Action Thread (Year 1153, Day 107) NEUTRAL & CHAOTIC GOOD

[Stirling]

Phaeus

"Go do your stuff Father HadrIan. Remember 'location, location, location!' Larger room with view over moat and grassland, airy with high ceiling and rubble niches for individual sleeping areas and exciting timber framed play stairs for climbing practice, plus superb meat feast banquet of dissected raccoon joints and seasoned offal"

The rogue backs up the duo as they approach the Wolf den. Eight wolves, possibly half are pups, some females, an alpha male. Still a formidable set of claws and teeth. He hopes that as the Meilikki favoured priest is more attune with these creatures that affinity helps the wolves move places.

[thenewflesh]

"Sounds offal..." Father Hadrian murmurs as he walks down the corridor.

Once at the room, he upturns his gaze for a moment, murmurs a brief prayer and touches his lips. He barks a quick friendly greeting before entering the room.

"We come in peace, with an offer you may find to your palate!"

I might have missed this somewhere, but does the room have a door I can slam in case things go south?

[atpollard]

I might have missed this somewhere, but does the room have a door I can slam in case things go south?

Sadly, no. Room 12 opens directly into the south corridor ... which leads to the Great Hall (#6 on the map).

[atpollard]

Year 1153, Day 107: 12:36 PM [Courtyard]

"We come in peace, with an offer you may find to your palate!" barked Father Hadrian from the entrance to the Wolf Lair (#12 in the map). Aari stood right behind Hadrian with Phaeus several paces behind the pair.

A large grey female leapt forward with hackles raised and teeth bared growling "Out of our den!" She blocked your progress forward, but did not attack.

Aari tensed at the threatening response, but withheld any first attack.

An all-black female leapt between the grey female and Father Hadrian, growling a menacing challenge back at the grey wolf. "Back off! It is not part of the pack, but it serves the Mistress."

The large grey female growled back "Are you challenging your Alpha?"

"I am the Beta" the black female responded "It would be my right, but only if you continue to challenge the Mistress."

A powerfully built grey male slowly walked forward and barked out commands to the two females "We will hear what the Mistress’ servant has to say!"

Both females adopted a more submissive posture. A second younger male moved behind the grey Alpha Female and maintained a menacing defensive posture. From the entrance to the room Father Hadrian could see three grey pups (less than a year old) behind him.

A third male, older than the Alpha, wandered up from the other direction. He stopped inches from Hadrian to sniff him for a moment, and then he licked your hand and lay down on the floor. The rest of the pack relaxed slightly … growling stopped, they just sat and watched alertly.

"Speak, servant of the Mistress." barked the Grey Alpha Male to Father Hadrian.

There are 4 pairs of adult wolves age 2-5 and 3 pups almost 1 year old.

[thenewflesh]

Father Hadrian waits quietly until the wolves are quiet and listening. Then he addresses the Alpha.

"I would like to propose a relocation to the tower" - and here he points through the wall in the direction of the tower. "Your movement there will be freer than it is here, being directly connected to the large open courtyard and adjoining bridge to the outside world. To sweeten the deal, I would also like to present for your discerning tastes a giant raccoon, freshly-killed, which is currently sitting in the tower waiting for you. In the likely event that in the future my pack obtains other carcasses, we will be happy to provide them to you as well in order to sustain what I hope will be a long and prosperous partnership between our two packs."

[Rex]

Aari

Aari will do his best to remain calm. Not understanding the conversation, but following the wolves actions fairly well.

[atpollard]

Year 1153, Day 107: 12:40 PM [Courtyard]

“… what I hope will be a long and prosperous partnership between our two packs.” concluded Father Hadrian.

The Pack communicated in sub-vocalizations that conveyed meanings beyond the ability of human speech to capture. There was no common frame of reference. It was a language based on shared emotions and collective memories of this particular pack. From the snippets that Hadrian was able to follow, the gist seemed to be that four of the adults were opposed to the move, including the Alpha Male and two of the adults were in favor of the move, including the Beta Female, with two adults remaining reluctantly willing. However, Father Hadrian sensed that the Alpha Male might be persuaded to move with more negotiation and the hierarchy of a wolf society was more complex than either a simple democracy or a simple dictatorship.

The Alpha male addressed Hadrian “The Pack declines your offer. This den is larger and drier than the other. If you can get the blessings of the Hawks and agree to provide one kill per full moon as tribute to the Pack, we will reconsider. Good hunting, servant of the Mistress.”

The Alpha turned and walked back to the pack. The discussion was over and the matter settled for him.

[Stirling]

Phaeus

Watches the pawing, waggy tails, familiar sniffs and growls from the larger fang-toothed creature. He can see by the look on Father HadrIan's face as it turns away that the hopes for a clean resolution are fading.

"It is simply too dangerous for the Clan, for the children, to have these wild animals so close. Confrontation is bound to happen and we must place our security over some wild animals."

He leaves the corridor but brings up next suggestions as we gather. Unless the Wolf pack move willingly and immediately it stops our progress to secure the ruin. We simply cannot be sleeping in rotas locked in a single room when we number 30+ people. Now with the elf we are one extra.

Now we could just all load up crossbows and shoot down the corridor and slay the creatures in turn but that will obviously be meet with savagery and harm us too. Or we wait until the pack leave the den to hunt then move in, blockading the entrance. I don't believe just living side by side works. Hungry wolves will eat goat kids and dwarf kids and me with equal relish.

He offers his thoughts.

What do we do next? "Do you want to see the giant gator?" he asks the new elf. "Mean critter with a long serrated tail and dagger like teeth. You can spy on it through the keyhole in the other wing."

[thenewflesh]

"I understand. I do not feel it is necessary to provide tribute to our allies. However, your desire for the Hawks' consent is very reasonable." Father Hadrian nods, lays a gentle hand on the old wolf at his feet. "Mielikki's blessings upon you all."

Casting Animal Friendship.

He follows his companions down the corridor, and describes in plainspeech the outcome of the conversation. He concludes, "As the Hawks are also Mielikki's children, I am in favor of speaking to them; in addition, they may provide valuable allies, and improve our relations with the Wolves."

[Rex]

Aari

"It sounds like a good plan, we needed to speak to them anyways and if we can work out a deal with them very few would be able to sneak up on the ruins during the day unnoticed. I am not fully opposed to the tribute, think of it more as aid, they would be valuable allies"

[Dram]

Grakluse- Meets the clan with a smile. He will watch from a distance the interaction with the wolves.I may be able to aid your clan. With a spell. If you decide to work with the wolves. When Father Hadrian says he can show him a giant alligator. Yes I would like to see it. You seem to have quite a few creatures living in here with you. Is it safe?

[Rex]

Aari

"Safer then closer to Trollkin, but certainly not without danger. We are trying to make it safer."

[Stirling]

Phaeus

After the priest confers with the wolves, I will go into the west wing area of the ruin with whoever wants to explore.

Previously Aari killed the raccoon in the kitchen room. A search wasn't made of the room after, we just dealt with the carcass. So starting there I will search the cupboards and hearth, looking for utensils and stuff that can improve the Clan's quality of community life. Any silverware? Drinking goblets?

You mentioned the hearth chimney was climeable. I presume it just goes to the hearth of the collapsed room above. Is the ceiling whole or holed like the trophy room?

I think we should complete the assessment of each room, deal with the threats and then as a whole turn out to make the rooms useable. Disinfect the place, boil water and wipe down mouldy surfaces, sweep the place, ditch the junk.

[atpollard]

Year 1153, Day 107: 1:50 PM [Great Room]

Following the conversation between Father Hadrian and the Alpha, the Father lingered for an hour with the older wolf at his feet. At first, those watching were merely perplexed, but as time dragged on, it became clear that a bond was growing between Hadrian and the Wolf. At first the father just rubbed its fur. Eventually the wolf lay its head on the Father’s lap. After an hour of playing and caressing and licking (the wolf liked the Priest, not the other way around), Father Hadrian quietly stood and started to walk out of the chamber. The old wolf with a grey back and light brown sides followed along after Father Hadrian.

Gathered in the Great Room (#6), Father Hadrian summarized the conversation. He expressed his disapproval of “tribute” but though speaking with the Hawks was a good idea. Phaeus suggested that the wolf pack was too dangerous for “live and let live” to be an option when the Clan NEEDED more space. His argument was persuasive. Aari favored speaking with the Hawks irrespective of the wolves as a means to boost the Clan defense with an early warning.

Phaeus suggested starting in the West Wing rather than the south, and Grakluse seemed interested in getting a look at the gator. Since Aari had already removed the Giant Raccoon from the Kitchen, Phaeus suggested that was a logical place to start searching for anything useful and cleaning up to render it usable.

Phaeus suggested clearing the west wing of “critters” as a first step and led the way down the West Corridor towards the Kitchen. It seemed as good a plan as any at this point and Grakluse could get a peek at the gator from there, so Aari and Father Hadrian followed them towards the Kitchen.

Just a FYI: I am using CHA as a measure of general persuasiveness. Players can have their Characters do whatever they want, but NPCs will generally be persuaded by the Character with the highest Charisma. This post was sort of a test run in this game of everyone stating their ideas and the Characters following the Charismatic Character.

[Stirling]

Phaeus

Will bypass the rat room. No point sending a swarm scurrying around though I note stairs going down. So maybe some kind of cellar or cistern is that way which might come in useful.

I will begin to search the kitchen room as described in my previous post.

[Rex]

Aari

Aari will help break down the giant racoon and get the meat divided up among everyone. He will then see if he can brain tan the pelt for use as bedding.

"Work to be done if the wolves are not going to use it we will."

[atpollard]

New topic created for the united party at the ruins: Action Thread (Year 1153, Day 107): KEEPERS & CLAN