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[JackOSpades]

considering where we are outside actually seems safer, rather too often inns are actually traps for capturing travelers.

[Kashyyk]

I say camp outside of town. But be cautious and keep a watch.

[NUKE9.13]

Can't we find some abandoned building to squat in? Going past the guards every day seems like it might arouse suspicion, but staying at an inn could cause trouble as well. In a war-ravaged town like this, there must be some old house or forgotten shed we can sleep in.

[Iituem]

Previous: In which a temple is discovered, desecration abhorred. | Current: In which food is considered, good men found, evil men reputed, wards examined. | Next: In which slaves are rescued, overseers overthrown.

When you have recovered a little energy to think, you consider some of the flashes of memory you briefly encountered when picking up your weapon.  The most striking was a memory of striding through mist-ridden marshes, slaying the spectres that drove men mad and to their deaths within.  You name the sword Mistwalker and keep it concealed beneath your robes.

You opt to spend a couple of days searching the town for further information about the wards, any faithful still remaining in the town and the general situation.  The shades quickly find an abandoned building - an old butcher's shop abandoned since the town was taken.  There are no knives or cleavers left, or even the hooks to hang meat (all melted down for the iron or repurposed) but the old chopping boards and counters remain.  You hunker down and have the soldiers periodically go out to buy food whilst your followers and spectres search for information.

Your followers offer you food when they have their meals, some of which you accept.  You enjoy the taste, but the food honestly does little for you.  You are still fairly full after consuming that necromancer's soul - much like a demon, you ultimately are a predator, feeding off mortals to support your physical form.  You are rather less ravenous, though.  Instead of consuming souls to support you, you can have followers willingly give up a part of their life force to sustain you.  Technically this weakens them, but spread out amongst enough followers the effect is negligible.  If you had personal worshippers you could tie this into part of the worship rite.

Alternatively, the scripture in the Fere's Pike temple indicated the existence of a substance called manna that could support an angel without having to consume or drain mortals at all.  This may bear investigation, but sooner or later you will need to decide whether to drain your own followers or burn away the righteous to slake your hunger.  Not just yet, though - you are still quite full.

The shades you send out have a fairly limited understanding of what you mean by 'good' people, but they are thorough and comb through the greatly diminished population of the town, some three thousand citizens.  Interestingly they are unable to get into the castle's inner keep due to passive wards set up against spiritual intervention.  There are similar wards on the castle walls and gate, but the shades just fly over those.  From the information you bring back, you determine as many as ninety potential followers.  Some are part of a poorly organised resistance, others simply meet and pray to the gods in secret.  Others still are neither brave nor pious but give to those who need it, even though they themselves are poor.

The shades have little luck finding the priest of the temple, but your followers soon find out why.  When the castle was taken, the same night Sir Townsend fled to his own Lord in Ferrybridge, soldiers and the undead ransacked the temple, looting and destroying the iconography.  Many of the town's defenders made their stand there against the soldiers and Sir Braithe's zombies, but Braithe sacrificed the temple priest over the altar, casting a spell of desecration that removed the blessings on the defenders' weapons and quickly turned the battle into a rout.  He since set up the idol in its place along with the wards.

From what you hear, Braithe is clearly a very skilled necromancer.  He also tends to lead 'services' in the temple from time to time, or has a captain do it.  These rather twisted affairs mostly consist of human and animal sacrifices to the idol.  The soldiers are unaware how this works, but the rumour is that it has something to do with how they can field such a large army of the undead.

And large it is.  You didn't notice at first because many were clothed or even uniformed, but almost every soldier patrolling the streets is flanked by a couple of zombies.  Rumour has it they store hundreds more at the castle, just standing there waiting to be given orders.  It also explains the strange smell of vinegar whenever they walk past - the undead have been pickled to keep them from falling apart.

You personally investigate the runes again.  Unsurprisingly the temple remains vacant when 'ceremonies' are not being conducted, so you are not seen or molested.  In fact, the runes are relatively easy to decipher for a being of your intellect.  The outer circle is a buffer, causing pain to mortals who pass it by infusing them with a soft touch of demonic magic.  It has a similar, more potent effect on spirits.  The inner circle outright kills those who pass it with the same effect, unless they have some sort of key or item that lets them bypass it.  You presume they could also manually disable the runes, but that would be rather insecure.  Interestingly enough, the inner circle also draws power from the idol and sends it elsewhere.  You are not sure exactly where.

As for whether you can disable them...

The wards are of a clear and fairly straightforward design.  In the hands of a capable wizard and sufficiently powered, these would be rather formidable.  The rings both draw power from the idol and the outer ring depends mostly on the resistance it mounts for its defense rather than complexity.  You easily bypass the runes with the skill of an archmage - you might not be able to brute force the circle, but you can outsmart it.

The inner circle is trickier by far, better constructed and nastier.  You are on the very edge of breaking through after an age of patience and concentration when you find the trap within the trap - the runes are established in such a way that breaking the circle in anything other than exactly the right order will cause the trap to discharge all of its power at once.  You don't know if you could survive that and the inevitable battle thereafter.

If you had the key to the inner circle, of course, this would be a doddle.

Finally you send your followers into the town under the guidance of the shades, searching for those men and families who might come to your aid.  They fall into three camps; the resistance, the pious and the kind.  The resistance members will most likely be willing to enter the fold if you can strike a blow against Sir Braithe in the castle and his forces down below.  The pious will be willing to help you if you can do something to restore the honour of the gods (or simply impress them with a miracle).  The kind will be willing to aid you if you can lighten the suffering of those under Sir Braithe's will; for example, many villagers have been taken as slaves to work in the tin mines two weeks' barging up the river Fer, which winds about two miles from the town.  Slaves get send up by barge and tin comes down to Ferrun and to Lord Thrane's camp further downstream.  If you could do something to help them, many of the kind-hearted citizens would join your cause.


What will you do?

Name: Lvantha Talaoia
Strength: 13 manpower ()
Mind: 10 menminds (+1 Trap Bypass!)

Followers: 1 luxpanap (John) (training, 2 wks)
5 peasants (training: spearmen, 2 wks)
2 macemen

Slaves: 0

Servants: 15 shades
5 greater shades

Holdings:
1 village (1 Resource)

Items:
Mistwalker: +2 vs undead & demons if you wield it.  More effective when a mortal holds it.

[Kashyyk]

Well, it'll be easier to strike against Sir Braithe (and get support from the resistance) once the symbol is destroyed. Destroying the symbol will get us support from the pious. We'll need more mental power to break through the wards however, which we will get by having followers. So we need support from the kind to get support from the pious. And we need support from the pious to get support from the resistance.

So, to the tin mines!

[mcclay]

Slaughter the tin mine overseers and other evil men at the mines. Have you macemen contact the resistance nd tell the to attack the tin mines as your attacking it. With the support of the resistance and the kind we should easily be able to bypass the wards, destroy the idol, gain the support of the pious and take the town.

[Tiruin]

We need to strike at the heart of what holds the citizens, the intangible bonds of fear from their oppressor, other than those runes at the temple.

If we do attack, suggest leaving a scant force surrounding the perimeter of the place, in case any try to escape and run. The town numbers about ~3000 people if I'm not mistaken, we are few in number.

Easy to infiltrate and cause havoc in the enemies plan.

Enter the tin mines as one of the slaves. Yes, that means you, Lvantha. Being in the very presence of those you seek to ally with would be better than attacking head on, where the enemy can see our movements.

Contact the resistance, send a few unarmed civilians to scout the surrounding areas, then when we do insert ourself, form the perimeter and wait for the call.

If we do gain entrance to the mines, incite a revolt, target those who command fear and intimidate the slaves, examine the area for wards or runes that keep any supernatural beings at bay, bring the shades with you, including the Greater shades.

Make up some rallying cry that would be the signal. If this goes well, then Sir Braithe will not know he just lost one of his iron fists.

[zomara0292]

We need to strike at the heart of what holds the citizens, the intangible bonds of fear from their oppressor, other than those runes at the temple.

If we do attack, suggest leaving a scant force surrounding the perimeter of the place, in case any try to escape and run. The town numbers about ~3000 people if I'm not mistaken, we are few in number.

Easy to infiltrate and cause havoc in the enemies plan.

Enter the tin mines as one of the slaves. Yes, that means you, Lvantha. Being in the very presence of those you seek to ally with would be better than attacking head on, where the enemy can see our movements.

Contact the resistance, send a few unarmed civilians to scout the surrounding areas, then when we do insert ourself, form the perimeter and wait for the call.

If we do gain entrance to the mines, incite a revolt, target those who command fear and intimidate the slaves, examine the area for wards or runes that keep any supernatural beings at bay, bring the shades with you, including the Greater shades.

Make up some rallying cry that would be the signal. If this goes well, then Sir Braithe will not know he just lost one of his iron fists.

I agree with this.

[Iituem]

Previous: In which food is considered, good men found, evil men reputed, wards examined. | Current: In which slaves are rescued, overseers overthrown. | Next: In which unconditional surrender is accepted, an amulet destroyed, an amulet forged, armies trained, mines improved, resistance impressed, castles fortified.

Slaughter the tin mine overseers and other evil men at the mines. Have you macemen contact the resistance nd tell the to attack the tin mines as your attacking it. With the support of the resistance and the kind we should easily be able to bypass the wards, destroy the idol, gain the support of the pious and take the town.

Enter the tin mines as one of the slaves. Yes, that means you, Lvantha. Being in the very presence of those you seek to ally with would be better than attacking head on, where the enemy can see our movements.
Contact the resistance, send a few unarmed civilians to scout the surrounding areas, then when we do insert ourself, form the perimeter and wait for the call.
If we do gain entrance to the mines, incite a revolt, target those who command fear and intimidate the slaves, examine the area for wards or runes that keep any supernatural beings at bay, bring the shades with you, including the Greater shades.
Make up some rallying cry that would be the signal. If this goes well, then Sir Braithe will not know he just lost one of his iron fists.

You have one of your followers make contact with the resistance.  You offer to help rescue the slaves at the closest tin mine, provided they can offer some assistance in containing the area once the attack begins.  The resistance are extremely sceptical.  They refuse to commit any significant force from Ferrun but agree to send one man with you to contact friends in the area to see if they will help.  Lukewarm assistance at the very best, but you will have a witness to your deeds at the mine.

You travel south up the river towards the hills, moving through increasingly dense patches of forest.  You have little money, but are charismatic enough that the bargemen let you and your followers ride freely.  It takes around a fortnight to reach the tiny pier at the (all but abandoned) village of Stworca's Hamlet.  The handful of people still here mostly buy and sell supplies to Stworca's Mine half a day's travel away.  During the journey, your soldiers successfully finish training your other followers in the use of their spears.  What little armour your men have consists of layers of padded cloth, but they can stand to deal and take a little more damage in a fight than mere peasants.

John has swiftly gotten to grips with his sword as well.  As a parting gift when you reach Stworca's Hamlet, one of the bargemen gives you an old set of leather armour to help you in your travels.  Fairly useless on yourself (as an angel, you are already tough enough that mortal armour has little effect) you give the leather to John to complete his ensemble.  Armed and trained, he will now be rather more effective in battle in addition to his abilities as a luxpanap.

The man from the resistance raises a bit of a stir in the hamlet, most of whose citizens hold precious little love for their new overlords.  Most of the men in the hamlet agree to provide assistance when the time comes, though they are largely peasanry.  You tell them to be ready for the given day and form a perimeter around the mines - you will provide a signal for the attack.

Shades in tow, you approach the mine in the guise of a chained slave.  The mines are wide, open cast affairs leaving a great gash in the hillside.  Hundreds of slaves toil away, breaking rocks and carrying them up to the rails at the edge of the pit where they are sent down to a smelter by minecart.  One of the sympathetic villagers brings you, claiming you to be an extra brought up by the barges and asking if they will buy you.  The soldier at the edge of the wide wooden fence surrounding the pit offers no deal and simply takes you under threat of arms, to which the villager feigns humbleness and complies.  The pair of zombies standing beside him make no move to attack, apparently requiring an explicit command.  The soldier leers at your beauty and slaps you on the rump, then bodily throws you down the edge of the pit and yells at you to get to work.  You are heavily scuffed and bruised on the way down, bloodied but not injured.

Several slaves look.  Some don't.  Some turn back.  Some stare.  One moves, dropping her pickaxe and scurrying over to you.  A guard on the edge of the pit yells for her to get back to work.  She tries to help you up, telling you to be strong - the guards will kill you otherwise.  The guard again yells for her to get back to work, maggot.  He throws a stone - it hits her in the side of the head and she goes down like a log.  You drop to your knees and look at the wound - all but fatal.  You press your hands against her head as if you were trying to staunch the blood.  The guard laughs and walks on.  Some of the slaves that were looking turn away, having seen such injuries before and knowing the result.

Others do not, and though the guards do not see, they see the woman open her eyes again.  They see you take your hands away and the wound be gone.  The woman reaches up, feels the blood on the side of her head, and stares at you in wonder and fear.  You meet her gaze and nod once.  Then you haul her up and tell her the two of you had better get back to work.  For now.

Your new friend, Aloe, helps you do the reconnaissance work you need.  It doesn't take long to pick up - there are thirty guards and overseers, performing a dual role as security and slavedrivers, backed up by about again as many zombies - the zombies mostly do not act except to flank the gate guards and remain in waiting.  Aloe tells you that there was one small riot two months ago - a slave attacked one of the overseers and the zombies came to life (no pun intended) and tore him apart.  Other than that, the undead seem to do little else - they do not respond to the guards' commands.

The chief overseer is one of Sir Braithe's captains and the only overseer who can give direct commands to the zombies (as best as their simple minds can fulfil them).  Interestingly, nobody has ever seen him raise a zombie.  Undead are shipped south by barge from the various newly conquered territories (lately including Ferrun) along with the slaves.  The Overseer has a black bronze medallion he wears at all times.  You ask what image is on the medallion - Aloe says a sort of spiny snake.

Beyond the undead there appear to be no supernatural defences to this place - nobody was expecting magical or spiritual attack here.  Your shades infiltrate the mine with ease, including the guard barracks.  They remain in place, awaiting your command.

There are over three hundred and fifty slaves on the mine.  Once dusk arrives and the overseers cannot reliably prevent escapes from the mine proper, you are all herded into a fenced pit and locked inside.  It is incredibly cramped, but it gives you the opportunity to meet other slaves and converse, though only in whispers.  Someone accidentally raises their voice at one point and a few rocks get thrown into the pit.

Many of the slaves will not join you.  They don't believe you can manage.  Their spirits are already broken.  They are too weak or already dying.  You do what you can for the latter.  Some, Aloe whispers, would betray you for privileges from the guards, and they are the ones to watch out for.

Many will join you though, and they pledge to help you when the time comes.  They are beaten, their bodies broken and their wills pressed to the very limit, but they will not give in.  Some of them have families they must save.  Others have spirits that cannot be crushed.  Several are buoyed by their fettered rage for their captors.  Some, like Aloe, just want to do what is right.  The number you believe you can truly count on numbers just less than eighty, but provided the other slaves do not interfere during the strike you should be fine.

A couple of days pass as you organise your resistance.  On the appointed day, your followers mark six curved lines on their chests with dirt.  When the sun is highest in the sky, you move to the centre of the pit and stand up, lifting your pick into the air.  A guard shouts at you.  Slaves turn to look.  Your own, marked slaves, all look.

You sing.  A single, clear, terrible note, heard for miles around.  Your chains fall from your limbs.  The pick in your hand shifts and morphs into its true shape, a gleaming longsword.  Your eyes burst into light and six brilliant wings stretch out from your back.

The guard who shouted, the guard who threw you in the first day and nearly killed Aloe, hurls a rock at you in panic.  One of the wings snaps into tendril form and catches it mid-air.  Without so much as looking in his direction, the tendril flicks outward again.  The guard slumps to the ground, rock embedded deep in his forehead.  The pair of zombies let out a piercing alarm screech and lumber down the pit to attack you.

You cease your song and scores of raised voices yell their battle cry as marked slaves raise their picks and rush the zombies that descend from all sides.  Guards rush to their barracks to grab weapons and armour only to find a horde of spirits rising from the very earth to greet them, screaming and cackling and clawing at them with icy fingers.  Another battle cry surges from the edges of the pit as the resistance and your followers join the fray.

Not all the slaves are on your side.  Most flee or hide, but worse still more than fifty raise their picks and attack your followers, desperately hoping that by killing you the guards might grant them privileges.  The pit becomes a bloody melee as slave fights slave and zombies fight everyone.

The pitside fight is bloody, but the numbers of zombies and enemy slaves slowly thins.  By the barracks, the shades harass and mock the guards, but though their minds are weak the slavedrivers are comrades in arms and take heart from one anothers' presence; their attacks are ineffective and many shades are driven off by their jeering.  This does distract them until the real force arrives; your soldiers, John and the resistance.  John and your soldiers circle around the guards whilst the resistance fighters tackle them from the front.  The ensuing flank is devastatingly effective.

You wipe out the last of the zombies and join the fight against the rival slaves.  Though essentially a bloody stalemate for several minutes, when you join the battle the balance is tipped and the fight becomes a massacre.  About half die before the remainder surrender.  Around two thirds of the guards are killed, hemmed in on three sides by shades, resistance and soldiers, before they finally capitulate and throw themselves on your mercy.

A few slaves die in the battle, John suffers some wounds and one of your spearmen does not recover from his injuries, but the day is yours.


The majority of the slaves go their own way once you free them.  They have families to find, homes to return to.  Some do not and take up residence in the hamlet instead.  A few, with nowhere else to go, ask to work in the mines again for a fair wage.  A majority of those that actually fought for you do agree to follow you in your army, if you wish it, or in any other capacity.  Aloe volunteers to co-ordinate the mine, now that she is free, and you see no reason not to let her.  She is loyal to you, and in return for freeing her promises to commit the output of the mine to your cause, should you need it.

You have decisions to make.  The mine had a very high output under the previous overseer's rule, but that output was fuelled by heavy slave labour.  If you wanted, you could continue to use forced labour in the form of prisoners - cruel but necessary work as part of their sentences.  Alternatively you can tell Aloe to use paid labourers instead - fairer, but they will not work themselves to death the way slaves will and much of the mine's output will go towards paying their wages.  If you use forced labour, the mine's output will be about twice as high as if you use paid labour.  Remember that resources will be essential for you to field properly equipped armies or perform constructions.

9 of the 30 slavedrivers survived the battle, including the overseer.  You confiscate his medallion and learn what you expected; it allows him to command the nearby undead.  The amulet is steeped in Evil, probably from serial sacrifices, and bears the same image as that of the idol in Ferrun.  You will need to decide whether to destroy it, seal it away, or risk the corruption of a follower by giving it to them.  You will also need to decide whether and how to punish the slavedrivers.

Additionally there are the surviving 25 slaves who opposed you and have been taken prisoner.  Their opposition was motivated by fear and hopelessness as much as greed, but oppose you nevertheless they did.  You must decide whether to punish them or to exercise mercy.

Finally you must decide how to proceed next.  You could certainly head straight back down to Ferrun - rescuing those slaves was a powerful sign and will likely attract high support.  More than that, doing good has given you a powerful boost to your strength - this would be the perfect time to do any supernatural deeds.  If you leave now, you could beat news of the coup before it reaches Ferrun - quicker, if you went ahead of your forces.  Or you might decide to stay and train your new followers to fight as spearmen using the local resources - this would take about a month, but when you got to Ferrun you would have a true army at your disposal.  Or you might decide to do something else entirely.

What will you do?

Name: Lvantha Talaoia
Strength: 21 manpower (+8 Liberty!)
Mind: 18 menminds (+8 Liberty!)

Followers: 1 armed luxpanap (John)
4 spearmen
2 macemen

63 freed slaves

Slaves: 9 imprisoned slavedrivers

Servants: 15 shades
5 greater shades

Holdings:
1 village (1 Resource)
1 tin mine (Decision Pending, 4-8 Resources)

Items:
Mistwalker: +2 vs undead & demons if you wield it.  More effective when a mortal holds it.

Spearman: 2 Str, 1 Mind.  1 hp, 10 morale, 1 mobility.
Armed Luxpanap: 5 Str, 2 Mind. 2 hp, 12 morale, 1 mobility.  +3 Str vs demons/undead.

Uff.  Long update takes long time to do!  Probably worth it, though.  =B

[evilcherry]

Project the images of freed slaves to the nearby villages. Do the same trick again - a synchronized peasant uprising should be enough to attract an army in hundreds. Bless them, and march into Ferrun.

[Tiruin]

((Huzzah! For Freedom!))

Destroy that amulet. May the dead rest in peace. But before that, try to learn what exact incantations are marked in it, try to learn how to reverse it to stop the living dead from obeying others' command and instead following your own. (Ironic uprising when we do attack).

Exercise mercy on those who are captive in your will, they have their use as long as they live in accordance with your plans.

Project the images of freed slaves to the nearby villages. Do the same trick again - a synchronized peasant uprising should be enough to attract an army in hundreds. Bless them, and march into Ferrun.

Order John to oversee the training of your soldiers and maybe meet up with the resistance; contact them and secure their allegiance.

Aloe should supervise the mining, giving fair wages to those who work there. Sure, it may be lesser to your cause, but you are not like those overseers and Sir Braithe, maybe this will show them who really controls them.

On the Slavedrivers and Overseer, do what you did to the necromancer. Interrogate, and affirm loyalty, but mercifully. They could be of use as partial commanders, and redeem themselves in the eyes of those they oppressed.

Also, make Aloe into the next luxpanap if you have power remaining.

((Tiny error in the links at the first page. "In which food is considered, good men found, evil men reputed, wards examined." link goes to http:///))

[NUKE9.13]

-Paid labour in the mines. In fact, tell Aloe to reinvest the profits into the mine- get proper equipment for the miners, make the mine safer- we don't need the resources just yet.

-The amulet is powerful. Destroying it could have consequences. Seal its power, and have Aloe bury it in the mine somewhere.

-Offer the slavedrivers one chance to serve you unconditionally. If they refuse, consume them.

-The slaves shall receive the same offer as the slavedrivers, at the same time. However, if the slavedrivers refuse (and are consumed), offer the slaves a second chance to serve. If they still refuse, well, they knew what the consequences were (omnomnom).

-You and one of the resistance members should go back to Ferrun; he will verify your story to the others, allowing you to gain their support. Your other followers will remain at the village, helping with the mines, and those with a talent for combat being trained into soldiers.

[Angle]

Have the good slaves that wish to work in the mine for a wage do so. Offer the bad slaves and the slave drivers a chance to repent and work in the mine as penance- for no wage, but in good conditions: enough food, not worked too hard, etc. If they refuse, Kill them. Invest the output of them mine in getting it up to spec, like Nuke suggested.

Study the amulet, so that we can nullify it and others like it safely. In fact, see if we can find a way to redeem the skeletons: this would temporarily turn them to good, granting them some angelic might, before they self immolate. Next time we run into a skeleton army, we redeem them and laugh as our enemy crumbles. Then destroy the amulet.

[cerapa]

-Paid labour in the mines. In fact, tell Aloe to reinvest the profits into the mine- get proper equipment for the miners, make the mine safer- we don't need the resources just yet.

-The amulet is powerful. Destroying it could have consequences. Seal its power, and have Aloe bury it in the mine somewhere.

-Offer the slavedrivers one chance to serve you unconditionally. If they refuse, consume them.

-The slaves shall receive the same offer as the slavedrivers, at the same time. However, if the slavedrivers refuse (and are consumed), offer the slaves a second chance to serve. If they still refuse, well, they knew what the consequences were (omnomnom).

-You and one of the resistance members should go back to Ferrun; he will verify your story to the others, allowing you to gain their support. Your other followers will remain at the village, helping with the mines, and those with a talent for combat being trained into soldiers.

This. Except study the amulet.

[kaian-a-coel]

Have the good slaves that wish to work in the mine for a wage do so. Offer the bad slaves and the slave drivers a chance to repent and work in the mine as penance- for no wage, but in good conditions: enough food, not worked too hard, etc. If they refuse, Kill them. Invest the output of them mine in getting it up to spec, like Nuke suggested.

Study the amulet, so that we can nullify it and others like it safely. In fact, see if we can find a way to redeem the skeletons: this would temporarily turn them to good, granting them some angelic might, before they self immolate. Next time we run into a skeleton army, we redeem them and laugh as our enemy crumbles. Then destroy the amulet.