IC: Elves, Elves, Elves

[HerbieRAI]

In 4356 a group of elves riding pegasi land near whatever sign of civilization there is. They will hail whatever unit or people they can, We come from the Sillian Confederacy. I am Sergent Platian, and we'd like to have a talk with someone in your government about peace between our people.

(If there isn't anything in 4356 they'll be moving around in your territory until they find someone.

[Toptomcat]

A small group of five elven horsemen immediately greet you at the edge of a small logging town in the forest, flagging you down into a nearby clearing...as if they'd been waiting for you. They're led by a young woman with long, brown hair and gentle eyes, richly but not ostentatiously dressed. A crown of plain copper sits on her head.

Her clothes move somewhat unnaturally- with the occasional subtle, illusionary shimmer of someone who's concealing armor and magic items beneath a Disguise Self spell.

The crown signals an ongoing spell effect: Crown of Might. (http://therafimrpg.wikidot.com/crown-of-might)

The steeds of this delegation are some serious horseflesh. They're two or three hands taller than your pegasi, muscled like a carthorse...but when they flagged you down they were almost keeping up with your pegasi's flight on the ground, which is pretty much unheard of from a horse of that size. Or any size, really. They don't even seem winded.

The horsemen escorting the central figure are real pros: they move like they're born to the saddle, and their gear is top-notch and clearly well-maintained. In particular, the bows they're carrying are of highly unusual construction: it's huge, bigger than any you've ever seen, and the upper and lower limbs are of different lengths (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/YumiKai.gif/150px-YumiKai.gif).

It also seems to be made of something other than wood, though what you aren't sure.

The escorts are wild elves: she's a desert elf.

"Well, you're certainly a good deal more polite than the last few visitors we had around here. Greetings from the Free Cities of Varisia. I am Amelia Centinari, Serene Doge of Varisia and head of state."

A mule-drawn cart makes its way over from the village, and a few servants begin briskly unpacking its contents: food and water for your pegasi, a table and chairs to sit at, bread and olive oil, some kind of delicious garlicky soup, even good white wine. They seem amazingly prepared for this.


"Peace is best discussed over a hearty meal. Shall we?"

[HerbieRAI]

ooc

Just learned that a character can get on a units mount for free, so I'm going to actually send a diplomat with them. Yay! I'll use the same color since the sergeant shouldn't be needing to talk anymore.


After the quick greeting, another elf, strangely unarmored but dressed in fine clothes steps up equal with the sergeant, then takes a deep bow. It is a pleasure to meet you Doge, I am Lord Festil di Revira and I am here speaking on behalf of our ruler Lord Veshian. I would like to hear more about your past visitors, and this meal looks astounding.

Festil begins walking toward the banquet, eyeing the prepared meal. He had been eating rations for the past few days during travel, and hadn't brought enough wine for the entire trip. This was truly a heavenly sight.

[Toptomcat]

"If you'd like to keep these negotiations privileged, you can have your men withdraw a bit and I'll do the same with mine. If it's all the same to you, we can all eat at the same table and handle sensitive information a bit later. Whichever you'd like."

Emily sits and gestures for Festil to do the same.

"If you're elven and in the neighborhood, I have a feeling you may have heard from our prior visitors as well. An impressive, rather bloodthirsty-looking fellow who came calling from the north, with thousands of troops in tow. Styling himself Jack, Lord of All Fey, he made some kind of poorly-substantiated ancestral claim on our fealty.

Have you had a similar experience? If not, I suspect it won't be long in coming."

Eria raises her cup and clinks it against the ambassador's in a toast, signalling the start of the meal.

[HerbieRAI]

Of course, they will keep away for the current time Festil signals the pegasus riders to give some distance as he sits and enjoys a few small bites and sips before starting to talk You never miss a basic thing like good food until you're deprived of it for a time. We were visited by one of his diplomats, not the ..err man I take it.. himself. Not to add worries to your agenda, but his men can turn invisible and will sneak their heads around. My lord had an extra sneak into their diplomatic meeting, almost caused the entire meeting to go south. He had a similar half baked reason with us. I take it his... style of diplomacy didn't sit well with you either? In truth that meeting was the entire reason for this envoy.

[Toptomcat]

"Hmm. If magical espionage is an issue, please give me a moment."

Emily pulls out a chair to her right, and after a few seconds, another elf appears in it- this one a girl scarcely out of her eighties in the traditional robes of a spellcaster. She casts a quick spell-

Quickened Apocalypse from the Sky.

-takes a quick look around, nods at the result, then takes to the air and begins a much longer and more involved incantation.

Mage's Private Sanctum.

"No invisible infiltrators are anywhere nearby. This next spell will more or less wholly prevent the possibility of eavesdropping. I'm afraid it will take around ten minutes, though, so let's spend that time speaking of less sensitive things and enjoying the meal.

Tell me, what kind of man is your Lord Veshian?"

[HerbieRAI]

I didn't mean to infer there were spies around us, just a warning of what they are capable of. If we are in the same situation is benefits both of us to share this kind of information. Veshian is a very religious man, the main church in our land believes he was prophesied to lead our country to glory. I'm not a very religious one myself, but he has proven his ability to lead.


Festil seems to split the topic away from Veshian a bit quickly, and his facial expressions give the impression he see's Veshian negatively right now.


He also has some fear of the mountain getting closed off as the vermin take it over. If you would like to have us as close allies we can build a port in the next few seasons that will let us interact easier without needing to go through that dangerous territory.

[Toptomcat]

Emily's face lights up.

"That would be wonderful. Whether we're to be close allies or bitter rivals, one thing Varisia is always going to be up for is the opportunity for trade. I mean that: if your markets became available and I wanted to stop us from trading with you, I'd probably have to sink half the fleet and spend the next year putting down a revolt from the merchant princes. And why would I ever want to in the first place? I'm for trade, as swiftly and as much as possible."

She dips a bit of bread in the olive oil and savors the taste for a moment.

"That remark about the merchant princes probably deserves a bit of explanation, doesn't it? When I introduced myself as head of state, that was a bit of an oversimplification. In theory the powers of my position are quite limited- I'm mayor of our two central cities and commander of the self-defense force. Power in Varisia has historically been split between quite a number of parties- for starters the city government, the merchant princes, the Great Council, the elder mages of the Varisian Academy, the church of Waukeen...

In practice I have considerably more control than that implies. I'm head of the church as well, since last month. I'm thick as thieves with the Grand High Thaumaturge of the Varisian Academy-"

She gestures upwards, indicating the mage above the clearing still chanting her spell.

"Most of the merchant princes appreciate that I neither debase the currency nor have people who lend me money executed for treason, as was the habit of the previous few Doges. And I've had two or three of the really troublesome ones assassinated because I simply could not talk them out of trafficking with demons and cheating on their taxes."

She smiles beatifically.

"Don't worry too much about keeping track of all this, I've prepared a pamphlet- oh, Eria's done. Splendid."

A dark, foggy barrier appears around the meeting table for a moment before fading into translucency. Eria floats down from the sky straight into a seat at the table.

"Eria Berlinetta has my total confidence, and in fact has about as much a claim to rulership of Varisia as I do. I hope you don't mind if she joins us."

"Hello."

"So, then. Jack. No, his style of diplomacy does not sit well with me. To all appearances, he's a bloodthirsty barbarian with pretensions to empire.

On the other hand. What he's actually offered thus far seems to be a high degree of political autonomy in exchange for an eminently manageable amount of tribute. As empires go, it's not a bad deal."

Eria makes a face.

"Other other hand, though: why take the offer at face value? Maybe he just wants the chance to invade his non-elven neighbors without having to watch his back for us. In which case this wonderful new empire lasts only long enough for him to finish off everybody else, then Jack turns on us."

Amelia nods.

"So my immediate instinct is to gather as much intelligence on Jack and his offer as possible, try to get a feel for its sincerity, get a full understanding of the potential benefits of such an arrangement. And, at the same time, start making plans with any likely-seeming allies to put him down like a rabid dog, should it prove necessary.

What are your thoughts?"

[HerbieRAI]

Starring at his glass a few moments, taking in the new information with what he had been told before his departure. Our nations seem very similar. Ours is comprised of three city states that share the same head of state, Lord Veshian. While he conducts the interaction with other nations, major building projects, expansion, and the military, most of the laws are created without his input.

As far as taking down the Fae, we weren't necessarily wanting to destroy them yet. That said we didn't have a legion march on our territory. We were thinking more using them as a military buffer with bigger threats, like the Ska and Undead. All we have to do is get one of them to attack us, then we call on the Fae to honor their alliance and watch their armies clash.

The hard part would be getting the Ska to attack us, but I think we can manage that somehow. How many men marched on you? I think we can assume that a large portion of his troops were in that march to make sure the intimidation was at a maximum. We were going to swing by the dwarves on our way back and send another envoy to the hive next week. The halflings in the north could also be a great boon if we can get them to target the Fae's northern holdings.

[Toptomcat]

As far as taking down the Fae, we weren't necessarily wanting to destroy them yet.

Emily nods eagerly.

"Neither are we, really. I hope I haven't given you the impression that we're chomping at the bit for war: we'd like nothing more than to avoid a big, messy, and above all expensive conflict. We merely want to be in a good position to deal with it if we must."


We were thinking more using them as a military buffer with bigger threats, like the Ska and Undead. All we have to do is get one of them to attack us, then we call on the Fae to honor their alliance and watch their armies clash.

The hard part would be getting the Ska to attack us, but I think we can manage that somehow.

Amelia's eyebrows shoot up, and it seems like she's about to say something but gets cut off by Eria.

"If you can rely on them to back you up at all. Which isn't certain. They bail on you, you've got a war on your hands with hordes of angry ratmen and Jack eyeing your tasty underbelly. Not a good place to be."


How many men marched on you? I think we can assume that a large portion of his troops were in that march to make sure the intimidation was at a maximum.

Eria frowns.

"There was one hell of a lot of fairy infantry with him. It was hard to get a decent count, since they're a lot smaller than us, all flight-capable and all running around skirmish-fashion- they didn't move around like big blocks of groundpounders.

All in all...twelve legions at least, I'd say? Multiple tens of thousands."

[HerbieRAI]

When hearing the number of troops, Festil almost chokes on his wine. That would be a very difficult force to contend with. Even if you beat their main force with skill that I am sure elf warriors have, they could easily send other groups around to raze the majority of the country without being able to get men to their aid. It would be like fighting off a swarm of locusts. I just fail to see how you could get in a better position to a barbarian like that without having military prowess to back it up.

I never said the set up with the Ska would be easy, but gaining an alliance against the Fae is going to be just as difficult, doubly so with the other warmongers out in the world. Anyone we gain on our side could just be approached by Jack in the same situation and probably be persuaded just to help keep the others off their back. I believe Jack will eventually be at war with the Ska with our without our interference, it would just be beneficial to have that conflict come before the Ska weaken themselves against other factions.

[Toptomcat]

Eria and Emily exchange a look.

"Difficult to deal with, yes. Impossible, no. Remember, we're talking about tens of thousands of fairy infantry. The biggest and fiercest among them could probably fit in this wine bottle."

Amelia raps a nail on the half-empty bottle of wine for emphasis.

"The flight and their small size makes things tricky, it's true, but...not overwhelmingly so, not even in very large numbers. If they just stay at range and rain missiles on our bowmen from the air, they're going to be trading arrows the size of toothpicks for what are, for them, projectiles of monstrous size that will tear off a limb on a glancing hit and kill instantly on a solid one. Even if we're not bringing cold iron it's an intimidating prospect for their troops, and if we did, their losses would be horrific even in successful battles.

Jack must be depending on something else to make his army work. Even if they're all pixies and every one of them can go the whole fight invisible, all it takes is one commander with see invisibility to direct volley archery and the whole plan goes out the window. There's something we haven't figured out, something we still aren't seeing, some tactical trick or aspect of their unique fairy magics-"

Eria sits bolt upright, nearly knocking over her wine glass.

"Um. I think I just figured it out."

"What Jack's troops are going to do in battle?"

The mage is grinning, talking a mile a minute in her eagerness to share her sudden insight.

"The whole thing, I think, um, the battle plan and the bigger strategic one. He didn't approach us for peace because he wants to save us for last, nope, he diddit because he doesn't have a choice, he approached us because we're the only ones who are immune to his troops' most important strength."

Amelia shoots her a confused glance.

"It can't be that easy."

"Oh, but it is. That army is composed entirely of pixies. That's gotta be what they are: they're the only kind of common flying fairy that's that size. And it fits with Festil's warning about invisible infiltrators, and also with how completely they took us by surprise: they can all turn and stay invisible, every one.

But the real trick is the arrows. Pixies have special arrows with powerful sleep enchantments on them. Any body of troops without the elven immunity to magical sleep is going to be out like a light the moment they take the first volley. At which point Jack's legions simply saunter up and slit their throats at their leisure. Doesn't matter how small their swords are then."

Eria smiles triumphantly.

"He can beat any army in the field but one that's composed of elves."

[HerbieRAI]

Festil nods in agreement Yes, we can beat him if he attacks us in a conventional battle, but why would he do that. He would already know his weakness and therefore avoid that confrontation. He is more likely to send in a single legion to every province one of us owns, and our armies would not be able to reach every area to fight them off. After a few weeks he would have conquered half the country which would be hard to come back from. Veshian was wanting to bide his time for a while, perhaps build a road across the marsh so our men could counter attack and not only be on the defensive.

[Toptomcat]

Emily blinks in confusion.

"But that would...oh. Never mind."

She takes a sip of wine.

She views that scenario as a non-problem for Varisia, but is reluctant to tell you why.
"In any event, this information isn't of immediate relevance. Like your Lord Veshian, we're inclined to watch and wait, maneuver for advantage, and go to war with Jack only if the deal should sour.

As for the rest: peace between the Free Cities and the Confederacy is self-evidently in both our interests. The same for trade: we're willing to contribute in the amount of two hundred thousand pieces of gold to defray the costs of construction of your new port, half now and half upon completion of the port and trade agreement."

That's 1000 RP now and 1000 RP later.
"Was there anything else you wished to discuss?"

[HerbieRAI]

While the funds are appreciated they are not necessary. We have the funds, it will just take time to get the location ready. There is one other matter, would you like to have a representative permanently in your territory somewhere, to act as a swift diplomat between our nations? I'm sure you and Veshian could talk through other methods, but we will put the offer on the table.

[Toptomcat]

While the funds are appreciated they are not necessary. We have the funds, it will just take time to get the location ready.

Emily's smile wavers a bit and she's clearly controlling her reaction to this. You can guess what she's concealing from Eria's expression, which is considerably less restrained: she's looking at you like you've grown an extra head.

"You'd turn down free money? Well. That's...that's very generous. Thanks. Would you mind if we spent the money on some prominent, permanent public-works project and named it after you? The Sillian Friendship Aqueduct, or something like that?"


There is one other matter, would you like to have a representative permanently in your territory somewhere, to act as a swift diplomat between our nations? I'm sure you and Veshian could talk through other methods, but we will put the offer on the table.

"Hmmm. If we can discuss important matters with your envoy with the assurance that he speaks for Lord Veshian, that would be both worthwhile and welcome. If we have to go teleporting to the Confederacy whenever we have to discuss anything truly important, it would be less so.

So we accept, conditional on your ambassador having either the authority or the necessary long-range magical communication capability to ensure we can both make productive use of them."

[Toptomcat]

Festil stares into space for a long moment, and Emily leans in, looking somewhat concerned.

"Are you all right, Lord Revira?"

I didn't think the wine was that strong...

[HerbieRAI]

Sorry, I was just distancing my self from the coming trip. My lord has me going to a few other countries after this. Yes, our representative will have a method to talk with Veshian if needed. They should arrive around the time we have a port built.

[Toptomcat]

Amelia Centinari smiles warmly and inclines her head to the Sillian representative.

"Then our confidential business is concluded and your men can enjoy our hospitality!"

She stands, giving Festil a moment to contradict her before nodding to Eria. With a gesture, the young mage dismisses the eerie, grey barrier surrounding the meeting table.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Lord Festil di Revira. I hope our next meeting is as pleasant."

As Eria swiftly flies off, Emily makes a gesture to some waiting observer. The townspeople bring out extra tables and more food, treating Emily's honor guard and the Sillian pegasus riders to the same rustic but excellently prepared meal that their commanders have already enjoyed. Even the pegasi are brought good feed.

Heeding Festil's implicitly-expressed concerns about his tight schedule, Emily ensures that the meal doesn't get too hearty and that the drinking is kept light, but the atmosphere is nonetheless festive. Festil's riders are pleased to be able to fill their saddlebags with good fresh bread as they depart.

The hearty meal effectively serves as a small-scale gift from Varisia to the Confederacy, offsetting the upkeep costs of the pegasus riders by 50 RP.