Depends on the culture. Does the culture believe that path to power is possible? Then yes. Whether they exist in specific cultures depends on your definition of parasites, I suppose. And the antisocial varieties are generally gonna be vanishingly rare because there isn't really an existing infrastructure teaching them, and most individuals who pursue that kind of weirdness aren't inclined to start a school.
I still have doubts about that. Xenophobia is not restricted to any one culture and blaming outsiders for anything and everything is not new. As is doing something that would normally be seen as evil in their society to them not counting as evil because they are they and do not count as people
Heck, I could see it being based on laziness. Why put in the effort, if you can just steal it from someone else?
So I can see that every culture believes that path to power is possible. Do the QMs?
We haven't met anyone who got directly stronger by draining people's powers. even as a small subgroup of a larger faction. Though, of course, Audrey and Halla have only seen so much of the world. We have met at least one Necromancer if that counts though.
You already answered the question as a no, but it still seems silly to me to imply that any definition matters other than the QMs and how they wish to limit and structure their quest(ง❀ ❛ ֊ ❛")ว
To be clear, this whole line of questions was to draw up conversation with the thread as a whole rather than demand answers from the QMs directly. The vote has pretty much been decided and I wanted to see what world building theories other people had to pass the time.
If it bothers them, I can just easily wonder what sort of projects will open up and whether we should go for the towers upgrade, or go for an econ project first. We just opened up several options and I bet that at least one of them increases our value income. Our current value income is only +5 and these defense projects are expensive.
(By the by, did you know that the best millstones of this time in England were imported from France? Not because there was no access to stone, just that they produced the best quality? Crazy)
This has the connected question of whether we want to go for the White-Eyed quest immediately or we want to build up some more. If we want to clean up our build, it may be better to go for Econ while we are still here to defend personally
I still have doubts about that. Xenophobia is not restricted to any one culture and blaming outsiders for anything and everything is not new. As is doing something that would normally be seen as evil in their society to them not counting as evil because they are they and do not count as people
Heck, I could see it being based on laziness. Why put in the effort, if you can just steal it from someone else?
So I can see that every culture believes that path to power is possible. Do the QMs?
Okay, what 'parasitic' method of power gain did, for example, the Carolingians believe in? If you have something specific then by all means, please give an example. Or Norse culture? Other than the obvious raiding, which was for wealth and glory, not anything more esoteric.
These cultures are based on real world cultures and the way they perceived the world. Some have something you might judge 'demonic' or 'parasitic' but it's fundamentally very different from culture to culture and anything that prays on their own people is not gonna catch on. Preying on outsiders is certainly more acceptable, but not usually seen as a way to power in any ways other than the obvious like wealth and conquest, which work just fine. But that doesn't seem to be what you mean by 'parasitic'.
Stealing stuff is extremely common in a variety of cultures, but it only grants personal magical power if the culture believes it does. And it's the gain in personal magical power you seem to be talking about.
You already answered the question as a no, but it still seems silly to me to imply that any definition matters other than the QMs and how they wish to limit and structure their quest(ง❀ ❛ ֊ ❛")ว
The thing is, I didn't answer the question with a no. I said it depended on your definitions and cultural lens. That's actually a really important distinction to understanding the setting and the way it works. Saying it was just a 'no' misunderstands how culture shapes reality in The Written World.
Okay, what 'parasitic' method of power gain did, for example, the Carolingians believe in? If you have something specific then by all means, please give an example. Or Norse culture? Other than the obvious raiding, which was for wealth and glory, not anything more esoteric.
It is based on Christianity, so taking souls to through demonic contracts by witchcraft, alternatively selling your soul for power. Combine those even more power.
Norse culture, cannibalism. Halla gained power through eating the hearts of powerful monsters. Using the same logic on other Cultivators would count as 'Demonic.'
The thing is, I didn't answer the question with a no. I said it depended on your definitions and cultural lens. That's actually a really important distinction to understanding the setting and the way it works. Saying it was just a 'no' misunderstands how culture shapes reality in The Written World.
Alchemy wasn't commonly practiced in Western Europe in this era. It existed, but more in Byzantium and points east. Carolingians would not call their abilities or cultivation alchemical or think about them in those terms. On the other hand, a Byzantine Alchemist might easily define them that way if they met a Carolingian. So it heavily depends on who you ask...which makes it a definitional question. Whose definitions are we using?
You said that culture shapes reality. So it does not matter what a Byzantine Alchemist calls, same as it does not matter what Audrey thinks of Norse Cultivation, it will act according to its own rules. Quest Alchemy is not the same as IRL "alchemy" is not what Carolingian does.
Yours, we are using yours. This is the quest of you and the other QMs, if you say it is not Alchemy then it is not.
I wonder why Wessex was such a big exporter of wool at this time, I was under the impression that the land was mostly wooded. I would have thought that using the fields available to them for farming would have been a better choice.
I wonder what lands the rest of our peers ended up in. Our Rin!expy was set somewhere north of us I think? I hope she has a bird of her own by now. Did any of them get a horse by chance or is Audrey the most complete trio?
I wonder what sort of artisans came in on the boat. The better we do here, the more people that move to Sarre I imagine. It would be funny if we got a good blacksmith without going through research line.
It is based on Christianity, so taking souls to through demonic contracts by witchcraft, alternatively selling your soul for power. Combine those even more power.
Norse culture, cannibalism. Halla gained power through eating the hearts of powerful monsters. Using the same logic on other Cultivators would count as 'Demonic.'
Both of those work in theory (though cannibalism is nid so eating human hearts has problems, and making a deal with the devil has all the obvious issues). The first I've specified as a thing several times, in fact. There's just not any organized groups so it's all quite odd.
You said that culture shapes reality. So it does not matter what a Byzantine Alchemist calls, same as it does not matter what Audrey thinks of Norse Cultivation, it will act according to its own rules. Quest Alchemy is not the same as IRL "alchemy" is not what Carolingian does.
Yours, we are using yours. This is the quest of you and the other QMs, if you say it is not Alchemy then it is not.
This assumes that Carolingian cultivation and culture has primacy over alchemy and, for example, Byzantine cultivation, but that's not necessarily true. A Byzantine alchemist would say it was and could effect it as such with any relevant abilities, so saying it's not alchemy, while something most Carolingians would say, is not precisely accurate either.
My point is that this is subjective and definition-based in-universe. With different people and cultures having different opinions and those opinions having impact on reality. A fight between a Byzantine alchemist and a Carolingian cleric might easily determine which perspective is correct...for that fight.
Y'know, I'm not even sure at this point. From my perspective I'm just trying to clarify that no one cultural world view is necessarily objectively correct in TWW on a magical level. But maybe that's at cross purposes with the conversation.
Weird question: Say a baby is abandoned on a island. They have all the resources that they could ever need cultivate? Just trying to think of a hypothetical blank slate.
Weird question: Say a baby is abandoned on a island. They have all the resources that they could ever need cultivate? Just trying to think of a hypothetical blank slate.
Assuming they were truly alone and somehow survived they'd probably wind up in the same situation as animals and just fall under the prevailing cultural cultivation system without actually knowing that. In practice, this would likely be crippling and they wouldn't get to cultivate much, which only increases their odds of death.
So the real answer is without someone to raise them in some culture, they'd almost certainly just die.
A Finale for messily ripping someone apart is viable. I don't think an open wound would actually be required, but requiring an existing grapple and the same circumstances as Crush Organ (ie: either control or surprise) would give it very solid primacy.
Given that we have Crush Organs, Crush Nerves, Crush Senses and a Samson-derived Finale already approved, will something like Crush Tendons / Connective Tissue be feasible to inflict an different form of Debuff?
Both of those work in theory (though cannibalism is nid so eating human hearts has problems, and making a deal with the devil has all the obvious issues). The first I've specified as a thing several times, in fact. There's just not any organized groups so it's all quite odd.
I mean you did ask about how a theoretical demonic Cultivator could work in universe so it being nid...comes with the territory? If it was widely accepted it would not be Demonic Cultivation.
This assumes that Carolingian cultivation and culture has primacy over alchemy and, for example, Byzantine cultivation, but that's not necessarily true. A Byzantine alchemist would say it was and could effect it as such with any relevant abilities, so saying it's not alchemy, while something most Carolingians would say, is not precisely accurate either.
My point is that this is subjective and definition-based in-universe. With different people and cultures having different opinions and those opinions having impact on reality. A fight between a Byzantine alchemist and a Carolingian cleric might easily determine which perspective is correct...for that fight.
...I am pretty sure I did not assume that? The original question was about how the refinement of Zeal into Piety superficial resembled alchemy and if that were actual alchemy. You already said that alchemy is not a part of Carolingian Cultivation so while it may appear to be on the surface, it is something else. A fight would not change that. You already mentioned how difficult it is to change Cultivation systems, unless alchemists are a special exception that can change the Cultivation of others, I do not see how anything they say or think would change that.
If it looks like a human and walks like a human, it could still be an elf...or a skinwalker
Given that we have Crush Organs, Crush Nerves, Crush Senses and a Samson-derived Finale already approved, will something like Crush Tendons / Connective Tissue be feasible to inflict an different form of Debuff?
Given that we have Crush Organs, Crush Nerves, Crush Senses and a Samson-derived Finale already approved, will something like Crush Tendons / Connective Tissue be feasible to inflict an different form of Debuff?
...I am pretty sure I did not assume that? The original question was about how the refinement of Zeal into Piety superficial resembled alchemy and if that were actual alchemy. You already said that alchemy is not a part of Carolingian Cultivation so while it may appear to be on the surface, it is something else. A fight would not change that. You already mentioned how difficult it is to change Cultivation systems, unless alchemists are a special exception that can change the Cultivation of others, I do not see how anything they say or think would change that.
If it looks like a human and walks like a human, it could still be an elf...or a skinwalker
Cultivation is culture, culture thus shapes reality on a mystical level for everyone, even people not members of that culture to some degree. According to the alchemist and their culture it probably is alchemy, and that can be mystically true under some circumstances when their cultural paradigm predominates.
So a Carolingian would say it isn't alchemy, an alchemist would say it is, and mystically speaking both can be right depending on the situation. Hence it being a matter of perspective.
The following is strictly a casual audience member's interpretation of the setting, make of it what you will:
"Mystically speaking", what any given thing or process "is" is in the eye of the culture that is beholding it and the worldviews and values of that culture (whether it's being observed by an individual or a group, the individual still carries their cultural conception of reality with them). The same thing observed by two different people from two different worldviews can "be" two different things because the reality of it is subjective rather than objective (with only the underlying number-rules that exist for the sake of the quest always necessarily being the same, and it's unclear whether all or any of those have diegetic equivalents within the fictive reality of The Written World).
Honestly it reminds me a lot of the Old World of Darkness Mage: The Ascension game and its interpretation of subjective reality, which had umpteen different "Traditions" which all interpreted the mechanics of magic in a different way - alchemy, divine intervention, chi, Matrix-esque digital gnosticism) and all were "correct" in the sense that it was the Mage's will imposing their worldview on reality rather than the other way around. Mages from all traditions ran into trouble after the Enlightenment saw the majority of the world eventually adopt scientific rationalism as a worldview and the sheer mass of humanity's collective will being able to smother the will of an individual Mage if they were too public with their shenanigans, but that particular wrinkle doesn't exist in TWW (and wouldn't even if the authors wanted it to given that it's the Middle Ages). Instead, every culture and worldview works like its own "Tradition" and you can Cultivate in whatever framework your society teaches you, even as societies can adapt new frameworks over time as they evolve and learn from each other.
(with only the underlying number-rules that exist for the sake of the quest always necessarily being the same, and it's unclear whether all or any of those have diegetic equivalents within the fictive reality of The Written World).
The numbers do have reality in TWW, they're sort of a reflection of the laws of physics (and metaphysics to some degree), and generally only get broken by specific things...but some things do trump them, look at Finales for instance. The subjective part comes in at edge cases like 'Does this magic apply to this person of a culture it was never designed for?' and the answers there are...variable. Fuzzy at the edges. Depending on perspective.
Instead, every culture and worldview works like its own "Tradition" and you can Cultivate in whatever framework your society teaches you, even as societies can adapt new frameworks over time as they evolve and learn from each other.
Cultivation is culture, culture thus shapes reality on a mystical level for everyone, even people not members of that culture to some degree. According to the alchemist and their culture it probably is alchemy, and that can be mystically true under some circumstances when their cultural paradigm predominates.
So a Carolingian would say it isn't alchemy, an alchemist would say it is, and mystically speaking both can be right depending on the situation. Hence it being a matter of perspective.
Until you guys define what alchemy is, there is not more I can say about the subject
That does make me wonder if a Christian Priest could successfully exorcise a hostile spirit(read poof a Fylgja) from a Norse Cultivator.
...Someone asked earlier about what would happen if a newborn was random thrust into a completely different culture. What about the opposite? The Sea People event in the Late Bronze Period. That would have been a rapid invasion of one culture onto another.
Alchemy varies from culture to culture just like everything else. Alchemy in Muslim areas is likely quite different from the versions in Byzantium, never mind stuff like Chinese Alchemy.
Invasions inevitably change the culture of both invaders and the ones invaded, but I'm not sure precisely what you're asking here, how both are changed varies widely from invasion to invasion and we have little info on the Sea People so we don't know details like that. The Sea People specifically also used Steel fairly extensively in TWW which might shift things a bit for that specific event.
I believe you've had enough time, locking up and processing.
[X] Plan: Control the Engagement
-[X] Stance: Clever Deflection, Vanguard's Prayer, Innocuous Blows, Prayer For Perseverance, Crush Organ, Giant-Killing Blow, Controlled Grapple, Strandsense, Superlative Counter, Bouncing Leap, Against The Tide, Cloak of Terror
-[X] Expenditures: Audrey spends 21 Zeal to boost her rolls by +7 for the first round. Audrey spends Max Zeal possible to boost the damage of GKB and Crush Organ. Audrey will spend 19 Zeal to use Superlative Counter. May budget up to 21 Zeal to boost Bradamante's own attack damage. Audrey will save 41 Zeal for her Armor Charges. Utilize them at 30 or less Armor, barring really big, obvious attacks that require more.
-[X] Tactics: Hordebreaker and Fyrddmann stance at first. Make a show of charging towards the ranged combatant with Bouncing Leap, feigning for a charge-attack to bait out the shapeshifter to intercept and close in to a grapple of their own. If the shapeshifter manages to do so, use a Zeal-Boosted Organ Crush to try and one shot them. If they survive, use the Ring of Stone to take control of the Grapple and then use Organ Crush again to finish them off. Assuming the shapeshifter survives this, maintain Controlled Grapple and escape from the grapple at first opportunity, aiming to finish the shapeshifter off with GKB as soon as possible. If the shapeshifter doesn't try to intercept, use a Giant Killing Blow to try and crack apart any defenses the ranged combatant can throw up through Innocuous Blows. Use Cloak of Terror to swap tanking between Audrey and Bradamante as the fighting continues. Once the shapeshifter is finished off, try to run down the ranged combatant with Bouncing Leap and Bradamante using bog along with their other techniques to force them to remain hemmed in. If the ranged combatant doesn't try to run, have Bradamante react to the needs of the situation and better enable a successful GKB to finish the fight. Once the two Ironbrothers are dispatched, Audrey communicates with the Thanes to determine where she's best needed, then her and Bradamante break up concentrations of raiders in order to best manipulate the battlefield and keep down friendly casualties.
Takes it.
And it turns out I never actually opened the vote as part of my goof from misposting it before it was done, whoops.
Yeah, that's about what I expected. Mage is about individuals of superlative will being able to reject "consensus reality" with their own personal perception, although numbers do ultimately matter far more than individual will when multiple people are perceiving the same thing (hence, Paradox and the Technocracy being dominant due to enforcing a consensus on most of humanity). That's not the case with TWW, with Cultivators instead simply being the people best able to take advantage of the consensus reality of the culture around them in order to gain power, and each culture coming to its own consensus. And of course, as we see right here in Wessex, many cultures can co-exist whether in peace or conflict and influence each other even as they form distinct "paradigms" of cultivator power from each other.
So does that mean that using this Rote and Grip of Samson, we could break all of someone's limbs/bones at once?
Also I came up with a potential finale that I'd like to know the viability to. It's basically an even more restrictive version of Superlative Counter. Except probably in Hordebreaker. Specifically, it can only be used when 3 or more enemies are using Finales on Audrey. Intended for Very Dire situations.
Also I came up with a potential finale that I'd like to know the viability to. It's basically an even more restrictive version of Superlative Counter. Except probably in Hordebreaker. Specifically, it can only be used when 3 or more enemies are using Finales on Audrey. Intended for Very Dire situations.
Not at Audrey's current proficiency with it...her ability to multitask with Grip of Samson is still pretty limited, she can just transfer the force different places. If you got it up to Mastered you could probably hit multiple limbs at once, maybe eventually all of them...multitasking like that is definitely possible with Grip of Samson, just harder.
Also I came up with a potential finale that I'd like to know the viability to. It's basically an even more restrictive version of Superlative Counter. Except probably in Hordebreaker. Specifically, it can only be used when 3 or more enemies are using Finales on Audrey. Intended for Very Dire situations.
Sacred Circle + Embrace the Void do seem made for this, and Superlative Counter might survive this situation, with difficulty. A Finale that was only usable for this is maybe too niche, though...I'd need to think on that.
[X] Plan: Control the Engagement
-[X] Stance: Clever Deflection, Vanguard's Prayer, Innocuous Blows, Prayer For Perseverance, Crush Organ, Giant-Killing Blow, Controlled Grapple, Strandsense, Superlative Counter, Bouncing Leap, Against The Tide, Cloak of Terror
-[X] Expenditures: Audrey spends 21 Zeal to boost her rolls by +7 for the first round. Audrey spends Max Zeal possible to boost the damage of GKB and Crush Organ. Audrey will spend 19 Zeal to use Superlative Counter. May budget up to 21 Zeal to boost Bradamante's own attack damage. Audrey will save 41 Zeal for her Armor Charges. Utilize them at 30 or less Armor, barring really big, obvious attacks that require more.
-[X] Tactics: Hordebreaker and Fyrddmann stance at first. Make a show of charging towards the ranged combatant with Bouncing Leap, feigning for a charge-attack to bait out the shapeshifter to intercept and close in to a grapple of their own. If the shapeshifter manages to do so, use a Zeal-Boosted Organ Crush to try and one shot them. If they survive, use the Ring of Stone to take control of the Grapple and then use Organ Crush again to finish them off. Assuming the shapeshifter survives this, maintain Controlled Grapple and escape from the grapple at first opportunity, aiming to finish the shapeshifter off with GKB as soon as possible. If the shapeshifter doesn't try to intercept, use a Giant Killing Blow to try and crack apart any defenses the ranged combatant can throw up through Innocuous Blows. Use Cloak of Terror to swap tanking between Audrey and Bradamante as the fighting continues. Once the shapeshifter is finished off, try to run down the ranged combatant with Bouncing Leap and Bradamante using bog along with their other techniques to force them to remain hemmed in. If the ranged combatant doesn't try to run, have Bradamante react to the needs of the situation and better enable a successful GKB to finish the fight. Once the two Ironbrothers are dispatched, Audrey communicates with the Thanes to determine where she's best needed, then her and Bradamante break up concentrations of raiders in order to best manipulate the battlefield and keep down friendly casualties.
They said that one who enjoyed what they did would never work a day in their life. It was a saying that Gunnvaldr White-Hair appreciated more than some–getting out from the backbreaking labor of the farm and earning his living as an Ironbrother of an old and storied Warband?
Oh sure, the Jomsvikings may not have been at their peak currently–but their legacies were still strong even now. Their discipline was surpassed only by the Varagnian Guard of distant Miklagaard, and they had few equals. To the point where even a single snekkja's forces could tilt the scales of a campaign.
The Bergfalkes paid good gold to hire their swords as part of their vendetta–and with no Jarl to take offense in their lands, it was a good chance to get a little seasoning in for the newer recruits. The ambush went well enough, cornering old man Sindri Sweet-Tooth and his house karls on their return trip from the market town–the clients weren't quite satisfied with just driving the Storstrands from their lands though–a single karvi managed to slip out, and the risk of old Sweet-Tooth being restored in body because his family escaped with a lock of his hair?
No, they had to tear this threat out by the roots–especially when they confirmed him to be just Bodily Dead.
Understandable, and a quick raid with some extra help was a fantastic way to make a bit of extra coin. So they gave chase–either the All-Father was looking out for them or that Christian God smiled on them, because when the two snekkja arrived on the shores of Thanet, they were met by an assembled battle-line. Including a bloody Knight of all things
It could have been worse though–it was hard to miss that golden hair as anything other than 'Laughing Audrey'--he'd be a little dismissive of a woman playing the role of a fighter, but the stories of her running wild in the North-Seas Invitational were hard to downplay. Still, a Knight of the Fourth Decade–no matter how talented–could only go so far.
"Some brass on that little tart, thinking she can take both of us on." Vigi Bloodmouth chuckled–though the rippling of his form belied his caution in the matter. He was a prick, certainly–but nobody rises to the level of Ironbrother without having a certain degree of genuine talent. His muscles bulged grotesquely, his nails sharpening to wicked talons. "I'll hold, you shoot?"
"Works for me." Gunnvaldr nodded, summoning forth his ebon Ordstirr. "Let's sort this out quickly, I don't like the look of that greybeard taking on the Captain." Anglo-Saxons might have few genuine experts–but the deep-seated wariness of those who survived long enough to show their age wasn't something anyone should ignore.
"Hah, what's she going to do, slap me?" Vigi grinned, teeth having sharpened to razor tips. "I could use a new concubine, the old one finally wore out." His own blood-red Ordstirr flowed like viscous wine on the floor. "First one to take her out gets dibs!"
Proper piece of shit, Vigi was–but he was strong, and he wasn't alone either.
Gunnvaldr raised his free-hand, the gathered Ordstirr manifesting as a shroud of moonless night–darker even than the depths of the earth. A little reminder of his experiences early in life, when he was taught the powers of his lineage by having his eyes carved out and thrown into the woods. Unhindered by the false-darkness, Vigi lunged forward, devouring the space in the blink of an eye, taking 'Laughing Audrey' by the waist and pulling her from her steed.
He then raised his shield to turn aside said Steeds' counter-attack, and only a moment later did he realize it was too accurately aimed. She could see just fine.
Yet she didn't even try to avoid Vigi.
"GET BACK!" He cried out! His comrade's long-honed instincts leading his Frami to ignite at almost the same moment Gunnvaldr's words reached his ears as his bones seemingly liquified–hauling ass as far away from the Knight as he could.
A slap struck his cheek.
Resonating with the cracking sound of a broken jaw was Vigi's chest seeming to deflate–the Ironbrother clumsily toddling from side to side, eyes sightlessly gazing forward in confusion. He didn't even get a chance to bite, to draw blood.
Really?
A slap?
And with that, Vigi Bloodmouth fell, never again to rise in this world. VIGI BLOODMOUTH… HAS BEEN SLAIN
Rising up on an invisible plane was the Knight of the "Fourth Decade", covered in the heart's blood of the former Jomsviking Ironbrother. A quiver in Gunnvaldr's heart as he met the gaze behind that impassive visor.
Then, it began.
"OH-HOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOO!" Came the shrill cackle of a banshee, the Earth itself seeming to reject her as it launched Laughing Audrey back up into the saddle. A heavy head-cleaver of a sword leapt to her hand, and the Knight and Horse began closing at ALARMING SPEED
Gunnvaldr really shouldn't have tempted the Nornir, they never ignored a chance to remind the world of their power!
0~0~0
The battle was going great!
Audrey's little plot quickly led to the tougher, burlier looking Norseman's demise, as her newly developed technique allowed her to strike him down in a single blow when he had the gall to close in on her! She didn't like the look in his eyes, like she was just a piece of meat to be devoured–she was sure that cannibalism was a Sin even in the eyes of heathens! But turning a battle of two against two into two against one? An absolute win!
Crowley was busy doing what he did best–being a menace to the front lines under the cover of cloud and mist, and her Huscarls were acquitting themselves splendidly in the field of battle! Many were taking wounds, but delivering them in kind as well! Where they faltered, the hellish bog that had rapidly become of the beach between Tobias' blood-inheritance and Bradamante's magic often bought them an inch to escape with their lives.
That didn't mean the fight was over, far from it! But she had the advantage now and every intention to press it! Zeal pulsed through her veins and carried her forward with terrific speed–a small sample of what she could be with time to grow–and despite a hurled lightning bolt from the remaining Ironbrother's attempt to dissuade her, she could not be stopped!
A spectral sword flew into view from behind the remaining Ironbrother–hidden from sight previously–but she had learned well how to deal with tricks like this in the past! With the speed and momentum Bradamante had accumulated, it was child's play to corner the flying sword and shatter it with a fierce blow of Sunder! It did take her a moment to strip the Norseman's second line of defense though–and he used it admirably well, to his credit, charging his sword with a wreath of lightning and lashing out at Audrey with it.
And very much to his credit–it carved through her nearly pristine Hama with ease, with the enchantments of her Knightly Armor straining badly as the shocking force ground down its protection with alarming speed. Yet she could take several more such blows with ease.
Could he do the same?
Bradamante lunged forward, teeth bared as she sought to pin the Ironbrother in place. Naturally, having seen the fate of his ally, he didn't dare risk being struck like that–his Frami igniting in a wave of liquid night as he darted away–and into the path of Audrey's swung sword!
A clanging noise as forged-iron warded off ancestral metalwork–a perfectly ordinary slash–but one he had no adequate response for. All of the conditions for victory had been met! His defeat was only a single step away! Even his second strike with that voltaic sword of his failed to breach her defenses! Though it did admittedly come worryingly close to doing so.
Then came the shattering of bone and organs, like a millennial oak giving way from a hurled rock. All eyes shifted to the source of the noise–as Marshal Ryder Wayforde threw the broken body of the Berserk back behind friendly lines with contemptuous ease.
A lull fell over the battlefield–a hard fought battle between Firithstan and the second-in-command halting as both looked on the change of pace. Tobias' foe didn't have the same luxury–suffering a painful blow to the face by a hurled shield when he took his eyes off, shattering teeth and nose alike as he staggered back in pain.
Then, Firithstan's foe raised a war-horn to his lips, and a roar filled the air–a signal of retreat. Many of the attackers proceeded to start pulling back–though many were briefly fouled in their step by the terrible condition of the battlefield and were struck down with the ruthless confidence of the victors of a battle.
The ones that didn't, changed their minds when a matching signal came from Audrey's present foe. It was said that the Jomsvikings would never retreat against an equal force–but with their employers quitting the field, and their strongest champion a broken wreck of a man on the field, their doom was clear.
That didn't mean Audrey would let them flee so easily!
Bradamante lunged forward, seeking to bite and hold once again. A bat-winged cloak of darkness winked into view though as the surviving Jomsviking Ironbrother darted out of the way–willing to gamble against a blade-stroke he had already measured as tolerable over the risk of being held in place and exposed to that unknown power Audrey Eotenslaga had exhibited.
A rune on the talisman about his neck burned bright–and when the Giant-Killing Blow struck home, Audrey found much of the force of her blow deflected. The treasure he had to preserve his life no doubt. But even with him not being carved directly in half, she had torn a terrifying gouge in his body! She'd like to see him try and get away in that condition! She laughed with her usual battle-lust as the remaining Ironbrother scrambled away, trampling over other fleeing Norsemen as she went.
It was just a shame that she had forgotten something!
The Giant-Killing Blow crashed forward once again–and this time, he finally saw fit to use his shield! The fiend! The coward! He sought bloodshed and violence and yet he protected himself with a piece of wood?
Yet that piece of wood–uncaring for Audrey's frustration–bought him a moment's peace–and even as the shield fell apart into splinters, it survived just long enough for the Norseman to pull his feet up and jump off of the crumbling shield, borrowing the force of Audrey's own blow to fling himself back to his longship!
The coward! The absolute madman!
But with the distance opened up, and the Jomsviking Ironbrother now watching over the longships with lightning in his eyes and hurled bolts to ward off any who approached, it was clear she wouldn't be adding an additional Ironbrother to her tally this day.
It was annoying, to see the foe being able to retreat when she sought their destruction… But she would take a quick, clean victory under the circumstances.
She just hoped the butcher's bill was mild enough to justify letting the enemy flee.
0~0~0
In the end, it could have been oh-so-much worse.
Roughly a quarter of the defenders had been wounded even with the short duration of the battle. Even with every possible advantage the guardians of Thanet could muster, the savage might of the Norsemen could still ensure you take wounds. Even Audrey's own Huscarls–firm Veterans now to a man (Even Alvis! Who acquitted himself admirably in his own right!) had nearly a third of their fighters seriously injured–though only one was in serious danger of death before Aalis had a chance to get to him. One unlucky Regnscur Huscarl failed to set his helmet properly and was decapitated by a lucky Norseman–and against a blow like that, all that could be done was clean up his remains for a proper burial.
In comparison, a full third of the enemy force lay dead in the churned mud and loose sand of the beach. Of course, a careful examination saw that only perhaps a dozen or so were truly slain instead of merely in an extended nap, including the Ironbrother Audrey had slain at the beginning of the battle. The Geferan would see to the internment of the remains, to ensure that there would be no repeat of the recent Draugr incident–but the expense of raising so many warriors would be a good enough punishment inflicted given their utter failure to do much more than temporary harm for the most part.
There would be more to do in the days ahead–but now that the immediate crisis has passed, the question remains… What was to be done with the refugees? While there was enough food to go around to feed them, another forty residents would be a significant boost to any local population–more than could be fed on a few Hides alone. If anyone were to take them in, it would be a significant economic strain in the short and long term to support them. It may be possible to petition the King for more land to help support them, but that would require some lobbying–both internally and beyond. Barring that, it may be possible to compensate somewhat if any of them had useful skills–to make up for in trade what you lack in local agricultural capacity. That's far from a guarantee though, and you might just get a number of extra mouths to feed who can do little to pay for themselves.
More likely, it would be a tremendous drain on the economy of whichever territory took them in–though an affordable one by Audrey's reckoning. Though there were places that had room for more people throughout Kent in general, wasn't Milly commenting on how she didn't have nearly enough people to handle everything she needed to do?
There was always the option of just splitting them up by household and distributing them evenly–that would be the lowest strain on anyone here, though it would also dilute any knowledge they had down to nothing… Yeah, in hindsight, probably not worth it–Audrey doubted they'd appreciate being separated like that anyway.
She had also consulted Tobias on the matter–as these are his lands–and he has in turn deferred to you. "We can probably take a couple, but not the whole bunch of them. If you want to handle this problem, it's all yours." Of course, that didn't mean she couldn't sweet talk them into taking care of the problem–they did have better established places after all… Or she could just call in a favor too to resolve the issue.
It would have been better to have someone telling her the best way to go… But alas, there were none who were better suited to resolving this today than Audrey Eotenslaga–so she would have to fulfill her duty.
How to handle this…
[ ] Take these 55 refugees in on your own lands (Adds 110 Value Upkeep, two per refugee, for "Christianized Norse Refugee Community" Unlocks some new development options in the long term, and even a few right now)
[ ] Try and have the refugees settle elsewhere on Thanet (Requires successful Diplomacy check to convince some Thane to take them on, no personal costs but few benefits either, though they are nearby and can be interacted with in future. Failure involves taking them in yourself, but with less good feelings on everyone's parts than if she just did that.)
-[ ] Skip Diplomacy check by calling in favors owed by either the Regnscurs or Aikenings (specify which)
[ ] Arrange for the refugees to be settled somewhere on the mainland (Easy enough to arrange given Audrey's social network. Costs 1 Wealth, will not be nearby or likely to be seen again except in passing.)
-[ ] Specify where: Kent, the Eotenslaga family holdings, the Aikening family holdings, somewhere else
0~0~0
AN: Now for the fun part, refugees!
You'll get a chance to liquidate some of your battle loot with either of the costly options though, and you'll be unlocking some new money-making options at the end of the turn as well. As ever, Superior Mail sells pretty good in the short term, but you'll definitely want to figure out a way to stack up some cash if you decide to invest in having the local community.
Play nice everyone!
Round 1:
Gunnvaldr White-Hair gestures and darkness surrounds Audrey
Out of the darkness, Vigi Bloodmouth leaps upon her and attempts to grapple with a 78
Audrey defends using Controlled Grapple to get control of said grapple with a 79
Audrey burns 21 Zeal on upping her combat bonuses and uses her Strength of Stone Ring and uses Crush Organ with a 94
Vigi responds with honed instincts burning an Aspect to try and get away and gets an 89
Audrey uses a Force Ring and 4 Zeal to deal 120 damage right through his armour. Vigi Bloodmouth dies, this was his Fated Day and he shall not rise again.
Bradamante attacks Gunnvaldr with Water Slice for a 79
He defends with his shield for a 50, and suffers 1 Shield Use lost.
Gunnvaldr throws a lightning bolt at Audrey while retreating for a 99
Audrey uses Clever Deflection for a 78
Audrey takes -10 Hama Loss and -10 Armour Loss.
Audrey and Bradamante see that this guy has a spectral sword hovering to defend him, both target it and it is destroyed.
Gunnvaldr burns an aspect, his sword crackles with lightning and he strikes at Audrey with an 83
Audrey uses Clever Deflection for a 77
Audrey is hit and loses 10 Hama and 40 Armour.
Audrey uses a Basic Attack and Bradamante attempts Grab and Hold with a 76
Gunnvaldr dodges Bradamante with a 92
He is hit and takes -10 Armour Loss.
Gunnvaldr spends another Aspect and repeats his lightning-based sword slash for a 90
Audrey uses Clever Deflection for an 83
Audrey is hit again, losing 10 Hama and 50 Armour.
Audrey this time uses Giant-Killing Blow while Bradamante attempts Grab and Hold with a 73
Gunnvaldr again defends against Bradamante with an 82
He is hit, but his rune-worked amulet glows and he survives somehow. No Zeal was needed to 'kill' here and that was obvious so none is spent.
At this point, Gunnvaldr notices that Ryder has killed his boss, and the leader of the Bergsfalks calls for a retreat, he seconds that and leaps away even faster than before.
