Main IC-Scene: The Officers' Assembly Room

Saeros arrives panting and takes a seat. Keen Silvermist senses smell tomato pulp in him, but no stain is apparent and his tabard is a clean as it can be. He puts a pile of cloth on the table and starts unfolding it, revealing a large book inside.

"The book is for a later topic. Right now, before everything else, I would like suggest something that may influence our plans for the steppes. You see, the steppes were until recently a wild, dangerous, and one could say, unclaimed territory. The Silvermists have taken considerable measures to improve it. We are here to discuss still further changes, and, succeeding in that, we will have brought life into that wasteland. Those familiar with the accounting book of the order know how high the costs of this enterprise were, and how high they will be. They can also make an estimate of how much profit this ressurection of the stepps will bring to the Crown, and anyone sane of mind will say that the settlement of the steppes is a great step for the progress of the kingdom.

I think it is time to bring the Silvermist family back to life, as we intend to do with the wasteland. I think it is time that the Order uses its power to support the return of the Silvermist to the nobility. Seeing our efforts, I am confident that the king will not refuse such a request. The Noldor will be glad to have another lord as ally, as will lord Alamar and Aldemar. The king will also be pleased to know that he will have a loyal lord bordering Aelfwine's county.

[OOC: so, if you accept it, I guess we will either have to find a surviving member of the Silvermist family, or we'll pick a noble from our midst and lobby for the king granting him a fief (Caranthir, probably).]

I fear the last remaining offspring of that legendary family is Quigfen himself. The stories do not mention their children or any other decendants and even if there were any, their traces are lost in the mists of time. Most likely they carried on as members of the company but put aside their name when the hope of regaining their hereditary castle faded.

I'd say we concentrate on building up this land before we claim rights of nobility. What use is it being the lord of a wasteland? And furthermore, who would be able to reasonably decline our claim to the lands once we turned them into a flourishing part of the realm?

Laisha walked into the room a little out of breath, but otherwise composed. Her hair was tied up, as it was when she was in the field or roughly any situation when she was expecting to fight. Her sword was still attached to her hip. She planted her hands on the table, but did not sit.

"I apologize if I'm late. I understand we're discussing the steppes?"

"Yes, we are, and everything related to that. You already know my position: using the improvement of the region as a means of putting the Silvermist back in the Pendorian nobility.

Now, concerning the means in which that can be achieved, it is reasonable to divide our project in two categories: short-term and long-term. Short-term are those that can be started 'tomorrow', while long-term plans are those which demand extensive research and complex constructions.

Some short-term projects are relatively easy to advance. There is one I have been thinking about one of them for a while: the steppe hub.

We could fund the construction of a resting and trading station at the South of Evasolde. We would send a weekly order of key supplies, especially iron tools, lumber, clothing, grain, ale and oil, and fund the construction of taverns and carpenter workshops.

Being right in the middle of the Eastern trade route to the North, a place like this will surely attract caravans and and travelers. Their presence will foster local commerce, and they will also provide them with supplies not found in the steppes."

A good idea, Iskar agreed. We could use our already existing centre of Wayrest Castle for that. It guards the junction of the trade routes from Marleons and Laria to Poinsbruk in the southern Evasolde March.

What kind and amount of resources do you need in particular for this?

"We can make two estimates: one with the minimum, and another with the ideal amount of resources.

The low-budget option will require only a weekly supply of lumber, iron tools, grain and ale, to be managed by a loyal Silvermist merchant assigned to that fief. Lumber and iron tools are for the eventual repairs that the caravans will require, and for the construction of new buildings, according to the local's needs. Grain and ale are for the taverns and the locals. The other resources will be provided by the merchants themselves. While stationed there, it is inevitable that some bartering will occur among the local and the visitors.

The costly option will require the same, with the addition of funding for the migration of carpenters, blacksmiths, and inkeepers. It will also require paved and safer roads, in order to attract the a more refined sort of merchant. Paving the roads and guarding the markets are jobs that can be done by the locals, thus giving some of them a fuction beside farming.

In both cases, once we get the a steady supply of salt, I'd suggest making Wayrest its main selling place. This will force traders to stop by and spend some money with the locals.

In short: I would say that the first option would require a weekly cost of 200 RP, while we would have to invest 800 RP weekly in the second. This support is temporary and should be withdrawn as soon as the locals start making a bit of profit, and, so to speak, are able to walk by themselves."

Saeros pauses for a moment.

"The lack of women is a problem that will have to be dealt with soon. As an initial suggestion, a simple measure to solve that is offereing some silver pieces for any woman willing to migrate to the region. Poor and hungry commoners will accept that without hesitation."


[OOC: I will have to check which buildings were completed in that hex.]

Iskar shook his head at the last suggestion. Partnerless women that can be attracted by some coins will only make the steppes Pendor's biggest brothel. I'd rather have families move in.

I think for a start I'll allocate 1000 denars per week to Wayrest Castle. Would you oversee the development there and organise the acquisition of the necessary materials? The timber can be taken from our stores and sawmills.

Saeros raises his brow, "Ah, sir Cumberbatch, welcome to the Clarion Hall.", then turns to the constable., "Yes, I would like to oversee the project, thank you for the honor. I am much more comfortable in the frotier than in this city."

[OOC: what do you think of allocating the 0.5 points of Mordred's spreadsheet to merchants and peasants? In merchants to attract them to our territory, and peasants to do the heavy work. This will speed things up. ]

Very good, Iskar smiled, then addressed the newcomer. Sir Cumberbatch, please do join our discussion with your knowledge about the steppes. Grandmaster Caranthir is not present for the moment but I serve as Lord Constable and have all the authority needed to enact whatever measures we want to take.

He turned back to the table.

Now for the most pressing matter, the food supply. The steppe soils are mostly too dry and meager to grow crops on them, but cattle, if properly herded can live well on the steppe grass. We will acquire breeding cattle, choosing the most stout and frugal animals, so in time we will have a kind of cattle adapted to the steppe. Furthermore the newdwellers must be trained in basic riding skills. I have heard reports of wild horses roaming the steppes. We could send out men to capture them, while some mounted rangers teach their riding skills to the newdwellers. Using the horses' herd instinct some ten riders should be sufficient to control a large herd of wild horses and lead them to the pens near the settlements. Then the mounted rangers can break in the more stubborn horses.

Furthermore we can encourage the building of cisterns and digging of wells across our holdings to provide the villages with a basic water supply. We can bring saplings from the nearby forests to the villages so they can plant lines of trees and hedges to stop the soil from being blown away. I will send to the Ravenspear and the Noldor for scholarly advice in the construction of irrigations systems, so we will have at least some fields around the villages. On the shores of Lake Avendor we will help the building of fishing villages and salinae. Salt is a valuable resource and can be used to stop meat from decaying.

In general, we should send men to examine how the D'Shar have managed their food supply over the years. They live in a similar climate and have much experience in farming steppes and herding cattle. Perhaps they even have steppe adapted cattle and crops already. We will also offer food, shelter and payment to every retired craftsman or farmer who is willing to teach his trade to the settlers.

Until the steppe farming and cattle herding is fully working we will help supply the villages with whatever surplus the surrounding counties produce.

Sir Cumberbatch walked closer to the table and cleared his throat quite loudly. He listened to the Silvermists and waited for a moment of silence. He started speaking with a low voice. Much will be said this day he thought so he didn't want to stress his voice to much. And he was sure that the Silvermists would understand him.

"Thank you very much for inviting me to this Meeting. The Generosity and Wisdom of your Order is praised throughout all the Castles and villages in the steppes."

He spoke very slowly and made a pause behind nearly every word. He was not a friend of talking just to overcome a silence. Everything that is being said should have a meaning.

"I like your way of thinking." he addressed Iskar directly "And you already mentioned the biggest problem right now. Much of the food that is needed to survive comes from your Warehouses.
The herding and farming in the steppes is quite inefficient but with enough time this problem will solve itself. The newdwellers are learning quickly and most of them put very much effort in their new labors."

He raised his finger and spoke a bit louder to emphasize his next words.

"I wish to address a more pressing issue. You know I was in Winteredge Keep throughout Spring and the first part Summer before I came here. I talked to the elders not only in the south but as well in the north of the river. They are separated by many miles and have not much interaction due to their age but one thing they have in common. Everyone of them was talking about a Winter which hasn't been there for 20 Years. They talked about their youths and how they lived before Pendor became one. I compared their stories and I became aware of one thing, nearly every 15 to 20 Years the Winters will multiply in strength. One of them even told me he witnessed Winter that lasted nearly half a year and the River froze all the way to the big lake in the West. The Cattle died, the ground to stone and all that could be done was hope to wake up the next day."

Again he cleared his throat before continuing.

"Long nights I talked to him and he showed me the signs that the time was nigh for another strong winter. Maybe stronger maybe not, he couldn't tell.
Throughout Spring and Summer the snow did hardly melt around the Village. The ground was nearly impossible to farm at some places. And the cold winds rushing down from the Mountains blew away any warmth the Sun could bring. Even the Barbarians retreated to their Strongholds in the Mystmountains." he said "They are preparing and as well should we."

Iskar sighed. He tried to remember the last time one of their endeavours had been favoured by fortuna, but failed to find one. 'Very well', he thought, 'virtú will have to solve the matter.'

Thank you for the information, Sir. It seems I will have to order some measures I had planned for later times to be enacted right now. We will use our timber supply to build storehouses and granaries in all the villages. Salinae will be quickly established on Mistrock Island, too, where gaining salt is even easier than on the shores of Lake Avendor, and we will use our surplus supplies to fill the granaries and storehouses with grain, salted meat and dried fruit for the men and hay for the animals. After that whatever timber we can get hold of will be used to fortify the villages for the winter. The palisades we built should hold off the worst winds and shelter the cattle, but roofs and walls must be mended and thickened to keep the warmth. I will order our sawmills to collect all waste wood that accumulates when they saw trunks into usable planks, so we can supply the villages with firewood.

We must also make sure to catch as many wild horses as possible before they perish in the cold. We will never again have the opportunity to get so many high quality mounts for free.

He addressed the knight again. Sir Cumberbatch, you know the steppes and their populace very well. Could I ask you to select one trustworthy man in every village to be named bailiff? They would oversee the works according to our orders and report back to our castellans who would in turn gather all reports and send them on to the Clarion Hall after they have dealt with the minor issues themselves.

He liked the speed in which decision were made. A smile came to his face as he heard the Constable talk.

"I will most gladly do so. I already have some men in mind who can most certainly deal with this. Regarding the horses I might add something.
I have seen many herds of them running around in the steppe and I have to say they very intelligent animals. I don't think they will be easily caught, not by you nor by the cold.
These horses life in the Steppes longer than we can imagine and I think they will find a way to avoid the Winter. They might make their way towards warmer areas like Marleons or even Laria."

Sir Cumberbatch walked closer to the table and took a quill and paper.
He turned back to Iskar.

"Could you give me rough numbers of how much wood your order can provide. I think we need very much as the Steppes do not offer much for the Sawmills themselves. As for the food you can supply I have no fears that the amount will be adequate."

Iskar wriggled a report out from under a pile of parchments, flattened it and checked some numbers. We currently have 10 tons of timber in our stores and can provide a constant supply of maybe three tons per month.

Aldric walks in and pouts as he see that he was late and takes his seat. He gets a jest of what the fellow knights where talking about and chimes in.

If we need to attract families, we can offer them free land and housing. Right now, we don't have much people leaving in that area and we have all this land we aren't using. I'm sure that a lot of people would take up on that offer and would increase our population significantly.

Iskar greeted Aldric with a friendly nod. Having the Quartermaster-Captain here would definitely be helpful.

Yes, he replied to the latter, that is a good idea and we should do that as soon as we have a somewhat stable food supply and can ensure that the settlers do not die from the next hard winter.

He paused for a moment, pondering.

You are from Marleons, Aldric, right? Do you think you could oversee the construction of fishing outposts and salinae along the shore of Lake Avendor? Salted Fish would be a most welcome addition to the storehouses for the winter.

Aldric smiles as he hears the sound of his home.

I would be happy to do so. It would be a good change of pace from training the troops most of the time. It has been a while since I've been home. And I'm sure my mother is worried about me.

Laisha had been analyzing the words spoken during the meeting, choosing to listen instead of speak. She was never one to act or react to the grand plans of others, merely to carry them out. Yet, time and again, she seemed to be thrust into situations where she invariably felt she must act.

"Perhaps the Clarion Call can help," she chimed in. "Our knowledge of the steppes and survival on them is second only to people who've lived there. Speaking for myself, I've spent many weeks scouting the Jatu, both in high summer and the dead of winter. Perhaps we can help the settlers prepare."

She added, "Also, we're better known in the region, even with the Silvermist influx. Perhaps we'll be better suited as the face of migration?"

You have a good point there, mylady. Iskar crossed his arms, thinking. Then he searched through some reports, compared two lists, noted something down, mumbling numbers, and finally addressed the Clarion Call's Scout-Captain again. I can give you 30 mounted rangers to police the villages so as to keep the more dubious settlers in check and to immediately represent the order in the steppes. He smiled deviously. I've heard rumours that the newdwellers still take better to female authority than anything else.

"Sounds like a good combination of efforts. While lady Laisha represents the authority and enforces order in the steppes, I will oversee the constructions and deal with the merchants.

While we are at it, to what exactly should priority be given? I would say that installing an inn for the workers and a warehouse to store the goods are at this moment the most necessary buildings for Evasolde.

[OOC: I'm actualy talking about the metagame orders due tomorrow.]

A further question, sir Cumberbatch: how windy are the steppes? Because for the long-term we could consider building windmills, either for processing wheat or to pump out water and make the salinae and the aqueducts more efficient."

Sir Cumberbatch was brooding over his Parchment a scribbled numbers all over it. All the time he casually stroke his beard and mumbled inaudibly words.
When Saeros spoke to him he quickly turned around if woken from a deep sleep.

"Please excuse my negligence. I was calculating the amount of Wood needed for the steppes. Would you be so kind as to repeat your question."

He stood up and handed the Constable a letter with the numbers he Calculated and some remarks to the sides.

Spoiler:

He then turned back to Saeros with a smile on his face.

Saeros finishes his own notes. Some drawings are visible.

"Oh, I wanted to know how windy the steppes are. More specifically: would you think that the wind is strong enough to power windmills?"

"And I have made some detailed notes on the first building of Evasolde". Saeros hands the papers to the constable. "It will be called Wayrest Lodge and should function both as an inn and as a warehouse. I have seen similar facilities in Fierdsvain harbors, and it is perfect for what we have in mind.

It consists in a tall and large square building with four wings and an open courtyard in the center. The first and second floors will be used as rooms for workers, travellers and merchants, while the goods will be stored on the ground floor. The quad in the middle will be used by the merchants to display their goods, as if it were a small fair. Security will have priority and halberdiers will guard every wing and every floor. I will do everything in my power to ensure that guests feel safe and desire to return, or eventually even to establish business in the province.
For the whole construction I estimate we would have to ship 3 wagonloads of timber and 1 of granite.

Lastly, I will contact Larian and Marleonian merchants, and try to convince them to invest in the province.".

[OOC: it's a very large building]

That sounds splendid, Saeros. However, regarding the merchants, leave that to me. I have already made some deals with the Larian ones during the assassin crisis and I have far reaching plans for them and those from Marleons and Poinsbruk. I just need to discuss certain matters with Lord Ithilrandir first.

Laisha cringed at Iskar's smile. While she understood his meaning, she couldn't help but sense a more unsettling subtext to his words.

"Perhaps we could attract merchants from other cities as well?" she said as she absorbed Saeros' idea. "Though the villages I lived in while growing up were rather remote and poor, I remember we had a few merchants travel by us from places like Javiksholm and Valonbray. Though we weren't wealthy enough to buy much from them, we occasionally could buy things that weren't available in all of Ravenstern. Products from the coasts could help increase the knowledge and usage of an eastern trade route."