Summon an imp to serve Mischa as a familiar and help her understanding necromancy. Also, give her the Wordbearer to serve as assistant\apprentice\bodyguard
This should help her to increase power without the risk of killing her and covering her in suspicious runes.
Know what, we're stronger than we've ever been - corrupt the castle a little further, so that even the last vestiges of conscience fall before our might. If we judge that they've fallen far enough during this process, start converting people, starting with the advisors.
If not, stay the course. Just a little while longer, Nokluvgn, this'll all pay off when your religion gets backed by the provincial authorities...
You call Mischa to your chambers. You tell her that you have a gift for her, to help her with her studies. Where is it, she asks. Right here, you reply as you snap your fingers (for effect), creating a
grey imp. A brief glance of a more disturbing form is seen before the creature transforms into a large raven with grey feathers and blood red eyes. It caws in a near-perfect imitation of the real bird, then speaks; "Whatchoo wanna know den"
Mischa seems confused. You explain that this imp will serve her as a familiar, to answer any inquiries she may have. Her face lights up, and asks of the bird "Tell me, imp, what you know of dyscloven circles and their efficacy in channelling Evil"
"Dyscloven? Useless rubbish, innit. Double banded pentagon is wat oo wants"
Mischa writes this down in her journal, then thanks you profusely for the gift. She cannot wait to bring it to her quarters, for she has many questions that need answering. Though the imp will not know the answers to everything, its understanding of both human and demonic magic will help her discover the secrets of Necromancy- the art of combining the two- by herself. Of course, such things come at a price, for the creature must eat of human flesh every six days, or it will become sullen and refuse to answer more questions.
You are sure that a capable lass like Mischa will come up with some way of fulfilling that requirement.
Dark clouds gather over Brylib Castle. An unnatural chill stalks throughout, causing folks to huddle around fireplaces- fireplaces which, like the torches in the hallways, produce choking clouds of black smoke. The darkness extends to the inhabitants, who take to quarrelling with each other over the slightest things, whilst spending extravagant amounts of wealth- acquired from the now-overflowing treasury- on clothes, jewellery, and other knick-knacks.
After you expend some energy on increasing the corruption- the court seemingly having reached the limit of what you can do without expenditure- things grow ever worse. Violence breaks out amongst courtiers, blades are drawn, and blood stains the courtyard red. Undeterred- or even encouraged- by this violent display, an opulent feast is held, the occupants of the castle drinking themselves under the table and stuffing their faces with decadent dishes of every kind. Musicians play a devilish tune as a storm rages outside, the howling of the wind all but drowning out their song. The mercenary soldiers, once ostracised, are now welcomed in to join the festivities, adding their own crude debauchery to the more elegant sort already on display. The wizard provides entertainment in the form of minor magical tricks, the raven perched on her shoulder watching the crowd with knowing eyes.
You judge that several of the courtiers are vulnerable, desperately desiring of more power and pleasure, and appear before them in their dreams, offering them forbidden pleasures and diabolical powers if they agree to serve you. Seven accept your bargain, but the other three defy you, citing an unwillingness to deal with dark forces. You make a note of them. They shall be the first to be led to the altar, once things progress that far. In the meantime, you order your new converts to join the wizard's guest for a secret meeting.
At the meeting you have each of them kneel before you and pledge to serve you above any mortal master. Their worship is insignificant to you by now, but you return the paltry gains to them, as is the norm, granting them a modicum of the dark pleasures they sought.
A visitor arrives at the Duke's court from the capital. The depraved nature of the castle seems to escape their notice at first, and they happily join the line of petitioners waiting to talk to the Duke. Nothing strikes them as odd whilst they wait, and their turn to speak comes up. They open with greetings from Lord Gospodin, causing a brief murmur- the Lord himself, the Prince-Elect, the ruler of the entire country, sends word to their remote realm? They continue, speaking at length about news from the capital- the trade wars continue, the grand fleet has been expanded, a relative of the prince suffered an injury whilst hunting but will recover. The court laps this up; they rarely hear from the capital, and have been talking about last season's news for weeks. Eventually the man gets to the point of his visit, explaining that the Duke is requested to issue a voluntary conscription and entice a thousand men to join the grand army in the capital. A lieutenant will be arriving in a few weeks to collect the recruits. The Duke is offered a meagre sum as a contribution to any signing-up bonuses he may be required to hand out- the majority will have to come out of his own treasury. His speech finished, the man requests a guest room to rest in for the night, and expects to leave tomorrow morning with an affirmative reply.
With your influence over the Duke and his advisers, you have the opportunity to determine the Duke's response. He will
-Make up his own mind. You are a demon, not a politician; you don't care about what the Duke says.
-Refuse to gather the soldiers, for whatever reason, defying the capital and the Prince-Elect.
-Agree to gather the soldiers- using forced conscription, pocketing the money. The capital will not care how they get their soldiers, so long as they get them.
-Agree to the request, so as not to aggravate the capital or give any sign that something is amiss.
Meanwhile, you have more important business to attend to. The court is now thoroughly corrupted, with the beginnings of a cult presence ready to blossom. You should
-Stay in the court even longer. The entire castle will be members of your cult (or sacrifices on your altar) before you leave here.
-Go burn a village. You know, for fun.
-Terrorise the countryside, making the peasants fear to leave the safety of their homes.
-Go find a new town/village and plant the seeds of a new cult there, perhaps passing through multiple villages leaving a small cult presence in each one.
-Do something else.
Happy new year!
Your cults may also desire new orders.
Name: Nokluvgn
Age: 5.75 months
Physical might: 31 (-.5: summoning imp)(-5: corrupting court)(+2.5: province-wide suffering (continuous))(+1: from Mischa (see below))
Mental might: 29 (-.5: summoning imp)(-5: corrupting court)(+2.5: province-wide suffering (continuous))(+1: from Mischa (see below))
Followers:128 (92 cultists, 4 Wordbearers, 14 rich people, 6 councilfolk, 3 knights (heavily armed), 1 ex-priest, 1 mercenary captain, 7 courtiers)
Slaves: 12 (4 priests, 1 high priest, 7 guards (armed))
Servants: 13 (4 Brutewolves, two Smokewraiths, one devil-horse, 3 spectres, 3 giant-rat-packs)
Cults: The New Way: Low organization.
Locations:
Fellshore: 76 members (74 cultists, 1 Wordbearer, 1 knight (heavily armed))
Power level: 13
Of which: 4 spent gathering resources, 5 spent expanding the labyrinth, 3 spent training.
Resources: 22
Other: Training is underway (18/30). The upgrades to the labyrinth are almost complete. Further work will require the aid of trained miners or engineers.
Nuulyd: 37 members (18 cultists, 2 Wordbearers, 14 rich people, 6 councilfolk, 2 knights (heavily armed), 1 ex-priest)
Slaves: 11 (4 priests, 7 guards (armed))
Power level: 9
Of which: 5 spent recruiting new members
Resources: 1
Other: The cult moves on from the highest tier of Nuulyd society to the lowest, spreading recruiters amongst the desperate and the criminal. Their efforts pay off, and seven new members eagerly join the feasting and festing for the low low cost of their already tarnished soul.
Castle Brylib: 8 members (7 courtiers, 1 mercenary captain)
Power level: 3
Resources: 0
Other: You should really get around to merging the three branches of the cult- which requires them being able to exchange resources and members freely.
Champions: Mischa Alwiz: The Duke's 'loyal' companion, now corrupted by the allure of evil.
Physical Might: 1
Mental Might: 6
Knowledge: Magic, basic Necromancy.
Possessions: Grey imp (knowledge of human & demonic magic, disguised as a crow)
Other: Her experiments go much better with the imp helping her, and she manages to draw on the evil energy of the cemetery and send it in your direction, as thanks for the imp. She makes extensive notes, but fortunately she is well practised in keeping her writing secret, so it is unlikely a maid will discover them whilst cleaning her study (only an example, as would never let anyone clean her study but her).
At the end of the week she is frustrated to learn the conditions required to get further answers, and considers how best to accomplish this.
Fortresses: Fellshore: A small fishing village nestled between a small lake and a forest (with mountains not so far in the distance), now undermined with tunnels and chambers forming a twisted maze, lit with smoky torches, where the shadows form strange shapes in the corner of your eyes.
Small tunnel network: increases secrecy of local cult. Being upgraded (45/50)
Small (hidden) altar: A suitable place to sacrifice to you and praise your dark name.
Author
Topic: Demonhood 2 -Number of giant minions lost: between 0 and 3- (Read 143881 times)