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Itinerant: A Pilgrim Quest

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[x] Refused, and continued your pilgrimage alone.
I'm concerned at bringing someone we don't know along.
 
*refuses to believe that the people in his life moved on* *gave away most of his worldly possessions*.... I feel like when we get to Grace he's going to have a breakdown, but hey that's our opportunity to practice our preachifying! :V

[X] Accepted, and departed along with him next morning.
 
Moved on... after a year? The attack has happened last autumn. I would not believe it either.

[X] Accepted, and departed along with him next morning.

I am tempted to go alone, but the man is hurting for company badly, and I just can't refuse him.
 
Small PSA: I have updated the Character Sheet with information about items of value that you carry on yourself.
 
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1.5 Grievances
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    • So, I was told that one should not mix ibuprofen with aspirin, which explains several things. In other news: departing along with Reik won the vote, easily. And thus, you now have a companion on your road! See how long you can keep him around.​

    1.5 Grievances​

    Having experienced solitude, and contempting it deeply, you decided to travel along salt-trader Reik, who too seemed cheered by the prospect. You spent the night in the house of the good farmer Ivulf and left the village shortly after dawn.

    The weather had changed again, and the heavy clouds that tormented you so when you were lost in the woods dispersed, and instead sun shone brightly, clearing away the snow that remained. As the trail you travelled was not paved, it turned muddy, and so your progress was slower than expected, but Reik did not seem discouraged. In fact, after an initial time of silence, he soon started to speak to you at lengths, apparently being starved for a company more eloquent than that of simple villagers, who knew little of the world.

    He spoke to you about many things that concerned him greatly; chiefly, he lamented the passing of justice and honesty for the world, saying that the men he had hired in his home city of Breakers turned out false at heart and abandoned him after he had reached the port city of Ivory Gate in the summer, despite being well-paid. He spared them little, describing them in the most derogatory of terms and cursing them through the name of all the Saints, hoping that they would see their greedy hands rot away and that they would be launched into infernal flames to burn in them for all of eternities. He then also lamented his lack of mercantile fortunes, and the many ruins that the last year had brought to him, of which being nearly slain by an angry beast seemed the most insignificant. In fact, he had left Breakers with an escort of men-at-arms and a cart pulled by a pair of mules, heavily burned with salt which he had hoped to sell at a profit (as the traders are wont to do). However, not only was he betrayed by the men who were to protect him, but it also turned out that the new king of Brant people in the south had declared a series of new tolls and taxes on the routes and bridges, as well as inflicting high tariffs on salt, and so that which was to turn a modest profit instead became a terrible loss, and after selling his wares, he had to also sell his cart and mules and make way back home on foot.

    Then, he also cursed the peasant Ivulf and his own lack of considerations. For in fact, as he explained to you, when he was found on the road, he thought himself dead for sure, such was the depth of his pain and despair, and gave away all what he had, hoping that it would be pleasant in the eyes of the Saints and that he would thus earn himself an easier way to their domain after passing from the temporal. However, he made a recovery, and by the time was lucid again, the peasant Ivulf had already given away his gifts to a shrine of Saint Gerulf, and thus the goods were rendered well and truly unrecoverable, which brought Reik significant grief. It was also a cause of much sadness for him that he had never previously returned to home empty-handed, and now he was supposed to come back like a beggar, on foot and with little to call his own, although he did mention that perhaps there was still hope for him and with the grace of the Saints, maybe there would be a chance for him to gain some new fortunes in the city of Grace.

    His laments lasted for the better part of the day, and you made your stop at another village, where you were hosted by an elder man and his pair of youthful sons, who, although of few words turned to be gracious and kind to you, and did not allow you to go hungry.

    Next morning, you set out again, and Reik, being in higher spirits than on the previous day, did not continue his litany of grievances, and instead talked with you about other matters, and you found him a pleasant partner in discussions, for he was a worldly man and had seen much, despite being in prime of his youth. In fact, the talks you had while making your way through the woodland paths turned out to be rather informative, and with your curiosity being unsated, you managed to learn quite a bit about the world from asking right questions and listening to right answers.

    Yet, the time you had was rather limited, so you had to focus on specific matters, which was not helped by the tendency of Reik to launch into diatribes about the diminishing of the world at a slightest provocation; in fact he had a pointedly dim view of the temporal matters and was confident that the end was near and that the sings that were promised would soon be given for all to see.

    In the end, you primarily discussed the following…

    [ ] The matter of coin and trade, and the value of things.

    [ ] The matter of the lay of the land, and places worthy of note.

    [ ] The matter of nobility and kingship, and the nature of power.
     
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    • Gargulec said:
    Then, he also cursed the peasant Ivulf and his own lack of considerations. For in fact, as he explained to you, when he was found on the road, he thought himself dead for sure, such was the depth of his pain and despair, and gave away all what he had, hoping that it would be pleasant in the eyes of the Saints and that he would thus earn himself an easier way to their domain after passing from the temporal.
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    :D:D:D

    Ookay. I take it back. Whatever befalls the dude, he had it coming.

    [X] The matter of coin and trade, and the value of things.

    Could go for this, or the lay of the land. A merchant who traveled the world should know quite a bit.
     

    [X] The matter of the lay of the land, and places worthy of note

    I imagine we'd get some of this when we finally get to Grace but having multiple viewpoints is going to be very handy
     
    [X] The matter of nobility and kingship, and the nature of power.

    Knowing more of temporal kings and the burdens they place on their people would be good.
     
    So, this quest has been going on for a week now! Which is a success. In line of celebration, I advertised it in the advertisement thread. Also, I'd like to ask what do you people think of it thus far? I think that once 1.X section of the quest (I loathe, loathe to use the term "book" or "chapter" for various reasons), I'll post my own observations about how I feel this works or does not work (and the problems with maintaining the tone and theme which already are becoming apparent and which I did not actually expect), but until then, I'd be super happy to know if this looks sensible thus far.
     
    Gargulec said:
    Also, I'd like to ask what do you people think of it thus far?
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    There is hardly enough of it to form an opinion. The writing seems good, and there appears to be some research going on in the background - which is always a good sign. Deep characterization does not seem to exist (besides ourselves) - which is to be expected, since it's a quest about exploration, so we aren't staying in any one place too long to get involved with any person for more than an update. We'll see if that changes. The depth of choices/consequences is indeterminable, since it's too early in the story (but somewhere at the end of the prologue it would be good to hold a small 'what if' Q&A session to look into other possible futures).

    Overall, a lot of potential, but not enough 'meat' yet to judge either way.

    Gargulec said:
    I'll post my own observations about how I feel this works or does not work
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    Yeah, that would be interesting.
     
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    1.6 Coins
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    • The matter of coin won handily, thus showing that it is money that in fact makes the world go round.
    ​

    1.6 Coins​

    Although there had been money in the home of your youth (and you recall once glimpsing into your father's coffers, to see the gold stacked within), it occurred to you as you discussed various subjects with Reik that you had never put much mind to the value of coin, and to its power, which the tradesman seemed to view highly. Your brothers, who sometimes ventured to the city of Grace to make purchases there did not speak much of the matter of gold and silver, and it appeared to you that it did not behove a woman to exhibit such a lust for the things of the earth as to learn more about the value of things than her family had deemed fit to teach her. In fact, you recalled, however distantly, that your father had once complained that women with too good of a sense of the worth of their dowry are of deplorable mores and receive their morning gift with canny eyes of seasoned whores.

    However, all of that was very strange to Reik, who seemed singularly convinced that the knowledge of money is the foundation of all that is lasting in the world, and spoke at lengths about many blessed qualities that it brought to men, and to women as well; for he explained to you that a woman who does not know her own value makes for a poor wife, and that in the cities farther north, where the mores of White Wall had not yet entirely disappeared from the minds of men, the contract struck between the husband and wife is no different from any other contract of purchase, and that even farther north, on the isles on the sea which are known as Thistle Islands, the word they use there for "wife" is the same that they use for "cattle", for among those people there is in fact little difference between purchasing an oxen and striking out to acquire a spouse. Those stories seemed to you tall tales, and rather revolting too, particularly for the cheer in his tone as he spoke of all those things.

    You did not make your distaste apparent, though, and promptly Reik started explaining to you – so that you could make for a better wife and satisfy your husband properly – the intricacies of coin and value. And so, from him, you learned that the principal coin is called solidus and that it is struck from gold, but that also it is seldom minted any more, and although counts of worth are oft given in it, it is rare to see one in use. That Reik blamed on the greed of kings and bishops who would rather hoard gold in their treasuries and cast it into items such as ornaments and rings and chains and all that is of significant worth and brings great prestige to the wearer, but is usually of too high of a value to use it in lieu of coin. He explained to you – he was quite confident about that – that if all those golden candle-holders and cups and chalices, and rings and chains and other trinkets, that the mighty of the land gather, were to be rendered down into base gold, and from it, new coinage was to be minted, then the wealth of men would surely increase manifold. That too seemed to you a very strange notion, but Reik believed it zealously. Then, you learned from him that each solidus is divided into twelve parts (as each year also divides into twelve months), and those parts are called denars. Denars, you then learned, are struck from silver, and are the most common coin that one could find, and that there is a great variety of them out there, but of them, none can compare with the Breakers denar, which was issued from pure silver and never falsified. Then, you were also taught the basic value of things: that for a denar, you will get twelve wheat breads or a sixth of a measure of wheat, or a fourth of a measure of rye or half of a measure of oat (and that all those prices were ordained by the king, so that the paupers would not suffer too much in the time of famine). That a sheep was worth (in times of good fortunes) twelve denars or a single solidus, and an ox was worth twice that in the north (where they are plentiful) to nine times that in the south (where there are less common). And that your cloak was worth hundred and forty denars, which was how much they would give for a slave on southern markets in times of prosperity, and which was also one and a half of the price of a sword with a scabbard.

    He seemed surprised that you displayed little confusion at that, and in fact that you seemed to gain a good grasp at the basic value of things and after nearly a day of discussing it with him, you felt like you could enter a marketplace and not be immediately stricken with confusion and cheated out of your good.

    ***​

    Since you are already wise, you manage to get more out of Reik and acquire basic knowledge of the value of things! With this, you can now ask for precise monetary value of various items you have or encounter and be provided with a moderately accurate response, as well as a suggestion where best to sell or buy such items.

    ***​

    Before the night, you managed to reach the paved road, and soon found yourselves a good resting place; that was a stable where the horses for king's couriers were held, so that they could deliver their messages quickly across the realm. For your stay, you paid with service; Reik chopped some wood, while you assisted in the kitchen, and for that, you were offered a place to sleep, as well as some supplies.

    On the next day, your discussion about the value of things did not continue, for it seemed that some strange sort of melancholy overcame Reik and he marched mostly in silence, replying to your questions in short words and refusing to indulge you in a more engaged talk.

    Before noon, you reached a bridge thrown over a river, which you had to pass in order to continue towards the city of Grace. It was an old, stone monument, raised in the times when the skill of man was not diminished and great wonders of stonework were raised all across the realm (of them, the paved road was another). The presence of a river was also a surprise to you, because you did not realize that there was one barring the road to the city of Grace, but you thought to yourself that maybe you were approach from a different direction due to having been lost in the woods.

    A pair of guards hailed you as you approached the bridge, and demanded that you pay the toll to the bishop of Grace, to whom this bridge was belonging by the right of a king's investiture, and that the toll was a denar for each leg you intended to put on the bridge, and that if you did not have the coin then you would have to wander for a day down-river, to find a ford, which was free of toll.

    After cursing the guards and the bishop's greed (although compared to some of the laments you had heard him give, the curses that he spoke came off plain and uninspired), Reik reached for his meagre pouch, to pay the toll for both of you.

    Seeing that, you…

    [ ] Allowed him to pay.

    [ ] Stopped him, and paid the toll yourself…
    [ ] …with the fibula holding your cloak, which was worth a solidus.
    [ ] …with the silver-embroidered sheathe for your knife, which was worth half a solidus.    ​

    [ ] Stopped him, so you could check the Book of Roots to see if pilgrims travelling through the city of Grace can travel through without being taxed.

    [ ] Stopped him and demanded that you go for the ford instead.

    Author's note: I am not an economy historian, and therefore I am not really inclined to go too much in-depth in the workings of the monetary systems of the epoch that the quest is based on. The above is based on a system that is ever-so-slightly anachronic for the late Merovignian epoch (that is, it is basically based on Carolignian monetary system, with the prices cited being for the year 797), but due to its simplicity and the comparative wealth of sources I have on it, I will be using it instead of a more period appropriate system (which, all things considered, would not be that different, although the value of a denar would probably be significantly lower, and there would be more gold in circulation). Also, Reik's observations about thesaurisation are also something I am somewhat unsure about; I don't know how aware the people of that time were on the fact that the scarcity of gold in circulation came due to accumulation of it in the treasuries of kings, churches and monasteries. Nonetheless, it is an interesting bit of trivia, so you will all forgive me for breaking the verisimilitude here (although then again, historians consistently underestimate the subjects of their research, so perhaps I am treating the merchants of eight century unfairly).
     
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    • [X] Stopped him and demanded that you go for the ford instead.

    We aren't in a hurry after all, not THIS much of a hurry anyways. Neither of us are well served spending coin on passage when we have little coin to come.
     
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    If we allow him to pay for us, I expect he'll want some form of compensation. The guy isn't entirely nice, and is a lot more savy than us when it comes to money so I don't want to be indebted to him.

    How about we part ways here? He can pay for himself, but we'll cross the ford.

    I don't want to sell anything, especially our Fibula since it shows off our social status and says that we're an educated woman from a noble family which will prove useful when we talk with people who have authority and proves we aren't just some whore who happens to know how to read and write. And in the case we're kidnapped by bandits and sold for slavery, they won't harm us too much since we're top of the line merchandise and they don't want our value to drop.
     
    After reviewing the last few updates, I found out that we can't leave Reik.

    Guy's kind of an d-bag by modern standards, but he's traumatized from the bear attack and is scared of traveling alone. Leaving him would just be cruel.

    [X] Stopped him so you could check the Book of Pilgrims traveling through the City of Grace can travel through without being taxed.
    -[X] Persuade him that you go for the ford instead if nothing comes up.

    The dude doesn't want to go home empty-handed, and he doesn't have much left in the first place. Here's hoping our luck holds out and we don't encounter a bear or something.

    Since the city of Grace is ran by a theocracy, maybe we can appeal to the guard and convince him to let us in free of charge since we're a pilgrim? @Gargulec, is this a thing our PC knows about?
     
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    [X] Stopped him so you could check the Book of Pilgrims traveling through the City of Grace can travel through without being taxed.
    -[X] Persuade him that you go for the ford instead if nothing comes up.
     
    Hannz said:
    Since the city of Grace is ran by a theocracy, maybe we can appeal to the guard and convince him to let us in free of charge since we're a pilgrim? @Gargulec, is this a thing our PC knows about?
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    Okay, those are the things that you should know about, so let me explain in two points:

    1) As a pilgrim, you can attempt to ask for exemption from various tolls and in general except hospitality and alms; people are not obliged to give it to you by any means and often will not, but from the point of religion they should be doing that and it is encouraged (it is yet to come up yet in play, but pretty much any bigger religious organisation, a shrine, a monastery and so on will be running a house for pilgrims to stay and rest in and will be providing for them). If nothing else, this information would also be found in the Book of Roots, although it would be a pain to find.

    2) Don't assume that since Grace is ran by a bishop it is ruled by a theocracy; it is more that the bishop of a city is often a higher authority than any lay ruler of it (if one exists at all); it's characteristic of the epoch that I am trying to emulate that the bishopric cities tended to fare better in the time of rampaging ruralization of Europe. Then again, structures of rule and governance of that time are as painful to render as it gets, so calling it a theocracy is not that much of a stretch; in practice it is a city governed by a bishop as if he was a lay lord, and truth be told, telling one apart from another can often be more trouble than it is worth.
     
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    [X] Stopped him so you could check the Book of Pilgrims traveling through the City of Grace can travel through without being taxed.
    -[X] Persuade him that you go for the ford instead if nothing comes up.
     
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