Warhammer Fantasy: Divided Loyalties - an Advisor's Quest

Thanks to everyone that's explained the reasoning behind their votes. I'm pleasantly surprised at how... sensible, I suppose? the voting patterns and discussions are, with a focus not only on your capabilities but also your limitations.

I can sometimes get a bit gloomy around the early AMs, so my thanks to those who allayed my concerns.

Zaratustra said:

Please peole let's not trow away the swords whitout reason,

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The surest way to throw those swords away is to sit on them until they rot.

Give'm to the Amethyst, and at least someone will be researching them. We can trade the favours we get for looking that research over later.

If we were going to research those, it'd have been voted for by now.

[X] Donate them to the Amethyst Order (+2 College Favours)

I don't really have an opinion on any other aspects of the turn besides turning in the swords before they become useless/dangerous .

Welp, one action to supplant Nuln as the premier gunpowder in the Empire, but we couldn't fit it into our busy schedule... guess we might as well sell it all to Stirland, at least we'd be doing something with it.

VoidZero said:

Ouch, wooden sword to the neck. We ought to look into head and neck gear.

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Presumably we normally wear the metal torc with Crown of Fire inscribed in it.

PseudoLurker said:

For all the people who did not want to build a school both leading plans have buying land for it so please vote for more than just one of Dwarf options.

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Purchasing the land is not a commitment to run a campus ourselves, it merely keeps that option open in the future if we decide to pursue it. One of the great difficulties the colleges have with establishing branch campuses is the fact that nobody wants them on their land. If we own the land in our capacity as Dame Weber, that will no longer be a problem. Even if we don't do anything with it ourselves, we can use it as a bartering chip with the Grey College. This is time sensitive since all the land is probably going to be sold off by the Elector Countess to raise funds.

Atam the Ork said:

The more favors you have the bigger and better the rewards you get so stockpiling favors is actually really good in the long run.

Also wasteing more time on these swords which use may not even be beneficial instead of favors which have multiple uses and can be used in variety of different ways.

Also we have so many projects it will be better to clear some room for more interesting things than some old dingy swords.

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First based on what ? More favor means more use out of it but I have seen nowhere that the more favor we have the more valuable each favor ir.
You seen to have forgotten buth we noted down research as one of the things we would do for favor, so we could research the swords and then donate them for even more favor, so sending them for favor is ineficient.
Actualy considering we would want to wait untill Battle spells to research Fog the only thing we have to reserch on our own is the Libris Mortis.

Exmorri said:

The swords are not being thrown away, they are being traded to the experts on shyish, with reason. You might disagree with the reason(s); don't pretend it doesn't exist.

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All the reason people are giving are basicaly a self fullfiling prophecy, we should sell because we won't reaserch so we won't vote to research, I have yet to se the reason to not research the swords this turn.

Candesce said:

The surest way to throw those swords away is to sit on them until they rot.

Give'm to the Amethyst, and at least someone will be researching them. We can trade the favours we get for looking that research over later.

If we were going to research those, it'd have been voted for by now.

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See here is the problem, looking at that research is going to take an action anyway and there is a vote for researching it right now so why not vote for this ?
People keep saying if we were going to do it we would already have done so why not vote to have it done now thus getting it done?

Zaratustra said:

First based on what ? More favor means more use out of it but I have seen nowhere that the more favor we have the more valuable each favor ir.
You seen to have forgotten buth we noted down research as one of the things we would do for favor, so we could research the swords and then donate them for even more favor, so sending them for favor is ineficient.
Actualy considering we would want to wait untill Battle spells to research Fog the only thing we have to reserch on our own is the Libris Mortis.

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The bigger the favor asked the more favor spent to make it happen

An enchanted item cost 2 favors

Getting the Amethyst to send a Magister to help in battle would cost more surely

So the more favors we have the more things we can ask for or we can ask for one big thing.

Also there is no guarantee that these swords will be useful or if we can get anything useful.

Alliterate said:

Just because we're hiring a Steward doesn't mean the dice will bless us with a good one, and 900 Gold is a very tempting amount of money for embezzlement.

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Foolish and short-lived is the man that dares steal from the Dämmerlichtreiter!

Zaratustra said:

See here is the problem, looking at that research is going to take an action anyway and there is a vote for researching it right now so why not vote for this ?
People keep saying if we were going to do it we would already have done so why not vote to have it done now thus getting it done?

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It would also take time to write up our results, which we also have to do for our snake oil. The swords were interesting enough when they were our sole avenue of new magical research. Now it is it has to compete with our one of a kind snake in a box and the time we need to spend with the dwarves.

So, as mentioned previously I feel that the current action sets don't really prepare us well for warfare. Here's one which spends three of our five available actions on directly improving our capabilities. Hopefully, this will result in a significant improvement in Mathilde's performance. To anyone who is voting for the Karak Eight Peaks campaign, I would advise you in particular to consider whether advancing our capabilities like this before going to battle there might be valuable.

[x] Plan Ready For Battle
-[x] Seek and hire a steward to manage and improve the fief in your absence. (100+50 gold to pay them for the projected duration of your absence, free action)
-[X] Build a bailey for your subjects to shelter in and to encompass other structures. (100+50 gc for wood, free action)
-[X] Improve the road between the Estate and Sonningwiese. (50+25 gc, free action)
-[X] Purchase a loom, erect a building for it, and invite weavers to start calling your estate home. (100+50 gc, free action)
-[X] Set up a dairy and recruit skilled cheesemakers from among the locals to work in it. (100+50 gc, free action)
-[x] Internalized Lessons: If you've been using a particular trait a fair bit in the last year, you can spend some time on it to internalize what you've learned and increase the trait (choose which trait; can be taken multiple times; will be more effective the more you've used the trait lately).
--[x] Learning
--[x] Piety (Overwork)
-[x] Your experience with the so-called Fog of War has given you a lot of ideas for new applications of Ulgu. Investigate them to see what might be possible.
--[x] Ranald's Blessing
-[x] Spells of Grey Magic (teachers' choice; multiple spells)
-[x] Sell the produced niter crystals to Zhufbar.
-[x] 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.
-[x] Commission a magical healing item from the Colleges (-favours, specific spell deferred to a later vote, free action)
-[x] Farewell: Visit everyone you've gotten to know during your time in Stirland, let them know where you're off to, and say auf wiedersehen. (does not take an action, incompatible with Free Time)

Learning should have some massive internalization bonuses after the intense exams that we just went through, and is the stat used for spellcasting actions- in war we're going to be casting a lot of spells. Fog of war is the unique research line most directly applicable to going on campaign, and as it's developing Mathilde's unique capabilities the action merits the Blessing. Finally, we learned four spells in the last college class on learning shadow magic, and while that was a crit even if an average roll only gives us two spells it's still a fantastically efficient way to increase our spell knowledge compared to past actions. There are a wide variety of spells available to us now with significant combat and/or scouting application so odds are good that we'll pick up at least one and perhaps several.

There is a piety internalization action here as well, because I couldn't convince myself not to take it. Ranald has been a huge influence on Mathilde's life, but watching a literal god war (well, god skirmish) and seeing a divine force tear apart a priest in front of her, then reshaping the idol involved and building a shrine personally is probably the largest religious sequence that we've had all quest. If we don't take piety internalization now we're extremely unlikely to do so before the bonus has completely faded, and I can't countenance that. At the same time, it really isn't as essential as any of the other actions here so I've labeled it overwork and chosen to trust in Ranald that he won't smite us for our foolishness.

With the remaining actions, since we're going to be focusing on the dwarves now, it sells them the niter crystals. This has two significant benefits over selling them as fertilizer- firstly, the dwarves are likely to give us a fair price for their value as a strategic material since they actually know what they are and one of their craftsmen had a personal hand in arranging the production process; secondly, niter is a strategic material and selling it to the dwarves will keep the existence of the factory largely out of common knowledge. Sure, people who actually look to figure out what the gong farmers are doing and what their factory is producing might find out... but who pays attention to gong farmers when their attention isn't drawn there? Best to keep things subtle.

Finally, it scouts for ulgu sites. There is a substantial risk that the lands will get folded into a barony or similar instead of sold piecemeal while remaining under the aegis of the Elector Countess, making it difficult to get our lands on any locations we find- but even then, we can approach whatever noble ends up in charge of them later and see about getting rights to the land from them.
Edit: I know that scouting for sites isn't directly applicable to battle either and maybe the action would be better devoted to an additional Spells of Grey Magic class. However, the action is very popular in other plans and I don't want to alienate the voters for whom it might be a dealbreaker since it is both time-sensitive and potentially very important in its results upon our return. Open to discussion on this one.

Edit: Plan updated by replacing the site search action with an action seeking a magical healing item, see here.

Edit again: Plan updated with specific magic items, new GM phrasing for the Grey Magic learning option, elimination of overwork, and addition of free action fief constructions. See here.

Edit yet again: Plan updated with the removal of a Second Portent of Amul item due to the risk of dhar contamination from multiple sustained effects from different Winds. See here.

Edit returns: Plan updated to replace Earth Blood with Boon of Hysh due to restrictions on the usage of the former which limit its applicability to the upcoming campaign. See here.

Edit finalish?: Plan updated to go back to generic magical healing item. See here.

Edit horse-trading: Plan updated to set Piety internalization to overwork in order to free up a slot for shyish-kebabs. See here.

Zaratustra said:

See here is the problem, looking at that research is going to take an action anyway and there is a vote for researching it right now so why not vote for this ?

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Basically I am vastly more interested in the Qhaysh Juice. If there was a plan that included the Swords while putting Ranald's Blessing on the Qhaysh research I would consider voting for it, but there isn't.

Atam the Ork said:

The bigger the favor asked the more favor spent to make it happen

An enchanted item cost 2 favors

Getting the Amethyst to send a Magister to help in battle would cost more surely

So the more favors we have the more things we can ask for or we can ask for one big thing.

Also there is no guarantee that these swords will be useful or if we can get anything useful.

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First sorry I tough you were implying something else.
Also since you forgot :

BoneyM said:

[ ] Research and Development (thaumaturgical) (ie. stuff derived from Shyish-Kebabs and Qhaysh juice)

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Literal worst case scenario we are guaranted to get more favor from researching the swords than from just donating them, beyond whatever we get form the research.

[X] Plan Ready For Battle

Good plan for whichever adventure option wins.

[X] Zhufbar regularly sends salvaging parties into Karak Varn and mining parties into the tunnels below. It will be close enough to Stirland to keep in touch, and you have a good reputation in Zhufbar especially.

[X] Belegar Ironhammer has sent word that any that wish to seek their fortune are welcome to join him in retaking Karak Eight Peaks. While it is far from the civilized lands of the Empire, the treasure, the glory, and the adventure will be all the greater.
[X] Donate them to the Amethyst Order (+2 College Favours)
[X] Leave it behind; have Heideck come in and replace the containers as they fill.
[X] Bring it with you, safely locked within the enchanted box Abelhelm kept it in.

I massively prefer Karak Eight Peaks over Zhufbar, because while it has more risk it has a far greater opportunities to make a difference, and in a setting like Warhammer that is all one can strive for as death via the numerous forces of destruction is inevitable. Something to keep in mind is that Imperial wizards aren't Damsels so they're kinda on a timer that ends with them dying from a bad roll for consequences of a miscast, or having enough luck to acquire mutations that are flavored to their WoM turning them into a "avatar", which still sees them facing the grim fact that life* is cheap in Warhammer.

While these would be interesting to look into trading them to the Order who specializes in their associated WoM, and the simple fact that Mathilde already has too many other subjects to research, which makes the favors a nice extra imo. Given how good Skaven are at sneaking taking this along seems like a bad idea as it is a rather obvious shiny, and I shudder to think what they might do with it, but leaving it around makes me uncomfortable... well I doubt the players would give it to the college with how many are unwilling to give up a relatively minor research activity.

I've gone back, and forth on what to do with the Liber Mortis, but at the end of the day this will allow Mathilde to pass it onto her college through the Dwarfs if she is fatally wounded... just remember that opening the box makes allows anyone nearby with the ability to detect magic to learn of its' existence.

*Well the other way of looking at it is that turning back the Doomsday clock from reaching midnight requires constant sacrifice.

Edit
[X] Plan Ready For Battle

The reasoning behind this plan is solid.

[X] Belegar Ironhammer has sent word that any that wish to seek their fortune are welcome to join him in retaking Karak Eight Peaks. While it is far from the civilized lands of the Empire, the treasure, the glory, and the adventure will be all the greater.

Gingganz said:

Basically I am vastly more interested in the Qhaysh Juice. If there was a plan that included the Swords while putting Ranald's Blessing on the Qhaysh research I would consider voting for it, but there isn't.

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Ok.
Here you go a vote for people who want to get IT DONE but focus on the Juice.

And thanks to aproval vote people who can't decide can just chose both.


[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE Qhaysh EDITION
-[x] Qhaysh Juice: Whatever it is, it's dripping out of the box at a steady rate. You've got several gallons of the stuff and it's still coming out. It's got to be good for something.
--[X] Ranald's Blessing
-[x] 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.
-[X] Sell the produced niter crystals as fertiliser in Stirland.
-[x]Survey the Haunted Hills for sites rich in Ulgu for the EIC to buy on your behalf if the land goes on the market.
-[x]Seek and hire a steward to manage and improve the fief in your absence.
-[x] Farewell: Visit everyone you've gotten to know during your time in Stirland, let them know where you're off to, and say au revoir. (does not take an action, incompatible with Free Time)

[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE
-[x] Qhaysh Juice: Whatever it is, it's dripping out of the box at a steady rate. You've got several gallons of the stuff and it's still coming out. It's got to be good for something.
-[x] 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.
--[X] Ranald's Blessing
-[X] Sell the produced niter crystals as fertiliser in Stirland.
-[x]Survey the Haunted Hills for sites rich in Ulgu for the EIC to buy on your behalf if the land goes on the market.
-[x]Seek and hire a steward to manage and improve the fief in your absence.
-[x] Farewell: Visit everyone you've gotten to know during your time in Stirland, let them know where you're off to, and say au revoir. (does not take an action, incompatible with Free Time)

Edit:
[X] Plan Ready For Battle
I will be also aproval voting for this since they added the swords, and I recomend people who care about doing the swords at all more than getting juice done right now should also aproval vote for it.

[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE Qhaysh EDITION
[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE

Well, me made it. Magister Mathilde and Dame Weber both. Good fun, @BoneyM , great update as usual. Nice to see we did well. Aced the intrigue and had our Mathilde Shot First moment.

"and the Palace sends a grudging thankyou to the Grey Order that is passed on to you as a souvenir."

The phrasing made me think this was going to be something concrete? Is thankyou a souvenir?

Edit: Just saw this on the character sheet, we're good:

BoneyM said:

Note of thanks from the Imperial Palace for your impressive showing during security testing, signed by the Emperor himself.

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BoneyM said:

What were we... oh, yes. It is my pleasant duty to inform you that the Grey College has seen fit to bestow upon you the rank of Magister, along with all responsibilities and privileges thereof." He nods to his staff. "We used to give a staff to commemorate, but the previous Turner passed away and none have shown the ability and inclination to take it up. So I'm afraid all I can offer you to commemorate the occasion is my congratulations."

You stand there silent for a moment, taken aback by the abruptness. "I was expecting something more," you admit.

He nods. "The other Orders, no doubt, fill this moment with pomp and ceremony. But we are the Grey Order. Our work is rarely seen and even rarer appreciated. Temper your expectations accordingly. A job performed well needs to be its own reward, for we so rarely see any other."

"I see," you say.

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Yikes. And this is the four-month-study graduation option! I can understand Mathildes disappointment. I have to imagine the six-month option would have been a note left on our bed saying "Congratulations, Magister". Also, maybe we should try our hand at enchanting ourself a staff...

BoneyM said:

We get to slit open reality's underside and meddle with the steaming guts that spill forth,

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Hah. If only he knew of the box of slit Asp guts spilling forth reality's steaming underside.

Wait. He can't possibly know, right?

Indeed he can. We told Abelhelm, and two men can only keep a secret if one of them is dead. That leaves several years of a security opening he could have used.

[X] Zhufbar regularly sends salvaging parties into Karak Varn and mining parties into the tunnels below. It will be close enough to Stirland to keep in touch, and you have a good reputation in Zhufbar especially.
[X] Leave them stored in your spare room.
[X] Leave it behind; have Heideck come in and replace the containers as they fill.
[X] Bring it with you, safely locked within the enchanted box Abelhelm kept it in.

[X] Plan Private Sector Preparation
[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE Qhaysh EDITION

DarkLight140 said:

Mathilde could easily take an intrigue or learning (particularly learning) internalization action keyed off them and become better than she is at key aspects of both scouting and spying nonsense and using her magic in support of it.

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This is interesting are any of the plans doing internalization actions. We need to do a niter crystal action but if someone has both that and the open internalize actions whatever they may be I would be willing to switch over to there plan.

My preferred plan

[] Dwarf action

kitsune9 said:

This is interesting are any of the plans doing internalization actions. We need to do a niter crystal action but if someone has both that and the open internalize actions whatever they may be I would be willing to switch over to there plan.

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May I draw your attention to my current plan here? It has both a niter crystal action and two internalizations (Learning, which is important for spells and which we should have huge bonuses for right now, and Piety, for which we have rapidly expiring bonuses) as well as some other useful things.

Vote
[ ] Plan Ready For Battle
today, and help us build a better Mathilde.

Huh I must of missed it

I made a brief summary of the currently running action plans with more than one vote. RB = Ranald's Blessing, O = Overwork

Plan Private Sector Preparation: Juice (RB), sell niter to Stirland, Gong Farmers, Haunted Hills land, steward, Farewell.
Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE: Juice, Shyish-kebabs (RB), sell niter to Stirland, Haunted Hills land, steward, Farewell.
Plan Foundation For a Future: Trade ties with Zhufbar, expand EIC, sell niter to Stirland, Allies of Man, steward (RB), Farewell.
Plan Tying up loose ends: Fold farmers and factory into EIC, trade ties with Zhufbar, expand EIC, print elfbooks (O), Haunted Hills land, Juice (RB), get to know Regimand, local leader, Farewell.
Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE Qhaysh EDITION: Juice (RB), Shyish-kebabs, sell niter to Stirland, Haunted Hills land, steward, Farewell.
Plan Ready For Battle: Learning, Piety (O), Fog of War (RB), more spells, sell niter to Zhufbar, Haunted Hills land, steward, Farewell.

I still can't decide myself, but perhaps it'll be a useful reference for someone.

Alliterate said:

Wait. He can't possibly know, right?

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He could, he IS the head of the Grey Order....

[X] Plan Finaly Getting IT DONE

[X] Donate them to the Amethyst Order (+2 College Favours)
[X] Bring it with you, safely locked within the enchanted box Abelhelm kept it in.
[X] Leave it behind; have Heideck come in and replace the containers as they fill.

Not sure about Eight Peaks/Zhufbar anymore...

[X] Belegar Ironhammer has sent word that any that wish to seek their fortune are welcome to join him in retaking Karak Eight Peaks. While it is far from the civilized lands of the Empire, the treasure, the glory, and the adventure will be all the greater.

For the reputation of the Empire!
They may not deserve it, but someone has to do it.