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.....nope I am not getting involved in this argument.

Instead why don't we imagine how hilarious it would be to use Burning Shadow in conjunction with a holy symbol of Sigmar to literally brand a vampire's face with it.
With a large enough fire we could turn their army into a temporary holy symbol of Sigmar...but it was mentioned that mixing magic can get dangerous and divine magics are still magic.
 
With a large enough fire we could turn their army into a temporary holy symbol of Sigmar...but it was mentioned that mixing magic can get dangerous and divine magics are still magic.
I'm not really doing that to mix magic, I want to do it to mess with the vampire. Just imagine how embarrassing it would be for them to have Sigmar's mark burned into their face.
 
I'm not really doing that to mix magic, I want to do it to mess with the vampire. Just imagine how embarrassing it would be for them to have Sigmar's mark burned into their face.

If we were in a position to do that to a vampire without dying, wouldn't they be dead shortly anyway? Kinda defeats the purpose of doing it in the first place.
 
I'm not really doing that to mix magic, I want to do it to mess with the vampire. Just imagine how embarrassing it would be for them to have Sigmar's mark burned into their face.
Sigmar's symbol is inherently painful and damaging to them.
Some curse by Nagash.

So we would be mixing magic, even our magic with that of the Great Necromancer, in a very indirect way.
 
If we were in a position to do that to a vampire without dying, wouldn't they be dead shortly anyway? Kinda defeats the purpose of doing it in the first place.
Eh true, admittedly I just liked the image of the vampire having to explain it to his allies.

Also on a side note for those talking about use keeping a light around to make shadows, might I suggest that we start carrying around a Bullseye Lantern. Those can cast some pretty intense beams of light so if we did something like install a strip of metal over the lens we should be able to make some pretty deep shadows for the burning.
 
Sigmar's symbol is inherently painful and damaging to them.
Some curse by Nagash.

So we would be mixing magic, even our magic with that of the Great Necromancer, in a very indirect way.
I think the magic is on the vampire half of the equation though, not the symbol part, seeing how Vampires sort of come from Nagash and Sigmar probably wouldn't truck with Nagash messing with his stuff.

So, this really shouldn't be considered mixing magic anymore then just flat out casting magic on Vampires, an inherently magical race, is.
 
Couldn't Vampires just cut the branded part off and regenerate it back really easily?

I mean losing a patch of skin doesn't seem like it would inconvenience a vampire in the slightest.
 
Hence why I specifically said to burn it into their face as that would easily scorch the bone as well.
I still don't see it being that difficult for them to just remove the scorched bone and regenerate.

Also scorching Sigmar's symbol perfectly on the bone sounds really difficult

Sorry if I'm being a party pooper about this :c
 
Couldn't Vampires just cut the branded part off and regenerate it back really easily?

I mean losing a patch of skin doesn't seem like it would inconvenience a vampire in the slightest.
Yeah, but they would have to run away first or risk us killing them while they are cutting their own flesh off.

Having their face turn into acid is super distracting, sort of the thing that makes it harder to do, like, anything, such as defend yourself.
 
Getting anything that looked like a particular symbol would be... exceedingly difficult. You have a flickering, irregular source of light, and via Shadow magic you're trying to burn a recognisable design via flickering shadow acid onto an irregular surface like a face, on a fast-moving target.

If you can control the latter, there are much easier ways to brand something. Like, an actual hot-iron brand.
 
Getting anything that looked like a particular symbol would be... exceedingly difficult. You have a flickering, irregular source of light, and via Shadow magic you're trying to burn a recognisable design via flickering shadow acid onto an irregular surface like a face, on a fast-moving target.

If you can control the latter, there are much easier ways to brand something. Like, an actual hot-iron brand.
Meh.

We need Shadows, not just light, so, therefore, we want an object to block part of the light and thus create a shadow in addition to the actual light source. A Holy Symbol of Sigmar works about as well as any other object, and as long as we use it regularly there are no real downsides. IF we do it regularly we just get the spell to work as usual, and if we are particularly lucky about the way the shadow falls then the symbol is burned in and we do extra damage.

Seems like a win either way to me.
 
Getting anything that looked like a particular symbol would be... exceedingly difficult. You have a flickering, irregular source of light, and via Shadow magic you're trying to burn a recognisable design via flickering shadow acid onto an irregular surface like a face, on a fast-moving target.

If you can control the latter, there are much easier ways to brand something. Like, an actual hot-iron brand.
Hence why I suggested something like a Bullseye Lantern, those things cast a rather consistent beam of light. Plus we could theoretically make an enchanted version to amp up the light so that it is a deeper shadow.
 
Wait, someone cannot be attuned to 2 winds of magic without getting dhar...
But there are workaround: Divine magic, where you channel your god power and Nagash Magnus opus: Necromancy.
FYI Nagash TORTURED the secret of dark magic from a Druchi. He realized soon that direct contact with Dhar would make him nuttier than a squirrel, so he created necromancy which is like using a shyish khebab to take the dhar steak from the barbecue to avoid burning your hands.
We could try doing the same with Ulgu, wielding it to manipulate other winds or Dhar or High Magic.
And yet, Nagash's method still doesn't keep you safe. Instead rather then getting exposed solely to Dhar, the necromancer gets exposed to both Shyish and Dhar. Sure the ratio of exposure is still predominantly Shyish based over Dhar based(which is why it can be pretty damn hard to see the differences between an Amethyst Wizard and a Necromancer), but the Dhar's presence is enough to cause the prospective necromancer to go crazy in a different way then a pure Shyish user like an Amethyst Wizard. Amethyst Wizards embrace death and endings symbolized by their Wind where as Necromancer's reject the concepts of Death and Endings. The two styles are similar for they both involve death, but the addition of Dhar results in completely opposite views in their practitioners.
 
And it has been a few pages but point about maybe getting repeater pistol makes sense in that our ammo would be magical automaticly and repeaters should make the best use of this is my hope and we could try a pair of them ...

That would be pretty great damage wise if enemys arent fast enough to dodge bullets , magical armor .

And people if we dont go to the campaign , maybe lets check out our enchanting skill since eventually it should give lotsof money at the cost of actions atleast.
 
I honestly don't get the fixation with guns, ammo, different types of guns, which gun should we use, and shooting things with guns. Combat isn't a particular focus of the quest. We're not the Marshall, we're the Spymaster, and shooting someone repeatedly is neither subtle nor quiet. Greatswording is at least (comparatively to firearms) the latter. Wielding two pistols would probably affect our spell casting, as I imagine it benefits from a hand free, to pull out pinches of nothing and bat wings and so on.

And, you know, after all of that, we're a Wizard. Let's focus Mathildes scarce time and money on getting better at that and graduating to Magister. Then we can get more Wizards in Stirland- we can get a Journeyman assigned if we carve out a suitable responsibility from our espionage domain.
 
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Combat isn't a particular focus of the quest.

...You do know what world Mathilde is living in right? Combat is absolutely going to be around every fucking corner and shadowed alley because of all the evil and chaotic shit that exists.

Do you expect the Von Carsteins to just continue to ignore Mathilde and Van Hal's efforts in cleaning up Sylvania? Even if Castle Drakenhof goes up in a plume of dragon-breath they're still going to be crawling out of the woodwork to fuck with the living.

Or maybe the Skaven discover a warpstone deposit in Stirland/Sylvania and start removing those they see as a threat(everyone and themselves).

Having backup weaponry like a gun, repeater pistol, or even a dagger of some stripe is just being reasonable in a world where concrete examples of evil and horror exist and want nothing more than to kill you dead, often times by eating your soul.
 
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Purge of the Haunted Hills - Nachgeheim, 2475
Winning Vote:

[X] Plan The Front Don't Need Us Yet
-[X][Intel] Information Broker: Start selling tidbits of information, just enough for your information network to start paying for itself.
-[X][Personal] Seek out a new leader for the Watch.
-[X][Personal] Scribe: Altdorf's scribe did not get on well with the Prince. He's going to be rather busy with burning things, but maybe that'll put him in a better mood if you offer your own services. (NEW-ish)
--[X] Ranald's Blessing(if available)

---

It surprises you to find Wurtbad unchanged as you ride in. Thirty thousand men are marching to war and ten thousand more just outside the walls are prepared to join them, and Wurtbad is as it always was. The Watchmen at the gate salute as you pass, and your shadowhorse barely draws a glance from the citizenry, long accustomed as they are to your comings and goings.

You allow your horse to dissipate as you enter the townhouse that is the public face of the Information Network of Stirland. Stirland's coffers are strained by the war, and so are your discretionary funds - at the current rate your funds will be exhausted within three to four months, and at that point you'll have to start dipping into your personal funds, which would negate the whole purpose of having embezzled them in the first place.

"Madam," Julia greets you from her chaise longue, where she is skimming through files with an air of relaxed authority while tended to by a cloud of retainers she'd imported from Flensburg. She waves an air and in an instant all but one of them has left, who stands beside Julia, looking off to one side. "What news from the front?" You eye the remaining retainer, and Julia smiles. "This is Madeline, completely deaf and completely loyal. You can speak freely."

You consider testing it, but then, you hired Julia so you didn't have to micromanage things like that. You take a seat across from her. "Let's talk finances."

"Oh good," Julia says. "Gold has been flowing out like water and we're rapidly approaching a drought, I'm sure you're aware."

She has mentioned it a time or two... in every single report to you for the past year. "I am. Information brokerage is the solution I want to discuss."

She takes up a slate, scrawls on it with a piece of chalk, and then taps the girl on the elbow to get her attention; the girl peers at it and then disappears into the next room. "Hmm. It's not an immediate solution to our money troubles but it will at least put off the trouble for a few years - I've been collecting little bits and pieces for this eventuality. Limits?"

"Nothing that hurts Stirland, of course. Nothing that would empower competitors to the EIC, for obvious reasons." You consider further. "Nothing that would destabilize Western Stirland - with Flensburg sorted out, Anton's father happy and Wolfsbach and Franzen occupied with the upcoming marriage and their joint riverine ventures, everything's just how Stirland wants it." She smiles at that - you wonder how well her family is doing of late. "I'll give you a free hand in the rest of Stirland - just don't destabilize Central and Southern Stirland at the same time. We will need supply lines to remain open."

"Got it," she says, scribbling notes on the slate. "I take it that playing with internal Flensburg politics would be okay? I'd be propping up my own family, naturally, but also get a profit from playing the other families against each other." You nod, and she grins. "Shall we expand specifically for this? Our current agents aren't ideally placed to locate juicy gossip..."

You think for a moment. "We need to be trending towards the black. If your collected information brings in enough of a lump sum, you can reinvest some of it in new agents, but otherwise work with what we've got."

"Got it." Madeline comes back into the room, hands you a cool glass filled with some sort of... fruity-smelling cordial, and passes a folder to Julia, who skims through it with a smile. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"Maybe. Do you know a good candidate for a leader for the Watch?" You take a sip of the drink - it's quite nice, some sort of sweetened apple cider by the taste of it. Very refreshing after a day spent on the road. Alcoholic, but not nearly as much as the brandy you share with Van Hal.

"Hmm..." she nibbles her lip thoughtfully, still skimming through files. "If it weren't so important I'd probably try to talk you into one of my brothers, but to be honest they'd be thoroughly mediocre candidates. And it'd probably be a good idea to get at least one of the Hochschild boys out of the EIC, but they'd be terrible for the Watch." She pauses, then flips pages backwards. "Hand on. There's... here we go. The head of the castle guard at Steinbachthal is, by all accounts, wildly overqualified. And it just so happens that he's about to be out of a job, since someone is going to be selling information of his rather torrid affair with the Count's eldest daughter, who is supposedly a reclusive and respectable widow on the market for a new husband after her previous one passed away."

"Have your people keep an eye on him after he's encouraged to seek work elsewhere, then. I'll meet him for an interview later in the month."

[Martial candidate, Roll, Intrigue, 86+14=100.]

---

With that taken care of, you bring your own efforts to bear in searching for a suitable candidate for the position. You briefly consider your own personal contacts, but none of them seem suitable. Those that you've trained with in the Army of Stirland... well, none of them worth hiring would leave it at such a crucial time. Anyone from your time in the Colleges? You mull that over for a while, but none of them seem even remotely suitable. Your brothers and sisters in Ranald's Faith? You can't help but laugh at the thought.

Your only source of reasonable candidates you can think of is the mercenaries that Wilhelmina's been using to guard the EIC convoys between towns, and they're mainly the ones too cowardly or understrength to offer their services in proper wars. But then you have another idea.

[Candidate search: Roll, Diplomacy: 10+7=17.]
[Candidate search: Roll, Martial: 23+11=34.]
[Candidate search: Roll, Stewardship: 38+13=51.]
[Candidate search: Roll, Intrigue: 70+16=86.]
[Candidate search: Roll, Piety: 6+16=22.]
[Candidate search: Roll, Learning: 14+17=31.]

---

High atop the streets of Wurtbad, a shadowed figure runs along the rooftops, leaping from one to the other, the evening fog muffling his sounds. The route was carefully mapped in advance, and he had timed it perfectly so that he could pass unnoticed. He reached his destination without trouble, a townhouse near the Castle - and far from the two townhouses that everyone in Wurtbad's criminal community knew not to touch. With a grin of triumph, he reached into the sheath at his belt for his trusty crowbar made of blackened steel-

The window was already open.

He hesitated, but stiffened his resolve, slipping the crowbar back into the sheath on his belt. After a moment of thought, he reached to the other sheath and confirmed the presence of his sword. He slowly bent down to peer into the room, searching for anyone standing guard. Clear - nobody waiting for him. He relaxed. A careless servant, perhaps. He slipped through the window soundlessly and into the sitting room, and suddenly, in full view of the window, where he knew he had looked and seen nobody, was a slight figure all in grey, wreathed in the evening fog that rolled in through the window to curl around her almost lovingly.

---

"The Dämmerlichtreiter," the man breathes.

You blink in surprise at him. "The what now?" You had been prepared for all sorts of reactions, but not calling you that.

He stares, wild-eyed, pointing accusingly. "You! The Rider of Dusk! The woman who rides the coming of night across Stirland, bringing ruin to the enemies of the Hunter-Count!"

You stare back, and a delighted smile spreads across your face. "I mean... gosh. I hadn't realized people had been noticing. The Rider of Dusk? That's... wow." You bask for a moment, but duty calls. "Anyway. Not why I'm here."

The man's hand edged toward his sword, but an indecisive moment later away from it. "I will not resist the will of Stirland."

"What? No, I mean, yes, technically, but I'm not here to arrest you or anything. In fact, go ahead and rob them, they haven't paid taxes since '62. I'm here to offer you a job."

The man thinks that over, and relaxes somewhat. "Okay. What's the item?"

"Oh, not that sort of job. Meet me at the Golden Eagle Inn at dawn tomorrow, and we can discuss it." You walk past the man, patting him on the shoulder as you go, and climb out the window. You can feel his eyes on your back as you climb down empty air like a flight of stairs, and can't keep from grinning at how thoroughly you nailed that dramatic exit.

---

The man sits at your table as you work your way through your morning sausages. You glance across at him as you chew. Jack Albright, career thief and a damn good one at that. Originally of Marienburg, but attracted too much attention to himself and now on a protracted tour of the Empire. Charismatic, well-travelled, skilled in a variety of thieving arts and possessing of strong morals. You smile across at him. "Good morning. You look tired."

"I didn't sleep well," he mutters.

"The night before an interview," you nod understandingly. "Don't be too put out with your Fence. He would have warned you if he had remembered me." You smile at the wild-eyed look you get from him. "So, I take it you've heard of news with the Watch?"

He looks around the inn nervously - it's usually crowded, but not this early, and there's nobody within earshot. He lowers his voice anyway. "You're fighting the War Below."

"The War Below," you say musingly. Overly dramatic name for fighting against vermin and smugglers, but it has a nice ring to it. "The Watch is looking for a new leader. Ideally, someone with the creativity and inside knowledge to bring it success as it expands across Stirland."

"You want me to betray those I work with," he mutters.

"If I thought you would, you wouldn't be worth hiring. Besides, I envision the Watch as an organization with its attention elsewhere." As you talk, you dip a finger in your mug of small beer and draw an X on the table. Jack looks down at it thoughtfully as you wipe your mouth with a napkin, and then you place the napkin atop the X. "There are many threats to the good order of Stirland and the Empire, and a few thieves are the very least of them."

"I... think I understand," he says.

"Good. I'll give you some time to think it over - I've got to interview another candidate in Steinbachthal tomorrow morning, so if you're willing drop by my townhouse the day after, where I'll be receiving visitors." He stares at you, likely mentally calculating the distances, and you smile again. Being a wizard was so fun, sometimes. "Have a nice day."

---

The candidate in Steinbachthal is another story entirely, much less awed and more morose. Jacques Seingalt sits in the tavern, already half-drunk despite it barely being lunchtime, and barely reacts when you introduce yourself. "And what," he says in the overly-clear diction of someone concentrating to keep from slurring, tinged with a faint Tilean accent, "does the Spymistress of Stirland want with a fired castle guard?"

"To offer him a job," you say, and he perks up slightly at that. "The Stirland Watch is expanding, and needs a new leader. When I'd heard you'd been released from your duties, I decided to come see you for myself."

He straightens himself in his seat. "Then you have fine taste in employees. I am Jacques Seingalt, duellist, doctor, and leader of men, famed across the Old World for my abilities."

You'd heard similar. His career had begun in the mercenary bands of Tilea, before he befriended a travelling Bretonnian knight and went with him back to that strange land and led forces of men-at-arms against the greenskins ravaging the countryside in the unhappy aftermath of the disastrous Errantry War that wiped out a generation of Bretonnian knights. Since then he has travelled the length of the Old World, leading men of every nation against every enemy of mankind. It would be a mystery why he had settled for a lowly position as leader of a Count's household guard, if you didn't know well the full story. "I had heard as much. Would you be willing to perform this role?"

He drains his tankard thoughtfully. "Normally I am dismissive of petty thief-takers, but rumour has spread of your ambitions for the Watch, how they spread across Western Stirland, how they protect even the smallest villages and ride forth to purge banditry from the countryside. This may be a suitable role for one of my skills; I will ride with you back to Wurtbad."

You conceal a smile. "I think you will find it difficult to keep up."

He scoffs. "No man, nor woman for that matter, can match me in the saddle."

You end up impressed that it only takes him a week longer than you to arrive in the capital.

---

You rejoin the army a month after the Purge has begun. Your information attachés had kept you well informed of their progress; or rather, their lack thereof. The first stage was to purge the Hills around Leicheberg and west of the river, but the projected two weeks had already turned into four and the job seemed no more than half done. The jagged countryside seemed to contain more nooks and crannies than should be possible, and any given stretch of land needed to be passed over in force a half-dozen times or more before things would stop appearing. It was hoped that as the troops and leadership learned, that this would be accelerated, but the fear was the opposite would be true - as they pressed deeper into Sylvania, it would only get worse.

Still, at least Asarnil seems to be enjoying himself. He appears to be treating the operation as a massive hunt, with the armies acting as beaters to flush the undead out of wherever they were hiding so he could dive upon them - a symbiosis the troops are completely fine with. And the local shepherds who are flooding into the newly-cleansed hills with their herds have taken to sending sheep as tribute to Deathfang, the mighty jade-green dragon, who feasts on fresh mutton every evening surrounded by awed soldiers who play music on carved wooden pipes and kettledrums and crude mandolins in impromptu orchestras for him.

Asarnil himself is less taken with the crowds, and broods in his massive tent alone each evening. He's occupied with buffing his armour with a cloth, but turns as you enter with a scowl and his mouth open to deliver a cutting rebuke, but upon seeing you he stops, surprised. "That manner of dress - why, you're one of Teclis' little ones!"

You're rather taken aback at that. "I- well, I am part of the Colleges of Magic, yes-"

"I'm so glad that you're still doing well. Which of them are you? Wait, don't tell me, you must be one of the Grey ones, right? Ulgu?"

"Yes, I am of the Grey Order."

"So few believed it would work, but Teclis proved them all wrong. And didn't Finubar hate that! He didn't even have the bravery to forbid one of those two brothers from doing what they pleased, but he predicted such ruin, and yet here you are." You're completely taken aback by this, but that last bit at least partially explains it - the tale of Asarnil's banishment from Ulthuan is well-known, and so something that tweaks the Phoenix King's nose would definitely please him. But you're starting to get the annoyed feeling that you're being treated like a child that has learned a particularly clever trick. "He taught you something of our language as well, didn't he? Is that still being passed down? Of course, not the proper thing, but a few words to use like we would use Anoqeyån."

"Ulgunar kirior onai Tar-Eltharin, caladai-eldoir-kurn," you retort, and he stares at you, quite surprised.

"I haven't heard-" he breaks off, and almost haltingly continues in Eltharin. "I have not heard the tongue of the True Elves in close to two centuries."

"If it would please you, I would be happy to converse with you in it,"
you respond.

"Of course!" he stops, and looks frustrated with himself. "Of course. I would like that very much."

The two of you talk for some time on the progress of the campaign without touching on anything of any consequence, but the Elf seems to almost draw sustenance from hearing his language spoken, although he corrects your pronunciation a few times. And then you make your offer to him; though the scholar that was brought was inadequate for the task, you would be honoured to immortalize his campaigns in the Old World. He happily agrees - apparently it was Anton's unthinking comment of 'gosh, this should be written down so everyone could hear it' had planted the thought in him that some record of his acts should be made, to preserve his legacy in the unlikely event that he ever encounters something capable of striking him down.

Week after week passes and parchment accumulates as one hundred and seventy-three years of battle are preserved in ink, beginning with the Battle of the Siren's Rocks that destroyed the entire naval fleet of Miragliano and ended them as a naval power and only growing from there, stopping only for you to sleep and for Asarnil to perform his duties in the Hills, though Deathfang takes to going off without him to keep himself occupied. The stories continue. A thousand battles, tens of thousands of skirmishes, hundreds of thousands dead by claw and flame and sword and lance, every one of which bought at an exorbitant price. He has fought for every realm of Man in the Old World from Kislev to Araby, for the mysterious elves of Athel Loren, for the lizard-people of the Southlands, and strangest of all, for dwarves.

He shrugs at that. "I understand what it is to hold a grudge against the Phoenix King." Fair enough, you suppose.

In the end, you've got an enormous and unruly pile of parchment containing the Dragonlord's account of every battle he has fought as a Mercenary. Asarnil claps you on the shoulder, dons his helm, and walks out of the tent to rejoin the campaign.

[Purge progress: Roll, 30.]
[Befriending the Elf: Req 70, Diplomacy, 93+7+10 (Likes Wizards)=110.]
[Writing the stories: Roll, Learning, 51+17+10 (reader of tales)+10 (Ranald's Blessing=88.]

---



CANDIDATE FOR LEADER OF THE STIRLAND WATCH - CHOOSE ONE

[ ] Jack Albright, career criminal.
[ ] Jacques Seingalt, wandering adventurer.
[ ] Neither.


WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THE TALES OF ASARNIL? CHOOSE ANY NUMBER.

[ ] Hand them over to him in their current form; he would be fine with this, and would take his own actions with them.
[ ] Have a scribe transfer them into book form - one copy for you, one for the Imperial College, one for Asarnil.
[ ] Hire some printing press time and a translator, and start selling Reikspiel versions to anyone who's interested.
[ ] Hire some printing press time and find a merchant willing to ship and sell as many copies as they can to Ulthuan.

---

PLAN FOR THIS PURGE TURN

ORGANIZATIONAL ACTIONS - pick NONE. For reference only, as actions can be taken as Personal Actions.

Information Network - pick ONE (no action expenditure required):
[ ] Expand your information network into another province (choose one)
[ ] Expand your information network into another county or barony (choose one)
[ ] Expand your information network into the military (choose a Division)
[ ] Expand your Intelligence Attaché program to another Division (choose one)
[ ] Off the Leash: Let Julia handle the network without your micromanagement from now on.

Information Network finances - can be chosen INSTEAD of a selection from the above.
[ ] Attaché Paperwork: The Intelligence Attachés are your biggest expense by far - see if you can have them paid for by the Army of Stirland instead.
[ ] Fixer: Work with the Wurtbad Thieves Guild, supplying them information in exchange for a portion of profits.
[ ] Special Branch: Pull some financial trickery to get the information network classified as part of the Watch, so that their costs are covered by the Stirlandian treasury.
[ ] Trade Delegation: Convince Wilhelmina and Markus to partner your network with the EIC based on the value of market information.

Stirland Watch - pick ONE (no action expenditure required):
[o] Expand the ranks of the Watch, so that they're able to start covering even the poorer parts of their covered area. (cannot be taken until army retirement resumes in one year)
[ ] Expand the Special Branch into areas already covered by the Watch, so you have an additional pool of manpower you can call upon to supplement the full-time Watchmen.
[ ] Improve the training of the Watch, hiring trainers and dedicating paid time each week to sharpening skills.
[ ] Integrate the Roadwarden network of covered areas into the Watch.
[ ] Headhunt administrators from other organizations in Stirland.
[ ] Neither candidate is suitable - continue to seek out a new leader for the Watch.

---

PERSONAL ACTIONS - CHOOSE BETWEEN TWO AND THREE. ANY CHOSEN BEYOND THE FIRST TWO WILL COME WITH RISKS - PLEASE SPECIFY THE 'ADDITIONAL' TASK:

Genießt den Krieg - join the divisions entering Sylvania:
[ ] Attach yourself to the general staff, so you can be present for anything interesting that might happen and keep a finger on the pulse of the war.
[ ] Attach yourself to a specific regiment so you can spend some time in the thick of things.

Miscellany:
[ ] Financial Jargon: Everything with the EIC flew right over your head last time. Try again. Succeeding here will mean that you can take a more active hand in the company, adding it to the organizational actions; failing or not attempting means Mathilde will remain a silent partner.
[ ] Hang Out A Shingle: Spymasters don't advertise, but wizards sometimes do. Make an official announcement that there's a wizard in residence, and see who comes out of the woodwork.
[ ] Formal Proposal: Your idea for an undead research team was received poorly, but Van Hal is still open to the idea in theory. Write in details: Name, who it is technically a part of (Watch, Witch Hunters, Military, College, none), and whether it reports directly to you (becomes a new Organization you command) or, if not, who it would report to.
[ ] Gun Shopping: You're currently using a pistol that was a spare for the pistoliers. Visit Nuln to upgrade. (Choose: dueling pistols for accuracy and range, repeater pistols for weight of fire, dragons for hand shotguns. Choose: whether you will acquire and use two pistols at once or keep one hand free.)
[ ] Write up a proposal for Wilhelmina to approve a short-term increase in Discretionary Income, for the duration of the crisis.

Self-Improvement: Things have been going well so far, but the skills of a Journeyman Grey Mage can only go so far.
[ ] Practice, Practice, Practice: Having been thrown into the deep end of imperial politics, it would probably be a good idea to brush up on your skills and internalize the lessons you've learned (choose which trait; can be taken multiple times; will be more effective if you've used the trait a lot lately).

[ ] Tutoring: One of your fellow councillors may be willing to teach you in their chosen field (choose who; can choose which, or you can let them decide).
[ ] Really Good Swords: You have achieved proficiency with the Greatsword. Future progress is possible, though it will take more effort to see results.
[ ] Pistols at Dawn: You've taken some great strides in an entirely new form of combat, but you're still not entirely proficient. Finish your training.
[ ] Combat Training: You're virtually surrounded by armed warriors of various sorts. See if you can convince one to teach you (choose who).
[ ] Combat Training, In The Free Market: You haven't made many heavily armed friends yet, but gold is good for that. Go out and buy some training. (-personal gold)
[ ] Enchantment: You're naturally talented at enchantment; so far, this just amounts to being able to make your desk meow for about an hour. See if you can improve on that, or at least figure out a way to make that useful.

Home Comforts: Your Palace-Shrine is bursting with potential. And also mud.
[ ] Diggy Diggy Hole, Remixed: You're getting sick of having workmen tramping in and out of your abode. Recruit an entire team and personally oversee them to clear out all of the reachable portions of the Palace-Shrine and be done with it. (-personal gold)
[ ] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
[ ] Filled with Potential: You've got a room cleared out and ready to be put to use. Decide what you're going to put there and get started on equipping it. (write in the purpose of the room)

Research:
[ ] Undead Research: You know the basics, now. Perhaps a great deal of effort will allow you to advance further.
[ ] Snooping: Van Hal gave you a key to his Study. He didn't specifically say not to poke around and see what you could find.
[ ] Shyish-kebabs: The Shyish swords are hideously dangerous as weapons, but fascinating as a subject of study. Try to reverse-engineer the lost enchantments woven into them.
[ ] Bound Spells: Though the corrosive Dhar made them high-maintenance, the design of the bound spells in the castle's infiltrators has fascinating possibilities. The memories had faded but you've managed to refresh them. Try to adapt it for use with Ulgu.
[ ] Qhaysh Juice: Whatever it is, it's dripping out of the box at a steady rate. You've got two gallons of the stuff and it's still coming out. It's got to be good for something.
[ ] Qhaysh Skunkworks: It would take careful study to unlock the secrets of the liquid. It would take considerably less time to find out if it can be made to burn, or explode, or do something militarily useful.
[ ] As a Journeywoman, the path to Magister is marked by mastering more than the two shadow spells you already know. Send to the Grey Order for the basics and work on figuring out one of the others.

Influence:
[ ] Thieves Guild: It's currently little more than a church group, albeit of a very unconventional god. If it could be expanded under your aegis, it could be a powerful tool.
[ ] Biderhof: This village based on woodcutting and agriculture, has adopted you as one of it's own. Maybe you should adopt it as your own, in a literal sense.
[ ] Non-Thief Guilds: Wurtbad, like all major cities, is home to a number of guilds. Reach out to them and enforce your will.

Relations:
[ ] Getting To Know You: Spend time with one of your fellow councillors or your liege, offering your help in their tasks and generally getting a feel for them (choose one).
[ ] Getting To Know You Whether You Like It Or Not: You've been given good reason to mistrust your fellow councillors. Perhaps you should see what they spent their time doing (choose one).
[ ] Letters Home: You might be able to wring more information out of your Master, or you might just be able to get news, information and guidance in general from the Grey Order.
[o] Free Time: Now well-established in Wurtbad, you can spend some time in your scant off hours getting to know someone better. Pick one character. (not possible during Purge Turns)

- You will find out the financial effect of the Information Network decision at the end of the Purge Turn after this coming one.
- There are three votes - Watch Leader, the elf stories, and the turn proper.
- Don't forget Ranald's Blessing.

---

Added to this threadmark for posterity:


-[*] Attach yourself to a specific regiment so you can spend some time in the thick of things.

...I could have sworn this said 'specify which'. Though it might be better to have it be an informed decision. Okay, minivote time.

Empire tactics 101: spears receive the charge, swords countercharge. Each Division has two spear regiments, one sword regiment, and one crossbow regiment. The Regiment you choose will determine what sort of action, if any, you find yourself in. You can also attempt to join one of the other presences on the battlefield.

- Herr Schultz with the 2nd Division will be pushing up the Hilltop Road about halfway to Vanhaldenschlosse. Once there, they will find a hilltop close to the road and fortify it, to be used as a fallback position and supply depot. They will also be scouting the nearby area as well as standing ready to support the 3rd or 4th if needed.
- Gustav with the 3rd Division will be circling around the outside of the Hills to approach one of the tallest peaks in the range, home to many a local legend, most of which are worrying light on details but something called a 'Blasphemy of Blood' keeps coming up. Gustav is confident that whatever it is, it will prove vulnerable to at least one of steel, cannonballs, or dragonfire.
- Van Hal with the 4th Division will be scouring the hills between the two upper forks of the river, northwest of Naubonum. This is expected to be business as usual, though Van Hal will be intending to examine the problem of why any patch of given land needs to be scoured several times to be free of undead.

From the preliminary results of processing all the reports and paperwork coming in, most of what has been faced has been the restless dead - zombies, skeletons, and the occasional wight. Ghouls have been spotted, but not in any great number and most have been seen scampering away at high speed, and they've only been rode down when knights or pistoliers were close at hand.


2nd Division
[ ] Flensburg Spear Regiment
[ ] Franzen Spear Regiment
[ ] Flensburg Sword Regiment
[ ] Blutdorf Crossbow Regiment
[ ] 1st Pistolier Cohort
[ ] 2nd Pistolier Cohort
[ ] Talabeclander Knights

3rd Division
[ ] Steinbachthal Spear Regiment
[ ] Schramleben 1st Spear Regiment
[ ] Halstedt Sword Regiment
[ ] Marburg Crossbow Regiment
[ ] Artillery battery (10 cannon, 10 mortar)
[?] Asarnil the Dragonlord

4th Division
[ ] Schramleben 2nd Spear Regiment
[ ] Sigmaringen Spear Regiment
[ ] Leicheberg Sword Regiment
[ ] Hornau Crossbow Regiment
[ ] Knights of Morr
 
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apparently it was Anton's unthinking comment of 'gosh, this should be written down so everyone could hear it' had planted the thought in him that some record of his acts should be made

Anton is worth his weight in gold at this point.

[X] Jacques Seingalt, wandering adventurer.

Good candidate for his experience, not sure about his view of petty crime?

[X] Have a scribe transfer them into book form - one copy for you, one for the Imperial College, one for Asarnil.
[X] Hire some printing press time and a translator, and start selling Reikspiel versions to anyone who's interested.
[X] Hire some printing press time and find a merchant willing to ship and sell as many copies as they can to Ulthuan.

Books everywhere!

[X] Plan Field Study (Undead)
-[X] Attach yourself to the general staff, so you can be present for anything interesting that might happen and keep a finger on the pulse of the war.
--[X] Ranald's Blessing
-[X] Bound Spells: Though the corrosive Dhar made them high-maintenance, the design of the bound spells in the castle's infiltrators has fascinating possibilities. The memories had faded but you've managed to refresh them. Try to adapt it for use with Ulgu.
-[X] [Additional] Undead Research: You know the basics, now. Perhaps a great deal of effort will allow you to advance further.
 
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Edit: Ok this has been a surprisingly amazing turn. And the leader choice is gonna be important as heck! Do we want to foster a thieves guild? Or do the normal and try to purge them from existence?


Also Mathilde's dramatic exit was on point! Informal title aquired!
 
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Hot Damn. We ACTUALLY got a Dragon Prince of Caledor to like us. And the reaction to us from the thief was hilarious.

Our Derplomacy is far too strong.
 
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