Handbook of Erotic Fantasy: Bountiful Harvest (Patreon)

If you are invited to Harvest Rite, you should feel flattered. Not only does a wood elf in your life want to share an important cultural tradition with you, they also think you’re hot enough to bone.

Before responding to the RSVP, you should understand the symbolism of the day. Harvest Rite comes at a time of year when the barrier between the prime material and the fey realm are at their thinnest. That means spirits, gods, and the shades of the dead may walk with mortals. It also means that, while you’re astride your partner, there may be another entity along for the ride.

Possession is commonplace in the shadows of the Harvest Rite bonfire, offering an exciting element of uncertainty. After all, you can never be sure who (or what!) is on the other end of the love making. If the idea makes you uncomfortable though, keep an eye out for body paint. Spiraling designs indicate celebrants who have marked themselves open to otherworldly trysts. Such “edge walkers” can also be picked out by subtle tells like levitation, eerily glowing eyes, and spectral voices emanating from beyond the veil.

Whether you’re faced with a spiritual entity or a more conventional partner, you should feel free to find an open genital and attach yourself accordingly. The orgy is the main event after all! Just try to keep an open mind as you move from partner to partner. You may find yourself enjoying the attentions of a guest you’d initially deemed unattractive, but remember: You’re here because someone wants to fortify themselves against the darkening of the year with the sacred fire of your love muscle. That goes for everyone else involved in the rite. Get into the spirit of the day and try to loosen those inhibitions.

As you lay yourself down upon the dewy grass, feeling the thrum of the drums beating into your supine form, take a moment to make sure your partner is comfortable. A good host will supply soft beds of moss, woven cattail, and lamb’s-ear. However, if you lack darkvision, finding one of these in the flickering of the firelight can be tricky. And if you want to be invited back next year, you don’t want to accidentally drive your partner into an ear of corn over and over again (unless of course they specifically requested that).

Finally, when it is time to complete your personal rite, you may feel an unusually intense or prolonged climax. This is normal. Harvest Rite is where the term “little death” originates, as all participating “daughters of the earth” are ritually “stabbed” and “slain” by their respective “stag lords.” It is critical, however, that you take note of the air quotes around these terms. Harvest Rite is a strictly symbolic ceremony. If anybody comes at you with an actual sacrificial dagger, explain that you are participating in the non-Orthodox version of the holiday. If they begin to mutter in Old Elvish about “the old ways,” or if they suddenly sprout bloody antlers before advancing upon you, you should probably roll initiative.