(Just a note, this turn doesn't take into account any suggestions posted after Friday, when I said I had started this turn.)
Empress of SoulsName: Emeraldithine Weavewarper
Race: Drider
Traits:
Toxic Fangs: Creatures human sized and smaller generally suffer near instantaneous paralysis and inevitable death when exposed to your venom. Larger creatures will also suffer, possibly in a fatal manner, but may remain in the fight for some time.
Extra Limbs: You have four arms and four legs. This is a serious boon to potential equipment load out and wrestling ability.
Natural Climber: You never have to roll to climb unless you are particularly encumbered, injured, distracted, or on a spectacularly smooth surface.
Modified Spinnerets: You have enchanted your body to produce magical silks, as well as to have a higher yield than the average Drider. Each day you may produce two units of Drider Silk or one unit of special silk. Your daily output is doubled if you stay in one spot and avoid any serious physical activity. The special silk types you can make are as follows: Steel-Silk can be woven directly into steel quality weapons or armor. Trap Silk reacts violently and corrosively with any non chitinous organic matter. Oil Silk can be woven into a near friction-less surface and is also a great fuel source. Heavy Silk has a density three times that of lead, and can be used in place of any heavy metal in most alchemy reactions.
Skills:
High Master Magical Theorist
Master Bio-Mage
Master Ego-Mage
Great Omega Mage
Novice Ritualist
Novice Tectonic Mage
Novice Enchanter
Novice Conjurer
Novice Summoner
Novice Brewer
Novice Entropy Mage
Not Heat Mage
Not Alchemist
Not Essential Mage
Master Sneak
Great Diplomat
Great Grappler
Professional Researcher
Professional Clothier
Novice Sword User
Novice Shield User
Personal Inventory:
Cocooned Goat Soul
Fitted Chitin Extra-Exoskeleton
Scribe's Kit
Mage's Loom (Turns thread or silk into cloth with little effort. No bigger than a loaf of bread)
Sewing Kit
Slade Short Sword of Non-Encumbrance (All the power and weight of Slade for your foes, none for you)
Steel-Silk Shield of Reforming (Gradually repairs itself, even from a state of near total destruction)
The Empire has made a policy of offering titles and eventually land in the conquered deep realms for brood mothers willing to defect, but said policy brought about more out of necessity and desperation than any sort of fondness or acceptance. The empire is usually tolerant most religions, as they rule over a diverse population, but many of their officials distrust citizens who worship living physical gods, as such beings could easily have agendas in conflict with the Emperors. Some Drider Broods, your own included, are not entirely sure the imperials can be trusted to keep their promises, which in large part why you turned to the Council.
The Council claims to represent all wizards, many of which are at least as strange as your own race. A good handful of acknowledged mages even claim godhood for themselves. There are some quirks to their views on religion; They view priests as extensions of their god's power, and refuse to recognize them as wizards in their own right. Furthermore some religious folks their requirement that the Overmages of the High Chamber must relinquish all other titles and responsibilities, including godhood, before taking their seat. You have mixed feelings about that one, as although it means you cannot be both brood mother and overmage, neither can your mother, meaning that the former title will be passed down fairly soon.
If your mother's challenge, successful or failure, sours the council's view on your brood, your relative distance from mother and friendly relations with several Overmages would make you the only obvious choice for Brood Mother who could patch things up. If, however, by some small miracle, your mother mounts her challenge without ruffling too many feathers, some of your other sisters would be in the mix, but you would still have a chance...---
Evening 6:The one downside to specializing in Theoretical Magic, and none of the other Application Skills, is that your ability to highhandedly sling spells is rather limited. You could plan, design, and even explain or publish a spell to read the minds of some of the mightiest beings, but because you lack the conjuration to set up particularly stable Mind hooks on your own, even a person of average willpower could complicate your own mind reading attempts. Luckily for you, two of participants in the Grog incident were specifically bred to lack such spine.
You send for one of the Silk Trolls involved...
(Conjuration & Ego Magic =
Pass)
Instructing the apprentice to sit still, you wave your hand and conjure some mind hooks and mind lines, invisible, intangible, and temporary constructs that allow your consciousness to climb over and access the troll's memories. The bridge you build is shaky, to say the least, but the troll does little to disrupt it as you pass over, and once you are in its head the hard part is more or less over.
From there, your expertise in Ego Magic takes over, and in less than the time it takes for a human to blink its eye you locate the relevant memories and begin watching. You find more or less what you had expected; that neither party was entirely telling the truth.
Malfang did indeed make a token effort to negotiate the purchase of the grog, but her language was clearly designed to provoke a fight. Your sister carefully and not-so-subtlety weaved words of condescension and racism into the discussion, until the gullible Orc took the bait and attacked. From there, things more or less followed Malfang's story, with the exception of the dwarves.
Two dwarves were indeed present, but they were not the ones accused by the victim. You don't even recognize them as apprentices. The additional perpetrators, you figure, must be kin of the apprentices named. It makes sense; You technically have no authority over the non-mages in the village, which you suppose doesn't have any sort of law enforcement in place yet, so the Orc must have just named somebody related who you could punish. You vaguely recall that punishing others and taking the punishment for crimes committed by kin is a thing that occurs in many Orcish tribes. There is the very real chance the de-grogged woman might not have known that framing the incorrect dwarves was an inappropriate action to take.
With the facts clear, you dismiss the troll to ponder your response. Malfang's version of the story is technically closer to the truth, but the Orc woman is quite clearly the victim of the incident.
Day 7:You spend the morning producing Heavy Silk for the magic to come. Several hours after sunrise Emfangrin returns with his report on the area.
"There are three easily accessible populated sites in the area, sister dearest," he explains, "there is a dwarven hillock called Milkgrass a ways down the hill. The state of affairs there is rather sad right now; The Empire is holding a bit of a witch hunt. Every child under eighteen, they being the children conceived under Drugar Occupation, is a suspected halfbreed. Just a simple accusation is enough to get a kid dragged off for bearing enemy blood, and her mother taken away for fornication with the enemy."
He shakes his head. "The Drugar, of course, were not much better while they were here. They slaughtered everybody in this valley, save their surface dwelling cousins, when they first took over. There is, however, another group trying to set up shop. A family of goblin migrants, about sixty strong I'd say, are attempting to rebuild a ruined Deep Forces fortress into a proper dark tower. They already have some industry set up; alot of wool is produced there - they breed one of those large, stupid, shaggy troll species - and they have a fairly skilled alchemist among them who can produce more useful metals from local rock and tin ore. They intend to send their child-snatchers into deep forces controlled land, and their Chief was interested when I mentioned we had a cavern entrance."
"Last and of least use to us is the large fort and camp run by our good friend and patron General Frevious. The freshly constructed Fort Legion is home to a good fifteenhundred will entrenched soldiers, and blocks the Twistroads, a mountain pass connecting to a neighboring valley that is still occupied by the enemy. From what I understand, the sutuation is a stalemate; The Deep Forces outnumber the empire at least threefold, but both sides have extremely defend-able positions so as to render any sort of offensive push a fools errand. Fort Legion is also home to Tin-Camp, a mine run by prisoners of war, suspected half Drugar from the Hillock, and anybody else the general doesn't like." Your brother give a slight shudder, "the imperials make little secret about the fact that prisoners are worked until they can work no more, and then promptly executed."
Your brother offers a grim smile, and changes the subject. "I need to do something about the food supply soon. I might send the troops out to gather food under the command of one of our other siblings, and stay back to see if any of our villagers can be trained in the outdoor arts. Ideally, at some point, I'd like my soldiers to be soldiers and not hunters."
---
You spend the afternoon with Maleflare, teaching her some of the basics of Omega Magic, starting with simple soul traps made from organic material. Leading the Imp outside, you show her the basics using twigs, grass, leaves, and other available components. She picks the trick up after several hours of attempts, at which point you have her trap the area all around the tower. You doubt Maleflare will ever catch anything this way, but it is a good drill for a young Omega Mage nonetheless.
By the end of the session, you feel as if the imp has the art of the trap down pat. If she is clever, all you need to do is show her a few tricks involving playing with corpses and souls, and Maleflare will be able to connect the dots and become a competent Omega mage herself from there.
---
You lead Maleflare inside, make a quick stop on your floor to gather supplies, and then lead the imp down to Rivialia's workspace.
(Diplomacy = Pass)
The former dwarf agrees to help you put the battery together without much complaint; Without raw materials in abundance to work with, there is little else for her to do anyway.
The two of you work into the early hours of darkness putting the battery together as per your plans, and from there Maleflare is allowed to ignite the device. There is a small puff of flame, and you at once begin to feel the soul within slowly, yet efficiently, burning up as fuel. Thanking the Steel of Steel, you take the battery, and pay a visit to Archer on floor two.
(Diplomacy = Borderline)
The Orc takes the battery, thanks you for it, but when you suggest that he go power up the shovel at once, he balks. He uses the excuse that he already sent his apprentices away for the evening, and that he want to show them how to repair a shovel, but you suspect that he simply doesn't want to travel alone after dark. Deciding that him wanting to put the work off until tomorrow isn't worth making a fuss over, you drop the issue rather quickly, and bid Archer goodnight before retiring to your chambers.
Westward Tower:
Roof: Unclaimed, Single Aged Catapult
Floor 7: Unclaimed
Floor 6: Claimed by You, Emeraldithine's Magical Libarary
Floor 5: Unclaimed
Floor 4: Claimed by Rivialia
Floor 3: Unclaimed, Altar to the Prime Balrog
Floor 2: Claimed by Archer
Floor 1: Unclaimed
BF-1: Claimed by Jorgen
BF-2: Unclaimed, Sealed Door
Other Assets:(Competent Apprentices can be expected to successfully use at least one sort of magic on demand)
(Experienced Apprentices can be expected to use at least one sort of magic on a level at or approaching that of a Journeyman Mage. Experienced Apprentices can be promoted to Journeyman; You are entitled to promote an apprentice at will, but there are complicated politics behind the act. Will Explain Later if you guys explore the possibility)
(Apprentices marked with a * are apprentices that you have some sort of relationship with, and get a bonus to working alongside. At the start of the game, these are your former apprentices, that you were forced to transfer upon taking control of the tower)
Jorgen Pails, Pelvis of Truth
Known Notable Skills - Ego Magic
Home Location - Westward Tower, Unclaimed Floor
Underlings -
Competent Drider Apprentice x1 (Ego Magic)*
Competent Human Apprentice x1 (Ego Magic)
Marelflare, Competent Imp Apprentice x1 (Heat Magic) (15% Competent in Omega Magic)
Drider Apprentice x2*
Drow Apprentice x1*
Human Apprentice x9*
Imp Apprentice x2
Elf Apprentice x1
Thoughts/Ideas/Complaints: Jorgen will be gone until about day 25 at the earliest.
Archer Wargeater, Erector of Walls
Known Notable Skills - Tectonic Magic
Home Location - Westward Tower, Unclaimed Floor
Underlings -
Experienced Orc Apprentice (Tectonic Magic)
Competent Drow Apprentice x1 (Ego Magic)*
Drider Apprentice x2*
Drugar Apprentice x1*
Orc Apprentice x16
Human Apprentice x6*
Thoughts/Ideas/Complaints: Please don't let Rrivialia's apprentices strut around mugging my civilians! Tomorrow I'll get to work on the shovel. Hopefully the battery is the only issue... Once I get that shovel working, we can strike the earth!
Rivialia Unclank, The Steel of Steel
Known Notable Skills - Enchantment
Home Location - Westward Tower, Unclaimed Floor
Underlings -
Malfang, Competent Drider Apprentice x1 (Omega Magic)*
Competent Dwarf Apprentice x1 (Enchantment)
Competent Dwarf Apprentice x1 (Entropy Magic)
Drider Apprentice x3*
Silk Troll Apprentice x2*
Dwarf Apprentice x3
Human Apprentice x2
Automated Sapphire Golem Apprentice x1
Thoughts/Ideas/Complaints: All my gear is online... Now I just need something to do with it. - If I can get some of the travelers to part with their wagons, I can start doing some woodwork now. I'm thinking about putting together a large wood golem so that we have at least something impressive on the first floor of the tower. - You are not seriously considering punishing my apprentices for a crime they didn't commit, are you? It was a pleasure working with you on that battery, lets hope, however, that we were not wasting our efforts on that cowardly Orc.
Emfangrin Weavewarper
Known Notable Skills - Crossbow, Wrestling, Spear Use, Survival, Leadership
Home Location - Undecided
Underlings -
Drider Twin-Sniper (Including Scurryfingers) x3
Drider Skirmisher x10
Silk Troll Claw-Render x8
Silk Troll Smasher x8
Silk Troll Squire Slave x25
Thoughts/Ideas/Complaints: We need to do something about the food situation soon. I'd like to supply the villagers with training and bows, so that my squad can focus more on serving you as opposed to hunting. Our Brother Orbus took a spill at the goblin fort and broke one of his legs, it is not a major issue, as he has three to spare, but I'm sure he would be grateful if you or an apprentice took a crack at fixing it.
Wagon Train
Known Notable Skills - N/A (Will be unlocked once a leader arises from the settlers following your party)
Home Location - Undecided
Underlings -
192 Able Bodied Workers
57 Young
24 Infirm
Group Resources
Emeraldithine's Magical Libarary, Charts, Tables, Blackboards, and other Theoretical Magic Supplies x1
Rivialia's Wizardly Supplies x1
Drider Silk x1
Steel Silk x8
Thoughts/Ideas/Complaints: No leader to have thoughts or speak for the others...
The World:Glimersands (2 Weeks Travel): An elven forest retreat at the edge of the desert. Good place to import food, potions, and fantastic raw material from. Home to a breeder's guild headed up by the Elven Archmage Gwyndlyn Skyfire
Ironhawks (2.5 Weeks Travel): A dwarven fortress high in the mountains. Great place to import metals and finished goods from. Home to a Powder Sciences Guild headed up by the Gnomish Archmage Tippi Boomer
Riverflats (3.5 Weeks Travel): A heavily overcrowded human city. Decent place to sell or buy just about anything, and good place to recruit new apprentices. Home to an Assassin's Guild headed up by the Goblin Archmage Langly Bloodfrevor.
Law of the Lake (1.5 Weeks Travel): The closest Wizard's Tower to Westward. Presently held by the Lake-Hag Archmage Toothfin and her coven.
The High Towers (2 Months Travel): Where the Council of Overmages and the House of Archmages meet. Your position grants you the right to representation in the lower chamber, so it may be wise to send somebody to look out for your interests there eventually.
Milkgrass (Less than a Half Days Travel): Jorgen claims that there is a dwarven Hillocks in the area, that can be found by following the worn down road that run near the tower.
Unamed Goblin Tower (1 Days Travel): Home to a group of goblins looking to extablish a home and raid to lands of the Deep Forces. An Alchemist lives here.
Fort Legion (1 Days Travel): A well entrenched Imperial fort keeping a superior number of Deep Force soldiers from across the mountains from retaking the area. Home to the imperial general who dosn't like you, and the Tin Mine/Extermination Camp where he sends people who cross him.
Broken Mage's Shovel (Less than a Half Days Travel): A run down digging machine, likely of gnomish origin, that Archer suspects he can fix.
Canyon Village (Half Hour's Travel): Where the families of the tower's apprentices live. See the Wagon Train entry in the last tab for more details.
Drugar Lord Rugonuld's Lands (Half Day's Travel): The underground domain of a minor Drugar Warlord... Or so your brother says.
Potential Gnomish Site (Half Day's Travel, Fliers or Climbers only, potentially boobytrapped): A site that one of Emfangrin's men suspects of being a gnome home.
Potential Dig Site (Half Hour's Travel): Archer is looking into this...
Planned Magic:High Efficiency Single Soul Battery:
-Requires One Contained Soul
-Requires One Unit of Heavy Silk
-Requires One Unit of Steel Silk
-Requires Omega Magic
-Requires Heat Magic
-Requires Enchantment