The Eastern Council: Session Two

Count Vincent stood up just after Valdir finished. It seemed he always had a different opinion to anyone.

"I second the thought of Count Valdir as Treasurer, he has prooven himself as someone who knows how to distribute and handle Money."

"For Marshall I would nominate someone who is closer to the most possible danger. If Lady Abaddon is scouting the north the news will take to long to reach the far south. As Lady Abaddon has proven herself a competent Commander I would support her." Vincent made a small pause." If only she was here. Maybe we could give the new one in our mids a chance to proove himself. I nominate Count Rolando."

Vincent raised his hand and pointed towards the silent man now sitting among them.

"I have some problems with the Warden of the North however. It will require a great amount of troops for the Warden to effectivly scout the north. Maybe we should first ask who has the required amount of manpower to serve this task."

Everard rubbed his chin

"Perhaps Rolando would be a good Marshall, but I need to know his qualifications. Count Simon would perhaps be better off maintaining the budget, being more familiar with the border and the needs of it. But I am not discounting the contribution of Count Bazzano."

"I understand the need for the positions of Marshal and Treasurer, but I do not feel it would be prudent to create the position of Warden."

Everard shifted in his seat

"If it is true that the Lady Abaddon is facing charges for breaching the king's peace, then let us think about what led us to that point. A horrendous scouting attempt and a pre-emptive strike, one that was a Pyrrhic victory at that."

"It is one thing, to raid the bordering provinces, that is just border strife. But if the king were to hear that we are actively scouting the Mystmountains, without his permission at that, he would not be pleased."

He looked to the Governor

"I propose that before we do anything about scouting the Mystmountains, we ask the King for his permission. And if we do this, it might be better not to appoint one who has been charged with breaking the king's peace in a position that could very well trigger a war."

He looked to the other lords

"If we need a scouting party, perhaps it would be the best not to put the entire burden on a single noble, and instead, we could contact the Royal Pendorian Army to provide the scouts. We could possibly rent them out, using the tax."

Count Quiris takes a look around all the nobles that had talked. He started to answer them in the order they spoke.

"Your concerns have been heard, Count Lane. We will vote for the title of treasurer between you and Count Bazzano then.

Count Margrove, your suggestions of Countess Abaddon and Count Juarez have been put on the list of nominated Marshals. We will vote on this matter too, soon.

As for the position of Warden, it seems that Count Amelion wishes to postpone this in favour of getting information about the King's opinion. The idea has merit, but I have doubts regarding the Army's wilingness to deploy here. Thus, I wouldn't leave out the possibility of scouting "shifts" if the actual title is not created. We will vote for the creation of the title with the others.

However, I will write about your questions to the Royal Court, Count Amelion. I would rather not anger the King with unnecessary breach of peace if possible."


OOC: You have some time to nominate or give suggestions

Everard nodded his head

"My thanks to you, Governor Corax."

Rolando cleared his throat.

"I appreciate the suggestion to nominate myself to the position of Marshall, but as a recent arrival to the Steppe, such a nomination is premature. Someone with experience would seem more appropriate at this time."

He glanced at Everard.

"Forgive me, but I don't see the harm in scouting parties. Perhaps you have a point about placing this burden on one lord, but as long as we do not actively engage the Mystmountains, I don't see the issue. To eliminate this would leave us blind to any potential threats."

Finally the newcomer spoke up. He hoped he would say something when he proposed him as a Marshal. At least he revealed something about himself.

"There is much harm in scouting parties Count Rolando. The first that was sent to the north got utterly destroyed and in its aftermath a great deal of men were killed. One Lord can not do it alone because it would leave his County undefended, and to get two or more Lords to work together is something which might get difficult a well. Right now the Watchtowers are enough to keep us informed and give us enough early warning."

Vincent looked down a second.

"There might be way if every Lord chooses 100 of his men and puts them under control of a single commander who then acts as a Warden and patrols the Northern Border. That would strain every Lord the same and grant us a force big enough to not be crushed at once. That Captain of course answers only to the Governor."

Vincent was clearly proud of his idea. That much showed on his face before he started writing something again on a piece of parchment.

Simon spoke up in response to Count Vincent's suggestion.

"I'm afraid rallying soldiers under one commander is simply not feasible at the current time. One commander, at this stage, can not run such a large army on his own. Some of us here can easily lead 200 men, others can lead up to 400. However, an army of about 1000? No noble or captain that I know of can do so.

Perhaps next season this may be possible, but as of now that suggestion will not work. Also, such a large force is more of a patrol of the northern borders instead of simply scouts. Have you heard a scouting party of 1000 men strong, clustered under one banner?"

Simon glanced at the parchment provided in front of him, detailing the events thus far. He then continued speaking.

"If I may inquire, Governor, how will the scouting parties work? The idea has merit, but I wonder about the execution."

"That seems like a sensible solution. Though it might need modification, as Count Lane has so noted."

Rolando nodded at Vincent, then Simon.

"Perhaps the responsibility to provide men could rotate among us?"

Quiris answered Count Lane.

"The basic principle is that the warden organizes scouting parties from his/her manpower to scout the borders of the north for Mystmountain activity without engaging. Getting information about gathering hordes woud help the Steppe in preparing for them. Whether a pre-emptive strike is executed or defensive positions set up is a question for the Marshal."

Simon briefly looked down on the parchment provided for the meeting. He had let a detail slip his comprehension, but luckily he did not comment directly on that particular issue.

"Thank you, Governor. I have nothing more to say on this matter."

Simon resumed his attention to the overall session.

"But isn't that what the Lords of the North are already doing? If this is what the Warden should do then I see no sense in it."

"No, they rarely do. There are other problems beside the great hordes when you live near the border, but enough of that."

Quiris motioned for a servant to deal out pieces of parchments.

"We will now vote on the positions, the parchments in front of you contain the options to choose from. Then we will move on to the next part, individual concerns. From what I have heard during this meeting, most of you wish to discuss about the uses of the treasury. So far building the watchtower chain, and supporting Clarion Call have been put on the table. And thus, it might be wise to start with deciding about them."


OOC: Putting up the votes

Vincent scribbled his votes on the appers given and then looked around until everyone else was finished.

"I think the treasury should be used for matters that effect everyone. Which of course are the Watchtowers and reserve Camps. I say that the treasurer should be given a deeper insight into the economys of each county, through that he will be able to determine for what the money is used best. The treasurer can then sent letters to the Lords asking for a vote on his suggestions. That way we don't have to wait a whole season for the decisions to be made."

Quiris raises his eyebrows.

"It seems that people really agree to building the watchtower chain...

Anyhow, your idea has merit, Count Margrove, but it is a lot more reliable to vote for targets during the meetings. Calling a vote thorugh letters carries severe risks, like messengers being incapacitated by bandits, or votes being forged. It should also be taken into account that face to face meetings allow proper conversation regarding the targets of tax support. Something that doesn't work well with letters.

This is why I'd rather go through possible uses now rather than later. Royal Tax and perhaps the watchtowers are currently the only thing which have been agreed to so far."

Simon spoke once more. He was bewildered that the the so-called "isolated" barony became one of the most talkative nobles this session. The Count from Duskfall blamed it on the lack of attendance.

"In the unlikely event I become Treasurer, my plans were as follows.

1: Pay the Royal Tax.
2: Construct Watchtowers.
3: Compensate those who already built Watchtowers and Reserve Camps (20% of original cost).
4: Construct Reserve Camps.

After that matter has been taken care of, the money can be used for emergency funding or future projects. I was going to suggest perhaps constructing a Steppe Road to help with maneuvering soldiers around the steppe so precious time is not wasted on travel, a problem that may have occurred during the rallying phase of Tysha's expedition. Of course, such a network will be expensive, and it must be maintained. This road may even help with the merchant caravans as well."

The warrior then resumed silence, pondering how long it will be before he had to speak up about one topic or another...

"A road? Between Marleons and..the wasts of Poinsbruk?"

Valdir had been silent like most of the small party and suddenly realized something that made a wide grin appear on his face.

"The road is something we can discuss in the future, but for now I would like to suggest another matter to be written at the bottom of the agenda, namely awarding a title to Count Andros Vaaron. It seems Andros the Absent is so careless that I still don't know what he looks like."

OOC: [two or more times absent at the Council sessions makes you eligible for the title of 'The Absent'. Refusing the title has the normal penalty.]

Quiris looked at Count Bazzano.

"And what would this title entail?"

And one more to the flipped parchments department.

"As there seems to be a general consensus regarding the wathtowers, I would prefer to bring up the matter of Clarion Call forward. Countess McCulloch has suggested that the steppe support the order monetarily. If so, how much per month/season, and are there conditions to be put on this."

Vincent heard Valdir, but he thought it more of a joke and so did not reply to his remark. He rather talked to the Governor at first.

"If you are troubled that votes will be rigged my Lord Quiris then I might have a thing for you called encryption. In my time serving the higher echelons of the Church such matters were every day work. If you want I could implement such a system. It uses a simple technique including Quantum Mechanics Letters and Numbers."

"Such a cunning idea, Count Margrove."

Valdir lost his gay mood and the corners of his mouth dropped.

"The Absent won't have any consequences, besides offering some inspiration for the minstrels of the Steppe."

Whatever Quiris was going to say next, was cancelled by one of the servants giving a parchment to him. Quiris took a fast look at it before turing to address the lords.

"First, congratulations to Counts Bazzano and Abaddon for being elected for the positions of Treasurer and Marshal. Furthermore, the decision regarding the title of Warden will be delayed until sufficient information has been received."

Valdir stood up and bowed to those gathered.

"I'm honored that this council places its trust in me, I'm accepting the position of treasurer of the Steppe and promise to do it to the best of my ability."

He sat down again, too flattered to keep his mind on the mockery of Andros Vaaron.

Following Count Bazzano's small speeh, Quiris cotinued on the matter of Margrove.

"Should it become necessary, a code language can be arranged, and we would probably follow your suggestions. However, as of now, we are gathered here, and I see no reason to avoid making decisions here."

Quiris turned to look at Count Bazzano while handing him a piece of parchment.

"This parchment should contain all the necessary information about the tax levels of Counties. Now, we will vote on the matter of Count Vaaron's new title."

He honestly didn't know what to feel of Valdir's suggestion, but decided to allow it to serve as a reminder.

"Also, votes will be cast on suggestions by Count Lane and McCulloch."