Ulthor's troops,,

While building the xcell spread sheet I was wondering if the fellows who showed up have any real training.

its not that I'm trying to shortcut their rise to 1st but rather , IF they have no real training as of yet then weapon choice could still be changed, seeing we have surplus swords coming out your ying yang why would we maintain 40 light infantry with clubs, when they could be upgraded to sword for no cost other than a good cleaning and sharpening.

on that note what were the orc hordes carrying, mostly sword, some axe etc?

While upgrading for cav would mean getting new bigger horses for the majority, a costly change, upgrading for Infantry would simply be buying them better armour, weapons, some of which we have in great quantities.

eg, the 40 light inft with ;padded and club should really be upgraded to chain and sword, chain axe, something that is well within Ulthors means?

To avoid min/maxing with 0-level troops.

It adds a bit of flavour to the game. For example: the troops with clubs are a bunch of hillbillies, whereas the cavalry might be plainsmen with a military tradition and access to better equipment.

Once they're first level they can be upgraded to fit one's needs or style.

I can see cultural differences and pure preference in weapons but no one in their right mind willingly goes into battle with a club if there is a mace available,. no?

I'm just concerned about when these soldiers choose their 3 weapons, if it is at zero and then they are stuck with clubs..

If they can use anything at zero and choose at 1 then its not a big issue right now.
If it is just being poor hillbillies we have better and they should jump at it.

Again, it's to avoid min/maxing and overbalancing the game, and to add cultural flavour. Eighty warriors with chain & shield is more of a game changer than, say, twenty. It gets worse when you add a bow and another weapon.

I think there are examples of people resisting better weapons over traditional ones or, for that matter, some outright insane choices--naked claymore-wielding Scotsmen comes to mind.

Read the AD&D henchman rules. I seem to recall henchmen and hirelings have a loyalty chart, but followers do not. Henchmen were the rare ones. I'm sure there are other differences between followers, hirelings, and henchmen.

That said, from what I remember you get one weapon at 0-level, and you make your choices at 1st level. I don't recall if 0-level NPC followers gain anything more. I know you and Jonathan have come up rules, so the decision is his concerning followers and their difference to hirelings and henchmen.

There's the rub, these guys are all 0 level and yet most of them have 2 or 3 weapons already chosen for them via DMs guide.
Most are ok choices,, I'm not against weird weapons as I always try to take something that's a little different so as not to min max , spetum, bola, mancatcher etc. they are not always as useful but adds flavour,,(always makes it a bitch to find an enchanted version)

of course the idea of light infantry and/or the use of skirmishers has always bugged me. Was that really the best way of using them or was it simply a make do situation because those troops or that army could not afford good weapons? To me skirmishers always seemed cannon fodder to the front and not a good use of manpower and unless your weapons were mandated by the unit you belonged to, would they not be the first to pick the dead for better weapons. No different than Canadian troops throwing their Ross rifles into a shell crater the first chance the got when a dead brit with a Lee Enfield was nearby.

There is always an argument for fast troops who can dash in and out, traverse rough terrain, go out and forage etc and I can see these folks having substandard armour due to weight concerns but that is no reason not to have decent weapons if available. I'm not trying to min max them, mace instead of club, even spear, axe just have a practicality to them a club does not. Even a beserker uses a sword despite shunning clothes.

I'm sure clubs is a financial statement more than anything else for these troops.

The light infantry is actually equipped as follows: padded armor & shield: spear and club. I suppose they could carry short swords instead of clubs, but they aren't really supposed to mix it up. That's what they med. and heavy inf. is for. And yes, the light infantry is something of a cushion to slow down the opposing army while everyone else gets into position.

AH, I think I missed the spear part of the description, it was late,, poor bastards running around with clubs had me worried.

That said, as a more static force rather than field army, light inf has a much less important role.

PS, spread sheet is complete for the new troops.


its time to decide if we are hanging around all season or going out and doing something.

First however we need to have the orc lands scouted to see if a new army is being formed up for a campaign or if they appear to be in static defence mode?

provided we see no unusual groupings, movements, stockpiles we should go seal the mine for the dwarves or some such thing.

With that in mind, I still need a ruling if the guild's magic making monkeys had an answer for my query regarding either a 1 or 2 way communication device.

As defender of the faith I cannot leave in good conscience knowing I cannot be summoned back if the SHTF. I asked back when I had the sword made if such an item was feasible, if so I should have been able to receive it by now.
IMO, long distance communication is simple compared to teleporting, pulling monsters, fire, ice,stone etc out of thin air/one's ass, communing with trans dimensional beings. Actually the lack of communication devices seems to be a major blind spot in the game. If nothing else could Solomon not hire one of his fellow PSI to move to town as a message service, Free room, board, land +$ for someone willing to occasionally message those of us out adventuring, or relay messages to Solomon in Grey Hawk. once notified I can bring back the heavy hitters via my swords recall power.

Personally I'd like to do some that scouting myself , while killing a few orcs would just attract attention to ourselves ,something to be avoided. I would like to go a hunting for their human mercs. When it comes down to it killing mercs will probably piss off the orcs slightly less than killing their orcish leaders and would rid us of a greater threat if we find their mages/clerics.

Capturing and charming a couple of their human mercs would also be advantageous in revealing their plans, where the paymater is, supply schedule, number of ships, ........

I'd like to spend the season casting plant growth (Cirdastan's crops and the scrub and vines leading to Cirdastan) and tree growth, yet I'm itching to go out and scout the area for orcs--some action would be welcome. Another invasion could be mounting.

Now Carrow has his new spell, I find his ability to identify wizards helpful and potentially damaging to our enemies.

A few weeks hunting our enemies would be a welcome reprive.

Also, I'd love to know about Carse. I wonder if it is the same Carse that was an old RPG supplement.

2 votes for scouting.

Paul,

Am I missing something about play balance the explains why communication spells are nearly non existent?

Conservation of energy would make sending a voice or a thought so much easier than teleport or a summons. Is there any spell other than than the whisper spell that fits the mold?

with scry you get vision make it two way and use chalk boards,
or make it one level higher and allow communication through it.
the magical "bandwidth' for a video feed must be more magically expensive than a mere duplex audio

There is the 5th level magic-user spell Sending. Though the communication is limited to 25 words, it can be answered by the known creature contacted with 25 words.

I don't see a game balance issue. That said, it's the old rule: if you have it they have it, especially with the more powerful or useful spells.

I think the lack of communication spells stems from the game's need for face-to-face role-playing opportunities, or it could be an area of the game that just crops up rarely and is overlooked save for some limited use at higher levels.

I'm not looking for a shortwave or cell phone just a pager,,

town in danger, come quick,
goat ate holy book, fuck!

etc.
but 5th level for 25 words, a mage would just scry you, and then teleport to you

3rd level maybe, 5 words/level both ways.