Bringing the Scroll Traveller to the Pandora Campaign (2011)

From time to time (more often than that even) I'll give some behind-the-scenes commentary on stuff. This is the first one of those commentaries about Shefdu Sootootma's warband for the 2011 World Campaing:

I recently read 2 or 3 of the newer translations of the Epic of Gilsgamesh (for fun). That gave me every intention of doing a Gilgamesh-themed Ptah warband for the Pandora’s Box Campaign. But my own insecurities about pulling it off made me rethink it. I don't have all the figures I'd want to use as Babylonians in my vast collection yet. It would have been a fun warband but ToTanem Harbingers often end up being way too frustrating to play against. So I decided to try something that might be more fun for me and my potential opponents.

I considered an Inanna-themed Isis warband to keep with the Babylonian theme and add some spice to games. Inanna's warband will likely see some games as a proxy Chaos warband or my personal Chaos warband during the campaign. Many of her jilted and tormented lovers will be used as characters, plus she's got lots of Nekharu to help firmly put her in the Chaos faction.

This brought an idea I've been playing with for quite some time to the fore- a Tethru warband of the pre-mummified Shefdu Sootootma 'the Scroll Traveller.' Longtime fans of Shefdu's exploits will no doubt exclaim "Waitaminnut- I thought Shefdu was known as the 'Scribe of the Dawn' before he was the Dark Harbinger version known as the 'Scribe of Oblivion!'" Of course he was, everyone knows that. BUT before he was 'Scribe of the Dawn' he was known as 'the Scroll Traveller.'

A literal translation of Shefdu is "papyrus scroll" and Sootootma is "to travel or walk"- so he's been the 'Scroll Traveller,' or 'Scroll Walker,' all along. I think Mabuki may have made mention of this at one time but it was in passing so nobody really noticed it.

Before he first became a Harbinger of Thoth he discovered an ancient magical technique that let him enter a scroll and take part in the action. This is probably why he became a Harbinger in the first place (I haven’t written that part of his fluff yet). Of course it’s a forbidden knowledge thing so he was only able to use it for a little while before the Assessors stepped in. That is the Shefdu who finds himself in the midst of the Pandora's Box Crisis…