File: Knight.jpg (7 KB, 199x253)

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Bumping for posterity. Also, pics.

>>842771
>> What is your name, and by what title will the peasantry call you?
Durwin. I don't know what a good title would be, but everybody would just refer to him as sir.
>> What do you look like, and how old are you?
Tall, fair skin, black hair, gaunt face with a couple of nasty scars.
>> What is your background?
>> Bandit Chief
>> What attribute do you excel in? And what attribute could use some work?
His tough no nonsense demeanor can instill confidence and respect to soldiers under his command, but can be intimidating to others and hinders his diplomatic skills.
>> What are the three skills you are most known for?
Seigecraft, military tactics and animal training.
Is a big softy when it comes to animals, especially dogs and cats.
>> Finally, what is your ultimate goal for Entor?
To bring stability and crush those who oppose us.

>>842858
+1

>>842858
slagar the cruel or cluny the scourge

>>842858
I like this one

>>842858
this'll do

>>842858

You are Durwin, Sir Durwin to your subordinates. Well known for your intimidating nature, and callous demeanor, you are well versed in the arts of siegecraft, military tactics, and animal training. You were once a Bandit Chief, extorting and sacking villages in equal measure, but one night, you realized that you could be so much more than that. You will bring an iron rule over the land with total power, and ensure that all who dare to oppose you will be crushed under foot, or you will die trying.

As of now, your army numbers 26 men. 22 of them are untrained bandit scum, loyal to you only so long as you can keep them in coin. They demand 2 crowns a week. 4 of them are deserters, skilled men-at-arms, proficient with the sword and shield, they are much more loyal to you than the Bandits, but they definitely won't be putting themselves in any unnecessary risk for your sake. They demand 5 crowns a week.

You are sitting in your tent, planning your next course of action. Your warband has its campsite atop a small hill in the plains. You're in the southern region of Entor, known for its good soil and rich trading ports. Recently, the Nomads have been becoming more bold, raiding and pillaging across the land. Soon, they'll form under one ruler, and Entor will be shaken.

But that's besides the point, you've got only 2 days of rations. You've got only 300 crowns and five days from now your army will be wanting payment. There are three locations within 2 day's travel.

> Tavet, a farming village of fifty people. You've visited it in secret, and know that they have no defenses beyond a pathetic dirt berm, and have only half a dozen poorly trained guardsmen. Still, you've got no doubt that their men could put up a good fight.

> Orht, a large river port-town of two or three thousand people. It is fairly prosperous from its tobacco and cannabis trade, and as a consequence, well defended. Orht has two hundred well-trained militiamen, and the guards of merchant caravans that occasionally stop there, as well as an imposing stone wall.

> Eiolit Keep, an abandoned fortress from the old days of the Empire. You haven't visited in well over three months, but you've heard rumors that a Bandit Lord named Koed The Brazen and his host have been using it as a base of operations. They've supposedly been involved in a protection racket, and have razed at least two hamlets who refused to pay. Though the keep is old and decrepit, it is still quite formidable.

> Of course, you could always search for a family homestead. It certainly wouldn't be too difficult to raid one, and although the paltry amount of loot might not be worth the effort, they'd be sure to have food.

Now, as for the situation of supplies,

> 300 crowns
> 2 days of Wheatbread rations
> 6 Iron short-swords
> 8 Iron shields
> 3 suits of Iron half-plate,
> 5 suits of Iron ring-mail
> 6 pack mules
> 13 well-trained horses. Not ideal for warfare, but tolerable.

(cont.)

>>843254

You yourself are equipped with,

> A fine, if somewhat aging, grey warhorse.
> A Steel short sword
> An Iron Shield
> An Iron dagger
> A steel helm
> A suit of Iron half-plate, and a suit Iron chainmail worn underneath

Those among your army without listed weapons wield crudely carved wooden clubs and stone-bladed spears. Everyone has a knife or dagger of some kind.

>>843254
>>843284

What course of action does Durwin's band take?

>>843254
> Eiolit Keep, an abandoned fortress from the old days of the Empire. You haven't visited in well over three months, but you've heard rumors that a Bandit Lord named Koed The Brazen and his host have been using it as a base of operations. They've supposedly been involved in a protection racket, and have razed at least two hamlets who refused to pay. Though the keep is old and decrepit, it is still quite formidable.

>>843311
Scout out some homesteads for some food, leaving them with enough food to survive the winter. Then see if we can get some training and discipline into our untrained men with the eventual goal of taking over Tavet without any problems.

>>843415
+1
also, offer recruitment to the people in the houses. no need to leave too much of a footprint quite yet by conscripting them

>>843254
>> Orht, a large river port-town of two or three thousand people. It is fairly prosperous from its tobacco and cannabis trade, and as a consequence, well defended. Orht has two hundred well-trained militiamen, and the guards of merchant caravans that occasionally stop there, as well as an imposing stone wall.

Could see about procuring extra rations, perhaps pick up some extra hands from the local criminals and mercs, then head for the keep.

>>843437
Further, what are our prospects for taking the bandit lords host for our own? Keep what you kill kinda thing?

>>843437

If you went to Orht, you wouldn't be able to bring your whole army with you, and a peasant traveling with a squad of armored militiamen is bound to attract attention. Come to think of it, traveling peasants are abnormal on their own. You'd be wise to disguise yourself, as you are known in the area.

>>843463

If Durwin slayed Koed in a fair duel, his men might surrender to Durwin and join under his command, or they might kill Durwin and elect a new ruler. It all depends on Koed himself and the men he leads. Of course, there's nothing stopping you from forming an alliance with Koed, or agreeing to raid together. You know for a fact that Koed has a 1,000 crown bounty on his head, and his men surely have bounties as well. Though the same could be said for you.

>>843404

1 vote for Immediate travel to Eolit Keep.

>>843415
>>843425

2 votes to spend some time gathering food from homesteads, and training the bandit scum.

>>843437

And 1 vote to immediately travel to Orht.

In 30 minutes I'll tally the votes.

>>843629
Well yea, didnt mean bringing the whole crew to town with us.

Disguise as recruiter for a mercenary company possibly?

Do we have a vague idea of how many men Koed has?

>>843656
i chance my vote to spend some time gathering food from homesteads, and training the bandit scum.

>>843656
I support the obvious decision to raid that thorpe of 50 people and take their shit.

>>843715
Guess i'll switch over too.

But, id like to say with the threat of nomads around it'd be smart to make a move on that abandoned fortress. Well, beyond just them, have a good solid hold will go a long ways. Plus, theres probably a lot of good loot stashed there.

>>843730
you have a point but our men are too weak right now

>>843415
>>843425
>>843715
>>843730

Alright, Durwin's band will be gathering food from homesteads and training. Writing the update now.

Also, from this point on I'm going to keeping track of the army's equipment off-screen, as the character limit is frustrating, and I'll better be able to describe the army's equipment, for example, instead of saying,

3 bandits, 1 has a longsword, 1 has a spear, and 1 has an axe, I'd say:

1 sword bandit
1 spear bandit
1 axe bandit,

Instead. I will be keeping track of Durwin's equipment in the thread though.

>>843821
We dont necessarily have to be strong but smart. Of course, i still think its a good idea picking up extra hands from the trade town.

>>843898
>Also, from this point on I'm going to keeping track of the army's equipment off-screen,

Pastebin?

File: Grassy Plains.jpg (4 KB, 274x184)

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[b]Day One[/b]

After an hour of deep thought, you come to a conclusion. You'll spend the next two weeks "gathering" food and recruiting from homesteads, and train your men into a proper fighting force.

You leave your tent, and announce your plans to the men. For the most part, they seem to think that this is a reasonable course of action. Though some of the more thuggish bandits loudly complain that the band should raid Tavet, a withering glare silences them. Half an hour later, your men have packed up their tents and are ready to move.

The thing is, you don't know where any homesteads actually are. Fortunately, your expertise in [b]military tactics[/b] allows you to come up with a cunning plan on the fly. The thirteen best horsemen in the band will ride and scout out the area within a ten mile radius, while the rest of the men travel in the general direction of Orht, as homesteads are more likely to be there.

[i]Rolled using random.org[/i]

[b]19[/b]

In between hour long hikes, and your constant drilling, the men that aren't out scouting begin to pickup on the basics of military discipline and have become somewhat more organised overall. They aren't noticeably better at actual combat, but now at least they won't break ranks as easily.

[b]-13 untrained bandit scum, +13 slightly trained bandit scum[/b]

[b]17+2=19[/b]
((+2 due to Durwin's military tactics skill))

After two days of wandering around the general vicinity of Orht under the cover of night, your horsemen gradually begin to return, and inform you that they've discovered four small homesteads, and Urdl, one largely unprotected hamlet of barely twenty people. All within one day's travel.

You spend a moment thinking, and decide to,

> (Insert Write-in)

> Durwin's Warband, 26 men, (64 crown weekly wages)

> 300 crowns
> 0 Day's Rations
> Morale, 6/10

> 11 slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 2 sword slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 9 untrained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 4 sword men-at-arms deserters, (5 crowns/per week)

>>843919

I don't use Pastebin, I prefer to keep everything written down on cellulose sheets in the meat realm.

Shameless bump.

>>844050
>Urdl

>>844434

To extort for resources and recruits, or raid outright?

>>844492
resources and recruit.

>>844548
vote

>>844548

Might do well to establish a protection racket rather than just flat out taking from the folks.

sorry, got tied up after work

QM still around?

>>844828

I'm still here. Just waiting for votes. In fifteen minutes I'll tally the votes and update.

>>844905
Sweet.

It's a long time I've waited for a proper low fantasy medieval quest, much less one where we're a bandit chief.

I mean, shit's right up my alley.

>>844050
Resources and recruits

File: Knight on horseback.jpg (78 KB, 500x333)

78 KB JPG

*Day Three*

You decide that it would be best to extort Urdl, as the profit gained would far surpass the looting a few homesteads. You rally your men and begin to travel to the hamlet.

Due to your grasp of military tactics, you realize it would be best to partially surround the village at noon, as that's when the tired farmers would be getting ready for lunch. not expecting anything. Unlike the break of dawn or twilight, when they'd be on edge.

[5+2=7] VS [6-4=2]
((First roll is Durwin's army's. The second is the opposing roll. -4 due to circumstance.))

You would've arrived outside of Urdl undetected, if it weren't for a dog taking a piss outside of a cabin on the hamlet outskirts. Upon spotting the 27 armed strangers, it ran into the hamlet, barking at the top of its lungs. Fortunately the oafish peasants ignored the foolish creature, giving you enough time to complete the maneuver.

The 22 bandit scum partially surround the hamlet in a thin semicircle, appearing to be more numerous than they are. The 4 men-at-arms ride beside you on horseback, and you are imposing atop your warhorse.

*Roll to intimidate*

[17+2+4=23] VS [12-2-4=6]
((Durwin gets +2 due to his intimidating nature, and a +4 due to the circumstances.))((The farmers get a -2 because they're untrained farmers, and a -4 due to the circumstances.))

You shout at the top of your lungs, "OI! WE'VE GOT YE SURROUNDED! THERE'S 27 OF US, ALL SEASONED FIGHTERS AN' KILLERS! AN' ONLY A HANDFUL OF YE ARE STRONG ENOUGH TO PUT UP A FIGHT! WE DON'T WANT TO HURT ANYBODY IF WE DON'T HAVE TO!

WE'RE JUST HUNGRY, AN' THIS HERE HAMLET JUST SO HAPPENS TO FALL UNDER OUR JURISDICTION! YE'LL BE PAYIN' US A TENTH OF YER COIN, AND A THIRD OF YER HARVEST IN TAXES, OR WE'LL BE TAKIN' IT FROM YER CORPSES! UNDERSTOOD? ALSO, WE'VE BEEN LOOKIN' FOR NEW BLOOD, ANY OF YE WANT TO JOIN, YE CAN SIGN UP RIGHT NOW!"

You look at the hamlet, only six men walk out of their homes to meet you. They're wielding pitchforks and billhooks, and their eyes are filled with terror. The oldest one. well in his sixties speaks up, his voice quivering with terror, "A-alright, w-whatever ye need. w-we c-can get, uh, get it for ye! J-ju-just don't hurt us! Please!" One of the younger men looks at him in disgust, and calls out to you, "Hey mister! I'm tired of breakin' me back pullin' a plow! Does yer band got a place for me?"

> Urdl is at your mercy. What do you take from the hamlet, and do you allow your men the chance to pillage? How do you respond to this young man?

>>845269
>> Urdl is at your mercy. What do you take from the hamlet, and do you allow your men the chance to pillage? How do you respond to this young man?

The village is now officially under our protection, as payment for our protection we will take only the terms we demanded.

Really not sure how we should set up collection, but I suppose we can figure that out as we go.

Plenty of room for more lads, long as they'll earn their keep and do as they're told.

>>845294
vote

>>845294
Medieval Mafia pls. We'll have riders come to collect once a week once we establish a home base.
I suggest we also utilize the villagers as spies, maybe even try to get a few to join the smaller town as guard recruits to get us a insight on the town and the best time to attack.

>>845321

I just mean that considering agriculture, it's kinda hard to collect frequently.

Surely enough they could prove useful with subterfuge, but we'll have to build a relationship with them for a while in order to make sure they don't just flat out rat on us to the town guard first chance. Protecting against nomads, other bandit groups and so on. Hell, maybe even waylaying an official tax collector or two.

Speaking of home bases, there is that one bandit lord occupying a perfectly fine candidate for such things.

>>845321
We can't rob them that often due to how harvests work and should we let other bandits that would hurt our own income should we set up a protection racket.

Gotta remember the villagers are only going to have so much to take. Other bandits robbing them decreases what we can get too.

>>845352
We must hit the tax collectors.

EVERYONE hates the tax man you can't ask for a better way to generate goodwill AND make a lot of money!

Another option we should consider it hunting other bandits groups to generate goodwill and turn in their delicious bounties(through a middleman of course). Not to mention an excellent way to recruit and collect booty.

>>845393
>Another option we should consider it hunting other bandits groups to generate goodwill and turn in their delicious bounties(through a middleman of course). Not to mention an excellent way to recruit and collect booty.

Honestly, I'm of the opinion of making other bandits bend the knee. If they won't see reason of course, it works out just as well to kill them earning goodwill, getting rid of competitors, and possibly claiming the bounty on them somehow.

So, what kind of schedule are we going to be looking at here QM?

Got a twitter?

>>845536

I don't have any schedule in particular, or an anonymous Twitter account, but you can expect me to post daily for the next week, and on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoons afterward.

Hm... How do you archive a thread? I don't want this Thread to die and it be unable to gain any new readers.

>>845906
archived it for you:

http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/842771/

>>845912

Tubular, my quest has its very own archive. Could you tell me how you did it though?

>>845930
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive.html

then request archive at the left

>>845906
>daily for the next week, and on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoons afterward.

Good stuff

>>845294
>>845297
>>845321
>>845352
>>845393

So you guys want to start a mafia-style protection racket with the village? Alright. I'll update sometime later today.

>>846713

I've finished harvesting the fields, and am ready to type the update.

>>849129
and i'm ready to read

>>849129
Here as well

*Day Three*

You listen for a moment, before responding to the farmers. "WE AREN'T GOIN' TO HURT YE! I OWN THIS HAMLET NOW, AND I WOULDN'T BRING ANY HARM TO MY PROPERTY! I'VE GOT A DEAL FOR YE! MY BAND WILL DEFEND YE AN' YER ILK AN' KEEP YE ALL OUT OF HARM'S WAY! IN EXCHANGE, YE'LL PAY US A TAX WHENEVER WE COME BY, OF WHATEVER I FEEL YE OWE US!"

The farmer listens for a moment, before speaking, in a panicked, stuttering voice, "A-and i-if we d-don't a-agr-ag- agree w-wit' that?" You reply, "IN THAT CASE, WE'LL CUT YE ALL TO PIECES, BURN DOWN THIS HERE HAMLET, AND TAKE WHATEVER WE DAMN WELL WANT FROM IT'S ASHES!" The elder visibly gulps, before nodding. "Y-you se-seem v-very rea-reasonable, I-I, ah w-we'll accept yer offer, si-, er, mi'lord!"

You nod, satisfied. "FARMER, I'M NOT YER LORD! I'M NO KING! I AM DURWIN AND I NEED NO PETTY TITLE! I AM A GENTLEMAN, HOWEVER, AND YE'D BE WISE TO CALL ME SIR!" "W-wh-atever ye say, mi-lor- er, sir-sir!" The elder gives off a somewhat frantic salute, which you return, as you are a gentleman, after all.

You point to the traitorous young man, and speak, "THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM IN ME BAND FOR THOSE WHO'LL EARN THEIR KEEP AN' DO AS THEY'RE TOLD! WELCOME TO THE BAND, STRANGER!" The traitor eagerly nods with an earsplitting grin, and runs back into one of the houses, no doubt to pack his things. You shout one more time, "WILL THERE BE ANY OTHER TAKERS?" One of the younger men, a skinny fellow with a ratlike face, nods, and goes back into one of the houses to gather his things.

[+Protection Racket with Urdl, +2 untrained peasant volunteers!]

You then supervise as your men commence the systematic looting of the village. The farmers and their families stand by helplessly as your men rummage through their houses, and drag away the fruits of their year-long labor. They look hopeless, but resigned to their fate. Good, good, they won't be tattling on you anytime soon.

You are true to your word. Only a tenth of their wealth and a third of their harvest are taken. A few of your men ogle the farmer's wives and daughters, and you suppose they've been rather starved for company these last few months. Ah well, there'll be time for that later.

[+13 Day's Rations, +30 Crowns, +2 Morale]

> Now that your band is well provisioned, what do you do?

> Durwin's Warband. 28 men, (68 crown weekly wages)

> 330 crowns
> 13 Day's Rations
> Morale, 8/10

> Protection Racket with Urdl

> 11 slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 2 sword slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 9 untrained bandit scum, (2 crowns/per week)
> 4 sword men-at-arms deserters, (5 crowns/per week)
> 2 untrained peasant volunteers, (2 crowns/per week)

>>849512
>> Now that your band is well provisioned, what do you do?

There's a trade town nearby right? Well, means theres caravans.

Lets look about for a good ambush spot along a trade route, and anything else that may prove interesting while we search.

>>849512
As a gesture of good faith, ask the elder what kind of troubles their village has been faced with. Offer to take them out by any means necessary; we'll focus on capturing or recruiting those who surrender or attempt to retreat.

>>849602
This sounds good.

>>849602
Not a bad idea, helping them prosper puts more in our pocket.

Could always get the info from the elder and see if it's worth following up on immediately.

>>849602
+1
It'll keep them a little quieter about the whole "we're being extorted" thing.

>>849512
>A few of your men ogle the farmer's wives and daughters, and you suppose they've been rather starved for company these last few months.

Let our men know that the village is under our protection and rape will not be tolerated. First time offenders get a serious lashing. Second time gets them castrated.

>>849720
Also agree with this. Tell them that shit will be saved for the brothels. We don't need a bunch of lechers running around ruining our relations with our new friends.

>>849720
>>849818

Should get plenty of rape when we finally raid something.

Alternatively, were we to set up some manner of brothel we could not only have a place for the lads to have their fun, but also a source of income and information. Might not be too hard setting something like that up in the trade town.

>>849838
or on the outskirts

>>849838
Yeah, sounds fair. We'll just need to chill out for the time being. When we've built up our forces we can be absolute pricks, but there's no sense in screwing over our allies just after we make them. We need to ensure that they trust us more than the tax man, or the kingdom they serve. Otherwise they could put out a tip for manhunters or something.

>>849895
Eh. I think allies is a bit of a stretch.

I still say sneaking into the trade town and looking for more men is a good move. Mercs, criminals, general scum and so on.

We've got food sorted, so grabbing some more men and either making a move on the big shot bandit in the fortress, or hitting a few caravans would probably be good moves.

Just want to point out that we are thinking ahead by a little bit. What we really need is a base of operations that is not just one do to fear. So I propose we go to that one abandoned fort with the other bandit and take it over. And go from there.

Also, thoughts on the name of our forces? I'm for Militaires Sans Frontières, Diamond Dogs, or anything else that would make us a Middle Ages version of Big Boss.

>>850014
That's what I'm for. Just think that we could do with a few extra men. Or perhaps soliciting a traitor from within.

>>850038
I don't think we're in much of the same vein.

>>849923
why not stay out of towns for now and build up some shitty bandits before we go to one? if the village here is on our side we don't have to worry about them reporting to anyone else. i still think conscription is our best route but i wouldn't mind this coming next

>>850100
Just that more people means a larger pool to recruit from

Possible to absorb other bandit bands as well I suppose

Wherever we get them, we need bodies

Also, might not hurt getting our hands on some crossbows

Later, when we've got our own kingdom, we should gather a harem.

ded quest

>>852910

Not quite, I'm rolling the fields right now and can't post, but stay tuned, in two hours I'll have the next update.

>>853201

Tilling, not rolling. Fanned autocorrect.

>>853201
>>853210

Right on. So, we gonna basically be doing an update a day? Be cool get a proper session down once a week maybe.

What crops you working?

>>853274

My weekends are fairly busy, unless something comes up, I'll be able to post half a dozen updates tommorrow.

Watermelon, mostly, but I've got some potatoes in the ground, and with the way things are going, the squash is probably going to have a great turnout this year.

>>849593
>>849602
>>849642
>>849650
>>849672

You want to ask the Village Elder about his problems, and ambush a caravan?

>>849720
>>849818
>>849838
>>849842
>>849895
>>849923

You want to forbid rape among your men among any protected settlements, and possibly recruit a few men from homesteads?

OK, writing the update now.

*Day Three*

You're planning for the future, when you see one of the scum shamelessly staring at a blonde farmer's daughter. Ugh, you'd better put a stop to that before it starts. "LISTEN UP YE SORRY BASTARDS! NOBODY'S GOIN' TO BE RAPIN' PROTECTED VILLAGERS UNDER MY WATCH! FIRST TIME YE TRY TO TEST ME, YOU'LL GET FIFTY LASHINGS! AN' IF YE'RE DIM ENOUGH TO TRY AGAIN, I'LL CASTRATE YE MESELF! UNDERSTOOD?"

The bandit immediately averts his gaze, and begins nodding frantically, as do several others, though they're visibly unhappy about it. Many of your men mutter in agreement, and several salute you. Most of your men appear to agree with the new law, although they'll likely be frustrated with you for a few days. Ah well, they can deal with it. The last thing you want is a reputation as a backstabbing Tyrant, you know you're a backstabber but you try to be fair to your own people.

[-1 Morale, +New Regulations]

Now then, onto business. "VILLAGE ELDER!" "M-me name's T-t-tem, s-sir." "WELL TEM! HAS YER VILLAGE BEEN HAVIN' ANY PROBLEMS LATELY? 'SIDES ME AN' MY ASSOCIATES, THAT IS!" "W-well, the h-havest's been doin' p-poorly lately, but I d-don't know how much you can help with that. Uh, besides that a few of the Nilties, a, uh, homesteading family, disappeared from their farm one night, and t-the only thing left was, uh, bloody rotten skeletons, that sorta looked like someone had went at 'em with a few hooks and a hatchet of some kind.

If y-you could find out what happened, we'd be grateful, A-also, th-there's another group of b-band-, er, m-m-marauders! of some kind. A bunch of crooks an' thieves, they've been ambushing homesteadin' families, an' lootin' an' burnin' their homes afterward. What's worse, the only bodies left behind were the children, men, and old women, and, I d-dread to think of what they've been up to. A few survivors told us that there's 'bout twelve of 'em, and they take orders from a big man with a big nose. Supposedly, they've got their layer somewhere north of here. It's no cabin or anything, I think they got some kind of cave they're using as a base. Again, we'd be mighty grateful if ye could do somethin' 'bout it."

You nod, "I'LL DO WHAT I CAN, PEASANT!" and you ride off into the sunset with the rest of your band. You decide that before doing anything else, recruiting and gathering from the nearby homesteads is a good idea.

[2+2=4]

Well that went poorly. None of the homesteaders tried to put up a fight, but they seemed pretty pissed off at your "tax collecting". When you tried to ask about their troubles, their Elders complained about the same things Tem did. You feel like you wasted a day of your time, but you got a lot more rations, some crowns, and an alcoholic temperamental fool volunteered to join your army, so you suppose it wasn't a complete waste of time.

[+Protection Racket with homesteads surrounding Urdl, +32 Day's Rations, +30 Crowns, +1 Morale, +1 untrained peasant volunteer!]

(cont.)

*Day Four*

Now that you've got plenty of food and manpower, you ought to raid a caravan. It'd certainly be profitable, and it'd test your men, and if anyone died, you wouldn't have to pay them and they wouldn't have to worry about it! Sounds like a win-win! You and your men travel to one of the trade routes leading to Orht, and set up camp a ways away from the road about four hour's travel from the city, keeping campfires to an absolute minimum. You set up a watch to keep an eye out for any merchants or caravans, and while you and your men wait, you train.

*Day Seven*

Your men wanted their wages, and you're not a cheapskate, so you obliged. Still, your pockets feel uncomfortably light without the jingle of golden coins.

[-70 crowns]

*Day Eight*

[12]

Your men are gradually but steadily improving. Now, most of them actually know which end of a sword is which, and some of them can even march in a straight line! If you were a sentimental person, you'd probably cry, you're so proud.

[-8 slightly trained bandit scum, +8 moderately trained bandit scum]
[-9 untrained bandit scum, -3 untrained peasant volunteers, +9 slightly trained bandit scum, +3 slightly trained peasant volunteers]

*Day Nine*

[17]

Only one more day passes when one of your men runs back into camp, loudly saying, (but not yelling), that a three wagon caravan is travelling down the road! Finally, what you've all been waiting for! You mount your warhorse, and draw your sword, and survey the road. Three ox-drawn wagons are slowly moving along the road, two of the wagons look old and worn, but the one at the front looks almost brand new. There are at least three visible hired guards armed with crossbows and swords, more are probably inside. You'd say at most, there'd be a dozen, but you've been wrong before. The merchants might fight to keep their goods. There's a lot of ways this might turn out, but you're good at gambling, and have a nice feeling in your gut.

> How do you attempt to rob the caravan?

> Durwin's Warband, 29 men, (70 crown weekly wages)

> 290 crowns
> 39 Day's Rations
> Morale, 7/10

> 6 moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 2 sword moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 14 slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 4 sword men-at-arms deserters, (5 crowns per week)
> 3 slightly trained peasant volunteers, (2 crowns per week)

> Durwin's Equipment

> A fine, if somewhat aging, grey warhorse.
> A Steel short sword
> An Iron Shield
> An Iron dagger
> A steel helm
> A suit of Iron half-plate, and a suit Iron chainmail worn underneath

>>854682
>> How do you attempt to rob the caravan?

I'm assuming we're at or near a favorable location for an ambush? Bend in the road, hills, bit of forest, some such?

Well, we'll have ourself sit center in the road on our horse, looking all impressive like. Have 2 of the deserters and the sword bandits stand with us, one deserter with half of the remaining men hidden on both sides of the road.

When they get close enough, demand they throw down their weapons if they wish to live. Should they refuse? Well, that'll be the cue for the lads to let off some steam.

A couple wagons might just be half useful.


Likely we should be able to absorb most of that one band of crooks and thieves.

also, might be a good idea to get some pups off the villages to train into attack dogs

>>854682
We were smart enough to camp near good ambush points right? Thing is though they might be expecting that...but we don't want them to see if we are coming.

If possible we send out fastest guys to attack first make it clear they are to pin them down in their wagons. Our sneakiest guys meanwhile we ambush any scouts so that way they wont know we are coming. There is no way they don't have scouts otherwise the mercs would be long dead and the merchants robbed long ago.

if we can manage that its going to be much easier to wipe them out if they don't have the room to fight properly. If not we can expect things to get bloody. At that point we tell our troops to work together and tag team them to death. If we lose too many guys still not clearly winning we only retreat IF we the boss gives the order or our own lookouts discover reinforcements inbound we retreat.

Make it clear that the men who retreat too soon wont get any loot and if the lookout/scouts miss someone they also don't get any loot in addition to extra punishment.

After all getting flanked is how we all die if reinforcements are inbound and missing an enemy scout is how we fight a now prepared enemy.

We should also consider taking out that other bandit gang. They are clearly bad for business given their taste of burning homesteads and killing most the people. That is very bad business even more bandits. Being stupid is how you end up dead, broke, or starving.

Make it clear to our lads we ain't stupid like them we are smart. We know how to plan long term. Make sure to beat that into their heads. If they can think long term they'll be more apt to understand training can do for them and last likely to betray us.

>>854901
Considering being inspiring and intimidating are one of our strong suits, it may pay off to attempt bluffing the caravan. If most of our lads are hidden for an ambush with some of the better ones on show with us, we may be at least able to unnerve them before pouncing if they won't yield. Also, prisoners means ransoms.

Keeping an eye for outriders is a smart move too, of course.

The other bandit gang, deliver them terms of join or die I say. Be interesting seeing about what's been butchering homesteaders.

>>854822
If we try to bluff them, we'll need to have an upper hand that they can clearly see. The guards aren't earning their pay from dropping their weapons at the first sign of trouble, after all. Also, there's the issue of the crossbows picking off our men before they can reach the wagons.

I'm supporting >>854901, because I don't think our forces are strong enough to take a chance on intimidation, what with the possibility of losing more men than necessary.

>>854929
They got crossbows should the mercs choose to snipe us we are fucked. Not to mention...our guys honestly aren't that great and to do intimidation we'll have to risk our best guys getting sniped. At best we can expect a pay off to let them pass. At worse they take the opportunity to snipe us while rallying their guys out. Then we'll take a lot of losses. Unless we have a ton of scary looking dudes the merchant is gonna want to fight us because losing all his shit vs risk of taking us on is going to be an easy one. Especially since now they know we are coming and will be prepared. That is the sorta thing you can get away with if you gotta lot of scary dudes surrounding them or one hell of a reputation to lean on.

It would be best we killed their scouts sneakily and have our fastest guys bumrush their wagons from the closest ambush position we can manage. If we can pin them down in time and long enough for the rest of our guys to arrive. Victory will be ours with few losses.

Not to mention frankly mercs aren't gonna be worth a whole lot as prisoners now the merchants...they are worth something. Remind the boys to not kill them because they'll be worth the most as a ransom. Unless we know a slaver helpers wont be worth much.

I am not sure how much luck we'll have with the other bandit gang. They appear to be made of particularly dimwitted scum who don't got the guts to take on anyone but homesteaders. Still chances are their boss might have a bounty on his head and his boys might be recruitable(we are gonna have to watch them though bunch of bloody idiots the majority of our own lads have shown they ain't have bad but if we take on enough bad apples we are gonna have some nasty internal problems to deal with).

The monster though if it is a monster sounds like trouble...I would hate to lose guys on watch and take the big morale hit due to monster attack. That shit scares men a lot more then other men. After all monsters ain't a man. Taking that kind of morale hit is going to suck balls and should we kill the monsters we'll can earn some cred AND become known as monster slayers!

Luckily being charismatic will help with management especially should we explain to our men the reason why we are doing the things we are doing. We gotta make them think big and long term. We do that and that will go a very long way. They'll be less likely to bitch, more understanding of training/order, and less inclined to support guys who want our position.

But it requires sharing a bit and getting them into a different mindset. IF we can pull that off that alone would put us above most other bandit scum. Our guys will be less likely to do stupid shit that could backfire on us big time too if they can think longer term.

>>855017
>They appear to be made of particularly dimwitted scum who don't got the guts to take on anyone but homesteaders.

Most of our men, if not all of them, are absolute shitters too, they'll be in good company.

>>855049
Only to a degree from what I read. Keep in mind how they acted in the village, raiding homesteads, and during stuff at camp.

So while yes they are bad they ain't quite that bad. At least a good amount of them anyway.

>>855056

Well, I think that can fairly be attributed to us. They'll do as they're told or they'll wish they had.

These lads simply lack the proper leadership to make good use of them. Perhaps the leader too, though likely we'll have to make an example of him.

>>854822
>>854901
>>854929
>>854986
>>855017

Your forces are indeed hiding behind a cluster of lightly forested hills bordering the road. As far as you know, they didn't have any scouts, and likely thought that their hired guards would be more than enough to scare off any would-be looters.

Your plan is to blitz swarm the caravan? Killing the guards as needed, but preferably keeping the merchants alive as prisoners?

Alright, I'm writing the update now.

>>855378

That was me.

*Day Nine*

The wagons will be at the ambush point in twenty minutes. There's a dozen ways to go about this, but your expertise in military tactics tells you that it would be a terrible idea to ride in front of a group of crossbowmen and attempt to intimidate them. You don't have any ranged capabilities of your own, and your men are lightly armored and poorly trained. You do have the element of surprise and overwhelming numbers going for you.

The best thing to do here, would be to have your fastest men bum-rush them, and keep their men distracted long enough for your full force to reach them. You rally your men together, and give them their commands, explaining the reasoning behind the strategy, telling them that any cowards will be punished severely, and lose their share of the loot. You gather your men at the ambush point, and get ready...

Twenty-five minutes later, the caravan comes within earshot. You see the three crossbowmen, and two more guards are driving the front two wagons. The wagon in the back is being driven by a small, mustachioed man in light-red robes and a foppish blue hat. You grin, and give the signal to your men.

[11+2+2=15] [19-2=17]
((+2 due to Durwin's military tactics skill, +2 due to the element of surprise.))
((Opposing roll gets -2, due to the element of surprise.))

Thirteen of your best men rush out to back wagon of the caravan on horseback, hooping and hollering at the top of their lungs. Roughly fifteen of your men follow them waving their blades and clubs in the air. The guards are surprised, but they do their jobs, and fire their crossbows. 1 shot flies over your men's heads and misses completely, 2 shots fly and nail two of the bandit scum in the chest, knocking them over, and 1 shot flies and lands a glancing blow on one of the mounted men-at-arms deserters, being harmlessly deflected off of his armor, the last shot flies and hits a glancing blow on one of the bandit's shoulders. To his credit, it doesn't slow him down in the slightest.

[2 slightly trained bandit scum are severely wounded! 1 slightly trained bandit scum is slightly wounded!]

[20] [14]

Your men reach the back wagon, and your horsemen drag the screaming merchant out of the driver's seat, throwing him onto the ground where several of your men tackle and hogtie him. One of the guards is on top of the wagon, and he tries to load his crossbow, to no avail, one of your horsemen stabs him in the throat with his primitive spear. With the immediate threat defeated, the horsemen move on to the next wagon, which sports three guards.

[18] [12]

The guardsmen wisely draw their swords instead of attempting to reload their cumbersome crossbows, but are unable to effectively wield their blades on the top of the wagon. Your horsemen on the other hand, wield their wooden lances to devastating effect, stabbing one guard through the eye, and another in the throat. The last guardsman is grabbed by the ankle and forced off the wagon, where he is clubbed upside the head and tossed to the ground knocking him unconscious.

[18] [2]

Your footmen climb through the back of the two wagons, dragging those inside out kicking and screaming to be hogtied. Most of them begin to rip the wagons apart looking for valuables, though a few charge to the front wagon. One of the of the guards manages to get a shot off, though his hands are trembling and he misses completely. The horsemen reach the wagon and stab the guard half a dozen times in the face, throat, and chest, though his chest-plate and helm deflect several of the blows, it isn't enough, and he is killed instantly. The other guard tries to drive the wagon away as fast as possible but the horsemen ride ahead of him on the road, and lance him as they did his comrade.

With the guards neutralized, the battle is won. You hear one of your men curse as he is clubbed in the head by a scrawny youth, and he throws the teenager onto the ground, with the intent of kicking him to death. Fortunately, your men stop him after the first two kicks, and the boy isn't too badly hurt. The bandits seem to have calmed down, and are contenting themselves with smashing the wagons. There's roughly four merchants and their families, they appear to be in shock, and at least two of their women and children are weeping. The only casualties your band suffered were the two who were shot in the initial charge, they bled out while the fighting was going on. It's a shame really, but they died for a good cause. Your men are absolutely elated.

[VICTORY]
[-2 slightly trained bandit scum, +3 Morale]

> What commands do you give your men?

>>855440
Strip the wagons down to the plantings and search the axel's, wheels, and boards.
The merchants and their families are to remain unharmed while we interrogate them about their route, goods, wealth, and if they have anyone willing to pay ransom.
If they do have someone willing to ransom them, haggle hard, especially for the wives and daughters, as the threat to them is most obvious. Try and keep the boy though. Spirit should be rewarded.
Also, keep the wagons and animals.
The older two wagons for planks to start up a little fortified camp, with a ditch and berm and a half-timbered barracks, the newer wagon for transporting OUR supplies as needed.
This is a half decent spot for raiding, so long as we still let most caravans through. Need a few men to start practicing the crossbow...unless we can convince a wife or daughter to join our band and make them our archers...

>>855440
Stripe the wagons for loot and question the merchants. Ask where they were going, what they were carrying, how much plunder they had and where they are coming from.

Then break the boys hand, offer the last living guard a job, and see if we can't ransom them off.

If we can't ransom them, kill the men and male kids and enslave the women.

>>850444

We should consider this.

>>855505
I'll back that mostly. Keeping all three wagons might be a better move, using them for collections and for half ass laagers. Also will allow us to move faster since we dont have enough horses for everyone.

Offering the guard a job, sure why not.

>>855505
>>855656
>>855912

You all want to loot the wagons, and interrogate the merchants about their wares, route, wealth, and ask if anyone would be willing to ransom them, as well as offer the guard a job in Darwin's Warband?

What do you want to do about the boy?

What do you do with any merchants you are unable to ransom?
Note: Darwin does not personally know any slavers, but while slavery is very common in the East and North, though it is frowned upon in most of the South, where feudalism is the labor system.

Do you want to scrap the two wagons and use them to build a fortified camp, or do you want keep them all for transporting men and loot?

>>855814

As for starting a Harem, concubinage is fairly common among wealthy Easterners, and in much of the North. Elsewhere, it's fairly uncommon, but not unheard of, especially among nobles, wealthy merchants, and generals. Sex slavery is either slightly frowned upon, or considered abominable, depending on the region and ethnicities involved.

>>856306
I say we keep the wagons, strong logistical capabilities will go a good ways.

Offer the boy a job too, why not.

If they cant be ransomed, we could put them to work.

>>856306
...for shame if we don't know any slavers especially given we are bandits. We need to work on big time. Doing so will give us some money for those we can't manage to ransom. aka the lower quality prisoners.

I say we keep the wagon that is in good condition and scrap the other two.

What kind of goods were they carrying? How many coins did we loot?

For merchants and their families whom they cannot afford to ransom. Tell them they will be allowed to send out a message with those who ARE ransomed so as to collect funds even if they have to borrow if necessary. If they cannot put the funds together in the required time...well things are going to go very poorly for them and their families.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out how exactly and the fact we are willing to give them some time to put together the funds equals more money and more compliant captives.

Offer the boy a job maybe?

>>856329
The 'work' threat would be more effective on the women otherwise...well uh I suppose we could use a quartermaster no? Someone to keep track of the accounts?

I don't think that would be a good idea to give a captive that kind of access though...

What is the traditions like around our area anyway? What is more or less acceptable? Given we are bandits we can get away with more but its still helpful to know.

>>856420
Camp workers, tending the fire, hauling goods, cleaning, digging etc.

Probs better off finding a slaver to do business with.

Not sure on the tech, but considering our skill at siegecraft i would think we might know a thing or two about siege engines.

Might could attempt making a battle wagon like the hussites did, using parts from the shoddy wagons.

The men are busy gleefully looting the wagons, one bandit is busying himself with mutilating a guard's corpse, and several of the men move to grab the women. You give a stern command, "HANDS OFF OF THE MERCHANDISE! THERE'S VALUABLE COIN TO BE HAD FROM THEIR RANSOM, AND UNTIL WE KNOW WE AREN'T GETTIN' IT, YE'RE NOT GONNA HURT A HAIR ON THEIR HEADS! WE'RE GONNA SPLIT THE LOOT UP EVENLY, AN' ANYONE I CATCH STEALIN' COMPANY PROPERTY 'LL LOSE A HAND! UNDERSTOOD?" The thugs shrug, several half-halfheartedly salute you, and they go back to pillaging the wagons. The man cutting up the body continues, and you feel he's entitled to his fun. After all, he's not hurting anybody and the gang's trained hard these last few days.

While your men are stacking piles of loot on the ground beside the road, you take a closer look at the prisoners. There are four merchants, and seven others. Overall, they seem soft, and shocked about the current events. Three children stare in horror at the corpse defiling bandit.

Mostly men, and children, but you do see two women. One is in her eighties and is clinging to the arm of a merchant of similar age, they're likely married, and probably not too wealthy if they weren't able to retire.

The other woman is rather stunning, to say the least. She's fairly short, full figured, deeply tanned, and pleasantly plump. Her curvy blonde hair is cut short, only going down to her shoulders, and her eyes are an intriguing shade of turquoise. She appears to be very young, perhaps eighteen, or twenty, at the most. You'd rate her an 8.5/10 easy, maybe a middling nine, given the loss of a few pounds. You catch yourself staring, dammit, you're the chief and you've got to hold yourself to a higher standard!

The men are just finishing their looting, and they've stacked quite a pile of trade goods. With a glance, you can see six barrels, five bulging sacks of coin, and four small chests, among other things. You nod, and speak. The merchants look at you as if you're some kind of demon, but they listen nonetheless. "My name is Durwin, but you may call me sir. I'd like to know your names, and I'd be extremely appreciative, if you would tell me a few things about yourselves. Where did you come from, where were you going, and what were you selling?"

The scrawny young man who assaulted one of your troops steps forward, and speaks boldly, in a level tone, though he's doing a terrible job hiding his fear. "My name is Eten Steut, and I'll speak for all of us. My father, nephew, and cousin hail from Ututh," You quickly recall what you know of Ututh, it's a large, prosperous mountain kingdom in the Far East renowned for its finely crafted jewelry, and rich silver mines. Excellent. "And we were going to Yebro, to sell our goods. We'd planned to stop at Orht to pick up supplies. My father's a jeweler, and when a civil war broke out back home, we'd decided to pack up and go to the deserts of Yebro, as jewels are almost priceless there."

(cont.)

>>857049

That was me.

>>857285
Go update the Warhammer quest :p

>>857049
>(cont.)

He continues, "My father, and I spent our life savings on jewels, silver, a wagon, and some oxen. Since the war broke out, Ututh hasn't been safe. My mother, and aunt were both killed by marauders during a raid on our village, and my brother was conscripted by the Uthuth loyalists. As the fighting grew more intense, we realized it wasn't safe, and we decided would be best to leave and make it to Yeboro, to sell our wares and make a fortune large enough to set my nephew Rehn, and cousin Jeun for life." He gestures to two young boys, who vaguely resemble him, "Sadly, you came along, and we lost everything." You ask him a question, "Boy, ye've got spirit, would ye like a job in my band?" His eyes widen, "Fuck no, you've just stolen everything we had, and you're a band of pillagers!" You shrug, "Yer loss. Say, hey ye there, guardsmen! Ye fought well and hard, I could use more men like ye in my band. Ye up for it? Pay's good and meals are hot." The guard prisoner looks down, deep in thought, and raises his head, "I'll take it, I hate these spoiled bastards, and the smug cunt mercenaries they hired to protect them. I've been a guard for years and it's started to get to me. Say, what was the pay again?""5 crowns a week, my good man.""Then it's a deal."
The look on the merchant's faces as the guard walks over and joins your men in their looting is priceless.

[+1 Crossbowman Former Guard, (5 crowns/per week)]

After that, you start talking to the others.

> Nobody is willing to ransom the Steuts.

> The old man and woman are name Erbin and Yuth, they've been married sixty years and have made a good living trading fabrics and textiles. Recently, their hometown was raided and burned to the ground. Their relatives were there, as was their fortune. When it was lost, the two had to start all over again. Nobody would be willing to offer a ransom for them.

> The attractive blonde you were gawking at earlier is named Vaelyn, she's their granddaughter, who'd been travelling with them when their hometown was destroyed. She stayed with them to take care of Erbin, who's slowly been going senile. She's been hoping to marry, but is unable to, as Erbin needs her. Nobody would be willing to offer a ransom for her, but she'd fetch at least 200 crowns at the slave market.

> Two of the men, and one of the children, are Okok, Nhek, and Jum. Okok, and Nhek are Jum's uncle and father respectively. They're pious farmers and heard that there would be a religious festival in Orht, which they'd planned to attend. Their families could offer 50 crowns per head.

> The three families met in Drun, a large settlement a good way southeast of here, and they decided to form a caravan and travel together, for mutual safety. It didn't work out so well.

Your men have finished looting the wagons, and have piled up a sizable amount of loot. And it is sizable, reaching up almost to your waist on horseback! You spend a half hour counting the loot, and are quite happy with the results.

[+1,300 crowns]
[+42 Day's Rations]
[+6 Barrels of Mead]
[+300 crown's worth of Silver]
[+500 crown's worth of Fine Jewelry]
[+200 crown's worth of Textiles]
[+300 crown's worth of Misc. Trade Goods]
[+6 Plains Oxen]
[+5 Crossbows]
[+5 Suits of Mail]
[+2 Poor Quality Wagons, +1 High Quality Wagon]

Your men are waiting for you to split up the loot, and are eagerly eyeing the mead. You'd been considering scrapping the Wagons, but unless you want to be hauling all of the loot by hand, you'll have to keep them. Then, there's the matter of the ransoms, and actually selling the loot.

> What do you do?
(cont.)

>>857428

Loot, loot, loot, you've got your very own stack of loot. Loot, it's such a wonderful word, you'll just say it again, and again, and again, and again and again and again! LOOT!

> Durwin's Warband, 28 men, (71 crown weekly wages)

> 1,590 crowns
> 81 Day's Rations
> Morale 10/10

> 6 moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 2 sword moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 12 slightly trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 4 sword men-at-arms deserters, (5 crowns per week)
> 3 slightly trained peasant volunteers, (2 crowns per week)
> 1 crossbowman former guard, (5 crowns per week)

> Loot:

> 6 Barrels of Mead
> 300 crown's worth of Silver
> 500 crown's worth of Fine Jewelry
> 200 crown's worth of Textiles
> 300 crown's worth of Misc. Trade Goods
> 6 Plains Oxen
> 5 Crossbows
> 5 Suits of Mail
> 2 Poor Quality Wagons
> 1 High Quality Wagon

>>857428
We should take the wagons and look near out village. Scrap 2 of the them the poor quality ones use that and the nearby trees to make a camp. While we are doing this we send our most trusted men to sell the blond and trade goods promising them 10%.

As for the captives that are useless give the women to our troops for the night and then kill both the men and women we don't need them around. There trustworthiness is none.

Once we arrive at the location where we will make our camp we give every man 2 crowns worth of silver for there work and give the weapons and armor to our best men.

Then while the camp is being made we set up the ransoms and take 20 of our men (the armed ones) and deal with the bandits troubling our villages.

>>857307

:D

All shall come in time...

>>857377

I'm sorry, my cat got into my computer case and interrupted my typing.

>>857450
Your cat got into your computer case? Wha?

>>857446
Let's give
> 4 sword men-at-arms deserters, (5 crowns per week)
> 1 crossbowman former guard, (5 crowns per week)
> 2 sword moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
> 6 moderately trained bandit scum, (2 crowns per week)
First pick of the armor as they are listed, but each man who takes a suit of mail forfeits one crown a week for three weeks.
Let's have Yuth and two men-at-arms take an older wagon and one hundred crowns of trade goods into Orht to be sold. However remind them if they run well crucify our men and hand Vaelyn over to our more loyal troops if the trader informs the guard about us. Also have Nhek join them to rally up a ransom on the downlow for him, his brother, and his son.

Then take Erbin, Vaelyn, Jum, and Okok with us while we take one older wagon to make camp in the woods.

We'll keep the jeweler yes with us for later plots, along with keeping their goods intact as well as what was once theirs but is now our newest wagon.

Lastly we can set a trap for the next caravan by bring out the newer wagon, and some of our prisons to flag them down and as for a repair to their broken wheel.

If we have some of our men hide in the wagon we should get a better jump on them.

>>857421
>>857428
Tell Steuts, Erbin, Yuth, and Vaelyn they will be given the chance to send a message outside plea for aid.

Those old farts are bound to know some people given they were traders even outside their destroyed hometown. Traders know people they got to in order to make a living. Especially as previously wealthy traders they are bound to have a few contacts. If they can manage borrow enough money then they'll be fine. Also press them harder for their savings.

Tell them we know someone who lasted so long in these times has to have a stash. Especially as traders. If they tell us of the stash we will consider it their right to access said stash as their savings and ransom source.

I very much doubt they don't have a stash. Especially has old veteran merchants living in these harsh times.

Agree to have the farmers ransomed for the 50 crowns a head. Don't bother to push for more farmers aren't the rich type especially the faithful ones.

Take the wagons use them to carry the loot to our hide out. Once we are there scrap two of the poor quality wagons and keep the good one. Keep enough of the oxen to use the good wagon.

Slaughter the youngest ox for a feast and share the ale with the men. Make sure some guys stay sober for guard duty and encourage sobriety by having a shooting competition with the crossbows. The five best shooters get a crossbow each!

Keep the rest of the gear to the side to build up our armory. We'll need it to help equip our best guys as they prove themselves worthy.

Tomorrow I say we send some of the boys to town with some of the cargo the misc. trade goods. Their instructions are simple find buyers for goods both current as well as future, contact a slaver, and send messages for the prisoners. Make sure we send those who is best with numbers, who can write, and who is the best at bargaining with them.

Should they fuck up warned them the punishments will be heavy because its not just our own coin its everyone's as shares are naturally gonna be based upon how much they bring back and our health too should they bring in trouble. Naturally more is better it means bigger shares.

The rest of the boys meanwhile some will stay at camp guarding the prisoners make it very clear they are not to be harmed. Those who don't stay at camp will come with us to take out that other bandit gang.

>>857428
>>857446

Keep the wagons, reckon we'll be needing to find a fence alongside a slaver. Of course, nothing wrong with adorning ourselves in a ton of jewelry.

Kit out our best men with the gear and crossbows, might do to count that as part of their share. Be good having the guard training our men in using the crossbows.

Those that can't be ransomed might do well for indentured servitude until we can find a slaver. Maybe take the girl for ourselves?

If we can make good use of any of the captives that'll benefit us I'm up for that.

>>857507
Right forgot to mention what to do with the rest of the goods.

Stash the trade goods in a hidden spot that is dry and safe. For the rest of the oxen take them to the farming villages under our protection and give them to the people there. State its part of the benefits of being a part of our relationship.

Make sure an ox is given each of the peasant volunteers families should they be farmers. Otherwise offer them some coin if they ain't farmers.

Remember the reason why we do this is to generate goodwill and the more oxen they got the more fields they can till and the more they can pay us...its an 'investment'. An Ox is very valuable to farmers.

If we just outright sell it we lose out in the long run. Best to give them to the people under our protection to help them. The bigger their harvests the bigger our fees...get it?

Explain this to the bandits.

The reason why we give such things to the families of those who joined us is both to help ensure loyalty and help quiet them down. After all being a bandit is risky business. Plus showing we take care of our guy's families will go a LONG way to ensuring loyalty and their willingness to die for our cause.

Make sure to save some mead I think a barrel or two will work. Given how many guys we have and how big the barrels are.. I don't want our guys to wasted for work tomorrow. We gotta take care of that other bandit gang who is screwing around on our turf and other business. We can't do that if they all too hungover.

I agree with all of these. If Yuth hasn't returned with a ransom in two weeks, we'll kill Erbin and take Vaelyn for ourselves. Curvy shortstack blondes are the greatest, and we're wealthy enough that we can afford to have a personal "entertainer." In the meantime, we should enforce the lashing and castration penalty, if anyone gets her, it'll be us.

While our men are in town, they should pick up some more crossbows, swords, and armor. As well as trying to contact a slaver, and some mercenary companies.

>>857507
>>857536
I switch to this and would like to add the shopping part of
>>857574
We need to arm up more

After we're through raiding caravans, we need to recruit the dozen bandits that've been harassing Urdl and go meet Koed the Brazen at Eolit Keep to talk to him about merging our forces.

>>857630
I think the take from this caravan should suffice for some time being.

If we intend to sell some of the goods in town, I should say we have someone on the look for more men. Be they mercs or scum.

At the same time, press ganging the other bandit lads should bring our force up to a respectable number.

Either merging, alliance, or straight up attacking. We need to get in that fortress.

>>857574
I disagree. Giving them more time for ransoming works for us rather then against us. The more time they to get the money together the more we can profit. No need to rush that is how we lose money.

Vaelyn if she is a virgin and wont get ransomed is better off being sold to a slaver for coin. As she will be worth a fortune. Otherwise maybe we gotta consider our own guys but i wouldn't be surprised if those old traders really do have a stash somewhere and they should still have contacts regardless. Otherwise they know the risks should they fail to come up with it.

Keep in mind we don't have any guys trained to use crossbows so that is a waste of money. Armor gets real expensive getting some basic cloth and leather wont be too expensive so that isn't a bad idea. Not to mention being very effective protection against getting shot.

Melee weapons...hm I think it would depend on what our guys are trained to use. Spears are cheap as well as easy to train up and we might have some poachers among us so bows wouldn't be a bad purchase.

It would go a long way if we can secure some female entertainment for our guys preferably skilled sex slaves.If we can supply it in house it makes it less likely that they'll say things we don't want them to say to outsiders and we can have an easier time finding out about plots. Not to mention they'll be far less likely to harm female merchandise and piss off those under our protection if they aren't raping their women.

We'll even profit it from it!

As is we need to find a whorehouse so our guys can let off some steam before they start touching captives and those under our protection.

I disagree with the purchasing those mercenary companies those are going to be hellishly expensive. If on the other hand our guys find some gangsters, poachers, or soldiers who are interested is one thing.

>>857630
I don't trust Koed the Brazen to be willing to work with us. He will likely wanna stab us in the back and that dozen of bandits we gotta kill their leader who is a fucking idiot. His troops might be of use but not him.

>>857656
I agree with all of this. Just watch out for the mercs they can easily get really expensive. Much better off finding soldiers tired of shit pay and boring work.

I feel we need to build up our forces and take advantage of our siege craft before we risk taking the rival bandit lord on. I think a good way to go about this is crushing smaller bandit gangs, recruiting scum and disenfranchised soldiers. As well as expanding our protection racket.

We need villages to supply us and provide us with intel as well as potential recruits.

We throw in the odd caravan raid and we'll be all set to take the big guy on. After all he even has a very nice bounty on his head...

Be careful with raiding too many caravans. Otherwise the merchants wont come anymore and the lord is going to get pissed.

>>857656

Here's my plan:

Let's ransom the farmers, and keep the Steuts held prisoner in our campsite.

We'll torture the oldies until they've told us the location of their stash, and then we'll kill the oldies, I know they might come up with a good ransom but they've probably got rich friends. Rich friends who could afford to hire an army elite mercenaries that could kill us all. It's just safer to kill them, and they wouldn't bring anything in the slave market.

Let's take Vaelyn as a sex slave to start our harem, she's young and beautiful, and the gains from selling her on the slave market would be redundant. We've made this much from one caravan, 200 crowns isn't going to make any difference. Besides, her grandparents were bound to die soon, and she likely would've ended up marrying some farmer or prostituting herself to make ends meet.

We'll take much better care of her than any lecherous merchant desperate enough to frequent slave markets looking for booty. This is adark, low fantasy medieval setting, hot, shortstack blondes are a rare commodity, and we've got one all to ourselves. Let's not squander it.

We'll spend one week here, training our men to use the crossbows, ride the horses better, and fight better overall. During the week, we'll ration the barrels of mead to ensure that it lasts and doesn't give the men crippling hangovers.

During the week, Durwin, and his four most trusted and charismatic men, will be in Orht, selling the treasure, buying crossbows, swords, equipment for restraining prisoners, (handcuffs, rope, etc.) and armor, along with recruiting mercenaries and criminal scum. If we find a slaver, we'll sell the Steuts to him immediately, they're dangerous and cost intensive to have around. If we can't find a slaver, we'll butcher the adult Steuts, give the children some meager supplies, and send them off to the nearest village.

We'll SELL the two old wagons instead of demolishing them for scrap, and go to Urdl. We'll give them two barrels of mead and four Oxen, (we need 2 for our wagon) to bolster their loyalty towards us. We'll kill the small bandit fang's leader and recruit his men. We'll bring the villagers the bandit chief's head on a spike and they'll be intimidated, and like us more.

Then we'll head to Eolit Keep and meet Koed the Brazen, and talk to him about merging our forces. If he seems reluctant, we'll offer him Vaelyn, as payment to seal the deal.

>>857455

I've been doing some work on my computer lately, and I've been typing this all on a laptop. It took me a good thirty minutes to get all of the shed hair out of the computer case.

>>857449
>>857493
>>857507
>>857508
>>857536
>>857574
>>857579
>>857630
>>857656
>>857687
>>857697

Wow that's a lot of debate. Much of this is contradictory, but there are several things you agree on.

You all want to:

> Make a campsite.
> Use the mead to hold a celebratory party.
> Train the men for a week and wait for more caravans.
> Sell the goods in Orht.
> Search for a slaver in Ohrt.
> Purchase better equipment in Orht.
> Look for more recruits in Ohrt among local soldiers, criminals, and cheap mercenaries.
> If you find a slaver, sell the Steuts into slavery.
> Hold the captive farmers for ransom.
> Gift four of the Oxen to the farmers at Urdl.
> Attempt to recruit the bandit gang that has been harassing Urdl, and make an example of their leader.

You disagree on:

> What to do with the wagons.
> What to do with the old merchants, and Vaelyn.
> What to do with the Steuts if you can't find a slaver. Or whether to sell them all, but keep the jeweler held captive.
> Whether the men should be allowed a night on the town.
> Whether you should gift the farmers at Urdl a few barrels of mead as well as the Oxen.

Vote on these, and I'll start the new thread after five votes for each.

> For the wagons, we shouldn't scrap them, instead we should just sell the 2 old wagons, and keep the new wagon. We'll buy some digging tools in Orht and have our prisoners dig us a trench and put up a berm around our campsite.

> I think that Erbin and Yuth might get their contacts to hire some mercenaries or an assassin to kill us, they probably had most of their money on them, and they're northerners, which means their stash is probably in the north. I don't want to wait around for two weeks to get 100 crowns.

> We'll just kill Erbin and Yuth. We'll rape Vaelyn and keep her for ourselves, since her body's worth way more to Durwin than another 200 crowns.

> Let's sell the Steuts to a slaver, but keep the jeweler with us because he'll be useful later on. If we can't find a slaver, we'll kill the Steuts but enslave the jeweler ourselves.

> Let's give the men a night on the town, but only 5 a night, to avoid suspicion.

> No, let's keep the Mead for ourselves, the men would get pissed off if we gave it to our serf farmers.

>>858074
Keep the wagons to trap other caravans

Have the old merchants sell their goods for the best price, and kill them when they return but keep bloody for ourselves

Keep the steins for camp laborers

Ten men get night on the town at a time

Just give the farmers four oxen no mead
Also give them an older wagon for them to load our tith in, but remove all it's wheels before we leave it with them

>>858151
I agree with point 1 2 4 and 5

As for 3
>Let's kill Erbin and Yuth but sell vaelyn. We should use the money we gathered to outfit our men with proper weapons and armor as well as buy mercenaries.

If possible we should consider buying 100 or so mercenaries to attack the fort if it's profitable.

For the last one we should just drink the mead Mabey give a barrel to the village

>>858178

I agree with this.

>>858178

This sounds good, but how are we going to restrain the prisoners?

>>858074
Keep the wagons, maybe make battle wagons

Keep the girl for ourselves, make laborers of the others if they cant be ransomed

Sell them or make laborers. Jeweler might come in useful i guess?

Night on the town means trouble likely, be it desertions or loose lips

Give them a barrel of mead, keep tge wagons and oxen for ourselves.

>>858151
>>858178
>>858185
>>858258
>>858337
>>858428

So the general consensus is:

> You want to keep the wagons to haul loot.

> You want to force Erbin and Yuth to sell the loot at the highest price. Then you want to kill them and take Vaelyn as a personal sex slave.

> You want to keep the Steuts as camp laborers if you can't find a slaver.

> You want to allow the men a night on the town, at 10 men a night.

> You want to keep the mead for yourselves, and give one of the older wagons to Urdl.

OK then, I'll start a new thread soon.