Nobility on the Golden Plains [A Clan Builder / Cultivation Quest]

[Arcanestomper]

Turn 16: Tests, Tales, and Tutors (Year 4/Winter)

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Elixir Purification

[X] Plan: Pavilion Management
-[X] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. (3 TP School of the Iridescent Toxin)
-[X] Lead the Rust Lotus Project
-[X] Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 12/???)
-[X] Consider Other Promising Apprentices (Goal: 0/20)

---

You find that leading a large project is much more draining than you expected. Everyone has a different opinion on what must be done. On whether it is better to use condensed mud essence or pure yin spirits. There are arguments about whether to age ingredients naturally or use time acceleration formations. Even the question of whether to use qi gathering or qi repelling formations come up. Your understanding of alchemy helps you make a decision in many of these cases, but some of them stump even you. Why does placing an albino toad tongue in the cauldron increase the purity by two percent?

And of course on top of the actual technical questions there are the lingering accusations. You have proven yourself in recent times, but that is not enough for some people. Their attitudes have hardened and they now oppose you out of sheer spite. Fortunately there aren't many of these left in the ranks of your alchemists. Unfortunately the ones who remain are those who are too skilled in alchemy or too well connected to simply replace.

You are still thinking of ways to deal with them. A few you'd still like to win over as their mastery of alchemy would be useful to you. Others you'll need to figure out some way to transfer to other pavilions. For now you are too busy with the Rusted Lotus project to devote the necessary maneuvering for either option. Though you do hope that the project itself will be enough to win over the first group. If not you will probably need to replace them regardless of their skill. Their ability won't matter if they refuse to be loyal after all.

Speaking of loyalty you are still searching for a herbalist. You have combed the city markets and checked all the herbalism shops with no success, but your wanderings have at least yielded a few clues. In several inns you have heard rumors of an ancient mystic realm tucked in a secluded valley. The realm is said to be packed with rare and unique spirit herbs.

That is not particularly unusual given the qi in such realms is usually higher than in the main world, but the rumors go on to say that the realm has a master. A gardener who tends to the spirit herbs and is willing to reward visitors who pass their tests with herbs uniquely suited for them.

You aren't sure if this person is a herbalist. Or if they would be willing to work for you. Such hermits tend to be proud and focused on their paths. Not to mention they may well be more powerful than you if they can maintain a mystic realm on their own. They may not even exist. It's only rumors after all.

But still it's the best lead you've found so far. Unfortunately you are a bit too busy to wander the realm yourself at the moment. So you decide to put together a small team to dig up more rumors and find the mystic realm for you.

Since you're looking for new employees anyway you tell Miss An Lia to look for some alchemy teachers. Alchemists who are more versed in theory than practice. Fortunately there is a ready supply of these. There are a number of academies in the city that hold classes for noble children. And a further number that even accept rich commoners. The best teachers at these academies are too secure in their positions to be interested in your offers, but there are plenty of teaching assistants, tutors, and senior students with no prospects lined up that would be more than willing.

Sorting through these for the ones who are both good at teaching and have an excellent grasp of alchemic theory is challenging, but well within your capabilities. You end up hiring enough of them for four classes along the size of the Maple Cadre you taught personally. Their first assignment will be to create a standardized curriculum based off the manuals you have already written.

That should keep them busy long enough for you to move on to the next step. That being finding a place for them to actually teach. The laboratories inside the silver grass pavilion aren't really suitable for this sort of thing long term. And frankly you want them to be separated from the main pavilion. At least until you have the issues of loyalty among your alchemists sorted out.

---

Clocks

Personal Clock: Accusations of Inexperience (Minor) [X] [X] [X] [X] [X] [ ]
Clan Clock: Beast Tides (Minor) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Poplar Clock: Wandering [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Chìhóng Clock: Pending Next Visit

Special Actions

Alchemist Bonus
--- [ ] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. [Cultivation, School of the Jade Cauldron, School of the Iridescent Toxin]

Turn Actions

You may personally lead 3 actions without penalty.

Remember that you can also write omakes for other members of the clan to deal with issues you can't.

Spoiler: Actions

Cultivation (+13) [Cultivation + Qi]

[ ] Cultivate: +.2 TP for every point on the roll (Stress: +1)
--- [ ] Select a trait, skill, or technique to boost with the XP gained.
------ [ ] Who benefits from this boost?

[ ] Plant the Seed (Goal: 50)
Nurture your spiritual core by providing it with plenty of wood qi. Prepare a space in your soul to accept it by obtaining enlightenments as to your path. You will need to have a firm conviction and understanding of yourself in order to provide sufficient insights for the core to take root.

Your mother has asked you to wait before doing this.

[ ] Watering the Roots (Goal 100)
Locked
[ ] Pruning the Sapling (Goal 150)
Locked
[ ] Breakthrough: Eating the Fruit (Goal: ??)
Locked

[ ] Attempt to Gain Insights
- [ ] Pick a Path
You are currently on the path of alchemy. It is a fairly straightforward path as cultivation goes, but every cultivator is unique and their path to ascension will follow no others. You can search for insights on various other matters and use them to forge enlightenments to add to your comprehension of the world.

Administration (+4) [Administration]

[ ] Recruit More Alchemists (Goal: 1/10) (Spirit Stones: $1)
Send An Lia out into the city to hire more alchemists for the pavilion. There are always small alchemist shops and loose cultivators that can be recruited by a large clan like the Zhuge. They won't be the best or most loyal, but that can be fixed with time.

Size: +1
Discipline: -.5

[ ] Request More Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Reputation Test)
Request that the clan elders assign more alchemists to the silver grass pavilion. Despite your low clan influence this is still likely to be accepted simply because it isn't a very large demand. There are thousands of alchemists scattered among the various pavilions around the province.

Unless you happen to catch the clan elders in a bad mood these will likely be better than the alchemists you can recruit on your own.

Size: +1

[ ] Clean up Corruption (Goal: 0/20) (Stress: +0.25)
It will be rather difficult, but you can track down all the cases of corruption in the Silver Grass Pavilion and put an end to it. Many of the alchemists likely just need a warning, but some will need to be removed entirely. But it should get easier as you weed out the worst of the bunch.

Size: -1
Discipline: +1

[ ] Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 22/???)
You only know the basics of growing spirit herbs, but there are plenty of cultivators who specialize in it. You can attempt to recruit an Herbalist to assist you in tending to your spirit herb gardens and potentially work on improved herb varieties.

New Retainer

[ ] Lead the Rust Lotus Project
Monitor your alchemists and keep them on task. You also need to rub soldiers with various prominent figures in the clan in order to spread word of what you are doing and ensure that everyone is aware of what you are doing.

Multiples Silver Grass Pavilion progress based on your roll.
Face Test

Grand Project: Rust Lotus Refinement (Goal 72/100) 15/Turn
The Silver Grass Pavilion will refine the Rust Lotus elixir recipe.

Rusted Lily Elixir: Copper => Iron
Removes Clock: Accusations of Inexperience
Adds Pavilion Reputation to your Face

Alchemy (+11) [Leaf Cauldron + Core]

[ ] Brew Flowing Ivy Elixir (Goal: 3/5 Repeatable) (1/6 [1/3] Stress Free)
It's always good to have some healing elixirs on hand. You already have the recipe so it shouldn't be too hard to brew a few elixirs. You will gain 1 elixir for each five points of progress.

[ ] Brew Rusted Lotus Elixir (Goal: 0/10 Repeatable) (+0.5 [+1] Stress) (Costs $5 per elixir after first)
Prepare Rusted Lotus elixirs for cultivation, to provide to the clan, or sale to others. You may want to present your first one to the clan as evidence of your ability and to inform of the possibilities.

[ ] Research a new Recipe (Goal: ??)
--[ ] What kind of elixir are you trying to make?
You can try to figure out the recipe for a new pill or elixir. You are quite talented in alchemy so you can try to make nearly anything, but more complex and potent recipes will be harder. They may also require more exotic ingredients.

[ ] Use a Flowing Ivy Elixir (1 Elixir)
-[ ] The Target
Use 1 elixir and your wood qi to fully heal a cultivator of the Knight realm or below.

[ ] Assign the Silver Grass Pavilion a Task
-[ ] Elixir or research
You are the head of the pavilion. You can assign the pavilion as a whole tasks to complete. Even in its current state the alchemists will still carry out your orders. Though their output will be limited.

Automatically carries out a task.
Will continue every turn until stopped.

[ ] Lead a Grand Project
-[ ] Write in Goal
In order to increase the loyalty of the alchemists in the Silver Grass Pavilion you need to prove that you are a capable leader who can provide them with benefits in the future. You aren't sure how exactly to do that at the moment, but you can start by proving that you are a capable alchemist.

The best way you can think to do that is to marshal the entire pavilion into a grand working producing a rare pill of high grade and realm. This will be a complex endeavor. So your first step will be figuring out what you want to try and make.

Quest (+6) [School of the Iridescent Toxin]

[ ] Go on an Adventure (Goal: ??)
You probably shouldn't be heading out to explore ruins and look for treasures on your own, but you don't have anything else particularly pressing to do. Take some time off to go slay monsters, search ancient palaces, and roam the wild lands looking for fortunate encounters. (Depending on the roll you can find useful locations, harvest rare materials, loot treasures, tame spirit beasts, increase your cultivation, and possibly reduce stress.)

[ ] Find a Spirit Herb Grove (Goal 20/50) (+10/Turn) (Turn 16)
You will need a huge plantation to have enough Zhuge Lotus for your needs. Your current spirit herb gardens are not large enough. And unfortunately you cannot just plant them anywhere. You will need a location with high quantities of wood and water qi. Plus you will need to be able to adequately defend your new garden against both bandits and marauding spirit beasts that want to eat your bounty.

Locate Lotus Plantation Site

Learning (+5) [Sage]

[ ] Teach Senior Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Face Test) (Stress: +1)
You are the best alchemist in the silver grass pavilion, and you could teach even the most senior alchemists in the pavilion a thing or two. Unfortunately many of them are significantly older than you and unlikely to listen well. You'll have to force them to accept your teachings.

Expertise: +1 Grade

[ ] Consider Other Promising Apprentices (Goal: 12/20)
The last batch of apprentices weren't terrible, but it is beneath your dignity to continuously teach apprentices every year. Not to mention you lack both the time and inclination to do so on a regular basis. Still the idea has merit. You just need to find some competent teachers to handle the majority of the work. There will likely be some pushback from the alchemists who prefer to handle their apprentices on a personal basis, but you aren't looking to teach every apprentice like this anyway.

Organize an apprentice teaching system.



[ ] Decipher a New Technique (Goal: 10/Grade)
- [ ] Pick a technique
You are not particularly good at coming up with new techniques, but any cultivator understands the basics. You can work out the different Qi circulations needed to perform whatever goal you are after. Depending on how much effort you put into this your new technique will have a better or worse grade.

Create Crude/Low/Mid technique
High/Master/Perfected (Locked)

[ ] Train Lin Qing (Goal: 3/40) (+3/turn) (Turn 16)
You have decided to cultivate Lin Qing as a useful retainer. To that end you have to consider what she needs to reach the soldier level. The basics that any cultivator needs are techniques, resources, and insight. You can provide the first two, but the last one will be up to her.

Completion in 1 Year: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1, Unstable Foundation)
Completion in 2 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +2)
Completion in 3 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1)

Diplomacy (+0) [Diplomat]

[ ] Request a Larger Budget (Goal: 0/20) (Reputation Check) (Stress: +1)
The clan elders are unlikely to grant the Silver Grass Pavilion more money, but you can always ask.

Budget: +?

[ ] Request a Personal Stipend (Goal: 0/20) (Face Check) (Stress: +1)
You could also ask the elders for a personal allotment of spirit stones. You'd be free to use these spirit stones in any way you wish. If they agree to grant your request of course.

Spirit Stones: +?

Personal [Automatic success]

[ ] Spend Time with your Family (Automatic)
You could try to spend some time with your siblings, or even your mother. You don't know who would be available so it would be up to fate who exactly you can pull away from their duties.

[ ] Get Help with your Plantation
-[ ] Pick a family member
You admit the scale at which you are contemplating your new spirit garden is daunting. Setting it up by yourself would be challenging. Finding the site and establishing the Zhuge Lotus beds would be hard enough. But ensuring the secrecy of your new plants as well as defending them would be an ongoing task.

Fortunately you are not a lone cultivator. You are part of a clan. And this is definitely in the clan's interests. You can make your case to your family for support in this endeavor.

Stress Relief

[ ] Take a Vacation (Costs $2)
You can take some time off from clan matters to wander the city or journey to a neighboring province on a sightseeing tour. You spend your time carousing and flaunting the wealth and status of a Young Master such as yourself.

Stress: -2
Vacation Cost: +1

[ ] Perform Charity (Costs $3)
You can spend some money on the local mortals or even down on their luck loose cultivators. Forgive a few debts, fund some orphanages, perhaps supply elixirs to a clinic or two. Nothing too grandiose, but still enough to make a noticeable impact on your people's lives. There is unfortunately a good chance this will give you a reputation for undue mercy.

Stress: -2
Face Test

[ ] Ponder Existence
You spend time in the library reading philosophy and trying to find the point of all this cultivation. What exactly is the purpose of life? Is it to gain power or to do good? Is a life well lived one of decadence and pleasure, or should you focus on nature and understanding the world. The cycle of history seems never ending. What exactly is the point of it all?

Stress: -2
Deepens Melancholy

Personal Goals

[ ] Became a True Pavilion Master
It is time to consider what you truly want from the Silver Grass Pavilion. Is it a tool for your personal alchemy, a pillar of the clan, or a method to train loyal retainers. You will put some thought and planning into choosing a course for how you will manage it.

[ ] Acquire a Spirit Bonded Beast
Many members of the Zhuge clan have bonded companions. You would like to have one for yourself. The process is fairly straightforward, but the tricky part is acquiring a beast that will suit you. There are many options from protectors, to spies, to mounts. You could choose one to help you in alchemy or to cover your weaknesses in other areas.

[ ] Elevate the People
You have always felt that the common people in the clan do not have a particularly good lot in life. They are often mistreated and live short hard lives. Helping any particular mortal or their family is a small matter, but there are millions of them. Even you do not have the money for that. At least not on a whim. If you want to improve conditions in the Zhuge province you'll have to seriously plan it out.


Personal Goals
Could the personal goal be something about increasing the status of our Pavilion and making it more effective and efficient? Or at least increasing the loyalty of our members?

"acquire a suitable bonded animal, that would be directly useful and applicable to my life, and connect with it properly"

'Want to leave a legacy that will help lot of peoples and also make people remember him ?'

Trade & Investment (+0) [Merchant]

[ ] Visit the Market (Automatic)
You are not really a merchant yourself, but anyone can buy things. You will visit the markets in Fragrant Lotus city and browse for useful things.

Provides a list of available artifacts/techniques/pills/beasts to buy.

Spirit Beasts (+0) [Spirit's Command]

[ ] Cultivate in the Fire Lily Mountains
Your Poplar Guardian has been quietly rooted outside your personal residence for the last few years stabilizing its spirit. No one has really questioned why you have a new tree. That is your prerogative as the young master of the Zhuge clan, but your residence doesn't have the best qi flows for actually cultivating. You can send it to the Zhuge private training grounds to cultivate in proper wood qi.

[ ] Guard Your Residence
You can always leave the spirit by your residence to guard you. It's very large and strong and makes for a perfect protector of your home. Especially since not many people expect an awakened spirit tree.

[ ] Search for Spirit Groves (Current)
Being a tree your poplar guardian is uniquely sensitive to auspicious locations for spirit herbs. If it was a wild tree spirit these would be the exact sort of locations it would seek out to make its own home after all. You can take advantage of this to send your poplar guardian out to find groves and essentially take them over from their current spirit beast owners. This is somewhat dangerous, but your poplar is fairly sturdy. Unless it runs into a Lord level beast it should be fine. It is however slow so this will take a while.

 

[Arcanestomper]

Turn 17: Unspoken Favors (Year 5/Spring)

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Plan: Perfecting Cultivation and Alchemy
-[X] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. [Cultivation]
-[X] Lead the Rust Lotus Project
-[X] Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 22/???)
-[X] Consider Other Promising Apprentices (Goal: 12/20)

---

You are sorely disappointed in the Silver Grass Pavilion this month. And honestly with yourself as well. The research had been going so well recently that you had not been paying as much attention as you should have. It was only when one of the latest reports struck you as off that you took a closer look and noticed that an early error in the refinement of Zhuge Lotus had worked itself all throughout the process.

The technique used resulted in qi condensation that looked useful, but was actually vaporous and would quickly dissipate one ingested by a cultivator. Unfortunately only careful testing or a high level cultivator such as yourself would spot the difference and the apparent breakthrough in lotus qi collection had encouraged your alchemists to move ahead with their other tests.

To be fair to them those tests were all successful. From your analysis the new method should result in an elixir one grade higher on the standard Dewdrop scale. It just relied on the one flawed step. So rather than starting over you instruct your alchemists to focus their efforts on finding a method that can replicate the lotus condensation results.

You suspect that using ice and fire qi in series should prove useful and lay out a series of experiments to that effect. To your pleasant surprise rather than grumbling at the extra work your underlings quickly set up and perform the experiments. To your even greater surprise they immediately find an alternative method of producing lotus condensate.

It isn't even the month's end before a group of your senior alchemists are presenting a flask to you in a velvet lined box. Holding it to the light you can see that it is markedly less murky than your initial rusted lotus brews. Running your divine sense through it you can tell that the qi is denser and the impurities less toxic.

This is a great success and when you present it to your mother and the clan elders the quiet murmurs in the background are not rumors of your incompetence, but praise for your abilities.

Rusted Lotus Elixir: Copper => Iron
Removes Clock: Accusations of Inexperience
Adds Pavilion Reputation to your Face
Insights: +3

With that settled you turn your attention to finding people to carry out your mission in the wilderness. There are always loose cultivators wandering around the empire, but for the most part they are unreliable. Their very ubiquitousness means that if they find something valuable they are likely to take it and flee rather than return to their employers. As such only the desperate or poor use their services.

The next step up for most people would be to hire the services of an escort company. These groups offer guards to protect merchant convoys going through the wilderness. And between caravans usually take on small local jobs. Their ties to regular merchants means that their reputations are important to them, but on the other hand they are also leery of risking too much on what is ultimately a side job.

On the other end of the scale noble houses and powerful clans maintain their own sword companies to take on these sort of far ranging miscellaneous tasks. The Zhuge clan of course does as well. You could theoretically requisition one of these companies for your own use. But you are reluctant to. Perhaps if this was some vital matter or you had more concrete evidence.

But simple rumors? You'd be sending an important clan asset to search through the wilderness for months on end. The fact that you have the authority hinges on the fact that you know when not to use it. And in this case you choose a different path.

You turn to the Grand Heart Blossom Sect. Despite the name they are not so grand. They are rated by the Imperial court as a Twelfth Rank Sect with a history of a mere two hundred years. Barely two generations. Their founder is still alive. They don't even have an Ancestor. By comparison most of the Zhuge clan vassals are of the ninth or tenth ranks while the Zhuge clan itself is of the Eighth Rank.

But in this case that is the point. Such a minor sect will be quite keen to retain your favor, and they have enough disciples to do a decent job of searching. Your meeting with the sect master is straightforward and to the point. You tell him that there is a mystic realm in the wilderness with certain characteristics. You tell him that you will be pleased if it is found. The sect master throws you a feast and you have an acceptable time.

No orders are given. No promises are made. But by tomorrow Grand Heart Blossom disciples will be scouring the remote mountains of the Zhuge province looking for clues. Such is the power of your favor as a young master of the Zhuge clan.

Insight: +1

Your plans for new apprentice training are even simpler to carry out. There's no complex weighing of options and polite exchange of favors. You simply order the Zhuge clan workers to build a new series of buildings near the silver grass pavilion.

There are dormitories, large classrooms, and open laboratories for teaching the basics of alchemy. The workers are efficient and have the buildings completed in a matter of months. Your only contribution is deciding how lavish to make the quarters for the teachers. You decide to have them decorated to the level of a senior alchemist.

The official gradations of zhuge clan retainers are fairly broad. This is mostly to allow Zhuge overseers to maintain their own underlings as they see fit. Instead one of the main indicators of a retainer's rank are how fine the quarters they receive are and the level of cultivation resources they are allocated.

By giving your teachers rooms of this quality you are quietly indicating to all the members of the Silver Grass Pavilion that they are important and to be treated with respect. Something they will need if they are to claw the teaching of apprentices away from individual alchemists. If this had been a few years ago this would have also given rise to resentment and envy, but by this point you have proven yourself well enough that your alchemists will simply take it as a new direction for the pavilion and an indication to work harder.

When the new academic pavilion is finished there is a small ceremony. You make a short speech. The teachers are introduced, and a select number of alchemists are inducted as the Oak Cadre. The first of many no doubt.

One Cadre Graduated Per Year: Spring
Insights: +2

---

Clocks

Personal Clock: Pending
Clan Clock: Beast Tides (Minor) [X] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Poplar Clock: Wandering [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Chìhóng Clock: Pending Next Visit

Special Actions

Alchemist Bonus
--- [ ] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. [Cultivation, School of the Jade Cauldron, School of the Iridescent Toxin]

Turn Actions

You may personally lead 3 actions without penalty.

Remember that you can also write omakes for other members of the clan to deal with issues you can't.

Spoiler: Actions

Cultivation (+13) [Cultivation + Qi]

[ ] Cultivate: +.2 TP for every point on the roll (Stress: +1)
--- [ ] Select a trait, skill, or technique to boost with the XP gained.
------ [ ] Who benefits from this boost?

[ ] Plant the Seed (Goal: 50)
Nurture your spiritual core by providing it with plenty of wood qi. Prepare a space in your soul to accept it by obtaining enlightenments as to your path. You will need to have a firm conviction and understanding of yourself in order to provide sufficient insights for the core to take root.

Your mother has asked you to wait before doing this.

[ ] Watering the Roots (Goal 100)
Locked
[ ] Pruning the Sapling (Goal 150)
Locked
[ ] Breakthrough: Eating the Fruit (Goal: ??)
Locked

[ ] Attempt to Gain Insights
- [ ] Pick a Path
You are currently on the path of alchemy. It is a fairly straightforward path as cultivation goes, but every cultivator is unique and their path to ascension will follow no others. You can search for insights on various other matters and use them to forge enlightenments to add to your comprehension of the world.

Administration (+4) [Administration]

[ ] Recruit More Alchemists (Goal: 1/10) (Spirit Stones: $1)
Send An Lia out into the city to hire more alchemists for the pavilion. There are always small alchemist shops and loose cultivators that can be recruited by a large clan like the Zhuge. They won't be the best or most loyal, but that can be fixed with time.

Size: +1
Discipline: -.5

[ ] Request More Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Reputation Test)
Request that the clan elders assign more alchemists to the silver grass pavilion. Despite your low clan influence this is still likely to be accepted simply because it isn't a very large demand. There are thousands of alchemists scattered among the various pavilions around the province.

Unless you happen to catch the clan elders in a bad mood these will likely be better than the alchemists you can recruit on your own.

Size: +1

[ ] Clean up Corruption (Goal: 0/20) (Stress: +0.25)
It will be rather difficult, but you can track down all the cases of corruption in the Silver Grass Pavilion and put an end to it. Many of the alchemists likely just need a warning, but some will need to be removed entirely. But it should get easier as you weed out the worst of the bunch.

Size: -1
Discipline: +1

[ ] *Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 35/???)
You only know the basics of growing spirit herbs, but there are plenty of cultivators who specialize in it. You can attempt to recruit an Herbalist to assist you in tending to your spirit herb gardens and potentially work on improved herb varieties.

New Retainer

Alchemy (+11) [Leaf Cauldron + Core]

[ ] Brew Flowing Ivy Elixir (Goal: 3/5 Repeatable) (1/6 [1/3] Stress Free)
It's always good to have some healing elixirs on hand. You already have the recipe so it shouldn't be too hard to brew a few elixirs. You will gain 1 elixir for each five points of progress.

[ ] Brew Rusted Lotus Elixir (Goal: 0/10 Repeatable) (+0.5 [+1] Stress) (Costs $5 per elixir after first)
Prepare Rusted Lotus elixirs for cultivation, to provide to the clan, or sale to others. You may want to present your first one to the clan as evidence of your ability and to inform of the possibilities.

[ ] Research a new Recipe (Goal: ??)
--[ ] What kind of elixir are you trying to make?
You can try to figure out the recipe for a new pill or elixir. You are quite talented in alchemy so you can try to make nearly anything, but more complex and potent recipes will be harder. They may also require more exotic ingredients.

[ ] Use a Flowing Ivy Elixir (1 Elixir)
-[ ] The Target
Use 1 elixir and your wood qi to fully heal a cultivator of the Knight realm or below.

[ ] Assign the Silver Grass Pavilion a Task
-[ ] Elixir or research
You are the head of the pavilion. You can assign the pavilion as a whole tasks to complete. Even in its current state the alchemists will still carry out your orders. Though their output will be limited.

Automatically carries out a task.
Will continue every turn until stopped.

[ ] Lead a Grand Project
-[ ] Write in Goal
In order to increase the loyalty of the alchemists in the Silver Grass Pavilion you need to prove that you are a capable leader who can provide them with benefits in the future. You aren't sure how exactly to do that at the moment, but you can start by proving that you are a capable alchemist.

The best way you can think to do that is to marshal the entire pavilion into a grand working producing a rare pill of high grade and realm. This will be a complex endeavor. So your first step will be figuring out what you want to try and make.

Quest (+6) [School of the Iridescent Toxin]

[ ] Go on an Adventure (Goal: ??)
You probably shouldn't be heading out to explore ruins and look for treasures on your own, but you don't have anything else particularly pressing to do. Take some time off to go slay monsters, search ancient palaces, and roam the wild lands looking for fortunate encounters. (Depending on the roll you can find useful locations, harvest rare materials, loot treasures, tame spirit beasts, increase your cultivation, and possibly reduce stress.)

[ ] Find a Spirit Herb Grove (Goal 30/50) (+10/Turn) (Turn 16)
You will need a huge plantation to have enough Zhuge Lotus for your needs. Your current spirit herb gardens are not large enough. And unfortunately you cannot just plant them anywhere. You will need a location with high quantities of wood and water qi. Plus you will need to be able to adequately defend your new garden against both bandits and marauding spirit beasts that want to eat your bounty.

Locate Lotus Plantation Site

Learning (+5) [Sage]

[ ] Teach Senior Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Face Test) (Stress: +1)
You are the best alchemist in the silver grass pavilion, and you could teach even the most senior alchemists in the pavilion a thing or two. Unfortunately many of them are significantly older than you and unlikely to listen well. You'll have to force them to accept your teachings.

Expertise: +1 Grade

[ ] Decipher a New Technique (Goal: 10/Grade)
- [ ] Pick a technique
You are not particularly good at coming up with new techniques, but any cultivator understands the basics. You can work out the different Qi circulations needed to perform whatever goal you are after. Depending on how much effort you put into this your new technique will have a better or worse grade.

Create Crude/Low/Mid technique
High/Master/Perfected (Locked)

[ ] Train Lin Qing (Goal: 6/40) (+3/turn) (Turn 17)
You have decided to cultivate Lin Qing as a useful retainer. To that end you have to consider what she needs to reach the soldier level. The basics that any cultivator needs are techniques, resources, and insight. You can provide the first two, but the last one will be up to her.

Completion in 1 Year: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1, Unstable Foundation)
Completion in 2 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +2)
Completion in 3 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1)

Diplomacy (+0) [Diplomat]

[ ] Request a Larger Budget (Goal: 0/20) (Reputation Check) (Stress: +1)
The clan elders are unlikely to grant the Silver Grass Pavilion more money, but you can always ask.

Budget: +?

[ ] Request a Personal Stipend (Goal: 0/20) (Face Check) (Stress: +1)
You could also ask the elders for a personal allotment of spirit stones. You'd be free to use these spirit stones in any way you wish. If they agree to grant your request of course.

Spirit Stones: +?

Personal [Automatic success]

[ ] Spend Time with your Family (Automatic)
You could try to spend some time with your siblings, or even your mother. You don't know who would be available so it would be up to fate who exactly you can pull away from their duties.

[ ] Get Help with your Plantation
-[ ] Pick a family member
You admit the scale at which you are contemplating your new spirit garden is daunting. Setting it up by yourself would be challenging. Finding the site and establishing the Zhuge Lotus beds would be hard enough. But ensuring the secrecy of your new plants as well as defending them would be an ongoing task.

Fortunately you are not a lone cultivator. You are part of a clan. And this is definitely in the clan's interests. You can make your case to your family for support in this endeavor.

Stress Relief

[ ] Take a Vacation (Costs $2)
You can take some time off from clan matters to wander the city or journey to a neighboring province on a sightseeing tour. You spend your time carousing and flaunting the wealth and status of a Young Master such as yourself.

Stress: -2
Vacation Cost: +1

[ ] Perform Charity (Costs $3)
You can spend some money on the local mortals or even down on their luck loose cultivators. Forgive a few debts, fund some orphanages, perhaps supply elixirs to a clinic or two. Nothing too grandiose, but still enough to make a noticeable impact on your people's lives. There is unfortunately a good chance this will give you a reputation for undue mercy.

Stress: -2
Face Test

[ ] Ponder Existence
You spend time in the library reading philosophy and trying to find the point of all this cultivation. What exactly is the purpose of life? Is it to gain power or to do good? Is a life well lived one of decadence and pleasure, or should you focus on nature and understanding the world. The cycle of history seems never ending. What exactly is the point of it all?

Stress: -2
Deepens Melancholy

Personal Goals

[ ] Became a True Pavilion Master
It is time to consider what you truly want from the Silver Grass Pavilion. Is it a tool for your personal alchemy, a pillar of the clan, or a method to train loyal retainers. You will put some thought and planning into choosing a course for how you will manage it.

[ ] Acquire a Spirit Bonded Beast
Many members of the Zhuge clan have bonded companions. You would like to have one for yourself. The process is fairly straightforward, but the tricky part is acquiring a beast that will suit you. There are many options from protectors, to spies, to mounts. You could choose one to help you in alchemy or to cover your weaknesses in other areas.

[ ] Elevate the People
You have always felt that the common people in the clan do not have a particularly good lot in life. They are often mistreated and live short hard lives. Helping any particular mortal or their family is a small matter, but there are millions of them. Even you do not have the money for that. At least not on a whim. If you want to improve conditions in the Zhuge province you'll have to seriously plan it out.


Personal Goals
Could the personal goal be something about increasing the status of our Pavilion and making it more effective and efficient? Or at least increasing the loyalty of our members?

"acquire a suitable bonded animal, that would be directly useful and applicable to my life, and connect with it properly"

'Want to leave a legacy that will help lot of peoples and also make people remember him ?'

Trade & Investment (+0) [Merchant]

[ ] Visit the Market (Automatic)
You are not really a merchant yourself, but anyone can buy things. You will visit the markets in Fragrant Lotus city and browse for useful things.

Provides a list of available artifacts/techniques/pills/beasts to buy.

Spirit Beasts (+0) [Spirit's Command]

[ ] Cultivate in the Fire Lily Mountains
Your Poplar Guardian has been quietly rooted outside your personal residence for the last few years stabilizing its spirit. No one has really questioned why you have a new tree. That is your prerogative as the young master of the Zhuge clan, but your residence doesn't have the best qi flows for actually cultivating. You can send it to the Zhuge private training grounds to cultivate in proper wood qi.

[ ] Guard Your Residence
You can always leave the spirit by your residence to guard you. It's very large and strong and makes for a perfect protector of your home. Especially since not many people expect an awakened spirit tree.

[ ] Search for Spirit Groves (Current)
Being a tree your poplar guardian is uniquely sensitive to auspicious locations for spirit herbs. If it was a wild tree spirit these would be the exact sort of locations it would seek out to make its own home after all. You can take advantage of this to send your poplar guardian out to find groves and essentially take them over from their current spirit beast owners. This is somewhat dangerous, but your poplar is fairly sturdy. Unless it runs into a Lord level beast it should be fine. It is however slow so this will take a while.

 

[Arcanestomper]

Turn 18: Fighting The Beast Tide (Year 5/Summer)

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Plan Adventure And Training
-[X] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. [Cultivation]
-[X] Go on an Adventure (Goal: Cull the Beast Tide)
-[X] Train Lin Qing (Goal: 3/40) (+3/turn) (Turn 16)
-[X] *Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 35/???)

---

Reports of the beast tide in the province have been mounting up. It isn't your area of responsibility, but there has been plenty of gossip about villages overrun and massive packs of beasts roaming through the countryside. A beast tide at this scale is horrific for a mortal, but ultimately fairly minor. Something that will likely resolve itself in a few years. So far the Zhuge clan has not taken any action beyond reinforcing the garrisons at the other smaller cities spread throughout the province as well as important mines and plantations.

However for loose cultivators it represents a unique opportunity. Spirit beasts are treasure troves of cultivation resources. Normally hunting is a rather perilous process of venturing deep into the wilderness, but with a wilderness not only will the spirit beasts be moving into the open, but there are generally other cultivators in the area willing to join forces. Not to mention the reputation benefits of protecting the people.

Of course the downside is that the spirit beasts are moving in entire packs and have amplified aggression from whatever prompted the beast tide in the first place. More than likely most of those fortune seekers will die under the claws and teeth of the beasts. But the few who succeed will become rich from selling their kills.

Your own responsibilities with the Silver Grass Pavilion have reached an ebb. You have more or less put the pavilion in order for the moment. And while there are more things you could do for the moment you want to pursue other interests. Such as trying your own hand at fighting the beast tide.

So you gather your things and set out for the western mountains where the beast tide is emanating from. Accompanying you are a group of Zhuge soldiers and servants. More of the former than the latter given the situation, but even in this situation your status is too high to simply camp in the woods.

The cavalcade of dragon horses makes quite a sight as you ride through the lower foothills. Most of the time smaller spirit beasts would avoid such a procession, but as you approach the site of the beast tide they become more and more aggressive. Even before you reach the tide itself you often have to stop and fight off packs of them several times a day. But eventually you research a small mortal town close to the reported location of the tide.

The town has a solid stone wall and a small garrison of peasants, but you can see by the faces of the residents that they are still scared. The town hasn't been attacked directly yet, but they have received many refugees from destroyed villages to the west. From the sounds of it they aren't sure if there are even any intact villages remaining.

So after a night's rest you leave the servants and most of the guards behind while you and your strongest guards head west. You follow the road for several li until you make out the remnants of a village. It has been totally destroyed. The houses have been smashed in and the fields are dug up. There are signs of death here. Blood and bones are scattered around, but no bodies. Most likely the beasts devoured all the villagers. You search for survivors, but find none.

The attack looks relatively recent. Within the last few days most likely. So you search for traces of where the beasts might have gone. You aren't a hunter, but so many beasts leave tracks that even you can follow. You follow the claw marks and felled trees until you arrive at a clearing filled with beasts. You hear their growls and sense their qi long before you can see them so your party dismounts and carefully makes its way forward.

The clearing is filled with beasts of all types. Wolves make up the majority, but there are panthers, bears, and even more stranger things. Beasts tend to mutate as they become more powerful and you are not familiar with all the various subtypes. They don't look too strong however. Mostly soldiers with a few knight level alphas spread through the packs. It is a little worrying that the alphas are not currently fighting for dominance. It implies there is another stronger beast that is leading this section of the beast tide.

But you don't sense the presence of anything more powerful. So after a few moments of consultation with your guards you decide to take advantage of its absence and attack. To start you prepare a bundle of needles tipped in blue centipede poison. With a flick of your hand you send them flying out over the clearing like a deadly rain.

Dozens of beasts die to your initial onslaught and you quickly charge forward to deal with the alphas while your guards fend off the surviving lesser beasts. Beasts are stronger than human cultivators of the equivalent stage and this many knights is a challenge even for your refined skill. You gut two ice wolves with your daggers then dodge out of the way of a shadow panthers strike. The biggest threat however is a massive moss bear. It's slow, but a single swipe from its massive claws would disembowel you. Or at least if you weren't wearing defensive robes.

As it stands you quickly dart around the slow moving beast wearing it down with dagger nicks and the occasional thrown dart. This is made much more difficult by the fact that you have to deal with the other beasts at the same time. All of which are also physically stronger than you. But you are a whirling dervish cutting through their ranks, and one by one they fall to your blades.

You are feeling pretty proud of yourself when a low hiss pierces through the sound of battle. An oppressive pressure fills the clearing and you quickly whirl around to see a new beast. It's a civet with lime green fur and twisting root poking out of its back. Its eyes are filled with red light, and it looks furious at your intrusion. Most importantly however it's the size of a small hill. The leader of this pack has returned and it does not take kindly to what you have done to its underlings.

The Root Civet rushes towards you. Its movements are so fast that you only see a blur before an enormous blow sends you flying backwards. The defensive formations on your robes activate to keep you from taking a fatal injury, but the remaining force still slams you through a row of century old trees. You can't afford to take any time to recover however and quickly scramble out of the log pile. Grasping a defensive talisman you activate it just as a paw larger than your body comes down.

Green light forms an array that sends the paw rebounding back, but your talisman shatters at the same time. Out of the corner of your eye you can see a massive flare rise into the sky. Your guards are trained to summon reinforcements in times like these. Next a blast of qi punches into the beast from the side. None of your guards are lords, only the captain is a knight, but they train in formation techniques that let them fight above their realm.

Fight of course being relative. The blast did little more than turn the attention of the Civet from yourself to your guards. But that is intentional. They are also trained to give up their lives in your defense. Not that you want them to die. Not least because you'll be next. So you pull out a vial of thousand centipede poison and coat your daggers with the vile poison. Leaping forward you attempt to slice the civet's neck, but it easily blocks your strongest strike. You do little more than knick its paw. But that knick is now filled with poison.

Another blast from your guards formation draws its attention again. Your only real hope here is that even at the Lord realm most spirit beasts still operate mostly on instinct rather than intellect. If you and your guards can keep it distracted you might survive. That is of course when the moss bear you forgot about crashes into you.

You are saved by being mauled by your robes, but it still pounds you into the ground. Agony pierces through you as your bones break, but you still struggle to raise your dagger and strike at its nearest leg. In a situation like this the moment you stop fighting is the moment you die. You lunge forward and grab the bear's mossy fur with one hand then use your remaining strength to pull yourself upwards and stab it repeatedly in the neck.

With a howl it knocks you away, but you can sense that its life force is rapidly being eaten away. The thousand centipede poison might mean little to the civet, but to the bear it is deadly. Fumbling with a blood covered hand you retrieve a flowing ivy elixir and drink it in one motion. The healing qi rushes through you in a wave and you can feel your injuries begin to close. But the battle is not over yet. With its dying breaths the bear slams into you and rakes you with its claws.

You stab it repeatedly in a desperate attempt to finally kill the thing, but spirit beasts are tenacious things. Especially one filled with wood qi such as this. By the time it finally dies you are covered in blood, one of your arms hangs uselessly, and you can't see out of your left eye.

It occurs to you to wonder why the Root Civet has not killed you. You raise your good eye to the rest of the clearing only to see a large hill having mystically appeared while you were otherwise occupied.. It takes you a few moments to resolve the mound as the green furred back of the civet. It lies motionless and on its back stands a woman in ornate green robes. She is watching you with an appraising look.

It is your mother.

Clock: Reduced 2 Ticks
Injury: 2 Taken
Flowing Ivy Elixir (Gold) Used: 1 Wound Healed
Insight: +1

You aren't particularly surprised to see your mother. She must have sensed your soul lamp flickering and known your life was in peril. And while you might be somewhat distant now you remain her son. Of course she would come to your rescue. That doesn't mean the danger was any less real however. Not even a Baron can tear through the void.

It would have taken her time to realize you were in danger, locate your position, and then fly across the Barony. Time in which the Root Civet could have squashed you like a bug. You got lucky. Or rather your luck was better with the wealth of the Zhuge clan. Defensive artifacts that can defend against a Lord's strike. Guards willing to lay down their lives for yours. Everything added up to just enough time to save your life.

"Do you understand Liang?" Your mother has been lecturing on all this as the two of you fly back home. She has already healed your most grievous wounds, but you still ache all over. Still it's bearable enough and you nod at her words. "Yes, mother."

She sighs and pulls you into an embrace, "You're worth it of course. I'd pay much more than that for your life. But you have to be more careful in the future. You should have checked where their leader was more carefully before you attacked. What if I had been tied up and had to send one of the Elders instead."

You nod again and push her away. You are a grown man now. You don't need to be comforted. The Zhuge estate is in sight now and your mother sets down in one of the courtyards. She summons healers to tend to you and moves to depart. She likely had clan business she had to drop to rescue you.

Before she leaves however she gives you one last look and smirks, "I saw how you dealt with that bear Liang. Not bad, but I think you need a bit more power in your strikes. I'll tell Xin to give you some training."

With that ominous phrase hanging over your head you spend the next few weeks convalescing and constantly watching out for your sister. You aren't in any shape to do much, but you find time to train your new apprentice, Lin Qing. With your guidance she quickly tempers her eyes and lungs. You aren't surprised when she awakens the rainbow eyes. Many with a high talent for alchemy do as it helps to more easily see how an elixir is brewing.

With a few last instructions you leave her to her training and return to your quarters. Miss An Lia has left you a few reports for what has been happening with the pavilion while you were gone. Nothing seems to have gone wrong, and you are pleased to see that they are finally turning over quite a profit from the sale of flowing ivy elixirs.

You also received some reports from the Grand Heart Blossom's sect master. It's mostly full of negatives. They haven't found the mystic realm you were searching for. But they have eliminated quite a few mountains from the search area. Judging from the maps and their rate of progress you think it likely they finish their search some time in the fall.

Insight: +1

---

Clocks

Personal Clock: Pending
Clan Clock: Beast Tides (Minor) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Poplar Clock: Wandering [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
Chìhóng Clock: Pending Next Visit

Special Actions

Alchemist Bonus
--- [ ] Select a technique to boost with 3 TP. [Cultivation, School of the Jade Cauldron, School of the Iridescent Toxin]

Turn Actions

You may personally lead 3 actions without penalty.

Remember that you can also write omakes for other members of the clan to deal with issues you can't.

Spoiler: Actions

Cultivation (+13) [Cultivation + Qi]

[ ] Cultivate: +.2 TP for every point on the roll (Stress: +1)
--- [ ] Select a trait, skill, or technique to boost with the XP gained.
------ [ ] Who benefits from this boost?

[ ] Plant the Seed (Goal: 50)
Nurture your spiritual core by providing it with plenty of wood qi. Prepare a space in your soul to accept it by obtaining enlightenments as to your path. You will need to have a firm conviction and understanding of yourself in order to provide sufficient insights for the core to take root.

Your mother has asked you to wait before doing this.

[ ] Watering the Roots (Goal 100)
Locked
[ ] Pruning the Sapling (Goal 150)
Locked
[ ] Breakthrough: Eating the Fruit (Goal: ??)
Locked

[ ] Attempt to Gain Insights
- [ ] Pick a Path
You are currently on the path of alchemy. It is a fairly straightforward path as cultivation goes, but every cultivator is unique and their path to ascension will follow no others. You can search for insights on various other matters and use them to forge enlightenments to add to your comprehension of the world.

Turn Incrementing (Turn 18)

[ ] Learning: Train Lin Qing (Goal: 22/40) (+3/turn)
You have decided to cultivate Lin Qing as a useful retainer. To that end you have to consider what she needs to reach the soldier level. The basics that any cultivator needs are techniques, resources, and insight. You can provide the first two, but the last one will be up to her.

Completion in 1 Year: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1, Unstable Foundation)
Completion in 2 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +2)
Completion in 3 Years: Lin Qing (Soldier Breakthrough, Loyalty +1)

[ ] Quest: Find a Spirit Herb Grove (Goal 40/50) (+10/Turn)
You will need a huge plantation to have enough Zhuge Lotus for your needs. Your current spirit herb gardens are not large enough. And unfortunately you cannot just plant them anywhere. You will need a location with high quantities of wood and water qi. Plus you will need to be able to adequately defend your new garden against both bandits and marauding spirit beasts that want to eat your bounty.

Locate Lotus Plantation Site

Administration (+4) [Administration]

[ ] Recruit More Alchemists (Goal: 1/10) (Spirit Stones: $1)
Send An Lia out into the city to hire more alchemists for the pavilion. There are always small alchemist shops and loose cultivators that can be recruited by a large clan like the Zhuge. They won't be the best or most loyal, but that can be fixed with time.

Size: +1
Discipline: -.5

[ ] Request More Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Reputation Test)
Request that the clan elders assign more alchemists to the silver grass pavilion. Despite your low clan influence this is still likely to be accepted simply because it isn't a very large demand. There are thousands of alchemists scattered among the various pavilions around the province.

Unless you happen to catch the clan elders in a bad mood these will likely be better than the alchemists you can recruit on your own.

Size: +1

[ ] Clean up Corruption (Goal: 0/20) (Stress: +0.25)
It will be rather difficult, but you can track down all the cases of corruption in the Silver Grass Pavilion and put an end to it. Many of the alchemists likely just need a warning, but some will need to be removed entirely. But it should get easier as you weed out the worst of the bunch.

Size: -1
Discipline: +1

[ ] *Search for an Herbalist (Goal: 47/???)
You only know the basics of growing spirit herbs, but there are plenty of cultivators who specialize in it. You can attempt to recruit an Herbalist to assist you in tending to your spirit herb gardens and potentially work on improved herb varieties.

New Retainer

Alchemy (+11) [Leaf Cauldron + Core]

[ ] Brew Flowing Ivy Elixir (Goal: 3/5 Repeatable) (1/6 [1/3] Stress Free)
It's always good to have some healing elixirs on hand. You already have the recipe so it shouldn't be too hard to brew a few elixirs. You will gain 1 elixir for each five points of progress.

[ ] Brew Rusted Lotus Elixir (Goal: 0/10 Repeatable) (+0.5 [+1] Stress) (Costs $5 per elixir after first)
Prepare Rusted Lotus elixirs for cultivation, to provide to the clan, or sale to others. You may want to present your first one to the clan as evidence of your ability and to inform of the possibilities.

[ ] Research a new Recipe (Goal: ??)
--[ ] What kind of elixir are you trying to make?
You can try to figure out the recipe for a new pill or elixir. You are quite talented in alchemy so you can try to make nearly anything, but more complex and potent recipes will be harder. They may also require more exotic ingredients.

[ ] Use a Flowing Ivy Elixir (1 Elixir)
-[ ] The Target
Use 1 elixir and your wood qi to fully heal a cultivator of the Knight realm or below.

[ ] Assign the Silver Grass Pavilion a Task
-[ ] Elixir or research
You are the head of the pavilion. You can assign the pavilion as a whole tasks to complete. Even in its current state the alchemists will still carry out your orders. Though their output will be limited.

Automatically carries out a task.
Will continue every turn until stopped.

[ ] Lead a Grand Project
-[ ] Write in Goal
In order to increase the loyalty of the alchemists in the Silver Grass Pavilion you need to prove that you are a capable leader who can provide them with benefits in the future. You aren't sure how exactly to do that at the moment, but you can start by proving that you are a capable alchemist.

The best way you can think to do that is to marshal the entire pavilion into a grand working producing a rare pill of high grade and realm. This will be a complex endeavor. So your first step will be figuring out what you want to try and make.

Quest (+6) [School of the Iridescent Toxin]

[ ] Go on an Adventure (Goal: ??)
You probably shouldn't be heading out to explore ruins and look for treasures on your own, but you don't have anything else particularly pressing to do. Take some time off to go slay monsters, search ancient palaces, and roam the wild lands looking for fortunate encounters. (Depending on the roll you can find useful locations, harvest rare materials, loot treasures, tame spirit beasts, increase your cultivation, and possibly reduce stress.)

Learning (+5) [Sage]

[ ] Teach Senior Alchemists (Goal: 0/10) (Face Test) (Stress: +1)
You are the best alchemist in the silver grass pavilion, and you could teach even the most senior alchemists in the pavilion a thing or two. Unfortunately many of them are significantly older than you and unlikely to listen well. You'll have to force them to accept your teachings.

Expertise: +1 Grade


[ ] Decipher a New Technique (Goal: 10/Grade)
- [ ] Pick a technique
You are not particularly good at coming up with new techniques, but any cultivator understands the basics. You can work out the different Qi circulations needed to perform whatever goal you are after. Depending on how much effort you put into this your new technique will have a better or worse grade.

Create Crude/Low/Mid technique
High/Master/Perfected (Locked)

Diplomacy (+0) [Diplomat]

[ ] Request a Larger Budget (Goal: 0/20) (Reputation Check) (Stress: +1)
The clan elders are unlikely to grant the Silver Grass Pavilion more money, but you can always ask.

Budget: +?

[ ] Request a Personal Stipend (Goal: 0/20) (Face Check) (Stress: +1)
You could also ask the elders for a personal allotment of spirit stones. You'd be free to use these spirit stones in any way you wish. If they agree to grant your request of course.

Spirit Stones: +?

Personal [Automatic success]

[ ] Spend Time with your Family (Automatic)
You could try to spend some time with your siblings, or even your mother. You don't know who would be available so it would be up to fate who exactly you can pull away from their duties.

[ ] Get Help with your Plantation
-[ ] Pick a family member
You admit the scale at which you are contemplating your new spirit garden is daunting. Setting it up by yourself would be challenging. Finding the site and establishing the Zhuge Lotus beds would be hard enough. But ensuring the secrecy of your new plants as well as defending them would be an ongoing task.

Fortunately you are not a lone cultivator. You are part of a clan. And this is definitely in the clan's interests. You can make your case to your family for support in this endeavor.

Stress Relief

[ ] Take a Vacation (Costs $2)
You can take some time off from clan matters to wander the city or journey to a neighboring province on a sightseeing tour. You spend your time carousing and flaunting the wealth and status of a Young Master such as yourself.

Stress: -2
Vacation Cost: +1

[ ] Perform Charity (Costs $3)
You can spend some money on the local mortals or even down on their luck loose cultivators. Forgive a few debts, fund some orphanages, perhaps supply elixirs to a clinic or two. Nothing too grandiose, but still enough to make a noticeable impact on your people's lives. There is unfortunately a good chance this will give you a reputation for undue mercy.

Stress: -2
Face Test

[ ] Ponder Existence
You spend time in the library reading philosophy and trying to find the point of all this cultivation. What exactly is the purpose of life? Is it to gain power or to do good? Is a life well lived one of decadence and pleasure, or should you focus on nature and understanding the world. The cycle of history seems never ending. What exactly is the point of it all?

Stress: -2
Deepens Melancholy

Personal Goals

[ ] Became a True Pavilion Master
It is time to consider what you truly want from the Silver Grass Pavilion. Is it a tool for your personal alchemy, a pillar of the clan, or a method to train loyal retainers. You will put some thought and planning into choosing a course for how you will manage it.

[ ] Acquire a Spirit Bonded Beast
Many members of the Zhuge clan have bonded companions. You would like to have one for yourself. The process is fairly straightforward, but the tricky part is acquiring a beast that will suit you. There are many options from protectors, to spies, to mounts. You could choose one to help you in alchemy or to cover your weaknesses in other areas.

[ ] Elevate the People
You have always felt that the common people in the clan do not have a particularly good lot in life. They are often mistreated and live short hard lives. Helping any particular mortal or their family is a small matter, but there are millions of them. Even you do not have the money for that. At least not on a whim. If you want to improve conditions in the Zhuge province you'll have to seriously plan it out.


Personal Goals
Could the personal goal be something about increasing the status of our Pavilion and making it more effective and efficient? Or at least increasing the loyalty of our members?

"acquire a suitable bonded animal, that would be directly useful and applicable to my life, and connect with it properly"

'Want to leave a legacy that will help lot of peoples and also make people remember him ?'

Trade & Investment (+0) [Merchant]

[ ] Visit the Market (Automatic)
You are not really a merchant yourself, but anyone can buy things. You will visit the markets in Fragrant Lotus city and browse for useful things.

Provides a list of available artifacts/techniques/pills/beasts to buy.

Spirit Beasts (+0) [Spirit's Command]

[ ] Cultivate in the Fire Lily Mountains
Your Poplar Guardian has been quietly rooted outside your personal residence for the last few years stabilizing its spirit. No one has really questioned why you have a new tree. That is your prerogative as the young master of the Zhuge clan, but your residence doesn't have the best qi flows for actually cultivating. You can send it to the Zhuge private training grounds to cultivate in proper wood qi.

[ ] Guard Your Residence
You can always leave the spirit by your residence to guard you. It's very large and strong and makes for a perfect protector of your home. Especially since not many people expect an awakened spirit tree.

[ ] Search for Spirit Groves (Current)
Being a tree your poplar guardian is uniquely sensitive to auspicious locations for spirit herbs. If it was a wild tree spirit these would be the exact sort of locations it would seek out to make its own home after all. You can take advantage of this to send your poplar guardian out to find groves and essentially take them over from their current spirit beast owners. This is somewhat dangerous, but your poplar is fairly sturdy. Unless it runs into a Lord level beast it should be fine. It is however slow so this will take a while.