The Yelloweye Troupe

Information sourced from 'The Greatest Showmen', as well as many excerpts from newspapers published throughout the Holy See Territories concerning "Rivercrown's Most Wanted"

Written by David_Ulph

While reviled throughout history, the druidic diaspora throughout the Mortal Realm has undoubtedly brought many benefits to our Gods-fearing communities in the Territories. One such are their travelling tribes, such as the Boswells who focus on specialities and information of magical items, and the Fleckies who are renown entertainers. Ah yes, the druids are truly the greatest showmen, bringing joy to the lives of the lowest while the highest pay for the alumni of the bardic colleges.
The joy one can witness on the face of a young peasant when the horse-drawn carriages and caravans containing wonders from across the Mortal Realm. Wonders from acting troupes, to exotic animals across the sandy seas of Rostau, to extraordinary feats of non-magical abilities.

— The Greatest Showmen

Introduction

There are many forms of entertainment that pass through the lives of even the most common peasant which live on the Mortal Realm, with a common favourite especially in the Holy See Territories being travelling troupes of actors, bards or circuses. Often times, these are formed by tribes of druids, usually shunned culturally or even legally from many settlements or even whole counties. Many tribes are famous now for their seasonal entertainment acts rather than the druidic stigma ingrained in the minds of all those faithful to the Holy See.

One such travelling group of entertainers is the Yelloweye Troupe, so named after the ringleader Sam Yellow, who were once only active in the Grand Duchy of Rivercrown, but now travel throughout all of the Territories to much of the delight of subjects in the Kingdom of Analand since their acceptance of the Holy See. The Yelloweye Troupe are famous in the working lower classes of society, offering shows for mere coppers for the quality of entertainment a nobleman would pay handsomely to the service of an esteemed bard.

Entertainment

The main entertainment offered by the Yelloweye Troupe comes in three parts. Throughout the day, the troupe focusses on variations of acting. Acts included plays of a comedic sense, where the actors are comedians that talk about and portray life's mundane subjects, mixed with comic songs and surreal observations. Often times, if the troupe worried about authorities nearing them, they would show mystery plays that depict myths of the Holy See and the Gods of their Pantheon.

As the sun sets, various variety acts will come out to the circular field within where the caravans park, such as wonders of acrobatics, fire-eating, sword duelling and explosions of colour and sound. A regular sign of the troupe is the Fire Poi Dancers, where people twirl balls of fire on strings in mesmerising patterns while dodging the vicious sparks that fly off the fireballs. When the sun has fully set, music fills the Yelloweye's campsite, as a band comes out to provide a jig to the crowd, or a ceilidh in cultures which hold such dances.

History & Rise to Fame

Originally, the Yelloweye Troupe was based around a druidic tribe who travelled throughout the Rivercrown region known as the Tait Tribe. The Tait Tribe were renown entertainers, setting up fairs since the Dark Period to which all were welcome. Though lasting for centuries gave the Tait Tribe a relatively favourable public view with some even being allowed within city walls, it also allowed non-druids to join the ranks of the travelling Tait entertainers.

By the time one Catelyn Tait was the matriarch of the main Tait family, the blend between family and work had grown so much where the majority of the druid blood in the travelling part of the tribe had integrated back into society and hung up their life of entertainment for new starts throughout Rivercrown. An amalgamation of entertainers from across the Great Dance populated the travelling tribe, despite only Catelyn being a Tait left. When she died, Sam Yellow took the reins on his proclaimed vague druidic blood and decided to move the troupe in a new direction.

The Yelloweye Troupe became famous throughout the Territories for the same reason why they travel over multiple countries with no stopping in sight. A member of the troupe, Vindur Vanir, had started to court with the daughter of Grand Duke Megalos III to the dismay of the ducal family. The ducal family decided to frame the young Vindur with claims that he had planned to kidnap and potentially murder the Grand Duke's daughter, and offered a warrant for his arrest with a substantial reward.

Still keeping the druidic tradition that the troupe was a family, none of the entertainers handed Vindur in to the authorities and instead hid him, fleeing to the border with the Confederation of Vallatorlan. With Rivercrown being in the Holy See, a bounty for the entire Yelloweye Troupe was placed in every legal bounty guildhall throughout the Territories. Since then, great excitement surrounds the appearance of the troupe's caravans over the hills as the famed "Rivercrown's Most Wanted" that no one knows when or where will turn up next.

Prompts Advent Calendar #26

WorldEmber Article #28

Type

Entertainment, Troupe

Leader

Samuel Leno "Sam Yellow"

Predecessor

The Tait Tribe

Hierarchy & Internal Organisation

The leader of the Yelloweye Troupe where the organisation gets its name is Sam Yellow, who features vibrant yellow eyes are claimed by the ringleader to be from his claimed shared druidic and Satyr ancestry. Sam does not usually take part in the entertainment since taking over the travelling group, though will on occasion reprise his role as fiddler during night-time musical numbers.

Yellow's second-in-command is a Wind Genasi born in the Elementia Realm of Caeli itself called Vindur Vanir, who leads and organises the musical events that surround the entertainment of the Troupe. Vindur settled in the Northern Limit, where he bonded with a sea eagle and travelled eastward plying their trade through Vallatorlan and finally Rivercrown playing a panpipe with his eagle, Froj, wearing outfits and carrying a hat to collect donations from the crowd.

Other members of the Troupe in the "inner circle" are Kim Thrashand a Half-Orc war veteran from Yosha (a fire eater), and Tom Plymth a pelican-like Aarakokra who dresses in flamboyant colourful clothes while crafting magical-like herbal potions and non-lethal explosives used by other acts.