King Simulator 2013For a recap of the game's events, click here:
Spoiler
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/011_c.png)
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/022_c.png)
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/039_b.png)
And on the fourth day...
The King's men returned from the east, bringing with them a secretive NOBLEMAN.
The King, suspicious of the man's motives, offered a handful of knights to escort the NOBLEMAN to the coast, while keeping an eye on the man.
A skillful artisan then offered her services to the King, promising to craft a fine new suit for the King's pleasure.
The King offered to pay a 40 silvers for the dress after some haggling, and the artisan promised to provide the dress soon.
Dennis of the Traders brought news of a distant village to the north, one in dire need of food. The King was kind and allowed the villagers to keep their coin, offering them free food and asking only that the villagers build a lookout tower to help guard the borders of the realm.
Next the King met with Broomhilde, the sole inheritor of the Yesteryear family fortune. Broomhilde offered to marry the king in matrillinear unison, but the King declined politely, promising to contemplate the offer at a later time. The king quickly decided that more information was needed, and as Lady Broomhilde left, the king ordered Lancelot and the Jester to find him a SPYMASTER. Against Lancelot's wishes a meeting was arranged for the following morning, with a mysterious woman of questionable reputation, who might suit the role.
Guthwald the Farmhand was next brought before the king, quaking with fear. The man's farm was besieged by goblins, and the King sent Sir Lancelot to rid the land of the foul creatures at once. Guthwald would be forever grateful for this service, and word of the King's kindness and orderly rule spread rapidly.
Before the day's end a band of warriors from the north came, seeking their escaped bretheren and accusing poor Rorik of crimes unthinkable. As the men lacked evidence, so too did the king lack compassion to the group's cause.
And so ended to fourth day.
LINK HERE (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/King_Simulator_2013)Hello, and welcome to King Simulator 2013!
This game is run in the form of a forum thread, and anyone reading these forums is free to participate at will.
In order to participate, simply post in the thread with a COMMAND. To identify commands, please use the '>' -sign to denote a command. Examples:
> SUMMON the JESTER
> STAB the MALEVOLENT USURPER
> SLAY the DRAGON with a LANCE
> ORDER COURT MAGE to CAST FIREBALL at PEASANT RABBLE
> IMPOSE strict tariffs for all trade with the grand nation of TURBANISTAN and send TROOPS to enforce the tariffs
If you think a good command was already entered, you may SECOND a command by quoting it.
If several different commands are given, then a command is selected as follows.
- The command with the most quotes is executed
- If tied, then the first posted command in the tie is executed
Only commands entered after the last turn are valid for execution. Seconding older commands will count as new commands instead.
A command is executed and a new GAME TURN is generated roughly every 48 hours, depending on the required amount of artwork for the new turn.
(If you wish to participate further by contributing art, characters, ideas or anything of the sort, please feel free to do so via a private message. Contributed content will be used at my discretion and may not appear in the game immediately after being sent (a new character may take several turns or weeks to appear, for example) You may also speculate game events and characters in the thread and possibly influence future events that way.)
GAME RULES:
You are a King.
The King's word is law.
Long live the King!
-------------------------
A singsong voice interrupts your blissful sleep. The dream in which you sat atop a mighty steed, holding a bloodied lance as the lifeless body of a Dragon lay at your feet dissipates all too quickly. You try to call to the fair maidens, freshly secured from the Dragon's lair, but the image slips from you.
“Don't you see, Rise and shine, yesterday you said: ‘The world shall be mine!'â€
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/001_a.png)
You open your eyes and find yourself sitting atop a throne just as the first rays of the morning sun cast themselves upon the throne room. Your head throbs and you feel rather disoriented.
“Good morning, m'lord King, ‘tis me, Mr Jester, allow me to sing!â€
You frown as the strange man in an even stranger hat begins to dance while bellowing “I have the key! I have the key!†at an unnaturally high pitch. After a while, mercifully, the noise stops.
“Well Mr King, life is but a candle's wick, time to get to work, whip out your...â€
You raise your hand to stop the incessant prattling Jester. He makes a pouting face, but obeys and falls silent. You take this moment of silence and make the most of it, organizing your thoughts to make sense of where you are and why. You fail miserably. Maybe you're getting old?
“What is going on here? And no rhyming!†-you finally ask the Jester.
“My King, you forget yourself? I know the celebrations took more than two whole days and we all tipped a few mugs of ale every hour or so, but to forget? My King: we won! Your evil twin brother lies dead and buried and the Kingdom is free at last! You have finally taken up your rightful throne and the people rejoice!â€
You nod, so far this sounds pretty sweet.
“Come, my King, let me show you your castle, I'm sure you will soon remember all!†The jester stands up to you, practically bouncing up and down. He grabs your hand and pulls you up from the throne, leading you to the back of the throne room and deeper into the castle.
---
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/001_b.png)
“Well my King, here is the treasury.â€
You glance at the near-empty room, frowning as the echo of the Jester's voice dissipates in the stone walls.
“But... Where is all the gold? The treasure?â€
“Oh dear, My King, I was sure you'd remember. Your evil brother did, during his reign of terror, maintain a rather hefty tax rate and when he was cast aside the coffers were full of gold and treasure. However, those foreign visitors, entertainers, the living elephant pyramid you ordered and all the other food, drink and entertainment over the last two weeks has left the treasure a bit... well... empty. But worry not, with most of the old King's servant folk dead there is nobody to pay salary to! But we'll get to that in a moment. If you wish to find out about our finances, do ask me, your faithful ADVISOR.
Currently our treasury holds 20 gold coins and nothing more.
Our current tax rate, population and trade total an income of 20 gold every year.â€
You frown, but the Jester seems to have decided not to let you dwell on finances now, as he begins to direct you to the next area.
---
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/001_c.png)
You enter a large room with a round table (but no chairs for some reason) and a gigantic map on the wall.
“My King, this is the war room. I'm afraid the full map of the kingdom and the outlying lands was burned during your conquest of the castle. During the celebration this partial map of the kingdom was presented to us. As you can see it is centered on our castle and the outlying town. It also shows the mountain ranges far to the east and the ocean far to the west, as well as the Lifeblood River, which runs through the kingdom. The rest of the map is empty, however, and I fear we will need to do some work to fill ‘er up. The old King had business with three other kingdoms out there, but since I spent most of my time in the now-destroyed dungeon, I know not who these three kingdoms were and where they might be located. We will need to hire a cartographer and likely some soldiers or heroes to go and VENTURE out into the kingdom to seek more information of the land. Perhaps they'll even find valuable treasure on their voyages! Heroes can also be given almost any task you can think of, they're a handy bunch, but good ones are hard to come by.
We currently do not EMPLOY a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD, and thus our town does not have any GUARDS watching over it.
We currently do not EMPLOY any HEROES to do our bidding.
We currently do not have any EXPEDITIONS EXPLORING the land.â€Your head spins at the wealth of information it is being bombarded with. You wish the Jester would just write all of this down somewhere so that you could reference these lessons later somehow. Again you are pulled onward, this time back towards the throne room.
---
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/001_d.png)
“And here is the throne room! Apologies for the uncomfortable throne (we'd better find a more suitable seat soon), but the one with the menacing iron spikes and heads of the old King's enemies was, by your command, destroyed, and we had to find a replacement in a hurry.â€
You decide to take a seat anyway, the cushions are still a little warm. The Jester nods approvingly.
“In the throne room you can grant audiences to those seeking to speak with you. People from the town can come to meet you and seek your guidance, permission or assistance for all sorts of things. As a matter of fact I think the guild leaders and the head of the newly formed Farmer's Union are gathering outside in the hallway already. You have time to have FIVE meeting every DAY. Since this is a fantasy kingdom each YEAR only has 12 DAYS. It might seem a bit confusing, but you'll see that it actually works really well. See the wooden palisade wall out there, we had that whole thing built in just TWO DAYS! Cool stuff!
Now then, My King, to recap:
- When in doubt, ASK your ADVISOR!
- HIRE people to fulfill different roles in the castle. Your court should at least have a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD and a COURT WIZARD, as well as a good ADVISOR such as myself. A DOCTOR would probably be a good idea too, the old king had four in case of poisonings.
- Send HEROES or soldiers out to EXPLORE or to act as ENVOYS on diplomatic missions once you find OTHER KINGDOMS. You wouldn't want to seem impolite to them, now would you?
- There is always someone here to see you, so unless you want to do something else, make sure to GRANT AUDIENCE to the next person or group in line so they can enter the throne room.
- Last, but not least: have some fun! Heck, you can even go out adventuring yourself if you want to, but with the old King's guards no longer keeping the King's peace the Kingdom can be a dangerous place, so you should only do this if you REALLY feel it's IMPORTANT!â€
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/001_e.png)
The Jester awaits your reply for a moment, but as one is not forthcoming he begins to do cartwheels and begins to sing: “I HAVE THE KEY! I HAVE THE KEY!†The Jester cartwheels out of the throne room and into the hallway.
Well now, you think, best to get cracking, then. This kingdom isn't going to rule itself!
>KICK the JESTER out and invite a MAIDEN TOWN WENCH STRIPPER over. 8-)
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
+1
>HIRE CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD
Spoiler
Great idea WHAM! Glad you decided to run this fantastic forum games again! Thanks!
Yay! Replies! Spread the word, friends, and let's try and get some more players up in this baby!
Next update coming friday and then we're on a roll!
As mentioned above, questions, feedback, ideas and contributions are welcome via PM!
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
+3
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
Seconded Thirded Fou... well you get the idea!
> ORDER Jester to PUT ON a DECENT COSTUME and if he really WANTS to be a JOKER, then REFER HIM the appearance SIMILAR to that of Batman's Joker.
This game sounds like a lot of fun :-D
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
One more vote for this suggestion (nod)
Hooray for a new forum game :-D
+1 for 'ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.'
Or at least ask him what he's on about.
YAY! - Here we go again! (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/smilie_happy_256.gif)
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
> ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
> Yes, please do!
> seconded
> definitely
>
+ 1 > (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/genehmigt.gif)
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 06/11/2013 08:30:37
ASK Jester for this KEY he keeps talking about.
let's do this! YAY for a new game, yay for wham! :D
> FIRE Jester and do a CASTING for young female BARDS!
> SWAP clothes with JESTER and become the power behind the throne. No one will be able to assassinate you if you're wearing that clownish garb!
(And it's probably heavily armoured or something. Jesters are notoriously hard to kill)
Quote from: Scavenger on Thu 07/11/2013 11:46:20
> SWAP clothes with JESTER and become the power behind the throne.
(laugh) (laugh) (laugh)
-------------------------
The strange Jester's words catch your interest and you gesture him to return. He does so via another set of cartwheels, which land him right where he started.
“What is this KEY you keep singing so merrily about?†-you ask.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/002_a.png)
The Jester produces a large silver key and gestures at it.
“In days of old, or so I'm told, this key unlocked a dungeon.
Within was held a fair princess, but a warrior a bard and a ranger broke her out, so the key's purpose was undone.
However, the tale goes, that the same key could also unlock a secret chest!
Within was hidden a powerful potion, which would keep the princess refreshed.
Alas, the chest is lost and the potion is thus gone.
Stolen by a dragon, it's guardians were left mere ash and bone.â€
The Jester bows deep and looks mightily happy about having delivered his tale.
"My King, it seems that there are people seeking your audience, shall we grant them?" -the Jester asks as he pockets the key once more.
>DEMAND the KEY;
>ASK JESTER who seeks audience?
This story made me hungry
>demand something to eat
Quote from: Intense Degree on Fri 08/11/2013 15:04:09
>ASK JESTER who seeks audience?
I think we already know this:
Quote from: JESTERPeople from the town can come to meet you and seek your guidance, permission or assistance for all sorts of things. As a matter of fact I think the guild leaders and the head of the newly formed Farmer's Union are gathering outside in the hallway already.
so instead:
>agree with the JESTER to grant some people an audience
(we need to know more about our own kingdom, and I don't exactly trust the JESTER for some reason.)
> INQUIRE JESTER ABOUT THE PRINCESS AND HER WHEREABOUTS.
> ASK JESTER who are the guild leaders and the head of the newly formed Farmer's Union, let him tell you what he knows about those persons and grant audience to the first person/group afterwards
>GRANT AUDIENCE to the guild leaders.
+1 for TABATA post.
> hold AUDITIONS for court WIZARD.
> EMPLOY a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD
What if any of the guild leaders tries to kill us?
It was my first idea as well, cat!
-------------------------
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_a.png)
"Jester, I wish to know more of these guild leaders you spoke of."
“Well, my King!†-the voice of Mr Jester shrieks gleefully as he taps his feet. “The guildmasters are the very same people who helped you reclaim your evil brother's throne! The supplied you with men and equipment as well as finances and all of them, I believe, like you very much. However, now that you are king, they are no longer your allies and friends, but loyal subjects, and thus I believe they will wish to re-introduce themselves properly. Shall I present them?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_b.png)
You nod to yourself and call out to permit the masters of the three guilds enter. The three men are dressed in fine clothes and seem regal enough. Right behind them, practically bouncing with energy, comes a young girl in dirt-encrusted boots and pants and a straw hat, pitchfork in hand. You wince at the display, but decide to wait this out and see if there is a sensible explanation to this.
Before any of the three men so much as have a chance to bow down to you Kingship, the farm girl bounces forward and gives you a gleeful smirk.
“Howdy! Name's Cat, ‘n I'm here to represent th' farmer's un'un! Since we helped you overtthor... Overttthrf... Get ridda' th' ol' King, you promised us farmfolk that we all coulds have respent... umm, reperent... representas... Heck it! Well, ya'll know! We had a talk ‘n a vote ‘n a wrestle ‘n it seems I got elected for th' job so here I am. If'n there's ever ‘nything ya'll might need to know about us common folk, ah'll be glad to tell ya'll about it!â€
She pauses after delivering her line, glances over her shoulder, then seems to remember herself and gives you a curt little bow. You simply sit there, speechless to see such behavior in a royal court. This isn't quite what you had expected from your first day as king.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_c.png)
“Oh! King! Iff'n you ever want to talk to me, ask about anythin'g or somesuch, just holler and SUMMON me! Buh-bai!â€
With that the girl turns around and skips out of your courtroom, the two-pronged pitchfork swinging from side to side. As the sounds of her booted steps grow distant, the three remaining representatives gather their wits and make their best efforts at smiling.
The first to step forward is a tall man sporting a spiky-blonde haircut that makes your gleaming bald head jealous, as well as a fancy purple set of robes.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_d.png)
“Greetings, My King, my name is Dennis of the Frostsea family. With the trader's guild in turmoil after the change in leadership up here, it has fallen to me to take on the task of leading the TRADERS GUILD. We handle all trade in the town, from running the marketplace for local goods all the way to trading with foreign nations. Additionally, of course, we ensure that trade taxes are paid in full to the Crown's coffers.
We are currently not trading with other nations, however, as the writs of trade were lost with the previous guildmaster, but I am certain I will be able to re-establish trade as soon as we re-establish contact with the other kingdoms and tribes.
Should you ever wish to know more about our trades or to make requests or demands of me and my guild regarding prices, taxation, tariffs or anything of the sort, simply SUMMON me and I will heed your call, Sire.â€
The man bows down, you notice his hair is unaffected by gravity, and steps back in line with the other two.
Another man steps forward, this one sporting a set of black official's clothes over shimmering white silk. The man gives a deep bow, then slowly straightens his back. He has a very official and businesslike look to him.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_e.png)
“My King, I am Mandarb, and I am the leader of the guild of Craftsmen. My assistants and myself manage all of the craftsmen in the town, including weaponsmiths, armorsmiths, toolsmiths, potters, wood-carvers and the like. You could say that whatever Mr Dennis here trades, we produce, well, except for foodstuffs, which fall to Miss Cat's area of expertize. If ever you need us to produce something specific or special, you may approach us freely and we will do our best to provide. I will also seek your audience if we ever need assistance with anything.
At this time production of all goods is balanced and running smoothly. There are no shortages of raw materials.
If you ever wish to speak to me for any reason, you may SUMMON me at any time.â€
With another no-nonsense bow, the man steps back.
The last remaining representative steps up and bows deep, a theatrical swagger in his every move. You notice a finely crafted ornate hilt of a dagger glinting in his belt.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_f.png)
“My King, I am Construed of the Grimm family line, and I come to you representing the builder's guild! We handle all construction work in the town and should you ever wish us to expand or improve the town, you may count on our services! You see, for example, right now we are drawing up plans for the new city wall! I believe that in a few short years we could upgrade the run-down palisade into a hundred-meters tall stone fort covered in inch-thick gold plate to awe and amaze our friends and enemies alike! I assure you, you will see that we can make anything true!
Simply SUMMON me to commission a structure of any shape or size, I am sure we will succeed in pleasing you, my King!â€
The man bows, then steps back.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/003_g.png)
Having made themselves known to you, the guildmasters prepare to take their leave, unless you wish more of them. Mr Jester is already eager at the door in case you wish to admit another AUDIENCE from amongst those waiting to present themselves to you outside of your throne room. You can hear the clattering of armor plates outside.
> Ask CONSTRUED to start CONSTRUCTION of a BALLISTA TOWER near the city gate, unless we already have one, and to provide a list of all relevant buildings currently found in the city.
(if ballistae are not available, cannon or catapults are acceptable alternatives)
>SUMMON Dennis from the TRADERS GUILD and ask him to initiate contacts with neighbouring nations;
>ASK Dennis for a LIST of nations we had trading with;
Wheee, I am a farmer :-D
Quote from: miguel on Sun 10/11/2013 17:41:51
>ASK Dennis for a LIST of nations we had trading with;
As far as I understood the list is lost, we have to send out someone first to explore the surroundings and find other nations.
Quote from: Radiant on Sun 10/11/2013 16:19:18
> Ask CONSTRUED to start CONSTRUCTION of a BALLISTA TOWER near the city gate, unless we already have one, and to provide a list of all relevant buildings currently found in the city.
That's pointless unless we have someone to operate it. We should
> EMPLOY a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD
and
> EMPLOY an EXPEDITIONS EXPLORING the land
Quote from: cat on Sun 10/11/2013 17:48:00
> EMPLOY a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD
and
> EMPLOY an EXPEDITIONS EXPLORING the land
+1
+1 for Cat post
All those cameos made me dizzy and we *are* the King, aren't we? Shouldn't we make sure those Guild Heads have a good opinion about their ruler? So:
> INVITE GUILD HEADS to a refreshing DRINK
How did I miss this thread?!? I think employing anybody is a bit of a stretch with only 20 gold pieces to our name. I agree that the priority should be revenue: either tax the peasants or get trade back up and running. Since the traders seem eager to pay taxes, that's probably the path of least resistance. So....
Quote from: cat on Sun 10/11/2013 17:48:00
EMPLOY an EXPEDITIONS EXPLORING the land
+1 on this, unless it's not that simple. Otherwise.... >ADVERTISE for HERO. :=
ANNOUNCE a Kingdom-Wide, no holds barred, Tickle Contest. The winner will go on a quest to find treasure.
“Jester!†-you call out. “I think our coffers need filling and what better way than to make new friends and learn more of the land now that I rule over it. We need to hire an expedition at once!â€
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/004_a.png)
“My King†-the Jester replies “In order to send out an expedition, we need to have hired one or more HEROES. Alas, I see several suitable candidates out in the hall, awaiting their audience with the King, and I am sure many of them are here to offer their services. Allow me to present the first candidate!â€
Since sending out an expedition without men seems a bit daft, you decide to nod and approve the audience.
Plate and chain clatters as nearly two dozen men in gleaming steel armor stomp into the throne room. All of the men wear helmets and crests of families whose names you do not recall, however the leader of the group seems somehow familiar to you. Maybe you've met him once, long ago. The man kneels clumsily in his heavy armor, before righting himself to speak.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/004_b.png)
“King of Grimdark...â€
The Jester winces visibly and pipes up to interrupt: “My King, we might wish to renaming of the kingdom at some point! Just a thought...â€
The jester slinks aside.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/004_c.png)
The knight before you continues without missing a beat: “...I am Sir Lancelot. My family line and the families serving us have been sworn to offer our service to the crown, and for that purpose I have come to present myself.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/004_d.png)
For the price of five gold coins a year, I, Sir Lancelot, and my 20 knights, will offer our services to the Crown, serving as guards and doing your bidding for as long as thine rule is just and fair.
As you can see, the last part of our contract severed our ties with the old king, and we were forced into exile, but now, as a new king has risen to rule the land, I feel we can offer ourselves to you once more.
What say you, King of Grimdark, will you allow this old HERO and his men to SERVE you?â€
> Hire Sir Lancelot and send him out to explore.
Why is the Sir Lancelot so familiar to the King? Hmmm... let's not get too fast with hiring him.
>ASK JESTER to FIND OUT about the BACKGROUND of Sir Lancelot.
> RENAME the kingdom to BigBlueCupistopia*
__
* always listen to the jester! (nod)
Wait... do we actually HAVE 5 gold coins? 8-0 :confused:
> HIRE sir LANCELOT and his men, EXCEPT for any of them named SIR BEDEVERE or SIR ROBIN.
Quote from: CaptainD on Tue 12/11/2013 21:30:15
Wait... do we actually HAVE 5 gold coins? 8-0 :confused:
Yes. Current treasury is 20 with an income of 20 per year.
>DO HIRE LANCELOT but warn him to stay away from the King's ladies!
I agree, hire him, but 5 gold is a bit expensive, so I'd say:
>HIRE LANCELOT and SIND him to EXPLORE, but HAGGLE a bit with him first.
> Make the jester tell a joke
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Tue 12/11/2013 16:07:15
>ASK JESTER to FIND OUT about the BACKGROUND of Sir Lancelot.
+1. There seemed to be other candidates for the position of hero: let's find out about this Lancelot guy before we agree to pay him 1/4 of our income.
You gesture for the Jester to approach the throne, and the jokester shuffles to your side.
"Jester, what do you know of this Lancelot fellow?" -you ask, suspicious of the knight.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/005_a.png)
“My King†-the Jester replies “Sir Lancelot and his men are as straight and true as a knight can strive to be, and each of them can best any lowlier knight in single combat with ease. The Lancelot family has served this kingdom dozens of times and always with dignity and honour. Alas, the previous king, you know, the evil one, demanded them to put dozens of peasants to the sword for failure to comply with tax laws, so Lancelot turned his back on the King and fled into exile. It was around this time that you yourself began to gather supporters to overthrow the king. Lancelot declined to help you, as it would have been dishonorable to turn on a previous master, even if said master had taken a dark turn.
My King, if ever you wish to employ a band of men who will serve you loyally and truthfully, this is the man. However, if you ever plan to take a more, shall we say, drastic measures to keep the peace, then, while they will not turn on you, they may abandon you. Their service is only available to you for as long as your honour as King is untarnished."
Lancelot seems a good first choice. If Jester is right he's loyal as long as we play by the rules, that is a great bonus.
I say we take him aboard; who's with me?
I agree with Ghost. As soon as we decide to kill peasants we can still hire someone else :P
> HIRE LANCELOT and order him to SEND a DELEGATION to EXPLORE
We could keep the rest of the guys as guards or send them to search for grails later on...
maybe by mentioning the incredible worth of the golden coins we can negotiate some lower wage for him as we might need the rest of the goldcoins for other stuff... or we just pile up debts like every normal king would do...
I don't wish to hire him without seeing rest of the candidates first.
>INQUIRE JESTER about the OTHER candidates.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Thu 14/11/2013 18:58:58
I don't wish to hire him without seeing rest of the candidates first.
>INQUIRE JESTER about the OTHER candidates.
+1
Let's see what other candidates have to say
I think that hiring LANCELOT is a good decision. But before sending him to explore I believe we should have at least a MAP of the Kingdom.
There must be some records of previous alliances, both commercial and military with other nations. We should know more of the land history.
> ASK JESTERINO for a MAP of the Kingdom;
> ASK JESTERINO for a GIN and TONIC;
Quote from: miguel on Fri 15/11/2013 00:33:58
> ASK JESTERINO for a GIN and TONIC;
+1.
As for the map, I'm pretty sure the only one was burned in our assault on the castle (as explained in the OP). My understanding is that a hero will go off and explore, and come back and fill in the map for us. Since this Lancelot guy seems to check out, I guess it might as well be him and his posse. So...
Quote from: cat on Thu 14/11/2013 16:35:10
I agree with Ghost. As soon as we decide to kill peasants we can still hire someone else :P
> HIRE LANCELOT and order him to SEND a DELEGATION to EXPLORE
+1
Quote from: cat on Thu 14/11/2013 16:35:10
> HIRE LANCELOT and order him to SEND a DELEGATION to EXPLORE
+1
So, no maps anywhere? We have no clue where is the sea or the mountains or a river? But we conquered a castle obviously without any geographical knowledge of the area we live in...
And what about the latrines? An army has to have latrines. Are they outside in the backyard? Do we have a backyard?
Is ours a towncastle? What town?
Lancelot better carry pencil and paper with him...you know...between fights.
> HIRE LANCELOT and SEND him to EXPLORE;
Quote from: miguel on Fri 15/11/2013 13:17:56
So, no maps anywhere? We have no clue where is the sea or the mountains or a river? But we conquered a castle obviously without any geographical knowledge of the area we live in...
And what about the latrines? An army has to have latrines. Are they outside in the backyard? Do we have a backyard?
Is ours a towncastle? What town?
Lancelot better carry pencil and paper with him...you know...between fights.
See first post in the thread. :)
Here's why I'm reluctant to hire Lancelot:
1. His salary is too high for us to afford atm.
2. During the rule, we may have to do some 'dirty work'. If Lancelot would leave us at that very moment, at that crucial time, what's the use of him then?
Quote from: miguel on Fri 15/11/2013 00:33:58
> ASK JESTERINO for a GIN and TONIC;
+1
Quote from: miguel on Fri 15/11/2013 00:33:58
> ASK JESTERINO for a GIN and TONIC;
+ > ask to meet the guild of the female exotic dancers in the empire
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Fri 15/11/2013 18:18:03
2. During the rule, we may have to do some 'dirty work'. If Lancelot would leave us at that very moment, at that crucial time, what's the use of him then?
That may be true, but I feel this is a starting position we are in here. As I see it, Lancelot is competent and loyal, and should be worth his money. A cheaper hero may do us less good, and if we THEN return to Lancelot and offer him the job, he may be a bit bitter about it. Since we know almost nothing about the kingdom we rule, a hero with background knowledge sounds especially useful, and Jester actually got out of his way to tell us this is a fantasy kingdom. "Loyalty" sounds as if it had some effect/power- though I admit this is probably me projecting something that isn't there.
Fact is, we need a hero to get a map. The map will remain even if the hero leaves.
Quote from: NightHawk on Fri 15/11/2013 05:34:04
> HIRE LANCELOT and order him to SEND a DELEGATION to EXPLORE
+2
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 15/11/2013 14:27:38
Quote from: miguel on Fri 15/11/2013 13:17:56
So, no maps anywhere? We have no clue where is the sea or the mountains or a river? But we conquered a castle obviously without any geographical knowledge of the area we live in...
And what about the latrines? An army has to have latrines. Are they outside in the backyard? Do we have a backyard?
Is ours a towncastle? What town?
Lancelot better carry pencil and paper with him...you know...between fights.
See first post in the thread. :)
Sorry Wham, I wasn't really upset, just my Portuguese humour! :-D
You're doing a great job and I love this game!
> make peace with neighbouring nations and make the jester tell a joke
As I understand it, trade has almost entirely collapsed (since we as a nation apparently have no collective memory of where places we used to trade with are located (roll) ). But suspending disbelief for the sake of a fun game, it seems to me that investing 5 gold pieces a year in some relatively reliable muscle and opening trade routes will prove to be a very wise investment in the long run. Even if Lancelot fails, it's only costing us a quarter of our yearly income. But in the event that he is successful, we stand to gain a lot of revenue, reducing the relative amount that his posse drains from our coffers and opening up the possibility of more ambitious undertakings. I would strongly argue that we should spend the remaining 15 golds on other "investments" (speculations?) rather than more elephant pyramids.
Quote from: cat on Thu 14/11/2013 16:35:10
> HIRE LANCELOT and order him to SEND a DELEGATION to EXPLORE
+1
The Jester seems to me to be a kind on in-game hunt system, so if he says Lancelot can be trusted, then he probably can.
That said, it;s still worth hearing what the other candidates have to say. Maybe we could send Lancelot and his men to the East, while some other guy takes care of the West.
> ASK the JESTER why your REGAL FINERY is COWBOY BOOTS and a MATCHSTICK. Is the KINGDOM so POOR you can't afford a decent BALLGOWN to meet your DELEGATES with?!
Honestly, it's like we just took the throne, threw on whatever and expected noone to notice! You're a King for heaven's sake!
Okay, so we've got a hero for ourselves. Next thing should be hiring a spy...
>ASK JESTER about the CANDIDATES for the position of SPY.
Quote from: selmiak on Sat 16/11/2013 01:52:31
> make peace with neighbouring nations and make the jester tell a joke
+1
"Sir Lancelot" -you begin, finding your own voice quite regal all of a sudden. It only feels appropriate that you stand up to meet the knight.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/006_a.png)
"I hereby hire you to be a HERO of the realm, and your loyal knights to assist you in all endeavours. Your first task is to send a delegation of your men to explore the countryside, so that we can scout our surroundings and learn more of the land and it's people."
Sir Lancelot nods, looking pleased, and his knights' cheers reverberate in the grand throne room.
"As you wish, my King, a delegation of five knights shall leave immediately to scout EAST. I will report to you with any findings as soon as possible. Should you ever wish to provide me with further instructions, you need but SUMMON me."
Sir Lancelot bows deep, and leads his men out of the throne room.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/006_b.png)
As the knights leave, the Jester appears before you.
"My King, now that we have a HERO with military experience, he has been automatically assigned as the MILITARY ADVISOR of your kingdom. Should you hire more heroes, you can appoint another HERO to take on this job instead.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has send out an EXPEDITION of five knights to the EAST. However, he has personally remained in the castle, since you ordered him to send a delegation instead of ordering him to explore personally. This means the expedition will be less effective and may be in more danger than if they were accompanied by a HERO.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has ordered five of his knights to guard the castle.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has ordered tem knights to patrol the town, keeping the peace and protecting the common folk.
If you wish to change any of these postings, order more expeditions or anything else to do with Sir Lancelot or his knights, you may SUMMON him at any time to hear your commands.
Since we do not heave a treasurer, I shall hereby notify you that our treasury now holds only 15 gold pieces. That is just 1500 silve pieces. Or just 150000 coppers. Doesn't sound so bad when you count coppers, now that I think of it."
The jester counts his fingers several times over, giggling softly.
"Oh, there are more people seeking your AUDIENCE, however one audience seeker and his retinue just left the castle grounds for some reason."
> ORDER to find out about the audience seeker and his retinue who left the castle grounds. BRING them BACK to the castle, USING FORCE if necessary. Meanwhile, INVITE rest of the audience.
It seems we won a lot there. The castle and the town have now protection, we are about to learn more of the land, and we have a new advisor. This is a good start. I say we hold another audience.
Also: I'd like to know if we need to take care of "mundane needs"- do we have to provide food to advisors and staff?
Quote from: Ghost on Sat 16/11/2013 21:06:12
Also: I'd like to know if we need to take care of "mundane needs"- do we have to provide food to advisors and staff?
No-one will starve in your kingdom, unless there is famine, but providing people and servants with quality food might not be a bad idea.
> ASK JESTER for TOTAL POPULATION of our town and what are their occupations/jobs;
I think we could benefit from Lancelot expertise if we ever want to train soldiers. Therefore it's important to know how many fit men are around town that don't have an occupation.
WHAM: Also, things like how much food we need monthly to feed our people, raw materials and the likes, do we need to concern about this things?
Quote from: WHAM on Wed 06/11/2013 07:21:55
But worry not, with most of the old King's servant folk dead there is nobody to pay salary to!
So.... who are we feeding? And more importantly how much will it cost? I'm all in favour of largesse if we've got it to spend, but as finances are a bit tight at the moment I'm not sure feeding people that wouldn't starve anyway is the best use of our dwindling gold supply.
+1 on granting another audience.
Conducting a census of the kingdom is also a really good idea, but I'm sure it will be tiresome to administer. We should keep our eyes open for a minister of the interior to handle that. Actually a whole cabinet would be a good idea: who do we have so far?
jester: Grand Vizier/Prime Minister
cat: Agriculture
Dennis of Frostsea: Trade
Mandarb: Industry
Construed of Grimm: Infrastructure
Lancelot: Defence
As I see it we need someone trustworthy in
finance,
health (especially ours!),
spirituality (if only to reinforce our divine right to power in the eyes of the masses),
interior (census, education, policing -we should have a separate minister with the power to use force just in case Lancelot and his men walk),
admiralty (eventually I want to be able to exert some control over that ocean and the riches within and beyond it) and
foreign affairs (ambassadors, spying, diplomacy....). The last two aren't urgent, but I think we should definitely establish a chain of command to streamline our royal power. Oooo, we may also need someone to run our youth league, in case we need a mob of goons to sway public opinion. Something to think about anyway....
>Have Lancelot send 5 of the town guard to follow the river west to set up an outpost at the mouth of the river.
Baron, maybe we could start "small" and do a census of the town and castle population first. That can be done by JESTERINO and will cost us a bottle of booze. When we have money coming in we could think about hiring ministers.
If food really matters in this game, the first thing we should do is guarantee that there's enough for our people. That's basic stuff. Raise crops, plant trees, build fishing boats, etc...
Also, I think it would be important to create a royal newspaper where we could "inform" our people about the policies we intend to do.
At the same time, we could allow at least one public/private newspaper as well, that way we could grasp the public opinion about the King.
We need a court wizard, too!!
Quote from: miguel on Sun 17/11/2013 12:30:26
Also, I think it would be important to create a royal newspaper where we could "inform" our people about the policies we intend to do.
At the same time, we could allow at least one public/private newspaper as well, that way we could grasp the public opinion about the King.
+1 on both. The advisors will surely tell us what their "groups" think about us, but I like the idea of seing it all on one page. And informing the public sounds really useful.
Still: Another audience?
Quote from: cat on Sun 17/11/2013 19:32:13
Quote from: Ghost on Sun 17/11/2013 19:18:17
Still: Another audience?
+1
(http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/thagree-1.gif)
+ 1
Quote
Still: Another audience?
+1
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 16/11/2013 19:21:23Since we do not heave a treasurer, I shall hereby notify you that our treasury now holds only 15 gold pieces. That is just 1500 silve pieces. Or just 150000 coppers. Doesn't sound so bad when you count coppers, now that I think of it."
"Oh, there are more people seeking your AUDIENCE, however one audience seeker and his retinue just left the castle grounds for some reason."
> INVITE TO AUDIENCE from those waiting people the first one who can EARN MONEY for the kingdom.
"Jester, send in the next audi..." -you begin, but the words catch in your throat as you realize your next audience is already before you.
A chill runs down your spine as you gaze upon the SHADOWY TRAVELER, which stands before you.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/007_a.png)
"Greeting, King of the land." -comes a voice, deep, yet hollow, with a bite sharp as a cold steel blade.
"I come from far away..." -the SHADOWY TRAVELLER speaks, "...to congratulate you on your timely rise to power."
You stammer out a response: "Whatever do you mean by this?"
The stranger shrugs.
"Interesting times are upon us. The word interesting is key. Before long your kingdom will be beset by dangers untold, and it will be your task to ensure your people are ready. I see a threat to the west, another to the east, a third up above, and a fourth deep below. But which threat comes first, that even I cannot say, for I deal in prophesy and vision, not in petty guesses."
The strange man takes pause.
"King of the land, know that your reign will not be an easy one. But fear not, for on the third day from now, an object will be passed unto you, which will grant you the assistance of myself and others like me. Be wise and use it well, unlike the one who reigned over this land before you, for wasting such power might see your reign come to end sooner than you think."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/007_b.png)
There is a flash of ligh, or was it darkness? Whichever way, you are blinded for a fraction of a second, and a puff of black smoke is all that remains as the SHADOWY TRAVELLER disappears without a sound.
Well, looks like we got a court wizard. Of sorts, at least. And since we just spent 25% of our country's budget in the first hour, let's see if we can improve our earnings with trade:
> INVITE TO AUDIENCE from those waiting people the first one who can EARN MONEY for the kingdom.
>>Promote SHADOWY TRAVELLER to position of youth league leader
Also, I like Miguel's idea of harnessing the power of propaganda to cement our position, however I'm leery of the unstabilizing impact that mass literacy might have on our absolute monarchy. Is there no way to employ a herald or crier who can go around spouting propaganda orally? Of course if everyone is already literate then starting a newspaper makes sense.... If only we had a proper census of the kingdom, we would know the target market for our repressive rule and wouldn't have to be guessing at the most appropriate vector for mass indoctrination. (wtf)
Yes, we really need to have at least a town census. A herald sounds good and cheap as well.
> ASK JESTER for a town census;
Waitasec! Isn't anybody a bit creeped out by that shadowy traveller? We just shrug and say, yupp, mage? What is that danger?
> Initiate big celebration for the new king
>Summon the council of leaders to the war room for a state of the realm brief and ask them for suggestions on keeping mages from popping inside the castle.
Quote from: Ghost on Tue 19/11/2013 13:45:41
Waitasec! Isn't anybody a bit creeped out by that shadowy traveller? We just shrug and say, yupp, mage? What is that danger?
You mean something like
> ASK JESTER about SHADOWY TRAVELLER
Aye, thanks, cat (laugh)
__
edit
Quote from: cat on Tue 19/11/2013 14:08:34
> ASK JESTER about SHADOWY TRAVELLER
+1
Remember to quote the post you want to +1 for voting purposes. It makes my life soooo much easier when I tally the votes on what action to run next. :)
Quote from: WHAM on Tue 19/11/2013 21:00:11
Remember to quote the post you want to +1 for voting purposes. It makes my life soooo much easier when I tally the votes on what action to run next. :)
+1
Quote from: Baron on Wed 20/11/2013 03:21:53
Quote from: WHAM on Tue 19/11/2013 21:00:11
Remember to quote the post you want to +1 for voting purposes. It makes my life soooo much easier when I tally the votes on what action to run next. :)
+1
+1
"Jester!" -you call out, demand in your voice. The jokester's silly hat pops into the throne room.
"Who was that SHADOWY TRAVELLER you just permitted to enter? I wish to know all about him!"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/008_a.png)
"Uhh, I was just about to admit the next AUDIENCE to your presence, my King. I know not what traveller it is you speak of." -the Jester replies, looking well puzzled. You wait for a few moments, stern-faced, to see if the jester begins to crack up at his little joke, but he does not.
"My King, are you feeling well? Are you still in the mood for an AUDIENCE or shall we take a rest for the day?"
taking a rest brings us closer to the next payday, but for now we have enough money left to afford some more people in position...
>receive next audience
>Summon the council of leaders to the war room for a state of the realm brief and ask them if they know anything about the shadowy traveler that popped inside the castle.
Probably the shadow dude is known as a tale and not in the flesh like we just seen...He just popped up in the throne room so my guess is that nobody has seen him.
And because nobody wants a town census,
> Summon next audience;
Quote from: miguel on Thu 21/11/2013 00:42:31
> Summon next audience;
+1.
But I think that shadowy traveller is important. He did not really seem "evil", but... still. I am curious what "object" we will get.
WHAM, how does game time work, actually? Can we "see" it? Is there a clock or something that tells us how much time passes between turns?
Quote from: Ghost on Thu 21/11/2013 01:13:36
WHAM, how does game time work, actually? Can we "see" it? Is there a clock or something that tells us how much time passes between turns?
Each day ends after a total of five major actions are taken. These actions are audiences, special events, visits to locations (for example, in town) or talking to your advisors. The passing of time is not set in stone, and you can take actions in the night if you want, although no new audiences may be granted (the people went to sleep). The changing of a day is marked by a special "turn" slide which provides you with a summary of the day's actions as well as some basic data you have accumulated on your kingdom and it's affairs.
Each "year" in the game consists of 14 days and certain days will bring special events. Taxes are paid to the Crown on the 10th day of the year and salaries and other costs are paid automatically on the 13th day of the year. Don't worry, the Jester, or whoever has been assigned as your ADVISOR, will explain things as they come up.
Meaning we really need an ADVISOR...
I know everybody wants a new audience and it is logical but we should start thinking of hiring or promoting a wise man or woman for the ADVISOR role.
We are kind of "blind" regarding many things here like people's feeling towards us.
Well, there are all sorts of people waiting for an audience, and I'm sure you'll find more or less suitable people for all roles.
Your existing advisor will always seek to prioritize audiences based on how important they seem to him/her based on all sorts of hidden variables, such as kingdom wealth, happiness, ongoing wars, open posts in court etc.
I think the jester is our advisor and he did a good job till now, so let's just
Quote from: miguel on Thu 21/11/2013 00:42:31
> Summon next audience;
+1
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 21/11/2013 09:43:35
Each "year" in the game consists of 14 days and certain days will bring special events. Taxes are paid to the Crown on the 10th day of the year and salaries and other costs are paid automatically on the 13th day of the year. Don't worry, the Jester, or whoever has been assigned as your ADVISOR, will explain things as they come up.
Quote from: WHAM on Wed 06/11/2013 07:21:55
Since this is a fantasy kingdom each YEAR only has 12 DAYS.
WOOT! We get to collect taxes but don't have to pay salaries! I'm liking the vagueness and changeability of this medieval calendar!
In the long run though, I can see the seasons being thrown out of whack, which might adversely affect planting and the harvest, which in turn may lead to mass starvation and disenchantment with the government....
>> SUMMON THE DIVINE WHAM TO FIX INCONSISTENCIES IN THE CALENDAR
Maybe this is like the Mayan calendar and our existence will abruptly stop before the 13th day?
Bah, the first post has a typo. 14 days a year is the correct number.
Also: bad news: I'll be on a trip for the weekend so no update before sunday evening! :(
You gesture for the Jester to allow another audience. Perhaps the next one will prove less depressing.
A group of three DIRTY PEASANTS and a COW walk into the throne room. Oh boy...
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/009_a.png)
"Hails, m' King!" -the fair-haired man greets you as the group enters.
"On behaff' o' the peasants and our representative, Cat, we come 'afore you to bestow a gift o' goodwill to ouer new King. Annabelle, the highest valued prize cow in the entire village, is now the King's private property, iff'n, of course, you accept, my King."
The cow moos.
Quote from: WHAM on Sun 24/11/2013 19:43:20
The cow moos.
Ponch, your department! WHAT do we do with a live cow?
Quote from: Ghost on Sun 24/11/2013 20:19:04
WHAT do we do with a live cow?
Milk and make cheese!
Quote from: Ghost on Sun 24/11/2013 20:19:04
Quote from: WHAM on Sun 24/11/2013 19:43:20
The cow moos.
Ponch, your department! WHAT do we do with a live cow?
Yup, somebody must PM Ponch about this!
He's the only one capable of maintaining a cow alive!
> Kindly accept gift and ask if there's any major concern the peasants may have with their lives;
Quote from: miguel on Sun 24/11/2013 21:49:22
> Kindly accept gift and ask if there's any major concern the peasants may have with their lives;
Good idea, miguel- let's do that!
+1
Quote from: cat on Sun 24/11/2013 21:29:33
Milk and make cheese!
Milking surely is a free action?
+ 1 !
Milking is always a free action! (Hello ladies... := )
And a cow can only be a blessing, even to the king that has everything! So Miguel +1. :cheesy:
Quote from: miguel on Sun 24/11/2013 21:49:22
> Kindly accept gift and ask if there's any major concern the peasants may have with their lives;
+1
>Appoint Ponch in charge of the Royal herd.
>TALK TO COW
(Well you never know, it might just be able to talk?!?!)
>ENTER COW IN COMPETITIONS TO WIN PRIZES GALLORE
>Fight like a cow
>>APPOINT COW AS BISHOP
...and, assuming we can walk and chew gum at he same time....
>>ADMIT NEXT AUDIENCE
You decide to kindly accept the peasant's gift.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/010_a.png)
"Please present my kindest thanks to representative Cat." -you say, nodding approvingly at the, uh, majestic(?) animal. The DIRTY PEASANTS seem happy at the approval.
The Jester arrives to take your new gift to a more sensible place than the throne room as the DIRTY PEASANTS begin to take their leave.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/010_b.png)
The Jester seems to be taking his sweet time...
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/010_c.png)
Finally, the Jester reappears before you.
"My King, I have stored the PRIZE COW in the ROYAL GARDEN. This reminds me that the previous king cared little for gardening and imported all of his herbs, medicines and poisons. If we had a ROYAL GARDENER, we might be able to grow all sorts of things other than just grass for feed. But alas, there is time for only one more action today, as evening draws near. Shall it be another audience, or do you have something more specific in mind, My King?"
>Order the DIRTY PEASANTS to have a BATH
>Summon Cat and ask for candidates for Royal Gardener.
A gardener shouldn't be our priority at the moment, although I have the feeling that once we have a wizard he'll want herbs and shit.:=
>Summon another audience;
There's every likelihood that the next mysterious audience will be a qualified gardener! Or at least an unemployed gnome.... Really, what we need is a secretary who can peek into the waiting room and compile a list of who is waiting, so that we can prioritize our audiences and make more efficient use of our royal time. For the time being I guess the Jester can handle that:
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
And then that wraps up the day, so....
>> CHILLAX FOR A BIT!
> ORDER COOK to make a BIG DINNER and invite EVERYONE we've spoken to today.
Quote from: Baron on Wed 27/11/2013 03:47:33
There's every likelihood that the next mysterious audience will be a qualified gardener! Or at least an unemployed gnome.... Really, what we need is a secretary who can peek into the waiting room and compile a list of who is waiting, so that we can prioritize our audiences and make more efficient use of our royal time. For the time being I guess the Jester can handle that:
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
And then that wraps up the day, so....
>> CHILLAX FOR A BIT!
+1
Also, we should start thinking about a queen for our king, or at least a night out on the local tavern. Kings rule better when sexually satisfied. And the cow is not an option.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 27/11/2013 11:41:48
And the cow is not an option.
Hey man, this is an open-world game. Don't say stuff like that, you might make Ponch sad. ;)
:cheesy::cheesy:
Unless Ponch is willing to offer his services...:cheesy:
You guys do what you want. I'll be in the garden with my new friend. :cool:
Quote from: Baron on Wed 27/11/2013 03:47:33
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
+1. This really makes a lot of sense, it's odd to just let anyone in, not knowing who/what he/she/it is/may be.
Quote from: Baron on Wed 27/11/2013 03:47:33
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
+ 1 (nod) Would show us some possibilities and help making decisions about what can be done next.
Quote from: Baron on Wed 27/11/2013 03:47:33
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
But this would be the last thing we can do today. Who knows which of the visitors will still be here tomorrow?
but if some crappy uninteresting person comes in we also lose a turn
Quote from: Baron on Wed 27/11/2013 03:47:33
>> ORDER JESTER TO LIST NAME AND BUSINESS OF ALL VISITORS & PETITIONERS WAITING FOR AN AUDIENCE
+ ask them to get some rest too and come back tomorrow
> Pick nose while waiting;
Quote from: WHAM on Wed 06/11/2013 07:21:55
- There is always someone here to see you, so unless you want to do something else, make sure to GRANT AUDIENCE to the next person or group in line so they can enter the throne room.
My impression is that folks who want an audience hang around for days at a time until they get to see us. We must suppose that the castle waiting room is more comfortable than their peasant hovels.... I know it seems like a bit of a waste of an action making the list of people waiting, but for me accepting the cow was a bit of a waste of an action, and who knows how many colourful characters of dubious importance are waiting out there to bask in our valuable royal time? Think of what tomorrow might bring without the list: Hirschel the Grasshopper Keeper will want to show off his new hop-dance, Bertram the Ditch-Digger will want us to help sort out which end of the shovel to dig with, Guthwald the Night Soil Man will want to air his grievances, Broomhilde the Over-Ripe Bloom of Yesteryear will try to cougar her way into the queenship, and Fortincock the Mad Hermit will spout his lunacy all over us! Is that really how you want to spend your reign? :P
Exploring the taverns of the town would be fun -especially in disguise! But remember that we are currently nursing a hangover from our two-week long bender after seizing the throne, so for now I think it's best to keep it low-key.
As for finding a queen (besides the obvious candidacy of Broomhilde the Over-Ripe....), I'm pretty sure there was some prophecy of a princess and a key....
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 08/11/2013 09:17:03
“What is this KEY you keep singing so merrily about?†-you ask.
“In days of old, or so I'm told, this key unlocked a dungeon.
Within was held a fair princess, but a warrior a bard and a ranger broke her out, so the key's purpose was undone.
However, the tale goes, that the same key could also unlock a secret chest!
Within was hidden a powerful potion, which would keep the princess refreshed.
Alas, the chest is lost and the potion is thus gone.
Stolen by a dragon, it's guardians were left mere ash and bone.â€
In the mean time, I'm all in favour of recruiting a
mistress or two.... :-*
Oooh, nice ideas, Baron, I'll note those characters down for future use! :D
I completely forgot about the princess and the key, probably the main goal of this game!
But, yes, the list is a good idea and supported by many.
If someone granted an audience happens to displease the King, I would imagine (ok hope) that there is a hidden trap-door that leads straight down into a lion pit. 8-)
"Jester" -you boom "I wish to know what sort of people are awaiting my audience. Make a list of those waiting to see me, and their business."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/011_a.png)
The Jester looks puzzled.
"My king" -he begins "I must remind you that these people are all waiting for your audience, and picking and choosing might upset some of them, possibly even turning them away if they feel they are being made wait for longer than is courteous. More people are constantly arriving and leaving, and it is only fair that, should someone's business be urgent, the others will allow the more urgent matter to be presented first, for example, if our Kingdom were to come under attack, your military advisor would arrive before you at once no matter who sought your audience first at the time. Additionally, the guild masters and members of the ROYAL COURT have a right of way, and may replace your next audience if they have a matter which requires the King's attention. As you can see, it is quite the well-oiled machine, this."
The Jester giggles.
"Alas, I shall do as you ask at once!"
The Jester leaves for a while, then returns with a scroll of parchment.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/011_b.png)
"Audiences waiting for the King, in order of arrival:
a TRAVELLING MERCHANT from the south wishes to offer his finest wares and services to the KING
SIR KEVIN OF AXEMONT and his knights wish to offer their services to the KING
a LOST WARRIOR seeks assistance from the KING
BARON MONOCLE, an envoy of a pirate clan from the Western sea, seeks an audience with the KING
HIRSCHEL THE WIZENED offers his skills as a HERBALIST to the KING
ROBINA THE RANGER and her archers seek to offer their services to the KING
a TRAVELLING ARTISAN seeks to offer her finest crafts and services to the KING
There are no more audiences awaiting the King at this time."
You nod approvingly, pondering as to which audience might best serve you in the morning. For now, though, you retreat to your royal bedchamber for well-deserved rest.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/011_c.png)
>Grant audiences to the first five on the list.
Alright, the Jester is the first to go. The previous king had him held in the dungeon (which is destroyed and should be a HIGH priority to fix, unless there's a backup). Why was the Jester in the dungeon? Was he too annoying, or did he attempt to overthrow the king and was awaiting punishment before the battle broke to throw the old king.
I do not trust his counsel, it would unwise for us to have him find us a wise trustworthy person to replace him as ADVISER; he may have a hidden agenda or appoint you someone who is easily malleable to his will or some halfwit that won't serve you well. This is what we need to do ASAP!
Also, even if the JESTER is trustworthy, a good Kingdom wouldn't have someone who's so unprofessional and giddy, greeting the guests and acting much above his duties. I still strongly believe he shouldn't be promoted, he should probably be placed back in his cells. He definitely shouldn't be anywhere near the king, and if he's a threat to the kingdom he shouldn't be allowed to flee.
My FIRST command and most IMPORTANT:
> SUMMON Sir Lancelot, then INQUIRE privately to whom is the most knowledgeable, trustworthy, well-known and well-liked person in the Kingdom
- We need someone who is familiar with war and battle strategies. Someone who can counsel you and act as your Hand. We shouldn't be spending our time treating to "guests" seeking our attention unless our Hand feels it's something worthy of our personal attention. He should report to us each day with what he has done, and what has happened.
I recommend we ask Lancelot, obviously because he's familiar with this kingdom and because he sounds honorable and trustworthy.
Secondly (after hiring this person as your HAND & ADVISER):
> Ask your new ADVISER about the JESTER; also asking WHERE he feels the JESTER is better to serve (or imprisoned in dungeons)
Third, and MOST importantly after finding our HAND & ADVISER:
> Have your HAND notify a powerful and well-liked family within the kingdom, offering an incentive to wed their attractive, maiden and fertile daughter - HAVE BABIES IMMEDIATELY!
- They should be thrilled to have family wed into royalty, so not too big of an incentive - perhaps Lordship and Land to her parents or siblings if her parents are already Lords
Having children will give you blood ties to other kingdoms or with surrounding Lords within your Kingdom (I wish we knew more about the surrounding kingdom). It prevents wars.
Finally:
> ORDER DUNGEONS to be FIXED!
Next we should locate any of our blood family, assuming they aren't as evil as our twin brother, the former king, and have them Lorded and given land, taking Lordship and Land rights from any opposing Lords in your kingdom. Marry them and/or their children to any Lord families tying everything together.
DO NOT RENAME THE KINGDOM as the Jester suggested. It is bad counsel in my opinion. Peasants are generally satisfied with their king unless he was absolutely terrible and gave them reason to be hated. You're a King ruling over many towns and villages under other Lords who are basically like Kings in their own right, just one step below you (I'm assuming this isn't just a tiny Castle we're a king of with the surrounding land and cities/towns all ruled by other kings). If you rename the kingdom it won't change how peasants do their daily duties, how they feel, etc; it might just anger them, or give them a reason to start getting upset with things that normally wouldn't bother them, but now it does only because they're expecting things to be better.
I'm also not happy with this whole "woke up and forgot everything" scenario. Either it's just a poorly written introduction idea, or it's even beyond what it appears. My immediate reaction was that there was never a war, and you and your king brother had been switched, with the Jester orchestrating everything - but all the guests seem to be saying otherwise and that there really was a war (or none of them are even trustworthy and they're lying about the whole thing as well). Wham, I would like you to address this. Is this just a convenient and poorly written way to have the Jester explain to us, the players, what has ACTUALLY happened, or is it far more than that? Do we remember any of this, or is it completely fake. I do not like it at all.
Edit: Also Wham, I
suggest you allow for more actions per turn, ones that you feel mature and appropriate, or at least ones that have been chosen by other players (instead of JUST one each and every time); otherwise this game will stagnate and grow boring; and often or not, only the entertaining commands will be chosen. We might get 3 great commands per turn, but since the 2 didn't get enough up votes, it will likely never be repeated again due to frustration, or players just dropping the game or idea completely (this happened in your other games with me - I like how Stranded was played by VWG having him choose multiple commands per turn.
Ryan, I think Wham has done a great job. It's not easy to encapsulate a fantasy story into a forum game. At first things look strange but as we play it's easy to see why Wham does it this way.
Also, the commands we supply are quoted and supported if they sound interesting to other players, it's not fair to Wham to give him 3,4 commands in a row and it's less likely that other players will support your ideas.
I certainly don't think he should run any commands without at least one vote from other players (or unless WHAM strongly agrees with the command), but seeing a command that received a few votes being dismissed due to another command with only one extra vote is quite disappointing. If two commands were given in a turn, one being to hire a herbalist and the other being to send sellswords to search a newly discovered magical cave, all the attention will be on the magical cave and it's likely we'd NEVER see the herbalist being mentioned again (until we need one, but by then it'll be too late).
I agree he's doing a fine job with this, I only offer the suggestion to help improve and speed things along. A LOT of things can and do happen in a kingdom, and depending on how long and detailed WHAM decides for this to go, if it's going to take us two real-world weeks to do trivial tasks this game will certainly lose steam.
While I agree with Ryan about the kind of sinister "evil clown" vibe that I get from the Jester, I don't think relying on some impeccable "Hand" will be any better. Focussing a lot of power in any one vizier is always dangerous: my preference as stated earlier would be to have a 10ish person council/cabinet through which we could rule, playing the various ministers against each other if necessary to assure our own pre-eminence. I think the core of Ryan's issue with the Jester boils down to lack of information: but who
can a king trust? Who will speak truth to power, if not his surly Fool? Everyone's got an agenda. What we really need is a spymaster to snoop up on people. And then a secret spymaster to snoop up on the actual spymaster, to make sure he's doing a good job. And then a super secret spymaster, just to verify the results of the other two. And they can't ever find out about each other, so that they can never compare notes. So really we need a forth person just to conduct surveillance on the three spymasters, to make sure they're not in contact. And then we'll need someone (Let's call him "M") to administer the whole operation, 'cause it'd be too much of a bother to deal with them each individually (that'd be, like, a whole day of meetings!). But that creates another buffer between us and our reliable informants, so we'll need at least another loyal set of eyes to spy on "M". No, actually make that two sets of eyes, so that we can verify their accounts....
Or...
or we could just trust the Jester until we have genuine reason to suspect him. Then we should have him beheaded. That's right: I play for keeps. Nah, just kiddin'. But I like that trap door idea. We should definitely instruct all supplicants to stand directly on it while addressing us.
Another thought: I'm craving steak and my informant from the farmer's guild tells me that beef has to hang for about a month to "cure" before it's really tasty. Thirty days: that's like two game-years away! So.... Shouldn't we get cracking on ol' Bessie in the castle garden sooner rather than later? Just throwin' that out there.
As for audiences, I understand the Jester's veiled warnings about visitors being peeved about waiting, but we're the bloody king of Grimdark, not a theme-park mascot! Already we've had folks storm out....
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 16/11/2013 19:21:23
"Oh, there are more people seeking your AUDIENCE, however one audience seeker and his retinue just left the castle grounds for some reason."
...so it's not as if the current system of first-come, first-serve is working seamlessly either. We need a standing order for the Jester to keep the list up to date at all times. Yes, it's a bit more tedious administration, but it'll make our lives so much easier in the long run.
>> INSTRUCT JESTER TO KEEP AUDIENCE LIST UP TO DATE AT ALL TIMES, IN ORDER TO INFORM US OF NEW ARRIVALS AND PREMATURE DEPARTURES.
Once that's completed, my inclination would be to try to work through the backlog of people waiting just to establish a baseline for the amount of folks seeking audiences: if we can't keep up then we can start to delegate (although the Jester did say at one point that there'll always be somebody). I think we should prioritize audiences with people we need more than they need us. So for example Sir Kevin of Axemont and his band of knights sound like they'd be handy to employ (exploration, counter-balance to Lancelot....) while a pain to piss off (rapine, pillage....). On the other hand, the merchant from the south has travelled a long way to make a buck and isn't exactly about to storm out at the last minute if he's bumped back a bit in the queue. Just my thoughts. I'd even say:
>> ALSO ADMIT SIR KEVIN OF AXEMONT FOR AN AUDIENCE
...if I thought I could get a way with two commands at once, as Ryan suggested. But that might be asking too much of the WHAM processor.... Ah, what the heck: nothing ventured, nothing gained! Quote this:
>> INSTRUCT JESTER TO KEEP AUDIENCE LIST UP TO DATE AT ALL TIMES, IN ORDER TO INFORM US OF NEW ARRIVALS AND PREMATURE DEPARTURES.
>> ALSO ADMIT SIR KEVIN OF AXEMONT FOR AN AUDIENCE
Come on, don't give up on poor Chuckles after the very first day!
In my view, the first thing we need is MONEY and INCOME. Therefore, I would suggest offering an audience to the MERCHANT and ARTISAN.
We just hired a team of knights yesterday, so we don't immediately need SIR KEVIN or ROBINA. I don't think we're in a position now to offer help to a LOST WARRIOR.
It would also be good to hire a wise man for his advice, so let's give an audience to HIRSCHEL.
Finally, I think we need to deal with PIRATES as soon as possible, to see if they will be helpful or hostile.
So my suggestion,
> Tell KEVIN, ROBINA, LOST WARRIOR to come back in three days; then give AUDIENCE to the MERCHANT.
It's a game. We know WHAM's games, they have rules, we can screw up, but there's no malevolence. Usually. I think for a first day this worked nicely and we have some safe time to greow accustomed to things. And we didn't do anything really silly like setting the peasants on fire. And we have a cow.
Personally, I think the Jester is reliable.
My reasoning is that if the EVIL KING held him in a dungeon, he must have been NON-EVIL. That, or the EVIL KING hated jesters. I wouldn't mind a less prancy advisor but for now we have a free source of knowledge. And if this game sticks to history a bit then remember, the jester is the one man in the kingdom who is allowed to say anything, even to the king, and again, locking him up would be an indicator that the EVIL KING didn't play by the rules. Jesters traditionally are untouchable.
QuoteIn my view, the first thing we need is MONEY and INCOME. Therefore, I would suggest offering an audience to the MERCHANT and ARTISAN.
+1. While chosing the ability to hand-pick our audience may result in people leaving, I prefer it that way, and now that we can call specific subjects, we should get the groundworks done as soon as possible. I's also like to learn about what we actually HAVE for trade. Apparently wood, and cows (one less now). What's more?
Wow! I think Ryan has the same source of inspiration for his commands as I did when I began to dream up this game, what with the "Hand" and making babies to secure our King's succession. :D
Then again I had quite a few other inspirations as well, so don't expect this game to be quite as dark in theme as GoT (unless you folks start ordering assassinations, imprisonments, torture and war, of course).
To clarify some things:
- The King rules over a nation of a few thousand people, which consists of the castle, surrounding town and some smaller villages and farmsteads outside of the town walls. There are no minor lords or provinces under the king, instead there are the guildmasters, who are the closest thing to a council you currently have.
- There are other kings, nations, civilizations etc out there, just waiting to be found (and maybe conquered?) again (or they may find you and send envoys, traders or soldiers)
- People seeking audience may leave for various reasons. Example below, though it is a minor spoiler so I've hidden it:
Spoiler
When the Jester earlier told you that an audience left, the reason was that you chose to HIRE Sir Lancelot. The person who left was a well-known brigand and highwayman, who would have offered his and his men's services to you for coin. However, as Sir Lancelot is an honourable and pure knight, the brigands were unwilling to work side-by-side with him, and thus left without having an audience.
- I run 1 command per turn and
only 1 command. It might seem slow, but it allows me to keep the time spent in planning, writing and drawing (copy/pasting) the turns manageable. Then again, if you have an ongoing audience, you may take several actions WITH that audience, such as ask questions (How's the wife?), give orders (Dance for me!), make requests (Would you mind bringing your hot daughter over tomorrow, she's of age, right?) etc, and the audience still only counts as one major action for the day. Only exceptions I can think of on this are givin your advisors or heroes orders to send out expeditions, begin constructions etc (Example: you could SUMMON Lancelot and request him to give you a status report on the realm's defences and troop morale, then order him and his men to wear pink capes to identify them better. This is a single action. Then you could additionally, during the same meeting, order Lancelot to head an expedition somewhere. This would be a second action for a day.)
- As mentioned before, only commands and +1's posted AFTER the latest turn are registered. +1's given to older commands count as new commands instead, and the old +1's don't carry over.
Hope this explains things. If you have more questions about how the game works, feel free to ask and I will try to better explain things (unless it would spoil the game, of course)
Quote from: Ghost on Fri 29/11/2013 05:45:57
Personally, I think the Jester is reliable. My reasoning is that if the EVIL KING held him in a dungeon, he must have been NON-EVIL. That, or the EVIL KING hated jesters.
You miss the unfortunate possibility that
Spoiler
Jester is THE evil king in disguise
(lol)
I were suspicious of the jester, right from the start...
> GRANT PERMISSION to the TRAVELLING MERCHANT
Spoiler
And hey guys, long time no see! ;-D
QuoteGRANT PERMISSION to the TRAVELLING MERCHANT
+1
Quote from: Ghost on Fri 29/11/2013 05:45:57
Jesters traditionally are untouchable.
That's the main reason why I absolutely dislike the idea of him prancing around giving advice and acting as your royal counsel. I would never take a king seriously if their (only) counsel was a fool. Also you saw the way he interrupted Lancelot just to suggest to you that the kingdom should be renamed; a matter such as that should be brought up behind closed doors, not in front of your court or guests.
@WHAM: Without you addressing the woke-up-suddenly-as-king-but-we-don't-remember introduction, I can only assume the worst. No amount of drinking or drugs over a 2 day period could wipe your memory of leading an uprising against your own brother. And I'd prefer not to use a command to ensure it was just an introduction to the game "> Look into your memories to see if what the Jester tells you is true" etc, which is why I'm just asking the dungeon master if it was just a convenient way to have a proper introduction, or if we simply don't have any memory of this (if we don't, then we're best to simply run and run again - we're a fool being played by a fool who suddenly has us believing we're a king. Run and hide and throw down your crown). Or we simply still are the evil king but were given a potion to forget everything and now we're told we're his brother; which means the fool
certainly has a reason to aspire against us or even regicide.
Quote from: Radiant on Fri 29/11/2013 04:41:09
In my view, the first thing we need is MONEY and INCOME. Therefore, I would suggest offering an audience to the MERCHANT and ARTISAN.
I will
+1 that.
But don't forget, if what we're being told is true, we just took siege against the kingdom and claimed ourselves as the new King. I'm assuming we're the rightful heir when your brother had died (unless his kids were all butchered). There will be people who oppose us or have plans to usurp us from our new-found claim while we still have our pants down adjusting to the new seat of rule. ROBINA THE RANGER and her archers sound like the first crew we should be hiring after looking to secure ourselves a new merchant and artisan. A good set of walls (albeit they're wood and easy to storm and burn) is better held with archers and catapults than they are by foot soldiers with swords - we still need both.
This should be our queue of commands (sneaking a few in when it's needed):
Merchant > Archers > Rebuild stone walls > Find yourself a counsel and Hand > Retire jester > Look to secure your rule with an heir and blood ties > Fix dungeons (where else will we keep our POWs?)
> GRANT AUDIENCE to the TRAVELLING MERCHANT and ASK HIM about the south and where he came from.
Lancelot's knights are currently exploring the east, so it would be nice to get to know about the south.
@Ryan: I like to leave much of the past open to interpertation, so I won't be explaining much of the past out of character (as much of those facts are undecided and unwritten). If you do want concrete facts written into the game's internal history, bring up the specific subject with the jester or one of the guildmasters (or perhaps some other characters in and out of the town), as these were the people who helped you (notice how some guildmasters mentioned having just gained their position thanks to you?). Depending on who you ask may affect how the facts are told, though. Oh, and asking about these things on the side of more pressing matters will not cost you an action in your day, so go wild! Hell, you could ask the Jester for all sorts of things before your first audience of the second day, and they won't cost you an action. I will never penalize you for story-building stuff, as this game, it's world, events and characters are shaped by the players. I'm just a record keeper and, as you say, the 'dungeon master'. :)
What I can tell you is basically this: The old King ruled for longer than anyone wants to remember and he was a a greedy and evil douchebag, the people agreed on this, and you, the Evil King's seemingly nicer brother, got chosen as the leader of the rebellion in which the old King was de-throned (I'm not saying what happened to him, feel free to find out ;)). With the help of the people you stormed the palace, tore down the dungeons and released the prisoners within, captured the throne room and then everything is a bit hazy due to all the booze and celebration. Oh, and consider this: a YEAR in this fantasy world has 14 days. Now think of what a 2 day alcohol binge can do to your memory! :D
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 29/11/2013 11:49:53Oh, and consider this: a YEAR in this fantasy world has 14 days.
The Winter is Coming!
Spoiler
Sorry, could not help myself :D
That actually made me realize I had not planned at all for season changes. But then again, going the Game of Thrones way would make my life a LOT easier. When will the winter come, dear players, no-one knows!
*Starts the RNG*
Quote from: cat on Fri 29/11/2013 11:36:25
> GRANT AUDIENCE to the TRAVELLING MERCHANT and ASK HIM about the south and where he came from.
Lancelot's knights are currently exploring the east, so it would be nice to get to know about the south.
+1 and also:
>ASK what the merchant is SELLING / BUYING
Having slept peacefully through the night, you find yourself refreshed as you sit upon your simple throne. Beyond the castle windows the town seems to be peaceful but bustling with activity.
"Jester" -you command "Grant the TRAVELLING MERCHANT his due audience."
The TRAVELLING MERCHANT approaches the throne with a pequliar-looking cart in tow.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/012_a.png)
“Hail, mighty King of Grimdark! I travel from the scorching deserts to the south to bring you an offer of my finest wares and services.â€
The MERCHANT lifts the tarp which covers his cart of goods, spreading his arms wide as if trying to enhance the grandeur of the surprisingly small selection. You frown as you try to make a sense of the MERCHANT's wares.
“Of my ever-changing wares, I can offer three things at this time:
- A potion of vision, brewed by the greatest alchemists of the Southern Emirates of Turbanistan, which allows you to see a vision warning you of the nearest danger which opposes you. It is said that this very rare potion has saved the Grand Emir of Turbanistan several times over, and his purchased of the liquid has kept the southern Alchemists well coined for decades. The vial is on offer for a mere 8 gold coins.
- A seed-stock of a hardy desert-grass. The grass is edible by animals and men alike, and keeps hunger well away, although it's taste cannot be described as anything else than unpleasant. However, the grass grows even during the most dire heat waves and droughts. The seeds are yours for a mere 10 gold coins, which, considering the chance of averting famine during times of drought, is a steal!
- A shirt woven of steelspider silk. This light garment is tough enough to blunt any attack considerably, and can save the lives of heroes and Kings alike. It is said that the Grand Emir of the south never sleeps without one. This precious and rare garment can be yours for a mere 4 gold coins. Do keep in mind, though, that it will not stop all attacks and can never quite replace a well-made suit of armour.
Additionally, I am willing to buy any valuable artifacts your craftsmen might have produced, as well as found treasures, herbs and potions of all values. I have travelled between the southlands and the midlands each year for seventeen years now, as my father did before me, and I plan to keep travelling this route for quite a few more, so do keep my offers in mind if you come to possess anything of value.
Take your time, my King, and should you wish to consider for longer, I will be available for SUMMONs until tomorrow night, which is when I will head back South.â€
You begin to ponder if you should spend some of the little coin you currently have on these items. While you do, you ask the MERCHANT some questions.
“What can you tell me of the lands to the south?â€
“Oh, the southern lands are a harsh place of scorching sun, endless sand and little joy. However, past the sand-pits, deadly snakes and vicious scoprions as well as the wily naga-people who so love to ambush travellers on the few shifting roads, there lies a kingdom of immeasurable wealth and glory. Enchanted sandstone walls adorned with gold and gemstone protect the grand walled nation of the Grand Emir's Turbanistan. The people there are dark of skin and hair, and strong, hardy and wise as anyone can claim. Their lands are known for precious traded goods and especially the creations of the Grand Emir's Guild of Alchemists, who provide the Emir and his armies anything from healing poultices to poisons to coat arrows with to potions such as the one I sell.
To reach the desert sands would take two full days travel and to navigate the shifting sand roads without a good guide could take anything from three to five days, if the traveller can survive the heat and the dangers of the desert.â€
>Tell Sir Lancelot to add the merchant's trade route to our map.
> buy DESERT GRASS for SEVEN COINS.
Hey, we're the King, we're in a position to barter :) We can offer him a long-term contract or an official position as court trader if he's willing to discount us.
Quote from: Radiant on Sat 30/11/2013 22:40:31> buy DESERT GRASS
+1. If I read it correctly the wares are "ever-changing, meaning nect time there will be different items for sale. For now a robust means to provide food for subjects and livestock sounds the most attractive.
Quote from: Radiant on Sat 30/11/2013 22:40:31> for SEVEN COINS.
Why not just ASK IF MERCHANTS ACCEPTS TO BE PAID IN WARES?
Reason: We are about to open/establish a trade route. Should the first action really be potentially annoying the merchant by haggling? I tend to play it (too) nice maybe, so it's just my 2c.
but he comes from the hot south where they have droughts all the time and rely on desert grass. we are the north it seems, we should rather get some firewood once winter is coming...
Quote from: selmiak on Sat 30/11/2013 22:53:34
we are the north it seems, we should rather get some firewood once winter is coming...
I'm pretty sure we have access to wood. First post mentions us putting up a wooden wall, so there must be resources?! I also see a FOREST through the kingly window.
Whoa! Slow down there, my spendthrift friends! The whole point of seeing the merchant was that we were interested in selling him things, because raising revenue is a priority for us. It would be extremely irresponsible, in my opinion, to spend 7-10 golds (out of 20, 5 of which are already ear-marked for Lancelot and his men) on our sixth turn of the year (which consists of 70 turns!). It would be prudent with our current revenue stream to stick to a budget of 1 gold per day, unless there is a compelling reason (for the good of the kingdom) to spend more. Having an armed force that could also act as both defenders and explorers fulfilled that role, so I don't begrudge Lancelot his due, but investing in magic beans is a highly speculative venture. Medieval kings used to blow a fortune on unicorn horns and chips off the true cross, etc., but really they were just being hustled. Do we have any way of verifying that any of these items actually work? For that matter, do we even know if this is a magical fantasy realm? Sure, I've heard the Jester mention dragons and the shadowy figure appeared to disappear, but have we actually seen anything that should make us believe that magic is real and therefore a wise investment? And anyway we can't afford such extravagances at this juncture.
>>TELL MERCHANT YOU'LL THINK ABOUT IT, THEN SUMMON MANDARB OF THE CRAFTS GUILD TO INQUIRE IF HE HAS ANY SPECIAL WARES TO SELL.
Quote from: Baron on Sun 01/12/2013 03:33:52
>>TELL MERCHANT YOU'LL THINK ABOUT IT, THEN SUMMON MANDARB OF THE CRAFTS GUILD TO INQUIRE IF HE HAS ANY SPECIAL WARES TO SELL.
I'll +1 this just to delay the useless spending of precious gold coins. We can still offer the position of minister of finances to the merchant tomorrow. That would (hopefully) give us cheaper prices and he seems to have good connections with the rich and wise people from the south which will sure come in handy in the future.
Woah, slow down my fellow people! I down-vote all that was commanded. WHAM said that simply talking with an ongoing audience doesn't count as a major event advancing the day (unless we were to ask him eventful things such as asking him to draw us a map of what he knows).
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 29/11/2013 07:09:29Then again, if you have an ongoing audience, you may take several actions WITH that audience, such as ask questions (How's the wife?), give orders (Dance for me!), make requests (Would you mind bringing your hot daughter over tomorrow, she's of age, right?) etc, and the audience still only counts as one major action for the day.
We need to take advantage of this. We need to ask him more questions. Also to take advantage of what he has said: "Additionally, I am willing to buy any valuable artifacts your craftsmen might have produced, as well as found treasures, herbs and potions of all values."
We already have Lancelot's men mapping out the East, I say we use this MERCHANT a little more before dismissing him. First I suggest we ask his name and where he's from, or who he's related to (it may be important, if only for reference) and what he thinks of the Kings he knows of, which is the most IMPORTANT question. Then after that, have him draw us a map from memory of any of the surrounding area he knows of (if it's wrong, we can always change it later with professional scouts). Then have him meet with Mandarb to purchase anything we have.
> Ask MERCHANT his name, where he was born, and who he's related to, and what does he know and think of the surrounding KINGS (especially the King in the south whom I'm assuming is: Grand Emir's Turbanistan)On a side-note I'll mention a few things for reference and let you all know what I'm thinking: Do we have a treasurer? We need to check on our tax rates, make sure that every purchase is being taxed properly. And we also need to find out if there are any gold mines nearby and have some miners harvest as much as we possibly can. If we can't quickly 'earn' more golden coins, we can always make more (even if it's just to stockpile the newly made coins in our treasury). We'll need to find out if we have a royal mint. We also need to have the Churches tithe coin for the kingdom; perhaps we can squeeze more coin from peasants through their faith. Of course only a percentage though, some of that money (sadly) needs to go towards the church.
We need guards. I'm assuming we're sitting there on our throne without a single guard around us, or WHAM hasn't included them in the pictures. We also need adequate guards on the treasury where no one is to enter without record and of what they've taken or added, and they should be watched while they're in there. These guards will know that they'll be spending one year in the dungeons for each gold coin that goes missing.
Spoiler
Would it be possible to have a list of people or things we know? It certainly would make it easier to know everyone's names, what positions we have filled, what positions we don't, etc. I vote Baron to keep track of this information and to host it on a site for reference. Why Baron? Well, simply because I don't want to do it and I know that my good buddy Baron is a pushover eager to help. :-D (it doesn't have to be Baron, I jest)
I'm keeping the daily report pics in the first post for reference purposes, as a sort of "scroll of time", so you should be able to check who has been hired and to do what.
Each major action and event of interest will be mentioned in those.
Also: sorry, but there is no such thing as "downvote" in this game, although people are free to change their previous commands until the votes are tallied and the next turn is posted.
As to the guards:
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 16/11/2013 19:21:23
"My King, now that we have a HERO with military experience, he has been automatically assigned as the MILITARY ADVISOR of your kingdom. Should you hire more heroes, you can appoint another HERO to take on this job instead.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has send out an EXPEDITION of five knights to the EAST. However, he has personally remained in the castle, since you ordered him to send a delegation instead of ordering him to explore personally. This means the expedition will be less effective and may be in more danger than if they were accompanied by a HERO.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has ordered five of his knights to guard the castle.
It seems that Sir Lancelot has ordered ten knights to patrol the town, keeping the peace and protecting the common folk.
Quote from: WHAM on Sun 01/12/2013 13:00:03
Also: sorry, but there is no such thing as "downvote" in this game
Dang diddly dang-it! :-D
So the numbers of guards guarding the castle is a small fantasy scale number? Five certainly wouldn't be enough to even guard a house let alone a castle (night rotation, guarding king, treasury, armory, any valuables during a raid or theft, etc), which is why I assumed we should amp up the amount. Hmm, so you're saying that if an enemy attacks, it won't be in waves of a 1000+ knights/soldiers as I imagined it would be, but instead it'll be small numbers like 50?
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 01/12/2013 12:34:21
Would it be possible to have a list of people or things we know? It certainly would make it easier to know everyone's names, what positions we have filled, what positions we don't, etc. I vote Baron to keep track of this information and to host it on a site for reference. Why Baron? Well, simply because I don't want to do it and I know that my good buddy Baron is a pushover eager to help. :-D (it doesn't have to be Baron, I jest)
Presenting the OFFICIAL KING SIMULATOR GLOSSARY (http://www.vanwijst.com/games/king/index.html). I think I should also keep track of our finances, but double entry bookkeeping was never my strong suit.... I'll try to keep this up-to-date as the game advances, and actually link to the critical quotes I've cited, but I've run out of time at the moment. Remember that this is just from the player's perspective and the content is for reference only: it may not be entirely accurate according to WHAM!
---
Edit: Yeah, that looks pretty ugly.... I'll get to gussyin' 'er up later on, too.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 01/12/2013 18:02:29
So the numbers of guards guarding the castle is a small fantasy scale number? Five certainly wouldn't be enough to even guard a house let alone a castle (night rotation, guarding king, treasury, armory, any valuables during a raid or theft, etc), which is why I assumed we should amp up the amount. Hmm, so you're saying that if an enemy attacks, it won't be in waves of a 1000+ knights/soldiers as I imagined it would be, but instead it'll be small numbers like 50?
Well that would depend on the enemy, now wouldn't it. And should you, Gods forbid, piss off THE DRAGON, then all it takes is one enemy to wipe you out. But yeah, I doubt you'll see bandit raids of more than a handful of men/women, and even in war you can always prop up troop numbers with militia, mercenaries (if you've got the coin) etc. Oh, and magic, poison, alchemy and technology in general will help. Then again, why prepare for war unless you plan to have a war? ;)
Baron: you are awesome! Than glossary is awesome! Everything is awesome right now! WHEEE! :D
Quote from: WHAM on Sun 01/12/2013 20:25:33
Then again, why prepare for war unless you plan to have a war? ;)
Oh, I am not eager to prepare for war, simply just looking to defend our kingdom. A kingdom without guards and knights and sufficient men for militia is no kingdom at all (at least not for long).
Baron: That's awesome! (laugh) I had only joked about you creating this and you completely surprised me! Good stuff. I like!
Baron, fantastic work! Thanks for that!
I also think we should extract as many information from the merchant as we can, so
Quote> Ask MERCHANT his name, where he was born, and who he's related to, and what does he know and think of the surrounding KINGS
, ask him for a map of all his routes and significant places/towns/kingdoms (even if we have to spend an extra turn);
+1
I too believe that we need
more guards/soldiers and I believe Baron and me wanting for a
census of our kingdom to on early posts. We could then find out how many unemployed fit men could be
trained by Lancelot.
Spoiler
Ryan, sorry to reprehend your ideas before, peace!
Quote from: miguel on Sun 01/12/2013 22:45:39
I too believe that we need more guards/soldiers and I believe Baron and me wanting for a census of our kingdom to on early posts. We could then find out how many unemployed fit men could be trained by Lancelot.
I completely agree. I definitely would've
+1'd that command if I were part of this game in the early stages. We'll certainly need to address it at another point. Not only do I want a population census, I'd like to know what crops or livestock we have, how many forgers, if we have any mines and what kind of metals they have, if there's fish in the river or anything else that's worth collecting, is it salt or fresh water, how many boats we have (fishing or military), etc.
Spoiler
There's always peace Miguel, I don't mind a differing opinion ;)
I agree that the census is still a good idea, but we should be very specific in its design before delegating its execution. I think Ryan could handle drafting that up for us. ;)
In the mean time, we are already spending 25% of our yearly revenue on defence, and may well go higher depending on who else we deem fit to hire (Heroes, notably, are much better at exploring than the guys we've got so far....). I'm not sure raising a professional army is such a good idea, financially speaking. HOWEVER, it probably would be a good idea to have an organized force ready in case we had to fight a sudden defensive war. In that case, I say we start training a militia -the medieval term was fyrd: able bodied men 16-60 would owe us a month's free military service. It costs nothing, and strengthens the social contract since the peasantry feels more trusted (since we're giving them permission to bear arms), and might even save our royal butt in a pinch. Lancelot would probably gladly train such a force, since it shows how we intend to rule with the people and for the people (training them to fight would otherwise be very problematic).
Another thought: we really should inquire of the Jester what royal dues are owed to us besides what we get in taxes. It'd be great if we got free labour, but other notable perks of royalty in the past have been free room and board when visiting subjects, free admission to plays, and let's not forget the ultimate perk of prima nocta. :=
Droit du seigneur or Right of the Lord,
refers to a collection of putative similar rights allowing the lord to spend a night and have sexual relations with a subordinate woman. They also are known as prima nocta, mainly when they include the notion of "first night".
According to the most known variant, it was a legal right allowing the lord of a medieval estate to take the virginity of his serfs' maiden daughters.
+1
DEVNOTE: Three different commands tied this round, so the one proposed first gets a go.
You take interest in the desert grass seeds and decide to see if you can get the price down a bit.
"Ten coins for the desert grass seeds? I think seven gold far more suitable, considering the climate we are in. It would be a hard sell outside of the desert in any case, don't you agree?"
The MERCHANT shakes his head, exasperated.
"My most gracious King, the price I offer has already been lowered to meet the needs of the people of midlands. Alas, for your grace I am willing to part with them for a mere nine gold and fifty silvers."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/013_a.png)
Some time passes as you find yourself haggling with the wily MERCHANT. After a short while you have come to a stalemate, and the standing offer is eight gold, sixty-six silvers, fifteen coppers, a dozen chicken eggs and a button (don't ask how that last one got in there).
Additionally you have learned that the Merchant's name is Jib Ali-Gharzab of the Guaravana family line, and that he was born as the only son to a pair of travelling merchants, which is why he has found himself in the same profession as his parents. The MERCHANT does not think he can draw a map for you, as he has struck some sort of deal with the Naga people of the desert so that he is guided to his destination in the desert. He says that to find the midlands, all one must do is head north from the desert, and that to find the lands of Turbanistan, all one must do is head south of the midlands. However, the MERCHANT warns you that the NAGA will lead astray any wanderers and may even attack poorly protected caravans outright. The MERCHANT says that he knows there are seafaring people who rule over the ocean's edge to the WEST, though he does not know who leads these people, since he doesn't trade with them directly.
The Merchant seems pleased with the outcome of the haggling. Would you like to confirm the trade?
I strongly oppose this purchase guys. We should think really well on where to spend our money.
It does sound like a good buy but as far as we know the people are happy and the city is active and dynamic, we have dozens of people that want to speak to us and nobody had any complaint about food.
I know that things may change but maybe it should be better to access the real food production of our kingdom, like said before: grain, meat, fish, etc...
> ACCEPT THE OFFER, and have the grass sent to CAT.
It's good to have diverse kinds of food, this can either save us in case of fatigue, or it can feed the animals while saving better food for the citizens. Also, it's good to have ties with travelers and traders like this merchant. I would be interested to see HIRSCHEL or the PIRATE next.
> Don't accept the offer;
Quote from: miguel on Mon 02/12/2013 22:17:37
> Don't accept the offer;
+1 AND
summon MANDARB to meet with JIB (the southern merchant) to see if he has any wares to sell himQuote from: Baron on Mon 02/12/2013 05:04:11
I agree that the census is still a good idea, but we should be very specific in its design before delegating its execution. I think Ryan could handle drafting that up for us. ;)
All I can think of is what I've written in my post above, do you have any other suggestions?
Edit: I suppose religion is a big question. I'd like to know how many religions and churches we have in our kingdom.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Mon 02/12/2013 22:27:28
Quote from: miguel on Mon 02/12/2013 22:17:37
> Don't accept the offer;
+1 AND summon MANDARB to meet with JIB (the southern merchant) to see if he has any wares to sell him
+1
You gotta lead these merchant types along. If they suspect no sale, they move on. The more time they invest in a sale, however, the more desperate they become.
>>TELL MERCHANT WE SHALL THINK ON IT. THEN INVITE MANDARB TO SHARE HIS WARES WITH MERCHANT
Quote from: Baron on Tue 03/12/2013 03:14:02
You gotta lead these merchant types along. If they suspect no sale, they move on. The more time they invest in a sale, however, the more desperate they become.
>>TELL MERCHANT WE SHALL THINK ON IT. THEN INVITE MANDARB TO SHARE HIS WARES WITH MERCHANT
+5+(-4)
Quote from: Baron on Tue 03/12/2013 03:14:02
>>TELL MERCHANT WE SHALL THINK ON IT. THEN INVITE MANDARB TO SHARE HIS WARES WITH MERCHANT
+1. I like the cut of your jib, Baron ;-D
Quote from: Baron on Tue 03/12/2013 03:14:02
>>TELL MERCHANT WE SHALL THINK ON IT. THEN INVITE MANDARB TO SHARE HIS WARES WITH MERCHANT
+1 Vote
You inform the MERCHANT that you wish to think on the matter of the DESERT GRASS SEEDS more thoroughly before making the purchase. He promises to avail himself to your SUMMONS should you decide to seal the deal later today or tomorrow, but reminds you that he is to leave during the night after tomorrow if he is to make his trails in time.
As you allow the Jester to lead the MERCHANT away from the throne room, you instruct the fool to ensure the MERCHANT gets to speak with MANDARD, head of the CRAFTSMEN'S GUILD, so that the two can discuss business.
"Aye, aye, my King!" -the Jester replies, before leading the MERCHANT away while cackling gleefully. As he turns to leave, he stops in his tracks, allowing your guest to move a bit futher away before turning back to whisper to you in a secretive tone:
"My King, mr DENNIS is here to see you, along with some of the TOWN GUARDS. They seemed a wee bit distressed, so I would recommend you meet them as soon as possible."
With that, the Jester turns and leaves, on his way to do your bidding.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/014_a.png)
>SUMMON Dennis and the town guards;
wooooo, I'm excited now! What can this be?
Quote from: miguel on Wed 04/12/2013 19:56:36
>SUMMON Dennis and the town guards;
+1. Can't have a Dennis being non-summoned when in teh distresses.
> send RAY to calm down DENNIS :grin:
Oh.. for some reason I didn't know of Dennis being the head of trader's guild. He would've been more suitable for Jib to meet with instead of Mandarb.
I guess we need to figure this emergency out first, then afterwards perhaps have him catch up with Jib.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 04/12/2013 19:56:36
>SUMMON Dennis and the town guards;
+1
My understanding is that Dennis just does trading, while Mandarb produces the things that Dennis might trade. But Dennis doesn't seem to be big on taking the initiative while here is Jib, so....
Also, I've changed the venue for the KING SIMULATOR GLOSSARY (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/King_Simulator_2013), in case you feel inclined to look up who's who in a more polished format. It's now on the AGS Wiki, so anyone can edit. I haven't got the people & things up yet: they're on the to-do list.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 04/12/2013 19:56:36
>SUMMON Dennis and the town guards;
+1
Nice job again, Baron!
Tradesmaster DENNIS and a pair of knights of the TOWN GUARD enter the throne room, sealing the door as they enter. The trio look somewhat down. It takes a full minute for one of the guards to begin explaining:
"My King, it would seem that despite our best efforts a PETTY CRIMINAL has managed to enter our town last night, scaling the walls and entering the TRADERS GUILD HALL and escaping with some valuables. Considering the manpower available, we are aready doing everything we can to ensure the security of the town, but with a mere 10 knighs manning the walls at any given time, we are hard pressed to cover all of the town efficiently."
The knight steps back, lookign sullen. In his stead, Dennis steps up.
"My King, I must inform you that the thief made away with the GILDED SEALS of the TRADERS GUILD, without which we cannot officially make new trade treaties, contracts or establish trade routes. If you would be so kind as to ALLOW me to COMMISSION new seals from the CRAFTSMEN'S GUILD, I am sure we can correct the issue within a day or two, although the work will cut into the amount of goods produced by the CRAFTSMEN this year, possibly affecting INCOME slightly.
Additionally, the members of the TRADERS GUILD are not feeling entirely secure in the guild hall due to this event, and their happiness has suffered slightly. I will do my best to assure them that there is no real danger and that this incident was a mere fluke."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/015_a.png)
How about we
> order sir LANCELOT to find this THIEF?
>Order Sir Lancelot to draft the first born of every family in each village we control and train more guards.
Let's not build a policestate because of one mean thief....
> Summon Sir Lancelot and order him to investigate the location of the crime with his best men and find the thief asap or we will cut his budgets or his head (on sole discretion of his king!)
We kind of neglected security didn't we?
But, like selmiak said let's not rush into drastic measures.
Ordering Lancelot to train fit men was already discussed here and should be done on the short term, I say that Lancelot and another 2 of his men should chase the thief around our town and castle but not any further, this can be a trap.
Stealing the Traders Seals isn't a common theft, it has surely somebody (kingdom) behind it, and its purpose is clearly to stall our intents on reviving economy.
Meaning that we must hire one spy (at least) and his mission is clear: find out in town, where things get talked (taverns, markets and public occasions) of any unusual rumours or suspicious characters. Related or not to the recent theft it's a priority to have an informer working with us.
We've seen how this game runs, the minute we think things are peaceful, shit happens. So, let's think before issuing another command to WHAM. Turning the kingdom into the pentagon may sound clever but it takes time and turns. A spy would be the best asset we can have right now.
I'm not issuing a command, I wanted to discuss my thoughts with all of you firs.
but we neglected security because we just didn't know there was a GILDED SEALS of the TRADERS GUILD around to be guarded...
That is true, it's also WHAM first go at something like this I believe. Let's assume, from now on, that our little kingdom has valuable items and people to be guarded safe.
I guess we learn playing and WHAM improves with your very pertinent remark.
+1 for having the guards investigate the theft (within the town limits for now). I completely agree with Miguel that there's something fishy about someone stealing trader's seals. Maybe it's even an inside job since the trader's guild was mentioned to be in turmoil after the recent changes. (Can we even trust Dennis?). But perhaps we don't have to summon Lancelot to give him the order, but could just tell the two of his men who are already in the room, saving us a turn?
Since we can't be sure Lancelot will apprehend the thief, though, particulary if it's all part of some kind of plot:
>Allow Dennis to commission new seals.
And since we really don't know anything about our kingdom at this point, and since Dennis is already around.
>Ask Dennis to tell us more about the traders guild and himself.
Also, I'm a bit confused. The jester repeatedly mentioned a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD being necessary. But Lancelot has been named MILITARY ADVISOR. Does he still serve as our CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD for now or do we need to look for someone else to fill that position? Particularly since the Jester mentioned the need to hire a CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD as a seperate topic from the need to hire HEROES.
I won't be listing all the valuables in the realm, but yes, the guilds, nobles and even common folk may all have something of value, and crime can happen depending on several variables, such as kingdom wealth, security, fame etc.
For a look inside the game's inner workings (to maintain the illusion of "fair game"), see below for minor spoilers:
Spoiler
You currently have 10 guards assigned to watch over the town, each of which provide you with X points of GUARD RATING. Whenever a special crime (that affects an important character, a guild or the king/crown) is taking place, a SECURITY TEST is run (otherwise there is a generic "crimes per year" number calculated based on wealth, population and security rating). This test is a roll of D100 against the security rating. Security is modified by certain variables (stormy season helps thieves hide in darkness, whereas snow may hinder them as they leave more tracks), as well as the hero in charge of the GUARD (Lancelot) and his stats. Finally, the type of crime and the type of criminal modify the dice roll made against the security rating, and for example: a single thief breaking and entering is much harder to catch than a group of smugglers hauling a cargo of heavy chests filled with ill-gotten gold.
Finally, the difference between the roll and the rating can change the outcome. If the criminal rolls just a few points below your security rating, then he is caught as he makes his escape. If the roll is far below the rating, the thief is caught red-handed, and if the roll is waaaay below the rating, the thief is caught before he can even take a crack at the windows. If the criminal rolls higher than the security rating, then the crime succeeds and the outcome depends on the roll just as before. A natural roll of 5 or below always fails and a natural roll of 96 or above always succeeds.
As this was the first security test made, I will reveal the actual numbers involved below (spoilerific):
Spoiler
SECURITY RATING (modified): 80
THIEF D100 ROLL (modified): 86
THIEF SUCCEEDS by small margin, but does not manage to steal many items, the stolen items are noticed and identified, type of thief is revealed by investigation.
Had the thief rolled, let's say 92, you might not have heard about the stolen items until perhaps day 3 or 4 (or if you had tried to initiate a trade relationship and realized you can't)!
I'll let you guys have small peeks into the game's inner working sometimes, but I won't reveal most of the variables, modifiers and such. Heck, maybe you'll come up with some new ones during discussions and I'll integrate them into the game. :)
Hope you people are having as much fun playing and guessing how the game works as I am having creating it all! Hopefully we can keep the game running for at least a full in-game year so that we can meet all sorts of characters, nations and events.
@Tibatonk: CAPTAIN OF THE GUARD and the MILITARY ADVISOR are currently both Lancelot, as he is the only hero you have with military skills, but these COULD be two different people if you had two or more military -type heroes. Or you could create more positions such as the sheriff of east-town and west-town etc and offer those to different people to make them feel important (and more well-paid). Or you could just consolidate all the military and security power under one well-trusted hero. Or... I don't know! ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN! :D Anyway, good question, and I should have been more clear about that.
We currently have no security with 10 guardsmen trying to protect thousands of villagers let alone the 5 guards protecting the government. We need lots of guards for security and to send out on missions and training takes time.
Quote from: selmiak on Fri 06/12/2013 16:28:06
Let's not build a policestate because of one mean thief....
But we can't neglect the security. This thief was merely a warning that there will be more severe criminals. So, I believe that we should increase the number of knights/guards to ensure that we don't suffer losses too often.
Quote from: NightHawk on Sat 07/12/2013 02:18:03
We currently have no security with 10 guardsmen trying to protect thousands of villagers let alone the 5 guards protecting the government. We need lots of guards for security and to send out on missions and training takes time.
NightHawk is absolutely correct and I agree with him.
> Summon Lancelot and inquire the list of free knights/guards available for duty, also inquire about the new knights'/guards' training program.
I agree that we should hire at least one more hero. Someone we can also send out on missions and stuff. Whereas Lancelot as our current captain of the guard/military advisor should probably stay close to home most of the time. Would it be sensible to summon both Sir Kevin and Robina, who are the only heroes currently offering their services, together with Lancelot or would that make them and other people waiting for audience unhappy?
Before we do any of that we should really try to get as much as possible out of our current turn with Dennis, though.
I must try to convince you guys of the importance of hiring a spy. We need a second pair of eyes around town to find out any plots or conspiracies against us before it happens.
I remember you guys that although the criminal was but a petty thief according to the investigation lead by the town guard, he could have sneaked into the treasury and take our short amount of gold!
Yes, more guards indeed. And trained by Lancelot.
But a spy could detect things before they happen and even bigger conspiracies against us.
>Hire Spy;
Quote from: miguel on Sat 07/12/2013 17:51:19
I must try to convince you guys of the importance of hiring a spy. We need a second pair of eyes around town to find out any plots or conspiracies against us before it happens.
>Hire Spy;
+1. We need basics.
Do we really want the jester involved in a task such a hiring a spy? It seems we're not entirely sure we can trust the guy.
Maybe that's a topic we can bring up with Lancelot while we discuss increased security anyhow?
>Summon Lancelot. Tell him to have theft of trader's seals investigated. Ask his advice in increasing security and hiring/training more guards and knights. Also bring up the idea of hiring a spy.
But before that we should really (and I repeat myself here):
>Allow Dennis to commission new seals and ask him whether there's anything else about the trader's guild we need to know.
I think hiring a spy is premature. We need to get some basic things like guards, police, and trade setup first.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Sat 07/12/2013 20:43:46
>Allow Dennis to commission new seals and ask him whether there's anything else about the trader's guild we need to know.
+1
"Commission the new seals from the craftsmen at once, Mr Dennis. Trade is the lifeblood of a good Kingdom, and the sooner we establish trade, the better."
Dennis seems highly pleased, and nods in approval. "Very well, My King." -he says.
"Before you leave, Mr Dennis, I would like to know more about how the trader's guild actually works. Would you explain the workings of the guild a little, and perhaps the purpose of the seals as well?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/016_a.png)
Dennis nods, though not a single strand of hair is misplaced in the motion of his head.
"Well, my King, the trader's guild manages all of the traders, shops and caravans in the Kingdom. New trade routes, supply routes and the like are run by caravans, which we will prepare, stock and purchase protection for as each member sees fit. Of all the trading that goes on in the shops, taverns and inns, as well as between the villages and towns and between our kingdom and other nations, a small tax is accumulated, which is then paid, fully, to the crown once each year.
Currently the TRADE TAX rate is set as "LOW".
To ensure fairness and legality in our dealings with other nations, however, the SACRED SEALS OF THE TRADERS are used. These seals are finely crafted by the best craftsmen of the realm, and each seal bears icons and symbols which are pressed upon the seals of trade contracts. This way, any member of the Trader's guild can confirm the seals as valid and untampered at any time, based on the dates, times, signatures and seals on each contract. The exact way this works is a trade secret, as I am sure you will understand, but the system has served us well so far. To lose the seals is a horrible blow, especially at this time, but I am sure we can replace them soon.
Not having the seals does not mean we cannot trade, however it does mean that we run the risk of being scammed and having our documents tampered later on.
Is this explanation satisfactory to my King?"
>Tell Dennis to make sure the new seals can be distinguished from the old seals. Preferably by including our own royal sigil, a dancing cow.
So we're really just chasing our tail here: no money due to limited trade, but we have to spend our [limited] money to buy the seals to keep getting meagre returns on trade. No, what we need to do is to get to the root of the problem in the kingdom, and that's revenue. We can't afford the kind of security necessary to stop from spinning our wheels, which keeps us poor and always one step behind the problem. It's time to be proactive, friends. We need to raise money. As I see it, the options are:
1) raise taxes on tariffs and trade (currently set to LOW)
2) raise taxes on land and chattels (status unknown)
3) institute a poll tax, payable by every adult (regressive, but effective)
4) sell rights or offices (mill-rights, mining rights, hunting rights, knighthoods, etc.)
It's true, higher taxes tend to breed disaffection in the populace, but so do crummy services (i.e. security). Further, if we were to discuss our reasons for raising taxes, emphasizing the benefits to the populace, using what happened to the trader's guild as an example, I bet we could get the ratepayers to buy into the scheme.
>>SUMMON THE COUNCIL AND ASK THEM TO ADVISE ON REVENUE RAISING OPTIONS
Quote from: Baron on Sun 08/12/2013 17:16:13
>>SUMMON THE COUNCIL AND ASK THEM TO ADVISE ON REVENUE RAISING OPTIONS
+1
Quote from: Baron on Sun 08/12/2013 17:16:13
>>SUMMON THE COUNCIL AND ASK THEM TO ADVISE ON REVENUE RAISING OPTIONS
+1
Do we have a counsel? Who are they?
I suggest we find some treasure.
We need to get a foundation. This will cost us money. We can't do trade now, and even with trade established, money will come in slowly. And money is important because it makes the world go round.
You know who always has money?
Dragons.
I suggest we:
a) find out about dragons.
b) find out where the smallest and weakest dragon is
c) send someone there with a big pointy stick
d) profit
And this is a serious suggestion. Fantasy kingdom == dragons. Even if those dragons are different. Maybe they aren't even dragons. They might be leprechauns or, if I remember WHAM, lemur giants. That doesn't matter. Just replace anything I wrote about dragons with the other word.
> ASK ABOUT DRAGONS.
__
Edit: Made "Dragons" a larger font size for emphasis.
Raising taxes will lower our popularity but yes I understand it has to be done for now. So I support the meting with the trader guilds as well.
But let's consider this:
- our trade income is zero;
- we need merchants in town and trade routes with other nations really quickly, so how to incentive merchants to trade with us?
- what do we have to offer?
-the taxes on commerce should not be set different than LOW if we want trading routes to pass by our kingdom;
-how rich are our people? Can they buy products when merchants start trading with us?
We need to know this things: CENSUS. We keep forgetting to do a population CENSUS of our kingdom.
Also, the SPY. Don't forget the SPY.
Allow me to repeat my suggestion, backed up by RESEARCH.
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 08/11/2013 09:17:03
Alas, the chest is lost and the potion is thus gone.
Stolen by a dragon, it's guardians were left mere ash and bone.â€
So we know there is a dragon. It was able to defeat guardians by turning them into ash and bone.
We are dealing with a dragon at least the size of a princess (with either the natural ability to breathe fire, or accompanied by other creatures with said ability, or the Pyro); dangerous but, most importantly, DEFENITELY owning treasure.
Sometimes dragons are sentient. They can be talked with. Negotiated, even. Do we have another princess?
Dragons are also extremely greedy when it comes to gold and we would be destroyed on the spot if it so much as suspected that we took any even if it was our own coin falling out of our pocket.
Quote from: Ghost on Mon 09/12/2013 18:57:54
We are dealing with a dragon at least the size of a princess (with either the natural ability to breathe fire, or accompanied by other creatures with said ability, or the Pyro); dangerous but, most importantly, DEFENITELY owning treasure.
I disagree with your logic. The dragon may well have been quite tiny, just very powerful. Also, the chest at one point contained potion, the use of which was to "restore" the princess, which would be hard to monetize. Now I'm not saying that dragon hunting is a bad idea; I'm just saying that it entails certain risks, and I think you are misrepresenting the potential rewards. Do you have an actual dragon in mind that we could mug/grift?
Dragon hunting sounds like easy money, too easy. Maybe when we have a dozen heroes or so. Some dwarfs and a hobbit.
Let's stay focused guys! We have no money, poor defense and no trading.
Quote from: Baron on Mon 09/12/2013 21:15:00I disagree with your logic. The dragon may well have been quite tiny, just very powerful.
Agreed. Still there is a dragon, and my guess is based mostly on basic fantasy fare. Dragon == hoard == money.
I was a bit silly, but I think there IS some potential here. We need money. Trade will not really get us started and as is seems there are many things to take care of (and pay for) before we will have something like an economy. We should warm up to the idea to get money quickly. Taking on a dragon clearly would be a dangerous affair. But maybe there is more? Leprecauns with a pot of gold maybe? A rock in the fields with treasure buried under it that can only be taken by those pure of heart?
We should learn about the FANTASY aspect of the realm and monetize it. And that actually *is* a serious suggestion.
but be realistic, every big nation is built on debt and our people still don't know us...
> initiate big party for the new king
this can easily be combined with a census btw ;)
Yes, like all those who come to the party must state their name, age, occupation and the likes! Clever move Selmiak! And I'm not joking here.
It's a clever way of doing a census even if not accurate.
>Order Jesterino to announce a party inside the castle where all the townsfolk are invited; Inform Jesterino that guests must state SEX,AGE,OCCUPATION,ADDRESS;
We throw a party and then increase taxes!
Parties cost money. Dragon hunting requires a group of trained adventurers which cost money. Those are both great ideas in the slightly longer term, but having spent 25% of our yearly budget in the very first day, I think our first priority right now should be making money.
So yeah, let's find that council and ask them for our options.
OK, OK, OK.... Hear me out here. We throw a royal ball -yeah, that's right -and we invite every eligible maiden to attend. Girls go CRAZY over this princess stuff, and spend a fortune on wigs, dresses, jewellery, make-up, dieting advice, liposuction, yoga, dance lessons, delousing, dentistry, tanning, perfume, footwear, coaches, nails, manicures, pedicures, and for all I know pap-smears. THIS COULD BE A HUGE SPUR TO THE DOMESTIC ECONOMY. But that's not the whole of the scheme. Neither is asking for the personal details of the attendees (ie a census), although that's a good idea too.
No, the genius of my scheme is this: charge admission. Yeah, that's right. What have we got to flog besides a moth-eaten half-empty map and a fatted-calf? Nothing but our status as the most eligible bachelor in the kingdom! So let's cash-in on it! What self-respecting lady of means would miss the opportunity to be Cinderella? They're already spending bucketloads of cash to get ready for the actual ball: what's a little more to actually get into it? And all we're selling is the dream, the faint hope that fate has crossed their stars with ours. We don't actually have to marry any of them. In fact, just to be sure we aren't tempted I say we dress the jester up in a dress and spend the whole evening "smitten" with him. He runs off into the night, shedding a curly-tipped slipper, we're heartbroken and out of luck, and.... that's that. Thanks for the cash, gals!
Quote from: Baron on Tue 10/12/2013 03:17:06
No, the genius of my scheme is this: charge admission. Yeah, that's right.
+1. AND we invite the dragon, yes?
Quote from: Baron on Tue 10/12/2013 03:17:06
In fact, just to be sure we aren't tempted I say we dress the jester up in a dress and spend the whole evening "smitten" with him.
Aaaaand thanks for yet another picture I'll never get out of my head.
QuoteQuote from: Baron on Today at 03:17
No, the genius of my scheme is this: charge admission. Yeah, that's right.
plus get guests data, even if their only girls:=
+1
You thank Dennis for his information, and instruct him to stay for a while longer. As he waits, you have the Jester gather the other guildmasters, as well as your military advisor, Sir Lancelot, in the throne room.
The nearest thing to a council you have has gathered at your behest, and you put to them the most important question your realm now needs answers for: "How do we make money?".
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/017_a.png)
Lancelot begins:
"My King, as your military advisor there is fairly little I can suggest. As it stands, I can understand that my men and I are costing the crown rather much, but these men are knights of the realm, and their services are sought elsewhere as well. Should we offer them lesser pay, they might feel insulted and some might leave.
The only solution available to me is to send out more expeditions to chart out the land and to seek quests, artefacts and villains and monster to take and to conquer. Vanquishing bandits is always good for the economy and sometimes we might secure their previous loot for the crown. Alas, with our current manpower, I would be hesitant to lose any more of my men from their guard duties, to ensure there is no unrest in the streets."
Next up is Cat, though you are not sure why she is here again. She looks uncomfortable as she tries to think for a moment, before trying to relax and delivering her response.
"Gosh darn, m'King, the people are working as hard as they can, 'n' their wages ain't that good as to be willing to pay more taxes or nuffin'. The Evil King's taxes were so steep'n that many a farmstead are only now beginnin' to slowly recover, and ah don' think that most folks will have much 'afore th' 'arvest anyways."
You nod, slightly disappointed. Raising taxes for the common folk may well turn some of them against their new king. Next up is Mandarb, of the crafsmen.
"My King" -he speaks in a no-nonsense voice; "the craftsmen are making the most of the resources we currently have, but the local markets are well stocked with goods and I do not think we can count on making any majo breakthroughst any time soon. There is always the possibility that one of the craftsmen will produce an especially fine item, an artefact you see, but these things take time and we can never know for sure until the work is done. If we had some more exotic resources, such as STRANGE STONES or EXOTIC WOODS or perhaps even BONES of some faraway beast, our craftsmen might be inspired to produce even more special wares and artefacts sooner. I'm sure that if we can boost our production quality, the word will spread and Mr Dennis here will find trading partners more easily as well."
Next up is Dennis of the Trader's guild.
"As I see it, My King, we should send out expeditions to re-establish contact with the other nations. Turbanistan to the far south reminds me of valuable trade, but the route there is dangerous and unreliable. I am almost certain there are other nations we could trade with to the west, north and east, but we just need to find them and ensure they are peaceful. Our caravans are not willing to brave the wilderness without a clear goal to aim for, I'm afraid, and sending them out with valuable wares in search for the unknown is immensely dangerous for them and the economy."
Finally, there is Contrued of the Builders.
"As it stands, My King, our realm does not seem valuable to the outside eyes. The Evil King withheld almost all the gold to himself and so the run-down farmesteads outside of town are tilled by ragged peasants, the walls surrounding our town are but a crude wooden palisade and the town itself is but a collection of huts and lodges with a castle in the middle. We need to think about improving the palisade if nothing else, as this is what outsiders see if they pass our lands, and a secure wall is a signal of wealth within. In it's current sorry state the wall may even turn away some merchants. Alas, construction is not free, and I understand this may be a problem as we try and get started."
Sir Lancelot seems to be pondering Construed's words, but finally nods approvingly.
Last but (not?) least is the Jester, your most trusted (and only) advisor.
"Well, My King, it seems there are quite a few ways we could be trying to resolve this little situation.
- Fire Lancelot and his men and replace them with cheaper warriors to save coin (Lancelot looks troubled)
- Improve the peasant's lot in life to improve tax income from the people in the long run
- Construct new walls to attract more traders (construed rubs his hands excitedly)
- Find more valuable resources for the craftsmen to use
- Find more trading partners who might be interested in the crafts and goods we produce
- Send out expeditions, preferrably with a hero in charge, to map out the kingdom, seeking out treasure and quests and collecting rewards."
The Jester pauses and ponders for a moment.
"I'm sure there are more ways to make money too, we just need to find them!"
Okay, seems like we can't really do anything to improve our financial situation drastically in the short term.
So my suggestion would be to hire one more hero (I think Sir Kevin is next in line, maybe he's even cheaper than Lancelot). Then have a look at what kind of quest that Lost Warrior dude has to offer who is also waiting for an audience.
>Grant audience to Sir Kevin of Axemont. Ask our military advisor Sir Lancelot to stay for advice during the audience.
>Summon the southern merchant meet with Mandarb and Dennis to discuss any possible trade deals.
...
edit: Changed my vote
Quote from: Tibatonk on Tue 10/12/2013 16:49:54
>Grant audience to Sir Kevin of Axemont. Ask our military advisor Sir Lancelot to stay for advice during the audience.
+1
So based on what our council suggests...
Sir Lancelot suggests that we need expeditions to learn about other countries, quests, artifacts and so forth. Mandarb suggests that we need exotic materials, which would require an expedition as well. Dennis suggests we need expeditions to establish contact with other nations. And finally, we had that dragonslaying idea posted earlier, and for that we'd need an expedition to find the dragon (not to mention sufficient troops to kill it). See the pattern here?
We need more troops, and send them on an expedition.
I strongly suggest we
Offer an audience to KEVIN to see what she offers and at what price. If we don't like his offer, ask Robina instead. Then
Send out an EXPEDITION of the most suitable troops to explore and find something valuable, sending them north or east or west. Then after that, talk to the southern merchant.
Finally, Construed tells us that we need to improve our pallissade, which strikes me as a good idea. I suggest that we
Assign a yearly BUDGET of two gold to CONSTRUED, starting right now, for the purpose of improving the pallissade and other city defense works.Quote from: Tibatonk on Tue 10/12/2013 16:49:54
>Grant audition to Sir Kevin of Axemont. Ask our military advisor Sir Lancelot to stay for advice during the audition.
+1
Quote from: Radiant on Wed 11/12/2013 00:29:03
Quote from: Tibatonk on Tue 10/12/2013 16:49:54
>Grant audition to Sir Kevin of Axemont. Ask our military advisor Sir Lancelot to stay for advice during the audition.
+1
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Tue 10/12/2013 16:49:54
>Grant audition to Sir Kevin of Axemont. Ask our military advisor Sir Lancelot to stay for advice during the audition.
+1
As for the walls/palisades, I'm not sure syphoning off our precious revenue is the right approach. Stone walls and towers are a long-term investment that will pay-off for future generations. Since the future gets the benefits, they should also bear the cost. I say we
borrow a vast sum of money and build the walls overnight. Since we haven't met any bankers I'm going to assume that the kingdom is financially unsophisticated, so we're probably going to have to organize this ourselves. What we do is sell long-maturity
bonds with a guaranteed interest payment of, oh let's say 5%. This puts the people's savings, which are currently idle and benefiting no one, to work, as well as increasing the amount of money they'd have later on. And at 5% per annum, it is perfectly affordable for us. EVERYBODY WINS! Who's up for a bond drive? :=
We can't afford another hero. We should "give" more men to Lancelot. I imagine one gold coin would duplicate our army at least. An they would be trained by the very noble Lancelot. With a bigger army we could send Lancelot and Dennis on a exploration mission and still leave the town secure (more or less secure).
> Order Lancelot to gather and train men, he'll have 1 gold for expenses.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 11/12/2013 13:17:52I imagine one gold coin would duplicate our army at least.
Why on earth would a 20% increase in expenses lead to a 100% or more increase in army size?
Hi, I'm selling these fine leather bonds :=
Quote from: Radiant on Wed 11/12/2013 13:23:57
Quote from: miguel on Wed 11/12/2013 13:17:52I imagine one gold coin would duplicate our army at least.
Why on earth would a 20% increase in expenses lead to a 100% or more increase in army size?
Because Lancelot's men are expensive and of course well trained. We would be training common people, I imagine they should cost less, no?
Am I wrong here?
Quote from: selmiak on Mon 09/12/2013 22:15:30
but be realistic, every big nation is built on debt and our people still don't know us...
> initiate big party for the new king
this can easily be combined with a census btw ;)
+1 :=
I'm so much more interested what happens then than I want to advice people to handle the money task, all this will happen anyways, not that we could influence stock trade outside of our kingdom, but maybe we should invest in heros, these are alway the most interesting part of adventures, except when the game focuses on an antiheros, but, hey, we are the king baby!
You dismiss your council so that they may each pursue their personal tasks for the time being, aside from Sir LANCELOT, whom you request to accompany you for a while longer. Meanwhile you order the JESTER to permit another audience.
Clatter of heavy steel plate fills the throne room once more, as a young but strong knight leads a group of other equally heavily armored knights into your throne room. Each of the men is equipped with a fierce looking battleaxe as well as a heavy tower shield. Lancelot gives an approving nod at the display.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/018_a.png)
"King of Grimdark, I, Sir Kevin of Axemont, and my fifteen HEAVY KNIGHTS, seek to serve you and your kingdom. Our price for a year's upkeep is a mere THREE GOLD PIECES."
Man of few words this fair-haired Axemont, it seems.
LANCELOT steps closer to you: "My King, I have heard fairly little of this AXEMONT, and this worries me. He and his men seem well armed and armored, but they are also young and inexperienced, eager I am sure, but not nearly as well-trained as my knights. I bet that the worst of my knights could defeat sir Axemont himself if given the chance. Hiring them would allow you to set one of us guarding the castle and town while the other would partake in an expedition, but on the other hand, we need more men and even young knights are expensive.
I would rather suggest we hire someone cheaper and with more men. We could even have the JESTER hire a CRIER to spread the word that we seek more able-bodied men to defend the realm. I'm sure we could find more suitable warriors that way."
You get the feeling that Sir LANCELOT does not think very highly of Sir AXEMONT. You wonder what would happen if one had to serve under the other.
Three options I can think of:
Ask AXEMONT to test his men in training pits with a tourney bladed (wooden or dull) weapons against LANCELOT's men
- But with this option there is a chance of injury, death, or heavily damaging both parties armor - also LANCELOT doesn't seem to like them, so I'm not eager to hire them.
Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS
- This way LANCELOT has it his way and we'll know these people will follow LANCELOT. Also TOWNSFOLK have something to lose (their family and friends) if the battle goes sour, they're less likely to run than hired swords.
SUMMON ROBINA THE RANGER, keeping the company of LANCELOT
- We still need archers on the walls to defend the perimeter.
I vote for the middle option, check the cost of it, then later choose the last option.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Thu 12/12/2013 18:49:16
SUMMON ROBINA THE RANGER, keeping the company of LANCELOT
Tell Axemont we'll consider his offer, then compare him to the competition of Robina.
our military advisor and hero should see these kind of things and should know what he's talking about. So I'm interested in what the king himself thinks on these men. And as we are the king and have no other info than lancelots word we should really see them fight. So Ryan's first options sound the most promising. And of course we want to see what our military advisor really can do or if he is just talking to not lose his position. We should tell both leaders that the winner will either be the only swords we hire (lancelot wins) or the winner commands over the loser (Axemont wins).
So either we don't hire these mere 15 men for way too much gold and do ryan's number 2 or we can also negotiate anew with lancelot if he and his men lose and maybe have both armys for 3 goldpieces each and send some of them to hunt dragons and bring in more gold and treasure.
And we should ask the jester for our royal wizard or alchemist or both. This is sure interesting to know what he has in stock for us. Some potions that can make negotiation with fartraveled merchants easier or firework weapons to support the guards or equally magic stuff.
QuoteAsk LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS
+1
Meh, not happy with any of our options here.
-Hiring KEVIN and his men:
Since they are HEAVY KNIGHTS, they seem to be better suited for war-like situations than for exploring. Meaning, if we hire KEVIN, we would probably be better off sending LANCELOT on missions and keeping KEVIN around to defend the city. But since LANCELOT is much more experienced, as well, he would also make a much better MILITARY ADVISOR. And as mentioned before, it seems a rather good idea to NOT send our MILITARY ADVISOR out on errands.
-LANCELOT's advice: Hire CRIER to spread the word that we seek more able-bodied men to defend the realm.
That seems a decent enough method to enlarge our number of GUARDS and general KNIGHTS, and certainly should be considered. But will we find another HERO this way? And if yes, how long will it take? Can we really afford another couple of days of not having a roaming HERO at our disposal?
-Hire ROBINA and her ARCHERS:
While we definitely will need ARCHERS in the long run, particularly if we're ever gonna be involved in a war, I can't see much use for them, right now. Nor would a RANGER seem to be much help as a HERO. He (or, in this case, she) would probably be much less respected as an emissary than a SIR WHATEVER OF WHEREVER would be. And I can't see a RANGER slaying a DRAGON, either.
-Ask AXEMONT to test his men in training pits with a tourney bladed (wooden or dull) weapons against LANCELOT's men:
Seems a surefire way to actually lower morale, somehow. If LANCELOT loses, he will be unhappy for sure. Particularly since we are basically testing his advice this way. If KEVIN loses, well... we won't have gained anything.
So, in conclusion: Having LANCELOT train TOWNSFOLK as GUARDS seems a necessary and useful option. Therefore:
QuoteAsk LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS
(Edit: But going with Baron's idea for now)
But: Where to get a HERO from? And soon?
Idea: Create our own HEROES, we're the king, after all. Schedule two tournaments for the next day. One which every experienced KNIGHT, including LANCELOT's men, can enter. Another one which every ordinary CITIZEN who signs up to join our new TRAINING PROGRAM can enter. The winners of both tournaments will be KNIGHTED by us and named HEROES of the realm. Should be a good incentive for people to sign up for training and will leave us with two HEROES, one experienced and one probably rather loyal to us. Only thing would be to figure out how much to pay them, but I guess our MILITARY ADVISOR could help us with that. Shouldn't be too expensive, though, since neither off them will bring any men. Downside: We won't know who we'll get beforehand and we'll be stuck with whoever wins.
And a question that came to mind while writing the above: LANCELOT's men, as well as KEVIN's men, are considered KNIGHTS. Is this merely a description of their military function and fighting style, or does this actually mean they are KNIGHTED? And if they are KNIGHTED, what does differentiate them from HEROES?
I'm not going to hold Sir Kevin's inexperience against him, but I'm also not above exploiting his youthful eagerness. I mean, we can't exactly have this guy idling his thumbs, resentful at us, with all that muscle behind him. No, we need to harness his loyalty without needlessly spending cash. Tell him he has to prove himself before we can accept his offer:
>> SEND SIR KEVIN & COMPANY TO SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH; AND SHOULD HE BE SUCCESSFUL WE WILL HIRE (AND TRAIN) HIM AND HIS MEN
The Jester has already been sent to permit the next audience, so we've missed our opportunity to queue jump the audiences for now.
I've also added Sir Kevin of Axemount to our KING SIMULATOR 2013 WIKI GLOSSARY (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/King_Simulator_2013), and was quite pleased to see that our good Selmiak and Ryan Timothy have filled in all the blanks I had left. Capital job, good sirs!
Quote from: Baron on Fri 13/12/2013 04:13:18
>> SEND SIR KEVIN & COMPANY TO SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH; AND SHOULD HE BE SUCCESSFUL WE WILL HIRE (AND TRAIN) HIM AND HIS MEN
Definite +1 on that.
Quote from: Baron on Fri 13/12/2013 04:13:18
>> SEND SIR KEVIN & COMPANY TO SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH; AND SHOULD HE BE SUCCESSFUL WE WILL HIRE (AND TRAIN) HIM AND HIS MEN
+1 (hopefully not insulting the guy and turning him against us)
We could make better use of Sir Kevin's troops by having them escort a trade convoy to Turbanistan.
Suddenly, my two
cents gold coin pieces :).
Quote from: Tibatonk on Fri 13/12/2013 02:58:30And I can't see a RANGER slaying a DRAGON, either.
Remember Bard the Bowman (http://lotr.wikia.com/wiki/Bard_the_Bowman)!
Quote from: Baron on Fri 13/12/2013 04:13:18>> SEND SIR KEVIN & COMPANY TO SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH; AND SHOULD HE BE SUCCESSFUL WE WILL HIRE (AND TRAIN) HIM AND HIS MEN
+1
Also, I would still like to SPEAK TO ROBINA next (with LANCELOT present) and see what she has to offer. It strikes me that a team of rangers would be excellent at exploring the countryside.
Because the heroes are both present and Ryan and Baron ideas sound smart I suggest we chain both commands like this:
QuoteQuotes from Baron and Ryan:
>> SEND SIR KEVIN & COMPANY TO SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH; AND SHOULD HE BE SUCCESSFUL WE WILL HIRE (AND TRAIN) HIM AND HIS MEN
>> Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS
In case you support my choice don't forget to quote it and "+1"(support it) before WHAM makes another round.
"Sir Kevin, your offer interests me, but I already have knights at my disposal, and thus I need to evaluate your abilities before agreein on hiring you to serve the realm. I order you to venture NORTH in search of STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST, and only upon your success will I hire you and your men."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/019_a.png)
Sir Kevin frowns and gives you a hurt look.
"King of Grimdark, my men and I do not serve you yet. Either you will hire us and we will serve you accordingly, or you do not and we will go elsewhere. We are knights, not some rabble eager to prove their worth to an upstart King, and we shall not do your bidding unless we are compensated!"
There is rebellious muttering amongst the knights, and several are gesturing to one another as if they intend to storm out and leave right away.
"King of Grimdark, I am a patient man, but not all of my men are. I will offer our services to you once more; will you hire us?" -Sir Kevin demands.
Oooops...
> Say "It's -will you hire us, MY KING-, to you!"
> Say "My Military Advisor tells me that your "gang" lacks experience, Sir Kevin! You go on a quest and prove yourself and I'll hire your services!"
> Hire Sir Kevin and order him to escort the southern merchant back to Turbanistan mapping the trade route as they go.
Quote from: NightHawk on Sat 14/12/2013 15:42:09
> Hire Sir Kevin and order him to escort the southern merchant back to Turbanistan mapping the trade route as they go.
This could work. Shame no-one wants me to initiate the short-term dragon-slaying, so yeah: +1 this!
> Hire Sir Kevin and order him to SEEK OUT STRANGE STONES, EXOTIC WOODS OR THE BONES OF SOME EXOTIC BEAST TO THE NORTH.
Because we shouldn't abandon our plan for necessary further expeditions just because we have a minor setback.
Not a command but a suggestion- Radiant, why not combine maping out the route to Turbinistan AND seeking out strange valuables? Since we know hardly anything about the kingdom's layout? In addition, Kevin would be travelling in company of a merchant who *knows* the route, and might be able to share his knowledge.
Because Turbinistan doesn't sound so great so far; it's apparently dangerous and offers goods that we don't actually want. So I'd be more interested in learning about the other directions before committing too much to this one.
I still think it's cheaper to order Lancelot to train men from our town than to hire another hero, who is (by Lancelot standards) inexperienced.
Did he just call us an "upstart king"? I say we have Sir Kevin disconnected from his head. Oh wait, we haven't got an executioner yet...
But for real, DO NOT HIRE THAT GUY! It would send a terrible message. We would never be respected as a king again. And what use is a knight who doesn't want to prove himself anyhow? Isn't that exactly what knighthood is supposed to be all about?
>Tell Sir Kevin that we are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.
I'm with Tibatonk here.
We have the great Lancelot with us, a capable and honoured man who can train our own people. As a King we would knight the best men after training and accomplished quests.
Not only this, but we simply cannot allow this cheap nobody to question our authority and upstage us. If we do, we might just as well abdicate right now.
What we need to do, is turn the situation in our favor. We have to make our original proposal - working for us for free - sound like something desireable, like the right thing to do. If we have to make an enemy out of Kevin in the process, so be it. We will in turn gain the respect of Lancelot and this might help us tremendously in the future.
And if we shame Kevin into begging for a second chance, all the better.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Sat 14/12/2013 20:09:48
>Tell Sir Kevin that we are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.
+1Plus:
> You would have been compensated for your discoveries or conquests upon your return, but if that isn't satisfactory, that's all I can offer.I agree that accepting his offer to hire him, changing your initial decision, means he has now won and we would show weakness or to be fickle in our decisions - not very kingly at all.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Sat 14/12/2013 20:09:48>Tell Sir Kevin that we are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.
+1
QuoteQuote from: Tibatonk on Yesterday at 20:09
>Tell Sir Kevin that we are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.
+1
Plus: > You would have been compensated for your discoveries or conquests upon your return, but if that isn't satisfactory, that's all I can offer.
+1
I've got to go with the consensus here. I agree with Radiant's position that the exploration program needs to move forward, and I even think that expendable little twerps like Sir Kevin would be the ideal
dragon fodder warriors-in-training to do it. But the "upstart king" comment is indefensible, so I agree with Ryan that putting up with that would seem weak. Tibatonk's suggestion of beheading him would serve as a good example to others that we are to be respected at all times, but it would be disproportionate to the offence. I say we ream him out aloud for his impudence and send him on his way.
QuoteQuote from: Tibatonk on Yesterday at 20:09
>Tell Sir Kevin that we are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.
+1
Quote from: miguel on Sat 14/12/2013 19:17:17
>> order Lancelot to train men from our town
+1 on this too, since he's standing there anyway.
“We are not looking for a mercenary who is out to serve his own interests but for a true knight who is dedicated from his heart to serve both the realm and its lord as owed to the code of chivalry. A man who lives for honor and glory and not for money alone. And a man who seeks challenge and not refuses it.†-you bellow at Sir Kevin. He chuckles and nods at Sir Lancelot in return.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/020_a.png)
“And Sir Lancelot here serves you just to be chivalrous and noble, is that it? He and his men pay for their equipment, lodging, food and whores out of their own pocket? Tell me, what quest did Lancelot undertake before being named military advisor of the king as well as the captain of the guard?â€
Sir Kevin steps closer to you, gesturing in a threatening way. Within seconds Lancelot and two of his knights emerge to protect their King, causing Sir Kevin to step back.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/020_b.png)
“Phah! I could care less! But do have it your way, usurper, I shall take my men elsewhere. Pray that we never meet again.â€
Before you have a chance to respond to this menacing threat, Sir Kevin turns his back to you and gestures for his men to follow. The knights begin the file out of the throne room, muttering curses. Sir Lancelot gives you a look to see if you are all right as well as to see if you wish to instruct him to take further action.
Note to self for future audiences: Don't let somebody we don't know enter with fifteen of his men, all armed to the teeth. Turns out to be potentially dangerous.
Also, if ever asking heroes to prove themselves again, maybe we should offer to pay them a small fee for it. This kingdom seems surprisingly capitalistic.
As for now, I guess its time for our old project?
>>Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS.
>>Ask LANCELOT'S advice on finding trustworthy HEROES.
Well, let's call in Robina and see if we can avoid a similar bad situation.
This could have turned into a deadly situation. How does Lancelot allow 15 armed men so close to us?
>Order Lancelot to confiscate all weapons to visitors of the throne room;
>Cautiously reprehend Lancelot for allowing 16 armed men into the throne room;
also,
Quote>>Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS.
>>Ask LANCELOT'S advice on finding trustworthy HEROES.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Mon 16/12/2013 17:27:59
>>Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS.
>>Ask LANCELOT'S advice on finding trustworthy HEROES.
+1
Also we definitely need Robina, assuming she's a quality archer, to also train these men. We want any of these men that get trained by the crown to be crown's men, not mercenaries. With a contract that gives them money, food, and possibilities of Lordship and land, prison time if they run from duty. The only out being of age or disability or if the crown approves of the request. Full-time permanent job.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Mon 16/12/2013 17:27:59
>>Ask LANCELOT if he's willing to TRAIN, with his choosing, of any able bodied TOWNSFOLK that OFFER their services to be GUARDS.
Also ask LANCELOT'S advice on finding trustworthy HEROES.
+1
(actually I modified it into one command, so that the dungeon-master doesn't get all WHAM on us and only run the first line. ;) )
I too am intrigued by Robina. But I think you guys are overreacting in the security department. Yes, Kevin was a bit of a hot-head, and no doubt we'll have to murderously devise his doom later on, but he's really all just piss-and-wind, running his mouth to appear the big man in front of his posse. Boys will be boys... Now, were Robina to accost us physically and have her way with us, well.... As I say, do we really need that much protection? :=
In all seriousness, warriors who come into our presence seem to assume a right to bear arms, as was the custom in olden times (indeed, the right of nobility to the present day), so I think we might be fighting an uphill battle on that front. I think, for the time being, we have nothing to worry about, as Lancelot seems to have calculated all of the outcomes and posted guards to be at the ready. This attempt on our person has merely affirmed my faith in his abilities. Our priority now should be to get him more reliable people (as voted above), and then turn our attentions to other audiences.
Still, if we'd said the "wrong" words and Sir Kevin and his 15 men decided to attack us (Kevin did say we were the usurper king) who knows what the dice would have called? Imagine a worse scenario where Lancelot gets injured and loses a battle. Would Sir Kevin spare our life?
Fair enough that a Sir has the right to come armed, but the bulk of his men should stay outside.
It wouldn't matter how many armed men there were, if we'd just build that damn trap door! :=
You mean with a giant unsuspicious lever on the side?
Quote from: Baron on Tue 17/12/2013 22:19:47
It wouldn't matter how many armed men there were, if we'd just build that damn trap door! :=
Yes! I'm telling you...Punji stakes and/or stocked with hungry lions.
And the bigger the unsuspicious lever the better!
No, a RANCOR, like Jabba the Hutt has! Teedee Jedi! Teedee Jedi!
Quote from: Baron on Wed 18/12/2013 02:15:19
No, a RANCOR, like Jabba the Hutt has! Teedee Jedi! Teedee Jedi!
This baron is my kind of scum… fearless and inventive.
I knew the Jester reminded me of something or someone...
Spoiler
(http://i.imgur.com/aABms9w.png)
With Sir Kevin and his men gone, Lancelot permits the two knights to return to their posts close by, yet hidden from sight.
You gesture for Sir Lancelot to approach.
"Sir Lancelot, I feel we need to secure our realm further, and to do that I need men armed and trained as guards, so that your Knights need not patrol the streets. Would you be willing to traing those of the townsfolk willing to serve the realm to become members of a newly formed CITY GUARD?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/021_a.png)
Sir Lancelot ponders for a moment.
"If it pleases you, My King, I am willing and able to train men, and my Knights can spread the word during their patrols so that we can easily gather those willing volunteers. However, the townspeople are not warriors or knights or even squires, but commoners, traders, craftsmen and peasants. They will not make for Knights or great warriors, and I fear the like of myself might not be able to train them to their fullest potential. We will also require coin to arm the trainees and my time will be spent training the men. It could take several days to drill the men in the basics, and during this time my services will not be available to you."
You nod as you ponder on Lancelots words. You decide to ask Lancelot another question while you think.
"You've travelled the world and seen things, I'm sure. Tell me, Lancelot, how would I go about finding suitable HEROES to serve my cause?"
"My King..." -Lancelot responds; "The easiest way to find heroes is simply to wait and grant audiences to those who seek it. That is how I came to serve you, and I am sure that as time goes and and word of your arrival on the throne spreads, more people will seek to serve the new King. Sending out EXPEDITIONS will also send those serving you far and wide, and thus people in distant lands might come to know of our Kingdom and decide to seek an audience with you. Finally, commissioning a CRIER to spread your word could be a fine solution. If you are hesitant to hire a crier, send the JESTER to spread the word to the townsfolk, I'm sure he'd appreciate the chance to wander about a bit, and since he can sing and shout with the best of them, I'm sure you'r words will be heard all through the town. As the words spreads through the town, traders and travellers will spread it further in no time."
Lancelot pauses for a moment.
"My King, would you like me to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD? If so, I will return to you with information on the volunteers and an estimate for the costs by tomorrow night."
Finally!
> Yes Lancelot, please begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD;
Quote from: miguel on Wed 18/12/2013 19:51:12
> Lancelot, please begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD;
+1
Quote from: WHAM on Wed 18/12/2013 19:45:22It could take several days to drill the men in the basics, and during this time my services will not be available to you."
This line worries me, especially as we've just got an angry and possibly spiteful band of knights in our city. I'm fine with starting this town guard, but let's talk to ROBINA afterwards and strongly consider hiring her.
I'm okay with hiring ROBINA or other heroes LATER. I believe we are making the right decision on getting guards at a low cost (hopefully).
With those men trained we can send some of Lancelot's knight out to explore the country on quests.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 18/12/2013 19:51:12
Finally!
> Yes Lancelot, please begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD;
+1
If we all agree to have Lancelot explore the option of a town guard, maybe we can add a further command? Otherwise not much is going to happen next round, except Lancelot leaving.
So either:
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant next audience.
Or:
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant audience to ROBINA.
Depending on whether we want to work through the audiences in order of arrival (as suggested by the JESTER) or are really anxious to have a look at ROBINA. Personally, I'm also quite interested what kind of quest (if any) the LOST WARRIOR who is next in line might have to offer. But then again, we might not be able to help him all that much without a HERO at our dispossal.
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 28/11/2013 20:27:31
a LOST WARRIOR seeks assistance from the KING
BARON MONOCLE, an envoy of a pirate clan from the Western sea, seeks an audience with the KING
HIRSCHEL THE WIZENED offers his skills as a HERBALIST to the KING
ROBINA THE RANGER and her archers seek to offer their services to the KING
a TRAVELLING ARTISAN seeks to offer her finest crafts and services to the KING
You know, there's nothing in the list indicating that the Lost Warrior is a
he. ;)
And, while I'm all in favour of meeting Robina the Ranger and her band of shaved sharpshooting seductresses, meeting the travelling artisan before the Merchant of the South departs might enable us to turn a quick profit.
As for the militia, I am all in favour of it. Sure, they may not be great warriors, but since they'll be defending their homes they should at least be reliably loyal, and given their lack of training one would assume that they'd be reasonably cheap to employ. For guarding and standard law & order patrolling, I think that should suffice, while the more taxing work should be left to the professional warriors. So....
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 19/12/2013 00:42:53
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant next audience.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 19/12/2013 00:42:53
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant next audience.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 19/12/2013 00:42:53
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant audience to ROBINA.
+1
Quote
Quote from: Tibatonk on Today at 00:42
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant next audience.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 19/12/2013 00:42:53
>>Tell Lancelot to begin gathering volunteers for the TOWN GUARD and grant next audience.
+1
I sense a consensus forming here. :D
New update tomorrow, and I think we are at the end of day 2 with this meeting.
Really busy weekend, so no update until sunday evening. Sorry. :(
You stand up to make your proclamation more official.
"Sir Lancelot, I hereby order you to seek volunteers amongst the townspeople, in order to swiftly form a new Town Guard to keep the King's peace and to serve the King's justice. Report back to me as soon as you know what is needed of the Crown."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/022_a.png)
Lancelot gives you a curt bow.
"As you wish, My King." -he answers solemnly, before making his leave.
As Lancelot leaves, you call out to the Jester: "Jester, send in the next audience!"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/022_b.png)
The stange man in an even stranger hat appears before you.
"I'm afraid I cannot, My King, for the day is at it's end and those seeking your presence have left to seek rest. You should rest too, My King, for tomorrow the people will expect you to rule them fresh and strong."
The Jester's giggling and prattling unnerves you, but his words make sense and you do feel rather tired.
With that you decide to retire for the night.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/022_c.png)
So... does this mean we have to all reach a consensus again on voting to see the next audience? :-\
Unless other commands pop up, the next audience will be granted automatically.
> offer audience to ROBINA and request that our military ADVISOR be present
(and WHAM, may I suggest that you put the summary-of-the-day in regular text? I find the textual-graphics hard to read)
A new day dawns and you feel well rested and strong as you enter your throne room.
Remembering the queue of people awaiting your attention from the day before, you bid the Jester to permit the next audience immediately.
A somewhat stunted man enters the room, greeting you with a deep bow as he steps before you. The LOST WARRIOR seems old and wizened, yet strong and muscular, though you can tell there is something in his posture and behavior that speaks of the rough road he has been through.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/023_a.png)
"Hail, King of the South!" -the WARRIOR booms, his voice strong and coarse.
"My name is Rorik, son of Rorik, and I have traveled far from the frozen Northlands on an important mission. I began my travel with six companions, but as of now I am the only one remaining, as the others were..."
There is a short silence, during which Rorik blinks a few times as he tries to maintain composure.
"...lost. I shall say no more of their fate."
The WARRIOR's eyes turn to steel as he musters his strength.
"I am to travel further to the south and to the west as soon as I can, but the roads have become too dangerous for me these days, and I am forced to seek shelter and kindness. King of the Southlands, my request to you is this: permit me to remain within your walls for a few days so that I may rest and recover, as well as try and hire help from the town. Knowing the fates of my comrades, I dare not stay at any regular inn, so it is safety in your walls that I seek. I have nothing to offer but the gratitude of myself and mine, as well as the promise that a Northman always repays a kindness.
How do you answer, King?"
Well, sounds reasonable. Maybe we should ask him that once he's done with his task, he sends that help he hired back to us to provide us with information on the places he traveled to, as well as join our forces as heroes or scouts?
Quote from: Radiant on Tue 24/12/2013 23:46:23
Well, sounds reasonable. Maybe we should ask him that once he's done with his task, he sends that help he hired back to us to provide us with information on the places he traveled to, as well as join our forces as heroes or scouts?
+1 on that. Sounds like a really good chance to learn more about the kingdom AND showing kindness. Plus, wizened warriors are good at staying alive. They have the practise of a lifetime. Maybe he can even teach someone a bit.
But who does he fear in our town and regular inns? Shouldn't we know more of the fate of his friends?
I'm okay with helping him and with what you both said. Maybe there's something to gain with his stay and knowledge but shouldn't we know more?
Hold it, I see the issue here. We've just commanded Lancy to start training townsfolk, and he explicitly told us that means he and his troops wouldn't be able to protect us for a couple of days. And now we're letting someone into the castle who needs protection from some unknown killing force. See the problem here?
I see the potential problem. But I wouldn't jump to that conclusion. He comes from far away.
Well... okay now, I'm all for helping that guy since making friends should be rather high on our list of priorities.
But, as Miguel pointed out, there is something fishy going on here. His friends were "lost" and he's too afraid to stay at a regular inn, meaning what he's really looking for is our protection. More or less telling us THAT he needs protection but refusing to tell us WHAT FROM seems somewhat bad strategy on his behalf. Because now we know that we probably are inviting some kind of unknown trouble if we help him.
But I guess we should take the risk. Particularly since we shouldn't make enemies out of everybody we meet. And as far as Lancelot is concerned, I think the bulk of his men should still be available guarding the town and castle, even if their leader is busy recruiting and training our new town militia.
Personally, I don't think we should tie any conditions to our help, though. First make sure he becomes our friend, then determine what we can gain from it. What we should do, though, is try and get some information about the frozen Northlands out of him right now.
>>Grant shelter to RORIK and ask him to tell us more about his home to the north. Also gently inquire about his mission and the fate of his companions. But make sure not to insult him if he really doesn't want to talk about it.
The man is in our throne room. We are unguarded. He has not yet killed us. He must have come through the hall where Jester and all the other folks hang out and he hasn't killed anyone there either. I see that as a clear sign of his general "friendlyness" or at least non-aggressiveness, so I really think we should offer help.
It's not him I'm worried about, it's whoever/whatever is threatening him. But, yes, I completely agree with you, we should offer our help.
Correction: while Lancelot is not at his post in the castle, his men have not left their posts. The knights still guard their king and the town walls. (Lancelot is not THAT foolish!)
Quote from: Ghost on Wed 25/12/2013 05:00:51
The man is in our throne room. We are unguarded. He has not yet killed us. He must have come through the hall where Jester and all the other folks hang out and he hasn't killed anyone there either. I see that as a clear sign of his general "friendlyness" or at least non-aggressiveness
Assumption: he is a vampire werewolf and becomes hostile at nights.
If Rorik is afraid of staying at a inn it clearly means someone is after him. We need to know more before we give him shelter.
I know we need friends and immediate danger isn't our concern but who the hell scares him so much?
I say we do things subtly but do it.
> Grant Rorik the privilege of dinning with the King, Jesterino and Lancelot, at the end of the day and turn (this should be our last action). The purpose of our warm, candlelit meal is to allow Rorik to tell us of his travels and adventures. Doing it at the end of the day(turn) will allow us to keep him standing by and us to carry on all the orders of the day.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 25/12/2013 11:36:39
> Grant Rorik the privilege of dinning with the King, Jesterino and Lancelot, at the end of the day and turn (this should be our last action). The purpose of our warm, candlelit meal is to allow Rorik to tell us of his travels and adventures. Doing it at the end of the day(turn) will allow us to keep him standing by and us to carry on all the orders of the day.
I think this is a good idea but consider this:
If Rorik is not telling us about the fate of his men even when we're alone. Then what makes us think that he will tell us in the presence of two other men?
I believe the best way to tackle this problem is:
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 25/12/2013 04:44:00
>Grant shelter to RORIK and ask him to tell us more about his home to the north. Also gently inquire about his mission and the fate of his companions. But make sure not to insult him if he really doesn't want to talk about it.
+1
We should not be so afraid of being killed. It's the only way to know about the fate of his men and his enemy. He has said that he's going to stay for a few days, so I believe we can summon him later and ask about it. Maybe he'll become more warm then and tell us because he, himself, says that a Northman always repays a kindness. What do you guys think?
Quote> summon dragons and kill him with fire
+1
>Offer the Northman a room in the palace and order one of the royal guards to guard him during his stay.
Would you give shelter to a stranger knowing that he's being chased by unknown people?
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 25/12/2013 04:44:00
>>Grant shelter to RORIK and ask him to tell us more about his home to the north. Also gently inquire about his mission and the fate of his companions. But make sure not to insult him if he really doesn't want to talk about it.
+1.
Also, any news he can give us of the surrounding lands would be great. After all, at the moment we literally don't know what's beyond our city walls.
You decide it is time to make a friend, and this Rorik seems to be the honourable sort, so you reply:
"Rorik, son of Rorik, I shall grant you shelter and safety from your plight, whatever it may be. Know, that my kingdom is a haven to those in need, and accept my friendship today. All I ask in return is that you share your tales of the road you have travelled and tell me more of the lands you come from."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/024_a.png)
Rorik's face brightens up and he seems to stand a few inches taller after hearing your reply.
"I humbly accept, King of the riverland, and I thank you. I must admit I expected a cooler welcome here, consireding how little I would share of my situation, but I can only tell you that secresy is the only thing that has kept me alive on the road, and the mission I carry is of utmost importance to me and my kin. Your kindness will not go unpaid, I assure you. My kin will know of you kindness!"
Rorik shifts his weight, looking for a more comfortable position, before beginnig his tale.
"I travel from the frozen lands to the north and to the east, far away beyond the Wailing Woods who'se trees are said to grab men off their horses, and the Frozen Fjords, who'se slippery sheets of ice are known to shift under men's feet and swallow entire groups into the cold waters running below. It is a dangerous path that separates your land from ours, and that danger is what has kept the peace even in the darkest of times, as no army can march across the lands to make war on one another.
My people are known by outsiders as 'the men of winter' and we live most of our lives in solitude, hunting the frozen wastes for beast and fish. The tribes often go to battle with one another, be it for cattle, prestige or rights to marry another's daughter, and so those who survive these battles and the cold are all hardy warriors. No other race of men exists in this world who can do battle in the cold winter as well as we do.
During the summers we build fast longships and sail the fjords and rivers in search for the riverwhales. One such beast will feed a village for a month and the bones make for excellent handles for blades and axes, as well as fine crafting materials for the womenfolk. Sometimes we travel west from our lands, as far as the rivers will take us and then across the dry plains and to the edges of the lush jungles to trade with the furry-folk there. I have not met them myself, but it is said that they are a great tribe of black-and-white -furred womenfolk only, and that they weave dangerous traps in the narrow paths of the jungle. We buy herbs and woodcrafts and sell meats and riverwhale bones and fat to them.
That's about all I can say of my homelands. We are simple folk and we live simple lives, that is all. Is there something else you wish to know of me? My travels have left me weary and I would much like to have a rest. Last night I spent hiding in the town, and the night offered me very little in the way of sleep. Perhaps within your walls I can finally rest."
> fus roh dah
Come on. Someone had to say it, right? I could hear you all thinking it.
Still, that was a good move. Suggestion:
> have Jester bring Rorik to guest quarters, then hold audience
>Ask Rorik whether those furries do balancing acts on unicycles.
On second thought...
Quote from: Ghost on Thu 26/12/2013 19:27:45
> have Jester bring Rorik to guest quarters, then hold audience
+1
Do we even have guest quarters?!? Or is that code for bunking with Annabelle in the castle courtyard?
Oh well, here goes nothing....
Quote from: Ghost on Thu 26/12/2013 19:27:45
> have Jester bring Rorik to guest quarters, then hold audience
+1
You have the Jester escort Rorik to the Castle's guest quarters. Perhaps new faces in the castle will bring more colour to the daily activities within. As he leaves, the Jester permits entry to the next audience: a tall man in a handsome black sailor's uniform.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/025_a.png)
"Greeting, King of Grimdark." -he greets you using your formal title.
"My name is Baron, and I represent THE FORKBEAKS, the largest and the strongest of the six pirate clans, which control the seas to the WEST of your realm. I come to you in hope that we might form a friendship between our peoples, so that we might trade valuables and necessities in a peaceful manner. Should your realm ever seek to traverse the seas, you might also wish to contact me to secure safe passage to the high seas, for the pirate clans mercilessly capture and ransom any who dare enter the waters without our permission."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/025_b.png)
BARON produces a long tube, which shines like gold.
"As a token of kindness and friendship, I wish to offer you this valuable ORNAMENTAL TELESCOPE as a gift. It is not an instrument a true sailor would use, I'm afraid, I for one would certainly not give up my trusty old spyglass for it, but it's casing is gilded and encrusted with four valuable gemstones, one for each of the sea winds. Would you accept this gift to affirm the friendship between the KINGDOM OF GRIMDARK and the FORKBEAK PIRATE CLAN?"
I wouldn't trust that guy if I were you. He's got a shifty look to him....
Pointy hats! Who is he trying to fool?
Seriously, we should find out with our traders if there's any inconvenient on signing on with pirates. If not, I'm all for having "friends" in high sea.
> Accept the gift and invite him to dinner tonight; When he's gone summon our merchants and trader representatives and inquire about this pact with the pirate.
Hm, no idea how to deal with the guy. Trade and friendship = good. But pirates?
>>Ask JESTER for advice.
> make BARON wear the JESTER'S DRESS
> make JESTER wear the MONOCLE
> have tea
Quote from: miguel on Sun 29/12/2013 01:17:05
> Accept the gift and invite him to dinner tonight; When he's gone summon our merchants and trader representatives and inquire about this pact with the pirate.
Why not:
> Accept the gift and invite him and our merchants and trader representatives to dinner tonight and discuss the pact with the pirate.
Lots of Rum can never be wrong, people will love us when the rum is flowing and it can also be used to defend our city walls...
Quote> Accept the gift and invite him and our merchants and trader representatives to dinner tonight and discuss the pact with the pirate.
+1
Sounds good to me!
Quote from: selmiak on Sun 29/12/2013 14:25:33
> Accept the gift and invite him and our merchants and trader representatives to dinner tonight and discuss the pact with the pirate.
+1
Quote from: miguel on Sun 29/12/2013 17:25:58
Quote> Accept the gift and invite him and our merchants and trader representatives to dinner tonight and discuss the pact with the pirate.
+1
Sounds good to me!
+1 to both of you twos' opinions.
Doesn't "friendship" imply that we're allies? I'm sure a pirate clan would have many enemies, so I'm sure that making spontaneous allies (especially with people we don't know of whom might be evil) might give us instant enemies. But not accepting the gift would have him insulted and quite possibly turn enemy.
You're right Ryan, let's see what the dinner guests all have to say about it. If our traders and merchants aren't happy with this friendship we have a good excuse to decline the pirate proposal and still have him know that we tried.
This Baron seems like a friendly fellow and he did bring you a gift, so you feel you should reply to his kindness in kind.
"I shall accept your gift, Baron of the Forkbeaks, and in return I offer you a place at my table tonight. We shall dine together, and representatives from our traders shall be present so that we may discuss future trade between our peoples."
Baron seems pleased with your response.
"I will kindly joing you for dinner, King of Grimdark. Until evening, then."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/026_a.png)
The Jester appears to receive the ORNAMENTAL TELESCOPE so that he may place it in your treasury for safekeeping, while Baron humbly takes his leave.
The Jester soon reappears.
"Hail, My King. Your new treasure has been stored away safely. Shall we grant another audience or do we have greater plans?"
I guess everybody wanted to talk with Robina the Ranger in order to set our military force as soon as possible.
We'll then have Lancelot and Robina and their men plus the new trained town guard. Sounds safe enough.
I say that if we hire Robina we send her straight away on quests for treasures and land mapping.
We haven't even met Robina yet! What if she's an old scold? Or has braided-armpit hair?? Or is just a sad, lonely internet geek from Texas called "George"?!? On the other hand, maybe she has an evening gown and can temper the testosterone at our sausage party dinner party this evening.... I say we
>>Order the jester to make arrangements for the small feast tonight (including the appropriate invitations) and admit Robina as the next audience.
Quote from: Baron on Wed 01/01/2014 02:32:26
>>Order the jester to make arrangements for the small feast tonight (including the appropriate invitations) and admit Robina as the next audience.
+1 changed my mind
So we're prepared to upset Hirschel the Wizened, herbalist to the kings?
Oh, actually a herbalist might even better than Robina (we are currently training guards, should be enough for now) and a herbalist might provide us with income (trading herbs)
>>Order the jester to make arrangements for the small feast tonight (including the appropriate invitations) and admit the next audience.
Now I'm curious about Robina's body hair.
Quote>>Order the jester to make arrangements for the small feast tonight (including the appropriate invitations) and admit Robina as the next audience.
+1
Quote>>Order the jester to make arrangements for the small feast tonight (including the appropriate invitations) and admit Robina as the next audience.
[/quote]
+1
+1 to speaking to Robina next.
Have had a crazy couple of days and seems like I'll be having a few more (board games, meetings, birthdays, taking care of a puppy-dog etc).
Next update on saturday or sunday. Sorry guys!
Spoiler
Have a picture of our new dog to make you all feel better for now:
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn1/1531753_257407654415778_1573679019_o.jpg)
You order the Jester to prepare a small feast for the evening, ensuring that BARON and the head of the trader's guild, as well as a few other key traders, are invited. The Jester agrees that this is a wonderful idea and begins the preparations as soon as he has sent in the next audience.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/027_a.png)
A band of men, headed by a redheaded woman, all clad in matching white & green outfits and unusually tight pants enter your throne room. The woman steps forward to greet you.
"Hail King! I am Robina the Ranger and these are my merry men. I have come to offer you the services of myself and my thirty experienced rangers for the yearly pay of 3 gold each year. We are most experienced in rough terrain and woodland areas, and our bows and arrows make us utterly lethal at range."
She makes her boasts of power in a relaxed and assured manner, but the fact that at least one of her followers seems to be utterly blind does make you wonder.
>ask robina and her merry men to dance
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 04/01/2014 13:24:38
She makes her boasts of power in a relaxed and assured manner, but the fact that at least one of her followers seems to be utterly blind does make you wonder.
I can't shake off the feeling this kingdom is a pop-culture patchwork. Next thing we'll learn there are huge suits of armour around that can protect us even against the angels if we plug an angsty teenager in.
And that would be so awesome.
ON TOPIC:
> ACCEPT her offer.
Reason: They are trackers. The are a compliment to the melee fighters we already have, they are affordable, and the must know how to map the land. Maybe they already have.
Quote from: Ghost on Sat 04/01/2014 13:36:35
I can't shake off the feeling this kingdom is a pop-culture patchwork. Next thing we'll learn there are huge suits of armour around that can protect us even against the angels if we plug an angsty teenager in.
And that would be so awesome.
*makes a mental note*
> Only hire the blind archer.
Quote from: Ghost on Sat 04/01/2014 13:36:35
> ACCEPT her offer.
Reason: They are trackers. The are a compliment to the melee fighters we already have, they are affordable, and the must know how to map the land. Maybe they already have.
+1, and I would love to see Robina compliment Lancelot :D
More to the point,
> ACCEPT her offer, and as their first task request that they SCOUT our immediate SURROUNDINGS, starting with east and west
Quote> ACCEPT her offer, and as their first task request that they SCOUT our immediate SURROUNDINGS, starting with east and west
+1
Shouldn't we first try to find out more about her? Doesn't it bother you that one of the guys is blind? If we don't pay attention he might accidentally shoot Annabelle when trying to kill an enemy.
Quote from: selmiak on Sat 04/01/2014 13:27:53
>ask robina and her merry men to dance
You never fail to make me laugh. (laugh)
I agree with cat on this matter. We should find out more about Robina instead of immediately hiring her.
> ASK ROBINA TO TELL MORE ABOUT HERSELF, HER COMPANIONS ESPECIALLY HER BLIND COMPANION AND ABOUT THEIR PAST EXPERIENCE.
E: Fixed a sentence.
While I'm ultimately all in favor of hiring Robina...
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sat 04/01/2014 18:14:22
> ASK ROBINA TO TELL MORE ABOUT HERSELF, HER COMPANIONS ESPECIALLY HER BLIND COMPANION AND ABOUT THEIR PAST EXPERIENCE.
+1
Quote from: Radiant on Sat 04/01/2014 15:25:34
> ACCEPT her offer, and as their first task request that they SCOUT our immediate SURROUNDINGS, starting with east and west
+1
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sat 04/01/2014 18:14:22
> ASK ROBINA TO TELL MORE ABOUT HERSELF, HER COMPANIONS ESPECIALLY HER BLIND COMPANION AND ABOUT THEIR PAST EXPERIENCE.
+1...and before we let them scout, maybe we can ask the rangers if they already know something about the surroundings of our kingdom. They must have come from somewhere.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sat 04/01/2014 18:14:22
You never fail to make me laugh. (laugh)
Actually I'm serious about this in a non serious way. Well, what I mean is, WHAM is notorious for drawing the bestest dance scenes in forum games ever!
Quote from: selmiak on Sat 04/01/2014 20:06:19
Actually I'm serious about this in a non serious way. Well, what I mean is, WHAM is notorious for drawing the bestest dance scenes in forum games ever!
Refer here for old awesomeness (if I do say so myself, it was fun to draw at least): http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=44156.msg617019#msg617019
I just teared up thinking about poor Andrei.
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 04/01/2014 20:47:20
Quote from: selmiak on Sat 04/01/2014 20:06:19
Actually I'm serious about this in a non serious way. Well, what I mean is, WHAM is notorious for drawing the bestest dance scenes in forum games ever!
Refer here for old awesomeness (if I do say so myself, it was fun to draw at least): http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=44156.msg617019#msg617019
Oh. I'm sorry for my ignorance but still I'll say: selmiak never fails to make me laugh. I'd love to see them doing dance! :-D
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sat 04/01/2014 18:14:22
> ASK ROBINA TO TELL MORE ABOUT HERSELF, HER COMPANIONS ESPECIALLY HER BLIND COMPANION AND ABOUT THEIR PAST EXPERIENCE.
+1
upvote then, or maybe we should rather invite robina and her gang in tight tights to the dinner tonight :D
"Robina, is there more you can tell me of you and your companions? It seems one of your men is..." You pause. "...visually impaired." You suggest cautiously.
"What are your stories and experiences?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/027_a.png)
Robina glances behind her, then gives a chuckle at your remark.
"Blind old Mark here is as good a man as any. He may not be the best marksman, but his hearing and acute sense of smell have kept us from many a trouble. Each of my Merry Men have a special talent that make them valuable to the group as a whole. We have worked as adventurers and archers for hire in the countryside, wandering the woods and farmlands, offering help in exchange for lodging, food and coin. We've chased off many a goblin tribe and even the occasionaly ettin, and the common folk seem to like us well enough considering we were offered free lodgings just outside of town.
We specialize in moving light and fast, scouting ahead and harrassing our foes. We can't exactly hold off a cavalry charge out in the open, but in the woods or behind secure walls we can make even the most heavily armoured knights think twice before charging."
> Ask Robina if she's married or not. If not, propose her.
A strong wife should come in handy, seeing as our life is constantly in danger as a king! :P
I like this Robina!
Let's hire her!
> Hire Robina and order her to map the land outside our town, one day(turn) for each cardinal direction. If she finds treasure to be plundered from evil foes (monsters) then she is to attack and return to the castle.
We just learned that there are goblins and ettins. A world that distinguishes between those somewhat related mythical creatures is a dangerous place; Ettins are badass, and goblins are bad news.
Quote from: Ghost on Mon 06/01/2014 21:39:24
We just learned that there are goblins and ettins. A world that distinguishes between those somewhat related mythical creatures is a dangerous place; Ettins are badass, and goblins are bad news.
Hmmm, and previously we had learned that there was a dragon too.
But Robina is a good lass and hence we should marry her.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Mon 06/01/2014 17:46:29
> Ask Robina if she's married or not. If not, propose her.
+1
I like the command and thinking of this guy. This is the best thing we can do at the moment. :=
Quote from: miguel on Mon 06/01/2014 20:50:17> Hire Robina and order her to map the land outside our town, one day(turn) for each cardinal direction. If she finds treasure to be plundered from evil foes (monsters) then she is to attack and return to the castle.
+1
Quote from: miguel on Mon 06/01/2014 20:50:17
> Hire Robina and order her to map the land outside our town, one day(turn) for each cardinal direction. If she finds treasure to be plundered from evil foes (monsters) then she is to attack and return to the castle.
Oh why not:
+1Certainly not to marrying her though, we should save that to someone with a little more power than just the leader of a few handicapped archers. A lady who can contribute more to our wealth and/or power.
Quote from: miguel on Mon 06/01/2014 20:50:17
> Hire Robina and order her to map the land outside our town, one day(turn) for each cardinal direction. If she finds treasure to be plundered from evil foes (monsters) then she is to attack and return to the castle.
+1
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Mon 06/01/2014 23:50:08
Certainly not to marrying her though, we should save that to someone with a little more power than just the leader of a few handicapped archers. A lady who can contribute more to our wealth and/or power.
You got serious, pal. :-D
On a serious note, we don't know whether we are even married or not. We are just assuming that we're not married. There's a possibility that we may be a widower or a divorced man (since we look rather.....old). There's also a possibility that we'll soon get notice from the court about the child custody fight (in the case that we've just divorced recently).
Quote from: miguel on Mon 06/01/2014 20:50:17
> Hire Robina and order her to map the land outside our town, one day(turn) for each cardinal direction. If she finds treasure to be plundered from evil foes (monsters) then she is to attack and return to the castle.
+1
Quote from: Ghost on Mon 06/01/2014 21:39:24
We just learned that there are goblins and ettins. A world that distinguishes between those somewhat related mythical creatures is a dangerous place; Ettins are badass, and goblins are bad news.
Do they have to be bad news? Goblins are generally sapient and often intelligent. Would it be possible to have an audience with some goblins? If there's a diplomatic way we can solve their problem and ours, like hiring them as cheap militia, then the goblinoids won't attack us, and we will have more protection. I'd say map out the land around us, and if we find a goblin tribe or something, we don't destroy it instantly, but open a dialogue with them. Have them send their Goblin Chief to see us, to see what we can do for each other.
Species-based genocide isn't something I'm very keen on.
Hire her? Yes. Send her mapping? Yes.
But the lady got thirty rangers at her disposal. Wouldn't it make more sense for them to split up and scout all directions simultaneously?
Also, as Problem suggested a few days back, it might be useful to ask her what she can tell us about our realm right now. After all, they are supposed to be experienced rangers. They must have some prior knowledge of our kingdom. Or even own a map.
You ponder for a moment, then decide that Robina and her Merry Men are exactly what you need.
"Robina the Ranger, I hereby hire you and your men to serve the crown for the price discussed. Your first assignment shall be to explore and map out the immediate surroundings of the castle town and to report back. A day's travel in the North, West, East and South will suffice for now."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/028_a.png)
Robina smiles and her men do a little song and dance.
"As you wish, My King, my men and I will serve you well!"
Robina leads her men out of the throne room and you can almost hear them singing as they go. Something about pants.
> Write a note reading: "I hate my life", give it to Jester and commit suicide.
Awesome! Too bad this is not animated ;)
Now I'd like to talk to the herbalist, we could grow some stuff in the garden and sell it later ;)
> Grant next audience
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
Awesome! Too bad this is not animated ;)
I *can* imagine them doing a Riverdance number (nod)
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
> Grant next audience
+1
We could grow weed and stay in the throne room forever while Jesterino tells jokes...But then we'd have to kill him.
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
> Grant next audience
+1
Let's grow something poisonous and invite Sir Kevin of Axemount for tea!
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
Awesome! Too bad this is not animated ;)
Now I'd like to talk to the herbalist, we could grow some stuff in the garden and sell it later ;)
> Grant next audience
+1
After that we should try to find a royal wizard that can make good use of the herbs and weeds and can do other fine tricks.
Quote from: Ghost on Wed 08/01/2014 19:36:58
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
Awesome! Too bad this is not animated ;)
I *can* imagine them doing a Riverdance number (nod)
(http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/riverdance.gif)
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
> Grant next audience
+1
+1
> announce a Teh Tabby Has A Smiley For Everything Day.
Our first kingly holiday!
Everyone: Please thank selmiak because he's the person who reminded WHAM about dancing and hence we got to
see imagine them dancing! ;-D
Quote from: Tabata on Thu 09/01/2014 16:32:52
Quote from: Ghost on Wed 08/01/2014 19:36:58
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
Awesome! Too bad this is not animated ;)
I *can* imagine them doing a Riverdance number (nod)
(http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/riverdance.gif)
Quote from: cat on Wed 08/01/2014 18:59:55
> Grant next audience
+1
+1
+1
"Next!" -you call out, having gotten used to the routine.
An old man, his head bald and his beard thick, approaches the throne. He wears a faded green traveller's robe and around his neck is a chain of links crafted of many metals.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/029_a.png)
"My King, I am HIRSCHEL, THE WIZENED the call me. For decades I have offered my services to those in need and to those who sought it, and in those years I have accumulated a wealth of knowledge in the matter of plants, herbs and minerals of the earth. Now I seek a place to spend the rest of my years, a place where I may settle down and still be of use. Would you offer me such a place? I ask for no pay, just that I have a place to sleep and work and eat."
Is he the very model of a modern major general?
for my tastes he doesn't look cliche enough ;)
> Kindly accept the offer and assign him as ROYAL GARDENER. Order Construed to build a fence in the ROYAL GARDEN so Annabelle doesn't eat our precious herbs.
Quote from: cat on Fri 10/01/2014 18:19:50
> Kindly accept the offer and assign him as ROYAL GARDENER. Order Construed to build a fence in the ROYAL GARDEN so Annabelle doesn't eat our precious herbs.
+1
No pay? Get the commie out of here!
Even though he is not asking for payment, we as king should be kind and/or noble enough to ask the reason. So, I'll slightly modify cat's command (if she doesn't mind):
> Kindly accept the offer and assign him as ROYAL GARDENER. Order Construed to build a fence in the ROYAL GARDEN so Annabelle doesn't eat our precious herbs. Also, ask Hirschel: 'Why is he not asking for any payment at all'?
Since Hirschel looks like a wise and probably calm, old man. We can benefit from his wise advices too. :)
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 10/01/2014 17:00:13I ask for no pay, just that I have a place to sleep and work and eat.
Works for food? True C++ programme... wait... :D
Don't hire him just yet. Ask him some questions first.
> Ask the man why he seeks no pay in return for his services, and then ask about his past and people he's worked for. And ask what he can do with herbs and potions.
"Very well, Hirschel. I hereby appoint you the ROYAL GARDENER. You will have a quarter set up for you within the castle and you will have free reign over the roayl garden. I will have the garden segmented by fences to allow you to divide the area as needed and to ensure the ROYAL PRIZE COW does not hinder your work."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/030_a.png)
The old man bows as deep as his crooked back allows him.
"Thank you, Kind King. I will serve you 'till the end of my days, Gods willing."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/030_b.png)
You call for the JESTER to guide the new ROYAL GARDENER to some free quarters in the castle, and instruct him to relay your request for some fences in the royal garden to the head of the builder's guild; CONSTRUED.
The JESTER gladly obliges and is soon on his way.
The hooded silhouette of your next audience awaits at the door of the throne room
Quote from: WHAM on Sun 12/01/2014 10:41:16
The hooded silhouette of your next audience awaits at the door of the throne room
Hmm. I believe the last person on our list left is the TRAVELLING ARTISAN, unless this isn't the artisan.
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 28/11/2013 20:27:31
a TRAVELLING MERCHANT from the south wishes to offer his finest wares and services to the KING
SIR KEVIN OF AXEMONT and his knights wish to offer their services to the KING
a LOST WARRIOR seeks assistance from the KING
BARON MONOCLE, an envoy of a pirate clan from the Western sea, seeks an audience with the KING
HIRSCHEL THE WIZENED offers his skills as a HERBALIST to the KING
ROBINA THE RANGER and her archers seek to offer their services to the KING
a TRAVELLING ARTISAN seeks to offer her finest crafts and services to the KING
It sounds a little eerie. Like we should be requesting more guards before we let this person in. I suggest this:
> COMMAND the guards in your presence to stand alert but don't look too threatening, then SUMMON the next AUDIENCE
> Practice juggling.
> Commit suicide because of the fear of Travelling Artisan.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Wed 08/01/2014 18:13:25
> Write a note reading: "I hate my life", give it to Jester and commit suicide.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sun 12/01/2014 22:37:22
> Commit suicide because of the fear of Travelling Artisan.
Is that a deathwish I sense there?
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Sun 12/01/2014 22:37:22
> Commit suicide because of the fear of Travelling Artisan.
+1, but quicksave first so that we can undo the move for the lulz.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 12/01/2014 21:43:10
> COMMAND the guards in your presence to stand alert but don't look too threatening, then SUMMON the next AUDIENCE
+1
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 13/01/2014 10:07:19
Is that a deathwish I sense there?
Yes! :~(
Spoiler
Actually, I want him to live. It's just that whenever I play any game, I often deliberately make the protagonist die :-D So, the same ol' habbit is showing its colour here. ;)
Just keep in mind that this is a one-shot game. No saves, no loads, no retries. If the King dies and does not have a heir of some sort, the game ends outright.
Damn, now we're being threatened! 8-0
Quote from: cat on Mon 13/01/2014 19:23:44
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 12/01/2014 21:43:10
> COMMAND the guards in your presence to stand alert but don't look too threatening, then SUMMON the next AUDIENCE
+1
+1
Just wanted to be sure you knew the unwritten rules. Same went for previous game, and I can't exactly say we had a happy ending there, so let's hope we can get this kingdom a bit more upbeat one. ;)
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 13/01/2014 22:39:18
Just wanted to be sure you knew the unwritten rules. Same went for previous game, and I can't exactly say we had a happy ending there, so let's hope we can get this kingdom a bit more upbeat one. ;)
Sure, I understand! :grin: Thanks for clarifying. :smiley:
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 12/01/2014 21:43:10
> COMMAND the guards in your presence to stand alert but don't look too threatening, then SUMMON the next AUDIENCE.
+1
Feeling threatened, you call out your guards in a low voice. The men step out of the shadows behind your throne and emerge to be closer to you for the time being.
"Next!" -you call out once more, and the shadow in the doorway begins to approach.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/031_a.png)
Whoever this person is, he or she is small in size, yet somehow foreboding. A gray hood covers the new arrivals face almost completely, and it seems that the audience -seekers covered hands are holding something spherical, wrapped in a black silk cloth.
"My King" -a squeaky male voice begins to emanate from beneath the hood, causing a slight chill to run down your spine.
"I am Razathul, a lowly messenger sent by the others to deliver this gift to you. I was instructed only to entrust it in your hands and to tell you this: 'as promised, the gift is here. Use it wisely, for only once will it serve thee'. Will you accept this gift?"
BEAR! :cheesy:
> Arrest this visitor, throw him into the dungeons and execute him.
> Before accepting the gift, ask him to tell about the 'others' who sent him, and what the gift is and does.
Quote from: Radiant on Tue 14/01/2014 21:46:22
> Before accepting the gift, ask him to tell about the 'others' who sent him, and what the gift is and does.
+1
Ghost is right. These puffy ears can only mean he is a hooded bear and brings us black honey. Which we can either use to poison our enemies (or ourself if we want to) or this is a gift from our enemies (after 1 day on the throne already?) and accepting the gift brings bad luck over the whole kingdom. Or it is really delicious with pancakes!
So yeah...
Quote from: Radiant on Tue 14/01/2014 21:46:22
> Before accepting the gift, ask him to tell about the 'others' who sent him, and what the gift is and does.
+1
Is this the object the Shadowy Traveller mentioned earlier?
Quote from: Radiant on Tue 14/01/2014 21:46:22
> Before accepting the gift, ask him to tell about the 'others' who sent him, and what the gift is and does.
+1
Quote from: Radiant on Tue 14/01/2014 21:46:22
> Before accepting the gift, ask him to tell about the 'others' who sent him, and what the gift is and does.
+1So what did happen to our TRAVELLING ARTISAN, or did I completely forget about this person and she wasn't added to the wiki? Or is she still next?
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Tue 14/01/2014 19:53:48
> Arrest this visitor, throw him into the dungeons and execute him.
Just because of your previous suicide commands (which I honestly disliked, and would would prefer for you to not participate in this game if you're going to try to ruin it for others - no offense) I can't know if you're now serious with this command. The person is mysterious and could quite possibly be evil and as far as we know the object is some magical cursed object that will doom our kingdom. I do think if these people are evil, killing the messenger will only advance their plots much sooner than we're prepared for, but killing a messenger to a friendly group of people surely will create some new enemies.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Wed 15/01/2014 01:21:43
So what did happen to our TRAVELLING ARTISAN, or did I completely forget about this person and she wasn't added to the wiki? Or is she still next?
No, we haven't seen the artisan yet. If this guy/bear/whatever is indeed associated with the Shadowy Traveller, I guess he mysteriously skipped the line to make sure we would receive the strange object on the third day of our rule as foretold by Traveller. So I suppose the artisan is still patiently awaiting her turn.
Adeel, picking up on what Ryan said, please don't forget that IF one of your comments by any chance is the ONLY one given to WHAM he will process it. I believe you were joking but there is a risk when doing it.
Stuff like "pick your nose" or "sing a song" will do us little harm if executed but anything more may bring problems.
"Before I can accept your gift, I must know more of it. What does this 'gift' of yours do, precisely, and who are these 'others' who sent you to deliver this gift?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/032_a.png)
The strange man shifts nervously, but anwers nonetheless:
"My King, the others are just that: others. Others in our order. The less you know of us, the better, for we do not seek to be widely known in your lands, only to observe and protect. As to what the gift does, simply uncover it and gaze into it, and the answer will be made clear to you. All I can say is, that this land is fraught with unspeakable peril, and each creature to ever lay claim to ruling over it has been handed a gift such as this by our order, so that these rulers might stand where mere mortals would fall. Our time is short, do you accept this gift or not?"
You sense urgency in the voice of the squeaky-voiced man.
Note to self, in the future we should always have Lancelot, or Chuckles, or someone else trustworthy present whenever meeting obtuse strangers like these.
> Accept the gift and thank him.
I don't like to be forced to accept a (magical?) gift that isn't explained and from a stranger who might need my acceptance just for the magic to work.
Otherwhise he could have left it or take the time for explaining, even if he represents a secret group.
Also if they give it to all rulers â€" where is the version from the last king. Didn't he accept it, didn't it work or ... did it …? :shocked:
So much and even more questions and a big risk to accept something that I don't know of what it (really) does. (wtf)
We need a wizard and magic on our side, but this one didn't convince me to be the right one to be trusted right now. (wrong)
> Thank him for the kind offer, tell him that you are interested but regret him being in an obvious hurry and invite him for an extra visit/dinner when he has more time, is ready to tell more about his gift and (even in secret) about „the others“.
I too have some doubts about the gift, and like Tabata explained, why is the former King that had it dead? If the gift is so powerful shouldn't it have saved him from us? Or are the powers concealed in the gift of a magic nature and can not save the bearer from the steel of a sword?
I think we can bend the rules a bit:
> Kindly accept the gift, but do tell Bobbin that we somehow fear this charade and have a guard behind him ready to act if something goes wrong while we look at the gift.
Maybe this way, announcing our intentions, the hooded man will reveal his true intentions.
Quote from: miguel on Fri 17/01/2014 10:20:56
> Kindly accept the gift, but do tell Bobbin that we somehow fear this charade and have a guard behind him ready to act if something goes wrong while we look at the gift.
+1
QuoteAs to what the gift does, simply uncover it and gaze into it, and the answer will be made clear to you.
and then we end up turned to stone or so...
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 16/01/2014 22:20:35
As to what the gift does, simply uncover it and gaze into it, and the answer will be made clear to you.
Quote from: WHAM on Tue 14/01/2014 16:16:15
Use it wisely, for only once will it serve thee'.
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 18/11/2013 15:55:25
"King of the land, know that your reign will not be an easy one. But fear not, for on the third day from now, an object will be passed unto you, which will grant you the assistance of myself and others like me. Be wise and use it well, unlike the one who reigned over this land before you, for wasting such power might see your reign come to end sooner than you think."
From what I gather it's a one-time-use device that shows us the truth in what we seek, eg: an army is coming, you will be poisoned, etc. Knowing the truth now will likely be what he considers a "waste". So, given that information:
> Mention what the shadowy figure had said with the previous king having wasted the gift, ask when it would be an appropriate time to use it. Then accept the gift.Edit: I strongly believe that using the gift now would be considered a waste. And asking him questions is something we will only have one opportunity to do, so make use of his presence now or we'll never know what this device really does or when to use it.
I'm not sure whether gazing into the gift = using it, but some more information might indeed be helpful.
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Fri 17/01/2014 17:32:06
> Mention what the shadowy figure had said with the previous king having wasted the gift, ask when it would be an appropriate time to use it. Then accept the gift.
+1
Yup, looks like we can see what it does and then chose when to use it.
QuoteQuote from: Ryan Timothy on Today at 17:32
> Mention what the shadowy figure had said with the previous king having wasted the gift, ask when it would be an appropriate time to use it. Then accept the gift.
+1
Still not convinced by this strange man, you decide you will try and have more information of him.
"A man came before you, perhaps one of these 'others', and told me of your coming. He also said that the previous king wasted his gift. How? And how will I know when the time comes to use the gift?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/033_a.png)
The strange man shifts ever-increasingly nervous:
"When and how to use the gift is up to you, and the only instruction I can give to you now is to only use it when the end is near. There is no right or wrong time, however, but each ruler who has used the gift has wished they hadn't, and each ruler who didn't use the gift has wished they had. Heed these words: when the time is dire and your kingdom is truly in peril, then you may call upon this gift, and in doing so you will evoke powers that can both help and harm."
The hooded man glances at your guards, then at the window, and shakes his head.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/033_b.png)
"My time here is at it's end."
He places the gift, a round object covered in black silk, on the floor before you, and turns to leave without a further word.
Looks like we'll have to keep it without knowing what powerful forces it unleashes.
But the hooded man is still here and this time he didn't vanish in a cloud.
> Ask him if the king before us used the gift or not. Also have the gift stored in our treasury room.
It's times like this that we really needed a spy. We need somebody to follow and track people around town.
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 18/01/2014 10:39:56
"There is no right or wrong time, however, but each ruler who has used the gift has wished they hadn't, and each ruler who didn't use the gift has wished they had. [Using the gift] will evoke powers that can both help and harm."
Now doesn't that sound wonderful. I believe I now want to take it up to those mountains and have someone smash it to pieces.
Also the eerie darkness surrounding the shadowy figure, is that a quick and easy fix from WHAM to show that it's nearing the end of the day or did it actually get dark in this kingdom except for our furry friend?
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Mon 20/01/2014 00:31:21
Also the eerie darkness surrounding the shadowy figure, is that a quick and easy fix from WHAM to show that it's nearing the end of the day or did it actually get dark in this kingdom except for our furry friend?
I think the latter. We did not have the light changes before and WHAM tends to be consistent. I think this mysterious object is doing something: We and the hodded bear are still normally drawn; the background actually fades.
> DEMAND the HOODED BEAR to EXPLAIN*
__
* In a KINGLY MANNER.
And I sense that it's a bomb of sorts. Why else would this creature be as nervous as he is, and growing ever increasingly nervous with each moment you delay him - we didn't even accept it and he set it on the ground and is already dashing for the door. I say we take it out of the kingdom as fast as possible. Do not touch it with bare hands, he wasn't. Have these two guards run it out of the kingdom and bury it somewhere and keep a secret record of its location. If it isn't a bomb, it's doom. I don't feel good about this.
Let's order Jesterino to pick it up, then lick it in a manly way.
If he does survive then we're good to keep it.
Seriously, it seems to me that this item, although cursed with some inevitable harmful consequence when used, is vital to fight some darker forces that will undoubtedly attack us somewhere in the future. Maybe our fate as a mortal will be doomed the moment we use it but doing it may save our kingdom.
> Pressure the dude once more into revealing more info. Keep the item in our treasury, guarded at all times.
It's now clear that the guy won't pick it up again unless order it and maybe then he can vanish like the other one.
You feel the need for more information, and exclaim:
"Wait! Did the Evil King have this gift? Did he use it?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/034_a.png)
The strange man pauses, then turns to face you. You realize it is awfully quiet.
"He did not, though he could have, and had he done so, you would not sit here today, King.
I believe he was saving it for something specific, though I do not know what."
The air stands still. You feel a painful headache coming on.
"Please accept the gift, King." -the stange man says. "I must leave, for time waits for no-one."
He begins to turn to leave once more.
This gift is evil!
> Thank the man and let him leave.
Quote from: Radiant on Mon 20/01/2014 18:34:46
> Thank the man and let him leave.
+1
This is not darkness.. this is... err, monochromity. It follows this man (lol).
So whoever posesses this mirror is surrounded by greyness? And the farther you get away from it the more grey happens? And this grey seems evil. But we haven't accepted yet, thought the king is still in color... or is it some kind of cellphone to contact the beary figure. But he is still here so no need to contact him (or the others) that way.
> say: "Come on, explain what this thing does. And what's with all the monochromity here? Is your Graphics card broken? Do you need an updates? Update me first on your gift and you are free to leave." If he leaves anyways run after him and make him explain.
Perhaps the monochrome background is an indication that time has slowed down or simply stopped. And only we and mr. Hoodie are 'normal' at the moment.
It's logical since the guy mentioned there's no time left for him to stay here anymore. Hence, perhaps, he used all or some of his power to slow or stop the time down for a while to answer our questions.
E: Wham mentioned: 'The air stands still'. And then in his ending words, Mr. Hoodie mentions that time waits for no one.
So, I believe that mr. Hoodie is using all of his power to make the time stand still or slow down but he obviously can't do that forever. Because no matter who you're, your stamina isn't unlimited.
Quote from: Radiant on Mon 20/01/2014 18:34:46
> Thank the man and let him leave.
Yeah I roll with that. Time to do something king-worthy and active instead of always balancing numbers. I mean, we're a person right?
+1
Quote from: Radiant on Mon 20/01/2014 18:34:46
> Thank the man and let him leave.
+1
Yeah, he smells too.
Ooh noes :shocked:
Our world is beginning to fade away already because of that gift - no wonder this dark soul is in hurry to leave (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/vampirshrek.gif)
Hopefully the acceptance of that gift won't let the king fade away, too :undecided:
Quote from: Tabata on Mon 20/01/2014 23:06:29
Hopefully the acceptance of that gift won't let the king fade away, too :undecided:
Nah. No worries. King's Fade would make a bad title for an adventure game. King's Quest though, I think that could work.
Quote from: Ghost on Tue 21/01/2014 12:47:12
Nah. No worries. King's Fade would make a bad title for an adventure game. King's Quest though, I think that could work.
King Coloureone.
:grin:
Yes, King Coloureone played by David Colourusso.:=
You decide it is best to be rid of this strange man, and the quickest way to do so is to accept his gift.
"I thank you for your gift, you may le-"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/035_a.png)
The strange man is gone. All of a sudden you can hear the wind as well as the birds in the trees outside. Your guards waver and stumble, and one of them begins to bleed profusely from his nose. The men look confused and disoriented.
"My King." One of the guards speaks in a weak voice, while struggling to remain upright on his feet. "May we... May we be excused for a moment? I will call for replacement guards to come down from the walls."
You still have time for more audiences, but your guards do not seem to be doing well and you yourself feel quite exhausted by this strange ordeal.
Your gift lies before the throne, still covered in black silk.
>Pick it up, but don't uncover it (yet), then have Jester put it into the treasure room. And tell him to keep it covered and not look into it. Don't look!
Since this is the king's present he should pick it up first, after this strange happenings right now it could also be that the mirror/glasssphere under the silk only works with whom touched it first.
Poor Jesterino...
Do we have a dinner tonight? Maybe we could rest for an hour and replenish our mood for the evening?
You stand up from your throne, disregarding the guards who do their best to stand straight despite their unknown ailment.
You walk up to the object on the floor you reach down and pick it up. It feels heavy, like glass or crystal, perhaps even metal of some sort, and feels smooth underneath the black silk.
"Jester..." -you call out softly. The jokester appears before you only moments later. As he enters his endless smile evaporates, leaving him looking confused.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/036_a.png)
"My King, what happened? The guards!? And what is...?"
You silence the baffled clown with a stern look.
"Jester, store this artefact in the treasury. I want it under lock and key, always guarded, and whatever you do, do not uncover it or look at it, for it may well end your life."
The Jester looks like he is bursting with questions and alarm, but manages to calm himself and eventually simply nods, reaching to delicately pick up the artefact from your hands.
"At once, my King." -he manages, his voice bereft of the humor it usually reflects, before heading for the treasury.
now that went better than expected :)
> Wait for jester to come back, then ask him who is waiting for an audience
I think now we should start tackling our low gold income. Start inquiring or looking around for gold deposits or abandoned mines during our takeover and let's look at making some more. Given this:
Quote from: HirschelFor decades I have offered my services to those in need and to those who sought it, and in those years I have accumulated a wealth of knowledge in the matter of plants, herbs and minerals of the earth.
I know mineral isn't an element, but at least he's better for searching for signs than say the guard standing behind us.
> Allow the guards to swap with fresh guards, then SUMMON the Jester and Hirschel, ask if either know of any rich gold deposits within our kingdom borders, and if Hirschel could explore around for more possible mining sites or if Jester knows of anyone in town who's more appropriate for the task
Quote> Allow the guards to swap with fresh guards, then SUMMON the Jester and Hirschel, ask if either know of any rich gold deposits within our kingdom borders, and if Hirschel could explore around for more possible mining sites or if Jester knows of anyone in town who's more appropriate for the task
+1
Considering the guards barely stay on their feet, as was mentioned above, I'd suggest to correct this:
Quote> Allow the guards to swap with fresh guards, then SUMMON the Jester and Hirschel, ask if either know of any rich gold deposits within our kingdom borders, and if Hirschel could explore around for more possible mining sites or if Jester knows of anyone in town who's more appropriate for the task
To
> Order servants to take care of guards... etc.
This king has servants, has he? (wtf)
pffft, these guards have at least 75/100 HP left... ;)
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Fri 24/01/2014 18:18:50
> Allow the guards to swap with fresh guards, then SUMMON the Jester and Hirschel, ask if either know of any rich gold deposits within our kingdom borders, and if Hirschel could explore around for more possible mining sites or if Jester knows of anyone in town who's more appropriate for the task
+1
You permit the guards to swap out with fresh replacements for the rest of the day, and summon your advisor, the Jester, and your royal herbalist, Hirschel the Wizened, to your presence, thus beginning your last meeting for the day before dinner and a night's rest.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/037_a.png)
You eye over your two advisors, then explain the situation:
"Our realm is in dire need of income, and I need you two to help me correct this issue. Jester: do you know of any gold mines or miners in our realm?"
The Jester nods his head.
"I do, My King. There is a small mining operation not far to the north of our town. Ownership of the mine and it's income belong to a certain trader in the Trader's guild by the name of JONATHAN OF ANDERS, and the mine is run by a man by the name of MOOK. The mine is not a rich one, and there has been talk of halting it's operation and selling off the site unless profits increase soon. The mine does return tax income to the crown already, but I fear it is not much."
You nod, approving the Jester's wealth of information, then turn to Hirschel.
"Hirschel, you mentioned that you knew much of minerals as well as of plantlife. Do you think your abilities could be useful in searching for resources we could mine for?"
Hirschel gives a cautious nod.
"My King, if we can discover caves or caverns or make preliminary digs somewhere, I could certainly study the soil or rock for signs of anything useful. However, I mostly do the opposite, using my talents in studying the soil to identify fertile places for plants to grow, so I cannot guarantee success, though I do believe I can decrease the risk of beginning new mining operations should you wish. Mr Jester, do we know of any caves or caverns or other sites where I could easily study the rock and soil?"
The Jester ponders for another moment, mulling the matter over.
"I recall hearing of a partially udnerwater cavern near the river's edge to the east, but other than that I only know of the one existing gold mine in our lands. Expeditions would surely mark down caves and caverns as sites of interest should they encounter any, since such places are often nests of criminals as well as goblins or worse."
> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs that we could trade for an income.
Quote from: cat on Sun 26/01/2014 09:49:42
> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs that we could trade for an income.
+1;
I also think we could gather a expedition to that underwater cave. We'd need some armed men and Hirschel to go as well.
If we
had a spy we could send him first to scout the area for enemies. But because we
don't have a spy, we can't.
We sent Robina away to explore didn't we? Well I guess we could use her for scouting operations from now on.
Well that ruins that idea of hoping to takeover a successful mine operation that was momentarily abandoned during our revolution. I just wanted to cut the profit aspect and simply create our own gold coins. The best option for now is to likely meet up with this Jonathon of Anders and Mook and see what they say about new prospects for the Crown to give permission to mine/sluice, where we rake in a slightly higher tax profit since they won't own the land they're mining.
Quote from: cat on Sun 26/01/2014 09:49:42> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs that we could trade for an income.
Sounds like a promising question to ask, but I add the following:
> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs, or create any valuable potions, that we could trade/sell for an incomeSince a plant by itself may be worthless to the traders' guild but a potion could be invaluable. It all depends on our buddy Hirschel's knowledge and success rate.
QuoteThe Jester ponders for another moment, mulling the matter over.
"I recall hearing of a partially udnerwater cavern near the river's edge to the east(...)
This could be a valid place to explore. And we could get our hands dirty and fight some criminals for plunder.
Quote> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs, or create any valuable potions, that we could trade/sell for an income
+1
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Sun 26/01/2014 12:02:13
> Ask Hirschel if he could grow valuable plants or herbs, or create any valuable potions, that we could trade/sell for an income
Then let's go cave exploring :)
>Summon JONATHAN OF ANDERS and MOOK to the palace.
Quote from: NightHawk on Sun 26/01/2014 22:17:46
>Summon JONATHAN OF ANDERS and MOOK to the palace.
That'll have to be tomorrow. This meeting with Jester and Hirschel is the last event for the game night. But asking them additional questions is fine.
"Hirschel, would it be possible for us to grow any herbs which would be valuable for trading, or perhaps could be refined into potions of some value?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/038_a.png)
Hirschel nods.
"Yes, my King. It will take time, but I do believe I will be able to provide us with some herbs that might fetch a fine price in the south. I', afraid I'm not much of a potionmaker myself, but I have worked with southern alchemists in the past and I believe I can provide us with something of use. Mind, though, that growin quality herbs takes time, and I cannot promise a harvest this summer. We could harvest early, but that might reduce the quality of the herbs, and selling poor ingredients to alchemists for quick profit is a game several would-be herbalists have lost their lives attempting."
Say "We should allow these herbs to ripen in their own time. We must have a quality product to sell and thus "grow" our reputation."
(Nod smugly at our clever pun)
I agree with The Ponch (notice how I wrote the Ponch, not just Ponch).
We should focus on that underwater cave and get us some loot from whatever beast may be hidden there!
Or alternatively, we can commit suicide and thus relieve ourselves from the misery of managing a kingdom. :=
That word is something I keep away from as much as I can, even in a light comic situation. I refuse to even think that people do have to consider it.
> Hershel, take your time but do grow us some quality grass herbs. Chose the ones that alchemists most likely need.
"It would be a poor beginning for our future trade in the area of herbs and potions if we sold hastily grown and poor quality merchandise. Take all the time you need and let me know if you need anything or when we have something to offer for our traders."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/038_a.png)
Hirschel nods, clearly pleased with your words.
"I shall do my best, my King."
As Hirschel begins to make his exit the Jester pipes up: "My King, your dinner guest awaits, for it is late now. I suggest we enter the dining room before our meal goes cold."
> go pooping, wash hands, go dining
> Invite Hirschel to dine with you, and then go dining
Quote from: Ryan Timothy on Fri 31/01/2014 05:49:35
> Invite Hirschel to dine with you, and then go dining
+1 to this. Hirschel probably has a nice variety of spices to season our dinner.
Also, +1 to pooping. Time to spend a little time on the other throne. +2 to washing hands. :=
Don't wash hands, make them smell it, we are the King!
Quote> Invite Hirschel to dine with you, and then go dining
+1
Quote from: miguel on Fri 31/01/2014 09:54:07
Don't wash hands, make them smell it, we are the King!
you have to -2 this then ;)
Go pooping, don't wash hands, go dining.
:grin:
You decide it is time for dinner, and invite Hirschel to accompany you. He promises to bring some dried spices with him.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/039_a.png)
Your guests are seated around you, and the food smells unusually delicious. As the King you are served first, and in moments you and your guests are enjoying a delicious meal along with friendly discussions into several subjects. Hirschel entertains the table with tales of his travels as well as descriptions of some of the more rare and pequliar plants he has encountered, such as the scalding-to-the-touch dragon's tongue flower, the mandrake root and a highly rare desert rose, which only blooms once every decade and even then only on one specific day.
Baron, the pirate envoy, returns the favor with tales of grand battles on the high seas, and while he mentions having sunk or captured ships from all over the world, he never mentions having sunk one belonging to any previous king or the traders of your realm. You suspect he is simply being courteous. Baron also speaks at length with Dennis of the traders, and the two seem to come along well together. Dennis soon tells you that he believes that, should the King approve, he could forge a deal with the Forkbeak pirate clan, in which your people would supply the pirates with timber and cloth, while the pirates would pay with precious jewels and gold, as well as fish from the sea.
The night winds down and people begin to seem tired. If you wish, you might raise another subject for one of the people in the table, or you might simply head to bed and see what tomorrow brings.
Note to self, we need to commission a friendlier flag :)
Wasn't Rorik also meant to be in attendance?
>Ask Baron if any nation considers him an enemy and if we as a kingdom can get retaliations for using his services;
I personally agree with making the deal, we need gold. But would also like to hear what he has to say about his piracy deeds.
And, like Radiant, I think that flag is something pirates would use, not kings.
Quote from: Radiant on Sat 01/02/2014 15:57:08
Note to self, we need to commission a friendlier flag :)
+1. And, as already suggested, we could use a BETTER NAME than "Grimdark" too!
> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
You decide that you need to know as much as possible of this Baron and his pirates before agreeing to anything with him, and what better way to find out that to ask.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/039_a.png)
Baron considers you question for a moment, then replies:
"We pirates are enemies to no nation, per se, but all seafaring folk consider pirates an enemy of sorts. Some decide to bargain with us, thus gaining safety on the high seas and the coastlines, while others arm their ships and men and try to fight us. Beyond this most natural state of affairs the six major pirate clans do not always see eye to eye, but the Forkbeaks are the greatest clan by a wide margin. No other clan can muster even half of the ships and men that are at the Forkbeak's disposal at any given moment."
I'm almost certain we also invited Rorik to dine with us (I think that was the whole point of this dinner in the first place?) - I'd just like to know if he's conspicuously absent, or just absent because that wasn't part of the orignal plan? Regardless:
The difference between a pirate and privateer is basically just a letter of marque - if we were to offer Baron and his men amnesty on the condition that he and his people recognize our sovereignty and not attack our ships, we could even endorse his plunder in our name, perhaps grant him and his men land within our kingdom? I think it's a good idea to have a group of pirates on our side, particularly if we don't already have a royal navy. They aren't asking for pay unless we are looking for naval escort, and have also offered to help broker trade in the West: I think that's a pretty fair deal.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 25/12/2013 11:36:39
If Rorik is afraid of staying at a inn it clearly means someone is after him. We need to know more before we give him shelter.
I know we need friends and immediate danger isn't our concern but who the hell scares him so much?
I say we do things subtly but do it.
> Grant Rorik the privilege of dinning with the King, Jesterino and Lancelot, at the end of the day and turn (this should be our last action). The purpose of our warm, candlelit meal is to allow Rorik to tell us of his travels and adventures. Doing it at the end of the day(turn) will allow us to keep him standing by and us to carry on all the orders of the day.
Rorik was indeed the reason for this dinner.
Where is he?
Nope, as far as I can see from briefly scanning over all the posts after Rorik's appearance, there was no command to offer him to dinner. From post #307 (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=49495.msg636476419#msg636476419), that he:
Quote> Grant shelter to RORIK and ask him to tell us more about his home to the north. Also gently inquire about his mission and the fate of his companions. But make sure not to insult him if he really doesn't want to talk about it.
You're right, my mistake.
Fair enough - I guess the seed for having the dinner was planted there, but the actual 'event' that was decided upon was to just talk to Rorik there and then send him to be without supper. Oh well. Such is the nature of the beast when someone rephrases and that's the one that gets voted up. I'm just catching up to this game so I've been processing a lot anyway.
That aside, I stand by my suggestion that we Offer a LETTER OF MARQUE to BARON and ask about NEGOTIATING TRADE in the WEST. We don't have any enemies on the seas yet (That we know of), but it may well behoove us to pay it forward.
> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
Let's all agree that Rorik and Lancelot are actually just off-screen and just didn't fit into the picture this time. Rorik already shared tales of his travely with you during the day and drunkenly chatted with Lancelot before excusing himself early for bed, since the wine enjoyed by these folks of the warm lands apparently makes him queasy. He did not share anything further of his mission and when Lancelot asked why this is, Rorik became apprehensive in his drunken state.
Let's all also agree that I did not forget that Rorik was supposed to come to this dinner because we had two separate guests invited to the same dinner and I got confused.
Let's all ALSO agree that my website host isn't currently down causing all of the images to not display at all.
It's a lot to agree to, but I'm sure we can all get along. ;)
I agree and it's never enough to thank you for this game again.
Thank you WHAM.
> Offer a LETTER OF MARQUE to BARON and ask about NEGOTIATING TRADE in the WEST.
Are we really in a position to give out a letter of marque to a pirate clan which at the moment is probably much stronger in force than we are? Also, wouldn't this implicate us much more directly in their pirating than a simply trade agreement would? If they attack ships of other nations in our name, would those nations still want to deal peacefully with us?
Quote from: NightHawk on Tue 04/02/2014 07:02:43
> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
+1
In my opinion although they are indeed several times stronger than us, they lack the status we can offer as a kingdom. As for the letter of marque I did a little checking and I believe it could benefit us.
In the days of fighting sail, a letter of marque and reprisal was a government licence authorizing a person (known as a privateer) to attack and capture enemy vessels and bring them before admiralty courts for condemnation and sale. Cruising for prizes with a letter of marque was considered an honorable calling combining patriotism and profit, in contrast to unlicensed piracy, which was universally reviled.
from Wikipedia
We are, however, not dealing with a single person but with an entire clan of pirates. I don't think they have any interest in becoming our subordinates and might even consider the suggestion an insult.
You may be correct but from the clan's point of view it may be a great chance for them to become "legit". I don't think they'd be insulted by us from asking.
Before we consider offering a letter of marque, we should agree to the deal and see how it turns out. If the pirate clan proves to be reliable, we can always come back to this idea.
Quote from: NightHawk on Tue 04/02/2014 07:02:43
> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
+1
Fair enough.
Quote> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
+1
Quote from: NightHawk on Tue 04/02/2014 07:02:43
> Agree to the trade deal with the Forkbeak Clan.
+1
The Forkbeaks will love to sail under our flag ;-D
You inform Dennis and Baron that it would greatly please you to establish fair trade between your peoples.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/039_a.png)
Baron seems overjoyed.
"There is always need for frest timber and cloth for repairs and maintenance, as well as making new ships. As soon as I return to my clan, I shall send a vessel up the river at once!"
Dennis and Baron continue to talk for a time, but soon all those present seem to be very tired.
You decide it is time for bed.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/039_b.png)
I wonder if the food was terrible because there is still most of it left on the plates :P
[smallvoice]we did not even parley...[/smallvoice]
:-D
Is it tomorrow already?
> Bounce on the bed, then go to sleep with our royal teddy bear.
> Dream of Robina and Annabelle.
After a night of restless sleep and wild dreams ranging from romatinc conquests to the daily lives of farm-animals, you awaken to a new day. It feels like a day in which good things happen.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/040_a.png)
You arrive in your throne room to find the Jester standing next to a curious device which has been attached to the wall of your throne room during the night.
"My King! Good to see you wide awake! Look what Mr Mandarb of the craftsmen's guild brought you! They call it an hourglass of time!"
You examine the device and it indeed seems to be a large and rather ornate timeglass. The sand slowly trickles down into the lower segment, glittering in the rays of the morning sun.
"There are more news too, My King. The craftsmen have been especially busy and have forged new SEALS OF TRADE for the trader's guild. BARON of the forkbeaks left today and the new seals were used to seal a trade agreement with the FORKBEAK clan as he did. We expect trade to commence within days.
ROBINA and her rangers left on their expeditions at dawn, and are expected to return tomorrow morning.
Furthermore, the EXPEDITION sent towards the EAST by Sir Lancelot has returned.
All of the five knights have returned safe and sound.
The knights have added a new segment to our map of the realm. They have given us a rough sketch of the villages and woodlands to the east of the castle town of Grimdark.
The knights met with a small caravan arriving from the east, which requested protection within our realm and followed our knights to the gates of our town. A noble of unknown origin travels with the caravan and wishes to remain in secresy. However, the noble has requested an escort to travel with the caravan. If the caravan can reach the coast to the west safely, the noble promises to pay hansomely.
If you are so inclined, my King, I can take a word to Lancelot and have him organize some knights to provide escort for the caravan until it reaches it's destination before we get to your first audience of the day."
Quote from: WHAM on Fri 07/02/2014 19:21:09
...the noble promises to pay hansomely.
Does this mean he'll pay us in horse-drawn carriages from Victorian London?
>Take a look at the extended map
> Tell Jesterino to send word to Lancelot that he can pick some men and escort the rich dude;
> Summon any knights that aren't busy training into the war room for their next assignment.
Quote from: selmiak on Fri 07/02/2014 21:06:17
>Take a look at the extended map
+1
I know, curiosity kills the cat, but I can't help :)
Quote from: selmiak on Fri 07/02/2014 21:06:17
>Take a look at the extended map
+1we need that image for our wiki (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/wiki/King_Simulator_2013) (nod)
> Hold audience with the noble of unknown origin, to ask about the regions he's from, as well as his mission to the west coast.
C'mon guys! There's a reward for delivering the guy safely! We need the money!
Curious to see more of your realm, you decide to take a look at the MAP, before deciding on anything else.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/041_a.png)
You walk into the WAR ROOM and find that there are new symbols drawn on the map. EAST of your castle town there are symbols for three small villages and it seems that a wide swath of forest extend across the river that runs through your realm. The Jester, having followed you from the throne room, explains:
"The Knights travelled a good distance to the EAST, mapping out all three villages that belong to our kingdom in that direction. Having spread the word of your rise to the throne amonst the villagers the Knights rode around the great forest and even made some short incursions into the thick woods. They reported little of interest, save for some local wildlife. All in all they said that the easters portion of your realm seemed peaceful and the people were very pleased to hear that there was a new KING in castle Grimdark."
Quote from: miguel on Sat 08/02/2014 23:47:06
C'mon guys! There's a reward for delivering the guy safely! We need the money!
ready for to start audiences and giving orders :cheesy:
Quote from: miguel on Sat 08/02/2014 00:11:55
> Tell Jesterino to send word to Lancelot that he can pick some men and escort the rich dude;
+ 1> also ask Jester for todays news and upcoming audiences and let the first one enter to start the day's work
> Ask the jester about that timeglass
> Order the returned men to rest and send another scout troop to explore west and gain some EXP then get to business in the throne room
I think the hourglass is quite selfexplanatory and we will see it explain itself over the course of this day anyways and it will fill even faster when we waste a move on it. But then, tomorrow is another day too ;)
....and I'm back. I had to force myself not to indulge my King Simulator 2013 addiction while I was cramming to put the finishing touches on a project, but now I'm free to waste time indulge in my passion once more. ;-D
As for this "secret noble" paying handsomely business, the only motives I can think of for such an offer is that this fellow is involved in nefarious purposes. Maybe he supported our brother's side during the revolution? Maybe he's conspiring to assassinate Rorik? Maybe he's running a meth lab in the back of his caravan? I say it's our duty as the local strong-man to stick our noses in other people's business and tax them accordingly for the privilege. Thus,
>> Order Lancelot to bring this noble before us, and command the Jester to make a list of those who await an audience.
Did you miss me? ;)
I know I did, medieval meth labs would never be the same without The Baron.
And since your command gathers the best of what has been thrown:
Quote>> Order Lancelot to bring this noble before us, and command the Jester to make a list of those who await an audience.
+1
Quote from: Baron on Mon 10/02/2014 04:52:28
>> Order Lancelot to bring this noble before us, and command the Jester to make a list of those who await an audience.
+1
You deem that it would be best to ensure that you get to speak with this noble in person before deciding anything. You ORDER LANCELOT to bring the NOBLE into your AUDIENCE.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/042_a.png)
Within moments the sound of hurried footsteps, clang of armor and shouted curses and demands signal that the noble has arrived.
"You have no right! I am on very important business and I MUST be on my way! You have no right to delay me like this!"
The noble is brought to your presence. He isn't putting up a fight, but he is quite vocal about the fact that he does not with to be here and that this delay in his journey displeases him greatly.
"My King, I do apologize for my crass behavior, but my business is urgent and time wasted may well cost both gold and blood. A simple denial to my request of escort would have sufficed and I could have been on my way by now. Why have I been brought here?" -he demands, though there is a certain caution in his voice, as if the man were worried of something, perhaps even afraid.
> Tell him "As King I have every right to detain you." and Order Lancelot to have his men search the caravan for contraband.
Here in Grimdark, moustaches are taxed by the inch!
And there's the toll on silly hats too.
>Remind the nobleman that you are the King, a curious King;
>Ask the nobleman about himself, where does he come from, where is he heading and what does he transports that is so valuable that needs escort;
Quote from: miguel on Wed 12/02/2014 09:55:51
>Ask the nobleman about himself, where does he come from, where is he heading and what does he transports that is so valuable that needs escort;
+1
You ask the nobleman who heis, where he comes from and what his business is.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/042_a.png)
The nobleman looks exasperated and makes nervous glances at your soldiers standing nearby.
"My name is Jonas, my family runs a private trading business to the far east, well beyond the borders of this kingdom.
I only meant to pass through in secrecy, but as I saw the knights I decided to follow them, knowing full well that the lands of Grimdark are often riddled with bandits and soldiers of the evil king, and see if I could find an escort for my small caravan as we head for the coast. I knew not that a new king had risen to power before I met your knights. I cannot tell you more of my business for fear. Please, you must understand that lives are at stake and I must be on my way at once! Lend me a few knights for escort or not, but I must ride off as soon as possible, or else I will be late and all will be lost."
His orders still standing, Lancelot sidesteps to block the nobleman's path as he turns to leave. This man seems to be in a real hurry.
this nervous guy is a smuggler. We should demand some of his goods and some goldcoins and then give him the escort service ;)
We should find out what he's smuggling before we let him go. We might need to have Robina's team shadow him on the way back.
> Discreetly order Lancelot to have his men take a look at the cargo without being obvious that we searched it.
>Lend Jonas an escort and secretly tell Lancelot to instruct his men to keep an eye on the noble and try to find out what he's up to.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 13/02/2014 19:03:10
>Lend Jonas an escort and secretly tell Lancelot to instruct his men to keep an eye on the noble and try to find out what he's up to.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 13/02/2014 19:03:10
>Lend Jonas an escort and secretly tell Lancelot to instruct his men to keep an eye on the noble and try to find out what he's up to.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 13/02/2014 19:03:10
>Lend Jonas an escort and secretly tell Lancelot to instruct his men to keep an eye on the noble and try to find out what he's up to.
+3
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 13/02/2014 19:03:10
>Lend Jonas an escort and secretly tell Lancelot to instruct his men to keep an eye on the noble and try to find out what he's up to.
+4
You decide it is best to let the man have his escort, altbeit with a hint of espionage.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/043_a.png)
You explain to the NOBLEMAN that he can have his escort from among Lancelot's knights. The nobleman seems greatly relieved to have his escort and thanks you, before making a hasty exit. You gesture for Lancelot to remain for a moment longer.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/043_b.png)
With the nobleman out of earshot, you explain your cunning plan to Lancelot. His knights are to escort the nobleman to the coast, but they are also to keep an eye on the man and should report back with any knowledge of illegal or otherwise suspicious activities.
"As you will, my King. My men shall keep an eye on the noble on the road and protect him as needed. If his actions violate the law he will be arrested and brought before you at once!"
You nod approvingly.
"Before I leave, I wish to report on the matter we discussed before, that of a town militia. I believe we can train a force of roughly one hundred MILITIAMEN. These men would receive a basic training from me and my knights on how to fight, and the smiths and craftsmen would arm them with SPEARS and LEATHER ARMOUR. The men volunteer for the task but only in name. They will require a silver for each man for their services, thus totaling ONE GOLD PER YEAR and their initial training and arming will cost us another ONE GOLD.
If you agree to these costs, then I will have my men begin training the militia at once, though I believe it will take quite a while before they are ready for any kind of deployment or basic combat."
What about 50 men instead of 100? That would save us 1 gold coin and maybe speed up training.
50 men just complicates the math we'd still have to pay 50 silver a year for them.
> Order Lancelot to have his men start training.
Okay then,
>Order Lancelot to have his men start training.
Quote from: miguel on Sun 16/02/2014 00:52:02
>Order Lancelot to have his men start training.
Deal. +1!
You decide it is high time begin training the militia, and instruct Lancelot to begin working on the task at once.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/043_b.png)
"As you will, my King. We shall collect the volunteers for a meeting today, and the smiths and craftsmen will begin work as soon as possible. I expect to have the militia in a fighting condition in a few days, though I doubt even my training will turn them into true warriors."
Lancelot bows deep and begins to make his leave.
>Quote Confucius while Lancelot is leaving: "It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.";
>If he turns his head back give him the thumbs up and shout: "Go Lancy!";
> Remind Lancelot to also draw a map of the area while escorting the noble man, then summon next audience.
I'd like to make this:
> Remind Lancelot to also draw a map of the area while escorting the noble man, make him send out a small scouting and mapping troop to the west, then summon next audience.
The scouts will take a while until they return so it's better to send them out sooner than later.
All this talk of Lancelot drawing makes me acutely aware that we don't yet have a court artist on the payroll. Or nude models running around in support of the artist and his craft, but that's another topic. :=
Appoint the blind archer as the Court Artist!
You mutter to yourself: "It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/044_a.png)
Lancelot does not look back, perhaps he did not hear you?
In a moment he disappears from the throne room. The Jester's voice sounds from outside:
"Shall I send in the next audience, My King?"
> Yes, but first send word to Lancelot that he's to map the places he'll visit while escorting the nobleman!
Sorry if I screwed up this turn guys! It was a joke! A bad joke!
Quote from: miguel on Wed 19/02/2014 23:33:06
Sorry if I screwed up this turn guys! It was a joke! A bad joke!
This is how people lose testicles, buddy. (wrong)
I think the rules are that if each command has same number of votes, the first one is chosen? This would explain why miguel's one was selected.
> Grant the next audience.
>Make the next person seeking an audience wait. Make them sweat. Make them FEAR the crown!
>Then let them in and give them tea and cakes.
QuoteThis is how people lose testicles, buddy. (wrong)
QuoteI think the rules are that if each command has same number of votes, the first one is chosen? This would explain why miguel's one was selected.
Yeah, got to be more careful from now on and NEVER place this '>' before the sentence if I'm joking around!
Or never quote Confucius again!
"Send in the next one, Jester!"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/045_a.png)
A fine-looking lady in a purple silk dress approaches the throne.
"Greetings, my King. I am Meredith, a travelling artisan by profession. I have travelled your realm, visiting one noble after another, offering my services as a high-quality dressmaker to all who seek my assistance. When I heard of a new King, I decided that I must present myself and offer my skill. For the price of fifty silvers on materials I can craf you a new set of clothes, ones which will surely make you a sight to behold!"
> Tactfully tell the lady to come back next year.
Given the current state of our finances (or lack thereof), we really can't afford to splurge fifty silver on a new robe.
While I agree with Radiant, I also believe that a true king must not wear same old dress over and over again. :)
> BARGAIN with the lady, telling her the current state of our finances; and after settling to an appropriate price: ORDER her to design a fashionable but classy set of clothes. If she refuses to bargain, TACTFULLY TELL her to come back next year.
> Try to haggle the price and order new robes. > Ask her when they will be the new robes will be ready.
come back next year sounds so harsh :D
Will there be a new years celebration everytime a new year starts?
I strongly repudiate the idea of spending coins on clothes given our current situation. On the other side and after all, this is a game and we should have fun, so my mind is split.
>Ask Meredith if she has any kind of 'special' items, perhaps embed with magic, that we can wear not only as fashion but also with practical effects;
Quote from: miguel on Sat 22/02/2014 00:16:33
>Ask Meredith if she has any kind of 'special' items, perhaps embed with magic, that we can wear not only as fashion but also with practical effects;
For example: Magic Pants to keep constant erection? Yeah, that would be nice too! ;)
You wonder aloud if the artisan might be able to craft a magical piece of clothing for you.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/046_a.png)
"On my own, I'm afraid not, My King. I can craft you a fine suit out of any cloth you can find, but magic is not within my abilities. However, if you had a person versed in magic, I might be able to incorporate some sort of magical trinket or even magically imbued string or cloth into the clothes I make."
> ask her: What are you wearing on your head anyways m'lady?
You ask the artisan woman what she is wearing on her head.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/046_a.png)
"Oh, My King, this is a scarf!" -she giggles.
> Thank her but decline her offer, the kingdom has more important needs. Tell the jester that the next weirdoo can come in.
> Try to haggle the price and order new robes.
> BARGAIN with the lady, telling her the current state of our finances; and after settling to an appropriate price: ORDER her to design a fashionable yet classy set of clothes. If she refuses to bargain, TACTFULLY TELL her to come back next year.
(Since the lady is quite a beautiful one, we should definitely make her one of our several wives. Plus, that way, we'll get a free tailor for the lifetime too! :P )
Hmmm, the Skyrim approach, marry a a nice-looking girl who happens to own a business. By the way, we should convince WHAM to make some sort of leveling up system, where our actions would add XP or something along with objectives, no?
Quote from: miguel on Wed 26/02/2014 10:41:23
Hmmm, the Skyrim approach, marry a a nice-looking girl who happens to own a business. By the way, we should convince WHAM to make some sort of leveling up system, where our actions would add XP or something along with objectives, no?
Never played Skyrim. But now that you mention it, I'll make sure to play it asap. :) Also, I agree with the XP system.
Quote from: NightHawk on Wed 26/02/2014 09:27:42
> Try to haggle the price and order new robes.
+1
...and we should
not tell her the current state of our finances, that's none of her business. We're the king, and we have a reputation to lose.
Quote from: Problem on Wed 26/02/2014 11:27:12
...and we should not tell her the current state of our finances, that's none of her business. We're the king, and we have a reputation to lose.
I completely agree. Broadcasting that kind of information to the random traveler is just asking for trouble.
You attempt to haggle the price, and after a while you manage to get the price down to 40 silvers.
The lady artisan doesn't seem very pleased with the deal, but approves it anyway.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/047_a.png)
"As you will it, My King, your new clothes shall be done by dawn the day after tomorrow. Do you have any wishes on colour or style, some specific detail you would enjoy, perhaps?" -she asks.
Yes, please:
> At least one set of clothes should be PURE BLACK. As for the design: a long silky cloak (preferably black or red) should be a mandatory part for all the sets of clothes. Make sure that the clothes are classy. That's all. Now go and surprise us with your superior and elegant skills of fashion designing.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Thu 27/02/2014 21:20:27
Yes, please:
> At least one set of clothes should be PURE BLACK. As for the design: a long silky cloak (preferably black or red) should be a mandatory part for all the sets of clothes. Make sure that the clothes are classy. That's all. Now go and surprise us with your superior and elegant skills of fashion designing.
>and put flames on it!
Quote from: selmiak on Thu 27/02/2014 22:51:51
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Thu 27/02/2014 21:20:27
Yes, please:
> At least one set of clothes should be PURE BLACK. As for the design: a long silky cloak (preferably black or red) should be a mandatory part for all the sets of clothes. Make sure that the clothes are classy. That's all. Now go and surprise us with your superior and elegant skills of fashion designing.
>and put flames on it!
Hmmm, flame-printed black cloaks. Sounds like a good idea! ;-D
So we are buying new clothes! Great.
> We wish for the finest design ever, and black can never go wrong, so make them pure black with a long silky cloak (can be red as well) and flame-embroidered motifs in places where the eyes of the ladies will devour our muscular body. Surprise us!
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Thu 27/02/2014 21:20:27
> At least one set of clothes should be PURE BLACK. As for the design: a long silky cloak (preferably black or red) should be a mandatory part for all the sets of clothes. Make sure that the clothes are classy. That's all. Now go and surprise us with your superior and elegant skills of fashion designing.
+1
"I see..." -she mutters, clearly alreadly planning your future clothes in her mind.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/047_a.png)
"I'm sure you will be pleased with the result, My King. I shall return the day after tomorrow so you may fit the new clothes."
The lady artisan prepares to leave. You spy a familiad spiky-haired figure in the doorway of your throne room.
> Dramatically observe the lady as she walks away reminding yourself of how lonely this castle walls are; Send the next person in.
The travelling artisan takes her leave and heads off to plan your new clothes.
As she leaves, DENNIS from the traders guild approaches.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/048_a.png)
"Hail My King. I bring news from one of the small villages to the east. The people of the village have faced with an unexpected flood and it seems they will be having little or no harvest this year. Since midsummer and soon thereafter the harvest approaches, the people there are worried and have sent word, pleading for help in order to secure their survival in the winter times.
The villagers ask that we send grain and vegetables from the town granary to supply them with rations for the winter. This would decrease our food reserves in town by about a fifth, so it would pose only a minor risk to our own stocks even if we have a bad harvest. In exchange the villagers have gathered all of their belongings and have estimated that they can sell their valuables and give the resulting 100 silvers (or one gold) to the crown.
I have spoken with Cat of the farmer's union and she thinks that the risk is small and that the people in the villages need to be fed in any case. The decision in yours, my King. Do we accept the trade?"
>Do it! We need to help out subjects. If we don't, we soon enough won't have any...
>Ask Dennis about Ocean Spirits
>Offer the help they need, but instead of the 100silver pay, tell them to build an outpost tower that will serve the king and his men. The plans for the tower's layout and someone to command the construction will follow the supplies.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 05/03/2014 11:53:48
>Offer the help they need, but instead of the 100silver pay, tell them to build an outpost tower that will serve the king and his men. The plans for the tower's layout and someone to command the construction will follow the supplies.
sounds like a good idea.
we should also scout to the west, north or south sooner or later.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 05/03/2014 11:53:48
>Offer the help they need, but instead of the 100silver pay, tell them to build an outpost tower that will serve the king and his men. The plans for the tower's layout and someone to command the construction will follow the supplies.
+1
I were thinking the same i.e about refusing the payment. What a great, planned out idea indeed! That way, we'll have more advantage instead of some cash!
Quote from: miguel on Wed 05/03/2014 11:53:48
>Offer the help they need, but instead of the 100silver pay, tell them to build an outpost tower that will serve the king and his men. The plans for the tower's layout and someone to command the construction will follow the supplies.
+1
....Although I'd have them digging drainage ditches and building dykes around their fields. Any wooden tower of peasant construction is probably of dubious value to us militarily, but I agree that foregoing the cash in exchange for useful labour is a good idea for morale. (And those peasants would just be sitting idle until planting season next year on our tab, the scroungers!).
Been sick 'n' stuff lately, so few updates. I currently have a fever and zero brain power to spare, so updates will resume next week.
Whistle "Eye of the Tiger" while WHAM recovers.
You explain to Dennis that the villagers should keep their coin, and instead use it to construct an outlook tower to increase security in your realm.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/048_a.png)
"As you wish, My King. I am sure the villagers will be pleased with this option." -he says, smiling all the way. As Dennis begins to leave, he pauses.
"My King, you may wish to know that there is a rather fine lady coming up to meet you. I suggest you prepare yourself."
Dennis winks, then walks away.
>Quickly fart and relieve yourself, before that fine lady comes.
> Prepare the 'Magnum' look.
>Strike regal pose. You know the one, with chest out and legs splayed.
If the royal nose needs to be picked, now's the time to do it! :=
> Quickly fart, pick your royal nose (making sure to clean your hands by wiping them off the seat), relieve yourself, prepare the 'magnum' look and strike the royal pose.
:=
> Try to remember a good lesb funny joke to break the ice when she comes in.
Quote from: Baron on Tue 11/03/2014 02:45:15
>Strike regal pose. You know the one, with chest out and legs splayed.
+1
(Just to avoid the default choice, I'll plus one this)
Quote from: Ryan Timoothy on Wed 12/03/2014 00:03:13
(Just to avoid the default choice, I'll plus one this)
I'm not surprised in the least for I've read your posts. Hence I know that you're so much against the nice, 'manly' farts which any other man would never ever might be! :P
I didn't say not to fart. I just wanted to look important if we did....
Yeah, there's no harm with farting while looking cool.
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 10/03/2014 16:48:25
"My King, you may wish to know that there is a rather fine lady coming up to meet you. I suggest you prepare yourself."
I think that sounds pretty sinister. What kind of fine lady it is?
Spoiler
(http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs30/i/2010/197/e/c/Death_Rides_a_Pale_Trike_by_mjranum_stock.jpg)
With Dennis gone, your next audience arrives with notable fanfare. Two armoured knights escort a fair lady into your court.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/049_a.png)
"Good day, My King." -the lady speaks in a soft voice of a mature woman, cutting off her knights who were clearly about to announce her arrival.
"My name is BROOMHILDE of the prestigious YESTERYEAR -family line."
She pauses and glances around the throne room, then gives a disappointed little sigh.
"Oh, I expected better of a castle. Oh well, I fear it cannot be helped. I have come to offer your majesty a proposal of marriage. 'Tis a most simple matter, really. A matrilineal marriage of your line and mine, and the considerable wealth of the YESTERYEAR line is yours to spend in the betterment of the realm. I do believe we currently have well over three hundred gold pieces at our disposal and with the income of our lands and businesses, we expect another hundred or so every year."
She pauses, cocking her head quizzically, then asks in a most impatient and bored tone imaginable.
"Well, my King, will you accept?"
>laugh disappointed too. Then ask her where she comes from and which lands her yesteryear family reigns. And if she has a map of that area. And if her yesteryear family is in war with some nation or family. And if her people are happy.
...we should really employ a spy. Do we have any society experts at our service?
Two questions:
1) How old is she?
2) Is bigamy legal in our realm? :=
> Check her profile on match dot com
Quote...we should really employ a spy. Do we have any society experts at our service?
I've been telling this for ages! We are probably the most ignorant king ever to reign. There's nothing we know about the land or people.
She wants to be Queen and we could use some gold. Tough decision. If we add a spy we could plan her death as soon as we got out treasury filled.
I don't know, let's find out more:
Quote>laugh disappointed too. Then ask her where she comes from and which lands her yesteryear family reigns. And if she has a map of that area. And if her yesteryear family is in war with some nation or family. And if her people are happy.
+1;
> Politely ask her if she has a granddaughter who's available to court.
Erm, people, did she really mention that SHE herself is supposed to marry you?
Quote from: NightHawk on Fri 14/03/2014 03:39:08
> Politely her if has a granddaughter who's available to court.
Politely... what?....
I see a new meme here ;)
Quote from: Baron on Thu 13/03/2014 21:15:33
Two questions:
1) How old is she?
2) Is bigamy legal in our realm? :=
1) How old does she look?
2) You're the damn king, up to you
Quote from: selmiak on Thu 13/03/2014 18:04:09
>laugh disappointed too. Then ask her where she comes from and which lands her yesteryear family reigns. And if she has a map of that area. And if her yesteryear family is in war with some nation or family. And if her people are happy.
+1
E:
Quote from: Crimson Wizard on Fri 14/03/2014 07:26:19
I see a new meme here ;)
I thought you were the guy who didn't use social networking websites. ;)
I hate to be the voice of reason here, but since no one else is stepping up to the plate on this I feel obliged to make the case. It's not that I fancy the elderly (although I do have a penchant for slightly over-ripe fruit...), nor do I particularly relish the idea of spending another moment with this a stuck-up, snooty, condescending, self-important, arch-bitch (can I say that without offending anyone?). But she's got an annual income of 100 gold coins, whereas we've got an annual income of 20 gold coins. Any way you cut that math, it spells trouble. I've read that instability in the English monarchy is closely correlated to an over-mighty subject gaining an income equal or greater than 50% of the king's: the house of Yesteryear has over 5 times our income!
That kind of wealth is dangerous to have about. Where will those resources go if we spurn her? If we're lucky, we only suffer the opportunity cost of not having the cash, but it is just as likely it will fall into the hands of some other over-mighty lord (Sir Kevin of Axemount springs to mind), or she may well use the wealth herself to extract petty vengeance at being rejected. HELL HATH NO FURY LIKE A WOMAN SCORNED. Either way you cut it, this spells big trouble down the road.
As I see it, we have three realistic options here:
1) Reject her outright (the course we are on now, probably resulting in consequences even uglier than Broomhilde)
2) Accept her offer (gaining us wealth, but at the price of putting up with Broomhilde -probably expensive and certainly unappealing)
3) Stall for time
I would opt for the third choice. This could take a variety of forms, such as a lengthy engagement wherein she must be confined to a nunnery for at least a year to prove her chasteness and moral character, agreeing in principal but haggling endlessly over the details (pedigree charts, dowry, marriage contract, wedding details, proof of fertility, rumours of infidelity....), begging for time to think about it and then hiding behind the throne until she decides to leave, annoying her as much as she annoys us by endlessly asking for more information, travelling to distant places (to check with an augur, or inspect the lands of Yesteryear ourselves), wishing to indulge in courtship for a while until we get to know each other....
In the back of my mind, I'm thinking in the long run we've got to be a little nasty here (she probably deserves it due to her attitude, and in any event it is a political necessity): we part this old bird from her cash without suffering the horrors of marriage to such a creature. We've been pretty civil/chivalrous so far, but I think this is a case for some realpolitik: there's just too much on the line. I don't think we, collectively, have the stomach for murder, but maybe with the collusion of the Jester we could catch her in a compromised position immediately after the wedding which would result in her forfeiting her property to us for fraudulent and treasonous acts, and her being banished permanently to a convent or prison....
In the short run, we must assess the extent of the threat. Who is the head of the Yesteryear clan? How many family members are there? Where are her family's lands, and what fraction of them are on the table here (all, or only part)? How many knights serve the family? How well trained and how loyal are they? Where does their wealth come from (land, trade, industry, resources)? What feuds are they party to (what enemies would we hypothetically acquire by marrying into the clan)? What is her personal history (previous marriages/engagements/widowhoods....)?
>>Tell Lady Broomhilde we are honoured by the proposal and wish to know more about her and the Yesteryear clan. And order the lady a chair: that's classy.
Quote from: Baron on Sat 15/03/2014 03:22:48
>>Tell Lady Broomhilde we are honoured by the proposal and wish to know more about her and the Yesteryear clan. And order the lady a chair: that's classy.
+1
Also, begin Operation: Secret Mistress! :=
QuoteQuote from: Baron on Today at 03:22
>>Tell Lady Broomhilde we are honoured by the proposal and wish to know more about her and the Yesteryear clan. And order the lady a chair: that's classy.
+1;
I wonder if she has heirs herself and if they'll give us trouble like fighting for the throne.
We have Jesterino and he's a cool dude to have around but
we need at least one spy!We need a spy because:
- we want to track down all suspicious and weird people that daily visit our castle;
- we need to hunt down any chance of a conspiracy against us from the people that already work for us;
- if we have a spy we won't be asking so many direct questions to all visitors and can at leas act educated;
- it's cool to have spies and plot devious actions;
QuoteAlso, begin Operation: Secret Mistress! :=
Spoiler
Ponch, but what's Anabelle's role in all this after all?
Has it actually been established that she wants us to marry her? Or might she proposing in the name of a daughter or granddaughter?
Quote from: Baron on Sat 15/03/2014 03:22:48
>>Tell Lady Broomhilde we are honoured by the proposal and wish to know more about her and the Yesteryear clan. And order the lady a chair: that's classy.
+1
Quote from: Baron on Sat 15/03/2014 03:22:48
>>Tell Lady Broomhilde we are honoured by the proposal and wish to know more about her and the Yesteryear clan. And order the lady a chair: that's classy.
+1
You have JESTER bring a chair so that BROOMHILDE can have a seat.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/050_a.png)
"Thank you for the seat, my King, travelling does wear on oneself."
You explain that you are honored by the marriage proposal, but wish to know more of BROOMHILDE and the YESTERYEAR clan.
"We Yesteryears have lived for centuries on a hilltop mansion to the southeast of your town. We do not work, we simply own things within your realm and without. We own trade ships, brothels, craft-shops and trade caravans and much, much more, all of which provides us with a steady flow of return for our investments. By the old King Fortell IV's decree, which he gave four centuries ago, after our mercenary army crushed his royal militiamen in battle, our family has been given exemption from taxes and other mundane affairs, and thus we live a rather secluded life. The wealthy are often mistrusted by the commoners you see, so there would have been little point in taking over the crown by force at the time. This is why I have come to you, my King. Our marriage would allow my family fortune to be put to good use, allowing YOU to have an easier time, obviously, while allowing the Yesteryear family to return to society in a suitably prestigious position."
Before we make any decision we should know if they still have that mercenary army and how can we take them on our side. The obvious answer (because they're mercenaries) would be to pay them more than she does but what if we could "arrange" it on our wedding deal.
I need names of clan members, and numbers of mercenaries. Gently pointing out that the "good use of her fortune" might entail actually paying taxes to the crown might help us gauge the sincerity of her desire to further the interests of the kingdom instead of just her own. Another tact might be telling her that our evil brother had mentioned her beauty and breeding frequently: see if she reveals any relationship to him, or her age.
>> Offer BROOMHILDE of YESTERYEAR some wine and appear very interested in hearing more about her.
On another note, I've been reading up on how Henry II of England married into wealth (Eleanor of Aquitaine), and then imprisoned her for sixteen years when she became too much of a pain to keep. Just saying's all....
Can't say I'm particularly happy about marrying into any family without at least *some* basic knowledge concerning the political realities of both our kingdom and our bordering nations. It's basically the same problem we faced earlier when deciding whether to ally ourselves with those pirates or not. Only marriage seems even more permanent in nature - unless we decide to poison the bride early on.
Are there any other families similar to the Yesteryears? If so, are they feuding? How powerful are the Yesteryears in relation to any other families or factions that might exist? And what is the general populace's opinion on the Yesteryears? After all, they live in seclusion, employ a private mercenary army, and as Broomhilde put it: 'The wealthy are often mistrusted by the commoners.' Might there even be more to this comment than meets the eye?
Also, the whole scheme seems weird. A marriage to us could only be of permanent interest to the Yesteryears if it produces an offspring. And somehow I doubt that Broomhilde is still up to that particular task...
So yeah... I guess for now I'll go with...
Quote from: Baron on Mon 17/03/2014 04:17:28
>> Offer BROOMHILDE of YESTERYEAR some wine and appear very interested in hearing more about her.
+1
QuoteQuote from: Baron on Yesterday at 04:17
>> Offer BROOMHILDE of YESTERYEAR some wine and appear very interested in hearing more about her.
+1
You have the JESTER bring up some wine for yourself and BROOMHILDE.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/051_a.png)
One of the knights accompanying BROOMHILDE steps up and samples the wine for her. After a moment has passed the knight gives a nod, then hands the cup to BROOMHILDE who accepts it with a nod. She sips the wine.
"Thank you, my King, how very thoughtful."
You try to seem as interested as possible in hearing more about the YESTERYEAR family line, but BROOMHILDE does not seem very forthcoming. She seems to be waiting for your response to her offer of marriage.
"My King, my offer will stand." -she says. "Should you wish to think on the matter, then by all means do so. I shall be retreating to my manor later this evening, send a messenger for me if you wish to answer properly."
>Draw up pre-nuptial agreement
I think I smell a rat and I know when I smell a rat because it smells like rat.
Gee, between her, Rorik, and that guy Jonas people in this kingdom seem to have quite an aversion to giving away information.
Well, at least she told us to think it over, so now we can gather some intel on her and her family by other means.
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 19/03/2014 21:27:58
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
+1
we either marry her or tax her to get her coins. Marrying her will probably annoy us, taxing her will annoy her and she might try to annoy us and avoid these taxes and paying back for not marrying her.
Or we marry her, let her live her life, still get coins and when she gets annoying we just kill her in a royal way (nod) (wrong) (laugh)
Quote from: cat on Wed 19/03/2014 21:53:17
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 19/03/2014 21:27:58
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
+1
+1
Sounds good, but it could be even better if we had a spy.
Quote from: miguel on Wed 19/03/2014 22:52:19
Sounds good, but it could be even better if we had a spy.
I suggest sending someone disguised as a French Onion Seller. 8-)
Mais oui, msieur! I totally agree, French onion sellers never get caught!
But we all know what happens to them IF they get caught...
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 19/03/2014 21:27:58
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 19/03/2014 21:27:58
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
+1
Quote from: Tibatonk on Wed 19/03/2014 21:27:58
>Once again thank Broomhilde for her offer and tell her that we will indeed think her proposal over. Afterwards summon Jester and Lancelot and ask them what they know about the Yesteryear family.
+1
Although I'm disappointed she didn't indulge us much with the wine: these Yesteryears play with their cards close to their chests.... Maybe Hirschel could whip up a bit of a love potion, just to see what would happen. Of course first we'd have to fend off the taste-tester first.... :=
Quote from: Baron on Thu 20/03/2014 04:10:50
Maybe Hirschel could whip up a bit of a love potion, just to see what would happen. Of course first we'd have to fend off the taste-tester first.... :=
+1 on that. Sounds like... an ADVENTURE GAME!
You thank Broomhilde for her offer, but your response makes it absolutely clear that you are not ready to make this sort of decision so quickly, even with such amounts of money made available to you.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_a.png)
Broomhilde looks disappointed, but graciously accepts your indecisiveness.
"As you wish, my King, I will be available, should you change your mind."
With that she stands up and begins to make her leave.
After she is out of earshot you call for Lancelot and the Jester and request them to tell you what they know of the Yesteryears.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_b.png)
Jester pipes up first:
"My King, the Yesteryears are and have always been one of the most wealthy noble lines known to our realm. However, in a most unfortunate and unsightly administrative mistake by one of the past kings of the land, the Yesteryears were given exemption from taxes and all other responsibilities to the realm and to the crown. They are highly secretive and cunning, and are said to have dozens of high-level spies and saboteurs in their service.
Effectively, they are an autonomous independent state the size of a mansion and a small tract of forested land surrounding it. Most of their businesses are run outside of our Kingdom and any income they collect is transported to their highly guarded mansion and used sparingly. Only a few people have seen the building's interior, but it is said that the building is well-guarded and almost maze-like, in order to protect the Yesteryear's considerable wealth.
The EVIL KING sought to bring the Yesteryears to bend the knee to the crown once more and hoped to claim even a portion of their wealth, but the Yesteryears are well protected by mercenary knights and traps, and thus the EVIL KING's assassins and burglars failed miserably and even the EVIL KING could not raise enough men to make him feel secure enough to think that the Yesteryears would accept any changes in the Crown LAW that would have affected them negatively."
Lancelot nods, confirming the Jester's words. Then he speaks as well:
"The Yesteryears wield a considerable force of knights, who serve both as bodyguards to the Yesteryears as well as guards to their estate. Their lands are also infested with semi-feral wolf-dogs, which have been trained to attack but those serving the Yesteryears, although we do not know how this has been done. Most intruders to their lands meet a nasty fate in the hands of these wolf-dogs, and the few that make it through are cut down by the knights, or hired to serve the Yesteryears should their skills be of interest at the time."
> Ask them both to come up with a list of the best candidates to lead our spy network.
QuoteBut we all know what happens to them IF they get caught...
Well, Problem, it's part of the risk of being part of La Resistance!
Quote. They are highly secretive and cunning, and are said to have dozens of high-level spies and saboteurs in their service.
See?
Meaning the Yesteryears know that we have no money and our military strength.
Also, after what Lancy and Jesterino told us, I think that it would be too dangerous to marry the old carcass. They are already rich and powerful, give them a title and they'll run the country.
I'd go with NightHawk and hire some extra eyes, we need to know prices as well:
Quote> Ask them both to come up with a list of the best candidates to lead our spy network.
+1
You request Lancelot and the Jester to provide you with a list of candidates for court SPYMASTER's.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_b.png)
Lancelot shakes his head, looking disappointed.
"My King, I cannot in good conscience recommend that we hire a spy. Such behavior is lowly and not suitable for the values of a proper leader. One should rule only through virtue, faith and strong will, not by employing sneaks and thieves to listen, lie and steal."
The Jester on the other hand is more open to the idea:
"There are many different types of potential spies within your realm and beyond.
For example, many innkeepers and even courtesans tend to hear all sorts of things in their line of work, and thus have a good sense of events within our realm, their contacts might also allow them to serve as operators for a number of underlings.
On the other hand people who work in caravans, traders and diplomats and such, travel outside of our realm and can gather information abroad and are also often of some considerable wealth, which might help them to purchase the loyalty of many sneakier elements of society with relevan ease.
I also hear that one of the pirate clans specializes in training assassins and thieves, whom they insert into towns and keeps by small boats and who then scale walls and steal both gold and information with ease, perhaps we could hire one such individual?
There are also wild tales of a fold a furry-folk living in the jungles far to the northwest. It is said that they move among the trees and ancient ruins like shadows and that they train the finest assassins the world has ever known, although contacting them and hiring one might be quite troublesome.
Lastly, we can always just hire someone from our own realm, someone from Lancelot's upcoming militia might show promise, or perhaps one of the RANGER's? Such a person should be well-versed in travelling the countryside and moving silently, so further training and equipment might make such a person a valuable active spy.
Whichever type of spy we pursue, we must be ready to play handsomely to ensure loyalty of such an individual, for a poorly-paid spy makes for a likely traitor."
I see that we have a problem with Lancy. I think we should keep the spy a secret, anyway.
> Thank Lancelot and dismiss him;
> Ask the Jester to HIRE 2 spies: a merchant and a courtesan.Have them here individually and at separate dates to engage contract talks;
> Hire a diplomat, and an assassin and thief from the pirate clan.
> Interview courtesans. Lots of courtesans.... ;)
Quote from: miguel on Wed 26/03/2014 09:26:15
I see that we have a problem with Lancy. I think we should keep the spy a secret, anyway.
> Thank Lancelot and dismiss him;
> Ask the Jester to HIRE 2 spies: a merchant and a courtesan.Have them here individually and at separate dates to engage contract talks;
Yeah, throwing Lancelot out of the room before hiring a spy and keeping him out of the loop will certainly placate him...
The way I see it, Lancelot and his men remain our best asset for the time being. And it's impossible to outweigh them with a single spy. So we should be careful how we proceed.
>Tell Lancelot that we appreciate and share his concern. But go on to explain that the current lack of information on both domestic and international affairs remains our kingdom's greatest weakness. Therefore we are not looking for someone to steal information or assassinate, but for someone to coordinate the gathering of information, to inform us of possible allies or enemies, to warn us of threats, and to advise us on opportunities.
Let's see how Lancelot reacts to that before further upsetting him.
Quote from: Tibatonk on Thu 27/03/2014 08:12:30
>Tell Lancelot that we appreciate and share his concern. But go on to explain that the current lack of information on both domestic and international affairs remains our kingdom's greatest weakness. Therefore we are not looking for someone to steal information or assassinate, but for someone to coordinate the gathering of information, to inform us of possible allies or enemies, to warn us of threats, and to advise us on opportunities.
+1
QuoteYeah, throwing Lancelot out of the room before hiring a spy and keeping him out of the loop will certainly placate him...
But a good spy will not reveal himself, even for touchy Lancy Pants. ;)
Lancelot ideals were pretty noble and cool but they died with him and his keen. Big empires were successful because rulers conspired, killed and stole from everybody that wanted their place. Do we want to win this game or do we want to play King Arthur?
But Lancelot is not an idiot. If we dismiss him and continue talking to the Jester he'll put two and two together. Lancelot is too important for us, we shouldn't offend him like this.
I get you, I just think that it's just the way it goes. We can't always be the good King in order to respect Lancelot. Although I agree that he probably is our best asset we have a game to play and possibly (WHAM will) win.
My concern is not about always being the good king, it's about not alienating our most important guy this early into the game.
Not only that, but I genuinely believe that most of all we need someone who amasses information. A sort of lead researcher, if you will. Someone we can turn to for information whenever necessary. And someone we can tell to investigate an issue if we have to deal with yet another close-lipped character. An assassin or a thief on the other hand would not be of much use to us right now.
In fact, what use would ONE assassin or ONE shady spy-character be anyhow? Once we have instituted our royal researcher, however, we can always instruct him to build up a spy network should the need arise. And it probably will.
Fair enough, I'm with you. Let's try it out.
Courtesans! COURTESANS!!!!
Even Lancy likes courtesans! ;-D
Or does he?
What if our most honourable knight has a thing for Dennis the Trader or even Sir Kevin?
I'm pretty sure, even if he had a thing for them he wouldn't go for it to not alienate his men.
Lancy would go for it with his men?
yeah, he is a faithful man! :-D
You give Lancelot a long-winded explanation as to why the realm needs a spy network and assure him that you share his views, yet feel that this matter is of great import to the well-being of the realm.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_b.png)
Lancelot looks disappointed, but gives a curt nod eventually.
Lancelot: "As you wish, my King. It is not my place to go against your wishes in this matter. If you are adamant that the realm needs a spy then I do believe my men have spoken to me about a certain woman with such ambitions, although I dislike her reputation a great deal, it might just be worth a moment of your time to speak with her. Privately, of course."
Yeah, Baby!
> Ask both men about her "reputation" while they're here, but do call for her presence.
Quote from: miguel on Sun 30/03/2014 10:44:08
> Ask both men about her "reputation" while they're here, but do call for her presence.
+1
Do we have an alchemist who could develop a truth serum that we could secretly put into this woman's drink when we interview her?
We have a herbalist...and not a very good one I believe.
What about a pose, we must start thinking about a better pose than the last one!
You ask for more information on this "woman" Lancelot mentioned, and that a meeting with her should be arranged.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_b.png)
Lancelot looks troubled, but holds his tongue.
The Jester shrugs ad begins to explain: "I believe Sir Lancelot is referring to one MISTRESS SONYA of the HAPPY HANDS brothel. She is, even considering her occupation, a powerful woman with plenty of connections. Through her subordinates she is able to gather quite a bit of information on almost any man, and often some women, in the realm. However, her occupation makes her somewhat inappropriate company for a king, well, at least in the minds of most nobles I would presume.
We can have Sonya brought to meet you on the first light of tomorrow morning. I am sure Lancelot will provide some trustworthy knights to act as escort and cover to keep her identity secreted away as she enters the castle."
Ask the Jester to leave, then ask Lancelot what is troubling him about this woman.
Well she IS a whore, my Captain!
Quote from: miguel on Tue 01/04/2014 12:38:20
Well she IS a whore, my Captain!
Yes, but that might not be all there is to it! Look beyond the obvious, French Onion Seller!!
> Set up a secured location away from the palace to discreetly meet with Sonya.
You order that a meeting be arranged between you and this Sonya at a discreet location.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/052_b.png)
Jester: "As you wish, my King. The meeting shall be held first thing tomorrow morning! Is there anything else, or shall we send in the next audience for today?"
Spoiler
Yes, I am perfectly aware I am spamming the same graphic like five turns in a row. Sorry. :D
Sure, just one more question:
>ASK: When shall that tailor-lady ready our clothes? ALLOW next audience afterwards.
We should impress the lady with our new, nicely sewn, 'manly' clothes. First Impression is the last impression after all. (nod)
> send in the next audience
> bring on the next badly-dressed weirdoos.
Quote from: cat on Fri 04/04/2014 14:02:30
> send in the next audience
+1. Let's see whom we'll meet this time. I hope for something with a little *zing*.
I was hoping for something with just a hint of *boing*...
Forget Zing and Boing, what we need is Pizazz! (Although pizzas would also be fine.)
You order the next audience in.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/053_a.png)
A harrassed looking buck-toothed man in stained peasant's clothes stands before you.
"My King", he says with desperation in his voice. "I am in need of your help. Goblins! Three of them! They come every other night and break my fences, kill my cattle and steal my crops, and all I can do is hide in my home and wait for the sunrise. I fear for my life and for the life of my wife and children, and if this goes on our harvest will leave my family at the mercy of our neighbors. Please, is there anything you can do?"
This sounds like a job for Sir Lancelot!
It does indeed!
> Put on an heroic voice and tell the peasant that his King's men will escort him back.
> Order Lancelot to pick some men and deal with the Gobshites Goblins!
Quote from: miguel on Tue 08/04/2014 00:08:22
> Put on an heroic voice and tell the peasant that his King's men will escort him back.
> Order Lancelot to pick some men and deal with the Gobshites Goblins!
+1
Or you should rather negotiate with the Goblins.
Apparently and sadly: negotiating with the terrorists is the most favoured current trend in my country. (wtf)
You call in Lancelot and take on the most heroic tone you can muster.
"Lancelot, take a few of your knights and escort this man to his homestead and DEAL WITH the GOBLINS pestering him."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/054_a.png)
Lancelot and the peasant give a bow.
Lancelot: "As you wish, my King. I shall make sure these goblins won't be pestering anyone ever again!"
Lancelot and the peasant turn to leave. It seems you still have time for one more audience today.
> call in the NEXT AUDIENCE.
I just had a really shitty day yesterday. Long story short: I bricked 3 hard drives in one fell swoop due to being a complete idiot and I lost about 1,5TB of data, including backups. Among this data was a bunch of AGS stuff and all my backgrounds, sprites etc for King Sim.
As you can imagine I'm a bit grumpy right now. I doubt this project will continue, since I have no interest in re-drawing all of the characters and backgrounds and icons (I could lift some of them from this thread, but those have some shading effects and as such won't look clean with new sprites. Also lost my templates for new characters...
If you guys want I can give you a text-only description of what was supposed to happen over the course of the first year as well as some planned future events, but beyond that I am calling King Sim dead.
*kicks self in head*
come one, steal them from the wiki! We are just getting started for the next 50 years of reign. Let us at least start a war and go down in flames :-D
We don't care about graphics, WHAM! It's all about hanging out dude! Please continue!
Quote from: miguel on Sat 19/04/2014 01:01:13
We don't care about graphics, WHAM! It's all about hanging out dude! Please continue!
It's always bad to lose stuff, and over one TB must have included important stuff too. But yes, come on. Make it text-only. See it as your personal flip-the-bird against the fates of hard drive wreckings and continue. (nod)
Or, alternatively, confine in someone who can continue? I know you're thorough. You have NOTES. You always have notes.
Write it into the story - The king has become blind! He now has to describe everything he sees, but we will never again see the depictions of his realm.
But wait... did someone cause this blindness? Is there foul play at work here?
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 17/04/2014 19:10:59
... I am calling King Sim dead.
(http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/noway.gif)
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 17/04/2014 19:10:59
*kicks self in head*
(http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/big-no-no.gif) -
use it instead (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/troesten.gif)
It's hard to loose such a lot of work, but you'll find a way to go on with this for sure. (nod)
A little sprite of the appearing character for example every now and then will work fine to color up your story.
We all have a lot of fantasy and don't expect you to redraw everything - so please continue (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/ththPrettyPleaseCherry.gif)
(after recovering from self-flagellation ~ and drinking a cup of coffee (http://www.smileyvault.com/albums/userpics/12962/coffee.gif))
Yeah, that's what I meant. We are fine with some ZX48K king of graphics, really. The story and getting together is what drives us to play.
But, sorry for your loss. I was being selfish, wanting the game made me forget about your unfortunate accident.
Quote from: WHAM on Sat 18/01/2014 10:39:56
"When and how to use the gift is up to you, and the only instruction I can give to you now is to only use it when the end is near. There is no right or wrong time, however, but each ruler who has used the gift has wished they hadn't, and each ruler who didn't use the gift has wished they had. Heed these words: when the time is dire and your kingdom is truly in peril, then you may call upon this gift, and in doing so you will evoke powers that can both help and harm."
> Use
Magic Object to fix WHAM's harddisk and save the kingdom.
Quote from: cat on Sun 20/04/2014 08:42:58
> Use Magic Object to fix WHAM's harddisk and save the kingdom.
+1
That's a great one, cat! We can make it happen! Let's do the magic! (http://s1.directupload.net/images/user/131010/gikxfi44.gif) (http://fav.me/d6plkhb)
Quote from: cat on Sun 20/04/2014 08:42:58
> Use Magic Object to fix WHAM's harddisk and save the kingdom.
+1 :grin:
(laugh)
Quote from: cat on Sun 20/04/2014 08:42:58
> Use Magic Object to fix WHAM's harddisk and save the kingdom.
+1
// ERROR - FATAL ERROR
// GRAPHICAL DISPLAY FAILURE
// *** PROCESSING ***
//
// RECOVERY FAIL
//
// REVERTING TO SIMPLE MODE
//
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
GUTHWALD and LANCELOT leave your presence.
The sands in the hourglass run through and the sun begins to set outside, as your final audience for the day arrives before you.
Three men, short in stature and somewhat familiar in look, arrive before you.
They wear thick furs and horned helmets and sport vicious battleaxes.
The men remind you of the LOST WARRIOR you provided with shelter not too long ago.
"Hail, King of the southlands!" -the leader of the small group greets you in a booming voice.
"I am Ulric the Brave, and these are my men. We seek a man of the northlands who came travelling this way.
We hear word that he may have passed through your town, and if this be the case, then I hereby request that you give us any information on his location or whereabouts, so that we may apprehend him without delay.
Do you know of the criminal I speak of?" -he asks.
It is obvious that this man speaks of your mysterious guest; Rorik.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Ooo lovely, we're back!
I suggest we take advantage of our position as KING and demand an explanation first. I mean, Rorik didn't look that much like a criminal, and the Northern laws may be different from ours. Maybe it's illegal to own a carp over there.
> ask ULRIC to explain the situation in detail
[edit]
We should also have something done about EVERYONE stumbling into our place with weapons. Seriously. That can't be healthy in the long run.
As I asked some months ago when Sir Kevin showed up:
Quote from: miguel on Mon 16/12/2013 19:42:02
This could have turned into a deadly situation. How does Lancelot allow 15 armed men so close to us?
>Order Lancelot to confiscate all weapons to visitors of the throne room;
>Cautiously reprehend Lancelot for allowing 16 armed men into the throne room;
*************************************************************************************+
I went back some pages and Rorik said he had some companions who somehow stopped following him, as he never really told us what happened...
So now the plot thickens...
Quote> ask ULRIC to explain the situation in detail
+1
P.s: thank you WHAM
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
The King requests that Ulric explain the reasons behind his search for this other Northman.
As you ask your question Ulric's expression becomes one of grim revelation.
"I see you do not deny knowing of the man we seek...
Very well. We are looking for RORIK, son of Rorik, a coward, a kinslayer and a blood-traitor,
so that he may be brought to face Northern Justice.
The man escaped our lands after murdering his brother and abandoning his sister to her death,
a different crime, perhaps, but murder in everything but name.
The laws of the North say that for these crimes he must face trial and harsh punishment.
If you know where Rorik is, reveal this to us now, and we shall bother you no more.
The man is not worthy of trust and is outright dangerous!"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> "Rorik is currently my guest. Those are some serious accusations you make. Do you have any proof?"
I don't think we should tell them that he is our guest yet. Let's see if they have any proof first. How about this:
> "Yes, I know this man, he came here recently. I can help you find him, but those are some serious accusations you make. Do you have any proof?"
This gives us more options. Tell them that Rorik is here, or (if we want to protect him) tell them that Rorik left the kingdom.
Quote from: Problem on Tue 29/04/2014 19:29:29
> "Yes, I know this man, he came here recently. I can help you find him, but those are some serious accusations you make. Do you have any proof?"
+1. It won't harm our reputation if we play it save here, and I think we do outrank Ulric.
Quote from: Ghost on Tue 29/04/2014 20:51:53
Quote from: Problem on Tue 29/04/2014 19:29:29
> "Yes, I know this man, he came here recently. I can help you find him, but those are some serious accusations you make. Do you have any proof?"
+1. It won't harm our reputation if we play it save here, and I think we do outrank Ulric.
+1
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
"Yes, I know this man, he came here recently.
I can help you find him, but those are some serious accusations you make.
Do you have any proof?"
The northmen glance at one another and seem to ponder their situation for a moment.
You feel that your request for proof has caught them by surprise.
Eventually Ulric speaks up:
"We have no proof to offer, and I see not what proof I could offer to you, Southern King,
which would impress you in any way. The dead tell no tales, and there are no living
witnesses to this man's crimes.
All we can offer is our word of honour, and the promise
that, should you come between us and this murderer, we shall not forget the injustice."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Tell Ulric that the King does not like to be threatened. Therefore Rorik will not be handed over just because it is Ulric's wish.
> Demand Ulric to dispose of his weapons while Rorik is summoned and a just trial will be in order. He may leave at once if he does not agree knowing that we, The King, will not forget the disrespect.
I think now is the time to utilise the secret powers of the unknown object left to us by the manimal stranger!
Either that or offer ourselves up in Rorik's place. He may be guilty, he may be innocent, but either way the people of the Southernlands need an experienced king who actually knows a thing or two about how the world works, where he is, and who he's ruling. Rorik and his gnarled worldly experience could be that King! All hail King Rorik the may-or-may-not-be-guilty!
I love this game, spent an hour this morning at work catching up on events so far. Even in retro text version it is captivating :-D
> Ask the man to wait a moment outside the room. Order the Jester to bring Rorik without him beeing seen by the other guys and ask him (Rorik) about the accusations.
>Order the jester to record the name and rank of all the northerners who came for Rorik.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
"Know this, Northener, I am a KING and I do not take kindly to being threatened!"
-you boom in a show of power, which would have lesser men wince and step back,
yet Ulric and his men stand their ground completely stoic.
"You shall not have Rorik, as here in the south a man cannot be convicted by words alone.
Bring me proof of Rorik's guilt and you will have my assistance.
If you cannot do this, then we are done here."
Ulric does his best to remain calm, although you can tell that he is quite furious.
"As you wish, southern King, we leave you in peace, but we WILL remember."
Without further word the northmen turn and leave, the heavy furs they wear
waving around them as they move.
The sun is setting and night is about to fall.
You should probably REST soon.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Okay, so I got us a new enemy, so what? :=
If we were a Corleone, we'd send somebody to take care of them as they leave town, somewhere remote and quiet.
Anyway, please agree with me on this one, fellow rulers:
> Tell Lancelot that no party of men are allowed to enter the throne room with their arms.
> Rest;
Quote from: miguel on Mon 05/05/2014 09:57:41
> Tell Lancelot that no party of men are allowed to enter the throne room with their arms.
> Rest;
+1
Get Lancelot to have 2 of his men guard your room tonight. I sense an assassination attempt...
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
As your 'guests' leave you call for Lancelot.
However, in his place arrives one of his knights, whom informs you
that Lancelot is not in the castle at this time.
You order that no guests should be allowed to enter the throne room
bearing arms. The knight seems taken aback by the command, but
promises to comply and inform Lancelot upon hisreturn.
As the knight leaves you decide to retire for the night.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
As the new day dawns and you take up your throne, the Jester greets you with glee.
"My king, we have a couple of reports that came in this morning!
Lancelot has returned from GUTHWALD'S FARMSTEAD and the four expeditions
set out by ROBINA and her RANGERS have also returned. Lancelot and Robina would like to report."
You nod and tell the Jester to let the two enter.
---
Lancelot arrives first, looking pleased with himself, and declares:
"My King, I have dispatched the vile goblins that were harrassing GUTHWALD'S FARM.
The creatures have been slain and their bodies burned on a pyre.
That should serve as a warning to the other goblins for certain!
My men also tell me that you have decreeed that no people entering the throne
room are allowed to bear arms. I have ensured my men are instructed of this rule, but
you should be aware that this might cause some visitors to decline to enter. In the days
of the old king an unarmed guest who failed to please the king might be cut down in an instant
and many would like to have a weapon at hand in case of such an attack. In time most
people will likely understand and accept, but not soon."
With that Lancelot steps back and Robina takes the floor.
---
"My King, I have news from the expeditions.
In the NORTH there is talk of a vile PACK OF WOLVES attacking cattle and even travellers.
The people are fearful of the beasts and are pleading that the King send help.
In the EAST all is well. There has been talk of goblins roaming the countryside, but only in small numbers.
In the SOUTH the farmers fear for their crops. There hasn't been rain in a long time
and the farmers fear drought might spoil their harvest. There is little we can do about
this now, but hope for the best.
In the WEST a number of bandits are said to prey upon people travelling to and from the coast.
They attack in groups and pick and choose their targets with frightful accuracy."
---
Robina's report thus ends. The Jester reminds you that there is a MEETING for you to have
outside of the castle. He offers you a cloack to hide your regality for the short trip to
the DISCREET LOCATION where you are to meet your first guest today.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Who are we meeting? Can't remember!
Added a recap of day 4 events in the first post.
>Order Lancelot to have his men set up a decoy and ambush the bandits, Robina to send a team of her best hunters and trackers to bring back the hides of those wolves, and then go to the meeting with the spymaster candidate.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
In a rush of energy you command LANCELOT to have his men set up a decoy to lure out the bandits
so that they can be ambushed and dealt with. Lancelot agrees at once and marches off to fulfill
your command, six of his knights joining him as he marches off.
Next you tell ROBINA to gather the best hunters in her band of rangers and send them off north
to hunt the wolfpack. You tell her that you expect to see some nice wolf pelts adorning the throne
room soon. Robina smiles and bows, gathering her rangers and heading off at once.
Lastly you turn to the JESTER, whom seems to have switched to a new set of bright-red clothes and
is donning a fake beard.
"My king, it is time for the meeting! Here, this way, and please wear this." -he says, leading you
towards the rear of the castle and handing you a simple brown robe, which you wear to cover your
identity just in case.
The Jester leads you out from the rear of the castle, through a small gate built into the castle
wall. He leads you into a set of abandoned horse stables, which remind you of the odd fact that
there are no horses in the town at all. The EVIL KING hated horses. Weird...
As you enter the old stable you notice something, or rather someone, who doesn't quite belong.
A brown robe similiar to the one you wear, fails miserably to cover the shapely body of the tall
lady who awaits you there. As the steps towards you you can hear her high heels clack on the old
wooden floor of the stable.
"Welcome, gracious sir." -an openly suggestive female voice welcomes you. The hooded figure removes
her hood, revealing a rather striking face underneath: full lips painted bright red, eyelashes
longer than you think are natural and curtain of straight black hair as smooth as velvet. You nod
to your 'guest', struggling to keep your face from turning bright red, and await for the Jester
to introduce you. The Jester chuckles and steps forward:
"My K- Lord!" - he corrects himself, remembering the little charade you have going on to cover
your identity.
"Meet MISTRESS SONYA, the lovely lady whom we came here to meet."
Sonya extends her hand and you can see that she has painted her long fingernails with the same
shade of red as her lips. You cautiously shake the woman's hand.
"My apologies for meeting you so late, Sir." -she explains. "I have meant to offer you a deal
of some value ever since you took the throne. You see, I run an establishment near the edge of
the town. I gave it a nice name, but the locals have come to call it the HAPPY HANDS BROTHEL. Me
and my girls work there, you see, serving our customers to our best ability. However, in our
line of work we hear all sorts of things."
She leans in so close that her lips almost touch your ear: "Secret things" -she whispers. You
swallow hard and take a cautious step back.
"I can trade these secrets to you, good Sir, for a simple service. Some of our clients are a
bit rough around the edges and the laws of the realm frown upon our kind carrying weapons. I
would request that you order your Knights to make rounds in our establishment every now and
then, perhaps station a knight or two on the walls nearby, and tell them to keep my girls safe
from harm. In exchange I can tell you the deepest secrets of almost anyone in town as well as
most visitors, for you see, we are quite a popular establishment."
She steps back, smiling a mysterious smile.
"What do you say?"
Her offer made she crosses her arms, gives you a playful wink and awaits your reply.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Ooooohhh, she's hot! :-D
It sounds like a good deal to me.
> Agree to her request, she'll have some guards patroling her house at all the time. But arrange that the most inocent girl she has working will be the one to bring information to the castle. The girl should wear decent clothes and pretend she's delivering fruit. Or onions. She can be a onion-seller, yes.
> Agree to post city guard patrols within shouting range on the additional condition that she and her employees agree to regular medical checkups so that diseases aren't spread around the realm.
Or we could invent the condom?
yay, call us king pimp!
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You agree to the request, promising to have Lancelot route his patrols so that they keep the
HAPPY HANDS brother secure. You also add that SONYA should send her most innocent -looking
girl to deliver your intel, preferrably in some furtherly innocent disguise. Perhaps she could
deliver onions to the castle, you suggest.
SPYMASTER SONYA smirks at you, remarking that this is a wonderful suggestion and that she knows
just the girl for the job.
[YOU HAVE ESTABLISHED AN INTEL TRADE. WRITE DOWN NAMES, OBJECTS OR PLACES ON PIECES
OF PAPER AND LEAVE THEM IN A BOX OF ONIONS IN THE KITCHEN TO HAVE THEM DELIVERED TO
SONYA. REPLIES ARE GIVEN ON THE SAME OR FOLLOWING DAY.]
Your meeting just about concluded, Sonya leans in close and places a kiss on your bearded cheek.
"You won't be disappointed..." -she whispers. "Do come visit sometime, if your schedule allows it."
The JESTER gestures wildly, wiping faux -sweat off his brow and giggling.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Create the song Sex Bomb right after she leaves and sing it loud while doing macho poses! Invite the Jester do keep up with us!
Quote from: miguel on Mon 19/05/2014 11:36:41
Invite the Jester do keep up with us!
I want the graphics adapter back to see that.
Also +1.
>Shave off beard.
Guys we should actually give a proper order to WHAM or else he will put us inventing songs! :=
Before we go, I think we should ask Sonya if she has any information that could be useful to us NOW. And maybe offer her the title of LADY in the future if the information we get over the next few weeks is truly valuable.
Ask her if there is anyone who seeks to usurp the throne.
And if she has any information on those guys who came insisting we hand over the supposed criminal.
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 21/05/2014 11:26:13
Before we go, I think we should ask Sonya if she has any information that could be useful to us NOW. And maybe offer her the title of LADY in the future if the information we get over the next few weeks is truly valuable.
Ask her if there is anyone who seeks to usurp the throne.
And if she has any information on those guys who came insisting we hand over the supposed criminal.
+1
Sounds pretty good to me!
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You strike a macho pose and go:
"Seeex bomb, I am a big sex-bomb,
I have the sexiness of a bomb and the bomb of a bomb
and I fly through the air 'cause I am a sex-bomb!
SEX BOMB!"
The Jester cackles like a maniac, mimicing your pose and singing along.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Oooops... I've did it again... :(
It was just your imagination, running away with you.
But the result was...
TRAGEDY!
> Inspect the town guard.
CaptainD, my mind plays tricks on me when I'm next to prostitutes.
Quote> Inspect the town guard.
+1
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You cease your sign and dance -routine and head back to the castle.
Discarding your disguise you decide to inspect the town guard.
Currently a total of 20 RANGERS are patrolling the outskirts and the wooden palisade,
with ROBINA the RANGER observing and guiding them
ROBINA reports that her RANGERS have the manpower to easily secure the walls.
In addition a total of 6 knights are patrolling the streets,
one of them focusing on the HAPPY HANDS brothel at all times.
As LANCELOT is not present one of his knights reports in. He says that while crime is low,
he is worried that the number of knights available to guard the town might not be enough
should problems arise.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> ASK the expenses which would be required to recruit potential knights. If deemed fit, ORDER to recruit more knights/guards.
We have a militia being trained and knights are expensive. We should wait for Lancelot and ask him how's the training going.
> Call for the next audience;
Quote from: miguel on Tue 27/05/2014 00:34:01
We have a militia being trained and knights are expensive. We should wait for Lancelot and ask him how's the training going.
Sorry, I forgot about that. :-[
Quote from: miguel on Tue 27/05/2014 00:34:01
> Call for the next audience;
+1
It's okay Adeel, don't apologize man, I keep forgetting past events of this game all the time and have to go back some pages!
QuoteFondle the axle, then tap the leylines.
+1. That should give us a headstart.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You let the KNIGHT get back to his duties and head back to the castle, ready to
receive your next audience.
As you approach the throne room you note that the JESTER , who had disappeared
somewhere, is clearly in the throne room already. And judging by the fact that
several voices are singing in that annoying sing-song voice, he's not alone.
You step in and are greeted with possibly one of the most disturbing sights you've
ever seen. The JESTER is doing cartwheels as usual, but in addition there are three
other MIDGET JESTERS, who seem to be engaged in some sort of extremely fast-paced
variation of leapfrogging.
(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/65381625/Pics/King/dwuolwh_jesters.png)
Just as you are about to ask what in the seven hells is going on in here (one JESTER
is plenty to tolerate, let alone four), the JESTERS all stop moving around and form a
neat line.
"Greetings!" -the three MIDGET JESTERS call out simultaneously.
Baffled, you sit down upon your throne and greet the triplets.
"My King!" -the first MIDGET calls out.
"We seek your assistance in a dire matter!" -the second midget continues.
"For you see, one of our brethren has been IMPRISONED in your realm!" -the third one states with
some alarm.
Just as you are about to point out that you released the JESTER from the EVIL KING's prison
when you took the throne, they all continue in a single voice.
"Our lookouts received this letter, passed to them by a wandering trader. It originates
somewhere in your realm, but we cannot seem to find out where exactly. See here!"
The midget with the moustache produces a piece of paper and presents it to you. You look
over the piece of paper. On the front it seems to be blank, with only a crest of some sort
printed in the corner, but on the back it clearly states "IMPRISONED! SEND HELP!" in big red
letters. Beneath the words has been scrawled a crude image of a red three-peaked jester's cap.
"The sigil of the Jesters!" -calls out the midget with the top-hat.
"Proof that our bretheren needs help!" -states the midget in the middle.
"Please, King of the land, can you help us find and save our bretheren!?" -THE JESTER pipes in,
looking surprisingly worried.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information.
Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this.
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 28/05/2014 10:40:05
>Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information.
>Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this.
+1
QuoteTell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information.
Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this.
+1
Also, if we're requesting information from Sonya we should also ask her about RORIK - she may have heard rumour of his guilt or innocence or at least have some information on the accusations against him, the scamp.
Good thinking Haggis!
And before we forget to put this into a command... ;)
> Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information. Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this. Also ask Sonya if she has any information about Rorik and his alleged crimes.
Quote from: Problem on Thu 29/05/2014 13:59:55
And before we forget to put this into a command... ;)
> Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information. Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this. Also ask Sonya if she has any information about Rorik and his alledged crimes.
+1
Nice going, Haggis and Problem
Quote>Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information. Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this. Also ask Sonya if she has any information about Rorik and his alleged crimes.
+1
High five!
Quote from: Haggis on Thu 29/05/2014 17:41:19
Quote>Tell the midget jesters that we will do whatever we can to help them, and to come back if they have any further information. Send a message to Mistress Sonya that we need information on this. Also ask Sonya if she has any information about Rorik and his alleged crimes.
+1
High five!
+1 High four!
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You tell the midget Jesters that you will do whatever you can to help them, and suggest that they,
too, should return to you if they find any new information. The Midget Jesters explain that you can
just leave them a message via your own Jester, and that they will do the same.
As the Midget Jesters leave you have your own Jester prepare a message to be sent out to
MISTRESS SONYA. You ask her to find out what she can about the symbol on the MIDGET JESTERS'
NOTE and to see if she can find out something about your guest, Rorik.
"Right away, My King! Sonya will receive your message tonight and will hopefully send her reply on
the morrow!" -the Jester replies.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Call for the next audience
Quote> Call for the next audience
+1
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You call forth the next audience of the day.
Waddling into the throne room comes a man with a peg-leg carrying a fancy leather scroll.
"Arr, My King!" -he greets you in what you guess might be a polite way amongst pirate clans.
"I bring forth a trade agreement from the clan of the fearsome Forkbeak Pirates. For th'
purpose of construction we would like to commission all of ye available stocks of lumber
and cloth in your town. I have already discussed ye matter with the trader's guild and they
seemed to be pleased with th' deal. We agreed upon the price of twenny-five gold pieces on th'
trade, with an additional five gold pieces added to sweeten the deal, as ordered by Lord BARON
of the Forkbeaks. Accept ye the offer?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Finally some gold!
But I fear of remaining with out stocks of timber and cloth close to zero. We should retain a small percentage of it.
> Return the extra five gold pieces; make the deal for 25 GP's but keep 12% of our stocks at home.
Can we really trust this Lord BARON guy? Something about the name tells me NO... :P
Same here, the name just triggers my worse fears but we did make a deal with him.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You decide that all of your stocks are too much to give up, and inform the PIRATE TRADER that you
will keep a small portion of your stocks of wood and cloth while lowering the price accordingly,
down to 25 gold instead of 30 gold.
"Arr! As you wish, Land-King. The deal is done n' I shall take care of the details with th' guild."
The trader thanks you and leaves.
[Large portions of wood and cloth were sold]
[Your stocks of wood and cloth are low]
[25 gold pieces added to the treasury. The treasury now holds: 36 gold and 60 silver]
There is still time for one audience this day.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Audience, and bring on the dancing girls! Free drinks all round! Let's be generous. 8-)
Quote from: CaptainD on Sat 07/06/2014 18:33:59
Audience, and bring on the dancing girls! Free drinks all round! Let's be generous. 8-)
> Next Audience!
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
The Jester steps up.
"My King, a word if you will. The annual midsummer celebration is nearly upon us, and I was
wondering how much money we would like to spend on the celebration? This could be a good
way to make an impression with the people, differentiate yourself from the old king and possibly
invite new connections. The old king would only ever spend one gold on the celebration to pay
for the construction of a fighting pit in which he would force prisoners to fight to the death for his
entertainment..."
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Celebration? At last!
> Spread the word that the midsummer celebration is near, tell all the neighbouring towns that a big festival is to take place in our town. With the budget of 7 gold we'll have artists of all kinds performing in the streets and we invite couples to get married during the festival as their food and drink will be free. There will be a stage where the newly-wed will parade and celebrate.
> Send for Lancelot to arrange security for the event.
> Begin construction of the annual fighting pit but increase price to two gold to add some enhancements... namely fancy weapons, traps and wild animals.
Or what Miguel said.
Quote> Spread the word that the midsummer celebration is near, tell all the neighbouring towns that a big festival is to take place in our town. With the budget of 7 gold we'll have artists of all kinds performing in the streets and we invite couples to get married during the festival as their food and drink will be free. There will be a stage where the newly-wed will parade and celebrate.
> Send for Lancelot to arrange security for the event.
+1
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You are delighted by the idea of a celebration, and order a budget of seven (7) gold to be spent
on the preparations. There are to be artists, music and plays, and couples are invited to marry
under the King's gaze as part of the festival, with food and drink and cake provided by the king's
court. A grand stage is to be erected upon which the ceremony will be held. And, of course, Lancelot
will be in charge for the event security.
The Jester chuckles and bounces with glee.
"A fine celebration it will be! I shall make sure that the preparations are put underway!"
As the Jester bounces off, gold in hand, you realize that the time in the hourglass has run out
once again. It is time to rest...
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
>Have a right royal rest, sleep soundly sire!
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 11/06/2014 10:10:35
>Have a right royal rest, sleep soundly sire!
+1
But first, practise some manly moves.
Have we established if there is a Queen (or second King) yet?
If so > get to work on an heir.
If not > take a suspiciously long shower.
> dream of PONYCORNS because reasons
If there is no Queen yet, host a tournament for eligible ladies to win marriage to the Us. (How does it work in this kingdom? Who gets the dowry?)
Quote from: CaptainD on Wed 11/06/2014 10:10:35
>Have a right royal rest, sleep soundly sire!
+1
Captain, we do have a lady after us and our title. She offered gold, remember? We told her to take a walk and that we'd think about it.
Quote from: miguel on Sat 14/06/2014 12:35:02
Captain, we do have a lady after us and our title. She offered gold, remember? We told her to take a walk and that we'd think about it.
Oh yeah... :shocked:
It's been almost 10 days since this game was last updated. What happened?
I happened...
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
As you awaken to the dawn of your sixth day as King, the Jester meets you in the throne room.
"Hail, My King, I have news!" -he cries gleefully.
"Rorik the Northman has left our castle today, to continue his quest. As he left he promised that
he would spread word of your kindness towards guests and would surely repay your assistance.
Cat of the Farmer's Guild reports that the harvest is underway. It seems that the harvest this
summer is meager, but it should tide our people over the winter times unless something drastic
happens.
Lastly, a pair of reports from your SPYMARSTER arrived today, amidst a box of ONIONS."
The JESTER hands over the pair of written notes for you to examine. You crack open the
CRIMSON WAXEN SEALS and examine the papers carefully.
---
It seems that the strange symbol on the JESTER'S LETTER is not unique at all. In fact the symbol
has been seen several times by the workers of the HAPPY HANDS brothel worn as a SMALL
TATTOO on the necks of hired guards in the service of the family of YESTERYEAR. As to the deeper
meaning of the symbol, Sonya cannot say, though she promises to inform you should more
information come her way.
As to your now-departed guest RORIK, your spymaster has little to offer. She says that several
NORTHMEN have been travelling south this year, but all of them are highly secretive and stubborn
and tend to keep to themselves. Word is, however, that a small band of Northmen ambushed
another small band of northmen not long ago, and that the winners burned the bodies of the
defeated in a most pequliar funeral pyre. This happened just a short while before RORIK came to
seek refuge in your court, although Sonya cannot say for sure if Rorik took part in the battle or not.
---
As you set aside the SPYMASTER'S REPORTS the Jester winks at you.
"My King, I hear the new clothes you ordered are finished and the seamstress awaits your
audience. Shall I permit her entry?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 23/06/2014 10:17:27
I happened...
Yes. That was my question in the first place. What had happened? Are you alright? :)
>Grant permission
Combination of being lazy, away from home and busy is what happened. :) Nothing serious, though, and I'll try and keep the updates coming as steady as I can. You do know that the steam summer sale is on, right? I've bought like a dozen games already!
Quote from: WHAM on Mon 23/06/2014 10:33:53
Combination of being lazy, away from home and busy is what happened. :) Nothing serious, though, and I'll try and keep the updates coming as steady as I can. You do know that the steam summer sale is on, right? I've bought like a dozen games already!
Yes, I know about summer sale quite well. Happy playing (and sorry if I introduced as too aggressive)! :)
No worries, I needed a reminder and a kick in the butt to get back to work. ;)
Welcome back, sir!
Quote>Grant permission
+1
Let's hope this isn't going to be The Emperor's New Clothes all over again... (wrong)
> Request information from the Spymaster about the YESTERYEAR family and Grant the next audience.
Quote from: NightHawk on Wed 25/06/2014 23:08:13
> Request information from the Spymaster about the YESTERYEAR family and Grant the next audience.
+1
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You write down a note to your SPYMASTER, requesting more information on the YESTERYEAR family.
You seal up the paper with a wax seal and hand it to the JESTER to be transported back to SONYA.
Then you grant audience to the SEAMSTRESS.
She walks down the throne room and gives you a curtsy, then produces a parcel which she hands
over to you.
"My King, your new clothes are ready. I do hope you find them to your liking." -she says with a smile.
You unwrap the parcel to find a set of clothes made to your measure. The fabric is light, soft and
smooth and so thoroughly jet black that it seems to diminish the light in the room. Woven into the
fabric are thin strands of silver as well as a few pequliarly placed silver studs that, together,
seem to form some sort of a pattern, though you cannot identify it. The silver details shine coolly
amidst the black fabric and look a little bit like tiny twinkling stars.
To complete the outfit there is a fine silken cloak, also purely black, save for an intricately weaved
pattern of flickering flames that seem so natural that you can almost feel the faint heat emanating
from them.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/miguel_king1.png)(Image provided by Miguel)
You are awestruck by the quality of the craftsmanship presented to you.
The Jester whistles approvingly.
"If it pleases the King, then I woul have my payment. Forty silver, I believe we agreed. I do hope the
King finds the outfit worthy of the price." -she states.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> order the JESTER to pay the SEAMSTRESS, and COMPLIMENT on her (guild's) CRAFTS(WO)MANSHIP
I feel this pattern is somehow going to be important. Set aside time later to study this pattern in more detail.
Quote from: CaptainD on Thu 26/06/2014 10:06:49
I feel this pattern is somehow going to be important. Set aside time later to study this pattern in more detail.
I thought something like that but dismissed it as "typical adventure gamer paranoia" (Must not throw away shoestring! Will make useful bowstring!)... But let's keep that in mind! (nod)
NEVER DISMISS "typical adventure gamer paranoia"!!!
I figure that if it's mentioned, it's important (either that or bad game design... but now that I've said that, I'm sure WHAM will make sure that it IS important! :-D)
I will ALSO make sure to MENTION all sorts of pointless details from now on. ;)
Curses... sorry guys! :-[
On a (slightly) more serious note:
>Go to bedroom and change into wonderful new outfit.
>Go back to see if you have anyone else seeking audience.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Move away from the mirror.
>Okay, NOW,go back to see if you have anyone else seeking audience.
>Hope the next audience is an artist (let's assume he is called MAHW) so we can pay him for a giant painted selfie in our new clothes.
Quote from: Ghost on Thu 26/06/2014 09:59:32
> order the JESTER to pay the SEAMSTRESS, and COMPLIMENT on her (guild's) CRAFTS(WO)MANSHIP
+1
It would be cool if there was a WIG GUILD too. We could put on a Elvis look now! :=
Quote from: WHAM on Thu 26/06/2014 10:22:27
I will ALSO make sure to MENTION all sorts of pointless details from now on. ;)
The King has a third nipple, right? We're
GOLDFINGER (oops) SCARAMANGA!!
Oooohhh just like the wise men from my country with their trycles!
Quote from: miguel on Thu 26/06/2014 13:01:12
Oooohhh just like the wise men from my country with their trycles!
And now i have a mental image of the King standing in front of a mirror, three tiny wisemen (waving tiny tricycles) sprouting from his chest. One of them smiles and rings the tricycle bell.
THANKS! (laugh)
Don't bother, and the picture you idealized isn't even new to me, it's on our nation favourite cereal box: Crunchy Trycles!
Quote from: Ghost on Thu 26/06/2014 09:59:32
> order the JESTER to pay the SEAMSTRESS, and COMPLIMENT on her (guild's) CRAFTS(WO)MANSHIP
+1
"Psst..." -The JESTER whispers softly past the fourth wall: "If someone wants to draw a cool sprite of what THEY think the King now looks like, I won't mind at all. And the sprite may even get incorporated into the new visual style somehow, even if the art style clashes with the old style."
EDIT: Whoa, Miguel already provided. Check the previous page to see the results. ;)
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You have the Jester pay the agreed 40 silvers to the seamstress and commend her work with
high praises. She smiles and thanks you for your patronage, and informs you that she must
be on her way, for more work awaits her elsewhere.
As she leaves you get the faintest impession that she was disappointed, somehow.
The Jester seems unusually eager to let in the next audience.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Grant the next audience.
> Eat the seamstress
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You permit the next audience. As a shadowy figure enters the throne room you can almost feel
the Jester's building excitement.
The man wears a long purple cloack and dons a tall pointed hat.
"Your grace, I am called ZORDON-"
"HE'S A WIZARD!!!" -the Jester squeals in delight, rudely interrupting your guest.
There is an awkward pause.
"Yes, I am a WIZARD, and I have come from far away, from the EASTERN LANDS beyond the
mountains, in search of employment. When I heard that a new KING had arisen in GRIMDARK
I decided to come here and offer my services. I ask for 3 gold per year in salary and will
require a library to be set up for my work. In exchange of these I can offer you my vast
knowledge of spells and magics."
The JESTER seems ready to burst out of excitement.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Hire the wizard and order the library built.
> Ask if he has any alchemy or enchantment skills.
> Ask him about his story, previous employers, friends and foes;
Quote from: miguel on Thu 03/07/2014 12:05:22
> Ask him about his story, previous employers, friends and foes;
+1. Also ask him whether he knows about
Crimson Wizard or not. :D
> Cast "know all of your magic" on the wizard, take his robe and dump him in the moat
Quote from: NightHawk on Thu 03/07/2014 11:34:38
> Hire the wizard and order the library built.
> Ask if he has any alchemy or enchantment skills.
Quote from: miguel on Thu 03/07/2014 12:05:22
> Ask him about his story, previous employers, friends and foes;
+ 1 + 1 + 1 YAY! MAGIX (http://s1.directupload.net/images/user/131010/gikxfi44.gif) (http://fav.me/d6plkhb)
> make the Jester sing "The Wizard's Staff Has A Knob On The End" in soto voce.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You query as to the specifics of the WIZARD'S skills.
"I am able to cast spells of many kind. With the right preparation I can make a bolt of lightning
strike on command, or I can imbue an object with special powers. Spells are not a thing to be
trifled with, though, and nearly all will require thorough preparation and study before they can
be employed safely or at all. A library to catalogue and sort the relevant knowledge is of
absolute importance if I am to serve you effectively, my King."
You ask where the WIZARD has served before.
"My past I would prefer to keep to myself. Let us just say that I have served myself for well over
a decade and feel that the time has come that I put my abilities to work for someone who truly
has use for my talent."
You can't say that you are fully pleased with the answers you got, but your mind was made already,
and with time you might learn more of this WIZARD.
"Consider yourself hired and the price agreed upon. Consult with the builder's guild as to the
specifics of the library's construction and send them to me." -you command.
ZORDON bows deep, his hat flopping from back to front with the motion.
"I hope to serve you well, my King."
The JESTER does a little happy-dance, pausing only to wave around a small stick which he has
fashioned as his magic wand, and to make zapping noises.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Say "I hope you do serve me well, Zordon. I am giving you shelter and a well paid job, I expect the very best from you!".
> Summon Crimson Wizard from Kingdom of Russia and hire him to get your stuff done.
:grin:
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You agree to hire ZORDON the WIZARD for his price of 3 gold per year.
He nods, approving your wise decision. The Jester's joy knows no bounds.
"If it is well with you, my King, I shall take my leave to explore the castle for a bit." -he says.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
>make the wizard do some magic
> Grant the next audience.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
A fat man in an innkeeper's simple outfit enters the throne room. The man looks astonished
and a bit surprised.
"My King!" -he exclaims. "It is truly a pleasure to finally meet you. May your reign be long
and glorious. My name is Ronton, and I own a humble inn to the east of the castle town. I
simply wished to come here to see the new king..." The innkeeper pauses, smiling, then glances
around the room to see if anyone else is listening. He then nods approvingly, leaning slightly
closer.
"I have information for you..." -he whispers... "There is word that the gold SEALS of the TRADER'S
GUILD were stolen not long ago. Rumors travel fast and I have gotten my fair share of them. I
think I can help you find the thief and perhaps even the original seals. However, business has
been poor for me lately. In exchange for the information I would simply ask you for a small favor:
visit my inn. Spend a night there and I will rename the establishment in your honor. A King staying
there would surely be a boon to my business!
What say you, My King? Would you do this kindness for me?"
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
We should have our super spy to gather some info about this man and his business and relations before we agree with him. It may be a trap from an unknown enemy.
As King we could just order Lancelot to "extract" the information about the Seals (SELAS :grin: ) but that can hurt our reputation, no?
> Say: We will listen to you about the Seals theft NOW and consider staying in your establishment when our head of security finds it appropriate. So please do speak the truth!
Quote from: miguel on Fri 18/07/2014 11:20:11
> Say: We will listen to you about the Seals theft NOW and consider staying in your establishment when our head of security finds it appropriate or pay you a fair price for your information. So please do speak the truth!
> Order the guards to detain him for questioning.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You demand that the innkeeper part with his knowledge at once and inform the man that you will
consider visiting his establishment if the information is any good.
"M-My King, a fair deal is a fair deal!" -the man stutters, distressed.
"I-I do not ask for much, just a small boon. If people find out that I told anyone what I know
my business would be in RUINS! But if a King would visit my inn, it would easily negate the
whole matter. Everybody wins."
He does not seem willing to part with his information without something more solid.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
A King ought to be brave, imho.
>Immediately ride to Innkeeper's Inn (making sure to take necessary arms and a guard or two with you, preferably Lancelot or Zordon) to get the desired information. Also, warn the innkeeper that he'll be sent to prison if he tries to play any game with us.
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Mon 21/07/2014 14:10:05
>Immediately ride to Innkeeper's Inn (making sure to take necessary arms and a guard or two with you, preferably Lancelot or Zordon) to get the desired information. Also, warn the innkeeper that he'll be sent to prison if he tries to play any game with us.
+1. It's about time we stop sitting on that throne all the time looking all pretty.
Quote from: Ghost on Sat 02/08/2014 10:05:58
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Mon 21/07/2014 14:10:05
>Immediately ride to Innkeeper's Inn (making sure to take necessary arms and a guard or two with you, preferably Lancelot or Zordon) to get the desired information. Also, warn the innkeeper that he'll be sent to prison if he tries to play any game with us.
+1. It's about time we stop sitting on that throne all the time looking all pretty.
+1. Pretty and awesome.
Quote from: miguel on Sat 02/08/2014 12:21:05
Quote from: Ghost on Sat 02/08/2014 10:05:58
Quote from: Adeel S. Ahmed on Mon 21/07/2014 14:10:05
>Immediately ride to Innkeeper's Inn (making sure to take necessary arms and a guard or two with you, preferably Lancelot or Zordon) to get the desired information. Also, warn the innkeeper that he'll be sent to prison if he tries to play any game with us.
+1. It's about time we stop sitting on that throne all the time looking all pretty.
+1. Pretty and awesome.
+ 1 (nod)
> Have him detained.
Hells, it's been over a month!? I haven't had any time to write stuff lately, haven't even really visited the forums much due to "real life stuff".
Who knew that a 4 week summer vacation might be far busier time than regular work weeks. Still have some pretty hectic stuff coming up in the next week or so, but then I hope things will start to clear up a bit, so:
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You decide that it is finally time you took a measure of your new kingdom and what better way to
do it than to visit this innkeeper's establishment to seal the deal he has offered. Besides: a King
should not need fear his people! You call on two of your household knights to travel with you,
though, just in case.
Within the hour you, the two knights and the visibly relieved innkeeper depart the castle on
horseback, heading east through the town.
As you ride through the castle town you catch glimpses of your people and their lives. Just
outside the castle gates is the market square. Freshly baked goods, fish from the river and all
kinds of crafts and other wares are sold here, and trade seems to take place at a good pace,
though the market is not quite crowded. Nearly all people turn and bow their heads as they see
you approaching. You sense that you are well liked among your people, and why wouldn't you be,
you've done well by them. You catch a glimpse of two of Lancelot's knights patrolling the market,
though they soon disappear amidst the people.
As you leave the market you ride past houses of red brick and wood, some of them leaning slightly
on one another and clearly in need of some repair. A few buildings are burned down, a grim
reminder of the past king's deeds in the town, though you are glad to see that the makeshift
gallows of his late reign have been torn down.
Finally you reach the town wall: a simple wooden palisade with a few raised platforms build behind
it for archers to climb upon. A number of Robina's rangers patrol the wall, standing tall atop
the platforms and peering into the distance for any signs of danger or unrest. Two more of
Lancelot's knights are stationed at the wooden gate, which is open. Your group passes through
without incident and your ride to the inn begins along the EASTROAD.
After a short ride you arrive in a small village to the east of the castle town, and within the
village you find the innkeeper's inn. As you dismount a stableboy takes care of your horses,
leading them into the stable.
"My King, I shall go at once and ensure your room is tended and a table is prepared for you
and your knights. And a warm welcome to you all to the King's Grace Inn!"
As the Innkeeper hurries inside you can see that a new sign resembling a crown has already
been installed on the wall of the inn. You wonder what the innkeeper would have done with it
had you decided not to visit...
The Inn is a fairly large one, and clearly the only one in this small village.
It is a three-storey affair, built of wood on a visible and firm-looking base of red brick and
mortar. Numerous windows give the structure an airy look, and you can see a number of old banners
hanging from the outside walls, likely left here by previous visitors. You can hear music and song
from within.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Permanently rent a room for the spy network to use whenever they're in town.
> Permanently rent a room for the spy network to use whenever they're in town. Check the ground floor/story for anything and/or anyone suspicious and order your guards to do the same for respective stories too.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
Looking at the place makes you think it would make for a good base of operations for your spies,
and perhaps Lancelot might approve if your spy network was not wholly reliant on the ladies of the
Happy Hands Brothel. With your guardian knights in tow you enter the Inn. As you step through the
door the music and chatter inside pauses and silence falls over the main hall for a split second.
You estimate roughtly a hundred patrons are gathered in the main hall, with drinks in hand and
plates in front of them. Over the massive stone fireplace a pig is slowly roasting, the crackling
of skin and fat clearly audible in the moment of silence.
"All hail the King!" the Innkeeper calls, raising a tankard of ale.
"The King! The king! The King!" -the patrons cheer. Laughter and talk wash over you and the music,
provided by a pair of fiddlers, starts anew.
The two knights accompanying you give one another a smile and click their swords back into their
scabbards, from which they had been loosened as the silence fell.
General merriment encircles you, as the common men and women cheer and sing and dance around you.
Food is served for half-price at the innkeepers behest, and soon more people flood in to witness
the King in person. Toast after toast is raised in your honor and you feel the people are in good
spirits all around.
You try approaching the Innkeeper on a matter of renting a room permanently, but he gestures for
patience.
"We shall talk later, my King. When it is more quiet. Join us in a toast, this is a good day!"
-he urges you, offering you a fine silver goblet, then filling it and several others like it from
a wineskin. The other goblets are offered to a few noble traders who happen to be in attendance,
as well as your knights.
"A toast! The King's toast!" -the Innkeeper calls out, and the people respond with roaring laughter
and cheers.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Give a formal toast on how the kingdom needs the town and buy everyone in the inn a round.
> Address the crowd, raising your glass in a victorious pose, tell the people how kind and welcome the innkeeper is, wish for happy and prosperous days for the kingdom and thank them for being loyal. "Next round is on me!".
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You stand up, raise your goblet and say a few generous words of praise of the village and it's
people as well as the innkeeper and his inn. Your words are met with more cheers and it seems
that the crowd that has gathered is more than happy to have their King around.
The day turns to evening, people get drunk and song and dance are commonplace.
As you listen to the talk of the commoners you realize the reason for their merriment:
the preparations are done and tomorrow is the day of the MIDSUMMER CELEBRATION!
No work for an entire day!? You have a drink to that!
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)
> Send invitations to the nearby towns to join the celebrations tomorrow.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_top.png)
You think about sending midsummer celebration invitations to neighboring towns, but recall
that the celebration is kingdom-wide; everyone will be there if they can!
You congratulate yourself on your half-a-year reign with another drink.
(http://whamgames.com/king_game/Scroll_bottom.png)