It's starting to become a monthly release schedule isn't it? Well, I have two things to say this time.
The first is: Proofreaders Assemble!
It is time to review this latest work, and I know there will be things which can be done better in this update.
And speaking of things which can be done better, there is now a crude map of Solitas with a very general outlook of the continent. This map will change over time as I find others who can create maps better than me.
There is equal parts bounty and bane hidden on the map, and even the islands surrounding Solitas contain interesting things. There is also a lot which I haven't added to the map, mostly the other city and fort ruins, or the White Castle. Granted, I'll need to zoom the map pretty far to show how small scale the quest currently is, but there is much more to the map than I've listed. (If you want a taste of the full map, look up the Mother Maiden AU map of Solitas. That's one of the settings I'm skinning for this wonderful setting-flesh rug.)
In the scarce hours following the ceremony, there was much which needed to be done. While your Warriors and the hundred odd volunteers you termed Raiders departed to prepare their axes and clubs, you needed to give your "martyrs" a fitting funeral. In truth, you scarcely did more than conduct the motions, since all you were doing was very fancily burning meat. Nonetheless, you needed to put on a respectable show for your people, and you sprinkled enough red Dust flakes onto the bodies to ensure their complete cremation. You did not waste much time before "directing their spirits to the Mother Goddess" and placing them within their funeral pyre. There was much more important work to do.
You were not alone in leading the host. Ikarus joined you, staying at your side as an additional protector and the leader of the Raiders, which you found rather endearing. Vulpina and Ebon, the later, while slightly disgraced, was still the the greatest egreatest warrior in the tribe, lead the Warriors which supported them. Even Angelus Crowe joined, though she served as the shield for a small group of Elders which came to observe your raid. Among the Elders, you noticed Natalius, the Elder of Elders, watching you closely, which somehow made a shiver go up your spine. Even before Bubo's death, the man struck you as strange, and this feeling never quite faded. You banished the thought with a shake of your head, you needed to focus.
In raiding, there was always a modicum of luck. Would it rain during the raid or the day before? Would the Grimm emerge when the gates were opened, when the raiders were returning, or while the Warriors were away for the raid? At night, these worries were joined by the sky and the Shattered Moon. At first, you were worried by the light of the full moon revealing the raid, but as your host ventured towards the agreed place, clouds began to darken the skies. The conditions were perfect, now you needed the Tarenti to uphold their end of the deal.
The Schnee host quickly reached the forest clearing where you had met Alexander first, though there was little time to doubt the boy Champion's honor. The light of torches approached through the great white firs, and the sound of rawhide covered hooves soon sounded through the clearing. The rumblings nearly unnerved your Raiders, though through quick shouts and the jeers of Warriors, an embarrassing skirmish was avoided. Embarrassing and disastrous, given the plan.
Alexander's bodyguards approached your own, and you observed the Tarenti Riders ready for battle. While there were accounts of seats used in the before times, the Tarenti rode bareback, a simple cloth mounting between them and their horses. A bundle of wooden javelins were held to the flanks of their mounts and a long bronze headed spear stood ready on the other flank. A bronze sword completed the set, which showed the investment of the Tarenti in their Riders. Though they numbered a bare hundred, the Riders carried enough weapons for twice your own Warriors. These Riders were skirmish troops, meant to sap away strength rather than dominate an enemy, and even you could see this was near folly. Such troops would need to strike quickly and often, leaving yet more time for the Grimm to strike. Perhaps they believed their speed would keep them safe.
'No wonder they were beaten by the Schloss.' You thought to yourself as you approached the edge of your circled protectors. Soon, you saw Alexander nearing the edge of his own, and you saw the signs of battle on him. "So, since you're not running with your tail between your legs, the Schloss don't know you're free."
"Killed to the last, and their messengers couldn't outrun my horses. They have no idea blood has been spilled." Alexander answered, casting his own gaze towards your Warriors. He must have seen something he liked in the fur clad axemen, as he looked back towards you. "I know your people hate my people, so how did you manage to get them to agree to this?"
"Simple, I made you out to be converts." You stated almost casually, as if you weren't breaking tradition's metaphorical legs.
"Converts." Alexander responded bluntly.
"Or as close to converts as possible. Your people suffered under the Schloss, who are masters of the Grimm, and so you are joining us in a holy war against evil." It seemed almost idiotic said out loud, but it had worked for your people.
There was a long silence as Alexander watched you. For a moment, you thought he was going to snark at you, but he shrugged. "Close enough."
~~~~~
With the Tarenti's torches snuffed out and the light of the broken moon hidden behind clouds, you ordered your Warriors to take the reins of the Tarenti Riders. In the darkness of the clouded moon, your men would need to guide the humans to their target. This stroke of fortune pointed to an excellent night raid, which suited you perfectly. Already your host was the largest your tribe had seen in generations, almost half as great as the mythical hero Hama's in the dying days of the Kingdom of Atlas. This, however, did very little to assuage your worries.
Many times during the march you feared your Raiders would betray the Tarenti. You didn't worry terribly much of the Warriors, as you had impressed upon their leaders the importance of this raid. Your true worries lied with the hundred odd Tribesmen who were so impassioned by the ceremony they took up arms as zealots. If your plan would fail at any point, it would be with the zealots. It was always with the zealots.
But once again, your worries were proven false, and you would have breathed a sigh of relief when the walls of the Lesser Schloss camp came into sight. Instead, you paused to catch your breath, wishing you had one of Alexander's horses as your weak constitution attempted to catch up after the march. You would need all your breath for the battle. Even if you had all your breath, the walls would have stifled any sigh.
No history-speaker would sing of the Schloss' walls. Where the Schnee wood wall was twice the height of a Warrior but made to be lifted by a team of strong builders, the Schloss walls were like mountains. Four heads high, not a single wood pillar or stone could be seen in the sheer face of the walls, and there was no seam or stacked stones to be seen. The entire surface seemed to be the face of a sheer cliff, eerily similar to the ruins of Mantle. You couldn't help but feel a painful dread coming from the strange walls which no scout report could have conveyed. From their reports, however, you knew there to be three such walls, three! How could anyone defeat such defences?
Forcing your mind away from the walls, you saw a weakness: the large gates made of timber. While mighty in their own right, they would be easier to deal with than the walls. It would take a team of twenty men half a day to tear down such a gate, let alone three. But you weren't going to tear down the gates. No, you were going to simply open them.
You raised a hand high, two fingers splayed, drawing the attention of your host. You heard the rasp of hardened bronze and deep breaths as the Braves, the most courageous, or reckless, of your Warriors prepared themselves. You heard grass being pulled as the Braves positioned themselves like the Vytal Runners of yore. You began to mentally count from ten, forcing away the worries which come before any battle.
'Two. One!' You hand fell, and the Braves sprinted forward, climbing knives in hand as they charged for the wall.
~~~~~
78 + 11 + 35 (Bless) + 10 (Knowledge of the Before Times) + 25 (Training Bonus) - 10 (Ebon's Misstep) + 5 (Faunus Night Raid) = 164 - 60 (Camp Defenses) = 104 Walls? What walls? Schnee and Tarenti Casualties: 0, Schloss Warrior Casualties: 5, Krieger Mercenary Casualties: 2
The Braves did their jobs perfectly, climbing over the dreadful first wall with blistering speed. Two Braves in particular were over the wall three breaths before any other, and later you learned of their names: Ibex and Capra. Their bronze climbing knives were the first to draw enemy blood, and their speed ensured no alarm was raised until the third wall was taken. As the gates were opened, you felt the urge to laugh. If this was your luck at the beginning of the raid, the Schloss had no chance.
As your Raiders entered the Lesser Schloss Camp, you were struck by how foolish you were. The dread you felt when you first saw the Schloss walls seemed idiotic now. The Schloss had no doubt spent months or years building up their three walls, but all it took was a bare handful of climbers to overcome them. These Humans had become lax, so comfortable inside their walls they they forgot they had more enemies than the Grimm alone. The fact there were not tents, but short buildings made of wood, showed how committed they were to turn away the Grimm. A single spark would doubtlessly cause the entire camp to go up in flames, idiots. If all Humans were like this, then they truly deserved their just reward.
'While that's right,' You reprimanded yourself, 'I better change the tone. Don't want to become a Taurus, since I have the Tarenti on my side. Bubo's tales were clear what happened to the Grimm Faced Bull.' As in on cue, you heard the clopping of hooves as Alexander approached, shouting orders to his Riders.
"Companions! Find every fire you can and get the flasks ready! I want Erbauer to know what happens when he spills the Blood of Kings!" Alexander looked your way as his Riders streamed into the Camp, crying out the warcry of their tribe. "You'll find Erbaut's hovel at the center of the camp, along with the Krieger Mercenaries. Any defense will start there. I'll take my men and run interference, but be careful of Erbaut, he's a slippery snake." He paused, as if recognizing his words. "That was not meant-."
"Don't dull your tongue on my account." You interjected, enjoying the fact the boy Champion was still but a child, despite the sharpness of his tongue. "Good hunting."
"Good hunting to you as well." Alexander responded, again the Champion rather than the boy as he kicked his mount. You saw fires already starting to spread through the camp, and based on the screaming, the Tarenti were trying to cause as much panic as possible. Now it was up to your people to strike the telling blow.
"Schnee, hear me!" You shouted above the din, "Our enemy is in the center! Run as fast as you can! Now is the time to kill the Demon!"
You could hardly hear the screams over the war cry of your people.
~~~~~
44 + 11 + 25 (Training Bonus) - 10 (Ebon's Misstep) + 20 (Tarenti Riders In The Camp) + 10 (Dominated The Walls) = 100
10 + 15 + 20 (Outnumber) - 20 (Riders Wrecking Havoc) + 30 (Elite Krieger Mercenaries) = 55
100 - 55 = 45 Schloss Defeat. Schnee and Tarenti Casualties: 30 (11 Warriors, 18 Raiders, 1 Rider), Schloss Casualties: 43, Krieger Mercenary Casualties: 36, Erbaunt was not killed in the fighting.
Total DoS: 14, Schnee-Tarenti Victory. Total Schnee and Tarenti Casualties: 30 (11 Warriors, 18 Raiders, 1 Rider), Schloss and Krieger Casualties: 86 (48 Warriors, 38 Mercenaries). 2 Additional Victory Options gained.
AN: For non-bandit tribes, every 5 DoS (Degree of Success) on the total gains you an additional Victory Option. For bandits, it is every 3 DoS, which shows how important raiding is for their playstyle.
Yes, I said total. Even if you don't suppress the enemy, so long as you can overcome an enemy's walls, you'll be able to achieve the goals of your raid, and perhaps a few more things. The rewards, however, would be lessened.
Alexander's information proved to be true as your force charged through the camp. Schloss Warriors, running towards the center were cut down where they stood. Alexander's fire attack was already wrecking havoc, and the panic had spread to your enemies. In the center of the camp, milled three hundred odd Schloss Warriors attempting to array themselves. Beyond the rabble stood the largest threat: three score of Krieg's finest, steel shields and hammers ready, with a shouting man who was undoubtedly Erbaut among their number.
Fancy tactics? Masterful maneuvers? You didn't have the time for such things, nor did your people have any need. All you needed to do was hang back and catch your breath as your horde surged forth. Your job was not to descend into the melee, to coat Elatha in viscera, but rather to ensure there would be some mote of order. You would let the more able fighters do their job.
Before the battle was joined, you heard a thunderous crack, instants later followed by a Mercenary toppling to the ground. Angelus, her shield used as a stand for her strange firearm, carefully loading another precious cartridge as a furious grimace marred her face. The Kriegers would learn to fear her long reach... If she left any alive.
Angelus' shot heralded the beginning of the battle, and from your position it was difficult to follow every blow. There, among the disarrayed Schloss, you saw the Raiders strike down two for every death among their own. Among the Krieger shieldwall, you saw Vulpina and Ebon shatter the wall, the later's Aura turning even the devastating blows of their hammers into mere love taps as he stabbed and slice with acrobatic grace. As the battle reached it's peak, javelins from Alexander's Riders rained down, filling the enemy with terror.
It was the Schloss who broke first, routing in front of your men in a desperate attempt to save themselves. Even the man you believe to be Erbaunt fled with his men, commanding the Mercenaries to sacrifice themselves so that he could escape. The Mercenaries, held our far longer, even as they were reduced to half their number. But even these nigh suicidal men were forced to break, but you could not relish long in your victory. The time which the mercenaries gained would speed the Schloss' reprisal.
Your people needed to grab what they can and escape.
"Schnee, hear me!"
Raid Victory Options. Choose Two.
[X] Free Faunus Slaves (Goal of the Raid, automatically chosen, does not take up a choice.)
[] Hunt down Warriors
[] Hunt Schloss Leaders
[] Steal Resources
[] Loot Weaponry
[] Burn down Buildings
[] Damage Walls
[] Enslave Humans
[] Steal Technology
[] HUNT DOWN THE DEMONS (has a 75% chance of occurring even if not chosen. They are not people. They are unclean!)
[] Keep your Warriors and Raiders from Slaughtering the Schloss Tribesmen (Will lose popularity due to blatant hypocrisy)
And now, I present a writing challenge to anyone interested. Since poetry is something I am not talented in, if anyone wants to come up with a storytelling poem about the raid against the Schloss, I'll treat it as an omake with full rewards (and a little extra, if you want to include something into the world).
While taking weapons does reduce the amount of killing instruments available to the enemy, it also allows you to recruit more Warriors, and make your own Warriors more effective. I'll add Weapons to the Resources tab on the Character Sheet once the raid is done, but these are different from weapons used by Rivals. They're much more common, typically not the work of master metalsmiths. (Yes, metalsmiths, since blacksmith doesn't exactly fit the bill.)
Alright, options and why I think we shouldn't be too hasty:
[X] Free Faunus Slaves (Goal of the Raid, automatically chosen, does not take up a choice.)
My eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the looord...
[X] Hunt down Warriors
I personally am heavily in favor of this option. I don't know about you guys, but I supported targeting the military encampment in order to degrade their military capability overall, inhibit any attempts at immediate retaliation in force, and soften them up for future raids on other sites. Killing as many of their professional soldiers as we can (and with Alexander's light horse, it wouldn't be that hard to kill a LOT of them) is the surest way of weakening them at home and abroad, in the long term.
Having said that, there are other ways of striking at their military that don't necessarily involve striking at them directly. For argument's sake, and the sake of completeness, let's go over them.
[] Hunt Schloss Leaders
Killing Erbaut and whoever's running the Kriegers might be useful in creating further disorder among both groups, but I personally find it unnecessary. The Kriegers are mercenaries IIRC, they can fill that gap pretty easily, and we might even especially piss them off, which is not good when they're so well-armed. As for Erbaut, politically speaking he's fucked. He got his ass handed to him by a bunch of upstart fanatics and a tribe they previously kicked the shit out of like six months ago. Run by a twelve-year-old boy. I foresee immediate retirement in his future, and by retirement I mean a long walk off a short cliff. Ergo, killing him has little practical benefit. [] Steal Resources
Possibly worthwhile, we will after all have some new mouths to feed, but I don't think we're hard-up for anything in particular. Maybe lumber and dust? But we live in a forest and our zone of control is about to expand significantly, so finding surface dust deposits doesn't strike me as a great hardship. As for food, there's always hunting. And there's always the long pork if we get desperate. [X] Loot Weaponry
I support this option because it weakens our enemy while strengthening us. Getting more gear allows us to equip more warriors, and I'd say that with our ranks bolstered by freed slaves we'll have a lot of eager recruits to choose from.
[] Burn down Buildings
Initially I was against this, but I can see an argument for it. Turning the base into a walled burnt-out husk would make it difficult for the Schloss to sufficiently garrison it, and weaken any future attempts to retaliate as they are used to operating out of permanent camps and will not have that luxury coming after us if we pick this option. The real question is, is weakening the Schloss' ability to project force in the area worth giving up the benefits of other options? [] Damage Walls
Same as above, and probably a pretty healthy economic blow, especially if we want to strike at the camp in the future. But given that we lack the time to do serious, lasting damage, I'd argue that any gains would be limited and fleeting compared to more thoroughly sacking the interior. [] Enslave Humans
Naaah. Slave economies, as the Schloss have shown, are of limited benefit and require a lot of manpower on our part while offering limited mobility (hard to keep slaves in line when everyone is on the march and carrying their possessions on their back). Just give the new freedmen some rope and sharp objects and come back in thirty minutes once they've taken care of things. [] Steal Technology
I see the appeal, and I know SV is big into teching up, but tech is not our biggest issue right now, nor the point of the raid. A military camp would possess few advances we couldn't already get a peek at by stealing their weapons, and the walls, the only other big tech advantage I could see us getting out of this, soak up manpower and pin us down, and we can afford neither of those things. If we want tech, perhaps we could try getting some tips on animal husbandry from the Tarenti in future. [] HUNT DOWN THE DEMONS (has a 75% chance of occurring even if not chosen. They are not people. They are unclean!)
This concerns me, but not too much. The Tarenti possess horses, ideal for routing fleeing foes, and we ourselves are no slouches in the woods either. Provided we can retain enough control not to get over-extended and caught by the Grimm, we should be okay. [] Keep your Warriors and Raiders from Slaughtering the Schloss Tribesmen (Will lose popularity due to blatant hypocrisy)
I don't really see the point in this. We already opted for extra brutality and you can bet the Tarenti and the slaves won't hold back, so why should we?
Lastly if I may propose a small write-in:
[X] Free Faunus Slaves (Goal of the Raid, automatically chosen, does not take up a choice.)
-[X] Write-In: Make sure you take charge of the liberation of the slaves, and make a good (and lasting!) impression on them.
Hi, I'm Colubra, your liberator, and I'm here to welcome you to the Schnee Tribe! Yes, yes, no need to thank me, just doing my part to help fellow Faunus. Oh, those robed guys? Those are the Elders. They're a little weird. But don't worry, stick with me and I'll make sure you guys can get settled in without dealing with any of that crap.
Marriages between tribes are not terribly uncommon, but as a diplomatic move they are rare.
Ok, this isn't something which can be summed up in one sentence as some people may like, so here we go. Typically, intertribal (screw you spell check, it's a word) marriages occur between tribes which are on close in relations. This does not mean an alliance in and of itself, as in typical CK2 tradition, but it's usually a good indicator of tribal relations. For instance, Erbaut, the son of Erbauer (the Schloss Champion), wed the daughter of a powerful farm-lord of the Bauernhofs, which should give an indication how valued their relationship is. (If you're curious, they were wed for three years, which unfortunately ended on Turn -1 with her death in childbirth. I know a six word story which adds to the traedgy.)
Now, there are some tribes which handle marriages differently, in so far they always marry into the tribe. The Krieg tribe is an example of this, as anyone they bring into the tribe forsakes their previous tribe, claiming no other tribe than the Krieg. This is used twofold: firstly it breeds a sense of unity (once a Krieger, forever a Krieger), and secondly it reinforces the uniting narrative of the tribe (they view themselves as superior to other tribes, but with Schloss dominance they cannot afford to be true isolationists. Thus, they send out Mercenaries to ensure they won't be absorbed by the Schloss in a costly war). The Tier tribe is another example, but Bandit tribes are strange. Ever small, they value strength of arms and a good portion of their marriages are to bring in mighty raiders. That is, if they don't practice the time honored tradition of bridenapping. You can see marriage is not much of diplomatic move for these tribes.
And since I know this is going to be asked, I'll breach the subject of Human-Faunus marriages... I can, at this point, only speak of the Mantle Highlands and the Ruins of Atlas area without going into spoilers for later areas, but it is almost unheard of. In both areas, there is a strong animosity between the two races which gets very much in the way. Relations between the two tend towards one extreme in particular, and that's the euphemism "pet". I don't think I need to say much else, but if you want to know what happens to the result, I think American history can tell you their station in life.
Well, I did say twelve or so hours, and look, it's twelve or so hours. The vote is now closed.
And so we have the looting of weapons (gotta get that sweet sweet pounded car door) and the stealing of technology (which CWR did point out it is a military camp, but there are still things to be found). I'll also throw in CWR's write-in for the automatic choice, because I enjoy write-ins.
Then there's the matter of the "May happen regardless" option. I'm doing this as a roll under, which is 25 or below. So congratulations, with a 23 there will be no
ANGELUS CROWE SACRIFICES HER ACTION. ANGELUS CROWE SPENDS HER FATE POINT TO REROLL. NEW RESULT: 88
Welcome to Angelus Crowe, having a chance to send the biggest message she can. Normally, Rivals have to make do with the scraps left after you've had your fill, but Fate Points can be used to break the system. They are rare for a reason.
And now, for the Raid Aftermath.
Free Faunus Slaves
- Take charge of the liberation and make a damn good impression.
Loot Weapons
Steal Technology
HUNT DOWN THE DEMONS
-- Angelus Crowe will lead the Faithful against the Schloss!
Adhoc vote count started by Raiu on Aug 24, 2018 at 6:20 PM, finished with 467 posts and 7 votes.
[X] Free Faunus Slaves (Goal of the Raid, automatically chosen, does not take up a choice.) -[X] Write-In: Make sure you take charge of the liberation of the slaves, and make a good (and lasting!) impression on them.
ANGELUS CROWE SACRIFICES HER ACTION. ANGELUS CROWE SPENDS HER FATE POINT TO REROLL. NEW RESULT: 88
Welcome to Angelus Crowe, having a chance to send the biggest message she can. Normally, Rivals have to make do with the scraps left after you've had your fill, but Fate Points can be used to break the system. They are rare for a reason.
To take control, a spent Fate Point was needed, but not burnt. This is where I'm bringing in a rule patch which I've been thinking on since I started writing TTR.
I've rewritten Rule 12 to make the Fate Point more than an extra life or a "WHY WOULD YOU SPEND THAT" auto-crit. Now Fate Points can be spent to reroll a roll or break the system in a small way (which is the case here), or burnt for the usual effects (with the added ability to break the system in a much larger way). Spent Fate Points come back at the end of the Turn, so think of Fate Points like a cup with water. You can drink from the cup and refill it, but break the cup and it can't hold water any longer. Even an empty cup can be broken, so it is always possible to burn a spent Fate Point.
This will likely be my last change to the system for a while, other than patches for my own sanity.
I will add in a few more ways to gain more Fate Points, but all of them require some work to pull off (like an omake I feel REALLY deserves such a reward).
EDIT AFTER A FEW MONTHS: AND THEN THIS LATEST SEASON FINALLY GAVE US SOME LORE AND I ADDED IN A DLC FOR THE QUEST. OH. BOY.
Things have been a little silent from me recently, well that's because I'm nearing the middle of the semester and the change in habits which accompany it. Don't worry, I'm still working on the update, so it won't be a case of Turn 7 Hell Wait. To make up for the delay, I'm adding a few more things to the setting for you all to discover, specifically a tale on just how Atlas fell. The most militarily powerful nation in Remnant falling to just the Grimm? No, there has to be more to the story.
I'll give some terms which might help light the way, but you'll need to explore Solitas to find their true significance. "Monstro", "S.O.", "Schnee", "Arrows", "Solitas Reclamation Plan", "The New Path", "The Scorched Lands".
Just keep those in the back of your mind for now, there will be more later.
One month later, and I finished writing the draft for the raid aftermath.
Oh boy, this has been a fun one. I'll write about what the results of Stealing Technology actually are later. In the meantime, let's do something of a TEC tradition.
So, I believe a small status update is needed. The update which I threw towards my proofreaders is finished; of sufficient quality where I could post it without any regrets. However, during the proofreading a few additions needed to be made. Four Rivals attended the Raid (Ebon, Vulpina, Ikarus, and Angelus). Of the four, Ebon and Vulpina will have their own sections in the update showing what they did during the Raid. In addition, Alexander's portion of the raid got a lot done, so the Tarenti are also getting their own section. The reason why Angelus did not get her own section, meanwhile, is because she'll be playing a larger part in the next two turns due to certain mechanics. Oh, and Ikarus' own action in the Raid has been obfuscated due to his high Intrigue.
So, things have spiraled a little, but you'll be getting to see a lot more of the player generated characters. I broke a thousand words with Ebon's alone, but you'll get to see the kind of antics an Aura lets you do. Vulpina's action, however, ran into a bit of a snag, so you'll get to see someone who overcame a weak constitution with hard work make the best of a rough situation. Finally, with Alexander, you'll see the raid from someone outside the Schnee Tribe, from just how strange this partnership is to just how devastating cavalry can be.
Look forward to it. I've planning on releasing this before Thanksgiving, so you all will have something to read as you try to interact as little with your family as possible.
