Eaglecrest: From many comes one.

This piece is a tribute to a role-playing game that is long gone and remembered by few. But those who do remember it, remember it well. It was called the 13th Dimension. I couldn't tell you why it was so captivating or popular or well-loved - all I know is that it inspired a passion, loyalty and pride unlike any other game I've seen since. It was open in its heyday from 2001-2003, for a mere 18 months, with an attempted revival in 2005/06 that didn't do very well for very long. When I think of 13d, I think of the summer of 2002, when we literally had hundreds of members and as many posts in a day, when the plots flew and excitement was in the air, back before tempers got too heated and back before the game became more about out of character politics than in character fun.

This piece is a tribute to one of the five harems: Eaglecrest, Hawkmeadow, Gullshore, Ravenglade, and Amazonhollow. When you entered one of those harems, you became one of those birds, even though the characters were horses. You lived and died and gave everything just for your harem. Your wings were your identity.

This piece is for Eaglecrest. This was the "royal territory" in which the game first began with Midnight Phantom as its king and ruler. When the game split, it became one of the original four (the others being the Meadow, the Shore and the Glade), and it remained in possession of the royal line (descendants of Midnight Phantom) until the Tyrant was born, who, despite his name, was actually a lazy ass. Tyrant seceded his claim on the land to a stallion named Duplicate. Duplicate was not a bad ruler, but he had no idea that moving into his harem were horses with big plans. A group of rebels who were unhappy with the leadership, led by Bane, Nephthys, Aerofire and a few others I'm sure I'm forgetting, staged a coup and took over command of the harem. This was the first leadership mutiny that ever occurred, and set the stage for many to follow. Under the command of the power-hungry rebels, Eaglecrest was set into strict order and became almost a militaristic harem, demanding perfection of its Eagles in every discipline. Despite this tall order, Eaglecrest absolutely flourished and for a long while was responsible for setting the precedent for harems in the game. They raided frequently and usually successfully. It is heyday, Eaglecrest was certainly a force to be reckoned with.

I'm not sure who is depicted in this piece, nor what time is it from. Perhaps it's Bane or Nephthys, leading in the rebels. Perhaps it's Duplicate, taking one look back at his home as he leaves, exiled. Perhaps it's Midnight Phantom, first encountering the land and deciding to claim it. Or maybe it's just an unknown passerby, feeling the inexplicable power and majesty that still radiates from this land... now empty, but still alive in our imaginations.

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Stock:
Horse: [link]
Background:
[link]
Eagle: [link]
Sky:
Brushes:

Thank you to the amazing stocker, *kuschelirmel-stock, who really made this piece possible. As soon as I saw the background, I knew it was MADE for Eaglecrest. I didn't even have to touch it at all, except to add a little drama to the sky. I thought Eaglecrest this only existed in my imagination. Who knew it actually existed on earth, and that *kuschelirmel-stock had the perfect stock picture of it? Also a great thank you to ~starrynight-stock for the horse stock, who unless I am mistaken, knows exactly how it feels to be an Eagle.

If any of my watchers, or anyone else who comes across this piece, wants to share their 13d stories, I would love to hear them. It's been how many years and I still think about this game way more than I should. I miss it more than I can express. I hope to make an entire series of 13d tribute images, so I would love to hear stories about characters who are not just my own, and who may not have played the hugest role in the game, that I can immortalize in photomanipulations.

I am not sure yet if I'm entirely satisfied with this piece. It may be scrapped or changed at a later date.

Thanks for looking.