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A Sword Without a Hilt: A Song of Ice and Fire/D&D 3.5 Crossover

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Adhoc vote count started by DragonParadox on Oct 5, 2019 at 9:49 AM, finished with 106 posts and 14 votes.
  • [X] In Dragon Shape
    -[X] Arrive in style, enjoying the freedom and dominion of the skies just as naturally as you might fly above the Deep, but when it comes to speaking to the people take the form of man, for that is the form with which you rule and make common cause with most.
    [X] With Company
    -[X] All Companions make at least a brief appearance as we are making a show of it and they are famous, as well as Rhaella who deserves to share your triumphs just as much as they. Lady Saenena, Rhaella and Nettles will buzz the city in formation atop dragonback near the end of the day before returning to their business. Have Varys direct Balerion during the display in your stead.
    -[X] Lya will be at your side all throughout, and she might offer her own words to your speech or alter it and make it grander all for it. Today, and for all days, you will take on the burdens of rule side-by-side. Let there be no illusions that she is merely an ornament to your rule.
    -[X] Copious Buffing occurs for both:
    -[X] Divine Insight and Surge of Fortune (for a +35 bonus during the crescendo of each speech)
    -[X] Grand Destiny (for a +4 bonus at the five most important points of each speech)
    -[X] Greater Heroism (+4 Morale bonus)
    -[X] Voice of the Dragon and Air of Nobility (+20)
    -[X] Mythic Surge (+1d6 during the crescendo of each speech)
    -[X] Total: +49 from Viserys' base Diplomacy and another +24 from long duration buffs, for a total of +73, or +77 at four points during each speech. That increases to +116+1d6 during the crescendo of each speech.
    [X] To crowd and court
    -[X] To the plebs:
    -[X] "Citizens, I offer greetings to you. Some of you may know me for my deeds, and some of you might have come to experience my works first hand already. It is to you this day is a triumph to, for it is back to the first page in the annals of our forefathers when Western Essos stood as one."
    -[X] "And it is as one body that we march into the future, into the winds of change. It is not merely sifting through the ruins of the past that we might gain glory, for just as the common adage goes that we must learn from history in order avoid its mistakes, one must look to the future where dreams not yet envisioned might reach the light of day."
    -[X] "Networks of roads forged by sorcery even now take shape across the continent, straight and wide to bind the realm together, trade is stronger today among signatories of this accord than it has been for centuries. Never before have we had this opportunity for prosperity and peace secured with common bonds of friendship and good fortune, as much as the protections of strong armies and uncommon guardians as dragons."
    -[X] "But not all is as it seems. These mechanisms of empire, this artifice of war is not merely for welding Essos together as Aegon of old might have dreamed of Westeros. We are a people besieged not by our own ambitions but by darker things, the pitiless baleful gaze of aberrant ilk lurking beneath the waves, the restless dead haunting the plains and steppe, the cold blowing of the Northern Wind, the ancient sins of our forefathers, and more, inexorable in its march to bring an end to our way of lives. And if they should stand unopposed, civilization as we know it."
    -[X] "But we are not defenseless before the night. We are not without our defiance, shouting it into the distance before the contempt of pitiless gods and monsters. We are the firmament of the earth, reforged as iron is to steel. We are the burning flame to ward off the darkness that encroaches upon us from all quarters. We are first rays of the sun on the horizon. We, all marching together, for no one man alone is responsible for our survival. Only together can our deeds committed here and now serve to overcome these trials presented before us."
    -[X] "We are at a turning point today. This is the pivot upon which history will remember that when we came under attack from those without, rather than turning upon each other like a pack of hyenas as the sons of Ghiscar have, we will have stood together."
    -[X] To the Court:
    -[X] "Sons and Daughters of Valyria, I have no doubt you have your own means to have heard the promise and the warning given to the masses outside these hallowed halls."
    -[X] "So I will dispense with both, as what I speak implores you to simply pay witness to the unvarnished truth. Let this be the first counsel of many I take up with you, you deserve no less than that for you have chosen with forethought the better path for your kin."
    -[X] "Out there, the common man, barring the few with the talent, will and ambition to rise above their current status, have little need to do more but live their lives to the fullest extent to which they are obliged as citizens of a new realm, to reap all the benefits of being united under one banner."
    -[X] "A realm where rule of law is the order of the day, where the stern hand of justice guards men and women's livelihoods and ensures the common betterment of all, highborn or low, for when their rulers prosper so too those who follow them are able to."
    -[X] "Let me be open and honest then, for we of all people cannot afford self-delusion. Not any longer. We are facing a new age with all its wonders, and its terrors."
    -[X] "All I have done for the past four years was deliberate, calculated, yes, sometimes even ruthless. But it was also done with the minimum amount of bloodshed, lost lives and guaranteed stability throughout Western Essos in the long term."
    -[X] "The current state of affairs was not won without that bloodshed, but you will find, and I hope eventually make peace with the knowledge, that it was a mercy for slavery to die a quiet death. It could have been so much worse, after all, seeing as how fiends had been plotting for centuries to exploit that arrow in their quiver and use the chaos to reap a bloody harvest."
    -[X] "That is not to say my task has always gone perfectly, or that we are free and clear of that tangle. Slavery lives on in some parts of the continent. Our work will never be done until it is at an end, our safety will never be guaranteed from the guile and scheming of Asmodeus or his ilk if we do not strike off the last collar and melt down the last chain."
    -[X] If there is any confusion of who you speak of, briefly elaborate on what Baator is in general terms that you can while guarding more precarious knowledge, how it is structured and what you are all essentially up against.
    -[X] "That is just one among a host of threats I have worked against. That will alone could grant me the strength to deny this foe his unwarranted tithe, they have not had free reign of this Plane because of it."
    -[X] "He tried to yoke chains onto our ancestors, and too many of them snapped their own collar on for temporal glory and influence in a world uncaring. To that I say this: 'Go to Hell', all Nine of them, and remain there."
    -[X] "And with each of you aiding me today, thus he shall!" You thunder to the assembly.
    -[X] "And each time the Lord of Nessus' hand slips to take the fraying edges of our kindred into his midst, we shall slap it away."
    -[X] On that grim note, continue: "Yet for all that, for all those victories, for much of that time, I was an object of mockery and scorn. I have clawed back the respect and prestige of my line, each step of which was necessary to even be able to make these statements before this assembly, because even that much is necessary, to ensure your ears are listening and your eyes remain wide open."
    -[X] "I did not take up the Jewel of Volantis into my crown to lay more triumphs upon that name as my forefathers have with other realms. Aegon spurned the open hand of Volantis because he had a vision all of his own, and likely found the thought of a rival uncontested too burdensome to stomach."
    -[X] "I have always been of the mind that the Conqueror ruled with too light a hand, that his ambitions were not as grand as history implies, or his work might not have been nearly undone a dozen times in three centuries."
    -[X] "I will not cow my prospective vassals with vulgar displays of power until they all fall in line and then forget the scheming and the resentment that might foster."
    -[X] "There will be no more room for corruption, for infighting and undercutting each other because we cannot afford it. We cannot. We are faced with the threat of extinction. It is time to accept this fact, for we are responsible, together, for staving it off."
    -[X] "Any man or woman among you with the stomach for it, remain, or else leave advisers in these halls who can guide you along the path we all must take, to even have a legacy to leave to our descendants in the first place."
    -[X] Call Zherys to stand beside you and Lya. "Lord Naethyreon, I have given you a full accounting of our task. You were the first to recognize that it was an effort that could not be undertaken alone. For that, I thank you, and reward you." Take a client's oath in the manner of the Freehold.
    -[X] "You who have taken counsel with me and called me to the city as Volantis did Aegon were not mistaken this time. I will see this city rise taller and grander than at any point before in history, and you will be there by my side every step of the way. Now it is your burden to prepare this august body for the days ahead, for the wars we must fight and for the calamities we must face."
    -[X] "And in the fullness of time, as with the citizens we have guarded and guided along arduous paths, we too as they, shall reap the rewards of safety and succor for all, as we shall be of that body, to enjoy that peace which we have wrought."
    -[X] "Then, in its place, Volantis will stand a testament, as one with the will to see it through!"
    [X] Visit Red Priests of Volantis.
    -[X] Get the rest of the lore they have, as per Scholarum rules.
    [X] Make sure to take some time to look over the marriage law and the inheritance-related laws of the Emperium.
    [X] If at all possible, attempt to set up a personal meeting with the Traitor-General of Yi-Ti.
    -[X] General purpose: raising awareness on the matters of Golden Company, Illithids, Devils, Bloodstone Emperor acting actively and Long Night coming - ensure that he sees the true dangers to his people - and doesn't interfere with our coming war with Golden Company.
    [X] Go and talk to Faceless Men in Braavos.
    -[X] Set conditions on which they can operate in your Empire - if at all; what lines they aren't allowed to cross, how they operate on contracts, etc.
    -[X] Also access all of their magic lore (no matter the type, Divine or Arcane), as per Scholarum rules.
    [X] Set up a meeting with either a powerful enough servant, or manifestation of Weeping Lady of Lys' power.
    -[X] Ask for help against Tiamat, via empowerment of Well of Souls.
    [X] Attempt to come in direct contact with R'hlor, seeking out a presense once met before - or inquiring Melisande/Benerro about setting such a meeting up.
    -[X] To be done before the middle of 11th month.
    -[X] You have questions to him, and a possibility of an alliance (at the moment - mainly agaist Tiamat, with R'hlor possibly empowering Well of Souls alongside other Gods of the realm - if we can trust him with this, that is) between you exists, but trusting mere priests' word on the matter as delicate as this simply won't do.
    [X] Do acts necessary to gain the help of the remaining deities you planned to use against Tiamat (6 total, Yss already contributed):
    -[X] Merling King (Sacrifice: Greater Mind Devourer, +more).
    -[X] Old Gods (Sacrifice: Lormar, Abishai, +more)
    -[X] Jazzirian (use up the Favor)
    -[X] Goddess of The Silver Moon (use up the Favor)
    -[X] Weeping Lady of Lys (use up the Favor - needs to be met first)
    [X] Dany's birthday is coming up this month. You haven't made a habit of missing them, and you're not going to start that now.
    [X] Have a personal meeting with the Chosen of Smith.
    -[X] Extensively divine irregular points of interest about him and his works - just in case, since one favored by Smith can prepare far more of a trap than a regular cleric.
    --[X] Check his supply routes, from where he gets the materials for enchanting - and the peopel he interacts with along the way, including those he gives the items to, and who gave him the order of Dragon-slaying weaponry. Such spell as Hindisight may come especially in handy if he interacted with someone protected by Mindblank, giving us at least a clue to investigate.
    --[X] With Chosen of Crone having been helping him, also try to affect same general points about her and сompany she keeps.
    ---[X] Learn the interests and prioritets of Chosen of Crone, the people they keep company with - usual through investigation in search of clues for a possible trap.
    -[X] If no suspicious activity is detected via divination, meet with him - the focus of the meeting is setting up at least mild relationship with the Chosen, and ensuring he focues on bigger threats to people of Westeros than us.
    --[X] Sharing with him our wast array of Lore on Enemies of All (Devils, Demons, Daemons, Others, Illithid, Fey, Rakshasa, Tiamat, etc.-) is a big aspect of this. There is also potential of directly sponsoring him (see: Warrior's Chosen) if all goes well...
    [X] Sweep up the Riverland Neutrals and ascertain the political status of the Reach.
    [X] Use Discern Location, Greater Scrying, and Greater Teleport to find and deal with the Wisps that you encountered so long ago in swamps of Braavos... One way, or another.
    -[X] It'll be a very short trip for someone of Viserys' power these days, unless the Wisps take care to reside in local Feywild.
    [X] Ascertain the reliability and the trustworthyness of remaining high-standing mages of Mysterium (the Necromancer, The Fire Caller (Summoner ~7+ level), etc)
    -[X] Ensure the gathering of the magical and non-magical lore gathered by Mysterium as per regular Scholarum rules, as well as swift integration of the existing system into one set by our Empire
    [X] Check the Lys' Flesh-forge's Feywild reflection.
    -[X] If possible, have it brought under Imperial supervision and protection, given a possibility of it being able to repeat the feats of Mossforge - but from a whole new angle, so fitting the Feywild it resides in.
    --[X] If the situation "on land" proves to be in any way volatile, contact Viserys.
    [X] Have Divinations run targeting Denys Mallery - ensuring his safety wherever his father decides to send him.
    -[X] It might be a good idea to visit him as the cleric of the Earth Mother in person (be it reality or but a dream) - in the light of the deal you set up with the Storm God, he is your best chance at reaching his patron... And, perhaps, ensuring that her blessings spread far and wide, ensuring both her, and your realm's prosperity.
    [X] Have Vee, Lya and Dany help Selyse Drekelis, and give all necessary support to give birth to Garin's child(ren?)
    [X] Have a report on activities of Court of Stars, and the progress on the task we left him on, by Candlekeep Courtier.
    [X] Raise Heart Trees:
    -[X] Healing Heart Tree (Panacea, Heart's Ease, Healing Warmth) in:
    --[X] Stepstones:
    ---[X] Western Disputed Lands
    ---[X] Southern Disputed Lands
    ---[X] Northern Disputed Lands
    ---[X] The Daughters March
    ---[X] Eastern Flatlands
    --[X] Greater Pentos:
    ---[X] Western Flatlands
    ---[X] Velvet Hills
    ---[X] Nontelos
    --[X] Greater Braavos:
    ---[X] Sweetwater
    ---[X] Morrogos
    ---[X] Braavosi Coast
    --[X] Greater Volantis:
    ---[X] Volantis
    ---[X] Volon Therys
    ---[X] Orange Shore
    ---[X] Valysar
    ---[X] Eastern Disputed Lands
    ---[X] Selhorys
    ---[X] Volon Sar
    --[X] Northern Valyria:
    ---[X] Painted Mountains
    -[X] Tree of Crows (Positive Energy Aura, Ancestral Gift, Summon Ancestral Guardian) in:
    --[X] Nightfort (castle of Nightwatch)
    --[X] The Shadow Tower (castle of Nightwatch)
    -[X] Philosopher's Heart Tree (Discern Lies, Tongues, Wisdom of the Ages) in:
    --[X] Naath (Scholarum branch)
    --[X] Tyrosh (Scholarum branch)
    --[X] Mantarys (Scholarum branch)
    --[X] Volantis (Mysterium/Scholarum branch)
    --[X] Tolos (Scholarum branch)
    -[X] Total: 26 Tier-3 Hear Trees, equivalent of 520 CL of items or 1404 HD of sacrifices necessary.
    [X] Visit Armun Kelisk and Opaljne Vault, searching for any mercenaries, crafters, or teachers who might be willing to join our service.
    [X] Attempt to summon the familiar Fiend of the Efreeti Sorcerer, one that overtook it's master's empty body and ran from you in Valyria.
    -[X] Utilise both it's True Name, and the remaining connection of Efreeti's soul (now a book) to the body (using Yss' curse-staff to pierce the Mindblank/summon effectively)
    -[X] To be attempted around the start of 11th month.
    [X] With the help of Yss, attempt to summon the Advodaza that once slew Thoros and tried to corrupt Westeros through works of Alchemist Guild.
    -[X] Have Yss look back into time to the connection Advodaza's summoning amulet once had (6 in 9 chances of succeeding).
    -[X] If successfull, commence summoning in The Snare, no matter if dead or captured, this thing cannot be allowed to spread it's influence again, as it without a doubt will try.
    -[X] To be attempted around the start of 11th month.
    [X] Have our Diplomacy corps make moves to set up a personal meeting with Azure Emperor.
    -[X] The goal being us sharing the lore on "Enemies of all" with each-other (Yi-Ti is bound to have unique lore on Void - having lived through the Long Night - and Bloodstone Emperor; where as we have extenhsive knowledge of Devils, Illithids and Others (as a new tool of the Void).
    [X] Make a massive order of Flesh-crafted and Plantforged creatures (needs a vote and discusssion)
    [X] By sending people to look into Tiamat's Shadow Fortress, you are no doubt setting a very difficult task before them - even if they aren't there to actually get in, but just to learn the plans and a quick way to enter later.
    -[X] At the start of 11th month, ask Undead of Sallosh to assists Melisande, Shadow!Tor and Anu in their task, if only because one of the guaring measures seem to be engraged Undead of their long-lost nation.
    [X] Colalborate with Extraplanar Empires in order to further joint understanding of various subjects, magic and common (military) alike:
    -[X] Attempt to set up students' exchange with Shaitan Academy of War (Warmages, Diviners, Officers and Engineers), and the Guild of Shapers (Magewrights).
    -[X] Attempt to set up students' exchange with Djinn Order of Arcane Seal (Abjurant Champions) and Order of Stormweavers (Stormcasters).
    --[X] Both Djinn and Shaitan establishments will possibly require specific arguments - if any arise, refer from Diplomacy corps, to Viserys directly for hashing out an exact deal.
    -[X] Accept the offer from Djinn Order of Cryomancers to hold lectures in Sorcerer's Deep, paying fairly for the privelege of course.
    -[X] Collect on the lore necessary for training Djinn Auxilaries (Mystic Rangers) the Captain of Sultan's Bows offered unilaterally, but paying fairly for the privelege.
    [X] Collect on the research done by Shaitan Spire of Wisdom, as a first joint research project between your Empires.
    -[X] A possibility exists of starting on a new, much more massive joint project - but the price for exotic and difficult research would be equally exotic lore from our side (Runecrafting, Qyuburn's Undeath research, Saena's draconic fleshcrafting works, etc...)
    [X] Have Lya transcribe Battlemagic Perception spell for the Jinn Archmage that helped us against the Efreeti expedition into Valyria.
    [X] Ask Jazzirian if he would be able to cleanse the corrupted Rose's of Heaven without changing them closer to his nature - like we assume every god would naturally as a part of the process.
    [X] The lore Lya uncovered within the Light of Creation is truly fascinating... and opens many magnificent possibilities. Still, first order of business should probably be seeking out similar sources, now knowing what to look for:
    -[X] Question the Merling King, perhaps through one of his daughters, if he has such knowledge, and what price would he ask for in return for it.
    -[X] Ask Bloodraven (and consequently, Old Gods) if through their deep connection to Earth they ever came upon knowledge like such for Earth spirits.
    [X] The collection of lore you gathered is vast indeed... And it's about the time those far from matters supernatural started to profit from it.
    -[X] Share the lore and books from your Library with your Vassals and loyal Westerosi lords.
    --[X] Share the following:
    --[X] Canticle of Decay (Daemons)
    --[X] Journals of the Betrayed (Others)
    --[X] In Memory of Death (Undead and Vampires specifically)
    --[X] Reign of Madness (Illithids)
    --[X] The Bitter Cub (Undead)
    --[X] Bestiary of the Bizarre (Magical animals)
    --[X] Notes on Devils, Fey, Demons, Rakshasa, and other assorted beasties (roughly equal in bonus to Canticle of Decay)
    -[X] Make it clear for the Westerosi lords, that not only are they to supply their troubleshooters with this knowledge, but to learn it themselves. In this day and age, nothing less can be asked from a person in power than to know how to recognise the signs of dangers lurking near them.
    [X] When visiting Armun Kelisk and Opaline Vault for wares, try to find rare resources:
    -[X] Entangle Weed
    -[X] Livewood
    -[X] Obaddis Leaf
    -[X] Cassil
    -[X] Djezet
    -[X] Voidglass
    -[X] Mindglass
    -[X] Obdurium
    -[X] Serren
    -[X] Pearlsteel
    --[X] Creatures (bodies are acceptable):
    ---[X] Roseling
    ---[X] Strangle Weed
    ---[X] Cassian Angels
    ---[X] Choral Angel
    [X] Proceed with binding of several Valyrian dragons:
    -[X] Grey Ghost - Headmistress Teana Strycos,
    -[X] Meleys the Red Queen - Zherys, Malarys, or Ceria depending on the desires of the three.
    -[X] Caraxes the Blood Wyrm - Zherys, Malarys, or Ceria depending on the desires of the three.
    [X] Curse the 2 knowledge-keepers of Asmodeus you summoned last month to same form their wretched cousin from Summerhall resides in.
    -[X] Have them thoroughly investigated for anything that can help the group sent to Slavers' Bay, immediately notifying them if any relevant information comes to light - but also keeping an eye out for any other plots of Fiends they may reveal.
    -[X] To be done at the start of 11th month
    [X] Throughly question the Gelugons and the Cornugon of Asmodeus summoned and captured last month.
    -[X] Any and all information relevant to the task of the group in Slavers Bay is to be relayed to them immediately- but also search for knowledge of powerful magics, rare resources, or nefarious plots unconnected to Slavers Bay.
    -[X] To be done at the start of 11th month
    [X] Have Amrelath, Maelor and Malarys read the Light of Creation (Amy for his upcoming rule on PoF, Maelor and Malarys for dealing with infiltration to CoB)
    -[X] Maelor's copy would obviously be disguised and shrouded away from sight in every way we can, and attempts would be made to never be caught reading it.
    [X] Ask Siduri for True Names of Devils serving Dispater. Having saved Zathir, and taken Sidri's oath, you all but ensured your eventual enimity. Once he openly makes a move against you, you will have just as little left to lose with him, as you do with Mammon.
    --[X] Take care to learn the names of Devils most likely to operate on Plane of Balance, or otherwise hurting our interest, via divination and interference with other sources (Uniila, Erynies, other captives), and target them first if a move is made against you. Continue operations as standard from there, with questioning of captured Devils leading further into dismantling their operating cells to maximally avaliable degree.
    [X] Assign the 4 Spontaneous Search stations created in 10th month to:
    -[X] 1 to Sorcerer's Deep Schoalrum
    -[X] 3 to Sorcerer's Deep Extraplanar trade route (one on our side, one in Opaline Vault and Armun Kelish each respectively).
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Part MMMXCIX: Seeking New Glories
  • Threadmarks
    • Seeking New Glories ​

    First Day of the Eleventh Month 293 AC

    Where before you had flown unseen you now arrive in the sight of all, flying out of the morning sun scales alight with its fire and the wind beneath your wings, and should any sorcerers care to look just as bright with magics of fortune and foresight. You do not come alone—your mother, Lady Saenena and Nettles fly at your side, mighty Balerion the Black Dread dwarfing all of you with his bulk, near enough to make it clear that you had mastered the ancient dragon returned from death but far enough removed that none but those who already hold a grudge against you could take it as an insult to Volantis. You wonder how many of those below would notice Varys perched upon Balerion's head, like a fly upon an elephant yet directing his every move.

    Beneath your wings the Legion marches, old soldiers and new marching together down the streets of Volantis the Great where never has a conqueror's foot had trod. The people cheer, why would they not? The lot of most has changed for the better since that fateful day when magic came into the world. For all the tales of horrors in the shadows, of monsters and demons, change had brought an end to slavery, more land under the plow and more trade with distant lands.

    Bright petals and thrown rice for good fortune is thrown before the tread of the legionnaires and silvery trumpets herald your arrival at the palace from where you are to speak to the people. The very moment your foot touches the stone you change shape while Lya manifests beside you looking admirably composed though you can see the nervousness sparking in her eyes.

    You squeeze her hand in reassurance and offer a smile before turning to the crowd: "Citizens, I offer greetings to you. Some of you may know me for my deeds, and some of you might have come to experience my works first hand already. It is to you that this day is a triumph to, for it is back to the first page in the annals of our forefathers when Western Essos stood as one."

    Leaving aside the notorious facetiousness of the colonies and the disinclination of the Dragonlords to bring them to heel under all but the most extreme circumstances, but then this is a speech meant to inspire not a historian's lecture, you think, looking over the crowd, from merchants in colorful robes to hathay drivers unclothed from the waist up. All had been invited here into the heart of the Old City at Zherys' command.

    "And it is as one body that we march into the future, into the winds of change. It is not merely sifting through the ruins of the past that we might gain glory, for just as the common adage goes that we must learn from history in order avoid its mistakes, one must look to the future where dreams not yet envisioned might reach the light of day," you continue, for Volantis could use many such lessons and you suspect not all of them will be delivered with as gentle a hand as this speech. Then again, seeing as you would have to deliver them upon the more obstructionist of the Old Blood, you suspect most of those below would cheer regardless.

    "Networks of roads forged by sorcery even now take shape across the continent, straight and wide to bind the realm together, trade is stronger today among signatories of this accord than it has been for centuries. Never before have we had this opportunity for prosperity and peace secured with common bonds of friendship and good fortune, as much as the protections of strong armies and mighty guardians in the dragons above." So saying you motion to the sky and send word through a spell of silent speech that that binds you to each of the riders. Such acts of grace and skill are seen this day as had once filled the skies over Old Valyria or the Day of the Dance, the dragons themselves imbued with arcane grace and forethought in every motion.

    "But not all is as it seems," you add amidst the cheers that follow, your tone of caution though not quite so foreboding. "These mechanisms of an empire, this artifice of war is not merely for welding Essos together as Aegon of old might have dreamed of Westeros. We are a people besieged not by our own ambitions but by darker things, the pitiless baleful gaze of aberrant ilk lurking beneath the waves, the restless dead haunting the plains and steppes, the cold blowing of the Northern Wind, the ancient sins of our forefathers and more, inexorable in its march to bring an end to our way of lives. And if they should stand unopposed, civilization as we know it would end as surely as the Freehold of old."

    To your right Lya shifts somewhat uneasily, for though she knows well the game you play, to stoke fear and then transmute it into determination, she has never seen it quite this close. Zherys by contrast looks on with a faintly approving expression, a smile of triumph seemingly moments away from manifesting, though he never allows himself the indulgence.

    "But we are not defenseless before the night, nor are we without our defiance. We shout it into the distance before the contempt of pitiless gods and monsters." You pause a long moment as the roar of the crowd seems to shake the very stones of the palace. Almost you feel as though even the ancient Black Walls themselves would shift. These are not a people unused to oratory, not shy about demonstrating their support. At last the great din settles to a rumble like distant thunder waiting to be called and so you speak again. "We are the firmament of the earth, reforged as iron is to steel. We are the burning flame to ward off the darkness that encroaches upon us from all quarters. We are first rays of the sun on the horizon. We are all marching together, for no one man alone is responsible for our survival. Only together can our deeds committed here and now serve to overcome these trials presented before us."

    "I say to you all, whatever your calling and whatever your deeds, we are at a turning point today," you say truth in every syllable for all this is a speech. "This is the pivot upon which history will remember that when we came under attack from those without, rather than turning upon each other like a pack of hyenas as the sons of Ghiscar have, we will have stood together. Thus we shall have the dawn of a new day."

    That is not the end of it of course, all your Companions make at least a brief appearance to be seen and sometimes to speak before the crowd, save Ser Richard who bluntly told you that he would rather be fighting demons in the sewers again and Rina who is obviously unready to make an appearance before so many.

    Two are the speeches that capture the attention of the listeners the most, first your mother speaking as a daughter of Valyria born to foreign lands and one reborn from magic into a world transformed. Her words seems to resonate across the crowds as little else could, for she speaks as one who was first bewildered and wary of a world transformed but then found her footing and discovered to her joy that it was in a place far fairer than fate had once ordained. The second is Lya, for though she speaks mostly by spell-gifted skill her words are ones the people of New Volantis and those not of the Old Blood had long hoped to hear, she speaks of magic born of more than blood, of the power of knowledge diligently sought, of the worth of every thinking and feeling mind and heart. Magic the people of Volantis had learned from Zherys was the new seat of power and from Lya's words they learn of the Scholarum, that they too might ascend to it.

    As the sun begins to dip from its zenith the time comes to address the court, the nobles of the Forty Families and the assembly if one wishes to be exacting, but in all actuality they might as well be the court of King Zherys, now graciously swearing to a higher overlord.

    ***​

    "Thank the gods armor is a good enough fit for the occasion," Waymar whispers in Common as you step up into the Speaker's Voice in the Assembly Hall. "If looks could pierce flesh or poison blood..." He motions to where the remaining Elephants are standing huddled together among a sea of empty seats. Zherys had used various bureaucratic means to refuse to appoint heirs to the seats left empty in the wake of the failed coup which had left the Assembly powerless in the face of the Archon's ambitions.

    "I have armor too, and mine doesn't show so they won't think to aim for my head," Tyene jests in response.

    How do you address the court?

    [] Write in

    OOC: I know the speech has already been voted on but if I worked that in this would probably be a three-thousand word update, and in any case this is your chance to add in thoughts about what to do about Volantene institutions, as that would be best spoken of here.
     
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    • DragonParadox said:
    OOC: I know the speech has already been voted on but if I worked that in this would probably be a three thousand word update and in any case this is your chance to add in thoughts about what to do about Volantine institutions, as that would be best spoken of here. Not yet edited.
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    Like what? The Mysterium will have traditions distinct from the Scholarum but the basic policies are clear, they have the same charter if not the same decorum. Things like school traditions are beyond the purview of the overall administration.

    As for the Inquisition, Volantis has no equivalent unlike Braavos so that's an even clearer and cleaner transition.

    Regional administration will overgo some minor changes to make things flow more neatly downwards from where Zherys stands as Governor-General of Greater Volantis, and we will handle the appointments (with Zherys' recommendations and our own requirements being balanced) for the Rhoyne.

    Seems pretty cut and dry, we promised Zherys we would accommodate his reforms, so long as he brought everything in accordance to Imperial legal code. There might be some local ordinances that are different, but such is the case elsewhere.

    [X] Proceed as planned. Anything else in particular that needs to be discussed in-depth can be handled separately from this speech, which is more about securing the Volantene nobilty's cooperation.
     
    Crake said:
    Like what? The Mysterium will have traditions distinct from the Scholarum but the basic policies are clear, they have the same charter if not the same decorum. Things like school traditions are beyond the purview of the overall administration.

    As for the Inquisition, Volantis has no equivalent unlike Braavos so that's an even clearer and cleaner transition.

    Regional administration will overgo some minor changes to make things flow more neatly downwards from where Zherys stands as Governor-General of Greater Volantis, and we will handle the appointments (with Zherys' recommendations and our own requirements being balanced) for the Rhoyne.

    Seems pretty cut and dry, we promised Zherys we would accommodate his reforms, so long as he brought everything in accordance to Imperial legal code. There might be some local ordinances that are different, but such is the case elsewhere.

    [X] Proceed as planned. Anything else in particular that needs to be discussed in-depth can be handled separately from this speech, which is more about securing the Volantene nobilty's cooperation.
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    Fair enough, Zherys can handle quietly dismantling the assembly that he has already made non-functional.
     
    @DragonParadox
    Now that Zherys is the Archon, does the Mysterium have a new High Speaker?
    Filling both positions and being on call if we need another 8th circle mage's firepower will be rather hard on him.

    [X] Crake
     
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    DragonParadox said:
    He kept both positions, though now that he passes under imperial law and he can't do that any more he will step down from the Mysterium post.
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    Since it's on our list of minor actions anyway, could we get a lineup of Volantine mages (both numbers for the lesser ones and a few details on the ones we met already (Necromancer, Astronomer, Snake-Possessed) and who Zherys will pick as his successor?
     
    DragonParadox said:
    The Khalasars were mostly shattered or eaten by Sarnori undead from what Viserys has heard.
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    That reminds me, Rhango gets a segment on MirrorVision in Dothraki declaring any rider is free to join his Khalasar, even expressing the new tradition where Khals might be spared even if it takes honorable combat rather than killed outright to determine right to rule--since he probably wouldn't have it any other way and neither would any Khal for that matter--since he's already probably done that to a few by now for the precedent to get around.

    This will also basically be a signal that if anyone wants to avert the course Rhango's taking the Dothraki people on, now is basically their very last chance to do so before he can't be stopped and completely changes the culture. Better to get the obstacles to that out of the way sooner rather than later, and it will also draw in the rest of the Dothraki under our banner rather than forcing our security forces and Legion to hunt them down as bandits.
     
    DragonParadox said:
    The Khalasars were mostly shattered or eaten by Sarnori undead from what Viserys has heard.
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    Cue world's smallest violin.
    Crake said:
    That reminds me, Rhango gets a segment on MirrorVision in Dothraki declaring any rider is free to join his Khalasar, even expressing the new tradition where Khals might be spared even if it takes honorable combat rather than killed outright to determine right to rule--since he probably wouldn't have it any other way and neither would any Khal for that matter--since he's already probably done that to a few by now for the precedent to get around.

    This will also basically be a signal that if anyone wants to avert the course Rhango's taking the Dothraki people on, now is basically their very last chance to do so before he can't be stopped and completely changes the culture. Better to get the obstacles to that out of the way sooner rather than later, and it will also draw in the rest of the Dothraki under our banner rather than forcing our security forces and Legion to hunt them down as bandits.
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    Cue crying Khal ad.
     
    For just one donation of a half-penny, you too can prevent horses from being put to use tilling soil instead of running down and crushing enemies, seeing them driven before them, and hearing the lamentations of their women.
     
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