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"So," you say to the trio of your fellow Wizards. "I take it you all picked up on what Lecturer Sarvoi mentioned?"
Thanks for the great update!

Oh boy, arguments where there are only 2 logical options are already heated. Can't imagine what will it be when you add something people actually like.

By my own OOC logic, I would vote Cult of Verena.

If I add a bit of feelings into it - then certainly We. Telepathic spider-librarians are just too good to pass up.

If I use my vision of Mathilde's IC - Orphans it is. They are loyal (which in my own opinion is very important quality by Grey wizard standart.). And they are certainly will remind Mathilde of her own past.

And there is Cython, who get my squeels of admiration for argument.

Guess I'll support Cython->We->Orphans->Cult votes in that order.
Let's start with
[X] Cython
And I will change it or approval vote, depending on situation.
 
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I wasn't suggesting that Mathilde wouldn't want to normalize the We - I was suggesting the We might not want to integarte into a society that's radically different from their own. Yes, they've expressed interest in other civilizations, that doesn't that they want to completely abandon their way of life in favour of doing something that our society thinks of as 'better'.

Since the We is a voting option I don't actually think Boney is going to turn around and say "no actually the We don't want to go back to the vote", but I'm not getting the warm fuzzies that others seem to get from this option.

The original We is going to keep doing their thing, the option is for a splinter We that will develop independently. Sort of like a beehive swarming.
 
[X] Cython

Pretty much the only way we are getting an emperor Dragon to talk to us about the Project IMO, he needs a reason to stay awake. This is I will note a being personally older than the races of men elves and dwarfs, he might have met an Old One

[X] The We

This on the other hand is just a cool concept and way of integrating the newest civilized race into the world as more than silk producers and hunters.
 
Technically speaking, nothing's stopping her. Practically speaking, a human-sized Orb would be such ludicrous overkill there wouldn't be a whole lot the Empire could possibly construct that would be able to make use of it. You'd essentially be making a wind-based nuclear explosive and asking people if they have anything that needs powering with the sun.
Could also be kept in reserve as doomsday weapons. If Nagash re emerges or something like that.
 
Preferred:
[x] Locals

Approval:
[x] Runescribes Guild
[x] Halflings
[x] Orphans

Depending on how the vote goes I could end up approval voting anything that has a chance of beating Cython/the we.
 
If nothing else, it'd be good to normalize the We.

Both in how people in general see them, and getting people to see them for things other than spinning gold and eating orcs.

[x] Locals
[x] The We
 
@Boney, does this means "spend CF to buy 8 power stones, turn them into Orbs of Sorcery and smugly give them to each college with no explanation as to our methods" is a possible action?
If so, I love it so much and want to do it next turn.

Also, so many of the library options are excellent. Orphans? Dwarves ? Locals ? Making us choose between the We and Cython ?!?
So evil. Hard to decide...
(Matheld)
Buys 8 power stones
Gives them 8 OoS
Refuses to elaborate
Leaves
 
A moment of divided loyalties here.
Orbs of Sorcery are a Big Deal. When we reveal this to the Colleges the snake box is going to become an item of Strategic Importance. While Mathilde will be compensated handsomely for handing it over, she is going to hand it over.
Which means that to continue unravelling this mystery we need to deliberately deprive the Empire of a very potent tool.
Why? Behind defenses that are built for a Dwarven Superweapon is a good place to store it.

Of course they'll want Orbs. Which they'll get for $insert_favor_here.
 
[ ] Cult of Verena
Will ensure the goodwill of the wider Cult, and will make a Library dedicated to sharing truth and knowledge.
[ ] Runescribes Guild
Guarantees the proper organization and maintenance of the Library.

Probably my preferred options here. The Cult's priorities are almost exactly aligned to what we want, and the Dwarves are always a safe option for keeping everything in working order, so our carefully cultivated usability doesn't start to slip.

[ ] Halflings
Will be reliable, trustworthy, hardworking, and relatively incorruptible.

Also possible. No real demerit against them, other than the probably increased training time, since it doesn't sound like there is a pool of experienced librarians on tap.


God I do want this, but I think they are just too young in this Civilization thing. This is noted to take a lot of time for training, and I do not want to sacrifice that much AP at this point in Mathilde's life.
 
[X] Locals

My favorite option, Dragons are great and spiders are cool but I think this is the best for a popular library rather than a great one.
Also the locals live in a Karak, they understand and respect loyalty, even if not to Mathilde personally, but we have no need fot that in the library.

[] The We
Going to approve spiders. Really like them as eternal, efficient guardians. Though I dislike how it will take time for the commom person to get used to them. A library in which you read while nervous is not a good one.
 
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The one other thing here that this update brings up.

Data points
The Dwarven Runesmiths know of it, and Runelore makes containing it safely trivial.
Laurelorn likely has a source of it (Font of magic far south of the poles, special crafters who obey guidelines that sound suspiciously like an amped up version of the human precautions for safe handling around it.)
Aetheric Vitae is a means of creating Orbs of Sorcery out of power stones.

Inference:
Teclis, and therefore Saphery/Ulthuan may have access to Aetheric Vitae. With this turn result, it's now the simplest explanation for the ability to produce them that isn't just "Wizarding Good."

---------------

Related Question, on how Ulthuan may have got Waystones:
We know that waystones can create Dhar during operation. Can they create other, purer, combinations besides? (I admit this is a long shot, but it may be worth investigating if the vitae can replace the role of Dhar in a waystone style magic transmission to infer the possibility.)

Other prospects:
Laurelorn is in an area where the aether is brought close to reality by the soul of a forest.
If what we recently learned about Athel Loren is any indication and the Forest of Shadows are any indication, the presence of a lot of ley lines in the area may bolster the forest-soul.

Question:
Would any area with a strong Genius Loci, and strong flow of magic, thus also be able to support fonts of Vitae? (such as the Forest of Shadows, if it got had access to more magic restored)

Hmmm... Honestly, I wonder if there might be a process like "Bring ley line close to an area strongly dominated by a god or world-soul, use said influence to shunt into the aether sending any more on wards to the vortex, bring the aether close to reality as a result, harvest profits in the form of AV." Kislev thusly wouldn't have noticed because they would have the "problem" that any font they had made accidentally would be in the influence of their patron goddess, and thus sublimate.

Any power stone or Orb of Sorcery has two main effects: they can be made to release the power that was trapped in them and thus are consumed to power a single spell, which would probably be a bad idea for an Orb, or they can be used for their constant effect of making reality around them a little less real and a little more attuned to the Wind in question, making it so that any enchantment that incorporates a power stone or Orb of Sorcery can do more with the same amount of magic than if they didn't.
And this, right here, is why I'm wondering if we'll hit a snag in the operation.

Three possibilities: Do the power stones cut off the reaction before hitting the size of an Orb of Sorcery, are they not limited at that point, or is the size of Orb of sorcery itself defined by being the point where the reaction is no longer possible?

... Yeah no we absolutely have to wheel a cart into Algard's office only to dramatically lift the tarp off and say "GOOD NEWS".

Then we can bring them in for further creation as our supply of Vitae allows.

(Though I'd like to keep some for AV enchantment, still.)
...Can I recommend we do this in the exact same turn we publish the Preliminary Paper on Aetheric Vitae?

Upside: We may be able to reprise the role of bringing out a ton of useful stuff all at once, with the inherent question answered with the cherry on top.
Downside: We may end up getting Demon Checked again.
 
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