Editing Death
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<blockquote>''"'Enjoy it while it lasts,' he growls. 'You're all of you mine in the end.'"''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_friendly_greeting|A friendly greeting|Fallen London|}}</ref></blockquote> | <blockquote>''"'Enjoy it while it lasts,' he growls. 'You're all of you mine in the end.'"''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/A_friendly_greeting|A friendly greeting|Fallen London|}}</ref></blockquote> | ||
[[File:Boatmanhat.png|thumb|The Boatman's Hat]] | [[File:Boatmanhat.png|thumb|The Boatman's Hat]] | ||
'''The Boatman''' is the | '''The Boatman''' is the Neath's Grim Reaper; it is his job to ferry the spirits of the dead across the river to the far shore. The Boatman appears to the dead as a skeletal figure, always wearing a brimmed top hat and possessing a softly glowing lantern.<ref name = "passing on">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"That skull looks directly at you. Those fingerbones beckon you forwards. Into your left hand, he places his lantern [...] Into your right hand, he places his oar [...] he lifts the hat from his head and places it on yours."''</ref> He has a special fondness for chess and dice,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Dice_with_the_Boatman|Dice with the Boatman|Fallen London|}}</ref> and winning against him may grant a spirit a little more time in the lands of the living,<ref name = "a boat trip"/> and he also seems to like weasels and bats.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Offer_the_Boatman_a_sacrifice|Offer the Boatman a sacrifice|Fallen London|}}</ref> | ||
The Boatman has hinted that he may answer to a higher power, possibly even the [[Judgements]] themselves | The Boatman has hinted that he may answer to a higher power, possibly even the [[Judgements]] themselves,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Your_move...|Your move...|Fallen London|}}''"He enumerates the souls that have passed down this river [...] into final dissolution. [...] "Each time, the extinction of a star that might have been [...] They would have been luckier if Parabola had rotted their lights. I am one tip of one finger. Everything is owed...""''</ref> though he has also stated that he "failed" these powers in some way, forcing him into exile.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/An_Episode_for_Exceptional_Friends|The Season of Family Ties|Fallen London|}} ''""I disappointed them. I failed in my service, and this is my exile." He surveys his boat and its passengers. "Now, I fulfil my duty as well as the Neath permits. But it will never be enough." He grins – but then he always grins."''</ref> | ||
[[File:Boatmanlamp.png|thumb|The Boatman's Lantern]] | [[File:Boatmanlamp.png|thumb|The Boatman's Lantern]] | ||
The job of the Boatman seems to be a bequeathed one to an extent, as the current Boatman is capable of passing on his position to those who seek it.<ref name = "passing on"/> Taking up the Boatman's oars gives the recipient a uniformly skeletal appearance,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You have taken on the mantle of the Boatman. To the dead, you will appear skeletal, sinister; the embodiment of Death."''</ref> though those who have died several times are sometimes capable of telling the Boatmen apart.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You're not the real Boatman," he says."''</ref> The Boatman is actually capable of looking into the memories of the dying, which can be useful for gathering intelligence,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"When you concentrate, you share the images he sees. [...] Is this some power the Boatman holds?"''</ref> and he is held in his boat by a mysterious force: there must always be a Boatman, to prevent the dead from piling up on the near shore.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You can't seem to leave the boat and walk towards the realms of the living. What is this force that holds you? "There has to be a Boatman," the previous Boatman says. "Otherwise, the dead would simply build up here, on the border.""''</ref> | The job of the Boatman seems to be a bequeathed one to an extent, as the current Boatman is actually capable of passing on his position to those who seek it.<ref name = "passing on"/> Taking up the Boatman's oars gives the recipient a uniformly skeletal appearance,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You have taken on the mantle of the Boatman. To the dead, you will appear skeletal, sinister; the embodiment of Death."''</ref> though those who have died several times are sometimes capable of telling the Boatmen apart.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You're not the real Boatman," he says."''</ref> The Boatman is actually capable of looking into the memories of the dying, which can be useful for gathering intelligence,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"When you concentrate, you share the images he sees. [...] Is this some power the Boatman holds?"''</ref> and he is held in his boat by a mysterious force: there must always be a Boatman, to prevent the dead from piling up on the near shore.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Shallows|The Shallows|Fallen London|}} ''"You can't seem to leave the boat and walk towards the realms of the living. What is this force that holds you? "There has to be a Boatman," the previous Boatman says. "Otherwise, the dead would simply build up here, on the border.""''</ref> | ||
==A Slow Boat== | ==A Slow Boat== |