Pushing Back the Deep

In 180 monsters from the sea appeared near the village of Pebble Cove. The monsters were driven off by Frostburn Company and in the years that followed the people of Pebble Cove would hold a festival to celebrate the heroes success. The members of Frostburn would sometimes attend these festivals, when they weren't otherwise engaged. The festival proved popular and was adopted by Covewatch which was founded to prevent a repeat of the monster attacks.

The festival kicks off with a parade with people dressed as aggressive sea creatures. These monsters make a show of threatening those watching the parade, brandishing tridents or oversized claws. Where paths or roads split, imitation barricades are put up to lead the parade to the centre of the settlement. Along the way the monsters will be confronted by groups of defenders, and mock fights will conducted, with the defenders pushed back each time.   The parade eventually makes it's way to the town or village square where a group dressed as Frostburn will fight and defeat the monsters. A wood and straw figure shaped like a sea creature is then burned on a bonfire which is the signal for feasting and merrymaking to commence. Bards are brought in to perform in the square and the influx of people draws other entertainers (and often more than a ne'er-do-wells).   Later in the day there are traditionally competitions between those who fancy themselves skilled fighters. In Pebble Cove these are friendly contests to establish bragging rights, but in Covewatch they are of greater import. Representatives of the Duke of Filishar and the Argentiss family attend the fights to scout out talent for their personal forces, and there is a sum of gold available for the winner of the contest.

The main items needed for the festival are the costumes for the parade. Many of the volunteers have costumes they use every year, with some having belonged to older relatives before hand. The more complex ones are for the monsters which include full head coverings that are shaped and coloured like sea creatures. Some also have tails and claws. The costumes for the defenders tend to be more simple, involving armour and helmets, staffs and wooden swords.   The costumes for those portraying Frostburn company tend to be reused from year to year, with suitable masks and wigs to convey who is playing each part. Fortunately the heroes had quite distinctive appearances with Malkash and Virris easily recognisable in their red or white.

Those playing the monsters and defenders in the parade are chosen from among volunteers for the role. If there aren't enough volunteers then the participants are chosen by drawing tokens from a bag. The roles of Frostburn are chosen from those who have distinguished themselves in the last year. In addition to playing the heroes, they are also given pride of place in the feast after the parade.   In Covewatch the role of the defenders goes to soldiers stationed there. It is a sought after duty as there is relatively little work and the participants are granted leave for the rest of the day