The Farmer’s Journey, Part 4: The Harrowing

The deep, somber tolling of a large cast iron bell filled the air surrounding the high rooftops and towers of Armes Abbey, sounding three times before floating away into the increasingly snowy evening sky.

The Mage replaced the iron mallet next to the bell and stood before the gates of the abbey awaiting admittance. Behind him, a set of stone steps wound its way down the side of the high mountain, through a layer of cloud and out of sight.

Before long, one of the initiates at the abbey, a young woman in grey cowl and robes, appeared. Wordlessly, she unlocked the gate and let the Mage into snow-filled courtyard. Then, with a deep bow, she gestured for him to follow her.

The initiate led the Mage back through the trough she left in the snow on her way to the gate, then in through a door in the side of one of the abbey’s outer structures. The two wended their way through the maze of stone corridors and stairwells of the large, fortress-like collection of buildings.

Eventually, the initiate stopped at a door on an upper floor and loudly knocked three times. “Enter,” replied a voice from within. The initiate opened the door for the Mage, who entered, then she shut the door behind him.

The room, like most of the abbey’s rooms, was bare but for a wooden bench along one of the walls. It was dimly lit by a few candles in sconces, and a narrow window was set into the far wall.

Standing next to the window was the abbess of the convent, a tall, thin woman of late middle-age wearing the same gray robes as the initiate, but uncowled, revealing a head of gray hair cropped short. “Lord Mage” she said to the Mage, with a slight bow.

“Hierophantess,” he said, returning the bow, “forgive my lateness. The wars, you see.”

“How fares the kingdom?” asked the abbess, her expression stern.

“Our resources have been severely taxed by the uprising in the southern provinces. We are currently awaiting aid from the clan. But I don’t believe you sent for me merely to inquire after his majesty’s health, mm?” asked the Mage as he joined the abbess at the window. As he neared her, he could see through her usual stern facade to the worry beneath.

“Fear not, I have read your letters,” he continued, “I have full confidence in you and your abilities, Hierophantess.”

“It is not my own abilities that trouble me, Lord Mage, as well you know,” said the abbess, in grave tones. “We monitored the girl carefully ever since you brought her to us. In the past two years, she has shown herself to be a diligent student of the Chronicles. She works hard at her chores and endures any hardship with stoicism. But we have seen absolutely no sign that she has Gift.”

The Mage did not respond, but turned to look out the window. The snow and wind were picking up, and had long since veiled the neighboring mountaintops. He stared out into the dark gray evening.

“Has the Ordeal begun?” he asked after a few moments.

“Dawn, yesterday,” replied the abbess, who could no longer conceal the note of reproach in her voice. “We cannot stop an initiate from undergoing the Ordeal if they wish to do so. I did everything in my power to convince her not to.”

“Why?” asked the mage quietly, turning to the abbess.

“Why? If she undertakes the Ordeal and does not have the gift…if only you had arrived earlier! I’m sure you could have convinced her not to attempt it. She will not heed my counsel, the stubborn girl!”

The Mage stroked his beard thoughtfully. Despite the abbess’ stern demeanor, her concern for the acolyte’s safety was clear.

“Hierophantess. I do not wish to contradict you, but I can assure you that the young woman has the heart of a shieldmaiden. I have crossed the desert with her. She has an unflagging spirit and will not give in to the ritual. But more than that, I promise you, she is Gifted.”

“Contradict me, Lord Mage. By all means. More than anything I hope that you are right and I am mistaken,” replied the abbess anxiously. “You have wagered her mind and her soul on it. She will be staring down the very abyss. If she is the first to look away, her shieldmaiden’s heart will be forfeit.”

The Mage fixed the abbess with a steady eye.

“Mark me, Hierophantess,” he said. “She has the Gift. She will endure the visions and see into the past. She will see the Red Realm and she will know the truth of it. She will bear witness to the Story, and she will emerge, sound of mind and soul, to serve the Farmer.”

They both turned to look out the window to stare at the wild whipping of the snowy winds.

“The girl is an Oracle,” continued the Mage. “I’d stake my life on it.”

Souldough Loaf

As you complete Epic Battles from now and the end of the event on September 1st at 12PM PDT you'll earn Rage Wheat, Vengeance Millet, Warfare Spelt, and Rebellion Rye. When you collect all four of these items they'll form Souldough Loaves which determine your rewards at the end of the event.

As you win wars you'll earn completed Souldough Loaves

Season 5 Bonus War Drops

During Season 5 we've substantially increased the number of Souldough Loaves earned through participating in Wars with winners earning 300 Souldough Loaves. In addition, both winners and losers will have a small chance at bonus Jackpot Souldough Loaves.

Weekend PvP Blitz

During the weekends of August 21 - August 24 and August 28 - August 31 we'll be hosting PvP Blitz events in a addition to the main event. During these Blitz events you'll collect and steal Skyshard Quill items from players in order to earn Souldough Loaves to help you with your progress in the main event. Every time you collect 500 Skyshard Quills they'll be converted into a Skyshard Pinion which cannot be stolen.

Rewards for these PvP Blitz Weekend events are based on the number of Skyshard Pinions you own.

PvP Blitz Opt-In

To Opt-In to the event, players will need to cast the Shazo Wardrum spell at the Alchemist. NOTE: Shazo Wardrum will only be available to cast once the weekend event has started.

Warning: Opting-in lasts for the ENTIRE DURATION of that specific BLITZ EVENT and there will be no way to opt-out after doing so.

Opted in players will:

• Have their name colored orange to indicate their participation
• Have a spell indicating their participation on their profile
• Have their Battle List updated to show only players who have opted-in

Skyshard Quills + Pinions

Once opted-in, players will earn Skyshard Quills by attacking other opted-in players. These items are both generated AND ARE STOLEN. The number generated depends on the players size. The number stolen depends on the amount of Skyshard Quills they currently have. The higher the number they have the more you'll steal.

Once a player collects 500 Skyshard Quills they'll automatically turn into a Skyshard Pinion which cannot be stolen. These Skyshard Pinions are what will determine your rewards from the PvP Blitz Weekend events.

Dolorthorn Branch

When you hit another opted-in player there's a chance that the Dolorthorn Branch spell is activated. This spell lasts for 24 hours, and has the following properties:

• Provides you with more plunder when attacking or stealing from opted-in players
• Allows you to obtain more Skyshard Pinions when attacking or stealing from opted-in players
• Provides you with a chance of creating Mithril out of thin air when attacking or stealing from opted-in players
• Will be visible on your profile as an active spell
• CAN BE STOLEN when you are attacked or stolen from by opted-in players. If stolen you will lose the spell, and the attacking player will receive it. Duration is not reset when stolen but continues to count down from where it was for the previous owner.

Note: You cannot steal another player's Dolorthorn Branch spell when you have an active Dolorthorn Branch spell yourself.

Ragged Hat

The Ragged Hat may be purchased in the Marketplace for 59 Nobility Points and casts the Harrowing Watcher spell on ALL of your current clan members. If you already have Harrowing Watcher active you will not be able to purchase it until the current spell expires.

This spell lasts for 1 hour and has the following properties:

• Provides you with more plunder when attacking or stealing from opted-in players
  (This is able to stack with the Dolorthorn Branch spell)
• Allows you to earn more Skyshard Quills when attacking or stealing from opted-in players
  (This is able to stack with the Dolorthorn Branch spell)
• Prevents other players from being able to steal your Dolorthorn Branch spell while Harrowing Watcher is active
• Will be visible on your profile as an active spell

Dolorseed Chest

As you complete Epic Battles you'll occasionally find Dolorseed Chests. These rare chests can contain a number of goods including Health Crystals, Souldough Loaves, Seals of the Damned, and more!

You can open these chests in one of two ways.

1) Purchasing a Sickle Key from the Marketplace using Gold. You can purchase ONE of these keys per day.
2) Purchasing a Gold Sickle Key from the Marketplace using Nobility. There is no limit on the number you may purchase.

Rewards + Leaderboards

Please see the event page in-game to view event rewards and leaderboards.
Weekend PvP Blitz events reward players with Souldough Loaves which count towards your totals in the main event.

Rewards will be made available for you to collect through the events page shortly after the event ends.

 

You'll get some pretty epic hunt rewards from participating in wars with 300 completed items per win (6 times higher than Chapter 3 of The Farmer's Journey) so that we don't discourage people from participating in the season. If anything it's encouraging it.

Also, do note we had an event during Season 4 last year as well.