jj@rabbit.UUCP (11/16/83)
And now.... The promised article on the medicinal knowledge of Ban'Dorcha. There are, as any lay healer or animist can tell you, four kinds of herbs/berries in common use for healing purposes. They are all found in the mountains. The most common is called Calfar. It is an herb, usually carried as a dried leaf. It seems to restore about as many concussion hits as a person manages to achieve when he or she completes a level of body developement. It must be chewed to have effect, and it takes five minutes to have full effect. It is usually found in mountain valleys near running water. The second most common is called Fenalfar. It is a small, red berry, that grows on evergreen bushes at the tree-line. It a bit harder to use, as the berries must be reasonably fresh, say not more than 2 months old. <The berries do not spoil until they are separated from the plant.> It heals much like the herb Calfar, except that it seems to be more certain in its effects. (It rarely has partial effect, unlike Calfar.) It is also a bit quicker to take effect when eaten, usually requiring about 1 minute. A bit more rare than either is an astringent soft green plant, looking something like present day watercress, but with (usually) three leaves that close at night. It is called Rockalfar. Its dried and crumbled leaves are reknowned for their ability to stop bleeding when pressed firmly into a wound, and bound there for a while with a bandage. After one minute, anything but a major bleeding wound that has been treated with Rockalfar will be stopped well enough to allow rapid movement, although injury may reopen the wound for several hours. And, finally there is Nildorchalfar, an extremely rare item, usually found growing in bogs at high altitudes. It as a small nut, much like a reddish filbert, that has the effect of prolonging one's life after one has been severly wounded. It must also be eaten, although it is rumored that it has worked several times when forced down the throat of an unconcious person. There are undoubtedly more plants, etc, that have good (and bad) effects on life, but those described above are the most common. There are, from time to time, but not right now, rumours about unusual effects that occur when other plants are eaten. -- (allegra,harpo,ulysses)!rabbit!jj