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>>29095619
You head to your newly minted strategy room – Cormann apparently found the war room in the plans and moved half his things there. Undine and Maloric are with you as Lynn is escorting Sarah back to her room. Undine seems to have recovered her composure now, or at least is giving the appearance that he is. Upon entering the room, you encounter grim faces – it would appear the scouts are back and the news is not good. You give your greetings and introduce Maloric before beginning proceedings.

“General,” Cormann begins, “I’ll give some good news before the bad. My contacts got back to me and I’ve spent the night drafting up as much as I can.”

He hands you a map of the region, with scrawlings all over it, and some separate sheathes of paper.

>see pic related for map

COLOURS:
Light Blue: Player Territory
Green: Independents
Yellow: Vitria
Purple: Taour
Tan: Royal Seraphi Kingdom
Blue: Magi League
Orange: Farun (minor royal city)
Grey: Impassable terrain
Red borders: Impassable border except for flyers

>Province information is now available in the general pastebin (some data is still missing)

HARROWMONT (PROVINCE)
Name: Harrowmont
Owner: Player Faction
Control: Very Low
Order: Moderate
Population: 200,000
Military Presence: Very Low; Moderate
Resources: N/A
Notable Locations:
- Harrowmont (Fortress) - a large but decrepit fortress containing a Source. Reasonably close to the north of the province and against some bluffs.

>>29095646
You briefly consult the map before moving on. Arail is next, and the news of the approaching army is grim.

“They’ll likely be attacking at dawn, sir, depending on how much they rest. Given their size and equipment, and our general unpreparedness, they’ll likely just attack.”

ENEMY ARMY
Position: Edges of Harrowmont province
ETA: 20 hours
Composition:
400 Vitrian Mage Knights
800 Vitrian House Soldiers
300 Vitrian Crossbowmen
10-20 battlemages

YOUR ARMY
45 Darlesian Flying Mage Knights (Vet.)
65 Darlesian Mage Knights (Vet.)
100 Darlesian Longbowmen (Vet.)
450 Darlesian Men-At-Arms (Vet.)
15 Battlemages (Reg.)
100 Vitrian Mercenaries (Reg.)
30 Vitrian Mage Knights (Reg.)
Satisfactory support and logistics corps

“Four hundred mage knights? Where did House Oaln get that many damned knights? How many flags are there?” Glynn asks.

“Only House Oaln flags, though that could mean anything. They’re probably green, sir, at the very least.”

You nod. Vitria has only maintained one active battlefront recently, so few of their men are suited to open battle. That should give you an edge you’ll definitely need. You…

>1. Invite Sarah down here for her opinion on the enemy army.
>2. Ask opinions from your officers on how we should approach this.
>3. Mull over the information yourself to build a battleplan as the others talk.
>4. Custom

>>29095666
>>2. Ask opinions from your officers on how we should approach this.
we should show our men that we trust and value their opinions.

>>29095666
Battleplan: Regarding our enemies imminent arrival I want Maloric and Gareth to come up with a delayed activation barrier. Essentially I want the barrier to come up after a good portion (say 1/3rd) of the enemy troops come inside and cut them off from retreat and reinforcement. Then we crush that portion of the army that's cut off quickly and cleanly. This also allows us to take advantage of battlefield control I.

Also get Sarah's thoughts.

Random Other Crap:

Regarding the so called "Gods" I vote we refer to them as Astral Adepts. It refers to the name of their energy, its alliterative and catchy, and its a backhanded reference to the Mage rank of Adept. Oh, and God-Knights would be Astral-Knights of course.

Next, regarding summoning things I think we should have Maloric summon the Fire Elemental sister as it would have a higher success rate than the earth elemental sister.

Finally, I have an idea for an innovation in warfare: the Arcane Archer. The arcane archer will be a well trained longbowmen with magical equipment, a ranged version of a Mage-Knight if you will. Obviously the enchantments would be very different, with an arcane archer focusing on strenght endurance, sight, and accuracy rather than heavy defensive enchantments. High level Arcane Bows can probably imbue spells into an arrow similar to the D&D prestige class of the same name.

>>29095701
>>29095698
a combination of the two. Ask for their advice and see if that battleplan is practical.

>>29095701
I can get behind this, but we should not use Sarah to lay battleplans, but our own staff. if we bypass them, their trust in us will be lowered

>>29095755
I was more using Sarah for information. Reading the pastebin I have a sneaking suspicion as to how house Orlan got so many mage knights. Also, since the Vitran's are reminding me more and more of the french we should make some arcane archers and go all Agincourt on them when we have the time.

>2. Plus delayed activation barrier idea

You speak up, offering an idea of yours about a delayed activation barrier that would allow you to control the battlefield better and cut off enemy troops.

Maloric rubs his chin, a wicked grin on his lips. “That would work pretty well. I’m not a barrier caster myself, but I know the theory and how to tear them down. With some help from your mages, it should be very possible, I think.”

Gareth nods. “If Archmagister Reegan can do the theory, I and my mages can make the barriers.”

Maloric gives you a sidelong glance at the archmagister reference. You shrug in return before letting the two know to get to work on it right after this meeting. You the invite any additional opinions from the men and women present.

Arail is first. “I see three advantages for us: Experience; diversity of options with flying knights and powerful mages; and powerful warriors such as yourself, General, and Magister Reegan here.”

Glynn agrees. “We can’t fight them head to head. We need to fight smart and make use of our strengths – these trick barriers of yours are good for that. Mages are a power on the battlefield for that reason.”

Undine offers an idea. “I may be able to set some traps around gatehouses and other overhanging areas. Nothing as great as your barriers, but they should be able to harm the foe.”

>continued

>>29095986
You nod and offer another idea for Maloric to consider – Arcane Archers. Magically enchanted equipment to support your longbows and their offensive capabilities. You can almost see the gears in his head turning as he considers the idea.

“I… may… be able to do something like that. There’s a few enchantments I might be able to place on bows, at the very least. I’ll assume you want me to get on that after the barriers? I won’t know how far I can get with this idea until that is done. I might consult you later for some ideas of what you want the bows and equipment to do. It’s an interesting idea.”

You have some ideas now. You’ve got almost an entire day to create a comprehensive battleplan. You gave Sarah until noon to make her decision as to whether she’d support you, but you could press her earlier. You…

1. Continue with the strategy meeting (player prompts for information)
2. Dismiss the meeting and go talk to Sarah
3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn
4. Dismiss the meeting and talk more with Maloric about summoning
5. Custom

>>29096002
>3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn
needz moar mortal kombat skills, save our mana for the battle

>>29096050
we'll get refreshed before the battle I think.

>>29096002
>1. Continue with the strategy meeting (player prompts for information)
See if there are any options for reducing the enemies strength before the main battle. For example, if they get sloppy with their cohesion the flying knights might be able to pounce on a few isolated units and such.

>>29096002
>1. Continue with the strategy meeting (player prompts for information)

We need a proper formation.

Ask Undine is she can do something big. We need to make the conditions absolutely miserable for the enemy. Have it start with a cold rain, soak the land that leads upwards to our fortress. By the time they make it to us, they will be drenched and disheartened and that is when we hit them with the major storm. Cold unrelenting rain, makes armor feel like a block of ice and daggers upon normal skin.

Position archers and long range mages along the walls in a way that forces their flanks inwards. We used the divide and conquer tactic, they could as well and take advantage of our low army. As they approach have the archers withdraw making sure to keep them in one mass int he center. Then leave the main gate open so they can mass through at a bottleneck. Spring traps on them, Cut their army in half. With the bulk of our armed forces, dry and ready on the other side ready to cut them down in quick order.

>>29096186
>Ask Undine is she can do something big.

Undine shakes her head. "Even at the height of my power, I'd have difficulty controlling the weather. I can achieve more localised effects though - I could turn the road approaching the fortress to mud, or I could create flood traps outside the walls that would create small flash floods of ice-cold water as the enemies approach.

>archer formation
Glynn nods and tell you he'll start organising the troops for exactly that.

>>29096133
Arail gives that odd smile of his. "We'll load up on speed enchantments and see if we can't bomb the parts of their formation that stray a bit far. We should wait until they get closer, though, or we'll waste a lot of time going to and fro."

>same options as last post

>>29096305
>3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn
spar and chat, we need to figure out what she is

>>29096002
>1. Continue with the strategy meeting (player prompts for information)
See if there is a way to hurt the army that is left behind the barrier.(the ones not caught), by using magically timed explosives hidden in the ground.

>>29096305
>3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn

>>29096305
3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn

>>29096305
Ask udine if the mages help her with her spell, how much more powerful can it be.

>>29096305
>small flash floods of ice-cold water as the enemies approach.
That sounds just as good. Anything to slow them down and make them miserable.

>1. Continue with the strategy meeting (player prompts for information)

Suggest we parley with them. Mage-Knights would be highly useful to us and if their army is sent up like ours their are units of them and generals. We could bring the highest Noble/most important of the Virtrian Mage-Knights we have from the siege and have him speak to them trying to convince them to defect lest they lose their lives. Might get at auxiliary force out of it or make their normal troops nervous.

Also after that.
>5. Custom

Ask Undine to speak to her in private. We have a few things to talk over with her, say, "Undine, take me somewhere... Beautiful within these walls, I would see what this fortress holds in secret before I walk to war once more. And you spoke of meditating, I would have you teach me."

Also,

>>29096305
>3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn

>>29096305
So can we do a pincer attack, that during the army that is 1/3rd trapped in death the other 2rd should be trying to dispel the barrier and moving around it looking for a weakness. I suggest around this time that we have long ranged units that were hidden a distance away take pot shots at them.

>>29096501
No. Focus fire on the 1/3rd that is trapped in order to take them out as quickly as possible.

>>29096305
3. Dismiss the meeting and go spar with Lynn

>>29096354
Maloric chuckles at that. "That ones been tried before. The dwarves use them for mining and warfare, and there's some magitech that achieves similar effects. Enchanting it can be difficult though, as most enchantment needs touch and will to be able to trigger the effects - if you want to hurt the enemies on the other side of the barrier, I have some spells that should work from our side and I'll teach our mages the basics."

>>29096407
Gareth looks a bit shocked that you would ask as such, but Undine merely gives you a small smile. "My magic can appear like sorcery, but it is not quite the same. Your mages are talented, but the differences in our magic would cause more trouble than aid."

>>29096501
Maloric says, "I can keep their mages from dispelling the barrier without much difficulty. I specialise in magical energy manipulation, so I can just keep them from gathering enough in a ritual to remove our barrier."

>>29096428
>parley
Cormann speaks up, but doesn't seem convinced. "Best bet is to use some sendings to see if they're amenable to a chat. A Vitrian knight might defect if he sees the size of the force, but we could still try it."
>separate vote on this one later after Cormann gets a response/no response

>Moving on to Lynn's sparring now unless there's a sudden bout of support for a differnet idea (like the Undine chat one)
>Keep in mind that spending time with people who are otherwise busy may impact on their ability to do their work

>>29096526
>Moving on to Lynn's sparring now

>>29096526
Lyn doesn't really have anything else to do though. So lets go with her and leave our men to it.

>>29096526

Alright I suppose Lynn spar. But we really should talk with Undine here soon as well.

You dismiss the meeting, thanking your officers for their help. As you step outside, you indicate to Undine that you would like to chat with her once she has some free time. She tells you that she’ll likely need a rest later this afternoon from her casting and that would be a good time.

Lynn is right outside the war room, in full armor and helmet on. You ask her to accompany you to a spare room – after the embarrassment of the last spar you feel no need to fight her so openly.

“This is the spar you mentioned earlier, sir? This should be enjoyable.”

You pause for a moment, and fetch your armour from your room. Having half your bones broken because you taunted Lynn earlier isn’t the best way to prepare for tomorrow’s battle. Once you are ready, the both of you take a very similar stance with your swords and shields and then meet in combat. You should be able to squeeze in a few hours of training.

[DC 14 Sparring]

Rolled 4

>>29096678
go go fighting

Rolled 99

>>29096678

Rolled 10

>>29096678

Rolled 19

>>29096678

>>29096722

Noice. Change our stance a bit. See if we can't throw her off.

Also, since it's just a spar, try to get her to teach us that repulsion thing she does. And ask some questions about her here and there. Time to find out who/what she is.

Rolled 6

>>29096769
She already said she can't anon.

>>29096699
d20, dude.


>Target met

You take it a bit easier in this spar than the last one, as you don’t have anything you prove. Yeah, that’s absolutely it – it has nothing to do with the fact you seem to be handling Lynn’s hammer blows a bit better and aren’t constantly on the backfoot. As it is, dealing with the speed and power of Lynn’s blows is fantastic strength training – your muscles are killing you but you push on, knowing that this is nothing compared to what tomorrow will be like. You figure after this bout, you’ll have a short break and a chat with her – she’s taking this fight very seriously, especially as you have the upper hand.

Lynn suddenly leaps back, before shifting into her shield charge technique again – the difference being that she is openly using sorcery this time. You wonder who taught her this – you’ve never been crazy enough to shield charge a foe. You…

>1. Be a man! Shield-to-shield.
>2. Dodge and counter. She needs to learn her lesson.
>3. Try to use a barrier to counter her this time, maybe it will work better than trying to barrier-break her.
>4. Custom

>>29096852
>2. Dodge and counter. She needs to learn her lesson.

Rolled 16

>>29096852
>>3. Try to use a barrier to counter her this time, maybe it will work better than trying to barrier-break her.
>>4. Custom
Use barrier break after the barrier breaks on us.

>>29096852
>2
Brute strength is fine, but she's gonna get herself killed if she relies on it anytime she is losing.

>>29096852
>2. Dodge and counter. She needs to learn her lesson.

>>29096852
>2. Dodge and counter. She needs to learn her lesson.

Empower our strike as well. Precision blow to mess up her magic flow.

>2.

She’s being too reckless – she did the same thing against the assassin and it nearly got her killed. You figure a well-timed dodge and counter will show her the problem with her fighting style. A nimble shift around her shield and an empowered pommel strike to her open side should do the trick…

[DC 11 Dodge and counter]

Rolled 8

>>29097013

Rolled 16

>>29097013

Rolled 12

>>29097013

Rolled 8

Incidentally folks, I think we should consider taking a mining town as our second town. Metals are important, especially in war time.

>>29097013

>>29097013
Question QM
Our skills: Are they all passive, or do we actively have to choose to use them?

>>29097049
The region to the immediate west is Darlesia's main mining region - if you look at the pastebin info on Mier (IIRC) it has an extensive mine network.

>Target met

You give the illusion that you are going to meet her head-on, but position your feet slightly differently. Right as she is about to strike you, you shift just enough out of her way and bring your pommel hard into her side. She grunts at the sudden impact, and swings her shield wildly at you, but it just misses you as you step back. She doesn’t give you any time to rest though, or herself for that matter, and is on you with a series of hard blows again. She’s definitely more cautious though, and is keeping her shield a bit too low in order to guard her battered side. Time to teach her another lesson about creating openings…

[DC 13 Sparring]
>last round of rolls before chat, fyi

Rolled 9

>>29097173

Rolled 4

>>29097173

Rolled 2

>>29097173
Was looking at that, that's why I mentioned it heh.

Rolled 3

>>29097173

>>29097157
The skill I choose is dependent on your actions. The same goes for the skill the enemy is using to oppose you. So, they're kind of active. Abilities are active though, but sometimes I might use one without prompting if it makes sense (you went through most of the Harrowmont assault with Empower Self active, for instance.)

>>29097188
>>29097209
>>29097221

And we blow it on the last one. Sounds about right.

>>29097188
Shit...uh...


Can we use any abilities to make it work?

>>29097235
Yeah, I thought as much. This is important, though. I wish we could make it work

>>29097235
>>29097268
meh
who cares, it's sparring
worse to fuck up in combat

>>29097338

Agreed. That and we won the other 2 rolls. I figure we'll come out relatively well in the end.

>Target not met

You should have known better than to get cocky with Lynn. She’s making a frantic assault, and although she has several openings, you can never quite make them work. Finally, you manage to get a solid blow in, only to be met in return with a knee to the stomach and a headbutt. You reel back, but maintain enough sense to make a strong sweep towards where she is, blasting magic through your muscles. Your sword strikes her shield with a clang, and she tumbles mid-advance with a small shout. You take a moment to recover as she rolls back to her feet. You figure this will be the end but she keeps the pressure on for many minutes more.

Eventually she tires, falling back on to the ground. You weren’t able to decisively win the spar, but you at least managed to outlast her – and you feel she’s still learnt something from this fight. You feel as though you have been bench-pressing a flagstone for a few hours. You lean back against the wall as she takes off her helmet. This is as good a time as any for a friendly chat.

>1. Talk with her about her ancestry.
>2. Talk with her about Maloric
>3. Talk with her about the attacking Vitrians.
>4. Custom

>>29097403
>>2. Talk with her about Maloric
how did they meet, swap funny stories.
loosen her guard

>>29097403
>2
Backstory~

>>29097403
>2. Talk with her about Maloric
Ask if he had a hand in her learning how to focus that shield repulsion thing she does. Then;
>1. Talk with her about her ancestry.

>>29097403
>2. Talk with her about Maloric
But with questions about him helping her with her sorcery mixed in there. She'll hopefully offhandedly mention her ancestry during the time.

>>29097403
>talk about her ancestry

>>29097452
sneaky Me like.

>2.

“So, how did you meet Maloric?”

She stares off into space for a little while before responding, her voice still her usual tinkle. “Well, it was when I first started noticing signs of the whole ‘not completely human’ thing, as he puts it. I had noticed him puttering about – he stands out a bit compared to the local agriwizard. So I imposed on him and he got interested and we went hunting to find out who my father is.”

“That’s when he taught you my fighting style and your sorcery?”

She gives you a funny look, before comprehension dawns. She sits there for a little while, mouth open. Oddly enough, it seems the little sprite didn’t realise you were the knight she had been idolising.

“Your – wow, I didn’t realise. No wonder it felt so odd fighting you… Um, yes, that was when he taught me. He complained about the way I seemed to rely on nothing but brute strength. He didn’t teach me sorcery though – said my magic was too different to his. Eventually we find my father – though he’s a grumpy old bastard. I don’t think he likes the fact I’m a girl.”

You respond…

>1. Ask who her father is.
>2. Ask why he doesn’t like her being female.
>3. Ask what is different about her magic.
>4. Custom

>>29097610
>grumpy old bastard.
>grumpy old feldragon bastard

I'M ON TO YOU. Maybe.

>1. Ask who her father is.

>>29097610
>2. Ask why he doesn’t like her being female.
>3. Ask what is different about her magic.
this girl prob has daddy issues, she will get mad talking about him an spill the beans

>>29097610
seconding >>29097646

>>29097610
>2. Ask why he doesn’t like her being female.
Dragon seems more and more likley. Astral Adept is solidly eliminated, as is pure elemental (They don't have dads)

>>29097645
>>29097688
Quick question:
Do you want to keep beating around the bush as to what you think she is (i.e. not referring to her as a dragon in the next conversation) or do you want to outright say it in hopes she'll bite?

>>29097772
I'm in no rush, patience is a virtue. being wrong is stupid

>>29097772
>in hopes she'll bite

Damn you.

Nah let's keep beating around the bush a bit. She'll tell us in time.

>>29097772
beat around the bush. If we can get her to commit all the better.

>2.

“Why wouldn’t he want a daughter? Even amongst humans, the female/male divide is breaking down with sorcery. The Magi League is headed up by a woman who is arguably the most powerful mage in centuries.”

She rolls her eyes. “He has some weird ideas about the future of our race – I’m not sure I buy into them. Also, from what I know of history, he has a real vendetta against a woman who he blames for everything – even the end of the Golden Age.”

“That’s… pretty severe.”

So, ancient race and history dating back to the Golden Age… you think you know what she is. You find it odd that she won’t outright say what she is – perhaps she suspects you don’t really know? Or maybe she finds it uncomfortable? You…

>1. Ask who her father is.
>2. Ask what is different about her magic.
>3. Wait until she’s ready to actually tell you and move onto a different topic.
>4. Custom

>>29097917
>even the end of the Golden Age.

OH COME ON. She's a dragon. Her father might even be one of the dragons that ascended to a feldragon and ended the Golden Age.

>1. Ask who her father is.

Do so in a well mannered way.

>>29097917
>3. Wait until she’s ready to actually tell you and move onto a different topic.

>>29097917
Ask what's different about her magic. I suspect this will clear some things up without making us look like a boob

>>29097917
>3. Wait until she’s ready to actually tell you and move onto a different topic.
I don't care...
Let us timeskip to the battle

>>29097952
Second

>>29097997
>Let us timeskip to the battle

Nah we still need to talk to Undine.

>>29097997
We still need to deal with Sarah.

>>29097997
You still at least need to deal with Sarah and her decision at noon (next event). Then you have the choice of talking to Undine or skipping to the battle (with some stat building in between).

>>29098025
Skip to
>next event
then

We don't NEED to talk to Undine, she has got shit to do, let her do it

>>29097997
I'd rather not skip all the juicy character development bits.
But yes, lets not interrupt people who are doing junk.

>>29098025
Incidentally, did our Strength increase from that whole mess?

>>29098088

Undine said she would be taking a small rest after preparing her stuff. Perfect time to talk to her, meditate with her and learn some stuff. Possibly reassure of some others.

>>29098106
Awesome

>>29098106
>>29098126

you guys just want it all don't you...
greed has taken down many an emperor my friends

>>29098150
We be ambitious niggah

>>29098150

Not really no. But we have suggested summoning Undine's sister Gnome(who I assume is her eldest sibling based on the lorebin) and we suspect she has a bit of an inferiority complex and a bit of a temper.

We have some stuff to talk to her about. And calming ourselves with her meditation before battle would help as well.

>>29098182
Disturbing her in her quiet time might not be a good thing.
and please, ease up on the "we" thing you got going. I've been here since the start, and though I like fleshing out things, I'm happy to do it a bit at the time, no need to know Everything. just. now

>to avoid this coming up again and frustrating players, I'm just going to roll with the dragon 'reveal'

“So, who exactly is your father?”

Lynn looks away for a bit and closes her eyes. After some time, she appears to have come to a decision and turns back to you, looking slightly meek but her usual smile is still present.

“Um, have you ever heard of Tylarne?”

“Who?”

“The Font of Eternity?”

“I don’t know those names.”

She looks put out at that and ‘ums’ and ‘ahs’ for a little while before continuing. “Um, he was the first feldragon – the blue dragon who discovered the process in the first place. He’s the only one other than Lairos to still be alive.”

Your blink. Feldragon. That meant she wasn’t just a regular dragon. At least her father wasn’t the Great Wardragon – you weren’t sure how you’d handle a black dragon the size of the castle turning up on your doorstep with her birthday presents.

“So you’re a feldragon? Not just a regular dragon?”

She nods. “Technically, I’m a ‘natural feldragon’ – they’re not supposed to be able to reproduce so I’m a bit odd. Father thinks I’m the future of a dying race but again, I don’t buy into that.”

You rub the bridge of your nose. “Thank you for letting me know, Caitlyn. I appreciate it. How about we finish off with some more sparring?”

She nods, eager to get away from this conversation and you do some light sparring.

>Strength increases to [5]. You are at the pinnacle of human strength, but you feel you can surpass that somehow…

You thank Caitlyn for the chat and the sparring, and head to Sarah’s room. It is just before noon. You…

>1. Knock now. Best not to keep her waiting.
>2. Enter. This is your castle, you’ll do what you like.
>3. Wait outside for a half-hour. Make her stew.
>4. Custom

>>29098255
>>1. Knock now. Best not to keep her waiting.

>>29098255
>1. Knock now. Best not to keep her waiting.
No need to be a dick.

>>29098255
>1. Knock now. Best not to keep her waiting.

Let's get it on.

>>29098255
>>1. Knock now. Best not to keep her waiting.

>>29098255
No need to reveal your cards just because some people are eager to know. Do it at your own pace, Aspiration.

Also, at least her pops isn't the super evil dragon...but damn, a dragon blood as our bodyguard? I definitely approve.

Also, fuck yeah, strength.

I wanted to know exactly what did those stats 'do'. We don't get modifiers to our rolls, so...do they just decrease DC? Or...?

>2
Just because us walking in on her changing would be HILARIOUS

>>29098334
>do it at your own pace
Fair advice.

>stat use
They change DCs. For instance, all your combat DCs? They would now be one lower if you did them again with the strength up (except for the few you did not using STR).

>1.

You knock heavily on the door. You don’t hear a response and so you knock again and hear an odd noise on the other side. Taking that to be an invitation to enter, you do so. Maybe she assumed you would simply enter after knocking, as so many nobles do.

Or not, you realise upon entering. The girl appears to have gone back to sleep and your knocking has half awakened her. She sits upright in the old bed wearing a purple nightdress – she doesn’t seem to be fully aware of who you are and is currently stretching out.

You feel exasperated.

>1. Remind her of who you are.
>2. Tell her to get changed for a meeting and step outside.
>3. Wait until it twigs in her brain that you’re General Talon, not a servant at her home.
>4. Custm

>>29098423
>>2. Tell her to get changed for a meeting and step outside.
no need to waste time here

>>29098423
>3. Wait until it twigs in her brain that you’re General Talon, not a servant at her home.

GENERAL TALON YORK DOESN'T TAKE SHIT FROM NO ONE.

>>29098423
>3. Wait until it twigs in her brain that you’re General Talon, not a servant at her home.
Wait with an eyebrow raised.

>>29098423
>3
Followed by an harsh 1 if she is stupid enough to not recall

>>29098423
>2. Tell her to get changed for a meeting and step outside.

>>29098452
>>29098459
>>29098477
>wanting to become an empereror
>acting like a little bitch

>>29098510

How so? York has a commanding presence and I assume is still wearing his armour. She fears him already, enough that his mere presence should be enough.

File: 1388105319903.jpg-(77 KB, 372x340, 1339753690950.jpg)

77 KB JPG

>>29098510
Thank god what we actually want is to be emperor

>3.

You’re not to feel put upon by a noble without enough sense to be awake at the time of an important meeting. You wonder if she’s spent any time at all thinking over your offer.

Once Sarah finishes her small stretching, she gets up off the bed and gives you an imperious look, completely ruined by her silver hair being rumpled. It doesn’t last long – she takes one look at you, in full armor and standing almost a foot taller than her, and goes pale.

“General Talon… I didn’t… I mean…” Then she suddenly reddens and fires up – at least you’ve worked out her defense mechanism when she’s stressed by something. “Couldn’t you have knocked?”

“I did. You invited me in.”

She looks down, mumbling a bit. Ah, so that was an invitation – you didn’t mishear earlier.

You reach under her chin and turn her face upwards, and speak slowly and strongly, “Now that you remember where you are and your position, I would like you to get changed into something more suitable, Lady Hawkins, and join me in a meeting room just across the corridor. There is a knight outside the room, so you shouldn’t get lost. Understood?”

She nods against your hand, your grip slack enough to let her do so. You let her go and leave, stepping into the room with a quick nod to the knight. There is a bottle of cheap wine in the middle, plus some stew with a warming spell on it in two bowls. Sarah enters shortly – her dress much more demure and understated than yesterday.

She enters silently but composed and takes a seat opposite you.

>1. Straight to business. Ask her what her decision is.
>2. Start the meal and make some light chatter first, then ask her what her decision is when her guard is down.
>3. Wait for her to speak first. Maybe she’ll apologise.
>4. Custom

>>29098645
>2
Seems to wisest choice, and maybe we will learn something interesting

>>29098645
>2. Start the meal and make some light chatter first, then ask her what her decision is when her guard is down.

>>29098645
>>1. Straight to business. Ask her what her decision is.
don't give her time to gather her wits

>>29098645
>2. Start the meal and make some light chatter first, then ask her what her decision is when her guard is down.

With some of 3 mixed in. Allow her to start talking, answer bluntly. She'll probably try to go after us when our guard is down, so play at her games.

>2. But wait for her to speak first

You pour generous helpings of the wine into both glasses – you learnt long ago to use empowerment to keep alcohol from dulling your senses, but she likely hasn’t. You push her bowl towards her and take your own, waiting for her to talk.

Once you take a bite of the stew without talking, she gives in. “What exactly are you doing here, General Talon? You are much too talented to be wasted on Darlesia. I heard once that the Seraphic King once offered you land and title and that you refused – so why are you wasting your efforts on a dying nation?”

You cock an eyebrow. So much for light chatter – it seems the girl is serious, which makes up for the earlier display. Still, no need to play to her tune.

“I am using my talents to pursue my own goals – if Darlesian soldiers aid me in reaching those, then so be it. What of yourself? When did you become the head of the greatest house of Vitria?”

She plays with her food for a little bit and takes a large gulp of wine before answering, “A little over a month ago. Mother passed and with the current crisis in the region I was seen as a the natural heir.”

You nod. “Impressive to avoid a battle over successorship. What of your talents at magic? You have pursued them so strongly before, does it not sting to abandon them?”

“I am not abandoning them – I can practice my talents and lead Vitria.”

You make some more probing small talk for some time, keeping her away from questions about yourself. The way she talks makes you doubt the strength of her position and house more so every word. Finally, as she is halfway through her second glass and thoroughly relaxed and telling you about the wonders of her holiday home in Port Temby, you spring your question.

>continued

“I apologise for interrupting, Lady Hawkins, but the food is gone and the wine dwindling, so I feel this is the right time. What is your answer to my offer last night?”

She stares dumbly at you for a few seconds, sipping at her wine, before she remembers. Maybe you should’ve done this earlier, before she stupefied herself with a small amount of wine.

“Ah. Yes. Um, you said that I would be able to rule Vitria?”

“On my behalf.”

She frowns at that, but appears to be puzzling over it, staring into her wine. “I don’t suppose you wouldn’t be interested in an alliance rather than my serving you?”

Service? You weren’t sure you worded it quite so strongly… You respond, “Your answer, Sarah.”

She flinches slightly and drains her glass, staring directly into your eyes. “It is yes, General Talon. It is not as though I have a choice, with the way things are.”

>Response?

>>29098918

>"Good." Stand up and make to leave and before doing so throw over your shoulder, "... though let it be known. Service can become Alliance. So long as daggers stay out of my back. Good day Lady Hawkins."

>>29098918
"Ah, I assume the way things are would have something to do with House Orlan's sudden surge in mage knights?

>>29098918
I gathered your house wasn't in a very good position from our discussion. Would you fill me in on the details? What happened to Vitria?

>>29098918
Does this world posses any way of magically enforcing agreements such as this one, adding some dangerous or lethal element if they are broken by the parties?

If not, she will likely try and rebel against us once we secure Vitria for her. We night need to cultivate some loyal 'successors' within her House to replace her if she gets too uppity.

>>29098997
>magically enforceable agreements
Devils can create them, but they charge a high price and you'd need Maloric to summon one to do so. Otherwise, no.

>>29099016

That sounds like more work then it's worth. I think we can win her to our cause. Though in a confusing manner, since all we do is scare her.

>>29099016
I'm a bit sad. I wanted to warm up to the lady a bit. But it's kinda hard when she fears us so.

>>29098991
Sounds good. voting for this

>probing her about Vitria’s state of affairs

"Ah, I assume the way things are would have something to do with House Oaln's sudden surge in mage knights?

She licks her lips and looks at the remaining wine, you gesture to her to take it and she pours the rest into her glass and continues drinking.

“It’s not like it matters that you know, if I am to pledge my house and self to you and Darlesia.”

“Just to me,” you interrupt.

Again she frowns, but appears to be unable to make the connection. She continues, “Viktor Oaln is a powermonger – he has been destabilising Vitria for years. He’s bullied many houses into supporting him and is trying to seize Harrowmont from under me and take what it truly my house’s – and yours now. Oaln is arguably the most powerful house now. Those mage-knights, which I take it are marching on us now, are probably press-ganged from the weaker houses. Conscripts and cheap magical plate – but in numbers they are still very threatening to veterans.”

“If Hawkins was the power it’s said to be, how did it not stop Oaln?”

She looks away. “Mother was trying, but then she passed. I…” She looks directly at you, some of her earlier fire back. “I have the personal strength to lead the house and Vitria, I simply need the strength of arms. That is why I am going to serve you – I would have preferred an alliance, but if you can help me bring Vitria back to what it should be, I will aid you in pursuing your own goals otherwise. You have my word as the head of House Hawkins, General Talon York.”

>continued

>>29099193
You ask some more questions, but she won’t give too much detail about her house’s position. All you know is that Oaln has been cultivating power through force and the other three houses have been powerless to stop them. It seems odd that Oaln would suddenly find the strength to do so… Perhaps they found a strong backer?

Sarah is a little unsteady on her feet, so you ask the knight to escort her back to her room after the meeting. She tries to give you an elegant curtsy, but does so too close to you and bangs her head into your breastplate. Which then sets off a string of cursing followed by apologies. Perhaps you should keep little Sarah Hawkins away from the liquor in the future…

“General Talon, Master Cormann has some news on the parley.” It is almost 2pm.

>1. Tell Cormann to handle the parley as he sees fit. You have to prepare yourself for battle
>2. Tell Cormann to handle the parley as he sees fit. You will spend some time with Maloric and some plans.
>3. Meet with Cormann to see how the Vitrians have responded.
>4. Custom

>>29099210
>3

>>29099210
>3. Meet with Cormann to see how the Vitrians have responded.
As for Maloric. If he needs advice on constructing the Arcane Leather and enchanted bows he should consult with the leader of our longbowmen and some of our veteran mage knights.

>>29099210

Meet with Cormann. It shouldn't take too long...

>>29099210
>3. Meet with Cormann to see how the Vitrians have responded.

It is interesting to hear Vitria is a mess. And the fact that the forces marching on us were forced into battle might make our parley go better so probably a good idea to take a direct hand in this.

>3.

You step into the war room and Cormann is waiting there for you. Interestingly, none of the other officers are.

Cormann speaks, “We got a response from our sending – but not from the army. Count Argyle, the Vitrian in charge of Vale province, has sent us a response indicating he wants to have a personal conversation with you and only you via real-time sending. I’ve got an old magitech device for it here.”

“Where are the other officers?”

“Busy. Plus, this is strange. I figure I should let you make the executive decisions about this, particularly if that Hawkins girl has told you anything.”

You nod, Cormann fiddles with the device and leaves the room. After a few moments, you hear a voice come through it.

“This is Count Robin Argyle. I am speaking to General Talon York, correct?”

“That is right, Count Argyle.”

“Most excellent. I will try to keep this brief as my mages can only disrupt Oaln’s attempts to tap this communication for so long. How much do you know of Vitria’s recent troubles, General?”

“Enough that it’s undergoing some severe and potentially unwanted changes.”

A chuckle comes through. “Unwanted indeed. Viktor Oaln is trying to make Vitria his own. Although I am his vassal, I am also a servant of Vitria. He will have us all dead at the hands of Taour with the way he wastes our military strength.

“I hear you are a capable man, General. Perhaps we can help each other…”

[DC 12 Diplomacy]

Rolled 6

>>29099363

Rolled 7

>>29099363

Rolled 8

>>29099363

Rolled 2

>>29099363
Let's diplomize!

Rolled 14

>>29099363

>>29099395
>>29099408
>>29099417

>6,7,8
Oh come on that has to count for something.

Rolled 19

>>29099395
>>29099408
>>29099417
>>29099418

hahahaha we suck

We are only able to diplomacy with women it would appear.

Rolled 10

>>29099363
is it first three or first five?

>>29099467
On the bright side, any attempt at doing stuff trains our skills a little bit. So hopefully, we'll become more Charismatic over time.

>Target not met

You argue back and forth over what each of you can provide the other, but you don’t feel like you’re getting through. Eventually…

“It is unfortunate that we were unable to come to an agreement. Even so, I do not wish to see Oaln gain any more power. There is a unit of mage knights amongst the foe that are loyal to myself. They are the foe’s reserve. If you are able to stall the enemies main assault, then fly the flag of Vitria – not any one house, but Vitria itself. They will retreat along rather than join the battle.

“I am sorry we were not able to aid each other more. I hope this makes enough of a difference for you, General Talon.”

You lean back in your chair, frustrated. Negotiating by sending is always difficult – you are unable to truly bring your presence to bear.

It is after 4pm. You suspect Undine is taking a break now.

>1. Join Undine for a chat.
>2. Work with Maloric.
>3. Train your skills for the coming battle.
>4. Custom

>>29099488
>Rolls are d20 and the best of the first three posters. Please quote the post you are voting for or rolling against.

>>29099517
>2

That's a bit of a disappointment. But it'll help regardless. At least open up the possibility to future workings. Something in person preferably.

>>29099517
>1. Join Undine for a chat.

>>29099545
Thank you just wanted to check

>>29099517
>3

>>29099517
>1

>>29099517
>1

>1.

You mentioned to Undine about talking to her on one of her breaks, so you decide to follow through on that. After some time searching for her, you begin to think it would have been wise to ask where she would take a break. You wander down into the dungeons to where the Source is – perhaps she is down here.

You instead encounter her inside a different room on the lowest level. The room itself appears to be of slightly different design to the rest of the dungeon, with a large tiled recess taking up much of the room. Undine is sitting on the steps leading into the recess, and you notice from the water flicking from her barefeet that there is a small amount of water present. You join her silently, but remain standing next to her.

After some time, she speaks up, “How did your meeting with Sarah go?”

You spend some time filling her in on the events of the day, speaking softly – or as softly as you can with your rumbling voice. She appears to be rather serene right now and you don’t want to disturb her too much.

You then move on to…

>1. Talk to her about summoning one of her sisters
>2. Talk to her about meditation
>3. Continue with the silence until she sees fit to break it.
>4. Custom

>>29099756

4.

Her opinion on how the coming battle will turn out...

>>29099756
>3. Continue with the silence until she sees fit to break it.
Then:
>2. Talk to her about meditation

>>29099756
This >>29099790
and >2

>>29099756

Would meditation focus on one of our stats? Like intelligence or magic?

>>29099795
>3 first, then >>29099841

>mixture of options

You remain silent for some time, observing the room. You suspect this was a large bath of some sort – if so, then there is likely a water source or water supply nearby. Or perhaps it was never finished – this level was the last to be worked on.

“You don’t need to remain silent, Talon.”

You shrug, as Undine looks up at you with a peculiar smile on her face.

“I can appreciate silence, particularly on a break.”

She’s definitely amused now. “Are you worried about the battle, Talon?”

“Not worried. This is my life – for now and for some time while I achieve my dream. I am curious as to what you think, though.”

She ponders that for a second, her feet playing in the water. “I think we will win. You may be outnumbered, but you are strong and your men are loyal. You also don’t hesitate to use the abilities of myself and Maloric – I have known leaders who refuse to resort to what they believe to be underhanded tricks.”

“Those men never became emperors so I feel satisfied in ignoring their opinions.”

She giggles and the two of you fall silent. You speak, “You mentioned meditation earlier, Undine. Perhaps you could teach me of it?”

She looks at you sidelong. “I never thought you the type to meditate on your actions.”

“I am very capable of reflection, Undine,” you respond gruffly, getting only a smile in response.

Undine suddenly stands. “I need to return to my work, Talon. After this battle, if you are still interested, I can take some time to show you my meditation.”

You thank her and head upstairs with her. It is late now, and you need to finalise your battle plans.

>Any final input on your plans? Otherwise, I will compile what came up in the earlier strategy meeting and post it before breaking for battle.

>>29099933
You're not sure. You don't even know what Undine does whilst meditating, if there's something special to it.

>>29099966
>no final input

>>29099973
Interesting, something to look into later then.

>>29099966
Nothing else of real note. Make sure we have a Vitrian standard at the ready.

Speaking of... We don't even have a standard of our own yet.

>>29100003
You still need to give your faction a name, yes - most people (outside your men) think you are Darlesia.

>>29100024
>Naming shit
Damn it, this is always the hardest part.

I say, if we win this fight, we earn us a name. If only we had a proper lore related title that suited us...

>>29100100

Agreed with this. A post battle thing if nothing else. Though I would rather we created a standard soon.

Pretty easy to mix a few things together. Incorporating the fact we have a Source/Champion into it would be easier.

>>29099966
Does Maloric need any input on the Arcane Archery gear?

>>29100144
Oh shit right, I wanted to see what he found out

>>29100144
Oh yeah. Props to the alliterative anon for the name by the way.

>>29100144
You couldn't find some time to spare, so he took on some advice from the soldiers.

CURRENT BATTLE PLANS

>delayed activation barriers
Maloric and Gareth have erected several of these barriers at each key chokepoint (e.g. the gatehouse into the outer courtyard has four of them). Gareth will be busy most of the battle to activate these and maintain them – he will be relying on sendings from some knights assigned as spotters to know when to activate them.

>Undine’s traps
The outside walls, and the outer courtyard, have some traps attached to the walls. Undine activates these remotely and triggers a flash flood in the vicinity (knee-height water) for a short while. They are single-use.

>holes in walls
The men, with the help of some of your structural mages, have filled in a lot of the larger holes with magically reinforced wood and light barriers.

>arcane archers
Acceleration and mass-increase enchantments on arrows (i.e. on impact with something at high speed, the arrow increases its acceleration and mass incredibly), plus the bows are enchanted for high-draw but low strength (i.e. they don’t need a ton of strength to draw the bow but they fire as though they were very high draw bows).

>Maloric’s assignment
Maloric will busy himself with neutralising the enemy battlemages. He is confident he can do so with ease.

>Other battlemages
They will position themselves on the walls and rain magic on the enemy. Once the trap barriers go up, they will focus on enemies on the other side of the walls.

>Main formation
Rain arrows on them as they advance, retreat to inner wall and allow them into the outer courtyard. Activate trap barrier and annihilate the trapped force with everything you have. Attempt to rinse and repeat.

>any final changes before timeskip? Some things can't be changed, mind.

>>29100267
Looks good. How well did the hit and run attacks perform?

>>29100267
Oh, and I'll take any write-ins for an inspiring battle speech. Otherwise I'll do my own work.

>>29100267

That looks like some solid battle plans right there.

>>29100267

Sounds good...

What about some Murder-holes? Get some troops in the middle of their panicking formations to cause some havoc?

>>29100316
How many arcane Archers do we have?

>>29100309
>missed that
Arail reports they managed to snipe some of the regulars, but the mage-knights were keeping closely packed. You took no losses, as they will have been healed by the battle.

>40-50 House Soldiers removed from the battle

>>29100320
You have some murderholes set-up in the residential areas and merchant area if you need to retreat to them. The outer courtyard, with Undine's traps, didn't have any safe locations.

>>29100330
About half your longbows have the gear. Maloric started enchanting around 5pm and doesn't sleep until the battle. He's pretty boss and used to doing this. They won't last though - he'll need to reenchant after the battle.

>>29100100
Given that we can't simply appoint ourselves Emperor, we need a title which goes beyond general but does not indicate arrogance (given that our kingdom is small asoif now)

So something focusing on our combat prowess and champion would be good.

Our war and could be York's Chosen, while our own title could be Imperator (Latin for 'he who commands' ); which would easily allow us to transition to Emperor once we gain more lands.

>>29100365
I really like the term Imperator for us, as a title and all that junk.

>next post will be long and I need to get my muse (read: alcohol) so there'll be a small delay
>you guys created some pretty cool battle-plans so my pre-written one isn't really suitable

>>29100433

All good Aspirational. Take your time with it. We can talk about building harems in the meantime.

>>29100433
Awesome. I love to hear we changed your plans. I am pissed our diplomacy failed, but hopefully we learned a little something about future diplomacy.

>>29100433
"They outnumber us nearly three to one in mage knights and 3 to 2 in men at arms. Those poor bastards."

>>29100365

I like that idea.

I wonder if we should change our last name though, is York a suitable name for Nobility?

Also if we created our own standard would we quarter it or mix in elements of the old Darlesia?

And a personal thing. I think with a name like Talon we should have some sort of creature of prey on our standard. Eagle? Griffon maybe? I don't know.

>>29100536
Why not a dragon as our symbol?
After all, they have 'talons' so to speak. And our personal guard involves a dragonborn yes?

>>29100596

I thought about that too. But I assumed that dragons are prideful and wouldn't take kindly to some upstart human using their symbol on their flag.

Maybe if we had leave from one.

>>29100536
Hmm, I'm not sure about how noble our last name is; but I'm personally against mixing elements of old Darlesia with our new standard. Ours is a new Emoire, not some failed nation reborn.

I'd be in favour of a golden Griffon ascendant on a red background as our standard.

>>29100536
I was figuring multiple standards. An Imperial Standard used by those based in Harrowmont and other Imperial (read elite) units. Local standards that quarter the imperial standard and the Kingdom from which the unit is drawn (Darlesian, Vitran, ect.) and the standard of our personal guard, which should scare the stuffing out of our enemies.

>>29100624
Hm. Well, it doesn't have to obviously be a dragon. A scaly claw, with talons being the center image maybe. Could simply be reptilian in nature...but...

Bah I dunno. I am not so good at this sorta thing

>>29100536
>>29100652
You are a commoner and York is a commoner's name.

>>29100652

Only change I'd make is on a field of deep blue. Our champion is a pure water elemental after all, might as well incorporate that somehow.

>>29100684
I like the idea of making water a theme, because of the Champion. And maybe a hint of dragons, but make it subtle because of Lynn

>>29100684
Ahh, a rich, dark blue. I like it!

As for the allusions to a dragon, the standard of our elite personal guard could be quartered, 2 imperial squares and 2 dragon squares

>>29100680

Ah that's good to know then. Perhaps we could use York as the basis of a new name, with a suffix added. -shire, -sworth, etc. Maybe.

>>29100761

I thin when it comes to dragon things we should ask Lynn her opinion on it. Wouldn't want to offend her, and she might know how Dragons/Feldragons would react to it, especially if they found out who Lynn is.

>>29100885
That's why I said I'd prefer subtle dragonish features. None too obvious.

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301 KB JPG

>this is the greatest muse

The enemy struck shortly before dawn. You and many others had gotten some short rest – others such as Maloric remained hard at work. With so many veterans, it really just seemed like another day of campaigning down south with the Seraphs. The men have been in good spirits, and you spent some time walking amongst them, joining in some minor spars, sharing stories and talking of the future. Your officers had made it clear that everybody here understood that Darlesia was fallen, but walking amongst the sons and daughters of that fallen country made it crystal clear. These men are not here out of misguided loyalty to their birthplace or country – they are hear because you are here and they believe in you. They believe that you are the man that will lead them to glory. Even knowing how outnumbered they are, they do not waver. You had thought little of Darlesia previously, but you wonder what rot set into the country that men such as these could not keep it strong…

You step up onto the highest point of the inner walls, your men taking positions below you and alongside you. A sliver of light was peeking over the bluffs behind you, but it is from the torches your men laid all along the land leading to the keep that you see them. Undine was true to her word, and the land leading to Harrowmont, once sturdy and strong clay kept dry in recent weath, was little more than a muddy bog. For all the heavy armor of the foe and their numbers, you can almost feel their morale dropping – the muddy ground, the imposing keep, the fearsome General Talon the foe of these poor press-ganged souls.

>continued

>>29100957
“Men and women of Darlesia!” you bellow to the night, loud enough that the foe can assuredly hear you. “You know who I am. You know what I offer you. You know the future I will bring you. But for those who do not – know that I am Talon York, the man who will be emperor. You may be of Darlesia – but we fight now not for the past but for our futures. Your futures.

“The Vitrians march on us, but you can see them as they flag. They know that they cannot stand before us. For if they could not stand before Darlesia at its glory, what hope have they against those as great and determined as us. So I ask you, my brethren, my soldiers – will you fight with me? Will you secure your futures with you own hands? With your own steel? With your own will?”

The roar of your men is deafening. Your archers and mages let forth a response of fire and death at the enemy, their vanguard tasting the pain of Maloric’s work. You see arrows punch through steel as though it were paper and fire bursts from the torches surrounding the foe. They had been ignoring them, thinking they were merely for the benefit of seeing them, not a trap that would seek to incinerate them as they advanced.

>continued (2/4)

>>29100981
The Vitrians attempt to break into a charge, but their lack of rest and broken formation betrays them. The mage-knights use their enchantments to break free of the mud and charge the walls, attempting to cross the two hundred metre gap without losing too many. They are sharply reminded of the folly of breaking ranks, as Undine triggers many of her traps on the outer walls. A small tidal wave of water billows forth from the outer walls and many of the foe panick. Even the mage-knights with their reinforcement find their footing lost in the muddy bog and fast-moving rapids. Arrows and magic continues to rain down on them. You hear bellows with your enhanced hearing from the Vitrian commanders, trying to have their mages counter ours, but the Adepts they have brought with them can do little to stop Maloric’s disruption, and he continues to disrupt all attempts at magic they try.

The killing field only lasts so long though, as the water rolls on down the incline and the troops make for the walls. Now comes the next phase of the plan – your archers and mages abandon the walls, Arail’s knights ferrying them to the inner wall to continue their work later. It doesn’t take long for the enemy to breach the outer wall, but it is long enough for your men to have taken their new positions. The enemy mage-knights pour through the gap – your own men are in strong positions atop the platforms of the inner courtyard, and your knights taunt theirs with magical blasts.

>continued (3/4)

>>29101000
More foes stream in – and then the trap is sprung. A golden wall snaps into place over the gatehouse they have broken through and the Vitrians slam uselessly into it. The mage-knights lack the power or skill, as green as they are, to possibly break through and their mages are useless with Maloric’s meddling. You order your men to focus fire on them. You look briefly to Sarah, standing at your side, a glittering blue magical barrier protecting her.

“This is what I offered you, and what you were wise enough to accept.”

Now it is time for battle. You…

>1. Direct your men from atop the wall. You can protect them from enemy magical blasts and direct the battle with sendings.
>2. Join your soldiers in a raucous melee in the courtyard.
>3. You are Talon York and you will be emperor. Leap down into the foe and show them you are not to be trifled with – the distraction can let your men shatter the enemy, even if your life is at stake.
>4. Custom

>>29101023
>3. You are Talon York and you will be emperor. Leap down into the foe and show them you are not to be trifled with – the distraction can let your men shatter the enemy, even if your life is at stake.

You know exactly what we're going to pick.

Have that Vitrian standard flown quickly though as well. Get those reserve forces running now.

>>29101023
>2. Join your soldiers in a raucous melee in the courtyard.

>>29101023
>2. Join your soldiers in a raucous melee in the courtyard.
Have our best arcane Archers target anyone who tries to target the trapped men.

>>29101093
tries to rally rather. lets crush their moral quickly.

>>29101122
Targeting officers, basically?

>>29101023
>2

>3 is too flashy... though we can always try a 1on1 with their commander...

>>29101157
Yeah, or sergeants or basically anyone who tries to help them keep their unit cohesion or boost their moral. Keep them fighting as disorganized individuals.

>3. You are Talon York and you will be emperor. Leap down into the foe and show them you are not to be trifled with – the distraction can let your men shatter the enemy, even if your life is at stake.

>>29101023
>3

On a somewhat related note. That's some good stuff right their Aspiritional. Thanks for changing your plans for us. Spoilered for random off topic stuff.

>>29101023
>2. Join your soldiers in a raucous melee in the courtyard.
3 is to reckless.

>>29101023

If we jump down, Empower Self so our jump has impact upon landing. Send out a little shockwave and knock people off balance/scare the hell out of others.

>>29101023
>2. Join your soldiers in a raucous melee in the courtyard.

3 sounds like it'll have some tough rolls to make.

>>29101229

This sort of thing is exactly why I’m QMing. This battleplan was pretty awesome.

>2.

You give some quick orders to your arcane archers to keep the foe from rallying – target officers and anybody who thinks they’re a hero. You then leap down into the midst of your men – they quickly clear a path so that you can move to the fore, and you take the opportunity without hesitation. As you come to the edge of the platform you raise your sword high, even as you feel the powerful snap of Undine’s sorcery.

“Men, let us show these Vitrian dogs what it’s like to be true warriors!” you shout.

The Vitrians are in complete disarray, arrows raining down on them, and some of Undine’s flood traps wiping out their footing. Many of the regular troops are hammering on the walls and barrier, futilely trying to escape, as the mage-knights try to gather and not be knocked over by the flowing water. Officers drop like flies as your archers make brilliant use of their new bows and arrows – you know exactly what you need more of in the future.

You leap down from the platform, channeling sorcery into your fall to destabilise as many of the foe as possible. Your men join you as your flying knights bombard the foe with explosive spells and your mages elicit screams from the other side of the wall. With a bloodcurdling cry, you leap into the fray with your men at your back.

[DC 12 Combat]

>>29101401
I think our advantage is in melee right now, actually.

Rolled 19

>>29101408

>>29101432
nice

Rolled 7

>>29101408

Rolled 20

>>29101408
FOR HONOR

>>29101420
I meant that as in comparison to rolls for 2 though I did actually forget to read that last bit of 3 somehow.

>>29101463
well this should be ineresting

>>29101463

OH SHIT SON. TALON AIN'T FUCKING AROUND TODAY.

>>29101408
>Officers drop like flies as your archers make brilliant use of their new bows and arrows – you know exactly what you need more of in the future.
Arcane Archers are apparently a thing now. We should probably create some sort of Ranger order or something to serve as our counterpart to whatever knightly order we found.

>>29101606

>Ranger Order

Fucking fund it.

>>29101606
>Ranger Knights
Yes pls

>exceptional success
>the first one

You barrel into a Vitrian knight as you hammer your blade through a regular. With a mighty slam of your shield, you send the knight hurtling into several Vitrians and your men take advantage of the situation – arrows and explosive spells rain on the downed men and you charge on to the next foe, a poor soul who futilely attempts to block your sword with his shield, only to wind up skewered through the wood and steel he thought would save him.

Your blade hums with power, your body feels like it’s floating – you’ve empowered yourself before, but you’ve never felt so… godlike. Your men are following you along, cheering and shouting, as they clean up the foe as you pass. You feel a shattering sensation and realise that somebody has broken the first barrier – either they couldn’t last due to their ad hoc nature or the enemy rained enough power against it to break it. It matters little – the foe are broken and fleeing, and the reinforcements find themselves facing a tide of fleeing soldiers.

A Vitrian banner was flown sometime during the furious melee, and a brief sending told you it worked as expected – better, really, as many of the foe’s archers fled with the fifty knights of Vale. The foe is bloody and broken – their attempted onslaught was no match for your power and your cunning. Even so, you think, there is always one who thinks they can oppose you. Three great brutes, runes glowing on their magical plate, charge at you. Clearly they had been caught on the other side of the gate and they weren’t about to let their men’s cowardice stop them from trying to seize victory. One of them takes an arrow to their leg, but a rune flares and they keep charging. You recognise the sigil of Vitria’s largest knightly order – the Order of the Golden Bear.

You grin and ready yourself to meet their charge. If these nobles think they are a match for you, they’re sorely mistaken.

[DC 14 Empowered Melee]

>>29101606
Order of the Leaf:
Scout
Ranger
Ranger lord
Ranger errant
Pathfinder
Commandment

Rolled 14

>>29101669

>>29101696

Quarter their standard with a magical bow on a field of green.

Rolled 5

>>29101669

Rolled 12

>>29101669
BOW GOLDEN BEAR, YOU ARE BEFORE THE IMPERATOR

>>29101669

Those armors will look good over our fire place.

The Griffon does not fear the Bear.

what about a hawk clawing the air on a red feild for our standard it would tie in with our name

>target met

You take the offensive as their charge reaches you, your humming greatsword snapping forward and piercing the closest knight right through his guard and armor. You follow through with a shield smash as you draw your blade out of his chest, your foe tumbling into another. You meet the axe of the last knight, sparks and magic flaring as he attempts to overpower you but he is no match for your strength. With a yell, you shove his axe aside and hammer your first into his helmet, a half-dozen runes flaring and failing as you dent his armor into the side of his face and he falls, immobile onto the ground.

You hear a shout of warning behind you and spin, your blade moving so quickly you swear you see the air glow in its wake. The knight you had knocked down with his comrade is leaping at you, but your sword cleaves straight through his mace and your follow-up strike with your pommel sends him crashing to the ground. You coup de grace him with little fanfare, feeling as you are practically teleporting from place to place, such is your speed. You look up at the sky, feeling a shudder of magic run through you. Looking around, you realise the battle is over – seeing you tear apart their champions as though they were paper mache dolls has broken what was left of the enemy army. Those soldiers who have not fled have surrendered to your troops. You see Arail’s knights flying in the distance, presumably picking off any of those who would be dangerous should they regroup.

Harrowmont has held – held with little difficulty, such was the greatness of your battleplan and the strength of your will. You can scarcely believe the ease with which you routed the foe – between yourself, Maloric and Undine you very nearly single-handedly defeated the foe.

>continued

>>29101977
Speaking of which, the water elemental appears beside you, looking concerned. “Talon, are you alright? The magic around is… strange. You’ve been fighting so many foes – are you unharmed?”

>1. Reassure her.
>2. Tell her you’ve never felt better.
>3. Ignore her question and ask her whether there are any problems for you to take care of.
>4. Custom

>>29101997

>1. Reassure her
Followed by
>2. Tell her you've never felt better

>>29101997
>2. Tell her you’ve never felt better.

"Could it be the Source?"

>>29101997
>2. Tell her you’ve never felt better.
when Arail shows up to report we must greet him with "Excellent work Major."

>>29102009

Oh yeah we absorbed a lot of energy from the Source in Thread 2. Never did go on to describe what happened with that.

>>29102009

Sounds good.

>>29102023
Captain is basically the highest rank in typical armies below General (and Marshall, in noble-led forces). You can create the rank, mind.

>>29102023

Isn't he already the highest rank he can be? If we promote it should be within the Arcane Rangers ranks. Give them proper representation upon our Captains.

>>29101997
>>29102006
This

>>29102071
Eh, we can just knight him instead.
>>29102105
I think the terminoligy we are using is Arcane Archers are the dudes with the magic gear, while Rangers are the noble archers (who also have magic gear).

>>29102033
I bet the Source gave us our first Fate point

>2.

“Undine, I can honestly say I have never felt better. The energy running through me… could it be the Source is empowering me?”

Undine looks more concerned, to the point where you’re worried that you might burst into flames any second now. “That’s not… you did absorb a lot of energy, but it should be impossible for you to use it in its raw form. I don’t know, Talon – and the fact you appear to be using this energy effortlessly worries me. Please, try not to use it again in the future.”

You spend a little while dismissing Undine’s concerns – she’s a little insistent, but you are unwilling to refuse this power if it can aid you. Whilst doing so, you keep an eye on the battlefield – many of the Vitrians are still alive, just broken spiritually. That’s the problem with green troops – a little bit of terrifying magic and they fold like wet paper. Still, perhaps they will provide you with some new recruits.

You walk up to the keep to meet with your officers – you need to know if anything unexpected happened outside your area of the battle. As you approach the keep, you see Sarah to the side, her magical barrier still up, looking thoughtful.

>1. Approach Sarah and talk to her about the battle.
>2. Head on into the keep for the meeting.
>3. Custom

>>29102280
>1. Approach Sarah and talk to her about the battle.
"They say no plan survives contact with the enemy. That one did."

>>29102280
>1 Approach Sarah
Let's see if we can't impress on her a little, as opposed to just pure fear. I want to see if we can't get a chuckle out of her before the day's over.

>>29102280
...Are we the fourth great lord?

>>29102280
>1

"And now you have seen first hand what You were wise enough to accept..."

>>29102330

You're the same Anon from before. Haha I say we do this a bit. But just a small bit. Then quickly head on to:

>2. Head on into the keep for the meeting.

Also, check personal Mana reserves, see how much that took out of us. If any.

>as many of the foe’s archers fled with the fifty knights of Vale

I can only imagine the horrible accounts that those archers are going to give of this battle. People will fear us, maybe even think we have a larger army then we do. The smallfolk will probably come to us as well and throw their support, we can conscript an army.

Just curious

How old is York? How does int go up?

>>29102430
We should be ready. The stories of 'magic archery' is gonna spread fast, and the enemy will start training them too.

>>29102443
Stat increases will take place in a moment. You've got two including INT.

Also, York is about 33-34.

>>29102459
That depends on how long it takes them to get an accurate read on what we did. Also, Vitrans uses Crossbowmen, so they probably don't have enough Longbowmen to form a decent Arcane Archery division. You could do the same with crossbows I suppose, but Longbows make a much better weapon for elite troops for a bunch of reasons.

>>29102459

Then we'll have to get our Ranger Knights ready, outfitted with better weapons and armour and get that order started.

We shall have the best. And our magic arrows shall blot out the sun.

>>29102462

What is the average lifespan of a "human" within this setting? I imagine with magic/magitech a bit longer then real world average, but curious nonetheless.

>1.

You step up to Sarah. She looks up at you as you tower over her. Unlike before, there is no fear. Even caked in blood as you are, magical energy still hanging on your body and equipment as evidence of the butchery you just engaged in, she appears to be unfazed.

"They say no plan survives contact with the enemy. That one did,” you say. “Do you at all regret siding with myself after seeing that?”

She stares into your eyes, and you feel that something has changed between the two of you. “Undine told me earlier that I lacked the power, the will and the ambition to be her master. Although I still dispute her words somewhat, I think I understand why she chose you over me. I… I could never do that – imagine doing that. Men and women will never show the faith and belief in me that they do you.”

She smiles bitterly at you before continuing, “Even so, I do regret siding with you. It is impossible not to – you are everything I wish I could be. I need your strength if I am to ever unite Vitria… and even if you give the city to me after you conquer it, I can see that I will only ever do so in your shadow.”

She’s sullen but she continues to meet your gaze.

>Response? Or shall you just remain silent and enter the keep?

>>29102540
>Or shall you just remain silent and enter the keep?

Or throw a little word at her, some hope, "Perhaps there is time to learn."

>>29102538
Non-magical humans? Outside of warfare, they can expect to live into their fifties or sixties. Much higher for nobles and mages can live without aging for centuries, assuming nobody kills them.

A lot of the causes of high mortality in medieval times don't exist, but magic to match modern medical advances is only available in the larger cities and to those with wealth.

>>29102540
"And you have my strength. You serve me and in turn, I serve you. As a leader, I serve each of my men as they serve me. In battle. In leadership. In a future. Do you not agree?"

>>29102579

Interesting. Does that mean Mal might be a lot older then us?

And I assume at this point we might be considered a "magical" human. So that'll be interesting to see.

>>29102540
"Have some faith in yourself. I would not have given you the offer that I did if I did not think you would rule Vitria well. You may be in my shadow, but I believe you will cast some light of your own when the time comes."

>>29102617
Mal's 36 (ages are now in the pastebin). He was being self-deprecative when talking to Caitlyn.

And yes, you're definitely a magical human. You haven't aged for a few years now thanks to the amount of sorcery you've been putting through your body.

>>29102626
>You may be in my shadow, but I believe you will cast some light of your own when the time comes.
Nice

>>29102540

"Then fortune yet smiles upon you. You have the time to learn, to grow. I, as all men, started out with no knowledge of fighting, of leading men, but I learnt. I trained with what I had, spent time being lead by men, learning how to lead men... It is the things that I have experienced that have allowed me to become what I am, so too do you have the capacity to become a great leader, maybe even one greater than me..."
"Now, there is a meeting which you are required to attend..."

>Reassuring of Sarah

"Have some faith in yourself. I would not have given you the offer that I did if I did not think you would rule Vitria well. You may be in my shadow, but I believe you will cast some light of your own when the time comes.

"You will have my strength. You serve me and in turn, I serve you. As a leader, I serve each of my men and women as they serve me. In battle. In leadership. In a future. Do you not agree, Sarah?"

That different look is there, just as it was before. A smile blooms slowly on her face, much more gentle than you expected. You return a small smile of your own and give her a small bow before moving on into the keep.

Inside, you find your officers and some of your men with a few kegs of ale. Glynn greets you as you enter, having drawn the short straw of organising the aftermath, and is keeping his distance from the revellers, presumably in fear of getting caught up in it. Undine follows you in, whereas Sarah remains outside. Lynn is drinking a bit with Arail, and even Maloric, who usually won’t touch alcohol outside quiet moments, is enjoying a drink.

You step up and take an offered stein along with Undine, which you then raise in triumph.

“Gentlemen and ladies, to the future.”

You enjoy a drink with your best men and take satisfaction in a battle well-won. The debriefing is brief, with little of interest having occurred – the Vitrians you recruited appeared to have little difficulty fighting their former comrades, though that may have been because of how easily you overcame the enemy. Maloric is absolutely ecstatic over the success of his barriers, as is Gareth, and the enchanted bows and arrows he made.

All in all, it is a good day to be a future emperor.

>continued

>>29102626
I like this

>>29102807
>Intelligence increases to [3]
>Magic increases to [3]

>Normally I would end here, but I'm pleasantly buzzed so I'll go for a little while longer.

You have a whole day ahead of you. You feel in perfect condition despite the relative lack of sleep and your officers are enjoying themselves. You…

>1. Get in some practice. There is always another challenge ahead.
>2. Spend time with Maloric.
>3. Spend time with Undine.
>4. Spend time with Lynn.
>5. Custom

>>29102838
>3. Spend time with Undine.

She did say something about teaching us to Meditate and she is likely still worried about us after all the energy we gave off.

>>29102838
Ooo, Intelligence and magic increase? Interesting... wonder what caused it all. All that tactics?
If so, awesome.

>3
Let's see if we can't have a party with Lynn. We've been hanging out with Undine an awful lot lately

>>29102875
INT went up because of a lot of strategising and the like. MAG because you've been using sorcery extensively (and yes, not all of that is player-prompted).

>>29102894
Hey I'm not complaining bro. Works good by me.

>>29102838
>2. Spend time with Maloric.
Congratulate him on the effectiveness of all the stuff he made. We should ask him to see if any of his mage friends can help in setting up an Arcane Archer's gear production line.
>>29102894
INT went up because of our tactical genius and you know it.

>>29102875
>supporting 3 but talking about Lynn
You meant option 4, right?

>>29102875
that should be a 4 I think

>>29102838
From the Player Character Sheet:

>Battlefield Control I – increases all attributes by one when fighting in a battlefield of own creation.

I know that's a skill, but how do those increase? Would we get a jump in that after that absolute rout of a battle?

>>29102894
In case I have to leave in a bit, I just wanted to say: Awesome ass thread today, Aspir. Equal parts character development and assdestroying. Crit was the cherry ontop, whoever rolled that baby.

I imagine we'll be worrying a little bit about logistics next thread, and all that, look forward to how you handle it. You seem to have a damn good grasp of how to play a empire building quest.

>>29102927
...uh...yes..
Sorry, I'm retarded.

>>29102934
Skills increase the same way as stats, but they tend to increase slower (because stats cap out at 10 and skills at 4). Battlefield Control goes up any time you take control of a battlefield to your advantage.

>>29102951
Thanks. I'm trying my absolute best to mix a narrative style with the game-like empire building, without getting too bogged down. We'll see how I do as the scale gets larger.

>three way split on votes
>I'll roll a tie-breaker in a few minutes if necessary

>>29102992
Good to know. Are their other skills/abilities we can develop over time as well? If so, would you be willing to divulge them?

>>29102856

True that.

Also since we have secured our fortress, we should have sufficient time to socialise with all our officers...

Rolled 2

>>29103017
New skills and abilities are developed by interacting with characters about things they can teach us or learning new things generally (e.g. Undine could teach you Martial Arts or you could spend time practicing your skills to learn something extra). There's also some plot-related stuff for them (as a few people have guessed from the events of the recent battle).

>tie-breaker
1 is Maloric
2 is Undine
3 is Lynn

>>29102915
this.

>>29103064

If Martial Arts includes Empowered Suplex Powerbombs I'm in.

>3.

You decide to spend some time with Undine this morning. You spot her heading upstairs after the celebrations, and follow her up to the King’s Suite.

“Poking about my room are we? Is there something I should know?” you ask her.

She gives you a look. “Given that this is where I also rest, I feel I should be able to enter her without inquiry.”

You blink and frown. “I thought you came in last night, but I don’t remember you joining me in the bed.”

She gives you a quizzical smile before responding, “I mentioned earlier I don’t need sleep, didn’t I? I meditated at the foot of your bed – that way I could deal with any would-be intruders. I am your Champion and can protect you that way.”

You nod and move onto the topic she just brought up. “You offered to teach me meditation after the battle. I’d like to take you up on that offer.”

She nods and over the next half-hour takes you through her routine – her meditation appears to be more about attuning with the magic around her rather than centring oneself or escaping physical troubles. You spend the next hour in quiet meditation with her, feeling the magic inside yourself channeling – this could be useful before combat, you think.

>You have learnt the ability Focus Self I – this ability enables you to channel magic better for your next spell if you spend a short while meditating beforehand.

When you explain your discovery to Undine, she again looks concerned – does everything you do worry this water elemental? Once again you dismiss her concerns.

>1. Talk to Undine and Maloric about summoning another pure elemental
>2. Spend time with Lynn
>3. Practice your skills
>4. Custom

>>29103231
>1. Talk to Undine and Maloric about summoning another pure elemental