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[[image:Welcome Shaoman 2020.png|500px|thumb|right|A banner to the Introduction post]]
 
[[image:Welcome Shaoman 2020.png|500px|thumb|right|A banner to the Introduction post]]

Revision as of 07:07, 13 November 2020

<< Shaoman 2019

This article is a stub. A longer, more in depth article will be added at a later time.
A banner to the Introduction post

General

Shaoman 2020 was held from October 30 until November 5. The theme of the freeweek was Twisted Tales.


The introduction post - Welcome to Shaoman. Please expand to read more.

Summer came and went in the White Tower. People started wearing their thicker clothes, ready for fall and the coming winter. Summer was very calm in Tar Valon and it seemed that the events of the past Bel Tine, which had left some people completely bewildered, were largely forgotten. Novices, Recruits… and even some Aes Sedai, were showing excitement for the upcoming holiday, Shaoman.

The Browns didn’t really have much success with the odd looking ter’angreal, which was found during Bel Tine this year. They experimented with it in the safest ways possible, but couldn’t figure out how it works, or how it was made. So, now it lies in a room, hidden deep in the White Tower, so that no nosy Novice or Accepted can reach it. Even the Amyrlin Seat was seen walking through the corridors, leading to the secret room. Probably to ensure that the ter’angreal was kept secret and safe.

The day before Shaoman, Ilverin Sedai was walking from the Library to the Gray Ajah Sitting Room, when she noticed something strange happening at the end of the corridor, she was walking through. She was absolutely sure she saw a girl, dressed in a red cape, crossing the corridor in front of her. If that is a Novice, this would earn them a penance for sure! But the girl was leading something on a leash….something that looked like a wolf. This couldn’t be real! Quickening her step, Ilverin Sedai reached the end of the corridor where she saw the girl and looked around… but there was no one there!

“It seems something weird is happening again!” Ilverin thought to herself and marched straight to the Amyrlin's study.


On the other side of the Tower, Aleita Sedai was walking from her office towards the kitchens, looking at her notes for the next issue of the Tar Valon Times, when suddenly a giant man turns into the same corridor and starts walking towards her. He was dark-skinned, stocky and muscled with broad shoulders, but what Aleita Sedai couldn’t believe was that he had two long-hilted swords on his back. Surely, that cannot be Gaidal Cain himself, he is only a legend from the stories. The man saw that Aleita Sedai was staring at him and quickly turned into one of the other corridors and basically disappeared!

“Well this is something that does not happen every day!” Aleita’s thoughts were racing, while her feet were rushing her to the Amyrlin’s study.


When Aleita Sedai reached her destination, there was already someone there.

Ilverin was telling the Mother about another odd encounter she had had earlier today. Before Aleita even had time to speak, the doors burst open and a short Brown Sedai entered, her composure visibly shaken.

“The ter’angreal is gone, Mother!” she said not caring about the other Sisters in the room.

The Amyrlin had a slight smile on her lips.

“It seems this Shaoman will be filled with some interesting activities! From what I heard from you Daughters. There are creatures not of this world, walking around the Tower! Please, see to it that the person responsible for this is found and all the creatures returned to where they belong!”

The Sisters left immediately to get started on their tasks.

---

Dear Citizens of Tar Valon, White Tower residents and initiates, welcome to Shaoman 2020! This is one of the Freeweeks we enjoy at TarValon.Net, where we open up the Faire Grounds for fun, games, and of course some silliness. Not to mention, we get to change our avatars!

Join us this Shaoman in the search of the source of all the strange happenings within the walls of the White Tower!

In this forum, JMs need not use titles to address SMs, but remember to respect one another. If you have any questions or concerns, please email outreachactivities@tarvalon.net.

Now, let's have some fun!


Events

  • Group Theme Contest

Shaoman 2020 Word Wheels Banner.png

  • Word Wheels

Story and rules. Please expand to read more.

Lenn and Salya turned around yet another corner, hoping that they would finally see a way out. But there was only another staircase, leading down. After a second they heard footsteps coming from the staircase - somebody was climbing up! Lenn pushed Salya behind him to protect her from whoever or whatever was coming up the stairs... but what they saw was two little children - a boy and a girl.

“Oh, finally we found someone who can help us! My brother and I are lost and we cannot find our way back! Please help us!” Cried the little girl.

Lenn and Salya looked at each other and wondered if they should tell the children that they were lost too. They walked towards them with their hands up, showing that they are unarmed. Suddenly both the boy and the girl took out knives that had been concealed inside their pockets and slashed their pouches off and ran up the stairs.

Confused about what just happened, Lenn looked at his daughter and began running up the stairs following the two miscreants. They didn’t have much money anyway but they were in a place where they may need to use those coins.

One floor up, a door suddenly closed off their path. There was some type of lock on the door. It looked round and it had letters scribbled around it.

It seems that to unlock the door, they must solve what the letters meant.

---​

Welcome to the Word Wheel challenge!

Help Lenn and Salya, and Hansel and Gretel, get back to the legends and/or worlds that they came from.

You will have three Word Wheels to decipher. You need to write as many words that can be made out of the different letters inside the word wheels.

The word wheels and answers were posted in the same thread in spoiler tags.


Shaoman 2020 Logic Puzzles Banner.png

  • Logic puzzles

Story and rules. Please expand to read more.

Mara blinked and all of a sudden she stood in a very damp basement. The walls made only of stone, and there were no windows anywhere… no doors either. It had been such a weird day. Earlier she was driving her cart down the main road, when she thought she saw mushrooms growing on the side of the road. She had only taken two steps away from her cart, when she was transported to this odd place.

“I swear, if that King Kadar has hired some sort of witch to get rid of me, he is in for an even bigger embarrassment.” she thought to herself “Well, after I get back to my cart that is.”

The only way forward was a long narrow corridor, she thought she saw a door at the end. Maybe there will be other people there. Or at least a way out. She started walking.

Beyond the door there was an empty table, which looked like it had been holding an object. But not any longer. Dust covered the empty table except for a pile of papers and a small space, completely clean, in the middle. Behind her, she heard footsteps and turned around. There stood a boy, who was seemingly made out of... wood! What is this sorcery!

“This door was locked just a second ago! How did you open it!” it asked.

“But but….are you made out of wood???” Mara was near speechless.

“NO! What do you think I am? A doll?” it looked angry “I am a real boy!”

“I am sorry...I didn’t mean to offend you. Do you know where we are?”

The boy bit its lips and finally replied “No, I don’t know what this place is but I know it’s not home.”

Suddenly its nose started growing. It was a small change, but Mara noticed and stared.

“What do you stare at, haven’t you heard of Pinocchio, the one who does not speak truth? By now, the story has gone around the world…Anyway, look, there are some papers on this table, do you know what they are?”

Very confused by this small creature, Mara turned and looked at the papers on the table. The things written there were as odd as this whole day has been.

“It looks like some kind of puzzle!” Mara noticed “Maybe if we decipher it, we will be able to get out of here!”

---​

Welcome to the Logic Puzzles Challenge!

Help Mara and Pinocchio riddle out these puzzles and try to find a way back to their worlds/tales.

There are three logic puzzles which you will need to decipher. Post all your answers in this thread in spoiler tags.

The puzzles and answers were posted in the same thread.



Shaoman 2020 Scavenger Hunt Banner.png

  • Scavanger hunt

Story and rules. Please expand to read more.

The strange effects around the city were becoming very obvious now. Stores of food preserved by Aes Sedai weaves suddenly turned bad. Roads made of stone were melting one minute and sheets of ice the next. Many citizens swore they had seen their childhood bedtime stories come to life. Birgitte with her bow and arrow, giants outside their windows and stranger still, some creatures they had never heard of before. Many spoke of a young girl walking around town with seven very short men with long flowing beards and some had even seen talking pigs.

The citizens decided to band together and find out what was going on. They searched the streets of the city for clues and talked to the tower guards to see if they knew anything. As they walked the street they suddenly came across a small hut that had appeared out of nowhere. A wizened old lady stood by the door looking at them.

“Who … who are you?” the Mayor asked tentatively.

“I am someone who could help you find out what is going on in the city” she replied.

“Tell us then” the citizens clamored “help us put an end to this!”

“Everything has a price” the old woman said mysteriously “I will help you, but first I need your help to find a few items that I need. Here is the list of items I need.” she said “Once I have them I will give you another”

Everyone looked at each other questioningly.

“After you have brought me all the items I require I will tell you what you need to know.”

The old woman’s cackling laughter rang in the gathered people’s ears as they hurried to find all the items on the piece of paper she had handed them.

---​

Welcome to the Scavanger Hunt! Roll up your sleeves and get to work, so that we can find all the items on the lists! Note: This is an individual challenge.

Answers were sent to the Faire Ground Fairy.


Shaoman 2020 Cryptic Challenge Banner.png

  • Cryptic challenge

Rules. Please expand to read more.

You will receive three lists of cryptic clues, in three different categories, which you should try and decipher with your membership groups.

RULES: 1. You cannot get help from other membership groups during this challenge. 2. You will have 24 hours from the posting of the rounds to submit your answers. 3. You cannot submit answers more than once. 4. If you fail to submit a round of answers, you cannot continue forward to the subsequent round. 5. The membership group that has sent in all three lists with the most correct answers will win. 6. In the case of several groups finishing with an equal amount of correct answers, the group that has sent their answers for the last round first, will win.

The answers were sent to outreachactivities@tarvalon.net


Shaoman 2020 Writing Contest Banner.png

  • Writing contest

Story and rules. Please expand to read more.

Deep in the Tar Valon Library, a lone book stood on a thorny plinth. Its pages were layered with dust, and thick shadows fell all around. Surely nobody had turned these pages in a thousand years. The novice who'd been assigned cleaning duty in that part of the library stood staring open mouthed at it, a feather duster in one hand and a dripping candlestick in the other. That hadn't been here before, had it?

A drop of hot wax fell on her hand and she jumped, nearly dropping the candle. She took a step closer and peered at the book. "Twisted Tales" it said in ornate letters across the page. Twisted Tales? She felt a shiver run along her skin leaving goosebumps in its wake. That sounded deliciously scary. Carefully she opened the book and blew the dust off the first page and watched it dissipate in the candlelight. She flipped to the next page. It was blank. And the next. And the next...

--- ​ The Book of Twisted Tales needs refilling. This is your opportunity to craft your own twisted tale for the annals of the Tower.

You can twist together traditional fairy tales, modern tales, Wheel of Time tales, or a mashup of multiple genres. You can even do it in poetry!

Each member may only submit one entry up to 500 words, the format and contents are entirely up to you. The entries were sent to outreachactivities@tarvalon.net


Themes

Winners


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