File: map.jpg (252 KB, 1024x748)

252 KB JPG

>Actions agreed upon during last round of voting:
>Visit all villages (2/3)
>Install altar in Bridgetown (3/3)
>Road to Bridgetown (2/3)

It will take 1 month before the Altar is ready to be moved to Bridgetown. Once placed at the shrine, this will allow you to visit them regularly for festivals and prayer, increasing the strength of their Belief. It will also allow you to quickly return to the village to help defend it. The materials for the altar will require a small amount of this year's trading profit.

The road to Bridgetown will require a year to complete. Once finished, it will allow rapid trade between Bridgetown and the City, both increasing the City's wealth and encouraging population growth in the village. There is no direct cost to building the road, only the redirection of labor away from the harvest. The chance that the harvest--including the grape harvest for this year--will fail is moderately increased.

For this first vote, I also want to ask your opinion. As a God and ruler of a City, you have a lot of choices as to what you want to do. You could even choose to ignore the present and wait a while for future events. More choices than I can list in 3-6 options.

>How should we, as the QM and players, decide on the big choices and long-term strategy we wish to take? How can I offer you choices without influencing the outcome?

Do you want to suggest things yourselves, and I'll work on the most popular idea? Should I keep offering choices like I'm doing? Do you want an IRC for discussion? What?


For now, I'm offering the same choices as last time, plus one more.
>Military Focus
>Diplomacy Focus
>Internal Focus
>Allow time to pass, and let our current plans play out.

File: villages.jpg (257 KB, 1024x748)

257 KB JPG

Welcome to Land of the Gods! This is my first quest, although I have DMed with friends many times before. Some basic housekeeping:

1) *********NEXT GAME AT: Wednesday, November 19 at 2200 UTC**************

2) God List: http://pastebin.com/PHUpSAzn
Character List: http://pastebin.com/04E6Le14

Archives: http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=Land%20of%20the%20Gods

3) Twitter @landofthegodsQ
I will keep this updated with times for the next game, and I'll answer dms here, too.

4) email landofthegodsquest@gmail.com
I'll try to answer emails as well.

5) Choices offered are almost always suggestions. You can certainly suggest other alternatives I haven't listed.

6) While I am keeping track of stats behind the scenes and doing dice rolls and whatnot, my goal is for you to never have to think about the mechanics of things. Make your choices, play the game.

7) Plot armor is nonexistent. What happens, happens.

8) This is not a smut quest. THIS IS NOT A SMUT QUEST. I truly have nothing against smut quests, but this is not one of them. That's not to say that sex doesn't exist or won't be acknowledged as is story appropriate, but it won't be the focus and it won't be gratuitous.

>>36201672
Dammit, just before I'm about to sleep. Don't make bad decisions people. Focus on internal and and diplomacy if possible

>>36202119

I'll be around all day. With luck, you might catch the end of the thread!

It looks like I picked a bad time to start this. Regardless, I set aside today for the thread, so I'll be here waiting.

>>36201675
hey homie you never answered my email?

>>36201672
Voting on...Military/Trade focus. Diplomacy should steer towards A) the proper price of wine, and B) keeping the trade routes free from bandits. We can sacrifice the bandits by spilling their lifeblood into the sacrificial wine.

>>36201672
>Military/Trade focus
I think buffering ourselves will only be to our betterment

>Military/Trade Focus

We'll start military, then I'll write up trade.

So, to recap the military situation: Reah and Odon are feuding. You and Klabat have agreed to let Reah sail her ships up Odon's river, and in exchange Reah has joined you in a defensive pact against Kondar. Kondar, god of Smithing, is stockpiling arms and armor. Meanwhile, Anhur, the Howling Demon and God of War, continues to exist.

You have inspected your army, if you can call it that. You have 200 dedicated Temple Guard. They train daily and are fully outfitted with bronze armor and weaponry. In addition, you have 5000 men of fighting age in your city that could be conscripted. However, you only have enough bronze arms and armor to equip 1000 of them. The rest would scrounge crude weaponry and leather padding, whatever they can find.

Your Temple Guard are currently patrolling the roads around the city for the next 6 months. Any bandits they catch will be taken back to the City for Sacrifice.

Improvements you have made to your army include replacing Kalat with a competent general, the former sergeant Merodak, who is being trained by your head librarian in strategy and tactics. In addition, you have ordered your smithy to focus on producing simple bronze spears as quickly as possible to at least arm your men. Your Temple Guard has been ordered to clean the city together to build teamwork, but they haven't had much of a chance to do so, as they were sent to patrol.

Possible actions:
>Check in with Merodak, your new general.
>Check in with the smithy.
>Contact Kondar, and try to negotiate for more armor.
>Contact Klabat, who offered to sell you his last shipment of armor.
>Discuss the military status of other gods with Kalat and your head librarian.
>Something else?

Also, still looking for guidance about:

>How should we, as the QM and players, decide on the big choices and long-term strategy we wish to take? How can I offer you choices without influencing the outcome?

>>36202740
>Discuss the military status of other gods with Kalat and your head librarian

We need more knowledge before action.
>>36202755
>How should we, as the QM and players, decide on the big choices and long-term strategy we wish to take? How can I offer you choices without influencing the outcome?

should you offer short term choices which based upon such would gain in tension before leading to a main choice. I feel as though you cant offer big choices all at once because some people wont make it to every thread.

>>36202740
>Discuss the military status of other gods with Kalat and your head librarian.

Where is everyone? Thread seems a little quiet

>>36203493
I think I just picked a bad fucking time to start this. I'm hoping things heat up this afternoon. It doesn't help that there's no qtg thread for me to post the thread in.

>Discuss the military status of other gods with Kalat and your head librarian

You find the head librarian asleep in a corner of the library. Merodak snores next to him, surrounded by a pile of paper with scribblings. You carefully step over your sleeping general and carry the librarian into the next room before shaking him awake.

"Knight to f3! Wha? Oh, Lord. I'm sorry, I was sleeping. Where--where's Merodak?"

"I let him sleep. Looks like the two of you are busy."

"Indeed! But it's refreshing to have a new mind to train. I haven't had the chance to do much teaching for a long time. What do you need, Lord?"

"I was hoping you could tell me a little about the other cities' armies."

"I will try, but I must confess that we don't know a great deal. Most of what I know comes from the reports from the merchants passing through. But even our merchants must do their business outside the city gates, so we get little news of internal city matters."

"Most of the gods structure their army like us, with a dedicated Temple Guard and conscript soldiers. Anhur, it is said, has no Guard but expects every man to be trained in fighting. Every city has some stockpile of armor for their troops, acquired through trade from Kondar, for the most part. Some cities may have high quality mithril arms and armor, but if they do, those secrets are closely guarded. The only known mithril-equipped soldiers belong to Kondar. His Temple Guard uses at least 10 sets of the metal. According to our merchants' best guesses, most cities have both larger Temple Guards and more stockpiled armor than us. Obviously, we have little idea about Eschar's and Anhur's armies."

1/2

"Are there any promising targets for attack right now?"

"It is said that Naxos has a very small army, perhaps smaller than ours. He is relatively isolated, with few friends. Gurpal, too, has few friends. However, his army is said to be well-managed by his scribes. Reah has devoted a considerable amount of resources on her navy. If we eliminated them, it's possible she would have few remaining forces."

"Any gods known for their strong army?"

"Anhur, obviously. It is said every working man is also trained for war. Odon and Kondar are said to have strong armies and well-fortified cities."

"What do the other gods think of me?"

"That is very hard to say, Lord. You have a reputation as the most peace-loving and least warlike of the gods. Sending out your Temple Guard shows that you have at least 200 trained men, but it is unlikely that they would know that that is your entire army. I would say that few think you are a military powerhouse, but few know how weak we really are."

>Specific questions for the head librarian? Gods you want more info on?

Possible actions:
>Check in with Merodak, your new general.
>Check in with the smithy.
>Contact Kondar, and try to negotiate for more armor.
>Contact Klabat, who offered to sell you his last shipment of armor.
>Something else?

>>36202740
>Contact Klabat
"I'm thinking of putting a personal touch on the coming wine shipment. Might make it roughly equal to the value of that armor you mentioned, eh?"

>>36203543
>Specific questions for the head librarian? Gods you want more info on?
Ask him about where we stand as far as mercenary ties and paid soldiers
>Check in with the smithy.
Maybe we can step up our own industry and therefore become self sufficient

>>36203625
>Personal touch on the coming wine shipment

You could spend a moderate amount of belief to turn your current wine into a rare and heady vintage. This would give you the value you need to purchase Klabat's armor.

Alternatively, be prepared to sell off a good portion of your wine production this year in exchange.

>>36203679
"Anhur is always happy to rent his soldiers out to any conflict. Since none dare attack him, but all would band together to defend against him, that's the only way most of his people ever see combat. Klabat would normally sell his soldiers, but it is unlikely that he would do so while Kondar is scaring him."


Quick vote on a deal with Klabat:
>Spend moderate amount of belief to enchant one wine shipment
>Don't spend belief. We'll offer more wine instead.

Klabat and smithy updates inbound

>>36203807
>Spend moderate amount of belief to enchant one wine shipment

>>36203807
>Spend moderate amount of belief to enchant one wine shipment

>Spend moderate amount of belief to enchant one wine shipment
Your priests lead you to the warehouses near your city gates, where all your trade goods are kept. Long rows of dusty casks filled with amethyst liquid. You rest your hands on the first barrel and smell the wine within. It's aging nicely, starting to get pretty smooth. But as it has aged, it's lost some of that original fresh fruity quality. If you could just restore that while keeping it smooth...

You reach inside yourself and pull out two great handfuls of Belief. It drips off your hands onto each barrel. The casks are now softly glowing in the dim light of the warehouse. You place your mark upon each cask: a crimson cluster of grapes, with golden vines winding their way along the wooden edges. Afterwards, you return to the temple to rest. Between this and the lottery miracle, you're starting to feel a little tired.

Your priests douse your altar in grape juice to prepare it for Klabat.

He manifests again, this time as an enormous gold ingot. "What kind of deal can we make today?"

"I've been thinking about that armor you offered me."

"I've got 1000 bronze breastplates, shields, and spears. All ready to go. What do you have?"

"My rarest and finest vintage. I've poured my heart and soul into this batch. My merchants will send you a sample."

"No need. You give me your word it's as good as you say?"

"I do."

"It's a deal, then. Send your merchants with the wine and I'll send them back with the armor."

It will take about 1 week for the shipment to arrive, and another for your merchants to return. After that, you will then have enough to outfit 2000 men of your 5000 total manpower.

Smithy update inbound.

>>36204156
I'd be happy if we had 3000 total ready to be armed. We're a peaceful God, and hopefully we can talk/party our way out of situations like this.

>>36204156
Do we have any numbers for belief? Like, do we have "9 Belief and you just spent 3"?

>>36204406
I keep track of all the numbers in the background. My goal is to prevent too much powergaming or worrying about the system. I will say that you spent a small amount of belief on the lottery and a moderate amount of belief on the wine. Together, you're feeling pretty drained. If you were to fight another god right now, say, you would be fighting at a decent penalty.

Your belief should slowly return over the course of the year. You have enough right now for a few more miracles, depending on the cost, before you'd be completely drained.

A friendly reminder: It's only been a couple weeks since the start of the game and your resurrection. I know we're busy getting our City in order right now, but you *are* a god. You don't age, as far as you can tell. If you want to spend a few months, years, decades, or centuries hanging out, absorbing belief, letting the Sacrifices and Tribute roll in while you let the other gods do their thing, go for it. I'll interrupt as needed when issues arise.

Smith update in process

The next day, you and Kalat head to the craftsmen's district to inspect the smithy.

Burly men are unloading horse carts of ore into furnaces, while others are pumping the bellows. A master smith is pounding out a spearhead while his apprentices hold the metal just right on the anvil. In the back, a woman is counting out cords of wood while a scribe keeps tally. When the workers see you, the frenzy of activity stops--just for a moment. Then the master smith grumbles and starts beating the spearhead again by himself as his assistants stare slackjawed.

The woman comes to meet you, prostrating herself before you. "My Lord! It is an honor for you to visit. My name is Elba, and I manage the smithy."

"I've come to see how you all are doing. I know my order is keeping you busy."

"We've been working night and day keeping the fires running for you. Poor Arnold--the master you see over there--he's been working himself to death. But we've started to make progress. We've made over 50 spearheads so far!"

Only 50? Your heart sinks. It's been over a week now, and they've only made 50?

"Are you working at full capactity right now?"

"As much as we can. We're trying to scrounge up as much ore as possible right now. Then there's the wood to fuel the furnace, smelting the ore, preparing the molds. Lots to do."

"Is there anything I can help with?"

"Well, most of our ore is the low quality stuff our villages bring in. We wouldn't have to spend nearly as much time on refining if we could find a better source. Also, we only have Arnold as our master smith. It's hard to work much faster right now. If we had another trained smith, we might be able to get more done."

1/2

>>36204777
This post was me, sorry!

Kalat interjects. "Remember, Lord, that Kondar was the one who discovered the secret of smithing. Arnold is the son of one of Kondar's smiths who escaped after the invaders disappeared."

"Is that so?"

"It is." Arnold steps forth. He's a tall man, wiry and thin, with an enormous handlebar mustache. He's drenched in sweat and soot. "My da told me how Kondar worked his smiths day and night in the Great Fire around Him. He ran away to give me a better life. I'm not so sure he succeeded. There's no Great Fire here, but I'm still working day and night!"

Elba gasps. "Arnold! You're speaking to our God!"

"And our God is speaking to me. He wants to know why his spears are taking so long, and I'm telling Him why. Now I want to know what He's going to do about it."

How should you handle Arnold's impudence?
>He's understandably frustrated. Acknowledge his concerns.
>He's understandably frustrated, but that's no way to speak to you. Issue a minor punishment--what?
>Smith or not, no one talks to you like that! Strike him down where he stands.


>Ask Reah, Klabat, and Kondar about purchasing higher quality ore. Will probably cost the last of your surplus wine stocks.
>Provide Arnold with an artist's inspiration, enhancing his speed and giving him the drive to work even longer hours. Costs a moderate amount of belief.
>Something else?
>No changes to the smithy for now. You can't spare the belief or wine right now.

Going to take a short break for ~30 minutes. Will return afterwards.

Ugh. Sorry, for clarity, that's TWO votes to make there. One as to how to handle Arnold, and the other as to what to do about the smithy.

>>36204505
In that case, let's ease back. We can refine the militia and response times, in case of a surprise attack, but we should be well enough armed to withstand an assault long enough to call in some allies.

>>36204802
>>He's understandably frustrated. Acknowledge his concerns.
>Something else?
Advertise classes of smithing at the temple, hosted by Arnold. We'll attend, and even if most of them will be watching us, some will learn. also, say that smiths are desperately needed at this time.

>>36204802
>He's understandably frustrated. Curse him with sobriety until 300 spearheads are done.

>>36204930
Ease back o the smithing. We might need some other things, but our city is fairly well balanced. Besides, Kondar.

>>36204930
This as well as perhaps helping yourself, this would greatly increase peoples morale even though its technically out of our domain

>>36204802
Read this thread going to go back and read the older ones. So I have a better idea of things.
>>He's understandably frustrated. Acknowledge his concerns.
>No changes to the smithy for now. You can't spare the belief or wine right now.

I think we should focus on increasing our trade in some way.

>He's understandably frustrated. Acknowledge his concerns. (2/3)
>Ease back off the smithing (3/5)

You clap Arnold on the back and firmly shake his hand. "Arnold, you're doing damn fine work. I know you're under pressure for now. Do the work you can, and don't kill yourself. I don't want you to hate me."

You turn to Elba, who's regained her composure. You shake your head. "Resources are scarce right now. I can't spare anything to upgrade the smithy. I'll leave Arnold to his work and his apprentices. Hopefully one of them will be able to pick up some of the slack."

You take a moment to thank everyone at the smithy for their work, then depart with Kalat in tow.

I'm hearing some rumblings about trade now, which was the other focus of this session, so we'll start there next. Update inbound.

>>36204802
Sucks that I'm late, probably too late for my vote to count either.

>He's understandably frustrated, but that's no way to speak to you. Issue a minor punishment--what?
Who would respect a god that accepts back talk? We don't have as firm a grip on our people as we think we do.
Scar his right hand as a reminder of his place he'll see whenever he works, and give him a simple lecture on manners.

>Ask Reah, Klabat, and Kondar about purchasing higher quality ore. Will probably cost the last of your surplus wine stocks.
We're the second wealthiest city, we can afford something as important as this. We'll want to play the diplomacy game to get ahead in the long run, and military strength is essential to that.

>>36206040
No worries. There's always next year's harvest and belief to spend.

You and Kalat return to the temple. There in a sprawling office at the base of the hill you find the City Scribes. They occupy a long hall packed wall to wall with desks. Couriers run back and forth with scrolls, parchment, and fresh ink. The scratching of quills mixes with the thumping stamps of your seal to create one of your favorite songs.

Kalat grabs a harried-looking woman in a long robe. "Lord, this is Marti, Chief Scribe." She bows at the waist and awaits your questions.

"How are our finances looking?"

"This year's wine production was average. The merchants have finished most of their yearly deliveries without losing any supply to bandits. This year's harvest produced no surplus. So that's your income."

"In terms of expenses, they're a little high this year. The merchants themselves handle most of the expenditures, picking up necessary trade goods for the city. But we've spent some of our surplus wine stocks on more armor. In addition, the Temple Guard is requiring additional supplies for patrols out in the field."

"Overall, we expect you to earn a sizable amount of Tribute this year, much like past years."

"My only financial concern right now, Lord, is our surplus wine supplies. They are almost empty, with perhaps one more caravan load left. I expect an average harvest this year, with no surplus. If we were to have a bad harvest, we would fall behind on our trade commitments. It doesn't help that some of our laborers are working to build a road to Bridgetown right now instead of working in the fields."

>Questions for the Scribe?

>>36206415
"We can compensate on our commitments when the roads are finished. Short term loss, longer term gain."

"Speaking of, what are our commitments again?"

>>36206415
>Questions for the Scribe?
Is there any way to boost our harvest and work on our existing agricultural infrastructure, we are after all the God of the Party, also is there any way to boost tourism seeing as we are the Party God

>>36206415
>>Questions for the Scribe?
What if we reinvested Belief into the harvest to improve next years quality/quantity

>>36206415
Is literacy widespread in our and the other cities? Do the scribes make copies of books and epics for trade and tribute?

>>36206415
What's the best vintage we have?

>>36206415
What do you think is in our best interest with out hurting our long term?

>>36206512
>"Speaking of, what are our commitments again?"

Klabat and Reah both expect 3 shipments of wine every year. Kondar 1, Odon 1, Gurpal 1, and Naxos 1. Total: 10 shipments. These shipments should be maintained every year, or we might suffer diplomatic repercussions. If we have surplus, Klabat is willing to buy 1 extra shipment, if we wish.

Any extra shipments of wine are aged in our warehouses, and slightly increase in value every year. A ten year old shipment of wine might be worth twice that of a fresh shipment.

>>36206544
>Is there any way to boost our harvest and work on our existing agricultural infrastructure, we are after all the God of the Party, also is there any way to boost tourism seeing as we are the Party God

>>36206600
>What if we reinvested Belief into the harvest to improve next years quality/quantity

Kalat answers this one. "You can invest Belief every year into your fields if you wish, oh Lord. You could do this to improve all of your harvests, but you are best at improving your grapevines."

Marti nods. "Your laborers already spend a good deal of the year maintaining the farms and vines. They could invest more time, at the risk of the harvest suffering."

Kalat remarks. "Ooooor, you could talk to Odon! She is the god of waterways, after all. She could help improve your irrigation system, I bet!

As for tourism, that's a tricky one. We don't currently allow travels to enter the City. They must stay outside the walls. Every god does this to prevent spies. You could let foreigners in, I suppose. Your people wouldn't like it very much, though."

>>36206614
>Is literacy widespread in our and the other cities? Do the scribes make copies of books and epics for trade and tribute?

Marti steps up again. "Every city has scribes., but Gurpal has the most. Gurpal is the only god who can read and write, as the god of writing, of course."

1/2

>>36206728
We could let in VIPs. Art galleries on the edges of the city, places for foreign nobles to come in and view the best art in a city of artists.

For a fee, with an escort, and only an exclusive number.

>>36206728
Me again. 4chan x isn't storing my name, for some reason.

"It is said that everyone in Gurpal's city can read. Can you imagine? As for written stories, I've never heard of any. They are passed down as spoken word. I don't see the point in writing them down, though. Only a few people would be able to read them!"

>>36206619
>What's the best vintage we have?

"Well, right now, we only have freshly made wine, unaged. But, given a few years, we can make some truly smooth red wine with our Cabernet and Merlot blends. Our Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre blend is very popular as well.

>>36206723
>What do you think is in our best interest with out hurting our long term?

"Oh Lord, that's hard for me to say. I worry about this year's harvest, and next year's harvest, and next decade's harvest. But you must worry about next century's harvest as well. I will say that it would be hard to maintain more agriculture right now without a larger population. With more people, you could support more farmland."

Marti considers the question further. "Some gods like Klabat and Kondar don't grow much food at all, trading for food instead. That's good business for Reah and Odon, who sell extra fish and grain, respectively. Right now, we grow all our own food, but not much surplus. We could always specialize in wine, I guess. But then we'd have to rely on Reah or Odon for more food."

Do you want to do anything to improve the harvest at this time?
>Invest a moderate amount of belief to improve this year's grape harvest.
>Invest a large amount of belief to improve the grain, livestock, and grape harvest.
>Order your laborers to focus on cultivating more vines, at the cost of increasing the risk of a failed harvest. (Currently at double the risk of failed harvest, this choice would triple risk.)
>Talk to Odon about buying improvements in irrigation.


Vote 2:
>Suggestions on tourism?

>Other suggestions?

>>36206894
I would say, it best to keep them out.
Till We can create a village for foreigners to visit.
Art/taverns/dance halls. The best of a good time all in once place..Just out side of our city.
So spies won't be an issue. Make sure, our guards seem excessively abundant, For foreigners, so it seems like we have guards to spare. Also to make sure there are no thieves and what not in our paradise on the world.

>>36206968
>>Talk to Odon about buying improvements in irrigation.

>>36206978
No, because if something happens in this village, it can get pinned on us. If our city were sacked for artwork, the God(s) doing the sacking would suddenly have a treasure trove of belief they could gain from the spoils.

>>36206968
>>Invest a moderate amount of belief to improve this year's grape harvest.
>Talk to Odon about buying improvements in irrigation.
>Suggestions on tourism?
Have art classes, have exhibits, charge people to work on our farms, maybe we can host a party that costs a fortune to attend every year.

>>36206968
>Invest a large amount of belief to improve the grain, livestock, and grape harvest.
As long as we're extra careful, we'll never have to fight Kondar ourselves. Also, I don't want to depend on Odon or Reah in any way or be in their debt, it'll make political maneuvering much harder.

>Suggestions on tourism?
Forget about it. It would hardly be a dent in our income right now.
Anyone knowing exactly how vulnerable we are would be a disaster.

>>36206968
>Talk to Odon about buying improvements in irrigation.
We need to keep as much belief as possible

>Suggestions on tourism?
We could hold wine tours for the wealthy of other cities outside our city, or open up taverns in town and advertise our partying prowess.

>Other suggestions?
Does our city or towns produce anything else of value?

>>36206968
>>Invest a large amount of belief to improve the grain, livestock, and grape harvest.

We can't have the first harvest after our return go bust. We need them to know good times are ahead.

2/4 for Odon
2/4 for large belief.

I'll talk to Odon next, and you guys can finalize decision after.
It would be possible to build a village immediately outside the city's walls to visit, if that's what you want.

Tourism vote:
>No visitors, period.
>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)
>Above, plus VIPs may view artwork inside the city. (May possibly piss off your people. Moderate possibility of spies.)
>All outsiders may visit inside the city. (Most likely to piss off your people. Most likely to allow in spies.)

>>36207163
How much will the outside-the-city cost?

>>36206968
>>Talk to Odon about buying improvements in irrigation.
would be a permanent solution, to a permanent issue we have.
using belief takes away from our power. And only solves the issue this time around.
I wouldn't mind using it for Odon if it permanently leaves us with a surplus ever year. Giving us a chance to age our wine and increase population.

We should have a talk with Gurpal. Surely we must have the most talented poets, so trading the the best books in the world would likely gain us a fast ally.

Also putting our scribes to work for more annual tribute can't possibly be a bad thing.

>>36207163
>No visitors, period.
I say we can ease up after this business with Kondar is dealt with. We're practically at war right now.

>>36207192
No option would cost a considerable amount. You'd set up some paintings in a nice field, set out some wine, have a picnic. Fun times.

>>36207163
>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)
Is there possibility to build the village near our border to totally eliminate potential spies

>>36207163
>>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)
cost to this?

>>36207246
Wy not set it up in Bridgetown then? We're building roads there anyways.

>>36207163
>>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)

>>36207163
>>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)

>>36207272
i like where your head is at we could do this and make loads of money and belief, partying fuels us

we need to advertise though

>>36207272
sounds good too
Would be great to have a new revenue stream. other than wine.
Having nobles of other cities come to our town.
Possibltiy of merchants/nobles paying small tributes while there. Increasing our belief as well.

>>36207329
Our traders can take care of that. They can just deliver a message on our behalf to the other cities' trader, those traders can come check it out themselves and spread the news across their cities.

>>36207272
That's a good idea. It would leave our secret weakness out.

>Exhibits and parties outside the city. (Less likely to piss off your people. Slight possibility of spies.)

You're the god of Art, and Art belongs to the people. It could hardly hurt to bring out some of the nicer paintings and make a bit of gold on the side. It's also another opportunity to sell some of your wine.

Who knows? With a bit of work you might be able to become the God of Parties officially as well.

You're not quite sure where to plan these parties, though. Bridgetown is a very travelled village, but doesn't really offer the amenities that your city could provide. In addition, you'd have to leave all the art there, outside your immediate control. If something were to happen, you're not sure you could respond in time. Right outside the city, though, and your art would be safe.

>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)
>Set up the displays near the city gates. (No chance of art being damaged. Less immediate traffic. Increased chance of spying.)

>>36207272
Hell, we can deal with the discontent of the villagers by showing up ourselves using the shrine. If we personally entertain visitors every once in a while, foreigners could be seen as a positive thing! Pavlovian and response and shit.

>>36207441
>>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)
Also, leave some of our best to guard it.

>>36207441
>>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)

I say it's about time we add more people to our temple guard. And have them set up a small base there. in the future. Having say 50 guards there, should make for close to no loss of damage.

>>36207441
>Set up displays in Bridgetown
This is just a good decision, and its a good idea to officially morph into god of Parties. Also we could get some conscripted Guards

>>36207441
>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)
We could assign a small (like 4-6 people) garrison to the village to watch over it. Give them flashy ceremonial armor so they don't come off as intimidating. Without bothering our blacksmiths anymore, we could have artists volunteer to decorate normal armor and even make the guards part of the exhibit.

>>36207441
>>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)
We're improving the guard there anyways, right?

>>36207441
whats our funds looking like, and about how much do we make per shipment?
my bad if this has been answered still reading older threads.

Meanwhile, you call for an audience with Odon, who appears before you as a rippling ball of water.

"Virus. What can the god of water do for the god of the vine?"

You elect to ignore her overreach as the god of water and move on to your question.

"I'm thinking of expanding my wine production, but I could use some help. What would it take for you to lend your aid with my irrigation system?"

The sphere ripples intensely for a few moments.

"I'll improve all of your irrigation if you promise me all of the resulting surplus wine for the next century."

"Oh, is that all then?"

"Don't get snarky with me. You know that's still worth it in the long run, and it will improve the rest of your crops as well. Don't fuck with me, though. You start missing payments, and you might just find a tidal wave crashing down and wiping out all of your waterworks."

>Deal
>No deal. Instead, invest a large amount of belief in the harvest.
>No deal. Do nothing at this time.
>>36207606
>We're improving the guard there anyways, right?

Not that I know of. All of your Temple Guard save a token honor guard are out patrolling for bandits. You could recall any number of them you wish, but you currently have no extra guards to post to Bridgetown.


>Set up the displays in Bridgetown. (higher risk of art being damaged or stolen. More immediate traffic. Low chance of spying.)

You give the orders to Kalat to prepare some of your finest artworks for shipment. You consider posting extra guards there, as well.

>No extra guard there.
>Post a token honor guard.
>Recall 50 men from patrol to guard Bridgetown.
>Recall 100 men from patrol to guard Bridgetown.
>Recall all of your men from patrol to guard Bridgetown.

>>36207562
I'd be more comfortable with 10-15 guards, but this is something I'd be willing to spend a small amount of belief on. Cursing anyone who steals from the exhibit.

>>36207700
"It's still bullshit and you know it. I could trial and error the whole thing for less cost than that myself.

20% of Surplus shipments for the next two centuries.

>>36207700
>>36207758
This and
>Recall 20 men from patrol to guard Bridgetown.
50 seems a bit much.

>>36207700
>No deal. Instead, invest a large amount of belief in the harvest.
Ha ha, no way.

>Recall 10 men
The way I figure it, they'd just have to deal with vandals and rough housers. Just a tiny few to rotate guarding the exhibit specifically would be fine. I don't anticipate that many people going out to travel just for this.

>>36207723
I think the threat of getting stabbed with a spear is enough. We could probably put a curse on anything particularily valuable I guess.

>>36207700
>No deal. Instead, invest a large amount of belief in the harvest.
Either this or >>36207758 we need to boost crop yield somehow


>Post a token honor guard.
We only need a few guys to stand guard

>>36207811
I can get behind 20.

>>36207830
Would you only have 10 people on the mona lisa? We're turning Bridgetown into a mini Louvre.

Also, curse the exhibits so that anyone who is not a 'blessed of Virus' who moves the exhibits is cursed with having their location known by any temple guard nearby?

>>36207700
"We both know you're pver reaching with this.
You want want me to negotiate, and you know I will win. lets save us both some time and I will be generous with 50% of my surplus for the next century. I could work on the problem and find an solution to this in less than 2 years if I wanted to and completely cut you out.
I brought this to you so we could make a deal, so that your people would enjoy their short time alive unlike you and me and praise you for your cunning to get them free wine"

>>36207693
>whats our funds looking like, and about how much do we make per shipment?

You know that you have a Temple with a spacious treasury in the vaults beneath, magnifying your strength. Knowing the full total would require a careful accounting, but you can feel every object there as if it were a part of yourself. You currently have a vast amount of wealth at your disposal, which greatly magnifies your miracles. You know that without your wealth, you would likely already be entirely drained of belief from your two actions.

You could spend this wealth if you wish, though it would deeply hurt you to part with it.

As for your year to year finances, you receive 8 shipments of goods for the city each year, and 2 shipments of straight gold. The goods are sold back to your people by the merchants. The resulting gold is split between the merchants, craftsmen, noble backers, and the Temple. You estimate that you make more than almost any other god besides Klabat.

Again, I'm not trying to make things hard, just to keep things focused on the game and not the *system* behind it. Simply put, you are very rich, and it's a great help with your miracles. You make a good amount of money yearly, as well.

Odon post inbound

>>36207893
I'd keep the Mona Lisa in my temple as a valuable tribute. Bridgetown is going to be party central, not a ritzy museum.

>>36207932
this
>>36207926
Wait so if wealth gives us power, why arent we expanding all our industries, fishing, logging and pottery i would assume could become great sources of revenue, and therefore power

>>36207893
Were turning Bridgetown into Florida on spring break not the Louvre, were morphing into a party god, that's the plan

>"It's still bullshit and you know it. I could trial and error the whole thing for less cost than that myself.
>20% of Surplus shipments for the next two centuries.

The ripples grow stronger.

"Klabat's been teaching you well, I see. But has he taught you not to come back with an insulting offer? That's less than half of my original request. I'll do 1/3 of your surplus for two centuries, if you feel like spacing it out."

You discuss the offer with Kalat and your Chief Scribe.

Kalat is angry. "My Lord, Odon does not see nearly as much trade as you. 1/3 of your surplus would probably double her income!"

The Scribe is more circumspect. "But this deal would leave 2/3 of the surplus with us to do with as we please. We are still gaining, here."

>Deal
>No deal. Instead, invest a large amount of belief in the harvest.
>No deal. Do nothing at this time.

>>36208017
>>Deal
We will have more food. Increase in population.
also I say
>Post a token honor guard.
or have 50 men trained by the merchants. added permanently to our temple.

>>36208017
>>Deal
I say 20 guards.

>>36208017
I like this deal. It's a good compromise.

>>36207987
>Wait so if wealth gives us power, why arent we expanding all our industries, fishing, logging and pottery i would assume could become great sources of revenue, and therefore power

The Chief Scribe sighs. "In short, we're limited by the number of laborers, Lord. Between farming all of our food, the grape harvest, and wine production, there is little time for other industry. Our villages provide enough raw materials for our needs, but little more. We could expand into other areas in time as we grow."

"And grow we will!" laughs Kalat. He leans in close to whisper. "Growing means FUCKING, right Lord?"

>>36207987
If we could start importing some clay, pottery only seems natural for a city of artists. We should ask around for who has some rich deposits.

>>36208017
I guess we can do that, but our deal with Reah will probably lead to very bad things once Odon finds out.

>>36208017
>>36208091
Speaking of, is there anyway we could have plausible ignorance? Or do we feel what rides our rivers?

>>36208017
deal, we can manage with water on our side
>>36208064
really? 50?
>>36208089
Ok, sounds good we will stick to our domain of becoming party god then and I love Kalat, we need him to stay forever

I gotta run folks, might not be back before thread end. In case I'm not, suggestions: Party vintage (aged 5 years a batch for the exhibits), Temple Vintage (small belief + 20 years a batch, enhances Temple Guard), prime vintage (1 shipment a year, gets our special touch of moderate belief) and Premium Vintage (Aged 10 years for higher quality wine shipments)

Drunken Recall is a thing. If we teach our guardsmen while they are inebriated, they will remember it. It's an excellent way to keep passwords and combinations secret, if they are taught to guard while drunk. Enhances security against spies.

>>36208123
Not everyone knows exactly how weak we're.
Showing that we have enough guards to put on a small town would be a show of strength.
Otherwise,
1. We may lose items to being stolen/damaged
2. We lose face when things are stolen by other people.
3. We look like we can't defend a city under our protection.
Excessive > lack of
And As I said 50 new guards, trained by the merchants so long as they are still around. Since they can train in the time it takes us to build the city up for art and bar/redecorating/w.e
But not taking 50 from our already low number of guards.

>Deal

"Fantastic. Give me a week or so, and you'll see results. By the way, you might want to tell your people to stay back from the water for the next few days." It's hard to tell, but you think the water winked.

>Recall 20 men from patrol to guard Bridgetown.

You send a courier with the orders. You expect at this time now to have 10 guards at home, 20 at Bridgetown, and 170 in the field.


About 1 week later, an enormous tidal wave crashes against the shore. Instead of breaking, though, it *sticks* to the edge of the water and begins shaping it. Clogged canals are swept clean, and grooves are deepened. The channels widen and straighten, and several new artisanal wells gush forth into the air. New cropland is quickly flooded, then drained. Before long, your irrigation system is spotless, efficient, and almost doubled in size.

The farmers are awed at the sight, and rush down to the riverside to inspect their new lands.

It has now been 3 weeks since your resurrection. It's almost harvest time now.

>Suggestions for next actions to take? (will then put to a specific vote).

>>36208115
>Speaking of, is there anyway we could have plausible ignorance? Or do we feel what rides our rivers?

Our city lies directly next to the river. It would be exceedingly difficult for us to miss boats travelling past.

>>36208306
Talk to the rest of the gods!

>>36208241
alright well you have a point and we have to spend money to make money, the idea is growing on me

>>36208210
Can we implement this it would boost our legitimacy as well as give us a discern-able edge over other wineries

>Now that we have blessed water, we can focus our belief on other industries, anyone got ideas, I think pottery could be an option since we live on a flood plain

>>36201662
question. how do human, animal, and artwork sacrifice compare in terms of
>Power gained
Is 1 human = 3 cows? 7 cow? = 20 arts? 40?
Assuming averages of course, since there is internal variance between individuals.
>Duration of power gained
Is the power boost from all 3 permanent? is human sacrifice temporary power boost while art keeps on giving as long as it remains?
>Special qualities of the power
Are there things that can only be empowered by sacrifice while other things can only be empowered by art? or can everything be equally empowered by both?

Also, in regards to the need to spend a day to shift between alters. We can spread our mind to encompass our entire city, yes? I was wondering if perhaps a series of alters at regular intervals (say, 50 ft from each other) or maybe a series of houses, that sits along the road between the capital and the biggest village, would allow for such "fully encompass city" attempt to encompass both the city AND the village simultaneously through the same mechanism that lets us fully encompass the city instead of merely encompassing a X feet radius sphere around our temple in the city

Also, people have mentioned some ideas for custom wines for combat... I think the two best uses are:
1. miracle of getting the enemy shitfaced drunk. good luck fighting back
2. animate vines to entangle, trip, and restrain enemy soldiers.

>>36202740
>So, to recap the military situation: Reah and Odon are feuding. You and Klabat have agreed to let Reah sail her ships up Odon's river, and in exchange Reah has joined you in a defensive pact against Kondar. Kondar, god of Smithing, is stockpiling arms and armor. Meanwhile, Anhur, the Howling Demon and God of War, continues to exist.
Hey, idea here. all the local gods have a DEFENSIVE pack in regards to that fucker
what if we try and make an offensive pact instead, where we all attack him together and exterminate him for good?

>>36202740
>In addition, you have ordered your smithy to focus on producing simple bronze spears as quickly as possible to at least arm your men.
on that regard, it pisses some off that we basically forbade him from producing other stuff...
we should arrange to pay for both expanding his smithy, and getting him several apprentices and several more assistants (who do menial non smithing related stuff).
This will both let us maximize production rate, as well as allow him to make some trade goods. And also, we can focus on metal arts, since we are the god of arts. smithies can and do produce artistic products.

>>36203523
>I think I just picked a bad fucking time to start this.
you should make a twitter specifically for this quest and announce it there. so we can notice and go there.
as it is, we have to notice it on the front page or the catalog.

>>36208488

>>36201675
>3) Twitter @landofthegodsQ
>I will keep this updated with times for the next game, and I'll answer dms here, too.

>>36208376

Lot of stuff here. I'll try to answer as best I can without delving into the behind the scenes.

For starters, Sacrifice and Tribute both magnify your power. That is, you can spend less Belief to accomplish the same amount and also theoretically increase the maximum power you could put out if you expended all your Belief. There is no mechanic difference between the two, except for:

Sacrifice becomes part of you. Tribute is stored within your Temple. If Tribute were stolen or destroyed, you would lose this power, but Sacrifice cannot be taken away. However, it's hard to imagine a scenario in which a Temple with Tribute was lost, but the god was not killed.

Artwork is part of Tribute. Each piece of Art is a unique item that I roll for behind the scenes to determine its value as Tribute. None of your artists have currently created new Art, but you were given two statues of equal value in the intro.

Belief is separate. It flows from your people into you, where it is stored. The maximum amount of Belief you can hold is equal to a year's worth of your people's Belief. Belief is spent to cast miracles. When surplus Belief runs out, a god is relying on just the immediate flow of Belief he or she is getting at the time, taking a significant penalty to miraculous actions.

As for values of people versus cows versus art, it can vary. The average person might be worth 10 times that of a cow. A masterful piece of Art might be worth several people. Your yearly Tribute from the merchants is worth dozens of people.

As for the series of Altars, you're tied to one Altar at a time. You can travel to the edge of visual range of that Altar, which usually means distance to the horizon on a clear day, a little less on a rainy day.

(I'm secretly thinking about retconning it to make it so you can travel freely between altars. Upon further reflection, I don't see the immediate value in an Altar if you can't switch to it in time to respond to threats.)

1/2

>>36208424
We don't really have the military strength to beat him. Reah can help defend by deploying troops from the river and perhaps break up a seige, but she can't project her forces inland the same way. Our army is made of butterflies and marshmallows. Klabat is the only one in decent shape but he can't stand up to Kondar essentially on his own.

We need to diplomance our way out of this somehow, either by getting him to stop or getting more allies in on this.

>>36208210
>>36208353
>Can we implement this it would boost our legitimacy as well as give us a discern-able edge over other wineries

You consider the option and discuss the possibility of artistic branding to your vinters, who respond enthusiastically. They want to wait for next year's grape harvest before determining how much wine to devote to each line.

I'm really liking all the suggestions. I'm going to hold onto most of them for next session so that I can think a little bit more as to how to implement them and determine choices to offer.

For now, I think we'll start with this:
>Talk to the rest of the gods!


Pick 2 gods you want to talk to:
>Kondar
>Naxos
>Reah
>Klabat
>Odon
>Eschar
>Gurpal
>Anhur

Bonus points, tell me what you want to talk to them about.

God descriptions in case anybody didn't see them:
http://pastebin.com/PHUpSAzn

>>36208777
>Kondar
>Eschar

I'm curious if we can force Kondar into submission if we convince everybody to stop trading with him.

>>36208536
thank you, followed.

>>36208777
>Anhur
Anhur has a vast wealth of military knowledge he can share with you, and you need military advice.

>Klabat
Klabat is the master of Industry and we want to expand our artisan workshops anyway so its best to talk to him.

>Can I get my bonus points now or later

>>36208777
>>Eschar
>Klabat
Tell Eschar to prepare for a war, ask Klabat for some trading tips.
>>36208836
We CANNOT let Kondar know we think something's up. If something is up, we'll have the advantage of him thinking we thought he was unprepared, if nothing's up, he'll be insulted and that'll hurt relations.

>>36208644
So, if we had focused on an arts programme where artists create and gift art to the temple instead of the sacrifice lottery, we would have gotten the same (effectively) result?
... then again, its not like we can't do both.

>As for values of people versus cows versus art, it can vary. The average person might be worth 10 times that of a cow. A masterful piece of Art might be worth several people. Your yearly Tribute from the merchants is worth dozens of people.
So, if we ever end up sacrificing a devout artist who could have given us yearly art tribute, we massively lose out on power compared to having him provide us with art on a regular basis.

>>36208836
Oh, I forgot. I want to acquaint ourselves with them after our long absence. Ask them what's up, how they're doing, if they need any favors we could do for each other.

>>36208644
>As for the series of Altars, you're tied to one Altar at a time. You can travel to the edge of visual range of that Altar, which usually means distance to the horizon on a clear day, a little less on a rainy day.
Oho! so what we need is a massively tall spire temple. the taller the temple, the better?

>(I'm secretly thinking about retconning it to make it so you can travel freely between altars. Upon further reflection, I don't see the immediate value in an Altar if you can't switch to it in time to respond to threats.)
that is a good point. you can compensate for it with making it costly to maintain... or maybe, a basic alter takes a day to travel to, but an alter which is constantly being sanctified by a minimum of 10 priests can be instantly traveled to?
that limits the amount of alters we can simultaneously maintain in such a manner by introducing a cost

>>36208702
>We don't really have the military strength to beat him
Reread what I said. ALL the gods, not our 3 person pact.
Currently all the gods, even the feuding ones, have a pact to gang up on anhur whenever he tries to invade them.
I am saying get every single god around to gang up on him offensively.

>>36208777
Also when you get a chance could you look over my email, maybe respond tomorrow with some guidance

>>36208975
Maybe we can only travel when a priest is sanctifying it but when we do it's instant?

>>36208895
>Can I get my bonus points now or later

I for real came up with the best quest idea the other day that involves player participation with bonus points. It kills me that I don't have the time to run two at a time.

>>36208937
Both would be producing value. The sacrifices are more consistent, less like a windfall. You could do both, certainly.

>So, if we ever end up sacrificing a devout artist who could have given us yearly art tribute, we massively lose out on power compared to having him provide us with art on a regular basis.

Depends. The artist probably has a pretty valuable soul. Depends on how many art pieces you expect them to produce before dying. I'd recommend against sacrificing your new foreign artist, for that reason.

>>36208975
Taller temple would be better, yes. After a while, though, you'd still lose visibility just due to the air between you and your target.

I'm seeing 2 for Eschar, 2 for Klabat, 2 for Kondar. Updates inbound.

>>36208999
Oops, I thought you were talking about Kondar. My bad.

>>36209029
Pitch it in QTG or the IRC. It probably won't get run, but your idea will be out there.

>>36209062
It would require a specific knowledge base and possibly expose me to doxing. I'd probably have to run it myself. And I probably couldn't do it justice right now. A few years later, maybe.

>God of art
IDEA!
Martial arts for our troops. Something that focuses on both being effective AND looking cool. As an art it falls under our domain and lets us enhance our troops.
Heck, it can expand beyond the guard and to the general populace as well.
Basically, our people are like asians, everyone of them knows kung fu. (or rather, than is the end goal)

You start with Eschar. Kalat piles raisins high on the altar, although you spot him pocketing a few to eat later.

Seconds pass. "Are you sure you did the ritual correctly, Kalat?"

"As sure as I am of anything, master!"

"So not very sure, then?"

"Not at all, Lord."

You make Kalat go through all the motions again, without stealing raisins this time.

Minutes pass. You think you might have seen a flicker of green, just for a moment. But the feeling passes, and you remain alone.

"I am now moderately sure I didn't fuck it up, Lord!"

Kondar, Klabat inbound.

>>36207926
>You could spend this wealth if you wish, though it would deeply hurt you to part with it.
Two ideas here

1. Find artists whose quality of work is sufficiently high, and commission them to create temple artwork. Since the value of an art sacrifice varies by its quality, and top tier ones are worth multiple human sacrifices, I bet that basically paying a low tier artist ends up making you lose power. mid tier artists are a wash, creating artwork worth as much as the gold we paid them. And top tier produce art worth more than the gold we paid them. In essence such artists serve as "refineries" which transform wealth into more wealth.
2. I forgot

>>36209096
I don't know about effective in bronze-age warfare, but treating it like tai chi isn't a bad idea. Promotes strength, health, and discipline among our soldiers and conscripts. We'd have to figure out how to sell everyone on this, though.

>>36209155
>2. I forgot

Thanks, Kalat.

>>36209096
Anhur would hobostomp us if we even thought of saying that

>>36209029
That sounds cool, upsetting it couldn't be implemented

>>36209155
This except we could expand this to statues and pottery, this could go so well

>>36209200
Would he know? I assume we don't know every time grapes are grown or turned into wine.

I still think we should get our scribes working on recording epic ballads and stories. They'd probably work great as tribute if we let them embellish them with gold leaf and such. Something so time consuming must be really valuable.

>>36209155
2. spend it only and specifically on things that permanently increase our yearly income. like buying tools from other gods, paying to construct granaries, hiring workers from other gods to construct roads, etc. I was thinking buying real estate but that probably is silly. And investing in trade seems to be focusing too much on stuff that isn't our domain.

>>36209252
You're unsure. You certainly are aware of every single grape vine grown near your city, and Naxos claims he would know if you started mass sacrifice. But you're not sure if grapevines are grown elsewhere. At least, you don't sense any.

It's a good question. Does Odon feel her entire river? Does Klabat know the details of every trade? What about Kondar's armor?

>>36209265
There's already a god of writing.

>>36208644
>You can travel to the edge of visual range of that Altar, which usually means distance to the horizon on a clear day, a little less on a rainy day.
huh. is that the vision range of us or of an average human?
I am asking because, what if we mount giant wide angle telescopes or other such tricks to increase visibility range.
also, would that mean that fog can be used offensively? enemy comes in with a portable altar, someone calls in a super heavy fog in a 10 foot sphere around enemy's alter limiting the vision range to 5 feet from the alter. then slaughtering his troops unopposed, by the time he dispells the fog, its just a few soldiers and an altar?

>>36209252
If your a God you have to declare your domain, and martial arts is his domain, so he would know without a doubt
>>36209265
This, as it would still fuel us with belief as literature is art is its poems and shit

>>36208017
>We good at cutting deal
>Just made a deal that increases our income
you know, we should have deals like that with ALL the gods. it would be broken as hell because the other gods probably DON'T have that many deals going on with each other.
The net gain for us of 10 such deals would be massive

>>36209303
And we're the god of art. Recording our people's songs is well within our domain. We can start popularizing the practice and create playwrites.

>>36209331
>If your a God you have to declare your domain, and martial arts is his domain, so he would know without a doubt
his domain is war, not martial ARTS.

also, there is a ton of overlap, and that causes contention. After all, god of rivers and goddess of seas are now fighting because both claim to be the god of water.

>>36209326
To the first part, neither you nor your people have any concept of a telescope. I will reserve ruling on that until you do.

To the second, you're just as capable of dispelling the fog as they are at putting it up. So it would come down to who succeeds at what.


>>36209303
>There's already a god of writing.
>Is martial arts war or art?

It sounds to me like you're running into the same differences in interpretation that Reah and Odon have over the river...

Update still inbound

You tell Kalat to try for Kondar instead.

An enormous flame fills the room, ghostly light dancing on the walls. Within, you see a proud warrior, clad in all bronze, with just his eyes visible through the helmet. They burn intensely as they stare at you. His voice bellows from within the armor's depths:

"Virus! I was wondering when you might come and pay your respects!

"Kondar. Your armor looks splendid. How goes things?"

"Never better! My smiths grow ever more skilled, and their furnaces burn ever brighter."

"I've heard from Klabat that you're not selling your smiths' work anymore, though."

"Not to Klabat, at any rate. That fucking middleman thinks he deserves a cut from every trade."

"But to others?"

"Listen, I don't have any quarrel with you. If you want to buy some armor for yourself, and you're willing to keep it quiet, I have no problem selling to you. Just remember that when others start talking shit, yeah?"

"So if I were to send you a shipment of wine..."

"We could deal. SO LONG AS KLABAT DOESN'T FIND OUT."

>Trade your last surplus wine for 100 sets of armor?
>Enchant your last surplus wine for a moderate amount of belief, and trade it for 1000 sets of armor?
>No deal right now. "I'll take it into consideration."

>>36209479
>>Trade your last surplus wine for 100 sets of armor?
Big trades might attract too much attention.

>>36209479
>No deal right now. "I'll take it into consideration."

Ask if this quarrel between them can be resolved. We could probably convince Klabat to take a lesser share if Kondar will start trading again. He seems like a bro.

>>36209479
>>Enchant your last surplus wine for him blessing our smiths.

>>36209479
>>Enchant your last surplus wine for a moderate amount of belief, and trade it for 1000 sets of armor?

>>36209479
I am very interested. But I already sold off most of my stock this year.
I am definitely buying, but I will need to get back to you about whether its now or next year.

>>36209551
I can deal with this.
or just a simple trade of our surplus for 1-2 master smiths.

>>36209479
>No deal right now. "I'll take it into consideration."

>>36209397
Maybe we can talk to Gurpal and cooperate. Either he sends scribes to us or we send storytellers to him and we each get a copy of every work. It would probably be great tribute for the both of us and open relations.

>>36209569
I don't see why he would give us those.
Would you give him the secret of wine making for some armor?
Now, if you wanted to trade some master winemakers for master smithes... MAYBE... and that is still a hard sell.

You counter.

"Anything you could do to help my own smiths? There's some enchanted wine in it for you."

"Hey, FUCK YOU! You think I'd call you up and ask you to help me grow wine? This isn't a charity I'm running here. I'm not teaching a man to fucking fish when I can sell him my goddamn fish instead! If you want my armor, take it, but don't try to fuck me and call it a handjob."

He vanishes into a roiling black cloud of smoke.

Updates inbound

>>36209657
Well that's not good.

>>36209602
we could perhaps trade works of writing for musical works, it would be to both our benefits
>>36209657
That couldve gone better

>>36209657
DAMMIT!
>>36209632
I fucking told you so!

>>36209657
there were two people towards this.. Myself inculded.
while 2 people said no deal..
and seems like you just gave us the shit end of the stick.
i'd appreciate you take votes and tally them.

>>36209830
Nothing has been lost. The deal still stands, if you want to make it.

I counted 2 for offering the counter, 2 for no deal, one for trading unenchanted wine, one for trading enchanted wine, and one for peacemaking. Ties are hard. I try to resolve them as quickly as possible without actively going against someone's wishes. In this case I chose the option that would give a more interesting response, while not cutting off future options. I'm sorry that my solution upset you. DM me on twitter or email me and we can discuss it more.


>Klabat

Finally, you call up Klabat.

"Hey, buddy! Your merchants just dropped by. I sent them home loooaded with armor. What's up?"

"How's trade going for you?"

"Not great. You know about Kondar already, but now Odon's holding out on me. She wants TWICE the amount of paper as last year for the same amount of grain! Unbelievable."

"Tell her that you'll buy fish from Reah instead, then."

"And then she'll ask how Reah's getting her fish to market, and we'll be fucking screwed, now won't we?"


>"Nah, it's easy. I'll buy the fish from Reah and ship it to you myself. Odon's beef is with Reah, not me."
>Other plans?
>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"

>>36210001
>Nothing has been lost. The deal still stands, if you want to make it.
I thought we lost respect with him.

>>36210001
>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"
I would rather NOT get into this mess in such a manner.

>>36210001
>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"
I really don't like working behind Odon's back when we're depending on her for our fields. We're already helping him out, it's of no benefit to break our backs for him.

>>36210001
>>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"

>>36210001
>>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"
Never make the offer. Let him squirm to us. He already owe's us. So, anything we might ask for should at least be on the table.

Lets us think about it, and we're still not agreeing to anything yet.

>>36210001
>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"

>>36210114
by that i mean that RIGHT NOW odon's beef is with reah, but we can end up with it being with us too

>>36210142
>when we're depending on her for our fields
she already irrigated our fields.
Looking at it as a third party, yes it'd be pretty much a greyish area. But hey, The money to be made here, could make up for the surplus we're going to be losing over the next 200 years..

>>36206415
>"My only financial concern right now, Lord, is our surplus wine supplies. They are almost empty, with perhaps one more caravan load left. I expect an average harvest this year, with no surplus. If we were to have a bad harvest, we would fall behind on our trade commitments. It doesn't help that some of our laborers are working to build a road to Bridgetown right now instead of working in the fields."
Isn't farming done in seasons, where there is a lot more work on some seasons and lot less in others?
Couldn't we time it so that road construction only takes place during the more idle periods of the year?

Also. hey, which god might offer populace as laborers? I think we could actually pay money to one to lend us their laborers to build the road, so that ours focus on their existing work

>>36210259
She could destroy our fields if we piss her off, that's what I meant by depend.

>>36210259
>she already irrigated our fields.
She also warned us that if we fuck with her, we would get a tsunami that wipes out our crops instead

>>36210287
Klabat loaned out his soldiers when he didn't need them, we can probably contract him to build our roads, though I don't really want to pay for that right now.

>>36210287
Oi were the God of Art and Wine, just tell Kalat to tell the people that we want them to procreate, it'll take awhile but it wont cost anything
>>36210312
>this just because she gave it to us dosen't mean she cant take it away

>>36210292
Yes.
>>36210312
She did that as a deal.
She would Tsunami our feilds, if we missed payments of our deal.
Witch makes sense, not holding up our end of the deal = shity person.
Doing a deal that we haven't been told not to do. Doesn't make us a a deal breaker.
While not the "right" thing to do. That doesn't equate to going back on a deal we both agreed to.

>I thought we lost respect with him.
Maybe. Kondar's a pretty practical guy.

>"Man, that really sucks. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help, yeah?"

"Sure, sure. Thanks for the idea, anyway."

He ends the conversation. You and Kalat are alone again.


As night falls and Kalat retires to bed, you spread your mind out over the City again. It feels so soft, so loving, so safe. The walls are covered in yummy frescoes, and the rooftops with delicately carved weathervanes. You flit in and out of taverns, dancing among the lights and laughter. The whole city is your party.

Your party, yes. With a little more effort, and a long stretch of time, it's not hard to imagine yourself placing that crown on your head. The Party God. The Ultimate Bro. The...

You're broken from your reverie by a blinding light coming from your artists' residence. Someone is having a flash of inspiration!


>END
And I'll leave you with that. It's getting late for me, and I have work tomorrow. I'm tentatively planning for Wednesday, November 19 at 2200 UTC, 5PM EST. I'll take some of your ideas and work them into votes for you guys.

I'll be hanging around this thread to answer questions for a little while longer. Feedback is appreciated! Tell it to me here, DM me on twitter, or email me.

>>36210418
>She would Tsunami our feilds, if we missed payments of our deal.
She would tsunami our fields if we made an enemy out of her. whether it is reneging on a deal or openly supporting her enemies against her.

>>36210483
>You're broken from your reverie by a blinding light coming from your artists' residence. Someone is having a flash of inspiration!
oh sweet
>END
argh, cliffhanger!

>>36210334
>Klabat loaned out his soldiers when he didn't need them, we can probably contract him to build our roads, though I don't really want to pay for that right now.
Why not, its pay money to get money. Heck, we have FIVE roads to build and we are only building one right now. Because we can't afford the manpower for the rest.

One of our greatest strengths is that we are the second richest god around. Why hoard the money? think of it like a 4x strategy game, you got all that money sitting in your coffers...

>>36209200
>>Pay artists gold to make art for net power profit
>This except we could expand this to statues and pottery, this could go so well
what do you mean by "except". statues and pottery ARE art.
in fact, I was thinking of statues being the ideal primary for of art to hoard, because they last the longest. painting's lose their pigments. And pottery is not as durable.
I guess also things like mosaics, jewelry, etc.

>>36210460
I don't want to pay more because he'd ask us to get him food from Reah then just a normal transaction. That's too steep a cost and our roads aren't a priority.

Besides, the more we spend, the weaker we are in the short term; it's like having your units explore without leaving a garrison to stop barbarians.

>>36210483
Awesome thread, thanks so much. How do you like QMing?

>>36210460
>Why hoard the money? think of it like a 4x strategy game, you got all that money sitting in your coffers...
The more we hoard the more powerfull we are.
Think of us like a dragon, in the sense the more of gold/valuables we have the more powerfull the dragon is.
>>36210489
except we're not dealing with an enemy of hers. She is trying to ask for x2 the price. of her normal goods.
Heck we may end up with a surplus of food our selves, with our new irrigation.

>>36210483
thanks for running, see you next time.

>>36210587
It's so satisfying to get responses in real time. I've run play by posts in the past, and I'd only get to update a few times per week. This game would have taken *forever* just to get to where it is now.

It's also a rush to get posts out in real time, and I wish the post limit could be longer than 2K characters.

My only problem is trying to find a solid block of time to dedicate to the threads.

>>36210556
>I don't want to pay more because he'd ask us to get him food from Reah then just a normal transaction.
Not necessarily Klabat owe's us a favor. "anything" according to him. Would be a good way to call in that chip.
Also reading through the older threads slowly..I am assuming the roads to our towns will increase trade, and basically every export of the towns and villages we connect to?

>>36210593
>The more we hoard the more powerfull we are.
The more we have TOTAL, the more powerful we are.
Hoarding is the act of never spending any of it. Not even when spending it earns you more than you spent
You spend the money now, you make it back with interest later.

>except we're not dealing with an enemy of hers
Not klabat, reah
the suggestion was that we buy fish from reah, then ship them to klabat on odons waterways, to undercut odon's bargaining position with her. Underb the assertion that she will not allow reah to ship over her waters, but will allow us to do the same. When we are trading openly with her enemy to help her enemy undercut her on a sale to klabat.

>>36210676
It will certainly make trade easier from the villages, yes. There are no set roads from City to City.


>the suggestion was that we buy fish from reah, then ship them to klabat on odons waterways, to undercut odon's bargaining position with her. Underb the assertion that she will not allow reah to ship over her waters, but will allow us to do the same. When we are trading openly with her enemy to help her enemy undercut her on a sale to klabat.

This is the correct explanation. Hopefully that was clear when I wrote it, sorry.

>>36210718
whens next sesh man

>>36210676
I forget, we have a favor? Hm, I guess that wouldn't be so bad, assuming he has the labor to spare.

>>36210778
Wednesday, November 19 at 2200 UTC, 5PM EST

>>36210718
Does everyone speak the same language? Is that something we'll have to deal with?

>>36210718
>It will certainly make trade easier from the villages, yes. There are no set roads from City to City.
huh, that actually might be something worth working on too.
make our merchant's lives easier

>>36210814
two things,
1. thanks so much for the rp
2. I look forward to spitballing more via email, hit me up in you want to bounce anything around

>>36210687
>The more we have TOTAL, the more powerful we are.
>Hoarding is the act of never spending any of it. Not even when spending it earns you more than you spent
>You spend the money now, you make it back with interest later.
I know. I am saying that when we hoard we're more powerfull. I didn't say it wouldn't be wiser to pay for anything.
I myself am wouldn't be opposed to this.
If we we're willing to. I am down to spend a massive amount of money, paying for all the roads to be built.
And worry about increasing trade and efficiency in our city.

>>36210687
You're right. Forgot about Reah for some reason.

We could spend the money make the roads.
Invest our time into increasing farmlands/vineyards to get more money out of wine and focus on increasing our numbers.

>>36210851
Everyone speaks the same language in Punt. Foreigners won't, though.

>>36210483
Will you write more short stories like >>36201662 ? I really like it.

>>36211106
Thanks! I'll try to. They take more time than just my

INFODUMP

UPDATE NOTES, ROLL IN BACKGROUND

MORE INFODUMP

format though. So probably at the beginning and ends of things.

>>36208210
This anon is back.

Another idea: Sacrificial Vintage.

We are empowered by drinking the blessed wine that our sacrifices throw themselves into, right? I want one, JUST ONE, bottle taken from this. A simple, unassuming bottle. Elegant in its normality.

We shall send it directly to Klabat, as a gift, and ask his opinion on the wine. His, not his taster's. No clue what it might do to Mortals.

If he likes it, we take two more bottles. One, we offer to Anhur, as payment for one of his better combatants coming to train our temple guard in proper ways to fight. The other, we offer to Kondar, in exchange for an amount of mithril.

>>36211277
Would that cost a lot of belief and not work on Gods the same way it works on mortals

>>36211277
I'm for trying it.

>>36211317
Experiments. That's what this is about. FOR SCIENCE

wait, does that work if it's a god saying it? Let's ask Kalat.

>>36211317
It shouldn't cost any Belief, you're just losing a portion of the Sacrifice in the wine.

I'll put it to a vote next update, but I like the idea a lot.