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Warhammer Fantasy: Divided Loyalties - an Advisor's Quest

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veekie said:
Uh, theres a number of possible causes, some of which are not innocous:
-The blood is caused by a haunt or other monster residing there. The boulders smashed the thing. Not our problem.

-The blood is caused by a Dhar artifact or warpstone gathering. The boulders either smashed or buried the thing. If it's truly destroyed, good, if its just buried, then we'd probably want to know because people are going to be using the now clear waters

-The blood is caused by a Ghur artifact(what it does is in line with a Ghur device). The boulders smashed the thing. Is our problem, we need to make sure it's actually destroyed, not damaged, in which case it'd be producing Dhar down the line.

-The blood is caused by a naturally occuring leyline nexus. The boulders damaged the geography enough to disperse it. Is an academic interest, though it might be a temporary or permanent situation.

Priests and Mathilde, I would note, have never been to the source. They only looked at the water output.
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Merely burying warpstone wouldn't have knocked it out of the spring (dropping boulders into a spring to bury something would have raised the water level to flow over more stuff, not less), leaking Ghur out in the wilderness would more likely become a Ghur accumulation like the barrow had a Shyish accumulation, and leylines are a more obvious elven thing IIRC.

The site might very well be nocuous. But I'm not saying it's innocuous; I'm saying it's currently irrelevant.
1) It stood there for ages being part of the wider issue of Sylvania Sucks, and as we haven't generally focused on studying the endless Bits Of Sylvania that suck in a myriad of ways, there's no particular reason to get distracted by this particular Bit Of Sylvania just because it got screen time
2) Even if this Bit Of Sylvania had particular importance, it's probably destroyed
3) Even if this one wasn't destroyed, it's still stopped doing what it did
4) Even if this one has begun doing something else, it's something that doesn't behave in a manner indicative of being gribbly. If it had changed from "spilling bloody water" to, say, "emitting purple smoke" or other evil magic stuff, I would have been more concerned, but in that case Gustav would probably also have sieged it some more.
5) On the small chance that it was a particularly important bit of Sylvania, and it wasn't destroyed, and it's still doing or going to do something gribbly, and it's something gribbly enough to merit our later attention, we'll still hear about it later. We have an information network below us, and we have an Elector Count above us who can say "Mathilde this looks like your department".

I give it better-than-even chances of being nothing at all, and if it is something, it's not a time-sensitive something. The hill isn't going to get up and march on Wurtbad if we ignore it for a while.
 
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[X] Plan Publish and Learn
Adhoc vote count started by Lupercal on Feb 20, 2018 at 9:58 AM, finished with 96 posts and 41 votes.
  • [X] Plan Research
    -[X] By all accounts the entire general vicinity it was in has been pulverized, but there could be a shadow of a ghost of a chance that something might remain of the Blasphemy of Blood that could be studied? Maybe?
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    -[X] Publish Or Perish, Part 1: Though it's currently of limited utility to you personally, sharing your discovery might bring it to the attention of hundreds of wizards who could put it to great effect. Though before you do that, you'll need to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what it is you're doing, since you can't exactly submit the poor chicken as part of your paper.
    [X] Plan Magic Time
    -[X] 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.
    -[X] 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.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    -[X] [Additional] 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.
    [X] Plan Publish and Learn
    -[X] Publish Or Perish, Part 1: Though it's currently of limited utility to you personally, sharing your discovery might bring it to the attention of hundreds of wizards who could put it to great effect. Though before you do that, you'll need to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what it is you're doing, since you can't exactly submit the poor chicken as part of your paper. (NEW)
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    -[X] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
    -[X] By all accounts the entire general vicinity it was in has been pulverized, but there could be a shadow of a ghost of a chance that something might remain of the Blasphemy of Blood that could be studied? Maybe?
    -[X] Publish Or Perish, Part 1: Though it's currently of limited utility to you personally, sharing your discovery might bring it to the attention of hundreds of wizards who could put it to great effect. Though before you do that, you'll need to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what it is you're doing, since you can't exactly submit the poor chicken as part of your paper.
    [X] Plan Enchant Guns
    -[X] Gun Shopping: You're currently using a pistol that was a spare for the pistoliers. Visit Nuln to upgrade. (dueling pistols, two)
    -[X] 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.
    -[X] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    [X] Plan Research, Research, Research
    -[X] 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.
    -[X] 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.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    -[X] By all accounts the entire general vicinity it was in has been pulverized, but there could be a shadow of a ghost of a chance that something might remain of the Blasphemy of Blood that could be studied? Maybe?
    [X] [Plan] Teach me to write
    -[X] Publish Or Perish, Part 1: Though it's currently of limited utility to you personally, sharing your discovery might bring it to the attention of hundreds of wizards who could put it to great effect. Though before you do that, you'll need to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what it is you're doing, since you can't exactly submit the poor chicken as part of your paper. (NEW)
    -[X] 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.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    -[X] [Additional] Undead Research: You know the basics, now. Perhaps a great deal of effort will allow you to advance further.
    [X] PLAN STUDY STUDY STUDY.
    -[X] By all accounts the entire general vicinity it was in has been pulverized, but there could be a shadow of a ghost of a chance that something might remain of the Blasphemy of Blood that could be studied? Maybe? (NEW)
    -[X] Publish Or Perish, Part 1: Though it's currently of limited utility to you personally, sharing your discovery might bring it to the attention of hundreds of wizards who could put it to great effect. Though before you do that, you'll need to learn the vocabulary to communicate exactly what it is you're doing, since you can't exactly submit the poor chicken as part of your paper. (NEW)
    -[X] [ADDITIONAL] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    [x] A relaxing winter, trying to remember how to enchant.
    -[X] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
    -[X] 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.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    [x] A relaxing winter, trying to remember how to enchant.​

    -[x] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.​

    -[x] 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.​

    --[X] Ranald's Blessing ​
    [x] Enchanting and Snooping
    -[X] Snooping: Van Hal gave you a key to his Study. It's been a while since he's been in Wurtbad; he probably forgot he did so, and won't remember until he returns. And he didn't specifically say not to poke around and see what you could find.
    -[X] 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.
    -[X] [ADDITIONAL] Enchantment: You've finally got the equipment, now you've just got to unpack it all and set up your laboratory.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
    [X] Plan Follow the stink trail
    -[X] Capture and pack a functioning exemplar of the safest kind of undead (probably zombie but maybe a skeleton?) and notify your enigmatic patron about it.
    -[X] Follow the courier when it shows up to pick up the package.
    --[X] Ranald's Blessing
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Exmorri said:
Merely burying warpstone wouldn't have knocked it out of the spring (dropping boulders into a spring to bury something would have raised the water level to flow over more stuff, not less), leaking Ghur out in the wilderness would more likely become a Ghur accumulation like the barrow had a Shyish accumulation, and leylines are a more obvious elven thing IIRC.

The site might very well be nocuous. But I'm not saying it's innocuous; I'm saying it's currently irrelevant.
1) It stood there for ages being part of the wider issue of Sylvania Sucks, and as we haven't generally focused on studying the endless Bits Of Sylvania that suck in a myriad of ways, there's no particular reason to get distracted by this particular Bit Of Sylvania just because it got screen time
2) Even if this Bit Of Sylvania had particular importance, it's probably destroyed
3) Even if this one wasn't destroyed, it's still stopped doing what it did
4) Even if this one has begun doing something else, it's something that doesn't behave in a manner indicative of being gribbly. If it had changed from "spilling bloody water" to, say, "emitting purple smoke" or other evil magic stuff, I would have been more concerned, but in that case Gustav would probably also have sieged it some more.
5) On the small chance that it was a particularly important bit of Sylvania, and it wasn't destroyed, and it's still doing or going to do something gribbly, and it's something gribbly enough to merit our later attention, we'll still hear about it later. We have an information network below us, and we have an Elector Count above us who can say "Mathilde this looks like your department".

I give it better-than-even chances of being nothing at all, and if it is something, it's not a time-sensitive something. The hill isn't going to get up and march on Wurtbad if we ignore it for a while.
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And at the same time if we leave it for later it'd be even harder to figure out the cause. Remember, everyone's toasting each other with the water. The farmers and herders are using it now.

Should make sure it really IS nothing rather than dealing with a spate of mutation or worse a few years down the line when it turns out the boulder merely plugged the contamination source and it's accumulating pressure.
Particularly concerned because it sounds exactly like an incident in Indonesia last year, and where the plugged up mudflow suddenly giving way ruined quite a lot.

Note that none of the other items this turn are particularly urgent. I'd prefer to check and head it off if theres anything than to have it go critical when we're busy with something else.
 
This bound spell technique does have some outstanding implications and possible uses.

For example, we theorized about the ability of mass summoning of shadowsteeds to form a rapid response unit.

Now we don't need to be there, and it doesn't need to be at a specific time.

If we can figure out how to put the binding into a weapon, as a form of massively discounted enchantment, we could possibly add Blessed Weapon to entire Greatsword regiments.

Besides the many uses our agents could make of some Ulgu spells, imagine for a moment what an Elector Count would manage if he could cast normally-personal buffs from Ghyran, for example. Or something like a damn Griffon.

How much would people pay to have a Contingency Heal put on them? Would be huge, especially if it can work with divine magic.
 
veekie said:
You think we're up to out sneaking a Grey Order Magister?
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We're not. We're up to the task of following a wagon with a zombie inside, though, which is much harder to lose trail of. In fact, there is a quote from QM about exactly that.
BoneyM said:
Correct, the 'order' part is for information only. It just offers nebulous rewards for live captures. Which not only gives you whatever those rewards would be, but would also tell you something about them - both from what it is they reward you with, and what happens to the live captures, since it's a lot easier to keep tabs on a zombie in a box than one guy on a horse with a letter tucked into his jerkin.
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vsh said:
We're not. We're up to the task of following a wagon with a zombie inside, though, which is much harder to lose trail of. In fact, there is a quote from QM about exactly that.
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As in, the problem being that we'd find it rather difficult to avoid being spotted ourselves because up the chain is our teacher AND he just confirmed he has a similar cipher spell on his eyes.

But personally screw the bonus reward, I'm not shipping a 'live' zombie anywhere unless I know who's taking it.
 
veekie said:
But personally screw the bonus reward, I'm not shipping a 'live' zombie anywhere unless I know who's taking it.
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Now probably is our best chance to know who's buying, for a few years at least. Also we can sabotage the delivery halfway through (can we bind Shadow Horse to a zombie and leave it ticking?)
 
veekie said:
But personally screw the bonus reward, I'm not shipping a 'live' zombie anywhere unless I know who's taking it.
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I'd like to say that's incredibly short sighted. Worst comes to worst, the people know how to make a zombie. Not exactly the pinnacle of necromancy, that. If you are looking at it from the blackmail angle, there's nothing there. They already have us at their mercy and a single zombie is hardly undermining Stirland.

Finding out more about our backer should be a huge priority. It is absolutely worth risking both for the opportunity to follow the cart, and to see how they view a reward.

We don't have an option for it, but you've reminded me that we should try to get a live sample before the purge finishes.

[X] Plan Publish and Learn

Paper would give us an edge in learning, and setting up our enchantment stuff has been delayed far too long.
 
[X] Plan Magic Time

@BoneyM, once we have more skills and experience with bound spells, would be be possible to bind spell to a rock? Or weapom? It sould not be that much harder than living beings - items does not change over time after all, living things does.

Edit: and just to confirm - we can bind only one spell to a living being, correct? No matter the size?
 
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vsh said:
Now probably is our best chance to know who's buying, for a few years at least. Also we can sabotage the delivery halfway through (can we bind Shadow Horse to a zombie and leave it ticking?)
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While I approve of finding out the culprit(cost me quite a few votes), deliberately sabotaging the delivery sounds like the worst of both worlds.
 
veekie said:
Uh, as far as I can tell the spell doesn't immobilize you, due to the line about needing food and drink(which is difficult to survive while immobilized)
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I'm going by Realms of Sorcery:

You cause someone to appear and behave as if dead to all sight and inspection. That person continues to sense his environment through hearing, smell, and—if his eyes are open—sight, but he cannot move his body in any way whatsoever until the spell ends. However, he continues to require air and other essentials of life. This state persists until you will it to end or until a number of days pass equal to your Magic Characteristic. An unwilling target can resist the spell with a successful Will Power Test. You can also cast this spell on yourself. This is a touch spell.

Very effective for Mathildes' Enhanced Interrogation. Less so for scouting, but you could stick a 'corpse' on a cart. Maybe if the person you bound it to could end it as well as triggering it?

It's also a four-day touch range paralysis Hold Person spell... Great for all your abduction needs! And a super-scary Death Touch fakeout!

veekie said:
And at the same time if we leave it for later it'd be even harder to figure out the cause. Remember, everyone's toasting each other with the water. The farmers and herders are using it now.
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Well, examination of the water by priests and ourselves revealed no obvious taint. So we'd be looking for a contaminant at the source that was (temporarily?) cut off from the water, or changed in nature rather than destroyed. Which may or may not be there.
 
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veekie said:
But personally screw the bonus reward, I'm not shipping a 'live' zombie anywhere unless I know who's taking it.
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I agree. And for most of the potential "who" I have in mind, I wouldn't ship it even if I did know who it was.

Because I have a speculation that maybe Mathilde's handler has been bluffing or exaggerating a bit, and could make life difficult for her but not actually have her declared rogue - unless she shipped a zombie, at which point she arguably would be committing a rogue act in violation of the Articles of Magic.

Specifically, these look like concerns:
2. No Magister may obstruct in malice or for financial or political gain the rulings of the Emperor, nor may they seek to overthrow him for these reasons.
3. Every Magister of said Colleges must adhere to the laws of Sigmar's Holy Empire, regardless of the province, region, or city-state, just as any loyal citizen must, except that the Magisters alone shall be permitted to study magic and perform such spells for the good of the Empire.
7. No Magister may ever study the Forbidden Lores of the Daemonic Powers, nor the unholy ways of Necromancy, nor any other sorcery or witchcraft that utilises the wicked powers of Dark Magic. Any Magister found disregarding this Article is guilty of an Abominable Act and is both Heretic and Traitor and will be put to sword and fire immediately.
12. Magisters are permitted to pursue agreements of employment with any persons or organisations: civil and religious, public and private, noble and mercantile, providing their employers are not enemies of Sigmar's Holy Empire or the people and that will not lead to the breaking of any of these Articles.
15. All Magisters are required to exert themselves to seek out and counter such destructive and anti-Imperial machinations, practices, peoples, and creatures that are beyond the means of civil authorities and Sigmar's Templars to counter, but yet still serve the Daemon Gods or advance the corruption of Imperial citizens through any sorcerous or infernal means. This shall be the prime concern and purpose of the Colleges, their Orders and the Magisters belonging to them, and to fail in this duty is to render void all the Articles of this document and make obsolete their permission to practise arcane arts without hindrance.
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For 2&3, there's probably at least one of a law and an imperial ruling that says "no sending undead around the empire". 7 was raised by Regimand previously and zombie shipping would at least be accessory to a possible violation. 12 is just plain broad about how it might lead to breaking another Article. And for 15, a zombie is definitely a destructive and anti-Imperial creature that we'd be sneaking away from the civil authorities and Sigmar's Templars.
 
Alliterate said:
Well, examination of the water by priests and ourselves revealed no obvious taint. So we'd be looking for a contaminant at the source that was (temporarily?) cut off from the water, or changed in nature rather than destroyed. Which may or may not be there.
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Basically. Just...confirm the kill. This is Stirland, and filling an evil spring with carapult rocks sounds too easy
 
BoneyM said:
Gustav had greater luck with his adventure; what was once the tallest peak in the western Wold is now very much not so, and he's quite pleased to add 'killing a mountain' to his list of deeds.
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BoneyM said:
. The problem of what to do with the spring was puzzling for a while, and then he'd apparently decided that thinking was for other people and decided to hit it until it went away
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Pffft, I like Gustav.

BoneyM said:
The death of the host would cause the spell to discharge; this is harmless for Mindhole or similar, but it does tend to cause comment in polite company if a horse explodes from your pocket.
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Is that a horse in your pocket or are you happy to see me?

veekie said:
I'm not sure there IS a cure short of going full Dwarf Fortress.
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Going full Rome and taking shovel everywhere, in addition to Pickaxes considering all the rocks, and just making everything into flat ground?

Exmorri said:
For 2&3, there's probably at least one of a law and an imperial ruling that says "no sending undead around the empire". 7 was raised by Regimand previously and zombie shipping would at least be accessory to a possible violation. 12 is just plain broad about how it might lead to breaking another Article. And for 15, a zombie is definitely a destructive and anti-Imperial creature that we'd be sneaking away from the civil authorities and Sigmar's Templars.
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We could probably get around most of this if we just tell Van Hal that our benefactor, which he knows that every advisor has, wants us to ship them a zombie, and ask if that's cool or if he wants us to not do that.

Mind, might be too risky to be worth it.
 
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avatar11792 said:
[X] Plan Research, Research, Research
-[X] 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.
-[X] 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.
--[X] Ranald's Blessing
-[X] By all accounts the entire general vicinity it was in has been pulverized, but there could be a shadow of a ghost of a chance that something might remain of the Blasphemy of Blood that could be studied? Maybe?
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That's three actions. You need to mark which one is overtime.

King Arthur said:
We could probably get around most of this if we just tell the GM that our benefactor, which he knows that every advisor has, wants us to ship them a zombie, and ask if that's cool or if he wants us to not do that.
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When you say "GM", do you mean Elector Count? Because I don't think that helps all that much - article "8. The Colleges must respond favourably to any reasonable request for specific service from any Elector of Sigmar's Holy Empire." doesn't make me think it's reasonable to ship undead around to secretmongers.
 
We haven't tried to find our 'benefactor' without (probably) breaking imperial law and shipping animated undead.

So, we can try that first? We now have a four-minute duration 'Ignore me' spell we didn't have last time a courier turned up, at least.
 
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