Turn 4--Martial, Diplomacy, Stewardship
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Turn 4--2428(B)--Martial, Diplomacy, Stewardship
They drained the rest of the glass, looking at the reports from some of Lucille's assets. A lot of spy work didn't involve personal action, for all that they'd risked themselves multiple times over the past year. Two years ago they wouldn't have thought they'd be sitting in a crowded den bar, going over information related to the Technocrat Imperium. It was very interesting, seeing how different species lived and made their own government, though at the moment there was little that seemed directly relevant.
However, those seized ships did fit with some of the activity that the Phoenix Wing might have been up to, both the wing you fought a large portion of, and captured, and the other wing. For a Phoenix has more than one wing, always. It had been getting harder to go around, to walk among the people without being swarmed by questions, but it was worth it, and this was the heart of their job. It was the part that made them least annoyed. Nowhere near as bad as watching the coverage of the trials, or the thousand new shows and cultural events that seemed to crowd the cities.
Revitalized was the word, the sights and most of all the smells seemed to indicate much. Xvorzit could pick up a lot from the tone of a voice, or the slight differences in scent and positional emotive data, and this place smelled happy and busy and more than a little buzzed, alive in a way that they knew it hadn't been before, because they've been there. The den hadn't had the up-to-date holovid player it had now, among other things.
There would come a time where this wouldn't be possible. Vorzhan accepted it, as they accepted the need for secrecy, but there were members of their… administration who didn't. Kikkizit was almost as great a celebrity- and certainly did the work to deserve it- but still insisted on getting all of their own groceries, and otherwise risking swarming mobs of reporters at every bend. It was odd, a sort of, well, the term that came to mind was 'proud humility.'
*****
Which, to allow me to intrude after some time of letting the story spin off, is common among Xvorzit. Speaker Vorzhan themselves possessed some of that trait, and it was a large part of the Gazinith culture as I observed it at that time and also later. In fact, the culture as a whole was developing. More and more shows were being put out that explored areas that would have been taboo before, and there were even some shows that were starting to background themselves in the revolution. Even a few that included lookalikes of Speaker Vorzhan.
The trials of the vandals somehow turned into theatre, and their ideas spread farther than expected even though most considered them discredited. Several speeches were made, and the total views, both of videos on the holonet with snippets and news coverage, surpassed 8 billion- put simply, over half the population tuned in, and nearly eight million tuned in and agreed with the platform of the radicals. Many others at least respected the sentiment. In their total defeat and conviction, they managed to shift the discourse.
That, combined with the event that would soon engulf the media, led to an interesting spectacle that says something about the state of the news, or perhaps the state of Xvorzit politics. Commentators ranting in response to a poll, accusing it of inaccuracy or, worse, of reflecting the truth, people shouting at each other, making comments both patronizing and rude about other species… and through it all the surprising devotion to Speaker Vorzhan. Upon hearing news that popularity polls for the Speaker had slipped into the 70% range due to budgeting questions, the naval 'debacle' and the trials, many commentators rushed to condemn the results as faulty, even as Vorzhan paid it no mind.
As far as they were concerned they were seeing the breakup of the post-revolution consensus. They saw doom, and surprisingly a number of writers wrote stories and articles about that fear, the fear that it would all dissolve, that the stability and peace would flounder if the Speaker was not loved to a degree that any Solarian Prime Minister would sacrifice people to eldritch elder deities to achieve.
Part of it was that Speaker Vorzhan was above and beyond a lot of minor splits. Militarists supported them, as did any number of spooks, and, as noted, they polled startlingly well with the common bug on the street. People had begun a process of deification that somehow still included- to use an old cliche- the all-important 'I could sit down and have a drink with them' factor. Vorzhan was even popular with businessmen and the Rulers, albeit by a far lesser margin. They held Gazinitah together, even though privately they would express a fear of themselves coming apart at the seams, chitin crumbling away from stress…
*****
It took a long, long time, sitting there drinking, before Vorzhan realized what was wrong. Intellectually, they distrusted Bizentara, without having met them. Despite having put forward a full argument before the world, on the morality of the action and how it was worth it, how letting the Commission handle the Xvorzit slaves was the right choice, and how they'd be processed and some might be sent to Gazinitah, the Speaker didn't trust them. Well, that was the weird thing. Their instincts were inclined towards trust, while intellectually they feared Bizentara trying something. They drank and thought about it, and couldn't reconcile things.
It took a meeting with Kikkizit to fix that.
*****
"You need to relax, but more importantly," the other bug whistled, "You need to trust your instincts. Hazitean is as paranoid as you, and twice as ruthless, and she didn't express fears of his ambitions. Much. Now, you're a good influence for her, so maybe she's settling down, but I don't think so."
"Of course you don't. She literally stormed in the other day, yelling at me, calling me a coward. Apparently we could have potentially trained with Sol, as well as gotten some of Sol's military equipment, had we agreed to deal with the Pirates' Moon with them."
"But…?"
"Well, it could go wrong, pretty wrong, and I wasn't sure if the people would support an occupation, even with all of the advantages it could have given us. But Hazitean said she literally didn't know of any other chance for our personnel to get any practical experience at all, and that--"
"I can guess. You were dooming Gazinitah and the military?"
"Yes. She said exactly that. She's not talking to me anymore. Well, it's more that she's ignored me for the past two days, she'll probably give up on that in a day or two."
"She's attracted to you," Kikkizit pointed out.
"I noticed, but it's not something I have time to deal with," Vorzhan admits. "So, you were saying?"
"Xvorzit aren't humans. While military prowess matters for leadership, the number of military coups that didn't immediately get taken over by civilians or fall apart or be totally rejected by the populace can be counted on one hand." They reached out their hand and waved it around. "It just isn't in our psychology and social history, and so the most you have to fear is an obstinate bug getting in your way. What I suspect is that you know this, instinctively, from the history lessons you've gotten, but it didn't quite become… conscious."
"I'm still not sure I trust them."
"Well, you don't need to trust him, but you do need them, if anything's going to be done with the navy… I can help out with everything that I can, and I know we're in this together, but you need Hazitean, and you need this Bizentara, you need everyone on this whole planet to work together if we're going to pull through and make the best world we can… the best polity, too, since the colonies don't deserve to be ignored, either. And I believe you can do it, I have faith in you, Speaker Vorzhan."
"That's probably a problem as well," the Speaker admitted, quietly, "Expectations."
Martial: Much is left to be done, and you're no closer to having complete mastery and control than before. While tank research continues under private umbrellas, and Haziteans stalks from place to place. Will roll 1d100 to see if Hazitean helps out with anything on her own. Will roll 1d100+20 (New hovertanks acquired)+5 (Enthusiasm) to see what those crazy Tankers are up to. (Pick two)
Current Bleed: 600+25-49 (Upkeep reduction from lost ships...next turn the costs start piling up from the upkeep of the new ships, so don't count on this)=576 Wealth in Bleeding
Diplomacy: You are making further progress in the matter of diplomacy, even if there's too much to do. It's far more enjoyable than… other things. (Pick 2) (+5 to Foreign Diplomacy)
Stewardship: The economy is doing better than ever. But then, why don't you ever want to talk about it. You *thought* you were good at administration, charts, graphs, and even economics. But... all it gives you is a headache and a growing sense of inadequacy. Every few hours of work is followed by at least an hour of blinding headaches. You have too much to do, and too little time, and so you work through it, if at all possible. (Pick 3) (Will of the Hive currently at 1.)
*****
A/N: And so the vote's up! I will note that while opening up a Naval Category gives more overall options, and more consistent ones as well, it does come with a small potential drawback, sorta. Getting more than one action will take some buildup, while theoretically if you kept them together you could spend all two (four once you get Hazitean) actions one year on things that'd be locked away in the Naval Category. Now, of course, you have plenty else to occupy you, but that'd at least theoretically be possible, whereas once Hazitean is locked out of control over that end, her actions will be aimed only at her baliwick: everything non-naval.
Anyways, hope it looks good, and a spoilered it this time!
They drained the rest of the glass, looking at the reports from some of Lucille's assets. A lot of spy work didn't involve personal action, for all that they'd risked themselves multiple times over the past year. Two years ago they wouldn't have thought they'd be sitting in a crowded den bar, going over information related to the Technocrat Imperium. It was very interesting, seeing how different species lived and made their own government, though at the moment there was little that seemed directly relevant.
However, those seized ships did fit with some of the activity that the Phoenix Wing might have been up to, both the wing you fought a large portion of, and captured, and the other wing. For a Phoenix has more than one wing, always. It had been getting harder to go around, to walk among the people without being swarmed by questions, but it was worth it, and this was the heart of their job. It was the part that made them least annoyed. Nowhere near as bad as watching the coverage of the trials, or the thousand new shows and cultural events that seemed to crowd the cities.
Revitalized was the word, the sights and most of all the smells seemed to indicate much. Xvorzit could pick up a lot from the tone of a voice, or the slight differences in scent and positional emotive data, and this place smelled happy and busy and more than a little buzzed, alive in a way that they knew it hadn't been before, because they've been there. The den hadn't had the up-to-date holovid player it had now, among other things.
There would come a time where this wouldn't be possible. Vorzhan accepted it, as they accepted the need for secrecy, but there were members of their… administration who didn't. Kikkizit was almost as great a celebrity- and certainly did the work to deserve it- but still insisted on getting all of their own groceries, and otherwise risking swarming mobs of reporters at every bend. It was odd, a sort of, well, the term that came to mind was 'proud humility.'
*****
Which, to allow me to intrude after some time of letting the story spin off, is common among Xvorzit. Speaker Vorzhan themselves possessed some of that trait, and it was a large part of the Gazinith culture as I observed it at that time and also later. In fact, the culture as a whole was developing. More and more shows were being put out that explored areas that would have been taboo before, and there were even some shows that were starting to background themselves in the revolution. Even a few that included lookalikes of Speaker Vorzhan.
The trials of the vandals somehow turned into theatre, and their ideas spread farther than expected even though most considered them discredited. Several speeches were made, and the total views, both of videos on the holonet with snippets and news coverage, surpassed 8 billion- put simply, over half the population tuned in, and nearly eight million tuned in and agreed with the platform of the radicals. Many others at least respected the sentiment. In their total defeat and conviction, they managed to shift the discourse.
That, combined with the event that would soon engulf the media, led to an interesting spectacle that says something about the state of the news, or perhaps the state of Xvorzit politics. Commentators ranting in response to a poll, accusing it of inaccuracy or, worse, of reflecting the truth, people shouting at each other, making comments both patronizing and rude about other species… and through it all the surprising devotion to Speaker Vorzhan. Upon hearing news that popularity polls for the Speaker had slipped into the 70% range due to budgeting questions, the naval 'debacle' and the trials, many commentators rushed to condemn the results as faulty, even as Vorzhan paid it no mind.
As far as they were concerned they were seeing the breakup of the post-revolution consensus. They saw doom, and surprisingly a number of writers wrote stories and articles about that fear, the fear that it would all dissolve, that the stability and peace would flounder if the Speaker was not loved to a degree that any Solarian Prime Minister would sacrifice people to eldritch elder deities to achieve.
Part of it was that Speaker Vorzhan was above and beyond a lot of minor splits. Militarists supported them, as did any number of spooks, and, as noted, they polled startlingly well with the common bug on the street. People had begun a process of deification that somehow still included- to use an old cliche- the all-important 'I could sit down and have a drink with them' factor. Vorzhan was even popular with businessmen and the Rulers, albeit by a far lesser margin. They held Gazinitah together, even though privately they would express a fear of themselves coming apart at the seams, chitin crumbling away from stress…
*****
It took a long, long time, sitting there drinking, before Vorzhan realized what was wrong. Intellectually, they distrusted Bizentara, without having met them. Despite having put forward a full argument before the world, on the morality of the action and how it was worth it, how letting the Commission handle the Xvorzit slaves was the right choice, and how they'd be processed and some might be sent to Gazinitah, the Speaker didn't trust them. Well, that was the weird thing. Their instincts were inclined towards trust, while intellectually they feared Bizentara trying something. They drank and thought about it, and couldn't reconcile things.
It took a meeting with Kikkizit to fix that.
*****
"You need to relax, but more importantly," the other bug whistled, "You need to trust your instincts. Hazitean is as paranoid as you, and twice as ruthless, and she didn't express fears of his ambitions. Much. Now, you're a good influence for her, so maybe she's settling down, but I don't think so."
"Of course you don't. She literally stormed in the other day, yelling at me, calling me a coward. Apparently we could have potentially trained with Sol, as well as gotten some of Sol's military equipment, had we agreed to deal with the Pirates' Moon with them."
"But…?"
"Well, it could go wrong, pretty wrong, and I wasn't sure if the people would support an occupation, even with all of the advantages it could have given us. But Hazitean said she literally didn't know of any other chance for our personnel to get any practical experience at all, and that--"
"I can guess. You were dooming Gazinitah and the military?"
"Yes. She said exactly that. She's not talking to me anymore. Well, it's more that she's ignored me for the past two days, she'll probably give up on that in a day or two."
"She's attracted to you," Kikkizit pointed out.
"I noticed, but it's not something I have time to deal with," Vorzhan admits. "So, you were saying?"
"Xvorzit aren't humans. While military prowess matters for leadership, the number of military coups that didn't immediately get taken over by civilians or fall apart or be totally rejected by the populace can be counted on one hand." They reached out their hand and waved it around. "It just isn't in our psychology and social history, and so the most you have to fear is an obstinate bug getting in your way. What I suspect is that you know this, instinctively, from the history lessons you've gotten, but it didn't quite become… conscious."
"I'm still not sure I trust them."
"Well, you don't need to trust him, but you do need them, if anything's going to be done with the navy… I can help out with everything that I can, and I know we're in this together, but you need Hazitean, and you need this Bizentara, you need everyone on this whole planet to work together if we're going to pull through and make the best world we can… the best polity, too, since the colonies don't deserve to be ignored, either. And I believe you can do it, I have faith in you, Speaker Vorzhan."
"That's probably a problem as well," the Speaker admitted, quietly, "Expectations."
Martial: Much is left to be done, and you're no closer to having complete mastery and control than before. While tank research continues under private umbrellas, and Haziteans stalks from place to place. Will roll 1d100 to see if Hazitean helps out with anything on her own. Will roll 1d100+20 (New hovertanks acquired)+5 (Enthusiasm) to see what those crazy Tankers are up to. (Pick two)
Current Bleed: 600+25-49 (Upkeep reduction from lost ships...next turn the costs start piling up from the upkeep of the new ships, so don't count on this)=576 Wealth in Bleeding
Crazy...and Brilliant
Hazitean, even after starting her therapy, is not an incredibly stable Xvorzit, but her thoughts are still insightful, and though they are scattered and strange at times, with official authority and backing she could do so much more. She's still working through her substance abuse issues, and her other psychological problems, as well as the potential for physiological problems, but while reluctant, the military establishment is not quite as opposed to her. But they do have their concerns, and perhaps they are valid. Of course, you aren't exactly inclined to fully trust the establishment whose corruption and graft were quite evident. It was something to consider, certainly.
After the stunts Hazitean has pulled, oddly enough she's basically a shoo-in for the position.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 100%
Reward: +2 Martial Actions, Hazitean starts presenting her ideas and reforms, possible drop in military opinion.
Colonial Police
The colonies have their own military forces, with their own (far smaller and uneven) budget. They, even more than the army, function as police more than anything. You could make sure you have control of them and figure out what their situation is, whether there are any funds there that could be creatively transferred, and of course whether they are loyal and competent. The colonies haven't stepped out of line, but neither are they completely integrated, and the situation is still more than a little confused.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Options, an outlook on things.
What Did You do Instead?
The Navy didn't patrol as part of the Repatriation Treaty. What did they do, then? All of those times they went out- where were they going, what were they doing? It's all a bit of a puzzle, and one that might be important. Or it might be nothing, it's hard to tell, naval affairs aren't your area of expertise.
Cost: Free
Probability: 100%
Reward: Information.
Domo Arigato
Studies should begin on the robots and the various weapons retrieved during the ground battle. There might be interesting design principles or technologies there, though it's entirely possible that there won't be too much. It's hard to tell, now, when all that you have are the remains of a lot of combat bots, but there might be something there that can be used.
Cost: 10 Wealth
Probability: 1d100, the higher the better
Reward: Study the inner-workings of the robots and machines deployed by the ship.
Study the Wreck
Begin studies on the ship you recovered, the one that seemed to function most in the atmosphere but, apparently, according to Hazitean, could also go into space. Safely, if only because it had no crew whose safety the ship had to take into account. It's complex, and with the controlling mind dead there's no guarantee that you'll get anything.
Cost: 15 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Begin research on the wreck, the abomination.
(Free) Gun it!
That Farsha Mk 2 handgun, and its long-gun version, is a horrible gun. You hate that weapon with a passion. As petty a thing as that is, you hold that grudge very deeply. It's a loud, inefficient weapon, a hog of energy and bullets, and you've seen civilians that have better weapons. You could try to convince the soldier-castes to buy some of a better model and make, in fact you have some ideas already. And you're going to start by buying some on the budget you know about, maybe do some trials to show how much better they are?
Cost: 500 Wealth
Probability: 75%
Reward: Your defense forces start using guns that, while not cutting edge, are at least not completely and utterly out of date. Also, you're convincing the people who you might be prosecuting to arm themselves better.
Gifts are not Warlike
You need to begin finding some way to even out the budget. And to begin with, the place to cut is the gifts, the graft, the very obvious areas of failure and problems, even if it does annoy some soldiers. Ultimately reducing foreign dependence here is a lot more important than the feelings of the soldiers, and seeing as looking at the loans ticking upwards feels to Vorzhan like watching his life slowly drain away. It was...well, none of it was anything she wanted to deal with, and it was only going to get worse, year by year by year.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 90%
Reward: Gain 500 Wealth in military budget.
Security or Liberty?
There have been calls to decrease the scope of the defense forces to interfere in internal affairs. The police should handle it, and the idea that there is a need for forces with special weapons or more militant tactics to deal with crime seems to many to be a sign of all that was wrong with the old order. Others have argued that in these chaotic times the need is greater than ever. Separating them and enacting laws to further this split would cost little directly, but could cause bruised egos and negative effects. The demand for this is increasing, and at the moment, resting under military control, police reforms are all but impossible.
Cost: 150 wealth
Probability: 65%, failure means laws are poorly written, bitterly opposed, or wind up compromising and not fully separating police and defense-forces.
Reward: Separate police and defense forces, updated planet page to represent this, increased opinion with the common Xvorzit, grumblings among the defense forces, ???
Admiral Bizentara?
Captain Bizentara is a very skilled commander, and holds a lot of respect from his men and the navy. It might be hasty, but you could promote them to Admiral and place them in charge of the fleet in general. They could then act towards making reform of the navy possible, to the extent that you know their opinions, goals, and ideas.
Cost: 50 Wealth a turn
Probability: 90%
Reward: New and separate Naval Options category created, has 1 action per turn.
Patrol Routes!
You could have someone set up more thorough and workable patrol routes. It'd give your ships and crews experience, if not in battle (mostly) and would make it less likely that anything goes wrong. It'd also give you a chance for small encounters and the like every so often, and would certainly be a way to exercise your flabby naval muscles.
Cost: 50 wealth, 10 Wealth a turn
Probability: 70%
Reward: Patrol routes created, chance of things happening each turn!
Engines and Jump drives, oh my?
You almost died because the FTL drives that your navy uses are unreliable, and apparently are given to problems of that nature. This will not stand, and not just because you swore an over-dramatic oath towards it. You don't expect miracles, but surely there can be research into finding out what's wrong with it, and how to fix things, and maybe it can start up more naval research in the future.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 80%
Reward: Potential quick-fixes for engine problems, open up the 'Naval research' options tree and the like.
(TL;DR: Unlocks naval R&D)
Shipyards!
Any improvements to the hardware or refitting of the ships to be more up to date is impossible while the shipyards are third rate, the contractors unknown- requiring laborious individual negotiation on a ship-by-ship-basis- and the overall situation is not so good. Begin looking into solutions for what Naval officers you talk to refer to as their 'shipyard woes.'
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Opens up shipyard/hardware upgrades, chances to eventually build newer, or more up to date ships. Might have some economic advantage for civilian ships, though not anytime soon.
(TL;DR: Unlocks naval construction & refit)
Commission on Pay and Caste
Both the pay of the rank and file, and their opportunities to advance, are determined partially by caste. Many see this as unfair- you could begin to look into it, though it'd risk getting nowhere, being sabotaged by the officers, and will certainly raise more than a few hackles. Still, it might be worth it.
Cost: 50 Wealth.
Probability: 50%
Reward: Improved soldier opinion, reduced officer opinion, ???
Officer Bug?
The police lack consistent procedures in a number of areas, and even more importantly some soldiers aren't adequately trained as peacekeepers, leading to plenty of troublesome incidents. You can begin to work things out by having a set of rules and structure made for the police and the soldiers for as long as they and the police are the same--to the extent that there aren't tons of alternate organizations all overlapping in this regard. Either way, it's a start.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Create a code of conduct and a stronger set of rules for the police, open up Police Options pathway.
Slim Down
There are plenty of troops who are no longer interested in being part of the military, and thus could at least in theory open up some more cash when you're bleeding money every turn. Less to pay in terms of healthcare, though there would be some even if they retire from the military, and less troops. But those that remain would be those that are dedicated to the job, and there's likely not going to be a huge drop in the quality of the troops and their ability to work, it always was too large for the task at hand.
Cost: 25 Wealth.
Probability: 80%
Reward: 150 Wealth opened up each turn.
Hazitean, even after starting her therapy, is not an incredibly stable Xvorzit, but her thoughts are still insightful, and though they are scattered and strange at times, with official authority and backing she could do so much more. She's still working through her substance abuse issues, and her other psychological problems, as well as the potential for physiological problems, but while reluctant, the military establishment is not quite as opposed to her. But they do have their concerns, and perhaps they are valid. Of course, you aren't exactly inclined to fully trust the establishment whose corruption and graft were quite evident. It was something to consider, certainly.
After the stunts Hazitean has pulled, oddly enough she's basically a shoo-in for the position.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 100%
Reward: +2 Martial Actions, Hazitean starts presenting her ideas and reforms, possible drop in military opinion.
Colonial Police
The colonies have their own military forces, with their own (far smaller and uneven) budget. They, even more than the army, function as police more than anything. You could make sure you have control of them and figure out what their situation is, whether there are any funds there that could be creatively transferred, and of course whether they are loyal and competent. The colonies haven't stepped out of line, but neither are they completely integrated, and the situation is still more than a little confused.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Options, an outlook on things.
What Did You do Instead?
The Navy didn't patrol as part of the Repatriation Treaty. What did they do, then? All of those times they went out- where were they going, what were they doing? It's all a bit of a puzzle, and one that might be important. Or it might be nothing, it's hard to tell, naval affairs aren't your area of expertise.
Cost: Free
Probability: 100%
Reward: Information.
Domo Arigato
Studies should begin on the robots and the various weapons retrieved during the ground battle. There might be interesting design principles or technologies there, though it's entirely possible that there won't be too much. It's hard to tell, now, when all that you have are the remains of a lot of combat bots, but there might be something there that can be used.
Cost: 10 Wealth
Probability: 1d100, the higher the better
Reward: Study the inner-workings of the robots and machines deployed by the ship.
Study the Wreck
Begin studies on the ship you recovered, the one that seemed to function most in the atmosphere but, apparently, according to Hazitean, could also go into space. Safely, if only because it had no crew whose safety the ship had to take into account. It's complex, and with the controlling mind dead there's no guarantee that you'll get anything.
Cost: 15 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Begin research on the wreck, the abomination.
(Free) Gun it!
That Farsha Mk 2 handgun, and its long-gun version, is a horrible gun. You hate that weapon with a passion. As petty a thing as that is, you hold that grudge very deeply. It's a loud, inefficient weapon, a hog of energy and bullets, and you've seen civilians that have better weapons. You could try to convince the soldier-castes to buy some of a better model and make, in fact you have some ideas already. And you're going to start by buying some on the budget you know about, maybe do some trials to show how much better they are?
Cost: 500 Wealth
Probability: 75%
Reward: Your defense forces start using guns that, while not cutting edge, are at least not completely and utterly out of date. Also, you're convincing the people who you might be prosecuting to arm themselves better.
Gifts are not Warlike
You need to begin finding some way to even out the budget. And to begin with, the place to cut is the gifts, the graft, the very obvious areas of failure and problems, even if it does annoy some soldiers. Ultimately reducing foreign dependence here is a lot more important than the feelings of the soldiers, and seeing as looking at the loans ticking upwards feels to Vorzhan like watching his life slowly drain away. It was...well, none of it was anything she wanted to deal with, and it was only going to get worse, year by year by year.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 90%
Reward: Gain 500 Wealth in military budget.
Security or Liberty?
There have been calls to decrease the scope of the defense forces to interfere in internal affairs. The police should handle it, and the idea that there is a need for forces with special weapons or more militant tactics to deal with crime seems to many to be a sign of all that was wrong with the old order. Others have argued that in these chaotic times the need is greater than ever. Separating them and enacting laws to further this split would cost little directly, but could cause bruised egos and negative effects. The demand for this is increasing, and at the moment, resting under military control, police reforms are all but impossible.
Cost: 150 wealth
Probability: 65%, failure means laws are poorly written, bitterly opposed, or wind up compromising and not fully separating police and defense-forces.
Reward: Separate police and defense forces, updated planet page to represent this, increased opinion with the common Xvorzit, grumblings among the defense forces, ???
Admiral Bizentara?
Captain Bizentara is a very skilled commander, and holds a lot of respect from his men and the navy. It might be hasty, but you could promote them to Admiral and place them in charge of the fleet in general. They could then act towards making reform of the navy possible, to the extent that you know their opinions, goals, and ideas.
Cost: 50 Wealth a turn
Probability: 90%
Reward: New and separate Naval Options category created, has 1 action per turn.
Patrol Routes!
You could have someone set up more thorough and workable patrol routes. It'd give your ships and crews experience, if not in battle (mostly) and would make it less likely that anything goes wrong. It'd also give you a chance for small encounters and the like every so often, and would certainly be a way to exercise your flabby naval muscles.
Cost: 50 wealth, 10 Wealth a turn
Probability: 70%
Reward: Patrol routes created, chance of things happening each turn!
Engines and Jump drives, oh my?
You almost died because the FTL drives that your navy uses are unreliable, and apparently are given to problems of that nature. This will not stand, and not just because you swore an over-dramatic oath towards it. You don't expect miracles, but surely there can be research into finding out what's wrong with it, and how to fix things, and maybe it can start up more naval research in the future.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 80%
Reward: Potential quick-fixes for engine problems, open up the 'Naval research' options tree and the like.
(TL;DR: Unlocks naval R&D)
Shipyards!
Any improvements to the hardware or refitting of the ships to be more up to date is impossible while the shipyards are third rate, the contractors unknown- requiring laborious individual negotiation on a ship-by-ship-basis- and the overall situation is not so good. Begin looking into solutions for what Naval officers you talk to refer to as their 'shipyard woes.'
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Opens up shipyard/hardware upgrades, chances to eventually build newer, or more up to date ships. Might have some economic advantage for civilian ships, though not anytime soon.
(TL;DR: Unlocks naval construction & refit)
Commission on Pay and Caste
Both the pay of the rank and file, and their opportunities to advance, are determined partially by caste. Many see this as unfair- you could begin to look into it, though it'd risk getting nowhere, being sabotaged by the officers, and will certainly raise more than a few hackles. Still, it might be worth it.
Cost: 50 Wealth.
Probability: 50%
Reward: Improved soldier opinion, reduced officer opinion, ???
Officer Bug?
The police lack consistent procedures in a number of areas, and even more importantly some soldiers aren't adequately trained as peacekeepers, leading to plenty of troublesome incidents. You can begin to work things out by having a set of rules and structure made for the police and the soldiers for as long as they and the police are the same--to the extent that there aren't tons of alternate organizations all overlapping in this regard. Either way, it's a start.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Create a code of conduct and a stronger set of rules for the police, open up Police Options pathway.
Slim Down
There are plenty of troops who are no longer interested in being part of the military, and thus could at least in theory open up some more cash when you're bleeding money every turn. Less to pay in terms of healthcare, though there would be some even if they retire from the military, and less troops. But those that remain would be those that are dedicated to the job, and there's likely not going to be a huge drop in the quality of the troops and their ability to work, it always was too large for the task at hand.
Cost: 25 Wealth.
Probability: 80%
Reward: 150 Wealth opened up each turn.
Diplomacy: You are making further progress in the matter of diplomacy, even if there's too much to do. It's far more enjoyable than… other things. (Pick 2) (+5 to Foreign Diplomacy)
No, seriously, what?
You are going to talk to the monarch, and anyone that you can find. It boggles your mind and gives you a headache every time you think about their misrule. You need to talk to them, figure out what happened and why it happened, in order to prevent this sort of thing in the future. And because your suspicion of them has increased dramatically over the last few months, to the point where you're half-afraid they're working against you.
Traitors, the lot of them, Hazitean says, deserving of being pushed up against the wall and shot. Your disagreement is... rather less vocal than it was before.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Information, knowledge, options.
Caste of Diplomats?
You have an entire caste of diplomats. Just… how good are they? Have they been doing a good job? Are there any candidates that you might promote to ambassadors? Any major problems sneaking up on you? You need to find out. And ultimately if you want an advisor to help you, they'd have to come from here.
Your faith in them has been shaken, or at least your faith in the ambassadors, but the situation has convinced you that you need someone on this yesterday.
Cost: None
Probability: 70%
Reward: More options, have some choices for a diplomatic Advisor, ???
Possibilities: Human Powers?
One of the more obvious ways to look diplomatically is towards the various human powers in the regions. Acquire dossiers on them, learn more about their trading needs, figure out as much as you can about them for the purpose of having more complete diplomatic relationships later on.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 60%+10%
Reward: Options.
Possibilities: Barsamen Confederacy
Recent events in the Barsamen Confederacy have come to your attention. You have no ties with the Confederacy, or even the Xvorzith hive world that is part of it, but it's one of the most powerful and populous entities in known space, to the extent that it is a single government. You could look into learning more about them and how there might be some connections that could be made.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 50%+5
Reward: Options, etc
(Free) Possibilities: Xvorzith Hives
Even more obvious are the other Xvorzit hives. Many have governments similar to the one you're trying to set up, so you could talk to them, try to figure out how you might work together. It'd be easier in some ways, though ultimately you are competitors as well as friends in the economic struggle. But it's certainly something you could follow up on.
I'isanah is working on this, actually!
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 70%+5
Reward: Options for the option god!
Learn the Will of the Hive
What do the people want, diplomatically? Are there any groups that haven't been heard, are there options that have been ignored because they have come from outside the usual context and the corridors of power? You should ask around, start to get to know the people's will.
Cost: Free
Probability: 70%
Reward: Options, Learn the Will of the Hive on these matters, increased commoner opinion, ???
Talk to the Colonies
The administrators currently in charge might or might not have to go, but either way you need to make sure everyone's working together, legs locked and all of that. Talking to them and making sure there are not any concerns or problems you're missing is a good start to that.
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Information, concerns, increased contact.
Re-establish all the Embassies
It's right there in the name. Establish new embassies on the Technocratic Imperium, the Incorporated Suns, the League of Free Worlds, the People's Republic of Tanara, the Republic of Deiah, Stendar, the Varalai Federation, the Transpecies Harmony Republic, The Star Kingdom of Kenoadad, the Republic of Graha, the other Xvorzith Hives, the Barsa Confederacy, the Ilwari Union, the Tawasi, the Mercantile Republic, the Rorrox...everyone, absolutely everyone.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: Roll for each individual state with diplomacy and modifiers and different DCs for each. Failure is a minor setback...unless you crit-fail.+5
Reward: Embassies EVERYWHERE
Political Toe-Dipping
Your ambassador to Sol would have to step lightly indeed, but they could start to try to learn more about the political situation on Sol, and transmit it back to you. Since Kikkizit has been rather mum on their interactions with Prime Minister Mutumbo this would be a good first step, though there's some danger, if not done right, that it could be seen as untowards interference.
Cost: 5 Wealth
Probability: 75%
Reward: Information, options, ties.
Meet the Sol Ambassador
You've heard so much about them, and you've sorta been busy the past while, so why not have a meeting with him...and just as importantly, bring up modifications to your existing treaties to deal with the critical 'bleed' situation, or all sorts of other matters.
Cost: Free
Probability: Roll 1d100+Diplomacy to see how it goes.
Reward: ???
You are going to talk to the monarch, and anyone that you can find. It boggles your mind and gives you a headache every time you think about their misrule. You need to talk to them, figure out what happened and why it happened, in order to prevent this sort of thing in the future. And because your suspicion of them has increased dramatically over the last few months, to the point where you're half-afraid they're working against you.
Traitors, the lot of them, Hazitean says, deserving of being pushed up against the wall and shot. Your disagreement is... rather less vocal than it was before.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Information, knowledge, options.
Caste of Diplomats?
You have an entire caste of diplomats. Just… how good are they? Have they been doing a good job? Are there any candidates that you might promote to ambassadors? Any major problems sneaking up on you? You need to find out. And ultimately if you want an advisor to help you, they'd have to come from here.
Your faith in them has been shaken, or at least your faith in the ambassadors, but the situation has convinced you that you need someone on this yesterday.
Cost: None
Probability: 70%
Reward: More options, have some choices for a diplomatic Advisor, ???
Possibilities: Human Powers?
One of the more obvious ways to look diplomatically is towards the various human powers in the regions. Acquire dossiers on them, learn more about their trading needs, figure out as much as you can about them for the purpose of having more complete diplomatic relationships later on.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 60%+10%
Reward: Options.
Possibilities: Barsamen Confederacy
Recent events in the Barsamen Confederacy have come to your attention. You have no ties with the Confederacy, or even the Xvorzith hive world that is part of it, but it's one of the most powerful and populous entities in known space, to the extent that it is a single government. You could look into learning more about them and how there might be some connections that could be made.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 50%+5
Reward: Options, etc
(Free) Possibilities: Xvorzith Hives
Even more obvious are the other Xvorzit hives. Many have governments similar to the one you're trying to set up, so you could talk to them, try to figure out how you might work together. It'd be easier in some ways, though ultimately you are competitors as well as friends in the economic struggle. But it's certainly something you could follow up on.
I'isanah is working on this, actually!
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 70%+5
Reward: Options for the option god!
Learn the Will of the Hive
What do the people want, diplomatically? Are there any groups that haven't been heard, are there options that have been ignored because they have come from outside the usual context and the corridors of power? You should ask around, start to get to know the people's will.
Cost: Free
Probability: 70%
Reward: Options, Learn the Will of the Hive on these matters, increased commoner opinion, ???
Talk to the Colonies
The administrators currently in charge might or might not have to go, but either way you need to make sure everyone's working together, legs locked and all of that. Talking to them and making sure there are not any concerns or problems you're missing is a good start to that.
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Information, concerns, increased contact.
Re-establish all the Embassies
It's right there in the name. Establish new embassies on the Technocratic Imperium, the Incorporated Suns, the League of Free Worlds, the People's Republic of Tanara, the Republic of Deiah, Stendar, the Varalai Federation, the Transpecies Harmony Republic, The Star Kingdom of Kenoadad, the Republic of Graha, the other Xvorzith Hives, the Barsa Confederacy, the Ilwari Union, the Tawasi, the Mercantile Republic, the Rorrox...everyone, absolutely everyone.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: Roll for each individual state with diplomacy and modifiers and different DCs for each. Failure is a minor setback...unless you crit-fail.+5
Reward: Embassies EVERYWHERE
Political Toe-Dipping
Your ambassador to Sol would have to step lightly indeed, but they could start to try to learn more about the political situation on Sol, and transmit it back to you. Since Kikkizit has been rather mum on their interactions with Prime Minister Mutumbo this would be a good first step, though there's some danger, if not done right, that it could be seen as untowards interference.
Cost: 5 Wealth
Probability: 75%
Reward: Information, options, ties.
Meet the Sol Ambassador
You've heard so much about them, and you've sorta been busy the past while, so why not have a meeting with him...and just as importantly, bring up modifications to your existing treaties to deal with the critical 'bleed' situation, or all sorts of other matters.
Cost: Free
Probability: Roll 1d100+Diplomacy to see how it goes.
Reward: ???
Stewardship: The economy is doing better than ever. But then, why don't you ever want to talk about it. You *thought* you were good at administration, charts, graphs, and even economics. But... all it gives you is a headache and a growing sense of inadequacy. Every few hours of work is followed by at least an hour of blinding headaches. You have too much to do, and too little time, and so you work through it, if at all possible. (Pick 3) (Will of the Hive currently at 1.)
Colony Administration
Try to arrange the administration of the colonies in a way that will work better. Right now there are appointed governors and small councils and the like, you could bring democracy (and people who are more surely in your pocket) to the colonies! It's probably overdue, and there are more calls for it now than there were before.
Cost: 100 Wealth, 50 Wealth a turn.
Probability: 60%
Reward: New colonial administration, stronger hold on them, options.
(Locked in!) Buy-out?
You know the Iashec have holdings on the planet, tax-free other than bribes and a few taxes they aren't immune to. You could research and begin buying out the smaller of the holdings and companies, while seeing what else you can do. Ultimately you want them all gone, yet short of nationalizing them in an overt act, it's going to be expensive and take a while, but it might have very positive effects on the economy. You can also do the same for the Colonial holdings at the same time, now that you know about them. Though now that they're on to you it could be a lot more complicated, or even lengthy with long legal battles and negotiations.
Cost: 600 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Time: Will complete next turn!
Reward: Government now owns several companies, potential wealth increase, options on what to do with them, knowledge of the larger Iashec firms that are harder to buy out.
Military Duties
You could open up some new taxes, import and export duties in order to pay for the military bleeding. In the long term, it might dampen economic growth, but it could make a quick patch for the shortfall that can then be fixed later.
Cost: Free, for now.
Probability: 100%
Reward: 250 Wealth, only towards Military matters. Small across-the-board opinion loss.
(Ongoing) Open Up Avenues
This is ongoing, and will be continued unless you vote to discontinue it. So you can ignore it, though at some later date you might decide that the markets are tapped out and that continuing to spend 100 Wealth on it will provide no bonuses. Indeed, it is possible for that to happen, eventually.
Cost: 100 Wealth a Turn
Probability: ???
Reward: Continues the program
(Hive) Unhelpful Taxes
There are taxes designed towards the underclasses, like the way that there is a tax for having more than one sac worth of kids, or the extra taxes levied if you live in houses constructed by non-builder-caste members. Those you know about. Your former caste. Tons of them cluster, and then there are payroll taxes, and taxes on basic necessities, and 'buy in' taxes designed to make sure that each and every member of the society has 'chitin in the game.' It's all rather problematic, and bizarrely enough, here Hazitean is taking the lead in advocating against them. She was born poor, and still remembers those times.
Now that the will of the Hive has been unleashed, this is a Hive action.
Call: Medium, trending towards High
Cost: 300 Wealth
Probability: 65% (+5 to rolls for it)
Reward: -600 Wealth a turn, Worker opinion increases, potential long-term gains.
Exemptions Must Go
The ruler caste doesn't pay taxes. The merchants don't pay import fees. People of the military caste have 50% discounts on all taxes. The diplomatic caste is immune from all import and export fees, as well as any fees on gifts they receive, and there are a thousand other exemptions. Some are not entirely bad and might be turned into some sort of 'tax-credit/reduction' sort of thing, like with teachers, or with builders and property taxes or so on, but a lot of it just can't be defended at all. Rip it all away, and let the light of taxation finally hit them.
Cost: 250 Wealth
Probability: ???, rolling better means you get more.
Reward: 500-1000 Wealth a turn, targeted groups will like you less.
Lower Taxes
The counterpoint is that the exemptions, while unfair, are also the only thing keeping the system going. As utterly messed up as the taxation system is, if everyone was getting hit equally it'd fall apart. More efficiency could, some argue, lead to depressed economic growth. Yet at the same time lowering taxes would lead to a large shortfall, and in the long term everyone admits it isn't a solution.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 50%
Reward: -800 Taxation income, tax burden reduced, mitigates for exemptions, preventing the economy from dipping, but might create difficulties in the future. Increased opinion of you across the board, though.
No Mr. Bond, I expect you to mature in 5, 10, or 20 years
Bonds are an idea that Kikkizit suggested off-hand, having read about them in regards to both Xvorzit Hives and Barsa and Human worlds. It gives a way for the common citizen to invest in the government at a time where the question of corporate investment is rather muted. It would of course have to be set up properly, and more than that it would be subject to the whims of consumer interest and confidence. But it could make money and it wouldn't step on any toes.
Cost: 150 Wealth, 25 Wealth a turn (for the structure and such)
Probability: 85%
Reward: Unknown amount of Wealth per turn, increases and decreases based on the confidence the people have and the economic situation. Currently estimated to be between 600-700 Wealth per turn.
There's Power in a Workers Association
Long hours, beatings, suppression of workers rights. You cannot accept any of this, and it has to stop now. Start by setting up some commissions. And if any of them get in your way, any of those so-called 'public corporations' that allowed this, you have no compunctions about destroying them. Patiently, slowly, justly, but if it comes down to it, destruction is better than the situation as it is now. Plus, it'd be really, really cathartic.
Cost: 25 Wealth a Turn.
Time: 1d4 Turns
Probability: 100%, rolls less than 40 add another year onto the time.
Reward: You shall BREAK them. You shall make it so that the worker no longer fears those who would exploit them, and if they stand in your way it shall be the last mistake they make.
Mines of the Hive
You need to make them productive. Which means charts. Graphs. Long meetings and economists accusing each other of being literally worse than Jasirin. All in a long day's work, but it would lead to the mines you purchased out in order to reform turning some degree of profits, at least hopefully.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Wealth, options, lots of good stuff!
Trauma Centers
Those that are hurt cannot be un-hurt. You cannot turn back the hands of time, but you can punish the guilty, prevent these things from happening, and open up psychological groups to allow them to cope with all that's happened, among other things. These abuses didn't used to be common, and they are disgusting, against everything Xvorzith culture is meant to embody, and yet you have a feeling that the disgust and rot is going to have to be cleansed, bit by bit, to restore Gazinitah to what it might have been.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 90%
Reward: Open up more clinics for those suffering abuse and rape, either at the hands of an employer (what drew the case to you) or otherwise.
Talk to the Castes
These castes were the ones that ran the bureaucracy that the ruler-castes led, they organized the economy, they did much of the middle-management. And they have been cast aside for the moment. You could reach out a hand and talk to them, learn about their concerns and see what they know?
Cost: Free
Probability: 80%, roll 1d100+Stewardship+½ Diplomacy to see how they take it.
Reward: Information, more knowledge of what they think of you. Opens up options.
Judicial Activism
Judges are terrible, chosen by inter-caste mechanics, and not remotely fair. You can solve all of these, taking the selection away from the judicial caste, for the moment doing it via appointment and eliminating those judges that don't measure up. Eventually you'll have to stop doing it by hand, it's not efficient, but for the moment there's at least enough information to start throwing out the worst offenders and starting with a clean slate, however difficult in time and work (with lawyers) it would be.
Cost: 150 Wealth
Probability: 55%
Reward: Judicial oversight, options.
Lawyer Up
The standards for lawyers is both far too strict and far too lax. Call attention to their problems and change the standards in a way that doesn't lead to as much railroading. It'd take money, potentially money you don't have, but it'd improve standards some.
Cost: 100 Wealth a turn.
Probability: 75%
Reward: Better lawyers and law-situation. Options might eventually open up (given time.)
Legal Reforms
Now that the bad laws have been eliminated, it was time to start fresh. You can start creating laws that can more carefully target the large cartels, keeping them off balance, and undermining the truly dangerous parts of drug culture and other such dangerous avenues. One has to step carefully not to repeat the mistakes of the past, but that the future might hold more than mistakes, it's something you must believe in, and so you shall have your lawyer friends and others try to craft something new, see whether it sticks.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Reformed laws, more weapons in the legal arsenal against large-scale crime, without targeting or weakening individual liberties more than is necessary.
A Survey of the Law-Books
You could hire some people to look through the entire law-literature of Gazinitah for suggestions towards tighter, more careful reforms. However, at this point with the judiciary not yet reformed, with very difficult requirements and fewer trusted members, this would take a while. But it would probably pay off. Probably. Though at the moment it'd be difficult.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 80%
Time: 1d2+2 Turns, might be less later on.
Reward: Further legal reforms, more knowledge of your own laws, other advantages/perks.
(Hive)Palace Fees
No. Get rid of it. You cannot possibly accept this as a valid use of economic power of your country, and you have to at least reduce it. It'll be dicey, and there might be calls against it from some, while others call for its complete elimination. You'll try to balance it, reducing it greatly while not leading to protest or dislike.
Call: Low, but growing, thanks to increased issue awareness. No major pressure yet.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: 500-1000 Wealth, potential raised/lowered ruler/worker opinion. The rest of that money (300-800 Wealth) would have to be gotten at in the budget more subtly because it's less obviously payoffs and might cause a bigger stink.
Diplomacy?
How much of that huge diplomatic budget is corruption? If any of it is, can it be taken away? And is there any waste or areas where it could be trimmed down even if it isn't corrupt? You're still not at the 'belt tightening and desperate scrabbling' part...well, mostly, but surely there's a little fat there.
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Wealth? Information? Options?
Search for an Adviser
You need help. Being able to fund a resistance movement or a secret holo-cast channel or do your household budget with your eyes closed and not counting off on your digits is not the same as running a world economy. Search for someone to help you.
Cost: 200 Wealth, 100 Wealth per turn to pay them.
Probability: 100% (roll to see how good of a selection you find to choose from.)
Reward: An economic advisor. If they have a higher Stewardship than you than you can finally have time to take a breath without numbers swimming through your head. +1 Stewardship, if replaced by Adviser's bonus, becomes +1 Personal Action, thus allowing the same number of Stewardship actions and one extra Personal Action.
(Hive) Caste or No Caste
It'll begin small, aimed at the specific complaints addressed to you, rather than at the issue as a whole, but something is better than nothing, right? Remove restrictions on low-level jobs that exist which protect them for certain castes. It's not targeting the soldier caste, the rulers, the merchants and the diplomats yet, nor other high-value castes, but it's part of a process, or it can be seen that way. However, some argue that taking small steps won't solve the larger problem or that it's premature... and yet, the call is strong.
Call: Very, Very High
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Caste prejudices in small positions attacked, potential loss/gain of opinion in several groups. No decrease in popular opinion.
(Hive) Government Fooding
You could buy out the company now that it's been laid low by your lawsuits and your consumer protection, and perhaps use it as a way to get the poor subsidized food on the cheap, as well as generally win points with the populace. It wouldn't make much, if any, money as a government corporation if you used it this way, but there are things more important than wealth, at least directly
Cost: 200 Wealth (It's a big company)-50 Wealth in losses a year
Call: Low
Probability: 100%
Reward: You now own a company! Joy. New options! Opinion of the masses increased.
(Hive) Public Transportation
Public transportation needs to be better, that much is rather obvious. And there are some calls to do so, even though it is indeed quite expensive. It'd be best at the moment to start with the areas of complaint, a set of Hive-Cities on the southern continent, solving their problems directly without going for the big, sweeping gesture...yet.
Call: Medium
Cost: 150 Weath
Probability: 85%+5
Reward: Public transportation improved in one area. Increased worker opinion. On the other hand, more graphs.
The Moneybags
The ruler-castes, the bureaucrats, they have money stored away, hidden away. The rich, the powerful they always do. Vast fortunes immune to taxation, immune to sense, covered in blood. You could free it, as it were. Fuck what the former rulers say, the money belongs to the people, through your own will, to spend for their betterment.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 50%
Reward: ??? Wealth, Caste and Ruler-Caste opinion lowered, perhaps dramatically, ???
Public Parks
Recreating the entire agricultural order is not on your agenda at the moment, and so you've told Kikkizit to shelve the plans until there is less on your plate since even looking at it for too long does horrible things to you, but public parks sounds nice, safe and uncontroversial, and Kikkizit talked you through it in a way that both allowed you to understand it without creating too many difficulties. Plus, it'd improve morale.
Cost: 75 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Parks start getting built, people get happier. Maybe you can go to one of them sometime and relax away from economic duties?
Try to arrange the administration of the colonies in a way that will work better. Right now there are appointed governors and small councils and the like, you could bring democracy (and people who are more surely in your pocket) to the colonies! It's probably overdue, and there are more calls for it now than there were before.
Cost: 100 Wealth, 50 Wealth a turn.
Probability: 60%
Reward: New colonial administration, stronger hold on them, options.
(Locked in!) Buy-out?
You know the Iashec have holdings on the planet, tax-free other than bribes and a few taxes they aren't immune to. You could research and begin buying out the smaller of the holdings and companies, while seeing what else you can do. Ultimately you want them all gone, yet short of nationalizing them in an overt act, it's going to be expensive and take a while, but it might have very positive effects on the economy. You can also do the same for the Colonial holdings at the same time, now that you know about them. Though now that they're on to you it could be a lot more complicated, or even lengthy with long legal battles and negotiations.
Cost: 600 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Time: Will complete next turn!
Reward: Government now owns several companies, potential wealth increase, options on what to do with them, knowledge of the larger Iashec firms that are harder to buy out.
Military Duties
You could open up some new taxes, import and export duties in order to pay for the military bleeding. In the long term, it might dampen economic growth, but it could make a quick patch for the shortfall that can then be fixed later.
Cost: Free, for now.
Probability: 100%
Reward: 250 Wealth, only towards Military matters. Small across-the-board opinion loss.
(Ongoing) Open Up Avenues
This is ongoing, and will be continued unless you vote to discontinue it. So you can ignore it, though at some later date you might decide that the markets are tapped out and that continuing to spend 100 Wealth on it will provide no bonuses. Indeed, it is possible for that to happen, eventually.
Cost: 100 Wealth a Turn
Probability: ???
Reward: Continues the program
(Hive) Unhelpful Taxes
There are taxes designed towards the underclasses, like the way that there is a tax for having more than one sac worth of kids, or the extra taxes levied if you live in houses constructed by non-builder-caste members. Those you know about. Your former caste. Tons of them cluster, and then there are payroll taxes, and taxes on basic necessities, and 'buy in' taxes designed to make sure that each and every member of the society has 'chitin in the game.' It's all rather problematic, and bizarrely enough, here Hazitean is taking the lead in advocating against them. She was born poor, and still remembers those times.
Now that the will of the Hive has been unleashed, this is a Hive action.
Call: Medium, trending towards High
Cost: 300 Wealth
Probability: 65% (+5 to rolls for it)
Reward: -600 Wealth a turn, Worker opinion increases, potential long-term gains.
Exemptions Must Go
The ruler caste doesn't pay taxes. The merchants don't pay import fees. People of the military caste have 50% discounts on all taxes. The diplomatic caste is immune from all import and export fees, as well as any fees on gifts they receive, and there are a thousand other exemptions. Some are not entirely bad and might be turned into some sort of 'tax-credit/reduction' sort of thing, like with teachers, or with builders and property taxes or so on, but a lot of it just can't be defended at all. Rip it all away, and let the light of taxation finally hit them.
Cost: 250 Wealth
Probability: ???, rolling better means you get more.
Reward: 500-1000 Wealth a turn, targeted groups will like you less.
Lower Taxes
The counterpoint is that the exemptions, while unfair, are also the only thing keeping the system going. As utterly messed up as the taxation system is, if everyone was getting hit equally it'd fall apart. More efficiency could, some argue, lead to depressed economic growth. Yet at the same time lowering taxes would lead to a large shortfall, and in the long term everyone admits it isn't a solution.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 50%
Reward: -800 Taxation income, tax burden reduced, mitigates for exemptions, preventing the economy from dipping, but might create difficulties in the future. Increased opinion of you across the board, though.
No Mr. Bond, I expect you to mature in 5, 10, or 20 years
Bonds are an idea that Kikkizit suggested off-hand, having read about them in regards to both Xvorzit Hives and Barsa and Human worlds. It gives a way for the common citizen to invest in the government at a time where the question of corporate investment is rather muted. It would of course have to be set up properly, and more than that it would be subject to the whims of consumer interest and confidence. But it could make money and it wouldn't step on any toes.
Cost: 150 Wealth, 25 Wealth a turn (for the structure and such)
Probability: 85%
Reward: Unknown amount of Wealth per turn, increases and decreases based on the confidence the people have and the economic situation. Currently estimated to be between 600-700 Wealth per turn.
There's Power in a Workers Association
Long hours, beatings, suppression of workers rights. You cannot accept any of this, and it has to stop now. Start by setting up some commissions. And if any of them get in your way, any of those so-called 'public corporations' that allowed this, you have no compunctions about destroying them. Patiently, slowly, justly, but if it comes down to it, destruction is better than the situation as it is now. Plus, it'd be really, really cathartic.
Cost: 25 Wealth a Turn.
Time: 1d4 Turns
Probability: 100%, rolls less than 40 add another year onto the time.
Reward: You shall BREAK them. You shall make it so that the worker no longer fears those who would exploit them, and if they stand in your way it shall be the last mistake they make.
Mines of the Hive
You need to make them productive. Which means charts. Graphs. Long meetings and economists accusing each other of being literally worse than Jasirin. All in a long day's work, but it would lead to the mines you purchased out in order to reform turning some degree of profits, at least hopefully.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Wealth, options, lots of good stuff!
Trauma Centers
Those that are hurt cannot be un-hurt. You cannot turn back the hands of time, but you can punish the guilty, prevent these things from happening, and open up psychological groups to allow them to cope with all that's happened, among other things. These abuses didn't used to be common, and they are disgusting, against everything Xvorzith culture is meant to embody, and yet you have a feeling that the disgust and rot is going to have to be cleansed, bit by bit, to restore Gazinitah to what it might have been.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 90%
Reward: Open up more clinics for those suffering abuse and rape, either at the hands of an employer (what drew the case to you) or otherwise.
Talk to the Castes
These castes were the ones that ran the bureaucracy that the ruler-castes led, they organized the economy, they did much of the middle-management. And they have been cast aside for the moment. You could reach out a hand and talk to them, learn about their concerns and see what they know?
Cost: Free
Probability: 80%, roll 1d100+Stewardship+½ Diplomacy to see how they take it.
Reward: Information, more knowledge of what they think of you. Opens up options.
Judicial Activism
Judges are terrible, chosen by inter-caste mechanics, and not remotely fair. You can solve all of these, taking the selection away from the judicial caste, for the moment doing it via appointment and eliminating those judges that don't measure up. Eventually you'll have to stop doing it by hand, it's not efficient, but for the moment there's at least enough information to start throwing out the worst offenders and starting with a clean slate, however difficult in time and work (with lawyers) it would be.
Cost: 150 Wealth
Probability: 55%
Reward: Judicial oversight, options.
Lawyer Up
The standards for lawyers is both far too strict and far too lax. Call attention to their problems and change the standards in a way that doesn't lead to as much railroading. It'd take money, potentially money you don't have, but it'd improve standards some.
Cost: 100 Wealth a turn.
Probability: 75%
Reward: Better lawyers and law-situation. Options might eventually open up (given time.)
Legal Reforms
Now that the bad laws have been eliminated, it was time to start fresh. You can start creating laws that can more carefully target the large cartels, keeping them off balance, and undermining the truly dangerous parts of drug culture and other such dangerous avenues. One has to step carefully not to repeat the mistakes of the past, but that the future might hold more than mistakes, it's something you must believe in, and so you shall have your lawyer friends and others try to craft something new, see whether it sticks.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Reformed laws, more weapons in the legal arsenal against large-scale crime, without targeting or weakening individual liberties more than is necessary.
A Survey of the Law-Books
You could hire some people to look through the entire law-literature of Gazinitah for suggestions towards tighter, more careful reforms. However, at this point with the judiciary not yet reformed, with very difficult requirements and fewer trusted members, this would take a while. But it would probably pay off. Probably. Though at the moment it'd be difficult.
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 80%
Time: 1d2+2 Turns, might be less later on.
Reward: Further legal reforms, more knowledge of your own laws, other advantages/perks.
(Hive)Palace Fees
No. Get rid of it. You cannot possibly accept this as a valid use of economic power of your country, and you have to at least reduce it. It'll be dicey, and there might be calls against it from some, while others call for its complete elimination. You'll try to balance it, reducing it greatly while not leading to protest or dislike.
Call: Low, but growing, thanks to increased issue awareness. No major pressure yet.
Cost: 50 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: 500-1000 Wealth, potential raised/lowered ruler/worker opinion. The rest of that money (300-800 Wealth) would have to be gotten at in the budget more subtly because it's less obviously payoffs and might cause a bigger stink.
Diplomacy?
How much of that huge diplomatic budget is corruption? If any of it is, can it be taken away? And is there any waste or areas where it could be trimmed down even if it isn't corrupt? You're still not at the 'belt tightening and desperate scrabbling' part...well, mostly, but surely there's a little fat there.
Cost: 25 Wealth
Probability: 65%
Reward: Wealth? Information? Options?
Search for an Adviser
You need help. Being able to fund a resistance movement or a secret holo-cast channel or do your household budget with your eyes closed and not counting off on your digits is not the same as running a world economy. Search for someone to help you.
Cost: 200 Wealth, 100 Wealth per turn to pay them.
Probability: 100% (roll to see how good of a selection you find to choose from.)
Reward: An economic advisor. If they have a higher Stewardship than you than you can finally have time to take a breath without numbers swimming through your head. +1 Stewardship, if replaced by Adviser's bonus, becomes +1 Personal Action, thus allowing the same number of Stewardship actions and one extra Personal Action.
(Hive) Caste or No Caste
It'll begin small, aimed at the specific complaints addressed to you, rather than at the issue as a whole, but something is better than nothing, right? Remove restrictions on low-level jobs that exist which protect them for certain castes. It's not targeting the soldier caste, the rulers, the merchants and the diplomats yet, nor other high-value castes, but it's part of a process, or it can be seen that way. However, some argue that taking small steps won't solve the larger problem or that it's premature... and yet, the call is strong.
Call: Very, Very High
Cost: 100 Wealth
Probability: 70%
Reward: Caste prejudices in small positions attacked, potential loss/gain of opinion in several groups. No decrease in popular opinion.
(Hive) Government Fooding
You could buy out the company now that it's been laid low by your lawsuits and your consumer protection, and perhaps use it as a way to get the poor subsidized food on the cheap, as well as generally win points with the populace. It wouldn't make much, if any, money as a government corporation if you used it this way, but there are things more important than wealth, at least directly
Cost: 200 Wealth (It's a big company)-50 Wealth in losses a year
Call: Low
Probability: 100%
Reward: You now own a company! Joy. New options! Opinion of the masses increased.
(Hive) Public Transportation
Public transportation needs to be better, that much is rather obvious. And there are some calls to do so, even though it is indeed quite expensive. It'd be best at the moment to start with the areas of complaint, a set of Hive-Cities on the southern continent, solving their problems directly without going for the big, sweeping gesture...yet.
Call: Medium
Cost: 150 Weath
Probability: 85%+5
Reward: Public transportation improved in one area. Increased worker opinion. On the other hand, more graphs.
The Moneybags
The ruler-castes, the bureaucrats, they have money stored away, hidden away. The rich, the powerful they always do. Vast fortunes immune to taxation, immune to sense, covered in blood. You could free it, as it were. Fuck what the former rulers say, the money belongs to the people, through your own will, to spend for their betterment.
Cost: 200 Wealth
Probability: 50%
Reward: ??? Wealth, Caste and Ruler-Caste opinion lowered, perhaps dramatically, ???
Public Parks
Recreating the entire agricultural order is not on your agenda at the moment, and so you've told Kikkizit to shelve the plans until there is less on your plate since even looking at it for too long does horrible things to you, but public parks sounds nice, safe and uncontroversial, and Kikkizit talked you through it in a way that both allowed you to understand it without creating too many difficulties. Plus, it'd improve morale.
Cost: 75 Wealth
Probability: 60%
Reward: Parks start getting built, people get happier. Maybe you can go to one of them sometime and relax away from economic duties?
*****
A/N: And so the vote's up! I will note that while opening up a Naval Category gives more overall options, and more consistent ones as well, it does come with a small potential drawback, sorta. Getting more than one action will take some buildup, while theoretically if you kept them together you could spend all two (four once you get Hazitean) actions one year on things that'd be locked away in the Naval Category. Now, of course, you have plenty else to occupy you, but that'd at least theoretically be possible, whereas once Hazitean is locked out of control over that end, her actions will be aimed only at her baliwick: everything non-naval.
Anyways, hope it looks good, and a spoilered it this time!
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