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Warhammer Fantasy: Divided Loyalties - an Advisor's Quest

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Catpetter1981 said:
During her time at a Dwarven Hold, Mathilde has picked up:
(a) Plaiting her hair in the style of Dwarven women;
(b) Interspersing stone-related phrases and metaphors into her speech pattern;
(c) Feeling more comfortable around Dwarves than in the Human Empire;
(d) Being named Dwarf Friend;
(e) Being named an honorary / metaphysical Dwarf by the Conclave of Ancestor Cults.

Looking forward to seeing Elven traits / Elven cultural markers Mathilde will acquire during her stint in an Elven forest.
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Who wants to bet that, with all the unconscious dwarven mannerisms she picked up, someone will start thinking the proclamation is real and literal? Bonus points if it's everyone and only Mathilde doesn't "know".
 
BoneyM said:
There was only one or two updates between the last trait pick vote and the beginning of the lead-up to the Expedition.
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The dwarf rescue mission seems like something that could inspire a trait, or at least contribute to one.

On that note:
-Microscopic Windsight: You've learned to pick up the faintest traces of magic, so long as the background is sufficiently smooth. Inspired by trying to see through Stone, the chamon heavy metal walls of the boat, and science in the no-wind-room.
-Chain casting: You've grown somewhat accustomed to using a dangerous number of spells in short order. Both from making a dwarf torrent and sleeping cows.
 
As souls are constructs of Aethyric energy that partially exist in the Aethyr, I wonder whether they're susceptible to being influenced by belief like gods probably are. If large number of people believe you're a hero, does that strengthen you. If large numbers of people believe you're a dwarf, does that make you more dwarf-like.
 
Others have talked about travel and logistics and come up with fine descriptions, but if I may I would love to forward a suggestion for a trait name to go with them: "Professionals Study Logistics".

Proper provisioning and travel arrangements were the star of the expedition, after all. Mathilde coming away from it with a more deft hand at preparing similar wouldn't be amiss. Casting it in a military light also lets it fit thematically with her leadership traits.
 
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BoneyM said:
At this point the only thing keeping her from being mistaken for a tall Dwarf on a regular basis is her Wizard robes and Arcane Marks.
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One day, her old nemisis Wizard Chic will return. Unlike humans, they don't dress as a wizard to infuriate their elders. They dress as Mathilde, to signal they'll do whatever uncomfortable and weird thing it takes to claim their future (and not just try to reclaim the gories of the past).
But then also to infuriate their elders.

Apropos clothing: We really need some ulgu or magically neutral metal or material, so Mathilde can get a proper set of clothing. Her robes may be stronger than plate, but it's just not proper to run around without a set of chainmail. You may as well go flashing your knees at everybody. How can Panoramia deal with such a wanton paramour? Cython is so much more proper. They're always clad in heavy armor.
 
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I'm looking forward to the trait: Stone is an excellent insulator of magic - Gain the knowledge that stone is an excellent insulator of magic.
 
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Post-Expedition Interlude, Part 3
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    [*] Laurelorn

    Over the years, combing and braiding your hair in the morning has become part of your daily rituals, a meditative focus that works better for you than any number of more formal methods and mantras. You've recently learned that having someone else do it for you is drastically less good at gathering your focus, but as a trade-off is astoundingly better at putting you in a calm and relaxed state of mind.

    "There's a lot of rumours floating around about the Karak Vlag business," Panoramia says as she runs the brush through your hair.

    "Oh?" you murmur, doing your best to focus on her words instead of the hypnotic quality of her voice, which still contains a trace of half-asleep huskiness.

    "One of the most common elements is that they're saying you succeeded where Teclis failed. I know you're very Windsight-oriented, but I didn't realize it was to that extent."

    "Oh, I've no doubt Teclis could run circles around me in every Arcane discipline, including Windsight," you say with a smile. "But when he visited High Pass, it was in the direct aftermath of an expansion of the Chaos Wastes, and it was a path that had recently been trodden by an Everchosen and his partly-daemonic hordes. I doubt any mortal being could have spotted the trace of Karak Vlag under those circumstances."

    "Ah. Still, it's a very big deal..."

    "Oh, absolutely. Just because I don't think I'm the only one who could have done it doesn't mean I won't take the credit for being the one that actually did. They've sent a few letters through the Karaz-a-Karak notables that are trying to coax them out. Once they're fully convinced that all this is all real, there's little they wouldn't do to repay what they see as their saviour." You lift a hand to touch Ranald's Coin through your nightshirt. The letters from Karak Vlag made it quite clear that Ranald's Protector aspect had somehow informed them that you were responsible for their return to reality, and the complete certainty they apparently had in that was frankly disconcerting. Sometimes you need to remind yourself that Ranald is no less a major God than any of the Old World pantheon.

    "Going to bring them in on this Waystone thing?" she asks.

    "I'm thinking about it. There's other debts I could call in - from here, of course, but also a couple from back in the Empire, one from business in Sylvania and another from the War Below. And from the Karaz-a-Karak Metalsmiths Guild from the Monitor rescue."

    There's an extended silence from Panoramia. "I looked up that spell you used on the sunken Monitor in your library. Substance of Shadow? There was an entire chapter on how it can go wrong."

    You wince. "It's a finicky and temperamental spell, yes. But it was risking one life to save, what was it... three hundred and twelve. I couldn't not."

    She squeezes your shoulder, and you place your hand atop hers. You sit like that for a long moment before the brushing resumes.

    "So, Waystones," she says, and you untense as the topic is firmly changed back. "You think you can get anywhere with it?"

    "I know that wiser and more experienced Wizards have taken their best swing at the topic, but all of them were working within the Colleges. The Dwarves and the Elves each have their own pieces of the puzzle, and I don't think anyone in the Colleges have ever been in a better position to bring both together."

    "Mmm," she hums in agreement. "There's..." she hesitates. "Well, I..."

    "Jade secrets?" you guess, to a silence that speaks volumes. "And if there were, you wouldn't be able to confirm or deny their existence?"

    "And I wouldn't be able to confirm or deny if I was able to confirm or deny," she says with a forced laugh.

    "I won't put you on the spot. If I try to bring the Jades aboard, it'll be through official channels. I've got a feeling that if I dig deep enough I'll find pieces in all of the precursors to the Colleges."

    "I know the Shamans know more than they let on," she says thoughtfully.

    "Hinting that you know more than you let on is the favourite pastime of the Colleges," you say with a smile.

    ---

    As you look over the fields of the Karak from your balcony as sunlight creeps over them, you consider the matter further. The Expedition itself is still never far from your thoughts as you continue to process it. There's still a sense of lingering frustration that you never got to the bottom of the Karag Dum mystery, but the rescue of Karak Vlag makes it impossible to consider the Expedition as a whole any type of failure. There's a lot of different lessons that could be taken away from the entire business, but you have to assign a great deal of the credit to diplomatic matters, which is possibly your weakest area. There are countless ways to divide up the Expedition - four intelligent species, eight types of magic users, five religious orders, seven different polities, and that's just off the top of your head - and success relied on the cooperation between these very different groups. And you're at least part of the reason that it all worked. That, more than anything else, is what your mind comes back to as you go over the journey.

    Mathilde will decide on two major themes to take away from the Expedition as a whole: one diplomatic, and one not. Vote for as many as you like from the list below, and one from each with the most votes will win. The exact mechanical effects will be revealed only for the winners.


    Strengthened Diplomatic Abilities:

    [ ] DIPLO: Collegiate
    How independent the Colleges are from each other depends a great deal on your perspective. There can be a lot of value in bridging those gaps.

    [ ] DIPLO: Dawri
    You've lived along Dwarves for long enough that your Wizard robes and Arcane Marks are often the only things preventing you from being mistaken for one. But you could immerse yourself even deeper in Dwarven culture and become able to navigate it like a native.

    [ ] DIPLO: Draconic Fascination
    You've only really spent time with two Dragons, but both have been thoroughly fascinating individuals.

    [ ] DIPLO: Interfaith Dialogue
    Ranald isn't the most accepted of Gods, but you're growing adept at finding common ground with the other faiths of the Old World.

    [ ] DIPLO: Knight
    You bear the title of Knight, and you've worked alongside Knightly Orders multiple times now.

    [ ] DIPLO: Mentor
    Though you've never taken an Apprentice of your own, you have spent quite a bit of time taking less-experienced Wizards under your wing.

    [ ] DIPLO: Polyglot
    If you had been unable to use Khazalid as a bridging language, there were many encounters that could have gone quite badly. There's a great deal of potential benefits to further expanding your linguistic lexicon.

    [ ] DIPLO: Trucemaker
    Sometimes the best battle is one you never fight. Every life not spent fighting lesser evils can be turned against the greater ones.


    Other Lessons Learned:

    [ ] LESSON: Cartographer
    Being able to explore, record, and subsequently navigate unfriendly territory is an incredibly useful and often underrated skill.

    [ ] LESSON: Dhar Insight
    You've seen Daemons, the Chaos Wastes, the Windfall. You're reaching as thorough an understanding of the fel energies of Dark Magic as can be attained without actually wielding them.

    [ ] LESSON: Leader
    Despite not seeking it, once more you found yourself in military command. Perhaps this tendency is something to be embraced.

    [ ] LESSON: Light Fingers
    It's not theft, it's espionage. The enemies of the Empire and the Karaz Ankor have all sorts of interesting and portable items that would do a lot of good in friendly hands, from supplies to devices to paperwork.

    [ ] LESSON: Logistician
    Warriors win battles, logistics wins wars. Being able to get what you need to where you need it is halfway to victory.

    [ ] LESSON: Mystic
    Some mysteries should be embraced, rather than unravelled. You might not fully understand the Gods this way, but you are much more likely to get along with Them.

    [ ] LESSON: Poker Face
    Acting like you always know what's going on has gone from a source of personal amusement to a vital diplomatic first line of defence.

    [ ] LESSON: Syncretic
    Ranald will likely always be your primary God, but you are branching out into a healthy and respectful understanding of some of the other Gods of the Old World, both human and Dwarven.

    [ ] LESSON: Theologian
    You have a breadth of experience with the Divine that would put many Priests to shame, and are starting to build tentative overarching theories of the Divine that many might consider heretical.


    - There will be a two hour moratorium.
    - No, there is no Windsight trait. As Windherder taught us, it gets treated as an autopick even when it's a sidegrade, and Mathilde is already near the peak of what is considered possible.
    - Similarly, there is no 'chain casting' trait. I'm considering introducing a mechanic where it can be learned individually for each spell, but it will always retain some danger and the most sensible path will almost always be to find another way to do whatever needs doing.
    - Deed / Boon Expenditure is pencilled in for the next update.
    - 'four intelligent species, eight types of magic users, five religious orders, seven different polities' - Human / Dwarf / Elf / Dragon, seven Colleges plus Ljiljana, Morgrim / Grimnir / Ulric / Taal / Ancient Widow, Empire / Kislev / Ulrikadrin / Karak Eight Peaks / Karak Kadrin / Zhufbar / Karak Vlag (sort of, via the Rangers of High Pass).
    - Yes, wrapping up the Expedition while also setting up the next project has been a bit of a mess. While it would be preferable to have it neater, it also feels 'real' to have it be a bit of a mess as Mathilde closes one chapter of her life at the same time as trying to open the next.
    - Say hello to the new avatar, courtesy of the Eonir of Laurelorn (via Total Warhammer).
    - For the record, anyone wanting to Trucemake between Elves and Dwarves is four thousand and eighty-five years late. That war ended with the death of Caledor II.
     
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    • [ ] DIPLO: Polyglot
    If you had been unable to use Khazalid as a bridging language, there were many encounters that could have gone quite badly. There's a great deal of potential benefits to further expanding your linguistic lexicon.

    [ ] LESSON: Syncretic
    Ranald will likely always be your primary God, but you are branching out into a healthy and respectful understanding of some of the other Gods of the Old World, both human and Dwarven.

    Edit: As pointed out. I have been too hasty once again.
     
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    [ ] DIPLO: Collegiate
    How independent the Colleges are from each other depends a great deal on your perspective. There can be a lot of value in bridging those gaps.

    [ ] DIPLO: Dawri
    You've lived along Dwarves for long enough that your Wizard robes and Arcane Marks are often the only things preventing you from being mistaken for one.

    [ ] DIPLO: Polyglot
    If you had been unable to use Khazalid as a bridging language, there were many encounters that could have gone quite badly. There's a great deal of potential benefits to further expanding your linguistic lexicon.

    [ ] LESSON: Theologian
    You have a breadth of experience with the Divine that would put many Priests to shame, and are starting to build tentative overarching theories of the Divine that many might consider heretical.

    I'm very tempted by these four, Mathilde learning more about divine would be incredible, Polyglot is going to be very useful as we're probably going to need to learn anoqeyen and Arcane Khazalid as part of the investigative work into the waystones.

    Dawri looks like another boost to our diplo skills with the dwarves and that has impact on working with runesmiths so could be very useful as we're going to operate out of Elgi land. Collegiate would be useful for wrangling the colleges.
     
    ...Oh. Oh that's nasty. Why must you do this to us, Boney? So many nice things, so few options... gah.
     
    These are the ones I feel will have the most use for the waystone project, and are traits I'd like to see get some narrative mention in future updates.


    [ ] DIPLO: Polyglot

    [ ] LESSON: Cartographer
    [ ] LESSON: Dhar Insight
     
    Actually, @BoneyM i can't quite tell, but... you've got multiple options relating to the divine and I'm curious. Is Mystic or Theologian related to actually using divine magic? I mean, Joerg, IIRC had a Mystic trait which symbolizes his ability to wield Taal's Lore...

    Or you can tell me if that's too much information.
     
    [X] DIPLO: Dawri
    More dorfishness might be really helpful to bring the Runesmiths into the Waystone project. Also dorfs.

    [X] DIPLO: Interfaith Dialogue
    As above, but for Bretonnia and Kieslev

    [X] DIPLO: Polyglot
    More communication, more good.

    [X] DIPLO: Trucemaker
    Picking your battles is always good. Just look how much we gained from our "cooperation" with Queek and from talking to the steppe tribes.


    [X] LESSON: Cartographer
    [X] LESSON: Logistician
    Logistics win the war
     
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    The traits I'm personally interested in.
    [ ] DIPLO: Collegiate
    How independent the Colleges are from each other depends a great deal on your perspective. There can be a lot of value in bridging those gaps.

    We're a Lady Magister, this will be coming in handy sooner or later, especially if we're going to get that research institute going.

    [ ] DIPLO: Mentor
    Though you've never taken an Apprentice of your own, you have spent quite a bit of time taking less-experienced Wizards under your wing.

    We're... Good at teaching. Really good. We haven't had a single Ulgu student but near everyone who has come to work for or with us long time has progressed leaps and bounds.

    [ ] DIPLO: Trucemaker
    Sometimes the best battle is one you never fight. Every life not spent fighting lesser evils can be turned against the greater ones.

    Another great one. We've built bridges we could never have expected with the Dwarves. We've managed to bring in The We and Cython, and we've done the most for Empire-Dwarven relations since Sigmar.

    [ ] LESSON: Dhar Insight
    You've seen Daemons, the Chaos Wastes, the Windfall. You're reaching as thorough an understanding of the fel energies of Dark Magic as can be attained without actually wielding them.

    [ ] LESSON: Theologian
    You have a breadth of experience with the Divine that would put many Priests to shame, and are starting to build tentative overarching theories of the Divine that many might consider heretical.

    On the other lesson, these are the only one that really calls out to me. I frankly don't know which of these that really call to me, but it's two bad options among other worse ones.
     
    [ ] DIPLO: Polyglot
    Back again, would have been useful, but maybe it's looking backwards? Or will we wind up recruiting even more widely?

    [ ] DIPLO: Mentor
    This also kind of feels right.

    [ ] LESSON: Dhar Insight
    This, I do not like. I would prefer less deep, secret knowledge of dark corrupted magics, not more. Temptations, hubris, and all that.
     
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    Ericwinter said:
    Actually, @BoneyM i can't quite tell, but... you've got multiple options relating to the divine and I'm curious. Is Mystic or Theologian related to actually using divine magic? I mean, Joerg, IIRC had a Mystic trait which symbolizes his ability to wield Taal's Lore...

    Or you can tell me if that's too much information.
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    There is absolutely no possibility of Mathilde ever wielding Divine Magic, at all, under any circumstances, ever.
     
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