The decision is fairly straightforward: the Tzar has a distrust of magical women and the Ice Witches aren't especially mobile (except for Ljiljana, but her transformation into what she calls a 'Morozvolich' is likely to spook the horses of the Ungols), so it makes the most sense for them to work with the forest rotas - and with Boris, which Nadezhda seems nervously enthusiastic about.
I like Boney's tendency to translate the vote into an internal narrative. The decision is fairly straightforward because the vote that won did so handily, so it seemed to be pretty straightforward. Mathilde even uses the thread's reasoning, with Boney masterfully weaving it into her thoughts. It's always great how in-tune Boney is with the thread.
Also, I had the worst time trying to figure out what Morozvolich means. It doesn't turn up results, so I had to fragment it and then I found out that Moroz is Slovak for Frost, and since I can't find Volich I just assume Volich means Fiend to refer to Frostfiends.
Also, I'm happy for Nadezhda. Her nervous enthusiasm is very endearing. It makes you want to root for her.
You want to leave at least one Wizard with the main body of the force and close to leadership, and if the Tzar has a problem with magic-using women, then he should find Johann refreshingly masculine
I don't know what it is about the phrasing, but the Tzar finding Johann "refreshingly masculine" sounds kinda homoerotic
- plus Johann would have trouble being an effective scout, and honestly his blindness is far from the biggest issue. More prominent than that is how very visible he fundamentally is. From the soul up he has been shaped by his desire to be seen, and everything he is rejects the entire concept of stealth.
This is a very interesting observation. It's something that I might have had rolling around in my mind, because it made a lot of sense to me immediately. A lot of Johann's motivation seemed to have been the result of a desire for others to witness him and see his true value, and his Gilding process could very well be seen as him making himself into an ideal form that could not be ignored.
It's a good thing that he has people who recognise his value and worth now, because if he wants to be seen, then I can guarantee that that goal has been satisfied.
For that reason, you find yourself among the krugs: the mostly Ungol nomadic communities of Kislev's oblasts. They do not maintain a distinct force that is sent off to battle as needed, as instead they go to war in almost their entirety, leaving only their oldest and youngest behind to watch over their herds. This far south the krugs speak a dialect of Gospodarinyi with only light influences from the Ungol tongue, so you're able to use your smattering of the language to find an ataman who knows fairly good Reikspiel, probably because of smuggling. There would be a fair bit of profit to be made in taking goods overland between the upper Talabec and Kislev City, and no exciseman would have a chance of successfully intercepting a krug on their own oblast. Though you haven't made as much of an impression as Johann, your proven ability to summon an inexhaustible horse from thin air means you have no need to prove yourself, and no objection is made as you attach yourself to the scouts that will be penetrating deepest into the forest.
This is some incredibly neat worldbuilding. Boney's worldbuilding style has been elaborated on before, but he operates in a "logic chain" kind of way, where he always expands on existing things by working his way down from known facts into the logcial conclusions that come from it. What language do the Ungols speak? This far south they would speak Gospodarinyi. How do they profit? Smuggling because of their proximity to the border and their speed. Logically, if they're smuggling to Imperials, then someone has to know Reikspiel for communication. How would the Ungols react to Mathilde? She's useful and can summon a shadow horse that doesn't get tired, moves fast and ingores terrain. They'd respect her.
In a shadowed copse, a spirit of spite and malice thinks and plots. It is far from the forests it knows, so it knows not what to expect of these manlings that are to be its prey. Are they Elf-puppets who have their weakest forces on foot and their elites on horseback and encased in metal? Or are they Dwarf-puppets who fight mostly on foot with the steel and gunpowder of their masters?
Thanks to
@Alliterate I now understand that apparently Drycha classifies humans under two categories. Bretonnians (Elf Puppets) and Imperials (Dwarf Puppets), and she doesn't know about Kislev to any sort of significant extent. That sort of makes sense. Drycha doesn't usually go this far north and there aren't too many forests here, and it seems like this forest is actively rejecting her.
Information from scouting flows in, and only compounds the confusion as it tries to make sense of it all. The Household was finally responding to the torment of their southern neighbour, and they creep down the riverside path with axe and bow, tearing at the trees as they go. The axe is to be expected of those that dare harvest the forest, but the bow suggests these are Elf-puppets. But the scouts say that the few horses they ride are bare. So perhaps these are Dwarf-puppets? But the scouts see no sign of Dwarf-weapons, nor any sniff of the unnatural powders that fuel them. Doubt rises, but is brushed aside by impatience. Of course these manlings are ill-equipped, they are the Glade Guard of a single House. Does it matter whether they are particularly weak Elf-puppets or particularly weak Dwarf-puppets? They will feed the forest all the same.
This is practically a comedy of errors. She really messed up on the intrigue here with the lack of prep. She's coming to all the wrong conclusions because of bad info. As K8P has shown us, information warfare is deeply valuable. Cutting off Mors' info network allowed us to completely dismantle them. In this case, Drycha jumped into a disadvantageous situation because she was misinformed.
Finally the last piece of the puzzle falls into place as the one who must be the local Highborn is identified by the armoured troops that surround it. The whiff of alien magic about its spear confirms it: this could only be the augured target of the hunt, the bearer of two intermingled royal bloodlines: one of the northern snow, one of the southern sands. A grin forms as forces begin to rally. Though the trees of this strange place are too deadened by the local magics to call for vengeance, they will still have it, and then one more tool of deliverance will be at hand.
We've discussed this at length from the little snippet we got. Snow and Sands seems to indicate Nehekharan+Gospodar heritage. The implication seems to be that the Boyar is the one with mixed heritage, but maybe Boris also has it. It depends on whether Pavel really was Kattarin's son.
Also on the topic of the forest. Drycha says that "the trees of this strange place are too deadened by the local magics to call for vengeance". Considering later on the Forest actiely resists Drycha's attempts at stealth, I think it's more than just local magics. I have a theory which I will expound upon later.
Most Wizards would have overlooked the first signs of trouble, but most Wizards had not spent months in the heart of Laurelorn. When the first of the tiny nature-spirits began to hover through the branches, you pointed out the soft glow and told the ataman that it was a spy for the enemy. She does not hesitate,
By the way
@Boney should it be Atamanka here? As far as I know Ataman refers to men, and this chief seems to be a woman.
Most Wizards would have overlooked the first signs of trouble, but most Wizards had not spent months in the heart of Laurelorn. When the first of the tiny nature-spirits began to hover through the branches, you pointed out the soft glow and told the ataman that it was a spy for the enemy. She does not hesitate, and a few murmured orders has the entire band draw bow and arrow from the holster and quiver on opposite hips, and a moment later a sheaf of arrows are sent whistling through the air to rattle through the boughs nearest to the spite. You cautiously advance and inspect the site, and from the bloom of scattered energies you're sure the spirit was at least injured by an arrow, if not entirely decorporealized. Messengers are sent off to warn the other scouts of what to look for as you consider the matter. If the enemy had used any kind of more traditional scouts, you'd be tempted to try to sneak up on one and incapacitate them for interrogation. But spites? Laurelorn only trusted spites because they were bound by the magics of the Grey Lords. The only beings that would trust the scouting of an untamed spite would be other forest spirits.
I'm certain that Boney actively researched horse archers and their methods. Firing from the hip, probably so they could quick draw without hesitation or their aim fluctuating. Kind of sounds like gunslingers.
Also, I find this part excellent because it presents both Mathilde and the Kislevites as competent. Mathilde's personal experience allows her to spot something that the Kislevites could not, which is the turning point that leads to the Kislevites being successful in destroying enemy scouts. The Kislevites prove their competence with an extraordinary performance in destroying all of the scouts. In the end, it turns out with both Mathilde and the Kislevites being done justice without presenting the Spirits as incompetent. I'm pretty sure the spirits didn't expect to be spotted. Mathilde's inclusion was important here. It's rewarding us for a good choice and a good roll.
Word reaches you throughout the day of a number of similar encounters, both from the krugs and from the Kreml Guard. All of them end similarly: with the spirit watchers being chased off by the expert aim of Ungol warriors. You wonder if that would dissuade the enemy, but you suppose by Asrai standards their aim would be rather mediocre. In any case, you're not just preventing proper scouting but also bleeding the enemy of scouts they can't replace, as Loren Arhain is no friend to Athel Loren.
You're just starting to wonder where that thought came from when the horns begin to blow.
And here it is. Something snuck into Mathilde's brain, again. Mathilde is starting to collect a veritable harem of gods and supernatural influences probing her mind. They need to learn that Mathilde is spoken for.
Arhain is the Eltharin word for Shadows/Stealth/Perfidousness etc. It clearly refers to the Forest of Shadows, except it's in Eltharin. The first thought is of course, the patron goddess of the Forest of Shadows, Haletha. The intriguing question however, is why the inserted thought was in Eltharin. Is it perhaps true that Ranald/Shallya are also Elven Gods and that poured over into their child if Haletha is truly the child here? Or is it some Elven God/dess that isn't Haletha that's also in this forest? There was a Cult of Styriss in Ostermark relatively recently that worshipped Anath Raema, but I somehow doubt Anath Raema would be fighting back against Drycha.
It's still a mystery, but by god is Mathilde's soul being ping ponged across the board between gods. Give her a break guys. It's barely been a week since the last time.
You're just starting to wonder where that thought came from when the horns begin to blow. You and the krug turn, and the Ungols quickly fall behind as the Shadowsteed easily outstrips the cautious trot of horses who need to be careful of their footing. As the trees thin out and eventually give way entirely to a field of felled trunks, you catch sight of the enemy immediately: a disorderly mob of vaguely humanoid beings of thorns and twisted wood, glowing with lilac energies, entangled in a melee with the Kislevite woodsmen. From what you can see their numbers are about even, and axe seems to bite into wood just as easily and often as talons do into flesh. Neither side shows any sign of being dissuaded, one as outraged by the felling of trees as the other is by enemies on their soil. In amongst them is Milica, a sword of ice in one hand and a swarm of frozen shards being fired from the other. By the river a knot of resistance has formed with the Kreml Guard split in half, one hacking at any of the Dryads that get near with their own axes and the other firing volley after volley into the river, which has been frozen solid with still more of the Dryads encased within, making easy targets. As you take in the battlefield with experienced eyes, you spot several problems.
This is a pretty vivid field of battle. Kudos to Boney for making an interesting and flavorful battlefield split into multiple sections while remaining organic.
In the river, one much larger being has torn itself loose of the ice and advances at a slow but unstoppable pace towards the Tsarevich: an entire ambulatory tree, perhaps thirty feet tall or more, with a rainbow of glowing spites warring with its lilac inner glow. Ljiljana stands among the Kreml Guard staring it down, and the energies of winter are beginning to grow within her.
Treemen are pretty big deals, and this one seems to have a wide variety of spites within them. Ljiljana is pretty tough tough, so perhaps she can provide an even match, even if she can't summon a Bearicane this time.
You catch a glimpse of Boris himself among the Kreml Guard, and to your surprise he's not in the thick of battle, instead staring upward with spear in hand and a look of concentration on his face. You follow his gaze and see why: overhead is the hovering form of a Manticore, Chaos' mockery of the noble Griffon. It seems to be returning Boris' gaze, and seems about to swoop. Nadezhda is by his side, but her attention is on keeping the river in winter's grip, and may be unable to help.
I have no idea where this came from. I suppose the spectators decided to pitch in with something of their own? Or maybe the beast just sensed prey to be hunted. There is a possibility it's been glamored by Drycha but there are no visible signs of that.
Also, I kind of like how Mathilde's inner monologue calls the Manticore "Chaos' mockery of the noble Griffon". One, because it shows Mathilde's nationalism because the Griffon is pretty important to the Empire. And two, because Griffons are a stable mutation made by Chaos very long ago. The only reason Manticores are a mockery is because they're still influenced by Chaos.
On the path, a trio of the Dryads have not charged with their fellows, and Ghyran flows through them as they attempt to bend the forest to their will. When the scouts begin to return those three could prove easy prey for them, but to those without Windsight, they might seem a much lesser priority than the Dryads currently engaged - and if left unopposed, they could turn the tide of battle. Milica is closest to them, but is currently engaged with the Dryads in melee.
Three Branchwraiths is a pretty big deal in a forest. One would be dangerous, three can be devastating. They need to be dealt with ASAP.
And above the din of battle and the whirling of magics and emotions, there are two undertones that are equally easy and impossible to ignore: the faint but growing sound of approaching horns from the rest of the Kislevite forces, and the dissonant note in the native energies of the forest. There is a wisp of Ulgu here that is very much not of the namesake of the forest, and the forest is resisting all attempts of it to blend in to its shadows, giving you tiny glimpses of it out of the corner of your soul. Somewhere out there, the source of today's violence is watching.
Can I just say that I absolutely love the sound metaphor here? The din of battle disrupted by two undertones, the sound of horns and the dissonant note representing Drycha. It's a great metaphor. Battlefields are loud, and Mathilde has demonstrated some degree of synasthesia before, so perhaps she's seeing sounds at this moment.
Also, I think it's excellent that the forest is actively fighting Drycha. If the forest was obeying her, we would have been in a shit ton of trouble. I cannot stress how dangerous Drycha could have been if things were to her advantage. It seems like the situation conspired to make itself the best for us to deal with. Otherwise we wouldn't have even detected her. Drycha is very skilled with Ulgu.
There is only one of you, and there are several places where you might make all the difference. Where will you lend your assistance?
[ ] Treeman
Face down the approaching Treeman with Ljiljana.
[ ] Manticore
Engage the swooping Manticore with Boris.
[ ] Spellcasters
Disrupt the trio of Dryad spellcasters before they can force the local trees to aid them.
[ ] Leader
Seek and engage the hidden watcher.
[ ] Reinforcements
Leave the battle to reach the approaching reinforcements, and use Rite of Way to speed their vanguard.
[ ] Other (write in)
This is conflicting. The spellcasters can be very dangerous. The forest is actively fighting them, but three of them can force the trees to help and that can turn the tides of battle. It's understandable why people want to attack the Treeman. He's vulnerable to fire so Flask can cause a lot of damage. On the other hand, I have faith in Liljiana dealing with the Treeman. I think Boris can handle a Manticore, but I'm pretty worried about him and want to keep him safe.
I will not vote for Leader. Even discounting Metagaming, I genuinely don't see how Mathilde can think that it's a good idea to engage with the mastermind without anyone at her back. This is a battle between armies, not a duel between champions. Taking out the leader might be a good call, but safety in numbers and all that.
