King Haggard

[absinthetics]

His eyes were the same color as the horns of the Red Bull. He was taller than Schmendrick, and though his face was bitterly lined there was nothing fond or foolish in it. It was a pike's face: the jaws long and cold, the cheeks hard, the lean neck alive with power.

Dry cedar, bitter balsam, and ashes.

Overall this is a startling dry scent. You could almost leave it as its notes-- it smells like ashes and cedar. The cedar isn't sharp like cedar can be. It's the dried, splintery kind that you can't activate with sand paper. There is a bitter quality to it that speaks of something else, un-nameable, in the mix. I can't imagine this being a person, more like the withered, husk of what a person once could have been. In keeping it in mind that this is King Haggard, it makes me kind of sad. If a scent could be lonely, this would be the one.

[edenssixthday]

This is my favorite from the third set of Last Unicorn scents. It's dry, woody, has the same slightly soapy ash note found in Meliai, and the "bitter" balsam actually has a flip side that's slightly sweet... it's bittersweet, I guess you could say. It's a fascinating scent, oddly appealing in its barrenness. I really like it, but it's more masculine than I typically wear, so I would love to smell it on a dude even more than I like it on myself.

[Little Bird]

King Haggard smells surprisingly outdoorsy and fresh & clean to me. His scent isn't dry, bitter, or ashen on my skin. I get tons of cedar (which is good, because I love cedar) and it's like a mix of spicy, dry cedar chips and green cedar, with something that smells a lot like cold rain water and a hint of mushroom on me. It smells like wandering around in the woods after a long rain, and is actually sort of watery like cucumber as it dries down. I'm puzzled, because it really isn't bitter or dry on me at all. The woods are more creamy and pleasant smelling and there's that cold, watery edge... it smells nice in any case.

[zankoku_zen]

Dry cedar and ashes. Very dry, hint of watery overlay. Strong, masculine dirty sort of smell.

[ajansuz]

Imp: A very dry scent, ashen and empty. Cedar is prominent, but it's not the bright cedar chest cedar. It's more aged and splintery.

 

Wet: For a little while this is really bitter and a little "old man", not like mothballs or anything, but just...old man smell. I wasn't sure at that stage if I'd want to keep it on or not. There was also a tarry sort of resin scent.

 

As it dried down, the cedar freshened quite a bit, and I also got the sweet side of the balsam another poster mentioned. A few hours later, it's sweetly woodsy, a really comfortable outdoorsy sort of scent that reminds me of when I used to go camping in lean-to type structures. I like it, and I'd say in the wet stage at least, it is very evocative of King Haggard's personality.

[midnight_aeval]

Whew! Hello masculine scent. I guess with a name like KING, you'd expect as much Nice if you're into that, but man, even as a lover of the masculine scents this one is strong for me.

 

ETA: in the drydown, I get more of the balsam which is a note I like, makes it less cologney, more sweet/woodsy.

Edited July 20, 2012 by Midnight Aeval

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Sweet wood. Cedar and something a bit lighter.

 

Drydown/Dry: Leaves and fresh earthy wood. Something vaguely sweet sneaks up from beneath the deep cedar note. Smooth and stately. It reminds me of Azathoth, but this is more sophisticated. A refined and regal cedar blend.

 

 

 

Sidenote - I tried layering Tavern of Hell over this and my gods did that smell good!

 

7 out of 10 bones

Edited June 21, 2013 by BoneBone24

[Gwydion]

In bottle: They aren’t kidding about the bitter. It is bitter balsam dominant, the ashes blending in with the bitterness. The cedar is second strongest and supports the balsam. Wet: The cedar flips the balsam to grab the dominant position. The Ashes are now second with the bitter balsam supporting both. It is well blended, but impossible on my skin. I am wondering is there is vetiver in the ash accord. Dry: Dry, dry cedar with a bitter, ashy, edge.

[DiesMali]

In the imp: Bitter, freshly hewn cedar.

 

Wet on my skin: I smell like the lumber section of a hardware store.

 

Dry: This is a dry, bitter, ashy redwood or cedar smell. It's like someone set a redwood forest on fire, laughed as it burned, and this is the charred aftermath. It's actually not unpleasant, and I love how it works on my skin. It's definitely not something for everyday use, but would be absolutely fantastic to wear at the Renaissance Festival or a tabletop gaming session. I may need to see how this smells on my sweetheart...

[savage_rose]

It smells very woodsy, like a forboding wooden door. Very neutral scent.

[renfair]

I got this scent as part of the Unicorn Horn III pack about three years ago, as my first purchase from BPAL!, so this more recent review is on a three-year-old imp.

First Sniff Impression: Probably the most fitting Last Unicorn scent of the ones I got with the III pack. It's very dry, very unforgiving, rather unpleasant, like the character.

Wet in Vial: Age might've mellowed this one out a little. I don't dislike it as much as I remember when I first got it. I can mainly pick out the balsam, though it does smell old and ashy, like dead, dry wood in a forest. I don't think I've ever actually put this one on my skin before now.

Drying Down on Skin: This actually dries down really nicely, which I was completely not expecting. The cedar comes out more clearly, making it smell more like an old attic than a dusty forest with the balsam, though the balsam still holds its own. It brings to mind the old, black, twisted pine trees at the far end of my forest I used to explore growing up.

Dry on Skin: Couple hours later it sweetened up and became a little less woodsy, a little more spicy.

Conclusion: Very surprised how much I liked this one on skin. It's still dry and woodsy, but in a older, regal sort of way. Definitely fitting for an old, worn out, selfish king. Hints of the cedar bring to mind maybe what Haggard would've been like when he was much younger, before he started driving unicorns into the sea. But then everything is covered with dust and ashes. Probably not one for my husband, but would work on a certain type of grampa.

[Lunasariel]

In the imp: A big ol' snootful of ashes and dry, charred wood. After a couple of sniffs I'm getting the balsam as well, which helps to round out some of the sharpest edges, but this definitely puts the bitter in bitter balsam.

 

Wet: Fairly linear, if perhaps even more smoky and bitter than ITI. Woof - it actually made me stick my tongue out and say "blech!" Right now, this might be a good room scent for a certain type of D&D game. After a few minutes, it settles down into very aged cedarwood and balsam. I agree with renfair - an austere, regal scent, but not an entirely pleasant one, with hints of a younger, less bitter, self.

 

Dry: Better and better. Cedarwood and balsam, or occasionally vice-versa - aromatic, resinous, and sometimes spicy. Never a warm, cuddly, inviting scent, but somehow a sternly appealing one.

[Lyahdan]

Starts off all cedar and smoke, outdoorsy feeling. Dries down into something like a bitter, woody incense with resin 'aftertaste'. I'm really liking this.

[Janis]

Reminds me very much of Cathedral, but with a straight ashy drydown instead of sweet church incense. And quite a bit colder overall. If Cathedral is a cathedral that's in active use, Haggard is a cathedral that's been abandoned for a while (but is not yet a ruin). Love love love.

[roseus]

Slightly bitter, ashy cedar. Rugged, austere is a good word too. Agreed that it feels like a good DND scent