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  1. - Top - End - #121
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Lady Serpentine's Avatar

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    Jul 2011
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    Avatar by Kasanip
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    Female

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    The Naherin Coalition
    Sikar Region 278
    Xehra Tzkepte
    D2
    M7
    O6
    F4
    I3

    Military: In Kepta's absence, her second in command - the Night Elf Valyae Ashwalker - takes command of her unit, and is sent south by Xehra to claim those lands for the Naherin. Of course, sending someone who earned her name by burning three villages for refusing to bend the knee is something of a statement, even when they are the nominal commander and your heir's friend... Despite this, they are given orders not to resort to violence unnecessarily, and they take with them a trail of slaves and camp followers bearing a wide selection of goods to demonstrate the wealth of the Naherin and how much each group they visit might benefit from a peaceful surrender. (Attack Region 277 with one unit, led by Valyae Ashwalker.)
    Military: Nhekta Tzkepte - the daughter of Xehra's sister, two years younger than Kepta - is sent off to the north with a band of trusted veterans, each of a noble family. Officially, they go to defend the Windowless Spire, for the silver webs found in the desert have disturbed their people and they would not leave the Truthseers undefended. Unofficially, having a Windowless Spire in their lands is rather desirable, and makes up for the loss of face inherent in the Sentinels of Stone choosing to construct theirs elsewhere, though they are under strict orders to not bring the bulk of their force closer to the Spire than a mile without first being granted permission. (Attack Region 279 with one unit, led by Nhekta Tzkepte.)
    Secret: Secret.
    Military: Raise unit.
    Military: Raise unit.

    Stat changes: +2 Military

  2. - Top - End - #122
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    SOSDarkPhoenix's Avatar

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    Dec 2016

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    The Scions of the Thalaz'ir
    Mamut: Region 30
    Thalaz'ir Haraman I
    Dip 1
    Mil. 7
    Op. 3
    Faith 6
    Int 2


    Faith: Lay Foundations for Celestial Tower (2/5)
    Faith: Build frame of Celestial Tower (3/5)
    Faith: Complete First floor of Celestial Tower (4/5)
    Military: Raise a Unit of Na'karat Zealots
    Military: Raise a Unit of Na'karat Zealots

    Expected Stat Changes: Faith +1, Military +1

    Spoiler: Fluff
    Show

    TBA
    Last edited by SOSDarkPhoenix; 2020-08-21 at 03:15 PM.
    "If the universe wasn't meant to be ruled, why does the power to rule it exist at all?"

    Awesome avatar made by Gengy!

    Played the Harmony in Empire! 5
    Playing the Scions of the Thalaz'ir in Empire! 6

  3. - Top - End - #123
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Ausar's Avatar

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    Jun 2019
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    Rural Victoria, Australia
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    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    The Deru
    Bhaile-Koma, region 37



    We do not speak for the trees. We are the trees. By the grace of the Sannha, we stride.
    We are the blessed of the Sannha. We are all its children. By the sacred waters, we abide.

    The 9th Sacrosanct Conclave (the Aster Council)
    Diplomacy: 8
    Military: 4
    Opulence: 5
    Faith: 2
    Intrigue: 4

    Spoiler: Manual of Mamut: Brythona - or, the Last Task of Inhira, Most Blessed (To be completed: at some point[SUP
    Show
    TM[/SUP])]Brythona is a traditional Deru chorus, composed sometime shortly after the False Dawn by legendary minstrel Ile-Koma. Performed by a chorus of songbirds, with the minstrel reciting the tale, such choruses are the pride of the Kinsubr.

    Leaves of green turned black; skies of blue come grey.
    'Neath a rain of ash; scent of slow decay.
    Few enough remain; sent off far away.
    Trees their roots retain; ne'er to halt, for there they'll stay.

    Along banks full to bursting, Inhira led the stride. Bent and broken tree trunks rent by fire from the sky were little better than the


    1: Military: Raise one unit - the Red Grove. The Askr will defend the west in truth once more.

    2: Diplomacy: Raise Reputation with the Dreamers. [13]

    3: Diplomacy: Continue Great Project - The Sankohma. (2/5) Transitioning the Sacrosanct Conclave from an emergency body to a permanent governing force is a slow process; the Deru have never needed such a thing for an extended period of time, and now with re-emergence of the Sannha's children across Mamut there are necessary changes to be made. The small population so geographically compact now requires permanent centralised guidance, and this the Conclave must be made to provide.

    4: Diplomacy: Raise Reputation with the Sentinels. [18]

    5: Diplomacy: Raise Reputation with the Truthseers. [15]

    Non-actions: Support all conversions, support all buyouts of unowned TP's.

    Spoiler: Admin
    Show

    Leader stat increases:
    Dip +2

    Techs:
    Animal Husbandry
    Writing (Hraban)(Elecctricat)
    Masonry

    Units: 0/6

    Heroes: none.

    Cultural Identity/ies: Children of the Sannha (2d8 on raising organisation reputation) (temporary).

    Tactical Doctrine/s: none.
    Last edited by Ausar; 2020-08-21 at 09:01 PM.
    "Into the Jaws of Death, into the Mouth of Hell;" (Tennyson)
    So shall you tread, once you pass the precipice of villainy.

  4. - Top - End - #124
    Pixie in the Playground
    Join Date
    Jun 2020

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Eleftheria
    Tarandi Region 133 Thade, The Distant Shore


    Spoiler: Flag
    Show


    Actions

    1. [DIPLOMACY]: Establish Claim Region 134 9
    Failure

    2. [OPULENCE]: Buyout Trading Post (CAW 137 TP 3) 11
    +1 (Pottery)
    Success! (support)

    3. [DIPLOMACY]: Raise TSR Rep 11
    Failure

    4. [OPULENCE]: Expedition (North using sailing) 14
    +1 (Animal Husbandry)
    Success? Again?

    5. [OPULENCE]: Buyout Trading Post (Shandole 115 TP2)16
    +1 (Pottery)
    Success!
    Rolls: /showsinglepost.php?p=24653258&postcount=306

    Non-Actions:
    - Accept all Embassies
    - Give 1 treasure to the Stone bois

    News and Rumors:

    Spoiler: Bookkeeping
    Show

    Leader: Veret Haftian
    D: 4
    M: 1
    O: 6
    F: 1
    I: 3

    Expected Stat Increases: +1 Opulence +1 Diplomacy
    New Ruler Next Round?
    no

    Treasure 1/5
    Expected Change -1

    Military Units 1/6
    Expected Change
    - 1 navel

    Heroes:
    - none

    Embassies:
    - none

    Technologies:
    Sailing
    Irrigation
    Pottery
    Animal Handling

    Temporary Cultural Identity: None
    Permanent Cultural Identities: None

    Tactical Doctrines
    - Reckless Charge
    - Skirmishing
    - Cautious Advance

    Special Materials:
    Armor:
    Weaponry:
    Ranged Weaponry:
    Cavalry:
    Scouts and Logistics:
    War Beasts:
    Combat Drugs and Medicine:
    Fortifications:
    Sappers and Siege Weapons:
    Subterfuge:

    Trading posts: (3)
    Expected Change +2
    - 133 (Lime) TP2
    - 129 (Grousse Shark) TP2
    - 136 (Musical Instruments) TP 3
    Last edited by bupkis; 2020-09-03 at 03:13 AM.

  5. - Top - End - #125
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    zabbarot's Avatar

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    Jan 2013

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Crow's Tribe
    King Kro Thorael
    Round 3




    Year 9 -12 of the Kro Dynasty

    News and Rumors
    • Crows celebrate as horses finally make it back to Highnest. Or at least to the base of Highnest. None had yet considered how they could be put to use in the cliff villages or even in the Crown atop the plateau. For now stables were built at the bottom of the mesa.
    • The Path of True Dawn calls some crows to service! A true organized military is established for the first time in Highnest.



    Actions Rolls
    • [Opulence] Buyout Agave Trading Post 2 in Region 305 ( 20 Success!)
    • [Opulence] Buyout Horse Trading Post 3 in Region 302 (Supported! 12 Success!)
    • [Faith][Great Project 1/5] Crow scribes travel to Dzah in the Sands of Shá to sit at the feet of the Revered Elders and transcribe their wisdom onto vellum
    • [Faith][Great Project 2/5] Continue writing the wisdom of the Path of True Dawn. Extol the Hundred Exalted Names of the Sun.
    • [Military] Raise one Unit


    Non-actions
    • Resist any buyouts.
    • Accumulate 1 Treasure from Trading Posts (5 owned)


    Ruler Info
    King Kro Thorael
    D 3 • M 2 • O 8 • F 4 • I 1
    Expected Gains:
    +1 Opulence +1 Faith

    The Vault
    Spoiler
    Show
    2 Treasure
    Shattered Runestone (TP1, Region 306)
    Gold (TP3, Region 307)
    Maize (TP2, REgion 277)
    Blightspawn Trophies (TP3, Region 275)
    Slaves (TP2, Region 311)
    Quote Originally Posted by lt_murgen View Post
    Exploratory expeditions expeditiously expediting exploration would be epicurially equipped.

  6. - Top - End - #126
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    TheDarkDM's Avatar

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    Los Angeles
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    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    End of Round Three

    I was old when the pharaohs first mounted
    The jewel-decked throne by the Nile;
    I was old in those epochs uncounted
    When I, and I only, was vile;

    Spoiler
    Show
    Quote Originally Posted by apocalypsePast2 View Post
    ...one could possibly refer to you guys' elaborate dance of allies-to-enemies-to-suicide-of-the-universe as some sort of weird art form.

    If one were on drugs.
    Quote Originally Posted by VonDoom View Post
    Behold, the mighty slayer of strangely coloured mutant equines! The thwarter of forum woes! The! Dark! DM!

  7. - Top - End - #127
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    TheDarkDM's Avatar

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    Los Angeles
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    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Round Four: Begin!
    Years 13-16

    Don’t forget to link to any rolls you make for ANY Attribute checks, plus rolls for rulers you will start using at the start of next round. If you want a new ruler in the next round, you must state so in your action post for this round and link to their rolls. Any increases from actions for this round are counted for the ruler you start your next round with (because it’s handier to account for by the co-GM), which may or may not be your current ruler.

    Good luck!

    Rules Alerts and Changes!


    Growth!
    • A new den of vice and iniquity arises in the land of the Targiz (19), known by the locals as the city of Kursaal!
    • The Soreni raise Silver City in the Sor Dunes (308!)
    • The city of Danneta-Yvaon is founded in Dannu-Gao (96)!
    • The Sewune establish Manticore Rise in the Gehudu Forest (216)!
    • The Dream Speakers seek out a hidden jungle city in the depths of Veramondo (218)! Its true name is lost to history and so the expedition defers to the local authority of Oram Hadev II in naming this mecca slowly being restored by modern hands.


    Claim!
    • The Soreni succeed in pressing their claim on region 311, and gain control of the region!
    • Sangar commences pressing a claim on 132. It will require further work to formalise control over the region.
    • The Creatures of Ancient Ways somehow manage to establish a claim on region 138.
    • Princess Raajrhaaandhuu of the trolls is married to the son of a local tribal chief, possibly at spearpoint (on his part). Lhungho Saar establishes a claim on region 220.
    • Scrimspeaker Nithor son of Lurn ventures into region 65 in search of his father and in the hope of establishing better diplomatic relations. Upon meeting with a local chief, he discovers that his father somehow gave serious offence and was banished from the region, presumably dying on his way home. However, Nithor is better received and is offered the chief’s daughter’s hand, establishing a claim on the region.
    • Calder, Thane of the Stag, sends his niece Aldra to conduct bedchamber diplomacy in region 117. While the locals take some convincing, a local ruler is eventually persuaded to marry the girl. Clann Solais establishes a claim on region 117!
    • It is however one step forward and one step back for the Scrim. While they may have improved their standing with the locals in region 65, the people of region 50 show no particular interest in unifying their government with the Scrim, treating the marriages arranged by the Truthseers as alliances only, and not tokens of submission.
    • Kortam Hadev, cousin of King Oram III of Veramondo, secures a marriage with the daughter and heir of a local chief in region 212. He soon discovers, however, that the chief was largely motivated by the desire to secure Veramondi support in the face of the Sirrvadut invasion, which quickly overruns the region - although Kortam’s marriage remains intact. Veramondo establishes a claim on region 212!
    • The Koxrrit princess Karra sets off to the west seeking to bind its people in marriage and thereby establish a claim. Some months later, a messenger arrives from the west to thank Rakthuk for “sending tribute in the form of a fine concubine”. Ixkarr fails to establish a claim on region 296!


    War!

    Led by Aspelta, the Alodites quickly overrun region 290 and claim ownership over the region, but will still need to placate the native population.. Region 290 is in Unrest!

    Spoiler: Sangar invades 135
    Show

    Sangar: 3 units, Prenadi (Mil 10), duelling (lost) = 30 Total
    Natives: 1 unit, NPC commander (Mil 10), dueling (won) = 18 Total

    The march south proves a simple affair for the forces of Sangar, their marching songs echoing triumphantly over the fields of spelt so prized by their chosen foes. It is in these rolling fields, rather than around their settlements, where the defenders choose to attack, rushing forward in a wave that ripples out to send the entire horizon to a mad dance. However, despite their familiarity with the terrain, the locals are unable to pin down the main force of the Sworn, as chanting auxiliaries bait the battle line away from any flagging spear line and the tireless northerners continually pivot against the outnumbered spelt-growers. It is in the midst of this lethal dance, atop a trampled field of grain, that Prenadi confronts the local warlord. His face hidden behind a red stained mask, he stood alone amids four Sangar corpses, a knotted hardwood club in hand. The two leaders’ eyes met, and as Prenadi’s voice rose in a battle-song the maked warrior stalked towards her in utter silence.

    Her sword arm outstretched, Prenadi circled the man in time to her beat, but to her eye something seemed subtly off. She placed it when he attacked, limbs contorting with sudden violence that lacked any rhythm or grace the Sangar hero could detect. She dodged with practiced ease, but even as the club flew wide his calloused foot was flying into her stomach. For the first time in years, Prenadi felt the wind knocked from her lungs as she rebounded off the ground, skidding into a ready stance even as the strange twitching thing came for her once more. This attack she parried, flowing like a dancer into a stab that pierced deep into her enemy’s arm...only for his free hand to lash out and take her by the throat. Twisting her blade, she felt muscle tear from bone even as she was lifted into the air, her own face reflected in the dead eyes lurking in the shadows of the mask. He slammed her into the ground hard enough to crack bone, and Prenadi was briefly paralyzed as he calmly, soundlessly took up the club in his functioning arm and raised it high. Time slowed, and at the back of her mind she heard the first song she’d learned as an aspiring Sworn. Life flooded back into her limbs, and she found herself rolling instinctively away from the murderous blow. Taking up her fallen sword she thrust again, taking the warrior in the thigh, only to catch a blow to her shoulder in exchange.

    The Sangaran sword was left impaling the warlord’s thigh as Prenadi recoiled with a broken arm, her song flagging as her vision blurred, and yet that damnable monster simply staggered back and took hold of her blade’s hilt without a sound. It came free in a spurt of blood, freeing him to march inexorably towards her. Reaching to her back, Prenadi pulled free her spear, her one good arm holding it just steadily enough to block his first strike. His second snapped her spear in twain. Her back to the tide of battle, Prenadi readied her String stance to make a final stand, and for some reason the masked man hesitated. Long enough, perhaps, for Prenadi to say a final prayer. Long enough, certainly, for three Sworn on the edge of the battle to throw their own spears once they sighted Prenadi’s desperation. The sharpened blades took the masked monster in the back, freezing him in the instant of his final blow until he sank, haltingly, to the ground. All around her, Prenai saw the battle settling as the last of the native defenders surrendered or fled, and she moved to remove the mask. Beneath was a man. Just a man.

    Sangar is Victorious! Sangar loses 0 Units, and conquers Region 135. Region 135 is in Unrest!


    Spoiler: Bel-Dan Armada invade 197
    Show

    The Armada: 3 units (2 land/1 naval), Ren-Cha-Fen (Mil 9) = 15
    Natives: 1 unit, NPC commander (Mil 10) = 19

    Sailing south with dreams of glory, it is Ren-Cha-Fen’s confidence that proves his downfall. Making landfall along the northern coast, the Bel-Dan raiders achieve several early victories against threadbare local militias, sacking three villages and growing drunk on victory and plunder. It is after this third successive victory that Ren-Cha-Fen declares a feast day, gathering the fullness of his forces for a beach-side debauch. It is exactly the opportunity that the native forces waiting inland have been waiting for. As the pirate army indulges in the fat of sacked villages and enslaved peoples, they are slowly encircled by their numerically inferior foes. It is not until the southern war drums begin pounding that the Bel-Dan realize their danger, and by then it is too late.

    Scattered and half-dressed, the Bel-Dan fail to repulse the savage charge that closes on them across the sand. Fighting back to back on footing made treacherous by sea foam and blood, they are pressed ever closer to their precious ships. After half an hour of fighting, and with his own stamina fading, Ren-Cha-Fen orders a retreat. The Bel-Dan’s affinity for the waves saves them from total disaster, as most of the raiders manage to swim to the safety of their ships, but hundreds of their brethren are left to feed the crabs.

    The Bel-Dan Armada is Defeated! The Bel-Dan lose 1 Land Unit.


    Spoiler: The Thunderpeople invade region 276
    Show

    Thunderpeople: 3 units, The Ripper (Mil 9), duelling (won) = 29
    Natives: 2 units, NPC commander (Mil 9), duelling (lost) = 26

    Like a summer storm, the hardened hunters of Thunderport travel north, to seize the lands of the water-walkers and fish-gnawers. The native peoples flee before the thunder of drums, leaving behind a great bounty of salt-trophies and fish flesh that fills the belly even as it raises spirits. It is not until the Thunderpeople reach the greatest of the local settlements, a settled hill amidst a tidal plain providing a natural moat at high tide, that the fleeing multitudes turn to fight. Proceeding forward in squads of trained fighters, the Thunderpeople endure a hail of sling stones and thrown javelins before they can close the distance, but on the pebbly banks of the fish peoples’ bastion they give vent to all the rage and power of their race.

    Even as warriors clash, The Ripper fades like a shadow from her lines, slithering into the water like a serpent to emerge on the opposite front of the battle. The few sentinels left behind fall quickly beneath her wide-bladed spear, their life-blood layering atop her war paint in a frightful tableau. Refugees and villagers scream at her coming, fleeing ignored even as she cuts down the warriors that come in answer. It is at the peak of the battle’s violence that she finds her target, a scale-cloaked man of monstrous size wielding what might once have been a boat hook but had since become a barbed monstrosity almost equal to her own spear. Desperate battle lust met cold glee when their eyes met, and the two commanders clashed atop the fortified palisade.

    Framed by the setting sun, sight proved secondary to sense as The Ripper traded blows with her opponent, the long blades of their weapons drawing sparks from each other as they sought an opening in the chaos. While their prey was as different as earth from sky, the skills of the whaler lord proved a strange mirror to The Ripper’s own, his senses near as sharp even as he grew light blind. Salt and iron mixed atop her tongue as a stray splinter of wood erupted from the palisade after a glancing blow, lacerating her cheek even as her foot found the enemy’s knee. Bone and cartilage screamed like a torn sail as the whaler staggered back, his swings growing wild in desperation, only widening the openings needed for The Ripper’s spear to bite. She gave him seven cuts before he collapsed, finishing him with a disemboweling blow as he gazed out towards the waves that had been his life. With his death, the fight went out of the fisherpeople, and a battle line that had held fast against the worst arts of the Thunderpeople melted away.

    The Thunderpeople are Victorious! Thunderpeople lose 1 Unit, and conquer Region 276. Region 276 is in Unrest!


    Spoiler: The Sons of Sirrvat invade region 212
    Show

    Sons of Sirrvat: 5 units, Vetrapa (Mil 10) = 36
    Natives: 2 units, NPC commander (Mil 10) = 14
    Additional unrest consequences on victory? (2 errant quests completed in region in last 2 rounds)

    Already suffering beneath the weight of heroic incursions, the people of the south prove incapable of meaningful resistance before the Sons of Sirrvat. The forces that stand before one of Kiswa’s great armies are half-starved and ragged, their fields and herds ravaged in the years prior by strangers in search of gold and glory. The Sirrvat’s first charge shatters any semblance of a battle line, and indeed the northerners are so vicious in their pursuit of limited recognition that a number of their fellows die trampled beneath their feet. A victory cry echoes across Kiswa, but it is only in the aftermath that the true price becomes clear. The region is so beleaguered that it seems barely capable of supporting itself, and may collapse into anarchy or worse if immediate steps are not taken.

    The Sons of Sirrvat are Victorious! Sirrvat lose 1 Unit, and conquer Region 212. Region 212 has suffered Unrest from two Errant Quests in a row, and the Unrest of conquest threatens to move it to total collapse. An Opulence Great Project must be completed to restore some semblance of the local economy or the ravages of starvation, disease, and desperation may begin to spread. Any kingdom may contribute to this humanitarian effort.


    Spoiler: Clan Alqar invade region 33
    Show

    Clan Alqar: 3 units, Kalm Alqar (Mil 7) = 15
    Natives: 1 unit, NPC commander (Mil 7) = 22

    Moving south with borrowed forces, Kalm Alqar seeks to erase the shame of his peoples’ loss to the Uzii while expanding his domain in the process. However, where he might have expected thriving villages and scattered defenders, he instead finds houses abandoned to sprawling fields of amaryllis flowers, and pathways slowly succumbing to the encroaching flowers. Still, mindful of the need for glory to buoy his regime, he presses one. And at the foot of the mountains, he finds the inhabitants of the region. Huddled in a shantytown around the entrance to a box canyon, tens of thousands of amaryllis-crazed eyes turn to look upon the forces of Clan Alqar, and charge.

    The press of bodies is unlike anything the moon-born warriors or their northern allies could have trained for, the people before them half-feral and seemingly immune to pain. Only killing blows slow the onslaught, and then only for a moment, as there are ever more bodies screaming in a foreign tongue to take their place. In a fighting retreat, the Alqar leave hundreds, thousands of bodies in their wake and while the lion’s share are natives the escape costs the Alqar dearly.

    Clan Alqar is Defeated! Clan Alqar loses 2 Units.


    The Naherin Coalition conquers region 277. Region 277 is in unrest!
    The Naherin Coalition conquers region 279. Region 279 is in unrest!

    Quests!
    • Petal Head of the Targiz is dispatched to undertake a quest in region 18. For the Targiz, it is a great success, as he returns laden with riches, but the people of the region may never sleep soundly again. The Targiz gain 4 Treasure! Region 18 is in unrest!
    • Ocēmis ventures into region 217 in search of adventure, and returns home with stories of monsters slain and chieftains’ daughters ravished, together with an impressive haul of booty. Henanda gains 3 Treasure!
    • Ingkannu Isidi goes on an errant quest in region 212 and returns home laden with riches. She reports however that the region has been stripped bare by her exploits. Lhungho Saar gains 3 Treasure!
    • Liyae of the Nocturnal Hydra sets out on a quest into unknown lands, but does not return! Fears grow for the safety of the elven hero. Liyae is lost in the wilderness and cannot be used during Round 4!
    • Epic Quest: Argent Sands (Concluded at 4/5)
      Thekr, Champion of the Rathox Clan and Theodora of the Sentinels both venture back into the Maw of Sikar in pursuit of the Argent Nests. Though the deep desert proves no more hospitable than during Thekr’s first trek, the unshakeable will and heroism of the Sikar native and the Kiswan transplant prove equal to the task. Two more Argent Nests are discovered and destroyed, and not a moment too soon, as both heroes return with tales of life violently beginning to awaken beneath the silver shells. This is a tale corroborated to the dismay of the Sol’Ikoth, as Sikar Johnson sets out with a similar goal but slips weeks past his expected return. Eventually, the hero staggers out of the deep desert, body ravaged by some unknown poison and his left arm turned to petrified silver. He collapses on the streets of his home city, but not before loudly announcing the emergence of a brood of horrors from the last Argent Nest. [Thekr and Theodora each return to their people with a measure of Dreadsilver. As before, each cache may be refined with an Opulence action for 4 Treasure or used as part of a ritual Faith action to provide a +2 to any roll eligible for Seek Aid. Sikar Johnson is wounded in the course of the Epic Quest and will not recover until Round Seven.]


    Trade!

    • The Targiz buy a trading post for Emeralds in region 18.
    • The Targiz buy a trading post for Copper in region 33.
    • The Brayewen Tribes buy a trading post for Grouse Shark in Braye (129).
    • The Ko buy a trading post for Silk in region 52
    • The Ko buy a trading post for Aurochs in region 45.
    • The Ko buy a trading post for Cormet Stone in Na’karat (30).
    • The Brayewen Tribes buy a trading post for Salt in Uldra (109) from the Dannu Gao.
    • The trolls of Llungho Saar buy a trading post for Avocados in Faranandull (193).
    • The Sol’Ikoth buy a trading post for Nakhla Stone in region 292.
    • The Sol’Ikoth buy a trading post for Nakhla Stone in region 292.
    • The Sewune buy a trading post for Elk in region 225.
    • The Sewune buy a trading post for Tvila Clay in Yatrhajidaat Gitj (211).
    • The Sewune buy a trading post for Healing Herbs in Troll Country (221).
    • The Dannu-Gao buy a trading post for Husky Dogs in Hiverness (108).
    • The Dannu-Gao buy a trading post for Furs in Shandolé (115).
    • The Dannu-Gao buy a trading post for Tin in region 112.
    • The Dannu-Gao buy a trading post for Safflower Oil in region 116.
    • Eleftheria buys out a trading post for Taiga Poppy in the Carrion Ward (137).
    • Eleftheria buys out a trading post for Furs in Shandolé (115).
    • The Kro Dynasty buys out a trading post for Agave in region 305.
    • The Kro Dynasty buys out a trading post for Ashirian Horses in Vesparre (302).
    • Sangar gains a trading post for Fish in Thade (133) from the Dream Speakers.
    • Soreni gains a trading post for Blightspawn Trophies in Thunderport (275) from the Dream Speakers.

    Failed Trades
    • Brayewen fail to buy a trading post for Grousse Shark in Braye from the Dannu Gao
    • The Sol’Ikoth fail to buy a trading post in 290.


    Conversion!

    The Path of the True Dawn has been organised in Sikar!

    The Ancient Way has been organised in Tarandi!

    • The Holy Site in Region 197 has been converted to Hozhisa!
    • The Holy Site in Thunderport (275) is converted to Path of the True Dawn
    • The Holy Site in Ta Seti (288) is converted to Path of the True Dawn!
    • The Holy Site in Vyterrat (226) is converted to Abiherism (roll not linked)
    • The Holy Site in region 221 is converted to Abiherism
    • The Holy Site in Shandolé (115) is converted to the Ancient Way!
    • The Holy Sites in Dannu Gao (96), Uldra (109), Aran Viska (111) and region 120 are converted to the Way of Eauden!
    • Despite opposition from the Quluq, the Holy Site in Nellen (291) is converted to Path of the True Dawn!
    • With support from the High Chieftain Ixkarr (293) is converted to Path of the True Dawn!
    • The Holy Site in Region 295 is converted to Yenmellenmey!
    • The Holy Site in region 290 is converted to Yenmellenmey!
    • The Holy Site in region 42 is converted to Soul Honour!
    • The Holy Site in region 40 is converted to Soul Honour!
    • The Holy Site in region 212 is converted to the Way of Green!


    Failed conversions
    • Region 212 to Hozhisa
    • Region 110 to Way of Eaden


    Heroes!

    • A new heroic Sentinel, Idris of Sikar (7), arises!
    • The Anbroch dwarfs announce that Neno, who never hit a foe twice, fights for them! (9)
    • The Sokau Tribes recognize Rẹ̌tšrìj (8)
    • The Al Ashir recognize Al-Zamira, Jewel of the Ashir (10)
    • The Soreni recognize Heskath (8)


    Investigate!
    • The wind blowing out of Sangar was rotten, and it wasn’t the good kind of rot. Stone-Beetle-Who-Shatters-Pride knew it was going to be another three-poppy day as his wings strained against the wind, flitting across the barren plain towards the scene of the crime. The city sprang up like a lion on its first hunt, all two-leg stairs and doors and constant singing. And nothing you could shake a thorax or rattle an antenna to - no, the two-legs sang like they did everything else. Big, loud, and only for themselves. It was no surprise he was able to slip into the old Speaker’s crypt, silent and cold as the Grey Lake itself. The old beetle gave the corpse a twice-over, stopping only briefly to nibble on a bit of ear, but he came away baffled. It was poison, that was as clear as the shine on Dream-Hands’ wings, be he’d be damned if he could tell the how. And without the how, the why was only speculation. Shatters-Pride was a professional, he didn’t speculate. About the only thing he knew for certain was that despite it all No Pride No Death was an unlikely suspect.
    • Drawn by the terrifying discovery in Serpent Pass, the explorers Root and ‘Soze brave almost certain death to return to their people with answers. Passage to the north proves impossible, as even redoubtable Moon Dancer fails to find purchase on the ice-slick cliffs and crevasses that bend west towards Shandolé and home. The south, however, proves a more alluring road. Following castoff scales along a shallow valley that must have been carved by the movement of the great serpent, the elven expedition proceeds higher into the mountains than any of the kind in living memory. Eventually, the valley falls away into a ravine that would prove little impediment to the beast but spans several hundred feet at least. An impassable barrier...until the discovery of a precarious rope bridge across the divide. The bridge leads down paths stranger still, as breath begins to turn to snow as soon as it leaves the lungs, and the snow-choked trails begin to double back on themselves as if the mountains were alive. Short of provisions and fearing frostbite, retreat seems inevitable. But one morn, hours before returning to the living in failure, Root catches an alien sensation on the wind - heat.

      Pulled inexorably onward, the expedition pierces a narrow crevasse in the mountainside, only to emerge in a garden of delicate berry bushes and albino orchids. A torii stands before them, ancient beyond reckoning, the now-petrified wood carved with an intricate pattern of scales. And beyond the gate, at the locus of the head sustaining the small valley, a pool of bubbling water beneath a frozen waterfall. All is pregnant silence as the explorers walk the pristine snow, until the crack of a branch draws the eye to a low yurt of thatch and branches erected alongside the spring. Emerging from it is a human man, or at least what appears to be a human man, of indeterminate age. His hairless head is smooth of wrinkles, yet the callouses on his hands and feet speak of years of labor, and the pools of his eyes hold a spark of some unknown wisdom. Raising a hand to the Shandolé he speaks, and though the words are unknown they are lost in a sudden sussurus from the bubbling spring that form words in the elven tongue.

      “Welcome, travelers. You must be tired, and hungry. Please, come and share in the bounty of the Great Mother.”


    Wonder!

    • Clan Alqar creates the Tome of Stars! (Seek Aid gives an additional +1).
    • Driven by religious zeal, the Uzii and Hraban scour the heavenly amaryllis from their lands, deploying a not-inconsiderable army to burn the flowers and their alluring scent out of Mamut. Despite the enormity of their task, even the most vigilant rangers can find no trace of the flowers when they are complete, and the mania borne of the scent slowly fades without only scattered reports of listlessness and stomach cramps to show for it.

      In stark contrast, the Sokau tribes join the Ko in continuing to exploit the rapacious demand for the flowers and the wine that comes from them. What began as a cottage industry explodes as one of the primary domestic products of both kingdoms, as variations and reformulations of the amaryllis wine are experimented with and enterprising merchants begin experimenting with a wider array of amaryllis-infused luxuries. What’s more, demand continues to grow from even the less-developed regions blessed with the flowers but no means of processing them. To abandon this economic boom now would surely be the height of foolishness. [The Heavenly Amaryllis is successfully removed from Region 34 and 42. Meanwhile, the Ko and the Sọ́kǎu Tribes may take one action in Round 4 to raise 3 treasure from trade in the Heavenly Amaryllis.]


    Terror!

    • Despite being prepared for an influx of false rumours and propaganda from Kincany, the pirates of the Bel-Dan Armada prove unable to contain them. Across Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, people complain about distribution of the proceeds of piracy, and the Reren’s icthyophobia. Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos (195) is in unrest!
    • The Bel-Dan campaign of terror in Dozgasil is more effective. The slaughter of the local Dozgach people restores stability to the region, but its third trading post is destroyed in the violence!
    • The Sokau struggle to maintain control of their regions, as diplomatic efforts to restore stability to regions 45 and 47 end in failure!
    • The Dolod economy suffers a blow, as their only Trade Post falls out of their control! The merchants charged with handling the trade of Desert Bell Seeds report a strange rash of bandit attacks that seemed uncannily able to predict their patrols, as well as a plague of nightmares that eventually drove many of their workers to abandon their posts. The truth of the matter becomes painfully clear when Dolod investigators arrive to assess the situation, only to be turned away by new management loyal to the Dream Speakers.
    • Agents in service to a Kiswan kingdom have been discovered attempting to bribe members of the Sentinels of the Stone! Reaching out to a number of patrolling Sentinels, these shadowy figures offered wealth, renown, and veritable armies of apprentices in return for knowledge of how to replicate the Sentinels’ Black Iron weaponry. Unfortunately for them, iron proved harder than gold.
    • The lands of the Dannu-Gaon play host to an odd influx of Dream Speakers, all of whom proceed to wander the region with a dire warning! Night after night in hold after hold, they sing warnings of gatherings of creatures twisted from shadows on the cold hills. Each night, under the light of the moon they gather, and twirl amongst themselves in an endless dance, until suddenly, they disperse, seeming more numerous than before. Yet as they move away, the shadows appear to give off a soft light, as if stolen from the moon, as they move out of sight, and the moon seems slightly dimmer. Fears of some new Blightspawn begin to fester until agents of the Noctrix discover that the Dream Speakers are imposters! Though the travelling storytellers manage to vanish before they can be apprehended, their actions nevertheless point to a conspiracy to destabilize the Tribes.
    • A string of disappearances raise concerns in eastern Mamut! While the number of cases is small, only rising into the dozens over four years, among them are a few well-known personages. While there is no sign of violence, the fact remains that both the Ko and the Sọ́kǎu Tribes have been affected.
    • With news of the survival of one Argent Nest, tensions along the Maw of Sikar skyrocket. Armed patrols are organized by every civilized kingdom, and it is not long before they are proven a prudent measure in the Sands of Shá. What at first seems a sandstorm on the horizon proves far more deadly when it sweeps over an oasis village bordering the deep desert, as the people are overrun by stinging masses of whip-like tails coated in brilliant silver chitin. The lucky ones suffer so many stings their bodies simply fail - the unlucky are the survivors, who slowly calcify into false silver statues in the care of nearby communities. The only mercy is that the horde slows to devour the town of metal, but after a week it continues its relentless push towards Dzah. [The last Argent Nest has hatched and become an Argent Swarm! Drawn south by some inexorable force, they threaten to reduce the Sands of Shá to a glittering wasteland. The Argent Swarm functions as an invading army with a total bonus of +13, which will attempt to activate the Glittering Death Tactical Doctrine with a +8 bonus to maneuvering. If not defeated, they will begin to transform the Sands of Shá into a Blighted Region.]
    • Peoples across the known world have begun to enjoy prosperity beyond what they might have dreamed during the Red Winter. However, with prosperity comes desire and competition. Regions not provided with their peoples' Required Resource may begin to fall into Unrest if not satisfied by the end of Round 5.



    Organizations!
    • Henanda raises reputation with the Sentinels of the Stone from 1 to 2
    • Henanda donates 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Henanda contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Sangar contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Sangar accepts the Dreamspeakers trade going into 2 Favor debt with the organization
    • Aran Viska donates 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Targiz donate 3 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Targiz exchange 1 favour with the Dreamspeakers for Reputation increasing reputation with the Dreamspeakers from 0 to 1
    • The Targiz gain 1 final favour with the Dreamspeakers for contributions to the Manual of Mamut
    • The Targiz contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Uzii contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Scrim gains 1 final favour with the Dreamspeakers for contributions to the Manual of Mamut
    • The Scrim exchange 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone for Reputation, increasing reputation with the Sentinels of the Stone from 0 to 1
    • The Scrim contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 the Sentinels of the Stone Favor
    • The Bel-Dan Armada donates 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Brayewen Tribes raise reputation with the Dreamspeakers from 0 to 1
    • Veramondo sways the Dreamspeakers to seek a lost city in their capital region
    • The Alodites gain 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone for aid on the Slabs of Prowess Great Project
    • Ixkarr raises reputation with the Dreamspeakers from 0 to 1
    • Creatures of Ancient Ways lose 2 reputation with the Truthseers for actively resisting recruitment
    • Creatures of Ancient Ways contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Soreni raise reputation with the Sentinels of the Stone from 0 to 1
    • The Soreni contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Soreniaccepts the Dreamspeakers trade going into 2 Favor debt with the organization
    • The Sons of Sirrvat raise reputation with the Sentinels of the Stone from 0 to 1
    • The Sons of Sirrvat donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Dannu-Gao contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Sokau Tribes contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The River Trolls donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Nocturnal Hydra contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Shandolé contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Shandolé donates 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Shandolé loses 1 reputation with the Truthseers for passively resisting recruitment
    • The Vygra raise reputation with the Dreamspeakers from 0 to 1
    • The Vygra contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The Vygra donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Al-Ashir raises reputation with the Truthseers from 0 to 1
    • Al-Ashir contributes to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 2 favours with the Sentinels of the Stone
    • Clann Solais loses 1 reputation with the Truthseers for passively resisting recruitment
    • The Deru raise reputation with the Sentinels of the Stone from 1 to 2
    • The Deru raise reputation with the Dreamspeakers from 1 to 2
    • The Deru raise reputation with the Truthseers from 1 to 2
    • Eleftheria donates 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone
    • The United Blemmyae Tribes contribute to the Slabs of Prowess gaining 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone



    Discovery! Map!

    Spoiler: Kiswa
    Show

    Region 236 has been discovered by the Vygra. A cold region by Kiswan standards, it has a Minor resource of Shale and a Holy Site dedicated to Shamanistic Paganism.

    In breach of historic taboos, the trolls of Lhungho Saar set off across the river and discover Region 208. It is a Wilderness Region that has a Good resource of Game Birds. Here and there, the explorers discover clearings and now-wild fields that indicate some civilized people once called the region home, but no trace of them remains.

    Warleader Dinfat Kw’Torineti sets out into the lands east of the Korebita Foothills and discovers Region 214. It has a Minor resource of Seafood, a Holy Site dedicated to Bounty of the Sea and 1 unit of native defenders!


    Spoiler: Mamut
    Show

    Region 41 has been discovered by the Uzii. It has a Minor resource of Cattle, a Holy Site dedicated to The Dreamflower and 1 unit of native defenders! Much to the Uzii’s distress, the Heavenly Amaryllis has apparently taken deep root in the area, spread across wilderness and civilized lands alike until certain expanses of the region seem snow-covered for the bright petals. The native inhabitants seem entirely enamored of the floral sea, and may react violently if it is threatened!


    Spoiler: Sikar
    Show

    Neferkare returns with news of a region to the north, and a band of followers she has recruited on her travels, who are happy to fight under her command! Region 284 has been discovered. It has a Good resource of Wombats, a Holy Site dedicated to the Doomwatchers and 2 units of native defenders! The Alodites gain 1 unit!

    Region 294 has been discovered by the Koxritt. It has a Good resource of Papyrus, an Open Holy Site and 2 units of native defenders!

    Region 282 has been discovered by the Nocturnal Hydra. It has a Great resource of Chickens, a Holy Site dedicated to The Great Hunter and 2 units of native defenders! The locals appear amenable to diplomatic entreaties by the Night Elves, and willing to discuss political alliance and unification. The Nocturnal Hydra has a claim over region 282 so long as Zora Soulsilver remains ruler!

    Region 283 has been discovered by the Nocturnal Hydra. It has a Good resource of Maize, a Holy Site dedicated to the Unconquered Sun and 2 units of native defenders! Although initial contact is friendly, the locals make it clear they are not interested in political union. (The Nocturnal Hydra does not gain +1 to establishing a claim, as Zora Soulsilver has already established one during their rule.)

    Long concealed within their sand-choked Maze, the Fffolkkk emerge in Region 266! None can say how these shelled survivors will impact the balance of power in Sikar.


    Spoiler: Tarandi
    Show

    Region 98 has been discovered by Aran Viska. It has a Minor resource of Dire Goats and a Holy Site dedicated to Frost Binders.

    Region 142 has been discovered by Rauri of the Phoenix. It has a Good resource of Eagles, a Holy Site dedicated to The White Queen and 2 units of native defenders!

    Region 130 has been discovered by the Arrok! It has a Minor resource of Horses, a Holy Site dedicated to the Endless Horizon and 2 units of native defenders!

    Region 123 has been discovered by Eleftheria. It has a Minor resource of Saffron and a Holy Centre dedicated to The True Dawn.


    Failed explorations
    • Henanda eastwards
    • Sangar southwards
    • Thunderpeople southwards


    Colonize!

    • Viskari colonists set off to attempt to establish a society in the wilderness of region 99, but contact is soon lost with them. The following spring, a further expedition sent to make contact with the new colony finds a deserted camp and no living colonists: it seems that they were unable to establish a viable settlement and either starved to death or moved on.


    Other!

    • The Bel-Dan Armada creates a Cultural Identity: Naval Networks, increasing die size on buyouts!
    • The Hraban Confederacy develops a Cultural Identity: Birds of a Feather, increasing die size on seeking aid!
    • Dannu-Gao has created an Embassy in Shandolé!
    • The Arrok of Uldra have created an Embassy in Eleftheria!
    • Llungho Saar has created an Embassy with Henanda!
    • The Uzii have restored a measure of stability to Rodrak (40).
    • Veramondo successfully stabilises region 228.
    Last edited by TheDarkDM; 2020-08-23 at 06:09 AM.

    I was old when the pharaohs first mounted
    The jewel-decked throne by the Nile;
    I was old in those epochs uncounted
    When I, and I only, was vile;

    Spoiler
    Show
    Quote Originally Posted by apocalypsePast2 View Post
    ...one could possibly refer to you guys' elaborate dance of allies-to-enemies-to-suicide-of-the-universe as some sort of weird art form.

    If one were on drugs.
    Quote Originally Posted by VonDoom View Post
    Behold, the mighty slayer of strangely coloured mutant equines! The thwarter of forum woes! The! Dark! DM!

  8. - Top - End - #128
    Orc in the Playground
     
    GreenSorcererElf

    Join Date
    Sep 2013

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    Sọ́kǎu Tribes
    Yúkró
    (Round 4: 13-16)

    Actions
    1. [Diplomacy] Improve Reputation with the SOS (roll=9)
      Once again an attempt is made to buddy up to the Sentinels. And once again it ends in failure. Eventually Yúkró just gives up and calls in some favors...
    2. [Dip5] Establish Cultural Identity: Dueling (Honor in Battle)
      War is a way of life among the Sọ́ku. It is not the only honorable way of life, but it is one of the most important. The ability to handle yourself well enough in battle to bring at least some honor onto yourself, rather than shame and embarrassment, is considered a bare minimum for a competent, worthy adult. How could that ever be enough for a hero, then? A hero should be able to stride forth before their fellow tribesmen and fearlessly wash away their enemies like the tide sweeping up the shore.
    3. [Military] Recruit naval unit
      The Sọ́ku are traditionally sea-going and have a long history of boatbuilding and sailing. But it has historically been a decentralized and individual matter. Powerful leaders would have boats of their own of course, but when gathering an especially large following for a raiding expedition or war it would be assumed that the more important and successful volunteers would also have some of their own to bring with them. Now Yúkró takes an interest in enlarging his own supply of war boats, and skilled sailors to pilot them in the hopes of reducing his reliance on others.
    4. [Military] Help Defend Region 41
      • 4 units
      • Rẹ̌tšrìj (M8) - Deferring to the native commander if rolled higher than 8 (if rolled an 8 exactly and so tying Rẹ̌tšrìj's score, she strongly requests overall command but is willing to accept the natives' decision)
      • Reckless Attack (if Rẹ̌tšrìj commands)
      • Accept duel (if Rẹ̌tšrìj commands)
      The Uzii are spreading out from their swampy home across the coast to the south. With the Sọ́ku's attention turning inland to the lands along the great river they have now finally found themselves in conflict over the same territory. Yúkró and his Zbãyúik allies gather their forces in preparation for battle, while also reaching out to make contact with the natives in the disputed lands. With the recent difficulties in establishing secure control over recently acquired territory still fresh in his mind, Yúkró decides a different tack might be wise, and the threat of Uzii aggression from the south might soften the otherwise harsh reality of eventually succumbing to Sọ́ku ambitions. Ultimately, the chieftain himself returns north to deal with matters closer to home: a thinly-veiled excuse to allow his sister the chance to prove herself.
    5. [Opulence] Buyout Silk: Region 52 TP #2 (roll=13)
      The increasingly reliable supply of gems coming downriver has thrown tribal relations out of balance. The tribes that enthusiastically took to the river were once scorned as foolishly abandoning the sea; now they are awash in new and exotic riches. Desperate to find something of their own, several of the northern tribes pursue stories of a marvelous and luxurious new fabric revealed in the north by the Dreamspeakers and now being traded for by the Ko. The Gãk tribe is first to the prize, and is able to secure a source of silk from [Region 52], further increasing their wealth and power in the north.


    Non-Actions
    • Contribute 1 treasure to the Sentinels
    • Call in a favor with the Sentinels to raise reputation to 1


    News and Rumors


    Yúkró

    Diplomacy: 5
    Military: 7
    Opulence: 7
    Intrigue: 2
    Faith: 1

    Increase: Diplomacy and Military

    Spoiler: Regions
    Show
    Region # Resource Minor Good Great Holy Site Holy Order Org Base
    Héokalón (u) 45 Aurochs The Ko
    XX
    XX
    The Cult of the Sky (none) (none)
    Džíu Phè Hwǔ 46 Wood Sọ́kǎu (open) (open) Tšhlèi (none) (none)
    Wēkache (u) 47 Goats (open)
    XX
    XX
    Native Animism (none) (none)

    Region # Owner Resource Minor Good Great Holy Site Holy Order Org Base
    The Blessed Vale 32 Clan Alqar Gems Alqar The Ko Sọ́kǎu Lunar Mysticism (none) (none)

    Spoiler: Armies, Technology, and Other Random Bookkeeping
    Show
    Units (l | n) Unit Cap Treasure Hero Tactical Doctrine Cultural Identity
    4 | 0 10 | 4 2 Rẹ̌tšrìj (8) (none) (none)

    Embassies
    (none)

    Artifacts
    Artifact Effect

    Org Relations
    Org Rep Favors* Bonus(es)
    SOS
    0
    2
    (none)
    DSP
    0
    2
    (none)
    TSR
    0
    0
    (none)
    *(+ is owed to us, - is owed by us)

    Military Technology
    Technology Slot Effect Requirement

    Technology
    Technology Effect Requirement
    Sailing Cross deep water (none)

    Spoiler: Resource Requirements
    Show

    Resource # Required for Sources
    Luxury Goods 1/1 Capital Requirement Blessed Vale (32) #3
    Last edited by Aventine; 2020-09-06 at 12:38 AM.

  9. - Top - End - #129
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Epinephrine_Syn's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2010

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Nocturnal Hydra Round


    Turn Planning 4
    Expected Stat Growths
    Dip 9->10
    Mil 7->8
    Opu 3
    Fai 1
    Int 1

    
Tentative Actions (very potentially up to change)
    Dip Press Claim on 282 Roll=16
    Dip Followup Press Claim 281 (Auto-success, no roll)
    Dip Raise Reputation with Sentinels of the Stone (Roll=17)
    Mil Attack 293 with 1 unit, (Alaskan bull worm) led by Kenseu
    Mil Raise Naval Army Unit
    Kenseu +4 Tac Doc roll, +5 total for army
    Use Reckless Attack as Tac Doc in attacks, Kenseu accepts duels
    Kenseu is NPC with half Mil score (4)


    Subaction/Nonactions
    Spend Favor from Prowess to gain +1 Rep
    Donate 1 Treasure to SoS “Issue a call for Treasure “ (being done by Lleban in my name)
    Accept Embassy from the Ta Seti

    Wyelde and Orcus go to meet the SoS fluff


    Writing Prompt #4
    Trial for the more heinous crime of your people.

    Spoiler: Truthseer Prompt: Collect Histories of the Sikarian Dynasties
    Show

    Zora's Royal Succession Eligibility Rules
    Must be some flavor of female.
    Must be at least 50% Night Elf.
    Must adhere to the traditional Night Elf naming scheme.
    Cannot descend from the ousted shaman caste.
    Parents must be Noble Class in good standing, and must primarily reside within the nation.
    Child must show promise quickly.
    One submission at max per person (two to a couple).
    Ideally trained by Zora for at least two years.
    (Zora spends a good portion of her time helping raise an elite crew of the next generation.)
    Succession Eligibility subject to change and expansion as future rulers dictate new standards.
    Family Tree as of 217 AFD
    Eligible and Ineligible


    Spoiler: Night Elven Armies (As of 219 AFD)
    Show


    To take a tally with their newfangled ‘writing’ shenanigans, the Nocturnal Hydra Nobles have started to tally their strength doing combat into a coherent manner. Figuring out ways to cross compare forces is essential. The Ier unit of measurement serves us in this end, taken from the strength of a top quality Ashir Cavalry. All of these measurements are approximations before even accounting for the fact that the IR measuring stick is itself an approximation.

    Unit 1
    (Alaskan Bull Worm Division) (218 IR)
    Hydra Worm (100 IR) (1 to 100 IR)
    100 Night Elven Cavalry (75 IR) (4 to 3 IR)
    120 Night Elf Axotol spearmen (40 IR) (3 to 1 IR)
    30 Peasants and load bearers (3 IR) (10 to 1 IR)


    Unit 2
    (Prince Azim’s Cavalry Regiment) (220 IR)
    Azim’s 200 Ashir Cavalry Riders (200 IR) (1 to 1 IR)
    ~200 Horse Groomers (20 IR) (10 to 1 IR)


    Unit 3 (still native defenders as of this turn)
    (Orca Mercenary Squadron) (232 IR)
    50 Orca Warriors (150 IR) (1 to 3 IR)
    Orca War Chief riding a War Troll (22 IR) (15 to 1 IR for the War Troll, 7 to 1 IR for the Warchief)
    300 Peasant Orca, Uzii, and Goliath in tandem (60 IR)


    (I'm not happy with this fluff piece, but it's good enough *maybe*)
    Spoiler: Riding Into The Sunrise
    Show
    Zora, Wyelde, Kenseu, and Waifu were discussing a very important matter.

    The orcish hordes were marching their way through the Alondite terrain towards them. Maybe not them, but at least their allies to the south. The Al-Ashir had already rallied to march upwards to greet these invaders, and Kenesu had marshaled their armies home for the defense.

    Slowly, Zola laid a parchment onto their stone table, one made from the broken pieces of the shaman tables two decades prior.

    “I have a better idea.” She declared, even as Wyelde shouted “No you do not!“ To overturn her. Zora tipped the petasos hat over her face, shade flowing over it and grinning wickedly.

‘Wickedly’ meaning her monotone face curved upwards into a devious smile, as opposed to a gentle one.

    “We’re going to ride out and hit those orcs from the rear. Stalk out at night. Make sure they have to turn back to defend their own regions.” Waifu squealed out, shaking her head at the woman. “But they’re savages, they’ll just plunder our homelands. And our allies…. May not come to our aid to patch up the defense.”

Wyelde nodded, holding her hands out. “Moreover, Liyae is still… I don’t know, ****ing wombats up in the north, bloody coward. Being a bloody coward’s my thing! And Azim is attending the solstice event south. You’ll have to lead those armies yourself.”

She paused, looking downwards at her fists. “If you die, all of our secrets will be lost. It’s your frankly… unearthly charisma that lets us tame the Hydra Worms. That lets us ally with other nations. All of the effort we spent building up the Nocturnal Hydra, it will be undone!” Holding onto Zora now, who seemed utterly unphased by her shouting.

“Do you trust me.“

It wasn’t phrased as a question, and the rest of them were cowed. Zora was calm as ever, in contrast to the others. Even Kenseu who agreed with her was heated. Waifu certainly wasn’t going to hold resolve with Wyelde to object, given her force of personality.

“I will not die. I swear it, on all the stars above and grains of sands below.“

    Wyelde knew that didn’t make it less risky, but. If there was magic in this world, it belonged to Zora, ironic given she took control of the Night Elf tribes through militant atheism. Distantly, she recalled when they first met in their younger years an exchange, the to-be-ursurper had boasted the words

    “I know no fear.”

    Over the course of their decades together, Wyelde had grown more and more to believe that this was no boast, but a declaration of fact. Zora literally did not feel fear. Joy, anger, annoyance (oh definitely annoyance) but never fear. She literally stared a fifty foot beast made of teeth and rage down and gave it a pat on the head. That woman walked up to Orcus, bowed her head, and talked the man out of a full blown rage. It was the only time Wyelde had ever seen that man calm down without killing someone.

Quietly, Wyelde bowed her head and nodded. “… if you die, I will never ****ing forgive you. Just as long as we’re clear.” Zora melted her smile into a more gentle formation, patting the woman on the head, and turned out to face the sunrise. Beaming wide, arms stretched out, and against all odds…. The room felt brighter.
    Last edited by Epinephrine_Syn; 2020-09-05 at 08:51 PM.

  10. - Top - End - #130
    Troll in the Playground
     
    bc56's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2018
    Location
    Sector ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    Veramondo
    Region 218: Veramondo
    Region 228: ???

    Actions
    Rolls

    [Military] Send Kona on a Quest into Unknown Territory west of Veramondo
    For her increasing number of faux pas, crimes, and general undesirableness, Kona has been exiled from Veramondo. She travels west with her infant son, hoping to find a safe place where she can live until she can return home.

    [Military] Attack 229
    With 1 unit, lead by King Oram.

    [Faith] Convert 228 to the Way of Green


    [Diplomacy] Raise Reputation with the Sentinels of Stone to 1


    [Diplomacy] Raise Reputation with the Truthseers to 1


    Nonactions
    Create Kiswan Collection entry
    Donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of Stone

    Vygra Embassy


    News and Rumors
    Kona is pregnant? The hero who was already much scorned receives even more disdain from her people, for she is not married, and will not say who the father is. But when her son is born, he looks suspiciously like a Bannanda.

    Spoiler: National Info
    Show
    Units: 2/6
    Treasure: 1/5
    Heroes:
    Kona: 8
    Relics:

    Technologies:
    Irrigation
    Writing (Veramondi Logography)

    Trade Posts:
    Cacao: 218.C, 218.1
    Wild Asses 212.1

    Cities
    Kanorage (218) Does not count towards city count limits.

    Spoiler: Ruler Info
    Show
    King Oram Hadev II
    Diplomacy: 4+1
    Military: 6+1
    Opulence: 8
    Faith: 5
    Intrigue: 2

    Descendants and Heirs:
    Prince Taro Hadev - Eldest Son, Heir
    Princess Kona Hadev - Oldest Daughter
    Prince Oram Hadev III - Youngest Son
    Princess Vari Hadev - Youngest Daughter
    Kata... Hadev? - Grandson

    Spouse:
    Queen Enva Hadev

    Other Family:
    Kortam Hadev: Cousin

    Last edited by bc56; 2020-09-06 at 12:50 AM.
    Awesome avatar (Kothar, paladin of Tlacua) by Linkele!

    Quote Originally Posted by William Shakespeare, King Lear, IV.i.46
    'Tis the time's plague, when madmen lead the blind.
    My Nexus characters

  11. - Top - End - #131
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Silent_Interim's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2015
    Location
    Somewhere South of Hell

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    The Scrimthun Unity
    Region 53 - Thun
    (Round 4)

    Actions:
    1. [Diplomacy] Press Claim: Pressing the claim on region 65. Success! No-one in Thun is pleased to learn of the near-certain death of Scrimspeaker Lurn, but closure has its value. Perhaps now, with Nithor's union to the chief's daughter, relations might be improved.
    2. [Diplomacy] Press Claim: Pressing the claim on region 50. Success! Our neighbors to the South have apparently failed to see the benefits of a closer union with Thun. Let us explain again, perhaps using shorter words.
    3. [Opulence] Buyout the unowned TP of Emeralds in region 18. The precious gems! We will have them! Glory be to Stone! Glory for Scrim, and glory for Thun! Success!
    4. [Opulence 5] Raise City: Creating the city of Thun City in the region of Thun (Region 53). The Scrim are not always fast learners. They can be set in their ways, slow to change. Not so with commerce. It has become necessary to expand the formerly minimalist settlement, to make provision for the comfort of non-Scrim staying there, to make counting houses and silos, and within a short time what was once a pile of rocks on a hill is a sprawling, thriving center of trade.
      Unfortunately, no amount of time has proved sufficient to teach the Scrim to make their architecture beautiful... or to teach them creativity in naming.
    5. [Military 5] Recruit Hero: Warspeaker Tior. Hero Roll: 8
      Several years after the creation of the post, the Thunspeaker has finally chosen a candidate to take on the role of Warspeaker. Surprising nobody, Scrimspeaker Tior, who was already closely involved with the military operations of Thun, has been selected. Warspeaker Tior gave a short acceptance speech, which was then repeated across all of Thun for each of its citizens to hear.
      "I accept this duty, and all the honour and shame it comes with. Thun will no longer need to bloody its hands; all guilt, all blame, will fall upon me, our new Warspeaker. If all goes well, then we will enjoy friendly relations with all the children of Life. If any of them should choose to fight us, however, then I will not hesitate to teach them the might of the River of Thun."

    Dice rolls 1
    Dice rolls 2, because the formatting for the first was mucked up
    Non-Actions:
    1. Attend any events to which we are invited.
    2. Resist any unapproved conversions or buyouts.
    3. Trade one DSP Favor for one DSP Rep. Thun does not blame the Dreamspeakers for the actions of the traitor who told them a story none outside of Thun should have heard. As a gesture of goodwill, and to prove Thun holds no ill will, we will forgive the debt that the traitor has claimed on our behalf, in the name of future good relations.
    4. Donate one Treasure to the SOS. There are rumours of Blightspawn in the cold reaches of the North. If Thun is to venture to the frost, then it would pay to be on good terms with the most fearsome enemies of the Blightspawn. An investment, then, in the future of the Sentinels, and the future of Thun in turn!
    5. Trade one SOS Favor for Rep. And perhaps, in exchange for the forgetting of certain other debts, the Sentinels might consider their steadfast friends more favourably...?
    6. Gain 1 Treasure at the beginning of the next round from passive income. Wealth flows through Thun. Only a trickle of that wealth remains, but that is enough.


    News and Rumors:
    • A general offer to all of Mamut: Thun will reward greatly anyone who is able to find the body of the esteemed Scrimspeaker Lurn, to provide proof of their dissipation and so their body may be returned to the deep places.


    Spoiler: Bookkeeping
    Show
    Leader: Thunspeaker Ulun (Not changing)
    • Diplomacy: 6 [=>7]
    • Military: 5
    • Opulence: 6
    • Faith: 2
    • Intrigue: 2

    Units: 4/6
    Passive Treasure Income: 0 [=>1]
    Treasure: 1/5 [=>0/5=>1/5]
    Technologies:
    • Masonry
    • Writing (Hraban Runes)
    • Animal Husbandry
    • Pottery

    Last edited by Silent_Interim; 2020-09-05 at 12:13 AM.
    I go by them/they/their pronouns, but I'm comfortable with he/him/his or she/her/hers.

    Spoiler: STUFFS
    Show
    Quote Originally Posted by Silent_Interim View Post
    Yes... continue ignoring me... exactly as planned
    Quote Originally Posted by Xihirli View Post
    'Kay! Ignoring a ninja never hurt anyone.



    Being terrible at being a wolf since always.

  12. - Top - End - #132
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Gengy's Avatar

    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Round 4
    [Swampum Protectorate, Home of the Uzii]

    [Homage Death-Grasp Mudmore]
    Region(s): 39, 40, 42


    Actions:
    1. [Military] Raise a Unit
      With so many Amaryllis flowers spawning, another Fight Throng is needed to help remove the threat.
    2. [Military] Attack region 41 with Soul-Rend Proudhoof (Mil 9) and 3 units
      - Reckless Attack
      - Duel the Enemy Commander; Singular Honor, increase die size for duels
      Flower worship isn't wrong. Unless it's the wrong flower. The Uzii are considering investigating which flower this "Dreamflower" is the only way they know how...
    3. [Opulence] Buyout Copper from the Targiz (Region 33, TP1) (Roll: 9)
      Attempt to make a deal with the Targiz for the Copper resource they have recently acquired. There seems to have been a miscommunication, however...
    4. [Opulence] Hoard Treasure
      Failing to acquire Copper after years of negotiations, this is attributed to the lack of shiny things with which to trade. Homage Death-grasp seeks to gather shiny things with which to make new efforts in a few years.
    5. [Diplomacy] Stabilize Cow Place [region 42] (Roll: 13)
      The Uzii happily came in to help protect the people of Cow Place [Region 42], but for some reason, not everyone here is happy about it. Weird! While many Uzii want to fight those who are upset until they feel better, many Den Mothers and Shaman suggest - ugh - talking to them first.

    Non-Actions:


    Spoiler: News and Rumors
    Show

    • People are starting to act weird because of the evil flower spawn. The Uzii want to help, but it's happening in so many places!
    • Congratulations are sent to Hrathgan for successfully removing the terror plants from their realm. An invitation to help clear away some of the other flower spawn in nearby regions is extended to the Hraban.
    • A message is sent to Den Mother Zinnia of the Ko: Is everything all right, and do you desire help from the Uzii to deal with the evil flower spawn? We will be there to help as soon as we are able, but can come sooner if asked.
    • Ko-Ball is very popular in Swampum... An Uzii has been on the winning team, two league seasons in a row!
    • The Big Strongs hold the league record for most consecutive second places in the entire league. This is said by many in Swampum with both pride and frustration. What is perhaps more sad is that the current team of Big Strongs is getting old, for Uzii. Some of the team's fur is starting to turn white, and while in battle, they would continue until they die with glory, the sport of Ko-Ball allows them the chance to be trainers to younger Uzii whom have never played before. The oldest team member, Young-Blood Fastchuck, is the first to retire and chooses to return to Swampum to scout out new talent for the Big Strongs, eventually sending new players from the Swampum League among the Snorts. The second oldest player and the former team ace, Down-Tooth Jumpgood, decides to stay in Kursaal, and acts as a local celebrity and official 'Uzii Game-Talker'. The third oldest team member, Head-strong Goadrun, has seen what the other teams are doing as decides to try this whole 'coaching' thing for the Big Strongs. He gets his clan Shaman, Long-ache Goadrun, to come act as the assistant coach and explain what both a coach and assistant coach actually are. This new style of planning and teamwork, mixing the old team with the new players, may or may not work out for the Big Strongs, but one thing is for sure: Ko-Ball is great, and Uzii are great at it.
    • Toad Racing is not as popular with the Uzii, outside of Snorts Jumpgood and Toadgrow. Even though it's not possible without Swampum Battle Toads, the sport is not receiving as much attention, since it is a race of raised beasts and not a competition of personal physical power.
    • The Uzii hear stories of the wonderful warriors to the northwest of Cow Place, and of the humiliating defeat of the greedy Clan Alqar. Their reaction to these stories slowly shifts from glee to concern, as they find out the warriors of the region are not wonderful but likely infected. A message is sent directly to Merine, asking if she sees the issue; the Uzii did give their word to her not to attack the effected region. It is good, though, that the leadership of Alqar is begining to understand the dangers. Because of this, the Uzii want to help, but are unable to do so because of the Sokau Tribes to the northeast of Swampum. While the humans of Clan Alqar have come to realize the truth of the flowerspawn, there are still some other foolish people in Mamut that the Uzii will need to save from the trappings of greed. Owning things is not wrong. Getting things for your people is being a provider. Foolishly ignoring warnings in order to personally live a little better? Shameful!
    • The Snortsmoot is approaching, and Homage Death-grasp is starting to feel the advancement of age. He still is strong, but will be nearing 50 years old soon. His fur is beginning to have white hairs.
    • Tusker Wise-weep passes away from old age. Snort Thumpstrong grieves, even as they hold duels to determine the new Snort Tusker. Eventually, another Shaman leads the Snort: Tusker Deep-Sigh is young - just barely over seventeen summers - but strong and clever.



    Spoiler: Ruler Information
    Show

    Homage Death-grasp Mudmore D M O F I
    Current 5 9 3 3 2
    End of round 1 1 1 0 0 0
    End of round 2 0 2 0 0 0
    End of round 3 0 2 0 0 0
    End of round 4 0 0 0 0 0

    New Ruler Next Round

    Expected Stat Bonuses: +1 Mil, +1 Opu


    Spoiler: Kingdom Information
    Show

    Techs:
    • Animal Husbandry
    • Writing
    • Masonry
    • Irrigation
    • Pottery


    Hero(es):
    • Soul-Rend Proudhoof [Mil 9] (Age: 24)


    Units:
    • (3) Fight Throngs [Melee]
    • (1) Float Bash [Naval]

    Last edited by Gengy; 2020-08-31 at 02:49 PM.
    Spoiler
    Show
    BladeofObliviom said:
    I've only seen a character at anything resembling this level of absurdity thrive exactly once, and he/she/what-the-jongo had the advantage of being written by Gengy, who I look up to as a writer.

    "What-the-Jongo?"
    Before you insult someone, walk a mile in their shoes.
    That way, you'll be a mile away, and have their shoes!

    Got me a Real Job™ (yay!). Still busy (boo!).
    ~avatar by myself

  13. - Top - End - #133
    Titan in the Playground
     
    Aedilred's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Bristol
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Henanda, Round 4

    News and Rumours
    • In an attempt to bring his wayward daughter under control - and also to bind the reclusive Hilelmē tribe to his own, Odilon arranges the marriage of Acadiprē to the son of their onōā, Īngippa. Īngippa remains apparently silent throughout the ceremony and subsequent revels, which some see as a sign of tension between her and the king, others simply her normal manner.
    • The morning after the ceremony, Ovozru, chieftain of the Hengala, accuses Ocēmis of having seduced his daughter Eydēma, one of the bridesmaids, the previous night. The act itself is not disputed (there are witnesses) nor is it, in itself, particularly scandalous, and is seen by many as an attmept by Ovozru to secure a political marriage of his own, of his daughter to the king's brother.
    • Eventually the matter is reduced to single combat, for despite Ocēmis's being generally regarded the greatest fighter among the Bannanda, Ovozru himself has some reputation as a warrior. To the surprise of many, Ovozru is victorious, in what is believed to be the first defeat of Ocēmis's life.
    • A wedding between the somewhat chastened hero and Eydēma is hastily arranged.
    • As part of the manoeuvrings surrounding the various marriages, Ovozru's son Bangenis will travel to the Sons of Sirrvat as a ward to learn from them the secrets of pottery.


    Spoiler: Tribes of the Bannanda
    Show

    To the external eye, the Bannanda may appear a fairly homogenous people, of uniform features, similar culture, and speaking a language with relatively little regional variation, but to the Bannanda themselves, they consider themselves principally members of a tribe or clan, and any wider affiliation has little relevance.

    The Esāla

    The Esāla are a highland tribe who occupy the hills in the east of the region, with the highest concentration of caves and therefore the area which, together with that of the Hengala further north, has been most densely populated by the Bannanda for longest.

    The highlands are also the ancestral home of the giants from which the Bannanda claim descent, and some remnants of their monumental buildings remain, usually as the foundation for a present settlement. The largest of these, Limdimon, was the first site to be occupied above ground following the False Dawn and has become the focal point of the Esāla tribe.

    Limdimon is, by the standards of the age, a well-fortified site, essentially a compound surrounding the tribal chief’s residence and centred on supply for the chief’s necessities. The population of the town comprises a combination of attendants and slaves, warriors, farmers, and toolsmiths needed to support the chiefdom.

    While still considered part of the Esāla, and subject to the chief at Limdimon in his capacity as tribal leader, the southern part of the tribe operates increasingly autonomously, and is sometimes referred to as the Banesāla Adācac (southern Esāla) for this reason. Their centre is Imālca, a place of very different character to Limdimon.

    Imālca still has fortifications, but these are principally to protect against Blightspawn and its facing is outwards, with the intention to trade. The Erapira is relatively narrow here but the volume of water means it is not too fast-flowing, and can be crossed fairly easily by the primitive canoes used by the people. Occasionally it can even be forded, not too far away. As a result, this has become the principal spot for trade across the river with the Ashihi to the south, as well as a link to the as-yet unexplored lands to the east, and, via the hill trail, Limdimon to the north. The local onoōa encourages commerce, taking a cut of the goods that pass through his territory, and it is a developing market town.

    Other than history and size of population, perhaps the main reason for the continuing dominance of the Esāla is availability of resources. They have ready access to flint, and have discovered copper in their territory (albeit the working of this metal is still in its relative infancy) meaning their warriors tend to be better-equipped than those of other tribes.

    Proximity to the eastern hills means that some of the greatest heroes in Bannanda history have been of the Esāla. The greatest at present is of course Ocēmis, the half-brother of the Esāla chief Odilon, but they also count among their number the founding hero Alibenon.

    Spoiler: Alibenon of the Esāla
    Show

    The people lived in the darkness of the caves for many years, fearing to venture back above the ground. Some believed that people could not survive outside the caves, and that to spend too long beneath the sun was to induce certain death.

    It was Alibenon who finally stood up and declared that the people should return to the land lit by the sun and on which trees grow. He left the caves, and many believed that would be the end of him. But after a year, he returned, and told the people that it was indeed possible to survive outside the caves. Some went with him, but the majority stayed, believing it was only a matter of time until he perished.

    A year later, he returned again, and each subsequent year, each time bringing more and more news of the outside world, together with fruits and bounties not known to the cave-dwellers. At length, the people agreed as a group to travel with him to ensure he was not lying about what he had found. He led them to Limdimon, where he showed them how he had made a “built-cave” above the ground, how the sun did not burn the skin, and how the trees provided fruit on which the people could survive.

    Wholly convinced, the people elected to stay in Limdimon, and many of them subsequently ventured to other caves to spread the news. Alibenon was recognised as the lord of Limdimon, and his descendants continue to rule the tribe of the Esāla to this day.


    The Azipāra

    From Imālca, turn west and travel downstream along the trail following the banks of the Erapira, out of the foothills and towards the town of Īellimon. This tract of forest until the confluence of the Erapira and its tributary the Erabeya is the land of the Azipāra, and contains some of the most productive avocado groves in the region. The Azipāra shepherd both rivers to keep the trees well-watered and are experts in the art of irrigation.

    As much as farmers, however, the Azipāra are known as warriors and bandits. Controlling the trails that connect the corn-growing regions to the west with the hungry Esāla to the east and the profitable market of Imālca in particular, the lands of the tribe are treated warily by outsiders.

    While Azipāra bandits do not tend to prey on their own farmers (except in times of scarcity) some of the farmers have been known to turn to banditry and travellers from other clans seem to be ambushed with some regularity. Often these attacks amount to mere robbery, perhaps with some roughing-up of the travellers in question, but outright killings are far from unheard of.

    Spoiler: The Eagle-Men
    Show

    In the years immediately before the Blue Star, a particularly formidable group emerged in the forests of the Azipāra, known as the Eagle-Men, which, depending on who you ask, is either for the eagle feathers they sported as accessories or because of their ferocity.

    While their numbers fluctuated, the core of the band was never fewer than six experienced warriors, making them more than a match for almost any traveller, and large enough that they could mount raids on actual settlements.

    They had an ambivalent relationship with the tribal chief of the Azipāra, as their predation on travel was a serious inconvenience, but they were also reliable warriors who were among the best fighters the Azapīra could field - and this led many to suspect that they were tolerated by the Azipāra leadership, if not by the smaller tribes who they terrorised.

    The Eagle-Men finally met their end when they fought the Esāla hero Ocēmis. Precisely what happened is already a matter of legend, with the canonical version being that he killed five of them with his bare hands, gave the sixth (and youngest) a spanking, and sent him home to his mother. Who instigated the fight is a question of local folklore, with the Esāla generally preferring the version where Ocēmis was travelling through their territory when they foolishly set upon him, while the forest tribes tend to prefer a version where the chieftain of the Elpēnga clan recruited Ocēmis to hunt them down and kill them in response to their depredations on his people. Either way, the Eagle-Men are no more, though mothers of the Atīngina and Elpēnga may still threaten their children that if they do not behave the Eagle-Men will carry them off in the night. To many of the Azipāra, by contrast, they remain heroes.


    The Huēna

    Continue through the Azipāra territories, across the Erabeya, and follow the course of the Erapira, until the forest starts to thin, in the fields of the Huēna. By the standards of arable agricultural societies this is primitive, but it is nevertheless the one part of the region where the forest has been cleared at all and cereal crops are grown, in rice paddies and wheatfields.

    Of all the Bannanda tribes, the Huēna are possibly those who have departed furthest from their traditions and heritage, living comfortably under the open sky without cover of stone or tree canopy, and attempting to make a living from the river itself rather than merely siphon off its water. While other tribes may begrudgingly make use of canoes to cross water where necessary, the Huēna build rafts and travel out onto the wide stretch of the Erapira to fish. This is not without peril, and many lives are lost, to unpredictable currents or to the monsters that lurk beneath the surface. More than any other tribe, the Huēna are used to losing the bodies of their dead.

    For all this, they are generally a cheerful and welcoming tribe, and this is reflected in their major settlement at Īellimon, the largest town in the whole of Faranandūll. Not only are the banks arrayed with boats for travel up and downstream - and even across the river to trade with the Banatūla - but they have constructed a separate stockaded area a short way outside the town specifically for trade.

    This place, Faradonalcūll lies about four miles upstream from Īellimon, and is a trading centre in the truest sense, a small village built entirely around commerce without any permanent residents not involved in trade in some sense. It is at once a wild and lawless place and yet a warm and welcoming one: after all, any visitor is a potential customer.

    North from Īellimon an established path leads northwards into the jungle. Recently more attention has been paid to this, its trail widened and partially flattened, and the reason for this will become apparent after a few days’ travel upon arrival at the great standing stone recently erected for the Sentinels in the territory of the Ānacacha.

    Positioned strategically in accordance with ley lines but also to protect one of the more remote areas of the forest, this is the regional headquarters of the Sentinels of the Stone - and the principal focal point for their training in all of Kiswa.

    The labour force engaged for the erection of the stone included workers from both the Sirrvadut and the Vygra, which has exposed the Huēna to probably the most foreign influence of any of the major tribes.This is an ongoing process, since not all the labourers who worked on the stone have yet returned home, and Īellimon, while far from cosmopolitan, nevertheless has an identifiable non-Bannanda population.

    Spoiler: Ontasosis
    Show

    The people were familiar with the fruit that grows on trees, and how to cultivate, harvest and care for the avocado and banana trees which provided them with their sustenance. But they were still reliant to an extent on what nature provided.

    Ontasosis was a traveller, some say one who had left Faranandūll and returned to it with knowledge gained from elsewhere, some that he was a foreigner who visited the land. Either way he brought with him an understanding of how to break the earth and turn it, creating furrows into which seeds could be planted. In the lands of the Hu ē na he helped cut back the forest and create open fields for growing corn.

    The other tribes looked on as the Huēna laboured under the yoke and turned away, preferring to maintain their trees. But Ontasosis persisted. Elsewhere, he said, people used animals to pull their ploughs, and if the Bannanda were to do the same the land would become even more bountiful. The Hu ē na hitched their small donkeys to the ploughs and found that the results improved, but less than they hoped. Still, the principle was proven, and they would continue to farm.

    None know what became of Ontasosis, whether he departed on travels again or settled down among the Huēna and died old and contented. His legacy lies in the cornfields north of the Erapira.


    The Hilelmē

    North of the standing stone the going becomes harder, the forest thicker somehow, darker and less cultivated. This is the deep forest of Bannanda imagination, the trackless wilds where borders become meaningless and men can disappear into the trees without trace.

    Some semblance of a trail leads to Repīma, the central settlement of the Hilelmē, the most enigmatic of the major Bannanda tribes, farthest from Limdimon and what are considered the major centres of civilisation. Only the Hilelmē - and possibly not even then - know the limits of their territory to the west.

    To the rest of the Bannanda, the tribes of the northwest are distinctly odd, speaking their strange dialect of Sūwenanda with its misaligned plurals, when they speak at all, for by comparison with the boisterous mien of other tribes, the Hilelmē are distinctly reserved and soft-spoken.

    Nevertheless, their presence on the fringes of the region means that they occupy an important strategic position for trade, and northeast of Repīma lies Faribalcā, a trading post so hard-bitten that even a denizen of Faradonalcūll might find it offputting. But through here are the goods of the region traded to the peoples to the north.

    Spoiler: Īngippa of the Hilelmē
    Show
    The most notorious of the Hilelmē is their current onōā, Īngippa. The daughter of the previous chieftain, she was married at the age of 14 to a promising young warrior of a local, smaller clan, the Hengiemē. She bore him twins, but the girl died in infancy and the marriage appeared far from happy, judging from the number of concubines her husband began to acquire.

    Perhaps she would have drifted into obscurity thereafter had it not been for a tragic fire which claimed the lives of her parents, husband and a number of other family members. Only her son, who had been staying with his father’s family, survived. Since that day, Īngippa has worn a wooden mask at all times in public, and it is rumoured that her face is disfigured - some say with burns from the fire, others say with scars inflicted by her husband, in revenge for which she set the fire herself.

    In the aftermath of the fire she moved quickly to ensure that it would be she who took over leadership of the tribe, outmanoeuvring her rivals (including her in-laws) and, defying all advice to take another husband, she has insisted on ruling personally. As a chieftain, she has a ruthless reputation, but her people would rather say that she is harsh but fair. She speaks little, and quietly when she does.

    Now into middle age, she is respected and feared in equal measure among the Bannanda.


    The Hengala

    From Faribalcā continue north-east through the jungle, skirting close to the border with Dozgasil and avoiding the wilder, unmanaged stretch to the south, through the avocado groves until you reach the settlement of Faratata, an outpost of the Hengala tribe. Their lands stretch from here all the way into the eastern highlands, north of the Esāla territory.

    Perhaps more than any other tribe the Hengala have a reputation for being fierce fighters. In their hill territories they are menaced by Blightspawn, and their lands border those of the Dozgasil, from whence raiding parties venture southwards into the forest. On occasions where hosts have to be mustered from multiple tribes to fight under the command of the king, it is always the Hengala warriors who are most eagerly awaited.

    Like the Esāla they were once a hill people but unlike their southern cousins they expanded westwards and into the lowland jungle area, where they have built communities among the trees. Starting at Faratata, efforts have been made to clear paths through the forest, leading to the town of Igenba, where the land starts to rise again into the eastern highlands. Igenba is not the largest town in the area but it may be the oldest, and remains the most odiferous. Here skins of beasts slain are brought from all around to be cured and tanned, making it the region’s most important producer of leather and of furs and other hides. A short way upstream the river Erapila is the more pleasant Pildunda, a bath-house where those from Igenba can visit to cleanse themselves of the muck of the tanneries.

    South from Igenba is Imdunis, a fortified town built around the house where the chieftain of the tribe makes his home, similar in many respects to Limdinol with a similar style of building, most likely built around the remnants of an ancient giant settlement.

    The current onōīs of the Hengala is Ovozru, a cunning man now in middle age, who in his youth was accounted one of the fiercest fighters among the Hengala.

    Spoiler: The Terrible Fate of the Īeycosa
    Show

    When the Hengala first ventured down into the forests, their people were set upon by attackers. Villages established in the trees fell silent and were later found abandoned, with only bones remaining of the settlers, their avocados left to fall to the ground and rot unharvested. Initially they were presumed to have fallen victim to blightspawn or other fell beasts of the jungle, but a darker truth emerged.

    The forest was home to a tribe called the Īyecosa, a small but ferocious band. It is possible that they were not in fact Bannanda at all but some relic of a different population fled from a terror in a region further afield. The Īyecosa comprised almost entirely women, with men used for breeding purposes only. Any men who strayed into their territory were killed, and if women refused to join them, they would be slaughtered too.

    It was not merely this which gave the Ī yecosa their reputation, however, but that in addition to killing their victims, they devoured their remains. As the Hengala began to investigate the situation further they pressed deeper into Ī yecosa territory they found places where their people had been carried off and butchered, and in others where the Īyecosa had feasted upon them, their bones cracked for marrow and otherwise left. The Hengala gathered up the remains of their friends and took them home for burial.

    All diplomatic attempts to reach out to the Īyecosa failed, with many Hengalē being killed as they tried to make contact. Eventually the Hengala concluded that the Ī yecosa were too dangerous to be allowed to survive.

    The ensuing war was not glorious and few boasted of their deeds. It was a conflict of utomst ruthlessness, with both sides aware that prisoners would not be taken and fighting to the death. Children were not spared, as the Īyecosa raided Hengala villages and carried off infants to eat, and the Hengala laid waste entire settlements when they encountered them.

    At length, the Īyecosa were defeated, and exterminated, down, some say, to the last child. Their villages and towns were destroyed and left for the jungle to reclaim, their names left unspoken thereafter and their locations long-lost. It is rumoured that some children did survive and were taken in by the Hengala, if they were young enough that it was believed they would not remember the ways of their parents, but any trace of the tribe’s culture is gone.

    It was this war which earned the Hengala their reputation as ferocious warriors. Few speak of the Īyecosa any longer.


    The Hapēzi

    From Imdunis, bear south-west, back into the forest, and once again find yourself in an apparently deep and mysterious part of the forest. Trails here are visible but hard to follow, seeming to peter out or lead off in strange directions. You might occasionally catch a glimpse of strange man-like figures moving through the trees, but who will not respond to calls except to flee. The idea that you are being watched will never leave you, but rarely will you see another human soul.

    These are the forests of the Hapēzi, the most sacred part of the region, where the shūvachē are most concentrated.

    Despite their proximity to larger tribes, the Hapēzi have distinct differences of language and mannerism that mark them out as an unusual people. Their accent can be hard for outsiders to understand, and their ways remain traditional, maintaining greater proximity to caves where they can be found, and suspicious of metal tools brought from more cosmopolitan tribes.

    Members of other tribes tend to view the Hap é zi with a mixture of frustration at their apparent stubbornness, contempt for their refusal to adopt new developments, and reverence for their devotion to the traditions of the people. Although seen by some as primitives, they are not to be underestimated, for many is the Azipāra or Hengala bandit who has confidently headed into Hapēzi territory for a raid, never to return.

    Spoiler: The Sacred Grove of the Hapēzi
    Show

    If you find favour with the shūvachē, you will find yourself at a small and humble settlement in the forest beyond which lies a grove of beauty and peace. Small standing stones dot the area, and it is possible to make out a circle of sorts around a central point, though effortlessly worked into the forest such that it could be mistaken for a wholly natural place.

    Here is the place where the banozhīsyī meet to discuss developments in the spirit world, and share their wisdom with each other. As a result, there are nearby communities which have grown up to cater for these meetings, but these are always small, for attendance at them is strictly limited, and the meeting-place itself is off-limits to all but the banozhisyī themselves.



    Actions

    [Faith] Convert 195 to Hozhisa: 10+2 support = 12 (success)
    [Opulence] Buy Wild Asses in 212, spending 1 Treasure: 12 (success)
    [Opulence] Contribute to the stability project in 212
    [Opulence] Contribute further to the stability project in 212
    [Opulence] Explore east from 192 - 12 - success!

    Non-Actions
    • Accept any embassies offered
    • Accept any technologies offered
    • Allow and support the Bel-Dan buyout of TP2
    • Resist all conversions
    • Oppose all unauthorised buyouts
    • Donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone on behalf of the United Blemmyae Tribes
    • Donate 1 Treasure to the Sentinels of the Stone on our own behalf
    • Spend 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone for them to stabilise region 194
    • Spend 1 favour with the Sentinels of the Stone to raise reputation (to 3)


    Spoiler: Ruler stats
    Show

    Paramount Chief (King) Odilon

    D: 5
    M: 6
    O: 2
    F: 5
    I: 3

    Next round: +2 Opulence
    Last edited by Aedilred; 2020-09-05 at 06:38 AM.
    GITP Blood Bowl Manager Cup
    Red Sabres - Season I Cup Champions, two-time Cup Semifinalists
    Anlec Razors - Two-time Cup Semifinalists
    Bad Badenhof Bats - Season VII Cup Champions
    League Wiki

    Spoiler: Previous Avatars
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    (by Rain Dragon)

  14. - Top - End - #134
    Troll in the Playground
     
    mystic1110's Avatar

    Join Date
    Dec 2010
    Location
    New York, New York
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Region 19
    The Targiz
    Current Leader: Ells Ogra
    Current Abilities: D2, M6, O7, F2, I1

    Round 4

    Actions:
    • MilitaryDeploying Unit (the Savlo Revel) [Attacking Region 36] - [clarifying with permission from aed - savlo revel is the name of my one unit. It is based on the maenads, a violent bacchanalia. My leader is not present. Tactical Doctrine, Reckless Charge (Drunkards know no restraint or fear).

      They poured the wine on her as she writhed on the ground. Across the field they screamed at him and he ate the flowers of the Jimsonweed and the Poppy, the twin Gods of Unreality. She moaned in expectant pleasure as the Witch-Sisters danced in the dusk light. They sang and drank of life – a life drained of consequence, much like the corpse is drained of blood once it is hung upside down on the tree. The man charged and she was there to meet him.

      They drew spirals on their bodies, stretching from their calves to the base of the back of their necks and they spun to create a living wire of red as they sung of how Poppy and Jimsonweed sprouted from the soil and realized that they were the mere discarded material of Savlo. With this devastated understanding they realized there was no use in pretending to suffer through living and that they might as well work at enjoying being dead. They took each other’s petals in their mouth, bit down, and saw life through dream and what could be real instead of what was not.

      Pots were smashed and the Revel drowned themselves in alcohol. They chewed their ritual flowers as they reclined with each other among the fields. They drank unending and in their thirst they raged. It was
      unfair that they were brought into this world in such a way. They did not ask for it. Their almost-mother did them a crime and they smashed more clay pots and drank more wine and together the mass, the mob, the teeming numbers of skin and sweat roved past the borders of the Targiz and into the boundless wheat fields of their neighbor.

      In the night they cut through the endless grains to create a camp and they brought forth the Pots of wine they carried from the Farmers they robbed. They fell into another debauched and naked orgy – they took the fallen wheat stalks that carried them in their hands as they spun around in circles. They burned a swath and watched the fire rage all night – they held in each other in broken sadness, the light reflecting in their eyes and they could swear that they could hear cries in the night sky and they couldn’t help by mirror them and cry themselves.

      The cold morning, one of the Witch-Sisters woke up shivering in the dew misted sun. She was filled with the familiar regret of the Revel, the holy shame they called it. She looked at what they wrought to the beautiful golden sea of wheat, a line of charred black among the gold. She heard a buzzing to her left and saw that a strange insect landed on her shoulder. The insect was small with six beautiful iridescent wings and most strangely a child’s face. As she looked at the child faced insect, its face twisted in anger, she thought how she should bid the twin Gods of Unreality, Jimsonweed and the Poppy, goodbye. She laughed at the absurdity of such an image.

      And at such a laugh the insect brandished its small scythe like arms and flew speedily and cut her throat and then buzzed further still towards the wheat stalks and disappeared – the sounds of mischievous giggling melding into the soft brush and sweep of the grain. The Witch-Sister clutched her throat, already gagging on her own blood, drowning within, through and by herself. The others were waking up and she tried to plead for help but she was already on her knees gasping, holding her throat with reddening hands afraid to reach out in fear of letting go of a life she already written as forfeit.

      The others woke in the cold morning to see her die, her blood on the ground and they simply nodded. Death was no stranger to the Revel. Curiosity or Fear did not worm their way into their addled minds. They drank more and chewed more petals and they dipped their fingers in her blood and drew spirals on themselves and continued on into the sea of golden wheat, dancing and singing, their merriment uninterrupted.

    • OpulenceBuyout [Region 36, TP #1] (Used 1 Treasure for roll) (Roll: Success) With the expansion of the Targiz into the neighboring wheat fields the Targiz farmers have begun to trade for the wheat with the Humans living there. While wheat was never thought to flower, Uko priests have pointed out that the plant does sprout a minute flower and have deemed this flower the lost Goddess of Bread.
    • OpulenceBuyout [Region 33, TP #2] (Used 1 Treasure for roll) (Roll: Success)
    • OpulenceBuyout [Region 33, TP #3] (Used 1 Treasure for roll) (Roll: Success)
      Merine asking Ogra for a favor to support Uzii Buyout of Copper
    • Military - Quest into the Unknown (West of Region 18) Roll: Great Success

      The Corpse Flower man stood still in the sunlight. He stood in a clearing, the trees softly talking with each other, the mushrooms dutifully carrying out their messages, birds in the air singing songs as sweet as honey. The bloom that seemed to have replaced his head was closed; only the smells of grass and pollen wafted in the morning. One of these songbirds landed on his shoulder and perched there for a bit before flying off. He was just another flower to them.

      Suddenly a jerking movement of the shoulders and it seemed that the creature woke up. Nothing in the clearing paid him much mind. After all trees sway in the wind, the flowers turn towards the sun. In fact, the creature was facing the sun, if facing was a word that one may use for him. The creature raised his left hand towards the sun with its palm up and stood there like that for what seemed like hours. Another song bird landed on his forearm. It stayed there exploring this branch and then hopped outwards, further along the arm until it stood on the creature’s palm. Again, nothing; it rested its wings.

      A cricket foolishly jumped on top of the man’s palm as well. It hadn’t expected a bird to be perched on this flower. The cricket immediately tried to jump away but the bird was faster; it darted towards the cricket and crunched it between its beak. The soft crack of the crickets exoskeleton clearly audible among the soft sounds of the clearing. The bird raised its head to break the cricket in half and swallow it when . . .

      The fist suddenly closes, the bird not having time to cry out or spit out the cricket. In a second it is just feathers and blood in the creature’s hand. The petals of the Corpse Flower begin to unfold. The smell from inside falls out, almost a solid. It roils through the clearing. It is foul enough that the grass wilts in its presence, the petals of the flowers directly beneath fall from their stems. When the flower is in full bloom the creature raises the hand it crushed the bird in and brings it above its inflorescence and lets drip the small miniscule portion of blood down. A feather falls from its hand and glancing off the creatures shoulder falls down to the clearing ground.

      A buzz is heard as the insects of the wild are drawn to the rotting scent. They swarm around the creature, land on in its spadix and then after absorbing its potent fragrance fly away – bearing its pollen. Who knows what may flower from these pollinators. The man woken up now begins to walk inexorably forward again, the swarm following close behind, and further behind the furtive eyes of those who believe in this dark god.



    Non-Actions:


    Spoiler: News
    Show

    International News

    Countries

    After having established contact with each major civilization in Mamut, Targiz – specifically Kursaal – has become a hub of international activity. The southern country and city are far enough from the conflicts in the center of Mamut to be a neutral ground and the City provides enough entertainment and riches for it to be worth traveling to. While some foreigners disappear in the city they do not do so in vastly larger numbers than the Targiz themselves. Most just chalk it up to city living. One can run into Ko Barons in the Stands, Uzii bouncers in the Gambling Tents, Deru Philosophers in the temples of Ukoism, and Humans of all sorts making trades for debtors who have lost more than they could afford, one could even find beautifully carved Scrim in the brothels. Internationally, other than some subversive elements in the countryside such as the Tansy Crusaders and the Revel (and perhaps a cult one may hear about if their ears are pressed to the ground), Targiz is content to remain a welcoming distraction to the rest of the continent.

    International Organizations

    Sentinels of Stone

    With the advent of Bronze weaponry the Tansy Crusaders have begun to seek inroads to the Sentinels for training with the bladed weapons; moreover the various dueling clubs, above ground or below ground (caged or uncaged) have drawn Sentinels both for entertainment and ways for them to hone their skills.

    Dream Speakers

    With the Twilight Lodge nearby and the growing presence of Dream Speakers in the city of Kursaal, as well as people wearing the colors of the two time League Champions, Dream Speakers are widely accepted in the Targiz. It is not rare that the poorer citizens try to get them to take their children dream sight or not.

    Truthseers

    As before – with the death of the Crone Ociete Lareneg, Truthseers are not seen regularly in Kursaal or the rest of the Targiz, how long that should remain is unclear especially as the Targiz turns into more of a traditional heirachy and the seat of economic power in Mamut.

    Internal News

    Religious Organizations

    The Four Faiths

    The Four Faiths have changed much in the last sixteen years. The OORT Crusade is now more of a Crusade than a philosophical school of warrior monks – the members no longer young and eager to explore and flex their power and have the opportunity to die vainglorious deaths on the battlefield; they are readily training with the Sentinels of Stone with their new Copper toys. The Witch-Sisters of Savlo have split and either become Harlot-Priestesses in Kursaal or have descended into nihilistic hedonism bereft of any mystery in the Revel. The Olkan Church has grown more powerful than ever as they are now the police, the jailors and the lawmakers of the growing city of Kursaal; what is more they are the referees of the Games and as such are indirectly responsible for running much of the entertainment in the city – there are rumors even than the Olkan Church is responsible for maintaining the order of Kursaal’s shadier elements and underground, certain Shadow-Senator-Priests maintaining the Law even if the Law is the unwritten Law between thieves. The Priests of Uko are perhaps more unchanged than any other but with the great demand for wine and the discovery of new and unseen flowers abroad they are also solidifying in their power and urge for expansion. Most of all the Four Faiths have counseled together, aware that some of their members have begun to disappear. There seems to be a Fifth Faith arising which may disrupt the already fading balance between the four existing Faiths.

    Unnamed Cult

    Even though it has been years and even though the cult has spread, even though children and others disappear into the streets of Kursaal or the flower fields of outer Targiz, not much is known about the cult. Whenever enforcers of the Four Faiths root out a cultist it would turn around that one of their number was also a cultist and would prevent the captured one from speaking. Given the infiltration by the Cult it is hard to say if even the ones giving the orders are not in fact cultists so it is equally unclear if the search for them is not already ineffective. The roots of the cult are now deep and it is impossible to imagine that they are not everywhere. . .

    Secular News

    The Ank’Anske have claimed through alliance with the other formerly larger and important communes predominance throughout Kursaal. They are effectively the aristocracy and leaders of the Targiz. That said the old commune system is not necessarily dead but it is much more hierarchal than it used to be.

    Targiz society can now be summarized as follows: The Ank’Anske are the Elite and Aristocracy – more over they control the vineyards and thus they are a Mercantile Aristocracy. The Ells, of which Ells Ogra is part of, is seen as in important High Commune given its holy inclination and are generally now considered the Priestly Caste. Ogra herself is seen as an advisor of the ruling members of the Ank’Anske, so much so that the heir apparent of the former commune is named after her (Ank’Anske Ogra: currently 4 years old). Most priest of each of the Four Faiths is from the Ells commune. The Redit and the Anco while they were in danger of both becoming the middle class of Kursaal have rescued themselves through marriage between the leader of the Tansy Crusaders and sisters of the leaders of the Anco; the combined Commune of Redit’Anco is now seen as a High Commune and mostly the warrior caste throughout Targiz. Most warriors of the OORT, Wrestlers and Tough men in Kursaal are from Redit’Anco. The other Communes have essentially been relegated to serfdom, either continuing their existence as farmers but now sending tribute to the High Houses or merely living on the bottom rungs of society and wealth in Kursaal. Certainly some of these now Low Communes are recognized due to their former lore, but these are now folk-tales and personal histories not hard social reality.

    The Military

    Tansy Crusaders

    The Tansy Crusaders have donated the riche they won during their campaign four years ago to the Sentinels of Stone, hoping that the organization would train them. The Crusaders have always admired swords and metal weapons and have finally started using such tools. They have been clumsy at first, being natural wrestlers instead of duelists, but they have been diligently practicing with them. Given that copper is so soft the weapons cannot be made to be proportional to the Goliaths. Instead the Goliaths have practiced and become proficient with the use of small swords that look like knives in their hands.

    Savlo Revel

    The wine flows, the revel drinks!

    Unnamed Army

    The various Golaiths who have been inducted into the unnamed cult could be identified with their ownership of serrated bronze gardening knifes. Such knifes are not rare in Targiz, since much of the population are farmers . . . however not all such knives are so sharp and there is very little use for a serrated edge among the flower fields.

    Ko-ball

    The reign of the Dream Team continues, but the gap between them and the rest of the league narrows. It seems that whatever so-called magic they use to coordinate their attack and defense struggles against simple brute force. The Big Strongs and the Zealots were able to force ties through sheer attacking prowess (both matches were heated 3-3 exchanges) and the Whirlpools were able to steel a defensive match (1-0) by utilizing clever tactics that seemed designed to trick the double sight of the Dream Speakers.

    The Zealots were a surprise this tournament as they seemed to have quickly learned the intricacies of Ko-Ball in the intervening four cycles since their last appearance. They focus on a fast style of Ko-Ball where they are already making a play before the other team is even aware that the Olkan Referee had even signaled that the match had begun. This fast style of play has caught most of the teams by surprise and has led to a fantastic showing.

    The Big Strongs are the runner ups, again. By only one League point! Some grumblings from Uziis in the stands is that this is clearly a curse, while others grumble that they were robbed by the Dream Team once again. What is clear is that the Big Strongs are perennial betting favorites beloved in Kursaal and after 16 sun cycles almost everyone wants them to win the crown. Whether they can earn the crown next tournament is a popular question in the gambling tents – the joke is another challenger or sudden influx in talent in another team will always keep the Big Strongs in second. The Big Strongs though have much to be proud of this season particularly that they were undefeated! While tying four games means they fell short of the Dream Team by one League point, they did not suffer a single loss! A particularly striking win was the Big Strongs’s victory over the canopies in a rout! (3-0). The Uzii completely pried open the Canopy defense this tournament.

    That said, there was much acrimony over the tie against the Jewels. Given the war between the Blessed Vale and Swampum this match (2-2) contained some of the bitterest fighting on the fields and off the field seen in the Grand. Big Strong Fans and Jewel Fans fought in the streets and there were many broken bones. It was almost a repeat of the war itself only that in the end there was no victor. This particular match and rivalry has become a great interest to gamblers and fans of the sport whom call it “The Copper War” after the resource of the land upon which the real war between the two people was fought. Many bitter feelings over the Copper War this year especially given that the winning the game would’ve led to a League victory.

    While it is no surprise that the Avalanches fell into last place again this year what was shocking was that they came into the arena carved like Goliaths. They were almost a mirror, a slower and worse mirror, but a mirror nonetheless. However, they were not as much as a poor mirror this tournament – since the people they were mirroring were equally in poor form. The home team of the Hemlocks suffered an extremely poor showing after having had much promise four cycles ago. It is unclear if this was poor management or poor conditioning, although some humans who bet on the Goliaths complained that the games were clearly fixed as half the Hemlocks emerged from the team barracks with red and sleepless eyes. As soon as this observation was made some other Goliaths who overheard it uneasily excused themselves and talked in a worried manner very quickly before leaving the gambling tents – the humans were suspicious of these actions for if the games were not fixed perhaps the Hemlocks gotten ensnared in something darker.

    The Canopies, the original champions put on a strong and respectful result showing that they are not going anywhere and remain a threat, while the Unkindnesses seem to have fallen on tough times.

    X Swampum Big Strongs Bhaile-Koma Canopies Hrathgan Unkindnesses Blessed Vale Jewels Targiz Hemlocks Thun Avalanches Pthǎi Èu Whirlpools Dream Speaker Dream Team Na'karat Zealots League Total
    Swampum Big Strongs X 3 3 1 3 1 3 1 1 16
    Bhaile-Koma Canopies 0 X 3 1 3 3 1 0 1 12
    Hrathgan Unkindnesses 0 0 X 0 3 1 1 3 0 8
    Blessed Vale Jewels 1 1 3 3 3 3 3 0 14
    Targiz Hemlocks 0 0 0 0 X 3 1 0 3 7
    Thun Avalanches 1 0 1 0 0 X 0 0 0 2
    Pthǎi Èu Whirlpools 0 1 1 0 1 3 X 3 1 10
    Dream Speaker Dream Team 1 3 3 3 3 3 0 X 1 17
    Na'karat Zealots 1 1 3 3 0 3 1 1 X 13

    Triple Flower Crown

    Only the top four finishes are displayed for each race – no country or Toad managed to take more than one race this season (there is no overall season winner as the races are individual and bring their own individual glory (and wealth from the breeding of the winning Toad) – it is just that the goal is to win all three either for country or particular toad or rider. It is understood that it may be an impossible goal, but a worthy one!).

    Run for the Roses

    The “People’s Race” this cycle was a mess! Four Toads tied for third. With the maximum amount of Toads running the Rose Race (20), the field was congested throughout the entirety of the muddy race. In the end some clever maneuvering allows the Home Grown champion to break through by hopping on top of another Toad and then jumping over one of the sixteen bridges crossing the track. It was a real nail-biter of a race and one for the history books! The Ko who have seen their fortunes rise in the last couple years (as well as their taste for wine) have spent much time in Kursaal and should be happy with getting their Toads onto the Podium for the first time.

    Toad Country Place
    Legs like Wine Targiz First
    Hop the Beaches Sokau Second
    Really Honor Ancestors Uzii Tied for Third
    We Got All The Wealth Ko Tied for Third
    The Toadest Toad Uzii Tied for Third
    Can’t Throw This Ko Tied for Third

    Run for the Poor-Land Daisies

    The “Rich Mans” race was also a mess this year. Not only were multiple Toads tied for Third, but two Toads were tied for Second. Additionally, while the naming of the Toads is usually in good fun this year caused quite a stir as the Elite Uzii in the stands confronted the Goliath owner of “Pride of Amaryllis” in rage given their beliefs of regarding the flower. The acrimony spoiled what was otherwise a great race – with a Deru run Toad emerging first and even a Scrim Toad making the podium. That said, by the end of the disagreement in the elite portion of the Crown Stands, the Goliath agreed after fisticuffs to rename his toad agreeing that the Goddess of Pride was a poor flower to name his Toad over and perhaps such hubris also led to his third place showing instead of higher – given his loss of personal combat the Goliath was forced to rename the toad “Burn them All”. The Uzii were mollified to some extent but one could see that they were still troubled over the name and its implications.

    Toad Country Place
    Root for Unrooted Deru First
    Legs like Wine Targiz Tied for Second
    Carved Victory Scrim Tied for Second
    Wait Till We Own You Ko Tied for Third
    Pride of Amaryllis Targiz Tied for Third
    The Toadest Toad Uzii Tied for Third

    Run for the White Carnations

    The “Champions Race” was also a close match if less hectic than the other races. This race also served as a farewell race to a crowd favorite over the last eight years as Traps Traps Traps is being retired. The Old Toad still got it as he earned a third place finish and has a life time of fertilizing championship worthy eggs to look forward to in his old age. The Sokau winner is congratulated – the sailors proving that there are as good with amphibians as they are in the salt water.

    Toad Country Place
    Hop the Beaches Sokau First
    Really Honor Ancestors Uzii Tied for Second
    Root for Unrooted Deru Tied for Second
    Traps Traps Traps Ko Third


    Spoiler: Leader Information and Technology
    Show
    Current Leader: Ells Ogra, Age 35

    Current Stats:

    Diplomacy: 2
    Military: 6
    Opulence: 7
    Faith: 2
    Intrigue: 1

    New Ruler Next Round:
    Succession: Non-Hereditary. No clear Successor ATM.
    Expected Stat Bonuses: +1 Mil, +1 Opu

    Technology: Pottery, Irrigation, Masonry, Writing, Animal Husbandry
    Spoiler: Resources
    Show

    Region # Resource TP - City TP #1 TP #2 TP #3 HC Military Treasure Status
    TAR TAR Ko OPEN 19 Flower Wine Broken and Ruined Rectangular Stone
    • Tansy Crusaders
    • Savlo Revel
    • Unnamed Army
    5 Capital

    Trade Posts:

    18 #1 – Emeralds
    19 City – Flower Wine
    19 #1 – Flower Wine
    33 #1 – Copper
    37 #2 – Living Wood
    39 #2 – Battle Toads
    51 #2 – Kaffe Beans

    Favors Available:

    1 DSP
    1 SOS
    Last edited by mystic1110; 2020-09-05 at 11:28 PM.

  15. - Top - End - #135
    Orc in the Playground
     
    D&D_Fan's Avatar

    Join Date
    Nov 2019
    Location
    Laniakea Supercluster
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Soreni

    Queen Gothek
    Spoiler: Stats
    Show

    Full Name: Gothek Sekthel I
    Age: 46 at beginning of round.

    New Ruler? No;
    Gothek doesn't plan to die anytime soon.
    Mil: 6
    Dip: 6
    Opu: 5
    Fai: 1
    Int: 5
    New ruler next round? No.
    Gothek doesn't plan to die anytime soon.
    Expected Stat Increase: TBA

    Technology: Writing, Animal Handling.

    Actions:

    [Military] Recruit Unit
    [Military] Defend region 308 with 3 units and my Hero.
    Attempt reckless attack.
    [Diplomacy] Attend the Solar Conference
    • Share writing with all attendees.
    • Accept all techs.

    [Faith] Adopt Path of the True Dawn.
    [Secret] Secret

    Nonactions:
    [Organization] Trade 1 Favor for 1 Rep with the SOS.

    Spoiler: Story Content: Birth and Death
    Show
    Important to know:
    • Saurians, being reptiles, hatch from eggs.
    • Soreni lifespan is ~120 years.

    In Soreni culture, children are not raised by their parents.
    After the eggs have been laid, they are handed over to the Soreni elders.
    Soreni hatchlings are raised and tought by these elders.
    Soreni adults are busy working and sustaining themselves, and while they acknowledge the existence of their children, they have very little interaction with them, and often wait until adulthood to form any sort of relationship with them.
    When it come to death, Soreni will hold a small ceremony for the recently deceased, they will remember the deceased, but Soreni care about death as much as they care about birth; It doesn't play a large role in their culture.
    After all, the most important part of life is actually living it.
    Last edited by D&D_Fan; 2020-09-03 at 07:58 AM.

  16. - Top - End - #136
    Orc in the Playground
     
    OrcBarbarianGuy

    Join Date
    Oct 2015

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Spoiler: Banner
    Show


    Ixkarr
    Regions 293, 295

    Spoiler: Leader
    Show

    High Chieftain Rakthuk

    Diplomacy: 7
    Military: 9
    Opulence: 3
    Faith: 3
    Intrigue: 2

    Projected stat increases: +1 Diplomacy, +1 Military
    No new ruler for next round.


    Actions:
    1. [Diplomacy] Stabilize 293
    Unrest still lingered in Tasathhi, as the Koxrrit had not accounted for the enmity between the Sharghi and the Astelte. Itsak, apparently disillusioned with the orcish quest for glory, moves to the shores of Lake Darah with a few of his trusted confidants. Once there he begins to more closely oversee the happenings in the region. He decrees that the Sharghi and Astelte pay their tributes separately, and also offers the Cackling Queen and her remaining warriors a position within Ixkarr's army.
    Roll: 16

    2. [Diplomacy] Attend the First Solar Conference of Sikar

    Subactions:
    -Accept the SHA gift of the Sun Sword

    3. [Military] Attack 278 with 3 units, led by Rakthuk (total bonus +12)
    The Naherin Coalition has assembled a large army and is advancing on the Soreni! What a glorious opponent to beat! A challenge is issued to Xehra Tzkepte and the Koxrrit host starts marching towards Soreni lands to aid them in their defense. While en route word reaches them that the Naherin have called their allies the Ashir to join the fray, and they're riding to meet the orcs. Rakthuk orders his troop to make camp near Txalitya, intending to meet the Ashir army in battle there. Rakthuk stands ready to personally fight whoever it is that leads these desert riders.

    Route: 291->279->278. No distance losses.
    Challenging enemy leader to a duel
    Attempt to use Reckless Attack tactical doctrine


    4. [Military] Thekr goes on an errant quest in Nellen (291)
    The Dolod truly baffled everyone in Ixkarr. They had willingly drawn a curse on themselves by banishing the Dream Speakers, who were clearly favored by the spirits (and the Sun, as some now believed). What's more, they had arrived in Tasathhi (293) to preach the very same doctrine that had brought them to disaster. They were terribly misguided in their efforts. With a little nudging Thekr agrees to leave for Nellen, to learn more of these strange people. Hopefully he'd be able to show them the Dream Speakers were a boon rather than a hindrance, and to gain some glory as well. Perhaps by conquering the "Snarled Stone", as he'd conquered the Maw of Sikar? Rolls: 11 on the contested Diplomacy roll, 19 on the quest. Great Success, 2 Treasure gained

    5. [Military] Defend 293 with 1 unit, led by the Cackling Queen (total bonus +6).
    It's soon realized that the Ashir aren't the only ally of the Naherin Coalition the orcs have to face. A small army of the Nocturnal Hydra is seen marching towards Tasathhi. The warlord known as the Cackling Queen stands ready to defend her homeland yet again, convinced by Itsak to this time do so under the banner of the united clans of Ixkarr. Unwilling to accept defeat again, she intends to be the very first of her elven warriors to sink her axe to the enemy commander's flesh.

    Challenging enemy leader to a duel
    Attempt to use Reckless Attack tactical doctrine


    Nonactions:
    -Support the SHA conversion of 293
    -Spend one SoS favor to raise Reputation by one
    -Accept that ALO donates one Treasure to the SoS in Ixkarr's name

    News and rumors:
    -The local Truthseer is asked to explain the concept of concubinage, and then promptly dismissed from advising the orcs. Whether deservedly or not, she is blamed for Karra being in effect a hostage and unable to return to her clan. The warriors square up for glorious battle as they had wanted all along, until news of war start trickling from the far south. Sensing opportunity for even greater glory, the warriors opt to go fight in the east instead. Rakthuk still wishes to march west to see his daughter returned to him, but is powerless against the majority of chieftains and warriors.
    -Early talks between the Ixkret clan and the denizens of 294 go well, but any further talks have to be postponed because of the war effort.
    -One of the Ippathaka twins suffers from several nightmares on the journey back from the Solar Conference. She was already known to be a gifted dreamer, so this is worrisome. Are these just bad omens, or something worse?

    Spoiler: Statistics
    Show

    Diplomacy:
    Cultural identities:
    Glory or Death (dueling) [temporary]

    Military:
    Army units 4/8
    Navy units N/A

    Heroes:
    Thekr of Rathox (9)

    Opulence:
    Trade posts:
    N/A

    Resource requirement: Wood (unmet)

    Treasure 0/5

    Other items:
    1 Dreadsilver cache

    Technologies:

    Animal Husbandry
    Irrigation
    Pottery

    Previous rounds:
    Round 1
    Round 2
    Round 3
    Last edited by OmnivorousOgre; 2020-09-06 at 01:10 AM.

  17. - Top - End - #137
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    BardGuy

    Join Date
    Aug 2016
    Location
    Behind you
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Regions 194 and 195
    The Bel-Dan Armada
    Leader: Reren Ren-Num-Har
    13-16 Era of Great Ocean


    Actions:

    1. [Diplomacy] Stabilize Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos: 11
    Ren-Num-Har is reluctant to use force to cow the Bel-Dan-Ub, but popular opinion is fickle, and hisGreat Raid against the dwarves is too little, too late. The unrest in Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos is unprecedented; no Reren has ever been so hated.

    2. [Military 10] Create a Tech: Crab-Claw Sails
    Originating from the southern villages of Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, the crab-claw sail or nel-me-baj has become the sail of choice among the Bel-Dan-Ub. It is approximately triangular in shape, widening as it rises to catch more wind and tapering off into two distinctive points at the top that give the sail its name. While older and simpler sail shapes are still in use, the crab-claw allows ships to travel faster and thus reduces the chances of being blown off course.

    Requires: Sailing
    Category: Scouts and Logistics
    Effects: -1 Distance Loss, extends the distance of overseas exploration

    3. [Military] Sack 198 TP 1 (ANB) for Guano: 19
    Warriors muster as the call goes out: a raid on a grand scale, unlike anything ever seen before. With the Reren sponsoring many Ren-Ub with his own warriors and ships, hundreds of pirates and reavers set sail for four years of pillage, plunder, and glory against the hateful dwarves. Let the ocean show its power!

    4. [Opulence] Explore region 196 (northwards from 195): 12
    With the Sentinels claiming to have extinguished the Blightspawn in the Kiswan hills, handfuls of fishermen and sailors drift further north, ranging far on the preserved meat of newly-tamed jungle pigs and Dozgach cattle. Wild tales of strange stars and whispers in the night spread throughout Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, but no one seems to have truly met the Ice... yet.

    5. [Opulence] Buyout 193 TP 2 (empty) Avocado TP (CI): 13
    Rumors spread that the Reren is secretly aiding the Hozhisa cultists of the south in their efforts to spread their strange spirit faith! They seem all but confirmed when these shamans arrive in Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos bearing great sleds loaded with the exotic avocado. For his part, Ren-Num-Har immediately sends envoys to secure more. Though his foreign dealings make him few friends, the ever-precarious food situation means that they also make him few enemies.

    Nonactions:
    1. Allow all religious conversions
    2. Support Henanda conversion of 195
    3. Support Blemmyae buyout in 194


    Spoiler: News and Rumors
    Show
    • Ren-Cha-Fen stays away from Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos for as long as he possibly can, but in the year 14 his fleet finally runs out of supply and forage and is forced to return. His welcome is cold at best, and the Ren-Ub debate what to do with him. Eventually they settle for permanent exile, and the Heretic is banished from the Armada with many of his followers. Most of the Ren-Ub quiet down - openly at least - but the prospect of an independent realm and a power base outside the domain of the Reren still circulates in quiet corners of the jungle.
      .
    • With the murder of the Anbroch Warlady and rumors spreading that the Bel-Dan-Ub were involved, Tes-Rus leaves her new home quietly one cool autumn night. She and her son, now a lad of eight summers, travel upriver through Elvish lands, then abandon the water to move south - and far inland. As winter draws on, the pair appear in the Korebita Foothills, asking for sanctuary among the Blemmyae. Cul is amazed by the strange people, taking a particular shine to their poetry, which he shows some natural talent for.
      .
    • Many Bel-Dan-Ub begin paying homage to those of the Hozhisa spirits connected to the ocean in some way, and by 16 Great Ocean the spirit faith has become a majority belief, especially among youths.
      .
    • Ichippa bears Ren-Num-Har twins in 13 Great Ocean - one boy and one girl. Ren-Num-Har demands they be named in the Bel-Dan tongue, but Ichippa gives them Sūwenanda names anyway. The boy, Beně-ě-Fa (or Onoynoyis), is a constant troublemaker, but his sister, Num-Tesha-Dan (or Oŋa), suffers from constantly swollen feet and hands and has difficulty learning to speak and walk. Indistinct shouting and argument from the Reren's home has become a common, almost nightly, occurrence.

      Throughout Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, the appearance of opposite-sex twins is taken as an omen of an uncertain future by the sages - what the next years will bring, no man can foretell.
      .
    • Tahaat-gev...
      .



    Spoiler: Ruler Information
    Show

    Current Stats
    Diplomacy: 5
    Military:10
    Opulence: 2
    Intrigue: 3
    Faith: 3

    New Ruler Next Round? no
    Expected Stat Bonuses: Opulence +1


    Spoiler: Other notes
    Show

    Land units: 2
    Naval units: 2

    Resources controlled:
    • +193: Avocado

    Techs:
    • Sailing
    • Animal Husbandry
    • Writing
    • +Crab-Claw Sails

    Cultural Identity: Naval Networks
    Effect: Increased die size on buyouts.

    Tactical Doctrine: Lightning Landings
    Effect: On a successful Tactical Maneuvering roll, negate the +4 defender bonus for attacks over Deep Water borders (including naval invasions).
    Last edited by Minescratcher; 2020-09-04 at 11:54 AM.

  18. - Top - End - #138
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
    Miltonian's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    Brinstar Depths
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    The Ko

    Spoiler: Leader Stats
    Show
    Worldmaster Thicket:
    Dip 1
    Mil 3
    Opu 8 => 10
    Faith 2
    Int 5


    Actions:
    • [Opulence] Hoard three Treasure
    • [Opulence 10] Create Technology: Stage Plays! (+1 to rolls against Unrest; requires refreshments.)
      Thicket has long been considered the premier composer of songs and epic poems among the Ko, even though his work takes on a more somber tone than most would prefer. At every meeting, some work of his or the other is always dusted off and performed. However, at the last Wine Festival (a literal, but accurate, name), another Ko, Theris by name, has stepped forward and innovated. She and a few other Ko took on the personas of the characters and spoke as if they were indeed those ancient heroes interacting with and talking to each other. It was loud, irreverent, and showed no respect for tradition or heritage.

      ...So naturally, it was a smash hit. This practice took off like wildfire, much to Thickets dismay. The Ko leader has frantically tried to compose a 'play' of his own, but his dour and serious mind has failed to create a play that can draw in the same crowds. Enraged, he denounced Theris' work as lacking artistic merit and appealing only to base emotions.
    • [Diplomacy] Host Event: The Playwrights' Duel
      And so, Thicket challenged Theris to a 'duel' of sorts, though after the Ko fashion, it is more of a contest. Invitations are sent to all the races that attended the first meeting at the Towerhome all those years ago. They shall be the judges. Tangle also hints at bribes offered to those who vote for him...
      - Gift the Goliaths two treasure.
    • [Military] Build More Traps [3/5]
      Hmm. I think we have enough traps now. I mean, we keep wandering into out own pitfalls now and--
    • [Military] ...EVEN MORE TRAPS! [4 of 5]
      Alright, seriously, Thicket? This is getting out of had.


    Non-actions: Attend event, support conversion.

    Military: 2 units led by Towermaster Thicket

    Treasury: 4

    Spoiler: Trade Posts
    Show
    Kaff Beans 1 and 4, Gems 2, Flower Wine 2, Silk TP 1, Aurochs TP 1, Cormet Stone TP 3


    Last edited by Miltonian; 2020-09-05 at 10:40 PM.

  19. - Top - End - #139
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Tentreto's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    UK
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Sangar
    Region 136+135



    Keeper Milah Polahi
    Dip 4
    Mil 5
    Op 1
    Faith 2
    Int 4


    Actions:

    1 [Diplomacy]Press Claim on 132 14 (2/2)
    With the passage of time, the ties of marriage become ties of Blood. Jia has her first child, and thus ensues that 132 will be tied into Sangar for the future, at least as long as this branch of the family lives.
    2 [Faith] Take The Ancient Way as official state religion


    3 [Diplomacy]Deal with Unrest in 135 URL="https://forums.giantitp.com/showsinglepost.php?p=24686182&postcount=358"]10[/URL]
    Bolstered by his success in 132, Milah attempts very similar tactics, inviting local leaders to Holan to help bring them over to his line of thinking. Alas, he does nothing to sway the populace, and achieves little more than giving those leaders some knowledge of the capabilities of the Sworn.


    4 [Military 5] Recruit a hero: Hinarah the Rider 9
    When the young lad who managed to ride a horse rode into Holan one dawn, he rode in pulling a great Blightspawn behind him. Immediately a great song was composed in his honour, and he was brought directly to Milah. It soon became apparant that Hinarah, nothing more than a son of a southern trapper, had simply ridden the blightspawn to ruin. The boy is starry-eyed to meet both the Keeper and the Maestro, and he surely has a great future ahead of him. Soon, Jia arranges for him to spend time in Shandole, to hine his riding skills, as well as keep him out of the influence of Milah.

    5 [Military] Quest to the South of Sangar with Prenadi 18 (forgot to add DSP bonus in roll)
    Once again, Prenadi is charged with bringing in more glory and people into the control of Sangar, and in particular Milah. Her time adventuring is far trickier than her last attempt, however, with the help of some Dreamspeakers, she still comes not within sight of a true challenge.

    Non-Actions:
    Attend Event


    Embassy Actions:
    Gift CAW Masonry

    News and Rumours:

    The strange mask that the man Prenadi fought wore is brought back as a trophy, although very warily. Prenadi herself almost destroyed it, but the Sworn who had killed the man, seeing it, called it simply a mask, and the first trophy of Sangar. Milah accepts it personally, and puts it in a place of prominence in his own home, albeit after having the Pledges look over it to ensure that it will not be a discordant force.

    Sangar finally has a new Maestro! After many years, Landros Niuamsas has completed the three tasks, and is a strong supporter of Milah, giving everyone a day of levity. Many are concerned however, as Prenadi, by far the best fighter of the Pledges had been entirely looked over for years, with Milah never recognising the followers she brought back after her adventures as winning admiration.

    While Sangar was due to receive fish from the Dreamspeakers there seems to have been a miscommunication. When the first caravan brings lime of all things, even the Dreamspeakers themselves seem surprised. Eventually, it is agreed in good faith that the agreement will be seen as void, especially as Lime has no musical value.

    Spoiler: Bookkeeping
    Show
    Owned Trade Posts

    136 TP1: Musical Instruments


    Embassy:
    CAW

    Claims: 132

    Orgs:
    Dreamspeakers: Rep 1,
    Sentinels of Stone 2 Favours.
    Truthseekers: Favour 1
    https://www.familyecho.com/?p=WI66X&...50599954769564
    Technology: Masonry +1 resist raids and sacks
    Irrigation +1 stabalisation
    Animal Husbandry +1 Op and Dip Exploration
    Writing (CAW) +1 Conversion defence with same alphabet


    Units: 4


    Heroes: Prenadi Kilia 10


    Required Resource: Animals unmet)
    Last edited by Tentreto; 2020-09-05 at 10:40 AM.
    Avatar by the Incredible Gengy.
    King of Caligonia in Empire 3. Crusaded into the sunset

    Played as The Whitefeather Kingdom in Empire 4. Flew too close to the sun

    Played as the Duenem in Empire 5. Ordered a God to stand down, and kept a contingency ready...



  20. - Top - End - #140
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Zayuz's Avatar

    Join Date
    Feb 2015
    Location
    Constantly Roaming
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC



    Clan Alqar
    Liege of none, subject of none.

    Chief Kalm Alqar (Ref)
    Diplomacy: 2
    Military: 8
    Opulence: 2
    Faith: 7
    Intrigue: 2


    Actions for Round 4 (Rolls)
    • [Military] Assault and raze region 33 with 2 units lead by Chief Kalm Alqar (mil 8) using skirmish tactics
      After the last battle, two things were determined. The first is that the petals, flowers, and wine that dropped a couple years back can make people reckless and hostile. Perhaps even powerful. No longer do the people of Alqar with to harvest it, if it should lead to such disaster. Secondly, the people see now why the Uzii were so bent on leading the efforts to destroy them. So many foes... Thousands. Tens of thousands, all driven to insanity. It is with no small amount of reluctance that the like-minded petal poachers (previously seen as rivals) of the Uzii and the Hraban Confederacy are invited to help Alqar gain control of the region if they should also wish to see them exterminated. This time, chief Kalm intends to take things a bit more slowly, hoping to reduce the amount of men lost in the fighting. To combat the strange enemies, great fires are to be lit across the region... Life will regrow, and hopefully the flowers won't.
    • [Military] Hero Merine (Score 7) explores southwards from the Blessed Vale into region 43 - Fail!
      With the disaster that was the invasion of R33, the path of flight that the creature took so many years ago to drop petals is looked upon suspiciously. Despite her new role as Thalesh'ir, Merine still takes to a lifestyle of adventure - taking a few capable friends made over the years and roaming southwards from the vale to follow the flying creature's path. If the locals here are so intensely affected as those of R33, a full-scale purge may be in order before the flowers spread. Merine and her companions are very mindful not to stray into the flowers where they can avoid it...
    • [Faith] Convert R53 (Thun) to Celestial Cult (with permission!) - Success!
      Flavor will be written for this next round!
    • [Faith] Convert R51 (Towerhome) to Celestial Cult (with permission!) - Success!
      Already seeing Ko traders commonly, the further away lands that first united the people of Mamut have become a haven of fine art and commerce. This attracts a great many people, some of which are even rich Alqari faithful, who pay handsomely to have some of the shrines dedicated to the sun, stars, and moon... As well as commissioning a popular comedy about the implications of how two plotting Ko vie for control over their mutual lover's heart can end with all sorts of 'gotcha!' nonsense, featuring plenty of cunning schemes, traps, and one upping of gifts and splendor through the way of divination magic exclusive to the Celestial Cult.
    • [Faith] Convert R33 (The Blessed Vale) to Celestial Cult - Success!
      The practice of worshiping both sun and moon is easily integrated in Alqari culture, as half of it is already present. The dichotomy between the many stars and their great unity contrasted with the sun's sole brilliance is sometimes difficult to adjust to, but it inspires many to strike out on their own to become powerful, good, and radiant.

    Non Actions:
    Support buyouts of unowned trade posts made by those following the Celestial Cult

    News and Rumors
    1. Text


    Spoiler: Stats
    Show

    Military Units: 3 (1 Solar Zealots, 2 Vale Guardians)
    Naval Units: 0

    Regions Owned: [Blessed Vale 32]
    Total Regions: 1
    Unit Cap: 6 (6 Capital + 0 Regions + 0 Tech + 0 Vassals)

    Cultural Identities:
    None

    Military Specialization:
    None

    Holy Artifacts:
    Tome of Stars (+1 to the effect of seek aid rolls once per turn)

    Military Technologies:
    None

    Heroes:
    Merine, Medusa Moon Shaman (7)

    Opulence Technologies:
    Irrigation - +1 to Stabilization Rolls
    Pottery - +1 to buyouts
    Writing (Hraban Runes) - +1 conversion defence, +1 to conversions in regions that share my writing system
    Animal Husbandry - +1 to opulence and diplomacy exploration
    Masonry - +1 to resist raids and sacks

    Deals:
    Non-aggression with the Ko
    Marriage Alliance with the SOT

    Capital: Blessed Vale, Mamut (32) [+1 to seek aid]
    Secrets Whispered: 0
    Embassies:
    Resources controlled:
    [Gems, Blessed Vale (32)]

    Some general constellations recognized in Alqari culture and divinations include:
    The Loyal Hound - A symbol of bravery and companionship, a general shape of a seated hound with a paw extended; pointing north.
    The Phoenix - A symbol of purity and beginnings, appears to be a nearly symmetrical avian that the white comet flew towards when it cleaned the red sky.
    The Twin Crabs - A symbol of bounty and love, two crabs that together hold hands all year round.
    The Hidden Owl - A symbol of vigilance and protection, appears on the southern horizon for the winter and fall as a pair of watchful eyes.
    The Blighted Kraken - A symbol of sprawling chaos and evil, appears a mass of bright stars with no particular pattern all growing from a point and engulfing the area around them - like a mass of tentacles come to choke life from the world.
    The Bounding Deer - A symbol of success and health, a pattern that could be construed as any significant four-legged mammal in quick motion. It flees the Kraken.
    The Licking Toad - A symbol of life and exploration, looks to be a toad-like shape with its tongue pointing out at the crabs.
    The Fallen Tree - A symbol of corruption and sickness, most visible in the spring and summer months.
    The Wicked Snake - A symbol of cunning and danger, appears in an S shape and looks to be dueling or communicating with the Warrior.
    The Warrior - A symbol of innovation and conflict, a humanoid shape wielding a blade whose point is the Godstar.

    Anomalies:
    The Godstar (The brightest star in the sky, said to be the heart of a distant deity now living or dead. Perhaps the end of the false dawn meant that it had finally finished bleeding.)
    The Seven Wanderers (Bright stars in the sky that are not easily traceable. They move not only with the year, but with change as if with a will of their own. They are coined planets, and do not appear to be useful for navigation. For the purposes of divination, however, the presence of a planet is considered to be a more exaggerated reading of what would come typically. Getting a planet mixed with a standard omen of evil would mean something truly wicked was coming.)

    Last edited by Zayuz; 2020-09-06 at 12:32 AM.
    "What is to give light must endure burning."

  21. - Top - End - #141
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Gaius Hermicus's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jan 2019

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    United Blemmyae Tribes
    (Round 4)
    King of Kings Huleten Kw’Muketi





    [Faith] Convert region 198 to Abiherism (15): Despite the disastrous blood feud between Yegin Kw’Haleti and the leadership of the Anbroch, the dwarves far to the west were perfectly suited to the Abiherist religion. Their cultural emphasis on personal glory and their worship of what is, to the Abiherist mind, an ascended ancestral hero makes them easy to assimilate into the basic ideals of the faith. As an added bonus, having the dwarves adopt Abiherism en masse would surely be a boon to the insecure diplomatic relationships between the nations. Oyem Kw’Mesihafi, the best missionary in the Bete Great Library, is dispatched on their most difficult mission yet: to convert the people of a hostile nation to the faith of their most hated enemy. If anybody can do it, it is Oyem.
    [Faith] Convert region 228 to Abiherism (17): The Bete Great Library was leery about interfering with the actions of the Way of Green, but in exile, Yegin Kw’Haleti had no such compunctions. Together with their trusty retainer Kasiy Kw’Sewi and a band of raucous blemmyae who joined them in search of glory, they ventured to territories controlled by the Veramondi, spreading the word of Abiherism at every feast, party, and drunken brawl along the way. Way of Green missionaries unlucky enough to cross their path are given a good thrashing and dragged in front of the feast tables to be mocked and have food thrown at them.
    [Faith] Convert region 214 to Abiherism (18): The seashores beyond the Korebita Foothills have just recently been discovered by Warcaller Dinfat Kw’Torineti, and are an obvious target for Abiherist expansion. Although the native inhabitants have their own religion, it is a pagan faith which has turned its followers astray, and the Abiherists must restore the region, which legend dictates was once conquered by the hero Fikiri, back to its former glory.
    [Opulence] Buyout 194.1 for Tropical Birds (13): The blemmyae are unlike most humanoids in that they do not reproduce sexually. Instead, they implant their eggs into a living host, where the spawn matures and eventually bursts out. The blemmyae had traditionally used goats for this purpose, but as the population swelled following the end of the Red Winter, a more plentiful source of hosts was needed. Agents of the Fikiri clan travel to Dozgasil to acquire a supply of the larger tropical birds native to the marsh, which are to be sent to Korebita and used as hosts for blemmyae reproduction.
    [Faith 5] Organize Abiherism: Although Abiherism was the creation of the blemmyae, it had spread rapidly throughout Kiswa and had morphed into many regional variations barely connected to the original faith. Recognizing that Abiherism no longer could be led exclusively from the Bete Great Library, Tubaw Kw'Mesihafi declares that each nation adopting the religion was now their own sect, with their own cultural heroes and rites. Each sect would still be considered part of the larger Abiherist faith so long as they followed the basic tenets of the religion: reverence for ancestral heroes rather than gods, the upkeep of records detailing the exploits of said heroes, and the belief in an afterlife connected to a person's legacy on earth. Given the religion's emphasis on personal bravery and great deeds, the most legendary living heroes are regarded with even more prestige and perform with even more determination. (HC 5 bonus: +1 to Errant Quests).

    Nonactions:
    Resist buyouts
    Resist conversions
    Attend event

    TRO Embassy
    Accept all techs

    Spoiler: News and Rumors
    Show

    It was two years after Tes-Rus’ arrival in the blemmyae town of Kema that she first met the King of Kings themself. It was a beautiful autumn morning: a cool breeze cut through the heat and a few wispy clouds floated through the sky. The sun could be oppressive in parts of Korebita year-round, but Kema was high enough in the hills for autumn to be a pleasant temperature. Tes-Rus sat on a hump of earth, watching her son Cul playing with his blemmyae guards a few feet away. The guards, siblings named Kenet and Renet, looked fearsome, but experience had taught Tes-Rus that they were at heart gentle people, and both had developed a soft spot for Cul. At the moment the three tosses dice, playing a game of Cul’s invention. The rules tended to change at the child’s whims, but Kenet and Renet didn’t mind, and it appeared to Tes-Rus that they usually allowed Cul to beat them.
    Cul had made a lot of friends in Kema. Besides Kenet and Renet, he had played with many of the blemmyae children, and under the supervision of his guards, had even been allowed to wander the royal palaces and run into various visiting dignitaries. An outgoing child with a developing propensity for the poetry that the blemmyae held so dear, almost everybody he spoke to seemed to fall in love with him. Tes-Rus, on the other hand, had had great difficulty making friends. Originally unnerved by the blemmyae, she had tried to join with the humans of the Sewi tribe, only to find that they were just as alien in culture as their headless counterparts. She had since made a few friends, but the only person besides her son that she would consider close was Tengir Kw’Sewi, the chief diplomat of the United Blemmyae Tribes. As Tengir was in charge of foreign relations, it had been them that officially welcomed Tes-Rus to the Korebita Foothills and arranged for them to stay in the royal palace. Apparently there had already been a Bel-Dan visitor to Kema, who had years ago returned to Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, and Tengir requisitioned his apartments for Tes-Rus. They were already designed to invoke similarity to the seaside kingdom of the Bel-Dan, and Tes-Rus had found them comfortable. Tengir had continued to visit her sporadically throughout their visit, and the two had grown close over time. Cul, of course, adored the gregarious diplomat, and Tes-Rus couldn’t help but notice how similar the two were. They shared a sense of wonder and enjoyment, as if the world was their personal playground and every person had been placed there specifically for them to interact with. The attitude was intoxicating.
    On that cool autumn morning, it was Tengir who came to visit Tes-Rus.. Cul spotted them first, walking up the steep trail bedecked in their many-colored clothes. “It’s Uncle Tengir!” he shouted, jumping to his feet and abandoning the dice game to rush to Tengir’s side. Hugging their slim but muscular leg, they hopped up and down, talking in a continuous stream of questions. “Did you bring me any presents, Uncle Tengir? Want to play dice? Why is Mother so quiet today? Want to hear a new poem I wrote, Uncle Tengir?”
    Ten-Rus grabbed Cul and tried to pry him off Tengir’s leg. “Cul! Get off their leg! Honestly, you can be such a nuisance at times…”
    “But Mother, I want to play with Uncle Tengir!”
    “As I’ve told you a thousand times, Cul, Tengir isn’t your uncle. Now get off their leg and start acting your age!”

    Tengir chuckled. “Nonsense, Ten-Rus. They haven’t done anything wrong.” Prying Cul off of their leg, they lifted him into the air so that they were face to face with one another. “I can’t play with you right now, sweetling, but perhaps later. Would you like some honey cake? I brought it just for you.”
    Cul snatched the cake from Tengir’s hand, hugged them again, and ran back to Kenet and Renet, still talking at a furious pace. As soon as he was out of earshot, Tengir turned back to Ten-Rus. “As delightful as your child is, they are not my only reason for visiting. I thought perhaps today you could have an audience with the King of Kings? There is a very important trial that they must preside over today, and I suspect that afterward they will not want to receive any of their scheduled petitioners. That gives me a perfect window to send them an unscheduled petitioner. I still can’t believe you haven’t had a chance to meet them yet!”
    Ten-Rus gazed into their eyes cautiously. “Don’t you think they’ll be angry to be interrupted? I don’t want to disturb them if they’re relaxing from a stressful trial…”
    Tengir laughed again, bubbly and full of mirth. “Darling, seeing petitioners is how the King of Kings relaxes! It’s all they know how to do! Yet they insist on taking breaks every so often. They’re always going mad by the end of it, with nobody to command besides servants and no decisions to make harder than what flavor of cake to have with dinner. Trust me. They’ll be delighted to receive you.”
    “Well, I suppose so,” said Ten-Rus, still unsure. “When will they be ready for me to visit?”
    “Could be anytime this evening. It depends on how long the trial drags on. I’ll have to be at the bothersome event anyway, so perhaps you should just come along with me? I promise, if it gets too boring, we can sneak off to an abandoned room in the palace…”
    Ten-Rus smiled then, for the first time that day. “We’ll see about that, you rogue. All right, I’ll come to this trial. Do you think Cul could come along as well? I hate to leave him alone, even with Kenet and Renet.”
    “Of course!” Tengir exclaimed. “Although it might be best if we distracted them somehow. The details of this trial are a bit gruesome. Certainly they are not for the ears of children.”
    “I’ll tell Kenet and Renet to ask him to recite poetry if anything gets too ugly, but I don’t think it would be a bad thing for Cul to learn the dangers of the world. All he knows of battle comes from the songs. He thinks being a warrior is all daring and courage, nobility and jewelry flashing in the sun. He needs to learn that there’s another side to war. A warrior needs a strong stomach and a heart as hard as copper. Cul is still too soft.”
    “Not everybody needs to be a warrior, my darling. There is no shame in using words rather than spears, such as I do. Cul has the makings of a diplomat, if I may say so.”
    “Perhaps you are right. I will see you later at the trial.” Ten-Rus smiled at them as she turned away, to show that she had not taken offense at their comment.
    “I cannot wait!” said Tengir earnestly, laughing again, then walked away, back down the slope of the hill and towards the cave entrances of the palace.

    The trial was to be held in a conical theater deep in the bowels of the palace. Although lit by torches, the shadows flickered along the walls and obscured the exits. To Tes-Rus, it seemed as though she had been swallowed by some horrible beast, trapped forever in its stomach. The upper portions of the palace didn’t bother her; they usually had openings to allow sunlight in, and were kept warm by their proximity to the air. This deep underground, though, the chill and damp seemed to seep into her bones, making her lethargic and anxious. Cul seemed to have no problem with it. His earliest memories had been of Kincany, where he spent plenty of time underground, and even in Kema he had routinely ventured into the deepest parts of the palace. He sat atop Renet’s shoulders, talking animatedly to Kenet and barely paying attention to the trial.
    At the nadir of the theater sat a blemmyae, tied to the wall with flaxen rope. A pair of guards stood nearby, alert for any sign of an escape. Standing on a ledge overlooking the prisoner was the King of Kings themself, dressed in the colorful ceremonial cape of their station. After a few minutes of spectators and dignitaries shuffling into the theater, Huleten raised their hand for silence.
    “All you assembled, hear of my will! This prisoner, Nafig Kw’Torineti, is accused of the foulest, most reprehensible crime: the murder of a child. Should they be found guilty, the punishment is inescapable: they shall be executed in the lawful fashion, and their name shall be scrubbed from all records. No one shall speak of their deeds or their history. They shall be forgotten, lost in the mists of time. Their soul shall never ascend to Dumuzi.”
    Tied up on the ground, Nafig screamed, attempting to wriggle free of their bonds. Tes-Rus shuddered. She did not share the blemmyae’s religion, but even so the thought of being eternally forgotten was horrifying.
    Huleten continued. “As King of Kings, I shall decide the innocence or guilt of this… creature.” They glared contemptuously at Nafig. “This accusation comes from the Anigoli tribe; hence, I will hear the facts of the case from the tribe’s leader, Inigid Kw’Anigoli.”
    On a ledge perpendicular to Huleten’s, another blemmyae stepped out of the shadows. They wore a tattered, patched cloak, drawn so as to obscure the face on their chest. The overall impression was intimidating. Tes-Rus knew very little about the elusive Inigid. It was rumored that they were a sorcerer of great power, that they had accompanied the exiled hero Yegin Kw’Haleti to Kincany and helped to slay Warlady Mollie MacGill. They were rarely in Kema, spending most of their time leading the nomadic Anigoli tribe on their circuitous wanderings of the western plains. She’d never even seen the sorcerer’s face: rumor had it that it had been hideously damaged by the poisoned dart that MacGill had shot them with.
    “My king, this foul creature murdered a child of our tribe, only seven years old.” Inigid’s voice was high and piercing, like the screams of a vulture. “My clan had been passing through Kema, just for a short visit, and were camped on the ridge overlooking Blood Field, a few miles south of here. Three nights ago, a watchkeeper spotted a lone blemmyae approaching the encampment. They were dressed in a cloak similar to mine, and it seems the fool mistook the intruder for me. Entering the camp, they crept silently to my tent and entered, perhaps seeking to murder me, or to rob me of my possessions. As they found nothing within, they exited the tent, and in doing so were spotted by Loz, only an innocent child. For fear that the child might raise the alarm, they murdered them and tried to flee, but were captured exiting the camp. Because of the actions of this disgusting piece of slime, Loz will never grow up, never commit any great deeds, never have the opportunity to ascend to Dumuzi and attain the highest honors. I have half a dozen witnesses to these events, who can describe them to you exactly as I have.”
    Huleten waved their hand impatiently. “Never mind that, Inigid. I want to hear what their defense could possibly be.”
    “I will speak for myself!” shouted Nafig from the ground. “Blood Field is a sacred land to my clan, and these cowards disrespect it with their encampment. Sorcery and trickery, such as they use, are dishonorable to any blemmyae, but are an insult to the memory of Torineti, the greatest warrior the Korebita has ever seen! I entered their camp to demand that they move away from our holy ground, and when I did, they seized me, tied me up, and blamed the murder of a child on me! I am innocent of this killing, King of Kings!”
    “Inigid claims to be able to produce the body of the child you slew,” the King of Kings said softly.
    “Most like they killed it themselves!” Nafig screamed. “Everybody knows that the Anigoli cannot be trusted, and this sorcerer is the worst of them all! How did they recover from the poison, I ask you? By drinking the blood of infants, that’s my guess!”
    The crowd burst into an uproar, shouting furiously at Nafig or Inigid or both. Huleten tried to speak, but gave up as the crowd shouted over them. Finally the shouting died down, and Huleten managed to get a few words out.
    “But can you produce any evidence of these claims? Without any contradictory evidence, it seems that Inigid is more likely telling the truth. Your claim is simply too outlandish.”
    Nafig went silent. It seemed that they had no evidence to support their, in Tes-Rus’ opinion, ludicrous claims.
    “Very well then. It seems you leave me no choice. I declare you to be guilty, and to be punished in the lawful fashion.”
    Nafig screamed as the guards thrust their spears into their eyes, then went silent and flopped, unmoving, to the ground.
    “Inigid,” continued Huleten, “I also declare that from now on, it shall be forbidden for the Anigoli tribe to set up camp at Blood Field. Had you respected the Torineti clan’s customs, this tragedy could have been averted.”
    Inigid nodded. “I shall inform the elders of the tribe.”
    “Very well then,” said the King of Kings exhaustedly. “I declare this trial to be over, and I will see no further petitioners today.”
    Tengir suddenly appeared at Tes-Rus’s side, grinning broadly. “Over quickly, excellent! Quick, come with me. I can’t wait for you to meet the King of Kings!”

    They walked quickly through the passages, moving upward past the sunlit apartments occupied by various dignitaries and finally into an open-air courtyard. At the center of the courtyard was a small pool of water stocked with tiny goldfish, while tropical flowers in red, blue, and purple bloomed around the edges of the square yard. Sitting beneath a shaded portico, sipping a glass of pale gold palm wine, the King of Kings themself barely even looked up as they entered.
    “Who is this, Tengir? I thought I said no more petitioners.” Huleten’s voice was quieter now than it had seemed in the echoing theater, dry and exhausted.
    “My king, this is Tes-Rus of the Bel-Dan, a personal friend of mine. With them is their child Cul. They are a charming little thing, aren’t they?”
    Hearing his name, Cul looked up from his position on Renet’s shoulder. “Why are you so wrinkly?” he inquired of Huleten, jumping to the ground and running toward the King of King’s portico.
    Huleten looked shocked to be addressed in such a disrespectful manner. Blinking apologetically at them, Kenet made a grab for Cul, but the boy slipped from his fingers and jumped up into Huleten’s lap, sitting so that his head was directly facing the face on Huleten’s chest. “Are you the King of Kings? Mother has said a lot about you, and Uncle Tengir too, but I haven’t met you yet. Why didn’t you come to visit me?”
    Tes-Rus rushed to pull Cul off of the aged blemmyae, bowing repeatedly as she retreated. “I am so sorry for the conduct of my son, my king. I assure you he means no disrespect. He is young, and knows little of the way the world works.”
    Huleten continued to stare at Tes-Rus and Cul for a few moments, before their cranky expression finally slipped off their face and they broke into a smile. “No apologies necessary, Tes-Rus of the Bel-Dan-Yb. It’s a breath of fresh air to have somebody who doesn’t just bow and scrape all the time.” Getting up from the chair with a groan, Huleten walked over to Cul and sat down so that the two were once again face-to-face. “I beg your forgiveness, Cul. It was most rude of me to fail to visit you all this time. I shall make a point of doing so more often from now on.”
    Tengir laughed, and once again Tes-Rus’ heart was lifted. It seemed Tengir was right about Cul having the makings of a diplomat, rather than a warrior. Perhaps she had been too closed-minded about her son’s future. “Kenet, could you entertain my son for a short time? I should like to speak with the King of Kings myself.”

    “You rule over a beautiful land, my king,” Tes-Rus said once Cul had been sent out of earshot. “I can see why your people take such pride in it.”
    “And yet you do not enjoy the Korebita yourself?” inquired Huleten, sipping their palm wine. “Tengir has come to me with their reservations in the past. They seem to think you are depressed.”
    “My king, I fear Tengir is correct. Your land is beautiful, but it will never truly be home to me. I yearn for the salt spray of the ocean, the feel of a storm-tossed ship beneath my feet.”
    Huleten blinked in understanding. “Your memories are of a different land. It is no surprise that you find my kingdom unnatural.”
    “Indeed, my king. But my son has never known Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos. The Korebita is his home, more than any other land has been. We have been treated with nothing but kindness here, and I know Cul loves your kingdom and your people in the way that I cannot.”
    The two of them glanced over to the pool, where Cul was dipping his hands into the water, trying to catch the tiny goldfish. His laughter rose, it seemed to Tes-Rus, to the very heights of the sky. Huleten turned back to look at Tes-Rus, waiting silently for her to continue. When she refused to meet their gaze, they spoke themself.
    “I sense that you are too proud to ask me for a favor, Tes-Rus of the Bel-Dan-Yb. But I believe I know what it is you seek. If your son desires it, I will declare them my ward, with all the benefits that entails. I will protect them from the hired knives of your husband, and I will ensure that they receive all the opportunities afforded to my own children. May they grow into a great and respected leader!”
    And at last, Tes-Rus was truly happy.


    Spoiler: Songs of the Korebita
    Show


    In the Twilight Age, when magic was on the earth
    Wild-eyed Adeni set about their purpose
    To slay the demons that terrorized their people.

    For many days they walked beneath the starlit sky
    Until hunger forced them to stop their wanderings
    Capturing a goat, they roasted it over flames.

    The scent of cooking meat wafted through the night air
    And into the dank lair of an awful monster
    All toothy ravenous maw and long grasping arms.

    Adeni’s mouth opened to swallow their dinner
    But behind them the monster’s mouth opened as well
    With one greedy gulp, it swallowed the hero whole.

    Suddenly, Adeni could see naught but darkness
    Panicking, they lashed out with their razor-sharp knife
    Slashing open the demon’s gut and crawling out.

    From that day forth, Adeni would eat no cooked meat
    Because doing so had nearly cost them their life
    Adeni would only eat raw food in future.

    Continuing on, they reached a place called Wogir
    A lonely crag on top of a granite cliff
    Home to a faceless beast with the wings of a hawk.

    Having heard of the beast in a nearby village
    Adeni began to scale the cliff to Wogir
    Hand over hand, two hundred feet up the rock face.

    Nearly at the top they stopped, dangling by one hand
    From above them came the sound of beating wings
    Helpless, they watched the demon dive, talons outstretched.

    But the beast had not seen them; it dived at the ground
    Where, unaware, a child sat playing with toys
    About to have their entire future snuffed out.

    No time to waste, Adeni jumped from the cliffside
    Plummeting toward the circling monstrosity
    Pulling out their flint-bladed dagger as they fell.

    They slammed into the space between the demon’s wings
    Plunging their knife into its gelatinous flesh
    And clung to its back, striking at it with their fist.

    Beneath the transparent skin was its throbbing heart
    Adeni pierced the organ with a vicious thrust
    Causing the slain monster to fall out of the sky.

    Stooping, Adeni picked up the awestruck child
    And carried them back to the village of Wogir
    To spread the news that the monster had been destroyed.

    And the townspeople were overcome with relief
    No longer would they be terrorized by the beast
    As one, they declared Adeni to be their king.

    For ten prosperous years Adeni ruled over Wogir
    And slew beasts from all over the Korebita
    Until one day a messenger came to their hall.

    “Oh great king Adeni,” they said, “you must save us!”
    “A demon is ravaging the far western hills
    A pestilential hyena tall as the sky.”

    At once Adeni set off for a final hunt
    With Okisi, whose life they had saved as a babe
    In pursuit of the deadly Cosmic Hyena.

    Soon they spotted the beast, running across the plain
    Its black fur speckled with a thousand brilliant red stars
    Ruin, death, and disease following in its wake.

    Adeni battled the demon but could not win
    The hyena healed each mortal wound instantly
    At last Adeni realized what had to be done.

    If left on earth, it would destroy all living things
    Adeni must force it to return to the sky
    And remain there with it, fighting it for all time.

    So now the two of them battle in the night sky
    Adeni Unslain and the Cosmic Hyena
    Neither able to escape nor able to die.

    Someday, if the Cosmic Hyena can be tamed
    Adeni may be able to return to earth
    The only one who never felt the sleep of death.


    -from the Song of Adeni


    Spoiler: People of Interest
    Show

    Huleten Kw’Muketi Yegin Kw’Haleti Dinfat Kw’Torineti Tengir Kw’Sewi Tubaw Kw’Mesihafi Inigid Kw’Anigoli Kw’Muketi Kw’Zinabi Kasiy Kw’Sewi Oyem Kw'Mesihafi Neguwi Kw’Zinabi
    King of Kings, ruler of the entire United Blemmyae Tribes, former vizier to Neguwi Former First in the Realm of Korebita, now in exile following the murder of Warlady MacGill Warcaller of the United Blemmyae Tribes, chieftain of the Torineti clan Chief Diplomat of the Ten Tribes, most prominent human in the Korebita Curator of the Bete Great Library, head of the Abiherist religion Sorcerer and leader of the Anigoli clan, whereabouts currently unknown Child of Huleten, heir to the throne of the United Blemmyae Tribes Chief of the Zinabi clan, distant relative of Neguwi Human folk hero, currently in exile with Yegin Rising star in the Abiherist religion, the most promising missionary in the Bete Great Library Former King of Kings of the Ten Tribes, slain by Warlady MacGill of the Anbroch


    Spoiler: Technologies
    Show

    Writing

    Spoiler: Bookkeeping and Ruler Info
    Show

    Units: Torineti Warriors, Anigoli Slingers, Sewi Warriors

    Treasures: 0

    Resources Controlled: Flint (213.1)

    Heroes: Yegin Kw’Haleti (Hero 7), Dinfat Kw’Torineti (Hero 7)

    Leader: King of Kings Huleten Kw’Muketi

    Diplomacy: 5
    Military: 7
    Opulence: 3
    Faith: 7 [+2]
    Intrigue: 5
    Last edited by Gaius Hermicus; 2020-09-05 at 06:22 PM.
    Avatar by Sniper Jo!

    Played as New Bhule in Empire!4
    Played as the Rothuun Galactic Hegemony in Empire!5
    Played as the United Blemmyae Tribes in Empire!6

  22. - Top - End - #142
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    Ivor_The_Mad's Avatar

    Join Date
    May 2017
    Location
    The Halls of Valhalla
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    The Sol'Ikoth
    Leader: Koth Akosh
    Round 4

    Ruler Stats:
    Dip: 3
    Op: 10
    Mil: 6
    Faith: 1
    Int: 2

    Spoiler: Other info
    Show

    Tp 1: SKO
    Tp 2: SKO
    Tp 3: SKO
    Tp 4:
    Required Resource: Slaves MET
    Holy Site: Cult of Ancients
    Techs:
    The script of Non'rathk (Writing): +1 Conversion Defence +1 Conversions in regions that share your writing system
    Animal Handling: +1 to Op or Dip Exploration
    Pottery: +1 to buyouts
    City: An Akhad
    Treasure 5
    Units 1


    Actions:
    1 Op 10: Seeker: Allows exploration over Deep Desert borders Requires: Nakhla Stone
    After much effort and hours of experimentation and research the Sol'Ikoth finally manage to get their first functioning version of their newly developed "Seeker" Essentially it is a carved and engraved piece of Nakhla stone suspended in a small box by a thin cord. The Seeker allows one to keep their bearing by always pointing their destination. In this case, The Black Monolith deep in the desert.
    The swirling mesmeric sands of the deep desert part as the Sol'Ikoth complete the first step in their holy quest. Soon. Soon they will find their lord once again.

    2 Mil: Raise a unit of Nafkelet Guards
    3 Faith: Convert 294 Fail
    4 Faith: Convert 279 Fail
    5 Mil: Raise Unit of Prowlers
    rolls
    New leader: Yes
    Spoiler: New Leader Stats
    Show

    Oraket the Three Hearts
    Dip: 1
    Op: 4
    Mil: 1+1
    Faith: 5+1
    Int: 5


    Non-Actions
    Resist all Buyouts and Conversions.
    give 4 treasures to the SoS for the fundraiser.
    Last edited by Ivor_The_Mad; 2020-09-04 at 04:26 PM.
    Come to the dark side; we have pop-tarts.
    Avatar by Linklele
    "Is no fun. Is no Blinsky" "He is... FIZBOP THUNDERTOES!!!!!"

    Spoiler: The Night of the Living Thread
    Show

    Quote Originally Posted by DivisibleByZero View Post
    We, as humans, have incisors. Those are made for tearing flesh and meat.
    Meat tastes good.
    If we aren't supposed to eat people, then why are they made of meat?

  23. - Top - End - #143
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Frostwander's Avatar

    Join Date
    Apr 2012

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    The Vygra
    Kiswa Region 226
    Turn 4

    Spoiler: Banner
    Show


    Actions:
    1) [Diplomacy] Raise Reputation - The Sentinels of Stone (Roll: 18)
    Matji Khetra continues to spend significant time speaking with representatives of the Sentinels of Stone as they pass through Vyterrat. Any encounters with blightspawn, even brief sightings or trace signs, is documented and reported. Any sentinel in the region is provided with good food and comfortable lodging.
    2) [Diplomacy] Establish Claim - Region 225 (Roll: 17)
    Caruvi, Bora daughter to Fulji Hamyra and member of Aruni's warriors, is sent with a small group of Vygra to entreat among the elk herding people to the south, in the hopes to establish closer relations. Caruvi, in a rare show among the Vygra, has shown a particular interest in the different physiques of the peoples of Kiswa, and hopes to establish much closer relations.
    3) [Diplomacy] Begin assistance to Kingdom of Lhungho Saar constructing a Windowless Tower for the Truthseers in Region 221. (1/3)

    4) [Diplomacy] Diplomatic Mission - Explore Southwest from 225, West of 236 (Roll: 14)
    Fulji Hamyra continues her exploratory outreach to the south, hoping to encounter natives there who may tell them more about the lands.
    5) [Military] Quest into unknown lands - Fulji Aruni sets out to explore south of region 236 (Roll: 19 - Great Success!)
    Fulji Aruni, inner fire like an unquenched furnace, sets out on her own. Some rumors state that there has been a dispute among her family regarding leadership and the Vygra's interactions with their Kiswan neighbors, and she is leaving to allow things to 'cool off'. Others believe that she feels challenged by the reports of increasing cold to the south, and desires to test whether her Ef can sustain her through the unknown. If her three warrior companions know more, they do not share it - they simply continue in her stead supporting the growing Vygra military and picking up Aruni's other duties where possible. Whatever the truth of the matter, she disappears beyond even the furthest boundaries of Hamyra's explorations, striding into the snow alone.

    Non-actions:


    Spoiler: Leaders and Heroes
    Show
    Leader: Matji Khetra (Diplomacy 8; Military 5; Opulence 7; Faith 1; Intrigue 3)
    End-of-turn increase: Diplomacy +2

    Heroes: Fulji Aruni (8)

    Spoiler: Vygra Resources
    Show
    Techs: Irrigation, Animal Husbandry, Writing(UBT), Pottery
    Units: 1 (Defending region 226), 1 (on loan to Sons of Sirrvat)
    Treasure: 0
    Trading Posts: 226 TP2 (Copper), 195 TP3 (Timber)
    Embassies: Veramondo (218)
    Last edited by Frostwander; 2020-09-03 at 11:53 PM.
    "It is in the compelling zest of high adventure and of victory, and in creative action, that man finds his supreme joys."
    ~Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

    Empire! 6 - The Vygra Confluence
    Empire! 7 - Costa Sereia
    Empire! 8 - Caipe Ushere
    Avatar by Gengy

  24. - Top - End - #144
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Jade_Tarem's Avatar

    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Elsewhere
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Clann Solais



    Actions:

    [Diplomacy]: Press the Claim on Region 117. [Result 12: Success]
    [Opulence]: Attempt to Buyout Trading Post 1 in Region 116 (Safflower Oil) [Result 14: Success]
    [Opulence]: Attempt to Buyout Trading Post 2 in Region 116 (Safflower Oil) [Result 11: Failure]
    [Military]: Rauri will go explore the land south of Region 142 [Result 18: Great Success!]
    [Military]: Raise one unit.

    Rolls Found Here

    Non-Actions:


    Ruler Stats:
    Calder of Stag: Diplomacy 6, Military 7, Opulence 4, Faith 2, Intrigue 2

    Expected Stat Increases: Military +1, Opulence +1

    Rumors:
    Amazing Zealot avatar by Elder Tsofu.

  25. - Top - End - #145
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    BlueWizardGirl

    Join Date
    Aug 2011
    Gender
    Female

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    The Dannu-Gaon Tribes
    Chiefs: Nocter Irin-Mak and Noctrix Sare-Mak


    News and Rumors
    -

    [Opulence] Buy out Region 109 (Uldra) Salt TP2 from the Brayewen Tribes (Supported) [TN 12, Roll 17, Success] - .

    [Opulence] Buy out Region 111 (Aran Viska) Silver TP3 (Supported) [TN 12, Roll 17, Success] - .

    [Opulence] Buy out Region 136 (Sangar) Musical Instruments TP3 [TN 12, Roll 12, Success] - .
    (Note roll says TP2 in error; corrected with GM approval)

    [Diplomacy] Host The Hunter's Moon Clan-Meet - Danneta-Yvaon had in a few short years gorged itself on trade, expanding from a collection of nearby clanhomes with pastures to the undeniable Jewel of Tarandi. It was only right to hold a great festival in celebration, and to invite the outlanders to witness it.
    Spoiler: Sub-Actions
    Show

    - Trade Pottery tech to Shandole in return for the promise of 1 Military Unit in Round 5, in the form of horses, elven-crafts, and training.
    - Trade Pottery and Irrigation to Aran Viska in return for buyout support and an Oath of Military Protection. Despite the failure of their most recent forays, the Viskari are recognized as fine warriors and their warcraft a valuable asset against blightspawn or any other foreign invasion.
    - Accept both Rings of the Phoenix gifted by the Viskari.


    [Diplomacy 5] Establish Embassy with Shandole - .



    Non-Actions
    - Donate 1 treasure to Sentinels
    - Support Clann Solais buyout of Region 116 (Safflower) Oil TP1
    - Spend 1 Sentinel Favor to reach Rep 2
    - Accept Embassy from Eleftheria
    - Spend 1 Truthseer Favor to increase Eleftheria's reputation (1->2).

    Embassy Actions
    - Gift Pottery, Sailing, and Masonry tech to Clann Solais. May this loose alliance prove fruitful.


    Spoiler: Ruler Info
    Show

    Nocter Irin-Mak and Noctrix Sare-Mak
    Diplomacy: 6
    Military: 1
    Opulence: 7
    Faith: 3
    Intrigue: 6


    Spoiler: Additional Notes
    Show


    New Ruler Next Round?
    No

    Military Units 1/6
    - Dannu-Gao Hunter Militia

    Treasure: 1/5
    (+1 passive treasure/round)

    Heroes:
    - none

    Embassies:
    - Embassy with the Arrok
    - Embassy with Clann Solais

    Organizational Overview:
    Sentinels of the Stone: Rep 1, 2 favors
    Truthseers: Rep 0, 2 favors
    Dream Speakers: Rep 0, 0 favors

    Temporary Cultural Identity - None
    Permanent Cultural Identities - EMPTY

    Tactical Doctrines
    - Reckless Charge
    - Skirmishing
    - Cautious Advance

    Technologies
    - Irrigation, Writing [Hiverness Runes], Masonry, Pottery, Animal Husbandry, Sailing

    - Special Materials
    - Armor
    - Weaponry
    - Ranged Weaponry
    - Cavalry
    - Scouts and Logistics
    - War Beasts
    - Combat Drugs and Medicine
    - Fortifications
    - Sappers and Siege Weapons
    - Subterfuge

    Trading posts (8, 1 treasure/round)
    - City of Danneta-Yvaon (96 Living Stone TP)
    - 96 (Living Stone) TP1
    - 113 (Hardwood) TP2
    - 129 (Grousse Shark) TP1
    - 108 (Husky Dogs) TP3
    - 115 (Furs) TP3
    - 112 (Tin) TP1
    - 116 (Safflower Oil) TP1


    Spoiler: Expected Stat Gains
    Show
    +1 Opulence, +1 Diplomacy


    Spoiler: Link to Rolls
    Show
    Last edited by BladeofObliviom; 2020-09-05 at 05:21 PM.

  26. - Top - End - #146
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    NecromancerGirl

    Join Date
    Aug 2018
    Location
    Czechia, Europe

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    Sirrvadutr Flosut [The Tribe of the Sons of Sirrvat]
    Kiswa, Yatrhajidaat Gitj (211)
    Chief "Tyrant" Uvarali
    Round 4

    Rolls

    Actions:

    [Military] Invade 217 with mil 5 commander, 1 unit and tactical doctrine: Skirmishing. Route: 212>213>217

    [Military] Invade 197 with Uvarali (10), 5 units and tactical doctrine: Skirmishing. Route: 211>193>197
    Despite getting ousted as Chief (see news & rumors), Uvarali is not quite done with politics yet. In the final months of his reign he marches the army north against the peoples living along the coast. The casus belli? These impertinent humans have refused a request for a donation in the name of the all-important crusade. The Sirrvadut understand that killing the gods will solve everything, so everything has to be committed to the cause, including seafood, of which the region 197 people has enough to feed a gigantic army for months! The fishes could alternatively feed the populace, but we all have to endure a little discomfort.

    Some would say that Uvarali has little to lose now that he's agreed to resign, but he values his life greatly. He still has centuries to live and get back in power, and so he advances cautiously, with the help of Vygra fighters allied to the Sirrvadut by treaty.

    [Military] Explore southwest of 211 with Vetrapa (Mil 10) 16
    Irritated by Neno's questioning and moralization, Vetrapa parts way with his student after adventuring with him for a while, and heads further south, perhaps hoping to find the troll warrior who fought him. Or started to fight him. Certainly if Neno didn't intervene he would have beat her to a pulp. His bloodlust has abated now, but still he would like to cross swords with her once again to decide which hero is stronger.

    [Diplomacy] Raise rep with Dream Seekers 0>1 TN 10 10

    [Military] Raise fortress in 212
    The elves are somewhat confused as to why the humans are running around eating bugs and robbing each other, and have no idea how to fix this, having not run a single village before, just a hunter-gatherer-pillager community. Additionally, they are no longer under the forest's protective canopy in 212, and their beliefs require that they do not perform various 'sensitive' household activities while the sky has a clear view of them. Thus a large earthenwork fortress, surrounded by many rows of palisades and pits and traps is constructed on the highest hill in the region, and many elves settle inside it, shielded from the humans flailing around in desperation outside.




    Nonactions:

    Request that other polities contribute to the recovery of region 212, especially the Trolls, whose hero inconsiderately ravaged the land, in honor of the Truthseers or not - if Lhungho Saar will not help repair the damage it has caused, repercussions may follow...


    Resist everyone who tries as much as step into our lands, but support Hennanda buyout of Wild Asses

    News and Rumors:
    • Birth/Death rituals cont'd:
    • After Tahaat-Gev left for Ten-Fuj-Sa-Cos, Uvarali was left without a follower to whom he could pass the leadership in case he resigned - most elves were far too, well, sheltered, and unaware of human politics to be trusted with this. Meanwhile, Dasrtali, the woman respected by most though she does not hold any official post, has managed to convince the elves of the obvious: The gods, and the end of the elves' journey, were behind the tall mountains to the east, which the cowards must have erected to protect themselves. Thus, the elves need to pause their march, and consolidate their power, before setting off the final battle. Uvarali's insistence on continuing the "all Sirrvadut are soldiers, tirelessly marching to kill the gods" practice has now turned against him, and many of the Sirrvadut now disapprove of his illegitimate reign. The popular Blemmyae tradition which emphasizes honoring ancestors over killing the gods may have contributed to this turn of events. Uvarali has met with Dasrtali and elders, and after much debate, they came to an agreement. Uvarali will abdicate, and the now adult Zarrkatl, who is the only heir of Sirrvat the Brilliant Sun according to tribal law, will become chief, with Uvarali guiding him through the transition for several years.




    Spoiler: Ruler stats
    Show
    Chief "Tyrant" Uvarali
    Diplomacy 4
    Military 10
    Opulence 2
    Faith 1
    Intrigue 4

    Specials used: M5

    NEW RULER! Zarrkatl the Golden-Eyed

    https://forums.giantitp.com/showsing...&postcount=385

    Diplomacy 2 +1
    Military 4 +2 +2
    Opulence 3
    Faith 4
    Intrigue 4 +1




    Spoiler: Tracking
    Show
    Units: 5 + 1 Vygra (updated R4)
    TPs: Tvila Clay (211.1)

    Technologies

    Orgs:
    Sentinels +1 stabilization
    Sentinels Rep 1 Favor 1 +1 stabilizations


    Name Effect Requirement
    Pottery +1 buyouts -
    Writing (Blemmy) +1 Conversion Defence, +1 Conversions in regions with Blemmy script -

    Last edited by Corona; 2020-09-05 at 06:07 PM.

  27. - Top - End - #147
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    LapisCattis's Avatar

    Join Date
    Sep 2017

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC


    The Arrok of Uldra - Region 109
    Chief Taran Icechaser
    Round 4

    Leader Stats Round 4 :
    Diplomacy - 6
    Military - 5
    Opulence - 2
    Faith - 1
    Intrigue - 5

    Actions:
    1. Diplomacy – Establish Embassy with Eleftheria
    2. Diplomacy – Explore east of 109 (south of 130) (Success - 15)
    3. Diplomacy – Establish Claim on 130 (Success - 16)
    4. Diplomacy – Raise reputation with SoS 1--> 2 (Fail - 8)
    5. Military – Send Hero on a Quest Into Unknown Lands (Fail - 8)

    Dice Rolls

    Nonactions, News, and Rumors:
    Donate 1 Treasure to the SOS donation drive

    New Leader next Round? No

    Leader Stats Round 5 :
    Diplomacy - 8
    Military - 5
    Opulence - 2
    Faith - 1
    Intrigue - 5
    Last edited by LapisCattis; 2020-09-07 at 02:38 AM.

  28. - Top - End - #148
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    Tychris1's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Mt. Ebott
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Creatures of Ancient Ways
    Tarandi Region 137 The Carrion Ward


    Spoiler: Map of the Carrion Ward
    Show


    Wounded-Vulture-That-Nests-In-Skystruck-Tree


    Actions

    1. [FAITH] Convert Region 132 Success! 19
    While Sangar was beginning to tie bonds between their people and those they had made first contact with, a host of Beetles began to settle into the lands beyond the Carrion Ward. A swarm descended upon the land, leaving messages in Kagahara for the Sangar nobles to find, and divining strange portents from the realms natural phenomena. One Wasp, Golden-Jacket-Of-Love's-Burning-Sting has taken upon themselves to settle a permanent nest for all to come by. They offer to perform the rituals of Soul-Bonding for the Sangar and locals forming closely-knit ties between each other. The Ritual is one of mixed cultural basis and divided opinion among many of the Scavengers of the Carrion Ward and the Ancient Ways as a whole. But Love is a potent agent, one that defies all physical limitations, and it is most exemplified in the strange bonding and relations fostered in that mystical land of the Carrion Ward. This religious ritual has a variety of executions depending on who is performing it as all customs are prone to regional alterations but the core concepts remain roughly the same throughout. The two or more beings interested in becoming Soul Mates or Soulbonded gather round and sing songs or recite poems of their joy for each other. They spend the whole day in each other's company, from dawn to dusk, traveling around to let others know of their mirth, or inviting them into their lairs instead. The ritual culminates at dusk with a physical representation of their love as agreed upon by the soon to be bonded, that is then bled on by those involved, and destroyed in symbolic transition to the spiritual level all mortals truly exist on when not constrained by physical form. The remains are then consumed and the ritual complete. The process of forming a Soul Mate is not mutually exclusive, as the followers of The Ancient Ways believe the essence of creatures goes forth everlasting, and so it is entirely possible and expected that individuals will Soul Mate with different people in this life or the next. It is a symbolic gesture and expression of compassion and trust between creatures, not a jealous hoarding of the soul, and to find someone you bonded to in a past life is a truly cathartic and surreal experience many Scavengers dream of. Indeed dreams are where most Soul Mates seem to find each other, vague impressions of tender warmth pulling them in the higher state of being, and leaving them restless in the cage of flesh and chitin of the waking world after. Only the process of ritual regurgitation and refuting of a Soul Mate ends the bond between them. A solemn affair but one that is respected and expected in a world as dark and twisted as our own.

    2. [FAITH] Convert Region 135 with Support Success! 19
    With blood and sweat the lands of the Sangar swell and the Scavengers of The Ancient Ways descend to pick through the ravaged fields of conquest. Rows of corpses tilled by lifewater stained hands and with disquiet boiling in the hearts of the Two-Legs the Scavengers find it an acceptable nest. Many move into the lands, proselytizing on the cycle of life and death, and some take on rearing the orphans of war. Those who survive are given savage training, some sequester back to their ancestral home, and a few take permanent residence in the local wildlands.

    3. [DIPLOMACY] Press Claim on Region 138 Success! 13
    The hills of the land near the Carrion Ward seem aflush with wandering descendents of the Two-Legs slaughtered in the Carrion Ward many cycles ago. Most paramount of them being the tribe of savage warriors who have laid dominion over the highest and most defensible hills in the region. Awash with crisscrossing crimson flowers, predominantly roses (Giving rise to their superstitions of "The Rosy Cross" and the Warrior's Creed that precipitated it), these "Bloody Hills" are the home of a formidable diaspora of families linked together in their violent blood ties. Paramount amongst them being High Chief Jaholo, first of his name, and raider of lower folk. His young daughter, Jahoon, is looked to inherit his lands, and she falls ill on a far ranging hunt of wandering mammoths. She is nursed back to health by a stranger, swooping down from the bleak gray clouds above, and alight with feathers of the dawn. Raced-The-Sun. In her youth she is taught of the world, cloistered from her family, and the two elope to the whispering chagrin of many a Vulture by the Gray Lake.

    4. [FAITH] Convert Region 134 Success! 17
    The distant smell of raw Cattle attracts the likes of Mountain-Leaper and his coterie of ravenous brutes. Lunging down from on high the Leopard and his traveling band of predators perform bloody rituals beneath the night sky, and howl to the realm beyond. Despite rumors of the adverse effects from the imbibing of the sacred waters by outsiders, Mountain-Leaper returns from these foreign auroch rich lands with cubs and spawnlings of different creatures and adds their numbers to his own.

    5.[FAITH] Convert Region 139 Failure! 10
    As it turns out Crocodiles are very hard to speak to. Especially for Lions. The scavengers are rebuffed by the strange scaled creatures.

    Non-Actions:
    - Slander the Truthseers with rumors of their potential involvement with the death of the former Speaker of the Sangar
    - Support buyouts from Eleftheria
    - Resist all other conversions and buyouts
    - Accept Masonry from Sangar

    News and Rumors:
    - Mountain-Leaper is rumored to speak with a band of Eleftherian merchants roaming through the Carrion Ward, at first ambushing them with the intent of consuming their flesh, and then leaving them mostly unscathed. The sea-faring Two-Legs are notably granted protection by the brutal and distant Snow Leopard as they gather flowers from Dreamer's Fall.

    - Shatters-Pride is unsatisfied with the state of his investigation but so much time has passed with little change he declares the case as cold as the corpse it's fixated on and relieves his band of procured scavenger soldiers haranguing No Pride No Death. The Old Lion wasn't entirely aware he was being placed under house arrest, spending his time training with Prenadi in Sangar, and gazing upon the strange wooden mask the powerful Pledge had brought back home. A spark of his younger vigor seems alight in the savaged ancient Lion's eye after speaking to his unsought for heroic pupil on their time at war. The Old Lion leaves Sangar, heading west in search of the setting sun.

    - A pack of Scavengers led by Snow-Lashed-Hyena-We-Followed-Home head to Braye on word of a strange spirit plaguing the people. A feverish dream seized by the imagination of a shocked people? Or the manifestation of the land's power in cruel shape? None can say for sure in the Carrion Ward but with stories of strange mystical Hounds and distant monstrous snakes it is hard to easily dismiss and it grips the imagination of many. Followed-Home leads her pack, alongside her most trusted packmate Sun-Caked-Lion-Conquers-Fire, to the distant Two-Legs land of high walls and bustling trade. It is a foreign concept to the ragtag group of adventuring mystics interested in tuning themselves to the ravages of the land, these marked paths where people shuffle in mindless pursuit of each other, and they quickly shirk local advice to "Always stick to the road" instead crawling through the land unbidden. Outside the walls of the bustling city of Kartoffel the Scavengers pick through the accounts of locals, some finding frustrating differences in accounts, and are nearly sent home in despair until Shatters-Pride arrives.

    Spoiler: BOOKKEEPING
    Show

    D: 6
    M: 6
    O: 1
    F: 7
    I: 5

    Expected Stat Increases: +2 Faith
    New Ruler Next Round?
    No

    Military Units 1/6
    - Swarm

    Heroes:
    - Old Lion, No Pride, No Death (Hero 10)

    Embassies:
    - Sangar (SAN)

    Technologies:
    Writing (Kagahara)
    Temporary Cultural Identity - Natural Philosophy (2d8 Conversions)
    Permanent Cultural Identities - EMPTY

    Tactical Doctrines
    - Reckless Charge
    - Skirmishing
    - Cautious Advance

    - Special Materials
    - Armor
    - Weaponry
    - Ranged Weaponry
    - Cavalry
    - Scouts and Logistics
    - War Beasts
    - Combat Drugs and Medicine
    - Fortifications
    - Sappers and Siege Weapons
    - Subterfuge

    Trading posts (0)
    Last edited by Tychris1; 2020-09-04 at 04:10 PM.
    “I’m a Terrorist not an idiot.” - Me
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  29. - Top - End - #149
    Bugbear in the Playground
     
    Lleban's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Location
    The Astral Plane!!!
    Gender
    Male

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    Ta Seti

    Aspelta Oases Seeker

    Stats
    Dip 6 (+1)
    Mil 10
    Op 3
    Faith 1
    Int 1



    Actions:

    Military: Neferkare (M10) marches to meet the blightspawn threat with 7 units, Tacdoc(Skirshmishing):

    Military: M10 tech Composite bows: Effect +1 to battles, Requirement (any Hooved animal resource, horses, cattle, buffalo, goats etc)

    Diplomacy: Emabsey with the Nocturnal hydra

    Diplomacy: explore NW of 288 roll 15

    Opulence: buyout some desert bells tp 2 roll 13

    Non actions
    • Donate one treasure to the SOS in the name of Ixkarr
    • Donate one treasure to the SOS in the name of Nocturnal Hydra
    • Donate one treasure in the name of the Dolod
    • Donate one treasure to the SOS
    • Submit family tree to the truth speakers



    News and Rumors
    [/QUOTE]
    Last edited by Lleban; 2020-09-06 at 12:53 AM.
    Beautiful Avatar thanks to Gengy


    Hangs out on the World building forums

    Giantitp projects: Caligoven the toxic seas, Baalbek Empire!3, Coatl Empire!4, Short and sweet world building
    Personal stuff: World of Tieg, Nexus: City of the Multiverse, Forgotten Planet Lost Between 2 stars, World of the 9 gates
    Spoiler: The gift that keeps on giving
    Show
    Spoiler: and giving
    Show
    Spoiler: and giving some more
    Show
    Spoiler: Metric tons of giving
    Show
    Spoiler: Keep going
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    Spoiler: Suprise
    Show

  30. - Top - End - #150
    Troll in the Playground
     
    Nefarion Xid's Avatar

    Join Date
    Jul 2008

    Default Re: Empire 6: Embers of Dawn IC

    🐎
    Clan Al-Ashir
    Lead by the Grand Prince Zidan il Kasima
    D 9 • M 5 • O 2 • F 1 • I 2

    News & Rumors
    • IXK's unprovoked aggression against the peaceful DOD is unbecoming. They will conduct themselves with more decorum and respects DOD's borders in the future lest the Ashir involve themselves more directly in keeping the peace.
    • By sending an army into 279, IXK has triggered the terms of ASH's defensive alliance with NAH. Zidan honors the call to war for the love of his family who have married among the Naherin and swears to drive back the trespassing Orcs, but sends word ahead to the commander to return home.
    • The Ashir congratulate brave Neferkare for his aid of the Sha. Despite what some may think of the meddlesome proselytizers, the Blightspawn would surely spread if they were allowed to gain a foothold in these lands. It is the wisdom of the Malak Amir that no force may stand before mighty Neferkare, and that sending further aid would be an injudicious use of the other armies of the Sikar. The royal court shall arrange gifts for Neferkare and Shebitku.

    Actions
    • [Diplomacy] Press Claim on 305 (12, Success) -
    • [Diplomacy] Raise Reputation with TSR from 2 to 3 (16, Success) -
    • [Military] Defend 278 against IXK (Al-Zamira 10 + 4 Units. Duel = Refuse. TD = Reckless) - Called to honor alliances forged in the last decade, the Jewel of the Ashir diverts from her campaign to conquer the southern barbarians and instead rides north to defend Txalitya with a series of brutal nighttime strikes against the approaching orc army.
    • [Military] Recruit Unit 👳🏾 - One thousand men of the Vesparre swear loyalty to the Malak Amir and ready themselves to march into foreign lands. Drawn from small communities of farmers and goatherds, these men are barely warriors, but serve the important function of occupying space in the middle of a battlefield.
    • [Opulence] Buyout TP1 Peppercorn in 279 with support from NAH (12, Success) - Life is hard in the Vesparre and the people are poor. Though they constitute the aristocracy, the Ashir likewise have little of value to foreigners apart from their horses. Still, Princess Esma is a dreadfully clever women. In a few short years, she is able to parlay the clan's meager assets into a handsome share of the region's spice trade. The Ashir rejoice and celebrate with feasts of well peppered goat.

    Non-Actions
    • Use 1 Favor with TSR - Zidan asks for the Truthseers to divine the closest source of good clay to satisfy the needs of the Dolod people of the Nellen.
    • Submit royal lineage to TSR for 1 Favor - See below.
    • Affirm that CRO is donating Treasure to SOS on their behalf.
    • Raise reputation with SOS by spending 1 Favor.
    • Attend SHA event.


    Spoiler: Bookkeeping
    Show
    Stat gains: +1 Dip, +1 Mil
    Next Round: D 10 • M 6 • O 2 • F 1 • I 2

    Embassies: DOD, HYD

    Technologies Known: Animal Husbandry, Pottery, Writing (Kagahara), Irrigation, Sailing

    Army Units: 4 🐎🐎🐎🐎
    _____• Grand Princess Zidan with 200 Light Cavalry
    _____• Princess Shiela with 200 Light Cavalry
    _____• Prince Omar with 200 Light Cavalry
    _____• Princess Amala with 200 Light Cavalry

    Spoiler: Ashiric Phrasebook
    Show
    "A shala elem" - Traditional greeting, lit. "Be you at peace". Informally shortened to "A shala" and just "Shala". Used quite literally, it means they do not intend to fight you.
    "Ashta hazid" - "Hear this" or "Bear witness" or "I swear", lit. "Witness truth". A preface used to assert that what follows is avowed true and may not be disputed without most grievous insult.
    "Abin barat" - "Forty blessings". The standard number of blessings for a joyous occasion, such as marriage.
    Amir/a - Prince/ss
    Malak - Master or Great. Used as an aggrandizing modifier.



    Spoiler: Family Tree
    Show
    https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachmen...amily_tree.png

    What follows is a recounting of the royal line of Eshara Al-Muahad.

    The children of Eshara were Hasan, Jamila, and Zineb.
    Jamila bore no children.

    The children of Zineb, fathered by Shal, were Shiela, Pashma and Azur.

    Hasan was Malak after Eshra.

    Liana and Ruya were consorts of Hasan.
    The children of Liana were Zarhan, Basri, Safiya, and Naim.
    The child of Ruya was Nadir.

    Malika was a consort of Nadir and their child was Novar.

    Zarhan was favored to be Malak after Hasan, but was ill-fated and died at 33.
    Naila and Kasima were consorts of Zarhan.
    The children of Naila were Amala and Omar.
    The children of Kasima, fathered by Zarhan, were Kasha and Ashina.

    Basri was Malak after Hasan.
    Kasima, Shari, and Isra were consorts of Basri.
    The child of Kasima, fathered by Basri, was Zidan.
    The children of Shari were Jalal, Rashida, and Nasira.
    The children of Isra were Samra, Baija, and Rashed.

    The children of Safiya, fathered by Ihab, were Azim, Zara, Dema, Amina, and Akila.
    Last edited by Nefarion Xid; 2020-09-05 at 08:40 PM.

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