Kingdom issues (After the bralani)

The fox seemed to require healing no?
I think he's a riot!!!

Admin wrote:

Excellent. We have a decision. Lakeshore it is.

We can call our castle the Lakeshore Citadel, if you like.

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It's actually the King's Citadel, and that's their equivalent of the CIA.

Whose equivalent? Aundair's? Breland?

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Actually, if I wasn't clear, you all do have a number of things keeping you busy. Stuff like obtaining the familiar only takes a day or so, which Rowan can make time for, but taking a few days off is tougher. It'll be more feasible in a couple of months, you would presume. Still, if you really want to do it now, that's possible.

So, what's the widow Lily Tesker like?

Can prestidigitation be used for birth control, or is that beyond its scope. Otherwise we may have a small horde of half-elves before too long, if Leonis is sufficiently into puberty to actually make them.

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What sort of expedition did you have in mind? Just the four PCs? Four PCs plus an entourage? Not the PCs but envoys from your kingdom?

We should send diplomatic envoys, to open up talks and arrange for a meeting in person. When we do go, it should be the four PCs and an entourage.

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With Khatovar not yet being a very large or heavily developed kingdom, the Lyrandar Windwrights Guild can't do much for you, since their airships couldn't dock in Lakeshore and you aren't producing enough (and are too far out of the way) to justify the expense of trading via them.

The Raincallers Guild, however, could be fairly handy, since they use their abilities to help with local weather, both in a magical sense (using dragonmarks and related abilities to actually affect local weather and rainfall) and in a non-magical way (building dams, irrigation systems and reservoirs to help maximize agrictultural production). They're not as famous or glamorous as the Windwrights, but they probably affect the lives of common people around Khorvaire in a more immediate way.

Will Olegton and its surrounding areas have a long-term problem with water supply? If so, we may want them to make a viaduct.

Could they make the fountain system for Lakeshore that we talked about? We can hire artisans to make the actual fountains, but we'd need their civil engineering to make them work.

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The fox peers suspiciously at Rowan for a moment and then opens its mouth in what she recognizes as the vulpine equivalent of a pleased smile. "Of course there is," snaps the fox, but there's no real heat to the comment. "My name is Vulpingetorix." He looks meaningfully at Rowan for a few seconds, before explaining a little peevishly, "That's 'warrior king of the foxes' in ... um, fox. I am the shadow in the night. I am the fangs in the dark. They call me Mister fox! No chicken is safe from my wrath! And as for my scars, you should have seen the other fox. Foxes! And dog!"

Rowan laughs at his gusto. Not laughing at him, but in appreciation.

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Having delivered the little speech, the fox sits and beams proudly at Rowan for a few seconds. Then it shakes itself and says, while scratching behind the tattered stump of a ear with a hind-leg, "But you called me here to be your ... what's the word ... familiar, right? I ..." he pauses dramatically, "...accept! Now you have to pledge me your soul! Right?"

"I am pleased to meet you, Vulpingetorix, warrior king of the foxes." She says seriously, while suppressing a smile. "I am Rowan Thorn, and I am the General of these lands. The warrior queen of Khatovar, you might say. "

"I did call you here to be my familiar. That doesn't actually involve pledging souls, but the forging of magical bonds of loyalty and friendship. And power," she adds slyly.

Queen rowan? kara may have something to say about that

Leonis wrote:

Fine, but the mages tower will now be called:
The Bastian of Doom & Dispair

Oh lord, he IS a 13 year old L33t geek!

Rowan won't correct him on his spelling.

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Those who can read magic know it is really called. "Back the F off Moses, this is Leonis' Pimp pad and we don't want your Ten Commandments in this crib"

Um, WTF?

That's both OCC and IC, by the way.

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I was talking out of game. I figured the fox is smart and wouldn't try to out fox it , the show would be more for the public.

He also has a pretty substantial sense motive.

WHAT???
If there is any queening to be done around here...... let me assure you.... I'm the one to do it!
Indeed!!!

Rowan wrote:

Leonis wrote:

Fine, but the mages tower will now be called:
The Bastian of Doom & Dispair

Oh lord, he IS a 13 year old L33t geek!

Rowan won't correct him on his spelling.

Quote :

Those who can read magic know it is really called. "Back the F off Moses, this is Leonis' Pimp pad and we don't want your Ten Commandments in this crib"

Um, WTF?

That's both OCC and IC, by the way.

Yo Dawg! Back up!

Rowan wrote:

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I was talking out of game. I figured the fox is smart and wouldn't try to out fox it , the show would be more for the public.

He also has a pretty substantial sense motive.

I think the point flew over some heads. Leonis would really like the fox (well cause I think the fox is cool), but would act like he doesn't like the fox to the rest of the world. He is not trying to master bluff it (which he could do fairly well), he is just being a kid

Luna wrote:

WHAT???
If there is any queening to be done around here...... let me assure you.... I'm the one to do it!
Indeed!!!

Don't say I didn't warn ya Mike

Luna wrote:

WHAT???
If there is any queening to be done around here...... let me assure you.... I'm the one to do it!
Indeed!!!

It's only a matter of time...

Besides, haven't we established that Grabthar is going to be the King, so he can have a throne to brood on?

We could always have two queens and two kings, like Narnia.

Leonis wrote:

Yo Dawg! Back up!

I still have no idea what the hell you're saying.

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I think the point flew over some heads. Leonis would really like the fox (well cause I think the fox is cool), but would act like he doesn't like the fox to the rest of the world. He is not trying to master bluff it (which he could do fairly well), he is just being a kid.

Okay, that makes sense.

OOC stuff below, with an IC post to follow:

Leonis wrote:

The fox is cut. Shil you should press for the soul. I like the darkwing duck copy/hack/paste

I've never actually watched or read any Darkwing Duck. I presume there's some soul-selling there?

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Shil would certain houses avoid us if we dealt with others? Is there some limit? I want to make sure weknow who we may alienate before we do so

No. While some of the Houses are rivals and have a greater presence in certain countries, every large nation of Khorvaire features enclaves from almost all the Houses. You should be able to work with all of them eventually, if you want.

Luna wrote:

The fox seemed to require healing no?

The wounds and scars are all old and healed.

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I think he's a riot!!!

Rowan wrote:

We can call our castle the Lakeshore Citadel, if you like.

Good idea.

Admin wrote:

It's actually the King's Citadel, and that's their equivalent of the CIA.

Rowan wrote:

Whose equivalent? Aundair's? Breland?

Whoops. Breland.

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So, what's the widow Lily Tesker like?

Human. In her late 20s. Attractive and vivacious. She's clearly a social climber (made advances to first Kara and then Leonis at a feast in their honor shortly before Rowan joined the group) but is also fairly smart and competent. Runs her own farm outside Olegton and is looking to possibly buy property near Lakeshore.

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Can prestidigitation be used for birth control, or is that beyond its scope. Otherwise we may have a small horde of half-elves before too long, if Leonis is sufficiently into puberty to actually make them.

Not prestidigitation, but there are herbal and other approaches that work pretty well. So Leonis shouldn't be adding drastically to the population. Unless he really wants to!

Leonis wrote:

Queen rowan? kara may have something to say about that

It's clearly a rolling rulership.

Rowan wrote:

Oh lord, he IS a 13 year old L33t geek!

Rowan won't correct him on his spelling.

Admin wrote:

I've never actually watched or read any Darkwing Duck. I presume there's some soul-selling there?

No soul selling. His "I am the shadow in the night. I am the fangs in the dark. They call me Mister fox! No chicken is safe from my wrath!" spiel was really close to Darkwing Duck's signature spiel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RJsjeoP8_w

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Human. In her late 20s. Attractive and vivacious. She's clearly a social climber (made advances to first Kara and then Leonis at a feast in their honor shortly before Rowan joined the group) but is also fairly smart and competent. Runs her own farm outside Olegton and is looking to possibly buy property near Lakeshore.

Hmm. Next time Rowan's in Olegton, she'll accept Lily's invitation to join her for dinner. Or if Lily Tesker's in Lakeshore before then, Rowan will invite her to the Citadel for dinner.

Who was her late husband?

Rowan wrote:

Who was her late husband?

Gotta love sloppy seconds huh?

Coverage of the IC stuff:

Avi, you didn't mention whether you wanted to follow up on the personal apprentice thing. Or would you rather just provide training at the caster's tower and not take one on personally?

Rowan wrote:

Will Olegton and its surrounding areas have a long-term problem with water supply? If so, we may want them to make a viaduct.

Could they make the fountain system for Lakeshore that we talked about? We can hire artisans to make the actual fountains, but we'd need their civil engineering to make them work.

Yes on both counts. Olegton is centered around what was Oleg's Trading Post, which wasn't built near a large water body or river like Lakeshore is. With the steadily growing population, they may have serious water issues any time the rains are not good, which is why planning for that eventuality is a good idea. The decanter certainly helps, but the Lyrandar Raincallers should be a handy aid too, esp. for the long-term.

In view of the above...

Luna wrote:

Well, we're still a pretty small place... and the use of airships may not really be profitable for them at this point... but I am certainly flattered and eager to for the successful integration of a house bearing my name into our area. So I think we should extend them an offical invitation to come out and access the viability of sort of arrangement.

Kara responds to the letter with a couple of missives, one of them a personal letter to her old friend and the other an official document cordially inviting House Lyrandar to come to Lakeshore. While the second letter doesn't make any promises, it hints at the possibility of a long-term arrangement between the rulers of Khatovar and the House.

Within a week of sending them off, Kara receives twin responses to her letters, both a personal and an official one. While the personal one fills her in on what her old friend has been doing, the official one says that a Lyrandar embassy will arrive in Khatovar within the next fortnight.

Rowan wrote:

Rowan laughs at his gusto. Not laughing at him, but in appreciation.

Vulpingetorix looks suspicious for a moment and then spreads his jaws in a vulpine grin of appreciation.

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"I am pleased to meet you, Vulpingetorix, warrior king of the foxes." She says seriously, while suppressing a smile. "I am Rowan Thorn, and I am the General of these lands. The warrior queen of Khatovar, you might say. "

"I did call you here to be my familiar. That doesn't actually involve pledging souls, but the forging of magical bonds of loyalty and friendship. And power," she adds slyly.

"Ah, I see," says the fox, before hurriedly adding, "I knew that. I was just ... ah, exploring possibilities." Rowan's fairly certain what the issue here is. The vast majority of arcanists who obtain a familiar do so when they are only beginning to gain power, which leads to them attracting a young animal, which gains a level of intelligence only barely more than all animals have and then grows in intellect as its mistress grows in power. Rowan is a fairly competent caster and her ritual has attracted and affected an older creature, which means it has gone in an instant from being an animal to having the intelligence of a barely-less-than-average human. The animal is clearly struggling to make the transition, while simultaneously assimilating all the information which the ritual poured into its mind.

Though doing fairly well at hiding whatever confusion he's feeling, considering the giant shift he's probably undergone in the last quarter of an hour or so. "Pleased to meet you too, Rowan Thorn. I shall be happy to forge these bonds with you, exchanging loyalty and friendship and power," he says, clearly parroting Rowan's words, before adding confidently, "This will be an excellent partnership. There are many things I can teach you, I'm sure."

He rises, shaking himself like a dog, and then walks over to Rowan. Vulpingetorix sniffs around her for a few moments, muzzle wrinkling, and then looks up hopefully, his right hind leg twitching. "Can I ... musk you?"

Leonis wrote:

I wuld think we either send envoys (to show we are not poor/desperate) letting those leaders know we would like to visit at some point. Some leaders don't like to be surprised.

Rowan wrote:

We should send diplomatic envoys, to open up talks and arrange for a meeting in person. When we do go, it should be the four PCs and an entourage.

OOC: Sounds good. Do you want the envoys to include any of your councilors? You know that sending someone who's important to the nation would look good, without the issues that the PCs going immediately might cause.

IC: The rulers of Khatovar begin to make plans for sending a diplomatic mission to Fort Drelev. With the growing number of responsibilities which each of them--and the other members of their council--has, making all the decisions and setting up the process takes longer than it would otherwise, but that has an added benefit in that it gives time for Leonis to use his slowly growing list of contacts (among the traders and merchants entering and leaving Khatovar, as well as others in Aundair) to amass more information about Drelev. Information trickles in slowly, but Leonis is fairly certain that at this same time next month, he should have a fairly good idea about Hannis Drelev's realm.

Coincidentally, while putting these plans into effect, the rulers receive envoys themselves. One day while they are at the town hall meeting with petitioners and dealing with the daily business of Lakeshore, Akiros walks into the room and asks to speak with them for a moment. She says that there's a group of a dozen people who have just arrived in town, asking to speak to the rulers. They claim to be envoys from the kingdom of Varnhold, the one immediately to the south of Khatovar. They are led by a woman called Helas Gunder, who identifies herself as the Warden of Varnhold. Akiros wants to know if she should show them in and if the rulers want to meet them at the town hall or at the Lakeshore citadel. Or at the villa?

Rowan wrote:

Hmm. Next time Rowan's in Olegton, she'll accept Lily's invitation to join her for dinner. Or if Lily Tesker's in Lakeshore before then, Rowan will invite her to the Citadel for dinner.

She is in Lakeshore first, so she'll happily meet Rowan there. You do have a noble villa too (attached to the citadel), which is presumably where the PCs stay. Would you meet there, or at the Citadel?

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Who was her late husband?

A local farmer, who died in a hunting accident. They had moved here from Aundair and bought a large farm, which is the one she owns and runs now.

Admin wrote:

Coverage of the IC stuff:

Avi, you didn't mention whether you wanted to follow up on the personal apprentice thing. Or would you rather just provide training at the caster's tower and not take one on personally?

Yes I will take an apprentice. If I get a choice I will take the hot looking one.

Admin wrote:

OOC: Sounds good. Do you want the envoys to include any of your councilors? You know that sending someone who's important to the nation would look good, without the issues that the PCs going immediately might cause.

Don't we have a diplomat? If not send one of our councilors.

Admin wrote:

Coincidentally, while putting these plans into effect, the rulers receive envoys themselves. One day while they are at the town hall meeting with petitioners and dealing with the daily business of Lakeshore, Akiros walks into the room and asks to speak with them for a moment. She says that there's a group of a dozen people who have just arrived in town, asking to speak to the rulers. They claim to be envoys from the kingdom of Varnhold, the one immediately to the south of Khatovar. They are led by a woman called Helas Gunder, who identifies herself as the Warden of Varnhold. Akiros wants to know if she should show them in and if the rulers want to meet them at the town hall or at the Lakeshore citadel. Or at the villa?

OOC: I think the Town hall is the most appropriate spot no?

IC: Leonis signals that the rulers will see the envoy, and while the envoy is waiting for the rulers to assemble (i assume they are not all in the same spot) they should be made comfortable from their long journey.

Leonis wrote:

Yes I will take an apprentice. If I get a choice I will take the hot looking one.

Since you'd be the one taking the apprentice, you do get to choose. Elga introduces you to the candidates, each of whom she has tested already:

1 - Male human Wizard2. Young Aundairan who didn't get into Arcanix and decided to try his luck outside the country.
2 - Male human Sorcerer3. A little older than 1 and 3. Had some experience of adventuring himself.
3 - Female half-elf Sorcerer2. Young. She's the "hot looking one" by Leonis' standards.
4 - Female dwarf Wizard1. Middle-aged, due to having got into spellcasting late in life.

Elga suggests that Leonis take the fourth one as an apprentice, since she seems the most mature and stable. If/when Leonis chooses number 3, the Witch smirks and says, "Why am I not surprised?"

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Don't we have a diplomat? If not send one of our councilors.

Yes. Jubilost Narthropple, the halfling merchant, is also your diplomat. She's quite happy to head to Fort Drelev once you have everything in place, and since that will take a little time, says that she will do so after her next trip to Khatovar (she does a lot of traveling back and forth between Khatovar and Aundair).

Admin wrote:

OOC: I think the Town hall is the most appropriate spot no?

All three locations would work, with the villa being more informal and comfortable, while the town hall and citadel are more formal.

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IC: Leonis signals that the rulers will see the envoy, and while the envoy is waiting for the rulers to assemble (i assume they are not all in the same spot) they should be made comfortable from their long journey.

Okay. Do you want the envoys to be first met in public, or do you want it to be a private meeting? Also, do you ask your councilors to be present?

Admin wrote:

1 - Male human Wizard2. Young Aundairan who didn't get into Arcanix and decided to try his luck outside the country.
2 - Male human Sorcerer3. A little older than 1 and 3. Had some experience of adventuring himself.
3 - Female half-elf Sorcerer2. Young. She's the "hot looking one" by Leonis' standards.
4 - Female dwarf Wizard1. Middle-aged, due to having got into spellcasting late in life.

Elga suggests that Leonis take the fourth one as an apprentice, since she seems the most mature and stable. If/when Leonis chooses number 3, the Witch smirks and says, "Why am I not surprised?"

How does a wizard go about training a sorcerer? Also, the ones who are not my apprentice can still stick around and learn yes?

Admin wrote:

Yes. Jubilost Narthropple, the halfling merchant, is also your diplomat. She's quite happy to head to Fort Drelev once you have everything in place, and since that will take a little time, says that she will do so after her next trip to Khatovar (she does a lot of traveling back and forth between Khatovar and Aundair).

Fair enough

Admin wrote:

All three locations would work, with the villa being more informal and comfortable, while the town hall and citadel are more formal.

Okay. Do you want the envoys to be first met in public, or do you want it to be a private meeting? Also, do you ask your councilors to be present?

Let's go with the more formal for envoys. For the actual leaders it's good policy to start with formal and eventually move to casual.

The first meeting will be private - but we will keep a couple advisors. Those who are good "judges of character" (e.g. diplomacy, and sense motive). Obviously Rowan should be here.

Leonis wrote:

How does a wizard go about training a sorcerer?

Training in the nature of magic and the details of individual spells (i.e. Knowledge (Arcana) and Spellcraft), advice about choosing which spells to learn and how best to use them, etc.

From an OOC standpoint, this is just my way of introducing NPCs who you can have as support, sidekicks, potential romantic interests, maybe even rivals/enemies later, etc (depending on what you choose and how you treat them). I don't plan to use the Leadership feat, and with the position your PCs hold, they can attract followers via roleplay. Since you'd mentioned Leonis being interested in an apprentice, I introduced one in this area. Others may show up in different positions for the individual PCs and the group in general.

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Also, the ones who are not my apprentice can still stick around and learn yes?

Yup.

Admin wrote:

Let's go with the more formal for envoys. For the actual leaders it's good policy to start with formal and eventually move to casual.

The first meeting will be private - but we will keep a couple advisors. Those who are good "judges of character" (e.g. diplomacy, and sense motive). Obviously Rowan should be here.

Sounds good. Since John hasn't been posting at all on the forums, I'll say that this occurs while Grabthar is off in Olegton (and if he does post, then this is when Grabthar returns).

I'll give Mike and Julia a chance to chime in with any comments before I put up a post for the meeting.

We should meet the envoy's in the Citadel. This should be formal at first, and private, not public like it would be at the town hall. We have to start this meeting with a power imbalance in our favor, and it'll be easier to give that impression while enthroned in the Citadel. That will show we're taking them seriously, and that we are in control here. If this "warden" turns out to be the ruler, and talks to well, then we can move to the manor.

When our diplomat goes north, he should have an entourage, if he's going as an official envoy.

As for Leonis' apprentices, what are the two sorcerers like? In terms of personality, looks, and bloodline/magic.

Edit: I'm curious whether the guard who snuck into Grabthar's quarters survived. Whether or not Grabthar accepted his proposition, one way or the other I'm concerned about his physical integrity.

Agreed on the incoming delegation, but we don't want to seem hostile or pretentious. We want to seem powerful, intelligent, and like good people.

Oh and we are now calling it the citadel huh

I am split between the half elf sorcerous and the dwarf wizard.

Agreed on the impression we want to give. We shouldn't act haughty or unfriendly, but we do need to seem powerful and in control.

Leonis should take the dwarf wizard as an apprentice. He'll still be in contact with the others through his classes.

Besides, she's an older woman. She'll teach Leonis what he needs to know.

Leonis will still bed the half elf.

Rowan wrote:

We should meet the envoy's in the Citadel. This should be formal at first, and private, not public like it would be at the town hall. We have to start this meeting with a power imbalance in our favor, and it'll be easier to give that impression while enthroned in the Citadel. That will show we're taking them seriously, and that we are in control here. If this "warden" turns out to be the ruler, and talks to well, then we can move to the manor.

Okay.

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When our diplomat goes north, he should have an entourage, if he's going as an official envoy.

Jubilost/Jubi is female. And the gathering of information, setting up an entourage, etc. is what'll take the month of time.

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As for Leonis' apprentices, what are the two sorcerers like? In terms of personality, looks, and bloodline/magic.

The man is in his early 20s, but looks a few years older, due to being somewhat weatherbeaten (since he did some adventuring). Medium height, thin, a little frail-looking. He's quite self-confident and a little garrulous. Elemental bloodline.

The woman is the same age but looks a little younger. Tall, slim, athletic build. She's fairly cocky as well, but less obviously so than him, and quite witty. Arcane bloodline.

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Edit: I'm curious whether the guard who snuck into Grabthar's quarters survived. Whether or not Grabthar accepted his proposition, one way or the other I'm concerned about his physical integrity.

Let's just say no other guards try that. Ever.

Leonis wrote:

Oh and we are now calling it the citadel huh

That's what we're calling the castle, not the town itself.

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I am split between the half elf sorcerous and the dwarf wizard.

Your call. If it helps, to add to the descriptions above, the dwarven woman is middle-aged, as I mentioned, so looks much older than them. And yes, she has a beard (sorry, Julia ). She's fairly serious and seems a little nervous, probably because she knows she has the least experience of them all and is older.

Rowan wrote:

Leonis should take the dwarf wizard as an apprentice. He'll still be in contact with the others through his classes.

Besides, she's an older woman. She'll teach Leonis what he needs to know.

Leonis wrote:

Leonis will still bed the half elf.

I never said she's interested

You'll find out after you decide, unless Leonis tries to hit on her before he comes to a decision. Just remember, Elga's watching!

I never want to hear about Luna's gnome again!

Admin wrote:

Leonis wrote:

Leonis will still bed the half elf.

I never said she's interested

You'll find out after you decide, unless Leonis tries to hit on her before he comes to a decision. Just remember, Elga's watching!

This is like Hollywood, she will have to be "tested" before she gets the gig. Meh, Leonis will go for the dwarf. If he doesn't like her he can dump her.

He will have the cleric run an alignment checks. I don't want evil folks so let me know if any of them register as evil

Luna wrote:

I never want to hear about Luna's gnome again!

Your gnomish exploits are epic as they are legendary and will never die.

Leonis wrote:

This is like Hollywood, she will have to be "tested" before she gets the gig.

And here I thought you guys weren't running an evil empire.

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He will have the cleric run an alignment checks. I don't want evil folks so let me know if any of them register as evil

None of them are evil. The alignments are as follows:

Male human Wizard2 - N.
Male human Sorcerer3 - NG.
Female half-elf Sorcerer2 - N.
Female dwarf Wizard1 - LN.

I'll put up a post about the meeting with the emissaries from Varnhold soon.

I'd also like to handle the kingdom-building for the next month (which shouldn't be affected in any appreciable way by the meeting, so someone roll me a d20 for a Stability check).

Emissaries from Varnhold:
The meeting, as suggested by Rowan, occurs at the small castle at the center of Lakeshore, now locally called the Citadel. The location allows it to be both formal and private, allowing a show of strength without having to do so--and possibly have it unintentionally undermined--in front of a large crowd.

The large chamber used for council meetings is quickly modified slightly to serve as the initial meeting ground. With Grabthar away in Olegton, the remaining three rulers of Khatovar seat themselves at the head of the large table, with Svetlana and Kesten also present. Guards in their livery stand at the doors, while Akiros ushers in the visitors.

While the embassy from Varnhold consists of a dozen people, some are guards and attendants, so only three of them attend the meeting. In the lead is a broad-shouldered and muscular human woman, probably in her late 30s, with dark-brown skin and black hair, which shows tinges of gray. She wears fairly formal clothing, which might be appropriate for a minor noble in the courts of Aundair, but a chain shirt peeks through it and a longsword is strapped to her back. Behind her walks a man, a little younger (at least as half-elves go) and dressed as a well-paid attendant might be, seemingly unarmed except for a dagger. The last person in the trio is a middle-aged gnome, garbed as a rich merchant might be. She appears to be unarmed but does walk with the aid of a staff sized to her height, and looks around with evident curiosity, studying the chamber as much as the people within.

Once she nears the table, the woman in the lead stops, makes a formal bow, and then straightens to say, "Greetings to the rulers of Khatovar. I, Helas Gunder, come to you in peace and friendship on behalf of Magra Varn, governor of Varnhold." Then she waits expectantly.

Leonis welcomes his dwarven apprentice.

No Wammies!