You have received a letter from your father, which contained a very peculiar mixture of admonishing critique and uncaring dismissal.
-You have (correctly) concluded that you are no longer under a "travel ban" (you may now exit Ponyville without fear of reproach).
-A very large sum of bits was also transported to the estate. Those resources are meant, you know from the letter, to be invested on the farmlands.
-Considering you have heard from Princess Cadance about the abolishment of nobility, and how that isn't common knowledge yet, you can only imagine what your father is planning.
...well, some bits "falling off a carriage" are to be expected, right?
But seriously, we might actually need to take some if we want to accomplish everything (expedition, rituals...).
You have a lot of things to worry about, in the near future, so you don't really care about your smaller problems right now.
-There was no mention of anything for you, from that very large pile of bits that was escorted to your estate. But, again, you don't care. (You have paid yourself 180 bits this month. This will have no negative consequence towards you.)
-You will dedicate the very minimum amount of time to administering the farm. But only because you truly believe you owe it to the hundreds of ponies who work for you. A non-inconsiderate part of Ponyville's economy and livelihood depends on it, after all. (You will have six action point this turn. Seven because of your choice, turned into six due to DoA's summoning)
And hey, if we were to pay ourselves a second wage, what could he even do about it?
On the scales of a massive farm operation, a few hundred bits are nothing, and if we actually become head of the lunar bureau complaining about a few hundred bits would just make him look petty. I suppose he COULD try to pressure us due to that, but... honestly, it would just look ridiculous.
You have way, way, way more things to do than you have time. Especially given how you actually have very real deadlines to be wary of.
-Captain Shining Armor will come to Ponyville in a few week's time. You would really like to rescue Twilight Sparkle before that.
-You will, according to Princess Cadance, be offered a job at the end of this month.
-You still want to make more progress on your own safety, for your inevitable break with the cult.
-As well as several Fleeting Opportunities
-You will basically have to decide what you want to prioritize.
Breaking news: Water is wet! More news at 11!
Very soon you will lose access to the Cult's infrastructure. One problem in particular that you will face is that of ritual-casting. Ritual circles require space, the larger and more complex they become, and their reagents and particularities might leave traces. Your current options and ideas, regarding that, are:
-You don't really have a problem when it comes to one-circle rituals. A shame you know so few of them.
-You think you can cast two-circle rituals in Rarity's home, on the large bottom floor where she has her boutique. But doing so will certainly interrupt and hinder her own work for the month.
-You think Jade Whistle's house, the larger living room, can accommodate a two-circle ritual. But you will have to clean the place up, first.
-Your own estate can accommodate ritual circles of any size. Your own house for one or two-circle rituals, and a larger farm barn for a three-circle rituals. Casting those rituals on your home, however, will cause the highest amount of suspicion and talk among your serfs, especially if you don't clean up properly after.
We definitely need to clean Jade's house for the lvl 2 rituals. lvl 3 ones will be a problem though, if not an urgent one.
And finally:
-Your Influence of "An Awareness of Appetite" has faded away.
-Rarity will be at risk of taking a blow on her professional life, if she does not dedicate herself to it this month.
[AN: And I have no idea where to add this in particular, but here it is. In short, and in an unusual roll of the dice, the problem of your connection with Starry Dancer took care of itself. Velvet decided to ignore it, it worked, and options regarding that will be quietly removed.]
well, Bummer about Rarity, but we knew that. Can we ameliorate the problem by having hintchasers or servants help with her work while also having her do something else? Something of a compromise "still roll for potential problems, but you have better chances"? Same for levelling her up.
Starry... well, that's convenient. a tiny bit of luck.
Now to deal with the remaining hundred problems!
This turn's available bits: 295 (minus items you decided to buy)
Monthly revenue: 120 bits/month(?) (although this month you have "given yourself" 180 bits)
Can we just take more if we need more?
Jade: we have to decide: if we DON'T summon the Windigos, this is likely to cause a trigger event by the end of this turn.
Potentially same for not making the manifests.
We could also have her research Selene, I suppose.
DoA/Velvet Axe (...shame Hissy Fit didn't win though): knock influence is an option. Wrong Keys is another.
And of course we could have any of our Confidants help with our own actions, or do them for us. Depending on the action list we might need them to.
Selene (MOTH 3; WINTER 2; EDGE 2; KNOCK 2):
As an alicorn, Selene has TWO actions.
-[X] Go play. (Selene will live a normal and happy life. This option costs one of her actions, it will always be picked, and there is nothing you can do to stop it.)
-[-] "And this feeling of wrongness shall be with her, until the day she wakes." (There is nothing more you can teach her about MOTH)
-[] There is something that she must learn now… for everypony's sake. (Teach Selene the final lesson of WINTER)
-[] She cannot shy away anymore. Not from this. (Teach Selene the final lesson of EDGE)
-[] She learned of the key. She learned of the lock. Now, she must learn about opening. (Teach Selene the final lesson of KNOCK)
mh...
Moth had her realize she's in the wrong body.
I don't remember if it was already mentioned, but I think it's now obvious WHY Knock should be after Winter. I think it will have her confront a worm directly, either seeing beyond a door or dreaming of her old encounter.
in any case, It's obviously Winter. we even have the lvl 4 already, and Knock can be next turn.
We just need an edge scrap for turn 17 at the latest.
[] Before this month starts, you will perform a ritual to draw the attention of
[SPECIFY LORE] (This is a free action to summon
"The Attention of the Laws")
Grail. Definitely Grail. We'll need all the grail we can get with Twilight, or possibly Comet.
Mansus: we're done with the Blank Plains until we get SH and/or Winter Sacrament.
I'd give a shot to the Red Church if we can afford it.
Sacraments: We probably can't afford them now, but obviously the most urgent one is SH.
...oh my f... that's a LOT of fleeting moment actions!
...I'll get back to it after everything else.
Books: We still have exactly 3 books to read: 2 forge 3 ones and 1 lantern 6 one (that only has a single scrap left to give).
If possible, I'd want to read them. It would give us Lantern 4, which could come in handy during the exploration, and puts forge in reach of a lvl 4, with just one more scrap left to reach it.
The progress on Forge and Lantern for the cult, even if it's NOT a lvl 3, could also be enough to gain us another month too.
Mansus again: ...part of me wants to visit Baldomare. I also, as mentioned before, REALLY want to visit the Ruined Church, because we shouldn't stop, and we're likely to summon influences this turn for expeditions and actions, so we might as well try while we're empowered.
We can "easily" get both a knock and grail influence, for example.
-[] Much to your own satisfaction, you now have a personal life outside of your maids, immediate family and business related meetings. You could choose to spend some time with… (SPECIFY if it will be "a social call" or "a step forward to converting said pony". SPECIFY if "you are willing to spend bits on this", for that little extra leverage)
--[] Teach Rarity yourself, and have her turn into an Disciple
--[] Teach Jade Whistle yourself, and have her turn into a Seeker Insufficient personal levels
of notice: if we read the books, we can also level up Jade (and/or Rarity).
Of course, we might not have the actions for it, but it's something to be considered.
Old Ways: Reagents for rituals, the rituals themselves (grail influence especially), We sadly can't summon a Mare in The Light because we have nowhere to do that.
...ok, let's see the fleeting moment actions now.
-[] Dedicate time to Soft Sweeps. You do not take your loved ones for granted, and you do not think of their suffering lightly. Soft Sweeps needs help, so there you will be. (NOT taking this action will incur in a "Stressed" malus for all your other actions this turn)
-[] Teach your family the Lores. This will take time, but you consider it to be utterly important. For their safety, if nothing else. So, you better start sooner rather than later. (You will dedicate yourself to teach Stormchaser and Silky. You will also cover Soft Sweeps if you ALSO pick the action to spend time with Soft.)
...
such a good start
I don't remember what "stressed" does, but even a -10 would be problematic right now. Also we adopted her (basically), so it's really our duty.
I'm not sure about teaching them the lores right now though.
Then again, if we want to have a chance of convincing Stormchaser to let us proceed with the ritual we HAVE to start teaching him. It's not guaranteed to be enough, but it's at the very least the bare minimum required.
You can think of several ways you can go talk to Comet Feet. The problem is that you don't know how he will be, as soon as his Influence fades, so the timing of when you bring Fluttershy into the conversation (if at all) will be important.
(These actions are all mutually exclusive).
-[] Take Fluttershy with you, of course, and have her be by your side the moment you find Comet. Making her trust you enough to help her was no small feat, so you would be remiss if you didn't follow through with your promise. (Fluttershy will appreciate this, but you have no idea how Comet Feet will react)
-[] Take Fluttershy with you, but keep her in reserve. Out of sight, and perhaps not even within earshot. You will have her as a fallback plan, if things go wrong, or you will take Comet Feet to her, if things go right. But since it could go either way, you'd rather have the mare at a safe distance at first. Even if it means her not participating in the conversation. (Fluttershy will not appreciate this, and you have no idea how Comet Feet will react)
-[] Don't take Fluttershy with you. Comet Feet might be unstable, and bringing the mare over might cause whatever relationship they have to simply dissolve on the spot. Plus, the whole situation might be dangerous to begin with. Plus, come on, hoping Fluttershy will help you on a conversation? (Fluttershy will definitely not appreciate this, but only if she finds out. You have no idea how Comet Feet will react.)
...I think we have no choice but taking the risk and going with option 1, or at the very worst 2.
Option 3 is not really an option at this point.
And, again,
we need lots of Grail
Captain Shining Armor will arrive near the end of the month. You will plan to be done before that.
-[] Go save Twilight. What are you waiting for? (This is the "Crepuscule Jailbreak" Expedition option, placed here for your convenience)
-[] If you plan on going to Manehattan to do something dangerous, you really should stack the deck in your favor. And you know just the Ritual to help you with that. (Perform the "Reflection of the Tapestry" ritual for the "Crepuscule Jailbreak" expedition. Costs 35 bits)
--[] To be performed in your own estate, where you might leave traces for somepony to find.
--[] To be performed in the Cult, although you will NOT ask for help of the Cadre, and that might turn some heads.
--[] To be performed in Jade Whistle's old house, where you can fit a Two-Circle Ritual in the largest room (Requires cleanup first)
--[] To be performed in Rarity's boutique. It will take up a lot of space on the ground floor, thought, and will definitely impact her work.
--[] Somewhere else…? (WRITE IN) (You have no convenient places to perform rituals outside the Wildhoof Club, that QM knows of)
-[] If you plan on going to Manehattan to do something dangerous, it would be best to get a lay of the land first. Go there yourself, or send somepony, to scout it out. (Physically send somepony to Manehattan to look for Twilight. Costs 35 bits in transportation)
Our home is not an option. Rarity is not an option.
If we're going to do it ourselves, and NOT have Jade do this, we should do it in her house. Which means we'll need to clean it up.
We should have done it long before, either in person or with an Risen. well, we don't get to delay any longer.
It's either Jade's house, or we risk it in ours.
and with the ritual, we don't really
need to scout in person.
A literal cartload of bits was delivered to your estate. An obvious and interested infusion of capital from your father, which may or may not have to do with the recent decisions of the Crown. Regardless, money is money, and there is always something you can do to make a few more of those bits end in your own purse. (Embezzle funds. Options with increasing rewards, but increasing risks)
(You will officially use up, or at least commit, this money in the farmlands by the end of the month. This is your only window to make a decision regarding it)
-[] You already "paid" yourself this month. But you think you can grab a bit more. But only an amount that is barely noticeable, unless somepony really sifts through the numbers.
-[] Transfer a reasonable amount of bits for your own personal use. This will require you to "cook the books" a bit, though.
-[] Steal (that's right, steal) a considerable amount of bits. Although you might get found out If you don't cover your trail properly, or if somepony really tries to find out about it.
-[] Embezzle a very large amount of bits. You will have to dedicate more time to cover it up, though, and it will involve far greater and traceable risks. (Costs TWO actions)
I think we could afford the "transfer a reasonable amount of bits". Even if noticed it would barely even turn anyone's heads.
We COULD likely afford to steal them though. Would any specific Lore help with "covering our trails"?
You also have to deal with your soon-to-happen "retirement" from the Cult.
-[] Not having evidence that can point at you, when it comes to cult activity, is paramount. Steal the originals of your manuscripts, in the Bright Library. The thing is chock-full with your hoof-writing, and it is something you would rather not have there. (Due to the amount of copies the cult has of your manuscripts, it is impossible to "remove" them from the cult's knowledge. This is only an evidence-reducing effort).
A "simple" hintchaser action, really. DoA would be even better for it, but she has more important things to do.
-[] Lady Velvet Covers never was a high-ranking member of the Inner Circle, and anypony who believes that is too deep into Moth for their own safety. (Double down on distancing your name from the title of Loremaster, especially among the Cadre and the more knowledgeable cultists).
-[] What the hay are you saying? Lady Velvet Covers isn't even in the Cult. She was at most just a backer for the Wildhoof Club itself, together with the other well-to-do families of Ponyville. (Focus on completely erasing your connection with the Cult, especially among the lower ranking cultists at large).
-[] Try instead to increase your influence, especially over the Hintchasers. You will try to do this without associating "Velvet Covers" with "Loremaster", but running a masquerade in a Moth Cult can always go either way…
-[] Try instead to increase your influence, or the Loremaster's influence, over the Cult at large. You will try to do this without associating "Velvet Covers" with "Loremaster", but you can already tell how hard this will be just from thinking about it...
-[] Try instead to sow dissent over the cult at large. To make sure more ponies defect, or are scared into "permanently" lying low, if things ever get ugly. (This will be especially harder due to your previous efforts to make sure the Cult kept itself focused and calm, after the changeling purge)
-[] You heard from your Hintchasers that one pony on the expedition never returned. That might be a red herring, or that might be a goldmine of information. You can only think of one way to locate that pony thought. (This is a "Reflection of the Tapestry" ritual option. Cost 35 bits).
Searching for... I think she's named Flower Serenade?
That could potentially give us more informations, and a way to actually encourage ponies to leave the cult, if that's the way we want to proceed.
I think we could get the hintchasers on our side, playing it as the Loremaster rebelling and forming their own cult.
We could, quite literally, make our own side-cult only composed of the Hintchaser, in theory. And then we could potentially
slowly recruit them into the Lunar Burea, to get agents unquestionably loyal to US over everyone else.
Something to consider.
...well, plan making will NOT be easy.
actions I think we should take, in no particular order
1)Steal manuscripts (possibly hintchasers?)
2)Grail influence
3)Knock influence
*) Red Church (free mansus action)
4)Expedition
5)Tapestry for expedition
6)clean house (to make ritual in)
7)soft sweeeps
8)Teach family
9) Books (might also work as an excuse for manuscripts, as in "we'll get TWO level 3s next turn, this is groundwork!)
10) and 11) Teach Rarity and/or Jade
12) Comet Talk
13)... should we try again with Windy? I think this is our last chance to find a way OTHER than killing him or having him go mad.
14)Influence on hintchasers
15)Another mansus action for the two woods places, or another Stairway place.
16) get more money/steal
...and I'm probably forgetting more.
...we really don't have enough actions.
On a secondary note, let's see our budget:
1)30 bits per person for the expedition (at least 60, possibly 90 if we go Velvet+ Rarity+DoA. If we want to persuade Twilight, having Rarity there would likely help).
2)35 for tapestry ritual (on twilight).
3)35 for tapestry ritual (on flower serenade, if we want to do it).
4) 5/20/45 bits for a reagent (lvl 1/2/3)
5)Calling of Influence (Grail): 30 bits.
I think we need 30 (influence) + 45 (grail reagent) + 35 (tapestry for finding twilight) + 60 or 90 (expedition).
AT LEAST.
that's... between 170 and 200 bits.
...uh, we ACTUALLY have enough!
