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Ok, going to be a while before I get to sit down and write a turn plan, but until then:
@Boney, can we ask some specific questions about the information in the books we bought? More specifically:

On minor Gods:
-Is there any information about Halétha?
-Any information at all about Haleth? Is she even quest-canonical?
-Are the any Goddesses with V's or chevrons in their symbolism?
-Are there any Goddesses that are thought to be sisters?

On Hekarti and Loec:
-Is there any indication that Hekarti and Loec are related?
-Does Mathilde see any similarity between Loec and Hekarti's domains?
 
[ ] MAX: Learning: (Ritual Magic)
[ ] EGRIMM: Attempt a Windherder enchantment with Egrimm (Ring of Sudden Dawn)
[ ] WEB-MAT: Investigate Gryphon Wood with one or more members of WEB-MAT (Johan and Egrimm)
[ ] Attempt to bring a Major House or Ward into the Waystone Project (Frost)
[ ] Investigate Alric
[ ] EIC: Investigate what trade goods the Eonir might be willing to import from the Empire.
[ ] Seek an agreement with a Cult to have access to their libraries (Verenans)
[ ] Serenity: Windsoak Mushrooms (1/2)

My initial ideas for a plan. Still has an AP left to assign.
 
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Question. Why are Windsoak Mushrooms as a paper subject fade-able? Don't we (or Pan) maintain a plantation of each type we discovered? We won't just go from memory if we decide to write a paper.
 
Johan was sneaky when we were infiltrating the skaven bases under K8P. Perhaps he would be better to take along when investigating Alaric?

We can potentially take Egrimm to the Wood instead.

What does the Ring of Sudden Dawn do?

I'd like to bring the Bretonnian Damsels into the project this turn, if we can. They might bring more knowledge of rituals like the Life Order is struggling to recall, and there's the connection to the Fay Enchantress and Athel Loren we could potentially leverage if we get them on board.
 
What does the Ring of Sudden Dawn do?
So as I would like an range enchantment that isn't 'better gun' I present:

The Ring of Sudden Dawn (Take No Heed or Cloak Activity/Radiant Gaze)

'A ring of twisted black and white metal coloured strands of metal with a cat-eye jewel in the centre, for some odd reason no one seems to notice that the owner is wearing it, even as it is being lined up for a shot: that is, until after the laser of light is already coming for them.'

one auto-surprise attack, even in the middle of a fight, unless they pass some sort of passive perception check on the 'don't look at me ring'.
This
Johan was sneaky when we were infiltrating the skaven bases under K8P. Perhaps Egrimm would be better to take along when investigating Alaric?
FTFY

No time for deep discussion, but a reminder that we need to take teaching classes soon.
We planned on teaching our greatsword technique right?

We should also remember that Halethan Hedgewises are an option for The Father Coin.
 
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While there's undoubtedly still value to be found among other groups, this foundation should bring enough perspectives to the table that a groundwork established here and now should be able to incorporate all of those you're likely to be able to bring in in the future. Part of you does want to bring in practically every magical tradition on the continent before you begin, but that's hardly practical.

Strong indicator that we should groundwork this or next turn. The project hasn't actually started before we do that, and being perfectionist about gathering up everyone before we even get started would be a total waste of time.
 
Ok, did we want to bring anyone else in on the project immediately? I vaguely remember wanting elves of the frost ward for some reason but I can't remember why.
 
Alright, so getting into the update:
A brief skim of your recent purchases highlights the difference between the human and Elven perspective of Gods. A human book on a God will tell you how one should act to attract the attention and approval of a God, whereas an Elven book instead instructs the reader to find the place in themselves where that God is already reflected, how to give that part primacy when needed, and the situations in which doing so would be most beneficial.
An interesting exploration on the societal and psychological differences between the Warhammer races. I always enjoy when Boney explores these parts of the Warhammer World. I enjoyed it with the Dwarves, and I'm sure I'll continue to enjoy it with the Elves.
Parts of the books dedicated to Hekarti read like a very mystical version of a set of Wind attunement and attenuation techniques, and parts of the books dedicated to Loec would function well as guide to music, dance, or ambush tactics.
Hekarti makes a lot of sense, particularly as Boney is putting more focus on her aspect as the Goddess of Magic rather than the Goddess of Dark Magic specifically. Loec intrigues me here, because the way Mathilde describes him is very distinct from the way Ranald would be described. She emphasies his focus on music, dance and ambush tactics, and aside from similarities between Night Prowling, which is more of an urban thievery thing, to ambushes, that holds little similarity to how Ranald would be described. Is this simply a matter of the books Mathilde is consuming focusing on aspects that differentiate him from Ranald, or Mathilde simply viewing him as a different god and therefore focusing on aspects of him that don't entirely resonate with Ranald?

Or maybe I'm looking too deeply and the parts of Loec that are largely venerated by the Elves are very distinct from what humans appreciate about Ranald. I can't remember humans having any seriously prominent Gods of Theatre, Music, Dancing and Festivals and stuff like that. WHF humans are allergic to fun sometimes, justifying it with stuff like "Slaanesh will prey on you for that" or whatever. Humans tend to worship Gods for things they want, rather than things they are. They want mercy, so they pray to Shallya. They want to survive, so they worship Ulric. They don't want to die, so they pray to Morr. They want healthy children and lots of fields, so they pray to Rhya. They want good luck and freedom from their oppression, so they pray to Ranald.
You wonder if this difference arises from the Elves or their Gods - are the Elven Gods more willing to share worshippers, or are Elves just poorly-suited to dedicated to a single God? You find the question resonates with very similar ones about the Winds, how Elves are capable of weaving all of them in concert but humans delve much deeper into just one.
The Elves had a rich and well constructed society before Chaos came to the world that they can still recall. Human society was barely a thing before Chaos came to the world, and their lives and memories are much shorter. Perhaps it's just the fact that Human society was born into a world of Chaos and destruction that leads them to be so desperately attuned to extremes, compared to Elven society which still recalls the time before the world was war after war and death after death. The Elves still long for the time before the world became what it is, but for humans, this is what it's always been. I think that plays a factor into the ways in which Humans tend to dedicate themselves into extremes. Life is short, so why waste time being indecisive and moving around when you can commit?
As in all things, the Elves have a tendency to claim this as a sign of superiority, but an argument can be made - and Cython has already done so - that this is a form of cowardice. To choose one is to reject the others, but to choose none is to master none.
The interesting thing is that even Elves have mono-wind casters, although their mono-wind effect is probably different than humans. Shadow Dancers of the Asrai cast exclusively from Ulgu, and the Dragon Mages of Caledor are stated to be---

Actually, you know what, let me quote Page 47 of High Elves 8th Edition, the Dragon Mage section:

"Into every generation of Caledorian nobility, a handful of Dragon Mages are born, Elves who have a sensitivity not only to magic, but to the slumbering minds of Dragons. Many nascent Dragon Mages only recognise their destiny when their sleep becomes haunted with dreams of fire and blood, in which they ride Dragons the color of the setting sun. Such dreams mark the dying days of a mage's tutelage, for they herald an impeteousness that is ill-suited for the study of anything other than Fire Magic"

In the tabletop, Dragon Mages only cast from Lore of Fire, and they have the "Reckless" special ability. This gives them an additional +2 to casting Lore of Fire spells (on top of any other bonus, like their Wizard level. That is Staff of Volans level bonus), but it also means that they get no bonuses whatsoever to dispelling enemy spells. They're just garbage at dispelling. Even Elves have those people who aren't well suited to everything.
This difference in perspective is also why you were able to secure this many books at all. In any human Cult, a large amount of these would be considered Cult secrets and only available to those that have dedicated their lives to the God in question. But to an Eonir perspective, it makes no sense to try to conceal these things because they are simply transcriptions of information that lies within every Elven soul. And because no non-Eonir have had access to the Library of Mournings for millennia, it would make no sense to have any sort of safeguard against that information reaching non-Elves. Perhaps they will identify this as an oversight and close it in time, or perhaps they won't, as this is all information available to polities as distant and inscrutable as Ulthuan and Naggaroth and Athel Loren. Divine secrets exist that aren't on the shelves for any reader to access, of course, but they represent a much narrower portion of the corpus and would fill perhaps a tome or two, rather than entire shelves.
Mathilde going through an entire philosophical discussion about the differences between the mindsets of humans and Elves just because she bought some books. Fascinating.
With some effort, you put the metaphysical examination of specific psychology and sociology out of your mind to turn your attention to more worldly matters.
It actually takes her effort to bring herself down from her own musings at this point, which seem to increase the longer the story goes on, to focus on more grounded things. My suspicions on her ascension being farther along than expected gets stronger with every update.
With the cooperation of the Order of Light and the Order of Life secured, if not yet fully paid for, you now have quite an array of contributors, including inheritors of each of the major parties that was present for the raising of the Old World's Runestones - Thorek for the Dwarves, Lord Hatalath for the Elves, and Elrisse and Tochter for the humans. While there's undoubtedly still value to be found among other groups, this foundation should bring enough perspectives to the table that a groundwork established here and now should be able to incorporate all of those you're likely to be able to bring in in the future.
I think this is a bit of a hint that we should get moving on the groundwork action. I would like to continue recruiting, but at this point I think we have a solid base from which to work from and Mathilde seems to think so too.
Part of you does want to bring in practically every magical tradition on the continent before you begin, but that's hardly practical. Another part of you does rankle at beginning work on credit, so it might be preferable to fully pay for the presence of Elrisse and Tochter before you put them to work. You did agree to investigate Alric personally, and while you technically didn't promise personal investigation for Gryphon's Wood, a lot of the reasons why Paranoth thought you'd be suited for it wouldn't apply if you merely delegated it.
Have I said how much I like that Boney interprets the thread's discussion that he reads through into Mathilde's musings and thought processes? I find it a really nice way to include the audience into Mathilde's characterisation while maintaining who she is. It also depicts a very solid understanding of what the thread's desires are and allows for Mathilde to specifically address the thread's concerns to mollify them and provide direction and solutions to the problems brought up by us. It really helps me solidify what I want to do with the turn plan.
[ ] WEB-MAT: Investigate Alric with one or more members of WEB-MAT (specify who) (NEW)
[ ] WEB-MAT: Investigate Gryphon Wood with one or more members of WEB-MAT (specify who) (NEW)
I do not want to bring anyone else with us to Alric. That would be dangerous, and no one else has the capabilities to match Mathilde. I 100% support bringing Johann along into Gryphon Wood though. That seems like the sort of adventure he'd be suited for. This is where Johann excels, dangerous journeys into unknown areas. I can think of a few airborne contagions that might be in the area which I'd prefer Johann walk into rather than Mathilde. Gotta make use of those golden lungs.
[ ] Investigate Alric (NEW)
[ ] Investigate Gryphon Wood (NEW)
I support doing Alric investigation solo, and Gryphon Wood with Johann, to clear the cost of Tochter and Elrisse. Clearing our conciousness and getting some action. Sneaky Mathilde's great.
[ ] EIC: Investigate what trade goods the Eonir might be willing to import from the Empire. (NEW)
[ ] EIC: Try to uncover what's going on in Gryphon's Wood. (NEW)
While the second option is good and I think it might be useful, I'd prefer a personal look. The EIC doesn't have much of a presence in Eastern Talabecland, Ostermark or Ostland, because we've been focusing on the central and western sections of the Empire. Instead, I think we should analyse what sort of good the Eonir might want so we can further consolidate our position and alliance. We want to make sure the Eonir think that they're better off with us than against us. A reminder that the council almost voted against contact, with a tiebreaker being necessary.
[ ] Lay the foundations: work with the current members of WEB-MAT and the Waystone Project to build a single unified framework for understanding the Waystones.
I am currently of the mind that we should do this action.
Lovely Laurelorn
[ ] Explore the wonders of the ancient and beautiful city of Tor Lithanel.
[ ] Explore one of the Wards of Laurelorn (specify which: Storm, Rain, Frost)
I want to explore the Ward of Frost. We've kept Cadaeth and the Council of Frost waiting, but they were our contacts and I'd like to see them. Getting some Forestborn support would be nice, especially since they're one of the more invested parties, what with them bordering Salzenmund.
[ ] Seek an agreement with a Cult to have access to their libraries (specify which, eg: Verenans, Myrmidians, Sigmarites)
Difficulty will vary heavily depending on the Cult in question, but can allow access to rare tomes and esoteric subjects.
My suggestion is to try to contact the Verenans. Obvious reason being that they're the best contact for books.

My proposal: Investigate Gryphon Wood with Johann, Investigate Alric with only Mathilde, Lay Foundations, Explore Ward of Frost, Get Verenan cooperation with the Library, Explore what the Eonir want trade-wise with the EIC, and two more WEB-MAT actions. Maybe we let Max write papers and do Windherding with Horstmann.

This is is all very tentative, and I don't make plans, so I could be convinced.
 
My initial ideas for a plan. Still has an AP left to assign.
Maybe beginning the project?

[ ] Lay the foundations: work with the current members of WEB-MAT and the Waystone Project to build a single unified framework for understanding the Waystones.

I really want to begin this turn, it has been months irl and we didn't do anything Waystony. Of course we had very good reasons, but now that we have enough people to begin let's do this. We can always add more people later.
 
Ok, did we want to bring anyone else in on the project immediately? I vaguely remember wanting elves of the frost ward for some reason but I can't remember why.
Cadaeth was the one who introduced us to the project, and she is on the ruling council of the ward, so presumably they would be wiling to work on the project. And the forest beings would bring interesting insights to the project.
 
I'm not sure that's a good idea. There isn't a significant amount of metal, greed, artifice, or logic out in the wilderness, so the access to his favourite wind would be limited. It'd be like bringing along an amber wizard to do a job in a big city.
Johann is metaphysically made of metal. His specialty is smashing things, which works regardless of the setting he is in. If he was a Journeyman, maybe I'd agree, but a Magister of his ability is capable of dealing with an absence of his wind when fighting, especially since his main forms of combat with metal is usually by producing it from the Aethyr or enhancing his own body, neither of which require existing metal.

Even Johann's sense don't necessarily require metal.
To you, Windsight is mostly sight, though Dhar has an accompanying smell and the Waaagh is more of a mingling of taste and sensation. The sense Johann describes to you is very different to conventional senses, and he haltingly does his best to explain a constant awareness of his surroundings, and eventually settles on describing it as being able to know where a fire is by the sensation of heat on your skin. To this sense, open air feels different enough to inert stone walls that he's still mostly able to make his way around, and various types of magical energies are sensed as a sort of once-removed emotion. But, naturally enough, it is various metals that his magical sense is most able to perceive, including the ability to discern alloys and roughly gauge purity at a touch. It does present something of a stumbling block for direct study, but you're still hopeful.

[Mathilde's teaching: Learning, 33+27+10(Windsage)+2(Library: Chamon)=72.]
[Johann's learning: Learning, 90+14+10(White Tower)-10(Inflexible Magic)=104.]

It goes a lot better than you expected. Your own magical sense manifests omnidirectionally, so after some trial and error you're able to find common ground and develop a good understanding of how he's perceiving the world. From there, you take him through some of the more basic meditative exercises of the Grey College, which is a lot better received when you tell him that absolute stillness is not required, nor is refraining from playing with his wolf-rats. Under your thoughtful gaze, he quickly and unknowingly hones his senses on the nimble and energetic creatures, and it's not long until there's no hesitation at all in his reaching out to rub ears, scratch shoulders, and tickle bellies.

From there, it's simply a matter of escalation, starting with simple sorting exercises and quickly moving on to more energetic pursuits, from throwing sticks for his wolf-rats to making his way carefully through the sprouting cabbage fields without crushing too much of the crop underfoot. Eventually you reach the point where you're throwing an ovular ball wrapped with iron wire back and forth, hindered to no small extent by the wolf-rats and their ability to jump higher than a man when they feel they're being left out of the game. By that point, Johann has regained his old confidence, and only the blindfold over his eyes indicates that he's not currently able to see.
Magnetoreception: Johann has developed keen magical senses, especially when it comes to metals.
His senses work best with metal, but he has proprioception that lets him feel where everything is and he's adapted to it. He's been going on trips and exercises with Kadoh for over a year inside a magical forest by now. I think he's learnt to adapt his abilities to a forested environment by this point. Worst comes to worst, he's a good tank.
 
-Is there any information about Halétha?

She is often referred to as the Goddess of the Forest of Shadows, but specifically she is the one who protects people from the Forest of Shadows. While Taal and Rhya are those worshipped in the larger towns and cities, in the rest of Ostland many call on Halétha instead. Where Taal and Rhya is 'here's how to live in harmony with nature', Halétha is more 'there is no nature here, here's how to carve something you can live on from the darkness'.

-Any information at all about Haleth? Is she even quest-canonical?

Nordland Haleth is simple enough, the general explanation is that those in central and western Nordland adopted her from those in eastern Nordland, which is within the Forest of Shadows, as a general hunting Goddess. Middenland Haleth is more puzzling. It looks like both arose at about the same time as the Cults of Taal and Rhya were expanding their influence in Ostland, so it might be a result of a Haléthan diaspora.

-Are the any Goddesses with V's or chevrons in their symbolism?

Lots. They're very basic symbols and pretty much every language has at least one as a letter, including Khazalid and Dark Tongue. Shapes like V are used to represent trees, flowers, springs, cups, lakes, and a yonic symbol, while shapes like chevrons are used to represent mountains, roots, sunshine, rivers, and a yonic symbol.

-Are there any Goddesses that are thought to be sisters?

Shallya and Myrmidia, Hyacinth and Groplotta, Clio and Scripsisti, and a handful of paired river goddesses. Familial relationships don't seem to be common among minor Gods, and when they do occur it's usually because they're being chained in to the family tree of the main pantheon.

-Is there any indication that Hekarti and Loec are related?

Hekarti and Atharti are explicitly said to be twin sisters but there's no information about any other relations. Some are referred to as Loec's children - Alith Anar, Wardancers in general, and bizarrely Draugnir in one place - but it doesn't seem to ever be applied in a way that is meant to be literal.

-Does Mathilde see any similarity between Loec and Hekarti's domains?

Not really. If you really wanted to you could draw a line between Loec's shadows and Hekarti's darkness, but magically the two are completely different. Hekarti is as associated with the Wind of Shadow as she is with all the others, and Loec is associated with shadow and only indirectly with the Wind of Shadow, which might make sense if you were trying to argue that Loec is Hekarti's son, but not the other way around.

Question. Why are Windsoak Mushrooms as a paper subject fade-able? Don't we (or Pan) maintain a plantation of each type we discovered? We won't just go from memory if we decide to write a paper.

Just having the mushrooms present doesn't mean that you're instantly and perfectly able to recall everything you observed and discovered about them. You could study them all over again to refresh the bonus if you wanted to.
 
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Maybe beginning the project?

[ ] Lay the foundations: work with the current members of WEB-MAT and the Waystone Project to build a single unified framework for understanding the Waystones.

I really want to begin this turn, it has been months irl and we didn't do anything Waystony. Of course we had very good reasons, but now that we have enough people to begin let's do this. We can always add more people later.
I'd only support that action if we take it alongside or after the 'stare at a waystone' action. Because Mathilde has been bluffing about what she brings to the table, which is to say zilch, and I suspect it'd be easier to maintain that fiction if she has more to work with than the few days she spent hurriedly on campaign.

Also, could somebody remind me why we're against bringing Egrimm to investigate Alric? It's been a while and the arguments have slipped my mind.
 
Just having the mushrooms present doesn't mean that you're instantly and perfectly able to recall everything you observed and discovered about them. You could study them all over again to refresh the bonus if you wanted to.

What does the "Timeless" for paper on coins mean? I thought it just referred to coins being physically present and not something to write on from memory.
 
Hekarti and Atharti are explicitly said to be twin sisters but there's no information about any other relations. Some are referred to as Loec's children - Alith Anar, Wardancers in general, and bizarrely Draugnir in one place - but it doesn't seem to ever be applied in a way that is meant to be literal.
For those curious, Loec has a bit of a relationship with Dragons. This is from 8th Edition Wood Elves Page 52:

"Though Forest Dragons seldom pay heed or homage to the deities of the Elves (few are prepared to admit the existence of beings nobler or more powerful than Dragons), most have a grudging respect for Loec, the Lord of Laughter. At heart, Dragons are creatures of cunning and intellect, and they admire the legerdemain by which the Shadow Dancer rescues Elven souls from Slaanesh as well as the trickery Loec employs to erode the Dark Prince's vengeance once the deed is done. Indeed, many Forest Dragons hold true to the belief that Loec honed his cleverness under the tutelage of Draugnir, Father of Dragons. The Wardancers, being Loec's foremost devotees, hold that the opposite is true, and love to engage Forest Dragons in battles of wits to prove their point"

Qu'aph, the Nehekharan Snake God that Mathilde got a sense of deja vu from, also has a relationship with Dragons. Although it is...different:

"Qu'aph was said to have preyed on the Dragons that dwelt in the Great Land before the coming of Man. The God would lie in ambush beneath the surface of the desert before lunging towards his prey and sinking his spear-sized fangs into their scaly throats" Tomb Kings 8th Edition Army Book Page 44

Does this have any sort of connection whatsoever? I dunno. Just throwing it out there.
 
On the other hand, Mathilde can do the sneaky sneaky while referring back to Egrimm as 'man in the chair', helping us interpret the clues on what what Alric is up to?
 
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