I Have Tasted Command, And I Cannot Give It Up: Lords of Infinity

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Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

After seven years, the sequel to Guns of Infinity is here, and it is a doozy, coming in at 1.6 million words. When Guns released, I ran a participatory let's play of it here, along with its prequel, Sabes of Infinity, and I'd like to continue with the newest release. This game is about the cavalry officer protagonist of the last two games finally coming home to take up his (this is gender-locked, sorry to say) title and deal with his greatest challenges yet: peacetime, finances, and politics. This is a Choice Of game, meaning it's text-based, but don't confuse that for simplicity here- this game does feature complex systems for modeling your finances and resources, and is a pretty big leap in difficulty from the last two games, and that's exactly why I'm going to continue to trust goons to vote on our choices.

It's probably fine for people to jump in here, but here and here are the links to the previous two threads, where our imported character history is coming from.

quote:

An Author's Note�and a Warning:

The Infinite Sea, much like our own world, is a place overrun with bigotries and injustices, where those with power rest their weight atop the bent backs of those without. It is a place where distinctions of race, gender, and class separate those who are born fortunate from those who are not�and where such divides are often enforced with systems of violent and cruel repression.

Lords of Infinity is ultimately the story of a man of noble birth who must contend with the hypocrisies and failings of a society which was built by men like him for their own benefit. It is about the consequences of violence, and the traumas left by war. It is about the breakdown of order and the nature of power. It is about the paradoxes of idealism, the ruin left in the course of empire, and the cruelty inherent in a society where a person's birth determines how they live and die.

If the exploration of such matters does not appeal to you, or is likely to cause you distress, then there is neither shame nor discourtesy in seeking your stories elsewhere.

Import a character from Guns of Infinity.

quote:

Sir Alaric d'al Sancroix, Baron Somewhere Awful
Lieutenant-colonel, Royal Dragoons (half-pay)
Age: 41

Current Funds: 550 Crown
Current Bi-Annual Income: 180 Crown
Current Debts: 15895 Crown

Soldiering: 24%
Charisma: 50%
Intellect: 60%

Reputation: 55%
Health: 40%

Idealism: 60%Cynicism: 40%
Ruthlessness: 87%Mercy: 13%
You are a Knight of the Red, having the right to wear Bane-hardened armour and wield a Bane-runed sword.

Known friends and associates.
Iago d'al Blaylock: Captain (half-pay), the Royal Dragoons.

Lady Katarina d'al Cazarosta: Only legitimate child of the Earl of Leoniscourt. Agent of Royal Tierran Intelligence. Friend to Isobel, Princess-Royal.

Lord Renard d'al Findlay: Eldest son of the Duke of Cunaris. Major, the Royal Dragoons.

Hiir Cassius vam Holt: Takaran Ambassador to Tierra. Eldest son to Richsgraav vam Holt.

Solhammond Lanzerel: Colour Sergeant, the Royal Dragoons.

Cedric Lewes: Colour Sergeant, the 8th Regiment of Foot. Formerly Lieutenant (brevet), the Experimental Corps of Riflemen.

Robert Marion: Sergeant, the Royal Dragoons.

Victor d'al Reyes: Eldest son of Baron Reyes. Major, the 8th Regiment of Foot. Formerly Commander, the Experimental Corps of Riflemen.

James d'al Sandoral: Captain (half-pay), the Royal Dragoons.

Eleanora d'al Welles: Countess Welles. Proponent of Military Reform. Friend to Isobel, Princess-Royal.

Known enemies.
Sir Caius d'al Cazarosta: Bastard son of the late Countess of Leoniscourt. Captain, the Royal Dragoons.

Sir Alaric is technically a war hero, despite some ugly setbacks in the previous games, and is coming in here with a long list of friends and enormous debts

Proceed.

quote:

"Lord Alaric d'al Sancroix, heir to the Barony of Somewhere Awful, presents himself before the King's majesty!"

You step forward as the herald's booming announcement echoes off the stone walls of the Cortes chamber, the long train of your investiture robes dragging against the plush carpet with every step. You feel the gaze of your soon-to-be peers fall upon you from all directions, the heat of their attention boring through the thick fur mantle on your shoulders. Everything chafes, everything itches. With each step, you deplore the encumbrance of your robes even more, even as you long for the absent weight of your sabre and pistols.

Yet you keep steady, eyes front, shoulders back. You force yourself to walk as if the eyes of the King Himself are upon you, because they are.

There He is, at the far end of the chamber, a thin, auburn-haired figure wrapped in the mass of His court robes. His eyes are weary, His face is old for a man not yet thirty, lined prematurely by the stresses of war and rule. Still, He sits proud atop the throne his ancestors had carved from stone and steel and dark Butean wood, tired eyes following as you approach.

Near the end of the previous game, Alaric's father died (but he was fine with it, as all men must die), and as the firstborn son, we will be taking up his title and hereditary seat in the Cortes. The Cortes is a sort of proto-parliament made up exclusively of the heads of title-holding noble houses.

quote:

The etiquette for approaching a King of Tierra was drilled into you as a child, and through the long years of turmoil in between, your father's voice reaches out to you and guides your limbs: stop precisely twelve paces before the dais, bow. Three paces forward, bow again. Three more, kneel, and await the King's reply.

But it is not the King who moves first. Instead, a dour-faced man in the uniform of a lieutenant colonel of the Grenadiers steps out from the shadow of the throne. In his hands, he carries a gigantic two-handed sword, larger even than those used by the Knights of the Red, its blade flickering with the faint tracery of baneruned steel. You've seen this sword before, though only in engravings and paintings: Pactmaker, the Tierran sword of state.

From the corner of your eye, the Grenadier officer gives you an imperceptible nod as he sets the sword before his King. You and Lieutenant Colonel Lefebvre have a history. In Antar, you were brothers-in-arms, though not always friendly ones. Some part of you wishes to nod back, in recollection of those scant, cold years of war.

But now is not the time. That is not what you're here for.

quote:

The Grenadier steps back. The King rises, taking up the sword with which Edwin the Strong wrought the Unified Kingdom more than a century ago. With solemn, practised grace, he moves forward. In the silence, even his soft footfalls upon the rich carpet seem to echo. He stops, little more than an arm's length away, and with a strong, clear voice, he utters the words which he must have by now said a hundred times before.

"I, Miguel, of the house of Rendower, Duke of Aetoria and King of Tierra, do confirm before those assembled here, the rights of Lord Alaric of the house of Sancroix, to the barony of Somewhere Awful. I hereby pledge all my power to the preservation of his freedoms, his properties, and his titles. I swear to accept his counsel in the governance of the realm. I swear to be his champion in peace, and his brother in war. This I swear on behalf of myself and the rightful heirs of my bloodline. This I swear by the Saints and my Sacred Honour."

Slowly, carefully, he turns the Pactmaker in his hands, reversing the blade until its hilt hovers just a hand's breadth from your face.

"Upon this oath, swear your loyalty to me," he continues, with all the ominous ceremony the occasion deserves, "or with this blade, strike me down."

Your fingers reach out, brushing the silver inlay of Pactmaker's pommel�

"I, Alaric of the house of Sancroix�"

quote:

"�do hereby swear fealty to Miguel, of the house of Rendower, and acknowledge him as my liege and rightful King of Tierra." The oft-rehearsed words come to you readily, flowing from your lips as easily as breath. "I hereby pledge all of my power to the defence of his realm, to the enforcement of his laws, and to the protection of his honour. I swear to offer him wise counsel in the governance of the realm. I swear to be his brother in peace and his champion in war. This I swear to him, and to all the rightful heirs of his bloodline. This I swear, before all assembled here, and with his life in my hands. This I swear, by the Saints and my Sacred Honour."

Pactmaker draws away as your voice echoes against the stone. The King steps back.

"Then by my right as sovereign and the authority vested in me by this Cortes, I name you Baron of Somewhere Awful, as your father was before you," he declares, loud enough for all to hear. "Rise, Lord Somewhere Awful, and take your rightful place among your peers."

quote:

You rise to a round of polite but enthusiastic applause. Some nod approvingly from the high galleries. Your service in Antar made you a name among the officers of the King's Army, but it's a surprise to see something of the lustre of your exploits reach even to the very Cortes chamber.

They're still clapping as you ascend the steps to the benches and take your place among the Lords of the Cortes.

You look for the red dragon banner of the Duke of Cunaris hanging from the gallery. The benches are crowded, but of the Duke of Cunaris himself, you see nothing. You move to join your fellow Cunarian lords. Some offer to shake your hand as you take your place. Others make space on the benches and motion for you to sit down.

You take your seat just in time for the King to lay Pactmaker across His lap. The booming voice of the sergeant-at-arms echoes across the stone, calling the chamber to order.

At last, the business of governance begins.

Achievement Unlocked: Lord of the Cortes: Take up your birthright as Lord of the Cortes.

quote:

Quorum is obtained, grievances are aired.

The issues facing the chamber at first are minor ones: the placement of a fence, the ownership of a road, petty squabbles made significant only by the noble blood of those entangled in them.

Yet even so, you pay close attention to the proceedings, even as some of the lords around you seem to nod off or pursue their own conversations with their neighbours. You note carefully how a Lord of the Cortes must present a motion before the chamber, how he must never address another member by name, only by title, how he must ask the King's permission to speak, and how the King, bound by the strictures of his own office, cannot but give it.

In truth, the complicated procedure of the Cortes makes for more interesting watching than the debates themselves.

When you imagined what it would be like to sit upon the body which governed the Unified Kingdom, you thought of great and eloquent statesmen delivering thundering condemnations of evil and high-minded appeals to goodness and virtue. The Cortes was supposed to be the refuge of the best of men, doing their utmost to ensure the prosperity of the realm and the security of its people.

Instead, you find men no better than you, in an atmosphere more like a fishmarket or a cafe than a solemn chamber of state.

It is then, as you begin to come to terms with the reality of your new peers, that the burble of conversation suddenly halts. The chamber falls silent as a youngish, broad-shouldered man in a fashionably cut frock coat steps out from under the section of benches just to the left of the throne. He proceeds down the aisle as those still standing take their seats. With the requisite bow, he turns to the throne.

"Your Majesty; His Grace, the Duke of Wulfram, requests permission to address the chamber."

quote:

So this is Young Wulfram, the son of the man who died at Blogia. The man who, by all accounts, has become one of the most powerful and controversial voices in the Cortes. This, at least, will be worth paying attention to.

The King nods his assent. Wulfram turns to face the whole chamber, his voice a low tenor with the gravitas of a practised orator.

"One would like to open on a note of thanksgiving, for there are those in this chamber to whom much is owed. In the long years in which this realm has been at war, it has become easy to forget the truly extraordinary scale of the exertions of those who have taken up arms in defence of Crown and Kingdom. When war becomes commonplace, it cheapens even the most brilliant acts of courage in the eyes of those who do not live the terror of battle for themselves. When the men who perform such acts are forgotten, then we are all cheapened."

He turns as he speaks, chest out, shoulders back, his voice broadcasting itself like a farmer with a handful of seed.

"Thus, let us not forget that there are those in this very chamber who have performed prodigies in the face of the King's enemies, those who have endured cold and death to be restored to us once more. Let us recognise Viscount Palliser, whose charge broke Khorobirit's army. Let us recognise the Dukes of Havenport and Cunaris, who cannot be here with us on this day. Let us recognise the Viscount Weir, the Earl of Castermaine, and Baron Matheson. Let us recognise the newest addition to this chamber, the gallant Baron Somewhere Awful, who led the storm of Kharangia. Let us recognise them all, and all of those who have fallen on foreign shores, lest we forget the sacrifices they made."

A fresh wave of applause washes over the chamber. You see Palliser�made a Viscount for his role at the Second Battle of Kharangia�incline his head in appreciation. Castermaine seems to turn an even deeper shade of red than normal.

I think I rather enjoy being recognised like this.

Such compliments will mean little to the dead.

I wonder what Wulfram is getting at, opening his address like this.

So the way this thread will work isn't any different from the previous ones- the option with the most votes (bold your vote) is what we'll do. Once we get to some of the more complex mechanics, I'll adjust as needed to try and keep the spirit of the vote alive without causing us to go bankrupt. And since this just came out, please don't spoil anything until we get to it without tags.

Edit 1: Here's the reference section from the game, for anyone interested in the lore:

quote:

A Brief Introduction to the Unified Kingdom of Tierra.

A Brief Description of the City of Aetoria.

Baneblood and its Properties

The Powers and Obligations of a Lord of the Cortes

The Sainted Martyrs and the Knightly Orders

Lord Cyrahzax fucked around with this message at 23:13 on Mar 7, 2023

# ? Mar 3, 2023 20:06

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# ? May 5, 2024 06:19

CottonWolf: Jul 20, 2012; Good ideas generator

If there�s no war, do we just do crimes now?

E: We were a ruthless cynic when we left off, so we clearly distrust his motives.

CottonWolf fucked around with this message at 20:34 on Mar 3, 2023

# ? Mar 3, 2023 20:30

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Financial crimes are very much on the table, among others

# ? Mar 3, 2023 20:31

LJN92: Mar 5, 2014

If there's no war, we can always try to start one.

But I'm guessing we'll have to be satisfied with being an rear end in a top hat at peace.

EDIT: I wonder what Wulfram is getting at, opening his address like this.

LJN92 fucked around with this message at 22:32 on Mar 3, 2023

# ? Mar 3, 2023 21:55

ShootaBoy: Jan 6, 2010; Anime is Bad.
_{Except for Pokemon, Valkyria Chronicles and 100% OJ.}

Oh gently caress yes, its out and you're doing an LP. Now to buy this and mash my own playthrough or 2 out before this gets too far.

# ? Mar 3, 2023 22:31

McTimmy: Feb 29, 2008

The King's Dragoons... don't ride again?

I started reading the WIP at Chapter 2 and it was fascinating watching everything in this unfold as it was being wrote.

# ? Mar 3, 2023 22:48

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Happy to see you guys back! This probably isn't the most exciting opening choice though, so let's stay in character and continue:

I wonder what Wulfram is getting at, opening his address like this.

quote:

There's some hidden purpose to Wulfram's words, though you aren't quite sure as to what. What's certain is that he didn't bring the Cortes to a standstill for the sake of a few lines of poetic flattery. The only question is to where he means his speech to lead.

He doesn't wait long in providing you with an answer.

"But now, our realm is restored to peace," Wulfram continues once the applause fades enough for him to be heard. "Would it not be only just and fitting for our soldiers and sailors to return to their interrupted lives and enjoy the prosperity and tranquillity for which they have fought and bled for?"

There's a murmur of approval, not just from the Wulframite benches but from all around the chamber. The Duke nods with them. "Yet instead, they return to find the kingdom on the brink of ruin! They find the shops of their fathers bankrupt, the shawls of their mothers threadbare, and the bellies of their children empty!" Wulfram's voice grows in pitch, even as the murmurs of agreement swell. "The good people of this realm have been driven to destitution by the taxes which the Exchequer has levied these past ten years! Taxes which impoverish our tenants and drive honest men to brigandage for want of food! Taxes which have strangled our market towns and trading houses! Taxes contrived to pay for a war which is now over!"

The murmurs have become a dull roar. Many cheer and brandish their rolled-up papers in approval. The King sits stone-faced. Wulfram may not have called out the man upon the throne by name, but he didn't have to; it was the King's decision to retaliate so boldly against Antar's declaration of war, it was the King's decision to fight that war to the finish, and to pay for it with emergency levies and foreign loans when the kingdom's treasury ran empty. You all know whom Wulfram means to blame.

"For the sake of our much-abused commons, I call upon His Majesty's Government to repeal these taxes!" the Duke continues, all but shouting over the roar of voices. "I call upon the Exchequer to disband our superfluous army, draw down our oversized fleets, and deliver us a budget which does not rely upon the impoverishment of our people to keep this kingdom from bankruptcy! And if the right honourable Chancellor of the Exchequer cannot do this most elementary thing, then I call upon His Majesty to find someone who can!"

quote:

The chamber explodes in a renewed rush of voices, cries of approval warring with roaring, indignant shouts of "Shame! Shame!" The King looks on, his hand white-knuckled around Pactmaker's hilt. Not far away, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Earl of Weathern sits in tight-lipped fury.

You recognise some of the men shouting their disapproval the loudest, men you served with in Antar, some even in their regimental uniforms. Perhaps you ought to join them. Even if everything Wulfram said is true, Tierra is in need of strong defences more than ever. Victory over Antar has made Tierra a potential Great Power, and a target for those in Kian or Takara who may see it as a threat to the primacy of their own countries. The Unified Kingdom cannot afford to be defenceless.

And yet, if everything Wulfram said is true, then Tierra's survival might depend just as much upon an immediate end to wartime taxation. How could the people be depended upon to defend a government which has done nothing but impoverish them? What purpose would it serve to commission warships and cannon if nobody is willing to man them?

To be honest, I am of two minds regarding the matter.

In truth, I don't give a drat about all this.

Wulfram is mistaken; we must maintain our defences, regardless of the difficulty.

The Duke of Wulfram is right. The war taxes must end, whatever the cost.

What does Lord Alaric think of...taxes?

# ? Mar 4, 2023 01:13

McTimmy: Feb 29, 2008

More taxes leads to uppity peasantry which leads to completely legal not war crimes.

Therefor Wulfrum is right.

# ? Mar 4, 2023 04:50

STABASS: Apr 18, 2009; Fun Shoe

last game we invested a large amount of money into designing cartridge ammunition. for completely unrelated reasons, we need to maintain a large military.

Wulfram is mistaken, keep those defense dollars flowing :911:

# ? Mar 4, 2023 18:41

CottonWolf: Jul 20, 2012; Good ideas generator

We are the embodiment of the military-industrial complex, so I can�t argue with this:

STABASS posted:

Wulfram is mistaken, keep those defense dollars flowing

# ? Mar 4, 2023 20:33

LJN92: Mar 5, 2014

Wulfram is lying, lowering taxes probably benefits him and the upper class somehow.

Oh, that's not one of the options?

I guess Wulfram is mistaken.

# ? Mar 4, 2023 22:28

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Wulfram is mistaken; we must maintain our defences, regardless of the difficulty.

quote:

Wulfram may have reason to speak the way he does, but he wasn't in Antar as his father was. He hasn't seen with his own eyes the consequences of leaving a country unprepared for its own defence.

The League of Antar had possessed no standing army, its divided and self-interested aristocracy could respond only piecemeal, with improvised armies which all too often fell apart in battle. Had the Lords of the Antari League Congress committed to a common defence, they would have overwhelmed you with sheer numbers. Instead, they surrendered large portions of their country and their people to the control of the King's invading army, and an invading army cannot but spread devastation in its wake, no matter the intentions of its leaders, and although you accepted such matters as ones of bare necessity when it was the King's Army which burned and pillaged across Antar, you couldn't possibly wish such destruction to be visited upon your homeland.

No, Tierra must be defended, whatever the cost.

I'll not voice my opinion yet, not whilst I'm still unaccustomed to Cortes politics.

I can offer no rhetoric, but I must be seen among those who oppose Wulfram's words.

Wulfram's words must be answered, and I will answer them.

So how vocal is Alaric?

quote:

As of the Autumn of the 613 of the Old Imperial Era:

Sir Alaric d'al Sancroix, Baron Somewhere Awful
Lieutenant-colonel, Royal Dragoons (half-pay)
Age: 41

Current Funds: 550 Crown
Debts: 15895 Crown

Bi-Annual Income (Personal): 180 Crown

Soldiering: 24%
Charisma: 50%
Intellect: 60%

Reputation: 59%
Health: 40%

Idealism: 54%Cynicism: 46%
Ruthlessness: 87%Mercy: 13%
You are a Knight of the Red, having the right to wear Bane-hardened armour and wield a Bane-runed sword.

You can speak, read, and write the Antari language.

# ? Mar 5, 2023 03:06

STABASS: Apr 18, 2009; Fun Shoe

Wulfram's words must be answered

might as well establish ourselves as the Main Character of the Cortes early

# ? Mar 5, 2023 03:34

McTimmy: Feb 29, 2008

Wulfram's words must be answered, and I will answer them.

This isn't a Forlorn Hope what is there to be afraid of?

# ? Mar 5, 2023 21:53

LJN92: Mar 5, 2014

Answer Wulfram's words.

# ? Mar 5, 2023 22:35

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Wulfram's words must be answered, and I will answer them.

quote:

You stand up and advance. An arm reaches out to stop you. Perhaps it's a custom for a new Lord of the Cortes to refrain from speaking.

If that's the case, it is a custom you're about to break.

Around you, heads turn as you descend to the aisle, still resplendent in your investiture robes. Men stop, mid-harangue. The storm of voices which filled the chamber just moments ago begins to subside, out of sheer shock if nothing else.

Your voice cuts clear through the dying furore. "Your Majesty; His Lordship, the Baron of Somewhere Awful requests permission to address the chamber."

quote:

The King seems bemused for a moment, that you would seek to stick your head into the lion's mouth on the very first day. Yet after that first shock, he doesn't hesitate in tendering his approval.

You lay out the facts as best you can, reminding the chamber of Tierra's position in the cold, hard terms of a cavalry officer describing the enemy's dispositions to his subordinates. You remind them of the Unified Kingdom's changed position in relation to the Great Powers, and how in return, Tierra's need for effective and well-funded defences have become more important than ever.

With the precision of a squadron briefing, you describe the situation with barely a word out of place, and perhaps that is the problem. By the time you're finished, the chamber seems to barely stir. You receive no reply save a dead calm. You think you might actually hear snoring from the back.

You return to your bench, disappointed and more than a little frustrated. You were hoping that the Lords of the Cortes would respond as well to unadorned truths as your subordinates had in Antar. But these are not soldiers, and you're no longer in Antar.

Next time, you shall have to do better.

quote:

Meanwhile, the debate continues. Other men take up where you left off, volleying back point and counterpoint like battalions of line infantry.

The debate goes on. Other men answer Wulfram's address, only to be answered in return, stroke and counterstroke, each compelling the other like a pair of fixed gearwheels, turning and going nowhere.

An hour passes, then two. Argument and rebuttal subside into the indistinct buzzing of voices. Those around you droop in their seats. Some doze off entirely. You're not sure you can blame them: no resolutions are passed, no motions are carried, no votes are called. The Chamber does not progress, it dances.

In the end, the session is adjourned more out of sheer exhaustion than any sort of accomplishment.

quote:

It's a relief to stand up again and stretch your limbs. It's all you can do to avoid a most indecorous sigh of relief when your backbone realigns itself betwixt your shoulders. Still in your robes, you join the throng of your fellow Lords as they file out of the doors leading to the antechamber and beyond, to the Lords' Course.

Yet not long after you pass the pair of Grenadiers at the antechamber doors, a portly, middle-aged man hobbles towards you, cane in hand, his hair tightly cropped in the style fashionable when you had left for Antar.

"One would think that his father would have taught the boy more sense," he declares darkly as he glances disdainfully at the Duke of Wulfram's turned back. "A soldier ought to teach his sons the value of his trade."

"My pardon sir, do you address me?"

"The boy? You mean Wulfram, sir?"

"Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?"

"And who would you be, sir?"

quote:

As of the Autumn of the 613 of the Old Imperial Era:

Sir Alaric d'al Sancroix, Baron Somewhere Awful
Lieutenant-colonel, Royal Dragoons (half-pay)
Age: 41

Current Funds: 550 Crown
Debts: 15895 Crown

Bi-Annual Income (Personal): 180 Crown

Soldiering: 24%
Charisma: 50%
Intellect: 60%

Reputation: 59%
Health: 40%

Idealism: 54%Cynicism: 46%
Ruthlessness: 87%Mercy: 13%
You are a Knight of the Red, having the right to wear Bane-hardened armour and wield a Bane-runed sword.

You can speak, read, and write the Antari language.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 01:21

STABASS: Apr 18, 2009; Fun Shoe

"Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?" seems like a nice balance between cordial and probing

# ? Mar 6, 2023 02:35

McTimmy: Feb 29, 2008

"And who would you be, sir?"

New Cortes seat who dis?

# ? Mar 6, 2023 02:56

Humbug Scoolbus: Apr 25, 2008; The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers, stern and wild ones, and they had made her strong, but taught her much amiss.; Clapping Larry

"Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?" Let's at least start off pleasantly.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 04:13

ShootaBoy: Jan 6, 2010; Anime is Bad.
_{Except for Pokemon, Valkyria Chronicles and 100% OJ.}

STABASS posted:

"Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?" seems like a nice balance between cordial and probing

Gotta get started somewhere!

# ? Mar 6, 2023 06:18

LJN92: Mar 5, 2014

"Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?" Sounds like the best one to me.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 07:02

Gun Jam: Apr 11, 2015

Lord Cyrahzax posted:

Wulfram's words must be answered, and I will answer them.

Was that predetermined outcome for us speaking against, or you've flubbed a skill check?

# ? Mar 6, 2023 16:26

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Gun Jam posted:

Was that predetermined outcome for us speaking against, or you've flubbed a skill check?

I believe that choice is more about not failing than succeeding- Alaric's charisma let him not embarrass himself with his first-day-in-the-Cortes speech.

Were you well acquainted with the late Duke?

quote:

"Extremely well, I would essay," the older man replies. "Better than his son, it seems."

He leans in, offering you a slim, pained smile, and his hand. "Baron Hawthorne, until very lately Assistant Under-Secretary at War. An honour, sir."

Lord Hawthorne. So this is the father of the boy you knew as a cornet at Fernandescourt, the young man whom you served with as a junior officer in Antar.

The father of the commanding officer who led your squadron into a mass of Antari horse at Blogia, never to be seen again.

Hawthorne catches the look in your eye. "My son did not think kindly of you," he admits. "He did not believe you had the judgement for what was required of you. Perhaps you have changed in the years since, or perhaps he was simply mistaken."

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then."

"I must admit, I did not think all that highly of him either."

"I appreciate the compliment, my lord."

"You speak of him in the past tense, does that mean�"

Hey, it's Papa Elson! I believe Alaric last saw his son disappear into a cloud of smoke at Blogia. I also believe Elson didn't like Alaric because Alaric burned down a camp of prisoners against Elson's orders

(no stat changes for the last choice, I probably won't post the attributes unless it's a new page or there's been a change, moving forward)

# ? Mar 6, 2023 16:48

Humbug Scoolbus: Apr 25, 2008; The scarlet letter was her passport into regions where other women dared not tread. Shame, Despair, Solitude! These had been her teachers, stern and wild ones, and they had made her strong, but taught her much amiss.; Clapping Larry

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then." play the political game. Making enemies will not go well, especially this early. We can gently caress everything up later.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 17:04

McTimmy: Feb 29, 2008

Gun Jam posted:

Was that predetermined outcome for us speaking against, or you've flubbed a skill check?

It can "succeed" but it's actually a TRIPLE stat check to get the best outcome.

And it's still lower from the initial draft where it was absolutely nut-so to get.

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then."

Quite literally! Alaric's barely able bungling in Sabres into actual well-done success in Gun's is still funny to me.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 18:07

CottonWolf: Jul 20, 2012; Good ideas generator

Humbug Scoolbus posted:

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then." play the political game. Making enemies will not go well, especially this early. We can gently caress everything up later.

Alaric doesn't think he's a fool, but he'd definitely say he was.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 18:47

Xander77: Apr 6, 2009; Fuck it then. For another pit sandwich and some 'tater salad, I'll post a few more.

Oh hey. Nice to see you playing this.

I already read through most scenes back when they were accessible on the choice of games website, so probably shouldn't participate. Might offer a review when the first playthrough is done?

# ? Mar 6, 2023 18:50

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Xander77 posted:

Oh hey. Nice to see you playing this.

I already read through most scenes back when they were accessible on the choice of games website, so probably shouldn't participate. Might offer a review when the first playthrough is done?

Hey, I am really happy to see so many old faces back for this! I think participating is fine, as long as you're staying in Alaric's headspace for choices, and I'd definitely love to see a review of the finished product. It's a long game, so I'm still more or less ruminating on my final opinion

# ? Mar 6, 2023 18:53

LJN92: Mar 5, 2014

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then."

So this is how the whole Elson/Cazarosta thing pays off, I guess.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 21:33

Regallion: Nov 11, 2012

Welp, had to re-read the first 2 threads before coming here, bit sad that we never got those extra scenes from guns back then.
Ah well, "You speak of him in the past tense, does that mean�" let's start off with a cool confirmation that they found the body.

# ? Mar 6, 2023 23:00

Rogue AI Goddess: May 10, 2012; I enjoy the sight of humans on their knees.
That was a joke... unless..?

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then."

# ? Mar 7, 2023 01:27

Lord Cyrahzax: Oct 11, 2012

Regallion posted:

Welp, had to re-read the first 2 threads before coming here, bit sad that we never got those extra scenes from guns back then.
Ah well, "You speak of him in the past tense, does that mean�" let's start off with a cool confirmation that they found the body.

Yeah, I am sorry about that, things got hectic for me and it just never happened. Good to see you back though!

"He was right to think poorly of me. I was a fool then."

quote:

"Perhaps," Hawthorne concedes, "but it has been six years since my son last wrote to me. Men can change a great deal in such a time, especially if they are driven by necessity�or regret."

"Then you have had no news of him?" you ask. Captain Elson's body had never been found after Blogia, but if he were alive, he would have surely contacted his family by now.

Hawthorne shakes his head. "Nothing. I handled the reports of the missing and dead after Blogia personally, and I have found nothing. It has been a difficult reality to face, but he is almost certainly with the Saints now."

A moment of silence hangs between the two of you, a little bubble of quiet surrounded by the hubbub of your fellow Lords. Hawthorne shakes his head again. He lets out a breath, the bubble breaks. "I apologise, my lord, I grow maudlin," he says, as he forces himself into some semblance of a smile. "We hardly have time to dwell upon the past, not when Young Wulfram means to mortgage away any hope of securing our future."

"You disagree with Wulfram's position?"

"That said, Wulfram may have a point."

"What of the common people? I have heard rumours of riots�"

"Does he truly mean to leave the realm defenceless?"

# ? Mar 7, 2023 01:42

Regallion: Nov 11, 2012

I love oscillating he might actually have a point

# ? Mar 7, 2023 08:37

STABASS: Apr 18, 2009; Fun Shoe

"Does he truly mean to leave the realm defenceless?"

too terrible to imagine...

# ? Mar 7, 2023 12:25

Rogue AI Goddess: May 10, 2012; I enjoy the sight of humans on their knees.
That was a joke... unless..?

Defenceless? For real?

# ? Mar 7, 2023 15:24

Regallion: Nov 11, 2012

As a reminder, our father (whom we actually liked on this character). flat-out told us that those taxes impoverished our tenants, leaving less of them and lower rent, putting us deeper into debt. As far as cash-money goes we don't actually like those taxes at all, although ofc getting bodied by either elves or not!china would be unpleasant too.

# ? Mar 7, 2023 15:35

Rogue AI Goddess: May 10, 2012; I enjoy the sight of humans on their knees.
That was a joke... unless..?

Regallion posted:

As a reminder, our father (whom we actually liked on this character). flat-out told us that those taxes impoverished our tenants, leaving less of them and lower rent, putting us deeper into debt. As far as cash-money goes we don't actually like those taxes at all, although ofc getting bodied by either elves or not!china would be unpleasant too.

Our tenants should do more war crimes to pay their rent. Maybe hang some partisans with bootstraps.

# ? Mar 7, 2023 15:41

Regallion: Nov 11, 2012

Rogue AI Goddess posted:

Our tenants should do more war crimes to pay their rent. Maybe hang some partisans with bootstraps.

The actual war crime guy didn't actually get that rich, couldn't even afford a promotion at the end. Crime really kinda doesn't pay here.

As for a more pragmatic argument - any taxes those poor fuckers aren't paying to the crown, they can be paying to us instead.

# ? Mar 7, 2023 16:03

Gun Jam: Apr 11, 2015

"What of the common people? I have heard rumours of riots�"

Riots of the commoners lead to guillotines, and we don't what that. Gotta pretend to care about 'em.

edit:

Lord Cyrahzax posted:

It's a long game, so I'm still more or less ruminating on my final opinion

ach, that's doesn't bodes well.

# ? Mar 7, 2023 16:39

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# ? May 5, 2024 06:19

STABASS: Apr 18, 2009; Fun Shoe

seems like a waste to have invested all our money in ye olde lockheed martin and our position as a lieutenant-colonel if we weren't going to lean on it. dad was cool and all, but he didn't have skin in the game!

# ? Mar 7, 2023 16:40

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Let's Play! > I Have Tasted Command, And I Cannot Give It Up: Lords of Infinity

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