Fri Oct 04, 2019 3:33 pm  
How do you solve a problem like Orcreich?

Was reading the Coins and Scrolls blog (Worth checking out if you're not familiar) and a campaign outline they brainstorming made me think of Orcreich. It involves the Alexander Romance, which is a fantastical telling of the story of Alexander, written in the 4th century, and translated and edited through the 16th century. It also wormed its way into the Apocalypse of Pseudo-Methodius, which is an apocryphal book of the New Testament. Here's the section that inspired me --

Philip, father of the king of kings Alexander, was a Macedonian, and whom did Philip take for wife? Cusheth, daughter of King PIl of the Cushites. And from her there was born King Alexander of the Macedonians. He built the great Alexandria and ruled in it twelve years. He went down to the East and killed Darius the Mede and conquered many places. And he marched round the earth and descended to the East and went as far as the sea called Fire of the Sun. And he saw there nations filthy and ugly to look at, who were sons of Japheth. And when he saw the abominable deeds which they were doing—they ate the vermin of the earth, mice and dogs and kittens, and they did not enshroud and bury their dead, and the embryos which the women aborted they ate as if it were some delicacy—and when Alexander saw their abominable deeds, he called God to his aid. And he assembled and expelled them and their wives and their sons, and all of their camps he expelled from the East.

And he placed them and enclosed them from the ends of the North inside the entrance which is the gate of the world from the North, and there is no other entrance nor outlet from the uttermost part of the world from East to West. And King Alexander prayed before God and God hearkened unto him. And God commanded the mountains called Sons of the North, and they drew near each other to a distance of no more than twelve cubits. And he [Alexander] made a gate of brass and anointed it on the inner side with Taseqtis. If one applies iron in order to open it, one does not affect it. And if one wants to melt it by fire, it quenches the fire brought near to it because the nature of Taseqtis is not affected by iron, nor by the operation of demons. Also not even fire can destroy it at all if it is applied to it, for these Unclean Nations who were imprisoned inside used all the wickedness of witchcraft. And through these two mighty things he brought to nought their entire activity so that neither through iron nor through the operation of evil spirits could it be opened before them and they depart and corrupt men and defile the earth. But at the end of the ages, as was the saying of the prophet Ezekiel which was prophesied concerning them, saying: In the end of times, at the end of the world, the followers of Agog and of Magog will come out upon the land of Israel.

Not sure where to go from here, but it does make me think of some plots and is inspiration for the article on the Romance of Azor'alq I started writing over a decade ago and couldn't figure out where to go with.