They were trying to say something like... "Being as isolated as they were, establishing any kind of friendly liaison is an occasion worthy of celebration, and to be considered a mark of divine aid from Ulair, Belsun, and Eldora Carmeline"
Yeah, I'd written one thing, and then was supposed to be rewriting it into another, when the migraine hit, so I rushed to finish up which left you all with the half rewritten mess. @Marlin had gotten the gist of it.
As for info, the current plan of actions is,
1) Finish the turn update
2) Edit the information post to reflect the changes
3) Do the War Turns
4) Cast dice to stat out the new generation, and the spousal candidates
5) Repeat # 2)
Archival, Starter, Start, Starta, Starting, Do Not FOrget ME! (This is a line so I remember that this post exists so, I can link to it.)
Empire Lost, but the Spark Remains.
Recording of the front page's important info, from my perspective, on .... (Thursday, March 21, 2019)
Note: Setup Turn 1.3 was released on Sunday, Febuary 3, 2019. The current most recent update was "Setup Turn 2.2.2", released on Wednesday, March 20, 2019.
"Archival", (last edited by QM on Sunday, Febuary 3, 2019)
Character Aelyn Tasakar
Attributes:
Martial: 16-1+3+1+1+1+2=23
Diplomacy: 18-1+2+1=20
Intrigue: 17+1+1+1=20
Stewardship: 13-1+1+1+2+1=17
Learning: 19+1=20
Piety: 19+1+2=22
Old Blood - 17% purity
Traits:
Tasakar - 15 attribute base. Can wield The Spark
You are of the blood of Turgud and Talasin, of Aseryah and Andora. You are the inheritor of more than 15 centuries of remarkable leaders, for good or bad, and it shows.
Sparkbarer - Progeny blood purity cannot be lower than yours. Can link the non-blood family to The Spark
Spark lays heavily beneath your breast. You can feel it pulsating, and roiling and... and... It is indescribable, like trying to describe mountain's sunrise to a blind, or the most exquisite symphony to the deaf. You can pull on it, and feel your family do likewise. And, you can connect others to be by their connections to you.
Foolhardy - -1base to all attributes. Inheritable
Your thought processes are not always the soundest, for all that that they can be remarkably quick.
Noble-wary - 1M, -1D, -1S, +1I, +1L, +1P, more difficult to draw in nobles from the empire during your reign.
For whatever reason, you dislike and distrust nobles. You preferred pursuing activities that would keep you away from your social strata.
Security-minded - +3M, easier Martial projects during your reign
If the fall of the empire had taught you anything, it is that there can be no such thing as too much security. You actively and aggressively pursue any means by which to enhance your military.
Fight smart - +1M, +1I, +1S
You are an avid believer in the principle of fighting smarter, not harder. Let others charge in the van, you prefer a more oblique approach.
Scrounger - +1M +1S
You are good at finding more to support your people with.
Demagogue - +2D +2S +2P positive morale dynamics during your reign
You love your people and they love you right back. You have a gift at keeping their morale up if nothing else.
Retinue:
Unit of Imperial household guard. 20 guardsmen, 4 sergeants and a Lieutenant in command
-Lieutenant Randrim - Gifted commander +2M, +1I
Hadar Milich. Personal Cartographer +1M, +1D +1S
Idrien Fergaz-Tasakar of Sastor
Attributes:
Martial: 22
Diplomacy: 21+1=22
Intrigue: 21+1=22
Stewardship: 17+1+2=20
Learning: 19
Piety: 18
Old Blood - 21% purity
Traits:
Avid hunter. +1 base M, +1 base I, +1 S
You appreciate few things in life as much as the pursuit of the hunt.
Second child (the spare). +1 base M, +1 base D, +1 base I, +1 base L
You were born and raised as 'just in case' spare to your elder sibling whom is the intended hair. As such you were trained to be ready to support them even once out of the line of succession.
Solid, steady and sober. +1 D, +1 I, +2 S
You were never going to be the life of the party, but people know they can rely on you.
Sparked
You are capable of utilizing The Spark
Thomas Tasakar
The firstborn prince of the New Tasakarim, quite probably conceived during the long exodus.
Unfortunately, as it turned, he was also the least prince. The one at the bottom of the line of succession.
Not that he was ever in a position to begrudge his siblings for supplanting him.
The horrendous decade heralded by the birth of his sister would have been more than ample proof of the paramount importance of The Spark for preserving their people that no one short of an idiot could doubt. Thomas bore many appellations in his life, but an idiot was never one of them.
As a matter of fact, he had the steadiest head on his shoulders, among his siblings, more akin to his taciturn father, than firey mother.
Trained primarily in the arts of warfare and diplomacy, he found himself naturally focusing his usage of The Spark towards influencing and command. By the time he was six, the household staff had to have had Spark infused order by his parents set up and maintained to prevent his childish requests be treated with the same weight as his mother's royal command. By the time he reached the tender age of thirteen, his mother and instructors regularly took him along to help interrogate the captured barbarians. By the fifteenth anniversary of the settling of Pyratryst, he had taken over the task of enhancing the children aspirants for the Tasakar household guard.
Attributes:
Martial: 23+1+1+1+1+1+1=29
Diplomacy: 21+1+1+1+1+1=26
Intrigue: 17+1=18
Stewardship: 15+2+1+1=19
Learning: 22
Piety: 22
Old Blood - 17% purity
Traits:
Tasakar - 15 attribute base. Can wield The Spark
You are of the blood of Turgud and Talasin, of Aseryah and Andora. You are the inheritor of more than 15 centuries of remarkable leaders, for good or bad, and it shows.
Solid, steady and sober +1 D, +1 I, +2 S
You were never going to be the life of the party, but people know they can rely on you.
Good with animals - +1M, +1S, small chance to gain animal/monster retinue
You just seem to be able to get along with animals.
Trained Fighter - +1M
You have been trained from an early age to the ways of combat.
Good listener - +1D
First lesson in diplomacy: let the other side talk more.
Gifted Student - +1M, +1D
You are an absolute joy to teach for your tutors.
Spark Traits:
Unnaturally persuasive - +1M, +1D, +1S, better spousal relations
Your every word is subtly imbued by The Spark, and when you speak, everyone around you listens.
Soft voice, and Big stick - +1M, +1D, easier martial and diplomatic rolls during war turns
You are, by your lonesome, an embodiment of an old, wise adage concerning relations to others.
Battlefield Beacon - +1M, So long as you are known to be upon the field, your units have unbreakable morale
Even when they cannot see nor hear you, your troops feel your presence upon the fields of battle, and it bolsters them like nothing else.
Master of the Royal household guard - It is your responsibility to turn ordinary children into the best warriors and bodyguards that had, are and ever will exist in the world.
Taesta Tasakar
The second son to Aelyn and Idrien, Taesta is much more his mother's son than either his elder brother or his younger sister. Rash, cocksure and passionate, he was and remains a hellion.
While sharing in his brother's military training, instead of diplomacy, Taesta studied under the masters of the Imperial College of Architecture. While not as natural a fit as his brother's studies, Taesta was by no means a lax student. Seeing the perpetual exhaustion suffusing his parents as they ran from emergency to emergency caused by the Mad Weather was more than apt source of motivation.
Still, while he proved fine student of creative and support applications of The Spark, where his true talent lie is destruction. No one displayed any surprise at that particular revelation...
Attributes:
Martial: 22+2+1+1+1+1+2=30 (32)
Diplomacy: 23-1+1=23 (25)
Intrigue: 16+1=17
Stewardship: 15-1+1+2+1=18
Learning: 19+1=20
Piety: 16-1+1=16
Old Blood - 19% purity
Traits:
Tasakar - 15 attribute base. Can wield The Spark
You are of the blood of Turgud and Talasin, of Aseryah and Andora. You are the inheritor of more than 15 centuries of remarkable leaders, for good or bad, and it shows.
Foolhardy - -1base to all attributes. Inheritable
Your thought processes are not always the soundest, for all that that they can be remarkably quick.
Brave - +2M, +2D when dealing with warriors and warrior culture, increased chance of gaining martial traits
Where celestials fear to tread, there you are, where cold terror grips the hearts of lesser men, you charge confidently.
Aggressive - +1M, +1I, +1L, -1D, -1S, -1P
Determined and forcefull, everything is a confrontation for you.
Trained Fighter - +1M
You have been trained from an early age to the ways of combat.
Apprentice architect - +1S
You are on your way to learning the intricacies of the arts and crafts inherent in building and tearing down buildings.
Spark Traits:
Enhanced Stonework - +1M, +2S, +1P
All stone you work with, every building you get involved with, they all turn out better than anyone ever thought possible.
Stonecaller - +1M, +1S, cheaper building projects
Stone is malleable in your hands, and with enough effort, you can even call small amounts to your hands.
OMSE - +2M during sieges
As the name says: You are one man siege engine.
Tremble before me - +2M, +1D
You are capable of calling forth small quakes in a limited area centered around yourself.
Anora Tasakar
The baby and the only girl of the Tasakar brood, Anora is quite something else. While not as... ah, energetic as her middle brother, she definitely did inherit all of her mother's passion, and then some more.
Bright, though definitely not mature far in advance of her tender years, and much stronger in The Spark than the rest of her family, one thing is for certain sure - everyone expects great things out of her.
The one cloud that darkens that future though, was the Mad Weather. Being born, just before a decade long natural catastrophe hits your lands is not something anyone could ever pretend was not ominous. Being of much higher sorcerous blood than your family just exacerbated the problem. Thus, at no fault of her own, her own people, or at least the low strata of it does, and probably always will consider Anora a harbinger of trouble.
Whereas her brothers got educated in matters of war, Anora's education was given to the Imperial colleges to educate her on the general academia, and special importance given to the Imperial College of Medicine.
Naturally intelligent as she is, she took to her lessons easily. On the other hand, it did not take her more than a few years for her spirited nature to start wearing down her tutors.
Thankfully for everyone involved, lady Myria Ladislaus was well equipped, both as the Grand master of the Imperial colleges, Grand master healer, and a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother to deal with cases just like hers.
Attributes:
Martial: 16-1+1+1+2+1+2=22
Diplomacy: 20-1+1+1+1=22 (23)
Intrigue: 18-1+1+2+1=21
Stewardship: 18+1+1+1+1+2+1+1+1=27
Learning: 19+1+1+2+1+2=26
Piety: 23-1+1+1=24
Old Blood - 30% purity
Traits:
Tasakar - 15 attribute base. Can wield The Spark
You are of the blood of Turgud and Talasin, of Aseryah and Andora. You are the inheritor of more than 15 centuries of remarkable leaders, for good or bad, and it shows.
Heir apparent - You shall be the next Sparkbarer, and thus the one to inherit the throne.
Foolhardy - -1base to all attributes. Inheritable
Your thought processes are not always the soundest, for all that that they can be remarkably quick.
Inauspicious birth - -1M, -1D, -1P
While it is hardly your fault, you can not escape the stigma of your birth forevermore being associated with the arrival of the Mad Weather.
Genius - +2base to all attributes. Inheritable
You are gifted at everything you do.
Ardent passions - +1M, +1S, +1L, -1I, better spousal relations
Everything you do, you do 120%.
Scholar - +1L
You are training for scholarly pursuits and academia.
Neophyte healer - +1S
You are training to become a full-fledged healer.
Demanding master - +1D, +1S, +2L
You are under the personal tutelage of Lady Myria herself, you will damn well end up being worth her time.
Spark Traits:
Diviner - +1 all stats
Despite what it seems like, you cannot actually see into the future, your Spark enhanced senses and intellect are simply very acute at reading into correlations and deducing the causes and effects.
Dynamist - +2M, +2I, +2S, +2L
You command a firm grasp upon magical applications of movement.
Healing hands - +1D, +1S, reduces atrition by flat 10%
You are not limited to the small and simple magics when it comes to applying your powers to healing.
Enchanter - +1M, +1I, +1S
You are gifted in creating simple trinkets, that nonetheless hold real, if minor, powers.
Green Thumb - +1D, +1I, +1S
Affecting and altering the plantlife to get exactly the desired results is simplicity unto itself for you.
Daughter of the storm - +2M, +1S, +1P, +1D during turbulent weather
While you are in no way connected to the beginning of the Mad Weather, only a fool would expect that there would be no connection between you and it.
Elanor Fergaz of Sastor
Attributes:
Martial: 20
Diplomacy: 15+1+1=17
Intrigue: 15+1+1=17
Stewardship: 19+1+1=21
Learning: 18
Piety: 18+1+1=20
Old blood - 14% purity
Traits:
Countess of Sastor +1 base all attributes. +1D, +1I, +1S, +1P
You were born and bred to rule the barony of Sastor. Your entire childhood was spent preparing you to that task.
Solid, steady and sober. +1 D, +1 I, +2 S
You were never going to be the life of the party, but people know they can rely on you.
State
Capital: Pyratryst
Population ~8000
Chance of discovery threshold 80
My sincerest apologies folks. I cannot conway how sorry I am for letting you down.
I will not bog you down with my personal problems, because frankly, they are not nor should they ever become your concern.
But I do feel the need to explain the reasons behind my inaction.
As some of you might have already gathered, I am of very, very poor health. I have been so for as long as I've lived.
The health problems I had as I was writing the previous portions of this were much more serious then I'd made them out to be. Long story short, I've ended with another brief stay in the hospital over them, and have been suffering from dumps since I got released.
I've, mostly, gotten out of the blues now, but in a way, my methodology for doing so is part of the problem.
My voracious reading and escapism tend to overcharge my muse, but without any direction. As I try to write, I get lost in a tangent, and the next thing I know, I've been wikiwalking for the past four hours, and my initial train of thought has long since left the hemisphere I'd been inhabiting.
So, yeah. Sorry, this is still incomplete, but I figured I owed it to you to get you at least something out, since I'll be somewhat indisposed by other stuff for the next several days.
Reach out to the people of Stalker's Run (roll difficulty 5)
-Enter into Trade agreements (raises difficulty by 10, roll for gains, difficulty further raised by additional 30 until path between the plateaus and the former empire is secured, incompatible with convincing them to join you, increases the chance of discovery by a low amount)
-Recruit from within the populace (raises difficulty by 10, roll for a small increase in population - tradesmen and common workforce, small chance for skilled hunters/trappers, small chance for militia rangers)
1d100=77+5+5(trade deal with Onas)=87; 87>55 pass!
Getting the dour, independent-minded folk of the Stalker's Run to majorly agree upon anything tended to be an exercise not dissimilar to carrying large boulders up the mountain, without any tools, your agents are told by the mayor over cups of strong woodsman's liquor, after the finalization of the trade agreements.
Nonetheless, even they cannot exist in the vacuum, and, over the years, your people left good impressions on them.
The piece that sealed the deal, however, came relatively late in the negotiation process.
Thanks to consort princess Emaline and her efforts to establish trade relationships with her home fief, and a little bit of quick thinking of your agents it was arranged that the trade caravans from Onas would pass through their town giving them two trade partners for the price of one, and ensuring better protection on the road for their own trade goods.
Besides that, the other task of your agents also seems to have gone very well, managing to attract a number of people to come and resettle in your realm, with an entire company of ranger militia, having fallen in love with the wilderness upon the plateaus, and you suspect, a bit of subtle prodding by Prince Thomas, offering to formally join the ranks of your military.
(Steady trade between Pyratryst and Stalker's Run established; morale penalty due to resource scarcity lowered; current market conditions - favorable; +351 population (no attrition)(204 workmen (primarily lumberjacks), 114 tradesmen, 33 woodsmen); 319 soldiers (300 militia rangers, 18 militia officers, 1 ranger captain (elite)); bonus to relevant actions)
Reach out to trusted Fergaz cousins (roll difficulty 35, slightly increases the chance of discovery)
1d100=37; 37>35 pass!
It was slow work, finding where the few of their kinsmen Elanor and Idrien thought to be trustworthy had gone, and what happened to them.
The family had never been big in the first place, for all that they were a lineage almost as old as the empire. After the ravages of the civil war, unfortunately, there were even fewer of them left - a bare dozen that your agents could locate, and all but three of them were deemed not appropriate for contacting for one reason or another.
Sheridan Fergaz did well for himself as the owner of rather extensive shipyards within Garruk, and serving in a lesser capacity as one of the myriad councilors to the ancestral rulers of the port city after whom the city and the former dukedom had been named, the Garruk family.
Robert 'Hob' Fergaz bred horses on a modest ranch a few miles outside the great merchant city of Trellyn. While his horseflesh was of good breeding, he was nonetheless only one of many, many, many small landowners providing goods and animals to the largest metropolis of the known world.
The final, trusted member of the family was a truly tragic story.
Christien Fergaz and his two younger sisters were mere babes when the upheaval started, and both of their parents were lost when they attempted to stop the mad mobs from descending upon and ransacking their small village. The crazed, barbarous, unruly brutes responded to the resistance by putting the entire place to torch.
The only reason that the children survived was thanks to their grandfather Kostas siccing his deceased father's former mount upon the mob, producing from somewhere the Fergaz ancestral weapon - the ancient, magical long axe "Ferrus Gasa" which was supposed to have been lost for generations, and the two of them, an old man without any formal training in handling weapons, and an ancient, near-blind, arthritic cragscale basilisk punching a hole in the encircling mob and keeping that hole open long enough for the household to escape.
While the last of his people managed to pull the half-dead and quite maimed old man and the priceless family relic away from the carnage, none of them dared attempt to approach the rampaging old monster.
Taking refuge with their nearest cousin, the honorable Ian Fergaz, the old man was finally put to rest and the runaways were able to find peace and safety again.
For a tragically short period of time.
Barely a decade later, Ian also passed away, and the holding was inherited by his wretched, ne'er-do-well son Quentin.
Quentin Fergaz was the very epitome of the old adage of even the best of trees baring rotten fruits.
In a thoroughly disgusting and torrid affair, he had tried to have his younger cousins killed or worse so he could claim the relic weapon.
The exact details are not too clear, but the end result of the entire awful incident was open fighting within the mansion, one of Christien's sisters dead and the lad, barely twelve at the time, taking the head of his traitorous kin with the very ax that was at the center of the entire tragedy.
Unfortunately, the tragedy did not stop there.
Words of the precious weapon had spread in the underworld and various criminals, corrupt officials and venal 'nobles' proceeded to hunt the poor lad and those close to him for the proceeding decade, which culminated in his remaining sister getting kidnaped and subsequently killed by a crime lord who refused to believe that the young man had gotten rid of the troublesome weapon by throwing it off the cliff into the southern ocean.
A claim that a lot of ruthless criminals still disbelieve, despite Christien's failure to produce it so he could save his sister, or during his roaring rampage of revenge against the crime syndicate responsible for the death.
The only reasons that he is even on the speaking terms with your agents are that Ian had held Elanor in high regards and that the brotherhood of the Talon took it upon themselves to bring him the heads of the worst offenders chasing after him and the once-more lost family treasure.
(contact established with Garruk via Sheridan Fergaz; contact established with Hob Fergaz; your agents are protecting, aiding and abetting Christien Fergaz)
Reach out to the people of the north-western regions' towns (roll difficulty 40, slightly increases the chance of discovery, can be taken multiple times)
-Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 25, further raises the chance of discovery penalty to low) X2
1d100=65; 65=65 bare pass!
1d100=82; 82>65 pass!
Your recruiters continue to prove their weight in whatever precious material you wish to use.
Having been directed by you to try to attract larger and more urban populations to your cause, they prove as adroit at that as sending villages your way.
Elmsborough was, as the name might imply, a town built around the woodcutting and carpentry industry. Unfortunately, having been a relatively young town, and very much concentrated upon its native purpose, when the troubles started, and the commerce broke down, they were left with a lot of timber, furniture, etc, and critically low on such essentials as food, clothing, tools, and frankly - protection.
Somehow, the hardy folk endured, but the population had been hit hard.
By the time your people found them, the town was already half abandoned, and it was not overly difficult to convince the remnant to relocate.
The other town they managed to talk into joining you was a much more difficult yet rewarding prospect.
Hardrinsburn was a venerable town, built around the confluence of many mountain streams into a small, but respectable river of the same name, that itself, eventually joined the much more significant Della river.
Apparently, members of three out of the four founding families had been chasing titles of nobility for the past few generations, so once they got vetted, your agents had the perfect bribe to convince them to take up their own people and venture for the Plateaus, and the fourth, having opted to remain where they were, were grateful enough for you relieving them of their rivals, that they readily agreed to maintain trade relations with you.
(+3000 population (wood industry); +120 soldiers (mixed militia); bonus to relevant actions; +4800 population; +150 soldiers (30 archers, 20 scouts, 100 infantry militia); trade between Pyratryst and Hardrinsburn established, market conditions - variable; bonus to relevant actions)
Reach out to what remains of the former imperial academy
-College of Medicine (roll difficulty 25, slightly increases the chance of discovery)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 20) OMAKE BONUS - automatically roll for this suboption if the action is undertaken without taking up a suboption slot
-College of Horticulture (roll difficulty 35, slightly increases the chance of discovery)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 25) X2
-College of Husbandry (roll difficulty 35, slightly increases the chance of discovery)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 25)
-College of Alchemy (roll difficulty 35, increases the chance of discovery by a low amount)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 35)
-College of History and Law (roll difficulty 35, increases the chance of discovery by a low amount)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 25)
-College of Linguistics (roll difficulty 35, increases the chance of discovery by a low amount)
--Convince them to join you (raises difficulty by 10)
1d100=59; 59>45 pass!
1d100=62; 62>60 pass! 1d100=82; 82>60 pass!
1d100=60; 60=60 bare pass
1d100=100+1d100(crit)=23=123; 123>60 exceptional pass!
1d100=66; 66>60 pass!
1d100=98; 98>45 exceptional pass!
The greatest amount of resources expended upon operations within the lands of the former Tasakarim were dedicated to tracking down, rounding up and recruiting elements and resources of the Royal Colleges that still remained, and the results were, almost, everything anyone could have wished for.
Except for the part that such a massive exodus of scholars could not, nor did not pass unnoticed, but your agents at least managed to muddle affairs enough to make the name of Pyratryst lost in a slew of other places that could be responsible for snatching up the academics.
What remained of the College of Medicine were simultaneously the easiest to track down and the absolute hardest to convince to relocate. Ultimately, only the names of some of their most venerated members, whom they had thought lost, and the promises of frankly extravagant budgets managed to get them to come. And, even then, some few holdouts remained, but at least those noble souls agreed to work with your agents still operating around.
A special amount of effort and expenses were made to enlist the college of Horticulture, due to the sheer need for their expertise.
Your farmers were good, but you simply lacked the proper cultivars, and the skills to find, breed, crossbreed and all the other myriad nigh-arcane things needed to actually produce almost any useful plants that could be successfully grown upon the shelves.
So, the proportionally larger effort to get the academics whom made it their lives work to investigate and study and experiment with those very processes, and possessed all the right and necessary equipment and more besides.
An effort and resources that you consider very well spent indeed, all things being equal.
College of Husbandry was... well, something of a flop, considering all the success you had with the other colleges. Still, a respectful amount of scholars, their libraries, apprentices, and experimental livestock eventually found their way to Pyratryst, just in time to set down in the newly opened complex of the Great Royal Academy.
As far back in history as their art and science had existed in whatever form, the alchemists were considered odd, eccentric sorts, which might explain why so many are and always had been shunned by the society at large.
Even those raised to know better tended to look upon them with a certain unease.
Well, their loss. The College of Alchemy had always been as much of a refuge as a place to study for its members, and regaining that sense of safety and purpose was more than enough to get every single Alchemist to head up the mountains, really. Every other perk of relocating up to Pyratryst was merely a nice bonus.
Getting the historians and lawyers up was a much more mundane matter. Some agreed, some did not. Some of those who refused mysteriously lost contents of their libraries and offices, and some of those going to Pyratryst found their own collections equally mysteriously supplemented.
As for the College of Linguistics, your agents reported almost as good a success as they had at getting the Alchemists to agree.
In war-and-strife-torn lands, no one really has the time and patience to pay attention to a bunch of lazy layabouts who want to do nothing but endlessly debate language.
Also, your agents might have just mentioned the presence of people whose language apparently shared nothing with the myriad of tongues that had amalgamated together into what is present-day imperial tongue...
(Effectively the entirety of the Colleges of Medicine, Horticulture, Alchemy and Linguistics recruited; portions of the Colleges of Husbandry and History & Law recruited; new options unlocked; received relevant bonuses for the future)
Attempting to establish diplomatic and/or mercantile contacts with To-Kruk (roll difficulty 35)
-Try to reach Skaggi through To-Kruk (raises difficulty by 10, slightly increases the chance of discovery)
1d100=44; 44<45 fail!
It is not that your people could not locate the To-Kruk.
It is not even that they failed to establish contact.
It is simply that as soon as your people even obliquely approached the matter of Skaggi, the To-kruk would immediately turn belligerent, and your people were forced to fight their way back to you.
(Action failed; can be repeated; need to investigate the matter further before you again bring up the Skaggi)
Thomas
Work with his wife and the hunters, breeders and tamers to go out and search for useful beasts and/or monsters to tame and raise (roll difficulty 40. Results raise the higher the roll. If taken replaces the main monster seeking/taming project. Can DD)
1d100=82+10(Rangers); 92>40 exceptional pass!
"Well, my dear, I'd say this is quite a find. Or should I just call it another minor miracle of yours?" the firstborn Tasakar sibling grinned jovially at his wife as she cautiously threaded her way amongst several clutches of moss green, armspan high eggs that had been half-buried in the soft river clay and covered by veritable oodles of composting swamp vegetation.
Turning her head to give him a brief, soft smile, Emaline continued on in her inspection of the eggs.
"Don't praise me just yet dearheart. Most egg-laying animals, monstrous ones included, rarely if ever just abandon their clutches in such a way. And, despite what these eggs might look like, no species of Drake that I've ever heard about does so, so you can abandon that line of speculation right away. Nonetheless, far as I can determine, whatever reptile laid these, they all seem viable... Ah, well, except for this poor thing. Well, the good news is, we now have some idea of what we are dealing with, these are something in the turtle family"
Emaline kept her voice even and steady as she motioned for Thom to join her where she uncovered another egg. This one half thorn and filled with small bones and half-formed shell.
"Oh, don't get all modest on me. Even if they prove unsuitable for raising, these eggs are still a find we all would have missed without you, and I have yet to hear of anything in the turtle family producing toxins so at the very least we might be able to harvest them for food." Thom chided as he came next to her to do his own inspection of the sad remnants.
"Proves what you know. Horned Cardinals of the inner sea are incredibly toxic, and so is the oil secreted by Oily Leatherbacks." Ema gently crowed, but Thom was unimpressed.
"Actually, you are wrong on both accounts. Cardinals themselves are not toxic. Toxins come from the jellyfish that constitute their primary diet. Kept away from those and forced to feed only on sea flora and small fishes, their flesh is something of a delicacy. As for Letherbacks, their oil is not toxic, just incredibly emetic." He gently corrected, most of his focus on gently prying up the half-formed shell from the malodorous goo.
Having succeeded in his endeavor, he rose back up, his prize clutched in his hands. Darting a quick, playful peck upon Ema's nose, he just as quickly evaded her automatic swat and continued on back to the rest of their party.
Left to briefly attempt a right proper wifely fume upon the nature of her husbands' immaturity, Ema really did try, but she just could not get into it. Eventually, she just gave up on the silly business altogether and with a good-natured sigh decided to follow his example.
The mysterious eggs were the last proper find they did manage to uncover before Emaline was rendered indisposed due to pregnancy, and Thomas got too wrapped up in the operations against barbarians.
(Titanic Wooly Hydravore gained (war, meat, wool, anti-pest); Saber-toothed Swine gained (meat); Silkentail Peacock gained (poultry, exceptional feathers); Pygmy Owlgryph gained (hunting aid, feathers, pet, anti-pest); Armadillo Ass (work, rideable, carapace, hide, meat, catgut, could potentially crossbreed with other equines); Mysterious 'turtle' eggs gained (will hatch next turn))
Lead a military campaign against To-reil barbarians (military turns. Any main project that concerns To-reil affect the campaign. Incompatible with attempting to establish diplomatic relations with To-reil. If the same actions were also undertaken by Taesta, the project is further enhanced. Can DD)
See war turns
Work with her husband to establish a native knightly order (results depend on the height of the roll. If the same action is undertaken by Thomas results are further enhanced. Can DD)
1d100=65
Ubi were really not built for riding.
Their spine was the wrong shape.
Their backs were too wide.
Their natural running gait was anything but conducive for staying attached to their backs.
And then there were the antlers. Any time a bull reared or moved their head, there was a good chance they'd clip the rider.
Thankfully, the saddle and harnessmakers of the old empire had been past masters of figuring ways around such minor concerns. And the old chestnuts about the army depots having 'at least one of everything' in their stores were comfortably close to the truth.
Emaline suspiciously eyed the odd contraption hauled out of the storage of the army depot, before transferring her gaze back to the master armorer, and then back to the purported Ubi saddle.
This occurrence repeated several more times over the next several minutes.
Finally, she decided that there was no helping it, and she'd have to voice her doubts.
Before she could do so, however, she was pre-empted by the armorer's gruff voice.
"Yes, your highness, we are certain this is the correct saddle. Yes, we are certain that there are no bits missing. And, yes, we'll be able to reproduce it and teach both you and your trainees in both how to use and how to take care of such saddles."
"Was I that obvious? No, please do not answer that master armorer. But you must admit..."
"Yeah, it's a big, cumbersome bit o' leather, cabling and cloth innit?" The man answered with a crooked grin, before spitting to the side and continuing on.
"Don't ye worry a thing m'lady. I know the inside-out o' every bit o' equipment that the depot holds, including their usage. See, it's not meant to sit on the beastie's back, like a regular saddle, but rather, over the hips, to keep th' rider well clear of the horns. and iff'n you'd look over here, you'll see that ye're feet are supposed to rest all the way up 'ere, which, thanks to this bit o' pulley and fulcrum would allow you to operate lower reins with 'em see, and this..."
Losing herself in trying to follow the complicated and highly technical explanation, at least to the point that she'd be reasonably confident enough to try the contraption with Randor, she spared a brief thought of thanks to the gods that it would be Thomases duty to figure out how to fight from the damn things.
Still, she was confident, both in herself and her husband that in a few years they'd be ready to receive the first intake of teenage aspirants to match up with maturing young bulls of her herd and turn them into effective and efficient assets upon the battlefield.
(Order of the Charging avalanche founded; +22 Knights (Heavy armor, formation-breakers, exceptional mobility, effective both at range and in melee))
Contact your home about establishing diplomatic and economic relationships with your new home and easing the population burdens of Onas by recruiting excess people into Pyratryst (Roll difficulty for recruitment 35 - farmers, tradesmen and common workforce, small chance for skilled hunters/trappers, lesser nobility and low clergy of the northern pantheon)
1d100=73; 73>35 great pass!
There was a small, ignoble, part of Emaline, safely tucked in the far back part of her mind that she only let out in some select, rare occasions.
Such as, to choose a totally and absolutely random example, when reading her latest personal correspondence from her grandfather and uncle, respectively the Baron of Onas and his heir, and, reading between the lines, having realized that not only did she get a better marriage match, despite having married off to a place that was more than triple the combined distance of both of her sisters' new homes from Onas, her marriage was also more than twice more profitable then, again, the combined gain her sisters' marriages had brought Onas.
Well, in that situation, could one really blame the young woman for giving herself leave to let loose a brief, subdued bout of cackling?
"Sweetlings, mommy is being just a little bit naughty right now, so let us keep that to ourselves, shall we?" She softly crooned to her expanding pregnant belly.
As if to answer her she felt a non-too-gentle impact upon her bladder.
"Ugh! Your complaint has been lodged and acknowledged. I'll endeavor to better rein in my petty wickedness in the future." She joked in response, then continued in the same vein.
"Though how Ady and Franny managed to secure your loyalty this early, and without even knowing yet that you are on the way suggests I'm still behind the curve." she added with a bright smile, as she got back to her letters, when she was interrupted by a quiet laugh, pitched to be unobtrusive, yet perfectly audible.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your, frankly adorable waggery, but you are needed, my lady." The tall, imposing woman murmured from just beyond the doors of Thomas and her's suite.
Ema bit down a self-conscious curse. She did not even hear the doors open.
Then she self-recriminated for yet again forgetting that the six foot four woman beyond the portal was hardly your average guard.
Taking another moment to properly compose herself, Emaline rose from the chair and started walking for the doors.
"Yes, Kayela? What seems to be the matter?" She asked in her best, dignified voice.
"Are you sure you are available now my lady? I could always endeavor to delay things for a bit if you need more time."
Kayela looked as gravely bland as she always did, and her voice was even and uninflected as she answered, but despite that Emaline was certain beyond a shadow of a doubt that the bigger woman was taking the mickey and deriving a perverse amount of indulgent amusement in doing so.
Royal Guards, what could you do?
According to Thomas, even the young initiates, no older than 10, by some weird alchemy of their order adopted the attitudes of an amused nanny.
Truth be told, Emaline had no problems with it.
Everyone needed ways to amuse themselves.
So, she played along.
She tried to imitate Nicholas by giving her answer as an unamused raising of an eyebrow.
Judging by the, well, placid nature of Kayela's posture, she did not believe she had quite made it.
"Well, my lady, it appears that a cousin of yours has arrived with that latest caravan and has since gotten into a bit of trouble."
"A cousin? Why did no one inform me when my mail was... Oh, oak and ash, it's Freddy, isn't it? Freidriech Yanston? Gods all damn, what is that blockhead doing here?! No, no matter. Just take me to whichever cell he had ended up in this time..."
(Steady trade between Pyratryst and Onas established; morale penalty due to resource scarcity lowered; current market conditions - favorable; +869 population (after attrition) (311 farmers, 224 workmen, 211 craftsmen, 73 woodsmen, 36 low-level clergy, 13 minor nobility, 1 noble); +22 soldiers (16 footmen, 6 rangers))
Taesta
Involve himself in the expedition to secure the site and study the door upon the mountain (must have taken the main project to secure the site. can be combined with similar actions by siblings for greater/better results. Can DD)
See 2.2.1
Lead a secured expedition to seek out possible metal and/or stone deposits (roll difficulty 50. Replaces main metals and stone seeking project. Can DD)
1d100=100+10(Shingh)+1d100(crit)=43+10(Shingh)=163
5d20=10, 20, 18, 20, 10
bonus 3d20=14, 1, 4
"You know Tessy, it is not that I am unhappy about the silver, gold and emeralds. Ashes and abyss, according to all the reports it was the news of your findings that secured us the entirety of Shingh. That all said, could I ever implore you, both as your baby sister and your future monarch, to at least try to find some more immediately usefull resources this time?" Anora whined flippantly at Taesta as he arrived to her mansion to say his goodbyes before leaving the new town for another bout of inspecting the surroundings for further resource deposits.
"The brat can get off of her skinny arse and look for the 'more immediately useful resources' herself if she wants them so much, and the monarch can loge her complaints once she loses the 'future' appellation, thank you very much." Came her brother's derisive answer as he hugged her.
"Stay well bratling, and don't destroy the doors." He added as his personal squad of guardsmen encircled him as he exited the grounds.
A few seasons later, as she was going over the piled up paperwork running even a small town necessitated, Anora was interrupted by the delivery of messages from Pyratryst.
Deciding to reward herself over her diligence, she paused in her work to see what her family was up with.
Her mother complained and praised, as usual, her father wove tales of his latest hunt, and very pointedly both of them described in excessively great detail all the joy and sunshine her nephews were.
Subtle, her parents were not. At least not without a heckuva lot of outside assistance.
Her sisters-in-law were neck deep doing their own things, and Thom was continuing on his personal saga of 'brave prince general versus the bloodthirsty barbarian hordes'.
Finally, she came upon Taesta's latest findings.
She let out a peal of snorty laughter.
"Well, whadaya know. Looks like Tessy actually can follow simple instructions! Will wonders never cease?"
(2x silver vein, 2x gold vein, emerald vein, coal deposits, copper vein, quality clay deposits discovered and secured; morale up; lack of resources penalties reduced)
Okay, just got around to this because I'd managed to miss the update...
Well, it looks like we just need to find a tin and iron vein to have secured a source of the critical resources we need. The plentiful gold and silver means that we are never going to have a coinage scarcity problem... And the emeralds mean that if gemstones are useful magically, at the worst we aren't going to be completely dependent on imports.
That said, for things we'd really like to secure access to, rock salt is the big one that I haven't mentioned before. Sulfur and saltpetre would also be very useful I think, but those are more 'would be nice to have, especially for future developments'...
Going to assume that the D20s rolled tell you what we discover @yannoshka ? Mind posting the list of possible results, because I'm interested in seeing what's possible to find.
Edit: Oh yeah, we might also still need a deposit of limestone or some other flux stone, if we want decent production of steel. I don't remember how critical those are for medieval steel production, though I know it's needed for more modern methods of making quality steel.
Thank you for your wory.
Everything is mostly Ok.
I just had been busy as Sisyphus. About as productive overall too.
+ My laptop got disjointed and finding replacement parts for everything that got damaged is both difficult and more expensive than the laptop itself is really worth it, and since I'm doing some traveling during the last week of May my entire current savings are reserved for that.
It is said that when Zhar's mother Toquy the Winter gave birth to him after her thrust with an unknown/unremembered being she took him to a conifer forest so that he could be close to his father as well as his mother. Because for all that Zhar was an unexpected child to his parents and their thrust was an act of pure chance and lust, he wasn't unwanted or unloved.
Good news people, my new laptop should arrive sometime this week, so we should be able to get back to the quest.
Actually?
Yanno, what, even if things go bad for some reason, even if I am forced to write on the phone, I am finishing the regular turn 2 by the next Sunday.
Good news people, my new laptop should arrive sometime this week, so we should be able to get back to the quest.
Actually?
Yanno, what, even if things go bad for some reason, even if I am forced to write on the phone, I am finishing the regular turn 2 by the next Sunday.
The health problems I had as I was writing the previous portions of this were much more serious then I'd made them out to be. Long story short, I've ended with another stay brief stay in the hospital over them, and have been suffering from dumps since I got released.
"another brief stay" not "another stay brief stay", since this is not part of the actual text it doesn't matter if you leave it up, but be aware that you made this mistake please. I usually only see a mistake like that when the writer/speaker is under a lot of stress.
Getting the dour, independent-minded folk of the Stalker's run to majorly agree upon anything tended to be an exercise not dissimilar to carrying large boulders up the mountain, without any tools, your agents are told by the mayor over cups of strong woodsman's liquor, after the finalization of the trade agreements.
The exact details are not too clear, but the end result of the entire awful incident was open fighting within the mansion, one of Christien's sisters dead and the lad, barely twelve at the time taking the head of his traitorous kin with the very ax that was at the center of the entire tragedy.
"the lad, barely twelve at the time, taking the head of his traitorous kin with the very axe" not "the lad, barely twelve at the time taking the head of his traitorous kin with the very ax"
The greatest amount of resources expended upon operations within the lands of the former Tasakarim were dedicated to tracking down, rounding up and recruiting elements and resources of the Royal colleges that still remained, and the results were, almost, everything anyone could have wished.
Your farmers were good, but you simply lacked the proper cultivars, and the skills to find, breed, crossbreed and all the other myriad nigh-arcane thing needed to actually produce almost any useful plants that could be usefully grown upon the shelves.
So, the proportionally larger effort to get the academics whom made it their lives work to investigate and study and experiment with those very processes, and possessed all the right and necessary equipment and more besides.
"nigh-arcane things needed" not "nigh-arcane thing needed"
"useful plants that could be successfully grown" not "useful plants that could be usefully grown" because you are both repeating the same adjective and saying that useful plants can be usefully grown which is redundant.
College of husbandry was... well, something of a flop, considering all the success you had with the other colleges. Still, a respectful amount of scholars, their libraries, apprentices, and experimental livestock eventually found their way to Pyratryst, just in time to set down in the newly opened complex of the Great royal academy.
Getting the historians and lawyers up was much more mundane matter. Some agreed some did not. Some of those who refused mysteriously lost contents of their libraries and offices, and some of those going to Pyratryst found their own collections equally mysteriously supplemented.
(Effectively the entirety of the Colleges of Medicine, Horticulture, Alchemy and Linguistics recruited; portions of the Colleges of Husbandry and history & Law recruited; new options unlocked; received relevant bonuses for the future)
It is simply that as soon as your people even obliquely approached the matter of Skeggi, the To-kruk would immediately turn belligerent, and your people were forced to fight their way back to you.
(Action failed; can be repeated; need to investigate the matter further before you again bring up the Skeggi)
"Well, my dear, I'd say this is quite a find. Or should I just call it another minor miracle of yours?" the firstborn Tasakar sibling grinned jovially at his wife as she cautiously threaded way amongst several clutches of moss green, armspan high eggs that had been half-buried in the soft river clay and covered by veritable oodles of composting swamp vegetation.
Emaline kept her voice even and steady as she motioned for Thom to join her where she uncovered another egg. This one half thorn and filled with small bones and half-formed shell.
"This one was half-thorn and filled with small bones and a half-formed shell." not "This one half thorn and filled with small bones and half-formed shell." You need an a for the singular in the half-formed shell since the words on the other half of that "and" are in plural.
"Proves what you know. Horned cardinals of the inner sea are incredibly toxic, and so is the oil secreted by Oily leatherbacks." Ema gently crowed, but Thom was unimpressed.
"Titanic Woolly Hydravore" or "Titanic Woolly Hydrovore" depending on whether you meant this beast was a primary hunter of Hydras or if it was just a beast that fed in/with water.
Losing herself in trying to follow the complicated and highly technical explanation, at least to the point that she'd be reasonably confident enough to try the contraption with Rendor, she spared a brief thought of thanks to the gods that it would be Thomases duty to figure out how to fight from the damn things.
Still, she was confident, both in herself and her husband that in a few years they'd be ready to take in the first intake of teenage aspirants to match up with maturing young bulls of her herd and turn them into effective and efficient asset upon the battlefield.
(Order of the Charging avalanche founded; +22 Knights (Heavy armor, formation-breakers, exceptional mobility, effective both at range and in mele))
There was a small, ignoble, part of Emaline, safely tucked in the far back part of her mind that she only let out in some select, rare occasions.
Such as, to chose a totally and absolutely random example, when reading her latest personal correspondence from her grandfather and uncle, respectively the Baron of Onas and his heir, and, reading between the lines, realized that not only did she get a better marriage match, despite having married off to a place that was more than triple the combined distance of both of her sisters new homes from Onas, marriage was also more than twice more profitable then, again the combined gain her sisters' marriages had brought Onas.
Well, in that situation, could one really blame the young woman for giving herself leave to let loose a brief, subdued bout of cackling?
"to choose a totally and absolutely random example," not "to chose a totally and absolutely random example" as it's the present tense not the past tense since Emaline is talking about which example she is choosing in the now which happened before.
"having realized that not only did she get a better marriage match," not "realized that not only did she get a better marriage match,"
"both of her sisters' new homes" not "both of her sisters new homes"
", her marriage was also more than twice more profitable then, again, the combined" not ", marriage was also more than twice more profitable then, again the combined"
"Sweetlings, mommy is being just a little bit naughty right now, so let us keep that to ourselves, shall we?" She softly crooned to her expanding pregnant belly.
As if to answer her she felt a non-to-gentle impact upon her bladder.
"Ugh! Your complaint has been lodged and acknowledged. I'll endeavor to better rein my petty wickedness in the future." She joked in response, then continued in in the same vein.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your, frankly adorable, waggery, but you are needed my lady." The tall, imposing woman murmured from just beyond the doors of Thomas' and her suite.
"of Thomas's and hers suite." or "of Thomas and hers suite." not "of Thomas' and her suite." because that's how English grammar works: It's either all of the persons or the last person whose ownership of something is marked. Never just the first person.
"she self-recriminated of yet" or "she recriminated herself of yet" not "she self-recriminated herself of yet" it's utterly redundant to say "she self-recriminated herself"
"The brat can get off of her skinny arse and look for the 'more immediately useful resources' herself if she wants them so much, and the monarch can loge her complaints once she loses the 'future' appellation, thank you very much." Came her brother's derisive answer as he hugged her.
Her mother complained and praised as usual, her father vowe tales of his latest hunt, and very pointedly both of them described in excessievly great detail all the joy and sunshine her nephews were.
Subtle, her parents were not. At least not without a heckuva lot of outside assistence.
Ah, I feel horrible.
Like, such a weasel.
The update will not come tomorrow.
No, nothing is, wrong. Well, I did have to recast the die, since I can't find my notebook, but that is minor.
Anyway, the reason I'm breaking my word is that I'm pulling double night shifts, so I'm giving myself extra time to rest.
Update WILL be on monday. Heck, for some of you it might even actually be on sunday.
Ah, I feel horrible.
Like, such a weasel.
The update will not come tomorrow.
No, nothing is, wrong. Well, I did have to recast the die, since I can't find my notebook, but that is minor.
Anyway, the reason I'm breaking my word is that I'm pulling double night shifts, so I'm giving myself extra time to rest.
Update WILL be on monday. Heck, for some of you it might even actually be on sunday.
No, no, no. We lost a badass. There was a crit somewhere in these missing rolls that got a nat 20, or something bonus like. You did a number reveal of certain numbers that had yet to be revealed, not all the numbers, just some of them. We hadn't hit all those crit numbers yet.
No, no, no. We lost a badass. There was a crit somewhere in these missing rolls that got a nat 20, or something bonus like. You did a number reveal of certain numbers that had yet to be revealed, not all the numbers, just some of them. We hadn't hit all those crit numbers yet.
You are greedy
But, no. You did not in point of fact lose that 90.
That is the only roll, I was certain of.
Heh, to tell the truth, I've had that bit of update written up since a few days after the last one. Needs a bit of touchup, but in the main, it's there.
LUCK?!?
Don't speak to me of luck!
Yours is insane this turn!
And, I do mean absolutely insane.
I've been switching die, rolling apps and online die rollers and you are getting a mix of averages and freaking amazing.
It is not too much spoiler to say that you've only failed one roll (mind, I'm still not rolling actions that line into war turns, so can't speak for absolutely every action). by 1.
Well, there was also another where you did roll bellow DC, but you did get bonuses from other things that more than made up for it.
So, besides the double crit of court, there are another 2 #100s rolled, 1 #99, 2 #98s, 1 #96, 1 #91 and 2 #90s. + 3 #20s on d20
Yeah.
You've cleaned house.
OTOH, if previous rolls mean anything, your good and bad luck tend to balance out. So gird your loins my friends because something bad might just hit you during the war turns.
the 96 and previous 20 were expended in background rolls.
Specifically, 96 netted you the mysterious turtle eggs and 20 got you rangers from Stalker's Run
Ah, I feel horrible.
Like, such a weasel.
The update will not come tomorrow.
No, nothing is, wrong. Well, I did have to recast the die, since I can't find my notebook, but that is minor.
Anyway, the reason I'm breaking my word is that I'm pulling double night shifts, so I'm giving myself extra time to rest.
Update WILL be on monday. Heck, for some of you it might even actually be on sunday.
Sorry! Sorry!
I've been 90% zombified sunday after my night shift, and perversely unable to get actually asleep for more than 20-40 mins a pop, and then when I finally did get asleep I slept for 21h straight and then had to crunch down as many of the chores/responsibilities I thought I'd have at least a day and a half to clear out into a few hours and still get to bed early enough to get to work today at dawn... Which I overslept for, and in the mad rush left my phone at home, leaving me cut off from the net...
expect the promised update within the next 4-10h
(with how hectic my life can get, I figured I'd err on the side of paranoia)
Sorry! Sorry!
I've been 90% zombified sunday after my night shift, and perversely unable to get actually asleep for more than 20-40 mins a pop, and then when I finally did get asleep I slept for 21h straight and then had to crunch down as many of the chores/responsibilities I thought I'd have at least a day and a half to clear out into a few hours and still get to bed early enough to get to work today at dawn... Which I overslept for, and in the mad rush left my phone at home, leaving me cut off from the net...
expect the promised update within the next 4-10h
(with how hectic my life can get, I figured I'd err on the side of paranoia)
Contact and recruit from the priesthood of the former empire (Replaces main contacting the priesthood action. Roll difficulty 20, If 35+ rolled gain mid-level clergy in addition to low-level, if 50+ rolled gain high-level clergy in addition to the mid and low level, if 75+ rolled ???. Clergy limited to the celestial pantheon)
1d100=90; 90>75 complete pass!
Despite all of her initial misgivings about the idea, and especially the infuriating nature of the second born Tasakar she had wedded, Sofia found that, all things being equal, high priest Oglaf had indeed been blessed with holy wisdom when he counseled her that marrying into the blessed chosen was indeed far greater service to the church than dedicating her life to The Temple early ever could be.
Even if they did not exactly like her at times, all of her inlaws respected her, which, she found, suited her much better.
And, even more importantly, her mother-in-law made it painfully obvious shortly after her wows with Taesta were exchanged (ugh, the very memory of that man's flippancy and casual disrespect for both the temple and the ceremony at such an important moment made her blood boil) that she was expected to be a working wife and a full partner to her son.
She was not just expected but required to wield royal authority and power, and, best of all, she was trusted to determine for herself the best ways that power and authority invested in her would be used.
Oh, she was neither foolish nor vain to believe that there was not someone surreptitiously looking over her shoulders at all times, and reporting to either the throne or the royal council about what she was doing, but, as the reverend arch-exarch had put it when the two of them met to discuss a particular project, that was simply the nature of politics.
All that said, as far as Sophia was concerned, whatever her opinions of the failings she had as a parent that produced that man, as a monarch and the holy figure worthy of The Holy Spark, there was no greater exemplar, living nor dead, more deserving of respect and devout allegiance than Queen Aelyn.
So, when the holy Queen personally and publically delivered unto her her effusive gratitude over spearheading a successful effort to draw in the priesthood of the great goddess and her celestial court (done surreptitiously and carefully, of course, Sophia was no fool and understood perfectly what kind of disaster drawing the wrong kind of notice would be), Sophia felt fit to burst with a sense of pride and accomplishment. Even, miracle of miracles, The Lout gave her an earnest "good job".
The goddess truly had blessed her efforts, she was sure of it!
The sheer number of deacons, clerics, priests, monks, exarchs, temple guardians, etc... was beyond even her wildest prayers.
There were even three... Three! Oracles of the great goddess!
According to the holy tomes of records, most of the saints of the Church of Isanella had never met even one of the oracles in their lifetimes.
And the representatives of The Son were almost as impressive.
His holy eminence The Radiant, Ebash, had sent four of his Archons!
Four of the twenty of the most glorious paladins that stood guard at the very Throne of the Sun.
(+234 population (attrition canceled)(109 low-level priesthood and sundry, 89 mid-level priesthood and sundry, 36 high-level priesthood of the celestial pantheon), 3 Oracles of Isanella (net reduction to all attrition, bonus against natural disasters), 4 Solar Archons)
Work with the remnants of the church of Isanela in the former empire to find and recruit trustworthy people for Pyratryst and the new Tasakarim (roll for results. Each individual recruitable strata has it's own roll and roll DC)
1d100=54
Nothing, not even recovering from her latest childbirth, could ever stop Sophia Tasakar nee Mantebrau, from ministering to the faithful.
And anyway, being exposed to the good works of the faith early would do her daughter and sons a world of good, she was certain of it.
Especially her daughter...
Deep within the hidden recesses of her mind and soul, the place she consigned her most shameful and unworthy thoughts and opinions, Sophia felt her disappointment in her mother-in-law get eroded day by day due to dealing with Aseryah's rambunctiousness.
She hoped and prayed every day that she would manage to temper the girl to be less like her father.
And every day the dark fear that that was the one grace the great goddess would not grant unto her got reaffirmed.
Still, it was a mother's duty to do best by her children, so she would not, could not, accept what everyone else already considered the inevitable.
Inevitably thus, she was more than a little resentful when Taesta trampled all over her desires to educate the child in the faith in favor of focusing her tutoring to Architecture and Arts.
(At least he agreed that she would have most of the say in their sons' education. Not that it soothed the insult much...)
So whenever the opportunity presented itself, her firstborn got dragged along to witness, from the ground level, why her father's disrespectful and denigrating attitude was wrong, and just why The Temple and The Church were so important and necessary.
Sophia just wished she had managed to attract more of the faithful masses, out of the chaos and misery from the decaying cadaver that The Faithless had made of the old empire.
(+721 population (tradesmen, merchants, workers, farmers)
Anora
Involve herself in the expedition to secure the site and study the Door upon the Mountain (must have taken the main project to secure the site. Can be combined with similar actions by siblings, spouse and in-laws for greater/better results. Can DD)
see 2.2.1
Personally dedicate herself to the effort to raise joint twin cathedrals to Camny and Satine (roll difficulty 40. Can be taken alongside similar project by Taesta)
1d100=80; 80>40 great pass!
Do not get her wrong, Anora was fairly devout adherent to The Starmother.
But, will-ye, nill-ye, all her life she had lived under the stigma of her birth heralding the Mad Weather.
It was always there, hounding her like an unwanted second shadow.
Even in those exceedingly rare times, when she was all alone (well, as alone as any Tasakar nowadays ever got. Royal guards were not about to leave their charges to their lonesomes. They might get ideas and certainly would get into trouble, even while just laying in bed and reading), she felt it.
Like a weight hung upon her shoulders, always subtly dragging her down.
As the history, both ancient and more recent would gleefully show, putting a Tasakar in such a position was...
Well, bound to be exciting, to say the least...
Predictably, Anora chose to face her 'doom' in fairly predictably Tasakar fashion.
By grabbing it by the neck and breaking it down for a ride.
If she was destined to be 'Child of the Storm' than it damn well would be under her own terms.
Thusly, the sprawling - though, with an almost malicious precision, smaller than the grand cathedral of Isanella - twin cathedrals of the Tumultuous Lovers were erected by her decree, the construction funded out of her means, and helped along by her hands.
And if the central figures of the Southern pantheon felt slighted by the... political nature that prompted the project, well, too bad for them.
If they really minded they were free to lodge their complaints.
But, if they did, gods or no, she had a little list of her own she would like... clarified by them.
(Twin Joint Cathedrals of Camny and Satine built, morale up; all attrition reduced; further religious actions unlocked; priesthood of the southern pantheon strengthened)
Nicholas
Join in on the campaign against the To-reil barbarians (relevant personal option must be undertaken by either or both Thomas and/or Taesta)
Upcoming in War turns
Personally involve himself in the efforts to reach out and recruit from what remains of the former imperial academy (relevant main action must be taken. Reduces DC on each individual roll by 5. Add one more sub-option slot)
see 2.2.3
Royal court
Established the Royal court Quickly and with style!
Established the royal court in a single turn Academically Inclined
Recruited more than half of the membership of the Imperial Academy New Imperial Academy
Recruited membership from all departments of the old empire's Imperial Academy Emergent Realm
have >30000 population Master of the Pitch
more than tripled your population in a single turn Resourceful
Secured all the basic resources necessary for the foreseeable future Deep Treasury
Gained an abundance of luxury resource
Aaaaand done!
The official Turn portion has been wrapped up, after many, many, many, maaaaaaaaaaaanyy delays.
Yeah, you are getting an apology FP.
Now on to the War turns.
A lot (at least 2/3) of prep work has already been done, so I promise I'll start down on writing later today.
First things first, though, I need to update the info post... That will be done in a few hours, along with corrections that had been pointed out to me.
Also,
The naming votes had stalled, didn't they?
Well, let's redo those, if you don't mind folks.
Girl names (Names starting on A have major preference, names starting on T have minor preference):
[] Aronel
[] Astrid
[] Annette
[] Tessa
[] Torun
[] Myria
[] Write-in (Even if very popular, if I find a name inappropriate in any way, it gets nixed)
Boy Names (Names starting on T have major preference, names starting on A have minor preference):
[] Tarkus
[] Tybalt
[] Thaddeus
[] Alexander
[] Anthony
[] Luis
[] Write-in (Even if very popular, if I find a name inappropriate in any way, it gets nixed)
Town names:
[] Portas watch
[] Mountainholme
[] Turberg
[] Stendore
[] Write-in (Even if very popular, if I find a name inappropriate in any way, it gets nixed)
And mind that the votes will be counted BY LINE
The vote shall be open until the start of the War turns - let's say Monday?
Finally, I am sorry for the low word count folks. The original update draft was almost 700 words bigger, but I found myself severely pruning down on and rewriting a lot of things that I felt just did not fit. They were clunky, purple prose-y and just in general, bad writing. At least in my opinion.
If you really want to go full hog on the latin, then it would be
either
Portas Observum
or
Portas Sentum
...
... ...
... ... ...
Unless I messed up on declension, which is possible.
