Winter & Spring Vacation with Dragon's Eye

Dragon's Eye Adventures will be offering adventures for February and April break this year. Winter break will feature "The Winter Queen," a Scottish story about the seasons, for ages 6 to 12. The Spring break will offer "Return of the Midnight Cat," an Egyptian-inspired story about a modern day jewel thief, for ages 9 to 16.

Registration for these programs will open on January 1.

Well of Destiny - Recap

Runes selected and designed by L. Blaiklock

The summer 2016 season ended with "The Well of Destiny," a Norse adventure for Mavens of Mystery ages 12 to 16. The team was called to investigate carvings on the world tree, Yggdrasil. After a visit from a very cranky dwarf, the Detectives headed to Svartalfheim to talk with the dwarves. Their first visit did not go well at all, unless one counts the nice chat with Clark Kent. While no autographs were received, the Detectives managed to escape from a dwarven prison and to free the man of steal from his kryptonite shackles as well.

Their visit to Yggdrasil went a little better, unless one wishes to count the computer password change they made with the whole world listening. They did find out more about the runes. Don't touch them. Good advice for those who wish to remain alive and well. They managed to escape that little episode as well, in spite of the shadow serpents.

After a nice little soccer game with Heimdall on Bifrost, the rainbow bridge, the Detectives made their way to Asgard for a little talk with the big O. His thoughts were all over the place with the quickening of Ragnorak on his mind, but his memory knew just who the Detectives were. He was as eager as they were to slow down the coming of the world's end.

All roads lead to the Well of Urd, home of the Norn ... another visit that may not rank on the Detectives' Ten Favorite Places to Visit list. The three creepy ladies sharing an eyeball might have something to do with it.

Fortunately, our Detectives were as brave as they were diligent in this case. They came away from the Norn with fewer magical amulets and the power to change destiny. The battle of the runes began, with the Detectives teaming up to take on their enemies. The Yellow Pads were out, the pencils scrawling furiously as each team went up against the Power of Max.

It was an epic series of battles, as each team brought their runes into play against the runemaker in the story. The first runes cast helped scry the location of some stolen artifacts and made visible a third party who shall go nameless here. The second set of runes brought the runemaker right into a trap set by our team. They got her, my pretty, and her little dogs, too!

Toy theater by O. and P. Van Soest

Norse gods were summoned. Metal dragons, shadow phoenixes, time trackers, Cernunnos -- oh yes. The moment of the week was definitely the summoning of Cernunnos, Celtic god of the hunt. He's as chaotic as they come. Drop him down a chimney and watch the howling fun -- let's just say the Ironwood Forest will never be the same. "Is that enough chaos for you?"

Apparently not, since there was more adventure, more chaos and more fun to be had! Thanks to Ken Walden and Lou Ensel for playing our shadow serpents, and to our two younger visitors who played the Metal Dragon and the Shadow Phoenix. Shots of the adventure may be seen here and images of each team's toy theater may be seen here.

Did the Detectives save the world? Well, yes they did--and rather well, I must say! No one died. The world won't end. And we have one more Detective in our ranks, plus two very hungry dogs, a shih tzu and a chihuahua. Don't forget to feed them!

Book of Dragons - Recap

The fifth adventure of the summer 2016 season saw eight Detectives ages 12-16 tackle a new mystery called "The Book of Dragons." It's not easy to summarize this one without giving away secrets for the next group who faces the challenge, but I will try ...

The Dragonmages had some concerns about involving the young Detectives in this mystery. Sending children to do adult work is problematic -- and if we look too closely at this, the whole game falls to pieces, so we'll just say that Rebecca had her reservations. Madame Drak, the Soothsayer, weighed in with her opinion, but the whole debate was settled when a couple of demons kidnapped Rebecca and Max. There was no one left but our young Detectives, so they set about solving the mystery.

The first set of clues led to a painting at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (MFA). The Nine Dragon Scroll by Chen Rong was involved in some magical shenanigans that required a closer look by our team. The bad guys weren't the only ones performing shenanigans. Several of our heroes decided that invisibility spells were a wise move while purchasing tickets--and the whole crew landed in trouble with security.

Fortunately, they had a friend on the inside. She showed the Detectives the strange writings that had appeared on the now-moving scroll. I shall not say more on this topic, for fear of giving away major secrets, but the discovery sent our team back to the 13th century of the Southern Song Dynasty to visit Chen Rong, the painter and government official.

Ignore the rumors of a visit to Bob Ross. They are merely rumors planted by a certain cartoonist whose shadow undoubtedly contains a red star or two ...

The stories about a chaos demon and and order demon working together, however, are perfectly true. A very rare pairing that had its explanation in a part of the story which I cannot reveal here. Let's just say that they were not happy to be working together. And let's just say that placing them in the same cage together is not a great idea ... tick, tick, tick, tick, tick...

Somehow, our Detectives managed to survive every disaster headed their way. Well, except for that one little problem where the Empress of Chaos pretended to be Rebecca and they nearly believed here except someone remembered to check her shadow. Yeah. Billions and billions of red stars are not a good sign in a Dragonmage.

Drawing of Empress of Chaos as Shadowmouse
O. Van Soest, 2016

But the Empress of Chaos was just a diversion, drawn into the adventure by the extreme amounts of chaos and laughter experienced by friend and foe alike. Yes, folks, this was a funny one! Chaos and order demons, Cernunnos and the Empress of Chaos -- only the Monkey King was absent. (Or was he?)

Fortunately, all's well that ends well. Unless of course you are the two culprits who nearly pulled all of this off like a couple of pros. They're not so happy, now that they're scrubbing floors and polishing brass fixings. They'll be at it for a while!

Thank you to Lou Ensel and son for a fine appearance! You can see them in action in the photos on our Facebook page and view the beautiful Dragonscrolls created by the Detectives for their entries into "The Book of Dragons."

Moon Rabbits - Recap

The Twelve Moon Daughters
by R L McNulty

Thirteen lucky Detectives took on the very first episode of "The Moon Rabbits," one of four new adventures during the summer 2016 season. The Detectives, ages 9 to 12, were a very seasoned group, including one of our first Detectives to reach her 10th mystery.

A delightful and strangely silent Moon Rabbit named Cai wormed her way into the Dragon's Eye headquarters carrying a copy of The Celestial Snews. This newspaper told the backstory of The Nine Fallen Suns, the prequel to this mystery. Our clever Detectives noticed a secret message hidden in the articles that hinted at trouble on the Moon.

Cai led the Detectives to the Palace of the Moon, where Chang-o the Moon Fairy asked for their help finding the twelve missing Moon Daughters. Our group faced a few challenges along the way, fighting off wispy black cloud demons, a disgruntled old toad and moon spiders. Lesson of the week: Take the time to admire the swamp.

Moon Palaces are akin to Sun Palaces -- not so easy to enter when one is a mortal. The Detectives had none of the usual paperwork, so they used the magical artifacts they had from other adventures to obtain the needed paperwork and Moon Gate Pass. Their first attempt with a wish from the Wind Amulet from The Wind Horse failed -- well, technically, it succeeded, only not on the day they intended. They received that Moon Gate Pass on the second in-game day.

Fortunately, a member of the group also had a Selkie Stone, and the Selkie's instructions were much more clear: Bring the Moon Gate Pass back now. The group entered the palace with their Honor intact and met the beautiful Chang-o.

She sent them to the Palace of the Purple Tenuity to talk with the Might Magistrate of Matters of Most Momentous Magnitude. Mind your manners in the Palace of the Purple Tenuity. These deities are all Order Gods, so they like things just so.

The Magistrate is an old friend of the Detectives by now (three cases involve the Magistrate and his brother). He discovers a slight problem in the Book of Matters -- the Moon Daughters are slowly vanishing from the book.

Madame Wu's Caravan by S. Melquist

The Detectives hurry to a meeting with Madame Wu, the oldest of the old storytellers. She lives in a swamp just like the toad, only her swamp is guarded by pesky caterpillars who spit freezing venom. (We've met those pesky caterpillars all summer! They had to make an appearance somewhere on the page!) Madame Wu told the Detectives what they had to do -- and here I shall refrain from giving away too many secrets for future adventurers!

Let's just say that the Detectives did a fabulous job creating new stories about the Moon Daughters. Teams of two or three designed games for the rest of the Detectives to play--and everyone had a chance to see what it was like to master a game for the adventure! it was great fun! The games can be seen here on our Dragon's Eye Facebook page.

The Detectives' own Moon Rabbits helped save the day -- and introduced the first ever Patience Jewels into the game. These lovely jewel are not a school of magic in and of themselves. Patience is not necessarily a goal in itself, but a way to other kinds of skills--so these jewels boost other types of magic.

Congratulations to a delightful team of Detectives who worked hard on their teamwork and their rabbits! Much was achieved by all that work! We had a strong finish and a wonderful week exploring a whole new story--and we ended with an invitation to an interplanetary journey that shall one day come to pass.

Thanks to Ken Walden, Lou Ensel, Isaac Ensel and Drew Walden for playing the Generals this week! Also thanks to Amanda Walden, without whom the Moon Rabbits would still be in pieces! Sewing with thirteen Detectives is quite an accomplishment!

The thirteen Moon Rabbits sewn by the thirteen Detectives

Shackles of Truth - Recap

Tufan the Peri, Master of Storm, by Finntan

Our third mystery of the 2016 summer season was "Shackles of Truth." The Experts of Enigma (ages 9-12) tackled this adventure with their usual zeal, diving right into the midst of one story after another. It was challenging to identify the good guys from the bad guys in this adventures, since most of the characters were experienced liars.

The Detectives didn't realize this until later in the story, so they found themselves in and out of trouble faster than one could say, "periwinkle." (I checked the etymology, and this word is not related to our "peri," but it is in my mind, now! No wonder it's my favorite color.)

Did I mention peri? Yes, we met some peri. We frightened them away. That's what happens when one threatens war upon diminutive fairy-like creatures. They turn and run. Actually, we're lucky they didn't turn back into Paraika, the truly evil female demons of desert nightmares.

We did apologize--and this seemed to help! The peri proved to be useful little allies later in the game. Their tiny roll of a "4" saved the day in a very important roll against some pretty nasty bad guys.

Did I mention Div? There were Div. Demons working for Angra Mainyu, the Zarathustrian god of darkness and the Druj. Druj means lie--which should explain why there were so many lies flying around this case.

Confused now? Good, since that's just where our Detectives found themselves all week. A wonderful, confusing mess that had them wondering what exactly was their case. They even thought Madame Drak had lied to them, that wily fortune teller, but it turned out she was telling the truth about the wrong guy. Asking questions of a soothsayer is tricky business!

Zahra Niyoosha the Peri by Sadie

I can't tell you what happened, since this case will one day be repeated and the lies must have a chance to work then, too.

Let's just say that Asha won out in the end. The Truth was discovered in time, reparations were made even to the Peri, and the big bad thing that could have happened ... didn't.

Kudos to the bold team who managed to balance strong courage with a whole lot of problem-solving in hindsight. They knew all along that they might be in trouble, yet they dove into the fray like a true group of heroes!

This mystery tests a group's resilience, their ability to rebound after a truly demoralizing defeat. This group came back with sparkling resilience, their humor and determination restored after a night's rest.  They saved the day with their usual flair, a little older (five days older, to be precise), a little wiser and oh, so happy to put an end to the lies!

Here are links to the mystery's magical Peri, which the Detectives made, and the adventure images. [Adventure Images Coming Soon.]

Troll Trouble - Recap

One of the fairies the Detectives made

Fifteen wonderful Detectives set out to resolve the "Troll Trouble" from our second mystery of the 2016 summer. A hummingbird brought a request for help from Tianna, Queen of the Fairies, and the team set off to find Tanglewood Forest on the border of Sweden and Norway.

Stolen fairy babies needed a rescue, and our Detectives proved they were up for the task! They boldly set off through the woods, following the giant troll footprints. The Crows caused a bit of trouble, but it was a woodland witch who really caused a stir. A third of the Detectives took a brief time out when she appeared. She did threaten to eat them, so it a perfectly understandable response!

The group pulled their courage together and faced down the witch, who turned out to be an ally of sorts. They made a deal with her and moved on to find the giant hut where the trolls lived.

Another fairy from the Detective's artwork

Our clever detectives devised a whole series of disguises to take on the trolls. First, they turned into a huge, thousand-legged monster who stomped up to the hut. It was their turn to frighten someone--and it worked! The trolls nearly called a Time Out in the game -- but just barely held their courage together and made a run for it, right into their secret tunnel.

The Detectives turned into screech owls and flew after them, but they couldn't lift the heavy trap door. So they turned into tiny mice who crept into the hole near the hatch. They boldly chased the trolls through tunnel after tunnel, all the way to a place that I shall not mention, since it would give away secrets for the next time I run this case.

Let's just say that all's well that ends well, especially when there's a Tomte involved. Congratulations to the kindest group of Detectives, who managed to rally their courage and save the day. The baby fairies were returned safely, the deal with the witch went quite well, and even the trolls got what they deserved.

This week's adventure is dedicated to the memory of one poor little groundhog, who lost his life in the real world. This thoroughly unexpected bit of life's tragedy touched all of our hearts this week--and I can't write about this case without a moment of reflection on that shared experience.

View the fairy artwork of the week on Facebook here -- and the children's drawings here,

Jewel of the Shining Tides Recap

Our first mystery of the summer has come and gone in four swift and fun-filled days! The Queen of the Selkies sent a message in a bottle, requesting help for the seal people. The Shining Jewel of the Tides was stolen by a hideous Sea Witch known as Muirdris. She planned to release tidal waves upon the land.

Our brave adventurers dove right into the adventure, deciphering messages, scrying maps to mythical locations and facing off with the Sea Witch's many-tentacled monsters. We never did decide exactly what those tentacled monsters were (squid, octopi or giant sea anemones ....?), but the Detectives managed to foil their plans. A certain shapeshifting sheep/polar bear came to the rescue, retrieving stolen artifacts, such as the Dragonstone and an ID.

A visit to the Waterfall of the Silver Tears brought visits with a Crab who knew how to summon the Salmon of Knowledge with an old practice of placing quartz crystals into a moonlit pool. The Salmon had much to tell the Detectives about the Sea Witch, including how to enter her lair, the Cave of Murky Shadows.

A visit to the underwater palace of Mannanan Mac Lir tested the adventurer's compassion as they debated about whether to free one coral-encrusted merman or the whole palace-full of sea dwellers. The Detectives chose the more compassionate and expensive spell to free everyone, and gained the gratitude of Mannanan Mac Lir, god of the sea, when he came home.

Once they had what they needed from Mannanan, the Detectives had to dive into the bottle that held the secret message. This was a bottle that had zapped a Detective and sprouted tentacles any time a certain Detective dared to open the bottle. (I think that was three times ... or maybe just two, but lots of trouble followed each opening of the bottle!) So, the Detectives gathered their courage, performed a shrinking spell and dove into the bottle to head for the Sea Witch's lair. They were led by a baby Selkie, and each one rode a Sea Unicorn.

Sneaking and invisibility spells helped the Detectives learn how to enter the Cave of Murky Shadows. Once again, they chose to use extra jewels to free the Selkies who were held captive by the Sea Witch. After a hilarious game with a sleepy octopus, they reached Lerwin, Queen of the Selkies, who was held captive in a cage. She told them how to approach the Silver Oyster that held the Jewel of the Tides--and the group managed to convince the oyster to join their side. Even the Octopus joined them, their courage and compassion and respect were so high.

The Detectives finally faced off with the Sea Witch--and put into action the plan that would slowly bring her back to her original human form. I cannot say what that plan was (in case future Detectives should read this), but I can say that this group of Detectives gave the plan everything they had--and a few things they didn't have. The plan worked its magic--and the Sea Witch returned to her human form, healed by the kindness of our adventurers.

What a wonderful short week we had--full of laughter and fun! Photos of the adventure can be hard to capture when one is a part of the storytelling and the action, but I managed to snap some shots for a few of the challenges. Adventure photos are here, and artwork is here, both on Facebook.

Welcome back to Max Middleton

Max playing Humongasaura Regina
in "The Black Skystone of Doom"

As the summer 2016 season begins, I want to welcome back Max Middleton, our Mystery Specialist. It takes a pretty special person to dive into our adventure program, and I love the fact that when I talk about Darius I, Max has insights to offer into the king's complex strengths and weaknesses. Have to love a Classics major! Add to that a thorough understanding of gaming, wonderful theatrical skills, a cheerful ease with kids of any age, and the ability to maintain the critical balance between safety and fun -- and any parent can see why I offered Max the job!

Here is what Max has to say about this summer:

Hello Parents of Dragon’s Eye Adventurers,

My name is Max Middleton. I will be Rebecca’s full time helper this year. I just graduated from Bowdoin College this past spring, where I studied Classics and Music. This is my second summer at Dragon’s Eye, and I have become as big an appreciator of the program as any of the children who attend. I am a huge theater fan/fanatic, and I have performed in productions of plays and musicals at Bowdoin and around the state. I went to High School at Hebron Academy, where I was a member of the residential life team and class president. For the past few summers, I have worked with the various camps that use Hebron Academy’s campus while school is not in session. I am looking forward to another fantastical summer!

Sincerely,
Max Middleton

Advanced Adventures for the Teen and 'Tween

Character from "Well of Destiny"
by RL McNulty
Micron Pen & Colored Pencil

Dragon's Eye Adventures offers live-action mythological adventures for that would-be hero who longs to save the world! We take the adventure off the page and put it into live-action games and challenges that breathe life into old myths and history. 

What the children gain along the way is a powered-up imagination that has an opportunity to take flight. Information they've learned in school suddenly becomes relevant when the Detectives travel back in time to meet historical figures like Darius I. Mythical characters come to life as our fearless leaders become tiny, winged Peri or ancient Norn.

Here are four live-action mysteries for the teen and 'tween crowd this summer:

The Shackles of Truth (ages 9-12) runs from July 18-22 and features mythological creatures known as the Peri. These fairy-like mischief makers lead the Detectives into trouble of a much deeper kind. The story taps into Zoroastrian myths and ancient Persian history, with a visit to the court of Darius I.

The Moon Rabbits (ages 9-12) follows from July 25-29 with a mystery tied to The Nine Fallen Suns. That adventure featured ten Sun Ravens. This one deals with their half sisters, twelve Moon Rabbits whose stories have vanished. There are only three spaces left in this adventure!

The Book of Dragons (ages 12-16) runs from Aug 1-5. The Detectives will learn about a dangerous period of time in 13th century China when a dragon scroll became a dangerous artifact to paint.

The Well of Destiny (ages 12-16) finishes the summer from Aug. 8-12. This story taps into Norse myths about the Norn, the three Fates who live at the tip of one of the three roots of Yggdrasil, the World Tree.

Summer 2016 Update

Dragon's Eye Adventures
Micron pen and colored pencil
RL McNulty 2016

Dragon's Eye Adventures offers summer mystery programs for the young detective mage. Our wizardly detectives solve mysteries of the mythical variety, the kind that might concern dragons.

There is still room in four of our adventures:

Session III: July 18-22  The Shackles of Truth (Ages 9-12)

Session IV: July 25-29  The Moon Rabbits (Ages 9-12)

Session V: Aug. 1-5  The Book of Dragons (Ages 12-16)

Session VI: Aug 8-12  The Well of Destiny (Ages 12-16)

Click on the links for more information about each week.

The Oroborus - April Vacation 2016 Recap

Merneith the Time Raveler had a toolbox full of odd items

A small but brave group of Detectives took on the mystery of "The Oroborus" this past week at the Landing YMCA in Brunswick. Rifts opening in the Serpent Roads of the Oroborus were threatening the known world, so the Detectives set off for the Egyptian Duat to find out who was causing the problem.

Fortunately, they had some help--an ancient Dragonmage known as Djedi, who once served the Pharaoh Khufu CA 2500 BCE, plus a Time Raveler known as Merneith. It was a week of serpents, some good, some bad and some very, very bad. One highlight of the week was the group's use of the Moon Rabbit as bait for the Serpents trying to capture them. The youngest Chef showed off his culinary skills, sending the hungry Serpent for some wild Sage, while he and the Rabbit escaped to safety.

Our new location at the YMCA provided some unexpected additions to our games. The exercise balls in the Aerobics Room quickly found popular uses as shields, water globules and comfortable seating. The Meditation Room proved to be the perfect place for the Circle of Stillness the Detectives created to calm the darting silver fish that represented their Ren or Names. The group soon found out how difficult it is to remain still when a Water Snake is rattling off nonsense rhymes and talking about itching noses.

The Big Bad (who shall go nameless for future adventures) found the Detectives to be a formidable group who just would not give up the chase! They had the audacity to petition help from Egyptian gods and goddesses, such as Au Set (goddess of magic), Anubis (god of the underworld and embalming, who brought an army of jackals), Serket (formidable scorpion goddess), Pesht (ancient cat goddess of the wild, wild variety) and others.

With the Detective's brand new Time Serpent Traps and the Time Stopper Amulets in play, the Detectives and the assembly of immortals saved the world from a watery chaos. The Oroborus was restored and a handful of Detectives now know the secrets of the Mystery of Mehen. We celebrated with a toy theater presentation for family and friends.

Thanks to the Detectives for a delightful week of fun, laughter and creativity! And thanks to the staff at the Landing YMCA for a warm welcome to the Y!

The Dragon's Eye Adventures Facebook pages has a few illustrations from the week.

April Vacation 2016

The Ororborus
Micron Pen & Pencil
R L McNulty 2016

Dragon's Eye Adventures is offering a special 4-day mystery during April Vacation. The mystery is for ages 9 to 14. It will run from Tuesday, April 19 through Friday, April 22, at the Landing YMCA in Brunswick. The hours are from 9 AM to 4:30 PM, with After Hours provided until 5:30. The fee is $200 for the 4-day mystery.

The mystery is "The Oroborus." The serpent eating its tail (Ororborus) is a familiar character in the Dragon's Eye world, but do the Detectives really know much about this serpent that transports them through time and space? This mystery will reveal secrets only the time and space raveler* knows, drawn from Egyptian, Indian and West African myths as old as the trees.

Our projects this week will include Dragonmage Cards and Orobori. Our team will also encounter the very first Time Jewel the Detectives have ever seen.

*This is not a typo -- a raveler is one who ravels or unravels threads (or mysteries).