Smashing Axe said:
So this gold. Was this part of the Blackrock holdings, or is this part of the funds that have been lent to us? How much does it amount to effectively?
Jawbone is hesitant to say just how much was there but you press him and get an answer. The vault contained 45 WPs worth of legitimately earned gold enough to finance the operation of the organization for another month. It also contained a further 200 WPs worth of illegally obtained diamonds acquired through trafficking in dwarven slaves. Naturally it is not on the books and 'does not exist' as far as everyone is concerned. He says he was going to tell you, when the time was right, he just did not want you to think too poorly of his organization. He stresses that they are 'good people' but that they just 'do what they are told'.
So the sum is quite substantial.
Smashing Axe said:
Please tell me we will at least sell this ghol to some dwarves.
She is at the very least minor ghôlish royalty. The prices that you could get for her would be quite high if you did decide to sell her on.
The Royal Academy would be quite interested in a ghôlish leader in good condition, particularly a mage, to experiment on. They could probably give you 400 WPs for her, she would die of course, probably painfully but you would make out wonderfully.
The King would pay you 250 WPs and serve her as the dish of honour in a banquet in your name. It would be decent publicity and if he quadruples the normal guards he would probably be willing to do it. The upside of that is that you can immediately scramble her mind and turn her into a vegetable so there would be much less risk. It would also give you a good opportunity to meet the assorted nobles and royals you will work with in the future. If you did go through with such an option then you would be expected to partake in the meal which would be difficult for Derryth and Thaïs since they have spoken to Nanshe now.
She is in good shape so the slave masters would probably give you 125 to 150 WPs if you took her to them. She is a mage though so you would have to scramble her mind first which would reduce the ultimate payout you can get.
Alternatively you could break her mind and attempt to steal all the magical and mundane knowledge she knows as in Bii.
Or on the other end of the spectrum you could treat her like a person and/or a prisoner of war. Derryth does sort of like and respect her even though they are technically enemies.
Really Derryth could go either way on this. Her extensive past experience with followers of the 'Dark' has made her more open to considering them as actual 'people' rather than just enemies/food/slaves, however she is also pragmatic enough that she would be willing to do most things to her enemies if it helped her cause. This one is completely up to the voters.
One caution though, do not leave her alone with the dwarves or they will murder her or sell her on eventually. Right now Derryth is using maul and human guards only as there is far less racial tension there.
Also it is worth remembering that the dwarves really hate ghôls. In the Empire someone like Nanshe might (and I stress might) be given a chance in some circles as long as she did not break the laws. In the Kingdom, openly aiding her would be a death sentence. This is largely down to the social attitudes of each state, the ghôls are to the dwarves as the myrkridia are to the humans. Ancient and 'irreconcilable' enemies. However if you make it back to the Empire you will also notice that Alric's administration holds the law in much higher regard than Albrecht's. Even the secretive Imperial Police are bound by certain restrictions and a certain sort of 'privilege' is extended to all subjects of the empire regardless of race. Alric does (or at least appears to) hold justice as an ideal in very high regard where as Albrecht largely pays it lip service.
Smashing Axe said:
Intercepting the ghols is probably our best bet. It's mountainous terrain, right? Why would we think we could fit the chariots and wagons through? How many horses to each chariot? How many to the wagon?
There are a number of valleys and passages running through the mountains. Your escorts assure you that chariots can move through them if in a limited fashion and they could be useful if you happen to catch the ghols in a valley of on the plains around the Great Devoid. You might not be able to take the most direct route however and you might be put in a situation where you are required to split your forces. Two horses to each chariot, four to the wagon, you will have to stick to the major passes with them. Really it all depends on where you hope to fight them and when you can catch them. The chariots could also be used to deploy infantry or create a barricade if needed.
A few things to consider. The escort captain really does not want you to go without him. If you die under his watch he will be expected to commit ritual suicide to preserve the honour of his clan. Derryth also is not a military commander and Berty has little experience with cavalry or mounted forces in general. They think that the chariots might be useful but they do not know if they will be.
Nevill said:
Hm. How big does the spell make you? If you cast that on an eagle, would it still be able to fly? I assume it would, since the spell didn't affect Berty's aerodynamics in a significant way.
Would it be able to transport you in its claws? Could you ride on its back?
Not much bigger, if you cast it on a six foot tall person they might gain two inches, maybe three. It does increase the weight of the target a fair bit though. An eagle would not be able to fly, it would weigh too much. Berty began to drop almost immediately but he was also practically on top of Nanshe when you cast the spell. You would not be able to ride on the eagles back, not even close. Same with the claws, it simply would not work. For that you would need some sort of Giant Eagle but such things do not exist as far as you know. Maybe in the Ermine perhaps?
Nevill said:
For how long can we maintain the spell at point-blank without running through the consumables?
About fifty seconds. Maybe a minute if you wanted to totally exhaust your capabilities.
Azira said:
Nope. Kill her and be done with it. She's the Watcher's pawn.
I forgot the general 'dispose of her and forget about it' option. I will add it as D.
Jester said:
Name for skill. ENTER OF THUNDER COLOSSUS! (could be colossus fall from heaven.)
I like it! Added to Organization sheet under 'Group Techniques'.