>>5375341
>>I want you to send a few people to Braehoulland. I’ll send reinforcements to act as a reserve.

>>5375341
>I need your help to secure the northern passes. Get ready to temporarily redeploy your troops.

>>5375341
>>I need your help to secure the northern passes. Get ready to temporarily redeploy your troops.
Don’t split the troops, but be ready to counter any enemy attacks

>>5375341
“I need you to prepare your troops for temporary redeployment,” you insist curtly. “There are a few northern settlements near mountain passes that need to be reinforced, but your troops will still need to act as a reserve.”

“... ma’am, that’s two different objectives,” the man replies warily.

“Not if you split your forces,” you counter. “Send enough troops to Braehoulland to get the job there done, withdraw them, send a different group to the next town. Do it in phases based on risk.”

After a few moments the officer nods in agreement. “Okay, I understand your thinking. I don’t necessarily like it, but I think it will work out.”

“How far west do you want us to go?”

“Not far,” you assure him. “This is mainly to make it harder for the enemy to make a short thrust towards Scaithness.”

“Understood, ma’am. I’ll prepare my men.”

…

“So what will be our next step?” Aurora wonders aloud.

“We could move to the next village that will need to be reinforced,” Sabela suggests quietly. “Or we could return to Scaithness.”

[There is also the western border to mind,] Serana points out.

>We’ll go to the next mountain village and plan their new defenses.
>We should return to Scaithness. That’s what our efforts here were for after all.
>We should focus on the west. I still believe that’s where the hammer will fall.
>We should split up (how?)
>Other?

>>5376578
>>We should return to Scaithness. That’s what our efforts here were for after all.
We can't go or be everywhere

>>5376578
>>We should return to Scaithness. That’s what our efforts here were for after all.

>>5376578
>3d10 best of three

Rolled 7, 5, 6 = 18 (3d10)

>>5377329

Rolled 6, 2, 1 = 9 (3d10)

>>5377329

Rolled 7, 1, 9 = 17 (3d10)

>>5377329

Very mediocre

>>5377329
You elect to return to Scaithness, having left instructions for the garrisons in the north. It’s been some time since you were home now, and all the players on your side know their roles. All that remains is to wait until the time comes for the show to begin - and that decision is in your enemy’s hands.

…

It’s late morning the next day when you arrive in Scaithness, and your orders are for your comrades to relax. Which is why when a messenger finds you it’s under a tree, with your head laid in Serana’s lap and a half-eaten apple in your hand.

“Ma’am.”

You spare the young man a glance. “Yes?”

“Sorry to disturb you, ma’am,” he offers nervously, “but I have a message here from the Regent. It’s urgent.”

“Read it.”

“... I’m sorry, ma’am?”


“I said read it,” you repeat your instruction. “Please.”

The young man clears his throat. “Ma’am. Regarding wartime efforts, protests in few large towns. Discontent with slow pace of civil projects not related to defense efforts. Apparent under-evaluation of threat due to failings of northern forces to advance into Hazari territory. Discontent with continued levies of non-combat service. Please reply with thoughts. Noventus.”

“That is the end of the message, ma’am.”

“... take dictation,” you insist.

>Noventus. Discontent is fine unless it becomes rebellion. Ignore for time being. Noel.
>Noventus. Challenge protesters to send representatives to Scaithness. Will meet. Noel.
>Noventus. Will make situation clear with visits to settlements in question. Noel.
>Other?

>>5378324
>>Noventus. Challenge protesters to send representatives to Scaithness. Will meet. Noel.

>>5378324
>Noventus. Will make situation clear with visits to settlements in question. Noel.
Arrange a propaganda campaign.

>>5378324
>Noventus. Will make situation clear with visits to settlements in question. Noel.

>>5378324
>>Noventus. Challenge protesters to send representatives to Scaithness. Will meet. Noel.
A queen shouldn't do everything by herself or visit every source of problems. Now we have people who are discontent, challenging them to come to you makes them show effort in attempting to show their discontent to you. If Noel goes to every single place that is irate, then it gives a signal to people that they could boss her around.

And we shouldn't leave Scaithness too much. If something happens, we need to be easily reached.

>>5378324
>Noventus. Challenge protesters to send representatives to Scaithness. Will meet. Noel.

>>5378324
“Take this message back to the capital for me,” you order. “Noventus. Challenge protesters to send representatives to Scaithness. Will meet, determine best way forward. Noel.”

“Get something to drink and eat, take a rest, then get started.”

…

“My apologies,” you tell the group of Hazari citizens who gathered all day yesterday in Scaithness before coming as a group to Blackthorn Keep this morning. “I had an unexpected obligation… my long-time horse had a foal this morning, and I wanted to be there.”

“You delayed our meeting… for a horse?” one of the men frowns.

You nod once, washing your hands in a basin before you sit with them around the table. “Alysheba is a remarkable creature, and has been loyal to me for many years in spite of my blood. Find me another horse who would carry me into battle against a yōma and then you can question my priorities.”

“Now, my understanding is the seven of you have some things you wish to bring to my attention? Please, feel free to share your thoughts.”

A second man, younger with a neatly-trimmed beard and short hair, clears his throat before speaking. “We discussed last night before coming here, and agreed that I would take the lead in our discussions. My name is Dimitrius Zorne, from the capital city.”

“What do you do, mister Zorne?” you ask politely.

“I am an architect,” he replies, “I design and plan mainly for civil infrastructure.”

“Thank you for humoring me by answering,” you nod. “By all means, continue.”

“I appreciate that you’ve asked for us to come here,” Dimitrius replies calmly. “I understand it’s a thin line you’re walking, from a political perspective. We have come here to express some discontent with the allocation of finances within Hazaran.”
>1/2

>>5379088
“Hazaran’s tangle of financial responsibilities and resources is complex,” you shake your head. “I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific.”

“The allocation of funding for defense and the simultaneous distribution of money to the more recently annexed regions, formerly inner Tarsus, Cuilan, and so forth,” he informs you. “Surely you must understand that this means other projects end up de-prioritized?”

>Explain patiently that the priorities you have chosen are necessary to preserve a free Hazari society.
>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.
>Offer to listen to what their top priorities are. Maybe you can shift some funding in those directions.
>Other?

>>5379101
>>Explain patiently that the priorities you have chosen are necessary to preserve a free Hazari society.
>>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.

>>5379101
>>Explain patiently that the priorities you have chosen are necessary to preserve a free Hazari society.
>>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.
Also aww, I missed some cute Noel x Serana. Shame.

>>5379101
>Offer to listen to what their top priorities are. Maybe you can shift some funding in those directions.
>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.
America started construction of the Transcontinental Railroad whilst fighting the Civil War. War and Peace is a continuum, not a dichotomy

>>5379101
>Explain patiently that the priorities you have chosen are necessary to preserve a free Hazari society.
>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.

>>5379101
>>Explain patiently that the priorities you have chosen are necessary to preserve a free Hazari society.
>>Go ahead and give them a taste of what Hazaran is facing in the north. With perspective, wisdom.

>>5379101
“I considered this possibility before you arrived, that we would be speaking from completely different positions,” you muse, rising from your seat and gesturing for the assembled representatives to do the same. “So I made preparations. I want to ensure that we are all aware of what precisely Hazaran’s funds are being allocated to opposing.”

…

The first demonstration is one of the automatic guns, which you explain are carried in either ones or threes by the armored vehicles favored by your enemy. To make the point you have a corporal from the local garrison open fire at fifty yards, letting loose a stream of bullets on the carcass of a recently-butchered hog strung up from a tree branch. The successive impacts rip chunks of raw pork off the carcass and toss them around until the legs and butt of the unfortunate hog fall to the shoreline within sight of your keep.

“And you say this enemy has… how many of these, exactly?” Dimitrius asks nervously.

“Many,” you reply. “We’ve seen upwards of nine with a single armored unit. Thank you for the demonstration, corporal.”

The man snaps off a crisp salute. “My pleasure, ma’am! It’s not every day we get to break one of these out like this.”

“Happy to make your day, soldier,” you smirk, before moving the group along to the next demonstration.

…

This time, one of the captured field guns mounted to the Organization’s armored fighting vehicles puts a round into a specially-designed ‘bunker’ set against a hillside three hundred feet’s distance - an inch-thick iron plate positioned over an orderly pile of bricks and mortar. The explosion throws shards of unidentifiable material all over, and more than one man flinches.

Upon approaching the destruction, it becomes clear that the shot easily sliced through the iron, as though it wasn’t there at all.

“How did it do that?” one of the men demands. “It hardly seems large enough.”

“Each shell is filled with an explosive that’s currently beyond our ability to reproduce in sufficient quantity,” you explain. “The filler and fuse are protected by a hardened steel cap which penetrates a target’s armor, and shatters in place of the rest of the projectile.”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 4, 10, 2 = 16 (3d10)

>>5380267

Rolled 6, 8, 8 = 22 (3d10)

>>5380267

Rolled 4, 5, 8 = 17 (3d10)

>>5380267

>>5380267
“And so… what is the practical meaning of this?” one of the representatives, a young woman, asks you nervously. “We watched a gun saw a pig in half and a bit of spare construction material blew up.”

You can’t believe what you’re hearing. “The meaning,” you intone, “will be made clear with one question, miss… of any of the nations you know of, which ones could stand up to an army that can field weapons at least fifty years beyond our technological ability en masse?”

“... fifty years?” Dimitrius repeats, seemingly having been the first to take your point. “Do you really think these occupiers are that far advanced of us?”

“With full mobilization and prototypes to base our efforts on we could perhaps cut that to ten,” you reply. “But that would mean massive budget cuts, rationing, compulsory participation of working-aged adults. It would be political suicide.”

“Maybe that wouldn’t be the worst thing.”

>So in your mind an independent judiciary and regional representative assemblies isn’t enough democracy for the average citizen?
>I suppose regional representatives could be elected, though mostly the same people would likely end up filling those seats.
>Be mindful of the fine line between “the people” not being heard, and “people like me should be heard more”. Be clear which you mean.
>Other?

>>5381295
I don't understand the sudden jump from war budget to democratic reform, so I won't even vote.

>>5381295
>Be mindful of the fine line between “the people” not being heard, and “people like me should be heard more”. Be clear which you mean.
>I suppose regional representatives could be elected, though mostly the same people would likely end up filling those seats.

>>5381312
Representative (but not necessarily democratic) countries are able to levy higher taxes than less-than-totalitarian autocracies that have to dole out special exemptions to maintain power.

>>5381295
>>Be mindful of the fine line between “the people” not being heard, and “people like me should be heard more”. Be clear which you mean.

>>5381295
>>Be mindful of the fine line between “the people” not being heard, and “people like me should be heard more”. Be clear which you mean.

>>5381295
>>Be mindful of the fine line between “the people” not being heard, and “people like me should be heard more”. Be clear which you mean.
>it's an option but I am ill-disposed to being deposed like my father was, for rather obvious reasons.

>>5381295
“You’re talking about democratic reforms,” you muse thoughtfully. “Are you certain that’s a subject you wish to mention at such an inappropriate time?”

“What time could be more appropriate?” she presses. “In diverting such a vast sum to fighting what to my eyes seems a private war between the silver-eyed witches and a bunch of outsiders, you have done real harm to the people.”

“That’s a fine line to tread,” you counter.

“What line?”

“The line between ‘serving the people’ and ‘serving people like me’,” you explain with a frown. “Be sure you make it clear which one you’re speaking of.”

“Pure sophistry,” she asserts.

“Hardly,” you reply with a placid calm. “If a thing serves all, but its opposite serves only a few but to a greater extent, which should a ruler choose?”

“The former, obviously,” Dimitrius replies.

“And in the case when an unpopular decision protects all, and a popular decision places all in jeopardy, which should a ruler choose?”
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 7, 2, 3 = 12 (3d10)

>>5382300

Rolled 1, 10, 7 = 18 (3d10)

>>5382300

Rolled 9, 7, 4 = 20 (3d10)

>>5382300

Rolled 10, 1, 10 = 21 (3d10)

>>5382300

>>5382300
“The popular decision,” the woman asserts. “The role of a ruler should be to manifest the will of the people.”

“Now, hang on a minute,” Dimitrius insists, “that’s not even what we’re here to discuss - we’re here to change the mind of the government that represents us, not change what ‘representation’ means!”

“In any event, young lady,” you frown, “your answer is remarkably short-sighted. The overwhelming majority of people living in Hazaran have no direct experience with the occupying army that has overrun Sakia to our north. They cannot possibly understand the threat, as our nation’s civil and military leaders do, and as you yourself now should.”

“So now you profess to some sort of benevolent paternalistic instinct?” she counters.

“Maternalistic.”

“I’m sorry?”

“I’m a woman,” you assert. “The adjective in that case should be ‘maternal’, thus, ‘maternalistic’ instinct. And no, my argument is that I consider the collective interest of the governed first, not necessarily its majority opinion - which you have yet to establish that you represent.”

“How many of you live in the northern border regions?”

No hands are raised.

“How many of you are from Cuilan?”

No hands.

“Daria? Inner Tarsus? The south coast?”

No hands.

>I suggest you take your concerns through your regional assemblies for deliberation.
>I can suggest through my regent that defense spending be streamlined for some cost reduction.
>We are at the point where local labor is no longer needed. I can offer that concession.
>Other?

>>5383477
>>I suggest you take your concerns through your regional assemblies for deliberation.
>>But I will raise the issues with my regent to find things in defense spending that maybe could be streamlined.
Nationwide audits on budget spending

>>5383477
>>I suggest you take your concerns through your regional assemblies for deliberation.
>We are at the point where local labor is no longer needed. I can offer that concession.

>>5383487
>>5383477

>>5383477
>>>I suggest you take your concerns through your regional assemblies for deliberation.
>>We are at the point where local labor is no longer needed. I can offer that concession.

>>5383477
“I suggest you take your concerns through the proper channels,” you declare, “your local and regional assemblies. Simplistic words and straightforward promises may play well with people, but that’s no substitute for a thoroughly considered and extensively-vetted plan, with details, contingencies, and defined metrics for success.”

“And what ‘metrics for success’ have you established, lonely queen?” the woman from before demands.

“You’re still alive and free to ask questions,” you point out. “That means our defense of Hazaran continues to be successful.”

“Now, is there anything further?”

Your gaze falls heavily on one man - Dimitrius - and you wait for an answer.
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 8, 6, 5 = 19 (3d10)

>>5384277
My dice go high!

Rolled 6, 1, 3 = 10 (3d10)

>>5384277

Rolled 7, 7, 10 = 24 (3d10)

>>5384277

>>5384277
After several moments, where you can feel the tension in the room, Dimitrius shakes his head. “No, I have nothing further I wish to discuss.”

“Then I will arrange with my regent to begin lowering reliance on levied labor,” you declare.

The woman who has been arguing with you speaks up. “I still have…”

“Sara,” Dimitrius insists, raising his voice a little more than he ever did before now. “This isn’t helping anyone. I thought we agreed.”

‘Sara’ eyes you warily. “We may not get another opportunity.”

>Nonsense. I’m always open to requests and concerns, provided they go through the right channels.
>You’re right. Maybe someone else like you, but you personally have blown your chance with me.
>I do not intend to pass on rulership of Hazaran, but for now you’re still stuck with me and that’s all there is to it.
>Other?

>>5385052
>Other?
"You're right. If we all end up dead or enslaved, then this may be our last chance."
>Nonsense. I’m always open to requests and concerns, provided they go through the right channels.
Do we have any measures against traitors? I suspect there are those who may be willing to sell out Hazaran for false promises.

>>5385052
>Nonsense. I’m always open to requests and concerns, provided they go through the right channels.

>>5385052
>Nonsense. I’m always open to requests and concerns, provided they go through the right channels.

>>5385052
“Nonsense,” you shake your head, brushing off her concerns. “I’m always open to considering requests and concerns, even those I disagree with. I just feel it should be done the right way. That is how ideas and plans are discussed by those who represent you in the assembly.”

“Sensible,” Dimitrius agrees., shifting his attention to his comrades. “Sara, we already talked about why we couldn’t pick this fight right now. I think we need to do as the queen suggested and take our concerns…”

In the mean time, as Dimitrius laid out his thoughts on how to proceed, ‘Sara’ the pro-democratic agitator has taken another of the other protestors and headed out for the door. Dimitrius himself falls silent as this unfolds, until well after the pair are gone. The mood in the room has decidedly soured.

“So, can I count on your cooperation?”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 5, 6, 3 = 14 (3d10)

>>5386113

Rolled 6, 2, 1 = 9 (3d10)

>>5386113

Rolled 6, 7, 7 = 20 (3d10)

>>5386113

I feel like this Sara is going to be a problem to us in the future. She should be watched and followed.

>>5386113
Once his attention returns to the subject at hand, Dimitrius nods. “Yes. We will do this your way, Queen Noel.”

“Will she be a problem?” you wonder.

“I… am not sure,” Dimitrius admits, his candor admirable if not directly helpful. “I have known Sara for a few years now, and she’s always been stubborn. Just… not like this.”

“Are we going to need to do something about her?” you rephrase the question.

Dimitrius seems shocked. “Wha- no! Nothing like that!”

You shake your head. “I meant put her under surveillance?”

There’s a pause. “Oh, I see.”

“You thought I wanted to have her killed?”

“The thought crossed my mind,” he admits. “Didn’t anyone else think that?”

“I might’ve done,” one of the older men who hasn’t spoken so far admits.

>Well, I DID consider imprisoning her.
>No, the laws are very clear what I can and cannot do.
>The laws here are fuzzy. I think we need to consult an expert.
>Having her kept under observation is totally legal.
>She's of little concern. I'll be focusing on the task at hand.
>Other?

>>5387238
>Having her kept under observation is totally legal.
>It would be in our mutual best interest to have this issue resolved before it becomes a true problem. As you've seen from the demonstrations we cannot afford political agitators or outright rebels in the middle of a war of this scale.

>>5387238
>>5387286
Supporting, this is a good write in

>>5387238
>Other?
"Better a loyal opposition than a silent plotter. I just need to make sure who is whom."

>>5387238
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 2, 10, 2 = 14 (3d10)

>>5387928
shoot!

Rolled 1, 6, 4 = 11 (3d10)

>>5387928

Rolled 6, 7, 9 = 22 (3d10)

>>5387928

>>5387928
“It would be best for everyone concerned to reach a resolution before this becomes a more serious problem,” you decide. “It wouldn’t be illegal to have her monitored for a while, so that’s what I intend to have done.”

“I wish it weren’t necessary,” Dimitrius admits wearily, “but it seems we’re beyond that.”

>I could use your help making those that follow you understand the situation.
>We will handle the situation from here. Thank you all for your time.
>Other?

>>5388153
>I could use your help making those that follow you understand the situation.

Better to get it from the horse's mouth

>>5388153
>>We will handle the situation from here. Thank you all for your time.
We shouldn't mix Dimitrius into this any more. He has his own job and we have our own people with their jobs.

>>5388153
>>We will handle the situation from here. Thank you all for your time.

>>5388153
“We will handle the situation from here,” you eventually reply, having considered and then ruled out relying on Dimitrius to carry the message back to the protestors in the capital. “Go in peace, all of you.”

…

[I trust you have a plan?]

“I do,” you insist quietly.

You’ve explained the situation as you understand it after the meeting with Dimitrius and the other representatives who came here at Noventus’ insistence. Now, the opinions begin to come in.

“You have to take someone with you of course,” Valentina insists.

“Of course,” you agree. “That’s part of the plan.”

“And the rest of it?” Helen asks curiously.

“Humans,” Justina grumbles mutinously.

Aurora shakes her head. “They always seem to find a way to be the biggest pain in our asses, don’t they?”

“Always and forever,” you agree. “But we’d be nowhere without them.”

“True.”

“We’re going to have to be the ones to get the situation under control,” Valentina shakes her head. “Aren’t we?”

“Mostly me,” you admit. “As queen it’s my voice they need to hear.”

“Will they listen though?” Alexa wonders aloud.

“Not everyone at the table did,” you admit. “Even after the demonstration.”

“That being said, an object lesson is often helpful,” Helen suggests. “And you would do well to remember that there are some people you will never convince, who cannot be won over.”
>1/2

>>5389240
“Then again, sometimes it makes most sense to have the people around the problem do most of the work,” Sabela offers, after having listened the whole time.

>I think the best plan is a public relations push - be seen doing good, and win over the public.
>I think I have to directly speak to the protestors, assure them their government is listening.
>We will need law enforcement or the military to back us. Bring peace and security to the city.
>Other?

>>5389246
>I think the best plan is a public relations push - be seen doing good, and win over the public.

>>5389246
>I think the best plan is a public relations push - be seen doing good, and win over the public.

>>5389246
>I think the best plan is a public relations push - be seen doing good, and win over the public.
>We will need law enforcement or the military to back us. Bring peace and security to the city.

We need both as it is likely that some of the demonstrators won't back down by mere words and public relationships campaigns. The guards could also see/prevent known thugs from using the demonstrations for their own advantage.

>>5389246
>I think the best plan is a public relations push - be seen doing good, and win over the public.

>>5389246
“I’ll need to make a series of personal appearances,” you decide with a weary sigh. “Not one big gathering or speech, nothing that would show me to be caving to pressure. It’s a tricky line to walk.”

“So how do you intend to walk it?” Helen wonders curiously.

“Honestly,” you shrug. “Just in small doses, in my own time.”

“I’ll go with you,” Valentina offers. “This is my homeland as well… if I can be of any help it would be my honor.”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 5, 9, 9 = 23 (3d10)

>>5390116

Rolled 10, 5, 2 = 17 (3d10)

>>5390116

Rolled 4, 6, 6 = 16 (3d10)

>>5390116

>>5390116
“I’ll take you up on that,” you decide. “Valentina, please be ready to go by this evening.”

…

Your arrival in the capital is a subdued one - you’ve chosen to wait until the next evening to slink in through the shadows, hooded and cloaked, into your own city unannounced. It’s all to lay out the basis for what you intend to do the next morning without anyone being aware that you’re doing it.

“I want you to handle this quietly,” you insist to the captain of the city guard, whose office you essentially forced your way into with Valentina. “The guard should be on alert in case there’s a problem, but shouldn’t be seen as on alert - which could itself become the cause of a problem.”

“So you wish for the guard to keep a weather eye for any possible unrest, rather than guarding you personally?” the captain asks with a frown. “Because while I’m aware that I have no real experience dealing with a monarch with your sort of… capabilities... those orders would be unusual, historically speaking.”

>Give me just two men. They can hang back at a distance so as not to be intrusive.
>No guards. My sister and I will provide more than enough security for ourselves.
>Alright, fine. Defense of the city is your domain, and I will allow you to handle it.
>Other?

>>5391134
>Other?
Two men/obvious guards nearby, others with hidden weapons/armor under clothes nearby (plainclothes officers, more or less)

>>5391155
+1

>>5391134
>>5391155
+2

>>5391155
“Give us two men,” you decide, “in uniform. Let them stand back, but be seen. Send a few men in streetclothes as well if you want, but don’t tell me who or how many, and make sure they aren’t seen.”

“I think we can arrange that…”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 7, 8, 10 = 25 (3d10)

>>5392154

Rolled 3, 2, 9 = 14 (3d10)

>>5392154

Rolled 5, 9, 4 = 18 (3d10)

>>5392154
GO HIGH MY DICE!

File: miria_scar_2_low.png (490 KB, 644x729)

490 KB PNG

>>5392154
At dawn you set out into the city, Valentina at your side and your uniformed escort several paces behind. You have both brought your great swords, carrying them on your backs, and go cloaked with your hoods down - atop your head you wear your steely crown, glittering with Hazari jewels, so that there can be no mistaking who you are.

The streets aren’t busy yet, and so you and Valentina decide to stop at a cafe near one of the two largest markets in the city. The waitress is stunned, and takes a few moments before she even knows how to handle your order, but after a few minutes she brings you the coffee and pastries you ordered. Meanwhile, the guards settle into a table nearby and do the same thing you and Valentina have done.

The ‘hidden’ soldiers, if they’re here, are essentially invisible. You can’t tell that any of them are immediately nearby.

“This is a nice cafe,” Valentina muses. “The one time I came here with my father we stopped for an afternoon drink.”

“Is that so?” you reply. “Dominica brought me here a few times when my father was too busy with work to eat with me.”

“... two very different memories.”

“Indeed.”

A few of the customers who come in after you stop in the doorway, either recognizing you immediately or managing to work it out eventually. Some talk amongst themselves in low voices while waiting for their respective orders.

>Wait here. This cafe will be busier later in the morning, giving you a chance to mingle normally.
>Finish up and head into the market. That gets you the broadest exposure to as many people as possible.
>The market would be a good way to set up an “impromptu” speech. Head out there and make yourself heard.
>Other?

>>5393223
>>Finish up and head into the market. That gets you the broadest exposure to as many people as possible.

>>5393223
>The market would be a good way to set up an “impromptu” speech. Head out there and make yourself heard.
https://youtu.be/Yu_PWm2zgbg

>>5393223
>Finish up and head into the market. That gets you the broadest exposure to as many people as possible.

>>5393223
>Finish up and head into the market. That gets you the broadest exposure to as many people as possible.

>>5393223
The market would be an ideal place to spread a message, as it’s one of the busiest parts of the city on most days. You briefly entertain the notion of presenting a speech, in something like an official capacity, but reject the idea in favor of something less systematic. Doing that would run too close to proselytization, and could actually risk further retrenchment of people’s dissatisfaction.

So the trick is going to be getting your message out without pressing people too hard on the issue, to get a grip onto something without letting it slip through your fingers.

“Well, are you ready to go out for a little walk?” you muse.

After finishing the last sip of her drink, Valentina sets her cup aside. “I think so. Where are you thinking about going?”

“Just out into the market,” you say to her. Then you glance over to find your table being approached. “Yes?”

“You’re Queen Noel, right?” one of the two men who are now looming over your table demands.

“Hard to mistake,” the second glowers down at you. “Fancy crown, big sword, ridiculous pink hair.”

“... ridiculous?” Valentina repeats.

“Yes?” you repeat your previous question. “What is it?”

… it’s almost like they expected you to rise to that level of weak provocation, and since you aren’t they don’t really know what to do next. Neither seems like they were ready to articulate any actual complaints they may have.
>1/2

>>5394556
“If you have nothing further to say,” you muse, “I suggest you return to your breakfast.”

“Valentina, let’s go.”

“Wait,” one of the men insists curtly. “You owe us an explanation.”

“For the war?” you ask curiously. “For the diversion of funds to border territories? Or both?”

“Both.”

“Sakia has already been invaded,” you point out, “and I don’t think you need to ask them to understand why I didn’t want that for my people. As for the diversion of funds, that was going to happen given Hazaran’s recent expansion into new territories. However, the coincidental invasion to our north shortened the time frame we had to work with.”
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 6, 4, 10 = 20 (3d10)

>>5394594

Rolled 5, 2, 6 = 13 (3d10)

>>5394594

Rolled 1, 5, 7 = 13 (3d10)

>>5394594

>>5394594
“Now unless you have any other outstanding questions,” you continue, “we have other places to be.”

This time, the two men simply allow you to leave - evidently stunned that you actually stopped to explain something to them personally, even after the way they approached you. Which is good. It’s an initial sign that in at least some cases, facing these complaints by explaining your position and your decisions rationally will cause people to back down. Show respect and a desire to do things ‘the right way’, and people still respond to it.

…

“That didn’t take long,” Valentina muses as you walk through the market, looking over produce in several stalls and wondering how best to take advantage of the fact that you’ve come here, where all manner of delicious things are bought and sold. “I hadn’t expected to be approached like that.”

“Nor I,” you shrug, handing money to a shop owner. “I’ll take these please.”

“Spices?”

You nod. “I figure Dominica could be running low… this is something everyone can enjoy.”

“Buying spices in bulk?” a woman behind you grumbles. “That’s not extravagant at all.”

“Dominica also cooks for the guards stationed at Blackthorn keep,” Valentina replies. “And most of our kind don’t eat all that much.”

“... really?” the woman asks, surprised. “You’re buying this for soldiers?”

“Of course,” you shrug. “They do a fine job for our nation, the least I can do is make sure they eat properly, when we can ensure such things.”

You leave that woman behind, and repeat the same sort of process several more times. People raise concerns, or speak snidely towards you, and you explain patiently the reasons why you do things, or the concerns you focus on as queen, or the wider geopolitical climate Hazaran finds itself in.

“People don’t really seem to understand how any of this works, do they?” Valentina wonders after several hours of fielding questions, many of which are repeats or slight rewordings.
>1/2

>>5396009
“Too many have become too used to either being angry or happy with the government, without need of broad understanding,” you sigh. “The last man to rule did such a poor job it was essentially just a known fact that he was incompetent, and that he should be disliked. Until lately, many probably thought the opposite of my rule, and Noventus’ service as regent. Until that is they found something to disagree with.”

>We need something more significant to change how people feel about the current situation. Something more than just words.
>The only thing we can do is change minds and win hearts, one individual at a time if need be.
>Pay ‘em. Most of this is about money, so a financial incentive will put the majority of ‘em back in line.
>Other?

>>5396041
>We need something more significant to change how people feel about the current situation. Something more than just words.

>>5396041
>We need something more significant to change how people feel about the current situation. Something more than just words.

>>5396041
>>The only thing we can do is change minds and win hearts, one individual at a time if need be.
The change shouldn't be immediate, but a gradual instead. Attempt to force them to change their minds could backfire or push those who are on the edge of disliking you over it. The change should be organic.

>>5396041
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 8, 10, 10 = 28 (3d10)

>>5397155

Rolled 2, 1, 5 = 8 (3d10)

>>5397155
Well can’t really top that >>5397157 but let us try

>>5397205
Absolutely tremendous failure!

Rolled 4, 2, 9 = 15 (3d10)

>>5397155

Rolled 10, 7, 6 = 23 (3d10)

>>5397155
Let me fuck this up

>>5397155
“Unfortunately I think what we really need here is a public event,” you sigh wearily. “Something more than just words, that demonstrates the reason we’re fighting this war.”

“And all that happens outside our borders.”

“By design,” you agree. “In a sense that makes us victims of our own good fortune.”

…

You continue until mid afternoon as you have done, until a runner finds you in the market.

“Ma’am!” he pants. “Regent Noventus sends word, the attack in the northwest has begun!”

>I’m going. Valentina, nothing compels you to come with me.
>We’ll go in force. We should throw our abilities into this.
>We need to coordinate our response from behind the front.
>Other?

>>5398263
>We’ll go in force. We should throw our abilities into this.

>>5398263
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 7, 1, 7 = 15 (3d10)

>>5399392

Rolled 5, 4, 10 = 19 (3d10)

>>5399392

Rolled 8, 4, 5 = 17 (3d10)

>>5399392

>>5399392
“We’ll need to go in force,” you decide, “but for that to happen we actually need the force.”

“You want me to go back to the castle?” Valentina realizes.

You nod. “Please.”

“And you’ll be going to the front.”

You nod again. “It’s pressing that I be there… this can be the moment we needed.”

“... we.”

“We,” you repeat.

After a moment, Valentina smiles. “We. I like the sound of that.”

You grab hold of her shoulder, and look her straight in the eyes. “Join me when you can. Until then, I will lead our people the way I was raised to.”

She holds your shoulder in return. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

…

And so you run, as fast as your legs can carry you. No time to find a horse, no time to make any other arrangements - you run through the night, only slowing to grab a few berries from the side of the road and eat them as you go. By sunrise you’re still holding that pace, without tiring, until you hear the unmistakable sounds of cannon fire.

“Where is the forward command position?” you demand of the first Hazari soldier you run across.

“My queen!” he replies, stunned at your abrupt appearance. “Keep heading northwest, the enemy trying to get around and encircle Rosemarkie.”

“The command post is set up south of Rosemarkie?”

“For now,” he explains. “Rosemarkie’s defenses are holding, we just can’t get to them.”

>If you help me find the officer in command I can carry messages.
>That won’t do. I’ll strike behind their front lines, target their supply lines.
>Gather up some men and weapons, we’re going on the offensive.
>Other?

>>5400387
>If you help me find the officer in command I can carry messages.
At least get to know the battlefield first.

>>5400387
>>Gather up some men and weapons, we’re going on the offensive.

>>5400393
>>5400387
plus we can take those messages to the front too, there is little chance for the other side to catch us or take us out on the way

>>5400387
>Gather up some men and weapons, we’re going on the offensive.

>>5400387
>That won’t do. I’ll strike behind their front lines, target their supply lines.
Has anyone else experienced being rangebanned after failing the CAPTCHA a single time? It happened to me several times.

>>5400387
>>Gather up some men and weapons, we’re going on the offensive.

>>5400387
“Gather up some men and some weapons,” you declare. “I’m putting you to work.”

“Ma’am,” the man replies, “with all due respect - what are you planning to do?”

“Trust me,” you grin, “you’ll love this.”

…

The plan is largely to put yourself at insane risk to achieve a crucial strategic objective - to re-establish communications with the main defenses of Rosemarkie. The “seven hills” no longer bear the sole responsibility for defending the region, instead serving as elevated platforms for guns to fire down onto the advancing army from Sakia. You can hear the loud ringing of bronze mortars firing as well, dropping explosive bombs down on plunging arcs into the soldiers from the north. It brings you absolute joy to notice that the guns across the border in Tarsus are firing as well, blanketing the wide valley the new border runs through in fire. Mud fountains and great craters belch low-hanging smoke, and small fires burn here and there where trees once stood.

It begins with a bombardment from the few field guns that could be mustered, and a hail of rifle-fire that forces the enemy in front of you to hug the ground where they’ve begun to dig in or risk death. And in this moment of reaction you move, a daring sprint through sparse cover which would ordinarily be a suicidal charge. It takes some time for the invaders to realize what you’re doing, and to start mounting a defense of any kind. But too many take too long to start too slow of a process, and the only shot that even comes close is a round from an armored gun-carriage that you can feel and hear passing you by.

…

“My queen!?” an officer recognizes you as you leap into the trench with him and his mortar crew. It’s rather obvious, as in addition to the pink hair, the giant sword, and the cloak you’ve worn your crown of state into battle.

“We need you to shift your fire eastward,” you insist, going over a predetermined plan offered by the officers to the south of the Organization’s advance. “Hit the lead vehicles and force them to stop, then the forces to the south can encircle the lead elements. We’re trying to get them to dig in more.”

“So we can launch the counter-attack,” the man realizes. “It will be done, my lady.”
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 2, 7, 4 = 13 (3d10)

>>5401495

Rolled 4, 3, 10 = 17 (3d10)

>>5401495

Rolled 8, 5, 10 = 23 (3d10)

>>5401495

Rolled 7, 7, 5 = 19 (3d10)

>>5401495

>>5401495
The initial actions go almost exactly as you intended - the mortars, and shortly thereafter the cannon-shots, begin to fall at the head of the advancing column of invaders. Finding that they can progress no further under such fire the column halts, and tries to reverse only to find that their allied units have come up behind them through a narrow lane between obstacles.

Things bog down from there.

Some of the gun carriers try to force their way through ditches or hedges and get entrapped there, coming under further fire. Several others simply wait, or disembark their soldiers who start to dig in nearby. At least one actually tries to force its way through a ‘hard’ barrier, smashing itself against the hardened steel tips of a row of tree-spikes.

Then you see the signal go up over one of the seven hilltop fortresses of Rosemarkie - a single, massive firework that goes up like a stream of silver flames before exploding. That calls down the cavalry. Behind a wave of mortar-strikes they ride, swords flashing and carbines barking and horses screaming. It’s not likely any of the invaders have ever faced an actual cavalry charge, with horses and all, and so many are clearly shocked at the speed and the terrible noise that come with such a charge.

Men are slashed across the chest as they try to fight back or across their back and shoulders as they try to flee. Some horsemen fall, while others drop hand-grenades into dug-out holes to blast the surviving Organization soldiers out of their shelter.

>Charge as well on foot, target equipment, heavy guns, and so on.
>Direct the guns and mortars west, cut off avenues for retreat.
>Wait for the time being - things still have time to shift against your side.
>Other?

>>5402650
>Wait for the time being - things still have time to shift against your side.

>>5402650
>Direct the guns and mortars west, cut off avenues for retreat.
Or rather cut off a counterattack.

>>5402650
>direct the guns and mortars west ...

>>5402650
>>Charge as well on foot, target equipment, heavy guns, and so on.

>>5402650
>>Wait for the time being - things still have time to shift against your side.
Stay back and watch. You should have the big picture in your mind and view.

>>5402650
"I need you to redirect those mortars west!" you order the artillery captain. "Cut off their reinforcements!"

"Understood!" he calls back. "Shift fire west, range marker ten! All units fire free!"
>3d10 best of three

Rolled 7, 4, 1 = 12 (3d10)

>>5403707

Rolled 2, 4, 2 = 8 (3d10)

>>5403707

Rolled 2, 9, 7 = 18 (3d10)

>>5403707
hnha2v

>>5403707
The mortar fire, after a few tries, starts to fall among the targets to the west. That slows and eventually stops the advancing reinforcements meant to relieve the stalled front line. You can also hear the sounds of fire coming from across the border more clearly now, as the artillery support you arranged for with Tarsus starts to roll in from the west to target resources being brought up from the rear of the advance.

“It’s not a rout yet,” you realize with a frown.

While the invading force is suffering massive casualties, far beyond anything they could possibly have planned for considering the technological gap that exists even now between your forces, Hazari soldiers are also dying. “We need to push harder somehow.”

The cavalry charge has accomplished about as much as it’s ever likely to, and the survivors of the assault begin to fall back into cover some distance from the invading armored units they assaulted, leaving their own dead and wounded behind with their fallen enemies. Your strategy of forcing the attackers into pre-defined zones and saturating those areas with artillery has been a success, however there are plenty more attackers and these are less likely to play into your hands a second time.

>You can make a difference by recovering some of the wounded. Give your side a morale victory.
>What you need is to soften up the enemy columns - to do that yourself, you’ll need to partly awaken.
>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.
>Other?

>>5404931
>>What you need is to soften up the enemy columns - to do that yourself, you’ll need to partly awaken.

>>5404931
>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.

>>5404931
>>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.
Partly awakening sounds dangerous with your own soldiers around, but rearranging your defenses is something we should definitely do. The enemy probably has a good idea where our guns now are and moving them would be smart. Recovery of the wounded and potential spoils of war should be left for the night.

>>5404931
>>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.

>>5404931
>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.
>It may help to maneuver some of your artillery into new positions, try to gain a more advantageous position.
>Other?
And rally any disordered units.

>>5404931
>31d0, best of three

Rolled 7, 2, 8 = 17 (3d10)

>>5405639
>31d0
an interesting dice choice

>>5405645
You heard me.
It's supposed to be 3d10 for anyone who can't tell

Rolled 9, 7, 7 = 23 (3d10)

>>5405639
roll

Rolled 7, 8, 3 = 18 (3d10)

>>5405639

>>5405639
It’s nothing less than a disaster for the entrapped frontline units as their support evaporates, and soon you have men clambering out of hastily-dug trenches and coming out from behind burning vehicles with their hands raised. Most of those burning wrecks are still burning by sundown, casting a dancing red light over the shattered terrain.

“This is going to be a long night,” you tell one of the gun-captains. “Send a sergeant out to get infantry out here and set a watch. Intruders may try to slip in unnoticed and take out some of our locations, and the mortars will be their main targets.”

“To clear the way for their armored guns.”

“That’s what I would do.”

“I suspect the same,” the captain agrees. “It will be done.”

“And we need to figure out a better set of positions to counter the anticipated attack,” you continue. “Let’s wait until right after sundown, then move our mortar crews rearward. Fill those firing positions with infantry.”

…

It’s well after dark when your eyes pick out the glint of moonlight on metal, moving in the distance. It’s not in a spot where there’s been anything like that previously, no fires or wreckage, so it can only be the expected infiltrators. They’re still too distant for you to hear them, but you know they’re there.

>Quietly organize a bombardment of the area. They’ll have to do better than that.
>Prepare your infantry on the front, make sure everyone is ready to fight hand to hand.
>Prepare to launch a few flares, try to illuminate the area the enemy is creeping through.
>Other?

Unfucked things a bit there.

>>5406269
>Prepare to launch a few flares, try to illuminate the area the enemy is creeping through.
If we can get eyes on, we can better estimate the threat, as well as observe their actions and determine their objectives based on their response.

>>5406269
>>Quietly organize a bombardment of the area. They’ll have to do better than that.

>>5406269
>Quietly organize a bombardment of the area. They’ll have to do better than that.

>>5406269
>>Prepare your infantry on the front, make sure everyone is ready to fight hand to hand.

>>5406269
>Prepare to launch a few flares, try to illuminate the area the enemy is creeping through.
We're so fricking lucky they don't have proper long-range artillery.

>>5406269
>>Prepare to launch a few flares, try to illuminate the area the enemy is creeping through.

>>5406269
>3d10 best of three

Rolled 6, 6, 8 = 20 (3d10)

>>5407358

Rolled 1, 3, 3 = 7 (3d10)

>>5407358

Rolled 4, 10, 8 = 22 (3d10)

>>5407358

>>5407358
“Send out a message,” you tell the mortar-captain. “I want flares launched on my signal. Send a runner to the infantry positions and rouse them, quickly now!”

You join the men in spreading the word, running swiftly and softly between positions in a low crouch and whispering your orders to hold fire until the flares have illuminated the battlefield over which the hapless infiltrators are presently creeping through the shadows, carefully picking their way around burning vehicles and other obstacles.

“Keep to your cover, and wait for the flares!” you hiss, or words to that extent, each time, met with grim determination as the fighting men of the Hazari armed forces prepare to meet their enemy. Then you work your way back to the mortar position, dropping into the trench near where you left the commander. “Are those flares ready?”

“Ready on your word, ma’am,” he whispers.

And so you wait.

And wait.

For several minutes that feel like hours you wait for the enemy to wander into the range of your infantry positions. Then, when you feel confident, you motion for the mortar crew to launch the flare.

The shell rises in a high arc over the battlefield before a fuse bursts it open, unfurling a shaped silk parachute - silk being the right sort of weight and weave for catching the air, and being one of the more difficult fabrics to ignite. That being said several of these “sun shells” fail and fall to the ground far too early, but several hang suspended over the terrain while the firework-like charges below them sputter and glow, spitting out little incandescent shrapnel that casts light all over.

Then your infantry open fire on the illuminated attackers.

“Open fire!” you order your artillery and mortars, which begin lobbing explosive shells now that they can see their targets almost as well as you could before.

The shouting, the crack of rifles, the dull thump of the mortar propellant charges and the blasts of their impacts are an unintelligible blur, though from what you can see the attackers are quick to note their situation and rally for an open charge - knowing full well that their only hope is to reach the dug-out holes your infantry have occupied before they’re all mowed down. Which many are, though not all.
>1/2

>>5408580
“They’ve reached the first line!” the captain shouts warning of what you can already see - that hand to hand fighting has begun along some of the infantry line. “What are your orders, ma’am?”

>Summon up reinforcements.
>Order your infantry to fall back and your artillery to target those positions.
>Your rules may prohibit killing humans, but they don’t prohibit fighting. Time to lead from the front.
>Other?

>>5408583
>Order your infantry to fall back and your artillery to target those positions.
WWI time.

>>5408583
>>Your rules may prohibit killing humans, but they don’t prohibit fighting. Time to lead from the front.

>>5408580
>>Order your infantry to fall back and your artillery to target those positions.

>>5408583
>>Order your infantry to fall back and your artillery to target those positions.

Can get quite disorganized, but we should have a second line of defense ready? Have the first line fall back and let the second line take the charge of the situation. I would like to keep Noel out of direct action for as long as possible.

>>5408583
>Order your infantry to fall back and your artillery to target those positions.

Also, this is gonna sound like an odd question, but why isn't the thread bumping? Is this something about /qst/ in general, or...?

>>5408779
I think qst threads have an auto sage time limit

>>5408779
From the pinned first thread on the board.

"Current board settings:

Anyone can post images.
Anyone can use painter.
Anyone can use dice & spoilers.
Only OP can use text formatting.
3000 character limit.
750 bump limit.
Decreased post timer to match /tg/ (30 seconds for text, 60 seconds for an image reply).
Automatic permasage after 72 hours.
Thread specific user IDs.
Max threads per IP is 5.
Standard 7 day internal archive."

>>5408583
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 5, 1, 4 = 10 (3d10)

>>5409380

Rolled 1, 10, 3 = 14 (3d10)

>>5409380

Rolled 9, 10, 3 = 22 (3d10)

>>5409380

>>5409380
Your next step involves a risky maneuver - ordering your first line of infantry to fall back a short distance under covering fire. If not coordinated well you run the risk of firing on your own men, and if the covering fire is ineffective you’re asking your infantry to fall back across open ground. Admittedly over a short distance, but still - you can expect casualties.

“Pull them back,” you order a nearby runner. “Have them stage a fighting withdrawal towards the artillery positions.”

Then you turn to the artillery captain. “Have your crews target the infantry positions. Fire on my mark.”

Below and before your position you can see the infantry briefly organize - the runner takes a bullet as he works to carry your message but is quickly replaced, and the infantry pull back in unison, rolling out of their cover and stopping to fire back at the intruders who surge forward to take up their old positions. For a few moments, which seem far too long, there are noticeable casualties among your infantry. Far too many men for your liking fall in executing the initial withdrawal.

“Open fire!”

The result of your planned maneuver, however, is dramatic. The enemy infantry, thankful to be in cover for once and likely feeling as though they’ve turned the situation around after their initially steep casualties, come under sustained fire again from mortars. Exploding shells fall into the trenches and fox-holes dug out by your own forces, and once your infantry make it to their new positions they waste no time in firing down towards their old shelters as well. With even just a slight elevation advantage they now find themselves sheltered and out of the melee that had broken out, with the advantage of artillery support that can fire into their enemy without fear of causing any friendly casualties.

“They’re trapped,” the artillery captain muses.

You nod in agreement. “We paid for it dearly, but no worse in my judgment than a close-quarters brawl at the front line. And this way there’s no chance of the infiltrators breaking through our second line of positions.”

Trading in men’s lives… the ugly, inescapable reality of war. But if you are obliged to enter into that trade, the least you can do is ensure their lives were spent as meaningfully as possible.
>Press the advantage, deploy your infantry to counterattack as soon as they’re able.
>Enough of your own have died already. Just keep shelling the enemy until they’re gone.
>Call for the attempted infiltrators to surrender. There’s no point in more bloodshed.
>Other?

>>5410004
>>Call for the attempted infiltrators to surrender. There’s no point in more bloodshed.
Try to save the lives of your men and ammunition of your artillery. You need them both for later. This might be the time for Noel to make her presence properly known as the Queen. If this doesn’t work and they don't surrender, then this.
>>Enough of your own have died already. Just keep systematically shelling the enemy until they’re gone or have surrendered.

>>5410004
>Enough of your own have died already, ..

>>5410004
>Press the advantage, deploy your infantry to counterattack as soon as they’re able.

>>5410004
>3d10, best of three

Rolled 7, 7, 8 = 22 (3d10)

>>5410335

Rolled 4, 3, 9 = 16 (3d10)

>>5410335

Rolled 3, 2, 5 = 10 (3d10)

>>5410335

So it just occurred to me, but...
>Constant asymmetric warfare against a massively better funded, better armed, better supplied, and better prepared enemy
>Originally we were effectively a colony of a distant land that rebelled against their colonial masters
Are we pulling an America here?

>>5410335
“Hold your fire!” you bellow, raising your voice and signaling with your hand and stepping out into the open. “All of you, both sides! Hold your fire!”

To your vague surprise, the infiltrators trapped in the trenches in front of you also stop firing.

“Throw down your weapons and surrender, and your lives will be spared!” you call out. “You have my sacred word as queen of this land! Continue to assail my homeland and your blood will water the thistles that will mark your graves!”

“Why should we trust you!?” one of the soldiers shouts back.

A bullet strikes your blade - you drew it in an instant when you saw the silhouette of a man by flare-light, raising a weapon to fire it at you. The response is several shots from your own side in that direction, and the man who shot at you falls.

“Hold!” you shout again. “That’s an order!”

There’s a tension in the night air as everyone seems to be waiting to see whether the shooting will start again. Some soldiers throw down their rifles and raise their hands, while others quickly turn on those who try to surrender, leaving you a choice to make. Nobody has started shooting each other yet, but it won’t be long.

>Step in personally, secure the safety of your would-be prisoners.
>Stay out of it. Let your enemies sort this out themselves.
>Move in with your infantry and take everyone into custody, if you can.
>Other?

>>5411468
>Step in personally, secure the safety of your would-be prisoners.

>>5411468
>Move in with your infantry and take everyone into custody, if you can.

>>5411468
>Step in personally, secure the safety of your would-be prisoners.

>>5411468
>>Step in personally, secure the safety of your would-be prisoners.

>>5411468
>>Step in personally, secure the safety of your would-be prisoners.

>>5411468
>3d10 best of three

Rolled 6, 1, 5 = 12 (3d10)

>>5412333

Rolled 2, 9, 9 = 20 (3d10)

>>5412333

Rolled 3, 8, 10 = 21 (3d10)

>>5412333

>>5412333
You calmly step into this fabulous mess, and shout the quarreling soldiers down. “What the hell is wrong with you people!?”

There’s a distinct pause, largely driven by surprise, and so you continue. “I’ve given you all a chance to just walk away with your lives, and how do you respond? By turning on each other? How does that solve any of our shared problems?”

“In fact,” you drive the point home even further while you have enough of the soldiers still in a stupor, “if you would all just leave there wouldn’t be a war at all! There’s no reason for you to have come out all this way to invade a land you probably barely knew existed and that broadly speaking didn’t know that you exist.”

You’re physically close enough now to separate two of the soldiers yourself, one who had been trying to surrender and the other who had then turned on him. Basically, you grab each by the scruff of his neck and reposition them.

After a moment, the man who was trying to stop his comrade from surrendering speaks up. “You risked your neck… for this guy?”

>We have rules here - at least trying to protect surrendering foes is one of them.
>This is an extraordinary situation. It calls for extraordinary efforts.
>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?
>Other?

>>5412548
>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?

>>5412548
>This is an extraordinary situation. It calls for extraordinary efforts.
But
>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?

>>5412548
>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?
>We have rules here - at least trying to protect surrendering foes is one of them.

>>5412548
>>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?
>>We have rules here - at least trying to protect surrendering foes is one of them.

>>5412548
>I’m just tired of all this. Aren’t you tired of it too, on some level? Don’t you want to go home?
>We have rules here - at least trying to protect surrendering foes is one of them.

>>5412548
“... aren’t you all tired of this?” you reply.

“Tired of what?” the man frowns.

“Tired of… all of this,” you gesture. “How many of your comrades have been killed so far? How many have died to your army’s advance? How many lives have you ruined? And over what?”

“We have our orders,” another man insists.

“Don’t you want to go home?” you press. “I want to go home. I’m sure all my men want to go home. We have so many other things to deal with. I’m sure many of you do too. How many of you are married?”

There’s an awkward silence. A few of the men raise their hands, and there’s a slight buzz of muttered conversation.

“Shut up!” an officer shouts, shoulding his rifle.

“How many of you have children, or want to one day? I’m sure all of you have other family you’d like to see again some day?”

Several more soldiers throw down their arms, and one cracks the panicking officer across the back of his head with the stock of his rifle before tossing it aside.

A few other men spend several long moments standing off, before the would-be loyalists find themselves outnumbered and outmatched. Eventually the last of them abandon the fight and surrender. And not a moment too soon, because shortly after the last one is in custody the explosions resume - this time, the fire coming your way.
>to be continued

>>5416830
New thread