The story continues!

  "I know enough to recognize the fish snake was yelling insults."  Scott punched clear through a man and his rider before, and even he's surprised the remaining fish snake could survive Grall's attack.

  He looks over to the girls, as Joey heals them.  "You two going to be okay?"

"Thanks to Joey!" Shelly squeaks. "Yeah. Thanks, Joey." Tread agrees before saying, "Thanks for the concern, Scott. That was a bit scary. But I think I'll be fine. And thanks, Grall, for agreeing to what the team wants."

Shelly nods and helps the group bind up the snake. Tread sits on it to keep it from squirming much. Shelly waits for people to wake the thing, then casts Comprehend Languages. "Hail, vicious Tatzlwyrm. Why did you attack us?"

Joey carefully coaxes the tatzlwyrm back to the land of the living.

"You invade territory!" the monster answers Shelly in draconic, weakly struggling against its bonds, "You kill mate!  Hate you!"

"Your welcome," Joey answers.

"Ya know, in some ways, it would be more merciful to just have killed it in combat," Grall points out.

  "Yes, it would just figure I am suddenly braining sentient beings after that whole speech back at town.  But I'm not as learned in wildlife to recognize something trying to eat a friends face is also able to hold a conversation."

Shelly continues the conversation, "We didn't know it was your territory. And we killed her only because she was trying to kill us. You may hate us, but we have spared your life. Do you wish to keep living?"

While Shelly continues talking in Draconic, Tread looks at Joey. "Yeah. So... how'd you know?"

"It's the language of the kobolds," Joey answers, "And it was a bit more detailed than the noises most mindless monsters make.

"Suppose you can ask about the dead person in the... uh... nest?  Who was he?"

Grall keeps out of the discussion and heads over to recover the body.

The tatzlwyrm doesn't say much of use.  Swearing revenge, eating, and a new mate with lots of children who will kill and eat all other ugly orcs, humans, and white otters in the world.

  "I get the feeling they do not know, or even care.  If we're just some faces to be bitten for wandering by, what's one more."

Shelly says in Common, "He isn't really saying much aside from swearing, curses, and a vow to have babies so he and his children can eat all the ugly people like us."

Tread stabs the thing in the eye to shut it up. "What a waste."

Grall delivers the body and its loot to the group.

Treasure: Though difficult to spot in the powerful,
churning currents, the skeletal remains of a long-dead
explorer makes up the tatzlwyrms’ meager horde. A DC 12
Perception check spots the skeleton wedged in the debris.
The skeleton still wears a suit of +1 scale mail, while clutched
in one bony hand is a masterwork cold iron longsword. A
DC 18 Perception check reveals additional treasure in the
rubble and mud below the skeleton within a rotting leather
backpack that contains 38 gp, 520 sp, a pewter drinking
stein worth 12 gp, a silver ring worth 35 gp, a jade carving
of a nude female elven monk worth 85 gp, and a watertight
scroll tube. Inside the tube is a partially completed map of
the northwest corner of the Greenbelt that seems to indicate
that the explorer approached from the north, reached
the source of the Skunk River, and was working his way
downriver. The PCs can use this partially completed map
to aid in exploring all of the hexes of the map that form a
triangle between areas A, B, and U—exploring these hexes
with the map’s aid takes half as long as normal, and areas
I, J, and N are noted on the map.

"So this is what became of the last one to try and map this place out," Grall says, "I wonder what that says of the ones who hired you to follow in his footsteps."

"Yeah I don't think any of us would have survived very long without the others," Joey says, "Unless this one's team abandoned his body, I'd wonder more what made him think he could handle this hostile land alone."

"Surprisingly common assumption among bandits."

  "The only reason we're getting anything even close to support, is that we seem to be the first explorers to not die within a week of those taking up the free offer of 'explore and keep what you find, no strings attached we swear'."

Shelly squeaks, "Technically no strings attached. They just don't mention the danger up front. Though it should be obvious from the fact others have gone on ahead of you."

Tread looks at the nude elf monk inquisitively. "...what was he doing with this? I guess he found it somewhere in this area?"

Shelly squeaks, "Or he just admired the beauty of a naked elf girl."

Tread pffs... "Doubt it. The kind of people who take up this dangerous life are either like us; interested in justice, or like the bandits; interested in money. This statue is worth more to explorers for its coin value." she stuffs it in her own backpack.

Shelly peeks at the map. "Oh boy! This guy did some mapping for us!"

"Sorry, Shelly," Joey says, "We've already explored the areas he mapped.  And did a better job of mapping from the looks of it.  Let's at least bury this poor fellow."

"Let's burn 'im," Grall suggests, "And the big snakes too if you're worried about giant zombie snakes."

He gets to work building a pyre.

  "I would go with Grall, but it could take longer than usual for them to burn considering he's been river scenery for this long."

  Shame about the redundant map though, but at least it suggests the did not miss anything on the way.

Tread agrees to burning. There is already a tatzlwyrm head back at Oleg's and really, she can't think of much other use for the creatures.

Shelly says a prayer for the dead and for their souls to move on. Spirits whisper as she prays.

Being wet didn't seem to slow down the burning process any longer than it normally takes.  The night and following morning pass without event.  About lunch time, the group comes upon something of note.

V. Trapp ed Thylacine
(CR 3; Standard)
Creature: A series of quick, yipping barks come from an
open pit in a clearing here. The pit, once covered by a
layer of branches, has claimed a brush thylacine, and the
hungry creature paces the confines of the 10-foot-square,
20-foot-deep pit in a frenzy.
Anyone who comes within 5 feet of the pit’s edge causes the
side to slip away. A DC 15 Reflex save prevents a 20-foot-fall
into the pit and exposure to the frantic thylacine’s hunger.

Joey doesn't approach, but Grall begins to get closer to take a look down the pit.

  The dice continue to hate the party avoiding obvious lurking hazzards, so Scott can't tell Grall that taking a peek into a hole with a wild animal inside it is probably a bad idea for his face.

Shelly is curious about the creature too and goes to the hole, some food ready.

Tread seems to hang back, but not far behind Grall.

Grall and Shelly fall into the pit!  The animal yips in surprise, then snarles, ready to attack!  Just as it jumps for Shelly, Grall swings upward with his axe, sending the rat-dog's head flying out of the pit!

"Who makes a pit trap you can't stand at the edge of to recover your prey?!" Grall hollers in anger.

"Judging from the lack of any markings, I'm guessing the same trapper who's body we found smushed under one of his own traps," Joey surmises, "Is Shelly ok?"

"She's fine.  Throw us a rope, would ya?"

Joey gets on that.

  Scott gets ready to jump down after them, and instead catches a severed head.

  "So, this may be a bad time but thank you so much for being a reasonable person."  Geee, party vs Wrathful Grall.  That would have been bad is likely a vast understatement.

  "Glad to hear you both are going to be okay, welcome to every other day exploring the greenbelt Grall."  This said as he drops the head, and goes to help Joey with the rope.

Shelly gives Grall a hug while the rope is being lowered. "Thanks for the save, Grall!" she squeaks.

But she will grab the rope once offered.

Tread assists with bringing the two back up out of the hole.

Grall blushes from the adorable otter hug.  Not something he's used to.  "I... uh... sure!  Sure thing, Shelly."

Scott snaps him back to his usual "cheerful" self.  He'll help the little squeaker up out of the hole first before climbing out himself.

"Thanks for the rope."

"You're welcome," Joey says, not having anything else to add other than his holy healing aura to restore both Grall and the princess back to full health.

"And the heals too."

"No problem."

  "At least it wasn't a very good trap, which is the only pleasant surprise about this whole thing."  You take 10 feet of fall damage.  That's the trap.  Then again, that could have easily killed someone in this system.  Your wizard fell on his keys and takes three damage, he dies.

Tread says, "Well next time, I'll tie a rope to whoever wants to peak and hold the other end." After all, she is definitely strong enough to hold up any one of her allies, no problem. "Grall, you volunteering as the scout then? You seem both tough and eager."

Shelly smiles brightly.

"And I can turn invisible," Grall boasts proudly, "Yeah, I'll be your scout..."

He eyes Scott.

"Though I've been accused of being near blind and deaf.  If Scott here is more perceptive, he might be a more practical choice.  Either way's fine with me."

Joey looks over at Scott.  "Yea, my vote is for Scott."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:18, Mon 24 Feb 2014.

  The wonders of having actual points in Perception, even if you only have a 14 Wisdo-Sweet Kord Grall's negative stats.  Maybe The difference between 5 and 6 Int is why Grall holds conversations beyond laying eggs and people eating?

  "May as well, not like I would be going so far ahead of everyone you wouldn't know if I ran into a problem anyways."  Of course you still rolled a 1 on that pit check.

Tread sounds unsure as she asks, "Do I sense tension in the group? Because we should take care of any of that if we want to live."

Shelly huhs?

"Huh?" Grall says, looking over at Tread in confusion.

"Well... you were blushing before..." Joey points out.

Grall sputters, face turning red again.  "WHAT?!  NO!  Sometimes my face gets red when I lop a starving rat-dog's head off in a rage!  Don't know what you're talking about!"

Joey chuckles.  "Fair enough."

  Right, it has nothing to do with being hugged by an adorable fuzzy (who is haunted).  "I think we're good,  though if Grall wants a minute before we get going again that's fine too."

  Once world map travel is good to go, he'll hope his perc checks don't fail so bad in warning the party of the next 8 random encounters in the next two tiles.

Tread smiles and says, "Alright then. Let's get going. I'm sure Grall is ready if the rest of us are."

She continues onward.

Shelly trots along with the others, giggling.

The day and night and next morning pass uneventfully.  The next day's exploring is in the area where the fangberries were.

"This place," Joey recalls, "Watch for swarms of spiders."

No spiders attack, though.

No so forgettable can't remember if it was kobolds or goblins willing to fight to the death over said berries either  "Maybe the spiders got bored waiting for us and went home."

Shelly sings a haunting tune as the team wanders. (This'll work for the general feel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxYqyWgYNyE ) The occasional spirit moans in harmony with her at random, sounding like whales in the background.

Tread mostly keeps an eye out for her team, making sure everyone stays together. Though she does occasionally comment about "if only Eli were here..."

Joey of course compliments Shelly's singing.  Another uneventful day, night, and morning.  The group comes upon the rickety bridge across the Torn River they encountered long ago.

"We really should get this thing fixed up at some point," Joey says, "But I suppose until it's within the legal borders of our kingdom, it's best to leave it as-is."

"Afraid of someone complaining you fixed it?" Grall asks in some confusion.

"No...  Just worried it'll be considered a waste of kingdom money if our people don't directly benefit from it."

"Tsh.  Politics."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:32, Tue 25 Feb 2014.

  "If exploring expense caused by exploring are not justified, then what exactly are we allowed to call exploring expenses?"  Not like they can get people to fix this right now, but seriously.

Shelly says, "Depends on the budget. If we have enough funds to fund both our exploration AND the bridge, then sure. But if not, it's not like we can dictate the terms of Restov's funding."

Tread says, "Could always just ask."

"I was under the impression that Restov's stipend was a one-time deal," Joey says, "And it was up to us to make a self-sufficient kingdom without any further funds from them."

Grall stays quiet and does his best to look like he's actually following the conversation.

  "If we have to keep going through this particular area in our travels, then I don't care if I have to drag hammers and boards from home and do it myself.  More than any money concerns, is if a workforce could even get here alive at the moment.  Let alone repair a bridge and return safely."

Tread says, "I'll help. Fixing a bridge shouldn't be TOO much work, especially with so many on our team who can swim and help from the water."

Shelly squeaks, "Just lemme know when and how to, and I'll help!"

"Heh, glad to hear you're all so eager to fix this old thing up," Joey says, "But Scott's right.  We need to be sure the experts can get here and back safely first.

"Well that's it for this leg of exploring.  Let's get back home and visit Eli."

The rest of the travel is uneventful.  Farmers stop work to wave and welcome their kingdom's ruler's back home.

  Scott waves back, because why not really.  "As expected, the place did not burn down while Eli was left in charge."  Are those high standards or low standards?  It's hard to tell these days.

Tread and Shelly also wave, both with bright smiles! The moment Eli gets word his friends are here, he rushes out to greet them with arms wide open! So much for his shyness. At least, when it comes to his closest friends.

Big fluffy fox hugs for little Eli.

"Good to see you again, Eli!  How've you been?"

  Metaphorical, or literal fluffy fox hugs now that they are back home?

  "Less things tried to kill us than usual.  Even then, I hope dealing with stuff here while we were out didn't make you wish that was the least of your problems."

Eli headshakes. "No... I'd rather deal with politics and people complaining than deal with something trying to kill my friends in front of me. I've learned the term 'out of sight, out of mind' is very true... in a good way, in my case. I trust you all to not get killed. But it was just so scary watching you get hurt or near-killed."

Shelly is sure to hug the boy also, smiling. Tread cuddles and pets Eli's hair. "Well you were missed. Even if I was glad you didn't have to deal with the violence when it did happen. But some day, we'll have these lands clear of all that stuff and you can travel with us, worry-free."

Joey being a kitsune, those would be literal in his case.  He chuckles at how much the boy gets smothered.  "We're all eager to repair that rickety old bridge over the Thorn River.  Maybe in your free time you could read up on how that's done and advise us.  But first, let's get something to eat and relax.  We can catch each other up on all that's happened."

  Scott nods, "A meal with a roof over our heads and something to talk about that's helpful sounds like a good idea."  He leaves the kid be, everyone else has the touchy feely stuff handled... That was terrible.

Eli is sure to give Scott a hug anyway. Then takes the group to the dining area, where he is usually joined by Addelworth. Eli tells Addelworth about the fact his friends want to fix the bridge even as Eli is pulling out some parchment to get started on drawing up a new bridge construction concept.

Tread, as usual, eats enough to feed 4 people easily. But then, all these adventurers usually have bigger appetites. What with working it off all the time.

Joey unrolls the map and shows the progress made then recounts the adventures had in each area.  Addleworth advises against building a bridge in an unclaimed area.  OOC: Game mechanics say anything that is outside the kingdom's borders will fall into disrepair in 1 month and any money spent on it is pretty much lost.

  "So what we need to do sometime, is take a look at all those still perfectly intact structures in unclaimed areas like that temple and see what makes them stay standing regardless."  It's because their remaining inconveniences the players more than their falling apart, duh.  Cost upkeep, travel time, and logistics only apply when the players have to deal with them.

Tread says, "Hmm... what about Nettle? Remember Nettle's Crossing? The guy had a legitimate business and it was enough to fund his bridge's upkeep. Maybe we could put a toll on the bridge like he did? He didn't have to be nobility to claim a single bridge as his personal property..."

OOC: Realize about game mechanics, but just roleplaying how my characters react to this. Besides... repairing the bridge is basically just spending money to say "can we please not have a trapped bridge we look for ways to avoid anyway?" Obviously, though, if this is too much against the module, totally cool with moving on with a handwave "well you can't do it because reasons"

"Good point," Joey agrees with Tread, "Let's be sure to encourage any entrepreneur interested in maintaining that bridge."

He thinks Scott has a strange idea of what "perfectly intact" means if he's applying it to the temple of the cursed bear...

OOC: "The thick tangle of brambles gives way into a large clearing
in the woods, its border partially defined by ruined stone
pillars.

Other descriptors include "weathered," "old and are thickly encrusted with layers of moss," and "overgrown."

Not that I expect us to ever have to deal with losing territory, but I agree with the module writers that the kingdom should lose what was invested in any territory lost.  What I don't get is that they were apparently very generous in the case of fixing this bridge.  Seems it was assumed to be included in the cost of building a road in that hex because they wave the normal cost of having to pay double for a road that needs a bridge built.  In other words, falling apart bridge counts for the same money wise as brand-new one.  But that's once you claim the hex and spend money on roads."

Addleworth agrees.  "The cost of that will be trivial and you won't have to worry about fixing the bridge with public funds.  And a private toll bridge tends to charge reasonable enough rates if they want to stay in business, so no worries about that either.  Just be sure to make it clear that once you claim that area, the business owner must abide by your kingdom's laws just like anyone else within your borders."

The month of Sarenith.  Time of the Summer Solstice.
OOC: Festivals:
Ritual of Stardust (Desna): Festival held in the evening and through the night, where Desna's faithful sing songs and throw sand and powdered gems into bonfires.

Sunwrought Festival (Sarenrae): Day commemorating the defeat of Rovagug by Sarenrae, celebrated with the flying of kites, fireworks, and gift giving.
Joey is sure to spend most of his free time working with Jhod in making sure the festivals are enjoyed by everyone.

  Scott hopes that his referring to the Sunwrought Festival as 'Kitesplosion Day' is not taken as disrespectful to Saranrae, but also sorta hopes that name becomes more popular.

  As for intact, he's more thinking along the lines of still standing with no chance of falling apart beyond looking cosmetically old.  Weathered stone temples aren't exactly something strange to his upbringing, after all.

  Through the festival between hanging out with friends and dealing with duties, he hands out gifts to his friends and took a bit of time to set up a cave bear pinata full of wrapped candies out of his own time and pocket for the townsfolk to smash and loot.

Tread watches the pinata and wistfully says, "If only the cave bear we fought dropped any loot at all, much less candy. Instead, we got a really old man who turned to ash and blew away."

Eli says, "At least its not a danger anymore."

Tread gave a bunch of kites as gifts to her friends. Each kite was tailored to them, having pictures on them (Such as a fist for Scott, a spellbook for Eli, a fox for Joey, an orc face for Grall, and a fish for Shelly. Tread's has a sword on it).

Shelly's gift to everyone were some tailored swimsuits. Obvious where she's going with that. Tread's, of course, looks big enough to be a hammock for Shelly.

Eli's gift to everyone is to show that he had the adventures all recorded in a book. There is still plenty more blank pages and he's excited to continue filling it.

Grall and Akiros are surprised by gifts given to them and thank the givers, but they are unprepared to return the gesture.  Auchs is very pleased by even the slightest thing given and will give gifts he considers to be interesting in return.  A shiny rock.  A mouse tail.  A human tooth.  Whatever random thing he happens to have in his pocket.  Joey gives a affordable but elegant jewelry to the girls and to the guys gives practical gifts like a well crafted wallet to Scott, an abacus to Eli, and so on.  He doesn't seem to mind Scott's nickname for the holiday and gets a kick out of the pinata.

"Well there was also that other bear we fought," Joey points out, "I'd say we have every right to want to hit representations of wildlife, but I'm glad it's not an Elk pinata.  People might think we hate all stags and make a logical leap that we oppose Erastil.  Who's holiday is next month, by the way."

  Scott thanks everyone for their gifts, and says it's fine for those without.  He also decides it's probably for the best not to ask where that tooth came from.

  "Really, a festive smashing object of anything will offend somebody somewhere.  This one fits more candy in it than an Elk would have anyways."

If Tread had been Maverick, she would have loved getting the rock. Instead, she only appreciates it and finds it to be kinda pretty. She has it set on her personal desk. Eli seemed a bit more fascinated with the mouse tail than maybe he should have been... and stuck it in a jar with some kind of preservative liquid. Shelly is happy to play catch with Auchs, using the ball he gave her.

Tread says, "Your pinata was a great idea, Scott. And well... frankly, no matter what you do, you will offend someone somewhere."

Shelly squeaks, "Agreed. So are we going to go swimming some time?" :)

Tread says, "For sure. Just a matter of when."

Eli is hugging Tread's side, watching the festival.

Joey will find time for swimming with Shelly.  Especially considering the kingdom just acquired an area with a nice, wide, river flowing through it.

OOC: Archer's Day or Archerfeast (Erastil): Holy day celebrated with archery contests, bartering for livestock, and the courting of women.

Joey isn't much for archery or livestock, but he does ask for a dance with the girls and encourages Eli to dance with them as well at the combo Archerfeast/Capitol City founding festival.  He'll also try and conspire to match make Scott with someone, but is mindful that he's an adventurer and likely not ready to settle down.  Grall... well...  Joey doesn't bother with Grall who's rather scarce during this festival anyway.

  Of course Scott will take up Shelly on her swim time request.   Gotta put those frivolously spent skill points to use somewhere.

  Scott is a bit more hazy on the direct courting of cute girls, but at the very least he spends time dancing with Tread and Shelly.  When they aren't busy dancing with Eli that is.

Eli is very shy about dancing with the girls. Not because of the implication that there might be crushing going on - Eli isn't even thinking about that at the moment. Rather, the fact he has to dance is scary for him. But with guidance, he gives in and dances with the girls, red-faced through most of it. He does finally get into it, though, and enjoys himself.

The girls, well, are in a great mood the whole time, giggle and chat with Svetlana about boys when they are sure the guys are far enough to not overhear them. Ultimately, though, they relax and have a good time.

At one point, poor Eli is being chased around by an aggressive little girl his age, who is making no bones about her crush on him.

Once the decision is made to build a castle on the ruins of the Stag Lord's Fort, Joey and Jhod bless the sight in a big ground-breaking ceremony.  Grall attends and asks the leaders gathered, "So is it going to be known as 'Stag City Castle?'  Or something else?"

Builders get started working with surprising speed, but apparently they've brought mages to aid in the construction with magic.

  "Honestly, I'd prefer not to name the place after any form of horned animal.  Plus I don't think most people want a reminder of the bandit lord stealing from them and having their people threaten to cut off the hands of married couples, sorry Grall."  Emerald city however, is Copyrighted even if it might make an okay name for someplace in the Greenbelt.

  "I wish I had a larger vocabulary so I could more easily think of something that means building in spite of adversity."

"Tenacity? Steadfast?" Eli begins suggesting.

Tread says, "I like our city name having meaning like that... though Greenbelt City is always an option."

Shelly says, "Or Tuskwater City, since we are near the Tuskwater Lake."

Grall frowns and folds his arms, giving no answer.

"Tena City," Joey chuckles, "Has a ring to it.  Though I don't know why we'd change the name we'd decided on months ago.  I'm fine with anything that doesn't sound over-the-top like 'Paradise City' or 'Perfection'"

He smiles down at Shelly.  "By the way, I found out that in the kingdom of Andoran, this month is celebrated with swimming contests."

  "I must have been hit in the head recently if I agreed to Stag City, but then that happens a lot so I should learn to not use that as an excuse in the future."  Scott either doesn't notice Grall's displeasure, or is trying to not field the awkward 'I'm sorry your adoptive dad was an asshole to everyone but you' subject again.

Shelly smiles brightly at the mention of a swimming contest. "Alright! I can't wait to see who all attends and competes!"

Tread looks at the others. "Sooo... any vote for Tenacity besides Joey?"

Eli cracks a smile. He raises a hand.

Shelly says, "As long as it isn't Tenacity City; that could get weird for people to say."

"Anything but Stag City, check," Joey notes, "Maybe Tuskwater because that's the name of the lake we're on?"

He looks again to Shelly, "The kingdom of Andoran is a long way away, Shelly."

A name is decided on eventually and Joey is sure to have all the signs and maps changed.

16 Armasse (Aroden, Iomedae): Holy day where commoners are trained to fight and historical tales are told with the hope that someone will learn from them.[3]

  Scott nods,  "Tenacity and Tuskwater both sound like good ideas, seems like more of us like the first one at the moment.  I will admit, the second one stands out better even if the first one is the kind I was thinking of."

  How many signs did they even have by this point anyway?

Shelly gets a mischievous smile and responds to Joey, "Well if any body of water connects us to Andoran, I bet I could swim there in time."

Eli enjoys the company of his friends, riding on Tread's shoulders (the view is incredible up there).

Tread is sure to check on people and make sure everything is running smoothly. She also lends a hand.

The following month, the month of Rova, named after the god of destruction, it is decided to build a noble villa on the waterfront.  Addleworth applauds the idea and invests some of his own money in order to move in now that he has a proper place to consider his home away from home.  But it is easily large enough to accommodate several wealthy people.  Joey keeps his domicile close to the office within the castle where he does most of his work.

Early Autumn
First Brewing (Cayden Cailean): The date of this religious holiday changes from year to year, but usually occurs about a month after the harvest of crops used for alcoholic beverages. Cayden's priests use this holiday to bless the harvest and reflect on the hard work of the Accidental God's devotees.[13]

19
Day of the Inheritor (Iomedae): Holiday commemorating the church of Iomedae's adoption of the forlorn faithful of the dead god Aroden into their midst.[3]

Autumnal Equinox
Swallowtail Festival (Desna): Holiday celebrated with storytelling, feasting, and the release of butterflies.[3]

  <brown>"I'm sure if you asked, people would be willing to try swimming contests here as well Shelly."<brown>  She's adorable enough that people sure they will lose would probably be okay.

  Scott isn't so picky about his room in the Villa.  He's still trying to adjust to the concept of having a bed in the first place.

Tread doesn't mind having the room farthest from the castle... it's less noisy. She has to have a custom bed made, but at long last, Tread is sleeping in a bed her own size.

Shelly especially wants a room farthest from the castle simply because she wants to be near the lake. Shelly is also very involved in the entertainment area

Eli makes sure there is efficient access to the castle while also being well-guarded. He then has a policy set up for a go-to office so that if an urgent matter comes up, people can go to that office. And, if it's urgent enough, the person running said office can come wake up one of the rulers.

On Eli's advice, it is decided to build an Exotic Craft shop the following month.  Month of The Demon Queen.

Lamashan

Second Moonday
Harvest Feast: Harvest celebration marking the end of many agricultural activities with the coming of winter.[3]

6
Ascendance Day (Iomedae): Holiday marking the ascension of the goddess Iomedae after taking the Test of the Starstone.[3]

27
Jestercap (Andoran, Druma, Taldor): Holiday marked by the playing of many practical jokes; particularly popular among gnomes.[3]

30
Allbirth (Lamashtu)

  Scott has to remind himself that not everyone is so shrug over the coming of freezing winter, or as he and the temple monks used to call it, Tuesday.  So when not busy with what little [airquotes]Leadership[/airquotes] duties he has, he helps out with the harvest.

Eli seems to be getting excited about his upcoming birthday, when he will turn 9 years old.

On Ascendance Day, Tread tells about how as a child, she always looked up to Iomedae. Today, she tries to use Iomedae as an example of what she should do in given circumstances.

Shelly is all kinds of excited about the exotic craft store and suggests to the team that maybe it would be a good idea to find some exotic things to commission the store to make for Eli's upcoming birthday.

On the 27th, Shelly's pranks are legion. She does about a dozen pranks per friend, and on top of that, pulls a few practical jokes on the citizenry. It becomes clear she is very experienced at doing this sort of thing when the others notice Shelly somehow manages to use her position of power to cause mass-pranks, yet no prank ever hurts anyone. The squeaking seabear is shown to squeak a LOT that day, as it tends to accompany her laughter.

Shelly will find many water related pranks pulled on her that month.  Joey chuckles when targeted by a Shelly prank and is sure to give her plenty of noogies.  He commends Tread's respect for Iomedae and also suggests the group go exploring soon since winter is coming.

  Scott is very glad Shelly is too cute to get annoyed with, the fact her gigglesqueak fits make it sound like she's got an brutal case of the hiccups also helps there.

  "Yes, as nice as it has been setting up something of a home here we do have more outdoors work to do.  Though at least by now, we have dealt with around half the greenbelt."

Turns out, Shelly can take a joke as good as she can dish 'em. So she winds up complimenting anyone who pranked her... unless a given prank was dangerous, hurtful, or deadly. Those, she is sure to give a talking to.

Tread says, "I still wonder if the worst is behind us. After all... we found a dead unicorn. That can't be a good sign. But we're the only ones I know of who are capable of navigating the greenbelt without dying."

Eli says, "I... really wanna go with you... but I'm scared. Maybe when I've built up more confidence..."

Shelly says, "We'll only be gone a short time. I promise we'll be smart about what dangers we face."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:31, Sat 01 Mar 2014.

"Let's start with the Sootscale Kobold area," Joey suggests, "I doubt the worst is behind us, but we've been there before, so we know our way around, and we can pay the kobolds a visit.  Offer a trade agreement for the silver, maybe.  Or at least find out how they'll react to being within our borders should we claim that territory."

  "Thanks for the concern Eli, at least we know you'll keep the place running well while we're trooping around."    He nods to Joey, "Makes sense.  I somehow doubt we'll be so pressed for land that we will need to do anything put set up for mining, hard part will having them believe that at all."   No, it's cool.  We only need to put a blue border on this map so our Mine doesn't mysteriously collapse.  Yes I know that sounds crazy, why?

Once the group is ready to head out, Tread and Shelly follow Joey out of the kingdom. They both look back a few times. Tread smiles and says, "We sure have accomplished a lot in a year..."

Joey counts on his fingers.  "It's only been seven months.  First two were the real hard part.  Defeating the bandits and what not.  Ruling a kingdom is turning out to be a lot easier than I ever expected.  But yeah.  We sure have."

When the group explores its way to the Sootscale Kobold lair, they find the place abandoned.  There's a weathered note just inside the mine attached to a rope hanging from the ceiling.  "Cave haunted.  Not enough fish here.  Went south."

  "Well, that's surprising."  After a moment, he feels the need to clarify.  "The Kobolds leaving, not the apparent haunting."

"Well, not enough fish can be a deal breaker." Shelly says as a breeze blows her hair a little. She's definitely used to haunting.

Tread says, "I sure am glad they told us where they went. We still planning to check on them? If so, we need to go south."

Joey nods.  "We'll have to deal with the ghosts should we ever open this mine, but let's leave it be for now.  Was planning to go East from here, then South then West back home.  Less likely to miss them that way anyway because we'll cover more ground."

The night, morning, and next day's exploring are uneventful.

  Right, Shelly is an expert on both subjects after all.  "Hopefully they have as much luck traveling as we have the past day or so."

Tread and Shelly, of course, have little issue with the idea and follow along. Shelly is pretty excited about following the river on the way home.

Another uneventful day of exploring until Joey spots something.

Part Three:
The Lonely Barrow
The isolated barrow mound of a fallen barbarian warriorking
has stood in this section of the Kamelands for
untold thousands of years. Over time, the earth near
the mound subsided, opening a crack in the side of the
tomb.  This, along with the fact that the
tomb is not easily distinguished from the other grassy
knolls dotting the landscape, means that the barrow has
gone undiscovered for many centuries. Once this hex
is explored, a DC 15 Perception check reveals the crack
in the side of a hill that leads into the barrow mound’s
interior. The Lonely Barrow’s interior is unlit and its
ceilings average 7 feet high.

  "So, considering Grall and Shelly were stuck looking at the last big hole, I figure I should take a look first in this case."

"Remember the new rule" Tread warns, "I tie a rope to you and if you fall, I catch you and pull you up."

Shelly smiles and says, "Good luck, Scott!"

"What they said," Joey agrees.  Grall just yawns, not expecting anything, thinking the others are being way too paranoid.

F1. Entryway (CR 4)
The walls of this octagonal chamber are decorated with crude
mosaics of simple village life: hunting, fishing, and farming.
A thick carpet of guano covers the floor—it’s crawling with
insects, and the sharp tang of ammonia hangs in the air. A
cobweb-filled tunnel to the east leads deeper underground.
Creatures: Hundreds of bats make their home in this
room, flying through the open doorway each night to feed.
If disturbed, the bats fly about frantically.

  Scott quietly sneaks into the cave.  There is an awkward pause, and then he turns around and leaves.  Once he is back with the others he says.  "Yeah, a few hundred bats in there.  Not that I would suggest attempting such a thing, but I don't think we could defile the barbarian gravesite in there any more than nature already has.  Let's go."

Tread looks at the others. Then back at Scott. "Yeah. We can come back with an expedition team in case there is treasure down there. But for now, let's just mark it on the map."

"Sounds good to me," Joey says, "Maybe if Eli tags along he can cast a nice spell to ensure all those bats remain docile."

Grall doesn't complain at this boring outcome.  Swarms of bats don't hack up easy with a double axe.  That night during Scott's watch, a monster sneaks up to the sleeping heroes...

  Scott finally rolled good on Perception, but of course the monster not only rolls a 18, but has twice the skill modifier as a PC putting a point into Perc every single leve.

A wild barghest appears!  It casts some depressing magic on the group!  Grall and Tread are hit with crushing despair!  Grall wakes, groans, stands, and moves to flank with Tread!

  Scott irritable walks up to the critter and uppercuts it right in the jaw, cracking it and puncturing the top of it's mouth with it's own fangs.

  "Trying. To. Sleep."  He mutters as little stars swirl around the creature's head.

Tread stands up and moves to be in the Barghest's face!

Shelly gets up suddenly as if she had been wide awake already. "HALT!" she commands, and the Barghest seems frozen in abject horror at the command of the oracle.

Tread proceeds to stab the thing.

Joey heals Tread, Scott stunns the monster bloody, and Grall twin-strikes!  In the blink of an eye, the enemy barghest is defeated!

"Everyone OK?" Joey asks.

"Fine," Grall says, spitting on the bloody heap of a monster, "The heck was that thing?"

"A barghest.  An evil, shape changing, spell casting, extraplanar outsider that gains power by consuming the bodies of innocent victims.  Known to ally with goblinoids."

"Lovely."

  "Complete jerk, got it."  At least he can't blame nature this time.  "You'd think things would learn not to bother us in our sleep by now, but no."

Tread says, "I'm fine, thanks to you. Good job everyone..."

Shelly squeaks, "You get frequently attacked in your sleep?"

"I'm sure Eli would have a more accurate statistic, but I'd say once every ten nights or so we're ambushed," Joey answers.

The following morning and afternoon are uneventful.  Around dinner time the group is hailed at a distance by a sootscale kobold who approaches and greets the group.

  Scott waves hello to the tiny scaled person.  "Hello, we saw your note.  How is your tribe holding up after the move?"

Tread is quite happy to see the kobold and waves excitedly! "a friendly face..." she mutters in quiet relief.

Shelly curiously watches the unfamiliar (to her and Grall) kobold approach. She'll let the team introduce her and Grall when it's convenient.

Joey of course introduces Shelly and Grall.  Grall just watches the exchange with arms folded.

"Where little human who speak Draconic?" the kobold asks, "Tribe much better now.  Much more fish."

  "Eli is dealing with keeping things running back home, while we travel and get attacked by wildlife.  It is good to hear you are doing well, is there anything you can tell us about that haunting aside from the general 'place is haunted'?"

Shelly tail wags at the mention of fish.

Tread asks, "How about leading us to the others and you catch us up on the way there?"

"Yes!  Me show way."

From the sounds of things the haunting was just an annoyance.  Creepy sounds every now and then.  Nothing compared to the Curse of Sharptooth.  Which has apparently become rather epic in the retelling.  Joey stifles a chuckle.  The group is taken to the tribe which has made a small village out of driftwood, mud, and whatnot.  Chief Sootscale greets the group and offers a raw fish to each hero.

"A feast for the heroes!  Where's the little human?"

Joey re-explains.  Sootscale ahs.

  "Thank you for the offer, we appreciate it.  Well, that and there being anything reasonable at all out in these lands aside from us."

Shelly ooos and aaaahs at the tails with the other kobolds, clearly sharing their enthusiasm. She can't be sure if the kobolds are exaggerating or her friends were just humble in their telling of the same tale. But she figures both to be honest with their feelings on the matter. Shelly doesn't seem to mind having raw fish.

Tread, of course, is sure to cook hers. Tread and Shelly both thank the kobolds for their fish!

Shelly says, "I plan to swim the span of these rivers some time, so keep an eye out and you may see me sometime!"

Tread adds, "When there's time, that is. Between running a kingdom and clearing the Greenbelt of its dangers, I doubt you'll have time to swim all the rivers until the entire Greenbelt is claimed in the name of Summershield."

Joey adds his thanks for the fish.

"You're welcome.  Summershield?  What's that?"

"That's the name of the kingdom we're building."

"Kingdom?  Good luck with that.  Greenbelt hates buildings.  Even simple huts like ours."

"Huts build easy," another kobold offers, "When Greenbelt break your buildings, make huts."

"Race!" a young kobold challenges Shelly, "There and back!"

He points at the opposite shore of the river.

  Scott nods,  "Somehow, I do not doubt the Greenbelt is a petty and vindictive area.  I will admit calling it a kingdom so far feels in name only, but it is a home we have had a decent start with."

   He smiles at the more little than usual kobold challenging Shelly to Swim O'Clock.

Shelly's eyes go wide as she briefly doesn't believe she was just challenged to a swimming race ( http://images6.fanpop.com/imag...34930193-706-486.png ). She then smiles impishly. "As long as you understand I won't hold back."

Shelly hurries off to the river.

Tread comments, "That... is an impressive kobold swimmer. To swim across the river and back is no small deal."

Thanks to running rules also applying to other forms of speed such as swim speed, Shelly can swim 280 feet in a single round.

While Shelly swims, Tread turns to Chief Sootscale and says, "Thanks for the wishes of luck. If the kingdom prospers, though, you and your tribe are more than welcome to join the kingdom if you wish."
This message was last edited by the player at 05:25, Mon 03 Mar 2014.

The kid realizes very quickly just how very outclassed he is and he just stares in awe at Shelly's speed rather than continue the race.  So does the rest of the tribe.

"That..." Sootscale begins, at a loss for words.

Joey chuckles, though it shows he's impressed.

"I guess she's been holding back in our swims."

  "Yeah, I got a long way to go to even tread water under harsh conditions.  At least she makes it look good while making it look easy."

Tread gulps at the sight. "...gosh. I thought I could swim."

Shelly soon realizes she is being watched and that the race has already been forfeited, so she proceeds to be a show-off and does various acrobatics, such as shooting like a rocket out of the river to do flips. She eventually returns to shore with a big grin. "Heee.... I've been waiting for a chance to really push myself. Can you tell I like swimming?"

"If Eli were here, I'm sure he'd be quantifying your swimming about now..." Tread comments.

....actually, Eli would just be in awe like everyone else. And then quantify it later after the shock wore off.

Joey laughs.  "Yes, Shelly.  I can tell.  Very impressive display, there."

He bends over to gently nudge the little otter.  The Kobolds look uneasy and look to Sootscale who puts on a brave face.

"Yes.  Impressive."

  Punching clear through a rider and mount the Kobolds can take, but fancy swimming OH SWEET MERCIFUL TIAMAT the horror.

  "I can see why you were fine with the idea to put the villa by the waterfront."

Shelly grins. "Thanks, everyone!" she squeaks.

Tread sits down near the chief and whispers. "Why are your people nervous?"

If they think Shelly swimming is scary, wait till they notice her haunting...

Sootscale tries to put it into words.  "Don't want her to know we're jealous.  Swimming is our life."

"Adorable too!" Joey comments with another chuckle, "And I really like that lake view too."

  "If it helps, I'm a little jealous myself.  Just ten more levels until you are sure to not cause yourself damage by swimming Scott.  You'll get there, maybe.

Tread smiles and whispers, "It's very considerate of you to not make her feel bad. And if it makes you feel any better, she is basically a water creature, born for swimming. And an oracle of the water gods." Tread knows the feeling. Heck... she is training hard just to compensate for the penalties her armor gives her.

Shelly gives Joey a big-eyed smile. "Thanks!" she squeaks. She then looks at Grall and encourages him to socialize. Though thanks to Akiros, Shelly has learned to not be as pushy as she normally would have been.

Grall headshakes.  "Probably best I not speak my mind."

Joey can't really imagine what might be going through the Orc's mind other than admiration for Shelly's swimming, and what's the harm in talking about that?  He shrugs and decides to brag some on Grall to the kobolds, recounting the orc's kills.  The kobolds cheer and ask what Tatzlwyrm tastes like.

Sootscale nods grimly.  "That helps, thanks."

The group is invited to camp at the village and the following morning more fish is served for breakfast.

  The Kobold camp already scores big points for no ambushes in the middle of the night.  Free caught breakfast that isn't rations is just a bonus at this point.

Hard to say whether it's lucky for Grall or lucky for Shelly that the seabear can't read minds like Eli. But his wisdom in keeping to himself what he considers bad thoughts is appreciated regardless.

Shelly so easily has warmed up to the kobolds. And she lets her charisma do the rest. Tread continues to thank them for the warm welcome and pulls out a surprise for them; Radishes! Having known she was going to visit them, Tread had brought them along just for this occasion.

The kobolds are blown away by Tread's gift.  Like when Buu was blown away by Vegeta: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GM_sV81nCUo  Some are moved to tears by the overwhelming generosity of the "most beautiful giant ever!"

Joey stifles a chuckle.  "Gotta agree with them there.  You are the most beautiful tall lady ever."

Grall chuckles.  "Jeez.  It's just radishes."

Sootscale headshakes solemnly.  "A pity not everyone can appreciate radishes as much as we can.  Oh well.  More for us!  Come back any time, Tread!"

  Scott says to Grall "By now, I'm sure you believe me when I say some other kobolds fought to the death just because we were anywhere near where some grew."

Tread puts a hand to her cheek, blushing. "Gosh... you're welcome. But that is what friends do."

Once the group is ready to move on, the two girls are sure to give a proper "until next time" to the kobolds and wave as they head off with the others.

A wild manticore appears!

This creature has a vaguely humanoid head, the body of a lion,
and the wings of a dragon. Its tail ends in long, sharp spikes.

It flies up to be about 25 feet in the air and hovers, wagging its tail.

  Oh hey, this one has a person face... But then again, it's an Ambush check, not a general encounter check and kitty wagging tail is the opposite of dog wagging tail.

  Either way, Scott's sling stone goes woefully wide.

"That was pathetic!" the manticore taunts Scott.

Grall vanishes then javelins the manticore!

"Come say that to his face, COWARD!"

The manticore roars and whips its tail!  Four spikes shoot from the tail at the heroes, one piercing Joey's arm!

"Fall!" Joey commands the manticore.

It laughs at him.  "Nice try, priest!"

  Monks shrugs, moves up a bit so it can't projectile spam him without missing everyone else, and rock fails again.

Shelly rushes to heal Joey with a touch! Spirits can be heard whispering on the winds as she does so...

Tread throws a javelin at the manticore and nicks him.

"Thanks for the heal, Shelly," Joey says.

Grall poofs and javelins the mangicore again.

"Or stay up there and be my pin cushion!" Grall taunts, "Fine with me!"

The manticore roars in rage again!  Again it flings spikes, only this time, it sends all four at Grall!  The spikes near kill the orc, but Grall stays standing!

"Not so funny now, are you, orc?"

Grall spits up some blood.

"We'll just keep healing whatever damage you dish out," Joey says, casting a heal on Grall, "Surrender!"

Shelly says, "Fall." and the manticore feels a stronger tug on his mind. His wounds must be widdling away at his resolve.

Tread throws another javelin. "Don't kill him yet!" she calls out as her javelin nicks him again.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:34, Mon 03 Mar 2014.

  Scott time loops his success rate.  "I'd have to hit him first for you to worry about that."

Grall javelins the manticore again, this time piercing its chest!

"Appreciate it..." Grall mutters to Joey, "But I wouldn't draw attention to that fact."

"Can't heal a dead man!" the Manticore hollers!

It again near kills Grall with a volley of spikes, one spike near missing Tread, then begins to fly away!

Grall gives chase and throws another javelin, missing his target!

"It's getting away!" Joey says, chasing after Grall to heal him.

He then takes out his bow.

Shelly heals Grall with a touch. "Not laughing now, are you, lionface?!" she squeaks, tossing the manticore's own taunt back at it.

  "Well rock, it's just you and me now."  He steps up, and hurls his fist sized lump of rock at the retreating Manticore.

  The sound department was caught off guard at Scott not only landing a hit, but the knockout blow.  So in their rush they play a sound clip of bowling pins being struck as the Manticore takes one to the Minicore, dropping it from the sky like... something hard and mineral based?

  "As good as that felt, wouldn't have worked without Grall filling it full of stab wounds first.  Speaking of Grall and stab wounds, how are you holding up?"

"Doing fine, considering," Grall says, marveling at all the spikes having magically removed themselves for the heals to be effective, "Nice shot.  You even kept it alive.  I would ask what on earth posesssed Tread to ask we spare it, but I really do NOT mind this outcome.  Heh heh heh."

He cracks his knuckles, approaching the manticore menacingly.

Joey puts the bow away and gets to tying up the prisoner.

Tread helps with tying up the manticore and says, "I'll tell you why.. two reasons. For one, I want information. For another, I will admit to wanting to rub it in this guy's face he was beaten." she then slaps it around a bit to wake it up.

  Nothing quite like seeing the other guy turned into a pin cushion to lessen comparing how good in a fight you are in one's thoughts.  "It is true that most things out here trying to kill us don't even talk much beyond 'I KILL YOU', I guess variety might have been another reason."

"Information?" Grall asks, "Ok...  Glad I'm not the only one on that second part, though."

The manticore wakes.

"Hey, moron!  Tell the tall lady what she wants to know or I'll give you a new ear piercing!"

He waves one of the tail spikes threateningly at the manticore.  It roars and struggles against its bonds.

"I'm thinking a live manticore could make for a very impressive trophy," Joey says, "Maybe boost respect for our nation."

Tread says, "Good point, Joey. And the threat of becoming a human's pet might even scare monsters more than the chance of dying." she then looks down at the manticore. "This is the first I've seen your kind. Are there any others of your kind in the Greenbelt?"

Shelly is careful not to get too close to the manticore. But she holds out a fist to Scott. "Gratz on the sweet take-down, Scott." she squeaks.

  "I'm going to have to say now about keeping it as a pet.  Not for moral reasons, but practical safety ones.  Who here can honestly tell me with a straight face, that he won't bust out and kill some innocent civilian?"

  He nods to Shelly, "Thanks."

"Not to mention the cost even if that never happens," Joey agrees with Scott, "A stuffed manticore, then."

The manticore hisses and roars and struggles.  "Of course there are!  There's thousands of us!"

Grall gladly makes good on his threat, jamming the spike through the manticore's ear!  It roars in pain!

"That's an obvious lie."

Shelly squeaks at the roar and hops a little before just squirming and holding her knuckles to her mouth.

Tread nods to the points made. "Look.. would you rather die than answer truthfully? If so, you can save us lots of time. On the other hand, we could use a short rest after that fight, so I could just let Grall have fun with you while we rest. And then kill you."

  "Knowing this place, I wouldn't be surprised if there were that many manticores purely because it would inconvenience us.  But I somehow doubt it they are that organized, there are more of them in the sense there are more bargests or other things that try to kill and eat us."

  Tread and Grall seem to have the right idea.  Though he does go to put a comforting hand on Shelly (he hasn't punched anything to death so they are clean right now).

"Manticore mount is what I was thinking, heheh," Grall says, grinning.

"I got nothing more to say to you!" the manticore hollers before it begins to sing the most obnoxious, noisy song it can think to sing.  Grall knocks it out.

"I doubt that would work out terribly well, Grall," Joey says.

"Only half serious.  Would be a major hassle, yeah.  So we putting this thing out of our misery or what?"

"I think we've gone way beyond the second chance Sarenrae would have me offer the villain, so I vote yes."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:22, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

Tread says, "By all means... you know, things like this make me really wonder. See; heroes have something to fight for. Villains only have themselves to fight for. So what on Golarion causes a villain like this to be so stubborn in the face of death or pain? You'd think survival instincts or selfish desire at least would cause villains to squawk."

Shelly says, "Never underestimate the power of hate. Hate can be stronger than the love of one's self."

  "Spite in controlled usage can be rather effective.  After all, it helped me make that last shot.  But it loses it's practicality if it is the only mindset available.  Then you get into things like fighting to the death over radishes."

Joey nods.  "Evil will never make sense to me."

Grall is careful to make the finishing blow not damage the pelt too much and skins the manticore to later be turned into a trophy.  The only thing else of note that day is the discovery of a ford.

L. Gurdin River Ford (Landmark)
Normally quite deep along the majority of its length, the
Gurdin River becomes rather shallow here, creating a
navigable ford across its width.

During the following day's exploring, a warg and its pack of wolves attack!

After the group sweeps the floor with the pack of wolves, Tread helps Grall with skinning them. She was too uncomfortable skinning the manticore since its face resembled a human just a little too much.

Shelly prays about... something. She isn't praying aloud.

  "Are they called Wargs because that is the sound they make when you hit them in the face?"  Saxton Hale may have a growing approval of Scott.  But then Scott doesn't have chest hair in the shape of Australia.

Joey is sure to pray silently with Shelly.  The following day the group comes upon a poor fisherman...

QUEST: That Damn Turtle!
Source: Arven the fisherman.
Task: Arven has a secret fishing hole on the east
bank of the Tuskwater, but now an ill-tempered
beast has claimed the spot. The beast in question
is a semi-legendary hookjaw turtle named Old
Crackjaw. Kill him! Watch out for his chompers!
Completion: Kill (or drive off) Old Crackjaw from
Arven’s secret fishing hole.
Reward: Arven finds all sorts of things; he’ll give
whoever helps him a ring of feather falling he found
in a pike’s stomach as a reward.

K. Old Crackja w’s Den
(CR 4; Hidden)
A 3-mile stretch of the Tuskwater shoreline rises up above
the water below here, presenting a swath of 40-foot- high
cliffs and limiting access to the water below. The cliff tops
are thick with stinging nettles, but a DC 20 Survival check
made while exploring the hex reveals a hidden trail that
leads through the nettles and down a cliffside trail to a
secluded pool, 50 feet in diameter, at the Tuskwater’s edge.
If the PCs learn about this trail from Arven the fisherman
(see inside back cover), they can find the hidden trail
automatically when they explore this hex.
Creature: Fishing in this pool has traditionally been
quite good, but recently an enormous and particularly
ill-tempered hookjaw turtle (a more carnivorous version
of the alligator snapping turtle) has moved in to the pool.
This turtle is something of a legend to fishermen and
boaters of the Tuskwater—a seemingly indestructible
reptile named Old Crackjaw that has supposedly attacked
and killed dozens of fisherman and even caused no less
than five boats to sink or flounder. Old Crackjaw has
claimed this pool as his latest den, and anyone who enters
the water is immediately attacked by the oversized, angry
beast.

Tread says, "Well if Crackjaw is known for killing fishermen, then it is time it meets its end."

Shelly says, "And just think; if Crackjaw is a legend among fishermen, then if we have it as a trophy, we'll be legends among fishermen and have a fine conversation piece to chat with fishermen about. We'll be loved and admired just for taking out a critter we would have taken out anyway."

  Scott has Snapping Turtle Style as a feat (we forget if he was going to get the rest, it's been so long all planned progression has been forgotten), so dealing with an actual example of the animal is definitely going on the To-Do list.

  "Plus as vicious as I am expecting the animal to be, it would be less of a terrible idea to keep as a pet than a manticore.  Because people might be able to run from an escaped turtle.  But yes, definitely turtle soup later."

  Shredder would be proud.

Upon seeing the turtle aggressively attacking, Shelly squeaks, "Halt!" and the turtle is forced to stop. Shelly stabs the turtle in a soft spot Shelly's short size helps her find.

Tread hacks at it, but her sword bounces off its tough shell.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:38, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

  Scott skillfully grabs the violent turtle, holding it in place.  Unfortunately he underestimates how fat the turtles is and only manages to lift it an inch off the ground before it drops back down.  Still, progress!

  Now watch the turtle roll a 19 on escape or something to spite his bonuses to grappling.

Tread is chomped badly only for Shelly to touch her and heal her back good as new!

Tread so hits the turtle... for a little wound. She seriously needs a higher damaging weapon.

  Scott ows when chomped for about half his hitpoints (Thanks toughness!), but maintains his hold that allows the others to actually land damaging blows on the irritable reptile.

  The battle nearly over, Scott abandons his plan to flip over the turtle and frees one hand to pull out his hardly used Kama decapitate the turtle with a karate... judo... whatever the hell in DnD chop.

  He still keeps hold of the turtle until it is certain it is dead, in case it's a Secret Hydra or something.  "I think we got it." Crackjaw's severed head chomp chomps in circles for a few seconds before flopping over.  "...okay, NOW we got it."

"He decapitated it with his bare hands!?" Grall bellows in shock, "How is that even possible?!"

"How about an orc turning invisible without magic?" Joey counters.

"Hmm.  Point taken.  With all these trophies, we should head back to town, right?"

Crackjaw is heavier than all the other trophies combined, but with some effort his under-shell can be pried off to gut the rest.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:40, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

Tread nods. "I agree... goodness, what a vicious turtle. And I always pictured turtles as gentle creatures. Then again, same with elk and those have attacked us."

Shelly says, "When we get back home, let's not forget to spread the word of the turtle's defeat so fishermen can all rest a bit easier."

  "So far as I can tell from experience, the trick is it only works on what would have died anyways from a normal punch in the face.  Pretty sure you could easily do it if you tried Grall"  After all, not like Scott can decapitate or punch a hole clean through the average enemy before they die.

The fisherman rejoices!  He makes good on his promise and awards the ring to the heroes.  If only he knew that it was worth more than he makes in several years of fishing.

Event 2: The Rabb le-Rouser (CR 5)
The second time the PCs return home from the wilderness,
they discover a new threat in town. A charismatic orator
arrived a day after the PCs last left town and has been
giving speeches criticizing and denigrating the leadership
and their actions. More and more of the townsfolk are
gathering to hear him talk, and he’s building a wellspring
of support among the disaffected settlers in the town.

When the PCs first arrive, Grigori is giving a talk in the
town common, speaking of the PCs’ “gross negligence”
in abandoning the town to “go gallivanting through the
Narlmarches on fool’s errands” and leaving the town
exposed to banditry, monster attacks, and worse. He brings
up the town’s recent werewolf troubles and even suggests
that the PCs may be responsible for the attacks because
their wilderness explorations drove the monster into more
civilized areas. He claims that the PCs have acquired much
wealth during their adventures, but they have used it only
to enrich themselves, not to aid the town or its citizens.
Grigori’s orations have increased the nation’s Unrest by 2
by the time the PCs first learn of him.

A sizeable group of townspeople have gathered to hear
Grigori talk, and shouts of agreement and mutters of
discontent increase as the speech progresses (helped along
by Grigori’s use of enthrall spells).

Grall stops dragging the turtle shell full of skins and takes out a tail spike recovered from the manticore encounter.

Tread towers over even the orc as she enters town with him. When she hears this guy talking, she looks angry.

Shelly trots over to Grigori. "Hello! I'm Shelly! Who might you be?" she squeaks.

  "Sorry, we were putting a stop to the deaths of hardworking fishermen."  He gestures to the large (for a turtle) creature and says "It could fit your whole head in it's jaw. What have you been up to today sir?"

  He has been resisting the urge to ask somebody to make a Crackjaw hand puppet out of it's head.  Chompchompchomp.

"Grigori!  Voice of the people!  Exposer of tyrants!  I'm on to you, Shelly!  I've heard of your infamy!  You manipulate the people with your silver tongue and cute appearance!  Do not listen to her!  She is a siren that will blind you to the reality of the dangers of living here!"

Several people in the crowd turn uneasy looks at Shelly.  Grall was going to threaten Grigori with the spike but Joey beats him to the punch.  Literally.  He punches the guy in the face!

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK OF SHELLY THAT WAY!" Joey growls.

The crowd gasps!

"Shelly!  Chosen of the gods!  Oracle of the ocean!  Who traveled far from her home, risking life and limb to help this nation, never asking for anything in return!  I will not tolerate your lies and manipulation of the people!  You're under arrest for sedition and slander!"

"Repressors!" Grigori screams, turning to run!
This message was last edited by the player at 06:06, Tue 04 Mar 2014.

Shelly puts on her sunglasses Shelly runs to cut the guy off, demonstrating a surprising amount of speed! (OOC: Her land speed is 35; Run 180) "He said you're under arrest! Do not run from the law; If you are innocent, you have nothing to fear from the heroes of the Greenbelt!" Shelly squeaks as she gets in front of Grigori and stands in his way, holding her hands up with a pleading expression.

Tread also gives chase, calling out, "Guards! Stop him!"

Around then, Eli is rushing to the scene, having just been informed of his friends' arrival! He calls out, "What's going on?!"

  "Are we talking dangers of living in this town, or dangers of the Greenbelt and most outskirts settlements in general?"  Then Joey happens, and Scott is very disappointed in the holy man.  "You forgot really, really good swimmer."  How could Joey forget that, the shock of it all.

  Then Eli shows up, and he comments "Yelling guy called Shelly a manipulative Tyrant, Joey manipulates yelling man's face with his knuckles."

Joey wanted his boasts to sound believable.  Swimming faster than most flying creatures can move is kinda over the top compared to being a glowing princess altruistic haunted otter oracle of the ocean.

Grigor tries to get away but is grabbed by Scott.

"So you return words with violence?!" he rants, "I see it will take magic to reason with you!  Calm Emotions!"

A nudge from Scott and a double-axe shaft to the groin from Grall interrupts the spell.

"That's enough!" Joey barks, "Surrender and you will be given a trial.  At worst you'll be made to apologize and work off your debt.  Far more merciful than the dangers of the Greenbelt you claim to concern yourself with yet I do not see you risking your neck to fight them!"

"People!" he screams frantically, "Come to my aid!  It will be you next!"

The people shuffle uncomfortably.  "Let him go!" a fat baker says, "You guys are supposed to be exemplars!  Not bullies of public speakers!"

Eli makes a few hand motions and his eyes go wide. "A public speaker who used magic on you to manipulate your minds!" he answers the baker. He then commands a guard, "Guard! Slap someone to knock them out of the spell!"

So the guard goes to slap someone.

Tread just keeps a hold on Grigori and doesn't answer since Eli already did. However, she does go to put a gauntleted hand over Grigori's mouth to shut him up.

Shelly faces the crowd and readies herself for if Eli's estimation doesn't work.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:32, Mon 10 Mar 2014.

"Hey!" the slapee objects as magical sparkles fly from his eyes.

"Waaait.  It's true!  He used magic on us!"

"How DARE he!?"

"Slap him in irons!"

"Put his head in the stock!"

The crowd clamors and fist-shakes angrily.

  "Well if it helps I am still rather calm-oh my, ow.  I know he was trying to use mind control on people but... okay yeah I can see your point."

  He looks over to the Baker, and comments "While I don't plan on letting him go, I gotta admit this has gotten out of hand fast."  What happened where the guy who's solution is frequently 'punch face' is doing some of the least hitting?

  Then the glorious sparkle slaps happen.  "...Magic is weird"

"Tell me about it," Grall agrees with Scott, reaching to stuff a dirty handkerchief into Grigori's mouth to help free up Tread's hand.

"I only said that because I was under his spell," the baker answers with a blush.

Joey begins tying up the struggling Grigori.

"My people!  Listen carefully!  There is a simple, peaceful way to have your leaders address your concerns!  Write to or speak with Svetlana Leventon!  She has never failed to represent the people!  This man is nothing but rabble rouser, and so help me I will find out his evil purpose!"

The people look satisfied and some mutter that community service isn't enough of a punishment for someone who slanders Shelly.

Shelly squeaks and gets a cute little smile on her face as faith in her and her friends is restored. She waves to the people and heads off with the group to the interrogation room.

Irons are SO slapped on Grigori's wrists and ankles. Tread smiles at Grall. "Heh... thanks." and has Grigori go with her and the others.

Once Grigori is taken to a quiet, private room, Eli says to his friends, "Don't stand in front of me..." and waves his hands and casts detect thoughts. Grigori fails to block out Eli's spell.

The speaker, Grigori, is a bard from the nearby
River Kingdom of Pitax. Grigori is not just an itinerant
storyteller, however—he is a spy and agent provocateur
hired to cause trouble in this
fledgling town by agents from Fort Drelev to the west.

If the PCs approach him in
private, Grigori is considered hostile for the purposes of
Diplomacy, and the DC is increased by 15, as aiding the PCs
would surely arouse the ire of his employer. Intimidate
might also be effective, at least in the short term, but under
no circumstances will Grigori divulge anything beyond
the fact that he is working for “parties interested in seeing
your little nation fail,” and that he aims to remove the PCs
from their positions of authority over the town (even those
admissions are made only under duress).

Mind-controlling magic can get Grigori to leave town,
as can a bribe of at least 5,000 gp.

"I was expecting something like this," Joey admits, "Spies are generally executed because the crime literally puts an entire population's lives at risk..."

Grall shrugs.  "This has got to be the gentlest interrogation I've ever seen."

   "How flattering, we rate spies and sabotage over a couple houses and shops."  He nods to Joey, "While I doubt it would make the ones who sent him any less likely to just hire somebody else, I somehow doubt a strongly worded letter would make a difference."

Eli answers Grall, "But effective."

Tread frowns. "Execution... as much as I favor that idea, the only proof we have that he is from Fort Drelev is his own mind. If we kill him, we won't have that to show other wizards that he was, in fact, sent by them."

Shelly squeaks, "So we need to send him to the Swordlords of Restov. Rather than deal with Drelev directly, doesn't it make sense to go crying to daddy for them to spank our sibling rivals? We may not officially be part of Restov, but we've never denied being their allies."

"True," Grall relents, unable to think of a comeback, "I'll uh...  be at the taxidermist."

He heads out.  Scott's comment gets Joey to thinking.  "Honestly!  What possible reason could they have for attacking us like this?!"

He sighs, shaking his head.

"Sounds like a good idea, Shelly.  Though...  I worry about how it will be viewed in the eyes of our people and elsewhere.  Part of me feels like we should deal with this 'Grigori,' if that's his real name, ourselves to show we are willing and able to deal with foreign incursions decisively without anyone else's help."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:55, Thu 13 Mar 2014.

  Scott shrugs, "Executing further obviously intending us and our harm home spies sounds like a given.  But as for this one, I doubt he knows anything more beyond 'screw with us because he has been told to' so sending him off to the swordlords wouldn't accomplish anything.  Either deal with him now, cut him loose with a warning we will not be as forgiving to the rest... Or I guess if we wanted to be mean, simply drop him off in the woods for the Elk to devour."  It's lawful if nature kills them with random encounter tables, right?

Tread says, "He knows who hired him... nobody but us is going to just take Eli's word for it. Executing the spy only punishes the spy, but what about punishing the ones who sent him?"

Shelly says, "Calm down... I'm sure we can take care of this our own way. Let's send a messenger to Restov. We'll keep Grigori alive long enough for Restov reps to show up."

Eli raises a finger. "...we could ask Addelworth his opinion."

Eli is able to learn the code name of the one who hired Grigori and where they met, but nothing more.  H was careful to disguise himself.  Joey suppresses a chuckle when Scott suggests death by Greenbelt.  He nods to Tread.

"That bothers me too, but I can't think of any way we can do so even if we knew the specific person or persons involved."

He then nods to Shelly.  "Good idea."

Unless there's objection he sends for Addleworth.  If asked his opinion, Addleworth reminds the group that he has scrolls of sending for urgent messages then drones on about what can be expected...

"You could have your answer from the Sword Lords by the end of today.  As for Grigori, his being exposed as a spy has both advantages and disadvantages.  The advantage is that it sends a message that the leaders of Summershield are vigilantly searching for and eliminating such threats.  The downside is that those to whom such a thing hadn't occurred to will likely be nervous knowing that foreign powers are actively trying to undermine the nation they are raising their families in.  So the overall attitude of the people is likely to remain unchanged.

"The swift execution of an unpopular criminal is generally considered favorable in the eyes of the mob and can garner their loyalty, but the more wealthy members of the population generally prefer thorough trials that very carefully prove a person's guilt first.  The use of mind reading spells as evidence in court is generally only accepted if the veracity of the mage who cast the spell has been firmly established.  A confession is much more convincing if one can be plea bargained.

"The occasional calling upon the aid and advice of the Swordlords of Restov will likely be considered a good sign in their eyes that you are eager to maintain close ties.  Frequent requests or requests on trivial matters will likely be viewed as a nuisance and rare or non-existent requests might be considered a declaration of non-confidence."

  "Sounds like a waste of time to bother them with this then.  It's the first of such issues, and they were hardly successful."  Nothing but taking the guy off their hands to no end accomplishment, really.

  "I can see your point about mind reading as evidence overall.  But in this case we have an entire crowd of people who know that their minds were coerced.  So if we did want a trial first, not like we are lacking in abundant legitimate evidence of his wrongdoing."

Tread says, "Oh sure, there's no shortage of witnesses for what this guy did, but none of them are witnesses to who sent him. Do we really want Drelev to get off the hook for this?"

Eli says, "Actually, the fact this is our first spy invasion means this is one of the few occasions it would not only be acceptable, but a sign we're acknowledging we still need our neighbor's help to grow."

Shelly squeaks, "It's not like we've bothered them about anything for this past year. And politically speaking, this is important for both us and Restov. Unless anyone objects, I vote we have Addelworth send the message. We'll only be waiting a day for a response and I can make sure they know the whole situation and that we plan to learn from them so we can handle Drelev ourselves in the future."

"An eye for an eye," Joey says, "A spy for a spy.  Perhaps we can send a spy of our own down there to find out why they're trying to undermind our humble settlement."

"First spy you know of," Addleworth corrects Eli, "Could be more of them."

  "As tempting as that is Joey, I somehow doubt what, if anything, passes as our spy network would fare much better."

Shelly says, "I'd like to think anyone would fair better than Grigori, at least. He was about as subtle as a heart attack."

Tread says, "A spy to find out why... I guess the direct approach wouldn't be wise?"

Shelly says, "We'd wind up with an angry and nervous Drelev on our hands. While unlikely, it is always possible the ruler of Drelev has no idea this spy was sent."

Eli says, "Who would we send as a spy anyway?"

"Perhaps the Swordlords of Restov could recommend one," Joey suggests.

Addleworth just resumes snacking while the group deliberates.  He offers a bite to anyone who looks his way.

  Scott declines from offers of partially eaten snacks.  "I suppose as much as I would like to avoid 'see, we're justified spying because they spied on us after we spied on them first' politics logic, I must admit simply asking them the specific reason they did it would not get anywhere."  Even if the answer is pretty likely 'because we hate any competition at all' or 'Because you are sorta kinda a slave state to Restov'.

Shelly squeaks, "Sounds like we have decided for sure that, at least for now, we're going to send that message to Restov."

Tread is slightly grossed out by Addleworth, but just gives him a nervous smile and headshake. Eli smiles, thanks him, and takes any sweets offered.

Shelly pretends she didn't see anything offered.

"What shall the message say?" Addleworth asks.

"Presumably we'll be telling them everything," Joey surmises.

"The spell is limited to 25 words or less," Addleworth answers.

"Then be succinct."

Addleworth does his best to cram as much of the important things into the message.  After a few moments, Addleworth writes down the reply he gets.

"Good work.  We'll lend an agent."

  Considering Addleworth is already around, it is no more 'what if Restov wants to Spy on us too?' than it currently is.  "I am somewhat curious to see if anything more practical can come out of this.  It is somewhat difficult to see the bright side of the situation outside of the Grigori being caught already."

Tread then looks back at Grigori. "I wish I could save you. But Joey's right. What you did literally put hundreds of people's lives at stake."

Eli says, "Well depending on what the agent says, maybe Grigori could yet live?"

Shelly squeaks, "Our kingdom has plenty of room for forgiveness. Nobody did die. Attempted murder is not the same as successful murder."

Eli looks hopeful.

Grigori's face is red and he doesn't answer.

"Then we need to figure out some other appropriate punishment," Joey says, "Our last convicted killer sentenced himself to life of public service, but his was a case of committing a crime against his will due to a curse...  Is there a written law for all this?"

"Most offenses have a range of punishments to allow for extenuating circumstances," Addleworth answers, "Like if the guilty has no prior convictions, if he belongs to a noble family, if he agreed to confess for a reduced  punishment, etc.  But in the case of espionage and treason the minimum punishment is usually quite severe.  I can have the lawbooks searched if you like."

  "In this case, I somehow doubt there were extenuating circumstances causing Grigori's action."  He turns to the tomato of a man, "Unless there were, but I think you would have shared more than nothing if that were the case."

  Even a fake sob story would have been more forthcoming than nothing at all if Grigori thought it would mean getting away with it.

Tread says, "That guy who is serving a life sentence did so to himself. He doesn't really deserve it... Makes me wanna cry every time I think about what it must be like to be him."

Eli hugs Tread and says, "The law as written in Restov is that what Grigori did has a minimum punishment of public lashing and 10 years in prison. But that's if he was an indispensable member of society and did so because he was drunk. But we technically don't have our own law for this. I put it off, not really expecting a kingdom this small and new would have spies sent from other kingdoms to tear it apart."

Shelly squeaks, "Then once we decide on a punishment for Grigori, we need to concentrate on making laws for our kingdom. Addelworth, your help is going to be highly valued here on both counts."

Tread says, "I guess deciding on his punishment while we wait for the reps from Restov is as good a thing as any to do... The public lashing could potentially be carried out now and still have him alive and presentable for the rep when he or she arrives."

Eli cringes. "But is that what we wanna do...?"

Joey looks angry.  "What?!  What family you belong to should have no bearing on reduced sentencing!  People are equally responsible to do what's right.  If anything, with greater stature should come greater accountability!"

Grigori remains silent, continuing to repeat mary Had a Little Lamb over and over in his head to try and keep Eli out.  Addleworth bows to Shelly.

"My pleasure.  Though as a reminder, my expertise is in building baronies using standard approaches to law and government."

He nods toward Joey.  "While innovations like mandating equal punishment for nobles and vagrants alike, or reducing sentencing parameters across the board, may have some benefits such as increasing the loyalty of the masses, it is likely they have much greater drawbacks such as undermining your economy or stability respectively.  Otherwise, good-hearted and practical rulers of the past would have done so frequently enough for it to be the present-day norm.  I cannot speak to the likely consequences accurately if you decide to deviate overmuch from the norm."

Joey tries to calm himself to offer a comforting pet to Eli and Tread.

"Sarenrae teaches that Justice allows for redemption.  Perhaps there's a more religious answer better than a political one.  I will pray for guidance."

  "We have been finding that running purely on common sense can be surprisingly counterproductive in forming a kingdom quite often of late."  Well okay, Piles Of Money selling magical knickknacks to.... Whoever at least has some basis in practicality.

  "Though I have to ask.  Do we even have any nobles as citizens around here?" Shelly (and maybe Addleworth?) Doesn't count as Citizens, they work here instead of being NPC Population filler.

Anyone being PC or NPC doesn't count either since the characters don't know they are just characters being played by players, so Eli proceeds to answer Scott by listing all the nobles (Besides, half if not most of the kingdom's rulers are NPCs such as Svetlana). "We are citizens as much as the next person. In fact, the requirement for being an official of any kind, be it mayor, duke, or king, is that you have to be a citizen first."

As Joey rants, Eli widens his eyes, but seems neither in agreement or disagreement. He just listens. He turns off his mind-reading power and ignores Grigori.

Shelly agrees with Joey and nods as he speaks.

Tread, however, gives Joey a confused look. "...how are you surprised? What kingdom are you from that doesn't have it that way? That's, like, everywhere I've ever been. The more important the person, the less the law applies to them."

Shelly says, "The kingdom I hail from has equal treatment under the law, but Addelworth's right. There have to be exceptions because of a good king makes a mistake and gets punished for it according to how much he's responsible for, there would be no king, or he would be replaced by a corrupt king and the whole kingdom would be in danger. The way Daddy deals with it is to have royalty treated differently, but still answer for their actions, so that if the crime was in fact a mistake, the royal person in question can still do their job and serve the people. Still yet another problem with royals being punished often is that the people lose faith in their leaders, so the punishments are going to have to not be made public most times. If the rulers don't appear absolutely deifically perfect to the people, even if you set a better example than the best in your kingdom, the people lose faith in you and demand a different ruler. So for future reference, if you wanna set things up like in my kingdom, we'll have a separate court designed just for us and those who hold a high-ranking office."

Joey blushes and rubs behind his head.

"I uh... admittedly have had limited exposure to how things work outside the church.  Accountability and oversight was an important part of the administrative structure.  No one was considered exempt from the rules of the church."

"Members of wealthy merchant groups can be effectively the same as noblemen considering the clout they wield," Addleworth adds.

  "Huh, well I'm sorry to say Joey that is not the outlook and impression the average church holds in my travels.  Though still generally better than the examples seen in our short time at the greenbelt."

  He nods to Addleworth, "So to put it simply, the people who write the bills, or pay the biggest ones is the average method.  I suspect it will be difficult to put down in legally adequate writing we would be willing to give a little leeway but will come down on them like their least favorite heavy objects if they overstep themselves."

Tread puts a hand on Joey. "Didn't mean to sound like you were missing the obvious. I was just surprised. But using religion as a guideline is a tried and true method. I'm sure Addelworth here knows of plenty of places who use religious teaching as the foundation if not just influence in their law making."

Shelly nodnods at Scott and squeaks "Sounds right, Scott. Room for mistakes, but intolerance of clearly overstepping. The real problems happen when you have too much leeway or too much intolerance. All mercy leads to anarchy and all strict leads to oppression."

Eli smiles up at Joey. "We'll figure something out." then hugs Tread's arm and looks at Scott. "I guess now is as good a time as any to get started on more law making and covering what is on our minds...?"

(Not that the player is going to roleplay through lawmaking or anything. So we can fast forward whenever you're ready)

Joey of course looks saddened when Scott says equal oversight was the exception to the norm in his experience.

"Then we'll need to make sure that does not become the case within the churches that wind up built within our borders," he concludes.

Addleworth nods.  "That is the generally understood arrangement in any given organization.  Whether its a trade guild, church, kingdom, or anything else, those with power are expected to be granted leniency but it is expected that those with yet more power will take them for all they're worth should they step out of line too often or too far.

"To explicitly implement the moral code of a religion into the legal code of a nation is very difficult considering no scripture includes an exhaustive list of crimes and punishments nor do they have extensive case history for judges to fall back on when faced with exceptional cases.  Much simpler would be to gradually clarify how you want the existing laws' wording interpreted.

"And Shelly is quite right.  If, for example, you catch a thief red handed stealing food for her starving children and order that her hand be removed because that is what is written in the law for thieves, the people will learn to fear you and future cases will likely be judged just as harshly by your judges.  If, on the other hand, you catch someone stealing the exact same amount of food, only this time from starving children, in order to throw it in a fire to torment them with the sight, and you do not punish the thief harshly, the people will lose respect for you and wind up turning on each other whenever they feel slighted because they know they won't get justice from the law."

"So in other words, intent and motive are more important than the specific law broken when determining punishment," Joey answers.

"For the specific kind of justice system you seem to be aiming for, yes.  Other kingdoms that value consistent adherence to the law more than the delicate balance of mercy and justice case by case both reap the benefits and suffer the consequences of their chosen approach, sacrificing loyalty and stability for improved economy."

"Hmm...  In Grigori's case, he wasn't specifically out to kill anyone, but he didn't care about anyone but himself....  Yes, Eli.  Lets."

(( OOC: If we want to move along we can just handwave that "The group eventually decides on an appropriate punishment for Grigori and moves on to other matters..." ))

  "If it helps Joey, things like 'turn priest into an animal until we get around to ordering another priest to kill them' haven't been the norm I have seen outside of the Greenbelt.  Yes Scott, we are sure telling them 'at least they aren't complete overkill insane usually' will really help...

Shelly squeaks, "Grigori's punishment should still be steep, considering his selfishness could have led to many deaths. Whether we decide to execute him or not, though, is very important at this conjuncture. Life is very very precious. That said, to protect the future lives of our people, as much as I hate to say this, I highly recommend the death sentence after the Restov representative has a chance to confirm what Eli found."

Eli says, "...I've never been sure how to feel about being responsible for someone's death; directly or otherwise."

Tread looks down at Eli. "Grigori is responsible for his death if that is his sentence. You did not set out to kill him and honestly? Neither are any of us setting out to kill him. We are setting out to find justice. And if that means he must die, then that is what will happen. Killing someone should never be something you enjoy, Eli."

"We don't know if it was Erastil himself or some dark power or what transformed that priest," Joey answers, "But even if it were the God of the Hunt who transformed him as a punishment to use that as an example of a church without oversight is at least as inappropriate as Grigori's accusations against us.

"But since you mentioned it, I do wonder if there are any examples of either of these sorts of things happening in the oceans?"

He looks over to Shelly.

Later, when the topic of Grigori's execution comes back up, Joey makes a suggestion.

"Tread's on to something.  How about we offer Grigori the option to decide his own fate.  He can choose execution, or he can choose life in prison instead if he confesses.  If he also publicly apologizes, he can choose a 30 year prison sentence instead.  From there, for every day he spends in public service carving monuments to honor those he slandered or something like that, he can reduce his sentence by two days.  That way it will be literally his choice just how severe his punishment is depending on how willing he is to make restitution."

  "I thought it was rather clear.  Unless Erastil has a retirement plan that makes most organized crime look pleasant."  Hmmm... Turn priest from bear (totally not my fault) back to man after like, 20 years as a bear... ooooor, send divine visions to another priest, ordering them to kill the old one and take his place!  Erastil isn't made of fancy sundials and thank you speeches you know.

  At the sentence shortening idea, he shrugs  "I suppose the tourist souvenirs cheaper than magical items have to come from somewhere."  This mug says 'Traed', we would add days for typos but then nobody would ever leave prison.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:13, Wed 09 Apr 2014.

Shelly squeaks, "Gods punishing people that directly usually takes a pretty severe taboo. If that guy was punished by Erastil, it was likely he deserved it or worse."

Concerning the sentencing, Eli looks hopeful. Tread shrugs. "How much someone regrets their actions does matter."

(( OOC: Module implies muuch longer than 20 years.  Disclaimer:  char's opinions not those of player. ))

Joey's expression shows he does not approve of Scott's disapproval of Erastil but he remains silent on that topic.

"Let's go with that, then.  Unless something significant comes up in Grigori's case, his fate is in his own hands."

As he turns to head out, Addleworth hurries to swallow his latest mouthful to add his two cents.

"Sounds good.  Now on the topic of faith, the shrewd leader will avoid debating potentially hot topics or even offering opinions or well known facts on them.  For example, there was a fishing guild who worshiped the god of the sea and they got into a dispute with the merchant guild over pricing.  To make matters worse, a merchant guild warehouse collapsed and soon thereafter a sudden storm sunk half a dozen fishing boats.  Now a certain councilman pointed this already well-known fact out, but in doing so he implied that 'the sea god "knows" that it was the fishing guild who sabotaged the warehouse and that's why he "punished" the fishermen.  His careless language sparked a riot.

"Much wiser is to be vague on the specifics of one's opinions when it comes to hot topics relating to faith.  Such as whether or not you agree with how a god handled a certain situation."

"I'm a cleric, Addleworth," Joey answers, "You expect me to be vague about my convictions?  Erastil is the good god of nature.  I do not like it when he is slandered any more than when my good friend Shelly, oracle of nature is."

"You are also all leaders.  If keeping opinions to yourselves on specific debatable topics prevents unrest, then yes.  Better to simply praise vague but useful virtues such as cooperation and peacemaking than to presume to speak for or against a god and invoke his and his believers' ire.  At the very least, avoid giving opinions on such things in public."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:47, Sun 13 Apr 2014.

  "While I may not be the most politically savvy, even I know not to state the unfortunate truth that Good does not mean Nice, or Forgiving to the public in most cases.  Just as Joey likely knows not to tell a crowd 'if someone you know got turned into a bear, they probably deserved it' regardless of if the victim did or not.

  He shrugs, "Besides, I did suggest the option of leaving Grigori in the woods for nature to sort out."  That... probably isn't what most mean when they say to have faith in nature, Scott.

Shelly nods. "Even just saying, 'this is just my opinion' and then stating your opinion to the public is a bad idea. People will use every word that comes from our mouths as ammo to win arguments both important and unimportant."

Eli says, "I generally don't talk to the public anyway... so no big deal for me."

Tread says, "Good thing our so-called opinions don't differ too much. Seeing as how my opinion is simple; Evil should be stopped and you usually have to use violence to do so."

Eli says frustratedly, "Some day, I'm going to make a spell to cause the world to be incapable of violence."

Shelly shrugs with a helpless smile. "Good luck with that?"

Joey's daddy instincts kicks in and he kneels down to fluffy-fox-cuddle-comfort poor Eli.

"Take heart, Eli.  For every monster or villain there's at least a hundred peaceful people enjoying fun with their friends and family singing songs about the brave heroes such as Eli who 'helped tame the wilderness without sword or bow.'  When you think about it, this world may as well already be under a powerful peace spell.  Even the most violent of storms will last but a few days only to be followed by weeks of gentle sunshine."

  Scott sighs,  "I can see where you are coming from Eli, but in such cases the cruel would just resort to nonviolent means or workarounds."

  Scene transition to bandits shaking people upside down for their pocket change saying I'm not hurting you, I'm not hurting you.  Also you are fat.

Eli seems comforted by Joey's words. Notsomuch by Scott's.

Discussion of laws and such ensues. Tread's take is simple and straight forward, but also leans towards the militaristic. Eli's take is more mercy and kindness, but tends to often overlook how important harsher punishments are. Especially when it comes to violence. And Shelly's take is practical with a balance of mercy, harsh punishment, but a small influence from her "let's party" personality. Probably because of the bunch, Shelly is the only one who was raised in a royal setting, so she's very familiar with all this stuff.

But as Tread pointed out, the opinions of the group are generally in synch. They all want a sane kingdom where people get along.

"Scott's right," Joey agreed, "Maybe there's another solution that will limit violent evil as a side-effect.  I've read of a cleric spell..."

He gives the details on the Early Judgement spell.  "Depending on the creature's alignment and its adherence to its ethos, you can provide it a brief glimpse of the reward or punishment that waits for it when it dies by showing it a mental image of its destined plane in the afterlife."

http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/...lls/e/early-judgment

During law discussion, Joey does his best to gently advocate Eli's point of view so the boy doesn't feel alone, but he still agrees with the others on fundamentals like, "Evil deeds should be punished."

"I've noticed there seems to be a distinct lack of rewarding good compared to punishing evil among all these laws."

  "One of the downsides of wanting not acting like a violent and larcenous jerk to be the norm, is that you do not reward normal.  It is a nice sentiment but 'what is in it for me?' should not be a legal basis for good deeds.  Nevermind the financial problems."   Scott does not comment on the idea of even more screwing with people's heads for their own purposes.  Nevermind the fact a glimpse of the afterlife would likely show rewards waiting for those of some of the more nasty mindsets.

  No Shadrakai that we know of in Pathfinder, but you get the idea.

Shelly squeaks, "While I wish I could say good is its own reward, it rarely is that simple. Most people don't understand right away the benefit of being kind since such benefits are usually really gradual. That said, even a simple "atta boy" or "good job" can really make someone feel great. So rewarding people for doing good? If we want something like that, I propose we simply encourage people. Maybe when someone is kind enough to you that they have made your day, you stick a yellow flag in the road just in front of their home. When us or the authorities see that, and have time to, we drop in for a visit to personally thank them for being kind."

Tread says, "That's a LOT of people to thank..."

Shelly says, "Not really. People making someone's day isn't as common as you'd hope. But even if it was, I did say us or the authorities. In other words, city guard and such. Who also will be commended by their superiors for fine work."

“There are many evil people who understand the long term financial benefit of being lawful,” Addleworth points out, “But as Shelly said, such benefits tend to be gradual.”

“I like your idea, Shelly,” Joey says, “Honor is something many value more than money.  So we can make it known that we honor those who go above the norm for their fellow man.  The greater the heroic act, the more we reward the hero.”

  "So far, 'evil' that considers law a benefit has not been in any noteworthy supply in these lands.  Unless we count 'do what I say or die' as a general all purpose law."

Tread says, "No, do as I say or die doesn't count as being lawfully minded."

Eli grumbles, "Close enough. Everything seems to boil down to might makes right. If you aren't strong enough to win, it doesn't matter what you believe because it won't come to fruition if you're dead."

Shelly says, "Good thing we're mighty, then, isn't it?"

Eli doesn't seem cheered up by Shelly's words. Just rolls his eyes.

"Some would argue that being consistantly inconsistant or sticking to any arbitrary set of rules counts as being lawful," Addleworth says between bites, "But I'm sure such silly semantics won't hold any water in your courts."

Joey reaches to comfort-pet Eli.  "Not everything, Eli.  Part of why I wanted to be sure that those who live honestly willingly are rewarded."

  "At least we actually want to try to deal with things without smashing their faces first.  But it just does not work out unfortunately."  Is inevitable violence because Charisma is his dump stat, or is charisma his dump stat because of inevitable violence?... Yeah stupid question.

Shelly giggles. "I see what you did there, Addelworth..."
Shelly's court IS water. XD

Eli looks up at Joey and Scott and gives a hopeful smile.

Tread says, "So is that everything? Are we set?"

Addleworth gives Shelly a wry smile.  Joey returns Eli's smile and adds more fluffy fox cuddles.

"Yes.  I think so, Tread."

Later, when the Restof spy shows up, he questions Rantface but is unable to learn anything more than the group already had.

"I'll go look into things.  Likely his employers used enough blinds for this to be a dead end.  Up to you what you do with him.  He's no use to me."

Rantface chooses not to publicly recant, preferring to stay in prison and out of the public eye.

  "Sooo...  Let the Elk sort him out, the brand new weight loss program of prison life, or what?  At this point I don't care so long as it is over with."

Eli perfectly recalls what Joey said earlier, "He can choose execution, or he can choose life in prison instead if he confesses. If he also publicly apologizes, he can choose a 30 year prison sentence instead.  From there, for every day he spends in public service carving monuments to honor those he slandered or something like that, he can reduce his sentence by two days.  That way it will be literally his choice just how severe his punishment is depending on how willing he is to make restitution."

Eli looks towards Grigori. "Execution? Or life imprisonment? Hint: Choose life."

Tread and Shelly don't add anything, simply watching Grigori and waiting.

Grigori frowns deeply.  "Life," is all he answers.

"Then you must confess during the trial," Joey reminds.

Eventually, Grigori tried and convicted, the ordeal is over and the group is free to move on to other matters.

((OOC: Like exploring?  Players decide what they do next.))

  "I'm sure the Elks are disappointed."  He looks to Eli,  "I hope you haven't had to put up with this sort of thing the entire time we were gone."

Tread looks to the others. "Well we just got back... should we take care of some things here in the kingdom and then head out?"

Shelly smiles up at the group. "Anything you bunch want, ^this girl is ready to deliver." 'this' said with a squeak.

---

Kingdom building? Or did we already do that? It's been so long, I forgot

Eli's silence tells Joey that he has had to put up with this sort of thing the entire time.  He reaches to comfort the poor boy.

"Thanks for being so eager, Shelly.  Yes we should, Tread.  It would be a good idea to lighten Eli's load as much as we can while we're here.  He deserves a break."

  "It would be nice to spend at least some time here not involved with 'fat man starts riots' details.  Even if that is still work."  If the wildlife starts attacking them in the middle of the desk job portion of running the kingdom though, he's OUTAHERE.

Eli is relieved at the fact Grigori chose life. He smiles when Joey hugs him and looks up at the bunch. "Thanks."

When the group gets to doing their duties as leaders of the kingdom, Eli sticks with them as much as possible, mostly sleeping with Tread, but sometimes having some kind of pajama party with the group, so they can just have fun together.

Shelly is more than happy to partake in such things and is usually the life of such.

Joey smiles at the Eli cuddles.

Joey glances at Scott and smirks.  "That would sound strange out of context.  I never imagined this was the life of a national leader." 

"Dealing with the occasional rabble rouser isn't that unusual," Addleworth says, "What is exceptional is leaders who personally deal with such let alone the dangers of the wild frontier.  But the results are very impressive.  Your kingdom is growing several times faster that is traditionally expected.  Though I suppose your explosive growth should be attributed to other factors such as the threat of a civil war in Brevoy."

"I wonder if the other groups are doing this well."

"News is sparce from those regions but from what I've read, They're at least off to a decent start."

He's more than happy to pajama party with Eli and Shelly, sings songs for them, and tells fables and such.

  "How often does political slander involve charm magic anyways, considering your past experience in this line of work Addleworth?"  Scott will not be surprised to learn that this place has it the absolute worst of problems short of dealing with an actual war (which may happen anyways).

  Scott isn't sure how normal the whole pajama party thing is, but hey it beats sleeping in the zen rock garden.

At one of the times the group is all together, Tread summons everyone in the ruling body and says, "You know... that attack was as subtle as a stampede. But I can only imagine it is only a matter of time before we get more physical attacks, like an army. Or if our enemy wants to remain anonymous, a hired band of bandits sent to just cause havoc. Sure, we would be able to stomp such bandits, but the damage would already be done. We need preventative measures. I'm thinking we focus on kingdom defense before we go back out. One tactic I was considering is training all our military forces in archery. If a gate's scout sees something coming that can't be handled by normal gate guard, he can ring a bell to summon dozens who will pepper the enemy with arrows before they can get within range. I would even go as far as to say we should have martial training available to ALL our people until we at least have walls put up around the kingdom. Then, whoever attacks, our people can keep their distance and fire arrows."

Eli says, "Can't make it mandatory for civilians, or fewer will attend such training. I propose making such a training program a competition. Archery competitions tend to draw even the least interested to pick up and dust off their bows."

Shelly says, "....while archery is not something I'm terribly familiar with, the concept of mandatory making things less desirable than a competition is a familiar thing. What do you think, Addleworth?"

"Don't know specifics," Addleworth answers Scott, "But besides the more common practices of wearing magic items that boost one's charisma, I imagine using spellcasters is also quite common.  Why not use every tool at one's disposal to frustrate one's enemy?"

He nods at Shelly, looking impressed.   "An excellent idea.  It would be risky for a kingdom who's people are on the verge of rebellion or civil war.  But yours being a stable frontier nation, it should work out well as a supplement to your primary defense strategy.  Just know that a militia is no substitute for a disciplined, and unfortunately costly, military.  They work fine as a support force but historically fall apart if called upon as the primary defense against an organized enemy."

"I agree it is time to focus on bolstering our defenses," Joey says with a nod to Tread, "I've been giving some serious thought to devoting the next several months of my time to strengthening the kingdom.  Perhaps even sending a substitute healer with you on your next adventure if need be."

  Their budding kingdom at least had the advantage of counter-intuitive metagame logic bolstering it's growth (Well, it was either that or even more disasters than usual).

  "Though I suppose this all depends on how many of the citizens know the first thing about archery."  Have you seen the average stats of the nameless populace?  Yeesh.

Eli says, "That's why I mentioned a training program. Those who do know can train those who don't. The selling point being that we will have competitions to make people interested in the training."

Shelly says, "We'll have to make sure there's a minor fee for the training. Otherwise, people will assume the training isn't worth their time. Put a price tag on something, and all the sudden, it's higher quality somehow." Ironic that a price tag causes people to come in more droves than if it were free. "Plus, that will help pay for the time of whoever is training."

Tread says, "We can all give the wilderness a rest so we can focus on defense." she then looks around at her allies and gives an endearing smile to each of them. "And focus on each other."

Eli smiles, looking quite excited that his friends might be staying.

Joey reaches to pet smiley Eli with a big smile of his own.

"All good ideas.  And considering Erastil is the god of the hunt who's holy symbol is the bow, we could ask Jhod to pitch in.  I'm sure he'll be thrilled at the idea of a nation of archers."

Joey smiles eagerly at Tread.

"Always a pleasure to focus on friends.  Did you have something specific in mind?  Because I do.  Namely I wanted to talk to the about Eli spending so much time away from us.  I'm considering talking to Jhod about taking my place as team healer during the wilderness excursions."

  Meanwhile in the wilderness, animals are getting frustrated at no random encounters triggering.  They only needed one more adventuring party to level up!

  At Joey's suggestion, he says "While I wouldn't mind not leaving Eli all alone to deal with the city himself, I wonder if Jhod could handle going out with us."  Look, Eli's got wizard spells.  That qualifies him more than the average 'I charge you gold for cure disease' NPC.

Eli points out, "The Leventons have been caring for me whenever you guys head out. I know Jhod is a healer, Joey, but he would die much quicker than you out there. And you're just as much a healer as Jhod is. I believe in you bunch to be tough tnough to stay alive. I don't like that you get hurt, and I realize now that is what was too hard for me to watch when I was out with you all. But I am willing to give it another shot if it means spending time with you guys once the defenses are built."

Shelly says, "I'm all for discussing togetherness. I <squeak>love</squeak> you guys!"

Tread nods. "Jhod isn't built for the adventuring life. But as far as Eli going with? Well... let's see how the defenses look when we're done with them. But I'm thinking ONE of us needs to stay behind if Eli tags along. Too many rulers away from the kingdom could be bad..."

"Love you too, Shelly," Joey answers the otter with an endearing smile.

"If not Jhod, then I suppose I could put a word in with both churches to ask for an experienced combat healer to fill in for me.  But in any case, this kingdom is only getting bigger and requires more and more attention...  Leaving less and less time for good quality togetherness."

"If I may suggest," Addleworth interjects, "The hiring of secretaries and other support staff is a time honored technique for reducing work load, and as a nation prospers so also does its capacity for supporting the staff needed to run it smoothly.  At present the combined salaries for each of you to have a full time assistant would be negligible within the budget."

"What about hiring adventurers to deal with the frontier exploration so we can devote ourselves to statesmanship?"

"You could give that a try, but I have my doubts that you will be able to find adventurers that will meet your requirements.  Many adventuring groups would likely have killed the grigs you befriended, for example."

Joey sighs.  "You're probably right."

  Bloodsword B McBloodhammer wonders why nobody is hiring him, he polished his shoulder skulls and everything!

  "I somehow suspect a smooth bureaucratic process will be as much, or more hard than outsourcing exploration."

Shelly says, "Scott has a point. Would we find secretaries who meet our requirements?"

Eli says, "Maybe not, but the difference is that out in the field, killing in self-defense is fine even by our standards. Here, though, the law arrests people and leaves killing to a very last resort."

Tread says, "And we will have enough of our people here to make sure whatever secretaries we hire will stick to our standards. Here in the city, we can look over the shoulders of who we hire while the rest of us go out into the field. Out there, though, we have nobody to watch over the shoulder of hired adventurers. And if we went to watch them ourselves, that would defeat the purpose of hiring them."

Shelly says, "Still, my question stands."

Addleworth shrugs.  "I suppose that is up to you.  I would think that fewer secretaries are the kind to kill fairies on sight than adventurers, but I cannot say for certain since none of the secretaries I've known have had the opportunity to kill a grig that I'm aware of."

"Guess time will tell, then," Joey says, "Let's hire some, give them a fake opportunity to be evil, and rewared or fire them depending on how they do on the test."

  These pixies are just RUINING my paperwork! What's the Damage dice on a memo spike?

  "Uh, setting people up with false circumstances and then calling it a 'test' seems kind of roundabout, and would make us look like assholes if they were not more gullible than we'd like to hire."

  Okay, we're leaving you alone with the kingdom treasury.  Have fun!  Also the lock is broken.  OH MY GODS WHY WOULD YOU STEAL FIVE DOLLARS SILVER.

Shelly says, "Real life brings tests. Which is why people earn trust and ranks. It's been quite some time now since the kingdom was set up. I'm sure Svetlana has found good people who deserve positions of authority by now."

Eli shrugs and looks at Addelworth, "Isn't it a rule that no matter what you do as a ruler, you look like a jerk?"

Tread says, "Even if so, what we decide has an impact on how much and how often people think that."

Shelly adds, "Not to mention how well we stand up to false rumors like the kind Grigori was slinging."
This message was last edited by the player at 04:12, Tue 23 Sept 2014.

Addleworth nods to Eli and the girls.  "There is a reason for the expression 'You can't please all the people all the time.'  Scott is right about those potential drawbacks of such an approach.  Also, most new hires are on guard against getting caught doing something questionable.  There are simpler ways to guard against errant underlings.  A rank system for one, as Shelly pointed out..."

He outlines a few other basics.

Joey shrugs.  "Whatever works."

  "Just like all the other realities of ruling settling in, it's becoming clear that 'make it up as you go, but act like you know better anyways' is a widely practiced situation."

Shelly giggles and answers Scott, "If a ruling body ever admits they were wrong about something, the people lose faith in them.... deja'vu. I feel we've exchanged these words before."

Eli says, "Seems odd to have to make it up so much when hundreds of kings have gone before us with tried-and-true methods."

Tread says, "But of those hundreds, only a handful at best have met the kinds of standards we are setting. We aren't willing to do some of the ruthless or downright immoral things that most kings do to settle problems."

Addleworth chuckles.  "Quite right.  Just bear in mind that no matter how mighty the king, good or evil, certain things will always weaken the kingdom.  Such as what Shelly just pointed out."

"I'm of the opinion that it is because of the virtues we put forward that our kingdom is prospering, not in spite of them," Joey asserts.

"One virtue in particular," Addleworth apparently agrees, "So far you have respected Brevoy's boundaries.  They are watching closely for if you do not.  Claim but one square foot of their land and no doubt they will declare war in a heartbeat."

"That...'s hardly a virtue.  Even an evil person wouldn't be that stupid."

"You might be surprised."

Joey looks skeptical.

  "I expect that to not turn up as a problem, until Brevoy starts declaring our own expansion efforts were theirs the whole time.  Fortunately, as they are likely too lazy to do so until we have made the outermost lands hospitable we may have some time before that happens."

  After a moment, he adds, "I suppose we should hope our works make attacking us require a PR campaign to convince their people it is a good idea to die in foreign lands they should be proud of, if they do not simple relying on conscription to accomplish it."

Eli says, "Don't forget Brevoy is still in a cold war. One move to conquer us, and Brevoy's enemies will take it as a threat to them, simply because expansionism is seen as a threat to everyone around the expansionist."

Shelly glances at Eli. "For someone who doesn't like violence, you sure know your stuff about war politics."

Eli says, "Not like it hasn't been the news for the past several years. But yeah... because I dislike violence, I take great interest in anything that could avoid it. Such as stalemates, political agreements, and what toes to avoid stepping on. In this case, don't step on your neighbor's toes by expanding. In fact, it is why we are not considered officially of Brevoy, just allies of Brevoy."

Shelly says, "In short, we don't have anything to worry about for now. When Brevoy starts gearing up for war, we can worry. But at that conjuncture, unless Brevoy has done something horribly evil, I doubt we would refuse a military alliance with Brevoy."

Tread says, "Along Joey's sentiments, I can only hope that prosperity or not, we serve as a good example to our neighbors that being benevolent is a valid leadership method."

"It will most likely be the Surtova family that will make such a claim on your lands," Addleworth agrees with Scott, "When they do, they will do doubt claim that because the land grant you received did no bear the royal seal that it is not valid and will therefor claim that your hold upon the land is unlawful.

"But to remove you from office now will mean that they will have to also take upon themselves the responsibility of defending these people - something they are not willing to expend their already strained time and resources on - for failure to do so will be a public relations disaster that could very well spell the end of their tenuous claim to the throne of Brevoy.  Not to mention that your benefactors - The Swordlords of Restov - wisely arranged that yours is an independent nation.  As Eli pointed out, any overt actions against you by the Surtovas will open them up to allegations of expansionism, giving the Swordlords more diplomatic capitol to make alliances with other nations against the Surtovas.

"The balance will likely be maintained so long as you do not officially declare a military alliance with Restov - something they hope you will do after Noleski makes his move.  Before then, the Surtovas may attempt to diplomatically persuade you to join them, hire secret agents to frame the Swordlords for some disaster that may befall your people, or, and in my opinion what they'll consider the least risky choice, wait until the wilderness claims your lives, destroys your nation, and makes the Swordlords look foolish for trying to civilize an un-tamable tract of land that thousands of years of history have been unable to conquer for very long."

"Cheery," Joey grumbles.

"I was speaking from Noleski's perspective.  I myself expect you all to succeed in taming this land for at least a generation or two.  Long enough to decide the future of Brevoy."

"Well thanks for the vote of confidence.  But is it true that we're here illegally?"

"That's a gray area of law that is debatable.  Considering that the Surtovas have essentially usurped a vacant throne against the wishes of the nation, it could be argued anything they put the royal seal on is null and void anyway.  On the other hand, when a king and his family vanish, is it really illegal for someone to step up and assume control in their absence?  So if it is illegal for you to be here, then it is equally illegal for the Surtovas to be doing what they are doing.  Historically, many new settlements have no choice but to establish themselves in the absence of a legal authority to do so, so the true legality of your claim is not really that much of a concern if it could be established at all.  Enemies will find an excuse to oppose you, legitimate or not.  But as Scott pointed out, the more legitimate you all appear, the more illegitimate your enemies will appear when they oppose you."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:59, Thu 02 Oct 2014.

  Scott says "Remind us to not make that much official power reside in single rubber stamp."  Scott, royal seals don't use rubber stamps, duh.

  At Addleworths further explenations, he nods.  "Looking good will be hard enough, so of course we're the sort of people who want to do more than just look good."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:09, Thu 02 Oct 2014.

Tread stretches her considerably long arms to pull her friends in for a hug (not Addleworth. Even if he was a fellow adventurer, he's too big for her arms). Shelly squeaks like a squeak toy from the hug. "Well I'm proud of you all for the fact you want to be good, benevolent leaders."

"Part of what intrigues me about your group," Addleworth answers Scott.

Joey smiles and returns Tread's hug.  "Right back at you, Tread.  And thanks."

He nods with a smile to Scott.  "Maybe more of a hassle, but totally worth it for the hugs alone."

  Yes, huge girls can be adorable.  This is a scientific fact.  "Thanks, Tread.  I'll settle for not being a huge jerk, but benevolent sounds better."

  All hail our not a jerk leader.  Sounds a bit more like a denial even if true.

Eli says, "I think I have hope that there will be a peaceful way to change the world or at least to live life. Too bad it requires unpeaceful methods first because of our enemies."

Joey chuckles and says, "Makes me wonder what high standards Scott has for himself if getting near killed by the Stag Lord to make the region safe for other people to live in doesn't count for a whole lot more than 'not a huge jerk."

He nods to Eli.  "You and me both."

  "You mean, aside from Grall's reaction to punching his dad to death?"  And then tossing the body to a zombie.

  "Though, things trying to kill people out in the wilderness is common enough that I don't really consider that part of 'leading' so much as 'going outside'"

Eli says, "But you followed us to the Stag Lord. That's a bit more than 'stepping outside'. Even the bandits didn't pick a fight with him."

Tread sighs. "Still such a sad story..."

Shelly adds, "A story we are fighting to keep from being repeated!"

Shelly then looks up at Scott and gives a nervous grin. "Well if you don't amount to much, I must not even amount to anything. You, at least, had a hand in taking down the Stag Lord. I came in late and have been hanging on the coat tails of your success."

"If the god of destruction were destroyed, I'm sure his worshippers would not be happy about it no matter how fitting his end was," Joey muses.

To Shelly he comments, "It seems everyone among us is the type to downplay our contribution.  But when it comes to you, I'm sure there are several rulers who would give anything to have just one word of endorsement from the oracle of the ocean, let alone have your full time support."

Addleworth nods.  "No doubt."

  "Maybe, but you are way more adorable than I will ever be so you can get away with that sort of thing Shelly."

  He shrugs,  "I'll probably feel accomplished once it's safer for people to wall more than a hundered feet from a settlement without worrying bandits, bears, or bandit bears attack them."  Scott, please!  It was a druid bear, get it right.

Shelly blushes from all the compliments, her whole body glowing. "Was just trying to show Scott how his words sound to the rest of us when he makes himself out as not really a hero. You guys are so kind!"

Eli says, "We'll get there, Scott."

Tread says, "Speaking of getting there, what is next on the agenda for securing the safety of our kingdom?"

"Oh I dunno," Joey chuckles, "We may encounter a nasty sorcerer with a strange sense of humor that casts a baleful polymorph spell on you to turn you int a baby bunny...  Hmm...  Or maybe a bear cub named Bandit."

He smiles at Shelly.  "Then you get the same reassurances Scott gets."

To Eli's comment and Tread's question he asks Addleworth, "Any suggestions?"

"If defense is the focus, then defensive structures are the popular choice for long term efficiency.  Some structures offer more defensive benefit than others, and some serve more than one function..."

He expounds on the pluses and minuses of each defensive structure.

  "As nice as it would be to have as sturdy a defense as possible, it might be best to start with the fasted thing to set up just for the sake of having something sooner."

Eli asks, "Isn't that how defenses are made? You start with something simple and functional, then you add to it, making something more permanent."

Shelly says, "That's possible. Slightly more expensive, but possible. For the sake of security, though, it's ideal. We set up basic defenses like Scott said. Then we improve them over time."

Tread says, "Thanks for all your information, Addleworth. Your advice sure has been helpful for our decisions."

"You are most welcome Tread," Addleworth answers with a smile.

"Historically, yes," he agrees with Eli, "Though the reason is usually lack of funds more than lack of time.  Your young nation has already grown more than most do over the course of several generations.  With your booming economy being what it is, you are in a unique position to have it both ways.  Sturdy and swift.  Projects that would strain the treasuries of other communities are trivial to your kingdom's wealth to build in one month's time.  Granted, you have not yet rivaled the budget of Brevoy by any stretch, but certainly you have surpassed the prosperity of most of her distinct municipalities that have lasted for hundreds of years."

"Well that's good to hear," Joey answers, "But I don't suppose they have to deal with bandit bears."

"Not to the degree that you do I wouldn't imagine.  Also they have stable, non-hostile communities surrounding them for the most part."

  A kingdom building campaign following a more reasonable time scale would probably be less of a draw to players, especially with the usual sort of fantasy problems thrown their way on top of political ones.

  "Comforting that we can afford better defenses straight away, if not the fact we need them more than others."

Eli says, "I'd have to look at the numbers in the treasury, but... if we're really that wealthy, then by all means, we should improve the defenses as much as possible without going into the red and without sacrificing effectiveness."

Shelly squeaks, "I'm sure you can find any numerical discrepancies, Eli!" She takes a moment to admire that her latest statement sounded kind of smart in her opinion. And this is her second language! "So let's get started. I'll work on getting the people on board. Tread and Scott can work on figuring which places are the best to start in first, in case we can't build all the defenses at once."

Tread says, "Phew... land surveying..."

Shelly pshaws. "Not as hard as you might think. All you need is a map. You've walked this land so much, you'll remember things about the map that nobody could know by just looking at it."

"Nothing says 'wealthy' quite like converting a ruined bandit lair into a bustling town complete with noble villa," Addleworth comments with a mouth full of chocolate covered raisins.

"I'm with Scott," Joey says, "Villa or no, I'll be happy when defensive structures are no longer needed."

He smiles at Tread & Shelly.  "The longer I stay here the more I love this land as home.  The waters remind me of play time with Shelly.  The trees remind me of strength, the hills of Tread's endurance, the sunrise of Eli's warmth.  It's inspiring!  I think I'll devote myself to writing a national anthem for us.  It's high time we had one."

  "Just so long as you think it's okay for one of the so called leaders to be faking it when they can't remember the words."  Something something cavebears lame something something seabears cool something something where the Elk and Antelope rampage purple drop mountains rolled for need, of thee I sing.

Indeed the surveying is easier than expected. Indeed, the treasury is able to handle the sudden build-up of defensive structures everywhere. Shelly is sure to make the team take breaks at regular intervols, helping them remember how to have fun. Tread is sure to worry. Eli is sure to do any and all calculations needed. Together, the team makes amazing progress.

Joey chuckles.  "That's what sheet music is for."

He helps out where he can, directing materials deliveries, leading prayers at ground breaking ceremonies, negotiating with labor unions, carrying stone, etc.  He enjoys fun times with Shelly and the others.  While working or playing Joey often hums or sings lines for the anthem he's writing.

  Scott isn't going to make any claims towards 'if you want something done right, do it yourself'.  But if you want something done slightly faster that involves manual labor, helping out yourself seems to work.

  At least, if you do not have noodle arms.

After the walls are all built, however, at a meeting, Tread brings up that the wilderness is not taming itself. "I've been itching to go out there and make sure things get better. Have we made up our minds about who stays and who goes?"
This message was last edited by the player at 06:28, Sun 23 Nov 2014.

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1 Kuthona

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