Winning Vote: said:
[X] Plan A Princess, A Future King, and Hopefully a Catbird
-[X] [Difficult] Triage Pt. 2: [Cost: 2 action]. Productivity Like No Other will proc. Apply optional structural materials and any aesthetic changes here. Due end of Turn 37. Gain 80 Favour with Kraka Drakk and 1 Standing and 80 Favour +??? with Karak Ungor. Three limbs to be made, three items to craft. 2 Actions.
--[X] Arm: Master Rune of Waking [T4 Troll Heart], Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of Stone, use Adamant. Bands detailing history of Clan with Hearthstone in shoulder.
--[X] Leg: Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of Vitality [on Hearthstone], Rune of Fortitude [on Hearthstone]
--[X] Leg: Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of the Valiant, Rune of Warding [on Hearthstone]
-[X] [Difficult] A Princely Wedding Gift Pt.1: [Cost: 1 action] Due end of Turn 36. If a rune you want requires special ingredients that you don't have access to I will alert you. Apply optional Rune Ingredients here. Gain 100 Favour with Kraka Ravnsvake. A talisman belt, the band is Elder Shard Wyrm Hide with plates of Pure Gromril carved with images of life in Kraka Drakk, of her craftsmen and teachers and King, and the center three plates of the buckle are Adamant, made from one bar, and contain the runes of power. The Pure Gromril plates are studded with Hearthstones and Dronril and images of Azrilwutroth and Dronwut are prominent in the imagery of the plates. 1 Action.
--[X] Choose: Master Rune of Wandering, Rune of Impact [T3 Stonehorn Horns], Rune of Grimnir. Apply any suitable upgrades to the Rune of Grimnir.
-[X] Zhufazul: [Cost: (4 -3) =1 actions] Journeyman of the Odd and Soul of the Earth will proc. 1 Action.
-[X] Dreng Them: [Cost: 1 retainer action] Can be taken multiple times. Additional actions add bonus modifier. The Hearth Guard will go out and slay [Write-in] monster. Gain mats, reputation and +2 bonus per action to Recruitment Dice.
--[X] Peak Clearing: Gain Flying Monster Mats, -2 to Brana recruit threshold (1D20, DC20) for this turn's recruitment.
-[X] ORDER: A White Lion corpse.
-[X] [Simple] Armoured Maidens: [Cost: 12 actions] Due end of Turn 40. Productivity Like no Other will proc. Gain 70 Favour and 1 Standing with the Cult of Valaya. Snorri thinks another patron might be found by end of Turn 35.
--[X] Accept
━<><><>< 254 A.P. ><><><>━
You grunt and watch as several of your Hearth Guard leave aboard their wagons while Dwarfs, mostly their families who moved here with them, lined the roads and waved them farewell. It's as if every last unoccupied Dwarf present has come out to see them off, which could very well be true given how small the community here was. Even as they travel down one lane, more dwarfs and wagons trundle down the opposite side of the road into the settlement for whatever business they have here. Which, for now, is mostly construction, moving or related to your own responsibilities but that would change as things settled down.
You pause and run that thought through your head again.
Damn it all Jorri.
This is what idle wool-gathering gets you!
━<><><><==><><><>━
"So what's the plan here Fire Keeper?" Gunhild says, hefting her hammer over her shoulder, the shrieks of Brana and the bellows of monsters heard overhead.
Their small convoy travels up the mountain slope steadily, several of them walking alongside the wagons ready and waiting for any possible shenanigans that could abound from a mountain currently being cleansed of hostile wildlife.
"Wardens are out tracking them down as we speak. They find it, signal us and bring the creatures down for the rest of us to pile on when we get there. Balik's modified Druin's mounted Crossbow to launch nets if we needed them. They say the contraption's tested and works, but we'll see how it fares against something that flies," Ylva replies easily, casually ignoring the sounds of carnage around them.
"Be a damn miracle if we get anything with how enthusiastically the Brana are getting down to it," Kemli mutters from the right.
"Rumour has it they're thinking of settling a new aerie soon," Thorek remarks, "Stocking up on meat or clearing the construction site, I can't say frankly and Thundertail wasn't sure himself either when I asked."
"We're fairly close to Ravnsvake," one of his fellows mutters.
"And the Young Three Axes is marrying their King's daughter too," Bardin agrees as he fiddles with some mechanism on his crossbow alongside the other engineers, "I still think pattern four would work best here by the by."
"The net will work, it will simply come down to our ability to Dreng the beast," Grimgar responds with conviction, his towering orange crest swaying side to side as he walks.
"Some troll acid would kill it right quick," Kemli remarks casually.
"Don't you bring that nonsense up again. You've already got half the Engineers here working on it alongside you, and I'm not going over the stitching debate now of all times," Bardin rumbles, pointing his hefty wrench at the ranger accusingly.
"
You started that damn madness by arguing for the double stitch!" he shouts back.
"Bah!"
"Am I walking alongside Garazi with scruff on their chins arguing about the best way to build a rock fort or a trained Ranger and Master Engineer?" Ylva asks both of them, voice carrying from her position at the front of their little wagon train.
"Well that's a foolish question, everyone knows the best way to build a rock fort's the tri-layer," one of the engineers replies.
"In what world is that the better method? Some topsy turvy madness where Dwarfs fly? Five layers or it's not even worth the name, just as my grandfather taught me."
Gunhild glances at Ylva as the wagon train descends into the passionate debate.
The Fire Keeper marches on, silent and staring straight ahead.
━<><><>< 255 A.P. ><><><>━
The liquid surprises you.
Well, most of the things that came from the locations in your Master's journal surprised you, but it bore repeating.
Collating the notes on Zhufazul you gathered in your mad grab two decades ago took a bit of time, but afterwards, you began the slow and methodical process of figuring out how it will interact with Runecraft. The work was helped along with the knowledge of what sort of energy the liquid contained thanks to the Brana. Of course, you still tested to the degree of thoroughness you always did when it came to Runecraft but having a general direction to go in was a breath of fresh air for once.
Your studies found that the Zhufazul, or perhaps Grimnirzan given what you discovered, was
very conducive to being used as a reagent for both the Regular and Master Runes of Grimnir. Which made sense given that the stuff was effectively everything Grimnir stood for in liquid form. Courage, bravery, obstinance, honour, you knew of no other magical substance that seemed so in tune with the Ancestor. In contrast, the likes of the Rune of Courage, The Valiant and other Runes of a similar purpose were rendered less effective when you used it as a reagent. Maybe the liquid was simply too dilute in terms of the strength of each aspect it encompassed? You have no clue.
Almost offhandedly, the liquid was still capable of acting as a replacement of Lodestone and Lodesteel, perhaps a connection to the deposits of the former it seemingly originated from? Knowing
what each material contains on the metaphysical level has certainly given you new ways to think about reagents now. Maybe you ought to get a Brana to consult with other reagents? Hmph, food for thought.
A niggling part of you wonders just how much more could have been done before had you known as much about the arcane energies that suffuse the world as you do now.
It is, just as Durin said, consternating to know you lack both the knowledge and ability to learn that knowledge, but it's only grown more irritating as your comprehension grows. Before, you never knew the heights of the mountain that denied you, but now? Now you're vaguely aware of the peak and that's enough to get you grumbling.
Bah!
Nine centuries on this solid earth without the knowledge and you did fine enough, look at
Barak Azamar if any doubted your ability! No, it simply means you have far higher peaks to climb, more to learn and understand in your pursuit of ever greater feats of Runecraft. You were not crippled by this lack of knowledge, your forebears,
Thungni, suffered the same limitations and they crafted wonders beyond comparison.
And that understanding is enough.
There are other things to be done after all!
━<><><><==><><><>━
"You think about taking on apprentices of your own ?" Fjolla asks, watching both Emlik and Durik bumble about with their training for the day.
She smothers a wince as she sees one of the boys crash headfirst into the other, sending the stone tablets they were carrying to the earth in a crash.
"Future I think, no rush," Joll mutters from his hiding spot, doubtlessly watching the two of them scramble to pick up the mess.
Fjolla still doesn't know where he is exactly but she's gotten used to speaking with empty air, though it does her reputation little good whenever a passerby sees her doing so.
She openly winces as Emlik falls, feet slipping on the troll grease once again, sending both he and his fellow apprentice sprawling face-first to the ground.
"Recommend you only take the one, don't regret my decision to take the both of them on obviously, but it's hassle enough to deal with Durik's bumbling, but he and Emlik both? Not a damn clue how Master Snorri didn't murder Dolgi and I sometimes," she advises.
"I'll take it into consideration," he says solemnly.
"Be a bit easier to speak if you came out of whatever hiding spot you're in you know?" she comments.
"No thank you."
━<><><>< 257 A.P. ><><><>━
You stare down at the arm in your hands, checking over the anatomy and the decorations for a final time.
It is a fine piece, austere by your standards, but Orra had asked for the whole set to be that way and you would obviously oblige.
You wish you'd gotten her to agree to the gold filigree, would have done well with the bands.
Bah.
A fine work regardless, you sniff appreciatively at the gleam of the Adamant and Gromril. The arm is a near duplicate of Orra's surviving limb, with the few differences present purposefully made to match the original limb it was replacing. The Adamant is broken up by bands of Pure Gromril, upon which you've painstakingly inscribed three separate accounts. The first, the saga detailing the death of the wyrm who crippled her, the second are the names of Lady Ironarm since the Clan's inception, and the last is the history of her Clan in its entirety. The shoulder pulses warmly, the five Hearthstones rhythmically flaring in perfect synchronization. Each one carved into one of five symbols Orra found most important to herself. The sigil of Clan Stonehammer dominates the largest central gem, while radiating out diagonally the sigils of Orra, her husband, Clan Ironarm and Karak Ungor glow brightly. As sure a sign of devotion to her new home as any.
Going by your calculations the arm in question should be perfectly capable of breaking through at least a couple dozen centimetres of good Dawi forged steel without much exertion on the Princess's part. Quite frankly, the arm would likely outperform any armour she decided to put on it, which was a boon in the case that the Princess found herself unarmed.
...Damn it.
Legs, yes, work on the legs and forget that particular tragedy of speech.
━<><><><==><><><>━
(Roll, Retainers: 10 +25[Bonus] =35)
"I'm ashamed of meself," Bardin moans, head in his hands, "Three years of work and all we get are several dozen particularly large snow hawks and a Great Eagle before the Brana cleaned the whole damn place out…"
"Swallow it down and learn from it you old goat," Gunhild responds, "how do you think the Fire Keeper is doing?"
"Let Bardin grumble," Ylva retorts, "We've gone near a century with rather fine results, the first blunder after so long is always bound to sting."
Many around the campfire grumble regardless, as even the wisdom of Ylva's words does little to soothe their wounded pride. The Fire Keeper only sighs and begins making the rounds around the camp to check in on her fellow Hearthwardens. From the lightly wounded Monster Wardens drinking ale to speed along their recovery and forget the past few years to the Engineers sullenly working over the damaged form of Druin's wagon, she finds that the morale of the camp has taken a bit of a hit, but decides its nothing they can't overcome.
She does what she can regardless, checking dressings, a comforting word or two. While a setback, and one that certainly pricked at her own pride, she couldn't afford to fall into the depths of sorrow over it.
(Roll D20, Recruit Brana: 4 +2[Omake] =6, DC 20 -2[Action] =18)
Snazz Points burned for Reroll
(Reroll D20, Recruit Brana: 18, DC 20 -2[Action] =18)
Two shadows zip through the nighttime sky, the piercing cry of the Brana cutting through the silence of the night.
Then Ylva has two particularly large birds fall in front of her.
The one on the left is a particularly black specimen, the obsidian plumage dark enough to be almost indistinguishable from the shadows and the darkness. The only truly visible parts of him are the glow of his eyes and the approximation of a beard braided out of the mane that grows out from the bottom of his neck. In stark contrast, the Brana on the right is brazenly obvious with her incredibly vibrant appearance. Incredibly pale, almost white, gold plumage that leads into lightly spotted white fur. Both are armed and decorated, the former sparsely with silver and the latter with, a predictably, large amount, of gold and ivory.
Ylva blinks.
━<><><>< 259 A.P. ><><><>━
Snerra waved at the passing elder, earning a grunt and grumble in return as he went about his business.
Her uncle's workshop had certainly grown more crowded these past few decades, almost like it was its own little town just outside Kraka Drakk proper. It was certainly homey, especially considering he'd contracted the Masons Guild to build walls six meters thick for him to inscribe protective Runes on.
Behind her, both Jolla and Siggrun struggled to haul the rock-laden cart behind them, but she was sure they'd manage while she went to see her uncle.
With a smile, she nods at Thorek and Bombur, letting the two elderly guardians know to watch over her apprentices while making her way towards the workshop proper. As she makes her way there she passes by a few of her uncle's Hearth Guard standing at attention, their glimmering armour, horned helms and red capes making them stand out from the grey stone and metal of the workshop's defences. Snerra nods at the faces of the Ancestors, the old ones she grew up around and the newer faces, snarling and ready to blast out disorienting blasts of sound and blinding flashes of light.
She pauses for just a moment, staring at the disapproving visage of a Dwarf Matron, the Runes of Fear, Lightfright and Fire glowing fiercely in her gemstone eyes and on the front of her war helm respectively. The depiction is new, barely two decades old based on the weathering, and yet it feels as ageless as the stone surrounding her.
"Hullo Grandma," she says, smiling softly at the image before continuing her way towards the door and the Hearthwardens standing on either side of it.
━<><><><==><><><>━
You grumble down at the prosthetics, making sure they look perfectly presentable in the Gold and Iron chest they were to be carried in.
Having already done this far to make the entire set, you'd be a damn fool of a dwarf to bumble the landing with a shoddy reveal of all things. There's still a bit of coordination to be done with the Princess and King of course, like how they wanted to go about revealing the legs to the world proper.
And how that may affect you.
Bah!
There was something to be said for pomp and ceremony, it was traditional after all, but doing so would send a message. Orra was a princess and mother of the Heir of Ungor after all, and that was a position with quite a few eyes on it. One you could try and mould to suit your needs, but it was ultimately up to the Dwarf in question in how they received it. The overall opinion of the general public, you reckon, would be a positive thing given that you've helped a princess regain three of her missing limbs. The same couldn't be said for your Fellow Runelords, who would either be fine with what you did or eye it suspiciously as a potential sign that you were no longer content with your
supposed stranglehold on the Far North.
Bah!
Your grumbling is, sadly, interrupted by a knock on your front door.
Opening it, you see Storri, the younger, standing beside your niece.
"Announcing one Snerra Magnasdottir of Clan Winterhearth," he announces, voice echoing through the pass.
"Aye aye, thank you Storri. Come in lass, not sure why you're here but I'll at least hear you out," you reply, beckoning Snerra in with a wave and nodding at Storri to close the door behind you.
━<><><><==><><><>━
You calmly digest what Snerra has explained to you, drinking from your tankard as the fire roars beside you.
Glancing at her earnest stare, you simply sigh and drink another mug.
"So," you begin, "You want to take on the agreement with the Cult of Valaya over the Rune of Forged Limb as I have."
"Yes," she confirms.
"But moreover, you wish to expand your efforts to include the whole of the Far North."
"Aye."
Belatedly you realize you actually would have preferred it if she had come to you about broaching the subject of betrothal to her father instead of this. Ancestors preserve you, two tankards isn't enough to deal with this headache.
"Lass, I have no say in whether or not you decide to go ahead and follow through with this," you eventually reply, "While your sentiment is appreciated, I will not and
cannot decide for you on this matter. Make an agreement with the Cult of Valaya as I have or not. You're a Master Runesmith now, the choice must be yours."
"But can I not ask you for your sage Wisdom? I'm aware of at least some of the risks involved, but I don't plan on forcing anyone to follow me. Just as you have! You know the mood of Rhunrikki-khaz better than I, what would they think?"
"Hmph, buttering me up only gets you so far, niece," you grumble, "but the House will likely only grumble so long as you don't try to suborn any other Runesmiths in this endeavour. As my student they're more than likely predisposed to thinking you cut from the same cloth. But reaching so far so quickly? Hmph, I cannot rightly say what many of my peers will think. I have stuck to Kraka Drakk and the surrounding territories for good reason after all," you explain.
This was new ground after all, untested and potentially treacherous.
Of course you couldn't devote yourself to it as utterly given everything else you dealt with, but that was a given.
"So should I? I'm knowledgeable enough to realize there will be precedent set whether I wish it or not, and this is
your project. But…"
"You wish to help," you rumble, "Aye, I know. I taught you after all, but good intentions mean little if the consequences create far more problems than they solve. Have you given any thought about what to do to mitigate any issues if you
did choose to pursue this path?"
"I had plans to uproot myself from Kraka Drakk after Jolla and Siggrun got settled. Wander from Hold to Hold like Master Yorri and offer my services wherever I went," she explains, "Cut down any belief that I'm trying to do anything untoward by dissociating myself from any other Runesmiths besides my Lineage. Go complete political nonentity doing commissions from any worthy Dwarf regardless of their political stance."
You blink.
"That is quite the commitment for you to make," you comment.
"I learned from the best," she responds.
"Hmph," you say with a snort, "While I can respect the intent. I imagine becoming what is effectively a wandering hermit may be a step too far, especially that last point. Simply associating with just your lineage or being more selective with who you share the Rune with would mollify the moderates and mostly de-fang the conservatives. At the very least you realize the gravity of the situation and what it could cause," you begin to explain, pausing to take another drink.
You put down the mug and stare at Snerra, who stares right back at you with the Gromril clad surety that you, her Uncle and elder, would know
something of use for her, if not now then later.
"Caution will be necessary. I'd advise you to try and do the deal with the local priesthood first and see how it fits you, even offer a clause to extend the service to other Holds if you so wish. You're proposing something that I haven't thought of entirely because I can't even go through with it given...everything on my plate. Return after you've done a bit of commission work with the limbs yourself, say a decade or two, and I'll have an answer by then. That's all I can assure you of," you eventually reply with a sigh.
Snerra nods, and soon after leaves your workshop, just as certain as she entered that you would have an answer.
A daunting thing, to be trusted so utterly.
A grave responsibility to do right by her.
━<><><>< 261 A.P. ><><><>━
Karstah's wagon trundles along the mountain path, the clanging of Zhufbar growing quieter and quieter as she marches farther south and west along the newly christened Black Mountains. Hers is one of many, part of a larger caravan headed to the growing number of settlements there. Many will stop at Lord Rorek's new Hold and settle there, but just as many will move on, further down the range to smaller holds with possibly greater opportunities. The bleating of goats and the grumbling of her elders can be heard all around her, the caravan making its presence known as it marches along the heavily patrolled road.
She grunts and takes a bite out of the troll jerky in her hands, thankful that she won't have to pay for food at the very least. But the cost to repair her wagon certainly made her wince.
Ach.
It wasn't a journey without some hardship she supposed glumly.
Though I wish the hardship was more creative than financial.
Karak Kadrin especially, where she was lucky she had managed to leave when she did. Given the stories coming from that place she'd overheard at the few taverns shed been to, the situation was beginning to decline again.
Still, one bad experience wouldn't outweigh everything else she'd witnessed. The depths and splendour of Ungor, the glittering halls of Brynduraz and even a passing glance at an absolutely titanic trade caravan from Karaz a Karak made it abundantly clear that she was in a far more developed part of the Realms than Kraka Drakk. While it would certainly be an adventure to visit the Major Southern Karaks, it wouldn't provide the sort of work she wanted to find.
No, what she sought would likely be at the end of the road she was travelling on. Where the fine workmanship of Zhufbar slowly gave way to the stout, but simple, roadwork that even Kraka Drakk was slowly transitioning from. From civilization to yet untamed wilderness. Where the scent of the air was fresher and less smoke clogged, where the sky seemed bluer and the virgin stone lay waiting for a solid pick to crack them open and get to the wealth within. Picks that, hopefully, would bear Runes
she had made.
She takes a whiff of the mountain air only to start coughing and smacking her chest as she inhales a bit of the troll jerky still in her mouth.
The other dwarfs in the Caravan thankfully choose to leave her to her embarrassment.
━<><><>< 263 A.P. ><><><>━
Your trips to and from Ungor are not spent idly, just as like the first time, you find yourself planning and working over the commission from King Villi. The King had, smartly, asked for a wedding gift that Gimli could wear even as he took on the panoply and royal garb of the King of Kraka Drakk.
Rik Hunken, The King's Burden.
A belt inspired by the crown of Prince Whitebeard, though more local in scope. Made from resources and items important or unique to Kraka Drakk. Hide from Haruzrildrakk, Adamant for the buckle, Hearthstones, and other materials used to depict the lives of the Dawi and Brana who call the Hold home. It will be a reminder, both to passerby and bearer, of what a King is responsible for.
The Runes on it are meant to synergize with the two pieces of armour now synonymous with the Kingship of the Hold. With your creation Gimli could, contradictory to the name of the belt itself, run faster, jump higher, and strike with the force to sunder the greatest foes. In your mind's eye, you can already imagine just how destructive the incredible speed
Rik Hunken provides will be when used in conjunction with either the burning shell of flame from
Wyrm's Hide or the terrible power of
Trollslayer.
But using it with both, altogether?
Well…
The results would be explosive to say the least.
━<><><><==><><><>━
When you get home you find a priority letter from Ylva waiting for you. Reading the date it's barely a day old, and from what your Hearth Guard reported came with the corpse of a great eagle and several hundred snow hawks, wolves and a bear. As for Ylva and the group you sent with her, they've since gone to Grom to lend their aid at Rudil's request. Which was fine enough seeing as you'd given him command while you were south in Ungor, and better they be out helping than sitting here waiting for you to tell them to do something.
Curiosity burning, you settle down before the fire with a mug of ale in hand then move to open the letter and begin reading in earnest. And after finishing, reread it another time to make sure you weren't misreading things.
After confirming that you haven't gone mad, you tap your finger to your chin and think.
Of all the things you expected, a request from two
Brana to join your Retinue was on the lower end of things. According to Ylva, they had come to them about three years into their purging of the mountain, though Ylva admits it was less a purge and more pest control given how thoroughly the Brana wiped out any competing predators. But back to the point, both Brana seemingly had aimed to be part of the Hearth Guard. One, Nightfeather, was noted to be a particularly adept scout, nighttime flyer and services as an Elgi translator. The other, Amberclaw had a similar skill set to her compatriot and was apparently an avid fan of Dwarf culture. She apparently saw the chance to be among a group of elder Dawi as the perfect opportunity to learn further. More interestingly, Amberclaw was also one of the few individuals delving into the more neglected aspects of Brana Amber magic.
You ultimately decide to…
[ ]
Brana: Accept
Gain x2 Branakroki Retainers, Nightfeather and Amberclaw. Giant, sapient, magical Griffons, what needs to be said here about their combat capabilities? The costs of feeding and housing them, which is what being their patron entails, would be large but not undoable. About double the average Hearthwarden.
[ ]
Brana: Decline
No Brana Retainers. It's unprecedented really, and taking on Brana retainers seems more like Dolgi's mineshaft than yours. Send them his way with a recommendation or two.
...their proposals, and write the letter to Ylva to inform them both. After dealing with that and a few more letters you simply fall down into your chair and stare at the fire with a tankard in your hands.
Ancestors willing, that'll be one of the last few decisions you'll have to make for a little while at least.
━<><><><==><><><>━
What did the ceremony for Orra's limbs end up being?
[ ]
Ceremony: Subdued.
The ceremony offering the limbs will be a smaller affair, and many Dwarfs outside the Karak will not be made aware until the news begins to spread naturally.
[ ]
Ceremony: Ostentatious.
Let all know that the Princess of Karak Ungor has been given wondrous enchanted arms made by the Gift Giver of Kraka Drakk.
The Princess is a high visibility figure, no matter what people outside the Far North will begin to learn about Snorri's work with prosthetics.
━<><><>< Khazalid Trivia ><><><>━
Rhunrikki-khaz - "Runelord hall"/ The House of Runelords
Rhunkalbrogg/Rhunkaltrogg - "Runefeast"/ The semi-regular conclave of Runelords
Rik Hunken - King's Burden
━<><><>< Gain ><><><>━
- Zhufazul Complete!
-- Liquid acts like metal but also water. Boils when heated into a shimmering crimson and silver mist, freezes into something resembling red metallic ice.
-- Freezes at lower temperatures than water.
-- The Brana say the liquid sings with strength, obstinacy, fortitude, honour and other associated emotions. Grimnirzan,
Grimnir's Blood, you recall Rudil say when he heard that. Hmph.
-- [Tier 2] Zhufazul (Liquid Metal)/ Grimnirzan (Grimnir's Blood) x∞: Can be a replacement to [T2] Loadstone, [T2] Loadsteel and any ingredient needed for the base Master Rune of Grimnir.
-- +2 progress to The Rune Metal Pt. 2b, new totals:
[Cost: (14 -7) =7 actions]
-- +1 progress to The Rune Metal Pt. 5, new totals:
[Cost: (12 -5) =7 actions]
-- +1 progress to The Mind of Things Pt. 3, new totals:
[Cost: (10 -4) =6 actions]
- A Princely Wedding Gift Pt. 1 complete! A Princely Wedding Gift Pt.2 Unlocked!
- New Rune Combo Unlocked!
Combo, Relentless Pursuit: [Master Rune of Wandering, Rune of Impact, Rune of Grimnir] The user can run at incredible speeds and jump the height of three average dwarfs with ease. Running towards the enemy further improves the user's speed. The user's first blow at the end of their charge deals a far greater amount of damage. No foe escaped Grimnir's unyielding advance, crushed underfoot or sundered utterly.
- New Set Combo Unlocked!
Set Combo, Grimnir's Burning Wroth: [Meteorfall, Pyrestrike, Relentless Pursuit] When charging at an enemy or specific point, the user rapidly picks up speed and gains a protective shell of flame around them, gathering more and more energy until it can be released as an explosion of heat and power strong enough to melt steel or condensed into the user's weapon, allies unharmed.
- Armoured Maidens Accepted!
- +1 [T2] White Lion Corpse Ordered, received Turn 36
-- Research unlocked!
- +1 Great Eagle slain.
-- +2 [T2] Great Eagle's Feathers
- Triage Pt. 2 Complete! You have made a set of powerful artefacts for the Princess of Karak Ungor. Limbs that restore and outright improve upon what she has lost. Time will tell what this entails.
-- +1 Standing and +100 Favour with Karak Ungor, new totals: Standing 6, Favours 180
--- +2 Standing with King Buradarr Goldenbeard, new totals: Standing 8
--- +2 Standing Prince Buradarr of Clan Stonehammer, new totals: Standing 10
-- +80 Favour with Kraka Drakk, new totals: Favours 460
--
Legendary Creation of Note, The Iron Arm: Despite its name, the arm's structure is actually made entirely of Adamant, decorated with bands of Pure Gromril with a Hearthstone cut to resemble the Sigil of Clan Stonehammer embedded into its shoulder. Four smaller Hearthstones carved into the emblem of Clan Ironarm, the personal sigils of the Princess, her deceased Husband and Karak Ungor are inset around the larger stone in an "x" shape pattern. Amid the very understated knotwork, the saga of Kolzharradrakk's death, the names of every woman of Clan Ironarm, and the lineage of her Clan is written in exacting detail in a style reminiscent of
Wyrmguard and
Drakeplate. Its hammer blows strike with enough force to easily break through thirty centimetres of steel, and can casually
handle glowing hot metal fresh out of the forge without the user suffering any discomfort.
---
[Master Rune of Waking (Ancient Troll's Heart), Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of Stone]
---
Soul of the Earth
---
Trollbane
---
Chaosbane
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Mind for Constructs
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Epic Creations of Note, The Steelshanks: Two lifelike Adamant legs, bound with bands of Pure Gromril. The left leg is the shorter of the two, a Hearthstone with the Rune of Warding is set into the knee while two smaller Hearthstones marked with the emblem of Clan Ironarm and Stonehammer each sit in the shins. The right leg reaches up to the thigh made in the same style but with a Rune of Vitality on the knee, a second Hearthstone that bears the Rune of Fortitude is embedded on the outside of the thigh, close to the hip. Together they greatly enhance the user's endurance, and toughness. The wearer will feel each limb warming them in even the bitterest winter cold and strengthening their resolve.
--- Left Leg:
[Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of Warding, Rune of the Valiant]
--- Right Leg:
[Rune of Forged Limb, Rune of Vitality, Rune of Fortitude]
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Soul of the Earth
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Trollbane
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Chaosbane
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Mind for Constructs
Retainers:
- +3 Master Engineers
- +5 Longbeard Warriors.
Wielding axes and hammers older than some Dawi, with shields and armour as stout and ancient as the mountains, these peerless grumblers are the backbone of any Shieldwall.
- ?
Total Retainers: 94 +8 =102/120
There will be a one-hour moratorium for discussion.
AN: Shorter update, but there's a vote or two! The mind juices devoted to writing creation scenes were a bit myeh this time I'm afraid. The creation poem wasn't feeling it this time, but we can't win 'em all! Snerra's also taking things into her own hands as well from the looks of things, I'm giving you a bit of forewarning so that's also something to think about as well! It looks rather mundane but man oh man. Anyhoo, thanks for your patience, hope you enjoy it and don't forget to C&C. :^)
Fun table I had on hand regarding Brana names for the 8 winds, for the curious.
| Wind | Lore | Brana Name |
| Aqshy | Fire | Ruby |
| Azyr | Heavens | Sapphire |
| Chamon | Metal | Gold |
| Ghur | Beasts | Amber |
| Ghyran | Life | Emerald |
| Hysh | Light | Diamond |
| Shyish | Death | Amethyst |
| Ulgu | Shadows | Quicksilver |
)
