[X] Make sure you are earning as much as you reasonably can from the windmill. You need money for future ideas and projects. 1+2d3 Profit/season.
[X] No. You shall not truck with gods, so secretive and constantly at odds with each other. That is too much time, and you can do more good with that money on your own anyway.
Adhoc vote count started by Rockeye on Nov 13, 2020 at 10:03 PM, finished with 87 posts and 65 votes.
[x] Only charge a bit more than it takes to maintain. Making people want to use the windmill and think favorably of it is worth a lower initial profit. 2d2 Profit/season.
[X] Very well. You will make a regular donation to the Church of Shallya, enough to be a meaningful sacrifice, and also take the time to teach them your heater design. Locks one action next turn. New ongoing expense, -5 Profit/turn. ???, chance of ???.
[x] No. You shall not truck with gods, so secretive and constantly at odds with each other. That is too much time, and you can do more good with that money on your own anyway.
It feels like something is tugging at you, when you decide. The gods are alien, perhaps, and might not really care. You're doing this to buy goodwill and soft power, you tell yourself. Or maybe because feeding the hungry and healing the sick is worthy in itself. Is that more acceptable than doing it because you want to help people? You would feel weak and foolish to give away so much money just for that, perhaps, when it would compound over time into more money that you can feed more hungry with, or new mills and plows that mean more food and less work for everyone a year earlier...
But while you argue to yourself about your motivation for some time and don't come to a clear conclusion, you decide almost right away that you will do it. Gold and knowledge shall flow to the Church of Shallya, and the Bismarcks will help the needy. It's a big commitment, but well, now you have made it. You can always stop if your situation turns desperate again.
New Ongoing expense: 5 Profit per turn to the Church of Shallya. Action committed next turn
Candidate Search
You take plenty of time to look for suitable employees this spring. You need to stretch your time further - and you're established enough to have some manner of prestige to go with it, and enough money to pay for them. So you write letters. You inquire in the market. You ask your friends' friends and those few nobles you are acquainted with, and you put word out far and wide that Harold Bismarck is hiring skilled retainers.
The first candidate is someone you've heard of before. Bravor Tobelli, a famous Romangan scholar who has written several books. He has performed experiments on the nature of light and attempted to measure whether it is truly instant, or takes some time to propagate as sound does. His experiments proceeded with more and more elaborate methods only to find it faster than any way he can devise to measure. Even watching a mirror seven miles away, meaning the light takes a fourteen-mile journey, the reflected light came so quickly after the first source was revealed as to be imperceptible.
But light is not the only thing Bravor Tobelli experiments with. He has taken study of metallurgy, of the weather, of monsters, of sailing ships, of the nature of fire. You found him when one of the castle guards brought him up to the gatehouse after he attempted to talk his way inside your Windmill. When you asked him to sketch how he thought it worked, he came surprisingly close. You took some time to talk to him, listening to the long adventure of evasion and lies that got a Romangan scholar deep into Veschwar with more and more incredulity.
When you asked about the war, he claims to hold no ill will over it. The lords will do as they please, and armies will do as they will. His research was not touched by the fighting, so he does not really care. He is shockingly rude to you, as a noble heir, saying you have worth only as an inventor, him hearing rumors of mechanical mills, alcohol strengthened by some strange process of yours, and more.
You talk to him for most of a day and the impression is only strengthened. Brilliant. Insightful. Inquisitive. But foreign, and quite manic - if not actually insane. You feel overwhelmed and a bit like a fraud, since it seems to come naturally rather than with external aid. You cannot help but feel like this man will quickly notice something is strange about your sudden flashes of insight and wonder where you're getting all your ideas from. Bravor Tobelli offers to become your direct subordinate and study what you ask him to study for much of his time, if you promise to work with him and fund him.
It would be expensive, and your funds are getting increasingly tight, but you could always seek more loans on better terms if you need to, now that you are more proven... Another concern is that he might learn more than he ought to... But likely worth it in the insights produced. You feel like if you tossed him the problem of iron casting, or niter production, or the math for cannons, he would run with it until it's perfect.
[ ][Tobelli] Hire Bravor Tobelli, a brilliant and manic Romangan scholar, as a researcher and experimenter. Will likely come up with some very interesting innovations and developments. Commits a half-action to working with and directing him. 4 Profit/turn.
[ ][Tobelli] Do not Bravor Tobelli. Maybe next year you will have more money, if he doesn't leave on some voyage of discovery or something.
The second interesting personality is Hilde Govesnacht. She is the only one to actually send a letter in response to your advertising for employees, and you arrange an interview at the castle. There is a little fuss when one of the guards notices a boot knife even after she gives up her sword and crossbow at the gatehouse, but you don't let that keep you from meeting her. Even if she won't let you touch the shiny crossbow.
She is a bandit hunter. And a monster hunter. You have heard the name before, from one of the merchants you pay to pass rumors and information to you. The report describes how she sought out and brought in a gang of cow-thieves who turned out to be members of the very merchant guild that hired her to investigate! This corroborates her boasting and claims of expertise. She describes various situations where she has driven out monsters and bandits not through fire and sword, but through the power of information. Knowledge and intelligence is more powerful than spearpoints at dawn, in some cases, to hear her tell it.
Hilde insinuates that something fishy is going on in the Zoetdorf market, but when you ask for more details, she simply says, "Ah, ah, ah. You'll have to hire me first before I'll tattle~."
Apparently she is seeking a break being constantly on the road, getting a bit too old for that. Working for you to keep anyone who tries to spy on or steal from you from succeeding will keep her busy and apply her skills in a slightly new way but still allow her a more comfortable life without any more camping in the cold. You speak with your parents and they agree to have Hilde act as a Spymaster of sorts, if you think it wise. They'll even pay half of the wage she asks for out of the Bismarck coffers rather than the funds you have personal control of.
[ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
[ ][Hilde] Do not hire Hilde Govesnacht.
The final person who catches your eye, you almost turn over to your father. A Sergeant by the name of Gerald Hooker who has been put out of the army after the war's conclusion. He has an impressive and alarming combat record, somehow finding himself and his unit in the thick of the fighting again and again. He bears a serious frown whenever possible, and his quick spar against the veteran guards in your family's employ prove his capabilities as a fighter, possibly even a near-equal to your mother. He also has a keen tactical insight and a sharp enough mind for arithmetic when you test him on it, and you find yourself nodding along as he responds when you describe some of the scenes from the old Duke of Destruction's books on strategy.
He tells you he would serve however he is asked to, if hired. You think he would make an excellent bodyguard, or head guard, or perhaps even a good cannoneer. You think he would get on well with Otto too, for all that Mr. Hooker is dreadfully serious and subdued, when you picture the two together they are getting along. The problem is that you don't really need a military advisor at the moment. You are ruling your family's lands now, but only economically, only one domain of the whole. You had planned to leave your parents to handle most diplomacy and military matters as you focus on development.
[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a military advisor. He could come up with uses for gunpowder, work out how to effectively use cannons, or talk to the Army for you, perhaps? Commits a half action to managing him. 1 Profit/turn.
[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a highly skilled bodyguard, better than the guards who usually escort you. He would be content with it and you could probably use one of those, you know you're not the best fighter. 1 Profit/turn.
[ ][Hooker] Do not hire Gerald Hooker.
Rumor Mills
Economic Rumor Mill:
Boat-building craze! With access to the sea via the river Zal secured as part of the recent war's peace treaty, there has been a massive amount of excitement and investment among Veschwar's merchant guilds. Basically everyone who can build so much as a fishing boat has been hired to study foreign-made ocean ships and try to begin developing a shipbuilding tradition in Veschwar. A variety of foreign ships, too, have been purchased by various parties in Veschwar. The design of the vessels is limited as they must be capable of sailing up the river into Veschwar's territory to be a truly good investment, all the way to the three-way border between Veschwar, Romanga, and Polecniz, upon which a large fortress is being constructed.
Aftereffects of war. So many men under arms was always going to create huge opportunities and distortions in the markets and trade of the realm. Now, we have a better idea what those are, and which will linger long after the war is finished. Merchants across Veschwar are in broad agreement on a few conclusions - the price of iron will be unstable for the next two years, due the need for new tools balancing with the glut of now-unneeded arms and armor. The price of timber and firewood has already fallen back to normal. Grain will remain somewhat expensive for a few years as the tension caused by several short-handed years is released. We can only thank Ordnil that we faced no drought or famine. What's more, a great amount of gold and gems and other treasure is glutting Veschwar, largely due to ransoms paid by the defeated nations to reclaim the captured nobility.
General Veschwar Rumor Mill:
A glorious victory! The war is over now, and the sturdy people of Veschwar have shown their determination and spirit to our enemies to the east. While it was not easy nor clean, and many good men now lie dead or crippled, we have proven our continued strength, several small territorial concessions have been won, and most of all we have finally secured our rightful access to the sea. We will not be stopped by jealous neighbors squatting on the mouth of the river any longer. For now, we can go back to our farms and families, in peace and preparation in case jealous eyes from the south or hateful Lumeria steps forward...
Pressure from the Governors? A new petition has been brought forth to King Conrad, our most noble liege, requesting a royal decree of law on several matters of considerably importance. What exactly this petition is is not yet known, but rumor claims it to be a set of laws that will increase taxes, though speculation is rampant about just where the increased taxes would apply. Lord Governor Burke of the eastern region of our country champions this petition most of all - claiming that action needs to be taken. Others, including nobility and merchants, have argued vigorously, and now the King has set a series of hearings regarding the mysterious tax-petition scheduled for this autumn.
A grand festival of the Shield. Several cities and many small towns are discussing the addition of a new festival in commemoration of the victory last autumn. The festival would be a celebration of the unity that keeps Veschwar strong, and of Ordnil who provides his shield to worthy soldiers. National spirit is higher than ever, with the old divisions and mistrust between different regions mostly vanishing in drunken victory celebrations. Except for the Fescalts, those annoying northerners. They didn't send any army to help with the war! "Murkhid raiders were savaging the countryside," pah, who would believe such a convenient lie? At least they sent some food and weapons, they are still part of Veschwar after all.
For each roll you spend on these outlines, you will roll 1d100 and add your Learning score plus any bonuses that apply.
Rolling a natural 100 gives you an extra roll that adds your Learning score again and adds to the total.
Rolling a natural 1 always results in some sort of disaster or major setback. Dangerous outlines can cause disaster on a wider range of low rolls.
Every 15 on the final result earns you 1 Success towards that Outline.
Any overflow will not be wasted, it will be assigned to a random Outline in your hand.
Outlines you do not choose have a 50% chance to 'discard' and disappear each turn (minimum 1 discard) per turn.
If you stop researching something you have partial progress on and it 'discards', you keep all your progress whenever it turns up again.
[Rare] Outlines have a reduced chance to be drawn compared to regular outlines (about 1/4 as likely).
You can select TWO Codex rolls for free, and optionally two extra for a total of up to FOUR Codex rolls. However, you can only select up to two different topics, and each extra Codex roll chosen beyond the first two will cost you one action slot next turn. For example, you could put three rolls into Niter Chemistry and one into Prototype Steam Engine, but that would leave you with just four free actions on the following turn.
Please make a plan vote for how to distribute your Codex actions. Tag it as [Codex], for example:
[ ][Codex] Plan name
-[ ] Item 1
-[ ] Item 2
Weaving Machines [0/15]
You've never looked closely into the process of weaving before, but apparently the process of doing it by hand can be improved. The loom the Codex shows you is puzzling to look at, but it looks like it can weave fabric faster and, importantly, in wider bolts. It can even be powered, like the mechanized saw or the flour-grinding mills. This could be an important advance.
Soil Science (Theory) [0/??]
Niter as fertilizer is only the first step for many more improvements you could to the farmland in your domain. Begin learning the complex reality of the soil - it's clear that the Codex knows enough about soil to keep you busy for years. Fertility and chemistry and watering and erosion and stranger ideas still. Actually knowing and understanding the nature of dirt is not immediately practical, but probably long-term useful.
Seed Drill and Reaping Machine [0/15]
Two complicated-looking machines that promise to make the hard work of farming somewhat easier. The seed drill digs holes and plants seeds at a specified distance from each other just by being pushed along, and the reaping machine quickly cuts down stalks of grain as the machine is pushed along. Both of them work by linking the motion of the wheel to the motion of tools. You'll need a good blacksmith on board to make these.
Early Cannon/Mortar [Rare] [7/15]
You know how to make blackpowder. You know how to cast iron and other metals into shapes that would be impossible to create by hand. It's a simple thing, really, to put the two together and make the first, early versions of a weapon that the Codex Crystal promises has immense potential and power... A 'mortar' or 'cannon' could change the nature of warfare and would be quite prestigious.
Prototype Steam Engine [Rare] [0/??20-30??]
The locations in your fief for mills are few and mediocre. But there is a way around that, with the power of steam. Vaporizing water to create pressure and energy, and with various complicated mechanisms transforming that pressure into motion. Power and motion derived from a flame. It will be an expensive and difficult project. The machine in your mind is intricate, complex, and made entirely of finely-worked iron. But something tells you it is one of the keys to the future.
Social vote. Pick as many as you like. The five with the most votes will be selected.
Family
[ ][Social] Your sister Heileen seems to have something of a complex relationship with her teacher. Maybe talk to her about it?
[ ][Social] Your brother Grover is paying a bit more attention to his lessons now. You could read the books he chooses with him to grow closer.
[ ][Social] A distant cousin from your mother's side of the family is coming to visit. Try to get to know them, they are family after all.
Friends
[ ][Social] Invite Genevieve Casinet to the Bismarck fief for a tour and to show off your inventions.
[ ][Social] Exchange letters with Timothy Greens to see how things are going in Nesiwald and with his wife and kid.
[ ][Social] Reconnect with Lennie, an old friend from before you were pushed into joining the army, an earnest Knight's son.
Locals/Employees
[ ][Social] Spend some time with the band of journeymen and cripples making your horse-collars.
[ ][Social] Attend dinners with Bailiff Kenneth Meyer, and try to crack his professional shell with friendliness.
[ ][Social] The castle has a lot of servants, many of whom you barely recognize. Quiz them a bit.
Nobility
[ ][Social] Send letters reaching out to the Catalina family, your mother's birth family. Marriage is an alliance, so they ought to be friendly.
[ ][Social] You wouldn't presume to try and have a friendly chat with the count of Franzen, but his grandsons or granddaughters, perhaps...?
[ ][Social] Hanna Renns-Abbot, who you met half a year ago, seems to have heard of your work with the Church of Shallya and invited you to some sort of party.
Miscellaneous
[ ][Social] A great many merchants and soldiers are passing through your family's lands. Chat with some of them.
[ ][Social] The slightly flirtations Miss Johanna is idly trying to compose a song about you, perhaps you can help her.
[ ][Social] Discuss whatever comes to mind with the scholar Bravor Tobelli. It's sure to be eclectic.
Steam engine showed up again from the technologies deck. That's basically like rolling a nat 100, in terms of luck.
PLAN VOTE for Codex Outlines and Hiring. LINE VOTING for social actions. 4 HOURS MORATORIUM.
I think we can afford to hire the latter two, the spymaster and bodyguard, who has potential for becoming a cannoneer. The first one, the brilliant inventor, I don't think we can afford right now. And maybe he's a little brilliant, I doubt he'd be entirely trustworthy with the secrets. Certainly not all three together. No, we'd need more income first.
Did anyone else think when meeting the spy, that she was someone who could take on Sasha? She's a guard right now, I think, but that wouldn't be the worst apprentice position for her, if she'd take it.
Urgh, we are already up to 9 ongoing cost and an upcoming loan, with an income of 6-20 +Nesiwald. That is getting to close for my comfort.
Esp. as the vodka has a huge range of 1-10
If we only get one advisor, then I say go for the spymaster. We can handle learning on our own, we have our parents for martial, so I think intrigue is the best pick.
Wow. We vote for a combination of options that gets us 2.5 less income a turn and increases our expenses by 5 and things start looking tight; who would have guessed?
If we only get one advisor, then I say go for the spymaster. We can handle learning on our own, we have our parents for martial, so I think intrigue is the best pick.
A note - one of the options for the Sargent is as a bodyguard, which is different from an advisor in the sense that it doesn't take up a half-action slot.
A note - one of the options for the General is as a bodyguard, which is different from an advisor in the sense that it doesn't take up a half-action slot.
I think the spymaster's the only one worth the money. The mad scientist is going to spend all our money on blowing up our castle, and the muscle is useful but we don't need muscle both our parents are war heroes.
I think we can afford to hire the latter two, the spymaster and bodyguard, who has potential for becoming a cannoneer. The first one, the brilliant inventor, I don't think we can afford right now. And maybe he's a little brilliant, I doubt he'd be entirely trustworthy with the secrets. Certainly not all three together. No, we'd need more income first.
Did anyone else think when meeting the spy, that she was someone who could take on Sasha? She's a guard right now, I think, but that wouldn't be the worst apprentice position for her, if she'd take it.
I'm definitely up for hiring the Bodyguard. In the grand scheme of things, 1 profit a turn really isn't much, and while it is not likely that we'd need his help, given that it doesn't cost any action economy I think that is a reasonable price to pay purely for insurance. Even if there is only one occasion a year (or one occasion per SEVERAL years) where his help is necessary, I feel like it would be worth it.
I would also vote for the Spymaster. First of all she doesn't ask for much money, which is important given our lack of funds. Second, she has VERY different skills than our own, which means that we get a bunch of help with tasks that we ourselves wouldn't be competent at. And, let be honest - right now we have basically ZERO intrigue coverage. It would be good to have someone able to work on securing our intellectual property (e.g. with regards to the distillery), unravel plots, that sort of things. I don't know if we have enough going on for four-actions-a-year of defensive intrigue, but presumably just because that is her focus doesn't mean we can't assign her to other similar things. Look at the Otto action vote last turn; yeah, the mine option was there, but so was a bunch of other construction and infrastructure related stuff.
Anyways, these are the two options I'll be voting for. The mad scientist isn't worth considering; while he would undoubtedly do valuable work, we can't afford to pay him and between the infosec issues he causes and him being potentially crazy, I don't think we can realistically go for this option.
For research think we should go with Reaping and Sowing machines and Weaving Machines. Should be able to give us a nice little boost in income and be well received by all and not to hard to make.
maybe we should try to get cement to make building stuff cheaper or other "quality" of life stuff
but yeah Reaping, Sowing, and Weaving Machines are a good way to start "industrializing"
Any kind of complex machinery is going to be very hard to prototype with all the expert smiths boycotting us, much less mass produce. I'm not sure adding more complicated metalworking projects to the queue is the best idea when we're already pushing the limits of the smiths we have access to with the gunpowder projects.
[ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
[ ][Codex] 3 to Soil, 1 to Guns
-[ ] Soil Science (Theory) [0/??]
-[ ] Early Cannon/Mortar [Rare] [7/15]
That's what I got for now. If we get 4 actions for codex, I say go quick down soil and forward on guns.
I think we should make clear to the mad scientist that we simply can't afford to hire him, flatter him, and mention that we may be able to hire him in a few years time. Make it clear that it's not out of a lack of respect for his work, so as to ensure we keep the option open.
It would be expensive, and your funds are getting increasingly tight, but you could always seek more loans on better terms if you need to, now that you are more proven... Another concern is that he might learn more than he ought to... But likely worth it in the insights produced. You feel like if you tossed him the problem of iron casting, or niter production, or the math for cannons, he would run with it until it's perfect.
[ ][Tobelli] Hire Bravor Tobelli, a brilliant and manic Romangan scholar, as a researcher and experimenter. Will likely come up with some very interesting innovations and developments. Commits a half-action to working with and directing him. 4 Profit/turn.
[ ][Tobelli] Do not Bravor Tobelli. Maybe next year you will have more money, if he doesn't leave on some voyage of discovery or something.
This is a massive benefit to hire this guy. Just being able to let him figure out iron casting alone will be massively beneficial. The same with the weaving machine or the steam engine. These are massive benefits that could provide massive amounts of money.
The problem is we are terribly constrained by our current expenses. So I feel we need the answer to a question from our father before making a decision based on this:
Aftereffects of war. So many men under arms was always going to create huge opportunities and distortions in the markets and trade of the realm. Now, we have a better idea what those are, and which will linger long after the war is finished. Merchants across Veschwar are in broad agreement on a few conclusions - the price of iron will be unstable for the next two years, due the need for new tools balancing with the glut of now-unneeded arms and armor. The price of timber and firewood has already fallen back to normal. Grain will remain somewhat expensive for a few years as the tension caused by several short-handed years is released. We can only thank Ordnil that we faced no drought or famine. What's more, a great amount of gold and gems and other treasure is glutting Veschwar, largely due to ransoms paid by the defeated nations to reclaim the captured nobility.
This is really useful information. Basically the country is a wash with hard currency right now - in other words, it's the perfect time to borrow money, as there are a bunch of nobles with more money than they need right now. Our parents are the most useful contacts for this too, as they would probably know many nobles who won big ransoms.
So we need to ask our father if he feels comfortable with taking out a major loan at this time. The argument in favor would be that currently there is a lot of excess money, which means we should be able to obtain favorable terms on a loan. We'd would have specific concrete plans for the money: First continue expanding the mine, second establish a sawmill on the western edge on the fief, third establish a iron casting industry in Zoedorf. We would also hire this inventor, and we would investigate the idea of a steam engine. The idea being that a steam engine would allow us to establish many industries despite our lack of watermill locations.
If we don't borrow money, then our expansion will be slower, and instead of investigating the steam engine, we will investigate better farming methods. This is because we won't have the funds to take advantage of the steam engine, so we will focus on things we can take advantage of without that. This is a slower approach, and we might not get access to the steam engine later.
We could also take a more balanced approach, with a smaller loan, investments in the mine, sawmill and iron casting, and hire the inventor but instead focus him on canons and siege works, the idea being to sell to the Army. In this case we would still not investigate the steam engine, but instead investigate farming improvements.
We need our father's opinion, as we are biased in favor of expansion, and we would probably need his contacts with the nobles that obtained significant ransoms. We want to know what he thinks.
@Rockeye What is our father's opinion on getting a loan, and fast vs slow expansion? I feel that since our father knows about the crystal, that we ought to be able to explain things to him, and get a good outside opinion, not to mention a decision on whether he is willing to support us in getting large loan in the current favorable conditions. I feel we need to know this before we decide on spending 4 profit a turn on this inventor.
Apparently she is seeking a break being constantly on the road, getting a bit too old for that. Working for you to keep anyone who tries to spy on or steal from you from succeeding will keep her busy and apply her skills in a slightly new way but still allow her a more comfortable life without any more camping in the cold. You speak with your parents and they agree to have Hilde act as a Spymaster of sorts, if you think it wise. They'll even pay half of the wage she asks for out of the Bismarck coffers rather than the funds you have personal control of.
[ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
[ ][Hilde] Do not hire Hilde Govesnacht.
He tells you he would serve however he is asked to, if hired. You think he would make an excellent bodyguard, or head guard, or perhaps even a good cannoneer. You think he would get on well with Otto too, for all that Mr. Hooker is dreadfully serious and subdued, when you picture the two together they are getting along. The problem is that you don't really need a military advisor at the moment. You are ruling your family's lands now, but only economically, only one domain of the whole. You had planned to leave your parents to handle most diplomacy and military matters as you focus on development.
[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a military advisor. He could come up with uses for gunpowder, work out how to effectively use cannons, or talk to the Army for you, perhaps? Commits a half action to managing him. 1 Profit/turn.
[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a highly skilled bodyguard, better than the guards who usually escort you. He would be content with it and you could probably use one of those, you know you're not the best fighter. 1 Profit/turn.
[ ][Hooker] Do not hire Gerald Hooker.
I think we should hire him. We don't need a military advisor right now, but as we are investigating the cannon I think we could really use someone to talk to the Army at some point. @Rockeye Can we take him as a bodyguard for now and then switch him to a military advisor later? Once we get further along the tech tree to where we could use that?
Boat-building craze! With access to the sea via the river Zal secured as part of the recent war's peace treaty, there has been a massive amount of excitement and investment among Veschwar's merchant guilds. Basically everyone who can build so much as a fishing boat has been hired to study foreign-made ocean ships and try to begin developing a shipbuilding tradition in Veschwar. A variety of foreign ships, too, have been purchased by various parties in Veschwar. The design of the vessels is limited as they must be capable of sailing up the river into Veschwar's territory to be a truly good investment, all the way to the three-way border between Veschwar, Romanga, and Polecniz, upon which a large fortress is being constructed.
Hmmm... since we already have this knowledge, we might be able to do something with this... but we probably need to visit Neiswald next turn, so we can't work on this till winter at the earliest I think.
Weaving Machines [0/15]
You've never looked closely into the process of weaving before, but apparently the process of doing it by hand can be improved. The loom the Codex shows you is puzzling to look at, but it looks like it can weave fabric faster and, importantly, in wider bolts. It can even be powered, like the mechanized saw or the flour-grinding mills. This could be an important advance.
Soil Science (Theory) [0/??]
Niter as fertilizer is only the first step for many more improvements you could to the farmland in your domain. Begin learning the complex reality of the soil - it's clear that the Codex knows enough about soil to keep you busy for years. Fertility and chemistry and watering and erosion and stranger ideas still. Actually knowing and understanding the nature of dirt is not immediately practical, but probably long-term useful.
Seed Drill and Reaping Machine [0/15]
Two complicated-looking machines that promise to make the hard work of farming somewhat easier. The seed drill digs holes and plants seeds at a specified distance from each other just by being pushed along, and the reaping machine quickly cuts down stalks of grain as the machine is pushed along. Both of them work by linking the motion of the wheel to the motion of tools. You'll need a good blacksmith on board to make these.
Early Cannon/Mortar [Rare] [7/15]
You know how to make blackpowder. You know how to cast iron and other metals into shapes that would be impossible to create by hand. It's a simple thing, really, to put the two together and make the first, early versions of a weapon that the Codex Crystal promises has immense potential and power... A 'mortar' or 'cannon' could change the nature of warfare and would be quite prestigious.
Prototype Steam Engine [Rare] [0/??20-30??]
The locations in your fief for mills are few and mediocre. But there is a way around that, with the power of steam. Vaporizing water to create pressure and energy, and with various complicated mechanisms transforming that pressure into motion. Power and motion derived from a flame. It will be an expensive and difficult project. The machine in your mind is intricate, complex, and made entirely of finely-worked iron. But something tells you it is one of the keys to the future.
So we keep going with the Cannon, that's going to be our political benefit and getting the Army as a customer. The weaving machine is tempting, but I don't think we can exploit it without the steam engine. Hiring the inventor will go a long ways to making both the Steam Engine and the Weaving Machine possibilities, so I think those need to be a package deal, if we don't get approved for seeking a loan from our father, we can't pursue those. Instead we go with the Seed Drill and Reaping machines, and focus on getting ourselves some blacksmiths.
@Rockeye I was sort of hoping we'd get some information on the blacksmith situation with the looking for help action. Last I understood it, the local blacksmiths don't like us much and won't do more than take specific jobs from us. Did we find any promising apprentices that we might be able to send up to study with Timothy Greens? Or a new journeyman who would be willing to learn from him in exchange for us setting up a smithy for him?
Family
[ ][Social] Your sister Heileen seems to have something of a complex relationship with her teacher. Maybe talk to her about it?
[ ][Social] Your brother Grover is paying a bit more attention to his lessons now. You could read the books he chooses with him to grow closer.
[ ][Social] A distant cousin from your mother's side of the family is coming to visit. Try to get to know them, they are family after all.
Friends
[ ][Social] Invite Genevieve Casinet to the Bismarck fief for a tour and to show off your inventions.
[ ][Social] Exchange letters with Timothy Greens to see how things are going in Nesiwald and with his wife and kid.
[ ][Social] Reconnect with Lennie, an old friend from before you were pushed into joining the army, an earnest Knight's son.
Locals/Employees
[ ][Social] Spend some time with the band of journeymen and cripples making your horse-collars.
[ ][Social] Attend dinners with Bailiff Kenneth Meyer, and try to crack his professional shell with friendliness.
[ ][Social] The castle has a lot of servants, many of whom you barely recognize. Quiz them a bit.
Nobility
[ ][Social] Send letters reaching out to the Catalina family, your mother's birth family. Marriage is an alliance, so they ought to be friendly.
[ ][Social] You wouldn't presume to try and have a friendly chat with the count of Franzen, but his grandsons or granddaughters, perhaps...?
[ ][Social] Hanna Renns-Abbot, who you met half a year ago, seems to have heard of your work with the Church of Shallya and invited you to some sort of party.
Miscellaneous
[ ][Social] A great many merchants and soldiers are passing through your family's lands. Chat with some of them.
[ ][Social] The slightly flirtations Miss Johanna is idly trying to compose a song about you, perhaps you can help her.
[ ][Social] Discuss whatever comes to mind with the scholar Bravor Tobelli. It's sure to be eclectic.
[ ][Social] A distant cousin from your mother's side of the family is coming to visit. Try to get to know them, they are family after all.
[ ][Social] Exchange letters with Timothy Greens to see how things are going in Nesiwald and with his wife and kid.
[ ][Social] Hanna Renns-Abbot, who you met half a year ago, seems to have heard of your work with the Church of Shallya and invited you to some sort of party.
The above three are must picks I think. If we don't hire Bravor Tobelli then we certainly want to do the following:
[ ][Social] Discuss whatever comes to mind with the scholar Bravor Tobelli. It's sure to be eclectic.
That leaves one more social slot open, and I'd lean towards this one:
[ ][Social] You wouldn't presume to try and have a friendly chat with the count of Franzen, but his grandsons or granddaughters, perhaps...?
Oh! I read that he is from the military and skimmed over his name ("Gerald Hooker") and it became "General Hooker" in my head. My bad; the Sargent it is.
*Amortized cost listed; the actual cost is 2 charged 1x per year
**Profit may go down over time. Profit not added to assets automatic, and collected in "bursts", presumably once a year or when we visit.
I'm going to exclude the Nesiwald profit for now, because we don't access it as smoothly, and also because we will probably want to save it up for the next year-and-a-halt to pay our 25 profit debt to the Renns. I'm also going to exclude the 0.5 from the rumor mill, because that makes things cleaner and I doubt it is a big deal.
Alright. Without those, our current net income each year is 1d10 + 5d2 - 7. This averages 6. It is negative less than 1/300th of the time. And it is less than 2 about 7% of the time.
Based on this, I think we can generally afford to hire both of the cheaper retainers here and increase our expenses by 2. We'll probably want to keep a couple of profit on hand and never go down to 0 so that a bad roll doesn't accidentally bankrupt us; while we could probably get away with borrowing that from our family for a season or just not sparing it for charity that season, it certainly wouldn't be a good look.
Regardless of whether we hire the two new people, our expected profit is also pretty thin. Hopefully we can fix that by getting the Watermill up for iron production. Though that raises the question of how we can afford the Waterwheel; I guess we'd have to grab some money from Nesiwald and invest it, or take out more debt. Honestly it is not quite the best position to be in; but hey, that is what happens when we decide to dump literally half of our disposable income into charity.
Hell no. We don't have time to pour extra actions into the codex - we have a LOT we need to start getting done!
We only have 5 actions total, after we spend 1 managing employees. And we've got a LOT that needs to be done. For example, here are a bunch of actions that we've been putting off for a long while:
[ ] Begin making inquiries into possible marriage candidates among the nobility. Less public than announcing yourself.
[ ] Investigate Abram Waller and see how competent he really is, and if he is stealing from you or engaging in corruption.
[ ] Demand the peasants and villagers to switch to four-field crop rotation. Technically within your rights, but they may resent it.
[ ] Spend time relaxing and enjoying the relative luxury of the Bismarck estate. You're driven to improve the world, but a break might be nice once in a while.[ ] The castle records check out, but you can surreptitiously check in the field whether the taxes to your family are being paid correctly.
Note that these are by no means the only actions we want to do - merely ones that we know we want to do at some point and have put off time-and-time-again. This isn't including actions that we generally want to keep doing (like martial training), available actions that we haven't been putting off for long (like investigating Blackpowder or trying to sell stuff to merchants or trying to figure out better ways to use the codex), or new actions that will undoubtedly pop up next turn.
And you are telling me that you want to take two of those precious, precious actions and use them to fast forward a season on our Codex research?
For research think we should go with Reaping and Sowing machines and Weaving Machines. Should be able to give us a nice little boost in income and be well received by all and not to hard to make.
maybe we should try to get cement to make building stuff cheaper or other "quality" of life stuff
but yeah Reaping, Sowing, and Weaving Machines are a good way to start "industrializing"
How will we exploit the weaving machine? It will take a significant amount of time to develop if we don't hire the inventor, and we don't have a watermill site for it. I guess we could use the Zoedorf site that we were planning to use for the blacksmith, but since we have access to an iron mine that seems like a bad decision. If we get the steam engine that would be different. Then we could use the weaving machine. But right now I just don't see how we would exploit it.
Any kind of complex machinery is going to be very hard to prototype with all the expert smiths boycotting us, much less mass produce. I'm not sure adding more complicated metalworking projects to the queue is the best idea when we're already pushing the limits of the smiths we have access to with the gunpowder projects.
Yet another reason to hire the inventor. This is why I see him as a very useful hire, but only if we get permission to borrow money from our father. I don't think we can borrow enough on our own without significant risk.
We don't get four actions. We get two actions, and we can sacrifice actions from our building/merchant queue to get more codex actions. We can't afford that right now, we got to make money, not research new stuff faster.
If we get permission from our father to borrow big:
[ ][Codex] Go Big Or Go Home
-[ ] Prototype Steam Engine [Rare] [0/??20-30??]
-[ ] Early Cannon/Mortar [Rare] [7/15]
-[ ][Tobelli] Hire Bravor Tobelli, a brilliant and manic Romangan scholar, as a researcher and experimenter. Will likely come up with some very interesting innovations and developments. Commits a half-action to working with and directing him. 4 Profit/turn.
-[ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
-[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a highly skilled bodyguard, better than the guards who usually escort you. He would be content with it and you could probably use one of those, you know you're not the best fighter. 1 Profit/turn.
If we don't get permission to borrow money:
[ ][Codex] Slow And Steady
-[ ] Seed Drill and Reaping Machine [0/15]
-[ ] Early Cannon/Mortar [Rare] [7/15]
-[ ][Tobelli] Do not Bravor Tobelli. Maybe next year you will have more money, if he doesn't leave on some voyage of discovery or something.
-[ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
-[ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a highly skilled bodyguard, better than the guards who usually escort you. He would be content with it and you could probably use one of those, you know you're not the best fighter. 1 Profit/turn.
And then choosing these for Social:
[ ][Social] A distant cousin from your mother's side of the family is coming to visit. Try to get to know them, they are family after all.
[ ][Social] Exchange letters with Timothy Greens to see how things are going in Nesiwald and with his wife and kid.
[ ][Social] Hanna Renns-Abbot, who you met half a year ago, seems to have heard of your work with the Church of Shallya and invited you to some sort of party.
[ ][Social] Discuss whatever comes to mind with the scholar Bravor Tobelli. It's sure to be eclectic.
[ ][Social] You wouldn't presume to try and have a friendly chat with the count of Franzen, but his grandsons or granddaughters, perhaps...?
I think we should finish off Early Cannon/Mortar, as we've already invested into it.
For the second codex, I think either 'Weaving Machines [0/15]' or 'Seed Drill and Reaping Machine [0/15]'.
Though we've already researched crop rotation for agriculture. . . which we reallyneed to start using next turn.
I'd choose Weaving Machines, for a broader variety of research topics.
[ ][Hiring] Hilde Hooker
- [ ][Hilde] Hire Hilde Govesnacht as a Spymaster focused on securing the Bismarck fief and your industries against hostile intrigue. Commits a half-action to working with her. 1 Profit/turn, remainder paid by family.
- [ ][Hooker] Hire Gerald Hooker as a military advisor. He could come up with uses for gunpowder, work out how to effectively use cannons, or talk to the Army for you, perhaps? Commits a half action to managing him. 1 Profit/turn.
- [ ][Tobelli] Do not Bravor Tobelli. Maybe next year you will have more money, if he doesn't leave on some voyage of discovery or something.
Tobelli costs too much, hire him after we start making more Profit.
Though if we don't hire him, we run the risk of him leaving our lands.
We can likely avoid that, if we take the Tobelli social action.
[ ][Social] Discuss whatever comes to mind with the scholar Bravor Tobelli. It's sure to be eclectic.
[ ][Social] You wouldn't presume to try and have a friendly chat with the count of Franzen, but his grandsons or granddaughters, perhaps...?
[ ][Social] Exchange letters with Timothy Greens to see how things are going in Nesiwald and with his wife and kid.
[ ][Social] A distant cousin from your mother's side of the family is coming to visit. Try to get to know them, they are family after all.
[ ][Social] Spend some time with the band of journeymen and cripples making your horse-collars.
