I'm alive still

A quick update on what is happening here at the rl home of Grai's Gang. This last week has been kinda a lost one towards anything productive. SHrinn MB arrived DoA Friday night bummer but easily worked around. The bigger issues is was that I came down with pneumonia. I sure i misspelled it. Well that put me in the ER all day saturday and has effectively put me on my but most of this week.

Yesterday Shrinn had her spinal tap a nasty headache has been the only negative side effect so far.

And the GAng got one member larger yesterday out 8week 4 day old Boston terrier joined our home.

I have a new power supply to order for my PC tomorrow Shrinn new mb should be in mid week I hope and then if all things smile at us we should be back.

So to friends we miss you all terrible each day but god willing only at worst another 7-10 days and we will be annoying you folks again.

Gonne be a bit dark

It appears that my PC at the hard drive. One can only assume the stories where so bad it went into digital cardiac arrest. Posting thru the lovely Shrinn's old PC so wont be many updates new post till i can get the HDD installed.

Doubt the loss will be great just wanted to let the 2 or 3 readers I have know.

Will miss you much and be back and boring as soon as the pieces arrive

Fal's version

Apparently my friend and road companion for these last years of my life, Graimerin, has taken to story telling in his old age. Now Dwarfs and Humans get along well in most regards but there are a few things that dwarfs just do better than humans. Drink, craft the ore's of the earth and last but not least, tell tales. Now I read his and to be honest he left a few blank spots, if ya take me meanin'. I have seen much of this world and many a person in Lordaeron, but never one named Graimerin. The gray man seems to be a name he choose after what he calls his cowardice. I fought side by side with the man and have never seen a moment of cowardice in him.

He touched quickly on the night we meet in Dun Morogh. I also remember it well, if differently than him, I had just settled into my camp and heard this sound like troggs mating coming from the west side of my camp. I jump up and grab my throwing axe and threw it towards the sound. I chase after it with my mace ready to cave in another trogg head and continue cleansing my land of their filth. Well to my surprise I hear the sound of it bouncing off metal and wonderin' if I be battlin' a worthy foe ,an orc.

I let loose with my battle cry and swing my mace in hopes of either disarming or injuring my opponent enough for a quick kill. To my surprise my mace slammed into a shield. The blow bein' stopped cold. I quickly settled into my battle rotation consistently looking for an opening to land at least a blow that would give some advantage. The dark and the skill of the opponent only in my mind confirmed an orc was my opponent. Heh, ya can imagine my surprise when I hear a bull like bellow claiming that this interloper to my camp is not only human but on the king's business.

With the certainty that I could get my mace back to a suitable position to defend myself, I step back into the dim glow of the camp fire and allowed him to speak. Guardedly, he began tellin' me his tale of how he had abandoned his vows to the Silver Hand after the traitor showed his true colors and was tryin' to redeem himself by helpin' when and where he could in the southern lands. My first reaction was horror that one could break a vow, freely given, but these have been odd times of late in Azeroth. My people, the dwarfs of Ironforge have felt the bite of the traitor deeply with the loss of the King's brother with the traitor in the cold forsaken north.

I offered him what hospitality is to be found on the road. Warm fire, a bit of ale, and a fine meal if I do say so me self. During this time it appeared a weight had been removed from his shoulders, simply seeming to be able to accept a kindness started to change him. We settled into a uncomfortable comfortable kind o' silence that any warrior of the road knows these days and made our plans to sleep for the night.

The morning found me alive and ready to continue my cleansing of the kings land of the foul troggs that had sprung up like weeds, during these last few season of battling orcs and plague crazed undead. I started breakin' down me camp and finally took a long look at this stranger who came out of the dark last night, noticing that while only of middle years for a human his hair and beard where completely gray. Feelin' a bit of the wise ass in me creep out, I asked him what a youngster by dwarven standards was doing with all that wrongly colored hair and sorry attempt at a beard. Now friendship can be based on many things but to me, ours will always be based upon his reply. He calmy stated “ I have seen the gates of hell, my young 'Ramord and I am searching for the way back.”

Now I don't take too well to being referred to as young, espically by one of the short lived races. Although that twinkle in his eyes when he said it made me wonder what this man had truly seen. I tossed back over me shoulder a simple claim that I'm out to hunt some troggs and if he is still looking to fill out his bounty, mayhap we can kill twice as many, twice as fast.

I'm a warrior trained from the days when I could barely hold the mace that me father crafted for me, and have seen many a fine warrior take to the field. Still seeing how this man would run into a pack of this vermin and the call upon the power of the light and simply hold them there while I wadded through their ranks decamating them. There are trully many ways to gauge the measure of a man but for me tis simple, can he hold his drink, can he hold his own in battle and most importantly can he turn a phrase and make a joke. While his ability to hold a drink had yet to be determined he made me laugh and was impressive in battle. So after we had our share of trogg killing I offer the chance for him to return to Ironforge with me.

We returned to my beloved mountain home, which I am away from to much to suit me those and these days. We managed to close a tavern or two together, and while he cant drink like a true dwarf he is close for a human. After this I knew that I couldnt let hin return to his war with the armor and weapons he carried into my camp. So I took him offer to the great forge and set about a task that nowdays seems to be me lifes work. Crafting him the best weapons and armor that my small skill in smithing allows me to create.

Many battles have we waged on this world and distant others, we even manged to gather a few others into our group, but seeing as how he wants to be the story teller I let him continue this tale as my small part in correcting his mistakes is done.

Grai's Story

It is at twilight that I begin this story. My story, a story about how I came to be in this frozen waste land; and my pursuit of the traitor who changed my life. I'll try not to make this as rambling as my travels have been these last few years. Although I shall try to include many of the fine people of this great land of Azeroth that I have meet on my journeys, through this land and strange lands where we have fought the taint of the shadow; in its many forms and guises. Who am I ? You may wonder if you are reading these words, I'm just a simple Paladin once of the Silver Hand and now of no group, save a few dedicated friends. My name is Graimerin, I'm not a lofty hero but a simple man trying to find the answers that have eluded me for many many season.

I was born into a lesser house of nobility in fair Lordaeron, the second son of a second son. My choices were limited to entering the clergy or hopefully getting accepted into the Knight of the Silver Hand. While I follow the light I'm not a overly pious man, I do follow the tenets of the light. So I applied and was accepted into the knighthood. During my novitiate I was taught martial skills, from the wielding of mighty two handed arms; too the ability of holding a enemy at bay until others could dispatch it. My instructors often told me I was stubborn as a rock and about as bright so I gravitated to shield work. Marking my spot on the ground with the power of the light in me and allowing my comrades to dispatch our foes. My training during this time was multi faceted and develed heavily into the arts of healing and sustaining my comrades through skirmish and battle.

Then came the glorious day when I was to be knighted, no longer a novice I would be sent out defend, protect and heal the citizens of Azeroth. It was at this time that a terrible plague descended upon my homeland. The dead rose and walked again as mindless slaves to the demon Mal'ganis. Hope sprang in our hearts because our Prince Arthas was on the field of battle. A fellow knight albeit of greater standing by birth and martial prowess would save us. I was fighting in what we now call the eastern plague lands when the story of horror came to my ears. We had been disbanded and named outlaw by our Prince, whom if tales carried on the wind were true then but my beloved city to the sword wantonly killing men, women and children; in his misguided attempt to save them.

I am ashamed to say that I ran. My order disbanded, a man whom I looked up to turned monster, my life turned into chaos in moments. Southward was my direction hoping to outrun the tales of horror that ran before me. In my shock I never removed the items that identified me as a knight, and I would get looks for the citizens wondering if I was another monster coming to destroy their homes and lives.

Rumors continued about a mission to the North where Arthas was to finally confront Mal'ganis. I didn't go as I had given up my allegiance to the silver hand by then. Hindsight now shows that to be a wise decision as none of my former comrades came home from it. Arthas did kill Mal'ganis but the cost was horrible. But his is not my story to tell.

During this time of my wandering I somehow manage to find my way into the southern human lands near Stormwind. Where a call was going up for people to help defend the area against the incursion of beast and man set upon destroying what fragile safety they had won for themselves. I answered this call as more of a way of redeeming myself for the earlier cowardice act I had committed.

It was during this time that I came to meet some wonderful people whom I still call friend. The first was a memorable encounter that I barely escaped from alive. I had taken a commission in the killing of trogs in and around Dun Morogh area. I was to collect their ears as proof of kills. It was getting towards dark when the light can play tricks on the eyes. I saw a campfire and was going to approach to yelling distance when a axe comes flying out of the darkness. I raised my shield to deflect the axe and when I had a chance to focus saw this enraged dwarven warrior rushing at me trying to finish the job he started with the axe.

Now I had battled man and beast and things that were both and neither. Never a battle have I had like the one that day. The power with which he could swing that huge mace was astounding, what was worse was that he didn't leave many openings to counter attack through. Having taken a few small wounds thankfully nothing fatal I screamed that I was working for his king, helping to defend his homeland. That seemed to quell his rage and he slowly lowered his mace, and very gruffly in heavily accented common said speak human.

This is how I came to meet Falromord. A prototypical dwarf, strong as the mountain rock from which he came; and just about as likely to change. It was obvious that he didn't have a lot of trust of me but was willing to at least hear my tale. After I told him of what had gone on in my life these last few years

, he challenged me saying that if I truly deserved the right to my weapon and shield I would continue on this path and do what I could to help.

He accompanied me back to the mountain glory that is Ironforge, where he crafted me armor that replaced my old and worn set. Slowly we began to trust each other and set out on the road of adventure together. Many battles have we fought side by side theses last years. He keeping me in weapons and the finest armors that can be made. Me taking the brunt of these attacks upon my shield and sword arm as he destroys our enemies with the whiling dance of death he creates with his maces.

While there is much more to my fine dwarf friend I shall let him tell his own tale of how he came to be on the road that night.

There are others of whom I shall tell you latter but the hour grows late and this tale grows long so I shall did you goodnight for now.

Why I havn't posted in a few days

Hello again folks. Been trying to get used to some new glasses, they have transition lenses. Easiest way to explain it for anyone under the bifocal cap is this. Imagine your eyes are out of control zoom lenses, every time you move your view point(eyes/head) the image either gets larger or smaller and also becomes fuzzy or clear. That been my life the last couple of days. My dear Shrinn tells me I look like a bobble head doll with a bad spring in it.

Okay some quick updates and maybe a small rant upcoming.

Play time has been somewhat limited for above reason but did manage to get a couple runs in last night. Log into Fal and figured I'll waste time for awhile waiting to see if we would have enough people log in for some guild raids VoA/OS. Get a whisper from a old guildie who needed dps for heroic VoA/OS figured 90 minutes should be plenty of time and if the guild needed me I warned in advance that I would leave.

So I make my way to wintergrasp only to find out we are still filling spots ok short wait but no biggie. Well we finally assemble blow threw Archie like the sub zero winds we have been having over here in the east and move on to OS.

Now I have over an hour till a possible guild run should be no problem. Right? Oops we had mad problems. From people dcing,sleeping, going afk without warning all the wonderful lovely things I despise about pugs. So we are finally moving through the trash no major issues take down western drake. After looting him we move our position up some and somebody face pulls next pat. We lived through but the recount of who,why and what took about 5 minutes. Clear trash skip the whelp drake as we want to try and leave him up for the bonus loot. Clear rest of trash and other drake.

Now we approach Sartharion, the raid leader didn't have a pre planned set up for tanking or healing assignments did I say this was a pug already. So after a period of time we finally make our attempt. Wipe for many reason. Fly back in try again wipe again more reason some same some new. Now we decide to take down drake we left. 10 minutes later we are still talking, I love pugs.

We kill the last drake then take 3 more attempts to finally kill Sartharion. 6 heroic emblems average out to about 12g a piece in repair bills.

Now I will freely admit this was a pug. Also that I am very spoiled by our guild runs we have communication in general vent chat, we have a healer channel so they can plan and raid leaders and tanks know who's doing what; and we rarely ever have bickering. It was just eye opening to see how different life can be than what I am used to.

Ok rants done.

I forgot after that wonderful waste of time I've just chronicled we did manage a guild heroic of AN. Seeing how are secret weapon was on-line. Grai managed to get the belt of the last boss which was a big upgrade for him. No trinket but ended the night on a relaxing run with the guild.

Helping them find you

The Big Bear Butt Blogger has ask that we throw up a short note concerning his reader. He upgrade something that wont talk to somethings else. So if you haven't gotten a feed update you need to re visit his sight and sign up for his new and improved feed reader.


The Big Bear Butt Blogger

So head on over and sign up if you haven't gotten your daily dose of bearness.