Need help with Riddle [Archive] - Wizards Community

Need help with Riddle [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
King Cornish
12-09-03, 03:12 PM :confused:

I need to figure out an answer to the riddle below, which my party came across in Silverymoon. If I don't, my character will die, and if that happens I'm going to quit school. Any help would be appreciated.

An Elephant in Musk

I long to see the pansies...

Hark, look there good boy,
and see the light of eternity
smiling at the sunset,
where clouds hump at the sky,
running along the sea.

It makes me feel joy,
pure unadultered joy,
unadultered by contaminants;
and my heart withers
at the thought of losing it,
withers hither and thither,
fluttering like a lark
feeding from a flower.

Look there!
at the gristle bird,
and see how he plods along,
uncaring and unfathomable,
with a heart of gold
not unlike mine,
but surely less fathomable.

Watch as he picks and pecks,
pecks and picks
at the odorant grass,
odorant and green,
like some strange green flower
in blade form
spread over the earth,
and the smell of an elephant in musk
fills the air...

And as I watch all of this
I lie in bed with illness,
of the body but not the mind;
a swordless army taking me over,
its' general generating heat,
and its' dictator dictating my thoughts,
making me hysteric.

My thoughts turn to my room,
a room filled with colors
and men speaking,
the men who made this country,
great men of history,
and they all love me,
even the animals and insects
and those organisms too small to see.

And the old man puffed
on his pipe,
blowing smoke that filled the room,
and everything faded away
into a swirl of nonsense.

- Any ideas?!?

PS - The riddle was written on the scroll Lemmiwinks found.
Adrian Moonbow
12-10-03, 01:53 AM What's the int of your character?

He might be able to know the answer while you don't (ask your DM)!
WizO_BigSister
12-10-03, 03:59 AM It would help a lot if you posted the context - where you found the riddle, how you know it IS a riddle, what are you trying to do etc
Kornovus
12-10-03, 07:31 AM Or more simply put: what´s the actual question?
SharsDarkestMinion
12-10-03, 10:20 AM unless your dm is a poet fan or something, its unlikely he made that riddle up. ive made up some riddles as dm before, but they always actually *had a question* attached to it. it sounds like a poem/riddle he found somewhere. check the internet for 'an elephant in musk' to see what you can find. if you go to your dms house, take a look through any poetry/puzzle books he might have. ...but the more i look at it, the more i think its a poem and not a riddle. take the riddle to an english teature and asker her to explain it to you. the meanings hidden in poems are often impossible to find by people who dont do it often, but english teachers do it for a living. anyways, just check out the internet, poem books, and a teacher.
King Cornish
12-10-03, 12:15 PM :confused:

Last night we got this clue. I think it has something to do with converting the letters to numbers and adding them or some kind of long division or something, or only paying attention to certain letters in each line. I still haven't figured it out though. I'm ready to just quit school because this is ridiculous...

The Puking Bard

No one told a story
like the puking bard
his face could tell a story
on its own sometimes.
The mouth part of the face
would usually say, "BLEHHGGG!,"
then "Uhhgg...,"
as we drank our ale in delight.
When he was able to talk,
between his periods
of mouth diarrhea,
He would amaze us with his
superior vocabulary
and severe mouth odor.
One day we realized
he wasn't a bard at all, but a hobo,
and that we weren't in a Medieval tavern.
"Can you spare a dollar?," he asked.
No, we can't - do we look like a MAC machine?
___

We found the second riddle on the scroll that Lemmiwinks, our dwarven battlerager found. He found it in the pocket of crazy bard that he smushed. The bard kept telling us these crazy stories that made no sense, but every time he finished a story there was a twinkle in his eye and a little "ding" went off in our heads. Before he started he said the riddle would lead us to a house filled with all of our weapons and equipment that was stolen from us by an army of dark elves. After he finished telling us the first story, we couldn't figure it out so Lemmiwinks smushed the guy. The weirdest thing is, after we read the scroll our characters started running around like maniacs and couldn't stop throwing up. Now I rob. I hope that helps.
King Cornish
12-10-03, 04:15 PM :confused:

Also, we are in a time-travel campaign.

Smiles.
Richard Lee Byers
12-11-03, 01:14 AM I notice common elements in the two poems. They both seem to make reference to illness, delirium, confusion, and hallucination.
Which does not appear to be the answer to a riddle per se. (I too found myself thinking, what's the question, exactly? It's not even clear what sort of puzzle this is supposed to be.) But maybe it's significant somehow in the context of the campaign.
King Cornish
01-08-04, 01:22 PM :confused:

King Cornish died on the way back to his home planet.

Thank You.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
King Cornish 12-09-03, 03:12 PM	:confused: I need to figure out an answer to the riddle below, which my party came across in Silverymoon. If I don't, my character will die, and if that happens I'm going to quit school. Any help would be appreciated. An Elephant in Musk I long to see the pansies... Hark, look there good boy, and see the light of eternity smiling at the sunset, where clouds hump at the sky, running along the sea. It makes me feel joy, pure unadultered joy, unadultered by contaminants; and my heart withers at the thought of losing it, withers hither and thither, fluttering like a lark feeding from a flower. Look there! at the gristle bird, and see how he plods along, uncaring and unfathomable, with a heart of gold not unlike mine, but surely less fathomable. Watch as he picks and pecks, pecks and picks at the odorant grass, odorant and green, like some strange green flower in blade form spread over the earth, and the smell of an elephant in musk fills the air... And as I watch all of this I lie in bed with illness, of the body but not the mind; a swordless army taking me over, its' general generating heat, and its' dictator dictating my thoughts, making me hysteric. My thoughts turn to my room, a room filled with colors and men speaking, the men who made this country, great men of history, and they all love me, even the animals and insects and those organisms too small to see. And the old man puffed on his pipe, blowing smoke that filled the room, and everything faded away into a swirl of nonsense. - Any ideas?!? PS - The riddle was written on the scroll Lemmiwinks found.
Adrian Moonbow 12-10-03, 01:53 AM	What's the int of your character? He might be able to know the answer while you don't (ask your DM)!
WizO_BigSister 12-10-03, 03:59 AM	It would help a lot if you posted the context - where you found the riddle, how you know it IS a riddle, what are you trying to do etc
Kornovus 12-10-03, 07:31 AM	Or more simply put: what´s the actual question?
SharsDarkestMinion 12-10-03, 10:20 AM	unless your dm is a poet fan or something, its unlikely he made that riddle up. ive made up some riddles as dm before, but they always actually had a question attached to it. it sounds like a poem/riddle he found somewhere. check the internet for 'an elephant in musk' to see what you can find. if you go to your dms house, take a look through any poetry/puzzle books he might have. ...but the more i look at it, the more i think its a poem and not a riddle. take the riddle to an english teature and asker her to explain it to you. the meanings hidden in poems are often impossible to find by people who dont do it often, but english teachers do it for a living. anyways, just check out the internet, poem books, and a teacher.
King Cornish 12-10-03, 12:15 PM	:confused: Last night we got this clue. I think it has something to do with converting the letters to numbers and adding them or some kind of long division or something, or only paying attention to certain letters in each line. I still haven't figured it out though. I'm ready to just quit school because this is ridiculous... The Puking Bard No one told a story like the puking bard his face could tell a story on its own sometimes. The mouth part of the face would usually say, "BLEHHGGG!," then "Uhhgg...," as we drank our ale in delight. When he was able to talk, between his periods of mouth diarrhea, He would amaze us with his superior vocabulary and severe mouth odor. One day we realized he wasn't a bard at all, but a hobo, and that we weren't in a Medieval tavern. "Can you spare a dollar?," he asked. No, we can't - do we look like a MAC machine? ___ We found the second riddle on the scroll that Lemmiwinks, our dwarven battlerager found. He found it in the pocket of crazy bard that he smushed. The bard kept telling us these crazy stories that made no sense, but every time he finished a story there was a twinkle in his eye and a little "ding" went off in our heads. Before he started he said the riddle would lead us to a house filled with all of our weapons and equipment that was stolen from us by an army of dark elves. After he finished telling us the first story, we couldn't figure it out so Lemmiwinks smushed the guy. The weirdest thing is, after we read the scroll our characters started running around like maniacs and couldn't stop throwing up. Now I rob. I hope that helps.
King Cornish 12-10-03, 04:15 PM	:confused: Also, we are in a time-travel campaign. Smiles.
Richard Lee Byers 12-11-03, 01:14 AM	I notice common elements in the two poems. They both seem to make reference to illness, delirium, confusion, and hallucination. Which does not appear to be the answer to a riddle per se. (I too found myself thinking, what's the question, exactly? It's not even clear what sort of puzzle this is supposed to be.) But maybe it's significant somehow in the context of the campaign.
King Cornish 01-08-04, 01:22 PM	:confused: King Cornish died on the way back to his home planet. Thank You.