A few months ago, I was making my way past the outskirts of Sanctuary, where I observed a group of the assembled citizens and protectors of the town involved in a rather unique activity. They were seemingly escorting what appeared to be an Sloth Erubi down a stone pathway of sorts, towards a type of circle in the center of the area they were working in. Normally, this would not be really of any consequence, but then from the nearby treeline, there was a series of loud and what can only be described as hostile, gobbles.
Suddenly, from all sides, small waves of aggressive turkeys erupted from the forest, and moved towards the sloth and the escort from Sanctuary. The puzzling thing was the turkeys seemed to be almost organized in how they approached their target. At that point, the denizens of the town attacked with either ranged, magic, or even some melee attacks, whenever a few of their opponents actually got close enough. The turkeys were fell by the dozens, but more and more were taking their place. A few times the enraged gobblers actually made contact with the Erubi, which made her turn back to the beginning of the pathway, only to begin her slow walk towards the circle, as fast as a sloth could move.
Even though the battle that ensued was very one-sided (I admit I even took a few free shots with my own bow at some of the stragglers that were emerging from the woods), the one-minded determination of these hate-driven fowl was a bit impressive. Their numbers, once dwindled enough, allowed Sanctuary’s champions to complete their escort mission, and the Erubi gave all those present a blessing, which seemed to help refresh their health and spirit, allowing them to not have to consume as much in keeping up with their needs in the future. The battle won, I moved on my own way.
It was later around a table and sharing drinks with some other locals, I was told of the old traditions around Sanctuary of something called Slothsgiving. It was an old tradition, mainly carried on in physical form by the children of the town previously, in their hand-written drawings of a mythical Sloth-like being (possibly the same Erubi I saw earlier), that granted those a unique boon once a year around the time that I was traveling through. Apparently the tradition can have different forms, but the beneficial results are the same. From a more grown-up standpoint, I rather enjoyed the “turkey shoot” that I witnessed and partially participated in earlier.
I may have to return to Sanctuary next year to see this again.
Until next time, keep your bows ready, and may your arrows always fly true.
-Archer Quill