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

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Interlude MCCXXII: Pouring Honey
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    • Pouring Honey ​

    Fourteenth Day of the Tenth Month 294 AC

    Long range translocation was an expensive service, that fact could not be denied. Even in this age of growing sorcery when one's words could be cast from Sunspear to Bear Island without a care doing the same with people was nowhere near as easy. It is a spell of the Fifth Circle when most Scholarum trained mages would be lucky to see the third and fourth was proof of mastery. So from the outside it must have looked quite remarkable that the Ministry of Education was putting its resources to ensuring a relatively small number of students would be able to safely and reliably translocate across land and sea, to the schools in Sorcerer's Deep, yet still have days at home in the company of their families.

    Minister Veda had heard the proposal called far less polite things than remarkable too, most often behind one's hand, though there was a public outcry for investigation stirred up by am ambitious school inspector in Volantis. There was an investigation of course and there was no sinister nepotism at the core of it either for there was one fundamental principle that all nobility functioned on, one that Veda had learned by careful observation: Follow the leader.

    Of course what leader meant could change from lord to lord and knight to knight, at times almost frighteningly provincial, but ultimately it was a numbers game, for all the numbers came with names with long and storied histories. Persuade those at the top, those who are not known to be great loyalists to send their children to be educated in the capital, and the rest will follow.

    Of course as the state was doing such a remarkable favor, access to sorcery that could not otherwise be obtained without far more coin than the recipients could hope to offer, it gave the demands of the Ministry far more weight. These children of nobility were already getting their special treatment, legally and above the board, and so they would be expected to excel not only in making friends in high places but in academic matters, which had so long been considered a thing apart form lordly matters west of the Narrow Sea, the domain of the maesters, grey, secretive and nameless.

    The world that was being opened up to the sons and daughters of Westeros would be none of these, but instead spun of a thousand thousand colors like the wings of the Rainbow Serpent whose subtle blessing was upon these works.

    Veda shivered slightly in her seat and tightened her hand around the cup of hot chocolate. She had many dealings with the pious, some with spirits bright and dark which had made the Imperium their home, but none with gods until she had come to the capital, yet one would have to be blind or weak of wit to mistake Zathir for anything but divine in his bearing and manner. In spite of her, or perhaps even because of her new understanding of the necessity of gods to shepherd the souls of mortals in a broken world, she had never thought to encounter religious precepts that so resonated with her own morals as these. Three glasses of strongwine had convinced her to attempt to 'make due'. She was not entirely sure what do do about a deity which promised her more than that. Ah, plenty of time to deal with that tomorrow, for tonight there was still plenty of paperwork to deal with.

    Noble Studies: 60 +10 (Zathir) = 70 (Success)

    OOC: I thought about doing this from the PoV of one of the new Westerosi students, but we have had many of perspectives like that from the various people you guys collected over the years for Viserys' horde... er, wards, so instead I decided to do the first working minister interlude. I know it's pretty short, but that is pretty much all it needed to say. Hope you guys enjoy.
     
    Last edited:
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    • DragonParadox said:
    Pouring Honey ​

    Fourteenth Day of the Tenth Month 294 AC

    Long range translocation was an expensive service, that fact could not be denied. Even in this age of growing sorcery when one's words could be cast from Sunspear to Bear Island without a care, doing the same with people was nowhere near as easy a spell of the fifth circle when most Scholarum trained mages would be lucky to see the third and the fourth was proof of mastery. So from the outside it must have looked quite remarkable that the Ministry of Education was putting its resources to ensuring a relatively small number of students would be able to safely and reliably trans locate across land and sea, to be schooled in Sorcerer's Deep, yet still have days at home in the company of their families.

    Minister Veda had heard the proposal called far less polite things than remarkable, too, most often behind one's hand, though there was a public outcry for investigation stirred up by an ambitious school inspector in Volantis. There was no investigation, of course, and there was no sinister nepotism at the core of it either, for there was one fundamental principle that all nobility functioned on, one that Veda had learned by careful observation: Follow the leader.

    Of course, what leader meant could change from lord to lord and knight to knight, at times almost frighteningly provincial. Ultimately, it was a numbers game, for all the numbers came with names and long and storied histories. Persuade those at the top, those who are not known to be great loyalists, to send their children to be educated in the capital, and the rest will follow.

    As the state was doing such a remarkable favor, access to sorcery that could not otherwise be obtained without far more coin than the recipients could hope to offer, it also gave the demands of the Ministry far more weight. These children of nobility were already getting their special treatment, legally and above the board, and so they would be expected to excel not only in making friends in high places but in academic matters, which had so long been considered a thing apart form lordly matters west of the Narrow Sea. It was once the domain of the maesters, grey and secretive and nameless.

    The world that was being opened up to the sons and daughters of Westeros would be none of these but instead spun of a thousand thousand colors, like the wings of the Rainbow Serpent whose subtle blessing was upon these works.

    Veda shivered sightly in her seat and tightened her hand around the cup of hot chocolate. She had many dealings with the pious, some with spirits bright and dark which had made the Imperium their home, but none with gods, not until she had come to the capital, yet one would have to be blind or weak of wit to mistake Zathir for anything but divine in his bearing and manner. In spite of, or perhaps even because of her new understanding of the necessity of gods to shepherd the souls of mortals in a broken world, she had never thought to encounter religious precepts that so resonated with her own morals as these. Three glasses of strongwine had convinced her to attempt to 'make due'. She was not entirely sure what to do about a deity which promised her more than that. Ah, plenty of time to deal with that tomorrow, for tonight there was still plenty of paperwork to deal with.

    Noble Studies: 60 + 10 (Zathir) = 70 (Success)

    OOC: I thought about doing this from the PoV of one of the new Westerosi students, but we have had many of perspectives like that from the various people you guys collected over the years for Viserys' horde... er wards so instead I decided to do the first working minister interlude. I know it's pretty short, but that is pretty much all it needed to say. Hope you guys enjoy. Not yet edited.
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    Here's an edited version of the chapter, DP.

    Nice Veda POV. Considering the nature of this action, it makes sense for us to see the results from the perspective of our Minister of Education. I'm glad to see Zathir getting a new convert, too.
     
    BTW, @DragonParadox, it hasn't been mentioned much lately, but the last major magical infrastructure enchantment Lya and the higher level crafters undertook before the system change was to complete the Teleportation Chamber. It uses Lya's Greater Baleful Teleport to Teleport a target to any known destination on Planetos, just like Greater Teleport.

    There is also a recall function, which allows those Teleported to be affected by a command-activated Evacuation Rune spell. So long as they trigger the spell before it elapses within 24 hours, they can use it to return to SD.

    We built it for rapid deployment and retrieval of special forces, Inquisition agents, etc., but its use would be a perfect fit for what we're doing in the Noble Studies action outlined in the interlude.
     
    [X] Ask Zathir if he would like to speak on the matter. If he refuses decline the request.

    Should be his choice.
     
    Goldfish said:
    BTW, @DragonParadox, it hasn't been mentioned much lately, but the last major magical infrastructure enchantment Lya and the higher level crafters undertook before the system change was to complete the Teleportation Chamber. It uses Lya's Greater Baleful Teleport to Teleport a target to any known destination on Planetos, just like Greater Teleport.

    There is also a recall function, which allows those Teleported to be affected by a command-activated Evacuation Rune spell. So long as they trigger the spell before it elapses within 24 hours, they can use it to return to SD.

    We built it for rapid deployment and retrieval of special forces, Inquisition agents, etc., but its use would be a perfect fit for what we're doing in the Noble Studies action outlined in the interlude.
    Click to expand...
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    That will show up in inquisition actions going forward yeah, thanks for reminding me. I did not have it in my notes, it likely got lost in the shuffle.
     
    DragonParadox said:
    OOC: I thought about doing this from the PoV of one of the new Westerosi students, but we have had many of perspectives like that from the various people you guys collected over the years for Viserys' horde... er wards so instead I decided to do the first working minister interlude. I know it's pretty short, but that is pretty much all it needed to say. Hope you guys enjoy. Not yet edited.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Pro Tip: If you plan on writing interludes for specific actions involving a ministry, make a habit of doing so repeatedly in that person's area of remit, or a direct subordinate interacting with that same character.

    That gives you an opportunity to introduce distinct habits, motivations an idiosyncrasies which might or might not be plot relevant, instead of a tight grouping of exposition dump updates with little need for player investment.

    Tarly has kind of an advantage that any canon character has, in that we sort of already know who he is, so that 'build up' which is necessary for everyone else, doesn't really matter. You can jump into a PoV update of someone who appeared in the books and already feel like you want to know what will happen next, but you don't have that advantage with non-canon characters.
     
    Goldfish said:
    BTW, @DragonParadox, it hasn't been mentioned much lately, but the last major magical infrastructure enchantment Lya and the higher level crafters undertook before the system change was to complete the Teleportation Chamber. It uses Lya's Greater Baleful Teleport to Teleport a target to any known destination on Planetos, just like Greater Teleport.

    There is also a recall function, which allows those Teleported to be affected by a command-activated Evacuation Rune spell. So long as they trigger the spell before it elapses within 24 hours, they can use it to return to SD.

    We built it for rapid deployment and retrieval of special forces, Inquisition agents, etc., but its use would be a perfect fit for what we're doing in the Noble Studies action outlined in the interlude.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    There's the Teleportation Circle upgrade for cities to reflect public availability of Mass Teleportation Systems.
     
    Ehhhh on favor here: can someone put the link to the part were visery coronation start? Is that im reading some part back and I want to start beyond the foregein delegation come and I cant find exactly the post.
     
    How are we suddenly cool with teleportstion circles now.

    I remember being shot down since it would be to the deterrent of the narrative.
     
    Azel said:
    For massed military movements, Gate is more useful since the connection is bidirectional and Teleportation Circles or the Teleportation Chamber can't send something to a Phase Warded area.
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    Presumably we can key the caster to wards. The preference over the gate is because it will have more mages able to cast it.
     
    And I finally have some time to write. sorry this took so long guys, today was crazy😬

    In any case I'm here now, vote closed.
    Adhoc vote count started by Goldfish on Jul 14, 2021 at 10:00 PM, finished with 41 posts and 16 votes.
    Click to expand...
     
    Part MMMDCCCLI: Of Smoke from Stone
  • Threadmarks
    • Of Smoke from Stone ​

    Fourteenth Day of the Tenth Month 294 AC

    "No," the word is not loud, from the height of the throne it does not have to be, the shape of the chamber assures it through clever acoustics. "While I understand the intent of the honorable member from Westhaven is innocent, the precedent he would be setting is not."

    Wyna had already been looking to you, yet he says nothing. He had been expecting support, not censure, you realize. It seems you have been misread. Not for the first time then and it shall not be for the last. You weigh your next words carefully: "The Imperium has gone further than any realm in the history that we yet recall to divide the affairs of the divine from those of the state. All here understand that it is not from any antipathy to the gods that guard the souls of its citizens. No, the reason that there is no Fiery Hand in Volantis, no Poor Fellows in Westeros, that all those who wield the miracles of the gods must swear to the Scholarum also is simple, that all the citizens of the realm should feel at home under its banners, that no god or gods be raised up over the multitude of its peoples who worship each in their own tongue and after their own manner."

    One could hardly say you are sharing anything new, but the same faithful souls who were about to applaud you for burning out the first shoot of blasphemy look at you in askance.

    "The same principle applies in reverse," you continue. "Just as we should not drag matters of the public good into the hallowed halls of this or that temple so too must be avoid dragging the divine into the forum of our discussions. Boundaries have two sides to them, at least if they are fair, and I do not think any of you ladies and gentlemen wish to transgress."

    Bluntly put the status quo serves everyone, even the parts you do not like, not that you think that will be the end of the argument.

    Thankfully that allows the session to move on to less contentious matters, at least for now. Attempts by the Ministry of Administration to find use in the marginal parts of the Whitelands have not yielded much use, which speaks well for the Manderlys and their vassals as custodians of the most populous and well-developed part of the North, a fact which the Minister assured you will be in the letter sent to White Harbor should that continue to prove the case. If one cannot provide new opportunities a touch of flattery does not hurt.

    Not so in the Neck, a land both poor and sparsely peopled whose lords could ill-afford the expertise of foreign surveyors. The crannogmen have had to spent most of their strength defending their lands against those who would encroach upon them, or else simply surviving the perils of the marshes, where the soil is thin and the waters team with dangerous insects every bit as much as with fish. Now that has changed, and miners from the east, used to prospecting the foothills of the Painted Mountains, found in the lands of House Reed a treasure worth digging for, though not one that gleams, coal.

    Survey Marginal Lands (The Whitelands): 25 (Failure)
    Survey Marginal Lands (The Neck) 49 (Success) -> Lignite Coal Discovered

    Specifically they had found brown coal better than the peat the crannogmen occasionally burn for fuel, likely to be cheap enough to mine and to sell in bulk. More compact and efficient than wood coal is likely to be the fuel of choice for not only forges, but also for citizens looking to cook their food and heat their homes.

    The trouble is that this is no boon unshadowed. It does not take an alchemist to realize that coal burns with a dirty flame that will darken the air and mayhap even poison those who breathe it. Soft Strider, newly made Voice of all the Singers in the Imperium, speaks up against counting upon such poisonous artifice, whereas Duke Reed sees the revenue from the coal as a chance to better the lives of his people.

    What do you weigh in on the matter?

    [] Yes
    -[] Write in how

    [] No, let Soft Strider try her best and if that is not enough Duke Reed will treat the coal as he does any other resource found in his lands

    [] Write in

    OOC: The advantages of worshiping a hivemind of albino trees that can see the future is that they can tell you about really long term dangers, like mass burning of coal in cities, the disadvantage is that even people who are your natural allies will think you are exaggerating when you tell them about it. For the record there is basically no support for Soft Strider in the Curia right now on this matter, if she brings up the Old Gods that might change, but that would be awkward given how this is supposed to be a secular space.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Let's go environmental protection
    [X] Make the case that we don't want to use due to the long term effects.
    -[X] Also mention that even petty magic can be used to produce continuous heat, it's no really needed here.
     
    Acolyte said:
    Let's go environmental protection
    [X] Make the case that we don't want to use due to the long term effects.
    -[X] Also mention that even petty magic can be used to produce continuous heat, it's no really needed here.
    Click to expand...
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    Continual flame does not scale well for individual use. Infrastructure could change that, but you do not have that infrastructure right now, even in design to show.
     
    [X] Make the case that we don't want to use due to the long term effects.

    Yeah let's not go full Evil Empire and start polluting. We don't need Captain Planet coming to try and kick our ass later. Not because we'd lose but because it'd just look really bad.
     
    DragonParadox said:
    Of Smoke from Stone ​

    Fourteenth Day of the Tenth Month 294 AC

    "No," the word is not loud. From the height of the throne, it does not have to be, the shape of the chamber assures it through clever acoustics. "While I understand the intent of the honorable member from Westhaven is innocent, the precedent he would be setting is not."

    Wyna had already been looking to you, yet he says nothing. He had been expecting support, not censure, you realize. It seems you have been misread. Not for the first time then, and it shall not be for the last. You weigh your next words carefully. "The Imperium has gone further than any realm in the history that we yet recall to divide the affairs of the divine from those of the state. All here understand that it is not from any antipathy to the gods that guard the souls of its citizens. No, the reason that there is no Fiery Hand in Volantis, no Poor Fellows in Westeros, that all those who wield the miracles of the gods must swear to the Scholarum also is simple, that all the citizens of the realm should feel at home under its banners, that no god or gods be raised up over the multitude of its peoples who worship each in their own tongue and after their own manner."

    One could hardly say you are sharing anything new, but the same faithful souls who were about to applaud you for burning out the first shoot of blasphemy look at you in askance.

    "The same principle applies in reverse," you continue. "Just as we should not drag matters of the public good into the hallowed halls of this or that temple, so too must we avoid dragging the divine into the forum of our discussions. Boundaries have two sides to them, at least if they are fair, and I do not think any of you ladies and gentlemen wish to transgress."

    Bluntly put, the status quo serves everyone, even the parts you do not like, not that you think that will be the end of the argument.

    Thankfully, that allows the session to move on to less contentious matters, at least for now. Attempts by the Ministry of Administration to find use in the marginal parts of the Whitelands have not yielded much use, which speaks well for the Manderlys and their vassals as custodians of the most populous and well-developed part of the North, a fact which the Minister assured you will be in the letter sent to White Harbor should that continue to prove the case. If one cannot provide new opportunities, a touch of flattery does not hurt.

    Not so in the Neck, a land both poor and sparsely peopled, whose lords could ill-afford the expertise of foreign surveyors. The crannogmen have had to spend most of their strength defending their lands against those who would encroach upon them, or else simply surviving the perils of the marshes, where the soil is thin and the waters team with dangerous insects every bit as much as with fish. Now that has changed, and miners from the east, used to prospecting the foothills of the Painted Mountains, found in the lands of House Reed a treasure worth digging for, though not one that gleams, coal.

    Survey Marginal Lands (The Whitelands): 25 (Failure)
    Survey Marginal Lands (The Neck) 49 (Success) -> Lignite Coal Discovered

    Specifically, they had found brown coal better than the peat the crannogmen occasionally burn for fuel, likely to be cheap enough to mine and to sell in bulk. More compact and efficient than wood, coal is likely to be the fuel of choice for not only forges, but also for citizens looking to cook their food and heat their homes.

    The trouble is that this is no boon unshadowed. It does not take an alchemist to realize that coal burns with a dirty flame that will darken the air and mayhap even poison those who breathe it. Soft Strider, newly made Voice of all the Singers in the Imperium, speaks up against counting upon such poisonous artifice, whereas Duke Reed sees the revenue from the coal as a chance to better the lives of his people.

    What do you weigh in on the matter?

    [] Yes
    -[] Write in how

    [] No, let Soft Strider try her best and if that is not enough Duke Reed will treat the coal as he does any other resource found in his lands

    [] Write in

    OOC: The advantages of worshiping a hivemind of albino trees that can see the future is that they can tell you about really long term dangers, like mass burning of coal in cities, the disadvantage is that even people who are your natural allies will think you are exaggerating when you tell them about it. For the record there is basically no support for Soft Strider in the Curia right now on this matter, if she brings up the Old Gods that might change, but that would be awkward given how this is supposed to be a secular space.
    Click to expand...
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    Made some additional edits to the chapter, DP.
     
    @DragonParadox, don't purification Rings largely nullify this problem? That's what we used for Everfire Dale's Forge when we made it IIRC? We didn't want smoke and soot everywhere.
     
    So I know coal smoke is a problem but surely we can think of some magical solution to it? A magical air filter?
    Although mining it also leads to problems…:???: Maybe it is more trouble than it's worth.
    It just seems wrong to deny Lord Reed the chance.
     
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