#etta rambles

Polling based off what were the "big" ones for kids growing up in the US, based off my very limited anecdotal observations. Asian, Native American, and African mythology and folk traditions are so so fascinating to me and it's a crying shame they're not more thoroughly covered by our shoddy education system. I'll probably make a follow up poll depending on how this one turns out. Tell me in the comments/tags!

Ranger's oakleaf pendants are enchanted by the commander to be a tiny beacon of warmth whenever an apprentice/mentor duo are nearby to each other, and this persists even after the apprenticeship ends. This makes the game of Gilan trying to sneak up on Halt way funnier because the pendant warming is a dead giveaway, and makes Halt giving up his oakleaf to go find Will a much bigger deal because now there's no way to tell if he's getting "warmer" to finding him. When Horace becomes known as the oakleaf knight, his shield is enchanted too because he's basically an honorary brother to will let's be real.

The rule of "The cloak isn't magic, training is everything, trust the cloak" still applies, because they're not perfectly illusory, but they do shift color and pattern throughout the year to match the changing seasons.

Where do the wargals go after Morgarath is killed??? Do they all just die spontaneously? Run off a cliff like lemmings?? Get mass executed by the araluens? No! They've got a tragic history of being semi-intelligent war-slaves. Let me see a few refugee ones make their way to Malcom's camp along with the rest of the "freaks" he takes in, and be given a home, and have Will reconcile his (very valid and traumatic) fears of dealing with them before with the fact that they had no control over the situation back then.

On that note just let Malcom be an honest to the gods sorcerer, he deserves it.

When they're chasing the Kalkara in book 1, they pass through this plain with singing flutes. What's the deal with that?? I think this is a religious practice for a god. We know the Skandians practice a polythestic religion but only get superficial information. I want to know more about the rest of the world and I want Details Please and Thank You. A singing shrine for local spirits is such a cool worldbuilding concept that is left totally unexplored.

The ranger horses can still be a special breed that Halt stole from the Arridi, but they're semi-intelligent mythical creatures in their own right with a history full of lore. Give them a better reason for their mannerisms beyond just "good training". Every once and a while Tug pulls out some whacky power and Will's like "HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN HIDING THAT ONE." This is already canon.

It's been a while since I read books 5 and 6 where Alyss got kindapped that one time, but I vaguely remember there was this one hypnotizing jewel. She takes that idea and brings it back to the diplomats to research, refine, reproduce, and use. They start wearing them as necklaces to subconsciously influence the people they're talking to to agree with them on diplomatic missions. Lady Pauline strikes me as the type of person to not shy away from a little harmless mind control. After all she married Halt "forging a king's seal is totally ok" O'Carrick so the moral compass is. A bit wobbly.

Jenny's cooking position is also a secret potioneering apprenticeship and she send Gilan off with tons of healing potions because she worries about him coming home safe. After hearing about what happens to Will in Skandia, and what happens to Halt in Halt's Peril, she makes it her life's mission to develop antidotes to warmweed and other addictive/poisonous substances so that no one has to suffer those withdrawl effects and symptoms again.

This is kind of what I'm looking at right now!

~Reposting this from my Instagram~. Image ID in alt text