Turn 11 said:Organizational: Expand Attaches, Expand Gong Farmers
Personal: Learn from Gustav
Study Undead
Research Spell Matrix
Learn Take No Heed
Learn Burning Shadows
Turn '12' AKA Purge 1-3 said:Organizational: Become information broker
Personal: Find new Watch leader (Jack Albright)
Write down Asarnil's stories
Research Spell Matrix
Join the Purge for a while
Investigate Blasphemy of Blood
Write Paper, Part 1
Turn '13' AKA Purge 4-6 said:Organizational: Hire more information brokers, soothe complaints
Personal: Write Paper, Part 2
Train Learning
Visit Bundebad
Write Paper, Part 3
Improve Paper, relaxing in hot water
Improve Paper, meditating on Ulgu
@BoneyM What about a write-in of:[] Send it off to our Master and ask that he passes it on to someone with the skills to distil it into greater elegance; though it will mean that they will get co-author status, and may fight you on the name. (does not take an action)
Is that what it is, though? Asking him to read and comment?Leaning on your master's oversight is a rather poor way of proving you're ready to be free of a master's oversight.
We can take some credit for the doings of underlings now. Information brokers.Bit light on actual job description of Spy Master, hope we can change that.
Seconded. Come on, dice. This time for sure.At this point I don't care about any of the other options nearly as much as finally getting this fucking paper right.
Is that what it is, though? Asking him to read and comment?
I mean, you run the game world, but I kind of disagree with that take.
Fair enough. I was imagining things a little differently. The same logic would then seem to apply to getting someone else to polish the language.The Colleges of Magic place a lot of emphasis on the importance of self-reliance, especially in this phase of Mathilde's career. Asking him to read and comment would be sending the exact wrong message if you're seeking advancement.
It does seem a little odd to me that the masterwork is submitted without our tutor giving it a once-over. After all, he's not the (sole?) decider on whether we advance. But, I'm not familiar with old-worldy apprenticeships and only secondhand with modern postgrad academia.Also, we can probably imagine sending Regimand a complimentary copy that he can freely read at leisure. (fluffwise)
But as I see it, the mechanical action of asking Regimand for feedback is quite a bit further into the territory of admitting ignorance and needing professional guidance, when a Journeyman career phase is supposed to represent pretty much the opposite, culminating in a "masterwork" - originally, a demonstration that you are qualified to be a master in your own right, rather than just following instructions.
Roll will save against Guilt.
Should have known the Witch Hunters already know as much. Lesser Evil indeed.In the scant privacy of a tent pitched outside the walls of Nachthafen, Van Hal nods as you give your report on the Countess. "It fits what we know - 'we' being the Witch Hunters. She's been under suspicion for quite some time, but by chance or artifice she's always been far down the list of priorities. It's not like there's any shortage of targets in Sylvania."
"So do you think she's a vampire?"
He waves a hand vaguely. "Impossible to say. The possible reasons for her lying are as devious as those for revealing the truth. Whatever she is, she's cooperating, and said cooperation cuts half a year of our timetable for marching on Drakenhof."
"Lesser evil," you note.
"Very much so. I'd like to know exactly what kind of evil she is, but either she keeps playing along and lends her aid to the destruction of Drakenhof or she plays her hand when I've got forty thousand men and fourteen hundred knights at my back. Both possibilities bode well for Stirland." He turns to you, raising a questioning eyebrow. "Though if you've got a better course of action in mind, I'm open to suggestion."
So this points to us probably wanting to put in Watch trainers and other prestigious items in the next couple of years. They want some glory.You meet with your two lieutenants in a conference room in Julia's townhouse, over a highly annotated map of Greater Stirland. Their reports to you are short and to the point. Jack has mollified the worst of the grumblers, and though the mood of the Watch's long-term veterans is no better than it was they've been convinced to wait and see rather than reflexively pining for the nostalgia-tinted past.
Sounds like a botch Her first attempt went well enough, I feel like letting her try again.Julia's news is less positive: her attempts to expand the Network to start soaking up saleable information went terribly, and badly-needed funds vanished into the Flensburgian society like stones thrown into a bog. You're not sure whether Julia was outmanoeuvred, got unlucky, or is just unsuited for this facet of her role, but at least she pulls no punches in her evaluation of how badly it went.
Super vampire. Good odds that Van Hal will show up to kill the bastard, and so will Kasmir. I'm opting to go join them, but expanding our intelligence network deeper into Bundebad is a possibility if we want to strain our finance harderJulia also passes on information from the front lines: the central Hills proved to be as terrible as Van Hal had feared. The army stumbled into a vast natural valley within the Hills that proved to be the home of innumerable ghouls lead by what the troops are calling the Singing King: an enormously muscled vampire mounted atop some sort of hideous dragon-bat that directed his gathered hoard with long, wordless cries. The fighting was long and bloody, and near a fifth of the army are now dead, wounded, or otherwise out of action - including Gustav's Pistoliers, who's horses were driven wild by the singing of the Ghoul King, and ending up bucking their riders and escaping into the questionable safety of the Hills. In the end the back of the ghoulish army was broken and the majority of the creatures were ridden down by the Knights as they tried to flee along ancient dirt roads weaving through the hills towards the Ghoul Wood. Their King, however, remains at large - though without a mount, as Deathfang apparently took umbrage at a counterfeit dragon sharing a battlefield with him.
And nothing of value was lost.News from the other two 'fronts' are better. Ostermark's progress continues, advancing slowly but steadily through the Dead Wood. The first of their troops have reached the dead city of Mordheim, and have reported chasing off small numbers of beastmen calling the city home. Down south, Zhufbar has finally broken their twin sieges, and greenskins are flooding out of the mountains pursued by the Throng of Zhufbar, seeking shelter in the greenskin shelter of Fang Island... deep within Ghoul Wood. Grins are shared over the table as the image of a greenskin army running headfirst into a ghoulish one fills your heads.
Family strain there for sure. Can't help her there.In other news, tensions are higher than ever in the Hochschild household as Wilhelmina chooses keeping the army amply supplied over outrageous profits; the EIC is currently operating practically at cost, to the protest of absolutely none of its shareholders. There'll be time enough for profit after the war is over, the three of you feel - but Wilhelmina's sons definitely do not feel the same way.
...just how exactly is Anton doing this ?!Further afield, Van Hal apparently gave Anton a discretionary budget again. Anton, it seems, mentioned to the Master Engineers of Nuln that Van Hal was going to kill the infamous Castle Drakenhof, but due to lack of cannon and powder he was going to have to do so with catapults. The thought of such a magnificent feat being accomplished in such a Brettonnian way went against everything the Imperial Gunnery School stood for, and now two score cannon were travelling up the river Aver to Sylvania, with all but the down payment still outstanding on them.
Strongly encouraged to do this after we actually learn how the EIC works.-[x] Trade Delegation: Convince Wilhelmina and Markus to partner your network with the EIC based on the value of market information.
On a side note, did Van Hal not consider that his Spymaster could do with knowing the Witch Hunters know that a town ruler may well be a vampire?
Can i convince you to shift the Ostermark vote to joining the front lines again? Seems to be gearing up for a mini boss battle atleast and Mathilde (and the dice) can hopefully turn all her frustration towards more productive pursuits.[X] Yes. Don't be unrealistic. The paper communicates the concept and construction of Mathilde's Mystical Matrix without inducing unconsciousness or migraines. That's a win. Take the win.
[X] Plan Money troubles and Ostermark
-[X] Formalize and organize the payments people make for the Gong Farmers to perform their service, as well as having the Watch start enforcing existing laws against dumping human waste in the street or the Stir.
-[X] Getting To Know You: Spend time with one of your fellow councillors, your liege, or any of the other important figures you've come to know, offering your help in their tasks and generally getting a feel for them (choose one).
--[X] Stewardship adviser.
-[X] Something apparently quite similar to the Purge of the Haunted Hills is going on in Ostermark's southern regions; you could inspect goings-on up there yourself.
--[X] Ranald's Blessing
Basically putting more attention to make sure we are fully capable of employing those retired soldiers as well as looking at Ostermark army, just in case.
Not keen on being within striking range of a vampire lord. Wannabe-Greatsword we might be but those things are freaking lethal.Super vampire. Good odds that Van Hal will show up to kill the bastard, and so will Kasmir. I'm opting to go join them, but expanding our intelligence network deeper into Bundebad is a possibility if we want to strain our finance harder
By being an open and honest optimist. It confuses and charms at the same time.