[Official NPC]

Those of you with sharp eyes may have noticed already that something's been going on in the forest, and may also have spotted the 'secret' pages on the wiki. I wanted to keep it quiet because I'm a sadist like that (and also because I wasn't entirely sure the plot would be going ahead), but it's finally time for me to announce it!

Catch up:

• When Hel froze over
  Xanth meets with rival god, Danae, on Earth to discuss a mysterious "deal".
  
• Is it a bird?
  A strange new flying creature, shrouded by a cloud-like vapour, is spotted over Quessenar in the Chandric Forest.
  
• Raiding party
  More strange creatures arrive through a portal in the Chandric Forest to survey abundant resources they plan to take for themselves by any means necessary. (Some of you may remember exactly where this portal leads.)
  
• King of the skies
  A person riding a vapour-shrouded "myst" scouts over the mountains but is spotted by an Anyeli garrison.
  
• Swarming Athendíl NEW!!!
  Nimisha, ex-lover of Mortimer Jericho, is visiting a commune on the Chandric-Fae border when they are attacked by a group of violent bull-like raiders.

Very shortly, a new forum will appear in Special Events and all related threads will be moved there. The plot officially begins in July as part of EF's 6th anniversary celebrations, but feel free to use these lead-in threads in the meantime! You could have your characters hear and spread rumours, go off to the forest to investigate, even attempt to track down the mysterious creatures for their own ends. If you'd like an actual encounter with either the Malaki or the Mystriders, however, you will need to request ONPC participation.

But what exactly is this plot about?
Clearly, it's not your run-of-the-mill "figure out what's going on" plot, or these wouldn't just be lead-ins. These are actually just the build-up to the plot itself, so don't worry if you've missed them before now. I'm not going to tell you just yet what the plot really is about (toldja, sadist), but suffice to say it's going to be big.

Feel free to ask questions, make suggestions or tip your hats here. :3

[Xanth]

I've moved the above threads into a new Special Event forum called The Acanthan Arc. If you'd like to investigate these strange sightings, please post your threads in that forum.

Keep your eyes peeled for more!