Hmm. What exactly did Blackbird and his band do that's freaked everyone out so much? Let's hear what's on Sansa's mind before getting the bill.

>>15118567
Agreed.
Also I hope that our life elementalist medicae are making a difference in keeping our KIA numbers from climbing.

Oh Pax, I'd like a special debriefing session with all of our combat elementalist teams.
I want to know how effective our policy of counter-elementalism was in the recent battle, and if we should change the focus of our training.

Pax, were we able to recover any strategic papers or orders that the supply caravan's leadership might have been carrying? Especially anything from the Guild contingent?

You hold out your hand, Sansa silently hands you the Bill. The longer version easily boils down to Spuria and Quintus' maniples having taken worse losses than your own did.

-196th Legionary
Gaius Rex
120/200
good
-454th Legionary
Cornelius Hoursch
115/200
good
-98th Warlords
Uurist Titius
80/150
good
-76th Deadeyes
Aurelius Caspius
90/100
good
-50th Dwarven Scouts
Finian Gaurush
85/100
good
-65th Dwarven Rangers
Kyria Esfelda
70/100
good
-House Garlian Uursan Cavalry
Lady Jayne Garlian
45/50
good
House Morzitus Heavy Cavalry
Balor morzitus
35/50
good
-Blacktusk Raiders
40/75
Blackbird
assorted gear
good
-The Sunstorm (elves)
Tyxia Nestad
100/200
Splintmail, spears, kite shields, javelins
good
-Celtron Guard (Dwarves)
Denuk Tyshop
90/175
Surecoats over mail, longswords, tower shields
good
-Neftius Spearmen
Trysha Morose
60\150
leathers, spears, circleshields
good
-Dentrus' Raiders (elfs)
Boros Klars
135/200
Leathers, combat axes, kite shields, javelins
good

"Something on your mind, Love?" you ask, after reading the list.

"I... will we be able to best both the Guilds and Uurlanth?" she asks, her nerves easily read to you, though she hides them well. "Especially with how worn down we are already..."

>>15118666
Our losses are damn high, considering that we started all conventional forces at 100% before the battle.
Those Guild soldiers really earned their reputation as hard-ass motherfuckers.

Respond to Sansa:
"We've faced long odds before; Degnar will survive them again. I've got an idea or two still, for evening up the odds."

>>15118666
"It'll may be a bloody affair but we can beat them. For the Uurlanth to get the assistance of the Guild likely means they're not doing as well in this war as they had hoped. If we can continue to hold the line, Uurlanth will cripple itself as it is."

I really hope the politicians back home are trying to get help from the Duchy. I don't even think we'll beat both those nations easily but it's best to say something reassuring at this point.

You shrug "It may be bloody, and it may be a long affair, but we will not be cowed by the odds; nor am I out of plans and ideas as of yet."

Sansa smiles, the barely perceptible fear lessening, but not receding entirely "I just hope Uurlanth breaks itself on our will before our will proves to be our downfall."

You nod in agreement "Gather our elementalists when we make camp tonight, I will want a word with them." Sansa nods, but does not ride from your side for nearly an hour.

-----CQ-----

Taht night, Jayne, Laelith, and all of your elementalists gather in the tent you normally meet your command staff in. "You wanted to speak with us?" the elf asks, as everyone seats themselves.

rolled 32 = 32

>>15118666
Our maniple is tired after fighting three major battles in a row. Its time to go home.

Also, put the dead bodies of our enemies in our trenches and cover them using earth elemntalism. We don't really want any evidence Degnar was here.

FInally test roll

>>15118870
"I wanted to get an idea from the rest of you on how effective your countering the enemy elementalists was. With the numbers the Uurlanth are throwing at us, I'm wondering if we need to change our training methods to improve the effect we want."

>>15118897
seconded

>>15118870
"Yes. I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on the most recent battle, how the enemy arcanists responded to your attempts to negate their attacks, and any observations you have concerning enemy deployment doctrines.
"This was our first major battle after I ordered emphasis made in training for counter-elementalism in which we engaged an enemy using their elementalists in direct-fire roles.
"I need to know if this doctrine was effective at all, if we need to adapt it, or even abandon it altogether. Remember, we are laying the foundation for the doctrine that the entire Legion will use when employing the arcane. We need to make sure that these tactics work in the field."

You take your seat "As this was our first battle where you were ordered to specifically counter our foes elementalism, I would very much like to know how those tactics fared."

One of the fire elementalists sheepishl chuckles "Commander, ah, it was they who were negating our efforts."

The smooth voice of your elementalist with the syptionus vine dominating his upper body adds "They were hastily trained compared to us however."

Laelith nods "They will not be able to continue their current human wave tactics with arcanists for long."

>>15118974
"Can you be sure of that though Laelith? We have no idea just how vast their arcanist population is. The enemy cancelling out our elementalists was adequate when it was only the Uurlanth since we had superior training and troops overall. With the addition of the Guild, however, we may need to refocus our efforts to try to be more effective than them."

>>15118974
>They will not be able to continue their current human wave tactics with arcanists for long
"Well, that is heartening to hear, at least.
"Was it that they simply had more raw arcane power? Or could they have been receiving boosts in the form of superior elemental foci?"

>>15119007
I'll second this.

You nod "Provided your certainty is not false, that is heartening news, Laelith." you turn to the other elementalists "Did our foes simply poses greater arcane power, or was it their foci?"

"Numbers." the elementalists agree, almost in unison "The only reason they were able to use the Stone Arrows was our inability to match the combined power of their earth elementalists." one of them postulates.

Laelith shakes her head "No, there were some truly outstanding arcanists amongst their numbers. It is the result of their tactics to this point. The chaff is falling away from the crop."

I'm afraid that we might be constraining the elementalists too much if we force them to wait for our order before switching from defense to offence and vice-versa.
Elementalists aren't just arcane artillery; they're also our shield generators as well.
Without radio to allow them to communicate the arcane situation in real-time to us, it forces us to make decisions based on stale information.

>>15119118
"Then Laelith, in your professional opinion, would you say that the current Uurlanthi tactic appears to be to use their weaker elementalists in large numbers to tie up our own arcane assets, while their more powerful ones concentrate on directly attacking our lines?"

>>15119118
"Let's hope some of our elementalists back in the capital are ready for combat then so we'll have sufficient numbers to deal with the enemy. Any suggestions on how we might adjust the training to improve our chances or should we maintain our course?"

>>15119128
Might be worthwhile to let them do as they want then unless we have specific orders for them in future battles. And maybe we should get back into thinking up of a new signalling system to hopefully improve our command rolls.

>>15119118
Do you think we'll be able to keep pace with them at our current rate then?

"So, their tactics are to use their weaker elementalists to tie up our arcane assets, then strike with their more skilled arcanists?"

Laelith nods "The current rate of attrition is not sustainable for them, but I do not have enough information to predict how much longer they will be able to hold their current tactics."

"Will we be able to keep pace with them?" you ask, leaving no question that you want the brutal, honest truth from the elf in your voice.

She shakes her head "We need another counter to the arcane, that much is certain." most of the other arcanists nod their heads in agreement.

>>15119284
"Unless you have any ideas Laelith, this will require some thinking and research when we return to the capital it seems. Thankfully, we should have access to some new sections of the library thanks to my new rank."

I can't think of anything else. Move on or talk to Quintus perhaps?

>>15119284
"Laelith, I'd like you to attend me later when I speak with Kyria and Finian about the possible deployment of runes. I have a few ideas concerning them that might help offset our problem."

Ideas to talk with our runeforgers about:
Disposable anti-magic amulets for front-line troops.
Anti-Arcanist Shield Penetrator Bolt for steambows and ballistae.
High-Explosive Rune Bolt for heavy repeaters and steambows.

rolled 56 = 56

>>15119284
Hmm, are you suggesting we harness the power of the divine? I am very reluctant to do that unless if needs call for it.

I think we have 3 choices as a counter for Uurlanth's large amounts of elementalists: runecrafting, the divine, and getting more elementalists out. We are already doing the one and three, and 2 is always an option, even if we don't like to use it.
I think we need a report on how runecrafted weopons stood up to the elementalists from Kyria.

"Would you be suggesting the divine, or runes? As I am reluctant to resort to the former" you ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Runes." Laelith answers "as much as I owe the gods, I am as reluctant to rely on them as you are."

You chuckle "We will have to speak with Kyria then." Laelith nods in agreement.

>so, anything else to ask your arcanists, or get to work on soemthing else?

>>15119508
Can't think of anything else to ask the arcanists just yet. I guess let's move on to see Kyria with Laelith since she's already here with us.

>>15119536
One last question. Was Vi helping out and how well did she do?

>>15119508
For the arcanists, tell them that we will continue training for maintaining concentration under fire. As for battlefield deployment, begin direct-fire exercises and more direct support roles (winds to aid or hinder arrows, water shields, earth spike walls). Work to increase integration with regular line units.

Quick talk with Kyria and Finian about progress on runeforging, and the weapon ideas from here: >>15119357

>>15119559
Highly unlikely she was helping out. She's no where near the level where we want her on the front lines. Actually, perhaps we can send the life elementalists to the other commanders and see if they can help out their wounded.

>>15119571
I had thought that was already the case, but if not, then I agree that we should have our life elementalists help the wounded of the other maniples. This use of elementalism, at least, neither two should have any objection to.

I agree we should check on Vi.

I also suggest we talk with Quintus. He can't have failed to see what happened in our fight against the elves. That's strong evidence of the need for the arcane.

"Do you have any new orders for us?" one of the elementalists asks.

You nod "Add direct fire and more aggressive support techniques to your training again. That will be all." at that you rise, salute, and walk from the tent. The camp is subdued as you search for Kyria. Outside the medicae tent Spuria paces. A group from the 454th walk in nervous looks on their faces, trailed by Wulf carrying a small plate of food. Kyria is very likely in your tent, you guess, but it may be worth your time to see who else is in the medicae tent.

>>15119702
to the medicae tent!

>>15119702
Kyria will obviously still be there after we check the medicae. For obvious reasons. Bow chicka wow-wow.

>>15119702
I dislike this... Let's go check out the medicae tent.

>>15119702
Check the medicae tent. I think Dorin the former bandit guy is greaviously wounded. Lets help heal him with our life elementalist surgeon.

>Kancho anitionf
Captcha I am not going to kancho anybody. How the hell do you even know that.

You head into the medicae tent. On one cot Annius, Spurias aid, is laying on a pallet, your two beast healing Life elementalists huddled over her mangled form. Burnt tissue, rent flesh, twitching... from the look of it she ran afoul of several elementalists, the fact that she is as alive as she is makes you wonder to the state of her foes.

Across the tent, Lena is now eating the food Wulf brought with him, several black cuts and gray scars and bruises decorating her body, her hands shaking. Next to her, Cornelius lays, a massive black... bruise, for lack of a better word, dominates his bared right arm, which hangs limp at his side. It would seem his soldiers stopped in to visit him.

>>15119866
Check in Cornelius first, then Lena.

>>15119866
Oh hell. Check up on Cornelius and then Lena. Guess Spuria is going to have to have a slight change in opinion on elementalists if her aide is saved. Perhaps we can try to convince Vi to help out there...

>>15119866
I think talk to Spuria and the elementalists working on her aide first. General check up things, ask if they need anything else to help. Lena and Cornelius after.

>>15119866
Our guys (well, guy and girl) first, then check on how the life elementalists are doing with the aide. If we can I would like to save said aide with elementalism, both for delicious irony and to prove there is at least ONE thing elementalists are good for to that brick house comanderess.

>>15119883
I'm leery about using Vi for healing humans.
She might have the raw elemental power, but given that most of her humanity was forcibly ripped out and she has to relearn everything, I'm not sure if she has the fine control necessary for healing.

>>15119901
I imagine she has plenty of control.

It's what she would DO with that control that worries me.

"The human form is not efficient, so I turned him into a prince of my kind. You're welcome, Prince Trentz."

>>15119921

Well then just make sure she's properly supervised while she's working.

>>15119883

I know that we don't want to owe any debts to the gods, but this might be a good time to ask the life goddess for a little help with healing the wounded.

At the very least we should ask her to help the OTHER maniples or the critically wounded. We've done our best to avoid asking for divine favors, but can we really let our countrymen suffer if we have any chance to aid them?

It's probably too risky to have her do it just yet. I suppose we can get an update from the two trying to heal her to see if they do need more help. No point trying to get her to help unless they need it.

>>15119954
I'm against this. We already owe her for a boon. Lets not add to the debt

>>15119966
Also against it for various reasons. We should try to heal and help as many wounded as we can under our own power. Nyetini can't heal all the wounded everywhere after every battle, we have to rely on mortal efforts for non-exceptional cases.

You make your way over to Cornelius "Will the arm heal?" you ask, returning his wrong-armed salute in kind.

Cornelius turns his head to face you "The elementalists seem to think so. From what they said near me, wounds from shadow mages leave scars like this. I'll be ready to fight in a few weeks, Commander."

You shake your head "Dont rush it, good captains are hard to come by. How did you take that wound, Cornelius?"

He forces a chuckle "The same way my arm was burnt; my shield didnt hold and my arm paid the price. I wasnt about to let any of my men take that blast."

>>15119966

what do we owe her for?

The first healing boon was for saving the nomads and the epic spirits of the dead charge was because other gods were giving her shit about us not asking for aid but following her ways in our command?

>>15119954
I'm against it unless we can get her to put a pricetag on her services.
Considering the level of medical technology in the setting, and our current low numbers of healer life elementalists currently deployed with our maniple, I will only entertain the purchase of services from Neytini IF we get a clear list of services and their associated costs.

>>15120005
You're thinking of Raynha. Nyetini aka the god chick that some of us want to haremize, answered our call to save that Uurlanthian guy's sister, leading to us getting Vi. So we already owe her one.

>>15120005
Wait, you're talking about Raynha and not Nyetini?
Regardless, divine intervention does not appear to be necessary as our life elementalists seem to be stabilizing the most critical cases.

>>15120005
I doubt it was "cheap" power-wise to rip Vi out of that thing. She even had to cannibalize the brother because her power wasn't great enough to do it on her own yet.

Plus, we shouldn't be begging boons from a future waifu yet. Wait until she's part of the harem at least first, jeez.

>>15120003
"A crazy thing to do. I would have done the same. Get some rest Cornelius."

We should invest in some better gear for our captains I think on our return to the capital. See if we can get some equipment made out of rare ore for them. Let's go see Lena then.

>>15120039
>>15120043
>>15120053

Apologies, I've confused goddesses.

I've been talking about asking Raynha for help, not Nyetini.

Anyone happen to have that "this is the pantheons" image?

>>15120055
Agreed on upgrading the equipment of our captains. I suggest meteor ore if we can afford it, with one-shot anti-armor rune talismans for magic protection.

>>15120085

>>15120055

seconding

> from Kinsiono

Captcha suggests that we get better gear for our captains from Kinsiono

>>15120055
seconded

>>15120055
Also seconding on what to say to Cornelius, and then checking on Lena.

>>15120113
I hope this guy has good gear. Cornelius is the one with the meteorite shield. If that didn't stop the hit, I'm not sure what will. We would need to get "perfect steel" from the Duchy or something.

You chuckle "A foolish choice, it sounds like something I would do in fact. Rest up soldier, that's an order." you salute again, before stepping back then turning to face Lena. "And how are you faring?" you ask the girl.

Lena finishes chewing, swallows and responds "It hurts, but we won. I, I'm sorry for not being able to defeat the leading mage sooner, Commander."

>>15120144
Does he have a meteorite shield? I thought he had a normal one.

>>15120164
"Don't worry too much about it. You have improved, and you were still able to defeat him in the end.
"It is an unfortunate fact of this war that the enemy usually has more mages, who've had the opportunity to train longer or with more resources behind them.
"But that advantage will eventually run out; just be sure that you're alive to take advantage of that when it happens."

>>15120164
"Do not apologize for that Lena. Everyone in this maniple knows you're always doing your best and your skills have improved greatly since our campaign began. As long as you keep focused in battle and don't get reckless, you won't have to apologize for anything. Are you sure you're alright? I noticed your hands shaking earlier."

You shake your head "No need to apologize, Lena. The whole maniple knows how hard you have been working, and how much your skills have improved. Right now, our foes have the advantage of numbers, and as a result training time. Now, are you certain you are alright? I noticed you shaking earlier."

Lena sighs "Like I said, it... hurts. I, I, it wont be enough to keep me from following orders." her voice trembling, clearly more afraid of letting anyone down, or offending you than determined to continue.

>>15120381
"Once they've finished with the critical cases, make sure that the medicae get a look at you.
"And how about you, Wulf. Any worse for wear?"

>>15120381
"You have to stop being afraid of letting us down Lena. If you're hurt, you need to recover. I won't have you injuring yourself because you pushed yourself too hard. If you made an error in battle because you pushed yourself too hard, wouldn't it be far worse for everyone? Your well-being is just as important to everyone."

I guess we should also tell Wulf that if her wounds are really worse than she's letting on, she should be forced to rest.

>>15120381
"It's all right Lena. Rest now."

Let's go see what's going on with the aide.

>>15120169
We had a meteorite shield made for him, after Laelith almost roasted his arm before we subdued her.

>>15120418
Second whispering to Wulf to keep Lena in bed until her magical wounds heal.

>>15119357
Building on top of this:
Anti-magic, poison crossbow bolts, for anti-mage/anti-elementalist sniper squads.

You sigh "Lena, you need to rest, we cant... I cant have you being injured because you pushed yourself too hard."

Lena nods weakly "I... it wont last much L-" she clenches off the word, allowing her pain to show in the face of your stern gaze.

"Wulf, if she starts trying to get up before her wounds have healed, stop her." you whisper to the young man as you leave Lenas side.

On the other side of the tent your two best life elementalists are silently working on Annius "Rather busy at the moment Commander." the older of the two grunts out, dripping sweat.

"What happened to her?" you ask, making sure to stay out of their way as they move from wound to wound.

"A group of elementalists tried to flee the main battle. She tried to stop them. The lightning, fire, and stone arrows combined was not enough to kill her individualy. Combined however..."

"Her armor simply wasnt enough. In the case of the lightning it actually increased the damage to her body." the younger of the two adds.

>>15120575
"Can you two handle her wounds or is it a race against time?"

Regardless on if they can handle it, we might want to get Jayne in here to help them out. If they can't handle it... We might have to summon Vi.

>>15120575
"I'll make sure Lady Jayne comes by to lend a hand."

>>15120584
I'll second this.

>>15120584
Seconding.

"Will you be able to care for her, or is this a race against time?" you ask bluntly.

"At this rate, she should survive." the older elementalist answers.

"But if we are distracted for to much longer..." the second adds, prying off a scorched plate of shin armor, and placing a hand on a suddenly revealed wound, gushing blood.

>so, who do you want to talk with now, or are you ready to start the timeskip to DragonsReach?

>>15120664
I say talk to Quintus at best then timeskip back. We can talk to Spuria a little later when she's not worried as hell. That and I suggest we keep reading that swordsmanship tome on the way back.

>>15120664
Check with Quintus, after that I can't really think of anything.

>>15120684
Seconding as long as we incorporate the runeforging update with Kyria, and give Degrian his next project (mass-production auto-wagons).
Also get an update on Bellatrix.

You salute the medicae, before leaving them to their work. They do not return the salute, and you do not hold it against them. Inside your tent you find Kyria and Jayne waiting, the former going through her books, the later already asleep. "How goes the reasearch?" you ask the dwarf, hoping for an optimistic answer.

She lets out a long breath "It continues well enough. I may even have a few basic phrases ready to be tested by the time we get home." she offers.

"I thought you had already tested a fire rune on that sword..." you trail off.

"I was overeager, moved to fast. Though it was fun to see you throw that burning sword." she snickers.

You rest your hand over your heart "And I thought you liked me..." staggering backwards as dramatically as you can.

"Shh, you'll wake Jayne, and then she'll whine." Kyria jokingly admonishes you, closing her tome and making her way over to you.

-----CQ-----

Two days later you are finally able to catch up with Quintus, who had been feverishly seeing that his men were properly cared for. "Commander Trentz, my friend. I understand that you have been trying to speak with me. Is this pleaseure a social call, or the follow up conversation on the arcane I have been expecting?" he asks as you ride up next to him.

>>15120858
Just a follow up for the battle, though if you'd like to speak more on the arcane, I would have no issue. Was this the first battle including Guild cooperation with Uurlanth?

>>15120858
"A mix of both. I was curious on your opinion on how the battle went, how your maniple has fared overall and if your opinion has changed at all. I would also like to once again apologize for Blackbird's actions at your briefing. He has a hard time following our chain of command at times but he is effective at what he does."

>>15120890
Second.

Ask him if he would like bow training. Mention that our aide is an excellent shot and would be discreet about teaching a legion commander how to shoot a bow in case it's a pride issue.

"A bit of both I suppose. I was wondering how you feel the battle went, if this is our first engagement with Guild forces of the war, how your men fared, and yes, if your view on the arcane has changed any." you reply honestly, pulling out your flask and taking a drink from it, before offering it to Quintus, who declines.

After a brief silence he simply states "Blackbird is a rather frightening fellow. Though not without his skills."

You chuckle "I did not hire him on for presentability, or manners. Spuria has her unsavory, and I mine."

"I suppose that is true. Though I must admit, yours seems much more effective, and trustworthy." you nod in agreement, allowing Quintus to continue "As to the tactics, are they always that... horrifically violent? What Blackbird had your men doing, it goes beyond warfare, I think."

>>15121048
"Honestly? This is the first time I've seen him in action clearly. The only other time I had a chance to see him in battle was when he and his men were in a forest around a road and the Uurlanth troops refused to enter the forest as a result of their actions. What he does may seem excessive but it is effective. His men have wiped out caravans and some of Uurlanths prized units all on their own. Besides, with what I've seen some of the Uuralnth do to their own people as slaves, I think they deserve worse than what Blackbird can do."

>>15121048
"Had you told me that before the Uurlanthi summoned the aids of the gods themselves against me, or turned their own people into abominations, or slaughtered entire villages of women and children, I would have agreed with you.

"There ought to be limits, even in warfare. Unfortunately our enemies does not afford us such luxuries. We will not stoop to their levels, but we must be... creative, and open to new ideas."

>>15121048
>What Blackbird had your men doing, it goes beyond warfare, I think.
"He is of the Old Clans, and their ways of war have come down to him.
"I admit, they are not meant for conventional forces, however I believe that such...unsavoryness, has its place in war."

>>15121048
"Blackbird's tactics date back to a savage time, when brutality meant survival. His unit's ability to traverse the salt swamps of the south are a testament to that nearly unscathed. One of his men killed a thing whose claws were as big as my wrist."

>>15121048
"It would be better still to never need kill at all, to be at peace forever. Yet we do what we must as soldiers of the legion. I admit I do not relish giving the orders or employing those tactics, but to protect both those I love and the Empire itself I will not shy away from doing so. If that is the blade given to me then I will wield it to the best of my ability, just as with magical arcana or the arcane talents themselves."

ability to traverse the salt swamps of the south nearly unscathed are a testament to that. **

DERP

>>15121105
Let's not mention the divine just yet.

>>15121165
Okay. Just mention that the enemy:
1. herded slaves toward our fortifications
2. rounded up and slaughtered women and children
3. turned their own people into abominations

>>15121176
>3. turned their own people into abominations
We sort of did this too.

Just saying. Don't throw stones from a glass house.

>>15121205
At least there's a chance the were-bulls can lead a semi-normal life. The women turned into the tower cores were always going to be grotesque monstrosities forever, barring divine influence.

You sigh "He is of the Old Clans, and those traditions are the ones he fights with. One need only look to the annals of history to know that it is by necessity a brutal tradition. As to it going beyond warfare, I agree that there should be limits, however..." you trail off, unable to finish the sentence, as anger begins to take hold of you as you think back to the crimes Uurlanth has commited within your sight.

"However... they are mortals, creatures of thought and reason the same as us, these our foes, are they not?" Quintus asks, trusting his horse to continue, as he intently watches your face.

"Before they sent throngs of slaves before their soldiers in an attempt to wear down my lines, before they slaughtered entire villages, set gods against me, and caused the rebirth of some of those foes that forced Blackbirds ancestral ways to be so brutal; yes, what you state would be enough for me to stay Blackbirds wrath. However, as they are..." again, your words betray you as Uurlanths crimes resurface to your mind.

"So, the rumors that have spread to my maniple are true then?" Quintus asks, clearly referring to your oblique mention of Loukys. You simply nod, and Quintus pinches the bridge of his nose "Sometimes, I wonder if we may have been better off had our ancestors simply rode out the temporary insanity of the Immortals, instead of stomping down their collective feet as forcefully as they did."

>>15121244
"They had no idea how long it would last. To be honest, the time of quiet game the gods time to think. Their game of chess has become even more complicated because of it, especially with so few pieces to worth through."

>>15121308
*to -work- through.

Goddamn, I need more sleep, I think.

>>15121244
"No one should be forced to endure blows and torment from another simply for fear of safety in the future. We have our lives as well, and all should stand as equals. I will not fear to strike simply for what may be, whatever comes in the future will be dealt with then. Both we now and our ancestors then could only deal with the problems they had at the time."

... Try to get him back on topic.

You shake your head "They had no idea how long it would last. And none can be reasonably expected to live through terror and suffering for the promise of protection in the future." you answer confidently.

Quintus shrugs "Either way, I suppose the past is what it is, though one must wonder what that war must have been like. Obsidian and bronze for everything. And the mages and elementalists, the Undead Legions and their countless clashes." his voice seeming almost wistful as he goes on.

"Speaking of the arcane..." you comment, snapping Quintus from his apparent trance.

He mumbles something, sighs, pinches the bridge of his nose and replies "How long did it take you to train your cadre, and how many accidents did you have to endure?"

>>15121453
"Our only accidents so far have been on the field. Some of my first enemies were so kind as to leave me a treasure trove of training materials and arcana, so the training was actually fairly smooth. Found even more during my foray into Urlanthi territory. I can share copies on request."

>>15121469

seconding

>>15121453
"I picked up my first elementalist during my first campaign.

"There were a few friendly-fire incidents and many close calls, of course, but that comes with warfare. A few arrows in the wrong spots on my body would do me in as surely as magical fire. The first part of magical training is learning how to prevent injury to self and friendlies, same as training with any other weapon."

Wait, weren't WE the ones supposed to overseeing the training?

Wouldn't it be better to advise him that we can scan his maniple for potentials and train them then send them back to him?

You shrug "The only incidents I have had were during battle. Thanks to the wealth of informational tomes and training arcana I have acquired during my various campaigns, the training process was fairly painless. Why do you ask?"

Quintus scratches at the back of his head "I simply cannot ignore this development any longer, this last battle has made that much clear to me. I may not yet be certain how deeply I wish to drink from this cup set before me, but I know that I must at least sip if I wish to survive. What would your price be to start my maniple to arcane training?" he asks, his voice carefully controlled, though you are certain you can detect some uncertainty in it.

>>15121469
This but add:

"I will, however, oversee the writing of more modernized training manuals. Many of the books I found are old and brittle, making you handle them with extreme care. The ones I found in Urlanth let me discover both a weakness in fire elemetalism in regards to consecrated fire and a way to keep Wulf's lightning at strength on even clear days using shock stones."

>>15121564
I'm not really sure how much to ask for, but we can do a sweep of his maniple with the detector stone and see who can become elementalists for a small price.

Also, do we need the Second's permission for training another maniple elementalists?

>>15121564
"I would need to borrow those of your men with the potential, and I cannot release them back to you until my chief instructor Laelith says that they are no longer a danger to themselves and others.

"As you can probably guess it's the novices who are the most dangerous to be around."

>>15121564
"I would ask no price other than your support if you feel I deserve it."

Heh. Thinking back, it's kinda funny. Our first elementalist did almost kill us, mainly because we were enemies at the time.

Makes you wonder how differently things could have gone if we had acted just a little bit differently (and not gotten spectacularly lucky).

>>15121564
show him our detection crystal. "First, I'd have to hand-pick the men best suited to the arcane, using this. A stronger reaction equates a stronger affinity. You can train on any arcane field on strength of will alone, but you're less likely to bear fruit.

As for price, that's hard to determine. I would have to start thinking about it eventually, though, as I do plan to start an academy for this."

>>15121601

We shouldn't charge any fee at all if Quintus is serious about getting his men trained.

Another maniple demonstrating the benefits of elementalism will be worth far more than anything.

The only catch will really be that the elementalists will need to train at the groundwork for our academy for a while.

>>15121564
Price? Why ask to get paid? I can identify those with arcane talent, and give materials and competent tutors to bring them up to a basic level of skill without causing them to self-detonate. You can pay me in char-broiled Uurlanthi and success in battle.

Definitely don't ask to be paid to do this. We potentially get another supporter and we're spreading something that will help our side win more battles more efficiently. No reason to be paid. At most, have him put up the costs for feeding his men and crap if they stay with us to be trained but there's no reason to make him even more hesitant to do this.

>>15121671
I can get behind this. So long as his men's upkeep and living cost is paid, I'm fine with that.

You shake your head "Commander Quintus, my friend, what sort of fool do you take me for?" you joke "To do this properly, your men will need to be screened, and trained past the point of being a danger to themselves, and the rest of your maniple. The simple fact that another force openly embraces the arcane would be more than enough payment for me. Though a few charred Uurlanthi corpses might be nice, my collection is getting rather stale of late."

Quintus pales "Corpses?"

You nod, glad to have found a man with even less of a sense of humor than you have "Burnt however, the cut ones get to smelling too quickly."

Quintus' face screws up at the effort to maintain a cool composure "How long will that process take, what materials will you be able to lend me... and how many, corpses, will you need?"

>>15121734
The corpses part was a joke. A joke that fell flat on its face. What I really want is for you to be victorious. Oh, and for your support in finding and training elementalists, especially against the old school. It is difficult, not to have political support in something which could be so useful in wartime.

I think if we can get into this guy's good books, we can have a supporter when we become the 7th pretorian.

>>15121734
"I'd have to talk to my head elementalists as to how long but I'd be willing to let them train with my cadre of elementalists to help speed up the process"

>>15121734
"OH... wow. I was speaking metaphorically about the corpses. So long as your trainees do their part to stem the tide of invaders, I will consider myself paid. As for the length of the process, the trainees with the most aptitude should be combat-ready within a month's time. More time is needed for the less-inclined and true magic users. The latter just have more difficult material to learn."

add in "If it turns out some of your men have the aptitude to be a necromancer, I will be hesitant to train them. My personal code regarding the dead is that they are dead, and should stay so. As well, one of Neshai's hobbies is tearing apart the souls of dead necromancers. There are less obvious powers they could utilize, though, and The Hag won't even blink at them for it."

You blink a few times, damnit, "The, ah... I was using a metaphor, perhaps a bad one in an attempt at humor. For the arcanists to do their part in stemming the tide of invaders will be enough payment for me. I do not require corpses, nor do I collect them. As to the time needed, that varies from arcanist to arcanist, but if they train with my current active cadre, their basic training should be over quickly enough." you finish, chuckling to yourself at how horrified Quintus must have been.

"I ah, oh, yes, but of course it was a metaphor." Quintus sputters out, making it difficult for you to hide the rapidly approaching laughter, he actually thought you were serious. "I, ah, I will have my soldiers prepared to be screened when we camp tonight." at that, Quintus salutes you, and rides off hurriedly.

That night you manage to find a solid 7 elementalists in Quintus depleted maniple. Truly lucky for him, and with Laelith working on smaller, much more concise training manuals for them, they may even be on their own by the time you reach DragonsReach, though that is wholly dependent on how quickly they learn.

>blargh, I'm beat, gonna call it here for tonight.
>Someone archive please
>I'll be back sunday at 10ish
>if you have any setting/random CQ questions, just email me at paxcomquest@yahoo.com

we'll have to joke with Blackbird about this event later.

Archived, too tired to have participated directly, though you guys seem to be doing stuff accordingly so no complaints, felt like I should contribute so here:
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/15118555/
vote and etc.