Special Sub-Topic: Six Duchies Trivia Click Here To Play: Six Duchies Trivia

Fitz is poisoned more than once in Jhaampe on his diplomatic mission at the end of the book. What is the first thing that he is poisoned by?

Carryme. Fitz is poisoned twice in the mountain kingdom. Kettriken suspects him of a plot against her brother's life, and feeds him three leaves of the Carryme plant in the gardens. He counteracts this with a purgative that the Fool had given him, but is later poisoned by Regal, who poisons the Apple Wine which he shares with Prince Rurisk. The Carryme herb is mentioned in the prologue to chapter 21, "Princes".

In Fitz' opinion, where did the tradition of naming royal children after virtues come from?

The first king, from the Outislands, had a name which sounded like "Taker" in the duchies tongue, and the tradition stuck.. There is a folk belief that royal children are bound to their names by Skill, either in a ritual or by some inherent property of the Skill. Fitz regars both of these with skepticism, however, and suggests that the tradition probably comes from the first king, whose name sounded like "Taker" when pronounced by his new subjects. The second Farseer king was named "Ruler".

What was the name of the Forged girl that Chade tried to rehabilitate?

Netta. The experiments Chade carries out on Netta are described at the beginning of Chapter 18, "Assassinations". All of his efforts to redeem her are in vain, and he still does not find out how Forging occurs.

In the "Man" ceremony, in which Fitz is indoctrinated into a secret society, three living things are placed into his hands. What are they and what does he do with them?

Fish, Bird and Beast: he lets them all go. As part of the initiation ceremony, which Fitz is still vague about because he wants to keep the secrets of the cult, he is handed a fish, a bird and a beast. His Wit won't allow him to kill animals in cold blood, so he lets them go even though he worries that this will mean he won't be allowed in, but he is made a Man, even though there is nothing to eat for his ritual feast.

What was distinctive about Crossfire's coterie?

All the members were in some way disabled or disfigured. Crossfire's coterie was one of the most famous in the Six Duchies' history. They were dedicated to Queen Vision and enabled her victory a the battle of Besham. The members were blind, lame, hare-lipped and disfigured by fire. Good-lookin' bunch!

To what Biblical character do the stories of the Fool's origins most closely correspond?

Moses. One of the stories about the Fool's origins is that he "was found as a babe, adrift in a small boat, shielded from the sun by a parasol of sharkskin and cushioned from the thwarts by a bed of heather and lavender." Fitz discusses the Fool's origins at the beginning of Chapter 9 "Fat Suffices".

Which Farseer king conquered the inland territories which became known as the Duchy of Farrow?

King Victor. King Victor conquered the inland territories. King Ruler was the second Farseer king. King Wisdom sought out the Elderling's homeland, and I made up King Conquerer!

The people of the mountain kingdoms have some strange traditions. One of them is called sequestering. What does it involve?

An elderly person goes into voluntary exile to die. Other customs which seem strange to people of the Six Duchies are that badly-formed infants are exposed or drugged to death and a man who breaks his word in a bargain has his tongue notched as well as having to surrendur double the value of the original bargain.

What was the occupation of Galen's father?

Weaver. Galen's father was of pretty humble birth. His mother, now... Queen Desire lived up to her name!

Which two rivers border the rich vineyards of Tilth?

The Bear and the Vin. The Vin and Bear rivers water Tilth valley. The Gem river is in the Chalced states and joins up with the poisonous Rain River. The cold river is in Farrow and flows from the mountains to the Blue Lake.