You were looking forward to the next meeting of the planetary leadership with great impatience. Your two new advisers - Senechal Angela, as well as Father Alexis, arrived on the same ship, and they have already managed to get to know each other. You suspected from the very beginning that they were unlikely to communicate well with each other. The Ecclesiarchy was usually not very fond of the Mechanicus, and in your case, the differences between them were complemented by another fact.
[Father Alexis opinion on Angela check: 92 + 5 (religious antagonism of Alexis) - 10 (Alexis despises non-military) + 10 (Angela diplomatic) = 87.]
[Angela opinion on Father Alexis check: 48 + 5 (religious antagonism of Alexis) - 10 (Alexis despises non-military) + 10 (Angela diplomatic) = 43.]
Father Alexis was a military man, and as it turned out, he strongly disliked representatives of the pampered imperial aristocracy. He was something of a conservative man who believed that it was the duty of the rulers of the Imperium to be the first to give their lives to protect every planet. Angela looked more like a socialite (and even was one), but in no way like the techpriests he was used to, who helped restore equipment right under enemy fire, to whom he was accustomed and imbued with respect.
Suddenly it turned out that by the time you met them something had happened that you did not expect at all - Father Alexis turned out to be completely fascinated by the words techpriestess. According to him, if all the inhabitants of high spires were like her and also focused on work, then they would receive much more reinforcements, and many of the worthy soldiers would survive. On the other hand, Angela herself, in a personal conversation with you without witnesses, could not resist making a caustic comment that "she was locked up the entire trip on the same ship with a stupid martinet."
In any case, you gave them time to familiarize themselves with the work situation, and were waiting for their ideas and suggestions at this meeting.
By the time you arrived in the large office, Angela and Sister Niota were already present and talking among themselves - a pair of women who were completely different, despite their external similarity. You couldn't help but notice that they were both phenomenally beautiful, according to most, however this was achieved through different methods.
Niota used biomancy for this purpose, and you suspect that it also changed even the shape of the skull to achieve this. Angela, on the other hand, replaced her entire face with an incredibly complex facial implant, which was not just a static mask, but a complex system that completely copies the facial expressions of an ordinary person. You were even surprised at how good this replacement was, since the change in facial expressions occurred with a delay characteristic of human nerves, but not wires.
Both ladies were chatting with each other and you soon found yourself drawn into a conversation between them. As you guessed, the topic of discussion between them was the issue related to the status of psykers that appear on the planet.
"And you think we have a good chance in this matter?" - the psyker asks cautiously, as if not believing his thoughts.
[Angela research check: Req ??, 77 + 8 (Angela research skill) + 15 (original of document) = 100.]
"Of course, the contract is on our side. The question is that Adeptus Astra Telepathica are in a position of strength in this situation." - you were still surprised by the fact that her speech was devoid of mechanical sound and seemed ideally suited to an ordinary person, - "The task would simply be to not let them understand this. You may have to bluff, claiming the presence of powerful patrons."
You only heard the middle of the conversation, but you couldn't resist asking a question.
"As I understand, you have already familiarized yourself with the work front. Have you discovered any specific leads or possible ideas?" - you ask, looking at the copies of ancient texts that were made especially for your Seneschal.
"Yes. The wording of the contract is absolutely on our side. Psykers from your planet must return to serve there under the responsibility of the planetary leadership. The agreement itself, in its wording, makes no mention of the Adeptus Astartes beyond one of the signatories. The problem is that Scholastica Psykana may still argue that the spirit of the agreement, not the letter, has been violated. And as a result, they may try to submit a decision to arbitration with the sector lord, and for him the astropaths are much more important, and not your planet."
You nod in response to these comments. Okay, that's a really good analysis of the situation.
"Could you convince them to stick to the agreement?" - Niota can't stand it and asks her interlocutor.
"It's possible, but until I meet the right people, I won't be able to assess the chances. You are almost guaranteed to lie and bluff. It is very likely that there will be an exchange." - the artificial face changed several expressions within a few seconds before Angela sighed, - "But overall, I would say that it is quite possible. If you want, I can go on a diplomatic mission in a couple of months for a couple of years. The main question is to what extent do you trust me to speak and enter into contracts on your behalf."
"What can you say about everything else?" - you still ask the question, - "Are there any other issues that may be more urgent for the planet as a whole?"
Angela sorts through the documents she has collected until she takes out several sheets of paper. You might think it was a short report, but the letters were extremely small and covered almost the entire page.
"Actually, there is one issue that may need to be addressed. The Sector Lord is going to soon organize a meeting of the various Adeptus of the sector, as well as several worlds."
Yes, you see information about this. When your Chapter was disbanded, it created fear among the sector rulers that the Gorgon Teeth subsector was unable to effectively defend itself. The report says that the possibility of disbanding the entire sector or significantly reducing its size is being considered.
"Nobody notified me about this," you note this fact, looking through the documents, "I will have to find out about the omission from Lira Nardes."
"In fact, it's hard for me to blame her for this. Discussions about this have been going on for more than ten years, and so far, without additional incentive, a decision is unlikely to be made. Unless we ourselves turn out to be that incentive."
You immediately have an idea in your head of what she wanted to say. Your planet, although poorly integrated into the sector economically and therefore considered a backwater, is still known to everyone in the sector. If she comes to this discussion and asks for patronage in connection with the change in the situation... This may be the very incentive.
"We have two main candidates. Firstly, Lord of Sector Tardon, the most conservative, but quite reasonable option. Secondly, Selena Artos, informal leader of the Eagle Watch subsector. Each of them wants to prove their strength, so they can take on additional responsibilities to protect the sector. In addition, they both want to prevent their opponent from gaining allies. We can extract great benefits from them in exchange for the opportunity to die for our protection."
Hmm... an interesting question that you still have to consider.
One option win:
[] [Diplomat action] - Send to Adeptus Astra Telepathica. Considering the status of your planet's psykers is an important matter that you will have to deal with in any case. On the other hand, the longer you delay this, the higher the risk of new psykers appearing on the planet.
[] [Diplomat action] - Send to Lord of Sector Tardon. This respectable man has been working for a long time to ensure the functioning of the sector. He has power, authority and enormous influence on his side. So why not get him as your ally, and he can be generous with the reward.
[] [Diplomat action] - Send to Selena Artos. This fairly young lady is actively increasing her influence in the sector, subjugating many aristocrats and the Ecclesiarchy, and trying to claim power in the entire sector. The sooner we join the potential mistress of the sector, the more generous she will be.
You also need to make one more decision. How much decision-making autonomy will you give your Seneschal? Eventually, she will have no contact with you. A high degree will give her the opportunity to seek more favorable conditions, and perhaps even change her desired side for the benefit of the planet, but your new obligations may be an unpleasant surprise.
One option win:
[] [Autonomy] - Low autonomy. You will provide her with a general understanding of what exactly you want to get and what concessions you are willing to make. Angela will have the ability to deviate from the exact requirements, but in general her freedom will be limited.
[] [Autonomy] - Moderate autonomy. You will give her a common goal and allow her to make any transactions within reasonable limits. Nothing too adventurous or onerous, but you'll allow almost anything that won't be a problem for the planet.
[] [Autonomy] - Extensive autonomy. You point out the problem and give her the opportunity to make almost any decision as long as it benefits you. Perhaps she will enter into an agreement with a party other than the one you sent her to.
After finishing the conversation about future work, Father Alexis comes to you. He is still dressed in carapace armor, as on the day he arrived on the planet, and half of his face is covered with a mask. You knew it was a battle injury when he went solo against the Orc Warboss. Yes, he lost that time, but this time was enough for several fighters with plasma weapons to take a position and incinerate the orc.
What was actually much more surprising was that he was without any accompaniment from the religious hierarchs of the planet, who always sought to come to your meetings. Not out of a desire to participate in the life of the planet, but rather in order to stand on a par with the opponent.
"Greetings, governor," says the preacher, and you see military stiffness in his movements, "I regret that I did not arrive first, I wanted to discuss some issues with you, but I see that we ... will not be alone."
You look at him before turning your gaze to Niota. The Ecclesiarchy has never been known for its love of psykers.
"No, no one will leave," you raise your hand, "Niota is an important element of the planetary government, given that it is responsible for the choir of astropaths, the search for new psykers on the planet and all other related issues. I will not send her away, even if you have complaints against psykers."
[Father Alexis reaction: Req ??, 5 - 5 (religious matter) + 8 (respect for you) + 5 (respect for Niota) = 13.]
The old preacher's face (or rather, the part not hidden by the mask) immediately distorted with anger.
"With all due respect, don't think that my faith has anything to do with this," he practically spits it in your face, "She may be cursed by the touch of the Warp. But Scholastica Psykana recognized her as quite competent in her craft. And the Adeptus Astartes found her reliable enough to trust her. I had no intention of questioning the judgment of those far more worthy than me."
With visible anger, he pulls out one of the chairs before sitting down on it. The wooden chair creaks as the large man practically collapses on top of it.
"I accepted your service out of a sense of duty to Mankind, and I know how useful psykers can be, considering that they saved my life, even if their souls are damned. If you really need my help, then trust that my judgment is not affected by prejudice. If you don't believe in my impartiality, then you're better off finding someone else." - the man takes a break, taking a few breaths until his face is darkened by a grimace of pain. He takes a few seconds, but continues, "I asked for a private conversation for another reason - the fewer people who know what was said, the less likely it will become public knowledge."
"Are you worried that someone here will spill the beans?" - you ask him carefully, trying to at least pretend that you are sorry, - "I can understand such judgments, but I completely trust everyone who comes here, otherwise no one would be here."
[Attempts to fix: Req??, 71]
The Crusade Veteran looks at you one more time before sighing heavily.
"I'm sorry, Governor. Sorry for my reaction. I don't want to question the loyalty of anyone here. But there is always a way to extract knowledge. Some of the methods are as mundane as banal torture. Others use sophisticated technology or psyker. There are too many ways to break the will, or to do it unnoticed. This planet is located right next to the possessions of xenos, which are precisely capable of extracting knowledge. You can't be overly paranoid in a situation like this."
You sigh. Yes, sure. The old preacher was paranoid and saw enemies everywhere, but to be honest, you can hardly blame him for that. It is more than likely that his tendency to see enemies everywhere more than once or twice was able to save his life.
"Thank you for your comment, Father Alexis, but I would still like to know what you have discovered over the past period."
"Yes, about this issue..." - the old warrior sighed, "Your cults hate each other. Irrational religious prejudices in the case of the population. And self-righteousness for the top. The population knows little about the other side, because there is almost no contact between representatives of the two cults. They did not try to understand others, and did not have such an opportunity."
You nod, understanding where they are going with this. Neo Bilsromians traditionally live on a large island remote from the rest of the planet, and have little contact with the rest of the planet. Contacts between them were indeed very limited, and the bulk of the population did not meet the other side in life at all, and they were not familiar with their religious beliefs at all, in fact.
"Both of your religious leaders are good people, although somewhat stupid. Each of them firmly believes that he is the one who can best help your planet, while the other simply puts a spoke in their wheels. I would like to arrange a meeting between them, but they have been interfering with each other for years, and now it is an old grudge that will be difficult to stop."
"You don't want me to try to organize a meeting between them," Angela raised her voice for the first time in this conversation, although before that she had been silent all the time, "I don't know them much, on the other hand."
"You can try, but I wouldn't recommend it," Father Alexis sighed, "They won't respect your personality. They will be present at this meeting, but only because you are the Seneschal of the Planetary Governor. You won't force them to change beliefs they decided on years ago."
Angela nodded in agreement, which - you suspect - contained too much bitter experience.
"But you still intend to work on this situation?" - she asks the pastor, giving him the opportunity to speak.
"Yes, although I'm not sure how long it will take. But it will certainly be an option. Both cults must understand that they have a role to play in society, each side can help the other, and apart they will fall. Additionally, the planet's law enforcement agencies will ensure that any hostile agitators are silenced. But this is only if you want this kind of work."
All you could do was nod, as you understood the possibility of this conversation. The option to support one of the cults and crush the other remained, although it was problematic. On the one hand, the Cult of Bloody Aquila made up the vast majority of the population, and therefore it would be unpleasant to try to act against them. On the other hand, your Neo-Bilstromians were much richer than most of the world's inhabitants, and you relied heavily on them. Repression by either side can add to your problems, but if both cults revolt... then you'll have even more problems.
One option wins:
[] [Cults] - You will take a neutral position. Father Alexis will have to reduce tension at least in the places where these cults come into contact. Breaking the superstitions of all the inhabitants of the planet is a difficult task and problematic for you. It is much easier and faster to provide the necessary working atmosphere in the planetary army and other services.
[] [Cults] - Repress the Cult of Bloody Aquila. Although they are much more numerous, at the same time there is no internal unity among the representatives of this group. Separating them and neutralizing them can be relatively simple.
[] [Cults] - Repress the Neo-Bilstromian Torians. The small cult is united in its position, but let's be honest - where can they disappear from your planet? They will have to live here, and you will ensure their obedience by any means necessary.
After this conversation, you waited for some time for everyone else to arrive in order to begin the main part of your meeting. Of course, much of the work had already been completed, and you knew full well what the results were, but there should have been a final discussion of the issues involved.
[Military Standardization check: Req 20/55/85, Rolls 20 + 2(Bureaucrat trait) = 22]
Your attempts to understand how the army's weapons are structured, in fact, revealed a problem of an even larger scale. In fact, it was not a complete failure, but you understand the reasons why it would be extremely problematic to systematize the weapons of the PDF troops.
You simply don't have anyone capable of producing that many weapons.
The existing weapons are a collection of different attempts to standardize weapons, carried out in different years and using different weapon patterns. The rest of the weapons came to your planets through foreign trade, and there is no semblance of standardization there either. But what's even worse is that you simply cannot easily direct all the power to create weapons for this purpose, since these same production capacities are not on the planet at the moment.
Perhaps, as you think, to solve this problem it is worth looking for a solution outside the planet.
[Promethium check: Req 30/55/80, Rolls 96 + 2(Bureaucrat trait) = 98]
The situation with promethium mining was the complete opposite for a number of reasons. Finding several deposits on the ocean shelf in a fairly good location is only the first successful coincidence, although it turned out to be far from the last in its role.
But perhaps more rewarding was the fact that promethium's chemical composition was more than suitable for mining and processing the material in existing chemical plants. As a result, not only did you not need to build new processing complexes, but you were also able to avoid the need to carry out costly and time-consuming re-equipment of existing enterprises.
As a result, the resulting deposits are already providing heat to remote settlements, as well as transport throughout the planet. You didn't have an existential problem before when the economy threatened to grind to a halt, but now you managed to significantly reduce fuel prices, which meant benefits for many.
[Moho discontinuity check: Req 40/55/85, Rolls 53 + 2(Bureaucrat trait) = 55]
But opening new mining complexes across the planet turned out to be intense work for you. Here you were fighting not so much for the performance of the project itself, but for the opportunity for it to reach the design standards for production and maintenance costs.
You are faced with several purely design problems that to outsiders (including you) seem incredibly boring, although the engineers were forced to rack their brains to solve the problem. In one of the mining complexes, for example, an earthquake invisible on the surface caused a shift in the earth's thickness by several meters and completely destroyed the entire mine shaft. You had to work hard to restore the complex and deliver the remains of those who worked to their families.
[Thralls project check: Req ??, 87 + 2(Bureaucrat trait) = 89]
Your attempts to create a special forces unit for the planetary police out of your brethren have proven to be even more effective and useful than you suspected. In fact, you had enough high-end equipment for them to arm them. And even the Scouts had superior equipment than almost all planetary forces.
As a result, when the workers near the mine learned about the death of their brothers and tried to rebel against you, demanding the termination of long-term contracts with them, your former brothers in arms intervened. Many of them fought alongside each other, if only as training for the guards stationed at Chapter Citadel. As a result, when the decisive moment came, with quick and skillful actions they were able to destroy the enemy's organization, which was many times superior in numbers, without any losses on their part.
Then, of course, the matter moved on to the rest of the planetary services and to you. Finding the instigators, carrying out legal measures, executing the organizers and additional amounts that the workers will have to pay before terminating the contract. In general, the usual dull everyday life for your planet.
In addition, Lira Nardes has prepared a report for you covering developments in the sector that you might be interested in reading:
Sector Intel report:
Disappearance of three transport ships: Merchant captains are frightened by the disappearance of three transport ships in one period, and which were moving through the same route connecting the forge world of Brown Titan with a remote part of the sector. However, no one has a consensus on what could be causing this - the instability of the Warp, the action of pirates, or something more exotic.
Meeting on the Cycklades planet: Lord of Sector organizes a meeting for several dozen people, inviting representatives of various Adeptus, as well as the most influential planets of the Gorgon Teeth subsector. There are rumors that even the Lord Inquisitor was invited to voice his opinion on the defense capability of the subsector. However, as always with the Inquisition, this may be false rumor, misinformation from the Inquisition itself, and even if the invitation is true, he may ignore it.
Shrine world Bilstrom is in internal strife: the death of an elderly cardinal has plunged the planet into chaos. The organized Ecumenical Council, by a minimal margin, refused to accept a bishop who was a protégé of the cardinal as the new ruler of the planet. However, representatives of the Ecclesiarchy were unable to agree on a single candidate. Power across the entire planet is particularly precarious right now.
5th Year's Planetary Development Plan: three options wins.
[] [Planning] - While you have certainly been able to significantly increase your ore production, it is still raw ore. Refining, enrichment, metal smelting - these are all processes that can greatly increase the value of the goods produced by your planet in the eyes of the Administratum. You could very well arrange to create several foundry complexes for this purpose.
[] [Planning] - The automotive industry on the planet is relatively well developed, but extremely suboptimal. And in most cases, local corporations use technology of their own design, rather than the highly optimized patterns common in the rest of the Imperium. It would be good to resolve this issue.
[] [Planning] - At the moment, you are producing even more metal ores than the planet itself needs, and is more than enough to meet the requirements of the Administratum. Perhaps you should convince the captain of some ore carrier to make a detour to pick up supplies from your planet. Sending your Seneschal for this purpose will be quite costly and time-consuming; you can negotiate this yourself, using astropaths.
[] [Planning] - Expansion of port infrastructure is a potential opportunity for you to begin at least a real update of data on many islands in the northern hemisphere. Although they have been mapped thousands of years ago, the lack of interest in them has meant that you only have superficial information about them. Studying the animal and plant world, studying soils and searching for minerals - all this is desirable to do.
[] [Planning] - The fishing industry is an important element in meeting the planet's food needs. Almost everything is used, from the meat itself, which is used as food for the richest inhabitants of the planet, to sublimates, which feed the poorest inhabitants of the planet. There can never be too much fishing.
[] [Planning] - Due to the fact that most of the planet is quite mountainous, it is difficult to use Archen Land's greatest invention, the landcrawler. However, for additional mechanization of agriculture, it is desirable to organize the purchase of less massive agricultural equipment.
[] [Planning] - Currently, the planetary army is largely based on dynasties of hereditary officers and a mixture of conscription of the population with volunteers joining the armed forces. The system is not the worst and allows us to contain possible problems, but will this be enough in the future?
[] [Planning] - You have learned that it will be problematic for you to ensure that you obtain the amount of weapons you need on your own, as well as somehow organize the existing chaos. Perhaps you could start working on this. At the same time, start calculating how much it will cost you to create several weapons factories, and also find out possible prices from suppliers in the sector. After all, you have Mechanicus and Rogue Trader in your sector. You won't believe that with such competition it will be difficult to find a supplier of technology or weapons.
[] [Planning] - At the moment you have a surplus of capital that you received through "negotiations" with planetary corporations. Why not put them to work by returning them to the corporations themselves? As trivial as it may sound, we can create a loan program for corporations to create ore deposits outside of traditional mining centers. Such an influx of resources will reduce the price of ore on the domestic market, because now you are forced to buy it back to pay tithes.
[] [Planning] - Finally, expanding the port infrastructure brings you to another logistical problem. You need to deliver any resources mined on the planet into the planet's orbit. There are no problems with elevator operators; you have shuttles to ensure the delivery of goods into orbit. But no matter how trivial it may sound, you have a problem with where to store millions of cubic meters of cargo. Perhaps it's time to take a few asteroids and simply hollow out a cavity inside where cargo can be stored in anticipation of arriving transports.
Your personal activities: two options win.
[] [Activity] - You currently have the head of the planetary military forces. It may be time to look for someone to replace him who has real experience leading large formations. You can decide what it will be called later. Arch-militant, marshal, castellan are all valid options.
[] [Activity] - In fact, the issue of administration has never been particularly difficult for you, and you would like to maintain control over it. But now that you have become a planetary governor and can no longer send any questions to higher-ups... you may need someone to help you resolve issues. And at the same time, another point of view on your decisions.
[] [Activity] - Although your Chapter no longer exists, you have an entire archive of documents on your planet that you could study. You cannot believe that among the documents there is not a single one that would help you. You are sure that you can find at least something. Old treaty of friendship. Forgotten commitment agreement. At least something.
[] [Activity] - Historically, representatives of two varieties of the Mechanicus are present on your planet. In addition, you have now been joined by Angela, who is somewhat aloof from most of the priests of Mars. As a result, you feel the need to get to know the owners of red robes better so that meeting them does not become an unpleasant surprise for you.
[] [Activity] - The planet received new Adeptus, some of which you never really got to know. The number of Arbites was almost tripled, and you met their leader only on the day the replenishment arrived. Then you both were busy with new responsibilities. A similar question can be raised regarding other similar organizations, for example, the Senior Commissioner, sent to oversee the Astra Militarum forces on the planet. It will be useful to coordinate activities of planetary police with them.
[] [Activity] - The Squats have decided that the current changes on the planet do not concern them, and there is no need for them to meet with you. Instead of sending a message for the next meeting, you could show up there yourself. As an option, with a guard of honor and all the accompanying pathos. It's still part of your domain!
[] [Activity] - Now that the future of your fellow thralls is not so cloudy, you can take up other issues that are left to you from Chapter. To be specific, you can finally try to tackle the issues of your Master of Forge, although this will be an extremely difficult task, and it is far from a fact that at the moment you will succeed.
[] [Activity] - On the day you assumed the status of planetary governor, you received a very interesting note, which ended up in your office, where no one could get into. You definitely have a suspicion that the Holy Inquisition is involved in this. It might be worth trying to find out what they need. On the other hand, trying to make contact with the Inquisition yourself is certainly a risky action.
As always, I remind you that voting does not take place in plan format. The specified number of options wins, but in each poll you can vote for any number of options you want, be it more or less than the winning number, or skip a section altogether.
Vote is open.
