Turn 6 - 2472.5
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With Schultz and Anton missing and the Marshal position still unfilled, the Council is barely worthy of the title, consisting of just you, Van Hal, Wilhelmina and Kasmir. Wilhelmina is unharmed and unbothered, but Kasmir's armour is dented and bloody, and his right arm is covered in bloody bandages and hanging limp from his body. "I'm sure you're all aware," Van Hal begins, "of the events that have led to this slightly earlier than usual meeting of the Council. Events may give a sense of urgency, but the Greatswords are sweeping the castle and will be for at least an hour yet, and all of the servants have been rounded up and are being watched. There is no reason for you all to be any less thorough than usual in your reports."
There's a moment of awkwardness about order again - the Marshal position is still unfilled and Anton isn't around to step in to fill the silence - before Wilhelmina volunteers herself. She consults some hastily-scrawled notes and begins speaking. "For the first time, the treasury has something worth guarding, other than Mathilde's weird metal crate. Without de Verezzo's expenditures or Schultz's building projects, we've been able to accumulate a fair bit of money." She slides a slip of paper across the table to Van Hal, presumably with an exact figure. He glances at it, and something almost like a smile reaches his face.
WEALTH OF STIRLAND: Poor.
INCOME OF STIRLAND: Mediocre.
TREASURY OF STIRLAND: Poor.
"Good. Use some of it to reinforce the archives - I want them built into and as protected as the treasury itself. Maybe you could use it as an entryway to the treasury proper, or... well, when Schultz returns he'll probably be able to make suggestions, and I'm sure he'd be delighted to be back working within the castle. Have a guard room put in too. And traps, maybe? No, I guess people will still need to come and go... unless there's some sort of lever mechanism that disables the traps, controlled from the guard room..." He stares into space thoughtfully for a while, then shakes himself from his reverie. "Kasmir?"
"I've been in regular contact with the Grand Theogonist," you bet he has, you think sourly, "and he's agreed to start dispatching Sigmarite acolytes that can act as chaplains for the military."
ARMY OF STIRLAND FAITH: Sigmarite Chaplains (in progress)
Van Hal opens his mouth to respond, then pauses, looking long and hard at the man. The moment stretches long enough that you and Wilhelmina exchange glances, and Kasmir begins to shift in his seat. You recognize the expression on Van Hal's face - that's the expression of his mind grinding through the facts, slowly but finely, achieving with concentration and patience what he can't with talent.
Then, as suddenly as it begun, it stops. "Acceptable. See to it they are integrated into the army. Keep them to a single regiment for now... yes, the Flensburg Swords." He turns to you. "The woman of the hour."
You take that as your cue. "The expansion of our information network has gone as well as can be expected," you say, consulting your notes. "Locally, the Wurtbad Watch will now be reporting anything unusual to me, and on top of that I now have informants in the bureaucracy of Munzhausen and Purgg." Reading along in your written report, Van Hal nods. "A second matter is my investigation into the weapons recovered from the Mound we assaulted. They're too volatile to be useful as weapons, though the enchantment woven into them has potential if reverse-engineered, though it will take time and funding.
"The third matter is, of course, my investigation into the castle staff. I identified an inconsistency in the background of one of them, and when pressed he attacked with unnatural speed. At least two others have revealed themselves in the aftermath, but we have yet to have the opportunity to reveal their nature or objective." You hesitate for a moment, and then press on with what you had decided you were going to say. "I would have appreciated Brother Kasmir's assistance in this matter, but when asked he declined to give it." The man shoots you a dark look at that, but the one Van Hal gives him is much darker still.
The moment passes, and Van Hal looks back to you. "I'm sure your assignment will come as no surprise: Investigate the infiltration of the castle staff." He gathers up the papers in front of him and tucks them into a pocket as he stands. "Wilhelmina, Kasmir, you're dismissed. Mathilde, walk with me."
---
Pursued by the near-deafening clatter of two dozen Greatswords in full plate, the two of you walk through the castle. Well, Van Hal walks, his strides so furious that you have to jog to keep up. He bursts through a door leading into the courtyard, and the smash of the wooden door against stone alarms near a hundred Greatswords awaiting orders in the courtyard, and a hundred hands drop from hilts as they see the source of it.
Without pausing, he advances to the training yard, and with a single motion he draws his Runefang and slashes a training dummy clean in two.
"Politics, Weber," he growls, leaning on Orc Hewer. "It's always bloody politics. Of all the jobs in all the Empire, keeping a lid on bloody Sylvania should be the one where the freest hand is given. But instead I'm crippled, loaded down with thieves, idiots, cowards and zealots. If it weren't for you and Wilhelmina, I might as well take up the halberd once more and march to Drakenhof alone, I'd be doing more good than I could do here.
"The religious situation in Stirland could have been very dire. Under the previous administration the Sigmarites pulled back to the major population centers and left the villages and small towns without spiritual guidance. But the Shallyans and the Morrites and even the bloody Ulricans and followers of a dozen other of our Gods stepped up and filled the void before anything else could, and saved a million souls in the process. But that's apparently not enough for the Grand Bloody Theogonist, so he sends me a goddamn zealot that spends all his time on infighting between the Gods of the Empire instead of doing his Godsdamned job."
You stay silent. You could have told him that years ago, but you didn't.
"I tell him to shepherd the souls of a military split five different ways and he just gets Sigmarites - and he doesn't even recruit locally, or send to Altdorf for teachers to begin teaching Stirlandian chaplains, he wants to import then en masse from the Grand Theogonist." He shakes his head in disbelief. "An army without Shallyans! I know I didn't mention them, but I shouldn't have to specify to get Shallyans. And no Morrites, in Stirland! I'm trying to build ties with the Knights of Morr and there's not a single Morrite priest attached to the army!" He looks to you. "You know why he didn't find anything when he winnowed through the servants of the castle? Because he refuses to know anything about how the other cults operate, despite me suggesting in private to him several times that he should. If someone tells him they're a Morrite or a Shallyan he has no way to gainsay them because he only knows the Sigmarite creed."
"What are you going to do," you finally say.
"I... don't know." He scowls. "The Emperor's Spymaster, he knows how the game is played. He sent me a broken pawn, I removed it, he owes me a new one, that's just business as usual. But the Grand Theogonist is unlikely to take it well if I oust Kasmir, even with cause. But I'm thinking: to hell with the Grand Theogonist. If he's stopping me from protecting Stirland, then surely he can't be doing the will of Sigmar." The confidence had fled from his voice at that last point, and he looks troubled. You share in a brooding silence for a time, then he seems to shake himself out of it. "Tell me what you found of the Marshal candidates."
You hesitate. "Well, if you're not liking Kasmir's attitude, I'll recommend heavily against Berthold. Nothing concrete, but his company in Altdorf was made up of Sigmar supremacists."
He sighs, and winces. "Of course. Well, if anyone asks, it was one of the infiltrators that knocked him out in the courtyard. Next candidate?"
"Gustav is skilled and spoken well of by those who served under him, but from everything I've heard he always leads from the front. All well and good for a sergeant, not so much for a general."
"Depends on the general, but I take your meaning. And Otto?"
"He's exactly what he appears: a mad engineer from Nuln. He might result in some revolutionary designs, but only after soaking up massive amounts of money we don't have."
"Hmm." He looks over to where the Greatswords are gathered. "Gustav then?"
"That would be my recommendation. Worst case scenario, he gets himself killed and the Spymaster has to scrape up a new set of candidates for you."
Van Hal smiles a little at that. "Gustav it is. Anything to report in private?"
"If you'd be available, I'd like your help in purging the castle."
"Gods, it'd be nice to face an enemy I can just chop up with a sword." He stretches. "I'll be able to spare you a little time, but most of it will be spent dealing with Gustav and probably Kasmir."
"I appreciate it. And speaking of the castle, can you tell me about the East Wing?"
You both look over to the building protruding out of the wall into the courtyard, doors and windows barricaded. "I... suppose you've earned at least a few details. According to the Witch Hunters that investigated, the previous count was attempting to summon... the sort of thing one doesn't attempt to summon. Instead, he was summoned. I'm told it will take fifty-five and a half years for the energies released to dissipate." You blanch in horror; of all the stories new Apprentices are told of why they must never dabble in summoning, by far the worst is what would happen to anyone unfortunate enough to be sucked into the realm they were trying to draw from. "I've been looking into it when I could for the past couple of years, and it appears unrelated to the rest of the dynastic problems, thankfully. A last-ditch effort to protect himself from whatever was picking off his family, I think."
"I... almost regret asking."
"And I almost regret investigating." You spend some time staring together at the barricaded building. "Anything else?"
"A couple of requests. Could you recommend a source of reliable lieutenants?"
"For spy work, I assume?" He chews his lip thoughtfully. "Not really anyone suited to it. I can get you loyal in abundance - veterans of the Army of Stirland ready for retirement, mostly - but they'd be both suspicious of magic and mostly uneducated. Try asking Anton, there may be a son or daughter of nobility with an education, and most of the nobles would love to get in my good books after what happened to von Stolpe. And the other?"
"I'd like to build an enchanter's workshop and lay in a supply of reagents, for my investigations into the enchanted swords and for future projects for Stirland."
"In the castle, or in wherever it is you're living these days?" he asks, a teasing note to his voice.
"...hidden," you hedge.
He smiles, then thinks for a while, his fingers twitching as he moves sums around in his head. "Not right now," he finally says. "If you can make it happen with your discretionary budget you're welcome to, but we can't spare any more money right now, not when we're about to start fortifying the border and building the Langwald-Leicheburg road. Ask me again in a year or so, and we'll see." He resheaths his sword. "If there's nothing else, I think the Greatswords should have finished rounding up all the servants. We've got a job to do."
[ASKING FOR ENCHANTING LAB: Breakpoints 30/50/70, Stewardship, 38+10=48. Discretionary income expenditure approved, but no extra funds.]
As Van Hal walks away, a Greatsword that was hovering awkwardly waiting for your conversation to finish comes up to you and hands you a message, saying that a courier had waited at the sealed gates for an hour before handing it off to him to pass on to you. You thank him and wait for him to leave, and then unfold it, and once more you feel brightness behind your eyelids as the unwelcome sight of the strange cipher triggers the magic embedded there.
Once they are appointed, prepare a report on the new Marshal of Stirland. You have four months from today.
You scowl and crumple the letter.
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VAN HAL CHARACTERISTIC REVEAL: Piety (12)
VAN HAL TRAIT GAINED: Crisis of Faith (-3 Piety)
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PLAN FOR THIS TURN - CHOOSE BETWEEN SIX AND EIGHT. ANY CHOSEN BEYOND THE FIRST SIX WILL COME WITH RISKS.
As Per Orders: Perform your current assignment. Choose ONE to have Van Hal's assistance with.
-[ ] Examine closely the corpse of the slain infiltrator, trying to determine the cause of their abilities.
-[ ] Examine and interrogate the imprisoned infiltrator.
-[ ] Trace their actions inside the castle, investigate every facet of what they did and see if there's a way they somehow could have sabotaged something.
-[ ] Walk back their movements, see whether they left the castle and if so, what they were doing.
-[ ] Closely interrogate every remaining servant.
-[ ] Go out to the nearby villages and confirm the details of every single servant claiming to be from there.
Influencing Van Hal: You're going to be spending time with him anyway, that's a lot of time to talk. Choose up to ONE. If 'Sucking Up To The Boss' is chosen, choose up to TWO.
-[ ] He's seriously considering getting rid of Kasmir. Spend some time with him and suggest a specific approach, or try to talk him out of it. (write in approach and reasons)
-[ ] If Kasmir is to be removed, he'll need replacing. Suggest somewhere that Van Hal could look to find someone. (write in)
-[ ] He's having a crisis of faith. If he's growing apart from Sigmar, there are other Gods you can suggest. Including one you're quite close to... (write in god)
Backtracking and Side Operations:
-[ ] The thing you stabbed in the face is still in the cells, and now several others that were found are keeping it company. Examine them, learn from them, see if you can identify them.
-[ ] Okay. A report on the new Marshal. Follow them around for a while, see what you can find out about them. (NEW)
-[ ] Write down what little you already know and send that instead. (does not cost an action) (NEW)
-[ ] Try to tail the messenger who you give the report to. (NEW)
-[ ] Worden failed to fall under your influence; perhaps you should backtrack and make it fall in line. (NEW)
Delegation:
[ ] New source: Maybe it's time to start being less spy and more master. Though Gods know where you'll find someone competent and trustworthy enough to grant such easily-abusable power. (write in source of potential lieutenants)
[ ] Van Hal can get you veterans of the Army of Stirland - mostly uneducated and suspicious of magic, but unquestionably loyal to Stirland. (no action required, -10g discretionary/turn each) (NEW)
[ ] Van Hal recommended asking Anton about sons and daughters of nobles to use as assistants. They're likely to be well-educated and politically savvy, but their loyalties would be to their family and they may be undisciplined. Line up some interviews and see how it goes. (NEW)
[ ] Getting To Know You: Spend time with one of your fellow councillors, offering your help in their task and generally getting a feel for them (choose one).
[ ] Getting To Know You Whether You Like It Or Not: You've been given good reason to mistrust your fellow councillors. Perhaps you should see what they spent their time doing (choose one).
[ ] Sucking Up To The Boss: Normally you'd just go about things and report in to the Elector Count when you've got something major to report. If you instead give him regular reports and updates, it may make him more willing to trust you, and allow you to better get to know him. Opening yourself up to oversight, criticism, and potential micromanagement is a heavy price to pay, though.
[ ] Letters Home: You might be able to wring more information out of your Master, or you might just be able to get news, information and guidance in general from the Grey Order.
[ ] Hang Out A Shingle: Spymasters don't advertise, but wizards sometimes do. Make an official announcement that there's a wizard in residence, and see who comes out of the woodwork.
[ ] Now that you've got gold to throw around, you should stock up on spell components. They're not strictly necessary, but they do make things easier. (-personal gold)
[ ] Self-Improvement: Things have been going well so far, but the skills of a Journeyman Grey Mage can only go so far.
-[ ] Practice, Practice, Practice: Having been thrown into the deep end of imperial politics, it would probably be a good idea to brush up on your skills (choose one).
-[ ] Tutoring: One of your fellow councillors may be willing to teach you in their chosen field (choose who).
-[ ] Pretty Good Swords: You've struck up a friendship with the Champion of the Greatswords and have discovered a talent for wielding them. Continue to cultivate this.
-[ ] Combat Training: You're virtually surrounded by armed warriors of various sorts. See if you can convince one to teach you (choose who).
-[ ] Combat Training, In The Free Market: You haven't made many heavily armed friends yet, but gold is good for that. Go out and buy some training. (-personal gold)
-[ ] You only really kept in practice with a handful of the petty and minor magics you were taught. Maybe you should brush up on the others.
-[ ] You're naturally talented at enchantment; so far, this just amounts to being able to make your desk meow for about an hour. See if you can improve on that, or at least figure out a way to make that useful.
[ ] Home Comforts: Your Palace-Shrine is bursting with potential. And also mud.
-[ ] Diggy Diggy Hole: A wizard wielding a shovel is unnatural, but doing it yourself might be the only way to keep things secret. Clear out a new room of your Palace-Shrine by hand.
-[ ] Diggy Diggy Hole, Outsourced: Pay someone to do the digging, then Mindhole them on their way out. (no action required, -personal gold)
-[ ] Enchantment: So far you've failed to find suitable equipment (damn Wizard Chic) but you could always try again with local goods. (-personal gold, action required to set up and learn to use equipment, action expenditure can be postponed) (NEW)
-[ ] Filled with Potential: You've got a room cleared out and ready to be put to use. Decide what you're going to put there. (write in the purpose of the room)
-[ ] Wardrobe Expansion: Start wearing a tunic and breeches under your wizard's robes. (no action required, -personal gold)
[ ] Research:
-[ ] This is Stirland. Time to bone up on your knowledge of the Undead.
-[ ] That damn Asp has still been quiet, but now you've got a lead. Peruse the book Light And It's Properties, by Leonardo da Miragliano. (NEW)
-[ ] The Shyish swords are hideously dangerous as weapons, but fascinating as a subject of study. Try to reverse-engineer the lost enchantments woven into them. (NEW)
-[ ] As a Journeywoman, the path to Magister is marked by mastering more than the two shadow spells you already know. Send to the Grey Order for the basics and work on figuring out one of the others.
-[ ] As a Journeywoman, the path to mediocrity is marked by only learning spells created by others. Your relationship with Ulgu is between you and it. (create-a-spell, write in the effects, much more difficult than the above)
[ ] Influence: Though you haven't taken these over (yet?) you could still spend some time to influence or tap into them. Write in what you would like to do with them.
- [ ] The Wurtbadian Thieves Guild is currently little more than a church group, albeit of a very unconventional god.
- [ ] Biderhof, a village based on woodcutting and agriculture, has adopted you as one of it's own.
- [ ] Your grip on the Wurtbad Watch is extremely tenuous, and would be difficult to tighten without official backing. Difficult, but not impossible. (NEW)
- [ ] Wurtbad, like all major cities, is home to a number of guilds. Reach out to them and enforce your will.
- [ ] There's a vacuum where a dozen trade guilds should be. Found one of your own, and let information and profits flow through you, and see what the Stirlandian League does about it. (warning: expensive, will need Van Hal or Wilhelmina to sign off on it)
- [ ] Your time in the sewers made you realize just how much of a maze there is down there, and you wonder what could be lurking down in the dark (apart from your fellow devotees of Ranald). Get in touch with the various groups of rat catchers, sewer jacks and gong farmers that deal with it. (NEW)
FINANCES: NO ACTION POINT EXPENDITURE.
Personal Income: 50 gold/turn
Discretionary Income: 150 gold/turn
Informer Payroll unlocked
Currently paying Grey College tithe (5 gold/turn)
Currently paying Grey College student loans (35 gold/turn)
Currently embezzling 1/4 of discretionary income (35 gold/turn)
[ ] Begin plumping the informer rolls (choose ratio of real:fake informers. Almost impossible to detect, but also very difficult to increase or decrease the amount quickly)
[ ] Change tithe payment/loan payment/embezzlement (specify)
- Van Hal rolled a nat 100 on his reaction to Kasmir. Shit's about to get real.
- Remember way back in Turn 2 how you almost told him about Kasmir's allegiance to the Cult of Sigmar first and Stirland second, but in the end the vote was to only tell him about Anton and the Professor? Just saying.
- I am trying so hard not to call the enchanted swords Shyish-kebabs.
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