Since Boney wrote up the ducklings' bit before my bedtime, here's remainder of my spaghetti review:
In your recently-furnished sitting room, you cast an eye over the gathered wizards. "In the past six months, I have weaponized the Hellfire of another race's Hell."
Oh Matty, touting your own horn isn't a good luck. That's what you have underlings for!
Adela, impress me."
She scowls. "Dwarves are really cagey about mechanics."
"No kidding. Did you really spend six months banging your head on that wall?"
"I've been working on getting my Flaming Sword cast time down. Shaved about a second and a half off."
"Could make all the difference.
Not that bad, but not good. At this rate we will
never get to properly exploiting her! In hindsight, that sounded wrong.
Oh well. Anyone up for helping Adela learn the mystifying innards of eldritch machinery that is mechanics in the future?
Hubert?"
He smiles. "I killed a troll."
You consider that. "...why?" He stares at you. "Okay, let me unroll that. While sorting out the trolls in Kvinn-Wyr is definitely an entry on the long-term list, there's a lot of things above it. What made you seek out a troll?"
He seems to be considering it. "My great-great grandfather killed a troll," he says finally. "I used to play with its club when I was young. I wanted to see if I could do the same."
"That's fair. How was it?"
"It was more work than I expected."
"Trolls are. When it is time to move against Kvinn-Wyr, it will probably be because we've got a whole bunch of ways to deliver fire on hand. And the rest of your time?"
He probes his side with a wince. "...healing."
"Let this be a lesson in proper prioritization and time management.
Mathilde, one of your ducklings is being proactive about getting killy. Don't discourage him just because he's a Celestial. He did betray his College for you and showed a filthy Grey how to muck around in their domain.
Gretel, I gave the others a chance and none have managed to dethrone you. What have you been up to?"
Looking quite pleased with herself, she takes out a sack of coins and slides one across the table for you to examine. You rub a finger across the gold, then look into a face only a mother could love. "Eugh. Malekith. Where'd you find these?"
"Picking through the ruins of Clan Moulder," she says, without a hint of self-consciousness.
"That'd explain it. Anything beyond monetary wealth, which I as a Grey Wizard am immune to the allure of?"
"Just a bunch of uncooperative Skaven and their ridiculous wyrdstone money. And yes, I used gloves and turned it over to Dreng and burned the bag they were in afterwards."
"Way to extend the lead."
Tsk, tsk. Playing favorites again. *sigh*
You know you'll regret it when Adela starts turning water into alcohol and she remembers you not headpatting her enough.
Anyway, it somehow feels fitting that an Amethyst Wizard is the one with no compunctions at playing a carrion scavenger. Good on Gretel for starting to gather her hoard full of loot.
You turn to Max, who's still sulking
Oh Maxie, your time will come. You'll learn the wonders of dwarf artifice, combine them with your mystical talents, and make your marvelous instruments of death. And you will get a lot of wizard favors by working as Mathilde's scribe! Truly, your future is certain to be prosperous, which is more than I can say for the rest of these non-gold filthy casuals.
and skip right to Johann, who's got one of the wolf-rat pups sitting on his shoulder and grooming his hair and another asleep in his palm. "Johann, apart from our favourite puppies, what's been happening?"
"Still stalled on the damn ratling gun, but I've been working with Panoramia with the ooze we found. It can digest just about anything organic and turn it into... well, more of itself. We're feeding it to some of the cattle and they seem to like it okay, we're up to three months without ill effects at half their diet."
"That's," you pause, consider. "Possibly a really big deal." You consider further. "And might answer some questions about Skaven logistics."
"It's a matter of how far we can scale without running into deficiencies," Panoramia says. "The Halflings have agreed to scale up tests, so we'll be starting sample groups of goats and sheep on 10%, 25%, and 50%. That seems to be as much as they're willing to eat without becoming upset and uncooperative. If they're still doing okay at one year in, we'll start draft cows, milk cows and horses at Ulrikadrin. After five years, we slaughter and do full autopsies."
This, I didn't expect. Mathilde is right. This really could be a very big deal. Also, color me pleasantly surprised that the QM managed to think up at least some explanation for one of the glaring impossibilites that is Skaven existence.
you turn your gaze to Panoramia.
"With all the water we could need, I've set up some ponds up against Lhune for the Black Lotuses." She frowns. "Loti?"
"Lotuses," Johann says.
"Loti," Maximilian disagrees.
"Old Reikspiel root, so it plurazlies as loti," Adela says with a satisfied smile.
"Black Loti, for the Rangers. I taught the Halflings how to tend it, but the Rangers have a thing about wanting to grow it wild where they range so I taught them as well."
So rangers and fieldwardens have devastating poison as part of their standard arsenal. Excellent job, Panoramia. Now, either go powercreep or learn what's the deal with the goblin shrooms. You have a name to live up to!
you all know Dispel and Magic Lock?" Five yes, one no. Oh, Celestial College. Why must you- well, actually, that one makes sense. No need for locks with prognostication enchantments to prevent thievery. "You've got a one-month grace period where I let you in and out, Hubert. Scrolls are under Sevir, take what you need with you when you leave but return it in good condition or I'm sending a stern letter to your Magister."
You'd made a little key enchanted with Dispel for Johann and gave it to him earlier. It's nowhere near strong enough to be useful, but it will get him in and out of the Magic section.
Hubert, my boy, we really need to work on your magical bits. This is getting ridiculous.
Also, Johann. If I remember correctly, he actually needs a higher magic score, so that he could attempt to increase his control and hence finally learn dispel and other similar spells?
Ps. Loti just feels wrong. Lotuses it is.