Drow Wars: House Arkenrae (IC)

[Erad]

Turn 1: Deep mines of svirfneblin

Times for House Arkenrae, the 12th House of Menzoberanzan weren't calm. It was surrounded by possible enemies, and was too far from Ruling Council position to feel safe. Fortunately, it had a good army and good terms with Baenres, the First and most powerful House. Even more fortunately, House Arkenrae was favored by Lolth.

It was time to make the House even more powerful: to equip it's army with decent gear.

The nobles of Arkenrae sent their agents to various locations, to seek the new source of wealth for their House, as well as for better war gear.

Erudiel, the Matron Mother checked many possible options, but after some thinking and hot debates, the rulers decided that it is better to seek wealth beyond the city borders. Rulers decided to invade and capture a small mining settlement of svirfneblin, although the mine was small, it provided very rare adamntium - the metal most priced by drow. It had other metals too: like gold and silver.

Deep gnomes only recently started to work in the mine, so their defenses weren't fully built. A small army, lead by House Nobles, could break through the defenses, kill all deep gnomes and capture the mine for their own use.

Right now, House nobles were preparing the detailed plans of the operation.

[Noedig]

Calvyr silently materializes out of the shadows of the war room.There was a large carved stone table with maps strewn about, dimly lit by a flickering candles. He sees that he is the first one to arrive, and he finds a dark quiet corner to wait for the other nobles.

[Jallorn]

Erthagh, meanwhile, is pouring over the maps they have of the area. He stands, weaponless, but not defenseless, bathed in the glow of enchanted fires over the marble table.

[un_known]

The light that did bathe Erthagh was not entirely enchanted fire. As part of it flared and then dimmed low into nothingness Rhyl`xun stood in his silvery cape, "When do we begin?"

[Noedig]

Calvyr does not move, but speaks from his corner.

"Where should we always begin, Master of Rogues? Scouts and assassins. 'Know your enemy, so that you may better place your first strike.' That is what I was taught."

[un_known]

"Calvyr don't be snide. I said where not when. Use those ears or they'll get cut off and I'd hate to get blood on this fine cloak," Rhyl`xun says with a sneer.

"But you are right, I shall have our spies move out momentarily once Mother Matron arrives. She does have the final say."

[Ranger Mattos]

Kamfe sits quietly in his chair during the proceedings. At his side are two daggers of the finest quality, and his cloak seems to bend with the shadows.

[Noedig]

Calvyr shrugs, remaining largely impassive.

"As you will. As to when, it may take a cycle or two but if we can find their sleeping patterns, I feel it would be the most opportune moment to attack."

[un_known]

"Sleeping patterns would be good. But where is mother? She seems to have slipped away from us, possibly in the temple?" Rhyl`xun asks his tone slightly offended.

He turns and pulls a bell-pull. After curtly telling the Servant, a slave actually, to find Erudiel he turns back to the map.

"If all bodes well I think we should move out soon and set up a kind of perimeter around their camp. So as to collect as many living ones, dead ones won't work."

[Cute and Evil]

Erudie came in just at this moment, and, always aware of anything and everything that happened in her presence responded to this as if she'd been there the whole time. "I do not plan to have our own precious people work in the petty mine, so let them do it, capture will indeed be our best plan de campagne. When she finishes, she lets out her hands, letting her cloak, robes and other clothes spread about and to her back, so she could move her arms more freely.

"No blood has to be shed, though red is a nice colour. The Inferior svirfneblin don't even have to be unsatisfactory with our agreement, they probably don't even know the value of adamantium, which we will surely downplay, and they would keep the gold, and give use the silver and the adamantium." While she's saying this, she pacing the room a little, which, with her fragile appearance, doesn't mean a lot at all. "It will seem like a perfectly good deal to them. We give them protection, they mine, we cut the share 50/50."

After all of this, she lets her words sink in on her children and joins Ertagh by the maps, pointing out possible choke-points, to cut off communication, and points good for observation. "Before we invade the mines, we shall know exactly when they do what in each day, I will do my best to help in this regard, and we will only attack with a few elite soldiers, making an elaborate show out of their military might."

Spoiler

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Erudiel, being the divining person she is, casts Status on each of the other 5 nobles each day, starting when we wake up, ending an hour before we go to seep (that time-frame should be about 15 hours).

[Jallorn]

Uncharacteristically for most male drow, Erthagh argues outright with his matron, That won't work. For starters, what happens when a greater house decides to take the creatures as slaves? Rightfully, we would have no honest argument against it. No, instead I think that we should capture them, and then sell those we don't have a use for. Put more conditioned slaves in the mines instead.

[un_known]

"Politics... Politics. I just wish we could end it with a nice big cliff that would kill them when they fall. I could easily deal with anyone who comes to collect them so long as we have something like that," Rhyl`xun muses.

But then he to looks at Erudiel, "Mother Erthagh is right though. The Greater Houses would look upon that as a sign of weakness. What if instead we took the wives and children prisoner. It provides us with a large number of potential sacrifices if they don't follow our orders. Love itself can be a weapon if used right."

Rhyl`xun smiles coldly and awaits his mothers decision.

[Noedig]

Calvyr moves forward quietly to the center of the room.

"That could easily backfire, Master Rhyl'xun. Putting the wives and children in jeopardy will probably be sufficient to cow the weaker willed ones. However when put into such a position, men can become desperate, and stupid. It would not do to have to put down a slave rebellion. It'd be too expensive."

He pauses, considering the ideas the others have laid out.

"I propose a synergy of the plans. Capture as many slaves as possible; men women and especially children. Tell the men that they must work the mines, and if they are agreeable and not prone to dissent or riot, we reward them, and let them live as families. If not, we take that privilege away. If the offence is egregious, we make a brutal example of them."

"Treat them like beasts, train them like beasts, and eventually they'll become beasts. Nice and complacent.

[Cute and Evil]

Erudiel's foresight had warned her of unexpected resistance, and she smiled to know it wasn't the svirfneblin, but her children, who have come to do this more often. The house was better for it too, because the ideas laid down on the table were all good ones, and as Calvyr rightly pointed out, "Treat them like beasts, train them like beasts, and eventually they'll become beasts."

"Very well Calvyr, we shall do the following: Make the men work the mines, have the wives tend to them and our guards, and let them live in families, sacrificing anyone too old to work. A violent act of any sort will be rewarded with a day of public torture, followed by a public sacrifice, which my priestesses are all adept in. Any act of disobedience will be rewarded by complete isolation for twice as long as the disobedience lasts, always at least a couple months."

As if her declaring the plan wasn't enough to show her authority, she began assigning people to the duties they would do, be it reconnaissance of the deep gnomes' camp (a duo-deal for Rhyl ' xun and Calvyr), finding the right people and equipment to invade the camp when ready (Kamfe), or finding out if there were any notable magics in the immediate vicinity of the svirfneblin mines (another duo for Ertagh and Ayne'elv.) while she herself declared to find the best priestesses to end the fight quicker than it already was by buffing their own soldiers.

"Once everyone is done with their current missions, report back to me and we shall start making plans for the actual invasion. Oh, and try to keep this from the other Houses, they will try the same if they knew, and do it sooner than us." Unless anyone physically stops her from leaving the room, which isn't very hard with her physique, she exits immediately.

[Jallorn]

Satisfied with the plan, Erthagh mutters something no one else understands, and begins to fade from view. From there, he heads for the mines, flying all the way.

[Noedig]

Calvyr salutes the Matron Mother, and turns to Rhyl'xun. He was pleased that his plan had been adopted, but chose not to be smug about it. After all, these were blood relatives to the Matron Mother, and they did outnumber him.

"Don't prod a sleeping Tarrasque. Sound advice from my masters."

"Shall we begin forging our plan? We have some time yet, but it would not do to wait long.

[un_known]

"I would rather begin moving now. I grow skittish when the fire does not burn around me. Your path shall be lighted by my glow and anyone else will only see darkness. You decide and I will follow, I wish to see just how good you actually are," Rhyl`Xun says as he begins to wrap his cloak around himself. Then he stops.

"Actually I think before we start formulating a plan we should find out what other houses are doing in response to this settlment. I don't want to wind up finding we arn't the only ones alone at the encampment. Excluding the slaves of course."

Spoiler

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Edit: Done to fix Spelling

[Noedig]

Calvyr nods.

"I haven't received any word from my spies on that matter. Have you?"

[Erad]

Before leaving for the mines, make rolls I asked for.

Edit: And write how many warriors you take and what equipment you use.

[Noedig]

Calvyr hopes for their sakes that none of his spies have been seen or caught. They know the penalty for failure.

Spoiler

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(1d20+23)[43]

OOC: NAt 20

[Erad]

Did you roll intelligence or counter intelligence?? Roll both please.

[Ranger Mattos]

On the way to the mines, Kamfe slowly slides from shadow to shadow. He doesn't speak at all on the way, being a silent type.

OOC: subscription trigger.