[X] Plan Both
-[X] Give out an order that any large-scale money transfer conducted by the state or trusted institutions (that is: the Iron Bank), can request additional security from the Inquisitional Stormtroopers (that is: their small army of high-CR monsters).
-[X] Encourage the use of chequing accounts by setting up a cooperation between the Iron Bank and the Imperial Postal Service so that people can deposit and withdraw money from and to their IB accounts at post offices.
-[X] Deepen the cooperation between the Imperial Administration and the Iron Bank, granting a small tax rebate for all taxable transactions that are processed by the Iron Bank, thus giving a de facto tax cut to everyone who has their monetary affairs primarily handled over their chequing account. This has the other great benefit of making it much easier for the Administration to collect taxes, saving effort and costs which will more then weigh up the slight rebate.
At Malarys' suggestion, you make several modifications to the procedure for civil litigation. You quickly have it laid down in a form the Voices can pass before the month is out, speaking with the senior representative for Sorcerer's Deep to ensure things go smoothly. Vaenarr Agreos's smile always reminded you more than a bit of Saan's, but never so much as when he takes up a law for emergency approval:
When a party in a suit introduces evidence, the other party must be given at least five days in which they can get full access to that evidence before it becomes admissible in court. Such contact will be supervised by a representative of the court and one of each party to prevent tampering. Any day on which such a viewing of the evidence could be done counts against this limit, regardless of the opposing party taking this opportunity or not. The opposing party can waive this right, if they so wish.
A party can request the court to verify evidence by Divination conducted the House of Mirrors, but the court can reject this request if it is made frivolously. The cost of this examination becomes part of the suit and the judge decides who will pay for all or part of the Divination expenses as part of the judgment.
The modifications are likely to lead to some greater strain on the House of Mirrors so you send out fifty pairs of psionic object reading gloves to be used in court cases. It certainly will not suffice for every court, but if you could find some way to ferry them around as required. Thankfully, there is one other person you can speak to on that matter, though she is likely to be less cheerful about it than the Voice.
***
"Sarell, I have found something else your sisters can do in place of library duty..." you begin. Her expression remains carefully attentive, but you can guess from the slight twitch of her left wing that she does not expect to enjoy what you have to say next.
In the end, she sighs. "One can hardly call the cause of justice any less than that of knowledge." Erinyes usually disdain carrying packages, but as you had hoped, they have enough affinity for seeing the law applied in cases great and small to agree to it without rancor. "In this, too, we might count your service better than that of Mammon. There is at least variety in the most minor of duties."
The fury remains with you throughout most of the day, ostensibly so that she can run messages to the various corners of the Imperium while you look through the reports, but in truth you suspect more for the company, having found herself at odd ends after the mission to the Feywild ended. Unlike many of her sisters, Sarell has not yet had the chance to make as rich a life for herself outside of her duty, due to having been stationed in the City of Brass for so long.
Not that you mind the company or the dark wit that accompanies it. Most of the rest of the news out of the Stepstones is good, from greeater progress on the schools in Myr due to continued donations by the guildmasters, to the discovery of a deposit of iron by survey teams in the Eastern Flatlands. Alas, not all news could be that good.
"Does this say what I think it says...?" You hand the most comprehensive report on the Daughter's March to Sarell.
"Vanished pay chests for the workers and materials. They should have found that by now..." you see her expression shift to one of confusion, then wrath, as she reaches the diviner's report and subsequent inquisition investigation. "I had almost forgotten how petty Tanar'ri can be."
Someone had stolen a not insignificant amount of coin from the project and then tossed the chests into one of the darkest, bleakest corners the Abyss. Even if you were to recover them you doubt those chests would contain anything you would be willing to expose your citizens to. As no one had died nor had there been any indication of demonic meddling until greater divination were invoked, the event had not been flagged urgent until yesterday.
"My apologies for reminding you," you reply as calmly as you can. It looks like you are going to have to review procedures for handling large sums of money across the Imperium.
Establish Public Schools in Lys (17/36)
Establish Guard Posts in Southern Disputed Lands (7/85)
Establish Public Schools in Myr (20/24) -> Critical Success -> +1d6 -> 21/24
Establish Messenger Service in Northern Disputed Lands (9/44)
Establish Messenger Service in Daughter's March (3/30) -> Critical Failure (20.000 IM Lost)
Establish Guard Posts in Eastern Flatlands (22/35) -> Critical Success -> Iron Mine Found Province Wealth +1
How do you increase security?
[] Assign Flesh-forged creatures to any large scale movements of currency (Short Term Solution)
-[] Write in how many
[] Encourage greater use of banking, not just for magnates and entrepreneurs but common citizens and small businesses (Long Term Solution)
-[] Write in
[] Write in
OOC: The demons did not steal 20.000 IM more like 15.000. The rest is wasted time as people did not work without their pay contractors shifted to other projects with the work grinding to a stop etc... Not yet edited.
Here's an edited version of the chapter, @DragonParadox.
Demon Guide: "Welcome to the Abyss. It's a shit hole, but it's our shit hole, all 665 layers. Through this Gate, we can make arrangements to purchase the souls you-"
Conjuror: "Wait, I thought there were 666 layers?"
Demon Guide: "...we don't like to talk about the lost layer." <sigh>
As a side note: The label "Inquisition" will likely already eliminate 99% of all attempted robberies of high-value transports. The kind of people who would feel confident to pick a fight with the Inquisition will not really have a need to steal 15,000 IM of coinage, while your regular old bandits will stay the hell away from drawing that kind of attention on themselves.
As a side note: The label "Inquisition" will likely already eliminate 99% of all attempted robberies of high-value transports. The kind of people who would feel confident to pick a fight with the Inquisition will not really have a need to steel 15,000 IM of coinage, while your regular old bandits will stay the hell away from drawing that kind of attention on themselves.
That's not a robbery though, but ultimately a terror attack.
In the future, they can see if this shit stays funny when they have to fight off a Vigilant Hunter, a Myrkdreki or some high-CR undead to get at that chest.
In the future, they can see if this shit stays funny when they have to fight off a Vigilant Hunter, a Myrkdreki or some high-CR undead to get at that chest.
That's not a robbery though, but ultimately a terror attack.
In the future, they can see if this shit stays funny when they have to fight off a Vigilant Hunter, a Myrkdreki or some high-CR undead to get at that chest.
I think we should maybe revisit our research into the Mimics. IIRC, we figured out their feeding issues to remove their desire to nom on innocent bystanders?
I wonder how difficult it would be to convince them to serve as real pay chests? They're sentient, so we could issue each of them a Sending Stone, Plane Shift, and Teleport Charm for use in emergencies, or when their own combat abilities are insufficient for dealing with thieves.
I think we should maybe revisit our research into the Mimics. IIRC, we figured out their feeding issues to remove their desire to nom on innocent bystanders?
I wonder how difficult it would be to convince them to serve as real pay chests? They're sentient, so we could issue each of them a Sending Stone, Plane Shift, and Teleport Charm for use in emergencies, or when their own combat abilities are insufficient for dealing with thieves.
Damn, I love this idea. Why not? We will give a CR to everything, including the coffers themselves. I wonder if we could also put some oozes protecting the actual treasure.
Imagine the would be robbers, after defeating the toothy chest only to find that the treasure is inside a petrified Living Stone, which might even get to petrify them too!
Okay but why would it? The Mammon Machine is stored and operated inside of a Demiplane, and its production has separate material feeds because of that?
Damn, I love this idea. Why not? We will give a CR to everything, including the coffers themselves. I wonder if we could also put some oozes protecting the actual treasure.
Imagine the would be robbers, after defeating the toothy chest only to find that the treasure is inside a petrified Living Stone, which might even get to petrify them too!
We could splice some Stone Pudding into the Mimic to make it petrify everyone touching it. Just need to pack everything into air tight metal containers before putting it in.
