Act I, Part Sixteen: Veil
Gustav[2+1] As the workers start doing what they do best, you choose a tree at random and start studying it, hoping to learn more about its species. You come to the conclusion that the wood is about as hard as an oak's, [1+1] though you don't know why, or how you might use that beyond the obvious possibilities. The sap of the tree you choose is red; however, when you take a sample from another, that one's sap has a greenish tint. Perhaps it takes its coloration from minerals in the ground? Finally, you note that the trees are more spaced out than they should be normally - there's a few meters of space between the closest branches of any two individuals, at least. [1+1] You don't know why - perhaps they have wide roots? Is the soil too dry to support a higher density?
[5] Your workers cut several trees during the day and set to work on processing them, cutting of the branches, removing wood too small to use, and cleaning the logs. After a few days, they've carved a large clearing out of the forest, where they erect their camp.
Two days after the first column of smoke, a second one appears, much further north. As far as you can tell, there were no others in between.
[4] At the end of a long afternoon of work, a soldier runs back to the camp after having left to drink some water from a nearby spring. He claims to have seen someone spying on the camp form higher up. When you go to the spot where he claims he was, you don't see anyone, however. [?] When you ask the soldier to describe the person, he claims the man was wearing furs and had a bow and some arrows with him.
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Friedrich[4+1] Almost as soon as you start putting pressure on them, the traders crack and give you a lot more details about the East. Up to fifty marauders at a time can be participants in a summer raid, though they generally aren't that numerous, going from their experiences of past years. The raiders are all armed, with axes and spears and bows, though they generally lack the metal to have swords or anything better than leather armor. Raids generally target isolated farmsteads or harass hamlets; in the past, bold ones have tried to bypass the line of defense formed by Hadvard and the hamlets to go into the richer lands of the west.
As far as the traders and the locals know, the raids are always for the sole purpose of killing and looting; the raiders are little more than brutes and savages, after all, and it's unlikely there is much strategic thought behind their actions.
This year, a few of the tribes appear to be fighting a force further to the east, which the traders say might dissuade them from sending out raids. What this force might be, however, they don't know - the Trinity is virtually unheard of across the passes in this region, and yet the tribes appear to be battling something that isn't them.
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Davian[3+1] You ask for an audience with the baron, who after a day's wait organizes a meeting. Going by the name of Greydale, he has a pleasant discussion with you, during which you learn about him and his holdings. He possesses a small parcel of land to the north, on the border of the Archduchy; his position there serves mainly as a border guard, tasked with defending the duchy should war break out. He complains loudly and frequently of dwarven refugees filling his land, but apart from that things seem to be fairly quiet around his holdings.
He seems fairly loyal to the Duke when you approach the subject, although he doesn't much speak of his opinion on realm politics - these don't really affect a nobleman removed from even the smallest of courts at most times.
After a short discussion, the baron agrees to let you use his manor as a base of operations for the Inquisition in the duchy. When you survey the place, [1] it is completely lacking in defenses, being a normal residence, [3] but there's enough space that twenty to fifty men could reside there if they were willing to be cramped up, [6] and the property itself is quite large; there's plenty of space to construct new buildings or erect defenses, although that might make the perimeter hard to patrol.
Afterwards, you go into the streets before the temple and rally the populace to give a sermon and encourage generosity and support towards the temple and your order. [4+1] You make for a splendid figure in your armor and white cloak, standing above the crowd on the temple's stairs, and your voice calls out, strong and warm, with charisma any Paladin ought to envy; you charm the crowd with ease, and they are quite generous.
[d100: 60] About three fifths of all the donations go to you, and the rest is sent to the temple. The populace's opinion of the order is increased, which will make it easier, amongst other things, to recruit or gain information here.
The Order's reputation within the town of Redhall is now Appreciated.
As long as the town's opinion is at Appreciated or higher, a small but steady stream of donations should support the Order's men and constructions within the city and around it.-----
FaranYou bless the Shrine in the name of the gods, kneeling in turn before each of the three statues and casting in three parts a spell that will ward the grounds against the intrusion of evil creatures.
[?] For the first time since you arrived in Hadvard, you feel like an answer comes from your prayers. When you kneel before the Patriarch, you sense something like a shroud before your eyes as you ask for guidance, masking your sight. The sensation seems to be indicating that something lies just ahead, something that you feel is
important, but a force is veiling it behind a screen of smoke.
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Oscia[4] This time you make good progress, teaching the militiamen to walk silently in rough terrain. They still sound like a bunch of teenagers trying to hunt boars to you, but now at least they make an effort to avoid cracking branches and ruffling bushes. Still, it'll take quite a while to form them completely - they're under a third of the way there, you'd say.
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Geldryn[6+6] You crack the codes barring you from reading the books, at last, and delve right into them. You learn a lot about Sorcery, and through this confirm that the mages you killed were Sorcerers, and come to the conclusion that they were trained by someone vastly more skilled than they. The books also contain information on a few complex rituals and simple spells; notably, you learn that the beasts you faced in the caves were not demons, but transformed cabal members.
Sadly, or perhaps thankfully, these books were not meant to train non-mages into being sorcerers from scratch; a basic level of skill is assumed to be present in the readers. Still, you make note of your findings and send a letter telling, in a carefully worded way so as not to alarm any other reader, to the High Inquisitor about your findings.
The lore entry on Sorcerers has been updated.
Three rituals of sorcery are now known to the Inquisition: Mass teleportation, a sleeping ritual, and greater transformation. All these require higher skill to employ.You then go to speak with the religious authority of the kingdom, a Godshear going by the name of Markus Thetros. Old - nay, ancient - and kind, he is a soft-spoken man who is pleased to discuss with you and willingly offers to let you use his cathedral as a base of operations for the Inquisition within the city. He tells you a little about the realm's history after being asked, talking of a war in which the previous king died and of the following regency, during which the duke Theram was Regent and Lord Protector. He speaks highly of the duke, and complains that the King ignores his advice on non-religious matters. Finally, he whispers that he has heard worrisome reports coming out of the earldom of Sandos about the Earl, and suspects him of heresy.
[5+1] [Godshear Thetros is a poor liar, hence the bonus] After considering his words carefully, you come to the conclusion that the man is lying through and through concerning that last matter, and that he is - for one reason or another - the duke's creature. This casts in doubt his previous praise, although you don't think he was lying, then; he might simply be biased.
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[6+1] Having finished with the shrine, Arkran brings the workforce back to repairing the castle. He has less men than he started with, since some are gone to cut down wood in the mountains, but he does get a fair amount of progress done. Castle repairs are at 50%.
[5] Ramsay comes to inform the Inquisitors that he has drilled the recruits brought by the priest into passable soldiers, noting that they were both eager to learn and that their small numbers allowed him to train them more quickly. The six recruits now have acceptable fighting training, though they are probably still below the men-at-arms in terms of skill.
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Topic: Inquisition - IC thread (Read 6828 times)