#the battle of taillte

[coppercrow]

The Battle of Taillte

In the wake of the latest Artemis Fowl trailer, I ended up rereading the series and I have So Many Feelings after finishing up the Last Guardian.

But what I really want to know more about is fairy/human history, and the events leading up to the Battle of Taillte. Everything we know is very fairy-centric - their point of view on an event that completely changed their civilisation forever 10,000 years ago.

From their perspective, the humans of that time were bloodthirsty Mud Men who wanted to kill faries for no other reason than that they were different, while the People were entirely peaceful.

We never get a human perspective on these events, which is to be expected - it's so far back in human history that the only remnants left is folklore. But I'm sure that the humans of the time would tell a very different story to that of the People.

10,000 years ago (around 8000 BCE), the humans in Europe were still firmly low population density hunter-gatherer societies who used stone tools. During the Mesolithic period in Ireland (8000 BCE to 4000 BCE), the population is estimated to have been no more than 8000 at most.

We know that the People's population was low at that point (and still remained low even 10,000 years later), but that puts things into some perspective for the Battle of Taillte.

From the story Holly tells in the Last Guardian, we know that the People retreated to Ireland for a last stand after prior conflicts with humans. However, even if a force of humans joined the battle from the British Isles or mainland Europe, the numbers involved cannot have been that large given the low population at the time.

We also know that there were 100 fairy Beserkers buried under the Fowl Estate, which made up only a portion of the People's fighting force, which includes demons, dwarves riding trolls, and warlocks. For the People to still have been overwhelmed despite all this, you have to assume that close to every able bodied human in Ireland was fighting.

The losses for the People may have been great, but I hate to think what a dwarf riding a troll could do to humans who at best had basic stone weaponry. There would have been a high number of deaths for humans as well.

So that leaves me to wonder - how did the conflict between the People and humans start? Did humans start off with the intention to hunt the People to extinction? Or perhaps was the conflict started by a misunderstanding between species that sparked into all out war where the stakes were too high to back down from?

[orangerosebush]

Lebor Gabála Érenn, (ENG: The Book of Invasions) is a collection of poems and prose narratives in Irish that serve as a mytho-history of Ireland from the creation of the world to the Middle Ages.

The AF books reference two locations that appear in Leabhar Gabhála/Lebor Gabála Érenn (the book of invasions): Tara and Teltown.

The reference to Tara is explicit, as in book one Holly mentions it being a site of great magical import, whereas the reference to Teltown is implicit.

In reference to “the battle of Tailte”, it is likely that “Tailte” is a different spelling of Taillte/Tailtiu, who in the mythology of Ireland (though there is some uncertainty regarding this due to revisions of the original myths after the Invasion of Normandy) died of exhaustion after making the plains of Ireland fit for agriculture. Her adopted son, the Tuatha Dé Danann named Lugh, then established a harvest festival/ set of games to honor her memory — this was to be called the Fair of Tailtiu (Óenach Tailten), and the importance of this festival was likely roughly equivalent to that of the Feast of Tara (both sites are located in County Meath).

Image: Enfield Meath, “Visiting the Area”. http://www.enfieldonline.net/legends-and-places

I invoke this myth specifically because of the goddess Tailtiu’s story, which deals with the idea of the invasions of Ireland.

There are multiple waves of invasion in Irish mythology, but I’ll mainly deal with the Fir Bolg, Tuatha De Danann, and Milesians. Essentially, Tailtiu was part of the Fir Bolgs, and most of her kind were displaced after the invasion of the island by the magical Tuatha De Danann (of which her son Lugh was one). However, despite the power of the Tuatha De Danann (essentially being pagan gods and goddesses), they were overcome by the Milesians, the human proto-celts according to the story.

The reason for their conflict varies. In some versions, some Milesians had visited the island years prior and were killed by the Tuatha De Danann (who then proceeded to shield the island with magic), and the return of the humans is due to wanting vengeance. In others, some Tuatha de Danann had killed one of the relatives (Íth) of the leader of the Milesians (Míl Espáine), so the return of the Milesians is an attack to avenge Íth’s death. However, in some versions, the Milesians simply land on the island and wish it to be theirs, and thus the fighting commences.

It’s not… entirely clear how the humans beat the Tuatha De Danann, but over the course of many battles, they prevail. Specifically, one of the battles that led to the downfall of the Tuatha De Danann was the battle of *teltown* or the battle of *Tailtiu* — the battle of Tailte to which Colfer refers!

Following their defeat, the Tuatha De Danann retreat underground to live in hiding from the humans for the rest of their days in the otherworld, and in living in this diminished form of power, they become the sídhe, the fairies of Ireland. At this point, you have the folktales where some fairies remain aboveground and toy with humans, while in others, humans travel below ground to barter for magical miracles. That’s where you again start to get some overlap with the mythos of AF, IMHO.

However, Colfer plays it pretty fast and loose when it comes to borrowing from mythology versus generating new lore for the series, and I would be fascinated to see different ways to situate the People in historical and/or mythological context(s). I’m also definitely interested by the idea of how to holistically deal with the past of the People, as I think any attempt to paint them in black-and-white terms of morality is 1) boring and 2) misses out on the opportunity to explore that they’re a completely different civilization that carries within it different cultural mores, religion(s), and ethical systems — if anything, I don’t see them as being morally grey so much as I see them functioning in a wholly different manner that just so happens to overlap in some places with common human systems of morality (e.g. vis a vis perception of violence, environmental value, etc).

From that perspective, I’d say that it was likely two groups of relatively equal power antagonizing each other, if one synthesizes the lore from the myths with the books. I think the instigating event could vary, though, as I’ll admit I’ve not given much thought to specifically that topic.

[moczothe1st]

Let’s Play Fire Emblem IV: Genealogy of the Holy War, Part 10: Yarrrrrrrr!

Part 9

Welcome back to FEIV! I was originally not planning to update this week, since my appendix ruptured last weekend and that’s actually pretty incredibly awful to experience. I figured I earned a week off. However, I did not consider one thing: when you’re basically required to keep yourself in bed for 90% of the day, you have a lot of time to kill. After the first four or so days of pain and eating very little, I started playing Genealogy because frankly why not. I did have to wait until I got off the IV, mind you, because industrial painkillers and strategy do not mix. Not unless you want to get all your units beaten to death by pirates.

Speaking of.

I feel like I should just point out that last week they were worried about me coming up north to attack ­them, and yet they willingly start a fight here, even opening up a bridge for me to reach them.

Given that our army has, at this point, defeated two entire countries, I think we can handle a bunch of pissed-off sailors, thanks. Though the first members of the group actually take their shots by going northwest after Bridget.

This exact same battle happens three more times. Bridget is awesome.

The rest of the pirates do go South, but Dew is holding the bridge and they literally can’t hit him. They’re axe men and his dodging is amazing. So they don’t even try, just walk to him and stop.

Sometimes smart AI is really annoying. When our phase starts up, some familiar faces come with it.

Taillte: Just look around! There’ll be pirates all over us if we don’t get moving!

Claude: Be at peace, Taillte. This was quite the fruitful journey! Lord Bragi has answered my prayers and revealed to me the truth. It is precisely as I had thought. Not to mention, I even found House Edda’s long-lost sacred heirloom within the tower: the staff of Valkyria.

Taillte: What, that grubby little cane?

Claude: … Taillte, please. Try to mind your manners. This is a legendary magical staff with the power to restore life to the deceased. It is usable by only the direct descendants of Saint Bragi. That is to say, me alone.

Taillte: Huh. So what you’re saying is, with this rod you could bring my sweet old grandma back to life?

Claude: Alas, most likely not. Valkyria is limited in many particular ways, and so cannot be used on just any lost soul. You see, all mankind is born bearing a life force called quintessence, which-

Taillte: Yaaaaawn… er, what’s that? You lost me. Why are you still talking about this anyway? We’ve gotta get outta here!

Well. This will be interesting, at least. Now, before we show off our new characters, there is a conversation to be held. Ethlyn, you haven’t made me angry in awhile: take it away!

Ethlyn: Here. Take this.

Quan: A spear? …. What?! I-isn’t this Gae Bolg?! Why do you-

(Yes, Ethlyn. Why do you.)

Ethlyn: Your lord father entrusted it to me, Quan. He thought it prudent for you to have it at hand in case our battles grew too fierce.

Quan: Even just holding it, I’ve never felt so strong! Why did you wait until now, though?

(YES, ETHLYN. WHY DID YOU?)

Ethlyn: With the spear, your lord father also passed onto me its tale… I’m so sorry…

Quan: … Ah. Gae Bolg bears the baggage of a truly sad legend. But that is all it is: a legend.

Ethlyn: But-

Quan: Ethlyn, trust me. Triumph is within our grasp this day. I’ll not fall victim to an old myth. I’ll not let it stop me from returning home. Our dear little Altena still awaits us, and I’ll not allow some fairy tale to disappoint her.

Ethlyn: Yes… Quan, no matter what happens… we’ll never lose each other. Right?

Quan: Ah, you’re concerned about Deirdre, aren’t you? There’s nothing to worry about. It won’t be long until we find her.

Ethlyn: Yes…. I want to believe she’ll be okay, too. I wish I could. But…

Quan: Ethlyn? Come now, dry your tears. Do you truly feel so bad about this?

(… Okay, I’m still angry at Ethlyn over her withholding the Omni-Spear from me the whole game, but she kind of has a point here. Her sister-in-law has vanished. It would be kind of weird if she wasn’t worried, Quan.)

Ethlyn: Yes… knowing th-that Sigurd and Deirdre may never meet again… they love each other so much… why, Quan? Why did this happen to them?!

Quan: Ethlyn…

Deep breath

Okay, let’s look at our new stuff. Simplest first.

Quan now has the Gae Bolg, his Holy Weapon, like Eldigan’s Mystletain and Claude’s above-mentioned Valkyria. It gives him +10 boosts to Strength, Skill, and Defense while holding it; he was already a nigh-unbreakable juggernaut, so take that ‘nigh’ off and you get the idea. It also does ten more points of damage per shot than the Silver Lance even without the strength boost, while weighing only slightly more.

So. You know.

THANKS FOR KEEPING THAT IN YOUR POCKET THIS WHOLE TIME, ETHLYN. YOU BITCH.

Now, the new characters.

Claude of Edda is basically Aideen: Part 2. Same class, similar growths; his Major Bragi Blood (+20% HP growth, +20% Magic Growth, +20% Luck growth, +40% Resistance growth) push his in a better direction for their class, but she’s leveled up so great she’s basically his equal anyway, and he has fewer levels left than her to take advantage of them. He’s also promoted, so he can use offensive magic in addition to staves… but he didn’t bring any, so that’s not much of a comfort.

And his gear at the moment is just plain not great for the situation, i.e. alone with a teenager fighting pirates. The Fortify Staff is the best healing staff in the game, giving a huge amount of health back to not a specific target, but to everyvunit within 10 spaces of Claude. Amazing… but it only has ten charges. The Valkyria staff, meanwhile, is basically a one-use get out of jail free card if someone dies: Claude can use it in the main castle to revive them, at which point it will break and require a stupid amount of money to repair for one more use. So it’s nice to have as a fallback, but if you rely on it you’re going to end up bankrupting yourself in short order.

Taillte is… a unique character. On paper, she’s quite good; her growths are solid, bolstered by Minor Tordo holy blood (+20% HP, +30% skill). She can only use Thunder magic, but that’s okay, because it’s the second-best kind of magic and she can use it up to A-rank, and even comes with the A-rank Thoron tome, meaning she joins us with the equivalent of a Silver weapon in her chosen weaponry class. And she also has a very nice personal skill, Wrath, which turns all her attacks into guaranteed criticals if her health is below half, basically taking her already ‘glass cannon’ status and allowing her to upgrade to a much bigger cannon if she’s willing to take some extra glass on board. And her stats are quite good for her level!

Which is to say, for level 3. When the rest of the army is in their late teens at the lowest.

So, we clearly need to get someone over there to help those two, because Taillte is most definitely not going to be able to hold off all the pirates in her area alone, and Claude can only heal her ten times. But whooooo is nearby to go saaaaaave them?

sniff

Oh, Bridget you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind, Hey Bridget. She’s also a little underleveled, being only 12, but she’s a pre-promote like Sigurd so if anything her stats are a little higher than most of the army; in particular, she actually has the third highest Strength stat of anyone in the army, after Quan and Lex. And a low level actually gives her more levels to gain bolstered by her Major Ullur Blood (+40% HP, +60% luck). She’s gonna be surprisingly durable for an archer class, with luck making her dodgy and plenty of hit points, on top of Strength, Speed, and Skill which are already enough to carry her the whole game. The only skill she has is Pursuit, but if you’ve been paying attention that’s the most important one for an offensive unit to have anyway, soooooo.

Let’s do this shit.

Bridget immediately begins moving west along the peninsula towards Taillte and Claude, who move toward the pirates around them to start working on things. Neither is, unfortunately, close enough to any enemies to make an attack… well, Bridget is, but she can’t run and shoot at the same time, and even the best Archer of all time can’t fight at melee. If she gets surrounded, even she’ll be in trouble. Everyone else, in turn, begins to move towards the units holding the bridge, while they themselves defend with all they’ve got.

Yeah, no, the bridge is going to fall. Horribly. The Orgahil pirates are so pitiful in comparison to Agustria that we might as well ignore them and go knit. The rest of the level is going to be entirely about Taillte and Claude’s survival. End turn!

Continues knitting

And over with Claude, Taillte takes a single hit, but survives. This leaves her in a somewhat dangerous situation because she’s fragile and will die at any slight brush now, but Wrath is now enabled and she one-shots her attacker in reply.

The rest of the pirates in her area are out at sea and will be coming ashore slowly, letting her engage them one at a time on her own terms, so. Picture that sequence of the Death Star getting ready to fire, and you have an idea what I’m about to do with Taillte. Bridget continues to move toward them as well, the edge of her movement range leaving an enemy in her sights.

Get used to screens like this.

For the bridge team, I actually don’t do any fighting this turn, because Dew is a perfect blocker, and he isn’t going to take a shot at anyone. Rather: Aideen is broke and his money is maxed, so he can’t rob any of these guys! I have her move forward to stand next to him reassuringly, and he in turn gives her 49,000 gold. I wish I had more friends like Dew.

Much better. Killing off all these idiots would have cost me so much money if I hadn’t done that. Dew will likely be right back to max money by the end of the map. The pirates, in addition, can move very slowly on water squares and some of them do go around Dew to reach other units.

Their next of kin will be reminded of the dangers of swimming. On our turn, it’s mostly movement. Quan and Ethlyn move toward our home castle, everyone else moves toward these dorks again. The dorks in question, mind you, are doing very well. I actually have Lewyn run back towards a castle because I don’t need him to hold these dorks, and his Elwind is about to break from overkilling. Instead, Jamke moves up to take a shot in his place.

For the pirates, this is kind of like saying ‘I send the killer bear home because his stomach is full, and replace him with the killer lion.’ Dew moves forward, continues robbing shit, and levels.

You know, he needs defense so badly I will take this. I have Ayra move up to back him up and soften the newly poor pirate up with her weaker Bolt Sword…

… and of course she uses Astra and kills it. I would have really liked Dew to get more kills, Ayra, he’s about to promote. Please try to be caring of me. Taillte also reaches her first victim.

“You may fire when ready, Commander.” End turn!

Dew… took a hit. From these idiots. How… why! You little jackass, your ability to make me money and your ability to dodge are your only good points right now! You better proc Sol next turn and get some of that health back, quicksmart, or I will be furious. More furious.

I also almost lose Taillte because I didn’t realize she was in range of the enemy, but unlike SOME PEOPLE she pulls off the dodge and destroys her enemy with extreme prejudice, gaining her first level. Not great, but she at least got Speed and since she certainly can’t take a hit, making her better at avoiding them is helpful.

Our turn takes over and Bridget continues to run towards the Dynamic Duo, her rage steadily building. Dew and Ayra team up to take out the first pirate in line…

And since I’m bored, I have Holyn run into this new empty space in the line and smack the guy behind it.

sigh

Holyn, I’m taking a fucking risk by putting you on the front lines. You could at least try. But on the bright side, this does open another new spot in the line for Jamke to move up and take a shot at the enemy commander.

Okay. Teach. Jamke, you ready to learn?

Yup, Jamke has totally learned fear.

Jamke also gets his personal little trinket, the Leg Ring, improving how far he can move each turn by 3 spaces. Jamke doesn’t get a horse, so he’s not a terrible choice for this, but I’m not totally sure if he’ll be keeping it or not. It’s definitely in high demand by units all over.

Erin, off on her own doing her own thing, stops at another of the villages.

Stranger with Candy: Don’t be shy. Drink up! Well, how about it? Feel the might swellin’ in yer muscles! Oughta make yer work out there so much easier.

Erin gains +3 to her Strength, another boost she sorely needed. You’re also probably realizing why I ignored most of the villages on the map; there are a lot of little gifts to be gotten on this one, and I wanted them to go to specific people. There’s still one left meant for Claude, in fact.

On the enemy phase, Jamke provides an assisted suicide and reminds me that all levels these people gain will be either flawless or the worst.

sigh No other combat happens other than some pirates missing Holyn with hand axes, and our turn begins. First, to the home base… Ethlyn, care to not disappoint me for once?

The first magic she’s gained all game! I also send Quan right into the top tier at the Arena, using his new toy. Let’s see how it goes.

Holy Weapons are the best.

Back up at the real war, I continue to break the pirates a little.

Nothing super impressive, but at least the bridge is now mine, so that battle is over and this team can start moving to flank the jerks chasing Bridget. Bridget herself has also reached Claude and Taillte; the general idea now is that she will be their tank, dodging 90% of all melee attacks and slaughtering the occasional archer while Taillte stands behind her doing her best death ray impersonation. End turn!

… I think the pirates are losing hope, you guys, this one definitely had targets to go after who wouldn’t have killed him as terribly as Holyn. Come on, pirates don’t give up! You can’t go out like Agustria!

Our turn begins, and the team that took Silvail begins to reach the pirate fight, turning it from a one-sided fight to a one-sided fight. Lachesis also gains a healing level.

I… really should have given her that Paragon band. At least Dew won’t need it much longer.

He gained a level from this battle, but I missed the stats. +1HP, +1STR, +1SPD, solid enough I won’t have to scream at his face. Aideen also levels from healing him.

… Kind of bad, but she’s gotten so many great levels on this map I don’t really care. End Turn!

… Nothing happens! A sword guy misses Bridget and an axe guy misses Beowulf.

On our turn, Lachesis gets home, and I send her into the Arena with her new Earth Sword to see if it helps her a little.

cue beating

Nope! But the fun part is that now there’s nothing to stop me from just having Ethlyn heal her and trying again next turn, so I’ll let you know if RNG turns her favor at any point.

Over to the west, my two little nukes begin their blasting away at the crowd pressing against Bridget.

Those two sword guys are the most dangerous; they’re not very strong, but are accurate enough to regularly hit Bridget. Most turns Bridget won’t actually be attacking, but I want those two dead ASAP. End turn!

WHERE THE FUCK DID HE COME FROM?! DEEP BREATH Well that scared the shit out of me. I had no idea there was a ranged enemy close enough to reach Taillte. If she hadn’t dodged I’d be up a reset. But, on the plus side, fine level! On the next turn, they both take their shots…

… For the second time this update I missed the stat screen. Bridget gained a level. It was +1HP. I would be furious if she wasn’t already basically endgame quality without any stat gains at all. Taillte is doing okay, though! And then Claude heals ‘em up.

There we go! And better yet, he instantly gains 85 experience from this; Fortify is a pretty rockin’ staff. I start moving the others toward them again; Erin is now close enough to help out next turn, and the others should arriving to reinforce soon.

Though they don’t need it, really, Taillte is dodging everything and its mom. Our turn begins again, and… slaughter?

Yup, slaughter. The enemy phase is basically just Taillte and Bridget continuing their brutal ascent to dominance.

Welp, there goes the enemy’s archer brigade. At this point the rest of the army is basically only heading their direction because I’d like Bridget and Taillte to get some trophy husbands. On our turn, Sigurd and a few others test the defenses of Orgahil itself.

It is not a test they pass well.

The western team continues their just… rampant slaughter, it’s almost humiliating…

You know, barring the horrible level. What is with you this run, Erin?! You started off so perfectly, too! Well, on the plus side, I also realize I completely forgot Ethlyn had Arena levels to challenge too, and she’s a Paladin now. Let’s see how this rolls out.

Ethlyn: Up to seven wins, gained one level: +1 HP

……………… I hate you so much, Ethlyn.

You fucking guys!

……. I want to leave Agustria.

Okay, I’m frustrated so I’m going to take Orgahill now. The boss is nothing special beyond holding the Strength Ring; I’m gonna try to give it to Sigurd, actually, since his Strength stat is actually somewhat on the low end for how high his level is. Luckily he’s a sword dude fighting an axe moron, so it shouldn’t be hard to arrange.

Yeah, this will be over quickly. End turn, and Duvall once again seeks to destroy us with all his skill and power.

See how much he needs that Strength? Duvall should definitely be dead by now. On our turn, it’s… basically… just kind of a pitiful slaughter again, you know the drill.

And Sigurd finishes off Duvall, ending his 27-minute reign as cap’n and gaining himself a sweet +5 to strength.

Welp, might as well end the turn here. Good times. The few remaining pirates all take swings at Bridget and… all hit? How the… no. No. Not engaging. Her defense is good enough it doesn’t matter, and they…

Will not be taking any more swings. One more turn of the same and the enemy army is gone forever, with Erin leveling.

If I had another Pegasus Knight to use she would be so fucking benched right now.

Anyway, there are no more enemies on the map, so from here it’s a matter of just cleaning stuff up. Like this village of ungrateful bitches!

Bitch: Why are you even here? We’ve absolutely nothin’ to do with Agustria or Grannvale! If you’ve really gotta fight, take it somewhere else, you thoughtless sod.

Take a close look at her village in that image. A section is burned, meaning we literally ran in and saved it from being slaughtered by pirates. Next time, we won’t.

More importantly, Aideen finally meets Bridget. Were yooooooooooou paying attention…?

(D’aaaaaaaaaaaaw. Yup, Aideen mentioned her sister Bridget way back in Verdane, and we finally reunited them. Heart: Melted.)

Aideen: Surely you recall me?

Bridget: What? How do you know my name? Hang on… you look just like me! Aideen, huh… it sounds kinda familiar. But where from…?

Aideen: Bridget, listen well. I am your twin sister! We lost you to pirates years ago, when you were just five years old. I’ve searched for you for years. I never lost hope we would meet again!

(D’aaaaaaaaaaaaaaw!)

Bridget: This is all so sudden… no. Weird feelings aren’t enough. I need proof!

Aideen: Proof, you say? Here. Draw this bow.

Bridget: Huh? Okay, a nice bow and all, but what’s it gotta do with anything? Well, I’ll humor you. So I draw it, and… Whoa! Wh-what’s going on?! The hell is this? This… weird feeling boiling within me… are these memories? Ah, my heart is on fire… Aideen? Yes… you’re Aideen... my sister...

Aideen: Oh, thank the gods! You remember! That bow is your birthright, Bridget. It is Yewfelle, the sacred bow of Jungby. Legends tell that the exalted weapons of this land, such as this one, can only be wielded by a single heir per generation. For House Jungby and Yewfelle, that rightful heir is you, Bridget.

Bridget: Oh, Aideen, come here… Let me get a good look at you. How is our father doing? And our brother… Andre, right?

Aideen: I’ve so much to tell you, too… Bridget. My sister.

Well. That was adorable. And Bridget also gets a hold of Yewfelle, which gives her a +10 to Strength and Speed, along with the natural ability Renewal to heal her a small amount per-turn. Not quite as great as Gae Bolg, but frankly Bridget doesn’t need much help to start with so this turns her from unbreakable to super unbreakable. From here it’s mostly last-second healing and warping around, to get Claude to the one village he still needs to get his holy butt to, and to have everyone else start moving the new dudes toward the arena.

Though Aideen does hit 20! Probably won’t promote her this chapter, though, I have no way to get her home quickly. And next, I trigger the secret event by moving Dew over to the sacred tower… no, once again, no hint to do this…

Dew: Mmm… nope, nothin’ over here. Over there, maybe? Aw man! What a boring little dump.

Strange Voice: Who… are you…

Dew: Huh?!

Strange Voice: … State your business…

Dew: Heh, maybe if I pretend I can’t hear it…

Strange Voice: How dare you… defile this sacred ground… BEGONE!

Dew: Kyaaa! S-sorry! Please don’t hurt me! Hah… hah… what just happened?! Hang on… a sword? What’s it doin’ sitting around a place like this? Eh, who cares? Guess I’m getting’ something outta this after all!

Dew gets the Wind Sword, a magic blade like Ayra’s bolt sword and Ethlyn’s light brand, and it will be put to good use over time. Also he’s an awful person. I kind of wish the event had been the ghost eating his soul and joining our army instead.

Over on the other side of the map, Claude grabs the final village:

Cool Old Dude: We can’t thank you enough, but mayhap this magic staff will help. They call it a Restore staff. If yer allies’ve been put t’sleep or silenced, one cast of this staff’ll get ‘em back on their feet.

See, village of northern bitches? This is how you thank the people who stopped your home from burning down.

Now, the last two things. First arena runs:

Bridget: 7 wins, Gained two levels: +2 HP, +1 Strength, +1 Luck, +1 Defense

Finn: Up to 7 wins, did not gain a level.

Erin: Up to 7 wins, gained one level: +1 Speed, +1 Defense

Dew: Up to 4 wins, did not gain a level. I shouldn’t have used him. 

Taillte: 7 wins, Gained three levels: +2 HP, +3 Skill, +2 Luck, +1 Resistance

In addition, a few of the new recruits have conversations with Sigurd.

Claude: I’m glad Taillte was close at hand. We may not have survived, if not for her magic. More importantly, Lord Sigurd, my prayers to Saint Bragi were answered.

Sigurd: You have the trust of all this, then?

Claude: That I do. As I thought, Duke Reptor is behind all of this. On his orders, it was Duke Langbalt who killed Prince Kurth. The two then framed your father, Lord Byron, for the crime.

(Noooooooooooooooooooo, ya don’t saaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay.)

Sigurd: As we thought…

Claude: The pair’s treachery runs deeper still. The murder of Isaach’s King Mananan was also the handiwork of Duke Reptor. He feared a peaceful end to the war would end the sole excuse for the conquest of Isaach, so he had the king assassinated.

Sigurd: Is that so… Reptor’s filthy hands are all over this mess…

Claude: Not entirely. In the shade of his avarice, there’s something else at work. Something unsettling and terrifying. Not even Lord Bragi could scry this evil presence, obscured as it was by its great power.

Sigurd: An evil presence? Could it be that dark priesthood? … Wait! What of my father, Claude?

Claude: Lord Byron yet lives, but he is weak. I fear he is not long for this world…

Sigurd: Father… this can’t be happening…

Claude: I’ll hasten back to the capital. His Majesty needs to hear the truth. Lord Sigurd, for the time being, stay here and restrain yourself from rash action.

Sigurd: Understood. I can’t thank you enough, Father Claude. I beg of you, do everything you can to save my father and clear his name.

Sigurd: The villages told me of a woman who leads the pirates of Orgahil, and of her devotion to aiding the poor and weak. That would be you, correct?

(“Also you’re identical to my childhood next-door-neighbor, who has an identical twin named Bridget, so…”)

Bridget: You must be that Grannvale man… Sigurd, right? Guess this is it. Come on. Just get it over with.

Sigurd: Oh, no, you’re mistaken! I’m certainly not here to kill you. I just want to talk. I’d like you to ally with you. We’d love to add your strength to our own, to help us better fight the pirates. What say you?

Bridget: Wait. You really want me, of all people?

Sigurd: Certainly! You’d be a tremendous asset.

Bridget: You’re a strange little man, Sigurd…

Oh, Bridget, You have no idea. Let’s get the Hell out of Agustria!

Sigurd: Oifey, would you please gather our troops here? Now that this is all over, I’d like to ensure that everyone’s alright.

Oifey: At once, sire.

Langbalt: Seize these vile allies of Byron, accomplices to his murder of Kurth and his bid to take over our kingdom! It is the will of His Majesty! No mercy for enemies of the state!

Reptor: To think, he personally put an end to that miserable prince and nearly killed Byron as well… I’ve never seen such a bold ploy! And with Arvis using His Majesty’s trust, it all worked flawlessly! Convincing the king of anything is hardly a challenge, but to succeed with a tale of this scale takes quite the storyteller… and here we are, with the entirety of House Chalphy framed for the crime! Heh heh… our victory is all but assured. The throne of Grannvale shall be mine, one way or another. I’ll leave no pest who dares interfere with me alive…

(……. I’m going to assume Langbalt is loudly shouting to the army and Reptor is just thinking to himself. Otherwise, I got some questions.)

Sigurd: What in the blazes is this?! I’ve been declared a traitor and a Grannvale legion waits at our doorstep to arrest me?!

Oifey: Sire… and to think, the war here was over at long last, and you were about to go search for Deirdre.

(“YES, OIFEY, THANK YOU FOR REMINDING ME”)

Sigurd: Gah… how could His Majesty believe Reptor’s lies? That my father, of all people, would kill Prince Kurth?! If only Father Claude had reached the capitol before they struck… Why?! Why is this happening?! I fought a pointless war! I let Eldigan die! And now this! What have I been fighting for all along?!

(The one and only time it will be a relief to see neutral units.)

Mahyna: Queen Rahna bade my corps and I to come and retrieve you. We invite you and your subordinates to retreat with us to Silesse, until your good name has been cleared in Grannvale.

(Lewyn’s mom! Finally, our habit of collecting lost royalty has paid off!)

Sigurd: … Queen Rahna of Silesse, you say? Why is Silesse willing to give aid to an alleged traitor like me?

Mahyna: Please, sir. Time is of the essence. The Grannvale assault is sure to begin at any moment now. My Pegasus knights will escort you across the sea to safety in Silesse.

And there we go! Grannvale, our ambiguously evil home, has outright turned against us. Reptor and Langbalt are in control, and the king thinks we killed his son. The only option remaining is to flee across the sea and regroup.

… We probably coulda solved the issue by having Lewyn stand near the enemy, but this is more dramatic.

Anyway, see you next week in the shining northern lands of Silesse, where I’m sure nothing will go wrong!

Part 11

[another-fire-emblem-sideblog]

GUESS WHO GOT THE 2ND GEN TO LOAD

THIS GAAAAAL

Near as I can tell, choosing Finn in this is probably what messed it up. Each character has a spot for their gender in their data, and near as I can tell the ONLY thing it does is determine what battle sprite or map the character uses. I’ve not seen it do anything else.

Although you’re probably wondering how it’s handling inheritance. Well.

For this, I swapped Jamke and Ayra (which actually ending up fucking up the love values pretty badly actually. Jamke immediately fell in love with Dew, for example. Probably because as far as the game is concerned Ayra was recruited out of order. This might be workable. I’ll have to futz with it.) As for Ayra’s kids, I got her replacements. But I paired Ayra up with Taillte, and I did get Taillte’s kids.... except the game counts their dad as Jamke.

Hrm, there’s got to be a way I can do better, but thus far... it’s workable.

[celticmythpodshow]

CMP006 - What Price Treachery?

Lugh devises a clever scheme to get revenge on the Sons of Tuireann

It's always great to hear from you! Email garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com, or call us on Speakpipe

  Show Summary:

Lugh devises a clever scheme to get revenge on the Sons of Tuireann and also get together some powerful magic to help the Tuatha De Danaan in their coming battle with the Fomori.

This episode is the 4th episode of the Irish Book of Invasions.

More resources over at our main Website at http://celticmythpodshow.com Show Summary:

Running Order:

Intro 0:42

News & Views 1:24

Story 2:38

Happy St. Maughold's Day on the Isle of Man 21:40

Promo - Marc Gunn's Irish and Celtic Music Podcast 21:54

Invitation to vote on what Celtic Myth area you'd llike us to cover next 22:15

All the credits for this episode can be found in our show-notes at http://celticmythpodshow.com/irish6

We hope you enjoy it!

Gary & Ruthie x x x

  News & Views

We talk about the upcoming Special Episode for Beltane, May Day.

  What Price Treachery? - Episode 6 of the Irish Mythological Cycle and Part 6 of the Book of Invasions

Names Used in this Story

Listed in order of appearance

Lugh Samildanach

Teamhair

Gaireach

Ilgairech

Athluain Ford

Bearna nah-Eardagarna

Magh Luirgi

Corr Slieve na Seaghsa

Sean-Slieve

Eithne, Ethlinn

Corann

Magh Mor an Aonaigh

Druim na Teine

Aomaigh

Fomor

Connachta

Bres

Elatha

Tailltiu, Taillte

Ethlinn

Tuatha De Danaan

The Sidhe

Bodb Dearg

Cian

The Dagda

Tuireann

Danu

Miochain

Ogham

Nuada

Brian

Urcar

Cainte

Dagda

Tuis, King of Greece

The Luin

Connachta

Dobar, King

Siogair

Easal

Fail-Inis

Ioruaidh

Inis Cenn-fhinne

Island of Caer

Miochaoin

Etain

Lochlann

Enya

Diancecht

Lugh Lamh-fada

Manannan

Aonbharr

Scuabtuinne

Curragh

Brugh na Boinn

King Pisear

Ur

Flidias, Flidais

River Boyne

River Life

Beinn Edair

Uisnech

Midhe

Fand

Connla

Corc

Conn

Aedh

Promo - Irish & Celtic Music Podcast

Marc Gunn

The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is a free downloadable Celtic radio show of independent Irish & Celtic music. Every hour-long episode features a mix of traditional Celtic tunes, Irish drinking songs, Scottish folk songs, bagpipes, music from Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, Wales, Nova Scotia, Galacia, Australia, the United States, and around the world.

Award-winning free radio show of some of the best Irish Celtic music online. http://www.celticmusicpodcast.com/

  Sources used in this Episode

Sacred Texts, Gods & Fighting Men by Lady Gregory

Timeless Myths

Lebor Gabala (Was http://members.aol.com/lochlan2/lebor.htm which is now dead, as soon as I find the page elsewhere, I'll update the link)

Sacred Texts, Celtic Wonder Tales, Ella Young

Sacred Texts, Myths & Legends of the Celtic Race, Thomas Rolleston

Celtic Twilight

Celtic Literature Collective, Mary Jones

And, of course, the Awen - inspiration and imagination!

  Special Thanks

For voice acting: Edward and Morgan, our sons, as Brian and 'Men of Dea'. Matt, our friend, as Urcar.

For incidental music: Diane Arkenstone, The Secret Garden . See the Contributor page for details.

Kim Robertson, Angels in Disguise . See the Contributor page for details.

Time Ticks Away by Jigger. See their Contributor Page for details.

For our Theme Music

The Skylark and Haghole, the brilliant Culann's Hounds. See their Contributor page for details.

  Extra Special Thanks for Unrestricted Access to Wonderful Music

(in Alphabetic order)

Anne Roos Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of her masterful music to Anne Roos. You can find out more about Anne on her website or on her Contributor page.

Caera Extra Special thanks go for permission to any of her evocative harping and Gaelic singing to Caera. You can find out more about Caera on her website or on her Contributor Page.

Celia Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of her wonderful music to Celia Farran. You can find out more about Celia on her website or on her Contributor Page.

Damh the Bard Extra Special thanks go to Damh the Bard for his permission to use any of his music on the Show. You can find out more about Damh (Dave) on his website or on his Contributor page.

The Dolmen Extra Special thanks also go to The Dolmen, for their permission to use any of their fantastic Celtic Folk/Rock music on the Show. You can find out more about The Dolmen on their website or on our Contributor page.

Keltoria Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of their inspired music to Keltoria. You can find out more about Keltoria on their website or on their Contributor page.

Kevin Skinner Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of his superb music to Kevin Skinner. You can find out more about Kevin on his website or on his Contributor page.

Phil Thornton Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of his astounding ambient music to the Sonic Sorcerer himself, Phil Thornton. You can find out more about Phil on his website or on his Contributor Page.

S.J. Tucker Extra Special thanks go to Sooj for her permission to use any of her superb music. You can find out more about Sooj on her website or on her Contributor page.

Spiral Dance Extra Special thanks go for permission to use Adrienne and the band to use any of their music in the show. You can find out more about Spiral Dance on their website or on their Contributor page.

We'd like to wish you 'Slán Go Foill!', which is Irish for 'Goodbye', or more literally 'Wishing you safety for a while'!

  Get EXTRA content in the Celtic Myth Podshow App for iOS, Android & Windows

Contact Us: You can leave us a message by using the Speakpipe Email us at: garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com. Facebook fan-page http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow, Twitter (@CelticMythShow) or Snapchat (@garyandruth), Pinterest (celticmythshow) or Instagram (celticmythshow)

  Help Spread the Word: Please also consider leaving us a rating, a review and subscribing in iTunes or 'Liking' our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow as it helps let people discover our show - thank you :)

If you've enjoyed the show, would you mind sharing it on Twitter please? Click here to post a tweet!

Ways to subscribe to the Celtic Myth Podshow:

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

Click here to subscribe via RSS

Click here to subscribe via Stitcher

    Check out this episode!

[orangerosebush]

I’m coming at this from a mytho-historical perspective, rather than a strictly historical perspective.

The AF books reference two locations that also appear in Leabhar Gabhála/Lebor Gabála Érenn (the book of invasions): Tara and Teltown. The reference to Tara is explicit, as in book one Holly mentions it being a site of great magical import, whereas the reference to Teltown is implicit. In reference to “the battle of Tailte”, it is likely that “Tailte” is a different spelling of Taillte/Tailtiu, who in the mythology of Ireland (though there is some uncertainty regarding this due to revisions of the original myths after the Invasion of Normandy) died of exhaustion after making the plains of Ireland fit for agriculture. Her adopted son, the Tuatha Dé Danann named Lugh, then established a harvest festival/ set of games to honor her memory — this was to be called the Fair of Tailtiu (Óenach Tailten), and the importance of this festival was likely roughly equivalent to that of the Feast of Tara (both sites are located in County Meath).  

Image: Enfield Meath, “Visiting the Area”. http://www.enfieldonline.net/legends-and-places

I invoke this myth specifically because of the goddess Tailtiu’s story, which deals with the idea of the invasions of Ireland. There are multiple waves of invasion in Irish mythology, but I’ll mainly deal with the Fir Bolg, Tuatha De Danann, and Milesians. Essentially, Tailtiu was part of the Fir Bolgs, and most of her kind were displaced after the invasion of the island by the magical Tuatha De Danann (of which her son Lugh was one). However, despite the power of the Tuatha De Danann (essentially being pagan gods and goddesses), they were overcome by the Milesians, the human proto-celts according to the story.

The reason for their conflict varies. In some versions, some Milesians had visited the island years prior and were killed by the Tuatha De Danann (who then proceeded to shield the island with magic), and the return of the humans is due to wanting vengeance. In others, some Tuatha de Danann had killed one of the relatives (Íth) of the leader of the Milesians (Míl Espáine), so the return of the Milesians is an attack to avenge Íth’s death. However, in some versions, the Milesians simply land on the island and wish it to be theirs, and thus the fighting commences.

It’s not… entirely clear how the humans beat the Tuatha De Danann, but over the course of many battles, they prevail. Specifically, one of the battles that led to the downfall of the Tuatha De Danann was the battle of *teltown* or the battle of *Tailtiu* — the battle of Tailte to which Colfer refers!

Following their defeat, the Tuatha De Danann retreat underground to live in hiding from the humans for the rest of their days in the otherworld, and in living in this diminished form of power, they become the sídhe, the fairies of Ireland. At this point, you have the folktales where some fairies remain aboveground and toy with humans, while in others, humans travel below ground to barter for magical miracles. That’s where you again start to get some overlap with the mythos of AF, IMHO.

However, Colfer plays it pretty fast and loose when it comes to borrowing from mythology versus generating new lore for the series, and I would be fascinated to see different ways to situate the People in historical and/or mythological context(s). I’m also definitely interested by the idea of how to holistically deal with the past of the People, as I think any attempt to paint them in black-and-white terms of morality is 1) boring and 2) misses out on the opportunity to explore that they’re a completely different civilization that carries within it different cultural mores, religion(s), and ethical systems — if anything, I don’t see them as being morally grey so much as I see them functioning in a wholly different manner that just so happens to overlap in some places with common human systems of morality (e.g. vis a vis perception of violence, environmental value, etc).

From that perspective, I’d say that it was likely two groups of relatively equal power antagonizing each other, if one synthesizes the lore from the myths with the books. I think the instigating event could vary, though, as I’ll admit I’ve not given much thought to specifically that topic.

[celticmythpodshow]

CMP005 - Girding the Loins for Battle

A stranger with many differrent skills comes to Teamhair

It's always great to hear from you! Email garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com, or call us on Speakpipe

  Show Summary:

The Sons of Tuireann encounter Cian, the father of Lugh, on his own and foul acts are committed. Later, the Dagda has two encounters and gains two allies. WARNING - This episode contains the "toilet humour" of the original myth which may be unsuitable for younger children.

This episode is the 5th episode of the Irish Book of Invasions.

More resources over at our main Website at http://celticmythpodshow.com Show Summary:

Running Order:

Intro 0:42

News & Views 0:50

Call to Action -Promote your Blog! J.C. Hutchins 2:18

Story 3:28

Appeal for Tara - Gary & Ruth 19:35

Promo - Chasing the Bard 21:02

Listener Feedback - Byron, Morgana 22:20

All the credits for this episode can be found in our show-notes at http://celticmythpodshow.com/irish5

We hope you enjoy it!

Gary & Ruthie x x x

  News & Views

We give out our contact details and mention that you can send us a message using the Evoka Browser Mic widget on our website. This has now long disappeared (2017) and has been replaced by Speakpipe. Use the link at the top of this page to leave us some voice feedback or just to have a chat with us!

  Girding the Loins for Battle - Episode 5 of the Irish Mythological Cycle and Part 5 of the Book of Invasions

Names Used in this Story

Listed in order of appearance

Lugh

Teamhair

Nuada

Balor

Tory

Erin

Fomor, Fomori

Nemed

Fir Bolg

Eithne, Eithlinn

Currach

Tuatha De Danaan

Druim na Teine

Goban

Samthainn

Cian

Glas Gaibhnenn

Birog of the Mountain

Tailltiu, Taillte

Eas Dara

Manannan

Aonbharr

Bodb Dearg

Cu

Ceithen

Cainte

Sidhe

Plain of Muirthemne

Tuireann

Ogma

Goban, Goibhniu

Brian

Urcar

Dagda

Glenn Etin

River Unius

Connachta

Loscuinn

The Morrigan

Magh Scetne

Ford of Uinius

Indech

De Domnan

Bres

Traigh Eabha

Etain

Geas

Fer Benn

Fer Benn Mach

Fer Benn Bruach Brogaill Broumide Cerbad Caic Rolaig Builc Labair Cerrce Di Brig Oldathair Boith Athgen mBethai Brightere Tri Carboid Roth Rimaire Riog Scotbe Obthe Olaithbe

Beltraw Strand

Tethra

Tir Tairngire

Ur

Ogham

Locations mentioned in this story

  Listener Feedback

We give apologies and hear some feedback from lhugnar suggesting maps for each episode.

  Sources used in this Episode

Timeless Myths http://www.timelessmyths.com/celtic/invasions.html#DanannArrival

Lebor Gabala http://members.aol.com/lochlan2/lebor.htm

The Second Battle of Moytura http://www.ucc.ie/celt/published/T300011.html

http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/cmt/cmteng.htm

Lebor Gabala Erenn http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/lebor4.html#55

Coming of Lugh http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/gafm/gafm05.htm

Coming of Lugh http://www.celtic-twilight.com/celts/rolleston/chapter_iii.htm

And, of course, the Awen - inspiration and imagination!

  Special Thanks

For voice acting: Edward, our son.

For incidental music: Diane Arkenstone, The Secret Garden . See the Contributor page for details.

Kim Robertson, Angels in Disguise . See the Contributor page for details.

Time Ticks Away by Jigger. See their Contributor Page for details.

For our Theme Music

The Skylark and Haghole, the brilliant Culann's Hounds. See their Contributor page for details.

  Extra Special Thanks for Unrestricted Access to Wonderful Music

(in Alphabetic order)

Anne Roos Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of her masterful music to Anne Roos. You can find out more about Anne on her website or on her Contributor page.

Caera Extra Special thanks go for permission to any of her evocative harping and Gaelic singing to Caera. You can find out more about Caera on her website or on her Contributor Page.

Celia Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of her wonderful music to Celia Farran. You can find out more about Celia on her website or on her Contributor Page.

Damh the Bard Extra Special thanks go to Damh the Bard for his permission to use any of his music on the Show. You can find out more about Damh (Dave) on his website or on his Contributor page.

The Dolmen Extra Special thanks also go to The Dolmen, for their permission to use any of their fantastic Celtic Folk/Rock music on the Show. You can find out more about The Dolmen on their website or on our Contributor page.

Keltoria Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of their inspired music to Keltoria. You can find out more about Keltoria on their website or on their Contributor page.

Kevin Skinner Extra Special thanks go for permission to use any of his superb music to Kevin Skinner. You can find out more about Kevin on his website or on his Contributor page.

Phil Thornton Extra Special Thanks go for permission to use any of his astounding ambient music to the Sonic Sorcerer himself, Phil Thornton. You can find out more about Phil on his website or on his Contributor Page.

S.J. Tucker Extra Special thanks go to Sooj for her permission to use any of her superb music. You can find out more about Sooj on her website or on her Contributor page.

Spiral Dance Extra Special thanks go for permission to use Adrienne and the band to use any of their music in the show. You can find out more about Spiral Dance on their website or on their Contributor page.

We'd like to wish you 'Slán Go Foill!', which is Irish for 'Goodbye', or more literally 'Wishing you safety for a while'!

  Get EXTRA content in the Celtic Myth Podshow App for iOS, Android & Windows

Contact Us: You can leave us a message by using the Speakpipe Email us at: garyandruth@celticmythpodshow.com. Facebook fan-page http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow, Twitter (@CelticMythShow) or Snapchat (@garyandruth), Pinterest (celticmythshow) or Instagram (celticmythshow)

  Help Spread the Word: Please also consider leaving us a rating, a review and subscribing in iTunes or 'Liking' our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/CelticMythPodshow as it helps let people discover our show - thank you :)

If you've enjoyed the show, would you mind sharing it on Twitter please? Click here to post a tweet!

Ways to subscribe to the Celtic Myth Podshow:

Click here to subscribe via iTunes

Click here to subscribe via RSS

Click here to subscribe via Stitcher

    Check out this episode!