Powder, Gears, and Blessed Steam - A WHF Engineering Quest

[adwarf]

You see the walls long before the city proper. Great works of stone jutting out over the crown of the seemingly endless forest all around you as the road winds around terrain that would've taken far too long to cut through. It is only as the trees begin to give way that you see it all in full, a massive curtain wall of stone reaching far out to either side surrounding which is sparse farmland mingling with a forest that even now woodsmen are working to cut back further away from the city. In fact, as you watch one the closer groups of loggers at work you are met by the sight of the bushes coming alive.

Roots surge forward to drag them down even as their cry sends every woodsmen in reach charging at the strange, living undergrowth trying to claim their comrade's life.

"Bloodsedge. Nasty things they are. Roots drag you in and then the plant eats you alive. Not the only thing in Ostland's forests that come to life either."

You look towards the voice to find a familiar teenager walking beside the wagon you were allowed to rest on.

'He has a different gun,' You note as you give him a once over only for him to sheepishly scratch the back of his head.

"Sorry for not trusting ya, if the veterans did I shoulda known better. Commander sent me to recommend an inn for ya, called the Twin Boar. He said ya can find it if you go down-"

...

You settle into the Twin Boar just as the sun begins to set with a few extra coin purses lining your pack and curiosity warring against a need for sleep in your head. For all you'd heard the stories of Ostland being a sullen, poverty stricken province there is little of that to be seen in what little of Wolfenburg you have. Multi story buildings line the streets, strange crenelated rooftops connected by walkways appearing every so often, and throngs of people from seemingly all across the Empire walk the streets.

Reiklanders, Middenheimers, halflings from the Moot, Dawi, and even Kislevites mill along the roads or rush towards destination carrying, or guiding trade goods. Patrols stalk the street all hours of the day and you have seen quite a few groups of archers keeping an eye out from the fortified rooftops dotting the city...

"It might not be Altdorf, but it certainly is impressive in its own right..."

You fall asleep that night with countless ideas for what to do in the morning running through your mind.

THERE WILL BE A SIX HOUR MORATORIUM ON VOTING.
Feel free to use that time to discuss the available options and the new information you've gotten below.

What do you do? (You have five AP to distribute each month. We'll be using plan voting.)
[] Looking for a Workshop - Maybe all the way to Ostland is far enough for you to be out of the eye of the college and the Sigmarites back in Altdorf. Finding somewhere you can get things setup for all your future work might be a good idea though it would force you to settle down for a little while to really be worth it...
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Seeking Patrons, Ostland Edition - A wealthy patron can fund an Engineers research for years if one is lucky enough to draw their interest. Finding on in a foreign land where you know little of the people or culture there might be rather challenging, but this certainly seems a place that could use a steady supply of guns at the very least. Might as well start asking anyone that looks well off and see where it gets you.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] The Rickety Wagon - You were told to head to the place if you needed work and looking at your wallet it certainly wouldn't hurt to have a job lined up for you. Now, the question is if you can find the damned place.
???
Difficulty ???

[] Search for work with Mercenaries - While you have an in with the Road Walkers it never hurts to shop around, even if the idea does make you think of Gramps' grumbling disapproval. A place like Ostland is bound to be swarming with mercenaries so its just a question of who looks worth working with.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Getting to know Wolfenburg - A new city, a new culture. A childish part of you wants to explore every nook and cranny of the city you can find while a more tempered adult part of you recognizes some places are not worth sticking your nose into. Still, there's a lot one can learn by spending some time on the streets!
???
Difficulty ???, ???

[] Eyes towards Kislev - With Wolfenburg being far closer to Kislev and one of the main channels of trade between it and the Empire it should be far easier to find a group heading that way. Asking around the marketplaces and checking with the head of the caravan that brought you here would be good places to start.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] South to Ostermark - Just like Ostland the province of Ostermark is constantly dragged into one conflict or another. Such a place would make a decent enough home for an ostracized engineer looking to make a living off what little of their trade they know though the question is how willing you are to stare down a vampire one day, an orc the next, and a beastman the day after.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] North to the Sea of Claws - A frontline against the never ending threat of Norscan raiders with beastmen at its back. A crucial trade route infested with piracy. If there was one thing you could be sure of it is the love every sea merchant and sailor has for the might of gunpowder, one that can likely act as an easy in for any long term work in the area be it from one of the ports along the coast or the belly of a ship.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Studying Gromdottir - A repeater pistol crafted by a Dwarf. By Gramps himself. It doesn't quite enter into the territory of being a work of art in its own right, but to you it is a thing of beauty utilizing knowledge well beyond your own and tying in something entirely unknown to you. At the very least nothing you've ever made has glowed blue! You want to know more about it. How repeater pistols work. How it was made. How the golden engravings were made. Why does it glow blue? What does the light do?
???
Difficulty ???

[] A Gifted Raven - Alongside Gromdottir was an amulet carved in the shape of a raven, the sign of Morr. His eyes in the mortal world, and His voice in dreams... Or so the priests say. Whatever it is, you were told to always keep it on you and while you have... Well, you are rather curious what exactly the thing is?
???
Difficulty ???

Actions below can be taken multiple times.
[] Crafting - Even without a workshop there's some simpler things you know that you can piece together if you comission a few smiths and carpenters…

• [] Matchlocks - Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Will create three.
• [] Flintlocks - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Will create three.

[] Inventing - While working from the confines of an inn room greatly limits what you're capable of there's a handful of things in your mind you can start working on at least. Whether it is worth risking that is the real question…

• [] Seeing Farther - You've seen some great overwrought examples of your idea upon Hochland Rifles back in the college, and have proof of their effectiveness both from it and the simple magnifying lens used by some of the colleges older professors. While a flintlock or matchlock wouldn't properly benefit from it just the ability to more accurately see at a distance could be quite handy in many situations. Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] A Better Crossbow - For all the power of firearms and cannons you have also looked to the more uncommon ranged companion of the flintlock and found it rather poorly tended to. Surely hidden in all the knowledge of engineering you have there is a path forward for this humble weapon? Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Voice Enloudening - You have been to more than one sermon in the various cathedrals, chapels, and temples spread throughout Altdorf and there you've witnessed clergy screaming to be heard even as the very buildings are designed to carry their words to the crowd. You listened to Godri grumble about how much you could learn from a room just by the way your voice carried through it... Could something not be made to help a speaker be heard louder and clearer?
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Oh, the Wonders of Soap - Your former colleagues might look down upon you for the act, but you're certain with your grasp of alchemy the creation of passable soaps should be simple enough if you can find the trick. Black listed or not, rich folk are always in need of fine smelling soaps to clean themselves with and it is a surefire way of lining your pockets at the end of the day.
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]

[] Physical Training - You are certainly not unhealthy but looking upon your reflection in the washing basin each morning you know you can do better. Early morning sprinting, a few exercises borrowed from State soldier training regimes taught at the school, and a prodigious amount of sweat should help get you closer. Difficulty 2, Provides experience towards the next point of Body, trains Athletics

[] Eureka! - You use your brilliance to gain a bonus die on an action! Costs 1 Inspiration and 0 AP.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 4
Inspiration: 1

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 2 [5/6]

• Athletics 1 [2/4]

Mind - 2

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Looking for a Workshop
Rolling Mind/Diplomacy + Brilliant Mind = 3d6 (2, 1, 1) = 0 Successes
Revealed as Difficulty 2

0 Successes vs Difficulty 2 = Failure

Search met with failure as you struggle to find anyone willing to even talk to you.

You break off from yet another Ostlander who follows your departing figure with a suspicious glare, a feeling of defeat running through the back of your mind. Over the course of weeks you are fairly certain you've asked almost a hundred people and scoured the entirety of Wolfenburg's South Market street for answers. A few met you with unwavering silence, a handful muttered curses before they met your questions with scowls, but the majority simply seemed distrustful of you.

Be it a lack of trust that you actually had the money to pay them, natural distrust for someone so young looking into such thi-

" 'Where are your parents, kid?' Bah! I'm not that young you half blind Umgi."

Muttering under your breath, you stomp down the street heading towards your next fruitless encounter.

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] The Rickety Wagon
Rolling Mind/Wayfinding + Brilliant Mind = 3d6 (6, 4, 3) = 1 Success
Revealed as Difficulty 1

1 Success vs Difficulty 1 = Success

Rolling 1d4 (3) = 3 Available Job Offers

Discovered the Ricket Wagon, headquarters of the Ostland Road Walkers and tavern?
Unlocked new actions working for the Road Walkers.
Unlocked Wayfinding 0
Gain 1 Experience towards Wayfinding 1

It is a process of several hours to find your destination even with the directions you'd been given. As someone who grew up in Altdorf you were used to a specific blend of deliberately plann thoroughfares and the sort of organic planning of a city that grew around them. However, Wolfenburg seems to be, if not deliberately planned, built on very exacting rules that have turned the portions of the city extending off the main roads into a frustrating web of roads littered with dead ends.

By the time you find Round Mill Street you've already turned down six dead ends and have a truly impressive scowl going even for you. Frustrated, your mind turns to comforting memories of your time pouring over drawings and theories about the exact specifications of Leonardo's steam tanks.

"Cannon, steam gun, and then the driving motion of the tank… Can they maintain each of them with just one boiler or are the using multiple? Could the aeolipile power one? Professor Wil-"

Lost in your thoughts you completely miss the old man standing behind the stained bar counter in front of you… And also miss the way all the patrons fall perfect silent as you stand there for longer and longer until finally the sound of a cleared throat causes you to yelp.

"Anything I can get you lass? Or are you going to stand there talking to yourself all day?"

The bemused voice of the bartender currently scrubbing the counter down calls out as you pull yourself together, "Sorry. Alric sent me. Said I could find some work if I stopped by."

His hand jerks towards the stairwell off to your left as he shouts across the room, "Brass, go tell that idiot some girl said he sent her here for work."

You cast a side glance just in time to see a small child scurrying through the door in response as the bartender turns back to you, "Not the usual sort he sends this way. Don't carry yourself like someone used to the woods or the road. Not got any wea-"

His words cut off as he catches sight of the firearm largely obscured by the holster at your side, "Nevermind, remarkably well armed actually. Interesting."

You stand there watching the old man clean the counter for several minutes after that, after all if there was anything Gramps had properly taught you it was patience.

'... Okay. Patience with anything other than steam, but that one makes sense!'

As you reconcile yet again with your fixation the door opens once again as Alric steps into the room looking more exhausted than he ever had during your trip, "So soon? Not that I'm complaining. Come, sit. Sit!"

You take note of the rather excessive happiness he displays as you're waved into a seat besides him at the bar, the two of you under the curious gaze of the elderly man behind it, "Important then. Need the place locked down kid?"

Confused, you watch as Alric nods and the barkeep signals towards the patrons who quickly make their way outside… Each of them visibly armed now that they're standing.

"She's the one I mentioned, the little Miss that looked over our guns," Alric's words cause the elder to freeze up for a long moment before he grunts, puts down the rag in his hand, and leans forward. Something about his grin is almost predatory to your eye.

"Girl. You have any idea how rare gunpowder is in Ostland? Bloody merchants will bleed you dry at prices three or four times what they got it for back out west. Half the reason the Road Walkers run caravan guard between here and Altdorf is to avoid getting bled dry for guns and powder."

Alric snorts from beside you, "Even with all that we only have twenty of the entire group equipped. Cost too damn much to arm and train more."

A bottle is soon placed on the counter alongside three cups, Alric grinning as he uncorks it and takes a sniff, "Ah, nothing quite like it... Ever had vodka?"

…

Your return to the inn is plagued by the memory of an intense heat in your chest and plans to come again in the future. They wanted to take a look at your work, hear more about what all you could make, and quite a bit more.

"Looks like things might get busy here soon…"

You say. Or at least you think you do as you stumble into someone who turns and simply laughs as you almost faceplant into cobblestones below.

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Physical Training x2
Rolling Body/Athletics = 3d6 (6, 3, 1) = 1 Success vs Difficulty 2, Reduces Difficulty by 1
Rolling Body/Athletics = 3d6 (5, 5, 2) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 1 = Critical Success

Gain 1 Experience towards Body 3.
Gain Body 3.
Hit the cap for what exercise can achieve.
Gain 2 Experience towards Athletics 2.
Gain Athletics 2.

Your various outings throughout the month turn into a continued form of training as you turn trips from the Twin Boar to the Rickety Wagon into endurance jogs. Each morning you wake up early to do sets of pushups, situps, and squats that were at first merely mimicking the training you'd seen Handgunners perform at the school but had now become something entirely your own. You push yourself each day just far enough to keep moving, but not so far as to make yourself useless and by the end of the month?

It's starting to show as old sets leave you sweating, but not even close to winded. You even start to think you might just be able to keep pace with the caravan you'd traveled with.

"For a day or two at least," You grumble as you recall just how long the trip had been.

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Getting to know Wolfenburg
Rolling Mind/Wayfinding + Brilliant Mind = 3d6 (2, 2, 1) = 0 Successes
Revealed as Difficulty 1, Slight Danger
0 Successes vs Difficulty 1 = Failure

Rolling 1d100 (10) = ???

Got lost several times throughout the month.
After one wrong turn Margaret finds herself accosted by two thugs.
Discovered the Red Woodsmen.

Your attempts to explore the city and understand its layout, landmarks, and any place of interest are repeatedly stymied by the frustrating design of the city. Day after day you succeed only in stumbling into one dead end back alley after another before barely making your way back to one of the main streets by the time the sun begins to set. However, it is on one such a day near the end of the month that you find yourself staring down a dimly lit alley as the sound of the evening bell rings through the city.

Finding your way back is easy enough, your memory always has been rather good, but the greater issue are the two men now stalking towards you. Both covered in dirt and grime, clothes in tatters, red axe tattoos peering out from under their sleeves, and most importantly… Holding weapons in hand,

"Ya look at that? Some brat shovin' her nose where it don't belong."

"Think she's got any money on her? Can't be havin' anyone think we're goin' soft ya know?"

"Course not. Oi, brat, this street is for Red Woodsmen. Ya know the deal. Pay up and we'll let ya walk with just a missin' digit."

His buddy quickly smacks him on the arm at that, "Sure she ain't supposed to be here? Any of the bosses ask for a girl?"

As the two think the question over, looking towards you for a response, you are left with a moment to think…

What do you do?
[] Try to talk your way out of it.
[] Make a break for it.
[] Draw Gromdottir.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 4
Inspiration: 1

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 0 [1/2]
• Wayfinding 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)

QM Note: Dice were a bit of a mixed bag this turn, but welcome to Margaret's first encounter with danger.

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Make a break for it.
Rolling Body/Athletics = 5d6 (6, 5, 4, 4, 2) = 2 Successes

Red Woodsmen 1 Rolling = 4d6 (4, 3, 2, 1) = 0 Successes
R.W. 2 Rolling = 4d6 (6, 5, 4, 2) = 2 Successes

2 Successes vs. 0 & 2 Successes

Rolling Mind/Wayfaring = 2d6 (4, 1) = 0 Successes

Rolling 1d100 (90) > 50 = Lucky Break

Margaret loses one of them, but the other stays firmly on her tail.
She does not make it out into a main street, but as she rounds a corner a patrol is passing by.

You can feel your heart pounding in your ears as you have slide around a corner, your feet almost failing to find traction as you half stumble into a dead sprint with the sound of your pursuer not far behind. It was easy enough to give the first one the slip, the idiot had tripped before you all ran even one street over, but this other one? Every bend you round, every turn you take...

'Who is the fool Umgi now? Huh!?'

A small part of you brain triumphantly calls out your past self complaining for all those early morning jogs, your breathing only now becoming rough after several minutes of your desperate escape. However, such thoughts are soon shoved aside as you dash around the next turn and right into the black and white uniform of Ostland's state troops. You sheepishly look up at the scarred fellow in front of you, "Sorry about that, just in a bit of a rush."

An instinct drilled into you from a childhood on the streets keeps your mouth shut even as the thug charges into the street behind you. Furrowed brows and suspicious glances dart between you and the Red Woodsman not too far behind before the leader finally speaks up in a voice loud enough to carry down the street, "In a rush, ay? Well on with ya lass. We got streets to check this way."

A big smile, a nod, and you take off leaving the soldiers covering you... But not before taking the chance to rudely gesture to the Woodsman with a smirk.

...

It is with that brush with danger behind you that you awake feeling tired and frustrated. A nagging thought digging into your mind as you tidy up your inn room, the mindless action helping to focus your mind enough to pick it out. It is something you always think about so its presence wasn't one you would consider strange but here, in distant Ostland? Exiled from the school?

The desires are growing out of hand, frustrations brewing as your brain and heart urge your hands to create even a sliver of the thing that has so long enraptured you.

You can feel it. The call of Steam.

THERE WILL BE A SIX HOUR MORATORIUM ON VOTING.
Feel free to use that time to discuss the available options and the new information you've gotten below.

Notes:
Believer of Steam begins to rear its head, two turns before a penalty is incurred. Can be assuaged by progress towards the creation of Steam.
Will lose 1 Wealth this turn to living expenses. So long as you're renting an inn you will lose 1 Wealth every two turns to pay for room and board.

What do you do this month? (You have five AP to distribute each month. We'll be using plan voting.)
[] Looking for a Workshop - Maybe all the way to Ostland is far enough for you to be out of the eye of the college and the Sigmarites back in Altdorf. Finding somewhere you can get things setup for all your future work might be a good idea though it would force you to settle down for a little while to really be worth it...
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 2

[] Seeking Patrons, Ostland Edition - A wealthy patron can fund an Engineers research for years if one is lucky enough to draw their interest. Finding on in a foreign land where you know little of the people or culture there might be rather challenging, but this certainly seems a place that could use a steady supply of guns at the very least. Might as well start asking anyone that looks well off and see where it gets you.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] A Steady Supply of Powder - Ori, the name of the bartender as you later discovered, placed a rather... Lucrative offer directly into your lap, but it is quite a challenging one given the circumstances. Prove that you can create viable gunpowder. If you can he muttered something about 'a dozen purses we can dig into fund it' before pushing you on your way.
???
Requires 1 Barrel of Gunpowder.
Difficulty ???

[] Proper Firearms Maintenance - By Alric's request you've been invited to return to the Rickety Wagon several times a week with the express purpose of teaching the members of the Road Walkers proper weapon maintenance for their flintlocks and powder care. It isn't exactly glorious work but it will certainly pay the bills.
Mind/Engineering
Gain 2 Wealth and ???.
Difficulty 1

[] Search for work with Mercenaries - While you have an in with the Road Walkers it never hurts to shop around, even if the idea does make you think of Gramps' grumbling disapproval. A place like Ostland is bound to be swarming with mercenaries so its just a question of who looks worth working with.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Getting to know Wolfenburg - A new city, a new culture. A childish part of you wants to explore every nook and cranny of the city you can find while a more tempered adult part of you recognizes some places are not worth sticking your nose into. Still, there's a lot one can learn by spending some time on the streets!
???
Difficulty 1, Slight Danger

[] Eyes towards Kislev - With Wolfenburg being far closer to Kislev and one of the main channels of trade between it and the Empire it should be far easier to find a group heading that way. Asking around the marketplaces and checking with the head of the caravan that brought you here would be good places to start.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] South to Ostermark - Just like Ostland the province of Ostermark is constantly dragged into one conflict or another. Such a place would make a decent enough home for an ostracized engineer looking to make a living off what little of their trade they know though the question is how willing you are to stare down a vampire one day, an orc the next, and a beastman the day after.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] North to the Sea of Claws - A frontline against the never ending threat of Norscan raiders with beastmen at its back. A crucial trade route infested with piracy. If there was one thing you could be sure of it is the love every sea merchant and sailor has for the might of gunpowder, one that can likely act as an easy in for any long term work in the area be it from one of the ports along the coast or the belly of a ship.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Studying Gromdottir - A repeater pistol crafted by a Dwarf. By Gramps himself. It doesn't quite enter into the territory of being a work of art in its own right, but to you it is a thing of beauty utilizing knowledge well beyond your own and tying in something entirely unknown to you. At the very least nothing you've ever made has glowed blue! You want to know more about it. How repeater pistols work. How it was made. How the golden engravings were made. Why does it glow blue? What does the light do?
???
Difficulty ???

[] A Gifted Raven - Alongside Gromdottir was an amulet carved in the shape of a raven, the sign of Morr. His eyes in the mortal world, and His voice in dreams... Or so the priests say. Whatever it is, you were told to always keep it on you and while you have... Well, you are rather curious what exactly the thing is?
???
Difficulty ???

[] Street Peddler - You have a few goods that you could reasonably sell and several markets to try and sell them at. Best get to work...
???
Difficulty ???

• [] Sell Matchlocks

Actions below can be taken multiple times.
[] Arming the Road Walkers - Alric, after learning a bit more of what you can do, has requested you help the Road Walkers modernize even more. He laid out an offer to cover the cost of materials and parts if you could handle the assembly. All told it seems a pretty steep investment to make though the man himself simply waves it off every time you bring it up.
Mind/Engineering
Gain 2 Wealth and ???.
Difficulty 3

[] Crafting - Even without a workshop there's some simpler things you know that you can piece together if you commission a few smiths and carpenters…

• [] Matchlocks - Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Will create three.
• [] Flintlocks - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Will create three.

[] Inventing - While working from the confines of an inn room greatly limits what you're capable of there's a handful of things in your mind you can start working on at least. Whether it is worth risking that is the real question…

• [] Seeing Farther - You've seen some great overwrought examples of your idea upon Hochland Rifles back in the college, and have proof of their effectiveness both from it and the simple magnifying lens used by some of the colleges older professors. While a flintlock or matchlock wouldn't properly benefit from it just the ability to more accurately see at a distance could be quite handy in many situations. Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] A Better Crossbow - For all the power of firearms and cannons you have also looked to the more uncommon ranged companion of the flintlock and found it rather poorly tended to. Surely hidden in all the knowledge of engineering you have there is a path forward for this humble weapon? Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Voice Enloudening - You have been to more than one sermon in the various cathedrals, chapels, and temples spread throughout Altdorf and there you've witnessed clergy screaming to be heard even as the very buildings are designed to carry their words to the crowd. You listened to Godri grumble about how much you could learn from a room just by the way your voice carried through it... Could something not be made to help a speaker be heard louder and clearer?
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Oh, the Wonders of Soap - Your former colleagues might look down upon you for the act, but you're certain with your grasp of alchemy the creation of passable soaps should be simple enough if you can find the trick. Black listed or not, rich folk are always in need of fine smelling soaps to clean themselves with and it is a surefire way of lining your pockets at the end of the day.
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]

[] Eureka! - You use your brilliance to gain a bonus die on an action! Costs 1 Inspiration and 0 AP.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 4 - 1 Wealth this turn
Inspiration: 1

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 0 [1/2]
• Wayfinding 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Looking for a Workshop
Rolling Mind/Diplomacy + Brilliant Mind + 1 Inspiration = 4d6 (4, 1, 1, 1) = 0 Successes vs Difficulty 2 = Failure, Difficulty reduced by 1

Again attempts are stymied, but you are beginning to figure out how to approach people here in Wolfenburg.

Persistence. Unwavering persistence and an underlying self confidence to drive you past even the worst failures. Something that at face value sounds rather simple, but it was something Godri had spent years drilling into you with all the relentlessness of a Dawi with a Grudge to clear. It isn't simple by any means to face rejection time and time again, to repeat the same act over and over only to fail as you know you would.

Some would call that insanity.

However, to you, it is just life. And so as you storm away from the latest merchant to reject your inquiries into a place to set up your eventual workshop you wait until you round the bend down the street to let a smile slip.

They had told you they didn't have any places that could even remotely fit your needs. Last month you barely got more than the word no.

"I'm making progress," You whisper to yourself with a broad grin.

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Proper Firearms Maintenance
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (6, 5, 4, 4, 3) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 1 = Critical Success

Gain 2 Wealth.
Gain 2 Favor with the Road Walkers.
Relationship with Road Walkers improves to 2.
Road Walkers acquire Meticulous Maintenance trait.
Gained one bottle of Kislevite Vodka.

"Taking care of your guns isn't simply checking the barrel for damages or cleaning it after you have used it. If even one of you leaves here thinking that I'll be out there grabbing you by the ear to do this all over again. Got it!?"

Your voice pitches up a little, half a growl underlining the sincerity with which you are backing that threat even as you turn to one of the Road Walkers muskets currently setting on the table. Snatching up a dirty rag and a ceramic bottle, you carefully pour a little of the yellowish liquid within onto the cloth.

"Flaxseed oil. Furniture makers use it because the stuff takes to wood incredibly well leaving a beautiful color behind. However, we are not carpenters. Anyone care to take a crack at why you should oil down the stocks on your flintlocks?"

Your eyes dart across the rather bare room you have claimed as your classroom. Ten people sit sprawled in front of you, each with backs straight and legs crossed regardless of their age. You force down a smirk as one of the middle aged veterans among them raises her hand, "I know. My Da was a carpenter. He said the oil helps protect the wood or some such."

You clap your hands in response and give her an approving nod, "Correct. It helps extend the lifespan of your stocks which I am sure seems a bit absurd given how long some of you have had these weapons with little issue, but even the smallest details matter. No matter how sturdy a building might appear if the support beams are rotting the thing is doomed to begin with."

You snatch up the musket as you talk, giving the group a demonstration of how exactly oiling the body of a musket should go.

...

"Here."

Alric's voice and the sound of a bottle clunking down onto the counter greet you as you step into the main room of the tavern that acted as a strange sort of front business for the Road Walkers. Your eyes find the source of the second sound easy enough. A bottle of kislevite vodka, unopened.

A raised brow and a grunt are your first response, "Payment was already agreed on. Not a coin more, not a coin less Umgi."

He snorts and waves your answer off without much thought as he roughly shoves the bottle towards you.

"Not from me Miss. Old Man said something about 'Give her a taste for the good bottles and she'll stick around the place more often.' "

A harsh snort escapes you before the bottle is yanked out of his hands, "See you tomorrow."

Spoiler: Actions and Rolls

[X] Arming the Road Walkers x3
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (5, 2, 2, 1, 1) = 1 Success vs Difficulty 3 = Failure
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (6, 5, 5, 2, 1) = 3 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (6, 6, 6, 4, 2) = 3 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success

Provided the Road Walkers with 6 normal quality Flintlocks.
Road Walkers now 26/75 equipped.
Gain 4 Wealth.
Gain 2 Favor with the Road Walkers.
Gain 2 Experience towards Expertise in Flintlocks.

Much of your month is consumed by the all encompassing torrent that is request accepted. You scour the blacksmiths and carpenters the Road Walkers can connect you with for anyone that can meet your perhaps overly exacting standards, though you would never admit. Among them most are seemingly relatives of the mercenaries themselves and each more than willing to listen to a girl on the cusp of adulthood proper with only a word from Alric.

Barrels are commissioned. Blueprints and diagrams scrawled up on paper or dirt as work is assigned to those capable of it, or so you hope as your attention is spread across some two dozen craftsmen. Musket bodies are carved. Flints sized. Screws crafted with all the care necessary for what was surely a rare task for many of those involved.

It is less one batch of parts that reaches you and more a continuous flow as you find packages handed over to you both at your inn and the Rickety Wagon in kind before each is put to prompt use. Several of the barrels are too warped for use. A few stocks too uneven to properly seat the many parts needed... And your personal attempts to correct them proving inadequate to salvage them. Regardless of the various flawed pieces it goes far better than you expected all told.

Nights spent screwing barrels into place, tightening straps of iron down over them to keep them fitted firmly to their stocks before the ignition mechanisms can be attached. Striking arms created by the hands of talented, but Umgi, craftsman fitted with flint strikers that you soon set to the test. Each musket needs dozens of adjustments all on their own from slight corrections to the barrel's shape to entirely new trigger mechanisms.

However, it is with a chest full of pride that you find yourself returning to your room with a purse far, far heavier than it was before and six flintlocks delivered to their new owners. You recall Alric's approving nod and Ori trying to press another mug into your hand as he grumbled about how much louder things seemed to have gotten with you around...

'Even if it is minor compared to my dream... This is pretty satisfying by itself, right?'

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 9
Inspiration: 0

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 4

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 0 [1/2]
• Wayfinding 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

QM Note:
And with this I can introduce a bit more about the Relationship system and talk about the new currency you have, Favor.

Relationships can refer both to your ties to individuals like Godri and organizations like the Road Walkers or even much larger groups such as the entire Empire. Relationships are tracked on a scale of -10 to 10. Lower means a worse impression with -10 implying they would willingly go to any length to ruin you while higher means a more favorable impression with 10 being held in a nearly legendary status. It is meant to be a simple representation rather than a hard stat, but it will influence the bit more mechanical Favor.

Favor is a measure of how far someone or some group is willing to go to repay what they see as a debt (be it literal or simply one of gratitude) to you. Depending on your relationship with a group Favor can be spent for everything from assistance in certain actions (occurring as additional dice you can buy for those tests) to calling on them to acquire rare ingredients, hunt down monsters or enemies of yours, and much more. Below you will find the current available Favors you can call in from the Road Walkers.

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

Carefully fiddling with the still unopened bottle that had been forced into your hands, your eyes dart from it to the street only a story below as you find your thoughts drifting again. So much work to do, so much to take. New sights, new people, work you've never done before. All of it is exciting and interesting in ways you couldn't have even begun to contemplate just a few months ago.

You had fun teaching mercenaries how to tend to a gun without blowing their hands off from simple mistakes.

For all the danger it offered, exploring Wolfenburg was enthralling in its own right for the only streets you have ever known was Altdorf's.

Every day walking this city's streets brought new things to your attention as your mind becomes increasingly aware of the hardline martial context even the architecture has taken on.

And yet...

"And yet, I've never been further from it than I have now... I want someone else to see it. To understand it," You place the bottle onto the nightstand with some reluctance as your gaze focuses on the passerby below, "Will they? Gramps always responded with a grumbling and angry stomping as he chased me out of the room. 'Blasted Umgi and your maddened rantings, bah! Out, out plaitling!'"

Your lips twist into a smile at the act though you know well enough it isn't genuine. Sighing, you step away from the window reluctantly, "Work to be done..."

THERE WILL BE A SIX HOUR MORATORIUM ON VOTING.
Feel free to use that time to discuss the available options and the new information you've gotten below.

Notes:
Believer of Steam begins to rear its head, penalties will be incurred next turn. Can be assuaged by progress towards the creation of Steam.

What do you do this month? (You have five AP to distribute each month. We'll be using plan voting.)
[] Looking for a Workshop - Maybe all the way to Ostland is far enough for you to be out of the eye of the college and the Sigmarites back in Altdorf. Finding somewhere you can get things setup for all your future work might be a good idea though it would force you to settle down for a little while to really be worth it...
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 1

[] Seeking Patrons, Ostland Edition - A wealthy patron can fund an Engineers research for years if one is lucky enough to draw their interest. Finding on in a foreign land where you know little of the people or culture there might be rather challenging, but this certainly seems a place that could use a steady supply of guns at the very least. Might as well start asking anyone that looks well off and see where it gets you.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] A Steady Supply of Powder - Ori, the name of the bartender as you later discovered, placed a rather... Lucrative offer directly into your lap, but it is quite a challenging one given the circumstances. Prove that you can create viable gunpowder. If you can he muttered something about 'a dozen purses we can dig into fund it' before pushing you on your way.
???
Requires 1 Barrel of Gunpowder.
Difficulty ???

[] Search for work with Mercenaries - While you have an in with the Road Walkers it never hurts to shop around, even if the idea does make you think of Gramps' grumbling disapproval. A place like Ostland is bound to be swarming with mercenaries so its just a question of who looks worth working with.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Getting to know Wolfenburg - A new city, a new culture. A childish part of you wants to explore every nook and cranny of the city you can find while a more tempered adult part of you recognizes some places are not worth sticking your nose into. Still, there's a lot one can learn by spending some time on the streets!
???
Difficulty 1, Slight Danger

[] Eyes towards Kislev - With Wolfenburg being far closer to Kislev and one of the main channels of trade between it and the Empire it should be far easier to find a group heading that way. Asking around the marketplaces and checking with the head of the caravan that brought you here would be good places to start.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] South to Ostermark - Just like Ostland the province of Ostermark is constantly dragged into one conflict or another. Such a place would make a decent enough home for an ostracized engineer looking to make a living off what little of their trade they know though the question is how willing you are to stare down a vampire one day, an orc the next, and a beastman the day after.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] North to the Sea of Claws - A frontline against the never ending threat of Norscan raiders with beastmen at its back. A crucial trade route infested with piracy. If there was one thing you could be sure of it is the love every sea merchant and sailor has for the might of gunpowder, one that can likely act as an easy in for any long term work in the area be it from one of the ports along the coast or the belly of a ship.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Studying Gromdottir - A repeater pistol crafted by a Dwarf. By Gramps himself. It doesn't quite enter into the territory of being a work of art in its own right, but to you it is a thing of beauty utilizing knowledge well beyond your own and tying in something entirely unknown to you. At the very least nothing you've ever made has glowed blue! You want to know more about it. How repeater pistols work. How it was made. How the golden engravings were made. Why does it glow blue? What does the light do?
???
Difficulty ???

[] A Gifted Raven - Alongside Gromdottir was an amulet carved in the shape of a raven, the sign of Morr. His eyes in the mortal world, and His voice in dreams... Or so the priests say. Whatever it is, you were told to always keep it on you and while you have... Well, you are rather curious what exactly the thing is?
???
Difficulty ???

[] Street Peddler - You have a few goods that you could reasonably sell and several markets to try and sell them at. Best get to work...
???
Difficulty ???

• [] Sell Matchlocks

Actions below can be taken multiple times.
[] Arming the Road Walkers - Alric, after learning a bit more of what you can do, has requested you help the Road Walkers modernize even more. He laid out an offer to cover the cost of materials and parts if you could handle the assembly. All told it seems a pretty steep investment to make though the man himself simply waves it off every time you bring it up.
Mind/Engineering
Gain 2 Wealth and 1 Favor.
Difficulty 3

[] Crafting - Even without a workshop there's some simpler things you know that you can piece together if you commission a few smiths and carpenters…

• [] Matchlocks - Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Will create three.
• [] Flintlocks - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Will create three.

[] Inventing - While working from the confines of an inn room greatly limits what you're capable of there's a handful of things in your mind you can start working on at least. Whether it is worth risking that is the real question…

• [] Seeing Farther - You've seen some great overwrought examples of your idea upon Hochland Rifles back in the college, and have proof of their effectiveness both from it and the simple magnifying lens used by some of the colleges older professors. While a flintlock or matchlock wouldn't properly benefit from it just the ability to more accurately see at a distance could be quite handy in many situations. Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] A Better Crossbow - For all the power of firearms and cannons you have also looked to the more uncommon ranged companion of the flintlock and found it rather poorly tended to. Surely hidden in all the knowledge of engineering you have there is a path forward for this humble weapon? Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Voice Enloudening - You have been to more than one sermon in the various cathedrals, chapels, and temples spread throughout Altdorf and there you've witnessed clergy screaming to be heard even as the very buildings are designed to carry their words to the crowd. You listened to Godri grumble about how much you could learn from a room just by the way your voice carried through it... Could something not be made to help a speaker be heard louder and clearer?
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Oh, the Wonders of Soap - Your former colleagues might look down upon you for the act, but you're certain with your grasp of alchemy the creation of passable soaps should be simple enough if you can find the trick. Black listed or not, rich folk are always in need of fine smelling soaps to clean themselves with and it is a surefire way of lining your pockets at the end of the day.
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]

[] Eureka! - You use your brilliance to gain a bonus die on an action! Costs 1 Inspiration and 0 AP.

[] Calling in Favors - You have some that would consider themselves in your debt and a desire to call that debt in. Cost varies based on Favors picked. Costs 0 AP.

• [] Write in.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 9
Inspiration: 0

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 4

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 0 [1/2]
• Wayfinding 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Getting to know Wolfenburg
Rolling Mind/Wayfinding + Brilliant Mind + 1 Road Walkers Favor = 4d6 (6, 5, 2, 1) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 1 = Critical Success

Gain 1 Experience towards Wayfinding 1.
Gain Wayfinding 1.
Gain 1 Experience towards Mind 3.
Gain 1 Inspiration.
Discovered various major locations in Wolfenburg and those of note to yourself.
New actions unlocked.

"That? Oh, that's the barracks of the Imperial Ostlanders. Odd lot they are. Only recruit from villages and hamlets around the Middle Mountains and then they spend all their time running around in the mountains."

Your brow raises as you stare at the building that looks much less like a military construction and far more like a library with the way bookshelf after bookshelf can be seen through the upper windows. Even the two people you've seen going in and out were dressed more like the exploration minded scholars you'd seen back at school with all sorts of pouches and oddities strapped to their bodies. Curious, you press the brat Alric had sent as your guide, "What exactly are they doing in the mountains?"

A shrug, "Not a clue. Supposed to be something to do with scouting but not a week goes by you don't see one of the lot carrying some weird thing or another inside."

'Interesting,' You smile a little as you turn to continue on down the street while taking note of the building for later.

...

Your eyes dart across the various temples arrayed around the common area your guide has brought you. A temple to Sigmar, one to Taal, one to Rhya, another to Ulric, yet one more for Shallya, a small one for Verena, and the understandable absence of Morr's Garden. It is the Temple District of Wolfenburg as the boy proclaims thought you can't help but to note the way the space seems dominated by Sigmar's presence more than any other. Sigmarite iconography adorns the space and the temple of Sigmar stands two or three times larger than any of the others here as the piece of architecture draws your eyes towards its harsh spires.

Despite your guide's suggestions that day, you do not end up touring each of the temples in turn. You certainly didn't hurry from the area though. Definitely not. He was imagining things when he said he noticed your hand going for Godri's gift.

...

Your trips with the guide Alric sends to help you see more of Wolfenburg are rather resounding successes as the boy, a kid in his teens that goes by Ralf, seems to know much of it like the back of your hand. He teaches you all of the major street names that act as thoroughfares for the city, while only four of them lead out of the city another four act as connections to the city center for the more maze like portions. You learn of the various barracks scattered throughout Wolfenburg housing Ostland's foot regiments, the place for markets and night markets alike, which portions of the city have been marked out by its version of gangs, and even get shown the Noble Quarter... Through an open gateway closely guarded by half a dozen private soldiers.

However, as the month begins to draw to a close you are guided along to a part of the city Ralf has never taken you before. Down one of the arterials he takes you until you arrive at an area where the external wall splits and cuts into the city, towers dotting the walls from which even now soldiers can be seen standing guard. Towering over the walls is a single grey keep, the windows strangely dark as the place gives off an abandoned feeling.

An angry snort comes from beside you as Ralf spits on the ground, "Königswald Keep. Seat of the von Königswald family of our oh so great Elector Count himself."

A light flickers on in one of the highest windows in the keep as you respond, "The von Königswalds?"

Ralf shakes his head as his eyes quickly dart around the road. His hand reaches over to grab your sleeve as he starts to guide you away from the keep, "Never seen them myself. The Grand Prince himself spends all his time in Altdorf letting Ostland rot. Supposedly the only people staying in the keep these days, besides the servants of course, are his son and the tutors. Fat lot of good he's doing us, aye?"

Spoiler: Actions and Rolls

[X] Arming the Road Walkers x3
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (5, 3, 3, 2, 1) = 1 Success vs Difficulty 3 = Failure
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (6, 5, 5, 5, 2) = 4 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success, Normal
Rolling Mind/Engineering = 5d6 (5, 5, 3, 2, 1) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success, Terrible

Provided the Road Walkers with 3 terrible quality Flintlocks.
Provided the Road Walkers with 3 normal quality Flintlocks.
Road Walkers now 32/75 equipped.
Gain 4 Wealth.
Gain 1 Favor with the Road Walkers.
Gain 2 Experience towards Expertise in Flintlocks.

It is a process much like the first time you did it though this time with known quantities providing goods they've already started to gain some skill with... And, yet, for all of that it goes worse than before. Blaming it on the craftsmen would be shifting the blame for as you stare down at a trio of what you can only call subpar muskets you can only accept that it was your hands that caused the issues.

You'd put the screws in at an angle on one making the flint striker a little unreliable. On another you had warped the barrel a little at the end while putting it into place... A feat you are both slightly impressed by and truly embarrassed from even as Alric eyes with a sparkle in his eye. Yet another you had messed up the trigger assembly something awful and it was a rather finnicky beast to get to drive the ignition mechanism home...

Wrapped up in your failings, you jump slightly as Alric's hand claps onto your shoulder and the middle aged man looks down at you with a smile, "I know that look."

His hand pulls away as your attention is drawn from worry to him, the mercenary leader snatching up one of your flawed creations and bringing it to his shoulder with well practiced movements, "Success is success. We might not get to it how we want, but we do have to learn to take it when we can. Never forget who you're giving this guns too, Margaret."

He lowers the rifle and stares down at you with a stern glance, "Ostlanders to the last. Our people have been fighting the land itself with sticks and rocks longer than you've been alive. We can work around a few mistakes."

He grins, "Especially if it'll blow a fist sized hole in a beastman from a hundred paces."

Spoiler: Action and Rolls

[X] Looking for a Workshop
Rolling Mind/Diplomacy + Brilliant Mind + 1 Road Walker Favor = 4d6 (6, 5, 4, 1) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 1 = Critical Success

Rolling 1d100 for luck = 80, Good luck

Unlock options for where to start your workshop!
Gain 1 Experience towards Diplomacy 1.
Gain Diplomacy 1.
Gain 1 Experience towards Mind 3.
Gain 1 Inspiration.

After two months of struggling to even get an answer from people you are honestly floored by how much simpler having Ori along to help makes everything. Instead of randomly asking about you are instead asked to come sit at the bar from time to time as you drop off flintlocks for the Road Walkers. Each time Ori calls you over it is to lay out some new location he's dug up for you or to schedule a meeting with someone willing to talk about a property to sale...

...

"Place has two stories and a basement. Got some furniture on the second floor, you can keep that. I just ask you keep your payment on time. Understood, girl?"

A part of you wants to rebel at being treated like a child by the matronly baker but refrains as you remember she seems more than capable of picking you up and snapping you in half from how she was handling sacks of flour earlier. Instead you look around the surprisingly clean room on the first floor and towards the almost spotless kitchen before heading for the most important space for you: the basement. The wooden door creaks open to reveal a flight of well worn steps leading into the dark.

A snort comes from behind you as the baker offers over up a lantern, "Last one living here left some of his stuff down there too. Said he wouldn't be needing it, something about buying even better stuff once he got to Marienburg. Verena certainly didn't bless that one with brains if you ask me."

You hold in a chuckle as you take the lantern and descend down. After only a few steps your face scrunches up as confusion settles in. Where paneled walls and support beams set up in a dirt hollow dug under the house should've been is instead a surprisingly large chamber carved from solid rock with support beams of stone reaching up to hold the house above.

Shelves and alcoves are carved into every wall and several wooden tables fill the space... And all of it is filled with a familiar assortment of glasswork, ceramics, woodcraft, and masonry. Words leave your mouth unbidden as the shock of it hits you, "An alchemist's lab?"

"Aye. What is left at least. Fool blew it up one too many times so I kicked him out the last time," The owner says as she waves towards the splintered remains of one table and the mess of shattered glass and oils surrounding it, "You'd have to clean it up yourself if you want to use it."

...

"This way Umgi."

You grunt in response as the Dwarf guides you to a large, single story stone building laying in the shadows of Wolfenburg's outer walls. A pair of large wooden doors mark the place as a warehouse once upon a time though the Dawi guides you towards a small door off to the side and unlocks it with a pair of keys pulled from... Somewhere. Together the two of you walk to the very center of the place and stand there for a long minute in absolute silence as you look around.

Several stacks of empty boxes. A wooden cart. Massive pillars of stone reaching up to the ceiling. And off against the far wall, a smelter that sits empty.

"We'll take the cart, but the rest will come with it."

"Ai."

"Ai."

...

"... What?"

Your head whips around the empty room you have found yourself in before turning back to stare at Ori who is currently leaning against the door with an open bottle in his hand, "Aye. Place can be yours to do your work. Two floors, some free furniture, and right behind the Rickety Wagon. Figured if you were shopping around then I might as well try."

He takes a swig from the bottle before pointing back out the door, "Puts you pretty close to your usual work as a bonus."

...

Which place do you choose for a workshop?
[] 23 Miller Street - A two story house with a basement owned by a local miller and baker who has offered the place up for a yearly rent. It's relatively small all things told, but comes with some bedroom furniture and a kitchen proper. Perhaps more importantly the basement is carved from solid stone and contains the remnants of an Alchemist's workshop that could be potentially very useful. Of course, from the way the owner spoke, too many accidents might get you evicted.
Costs 8 Wealth a year.
Remains of an alchemist's workshop?
Close to Wolfenburg's main streets.

[] 3 Underwall Road - A former warehouse involved in some form of ore smelting being put up for sell by a Dwarf. It is a rather sizable place that will come only with an old smelter in the back and some wooden crates, but it should be proof against any larger scale projects you want to take up. Of course, there is a rather concerning catch now that you know the lay of the land: It is right on the edge of Red Woodsmen turf.
Costs 12 Wealth to buy it outright.
Has a large smelter.
Near Red Woodsmen turf.
Very large space.

[] The Rickety House - One of several buildings surrounding the Rickety Wagon that Ori seems to own being offered up to you at a fairly reasonable price that can act not only as a house, but a small workshop for yourself. It would be perhaps the safest and most stable place you could choose in return for tying yourself even more tightly to the Road Walkers.
Costs 5 Wealth a year.
Right next to the Rickety Wagon.
Very safe space but close ties to the Road Walkers.

[] 39 North Street - A former carpentry workshop and furniture store directly on one of Wolfenburg's main streets being offered for yearly rental by the son of the carpenter who once worked their. It would need furnishing all on your own and would be a bit expensive, but perhaps the ability to run a shop directly on a main thoroughfare could prove worth it.
Costs 8 wealth a year.
Moderate space split between workshop, storefront, and living accommodations.
Right on Wolfenburg's northern main street.

[] None of them - Unsatisfied with what you found this month you decide to try again next month for a location more fitting your tastes and needs.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 13
Inspiration: 2

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 3

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2 [2/6]

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 1
• Wayfinding 1

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

[X] 3 Underwall Road

Several purses filled with coin nearly bursting at the seams are handed over to the Dawi you had met previously, the way their brown beard twitches doing more than enough to tell you the Dwarf is surprised. You try not to smirk as he begins to dump the coins out onto a crate, callused fingers counting them one by one with a meticulous nature unique to the Dawi. Every third coin is pressed tightly between two fingers while every fifth gets a bite until finally every last shilling has been accounted for.

A small pile is pressed across the crate back to you as he responds gruffly, "Too many coins in that last pouch, Umgi. Exactly as agreed, Ai?"

You smile warmly, "Ai."

He snorts and grumbles in response, "Back in my day we had good enough sense to keep a few friends close to us. Come on, sign here."

Several papers are passed over to you, the quill and inkwell the Dwarf used is handed over as well and with a few signatures as well as the stamp of a third party signatory... Well. You are soon enough left holding the deed to the warehouse as the previous owner grumbles all the way out the main door about 'the youth these days' and how you 'better know to lock the door at night'. It is...

"A little comforting. Almost feels like I was back at the college," You say with a weak smile before turning to stare at your first ever piece of property with a gleam in your eye and your heart pounding in your ears from sheer excitement. It was all yours. From one smooth stone wall to the other. From compact dirt floor to rafters of wood and stone and iron.

Barely even ten years ago you were an urchin fighting dogs for scraps on the street an-

"And now all of this is mine. Would you be proud, Gramps?"

Your question goes unanswered as it echoes through the former warehouse. Despite the silence you grin wildly as your fingers seem to twitch at your sides. Your mind is racing with thoughts of what needs to be done, with a thousand little experiments you could explore, a hundred different items the place needed to become a real workshop, just where in the place would be best for a bed... At some point you find yourself unknowingly pacing the length of your new workshop.

It was here. It was this place where everything would start, even if perhaps a temporary home they would one day talk about how the glorious legacy of Steam started here.

THERE WILL BE A SIX HOUR MORATORIUM ON VOTING.
Feel free to use that time to discuss the available options and the new information you've gotten below.

Notes:
Believer of Steam has begun to take effect. Lose a die on all actions not progressing towards making or advancing Steam in some way. Will grow even worse in two turns.

What do you do this month? (You have five AP to distribute each month. We'll be using plan voting.)
[] Furnishing Your Workshop, Pt. 1 - You've seen some of the greatest personal workshops in the entirety of the Empire born from the minds of Dawi with centuries of experience, Alchemists in their final years, Engineers at the height of their craft, and even the dens of reclusive geniuses that surpassed even yourself. Each and every last one of them was far, far better equipped than this empty space you now find you own. Tables, chairs, tools, glassware, partitioned chambers... So many things need done and so much is beyond your current means. However, some quality furniture and a more expansive set of tools would certainly help move things along.
Costs 3 Wealth.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 1, Engineering centric upgrades for your Personal Workshop.

[] An Alchemist's Lab, Pt. 1 - Alchemy is an incredibly dangerous science that occasionally begins to touch on the art of Magic itself as in the pursuit of understanding the world and the things within one also finds how that ties into Magic as an underpinning part of reality. Of course, there is that and then there is the fact that a lot of things that exist are simply inherently magical. In order to practice the art of Alchemy and take advantage of how integrally it ties into Engineering as a whole you need quite a lot of things. Fine glasswork, quite a lot of ceramics, tools and equipment created using delicate metalworking, and much more.
Costs 3 Wealth.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 2, Alchemy centric upgrades for your Personal Workshop.

[] Making it Livable - Short on money, increasingly obsessed with your work, and with an entire warehouse to call your own you've moved into the place on short notice. It is what someone might call less than comfortable, but far from the worst place you've ever slept. At least it has a roof and four walls. No rats rooting around in the corners either. Still, a bed wouldn't hurt. Or a pot and pan... Maybe a stool too.
Costs 1 Wealth
Difficulty None, makes your workshop a more comfortable place to live.

[] Dawi Doctrine? - "Any Daw- Anyone worth their salt knows a defensible home is the best home. Know every entrance and every crevice. Have five ways out planned and a sixth in a pinch. Make sure every single one is barred. And by the Ancestors, plaitling, don't forget to lock the door." Words from Godri himself when you questioned him an why the entrance to his workshop was collapsible, floodable, and had murder holes over it. You never did find the other entrances he mentioned, but there was some truth in it. With a potential threat nearby you need to make sure your new home and workshop isn't something easily at risk though what you can actually manage...
Costs 1 Wealth
???
Difficulty ???, ???

[] Searching for Stimulation - Every scholar, alchemist, and engineer's work is held aloft by knowledge. Simple words written down in books and scrawled across scrolls to be handed on to the next generation and the one after them and on and on until the end of time. You are far from the most learned person you've ever met and there is so much more out there to learn. They certainly aren't cheap things, but as a trade hub Wolfenburg is sure to have at least a few bookstores. Might be worth perusing them?
Mind/Wayfaring
Difficulty 1

[] Cleaning House - A home owner over on Miller Street has a house up for rent that once was occupied by a supposed Alchemist, which seemed likely from what you saw of the basement lab. They're willing to let you take the things the previous renter has left behind for a small fee and the act of handling it all yourself. You're not quite sure what all is salvageable or usable nor what exactly they even left behind but there seemed to be enough worth digging through.
Costs 1 Wealth.
Mind/Alchemy
Difficulty ???

[] Exploring the Temple District - A portion of Wolfenburg dominated by the temples of the Empire's Pantheon chief among them, at least the ones in this city, being Ostland's Grand Temple of Sigmar. Places of worship stand here to most every god that finds mainstream followings except for that of Morr, His Garden finding its place on the edge of the city rather than here in the heart, and to Myrmidia who instead finds her place in shrines erected by some few mercenary outfits. Such a place is a marvel of architecture and one of the hearts of the people here. Looking into them could prove useful in helping you understand more of Ostland and its people.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] Scouring the Night Markets - Different from the common marketplaces or streets lined with stores that most of Wolfenburg frequents are the bustling Night Markets that take place well after the sun has set. Lines of stalls hastily setup during the evening, hawkers and peddlers making their way through the crowds, and crowds of folk hoping to try their luck swarm the place. It is a trade venue dominated typically by less well established mercantile factions or simple lone traders known to play host to some of the more bizarre things one can encounter in this world. Perhaps some of the oddities there will be worth studying or a font of inspiration in their own right?
???
Difficulty ???

[] Seeking Patrons, Ostland Edition - A wealthy patron can fund an Engineers research for years if one is lucky enough to draw their interest. Finding on in a foreign land where you know little of the people or culture there might be rather challenging, but this certainly seems a place that could use a steady supply of guns at the very least. Might as well start asking anyone that looks well off and see where it gets you.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 3

[] A Steady Supply of Powder - Ori, the name of the bartender as you later discovered, placed a rather... Lucrative offer directly into your lap, but it is quite a challenging one given the circumstances. Prove that you can create viable gunpowder. If you can he muttered something about 'a dozen purses we can dig into fund it' before pushing you on your way.
???
Requires 1 Barrel of Gunpowder.
Difficulty ???

[] Search for work with Mercenaries - While you have an in with the Road Walkers it never hurts to shop around, even if the idea does make you think of Gramps' grumbling disapproval. A place like Ostland is bound to be swarming with mercenaries so its just a question of who looks worth working with.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 1

[] Studying Gromdottir - A repeater pistol crafted by a Dwarf. By Gramps himself. It doesn't quite enter into the territory of being a work of art in its own right, but to you it is a thing of beauty utilizing knowledge well beyond your own and tying in something entirely unknown to you. At the very least nothing you've ever made has glowed blue! You want to know more about it. How repeater pistols work. How it was made. How the golden engravings were made. Why does it glow blue? What does the light do?
???
Difficulty ???

[] A Gifted Raven - Alongside Gromdottir was an amulet carved in the shape of a raven, the sign of Morr. His eyes in the mortal world, and His voice in dreams... Or so the priests say. Whatever it is, you were told to always keep it on you and while you have... Well, you are rather curious what exactly the thing is?
???
Difficulty ???

[] Street Peddler - You have a few goods that you could reasonably sell and several markets to try and sell them at. Best get to work...
???
Difficulty ???

• [] Sell Matchlocks

Spoiler: Travel Options

[] Eyes towards Kislev - With Wolfenburg being far closer to Kislev and one of the main channels of trade between it and the Empire it should be far easier to find a group heading that way. Asking around the marketplaces and checking with the head of the caravan that brought you here would be good places to start.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] South to Ostermark - Just like Ostland the province of Ostermark is constantly dragged into one conflict or another. Such a place would make a decent enough home for an ostracized engineer looking to make a living off what little of their trade they know though the question is how willing you are to stare down a vampire one day, an orc the next, and a beastman the day after.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

[] North to the Sea of Claws - A frontline against the never ending threat of Norscan raiders with beastmen at its back. A crucial trade route infested with piracy. If there was one thing you could be sure of it is the love every sea merchant and sailor has for the might of gunpowder, one that can likely act as an easy in for any long term work in the area be it from one of the ports along the coast or the belly of a ship.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty ???

Actions below can be taken multiple times.
[] Arming the Road Walkers - Alric, after learning a bit more of what you can do, has requested you help the Road Walkers modernize even more. He laid out an offer to cover the cost of materials and parts if you could handle the assembly. All told it seems a pretty steep investment to make though the man himself simply waves it off every time you bring it up.
Mind/Engineering
Gain 2 Wealth and 1 Favor.
Difficulty 3

[] Crafting - Even without a workshop there's some simpler things you know that you can piece together if you commission a few smiths and carpenters…

• [] Matchlocks - Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Will create three.
• [] Aeolipile - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, creates one.
• [] Flintlocks - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Will create three.

[] Inventing - While working from the confines of an inn room greatly limits what you're capable of there's a handful of things in your mind you can start working on at least. Whether it is worth risking that is the real question…

• [] Seeing Farther - You've seen some great overwrought examples of your idea upon Hochland Rifles back in the college, and have proof of their effectiveness both from it and the simple magnifying lens used by some of the colleges older professors. While a flintlock or matchlock wouldn't properly benefit from it just the ability to more accurately see at a distance could be quite handy in many situations. Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] A Better Crossbow - For all the power of firearms and cannons you have also looked to the more uncommon ranged companion of the flintlock and found it rather poorly tended to. Surely hidden in all the knowledge of engineering you have there is a path forward for this humble weapon? Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Voice Enloudening - You have been to more than one sermon in the various cathedrals, chapels, and temples spread throughout Altdorf and there you've witnessed clergy screaming to be heard even as the very buildings are designed to carry their words to the crowd. You listened to Godri grumble about how much you could learn from a room just by the way your voice carried through it... Could something not be made to help a speaker be heard louder and clearer?
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Oh, the Wonders of Soap - Your former colleagues might look down upon you for the act, but you're certain with your grasp of alchemy the creation of passable soaps should be simple enough if you can find the trick. Black listed or not, rich folk are always in need of fine smelling soaps to clean themselves with and it is a surefire way of lining your pockets at the end of the day.
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]

[] Eureka! - You use your brilliance to gain a bonus die on an action! Costs 1 Inspiration and 0 AP.

[] Calling in Favors - You have some that would consider themselves in your debt and a desire to call that debt in. Cost varies based on Favors picked. Costs 0 AP.

• [] Write in.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 1
Inspiration: 2

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 3

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2 [2/6]

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 1
• Wayfinding 1

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: Your Nameless Workshop

Size: Large, an old warehouse now for your personal use.
Tools and Equipment: Basic Engineering Tools (Allows for work on Tech Tiers 1 to 3)
Security: Simple Locks crafted by Dawi hands, windows ten feet up, wooden bars across the warehouse doors
Facilities
Large Scale Dawi Smelter - A large smelter meant for the processing of ores before transport that hasn't seen use in months at the very least now in your hands. It will certainly make the process of refining metals much easier. Gain 1 Bonus Die when working with metal refining or alloying.
Your Bed - A mat of straw with a few blankets thrown over it in a corner of the space. Better than sleeping under the elements.

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Actions and Results

[X] Arming the Road Walkers x3
Rolling Mind/Engineering - Believer of Steam = 4d6 (6, 5, 2, 1) = 2 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success, Terrible
Rolling Mind/Engineering - Believer of Steam = 4d6 (5, 3, 2, 1) = 1 Success vs Difficulty 3 = Failure
Rolling Mind/Engineering - Believer of Steam = 4d6 (6, 3, 2, 1) = 1 Success vs Difficulty 3 = Failure
Rolling Mind/Engineering - Believer of Steam = 4d6 (4, 4, 3, 2) = 0 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Failure

Rolling 1d100 (39) = Poor luck, but could be worse.

Provided the Road Walkers with 3 terrible quality Flintlocks.
Road Walkers now 35/75
Gain 2 Wealth.
Gain 1 Experience towards Expertise in Flintlocks.
Revealed Relationship 2 with Alric.
Revealed Relationship 1 with Ori.
Arming the Road Walkers now limited to a max of two times a turn and the Road Walkers will begin buying guns in Altdorf again.

It is only by sheer stubbornness born into you from your time as an urchin and then years being raised by Gramps that you don't squirm under the narrowed gazes of Alric and Ori. Your heart aches at your decided course of action even as you bow your head slightly and speak in the steadiest voice you can manage, "By the nature of our agreement I have returned only a pittance for the coin you spent. I will do the next set at half price to make up for it."

All you can see from where you're standing is the counter top upon which rests a mere three flintlocks of dubious quality... When the money Alric has invested was more than enough for twelve of the things. A part of you wants to snatch the firearms from the counter and beat them against the ground unti-

"Raise your head lass," Ori's voice has a bizarrely commanding weight to it as you find yourself looking up to meet the one armed bartender's unchanging gaze. It is a surprisingly amused one that turns away a moment later to look at Alric, "I trust you know what to do. You ain't got wool for brains."

Snorting, he turns and walks off to take care of a customer that just walked in leaving you to stare awkwardly at Alric snatching up the rifles before turning to walk for the door leading upstairs. Halfway there he turns and looks at you with confusion on his face, "No point in just standing there Miss Margaret, come along now. I thought we were going to talk about this?"

You almost stumble as you hurry to follow him pulling a small smile from the man's face, the pronounced wrinkles somehow making his eye patch all the more noticeable, "Mind getting the door? Hands are a bit full as you can tell."

It is only after you are walking up the stairs behind him that you realize the tension and stress of your failings this past month... All the stripped threading, broken flints, the striking mechanism you've broken... Even good wooden stocks you've shattered wholesale. All of it has eased a little as the purchaser himself simply takes it all in stride. You are jarred from your thoughts as you arrive on the second floor.

"You lost me some money, sure, but all things told it pretty much worked out to the same we would've spent in Altdorf. However, you are right. I have been relying on you, a single person, too much. I have to think of my people more. I'm sure you understand?"

It is a simple question and yet it feels painfully heavy as your feet come to stop entirely. Your eyes dart downwards to stare at shuffling feet as you wait for him to cut off deals with you... Your first acquaintance in Wolfenburg. Your first independent work. All gone up in smo-

"I'll just have to limit how much I'm trying to buy from you. Split things between buying Altdorf flintlocks and the pleasant bonus that is your guns showing up on my desk. Honestly, even just the ones you've gotten us so far have saved me enough to tend to some long standing debts we've had hanging over our head."

Your heart descends from your throat as you arrive outside Alric's office, the middle aged mercenary commander giving you a warm smile as he continues, "Besides, I think quite a few of the veterans would be kicking in my door if I cut ties with you. Several of them wanted me to tell you they said 'Thank you'. Apparently those tips of yours have been paying off."

Spoiler: Action and Results

Rolling Mind/Engineering + Believer of Steam + 2 Inspiration = 9d6 (6, 6, 6, 5, 4, 4, 2, 1, 1) = 4 Successes vs Difficulty 3 = Success, Normal

Gain a normal quality Aeolipile.
Gain 1 Experience towards Expertise in Aeolipiles.
Soothes Believer of Steam penalty.
Gain an additional die to every action taken next turn.

While your many of your days are spent working on and ultimately failing at supplying Alric firearms, your nights and passion are fully poured into a simplistic machine that now stands in the very center of your workshop. It is something made almost purely from copper. A large basin held up by metal legs over a stone ringed fire pit. A sizable cork seals off an mouth that connects to the base of the basin through which water can be supplied, an act you have long since completed.

Your hands tremble a little as you set the burning tender into the waiting pile of firewood. Several minutes pass as you tend to it, the embers spreading until fire finally catches and begins to lick at the base of the basin. You almost curse as the sound of your own breathing and heartbeat makes it difficult to hear the water within beginning to boil as time passes.

Your eyes snap upwards as a familiar sound starts to pickup within the machine, tracing along the flat copper disk welded to the basic and the curved pipes welded on top of even that. Your mind recalls the trade you had made with a local coppersmith as your eyes follow the bend. All the pieces were cheaper for teaching the man forge welding, you had even helped in the process as tiring an affair as it was.

Then you hear the whistle of it. A forceful superheated white mist greeting the world with a high-pitched cry as the spherical engine resting between the copper pipes begins to turn. You find yourself having to snatch your hand back away from it as you almost instinctively reach towards the surely scalding jets of steam beginning to leave the two curved pipes on the engine. Enthralled you do little more than sit beside your creation, watching it spin slowly but surely in an almost tireless march.

Your vigil is broken only by the need to continually feed the fire beneath the Aeolipile yet more wood, or at least that is the case until the engine begins to slow and the steam billowing forth grows thinner and thinner... Until at last it stops entirely. You know full well the water in the basin has run out, but a part of you feels like it is the machine telling you 'enough of the admiration'.

Your sleep that night is the most comfortable you have had since being kicked out of the Imperial Engineer's School. It is one filled with giant aeolipiles raising gates, rows and rows of them connected in one vast assembly pulling barges across rivers and powering bulky copies of the Steam Tanks you so admire.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 2
Inspiration: 0

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 3

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2 [2/6]

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 1
• Wayfinding 1

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: Your Nameless Workshop

Size: Large, an old warehouse now for your personal use.
Tools and Equipment: Basic Engineering Tools (Allows for work on Tech Tiers 1 to 3)
Security: Simple Locks crafted by Dawi hands, windows ten feet up, wooden bars across the warehouse doors
Facilities
Large Scale Dawi Smelter - A large smelter meant for the processing of ores before transport that hasn't seen use in months at the very least now in your hands. It will certainly make the process of refining metals much easier. Gain 1 Bonus Die when working with metal refining or alloying.
An Aeolipile - Setup at the heart of the workshop is your Aeolipile. The crowning jewel of your workshop as its first ever steam powered machine and a monument to what can be. You find its presence calming and run it once or twice a week simply to watch the spherical engine spin.
Your Bed - A mat of straw with a few blankets thrown over it in a corner of the space. Better than sleeping under the elements.

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

On your way home from the Rickety Wagon near the end of Voregheim, you stumble upon a crowd gathered around one of many public billboards scattered throughout the city. A curiosity given the lacking literacy rates among most Imperial provinces, but from what little you garnered they acted as announcements boards more for local leaders and the growing class of burghers in the city more than the common citizen. Today's gathering though?

Upon closer inspection, one that requires elbowing your way through a throng of people or squeezing under arms and even a pair of letgs at one point, it is a bounty notice from the Elector Count of Ostland himself. For any and all willing to put their weapons and self to the test to make Ostland a safer place, a bounty would be paid for every last Beastmen head offered to the provincial government. Even you, despite your rather lacking combat skills to say the least, are rather tempted by the price up for grabs. Six of the regular beasts for a purse, two of the larger ones for a purse, and... Seven purses of shillings for the head and staff of one of their shamans.

Your thumb starts to rub against the grip of Gromdottir as you force yourself to walk away from the board.

'Dangerous, but... Just one shaman could cover my experiments for months...'

Perhaps it is a left over tendril of the life you lived on the streets, but a bit of risk for a better life seemed part and parcel with your existence somedays... Even as distant as those street brawls and stray hunts were.

THERE WILL BE A SIX HOUR MORATORIUM ON VOTING.
Feel free to use that time to discuss the available options and the new information you've gotten below.

Notes:
All actions this turn (and this turn alone) will have an extra die added to their pool.

What do you do this month? (You have five AP to distribute each month. We'll be using plan voting.)
[] Furnishing Your Workshop, Pt. 1 - You've seen some of the greatest personal workshops in the entirety of the Empire born from the minds of Dawi with centuries of experience, Alchemists in their final years, Engineers at the height of their craft, and even the dens of reclusive geniuses that surpassed even yourself. Each and every last one of them was far, far better equipped than this empty space you now find you own. Tables, chairs, tools, glassware, partitioned chambers... So many things need done and so much is beyond your current means. However, some quality furniture and a more expansive set of tools would certainly help move things along.
Costs 3 Wealth.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 1, Engineering centric upgrades for your Personal Workshop.

[] An Alchemist's Lab, Pt. 1 - Alchemy is an incredibly dangerous science that occasionally begins to touch on the art of Magic itself as in the pursuit of understanding the world and the things within one also finds how that ties into Magic as an underpinning part of reality. Of course, there is that and then there is the fact that a lot of things that exist are simply inherently magical. In order to practice the art of Alchemy and take advantage of how integrally it ties into Engineering as a whole you need quite a lot of things. Fine glasswork, quite a lot of ceramics, tools and equipment created using delicate metalworking, and much more.
Costs 3 Wealth.
Mind/Diplomacy
Difficulty 2, Alchemy centric upgrades for your Personal Workshop.

[] Making it Livable - Short on money, increasingly obsessed with your work, and with an entire warehouse to call your own you've moved into the place on short notice. It is what someone might call less than comfortable, but far from the worst place you've ever slept. At least it has a roof and four walls. No rats rooting around in the corners either. Still, a bed wouldn't hurt. Or a pot and pan... Maybe a stool too.
Costs 1 Wealth
Difficulty None, makes your workshop a more comfortable place to live.

[] Dawi Doctrine? - "Any Daw- Anyone worth their salt knows a defensible home is the best home. Know every entrance and every crevice. Have five ways out planned and a sixth in a pinch. Make sure every single one is barred. And by the Ancestors, plaitling, don't forget to lock the door." Words from Godri himself when you questioned him an why the entrance to his workshop was collapsible, floodable, and had murder holes over it. You never did find the other entrances he mentioned, but there was some truth in it. With a potential threat nearby you need to make sure your new home and workshop isn't something easily at risk though what you can actually manage...
Costs 1 Wealth
???
Difficulty ???, ???

[] Searching for Stimulation - Every scholar, alchemist, and engineer's work is held aloft by knowledge. Simple words written down in books and scrawled across scrolls to be handed on to the next generation and the one after them and on and on until the end of time. You are far from the most learned person you've ever met and there is so much more out there to learn. They certainly aren't cheap things, but as a trade hub Wolfenburg is sure to have at least a few bookstores. Might be worth perusing them?
Mind/Wayfaring
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty 1

[] Cleaning House - A home owner over on Miller Street has a house up for rent that once was occupied by a supposed Alchemist, which seemed likely from what you saw of the basement lab. They're willing to let you take the things the previous renter has left behind for a small fee and the act of handling it all yourself. You're not quite sure what all is salvageable or usable nor what exactly they even left behind but there seemed to be enough worth digging through.
Costs 1 Wealth.
Mind/Alchemy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

[] Exploring the Temple District - A portion of Wolfenburg dominated by the temples of the Empire's Pantheon chief among them, at least the ones in this city, being Ostland's Grand Temple of Sigmar. Places of worship stand here to most every god that finds mainstream followings except for that of Morr, His Garden finding its place on the edge of the city rather than here in the heart, and to Myrmidia who instead finds her place in shrines erected by some few mercenary outfits. Such a place is a marvel of architecture and one of the hearts of the people here. Looking into them could prove useful in helping you understand more of Ostland and its people.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

[] Scouring the Night Markets - Different from the common marketplaces or streets lined with stores that most of Wolfenburg frequents are the bustling Night Markets that take place well after the sun has set. Lines of stalls hastily setup during the evening, hawkers and peddlers making their way through the crowds, and crowds of folk hoping to try their luck swarm the place. It is a trade venue dominated typically by less well established mercantile factions or simple lone traders known to play host to some of the more bizarre things one can encounter in this world. Perhaps some of the oddities there will be worth studying or a font of inspiration in their own right?
???
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

[] Seeking Patrons, Ostland Edition - A wealthy patron can fund an Engineers research for years if one is lucky enough to draw their interest. Finding on in a foreign land where you know little of the people or culture there might be rather challenging, but this certainly seems a place that could use a steady supply of guns at the very least. Might as well start asking anyone that looks well off and see where it gets you.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty 3

[] A Steady Supply of Powder - Ori, the name of the bartender as you later discovered, placed a rather... Lucrative offer directly into your lap, but it is quite a challenging one given the circumstances. Prove that you can create viable gunpowder. If you can he muttered something about 'a dozen purses we can dig into fund it' before pushing you on your way.
???
Requires 1 Barrel of Gunpowder.
Difficulty ???

[] Search for work with Mercenaries - While you have an in with the Road Walkers it never hurts to shop around, even if the idea does make you think of Gramps' grumbling disapproval. A place like Ostland is bound to be swarming with mercenaries so its just a question of who looks worth working with.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty 1

[] Open Season in Ostland - With seemingly thousands of things to fund, a very light wallet, and growing need for more opportunities you latch onto some things you read on a notice. For all those who call Ostland home, be it permanent or temporary, an open bounty has been posted for the heads of Beastmen turned into your local Road Warden or government offices. It is supposedly a regular affair in Ostland meant to inspire militias and mercenaries with no work to help cull one of the most prominent threats in the province. You have a gun and a pressing need for cash, so why not?
??? & ???
Difficulty ??? & ???, Dangerous

• [] Go Hunting Alone (Monopolize the rewards for yourself, no support, little idea of the terrain and forests here)
• [] Join the Road Walkers on their annual hunt (Rewards split among everyone, accompanying people with experience in Ostland's woods, capable of killing far large groups than if alone)

[] Speaking the Truth of Steam - You now have something that could allow you to show the world the wonders of steam. A street corner, a bit of heavy lifting, and some preparation and before too long you can be exclaiming to all who can hear the glory of blessed Steam and the wonders it will one day bring to their very homes!
Soul/Oration
Difficulty ???, ????

[] Studying Gromdottir - A repeater pistol crafted by a Dwarf. By Gramps himself. It doesn't quite enter into the territory of being a work of art in its own right, but to you it is a thing of beauty utilizing knowledge well beyond your own and tying in something entirely unknown to you. At the very least nothing you've ever made has glowed blue! You want to know more about it. How repeater pistols work. How it was made. How the golden engravings were made. Why does it glow blue? What does the light do?
???
Difficulty ???

[] A Gifted Raven - Alongside Gromdottir was an amulet carved in the shape of a raven, the sign of Morr. His eyes in the mortal world, and His voice in dreams... Or so the priests say. Whatever it is, you were told to always keep it on you and while you have... Well, you are rather curious what exactly the thing is?
???
Difficulty ???

[] Street Peddler - You have a few goods that you could reasonably sell and several markets to try and sell them at. Best get to work...
???
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

• [] Sell Matchlocks
• [] Sell an Aeolipile They will take my aeolipile from my cold dead hands.

Spoiler: Travel Options

[] Eyes towards Kislev - With Wolfenburg being far closer to Kislev and one of the main channels of trade between it and the Empire it should be far easier to find a group heading that way. Asking around the marketplaces and checking with the head of the caravan that brought you here would be good places to start.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

[] South to Ostermark - Just like Ostland the province of Ostermark is constantly dragged into one conflict or another. Such a place would make a decent enough home for an ostracized engineer looking to make a living off what little of their trade they know though the question is how willing you are to stare down a vampire one day, an orc the next, and a beastman the day after.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

[] North to the Sea of Claws - A frontline against the never ending threat of Norscan raiders with beastmen at its back. A crucial trade route infested with piracy. If there was one thing you could be sure of it is the love every sea merchant and sailor has for the might of gunpowder, one that can likely act as an easy in for any long term work in the area be it from one of the ports along the coast or the belly of a ship.
Mind/Diplomacy
Road Walkers Favor can be used.
Difficulty ???

Actions below can be taken multiple times.
[] Arming the Road Walkers - Alric, after learning a bit more of what you can do, has requested you help the Road Walkers modernize even more. He laid out an offer to cover the cost of materials and parts if you could handle the assembly. All told it seems a pretty steep investment to make though the man himself simply waves it off every time you bring it up.
Mind/Engineering
Gain 2 Wealth and 1 Favor.
Can be taken at most twice a turn.
Difficulty 3

[] Crafting - Even without a workshop there's some simpler things you know that you can piece together if you commission a few smiths and carpenters…

• [] Matchlocks - Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Will create three.
• [] Aeolipile - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, creates one.
• [] Flintlocks - Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Will create three.

[] Inventing - While working from the confines of an inn room greatly limits what you're capable of there's a handful of things in your mind you can start working on at least. Whether it is worth risking that is the real question…

• [] Seeing Farther - You've seen some great overwrought examples of your idea upon Hochland Rifles back in the college, and have proof of their effectiveness both from it and the simple magnifying lens used by some of the colleges older professors. While a flintlock or matchlock wouldn't properly benefit from it just the ability to more accurately see at a distance could be quite handy in many situations. Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] A Better Crossbow - For all the power of firearms and cannons you have also looked to the more uncommon ranged companion of the flintlock and found it rather poorly tended to. Surely hidden in all the knowledge of engineering you have there is a path forward for this humble weapon? Difficulty 3, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Voice Enloudening - You have been to more than one sermon in the various cathedrals, chapels, and temples spread throughout Altdorf and there you've witnessed clergy screaming to be heard even as the very buildings are designed to carry their words to the crowd. You listened to Godri grumble about how much you could learn from a room just by the way your voice carried through it... Could something not be made to help a speaker be heard louder and clearer?
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Oh, the Wonders of Soap - Your former colleagues might look down upon you for the act, but you're certain with your grasp of alchemy the creation of passable soaps should be simple enough if you can find the trick. Black listed or not, rich folk are always in need of fine smelling soaps to clean themselves with and it is a surefire way of lining your pockets at the end of the day.
  Difficulty 2, Cost 1, Progress [0/???]
• [] Steam Force Application - While the actual output of this truly simple device is minimal it could perhaps be used for small, repetitive movements. Clothes lines, hauling up fishing lines, perhaps even to move a small platform carrying light goods like coins across gaps?
  Difficulty 4, Progress [0/???], Requires an existing Aeolipile to work on

[] Eureka! - You use your brilliance to gain a bonus die on an action! Costs 1 Inspiration and 0 AP.

[] Calling in Favors - You have some that would consider themselves in your debt and a desire to call that debt in. Cost varies based on Favors picked. Costs 0 AP.

• [] Write in.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 2
Inspiration: 0

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 3

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2 [2/6]

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 1
• Wayfinding 1

Soul - 2

• Oration 1

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: Your Nameless Workshop

Size: Large, an old warehouse now for your personal use.
Tools and Equipment: Basic Engineering Tools (Allows for work on Tech Tiers 1 to 3)
Security: Simple Locks crafted by Dawi hands, windows ten feet up, wooden bars across the warehouse doors
Facilities
Large Scale Dawi Smelter - A large smelter meant for the processing of ores before transport that hasn't seen use in months at the very least now in your hands. It will certainly make the process of refining metals much easier. Gain 1 Bonus Die when working with metal refining or alloying.
An Aeolipile - Setup at the heart of the workshop is your Aeolipile. The crowning jewel of your workshop as its first ever steam powered machine and a monument to what can be. You find its presence calming and run it once or twice a week simply to watch the spherical engine spin.
Your Bed - A mat of straw with a few blankets thrown over it in a corner of the space. Better than sleeping under the elements.

Spoiler: Road Walker Favors

Assistance on an Action - 1 Favor per Die on applicable actions.
Bodyguards - 2 Favor and 1 Wealth per month required, gives you six Road Walker bodyguards during the duration. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)
Request Investment - 1 Favor per Wealth requested. Can potentially harm your relationship with the group. (Unlocked from Relationship 2)

 

[adwarf]

Spoiler: Action and Results

[X] Open Season in Ostland
- [X] Join the Road Walkers on their annual hunt

Rolling Mind/Tracking + Brilliant Mind + 1 Reinvigorated Bonus = 4d6 (6, 4, 3, 2) = 1 Success
Road Walkers rolling Mind/Tracking + Ostlanders = 8d6 (6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 2, 2, 1) = 3 Successes
Alric rolling Mind/Tracking + ??? + Ostlander = 11d6 (6, 6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 2) = 5 Successes

9 Total Successes vs ???

Rolling 1d100 for luck = 33, Valuable targets found but of a more dangerous variety than expected...

Road Walkers rolling Body/Stealth = 5d6 (6, 5, 3, 2, 1) = 2 Successes
Fledgling Warherd rolling Mind/Perception + Animalistic Senses = 3d6 (6, 6, 6) = 3 Successes

2 vs 3 = The prey becomes aware of the predator.

Alric rolling Mind/Tactics = 6d6 (6, 6, 5, 5, 3, 1) = 4 Successes
??? rolling Mind/Tactics = 3d6 (5, 4, 1) = 1 Success

4 vs 1 = Critical success, A failure is turned into a boon.

Road Walkers rolling Body/Riflery + My Home = 6d6 (6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 1) = 4 Successes
Warherd rolling Body/Combat + Beastly - 2 from Alric's gambit = 5d6 (6, 5, 3, 2, 1) = 2 Successes

4 vs 2 = Critical Success, Crossing fields of fire mean gunfire reaps a bloody toll upon the enemy.

An earth shaking roar tears through the forest, a choice arises.

Rolling Mind/??? + Brilliant Mind + 1 Reinvigorated Bonus = 4d6 (6, 6, 5, 4) = 3 Successes vs Difficulty 2 = Success
You notice.

Oh, also Margaret:
Unlocks Tracking 0
Gains 1 Experience towards Tracking 1
Unlocks ??? 0
Gain 1 Experience towards ??? 0

It is in the earliest days of Nachgeheim that you barge into Alric's office with a question on your mind and the intent to ask only to find the man himself busy cleaning an array of almost a dozen flintlock pistols scattered across his desk. Black smears, likely born from a mix of soot and powder a like, mar his the table, his hands, and even somehow smeared across the bizarre orb of greyish stone occupying the socket usually hidden behind his eyepatch. As you burst into the room the mercenary commander calmly places down the pistol he is tending to and reaches up to pull down his eyepatch, "Rather impatient this morning are we, Miss Margaret?"

Your brain freezes up for a moment as you recall that normally one is meant to knock and wait before entering other people's rooms. Holding back a desire to kick yourself, you scoff in response and recover in the best manner you can... By channeling a bit of Gramps.

"Bah! Impatience is for Umgi, I simply wanted to catch you before you all leave," Your arms cross in front of your chest as you lean slightly backwards while staring at the man through narrowed eyes. His stoic expression turns to a smile as he chuckles and wraps his knuckles on the desk.

"Whatever you say, Miss. Since you're already here you might as well take a seat," He returns to his cleaning as you slide into the chair across from him, "So, what was it you wanted to 'catch' me for?"

Your face hardens a little as you instinctively sit a little straighter, "I want to go on the hunt with the Road Walkers."

Alric grunts in response, your eyes following the firearm as it is quickly placed on the desk yet again...

...

The chirping of birds. The growl of predators just out of line of sight. The sound of the wind through the canopy above. The eerie way the trees of the forest seem to grow ever closer, branches and roots intertwining into a nigh impenetrable mess. It is, in truth, the most unsettling place you have ever tread through. A life spent in back alleys, classrooms, and in the capitals of Imperial provinces has left you ill at ease in even normal forests let alone the Forest of Shadows which seems fit to devour you alive...

A feat it has attempted no less than three times since you walked under the canopy three days prior only to be pulled back just in time for a bloodsedge's roots to snap shut on the air inches from your throat. You remember the toothy grin of a Road Walkers veteran as he simply chucked a lit torch into the predatorial bush before dragging you along to catch up with the others. Despite several close shaves and a few nights spent curled up underneath roots you are quite enamored with everything going on around you.

Hour after hour your eyes dart around maddeningly and your ears seem to fight for even the faintest whisper of those nearby for in the various members of this mercenary band you behold a bounty of knowledge. Discussions on which plants are edible among seemingly a hundred of the things you can make out and the Gods know how many more you can't. Experienced woodsmen pointing out the myriad beasts that call the forests home and explaining what to watch out for to those who wouldn't know. Skilled trackers weaving through the fortress like undergrowth following the most minor of signs.

And then there are the oddities of the Forest itself.

Strange glowing mosses that grow beneath the large and ancient trees that seem to keep away insects.

Mushrooms that blend into their surroundings, the blue fleshy 'meat' hidden within capable of paralyzing grown men.

Creatures that appear like some halfway crossbreed between squirrels and wolves that act like opportunistic scavengers on the side while seemingly cultivating fruit bearing vines.

Great chunks of black rock that the mercenaries avoid with great caution, each apparently capable of ripping metal weapons from the hands of warriors and hunters who fail to pay attention.

And then there is the forest itself. You can almost swear it shifts and changes on the edge of your vision, that the roots and branches and trunks of these certainly unmoving trees were actively trying to destroy all sense of direction you have achieved. It is during one such moment, after the band has been on the march for nearing three hours, that your attention is pulled towards the front by you quite literally stepping into the person in front of you.

A signal you were taught before departing cuts off any surprised response, your eyes going wide and your hand moving to wrap tightly around the gun at your waist as the teenager in front of you readies their flintlock. You register it as one of your own even as the columns of Ostlanders spread out to either side of you begin to warp rapidly and Isabelle, the Road Walker you had bumped into and your keeper for the day, pulls you close to the ground.

You watch as she allows most of the company to fan out into a semi-circle in front of you all before finally turning her attention towards you, her voice a whisper, "Herd ahead. Resting. Half hour and we'll be upon them."

Short, to the point, and somehow communicated entirely through a system of hand signs and gestures that you now realize the Road Walkers use constantly in their daily lives. You give a small nod in response and ease the tension off a little as you realize the threat is a more distant problem then you feared,

'Alric told me to keep to the rear if any real fighting goes down...'

Isabelle's finger rises to her lip as a silent reminder before turning to stalk through the forest after the others, you yourself moving to follow with what you admit is substantially less grace than the younger girl. A part of you wants to grumble and pick at some of the minor flaws you can pick out in the girl but you press it down... It is both pointless and perhaps a bit too much of Gramps coming through you after all.

Time feels like it has slowed to a crawl as you creep forward and forward, weaving your way over and under more roots than you can even count as the forest seems to grow even darker than before. Strands of fog drift between branches forming and dispersing with the faintest breeze. Compared to the muffled movements of those around you the bullish way you scurry after them drives the tension ever higher, your head snapping around at every faint sound expecting to see the figure of a beastman you had only heard of in stories emerging from the woods or for vines to snap ar-

"THE CENTER IS TO GIVE! FLANKS SPREAD AND CIRCLE! SNARE AND KILL!"

Your tension boils over as a familiar voice shatters the calm of the forest, the Road Walkers tearing into action in response to their commander as Isabelle hastily grabs you by the arm and almost sprints back the way you came. Stumbling after her, your head turns to find the others following in close order as the sudden braying cries of beasts are joined by the crunching of wood beneath hoof. In such circumstances you can perhaps be forgiven for believing the worst has occurred as in the distance tens of humanoid figures charge from between the trees sending splinters and dirt flying in their wake.

"Sorry, big sis."

Isabelle's voice cuts through the sudden chaos as you are shoved to the ground below, the girl spinning about to bring her rifle to bear even as Alric can be heard once more, "SNARE! AND! KILL!"

Every word of his is punctuated with the all too familiar crack of powder being ignited. A trio of gunshots in rapid succession setting off what you can only describe as a chorus. Again and again the forest rings with the distinctive sound of gunfire.

You can smell the burnt powder in the air.

You can hear bestial screams of rage and pain.

Turning over reveals a forest shrouded in mist and smoke, the Road Walkers huddled behind what cover they can find as over half their number let loose with an assortment of bows that serve to cut down the torn front rank of their foes.

Standing halfway between you and the creatures taken by dark gods who sought humanity's end is the figure of Alric himself, two pistols dropping from his hands as he calmly draws another pair, "ROAD WALKERS HOLD YOUR GRO-"

All sound in the world seems to disappear before that of something in the distance. It is a thing that causes your pounding heart to still and your body to freeze, instinct driving you to stillness in the hope that whatever predatory thing cried out would simply pass you all by.

And then a tree bigger round than three men shatters. Vine and moss covered trunk crashing down onto the forest floor below. Your eyes widen even further as a goat headed man covered in patchy fur and clad in crude leathers is crushed beneath it. Bile rises in your throat as a shower of blood and sprays out from beneath the crashed tree.

It burns at the back of your throat threatening to force you to roll over and empty your stomach onto the ground even as something far larger than anyone you've ever seen charges out from behind the collapsed trunk. Even in the half light of the woods its shoulders and neck gleam, gold and gems buried into flesh that even now still struggles to heal around the foreign objects buried into them. Thick ropes tied to a crude leather skirt carry the partially crushed heads of others who had certainly fallen to this monster, humans and goblins and spiders all hung together in a vile display of success.

Thick brown fur covers every inch of the body that emerges from the mist and smoke. Distorted tattoos of unknown runes cover their body made of a sickly purple dye that stings the eyes merely to see. Hooves the size of pots stomp down with enough force to pulp the tree under foot. In its hands are two malformed axes almost as big as you. Steam puffs from its nostrils as it raises its head to the canopy above and it roa-

Crack.

A spray of blood from the beast's throat cuts short the cry as Alric takes up his orders again, "I SAID HOLD!"

As one the Road Walkers cry back, arrows being loosed yet again even as a pair of much lower roars tear from deeper into the trees... And yet, laying there on the ground as Isabelle hurries to press powder and shot into the barrel of her gun for a second shot your attention is pulled away from it all. Something tells you to look not at the ground... But up.

And up you look. Through the mist and the smoke and the tangled tree branches you catch sight of a shriveled husk of a thing clinging to the branch beneath it with one hand even as the other holds tight to a staff.

Everything is... It is all there. So many sounds and smells and things to keep track of that your mind struggles to even find where to begin. Your expectations that this would be akin to those childish street brawls were so very wrong... Had you ever seen so much blood before? Had you ever truly stared down death like this?

'Fear? Plaitling. Fear is a tool. When you face it, grab it between your hands and forge it. From fear find that which you would defend with every last bit of yourself. Friends. Loved ones. Dreams. Ideals. Honor. Whatever it is... Hold it tightly to the end.'

You can almost hear his voice as a memory of the man who raised you surfaces and pushes the overwhelming emotions down. They're... still there, but less. Enough for you to think. And act.

What is it you do?
[] Join the Road Walkers in fighting the remaining warherd. The sooner they fall the quicker the mercenaries can move to aid Alric and deal with the strange beastman hiding within the canopy above.
[] Move to assist Alric with the gold and jewel clad minotaur. Such a beast would surely prove more than a match for a mortal man, but despite that he drew its ire to him and him alone. Help him before he can be struck down.
[] Head to deal with the withered beastman. Something tells you the thing hiding in the branches above is a danger to everyone here and with the others occupied... It leaves you.
[] Write in.

Spoiler: Margaret, Former Student

Name: Margaret
Age: 16

Wealth: 2
Inspiration: 0

Favor:

• Road Walkers - 3

Attributes and Skills:
Body - 3

• Athletics 2

Mind - 2 [2/6]

• Engineering 3
• Alchemy 2
• Inventing 2
• Construction 1
• Diplomacy 1
• Wayfinding 1
• Tracking 0 [1/2]

Soul - 2

• Oration 1
• ??? 0 [1/2]

Traits:
Believer of Steam - Gain two bonus dice on any project involving the creation or use of steam power. Lose two dice when working with alternative power sources for what could compare to the marvel of a boiler? You are deeply unsettled by the absence of steam powered machinery and have a desire to explain to anyone who will listen the greatness of steam.
Student of Innovation - Gain an additional die when working on any engineering that is odd, experimental, or cutting edge.
Accidents Happen - On failing an engineering test with something new or experimental there is a 50% chance of an accident occurring.
Brilliant Mind - Provides an additional die when learning any new skill, halves chance of accidents.

Possessions:
Engineer's tools of the trade
Several sets of clothes
3 Matchlocks (Prone to misfires, Unreliable in even wet conditions, Godri would disapprove)
Gromdottir (+4 bonus dice when used for combat, ???, ???, Limited amount of ammo)
Raven Amulet (???, ???, ???)
Bottle of Kislevite Vodka

Spoiler: The Road Walkers

Alric
You, Margaret
35 Handgunners (Flintlock Muskets, Hand Weapons, Padded Clothing)
25 Archers (Bow and Arrow, Hand Weapons, Padded Clothing)
10 Spearmen (Spears, Shields, Padded Clothing)
5 Veterans (Swords/Axes, Shields, Chainmail)

Spoiler: Fledgling Warherd

Jewelry Clad Minotaur (???)
Withered Beastman (???)
~10 Gors (Hand Weapons, Crude Leathers)
~5 Bestigors (Swords/Axes, Crude Leathers)
??? Reinforcements Incoming