I think this is solid. However, I do still believe that this is not using Max well. I would prefer this:
-[ ] MAX: Bring him into the classified study on Warptech and have him assist Johann with the Ratling Gun.
Max is not a trained codebreaker. Max is a trained smith and engineer with Patient and Law of Logic. If Johann's worked himself into a corner, Max is probably the best-qualified person to help him out. Given that Gotri is a Radical who is introducing new weaponry left and right, how much do you think he'd love a reverse-engineered Ratling Gun that doesn't use warptech?
I want a major focus on the codebreaking, and its all hands on deck. Max is Patient and high in the relevant stats. He'll be fine enough for statistical analysis, even if he's not an experienced linguist, I think the synergy effect of like 4-5 actions interlocking supporting each other should overcome any difficulties.
I'm not sure any kind of diplomatic solution will be acceptable to the dwarfs and the dragon; the dwarfs will consider the dragon's goods (and home) stolen property, and the only non-grudging solution is full recompense, which I doubt in the extreme persuading any dragon to take.
I think this is th kind of stuff Mathilde would know more about IC, @BoneyM, what are Mathilde's thoughts on the acceptability of dragon diplomacy to the dwarfs?
Would support a plan with going on one of the skaven raids. Probably one of the empire ones people. I know we are in actions hell already but its only for this turn i think and i would be interested in seeing what happens and it should generate favors.
Yeah contacting asarnil about the ice dragon seems wise . Altough it would be cool to loot the dragon after we try to one shot it probably with some insane poison i think.
Random thought , giving the mountain to him if he or she returns any of the dwarf stuff and promise of assitance if attacked could be a interesting take to do and again probably would need asarnil for this. Cause eight peaks is way to massive for the dwarf population anyway and he could help with sacking other topside mountains . Especially trolls without having to pay asarnil.
We are literally the reason why the empire is poking skaven. And my hope is that the underholds we are attacking are from the traitor clans hopefully so it doesnt breach the conspiracy super much or gets abit handwaved away since they are pursuing the traitors for now.
The We are not in the lore, the WHF world is big and poorly mapped and full of undocumented gribblies, and the Karak hasn't been explored by Order humanoids in a thousand years. All kinds of things could have crept in. Stealthy bone-eaters seems a plausible guess to me, canon or not.
One possible solution to the dragon is to steal some of skyre's warpbombs and stage an attack on it to try and get them fighting; maybe if we set enough of the other mountain's occupants on it, it'll take off for greener pastures.
[ ] Plan Rats, Weapons, Papers
-[ ] The Gambler: specify an action this will apply to.
-[ ] MAX: Write a paper: The physiology and venom of the We. (FADED)
-[ ] JOHANN: Join him on raids into Clan Mors territory with the aim of finding written correspondence. (NEW)
-[ ] DUCK: Gretel's motivated by wealth. Take her on a raid against Clan Mors, looking for wealth and Queekish. (NEW-ish)
-[ ] Reach out to Roswita, and have the EIC start passing on tips about any tax evasion or other naughtiness by the EIC's rivals.
-[ ] Red Tower: build a tower that uses Aqshy to create mystical flames (and non-mystical light) to use the mountain at night.
-[ ] Supply a steady stream of Queekish documents for him to translate, and carefully check the results for consistency.
-[ ] [COIN] Branulhune's ability to disappear and reappear at a thought allows entirely new forms of combat. Try to create them.
-[ ] Attempt to learn a spell from scrolls (specify which, will be harder than studying it at the Grey College)
--[ ] Invisibility
-[ ] (Tower) Write a paper: The Black Orc Warboss' worship of Only Gork, and what you saw of the Rogue Idol ritual. (FADED)
-[ ] (Free) Add security measures to your Penthouse to prevent surreptitious entry. (NEW)
Max Doesn't really have much new to work on and Rattech isn't really his forte. We do a little raiding and looting with our boy Johann and our favorite duckling. Remove a few economic rivals by tattling on them. It lets the EIC expand faster.
The Red tower will let us fire at night and probably during overcast weather. Might not be useful in the rain, But I think its better than the Blue Tower.
Supplying a steady stream of documents to be translated. this will hopefully keep him occupied, while helping us build a lexicon. the Chaos Dwarf is too valuable to let him have right now, He might destroy it intentionally or accidentally.
Our Sword. We paid 25 favors for it. We should learn to use it properly.
Keeping Rats out of our home. is anyone really gonna argue with this one?
Don't really want to try any gambits, I'd rather be sure we succeed on the sword than lie to our Skaven.
[ ] JOHANN: Join him on raids into Clan Mors territory with the aim of finding written correspondence. (NEW)
[ ] DUCK: Gretel's motivated by wealth. Take her on a raid against Clan Mors, looking for wealth and Queekish. (NEW-ish)
Bullying Skaven and stealing their lunch money? Definitely want these, especially to gather more material for dealing with out new 'friend'.
[ ] Put policies in place that local news should be collected and sent to you (rumour mill).
Basically half the reason we decided to keep a hand on the EIC. I want the rumour mill, or alternatively the reach out to Julia option.
[ ] Red Tower: build a tower that uses Aqshy to create mystical flames (and non-mystical light) to use the mountain at night.
Eye of Sauron tower. A must pick.
Qrech: (NEW) (warning: though he has books to read, prolonged solitude and boredom may have negative effects on his sanity and cooperativeness)
[ ] Seek to build a stronger rapport with the Skaven, and see about supplying sources of mental stimulation that your company isn't the only thing keeping him sane.
[ ] Supply a steady stream of Queekish documents for him to translate, and carefully check the results for consistency.
[ ] Supply the book on Chaos Dwarf anatomy for him to translate, and use the translation to add what you can to a Queekish lexicon.
[ ] Though it's out of date and growing more so, try to extract whatever strategic information he might have.
[ ] Try to deepen your understanding of Skaven warfare.
A pretty strong hint that we should spend an action here. Interesting that the build Lexicon choice has been split into two choices here and no option for non-written language.
Maybe because we don't have Wolf upgraded we don't have the option?
[ ] Attempt to learn Battle Magic at the Grey College. (1 College Favour per attempt) (NEW)
Not something I actually want to do right now. But isn't it super cool that this is now an option.
[ ] Attempt to learn a spell from scrolls (specify which, will be harder than studying it at the Grey College)
We need to learn invisibility. Not much else to say here. Basically mandatory
[ ] You have set up a Shrine to Ranald. Expand it into a Temple to the Gambler - a gambling hall with clean cards, guaranteed unloaded dice, fresh sawdust in the fighting ring, and a lottery every Festag. Costs 100gc.
Nice to have but not a pressing priority.
[ ] Add security measures to your Penthouse to prevent surreptitious entry. (NEW)
Pretty desirable choice with Clan Eshin hanging around.
[ ] Wolf is fully grown and a Very Good Boy. Train him. (increases his intelligence, he may learn to speak Praestantia)
Best boy gets better. We can have him help us learn Queekish, or have him become a radio, or a library, or a priest, or train him to become a wizard and get a familiar of his own!
...OK maybe the last few aren't super realistic. Still we almost certainly need this at some point to help with out Skaven translations and the sooner the better. Also more time with Wolf.
[ ] Plan Radio Wolf
-[ ] MAX: Study an artefact: Skaven book on the Anatomy of Chaos Dwarves.
-[ ] JOHANN: Join him on raids into Clan Mors territory with the aim of finding written correspondence. (NEW)
-[ ] DUCK: Gretel's motivated by wealth. Take her on a raid against Clan Mors, looking for wealth and Queekish. (NEW-ish)
-[ ] Put policies in place that local news should be collected and sent to you (rumour mill).
-[ ] Attempt to learn a spell from scrolls (specify which, will be harder than studying it at the Grey College)
--[ ] Invisibility
-[ ] Red Tower: build a tower that uses Aqshy to create mystical flames (and non-mystical light) to use the mountain at night.
- [ ] Supply the book on Chaos Dwarf anatomy for him to translate, and use the translation to add what you can to a Queekish lexicon.
--[ ] Convince Qresh that the Underempire has no way of knowing he's even alive, and that he should prioritize the comfort with which he will live the rest of his life.
-[ ] Wolf is fully grown and a Very Good Boy. Train him. (increases his intelligence, he may learn to speak Praestantia)
-[ ]Serenity: Write a paper: Your personal understanding of countering Waaagh Magic. (FADING)
-[ ]Penthouse: Add security measures to your Penthouse to prevent surreptitious entry. (NEW)
-[ ] The Gambler: Wolf
@BoneyM If we use Have a tower built atop Karag Nar this turn, can it be used to build one of the Towers specified under our current task (like Blue Tower, Red Tower, or the anti-airborne tower)?
I think this is th kind of stuff Mathilde would know more about IC, @BoneyM, what are Mathilde's thoughts on the acceptability of dragon diplomacy to the dwarfs?
Dwarves live in mountains and love treasure. Dragons live in mountains and love treasure. There's only so many mountains and so much treasure to go around.
It's a long and ugly history, but the only saving grace is they tend to treat dragons as individuals rather than a polity, so if this dragon has no Grudges against it it might be possible to make it work.
Apparently Ice dragons are really lazy (wiki says sedate and slumbesome) and dragons have been known to sleep for centuries on end. Maybe we could be lucky and we could murder it in its sleep.
I'm not sure any kind of diplomatic solution will be acceptable to the dwarfs and the dragon; the dwarfs will consider the dragon's goods (and home) stolen property, and the only non-grudging solution is full recompense, which I doubt in the extreme persuading any dragon to take.
The dragon clearly moved here well after the fall of Karak Eight Peaks so shouldn't be grudged on that basis.
The dragon's hoard also seems likely to be akin to the Karag Nar hoard, looted from the surrounding area after the fall, as everything easily lootable for Karag Zilfin would have been taken by the skaven and orcs that occupied the place.
There's also the Empire's option, which is to assert that the dragon is merely looking after the state treasury.
As to the home, then letting out a peak to an ally is clearly something that the dwarves are willing to do. See Karag Nar. As trust improves the dragon may even appreciate sharing the peak, as it reduces the chance of thieves sneaking in and stealing its hoard while it sleeps.
A pretty strong hint that we should spend an action here. Interesting that the build Lexicon choice has been split into two choices here and no option for non-written language.
Maybe because we don't have Wolf upgraded we don't have the option?
@BoneyM If we use Have a tower built atop Karag Nar this turn, can it be used to build one of the Towers specified under our current task (like Blue Tower, Red Tower, or the anti-airborne tower)?
No, the Towers involved in the weapon are some high-power stuff and she needs to make sure they all play nice together, which takes time and attention.
Dwarves live in mountains and love treasure. Dragons live in mountains and love treasure. There's only so many mountains and so much treasure to go around.
It's a long and ugly history, but the only saving grace is they tend to treat dragons as individuals rather than a polity, so if this dragon has no Grudges against it it might be possible to make it work.
[ ] Plan Rats, Weapons, Papers
-[ ] The Gambler: specify an action this will apply to.
-[ ] MAX: Write a paper: The physiology and venom of the We. (FADED)
-[ ] JOHANN: Join him on raids into Clan Mors territory with the aim of finding written correspondence. (NEW)
-[ ] DUCK: Gretel's motivated by wealth. Take her on a raid against Clan Mors, looking for wealth and Queekish. (NEW-ish)
-[ ] Reach out to Roswita, and have the EIC start passing on tips about any tax evasion or other naughtiness by the EIC's rivals.
-[ ] Red Tower: build a tower that uses Aqshy to create mystical flames (and non-mystical light) to use the mountain at night.
-[ ] [COIN] Supply a steady stream of Queekish documents for him to translate, and carefully check the results for consistency.
-[ ] [COIN] Branulhune's ability to disappear and reappear at a thought allows entirely new forms of combat. Try to create them.
-[ ] Join the war between Stirland and the Strigoi in Hunger Woods.
-[ ] (Tower) Write a paper: The Black Orc Warboss' worship of Only Gork, and what you saw of the Rogue Idol ritual. (FADED)
-[ ] (Free) Add security measures to your Penthouse to prevent surreptitious entry. (NEW)
You have two things marked for the coin; only one action can get Coin benefit. But more importantly, you don't have us learning Invisibility, which is a must-do to avoid getting a penalty.
Did a bit of cursory searching, and some signs here are pointing to the Mourngul ; Wendigo themed wraith creature that lives in the coldest, highest, places and comes down to eat everything alive during snowstorms.
[ ] Plan Rats, Weapons, Papers
-[ ] The Gambler: specify an action this will apply to.
-[ ] MAX: Write a paper: The physiology and venom of the We. (FADED)
-[ ] JOHANN: Join him on raids into Clan Mors territory with the aim of finding written correspondence. (NEW)
-[ ] DUCK: Gretel's motivated by wealth. Take her on a raid against Clan Mors, looking for wealth and Queekish. (NEW-ish)
-[ ] Reach out to Roswita, and have the EIC start passing on tips about any tax evasion or other naughtiness by the EIC's rivals.
-[ ] Red Tower: build a tower that uses Aqshy to create mystical flames (and non-mystical light) to use the mountain at night.
-[ ] [COIN] Supply a steady stream of Queekish documents for him to translate, and carefully check the results for consistency.
-[ ] [COIN] Branulhune's ability to disappear and reappear at a thought allows entirely new forms of combat. Try to create them.
-[ ] Join the war between Stirland and the Strigoi in Hunger Woods.
-[ ] (Tower) Write a paper: The Black Orc Warboss' worship of Only Gork, and what you saw of the Rogue Idol ritual. (FADED)
-[ ] (Free) Add security measures to your Penthouse to prevent surreptitious entry. (NEW)
Max Doesn't really have much new to work on and Rattech isn't really his forte. We do a little raiding and looting with our boy Johann and our favorite duckling. Remove a few economic rivals by tattling on them. It lets the EIC expand faster.
The Red tower will let us fire at night and probably during overcast weather. Might not be useful in the rain, But I think its better than the Blue Tower.
Supplying a steady stream of documents to be translated. this will hopefully keep him occupied, while helping us build a lexicon. the Chaos Dwarf is too valuable to let him have right now, He might destroy it intentionally or accidentally.
Our Sword. We paid 25 favors for it. We should learn to use it properly.
Vamp hunting. we've spent so much time in Sylvania helping out, we may as well continue. We're experts at this point. not a firm choice though.
Keeping Rats out of our home. is anyone really gonna argue with this one?
Apparently Ice dragons are really lazy (wiki says sedate and slumbesome) and dragons have been known to sleep for centuries on end. Maybe we could be lucky and we could murder it in its sleep.
Quite frankly, killing an Emperor Dragon in its sleep is pretty damn unlikely, even with Moonlit Wit. They are that damn tough. Not to mention that as a likely extremely high level user of Hysh, it could have set up wards and alert spells around its resting place.
"This virulent plague causes the victim's bones to twist and warp, forcing them to grow in some places, and wither in others. Transmitted by air, this horror has wiped out entire communities, leaving malformed carcasses in its wake.[1a]"
1: Warhammer Fantasy RPG 2nd ED -- Tome of Corruption
Honestly, I wonder if we can't call The big-gun chap, you know, wizard lord who we met in the Zoo?
He:
- Can turn into a dragon
- Can help distract the Ice Dragon while we invisibly teleport around it and hit it with shadowknives (to reposition) and our sword of strength: yes
- Can have the favour repaid for a quick Gyrocopters flight and a dragon-brawl (i.e. a few days) with the eggs.
- We get dragonbone for our staff, and hopefully by that time we'll be able to stick powerstones into it for extra cool stuff.
I personally would go for the Skaven warfare on this turn and save the deceiver coin for next turn. Don't go for the language quite yet or use the coin to make him think we are getting ready for a move on the traitor clans and want to know how to hurt them more.
