User:Daric Gaersmith/TES Fan Fiction Collection/Gaersmith Legacy

These are the collected legends of an old Breton family, the Gaersmiths. Each volume is written about one of the Gaersmith patriarchs, and shows how they react to — or are involved in — the events of their times down through the ages of Tamrielic history. The tale begins with the most recent heir, Daric, who was born in 4E 171, only 30 years before the Dragon Crisis began when Alduin attacked Helgen.

Throughout this tale there will be mention of a custom class, (similar to the Elder Scrolls game Oblivion's Custom Classes), known as a "gaersmith" (with a lowercase "g"). This is different but entirely related to a "Gaersmith" (with a capital "G"), which is a Breton surname. A foundational premise of this fan fiction series is that the name "Gaersmith" stems from the family's historical business as "gaersmiths". In real life we see this sometimes, such as the common English surname "Smith" stemming from an ancestor's employment as a blacksmith, or the surname "Taylor" which may stem from an ancestor's employment as a clothing "tailor". In this fan fiction tale, the key "Gaersmith" patriarchs are still gainfully employed as "gaersmiths". A "gaersmith" is someone who is personally involved in every aspect of crafting an object, from mining the raw ores, through smelting and forging, to enchanting and selling the object. It is seen as a quirky, artisan endeavour which produces unique and beautiful items, as opposed to common "blacksmithing", which is seen as a more stoic, practical skill that often results in mass-produced items, and generally leaves both the collection of raw materials and the marketing of the end product to other people who specialize in those activities.

Prologue

This volume gives a little bit of history, before the Legacy itself begins, to help put the rest of the story into context. No-one in this volume is related in any way to the Gaersmith clan.

Volume I

This volume will be taken mostly from the perspective of Daric Gaersmith, the most recent in the line of Gaersmith patriarchs. It spans the time from the start of the Great War to the end of the Dragon Crisis; which includes the period of Tamrielic history covered by the game Skyrim. Daric is searching for identity, and for meaning in life. He is torn between duty to his father, and honouring his late grandfather's wishes. If only the previous generations saw eye-to-eye!

Chapter 1 - The Great War

Status: Completed.
It is the time of the Great War, the Aldmeri Dominion have invaded Cyrodiil and captured the Imperial City. In this chapter we meet the current crop of Gaersmith patriarchs. Andoryan and Daric are sheltering in Travendon Hall, which is now quite close to the new front lines of the war. Meanwhile Rerlas is busy making and repairing Imperial weapons and armour in Bruma for the war effort.

Chapter 2 - A Chance Discovery

Status: Mind mapping.
In this chapter we jump ahead in time to the Dragon Crisis of 4E 201. The Dawnstar Sanctuary of the Dark Brotherhood has recently been rediscovered after years of disuse. What will they find inside it?

Volume II

This volume will be from the perspective of Rodistyr Gaersmith, the great, great grandfather of Daric. It spans the time from just five years before the Warp in the West occurred, until 70 years after the Oblivion Crisis ends; the piece of Tamrielic history covered by the games Oblivion and Morrowind.

Rodistyr is soon to be a fourth-generation "legacy" initiate at the College of Winterhold. His family are living in Winterhold (pre-collapse), and are all very involved in the life of the city and the College. This tale gives a glimpse of how Winterhold was before 4E 122, and the antics of young scholars in the hallowed halls of the College of Winterhold.

Update History

• Update as of 21:41, 16 May 2013 (GMT): I have been doing a lot of mindmapping in preparation for chapter 2 of the first volume. Below is another view of the mindmap I've been building for this tale. At this size it is impossible to read the detail (which is good, because there's some juicy plots in there that I don't want to reveal just yet!) but at least you can get the feel for how much effort I'm putting in to planning the storyline and the sub-plots.

• Update as of 07:43, 20 April 2013 (GMT): Chapter 1 of the first Volume of The Gaersmith Legacy is now complete! 3,727 words in total for the chapter.
• Update as of 09:56, 19 April 2013 (GMT): Chapter 1 of the first Volume of The Gaersmith Legacy has arrived. It is not quite complete yet though.
• Update as of 03:18, 12 April 2013 (GMT): Work has begun on the first chapter of Volume I of The Gaersmith Legacy.
• Update as of 23:19, 10 April 2013 (GMT): Just to let you all know that I am still working on this epic tale. I thought I'd let you all into my head, showing you a portion of the mind map that I have been making for the story, using FreeMind. This helps me keep the story organized, so I know which parts of the plot will go into which chapters of which volume, and all that type of thing.

• Update as of 09:13, 19 February 2013 (GMT): The prologue to the The Gaersmith Legacy has arrived.
• Update as of 11:40, 17 February 2013 (GMT): I have been working on the prologue to the tale, linking it to existing lore. Now that I know what the basic structure of the main plot is going to be, fleshing out some of the details is becoming easier. I should be ready to start writing the prologue soon.
• Update as of 06:20, 30 January 2013 (GMT): The outlines of the volumes are starting to take shape. It is a bit like building a skeleton, which I'll add the "meat" to later. There is still a lot of lore that I want to incorporate into the tale, though. I'm not re-writing the entire history of Tamriel from the perspective of the Gaersmith patriarchs, but I am trying to link in as much relevant history as I can.
• Update as of 06:27, 24 January 2013 (GMT): I now have an overall plot for the storyline. I'm not giving too much away, but I will say that I drew inspiration from a current real-world event that has been in the news a lot over the last few weeks. It is something that rears its ugly head in the real world every now and then, so it shouldn't become stale before I finish writing. It will be interesting to see how I can apply this to the world of Tamriel and Elder Scrolls lore. Don't expect everything to become clear in the first volume though. I have to keep some secrets to keep my readers interested.