Ronja and Birk set-about figuring-out how to make more use of the space, the mountainside being precarious as it is.  As you begin carving-out a new level to the storage room, the Fairhairs construct a series of ledges and stairs that let them easily traverse the now much-wider and higher space necessary.  Thankfully the work moves along speedily and with little difficulty.

[ Ronja, Birk, and the Fairhairs Achieves an Astounding Success in Renovating the Storage Room in (H8). ]
[ You gain 2 Leveling XP, which must be assigned to the Fairhairs. ]
[ You gain 2 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Mason. ]
[ You save 3 Stone, consuming only 7 Stone. ]

[ The Wild Minds succeeds in Scouting (J8). ]
[ You discover a Small Cache containing:
12 x Stone
4 x Gold.
]
[ You discover a Poor Food Node.  It has an estimated 1 use remaining. ]

[ The Leaf Cloaks perform militia duty.  Reducing Your Usurpation's Upkeep.  You need not pay upkeep for neither the Leaf Cloaks and the Wild Minds. ]

Fairhairs: Level 9->10 (2xp), Strength 3->4
Ronja: Mason 4->6
Stone 20->13, Storage Room lvl 1->2
Stone 13->25
Gold 28->32
Upkeep 15 gold, 3 food-> 5 gold, 1-3 food (depending on answer in OOC) Not recorded in lair (as it only applies once); I'll gamble on my memory not failing me next upkeep.

Begin [Week 3, Month 5, Year 1]




[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (H7).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]

A proper make-over to the throne room would probably take the rest of the month, but for now they're sticking with what they can do in a week; They may or may not finish the rest next week.
For example, the throne is decidedly worn, and the garish colors say more 'wannabe noble' than 'bandit queen'.
Carving away the surface wood (which has been exposed to the elements for so long) and sculpting it into a more utilitarian design, and perhaps a fresh coat of a more subdued paint-color, should help.
And while it's one of the sturdier rooms (wouldn't do to have Ronja or Birk knocked out by a falling brick) there are still plenty of cracked bricks and make-shift braces - New stones could help give it a less 'ruins'-esque look.

Given Ronja's the better architect of the two, Birk's the one sent out to the elves; The band still needs so much more space and furniture for all their plans, both of which require plenty of wood.
At least the elves seemed to finally be offering 'fair' prices, last time they were there, so getting the wood going forward shouldn't be much of a problem.

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Assist Fairhairs	H8	H8
Birk	H8	Diplomacy (Trade)	I6	H8	Riding Donkey. Intent: Buying lumber from Shamerius
Wild Minds	H8	Scout	I7	H8	Intent: Still 'Specify first result as a cache, ideally equipment, though gold's good too'
Fairhairs	H8	Renovate Throne Room	H8	H8
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Assist Fairhairs	H8	H8

Upon entering Shamerius once more, the villagers are overly jubilant at seeing you.  Covered in dirt, and looking famished; the mayor and several villagers beg you to hear their tale of woe!
Shamerius has suffered from a hefty series of disappearances of their primary source of game.  This has left their hunters ill-practiced and prepared for alternative sources, and is leaving Shamerius dangerously short of food.  Shamerius needs some food to shore-up their storehouses to prevent famine.  Shamerius' hunters are in sore need of new bows to begin hunting again.

They are so desperate and are willing to swear an oath of fealty to you if you can help them!


[ Ronja, Fairhairs, and the Leaf Cloaks achieve a Significant Success in Renovating the Throne Room. ]
[ The Throne Room becomes Renovation Level 2 ]
[ You gain 1 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Mason. ]
[ You save 2 Stone, consuming only 8 Stone. ]

[ Birk achieves a Significant Success in Conducting Diplomacy with Shamerius (I6). ]
[ Birk gains 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Negotiator. ]
[ This is sufficient to improve Shamerius' Attitude Status to Loyal. ]
CT = Crafter's Tools, Fo = Foodstuffs

[ You receive a Quest from Shamerius:

• Name: "A Lousy Hunter"
• Type: Challenging Errand
• Mission: Shamerius has suffered from a hefty series of disappearances of their primary source of game.  This has left their hunters ill-practiced and prepared for alternative sources, and is leaving Shamerius dangerously short of food.
• Task 1: Shamerius needs some food to shore-up their storehouses to prevent famine. [Mechanics: Donate 5 x Foodstuffs.]
• Task 2: Shamerius' hunters are in sore need of new bows to begin hunting again.
• Reward: Fanatical Status with Shamerius.  4 Artisan XP.
• Duration: 4 x Weeks.

]
[ You receive an offer from an Extra:
]

[ The Wild Minds achieve a Significant Success in Scouting (I7) ]
[ You discover a Medium Cache containing:
1 x Earth Tools,
1 x Armor (Type 1),
4 Gold
]
[ You discover a Normal Stone Node.  It has an estimated 3 uses remaining. ]
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:40, Sat 05 Dec 2015.

Stone 25->17
Leaf Cloaks: Level 3->4, Offense 1->2
Ronja: Mason 6->7
Birk: Negotiator 2->3
Earth Tools equipped to the Leaf Cloaks
Armor 1 equipped to the Fairhairs
Gold 32->36

No to the extra - to be clear, and to reduce the chance of misspeakingwriting, I do not want to hire them.

Donate 5 foodstuff right now; I won't be able to complete the quest yet (need to go buy ranged weapons) but it'll free up storage: Food 9->4

Buy 36 lumber at 'Standard' 1-gold-per-3-lumber: Gold 36->23, Lumber 0->36

Begin [Week 4, Month 5, Year 1]




[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (H7).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]



This message was last edited by the GM at 17:17, Thu 26 Nov 2015.

The renovations to the throne room get put on hold, temporarily, in favor of a new project.
In the leaders' opinions, it has been far too long since they made any progress on the whole 'understanding magic' front, and their scouts really need to be able to recognize any ancient artifacts they stumble across.
But any study of such things would require specialized equipment: Exactly the kind of things they are trying to install into one of the more isolated rooms of the fort.
Half of the runes and charms they intend to hang up likely won't do anything, but with their spotty understanding it'd not be wise to skip anything, just in case.
Mostly, though, the room just needs to be sturdy enough that if an artifact explodes, it won't take the rest of the fort with it.

Recent... 'Generosity', so to speak, has left the food-stores fairly depleted.
So, any workers not busy with the new constructions join up with Birk for a hunter-gatherer trip.
There's not too much pressure, though; The food will last another month, so they can focus on getting the 'good stuff' and not sweat it if they get chased off before gathering a full load.

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Assist Fairhairs	H8	H8
Birk	H8	Assist Wild Minds	I7	H8	With donkey
Wild Minds	H8	Gather Resource (Food)	I7	H8
Fairhairs	H8	Construct Mysterious Room	H8	H8	Unless I've messed up, base cost should be 35 lumber
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Assist Wild Minds	I7	H8

The need for understanding the magic within this region was very important.  Ronja could feel it in her breast that a change was coming, and the time to build a facility to house such energies was now.  It took Ronja two straight days to work out the diagrams from her notes and the various tomes brought-in by her Intelligence Network to piece together the perfect housing and pillars necessary to harness and channel the energies needed to discover the lands in this artifact, but, with the Fairhairs hard at working; expertly carving beams and laying the foundations the work formed into a beauteous spectacle of almost magical craftsmanship.

As the Wild Minds and the Leaf Cloaks begin to scour the stores of the well-stocked and equally abandoned food storage you had discovered, Birk begins tabulating the food and is overjoyed that thanks to your generous efforts this month - your stores will be completely stocked and full!

[ Ronja, and the Fairhairs achieve an Astounding Success in Constructing a Mysterious Room. ]
[ You gain 2 Leveling XP, which is lost. ]
[ You gain 2 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Mason. ]
[ You save 7 Lumber, consuming only 28 Lumber. ]

[ Birk, the Wild Minds, and the Leaf Cloaks somehow achieve an Astounding success in Harvesting the Exceptional Food Node in (I7) ]
[ You gain 2 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 2 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Forager. ]
[ You return with 15 Foodstuffs! ]
[ This node is exhausted. ]
[ Yes - you can consume the Excess Foodstuffs before 'losing' them, since it is the end of the month. ]

Do not forget (when calculating upkeep) to calculate your temporary upkeep reduction you earned.
---The Leaf Cloaks perform militia duty.  Reducing Your Usurpation's Upkeep.  You need not pay upkeep for neither the Leaf Cloaks and the Wild Minds.---
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:53, Fri 27 Nov 2015.

Ronja: Mason 7->9
Lumber 36->8
Leaf Cloaks: Level 4->6, Strength 1->2, Offense 2->3, Forager 0->2
Food 4->19, in 'limbo' until after upkeep.

Upkeep:
Midas Touch: Gold 23->27
3-2=1 unit that needs upkeep: Gold 27->22, Food 19->18
18 food fits in storage (level 2 times 10 equals 20 spots, 2 spots used for one not-full stack each of lumber and stone) so nothing is actually wasted.

Begin [Week 1, Month 6, Year 1]



[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (I8).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]



ALERT!  You receive word from your Spy Network that Mistfield (H9) has been destroyed!
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:52, Sun 29 Nov 2015.

After the usual weekly instructions, Ronja is loading most of their valuables, and a decent load of the food as well, unto the donkey.
With a decent bit of luck, there should be plenty to trade for the bows they'd been asked for.
Since it's a big place, she's taking Birk along as backup (both backup for trading, to make finding merchants easier, and in case of emergencies)

With no 'overseers' to keep them on task, it seems likely the workers (or 'workers') will end up unfocused.
But the Wild Minds have done a decent job on their own, so hopefully twenty extra pairs of legs and eyes will help them cover more ground.
The mountain-chain has shown itself rich with various rare minerals and gems so far, so they'll primarily be looking for signs of the 'high value' finds (assuming they can still remember what they'd been taught about geology)
Thirty people make for enough spare hands (especially with just the one set of spyglasses) that if they stumble across something interesting they can take the time to dig it out or the like.
But the focus should still be on finding some trade-goods, given there'd be nothing to pay the workers with otherwise.

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Diplomacy (Trade)	G9	H8	Donkey. Intent: Buying 2 sets of ranged weapons and selling some food - amount yet to be decided.
Birk	H8	Assist Ronja	G9	H8
Wild Minds	H8	Scout Location	G8	H8	Intent: Specify first result as a Gold node. If there are any secondary finds, a 'free' cache is better than a small extra node I'd need to spend actions harvesting.
Fairhairs	H8	Assist Wild Minds	G8	H8
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Assist Wild Minds	G8	H8

After last month's sudden and drastic mood-swing among the major cities, you find it a welcome change that they are allowing strangers back into the gates once-more.  Entering the market, you are relieved to find several Elven vendors, who apparently also were in great need of plying their wares - and find a significant supply of beasts of burden and bows.

[ Ronja and Birk achieve a Significant Success in Conducting Diplomacy with Moracku (G9) ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Negotiator. ]
[ You encounter a single Advanced Unit available to recruit: They are level 1 with 1 Skill XP, and are available for 10 Gold.  If you choose to recruit - choose a standard race. ]
[ Donkeys and Ranged Weapons are selling at the Preferred (Pfd) Rate, this week. ]
[ They are buying Lumber at the Preferred (Pfd) Rate, this week. ]
[ All other items/resources are available at standard prices. ]

[ The Wild Minds, Fairhairs, and Leaf Cloaks achieve a Significant Success in Scouting (G8). ]
[ You gain 1 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Scout or Spy. ]
[ You discover an Exceptional Gold Node.  It has an estimated 3 uses remaining. ]
[ You discover a Normal Stone Node.  It has an estimated 3 uses remaining. ]
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:12, Wed 02 Dec 2015.

Ronja: Negotiator 3->4
No to the recruit.
Sell 8 lumber for 4 gold, because I can just buy more from the elves AND improve their size/trade-rate: Lumber 8->0, Gold 22->26
Buy 2 sets of Ranged Weapons: 2x9=18, Gold 26->8, ranged weapons not noted (they should be gone by next week, if I understood right)
Sell 6 food for 6 gold to free storage: Food 18->12, Gold 8->14
Two ranged sets will be donated to the elves as soon as possible, which might be immediately after buying them, but I should have the space to hold them for one 'sub-turn's worth of time if needed.

Leaf Cloaks: Level 6->7, Strength 2->3
Birk: Scout 1->2

This message was last edited by the player at 09:38, Wed 02 Dec 2015.

Begin [Week 2, Month 6, Year 1]



[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (I8).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]


You successfully complete the Quest "A Lousy Hunter" upon donating the Ranged Weapons.

You gain 12 Gold.
You gain 4 Skill XP, which must be assigned in any Harvesting Skills of your choice (provided that you meet the prerequisites.)  You may assign to whom you see fit.
Shamerius improves to Fanatical Status!  Additionally, all of your trade statuses improve by one (will be reflected in STT).  You are now capable of improving to "best" (once you reach "Favored" it will automatically improve. - which has triggered.)
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:54, Thu 03 Dec 2015.

If the wild-minds are to get to the competition on time next week, they can't go wandering around the country-side like usual.
Nor would it be wise to have them exhausted when they get there.
So they are set to finishing the renovation of the throne-room (supervised by Ronja, who's only just short of having mastered the art of architecture) - for the most part, there is plenty to be done with just improving what's already there (but flawed), though there should be time to add a new painting or some potted plants if they find any pots either not broken or broken into pieces large enough to fix with paint and glue.

Birk heads out with the rest to dig into the new vein.
They don't have to go far, but Birk's borrowing Ronja's donkey anyway to help with the load.
It's even closer to the local thug-Lord, if only in one direction (west), so they will have to be extra quiet.
Which will take some skill, given the task involves breaking rock apart with brute force (focused to a small impact-area using a pick and such), but if anyone can be subtle when mining it'd be twenty-one elves.
Heck, Birk's gotten all buddy-buddy with Shamerius (or at least their traders), who can at least partially hide an entire village inside a forest even while chopping enough trees to support an entire fort-restoration, so he should be able to steal some ideas from them.

Gold 14->26
Fairhairs: Digger 8->9
Leaf Cloaks: Digger 0->3

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Support the Wild Minds	H8	H8
Birk	H8	Support the Fairhairs	G8	H8	w/Donkey
Wild Minds	H8	Renovate Throne Room	H8	H8	Should, if I did it right, cost 15-out-of-17 stone, minus discounts
Fairhairs	H8	Gather Resource (Gold)	G8	H8	Possibly H8, but that's probably a typo
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Support the Fairhairs	G8	H8

Renovating the Throne and its ensconcing room, was become more and more necessary to showcase the growing splendor of Ronja's household of bandits and ruffians, who were rapidly growing into a true and concerted force.

As Birk began to direct the others, the burlap sacks began to flow and fill with yellow, red, blue and a swirl of beautiful colors.  The gleam shone across Birk's eyes as you began counting the coins that would soon fill the coffers.

[ Ronja and the Wild Minds succeed in Renovating the Throne Room. ]
[ You successfully Renovate the Throne Room to Ren Level 3! ]
[ You save 1 Stone, consuming only 14 Stone. ]

[ Birk, the Fairhairs, and the Leaf Cloaks achieve a Significant Success in Harvesting Gold from the Exceptional Gold Node in (G8). ]
[ You gain 1 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Digger. ]
[ You return with 10 Gold. ]

EDIT: You recover 3 Gold from the Retroactive changes to the Throne Room.
26 -> 29
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:06, Sat 05 Dec 2015.

Gold 29->39
Stone 17->3
Leaf Cloaks: Level 7->8, Defense 2->3, Digger 3->4

Begin [Week 3, Month 6, Year 1]



[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (I8).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]

With the tournament starting soon, the Wild Minds hand over any tools the elves can carry - both to lighten their own load, not being likely to need any tools, and in case they are needed while they're away - and head off to fight for fame and fortune.

There is still plenty of treasure to be pulled from the western rocks, so Birk takes the rest of the 'workers' back that-away.
While it's not a guarantee that they'll be back after this, it'd be nice to have the option.
So they will be hammering in supports for the roof and walls still, and getting the rope equivalent of a 'railing' to hold unto to make the slippery slopes less of a hazard - besides, even when they leave, it'd be a shame if travelers slipped and broke something here. Both because he isn't heartless, and because if they are going to die anyway they might as well at least survive until they get to where the 'gang' is more likely to find their bodies (and their belongings)

Ronja's off to get another load or two of lumber from the elves.
She's curious to see if the place has grown any since last time.
At the very least it'd be interesting to see how the incompetent hunters are doing now that they've gotten a chance to recover.
By now chances are the locals both know and don't question where she gets her goods - nor why she's bought enough lumber over the months to build a small village.
Or they suspect they know, given she's still got her rather worn clothes and gear.
Mind, she still has to hide what he brings in case she's spotted by bandits or the like, but she's not had trouble before.

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Diplomacy (Trade)	I6 (Shamerius)	H8	Bringing donkey. Intending to purchase lumber, if it matters.
Birk	H8	Assist the Fairhairs	G8	H8
Wild Minds	H8	Event Stuff	Event	Event	'On Week 3, Month 6, you may send ONE (1) Unit of your Choice to the Tournament.' These are the ones I choose. They won't return this week due to the event.
Fairhairs	H8	Gather Resource (Gold)	G8	H8
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Assist the Fairhairs	G8	H8

This message was last edited by the player at 16:35, Wed 09 Dec 2015.

The Wild Minds spend many hours preparing bundle of food, washing what clothing they have, and otherwise preparing mentally for the tournament.  They know that their participation may not only result in greater fame and renown for Ronja, but that they may acquire much needed information.

Entering Shamerius, it had been some time since your last visit; and you were surprised to see the sizable monument erected in your honor!  The young woman, girded in what appears to be heavy rags well-suited for moving among the forests; armed with a bow and sword; the visage strikes a powerful likeness.

[ Ronja succeeds in conducting Diplomacy with Shamerius (I6). ]
[ Thanks to the Scholar bonus - you gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Negotiator. ]
[ Ronja receives a Special Opportunity!  This will be a DF3 Quest.  If you complete it - your Usurpation will forever gain a Special Ability. ]

[ Birk, the Fairhairs, and the Leaf Cloaks achieve a Significant Success in Harvesting from the Exceptional Gold Node (G8). ]
[ They return with 14 Gold. ]

[ The Wild Minds depart for the tournament. ]

Doesn't sound like I have anything I can choose regarding the quest, since it's not choose-your-own-difficulty like the new Explore quests, but I do want to accept (or at least hear) it.
Ronja: Negotiator 4->5
Gold 39->53, and fixed not taking the Throne Room into account on my upkeep.
Trade 1 gold per 5 wood: Lumber 0->85, costs 17 so gold 53->36

Begin [Week 4, Month 6, Year 1]



[ Intelligence Network:  +10% to Scouting (Find a CP) or Exploring (I8).]
[ You are more likely to find Special Opportunities. ]

• Name: "Ranger's Bounty"
• Type: Challenging Charge
• Mission:  Shamerius wants you to prove your competence.  If you can, they will reward you with a fabled secret.
• Task 1 Narrative: Seek-out the Monstrous Spider in the nearby Forest
• Task 1 Mechanics: Attack Monstrous Spider in (H6) Grid.
• Task 2 Narrative: Prove your connected with the forests.
• Task 2 Mechanics:  Succeed in Harvesting at least 20 Lumber. (may require more than 1 Week.) Must be harvested to count.
• Reward: Gain a Special Ability
• Duration: 4 x Weeks.

The leaders have a lengthy discussion about whether or not to even try to 'prove' themselves to the elves.
For starters, they're not exactly the greatest woodsmen, so the idea of spending most of a month trying to gather the wood isn't too appealing.
But on the other hand, without it they've no short-term goal, and Ronja personally finds the temptation of a mysterious secret hard to resist.
It's such rotten timing too, with the humans off at the tournament; They could really use some trained scouts.

They still can't let their plans fall apart entirely, so she heads out with the more 'veteran' of the elves to get the rest of what's worth digging for in their mine.
This really will be the last week they bother going out there, so on the way back they can yank out or break any supports that aren't too sturdy or stuck - even if nothing collapses, it'll be less stable at least.
And it's not so important to be 'methodical' about their mining now; With limited time, it's better to get all the big finds and leave some more sparse areas un-dug, than try to mine everything as you find it and have to leave before getting all the good spots.

Birk, the closest the two have to a designated scout-leader, takes the leaf-cloaks out to find some good trees.
The 'spies', who likely do less spying than they do writing reports and bits of info for the scouts, have started on a tree-equivalent to their geology notes, but with so little warning it's still rather superficial.
The wood doesn't have to be good, since it's mainly for the sake of proving themselves, so a species with soft, easily-chopped wood would probably be best.

Name	Start	Action	Target	End	Notes
Ronja	H8	Assist the Fairhairs	G8	H8	With donkey.
Birk	H8	Assist the Leaf Cloaks	H6	H8
Wild Minds	H8	Event	Event	H8	Last week of the tournament
Fairhairs	H8	Gather Resource (Gold)	G8	H8
Leaf Cloaks	H8	Scout Location	H6	H8	Intent: Specify lumber with S-Suite, secondary results would ideally be an extra lumber node

[ Ronja and the Fairhairs achieve a Significant success in Harvesting from the Exceptional Gold Node (G8). ]
[ You gain 1 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Digger. ]
[ You return with 9 Gold. ]

[ Birk and the Leaf Cloaks achieve a Significant Success in Scouting (H6). ]
[ You gain 1 Leveling XP. ]
[ You gain 1 Skill XP, which must be assigned as Scout or Spy. ]
[ You discover an Exceptional Lumber Node!  It has an estimated 4 uses remaining. ]
[ You discover a CP:
]
Because you brought a leader on your first visit, you receive a free Diplomacy Check.  Because the race of your leader matches one of the race(s) in the CP, your starting Attitude Status is Unfriendly.
[ Birk achieves a Significant Success in conducting Diplomacy with Lastdale (H6). ]
[ This was sufficient to improve your Attitude Status to Indifferent. ]
They are BUYING Armor (Type 1), Construction Tools, and Stone.
They are SELLING Lumber, Spyglasses, and Ranged Weapons.

[ The Wild Minds return from the Tournament! ]
[ They gain 3 Leveling XP, which are wasted. ]
[ They gain 3 Skill XP, which must be assigned as a Combat Skill. ]
[ The Wild Minds took 2nd place! ]


As a result of achieving 2nd place in the Tournament, you glean some information:

Alhamandriel's Unit:

As a result of achieving 2nd place in the Tournament, you gain the following rewards:
1 x Spell of your Choice,
30 Gold.