"So this contract idea, it is the plan, yes? Otherwise I recommend you head further into the mountains to the village of Edas, we have been trying to recruit from there but lacked manpower. Edas has a relatively significant population of trollkin and orcborn. Either of which can be handy when things get ugly."
I could see how recruiting could be difficult there. Usually high populations of Trollkin and Orcborn mean that the areas have been subject to lots of raiding by orcs and trolls. The security the local militia provides would be hard to give up even if the people are being mistreated.
Zuket, I have to ask. How big is your network of resistance and are you the only ones around?"
"we have members in all villages for a day in any direction and a few members in farther areas including a few at the rock fort, where the Sheriff lives."
I think the plan has merit, and we should try it. The The trollkin and orcborn can wait a day I think. Do you have any contacts with them? being new tho the area I don't know it very well
To Joroth:
Regarding the contracts they work well as a distraction and demean the power base of the enemy, the public opinion will be against them.
I can discuss the possibilities more in depth, but I am not averse to doing what is needed to win a war so long as my soul is not overtly tainted and any nefarious methods used are ceased once the objective is had. Dealing with other otherworldy entities is a recipe for madness and disaster. One must be terribly careful. In the end one must understand the end can justify the means, so says Nietzsche, but that is a slippery slope.
Joroth and DM
To Joroth and DM:
Joroth and DM:
Isaac smiled
All right, let's get to work
Inside he grimaced. He knew Joroth was planing something, but this was no game.
Isaac looked around the room, he could see how they were all connected and brought together. He knew that the loss of anyone was a detriment to the whole, even Joroth.
How many enemy soldiers would stand with their comrades and think the same thing? How many peoples lives, with their complexities and depth, would be snuffed out because they got in our way.
There was a better way, there had to be. Isaac would find it.
Isaac sat down by the fire as Joroth made his forgery, making a thick brew of tea. It was dark and smelled repugnant but he was used to it by now.
"There is parchment, ink and quills inside the cave, anything else you need you will have to find for yourself."
Also just waiting, Elrith will see if Issac made enough tea for two.
Isaac make enough tea for Elrith to partake. It is bitter, but it brings a clarity. It suppresses any anger an anxiety.
Isaac becomes cheerful, sharing stories and his favorite poems. Some of which most of the group has never herd of because they are Turandy poems. His favorite being:
"No man is an island,
entire of itself;
every man is a piece of the continent,
a part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Turandy is the less,
as well as if a castle were,
as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were:
any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind,
and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls;
it tolls for thee."
I wish to watch the forging arts, always more to learn.
I move to Joroth's location and watch, studying each stroke and technique.
Content is key, and unless there is familiarity or previous correspondence it should be a simple process. Psychology of the individuals involved, key terms, etc. Understood.
To Joroth:
As to my style of leadership I won't murder anyone, and I don't stalk sentient beings unless they pose a true threat to the majority. Stalking a sentient being without provocation is pointless. Your beliefs on the art of rulership appear to differ slightly from mine.
Nevertheless I will hear your words.
waitin to see how plan goes...
I will have more thorough discussions about this later Joroth, but as it stands we have work to do.
I never despised you, but I don't trust your methods. Either way we can benefit the greater good.
I assert a very annoyed posture, and distance myself from Joroth, following him and looking very wary.
"lets get this operation underway. In the morning I will lead a raid on a Turandian Convoy while you travel south the Sherrif's castle and plant the "evidence". Once that is done journey to outlying villages to west and begin recruiting more men to our cause."
Isaac took the news with a wince. More raiding would hurt any chance of stabilization but that issue could wait for later. First he needed rest.
He pulled out his favorite book of poems from his backpack and opened it up. In the margins he wrote his spells, letting them be effected by the writing and the poems themselves serving as a device for memorization.
He slept well and woke early. He eyed the rest of the group, everyone was using everyone else. A web of people who saw each other as a means to an end. Most of them made it abundantly clear why.
Isaac turned a suspicious eye to Zuket. He was all too welcoming and needed little persuasion to let them stay, and plot. There was little to corroborate his story. Daras friend still hadn't shown up.
His suspicion reached out to his familiar who, as a cat,translated suspicion to curiosity and left the cave to investigate.
You are eager gnome, but support is welcome. What is next for us besides creation of the documents? We will need a map of these outlying villages, and who is officially going to plant the evidence?
"Yes, Yes, the map will be provided after you plant the evidence. I care little which among you places the documents in the castle. Now let us be to our tasks."
Awaits the outcome of the plan still
In the morning you depart the camp and after a day of travel southeast you arrive at the village of Loran that is across a small river from the sheriff's castle. The village has a population of about 500 and is manly a farming community. At its center there is an inn, the black sheep, a blacksmiths shop, a herbalist and a general store.
Isaac wastes no time, making his way straight to the castle. He made no attempt to hide his face, why would he? Right now, them knowing who he was was his best asset.
Don't give him enough time to plot
"I'll get us in the castle, it's up to the rest of you beyond that."
As you travel through the village joroth detects a few minor auras, the castle however has a much greater aura that appears to surround it, hiding the presence of any other auras inside.
The castle itself has 2 curtain walls surrounding the keep which is about 100ft square and 4 stories tall. The keep and walls are made of stone. The gate has a bridge over a small moat with a portcallis and heavy wooden doors. There is a pair of guards standing outside the gate, they have spears in hand, medium armour, shields and short swords sheathed. The guards have to look of trained soldiers but look too young to be veterans. Each of the towers on the outer curtain wall has a guard with a crossbow in it.
Isaac remained resolute. He did not fear being detected, for he did not have much to hide. He looked back to the rest of the group, waiting for Joroth to get out of earshot.
"If they do have such magics then do one thing. Consider the option of negotiation. Have an open mind. Other then our plan, we have nothing to hide. We have not been initiated with the resistance nor do we even know if the person we met actually represents it. Our intentions should be neutral at this point."
As you approach the gate one of the guards orders you to halt and declare your business. A pair of the crossbow men patrolling above stop and aim their weapons in your general direction.
Joroth you find no traces of the individuals you are looking for or magical auras associated with their work. It is almost as if someone has removed all traces of them.
The truth? Why not..
"I have information about the resistance that the sheriff need to know, I request an audience with him. My name is Isaac Dumont, proclaimed friend of the Turandy."
If he competent then he already has had reports that I am in the area.