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From what I gather here, the excellent strength and ability of the military of Talabheim/Talabecland is balanced out by the fact that they are divided into separate forces with little unity and each with their own agendas represented on the Hunter's Council. It makes an interesting contrast with Stirland's mundane and bottom of the barrel forces under a relatively highly centralized command structure (outside of one knightly order iirc).
It's also balanced by the fact that the most religous of Taalites are hampered by these strictures of Taal:

• Do not clad yourself in metal. Rather wear the hides of your animal kin.
• Take pride in your strength and natural skill. Avoid firearms and other works of science.

Obviously, not every part of the military follows these strictures because only priests are required to, but people like the Longshanks, Horned Hunters, Kin of Taal and Taal's Chosen would likely follow them. This limits thier power, but then again they usually fight in forested environments without proper line of sight for firearms and where mobility and agility is more important than charging onto an enemy mounted on a barded warhorse with heavy armor and lance.
What's the Wizard's Way?
Page 12 of Terror in Talabheim:

"The only legal way to enter into Talabheim is to take the Wizard's Way. As the Old Forest Road approaches the towering walls of the Taalbaston, it begins a winding path of switchbacks as it rises nearly two hundred feet up the side of the crater wall. The road is wide enough to allow several wagons side-by-side to traverse its length without impediment. The road is extremely busy during the day, and the lines grow long as the guards check each and every person's pass to enter the city. At the top of the road sits a massive fortress that casts long shadows onto the shanties below it."

The next page describes the High Watch which is the gate and guards:

"Known as High Watch, it is the first and best defence of the city. The gates are kept open except during times of crisis—High Watch has four separate black-iron portcullises, well greased and connected to a series of levers that can release the gates to slam shut with a single command. The walls and ceiling inside this tunnel are lined with murder holes, offering a great field of view for crossbowmen and soldiers to dump boiling oil in case an army actually makes it that far. The tunnel extends nearly 200 feet through the black walls of the Taalbaston and is illuminated by massive torches every 10 feet and huge candelabras that dangle from the ceiling. Although street sweepers work to keep the tunnel clean, the stench from people and animals, especially in the summer, can be unbearable.

A special branch of the City Watch mans High Watch at all times. The Taalbaston Guard consider themselves the elite branch, though most have grown bored and complacent due to the droll nature of their job. To keep themselves entertained, the Taalbaston Guard are notorious for the intensity of their questioning and searches of travellers as they pass through the gates.

Assuming one possesses the correct paperwork to pass through High Watch, they find a breathtaking view before them—the entire city of Talabheim sprawls beneath their feet, and the interior of the Taalbaston stretches out to the horizon. The Wizard's Way then begins another series of switchbacks down into the Merchant's Run below."

BTW, while lots of organisations were mentioned in the update, there are two other organisations that weren't there because we clearly didn't contact or mobilise them. The City Militia, known as the "Drunken Gang", and the City Watch, known as the "Dog Faces".
Is this just a coincidence or are these secretly Talabheim's premier anti-Skaven force? I don't remember how prevalent the Skaven are in the area.
Terror in Talabheim is an adventure where the primary adversary are the Skaven, with a side villain being Doctor Gugula Skell, a physician who gained a morbid interest in the dead and was gifted the Liber Mortis by a Grey Seer, becoming a Necromancer and using it to create "wonderful pieces of art" in the form of artfully crafted undead. It's a fun book.

But yes, each of the Empire's major cities has a significant Skaven presence. That's just their nature. The Skaven particularly love hiding in the hundreds of little holes scattered across the Taalbaston. The crater of Talabheim is specified as 40 miles wide in 4th Edition WFRP, and the Taalbaston's walls are pretty tall. Can't remember the number off the top of my head. Suffice to say there's plenty of places to hide and they have a presence.
Don't the Amethysts communicate telepathically among each other a lot?
I think I was the one to post this in thread? I also know that Torroar had that as part of his quest with the creepy twins not wanting to speak with their voices ever since they learnt telepathy.

Anyways, this is a thing that is only mentioned in a lore blurb in the Lore of Death section on page 41 of the Storm of Magic supplement for 8th Edition. I can't remember any other instance of the telepathy being a thing, but yes the blurb says that Amethysts rarely use their voice because they prefer to communicate telepathically. What are the limitations? Absolutely no idea. Very little is said about it. It's a casual one off line.

If Boney decides to play with it, he'll have to decide the parameters.
 
(is there a term for someone who thinks gender is a weird concept that has no relevance to them? Ace is something a little different)
Depends on the person. Some people prefer not labelling themselves or don't even care to do so. Other people feel that different words might fit towards them, like Agender as in not having a gender. Some might consider other labels like Genderfluid (a specific subset because the term is very broad), genderqueer or perhaps something else. The short term is nonbinary, because you don't conform to the binary. Gender expression is complicated.
I guess Tzeetch is the god of transitioning (I think once you have, they're not all that interested in you anymore)
I object to this on the principle that the whole point of certain forms of genderfluidity is that you shift gender expression. Change is a constant aspect. I realised I wasn't fully genderfluid when I stuck to my female presentation far longer than my male presentation and realised I preferred that, but beforehand I was pretty change-y.
 
You know thinking about it, that is another reason to go with the captain, if we take either of the other options Regimand could end up alone against mister Super Mutant McSwoleArm which could get him killed. I would rather risk the life of random nobles than his. Mathilde would not be in a good way if her call ends up leading to her surrogate father's death
I think your giving best dad to little credit. He's very good at fighting, and even more important, he knows when to fucking book it. He can probably stall with the best of them.
 
I think your giving best dad to little credit. He's very good at fighting,and even more important, he knows when to fucking book it. He can probably stall with the best of them.

I think i am giving him plenty of credit. I am not saying he will die, just that he could and the life of Random Noble No. 6 is not worth tacking that chance to me. I would rather risk them over Regimand
 
Thanks. I'm just worried that his Shadowsteed is slower than our Shadowsteed.
I think Shadowsteed speed is constant. Mathilde's mastery means she can ride at max speed without getting tired, which makes her faster at longer distances, but I think in this case it won't matter much - although I suppose Regminad won't be as fresh as Mathilde when it's time to fight.

Not sure about any of this, though. I'm pretty sure there's a WoG on Shadowsteed speeds of different casters, if someones feels like searching for it.
EDIT: nope, I was wrong, Mathilde is faster:
Shadowsteed: 15 MPH for 6 hours/day. 90 miles/day.
Mathilde's Shadowsteed: 25 MPH for 10 hours/day. 250 miles/day.
 
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"The only legal way to enter into Talabheim is to take the Wizard's Way.
I assume the reason for the name is not in those books? I just was surprised by an important Empire road holding that name.

I think I was the one to post this in thread? I also know that Torroar had that as part of his quest with the creepy twins not wanting to speak with their voices ever since they learnt telepathy.

Anyways, this is a thing that is only mentioned in a lore blurb in the Lore of Death section on page 41 of the Storm of Magic supplement for 8th Edition. I can't remember any other instance of the telepathy being a thing, but yes the blurb says that Amethysts rarely use their voice because they prefer to communicate telepathically. What are the limitations? Absolutely no idea. Very little is said about it. It's a casual one off line.

If Boney decides to play with it, he'll have to decide the parameters.
I know that Oksbad's WHF/Harry Potter crossover has it as a major characteristic of the Amethysts.
 
I think Shadowsteed speed is constant. Mathilde's mastery means she can ride at max speed without getting tired, which makes her faster at longer distances, but I think in this case it won't matter much - although I suppose Regminad won't be as fresh as Mathilde when it's time to fight.

Not sure about any of this, though. I'm pretty sure there's a WoG on Shadowsteed speeds of different casters, if someones feels like searching for it.
WoQM for FAQs has it:
Travel Ranges
Human: 3 MPH for 6 hours/day. 18 miles/day.
Dwarf: 3 MPH for 10 hours/day. 30 miles/day.
Heavy Cavalry: 4 MPH for 8 hours/day. 32 miles/day.
Light Cavalry: 5 MPH for 8 hours/day. 40 miles/day.
Steam-Wagon: 4MPH for 10 hours/day. 40 miles/day.
Steppe Horse: 6 MPH for 10 hours/day. 60 miles/day.
Steppe Horse w/ remounts: 8 MPH for 10 hours/day. 80 miles/day.
Bretonnian Horse: 8 MPH for 10 hours/day. 80 miles/day.
Demigryphs: 10 MPH for 8 hours/day. 80 miles/day.
Winter Wolves: 5 MPH for 16 hours/day. 80 miles/day.
Shadowsteed: 15 MPH for 6 hours/day. 90 miles/day.
Mammoth: 6 MPH for 20 hours/day. 120 miles/day.
Mathilde's Shadowsteed: 25 MPH for 10 hours/day. 250 miles/day.
Our Shadowsteed is 10 miles per hour faster than the average Shadowsteed.
I assume the reason for the name is not in those books? I just was surprised by an important Empire road holding that name.
I don't think so. At least not that I remember or can tell from checking. Taal doesn't have as much of a problem with Wizards as Sigmar and even Ulric and it's possible Ghur Shamans and Ghyran Druids were a part of initial Taalite circles, but they weren't exactly Wizards back then. I do know this:

"Taalagad's main thoroughfare, referred to by residents as the Wizard's Road, winds through the city's centre before joining with the Wizard's Way as it zigzags up the crater wall. The Wizard's Crossing, an old stone bridge spanning the Talabec along the road's course, offers a quick way for merchants and residents to traverse the river—so long as they can afford the toll." Page 30 of Terror in Talabheim
 
- Regimand will be with Mathilde if 'Longshanks' or 'Hunter Lord' is chosen, and covering the opposite possibility if 'Tunnel Brigade'/'Horned Hunters' or 'Bad Dankerode'/'Hunting Cabin' is chosen.
We could send Regimand into the tunnel if Mathilde is staying in the command centre.

[X] With the Tunnel Brigade

[X] Mathilde with the Hunter Lord, Regimand with the Tunnel Brigade
 
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Our Shadowsteed is 10 miles per hour faster than the average Shadowsteed.
Yeah, I found it after I posted and edited it in.

So, to those voting Hunter Lord because Mathilde is fast, I think either Mathilde and Regimand are going to go at Regimand's speed (60% of Mathilde's top speed), or Mathilde will go on her own and Regimand will catch up. Pretty big strike against that option, if true.

[X] With the Hunter Lord
-[X] Regimand with the Tunnel Brigade
This seems like a reasonable alternative. But if Alberich isn't going by tunnel, we'll have to face him alone.
 
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We could send Regimand into the tunnel if Mathilde is staying in the command centre.
Why would we send dad to do tunnel fighting? That's not his specialty at all at ours.

I don't agree with the worry about him dying if he covers the other target but I do think it's very silly to send him into a specialism which he's not familiar with while we hang back as reinforcements.
 
Yeah, I found it after I posted and edited it in.

So, to those voting Hunter Lord because Mathilde is fast, I think either Mathilde and Regimand are going to go at Regimand's speed (60% of Mathilde's top speed), or Mathilde will go on her own and Regimand will catch up. Pretty big strike against that option, if true.

Even if that was a flat 40% less chance to catch Alberich (which I do not think it is) i would call that a reasonable trade off. Keep in mind even if he manages to kill this one he will have to then kill a seventh noble 3 weeks after this and then an unknown eight victim 4 weeks after that. At the end of the day we are not here to guarantee than this particular sacrifice does not go through, we are here to kill the mutant and not get killed in the process and for that I would rather stick with Regimand as much as I would want him in the company of Mathilde and her sword.
 
@Rafin @Codex found the source for amethyst telepathy:
The suspicious dread is only fuelled by the silent and sombre nature of Amethyst Wizards, who prefer to communicate with one another through means of telepathy, rather than speech, and whose little-used voices therefore have the dusty tones more suited to the long dead rather than the living.

This from whfb wiki on amethyst order, citing Storm of Magic p 41 as source. Can't check it right now, if needed can do so in ~3 hours
 
Regimand is an incredibly mobile Wizard. He fought a Tzaangor across the Middle Mountains from Hovelhof to Mierarch. For those who don't know, that's from western Hochland to southwest Ostland. Across hundreds of miles. His specialty lies in areas that allow for that high mobility. I also imagine he figured out a way to fight that Tzaangor across the span of those miles while maintaining speed.

Relevant Maps to illustrate the distance Regimand covered:
The guy warned us not to chaincast and yet he learnt and trained himself on chaincasting Smoke and Mirrors and weaving Skywalk to travel across the air like he's doing a glitchy speedrun of an Elder Scrolls game.
@Rafin @Codex found the source for amethyst telepathy:


This from whfb wiki on amethyst order, citing Storm of Magic p 41 as source. Can't check it right now, if needed can do so in ~3 hours
I already checked that source and it does exist:
Anyways, this is a thing that is only mentioned in a lore blurb in the Lore of Death section on page 41 of the Storm of Magic supplement for 8th Edition.
Don't worry about checking.
 
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Rolling for information uncovered by Research: Alberich's form.
May I ask what prompted you to use an in thread d6 for this particular roll? The previous research-style investigation actions didn't have them and generally you have erred on the side of not showing diplomacy related rolls ever since the Karag Dum recruitments iirc, with the exception of Regimand's +100 of course.
 
May I ask what prompted you to use an in thread d6 for this particular roll? The previous research-style investigation actions didn't have them and generally you have erred on the side of not showing diplomacy related rolls ever since the Karag Dum recruitments iirc, with the exception of Regimand's +100 of course.

I think a 1 on that roll might have been dramatic given that we have the trait Disdain for Sigmar.
 
I don't think the roll was diplomatic. It might have been what the Templars had on him. A 6 gave us a captured accomplice who saw the whole thing with Windsight. A 1 could have given us practically nothing because the Templars had nothing aside from the sigils and stuff.
 
I object to this on the principle that the whole point of certain forms of genderfluidity is that you shift gender expression. Change is a constant aspect. I realised I wasn't fully genderfluid when I stuck to my female presentation far longer than my male presentation and realised I preferred that, but beforehand I was pretty change-y.
Fair, if you're constantly shifting, then Tzeetch approves.
 
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