadays.