Not just "pair off". Making other countries stronger is generally not to our benefit. We get no credit for being the host when they meet; it has to change the international balance in a way that benefits us.
Regara marrying Janera does benefit us, though, as Regara holds an alliance with Halrun as her primary goal. Not "Halrun would be best, but Nerinthar instead would be good" but "Halrun is necessary and Nerinthar would be nice to ally with as well." Helping her helps us. So, if we're open to an alliance with Regara, then, for example, a marriage between Vanessa and Essinya and a marriage between Regara and Janera could result in an allied bloc of Halrun, TKotN, Zarsim, Morvak, and Nerinthar.
Considering Morvak just finished invading Nerinthar, I think the odds of it being political viable lie somewhere between "dead on arrival" to "motherfucker, are you insane?"
"Well, I admit I thought this was a waste of time when you reached out," Vallefor considered, gesturing for Rykall to sit down across from his desk. Compared to Rykall's office, Vallefor's office in the palace was polished, tidy, well-appointed and decorated with what Rykall had to assume were some of his own property. The painting of his wife at least had to be his own, hanging on one wall, placed for Vallefor to easily turn his head to the left and look at her.
Rykall wasn't sure if that counted as romantic or not. His own success in that realm was limited, to say the least. As was, frankly, his interest.
"Then why did you agree to help?"
"Well, ten Dureks is ten Dureks, and there is the principle of the thing. Besides, I figured you could owe me a favor, which you do, regardless, but as it turned out, looking into a single trading company proved to be more interesting than I thought." Vallefor explained. "Wine?" He asked.
"Uhm, no thank you," Rykall shook his head. "I wouldn't say no to some water though?" He'd spent much of the last week interviewing his staff, the guards, the cleaning staff, as well as digging through every piece of paperwork that had had Sumel's stamp on it. There were no other missing payments or improperly stamped forms.
It seemed unlikely that Sumel would have only been corrupt the one time, unless he'd been offered a very large sum, and searching Sumel's home had turned up no such unexpected wealth (though it had turned up a terrifyingly organized, if small, apartment. Why anyone, even Sumel, needed to line up their books just so, so that the edge of the spine was touching the edge of the shelf exactly, and arrange them in ascending order by height and thickness, Rykall would never know.)
Vallefor nodded and called for a servant, requesting wine for himself, and water for Rykall.
"The interesting thing about this Ebon Dragon Trading Company is that by all evidence, they don't exist, and haven't for many years." Rykall stared at the spymaster, seeing the telltale smug 'I know something you don't know' smirk on his face. Vallefor matched his gaze, and only when he was good and ready did he continue. "There was a company by that name, from my agents inquiries, they'd been around for a few generations, mostly working in the field of bulk transport overland. Mostly bringing things from Thornferd or the rest of the Thornmarch to the river to be sent up to Lake Raida. But ten years ago, the owner of the company managed to marry the third daughter of Lord Stagrel. Lost most of his fortune at the gambling tables, and hawked his non-inheriting children off to any merchant looking to jump in status. It worked, and the owner sold off his company, took his fortune and settled down to a life of rural gentry."
Rykall didn't need to look at Vallefor's face to gauge his opinion of that.
"If it stopped existing ten years ago, then how did they file for the rights to that ruin? Seems like ruins would be well outside of their purview anyway."
"That's where it gets interesting. My agents spoke to Nosh's former employees about it, and they said that all the assets of the company were bought up by a pair of retired adventurers in Eaglecrest. The usual pack of tomb robbers and ner-do-wells. I had my people in Eaglecrest look into them, and neither of those two adventurers, a mage named Dorien and what I suspect is a former thief named Vrel has been seen in Eaglecrest for nearly five years. They packed up and moved, mentioning something about going south."
"So you think this Dorien and this Vrel are behind the original filing?"
"I believe so. I imagine your predecessor saw the 8 Dureks on offer and the option for more over time, and didn't ask questions about it."
"Well, if they never did business with the crown, there'd be very little information about it, and Syorkis and his Inner Council showed no interest in staying abreast of mercantile affairs outside of ones that did business with the crown." Rykall leaned forward. "Didn't really work out well for him." Take that, you smug asshole.
"Quite." Vallefor agreed. "My agents were unable to find out anything else about the Ebon Dragon name, or the two adventurers activities in the present, but one has to assume they're still in the Reserve, plundering that Necrotic site, or using it whatever their intent was, given that they renewed their license."
"Well, anyone who operates under a false name is unlikely to be doing something they'd be happy to have out in the open," Rykall mused, stating the obvious. "Is that all you learned?"
"Not quite. I had my agents do some digging, asking questions, picking up rumors, about these two." A servant walked in with the wine and water, and Vallefor took a sip of his, Rykall doing the same with his water. "There's a lot of fact from fiction to work through, which is half the work of my job anyway, so it's hard to say what's what, but here's what they found." He pulled a stack of parchment out from a drawer and handed it to Rykall.
"What are the highlights?" Rykall raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing good. They had a reputation for stealing from other adventurers out in the Northlands. There were no court cases, but well, adventurers always like to deal with things on their own. Rumors about fighting in streets, and bars, possibly a murder... all adventurers, so Eaglecrest's authorities could only do so much."
"Only wanted to do so much. Why kill the goose that lays the golden eggs? Adventurers hate rules, and they tend to be more than willing to back that up. But some insist they're profitable, at least in reasonable numbers." Rykall noted. His family had had bad experiences with adventurers, but there were plenty of merchants who could make good money off of them, indirectly.
"If nothing else, my ancestors had some good luck hiring them to deal with a batch of extremist Necromancers trying to kill them, a century and change ago," Vallefor laughed, "When you find yourself in need of the services of one, they tend to be quite useful. Regardless, Dorien and Vrel are by all accounts the sort of adventurers that give the rest a bad name. The rumors about their preferred tactics for dealing with goblins in the way suggest a penchant for cruelty and... most importantly, as in Dorien's case, a real skill with spells that meddle with the mind." Vallefor raised an eyebrow. "Something that could help in getting a license renewed?"
"There's no way Sumel was mind-controlled. He'd have a memory of it in the aftermath, he'd have said something." Rykall shook his head. "I don't know much about magic, but - mind control turns someone into a mindless puppet as long as it's active, and only then. When it even works."
"Not mind control." He rapped on his desk twice with his knuckles, and a woman in green robes appeared out of seeming nowhere in the corner of the room. Rykall was glad he'd set his water down or he'd have thrown it in shock. As it was, he nearly fell out of the chair, letting out a startled shout as he caught himself, barely.
"Count Vallefor, I really must protest. My talents aren't a party trick just to soothe your need to seem like the smartest man in the room."
"At the sums I and the Crown are paying you for your services, Quilera, if I wanted you to perform tricks to entertain the children of the serving staff, you'd do as I told you," Vallefor lectured. The mage, Quilera, just crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.
"If you told me to entertain children, I'd make your balls wither into dust." The woman threatened. Rykall looked at Vallefor, who seemed unamused, but unbothered.
"Her impertinence aside, Quilera is my staff magic expert, since consulting the Queen every time I or my office has a question about magic is hardly a productive use of her time. Tell him what you told me about the types of magics Dorien is said to use."
Quilera nodded, looking at Rykall. "Mind-affecting magics like this aren't about controlling minds. At they're most basic, they can be used for creating fear, or calm, or anger. They're difficult to scale beyond a few targets at a time, so unlike illusions or blowing things up, there's less demand for that sort of magic by armies. But when you're dealing with groups of goblins or some monstrous beast, it's a useful tool for controlling your enemy. "
"If Sumel was afflicted by any sort of magic like this, he'd tell me. The man's been tripping over himself to claim his innocence!" Rykall countered. "He's in tears every time I try to ask him questions. He's a wreck!" Rykall was certain that the answer had to be someone stole his stamp and now Rykall had to figure out who.
"Except that there are also spells for making someone experience a sort of... fugue state. Essentially makes them a sleepwalker," Quilera explained. "It can only last for so long - I'd hazard to say that even the Archmage Cyril would be able to only make such a period last for an hour, though gods know the man is rumored to be able to fart fire and piss gold, so who knows. But even a few minutes of blurred memory, suggestibility... it's difficult magic to master, requires difficult to obtain - but not expensive - components and doesn't always work with perfect reliability. But you don't always need perfect."
"You just need enough." Rykall murmured.
"Precisely," Quilera said. "It's too late for a magical examination to show any sign, but there are still ways to check." She gestured at the stack of papers Vallefor had given Rykall. "There's a description of Dorien - thoroughly unpleasant man, had the displeasure of speaking with him once seven years ago, don't recommend it - in there. Run that by Sumel. Odds are, he'll remember seeing that man... and nothing else about speaking with him."
Rykall bit his lip. That was dangerously plausible. And he wanted to believe that was the case, but...
"Count Vallefor, could I borrow Quilera while I speak to Sumel?"
"You may, but I will need her in a few hours, so don't take too long."
"Of course." Rykall nodded and looked over to Quilera, who rolled her eyes and sighed.
"Fine. Let's talk to your man and get this over with." She sighed, "I miss being a free agent." She grumbled as they walked out of Vallefor's office.
"You clearly don't like the Count either," Rykall noted.
"Does anyone?"
"...point. Why work for him? Mages are in high demand everywhere."
"True. But I have a four year old daughter, and my husband is a blacksmith here in the capital. Being a free agent pays well when you have someone to hire you, but even with mages in high demand, there's still time between patrons, and my husband can't just relocate freely, and my daughter has friends living near us. So when things started settling down, I started looking for more permanent employment. His Supreme Shitheadness pays well, doesn't fire me over some 'impertinence' and it's long-term patronage."
She shrugged, "Besides, Her Majesty seems a good sort, and this way I get to tell my daughter I'm helping the Queen, which makes her happy. She's a big fan of Her Majesty."
In the end, a discussion with Sumel turned up exactly what Quilera suggested - Sumel did remember meeting with the man, though not on the date the license said it was renewed. Which had been something Rykall had wanted to pursue next - if the stamp was a lie, perhaps the date had been too.
Rather, the man had come by three days before the listed date... and Sumel realized he couldn't remember any of it. He remembered the man coming in, and the man leaving, and his mind had just... elided over the fact that the period in the middle was gone.
"A common, but not universal symptom." Quilera explained.
"Do I have to order all my clerks to carefully interrogate their memories every day?" Rykall was very disturbed this sort of magic was possible.
"May not need to go that far. As I said, this sort of magic is difficult to do. Dorien just, by all accounts, has a natural gift for it." Quilera shrugged.
"Still... I can't have this happen again. I'll need to find another solution."
"I'll consult my tomes and see if I can find something, but no promises." Quilera offered.
Rykall wasn't even thinking of magic. He had a few ideas, all centering around paperwork. His clerks would hate the extra record-keeping, but...
He looked to Sumel, who was tapping at his legs repeatedly, only not doing it on the table because his hands were still bound together in front of him. Rykall gestured to a guard, who approached Sumel.
"He's just going to undo the rope," Rykall said, when Sumel recoiled from the guard, and Sumel took several breaths and managed to make himself stay still long enough for the guard to cut the rope.
"I'm sorry for not believing you," Rykall told Sumel. "I'm going to have you taken back to your home, and you will be welcome to return to work when you're ready. If you wish. If not, I'll be happy to find you a good posting at a counting house or merchant factor."
"I - I - I can go back?" Sumel sounded like he couldn't believe his luck. "No, no, I don't want to go back home, I need to go back to my office, there's so much - " Sumel cut himself off and cleared his throat. "I - I need to work. I don't - I don't like doing anything. I'm not lazy. I-"
"I just accused you of rather serious crimes and at a minimum you were facing being removed from your position. You're welcome to come back tomorrow morning if you really wish, but please, take the rest of the day." Rykall hated that he'd put one of his people through this, especially a man as fragile as Sumel.
Sumel was not exactly suited for most work. Paperwork was a perfect fit for him, which was why he'd offered to get him a sedate position outside his own offices, if need be. He had enough friends and family that could help him find a place for the eccentric, but capable man.
Rykall hadn't been happy about the prospect of firing or removing him, and now he didn't. Though he was going to keep a close eye on Sumel and anyone who had worked with him lately, just to be safe.
"Thank you for your help," He told Quilera as they left.
"Of course." She nodded and turned, heading back towards Vallefor's offices, presumably, while Rykall returned to his own.
He didn't really have much to go on. He'd go over the information Vallefor's agents had dug up, but it seemed like this was bigger than some missing Dureks. If Dorien and Vrel were behind this, as seemed all but certain, what did they want with that ruin? There wasn't much Rykall could do himself at this point, though he could still dig through the paperwork just to be sure. It was a pity his predecessor was dead, killed during the taking of the capital while trying to flee with several bags of gold. Rykall would have liked to have the man asked about this. Why had he never followed up about the money? Had Dorien done something to him, every time?
This is, of course, not the end of the 'sidequest', but Turn 3 is over. More chances to take steps to deal with it and investigate matters further will of course come up in future turns.
"High Marshall, why didn't you send any forces out to combat bandits in the Lordships or the Towns?"
Rienne looked over at the lieutenant who was currently on duty as a guard in her office. He looked to be a little nervous questioning her, standing stiffly, swallowing a bit, but only just. He was young. Wet behind the ears, might not even have actually seen much service in the war.
"We've taken several casualties during the recent efforts, and I wanted to make sure all the reorganized units were able to stay working together. It's going to be very different dealing with banditry in the Lordships and the Towns, because it will be even more dispersed. And we'll have to work alongside the militias and armsmen of the local towns, the gentry, the local nobles, and so forth. So that takes some preparation."
"None of the casualties were that severe! Many of them weren't even deaths, just severe enough injury." The lieutenant protested, "Letting bandits run rampant is a stain on the kingdom's honor!"
"That's certainly true, but it's also entirely irrelevant." Rienne sighed, setting the Quartermastery report she was reading down. "This isn't a war, lieutenant. This is peacetime. Even when dealing with bandits, the expectations of soldiers are different. If you push your men constantly, never take the chance to let them catch their breath, mourn dead friends and fellow soldiers, then they'll start to resent you. In wartime, they can - to a point - push ahead, but this isn't that. Besides, reorganizing the units is a good idea because we'll need to disperse them into small groups. Thankfully, it will also be primarily against small groups. Our previous work is, by all reports, making the bandits that are left scatter a bit, some are likely trying to slink away. That works to our advantage in many ways, but we'll need to make sure the cohesion of every detachment is secure. And, just as importantly, that our officers know how to not step on the toes of the locals."
The lieutenant nodded, "Of course High Marshall. I - I understand."
"I rather doubt it, lieutenant. When I was your age, in your position, I understood very little about the world." Rienne chuckled.
Just a little blurb to provide an in-universe reason for delaying on the bandit matter this turn. Nothing to vote on here, since we're wrapping the turn up, but Turn 4 will be another Council meeting, etc, in 2 weeks.
As for the marriage, I prefer either Janera or Gaius. If Morvak goes to war against us, we'll need all the allies we can get. Also, the idea of Vanessa with Janera or Gaius looks cute. They seem like good people who would get along well with Vanessa.
By now, Vanessa felt like she was getting used to the rhythm of her life. She'd never had so many meetings in her life, never dealt with so many reports and heard so many complaints (at least not in so short a time). Even with a Keeper of Justice and his underlings to do some of the work, as Queen, she had to hear petitions and cases.
Most of them were minor things in the grand scheme of things, but important to the people that they affected. And, Vanessa knew, it was important to be seen caring about the people's needs and problems. Syrokis had held open court too, but far less often, and been far less willing to address people's problems.
Whereas Vanessa, when a petitioner came asking for assistance or a redress, Vanessa did her best to help them... as long as it didn't step on too many other toes in the process. So far, she seemed to have avoided that.
In addition to open court and holding reports, there were the dinners - every night she was having dinner with someone influential. Someone with the title, name or pull to make it worth her time to keep them happy and flattered. Last night it had been a pair of fishing magnates from out of Port Lest - and of course, they'd eaten fish from the ocean, almost certainly caught by boats who sold to those magnates and Vanessa had not enjoyed the fish in question. The cooks had prepared it well, but Vanessa had never been fond of mackerel, and she'd had to pretend, like she did so many other things.
Right Vanessa, bitch about eating mackerel served with a sauce made from butter, eggs, cumin and pepper, along with rich custard and spiced wine. Vanessa was honestly worried she was going to get fat if she kept eating like a Queen all the time, and so she'd also added more calisthenics to her daily routine. She didn't want to outgrow all the nice dresses she'd 'inherited'.
She drummed her fingers against the table as she wanted for everyone to arrive. Rucdorn was the last, uncharacteristically, proving to be several minutes late.
"My apologies, your Majesty, a representative from the Redhammer Bank decided to accost me about the debt. Nothing serious, just the usual request for an update on things. But it took several minutes to smooth things out."
"So we shouldn't be worried that Redhammer bank is going to start demanding repayment or else?" Vanessa asked to confirm.
"Correct," Rucdorn said with a nod. He took his seat.
"Then let's continue with things we must deal with. Where do things stand on our tax reassessments?"
"Proceeding well apace," Rykall assured her. "I've got a whole section of my clerks working with Keeper Rucdorn's people on it, and they're pushing them out at a steady rate. We could put more effort to them, but we can't neglect everything else that needs to be done."
"True. Have you made any more progress on resolving the matter of this 'Ebon Dragon Trading Company'?" Vanessa had been informed of the matter just a few days ago, and she was not happy to find out that someone with the command of the mental magics this 'Dorien' purportedly had, was interfering with anyone in the Crown's employ. If he really put that sort of magic to work, he could use it to clear ways for assassins, spies, saboteurs - it was hardly foolproof for anyone, Vanessa knew that as well as Vallefor's pet mage knew, but still.
Mages like that, like Dorien, were the sort of people kingdoms needed to keep an eye on. Syrokis and Rykall's predecessor had been criminally negligent to not keep a closer eye on the man.
"Not as of yet. I've got several avenues of investigation to pursue. And I have everything at hand if you'd like to have me turn the matter over entirely to Keeper Itrick."
Vanessa considered, "Possible. What do you think?"
"I think it might be premature to turn the matter over to me, especially given the other matters I have before me. There's a possibility that Lord Moregol's recent suicide wasn't. Or so his widow insists." Itrick let out a sigh. "She insists that he didn't kill himself out of disappointment that Syrokis lost the war and an inability to reconcile himself to your rule, but that he was murdered by former rebels unhappy he was pardoned."
"He didn't even have that much to be pardoned for!" Vanessa couldn't help raise her voice. "He won a battle, took some prisoners and handed them over to his superiors. Those superiors are the ones who executed them in cold blood. If we're going to punish people for that!" She let out a breath. "Does his widow have any proof?"
"She does have several letters he was in the middle of writing to associates making the case that you were proving to be a reasonable Queen and that accepting your rule was far better than hoping pointlessly for an alternative," Itrick handed one over to her. Vanessa gave a quick scan.
She would hardly call it effusive - she might even say it was damning her with faint praise, but it didn't really sound like something someone who absolutely could not
"This is the first time we've had an accusation of ex-rebels murdering someone who they think got away?" But there'd been accusations and rumors of arson, beatings, thefts. She'd had to hear petitions about that, and she knew more were coming.
"So far." Itrick frowned, "There's a great deal of hard feelings out there, clearly, on both sides. I believe Lord Moregol's widow is merely grieving and trying to find someone to blame, but I have not pursued the matter yet."
Vanessa nodded. There were the lingering accusations from the war that also needed to be resolved too.
"How did getting the gold and silver for new coins go?" She asked Rucdorn, moving on to the next item.
"Quite well. A bit more silver than I'm entirely happy with - I was hoping to mint a slightly higher ratio of gold coins than silver ones, but anything to get the money moving, and silver spends just fine. The coins will be minted to the standard ratios of precious metals to semiprecious ones."
"And your people at the mint? You trust them?" Vallefor asked, raising an eyebrow. "We all know how easy-"
"Everyone involved in the process of minting is trustworthy," Rucdorn insisted. "And if they're not, I'll find out. The coins will be at the amounts they're supposed to be."
"Good to hear it," Vanessa raised a hand, giving Vallefor a raised eyebrow. "Are you raising the concern for a reason, or because you're being yourself, Count Vellefor?"
Vallefor cocked his head to the side, "Whatever could you mean, your Majesty?" He paused, then shook his head, "Nothing specific. But my agents across the kingdom are reporting that merchants, tavern keepers and the like are very worried the coins will be debased right out the gate. They know how common it is for Kings and Queens to do that sort of thing. So far, the common classes are inclined to support you, but people are worried."
"Well, hopefully the new issue of coins will resolve those concerns. Anything else to report, with regards to your agents?" She might as well move on to him, since he'd spoken up.
"So far, most people are worried, but cautiously optimistic, seems to be the general mood. No one appears to be actively conspiring, and you haven't alienated anyone that much yet, so far my network can determine. But we're still at the early stages, and a proper network of informants and agents takes time."
"Well, as long as you catch them before they do anything, we'll be fine." Vanessa had no doubts there were still people hoping for the return of Brunn Jr and the proper dynasty. Some were likely in contact with Countess Gramaire too. But she also doubted anyone was actively conspiring. Not yet.
And as long as Vanessa didn't alienate too many people too much...
"On the foreign front, Princess Regara has petitioned her father for permission to come 'personally negotiate' with you regarding 'the border'. Her sister has of course argued against it, but so far, it seems Basil is leaning towards giving her permission."
Vanessa frowned, "Do you have any indication Basil is aware that Regara is interested in a marriage? Has she run it by him?"
"No indication, but I doubt it. Given Basil's apparent mental state, both his children and his court are very careful about managing him. Regara is better at it, but Priscilla, as one might expect of the warmongering twin in a country like Morvak, has more allies." Vallefor said, "I suspect the first Basil or Priscilla will hear of it is if agreeable terms can be met."
"Or if Morvak's spies here find out she's here to court you," Arandel suggested. "After all, word will get out sooner or later that you're courting the various suitors come to see you."
Vanessa frowned, "And it's not as if we can purge literally every Morvakian spy?"
"Always assume there's at least a few spies in your kingdom," Vallefor nodded. "There's also the fact that even non-spies will write to friends, word will spread."
"But that does raise the question of how we control this news," Arandel held up a hand. "Essinya Serriados crossed the border yesterday, accompanied by about a dozen Death Knights and a small retinue of servants and diplomatic attendants."
"Knights of the Golden Throne gave her no trouble?"
"She was traveling under diplomatic banner, and I made it clear that General Darach should communicate to her fellow Generals your desire for her to be able to enter the Kingdom with a minimum of hassle." Rienne assured her.
"Good." Vanessa frowned as another thought occurred to her. "I don't suppose they're so annoyed they wouldn't be willing to send a few Paladins over? I rather doubt Serriados's visit to Halrun is meant to be violent, but if we're going to be hosting twelve Death Knights in the guest wing of the palace, I'd like to have some paladins on hand, just in case."
"I'm fairly certain the Knights of the Golden Throne already sent Paladins to follow them and keep a close eye, but I'll check with General Darach," Rienne nodded.
Vanessa sighed, splaying her hand across her forehead. "As long they don't accost her or her bodyguard," she chanted under her breath. Admittedly, she wasn't thrilled about the idea of a dozen Death Knights, but it wasn't an unreasonable number of bodyguards for the heir to a throne to have, from what she knew.
"In addition to Essinya Serriados, Prince Lothar Aldogun is by all reports due to disembark at Thornkeep later today, if not already," Arandel added. "The rest... Princess Janera will likely not arrive until next month, as well as Prince Loran. Princess Regara and King Gaius - harder to say."
"Gaius is intensifying his attacks on North Zarsim positions, likely hoping to stabilize the front lines so he can leave for an extended period." Vallefor said.
"He is one of the best things South Zarsim has going for it, militarily," Rienne agreed. "Even if you do end up picking him, he can't exactly benefit much if he loses his Kingdom while he's here courting you."
"True." Vanessa sighed. "It will be fairly obvious soon enough that at least some of our coming visitors are here to make their suit known. Two visitors... we could pass that off." Gods knew there would be advantages to delaying letting anyone know that Essinya Serriados was a potential suitor - why risk pissing anyone off if Vanessa quickly realized she absolutely could not stand the woman.
She was going to allow herself that one luxury, of not marrying an entirely insufferable person.
"And we could always pass Regara off separately, but only for so long," she continued.
"On the other hand, announcing formally that you're looking for a spouse would be seen as a good sign by our creditors and other bankers," Rucdorn said, after coughing a moment. "I know I've harped on this a great deal, but it is a significant concern for everyone in the banking community who we owe money to or who we can consider borrowing from."
"True. And it's possible Essinya or Prince Lothar will be offended a little if we don't greet them as suitors." Arandel said. "The decision is yours, of course, your Majesty."
"Isn't it always." Vanessa chewed on her lower lip. "I'll think on it. Balmain, where do we stand on the materials for the roads?"
"Very good. There's likely going to be a few overruns here and there, wastage, underestimations, that sort of thing, so we'll likely need to buy more, but I've built a bit of that into my cost estimates for things." She passed papers over to Vanessa, who started looking them over as Balmain, in crisp, efficient terms, laid out the monumental task before them.
The Kingdom's roads covered all parts of the Kingdom, but there were some roads that were more important, both as avenues for trade, and for military travel that would need to be addressed first.
"Personally, I recommend starting with the Grand Duchy. While obviously just doing those won't undo all the damage the state of the roads is doing to the prosperity of the region, since goods have to come in and go out of the Grand Duchy, it would still kickstart the process. And since you draw the most revenue from the Grand Duchy..."
"The faster we can get the funds needed to address everything else. True," Vanessa said.
The meeting did of course continue, but the major concerns were, thus far, raised and could be discussed in more detail. Fortunately, things managed to avoid anyone getting too annoyed or upset with any of the others, which did wonders for Vanessa leaving her Council Chambers without much of a headache.
Tax Assessments (Pick 2 to get resolved this turn) [ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Vannecht County Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] County of Vaspiri Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] South Eyrist County Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Write in Other Tax Source To Be Assessed (See Assets Post)
Keeper of Correspondence Tasks (Pick 1) [ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Personally Oversee Tax Assessments (Up to 2 more Tax Assessments Will be Finished This Turn) (Base Chance 50% + Stewardship + 1/2 Learning)*
-[ ] Pick Priority (Weak or Strong Success Required)
-[ ] Pick Secondary (Strong Success Required)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Gather Reports On Banditry (Improves Base Chance of future Anti-Banditry Tasks) (Base Chance 65% + Stewardship)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Reorganize the Clerks (Improves Base Chance of [CORRESPONDENCE] Tasks by 4% or 8% for the next 5 turns) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship + Learning)*
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Lend Clerks to help another Keeper with their Task (+3/+6 to their Task on a Weak/Strong Success) (Base Chance 50% + Stewardship)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
-[ ]In The Paperwork (Base Chance 38% + Intrigue + Stewardship)*
-[ ]Hire People to Investigate the Nectrotic Ruin in the Thrornwood/Southeastern Crown Reserve (Base Chance 50% + 1/2 Martial + 1/2 Diplomacy) (RISKY ACTION) (Costs 2 Dureks)
-[ ]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of The Royal Vaults (Pick 1) [ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Negotiate Bridge Loan of 100 Dureks To Help Pay Down Current Debts (Failure will mean no loan, Weak Success will mean the higher of the two offered interest rates, Strong Success will mean the lower of the two) (Must be Used To Pay Down Existing Debts)
-[ ] From The Goldaxe Bank (Lortan Dwarves) (10.25% or 8.5%) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From The Caragio Bank (Varaday Republic) (12.25% or 10.25%) (Base Chance 66% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From the Veterger Bank (Selissa) (13.25% or 10.75%) (Base Chance 77% + Stewardship)*
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Negotiate Free-Standing Loan of 50 Dureks (Failure will mean no loan, Weak Success will mean the higher of the two offered interest rates, Strong Success will mean the lower of the two) (Can Be Used For Anything)
-[ ] From The Goldaxe Bank (Lortan Dwarves) (12.5% or 11.25%) (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From The Caragio Bank (Varaday Republic) (13.75% or 12%) (Base Chance 67% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From the Veterger Bank (Selissa) (14.25% or 13%) (Base Chance 79% + Stewardship)*
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Acquire Raw Materials To Mint New Gold and Silver Coins (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda) (No Roll Required)
-[ ] <Amount of Dureks To Spend>
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Sell Tax-Farming Rights (Tax Farmers offer large sum of money up front and get full right to collect all taxes from a given source for a specified length of time) (Success of roll results on more money gained) (No matter what, you will get less money up front than you could get over that length of time) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship + Diplomacy)
-[ ] Write In Tax Source And A Number of Turns
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Invest (Miss will result in only getting X% of investment back, Weak success will result in regaining investment +1 Durek, Strong Success will result in Y% of investment being regained) (Cannot invest more than 10 Dureks at once at this time)
-[ ]In Land Speculation [Write In Amount] Base Chance 50% + Stewardship (X = 75% Y = 125%)
-[ ]In Mining [Write In Amount] Base Chance 45% + Stewardship (X = 60%, Y = 140%)
-[ ]In Shipping [Write In Amount] Base Chance 40% + Stewardship (X = 50% Y =150%)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Audit The Royal Desmene (Phase 1 of ?) (Could increase Revenues from Personal Holdings) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
High Marshall of the Armies (Pick 1) [ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Inspect the Levies (Determine Levy Readiness for Action) (Base Chance 35% + Martial + Diplomacy)*
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Recruit Additional Soldiers (Strong Success gets you all the soldiers you wanted. Weak Success or Failure gets you less soldiers) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)* (Costs Dureks Base on # of soldiers desired)
-[ ] Write in desired Types and Numbers of Soldiers
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Survey Border Defenses (Opens Options for Future Improvement of Border Defenses) (Base Chance: 75% + Martial)*
-[ ]Thornmarch
-[ ]Ashdan March
-[ ]Eaglecrest
-[ ] Write in (Suggest Other Border Area)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Stage War Games with the Mobile Reserve (Improves Army Readiness, increasing rolls for 3 Months) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)* (Costs 2 Dureks)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Expand The Logistics Base (Improves Army Morale, Adds Logistical Strategic Depth in case of War) (Base Chance 57% + Martial +1/2 Stewardship)* (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Liaise with the Knights of the Golden Throne (No Roll, Improves future coordination with the Knights if they need to be called up)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Draw Up New Plans for Calling Up The Levies (Makes it easier to call up the levies if needed) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)*
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Secrets (Pick 1) [ ][SECRETS] Attempt to Claw Back some of the funds Syrokis and his cronies stashed away in foreign banks. (Better success means more money. More money available in the Varaday Banks all told))
-[ ] In the Varaday Banks (Base Chance: 40% + Intrigue)*
[ ][SECRETS] Rebuild Internal Spy Network (Phase 2 of ?) (No roll required. Each phase opens more [SECRETS] options down the line and improves chances of success of internal spy operations, as well as giving increased chance for intelligence to be 'passively' received)
-[ ]Provide Funds to Speed up/Improve Process. Write-in amount.
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Nobility (Base Chance 37% +Intrigue)* (Costs 10 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Merchants Outside of the Free Cities (Base Chance 42% + Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Elites of the Free Cities (Base Chance 40% + Intrigue)* (Costs 7.5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Rural Gentry (Base Chance 45% + Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Rebuild an External Spy Network (Costs 5 Dureks) (Provides passive intelligence and improves chances of spy operations inside a given state)
-[ ] In Veldros (Base Chance: 65% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In Nerinthar (Base Chance 51% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In Selissa (Base Chance: 53% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In The Kingdom of the Necromancers (Base Chance: 40% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In the Varaday Republic (Base Chance: 43% + Intrigue)
-[ ] In North Zarsim (Base Chance 52% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] Pick a Target (Base Chance and Trait applicability to be set by QM)
[ ][SECRETS]Assess Royal Security (Stage False Break In of The Palace, potentially improves Royal Security) (Base Chance 55% + Intrigue)
[ ][SECRETS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of the Sheriffs and Reeves (Pick 1) [ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Repair War Damage (Strong Success means lower cost, Weak Success means higher cost) (Once done, it will take 5 Turns for the relevant modifier to be removed, but no additional costs) (Rebuilding the Roads will reduce this length and improve Base %)
-[ ]To the Coastal March (Costs 5 or 10 Dureks) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship)*
-[ ]To the Southmarch (Costs 3 or 7 Dureks) (Base Chance: 61% + Stewardship)*
-[ ]To the 3 Crown Reserves (Costs 1.5 or 3 Dureks) (Base Chance: 70% + Stewardship)*
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Appoint trustworthy and capable people to fill leadership positions in the Reeves to manage royal properties (Base Chance: 53% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Stewardship)*
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES]Start Rebuilding the Roads in the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)* (Costs 20 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Thornmarch and the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 60 % + Stewardship)* (Costs 35 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Grand Duchy and the Free Cities (Base Chance 54% +Stewardship)* (Costs 30 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Grand Duchy and Westcrown (Base Chance 62% + Stewardship)* (Costs 30 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Call for settlers in the Crown Reserves (No Roll, Additional Scene. Could be expensive up front, but could increase value of Crown Reserves long term)
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Send a full team of Sheriffs to investigate the Necrotic Temple in the Thornwood/Southeastern Crown Reserve (No Roll, Additional Scene) (Costs 2 Dureks)
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Justice (Pick 1) [ ][JUSTICE] Investigate charges as yet unproven against former Syrokis loyalists (Base Chance 68% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate charges as yet unproven against former rebels (Base Chance 68% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Post Bounties on Leading Bandits (Permanently Improves chances of anti-bandit operations) (No roll)
-[ ]1 Durek Total (+2 to anti-bandit operations)
-[ ]2.25 Dureks Total (+3 to anti-bandit Operations
-[ ]Write in (Each point increase above +3 costs 1.5 more Dureks)
[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Take Over The Ebon Dragon Trading Company Investigation (Base Chance 53% + Intrigue)
[ ][JUSTICE] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Envoys (Pick 1) [ ][ENVOYS] Open Trade Negotiations (Could Produce Additional Durek Income)
-[ ]With Zedarsh (Base Chance 68% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]With Kingdom of the Necromancers (Base Chance 74% + Diplomacy)* (Scrying the KoTN is more difficult)
-[ ]With Veldros (Base Chance 63% + Diplomacy)* (Scrying Veldros is more difficult)
-[ ]With Blerren (Base Chance 69% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]With Gyptar (Base Chance 69% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]Write-in (Suggest realm, Base Chance will be set by QM)
[ ][ENVOYS] Announce to everyone that the Queen is looking for Suitors (No Roll Required)
[ ][ENVOYS] Quietly Investigate who else might be interested in Queen Vanessa's Hand (Gives more options for quietly reaching out in the future) (Base Chance 47% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Intrigue)
[ ][ENVOYS] Negotiate Non-Aggression Pact with Morvak (Weak Success means concessions may be required, followup vote will be taken to see if you approve said Concessions)
-[ ]For 3 Months (Base Chance 48% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]For 6 Months (Base Chance 42% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]For 12 Months (Base Chance 32% + Diplomacy)*
[ ][ENVOYS] Reach out to the Kingdom of the Red Spear to gauge Intentions (Base Chance 56% + Diplomacy)*
[ ][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
[ ][ENVOYS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Queen Actions (Pick 2) [ ][QUEEN] Scry on a Neighboring power to gather information on them. (Provides information, may increase odds of future [SECRETS] actions involving the country) (Base Chance: 55% + Magic)*
-[ ]Morvak
-[ ]Suggest Additional Target (Some realms may be harder to Scry)
[ ][QUEEN] Scry on the Status of the Border Defenses (Opens Options for Future Improvement of Border Defenses) (Base Chance: 51% + Magic + Martial)*
-[ ]Thornmarch
-[ ]Ashdan March
-[ ]Eaglecrest
-[ ] Write in (Suggest Other Border Area)
[ ][QUEEN] Scry On The Kingdom (Base Chance 45% + Magic)*
-[ ]The Lordships
-[ ]The Free Cities
-[ ]The Rural Gentry
-[ ]The Trade Towns
-[ ]The Counties
[ ][QUEEN] Try to get Cyril to be willing to provide direct assistance in some cases (Opens options in the future) (Base Chance 25% + Diplomacy)
[ ][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
-[ ] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[ ] Greet them as Envoys publicly
[ ][QUEEN] Social Action (May use both Queen Actions on Social Action) -[ ] Get To Know Your Staff Better
-[ ] Write-in Councilor you'd like to improve relations with.
-[ ] Catch Up With Cyril
-[ ] Reach out to Vanessa's noble mother/family in Veldros
-[ ] Write-in (Subject to QM Veto)
[ ][QUEEN] Recruit more mages to Royal Service (If successful, costs 10 Dureks. No expenditure if failure) (Base Chance: 70% + Diplomacy)†
[ ][QUEEN] Negotiate a One-time 20 Durek 'Tax': (Will upset the target, degree of upset depending on roll result. Miss means no money and middling degree of upset, Weak Success means all the money but the greatest degree of upset, Strong Success means all the money and the least degree of upset)
-[ ]Tax Lordly Estates (Base Chance 33% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax The Counties (Base Chance 35% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Free Cities Trade (Base Chance 35% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Trade Towns Trade (Base Chance 40% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Rural Gentry Estates (Base Chance 37% + Diplomacy)
[ ][QUEEN] Take a Royal Tour of the Grand Duchy and Nearby Lordships (Could improve popularity and loyalty in the region) (Base Chance 70% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)†
[ ][QUEEN] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
So, the way that the multiple phases for both the Lordships and the Trade Towns will work is this: Rack up Three 'Victory Points' in total in a given area, and you'll have resolved the banditry problem in that area. A Strong Success counts as 2 VP, a Weak Success as 1 VP and a Failure as 0 VP. So it could take 2 to 3 turns to resolve each area even with success every turn. That may seem like a lot, but these are wide, dispersed areas with the banditry not having the convenient hidey holes that the last ones did. If there are overruns (i.e. you end up with more VP that required) then you'll get an extra benefit for dealing with the bandits so completely.
Obviously this is quite different from how banditry was done in turn 1, and even from turn 2. There are several things I've learned just over the last three turns about how to make a quest interesting and also not harder to run that it has to be. I'm sure I'll learn more as we go. Someday, I'm sure I'll run another CK2-style quest, and I'll have learned some major lessons 😅
Banditry Actions [ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Darach (Rolls will use her Martial and Trait)
[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send High Marshall Rienne (Rolls will use her Martial and Trait) (Will impose a -7% Chance to her [HIGH MARSHALL] Action this turn)
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Show the Flag (Send the bulk of the Mobile reserves in a big, showy force to spook bandits and make them quit or at least reduce morale, win local support to prevent anyone supplying bandits from doing so, etc) (No Chance of Casualties) (Base Chance 31% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Regular Trade Route Patrols (Patrol the main channels of trade to ward off bandit attacks) (Low Casualties at Most) (Base Chance 49% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Send Out The Cavalry On Hunting Expeditions (Send out the Light Cavalry off-road and have them try to drive out bandits root and branch) (High Casualties at Most) (Base Chance 69% + Martial)
[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Lordships
[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
VOTING MUST BE BY PLAN. VOTING MORATORIUM FOR 72 HOURS.
I feel that having the Keeper of Correspondence continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation will be the best use of his time, while having the Keeper of Royal Vaults actually mint the new money would be a good follow up on last turns action on getting the gold and silver.
I am less sure, what the best use of the High Marshall might be, but inspecting the Levies looks like a good action. At the moment, I would prefer trying to have the Keeper of Secrets attempt to get the money back from the Varaday Banks, but I am open for other ideas on his action.
Having the Keeper of Justice investigate these new claims of revenge done by ex-rebels would likely be wise, while having the Keeper of Envoys draw up detailed proposals for each of the marriage candidates seems like a good action.
When it comes to the Queens actions, then we have to choose between greeting our suitors as envoys or as suitors, and at the moment, I prefer the idea of meeting them as suitors. Creating a proper sanctum seems like a decent pick for our second action, though I have been thinking about doing a social action.
When it comes to the bandits, then I picked general Trins, since he has the biggest bonus against bandits, and I also picked dispersed to cover major trade caravans to increase our chance of a major success. I also prefer dealing with the bandits harassing our trading towns first.
[] Plan: Public Suitors
-[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
-[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
-[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
--[ ]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
-[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
-[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Inspect the Levies (Determine Levy Readiness for Action) (Base Chance 35% + Martial + Diplomacy)*
-[ ][SECRETS] Attempt to Claw Back some of the funds Syrokis and his cronies stashed away in foreign banks. (Better success means more money. More money available in the Varaday Banks all told))
--[ ] In the Varaday Banks (Base Chance: 40% + Intrigue)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
-[ ][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
-[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
-[ ] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[ ][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
-[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
-[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
-[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
The plan looks good at large, but one thing, no two things.
1. For Secrets, remember that Vallefor's help on the investigation penalizes him this turn. It might be better to save the Banks for next turn, and do a second level of the Internal Spy Network because it requires no roll.
2. You forgot the Sheriffs and Reeves action. Thankfully, it appears we have just enough money (and no other demands in the plan), to start on the roads in the Grand Duchy.
The plan looks good at large, but one thing, no two things.
1. For Secrets, remember that Vallefor's help on the investigation penalizes him this turn. It might be better to save the Banks for next turn, and do a second level of the Internal Spy Network because it requires no roll.
2. You forgot the Sheriffs and Reeves action. Thankfully, it appears we have just enough money (and no other demands in the plan), to start on the roads in the Grand Duchy.
Yeah, I had overlooked the action for Sheriffs and Reeves, so I added the action for rebuilding roads in the Grand Duchy, and you also make a good point about the debuff on Vallefor, I had forgotten about it myself.
[] Plan: Public Suitors and Roads
-[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
-[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
-[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
--[ ]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
-[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
-[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Inspect the Levies (Determine Levy Readiness for Action) (Base Chance 35% + Martial + Diplomacy)*
[ ][SECRETS] Rebuild Internal Spy Network (Phase 2 of ?) (No roll required. Each phase opens more [SECRETS] options down the line and improves chances of success of internal spy operations, as well as giving increased chance for intelligence to be 'passively' received)
-[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES]Start Rebuilding the Roads in the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)* (Costs 20 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
-[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
-[ ][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
-[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
-[ ] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[ ][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
-[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
-[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
-[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
I'm curious what's contributing to the lack of discussion this time? Was there something about the post that didn't seem to be giving anyone anything to latch onto?
Well me it's the usual 'I work by focusing on particular aspects because an overarching plan is overwhelming' but also me skimming because of not taking the time to deep read.
Or put another way being a filthy casual…
And worse yet I was trying to look for suitor actions about envoys versus suitors with the idea that depending on how we set this up we could ensure that king guy at least was set up with a backup plan/treaties that could assist him in the war effort even if another candidate wins the Queen's hand.
Heck, I could see the Peace Princess being on board-if he can score diplomatic wins and reinforcements that WILL make life harder for the Warmongers, at least being bad news that could demoralize them…
And worse yet I was trying to look for suitor actions about envoys versus suitors with the idea that depending on how we set this up we could ensure that king guy at least was set up with a backup plan/treaties that could assist him in the war effort even if another candidate wins the Queen's hand.
Heck, I could see the Peace Princess being on board-if he can score diplomatic wins and reinforcements that WILL make life harder for the Warmongers, at least being bad news that could demoralize them…
Those are both sound ideas, and they are options you'll be able to pursue during scenes with them and stuff.
And I do understand the analysis paraylsis with plan votes, etc. There just seemed to be more of it this time than usual. 🤔 It's nothing to feel bad over.
I actually agree with the current plan presented, so I'm just looking forward to all the fun that will happen when Vanessa publicly acknowledges Essinya as her potential wife.
I dont have much to discuss about. The plan is more or less exactly what I would have suggested.
Only thing Id do differently would be to get the Marshal liaise with the Knights on the off chance that it gets us first hand infos about them, the necromancers and their mutual relations before the suitors arrive.
Wasnt going to mention it, but seeing the lack of other discussion we could talk about this.
As a reminder, the voting choices are included below: Tax Assessments (Pick 2 to get resolved this turn) [ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Vannecht County Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] County of Vaspiri Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] South Eyrist County Land Tax
[ ][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Write in Other Tax Source To Be Assessed (See Assets Post)
Keeper of Correspondence Tasks (Pick 1) [ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Personally Oversee Tax Assessments (Up to 2 more Tax Assessments Will be Finished This Turn) (Base Chance 50% + Stewardship + 1/2 Learning)*
-[ ] Pick Priority (Weak or Strong Success Required)
-[ ] Pick Secondary (Strong Success Required)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Gather Reports On Banditry (Improves Base Chance of future Anti-Banditry Tasks) (Base Chance 65% + Stewardship)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Reorganize the Clerks (Improves Base Chance of [CORRESPONDENCE] Tasks by 4% or 8% for the next 5 turns) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship + Learning)*
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Lend Clerks to help another Keeper with their Task (+3/+6 to their Task on a Weak/Strong Success) (Base Chance 50% + Stewardship)
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
-[ ]In The Paperwork (Base Chance 38% + Intrigue + Stewardship)*
-[ ]Hire People to Investigate the Nectrotic Ruin in the Thrornwood/Southeastern Crown Reserve (Base Chance 50% + 1/2 Martial + 1/2 Diplomacy) (RISKY ACTION) (Costs 2 Dureks)
-[ ]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
[ ][CORRESPONDENCE] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of The Royal Vaults (Pick 1) [ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Negotiate Bridge Loan of 100 Dureks To Help Pay Down Current Debts (Failure will mean no loan, Weak Success will mean the higher of the two offered interest rates, Strong Success will mean the lower of the two) (Must be Used To Pay Down Existing Debts)
-[ ] From The Goldaxe Bank (Lortan Dwarves) (10.25% or 8.5%) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From The Caragio Bank (Varaday Republic) (12.25% or 10.25%) (Base Chance 66% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From the Veterger Bank (Selissa) (13.25% or 10.75%) (Base Chance 77% + Stewardship)*
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Negotiate Free-Standing Loan of 50 Dureks (Failure will mean no loan, Weak Success will mean the higher of the two offered interest rates, Strong Success will mean the lower of the two) (Can Be Used For Anything)
-[ ] From The Goldaxe Bank (Lortan Dwarves) (12.5% or 11.25%) (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From The Caragio Bank (Varaday Republic) (13.75% or 12%) (Base Chance 67% + Stewardship)*
-[ ] From the Veterger Bank (Selissa) (14.25% or 13%) (Base Chance 79% + Stewardship)*
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Acquire Raw Materials To Mint New Gold and Silver Coins (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda) (No Roll Required)
-[ ] <Amount of Dureks To Spend>
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Sell Tax-Farming Rights (Tax Farmers offer large sum of money up front and get full right to collect all taxes from a given source for a specified length of time) (Success of roll results on more money gained) (No matter what, you will get less money up front than you could get over that length of time) (Base Chance 55% + Stewardship + Diplomacy)
-[ ] Write In Tax Source And A Number of Turns
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Invest (Miss will result in only getting X% of investment back, Weak success will result in regaining investment +1 Durek, Strong Success will result in Y% of investment being regained) (Cannot invest more than 10 Dureks at once at this time)
-[ ]In Land Speculation [Write In Amount] Base Chance 50% + Stewardship (X = 75% Y = 125%)
-[ ]In Mining [Write In Amount] Base Chance 45% + Stewardship (X = 60%, Y = 140%)
-[ ]In Shipping [Write In Amount] Base Chance 40% + Stewardship (X = 50% Y =150%)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Audit The Royal Desmene (Phase 1 of ?) (Could increase Revenues from Personal Holdings) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][ROYAL VAULTS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
High Marshall of the Armies (Pick 1) [ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Inspect the Levies (Determine Levy Readiness for Action) (Base Chance 35% + Martial + Diplomacy)*
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Recruit Additional Soldiers (Strong Success gets you all the soldiers you wanted. Weak Success or Failure gets you less soldiers) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)* (Costs Dureks Base on # of soldiers desired)
-[ ] Write in desired Types and Numbers of Soldiers
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Survey Border Defenses (Opens Options for Future Improvement of Border Defenses) (Base Chance: 75% + Martial)*
-[ ]Thornmarch
-[ ]Ashdan March
-[ ]Eaglecrest
-[ ] Write in (Suggest Other Border Area)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Stage War Games with the Mobile Reserve (Improves Army Readiness, increasing rolls for 3 Months) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)* (Costs 2 Dureks)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Expand The Logistics Base (Improves Army Morale, Adds Logistical Strategic Depth in case of War) (Base Chance 57% + Martial +1/2 Stewardship)* (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Liaise with the Knights of the Golden Throne (No Roll, Improves future coordination with the Knights if they need to be called up)
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Draw Up New Plans for Calling Up The Levies (Makes it easier to call up the levies if needed) (Base Chance 50% + Martial)*
[ ][HIGH MARSHALL] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Secrets (Pick 1) [ ][SECRETS] Attempt to Claw Back some of the funds Syrokis and his cronies stashed away in foreign banks. (Better success means more money. More money available in the Varaday Banks all told))
-[ ] In the Varaday Banks (Base Chance: 40% + Intrigue)*
[ ][SECRETS] Rebuild Internal Spy Network (Phase 2 of ?) (No roll required. Each phase opens more [SECRETS] options down the line and improves chances of success of internal spy operations, as well as giving increased chance for intelligence to be 'passively' received)
-[ ]Provide Funds to Speed up/Improve Process. Write-in amount.
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Nobility (Base Chance 37% +Intrigue)* (Costs 10 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Merchants Outside of the Free Cities (Base Chance 42% + Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Elites of the Free Cities (Base Chance 40% + Intrigue)* (Costs 7.5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Plant Spies on the Rural Gentry (Base Chance 45% + Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)
[ ][SECRETS] Rebuild an External Spy Network (Costs 5 Dureks) (Provides passive intelligence and improves chances of spy operations inside a given state)
-[ ] In Veldros (Base Chance: 65% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In Nerinthar (Base Chance 51% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In Selissa (Base Chance: 53% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In The Kingdom of the Necromancers (Base Chance: 40% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] In the Varaday Republic (Base Chance: 43% + Intrigue)
-[ ] In North Zarsim (Base Chance 52% + Intrigue)*
-[ ] Pick a Target (Base Chance and Trait applicability to be set by QM)
[ ][SECRETS]Assess Royal Security (Stage False Break In of The Palace, potentially improves Royal Security) (Base Chance 55% + Intrigue)
[ ][SECRETS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of the Sheriffs and Reeves (Pick 1) [ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Repair War Damage (Strong Success means lower cost, Weak Success means higher cost) (Once done, it will take 5 Turns for the relevant modifier to be removed, but no additional costs) (Rebuilding the Roads will reduce this length and improve Base %)
-[ ]To the Coastal March (Costs 5 or 10 Dureks) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship)*
-[ ]To the Southmarch (Costs 3 or 7 Dureks) (Base Chance: 61% + Stewardship)*
-[ ]To the 3 Crown Reserves (Costs 1.5 or 3 Dureks) (Base Chance: 70% + Stewardship)*
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Appoint trustworthy and capable people to fill leadership positions in the Reeves to manage royal properties (Base Chance: 53% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Stewardship)*
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES]Start Rebuilding the Roads in the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)* (Costs 20 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Thornmarch and the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 60 % + Stewardship)* (Costs 35 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Grand Duchy and the Free Cities (Base Chance 54% +Stewardship)* (Costs 30 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Start Rebuilding the Roads Between the Grand Duchy and Westcrown (Base Chance 62% + Stewardship)* (Costs 30 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Call for settlers in the Crown Reserves (No Roll, Additional Scene. Could be expensive up front, but could increase value of Crown Reserves long term)
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Send a full team of Sheriffs to investigate the Necrotic Temple in the Thornwood/Southeastern Crown Reserve (No Roll, Additional Scene) (Costs 2 Dureks)
[ ][SHERIFFS AND REEVES] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Justice (Pick 1) [ ][JUSTICE] Investigate charges as yet unproven against former Syrokis loyalists (Base Chance 68% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate charges as yet unproven against former rebels (Base Chance 68% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Post Bounties on Leading Bandits (Permanently Improves chances of anti-bandit operations) (No roll)
-[ ]1 Durek Total (+2 to anti-bandit operations)
-[ ]2.25 Dureks Total (+3 to anti-bandit Operations
-[ ]Write in (Each point increase above +3 costs 1.5 more Dureks)
[ ][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
[ ][JUSTICE] Take Over The Ebon Dragon Trading Company Investigation (Base Chance 53% + Intrigue)
[ ][JUSTICE] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Keeper of Envoys (Pick 1) [ ][ENVOYS] Open Trade Negotiations (Could Produce Additional Durek Income)
-[ ]With Zedarsh (Base Chance 68% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]With Kingdom of the Necromancers (Base Chance 74% + Diplomacy)* (Scrying the KoTN is more difficult)
-[ ]With Veldros (Base Chance 63% + Diplomacy)* (Scrying Veldros is more difficult)
-[ ]With Blerren (Base Chance 69% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]With Gyptar (Base Chance 69% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]Write-in (Suggest realm, Base Chance will be set by QM)
[ ][ENVOYS] Announce to everyone that the Queen is looking for Suitors (No Roll Required)
[ ][ENVOYS] Quietly Investigate who else might be interested in Queen Vanessa's Hand (Gives more options for quietly reaching out in the future) (Base Chance 47% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Intrigue)
[ ][ENVOYS] Negotiate Non-Aggression Pact with Morvak (Weak Success means concessions may be required, followup vote will be taken to see if you approve said Concessions)
-[ ]For 3 Months (Base Chance 48% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]For 6 Months (Base Chance 42% + Diplomacy)*
-[ ]For 12 Months (Base Chance 32% + Diplomacy)*
[ ][ENVOYS] Reach out to the Kingdom of the Red Spear to gauge Intentions (Base Chance 56% + Diplomacy)*
[ ][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
[ ][ENVOYS] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
Queen Actions (Pick 2) [ ][QUEEN] Scry on a Neighboring power to gather information on them. (Provides information, may increase odds of future [SECRETS] actions involving the country) (Base Chance: 55% + Magic)*
-[ ]Morvak
-[ ]Suggest Additional Target (Some realms may be harder to Scry)
[ ][QUEEN] Scry on the Status of the Border Defenses (Opens Options for Future Improvement of Border Defenses) (Base Chance: 51% + Magic + Martial)*
-[ ]Thornmarch
-[ ]Ashdan March
-[ ]Eaglecrest
-[ ] Write in (Suggest Other Border Area)
[ ][QUEEN] Scry On The Kingdom (Base Chance 45% + Magic)*
-[ ]The Lordships
-[ ]The Free Cities
-[ ]The Rural Gentry
-[ ]The Trade Towns
-[ ]The Counties
[ ][QUEEN] Try to get Cyril to be willing to provide direct assistance in some cases (Opens options in the future) (Base Chance 25% + Diplomacy)
[ ][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
-[ ] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[ ] Greet them as Envoys publicly
[ ][QUEEN] Social Action (May use both Queen Actions on Social Action) -[ ] Get To Know Your Staff Better
-[ ] Write-in Councilor you'd like to improve relations with.
-[ ] Catch Up With Cyril
-[ ] Reach out to Vanessa's noble mother/family in Veldros
-[ ] Write-in (Subject to QM Veto)
[ ][QUEEN] Recruit more mages to Royal Service (If successful, costs 10 Dureks. No expenditure if failure) (Base Chance: 70% + Diplomacy)†
[ ][QUEEN] Negotiate a One-time 20 Durek 'Tax': (Will upset the target, degree of upset depending on roll result. Miss means no money and middling degree of upset, Weak Success means all the money but the greatest degree of upset, Strong Success means all the money and the least degree of upset)
-[ ]Tax Lordly Estates (Base Chance 33% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax The Counties (Base Chance 35% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Free Cities Trade (Base Chance 35% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Trade Towns Trade (Base Chance 40% + Diplomacy)
-[ ]Tax the Rural Gentry Estates (Base Chance 37% + Diplomacy)
[ ][QUEEN] Take a Royal Tour of the Grand Duchy and Nearby Lordships (Could improve popularity and loyalty in the region) (Base Chance 70% + Diplomacy + 1/2 Intrigue) (Costs 5 Dureks)†
[ ][QUEEN] Suggest additional task, subject to QM Veto (Base Chance Will be Set by QM If Approved)
So, the way that the multiple phases for both the Lordships and the Trade Towns will work is this: Rack up Three 'Victory Points' in total in a given area, and you'll have resolved the banditry problem in that area. A Strong Success counts as 2 VP, a Weak Success as 1 VP and a Failure as 0 VP. So it could take 2 to 3 turns to resolve each area even with success every turn. That may seem like a lot, but these are wide, dispersed areas with the banditry not having the convenient hidey holes that the last ones did. If there are overruns (i.e. you end up with more VP that required) then you'll get an extra benefit for dealing with the bandits so completely.
Obviously this is quite different from how banditry was done in turn 1, and even from turn 2. There are several things I've learned just over the last three turns about how to make a quest interesting and also not harder to run that it has to be. I'm sure I'll learn more as we go. Someday, I'm sure I'll run another CK2-style quest, and I'll have learned some major lessons 😅
Banditry Actions [ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Darach (Rolls will use her Martial and Trait)
[ ][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send High Marshall Rienne (Rolls will use her Martial and Trait) (Will impose a -7% Chance to her [HIGH MARSHALL] Action this turn)
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Show the Flag (Send the bulk of the Mobile reserves in a big, showy force to spook bandits and make them quit or at least reduce morale, win local support to prevent anyone supplying bandits from doing so, etc) (No Chance of Casualties) (Base Chance 31% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Regular Trade Route Patrols (Patrol the main channels of trade to ward off bandit attacks) (Low Casualties at Most) (Base Chance 49% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
[ ][BANDITRY PLAN] Send Out The Cavalry On Hunting Expeditions (Send out the Light Cavalry off-road and have them try to drive out bandits root and branch) (High Casualties at Most) (Base Chance 69% + Martial)
[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Lordships
[ ][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
[X] Plan: Public Suitors and Roads
-[X][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
-[X][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
-[X][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
--[X]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
-[X][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
-[X][HIGH MARSHALL] Inspect the Levies (Determine Levy Readiness for Action) (Base Chance 35% + Martial + Diplomacy)*
-[X][SECRETS] Rebuild Internal Spy Network (Phase 2 of ?) (No roll required. Each phase opens more [SECRETS] options down the line and improves chances of success of internal spy operations, as well as giving increased chance for intelligence to be 'passively' received)
-[X][SHERIFFS AND REEVES]Start Rebuilding the Roads in the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)* (Costs 20 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
-[X][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
-[X][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
-[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
--[X] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[X][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
-[X][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
-[X][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
-[X][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
New Plan replaces the levies with the knights of the golden throne hoping we get to know more about them, the necromancer and their relations in preparation for our suitors. I will stop voting for the old version when the new one overtakes it.
[X] Plan: Public Suitors and Roads Necromancer edition
-[X][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Eaglecrest 3% Wealth Tax
-[X][TAX ASSESSMENTS] Port Lest 4% Wealth Tax
-[X][CORRESPONDENCE] Continue the Ebon Dragon Investigation
--[X]Look into the Necrotic Artifact Market to see if you can trace their profits (Base Chance 44% + 1/2 Diplomacy + Intrigue)*
-[X][ROYAL VAULTS] Mint the <15 Dureks> Worth of Gold and Silver into new Coins and Put them Into Circulation (Base Chance 70% + Stewardship) (Progress towards resolving Currency Contraction, Advances Royal Propaganda)
-[X][HIGH MARSHALL] Liaise with the Knights of the Golden Throne (No Roll, Improves future coordination with the Knights if they need to be called up)
-[X][SECRETS] Rebuild Internal Spy Network (Phase 2 of ?) (No roll required. Each phase opens more [SECRETS] options down the line and improves chances of success of internal spy operations, as well as giving increased chance for intelligence to be 'passively' received)
-[X][SHERIFFS AND REEVES]Start Rebuilding the Roads in the Grand Duchy (Base Chance 56% + Stewardship)* (Costs 20 Dureks) [Process will take Multiple Turns]
-[X][JUSTICE] Investigate claims of ex-rebels taking revenge on pardoned former Syrokis loyalists and exact justice as required. (Base Chance 58% + Intrigue + 1/2 Learning)*
-[X][ENVOYS] Draw up detailed proposals for what Halrun can/should ask for from each possible marriage Candidate for the Queen's consideration (No Roll Required)
-[X][QUEEN] Meet and Greet with Arriving Suitors: Lothar Aldogun & Essinya Serriados (LOCKED, MUST TAKE)
--[X] Greet them as Suitors publicly
-[X][QUEEN] Begin looking for a suitable, secluded place inside the Palace to create a proper Sanctum (Sanctums are places of power for mages where their magics are most potent, they are hardest to kill, and where they can keep their greatest of secrets) (Base Chance: 50% + Stewardship OR Intrigue, whichever is Higher)
-[X][BANDITRY GENERAL] Send General Trins (Rolls will use his Martial and Trait)
-[X][BANDITRY PLAN] Disperse to Cover Major Trade Caravans (Get Merchants to travel in caravan convoys, and disperse to guard them directly) (Medium Casualties at Most) (Base Chance: 57% + Martial)*
-[X][BANDITRY TARGET] The Trade Towns
Voting will close Monday afternoon. I'll put up the income & loan vote post up shortly thereafter. The actual next post (i.e. the next story post with Council followup, etc etc) will be next weekend. I may split the greeting Lothar and Essinya off into a separate post, we'll have to see.
