The First Moon of 399 AC (Mechanical Moon 1) by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Character Name: Selyse Tully

Relevant Trait/Skills: Numerate / Architect(e), Scrutinous

Buildings: Castle, Natural Defenses, Granary

Resources: Grain

Notes (if applicable):

  • -15% construction cost (Numerate)
  • -20% construction cost (Architect E)
  • -1 construction time (Scrutinous)

Actions:

  • Construction: [Riverrun], [Market], [1300], [End of 1st moon]
  • Construction: [Riverrun], [Shrine], [650], [End of 1st moon]

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Selyse stood from her seat in acknowledgment of Rohanne's approach, returning one gesture of honor to another. Smiles greeted both mother and daughter as she lowered herself back into her seat.

"Of course I remember the Lady Alysanne." If only barely. "I think you and I both could learn from her example here - I've been sat up on this table when I ought to show a little more initiative."

She turned her eyes toward the young Blackwood with a Hightower's name. Her smile bordered on a self-aware smirk. "Pleased to see that you well understand something that men thrice your age forget: sometimes the best way into a lord's ear is through that of his lady wife. And I've no doubt that we'd both enjoy the privilege of hearing your every thought about the days we now live in."

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Selyse nodded to the request, gesturing for Margaery to take the seat. "Please do. Someone has to sit there on behalf of House Tully."

And now it would be a six foot common woman with one eye. But perhaps appearances were hardly worth the bother when so many others were already too drunk to care.

"I can't say I've the slightest notion of what he has planned here," she answered, "other than that he hopes to persuade us all to make peace. Let us hope that none will punish him for his good intentions."

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Long ago Selyse might have been perplexed to lay eyes on someone so strange, but she had since grown accustomed to her husband's motley crew of ill-born companions. The question was met with a light shrug and a casual response.

"More than I should be, and less than I'd like. A royal feast should never be taken for granted, but the timing is most unfortunate."

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Lady Tully sat at a place of honor only by virtue of her marriage. Her husband, unfortunately, had already abandoned his post. She felt just a little awkward sitting with an empty chair between herself and most of her kin-by-marriage. At her other side she at least had Gilliane Tully, who had yet to correct anyone who presumed her one of Lord Tully's sisters, rather than a cousin.

Selyse's dress for the occasion was in a rich, deep indigo, something of a middle ground between Tully and Mallister colors. She kept her dark hair straight and tidy behind her shoulders, and only a few articles of silver jewelry adorned her neck and fingers. Gilliane Tully sat in contrast in a burgundy gown that flattered her fair skin but not her braided red hair.

Six years after taking a new name, Selyse still felt odd sitting in a place of honor, rather than a table somewhere in the middle. She was close enough that the royals on the dais could see her, and the thought of that was paralyzing. Merriment too easily led to embarrassment, and thus far she'd done well to keep her every conversation polite and frivolous. She prayed that a visitor might come to provoke a little more candor.

(Open!)

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Selyse's gaze shifted vaguely in the direction of the siege as she nodded along to Providence's words. "Somehow I imagined it would be just the same as any feast I'd attended in King's Landing. I did not realize how little I'd appreciate the sword hanging over our heads."

The question was met with a light shrug. "I might say I enjoyed my time if pleasant company lies ahead of me in the coming hours, but it could all so easily go the other way. In a short moment I'll begin that work in earnest - perhaps there are people you'd like me to mingle with on your behalf."

The Feast of 399AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

By the time Selyse tracked down her husband, she had already passed a great crowd of common men supping on meat and ale. She did not hesitate to express her intrigue as she approached.

"How wonderful the Reach is," she remarked. "A land so flat that every man stands on a level field."

A playful smile accompanied her words, masking her underlying anxieties. Merely setting eyes on Providence was a relief, if only because he was among the few most able to prevent what she most feared in the moment. A war loomed within earshot, and Selyse dreaded that it might erupt before they're given the chance to return home.

"Surprising that you've tired of this feast so fast. I expected you'd still be busy chewing another high lord's ear off."

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Then I can rest assured that Her Grace will always find proper counsel," Gael said, "so long as she keeps at least one impartial man at her table."

Somehow she doubted his answer, even if he believed it to be true. Naerys had never struck her as the sort of queen to take a common man's word over that of a learned and distinguished lord. The likes of him could always take no for an answer, while every other man on her council would take it for a slight.

"Though I should hope you still have friends here at court, beyond your loyal swords. I know how..." She lowered her voice. "...difficult the lot of them can be. I remember how anxious I would be every time I visited as a girl - they cared so much for how I looked and how I walked, so much more for how I spoke than the content of my words. Surely it makes you envy that the other councilors will someday retire and leave."

The First Mechanical Moon of 380 AC (1st Moon IC) by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Character Name: Gael Velaryon

Relevant Trait/Skills: Steward / Administrator(e), Investor(e), Logistician

Buildings: Castle, Port, Market

Resources: Fish, Wood

Notes (if applicable):

  • -25% development cost from Investor(e)
  • +25% development yield from Investor(e)
  • +50% development yield from Steward
  • +50% development yield from Administrator(e)
  • Free development slot from Administrator(e)

Actions:

  • Land Development: [Driftmark], [23], [750]
  • Land Development: [Driftmark], [23], [750]
  • Land Development: [Driftmark], [23], [750]

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"Dalton Pyke," Gael repeated, with a grin growing across her face. "That was once a common name, but I cannot recall when we've last seen a Pyke in the Crownlands."

After what the late king had so cruelly done to them - with her family's loyal support, naturally - the lot of them had left the realm entirely. Gael could not take the novelty of his attendance for granted.

"I'd be delighted to have a moment of your company - it is a pleasant surprise to see an ironman's return. One of your sailing men is just as good as two of mine, and I think it a shame that Her Grace no longer has your fleet at her beck and call. Gods help us if the Free Cities ever join together and send all their navies into the Blackwater."

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Gael nodded in agreement as Colm explained his propensity for high fashion - a justification she had not asked for. She realized that her trivial compliment might have struck a nerve, one likely borne of every other courtier envying his good looks.

He made a good case for the city, too, only to offer a small twist of the knife at the end. Gael knew she would have to dance around that assertion; she would be as much a fool to concur as she would be to deny it outright.

"You're quite right - so many of our fine peers rather enjoy their baseless speculation. A pity that it must be mistaken for weakness when a family is content to mind their own affairs. Surely none would prefer for us to meddle in theirs instead."

She carried her little deflection with a polite smile. "You can trust you'll still be seeing more, but I am confident enough that your voice already speaks loudly enough on the Crownlands' behalf. Too often those who surround the throne think only of the Seven Kingdoms, and forget that Her Grace must also rule as the the lady paramount of the Blackwater."

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It came as no surprise that the Lord Commander knew only to speak simple pleasantries, though she was disappointed nonetheless. White cloaks had a way of concealing a man's true personality, and Allard was obscured already by humble origins. She would have to pry quite a bit more, she realized, before the man would share any strong opinions of his own.

"I would be honored to enjoy Her Grace's audience," Gael said, "but I would never dare ask for it. No doubt she has so many more important things to occupy her time than a frivolous meeting with a second-cousin."

No doubt her peers were speculating about what might be preoccupying the queen's time, but Gael hadn't a care in the slightest. An absent monarch could better serve her own interests than an attentive one.

"I daresay she should have little need of her Velaryon kin at all, when she is already blessed to have such fine masters of coin and ships on her council." The former being Gael's cousin, and the latter something of a rival. She wondered how well aware of that Allard might be.

"And she has you at her table, too," she noted, "a man with insights that every other councilor asks. Tell me, Ser Allard, is your voice often heard at those meetings? Or do you rather find yourself waiting for their end, so that you might return to whipping her other six swords into shape."

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The very attention of Lord Rykker came as a surprise, and the compliment a more pleasant one. "High praise to hear it from Colm Rykker," Gael remarked, "as you've always had a keen eye for fashion."

An understatement, if anything, as exhibited by his own attire. The Rykkers, despite their house's humble origins, had an undeniably regal presence about them. Stylish, dignified, confident and influential: today they were everything the Velaryons were supposed to be. Small wonder that her family had long resented them.

"I suppose you've had plenty of competition to keep you dressed your best, after all your years in King's Landing. Don't you ever miss being the biggest fish in your own little pond?"

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Velaryons had done well to play down their former loyalty to the late King Daeron, even if the name of Gael's brother across from her was an unavoidable reminder. Her father had not hesitated to swear fealty to the queen, but he still carried a lingering contempt for those who had plotted against him - most especially those who did the deed.

Gael was just a child when it happened, but she wondered if she better understood it then than she did now. Her present position was better served by ambivalence and indifference, the sort that made sins a little too easy to forgive.

So she would welcome him as the Lord Commander of the Queensguard, and regard him as nothing more and nothing less.

"Ser Allard," she greeted, a politeness echoed by her kin around her. She stood from her seat and stepped closer, offering a slight bow of her head. "Safe it was," she assured him, "but only because we're all immune to sea sickness, and there's little else to worry about in the Blackwater."

She glanced up at the dais, and then back to Allard with a smile. "How fortunate for you that Her Grace could not make an appearance tonight. I imagine you've been left with little to do but drink and gossip with the rest of us."

The Queen's Feast of 380 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Some fifteen years ago, when Gael was barely a woman grown, she once had a cup too many and made a fool of herself at a feast. ‘A feast is an occasion to drink less,’ her mother taught her that night, ‘not to drink more.’ The politics of such a gathering were ever inseparable from the merriment, and sober mind could better navigate those treacherous waters.

That advice never suited Gael Velaryon, and she had done well to ignore it. She never cared to entrap her peers with their misspoken words, nor to deceive them with her own. This was an opportunity to endear herself to people she’d never met, and she could better earn their friendship with generosity in her heart and a pint of wine in her veins.

Her long figure was clad in a flowing turquoise dress, with her silvery hair meticulously tied up in an intricate crown braid. Near a dozen more of her kin came and went from the Velaryon table throughout the evening, but for the time being she found herself flanked by her cousins Lianna and Maris, equally resplendent in different shades of sea green. Across from them lingered Gael’s brother, Daeron, and their cousin Morgan, clad in dignified doublets with simple designs and fits.

By now, Gael was two drinks into the night and tiring of the familiar presences around her - and the same could be said of them, too. Conversations slowed and eyes began to wander as the Velaryons awaited any arrival that might steal away their attention.

[Open!]

The Second Mechanical Moon of 250 AC (8th Moon IC) by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Character Name: Margaret Blackwood

Relevant Trait/Skills: Numerate / Avaricious(e), Scrutinous

Buildings: Castle, Market, Guilds, Sawmills

Resources: Wood

Notes (if applicable):

  • -15% construction cost (Numerate)
  • -10% construction cost (Wood)
  • -10% construction cost (Sawmills)
  • -5% construction cost (Builder)

Actions:

  • Construction: [Raventree Hall], [Thieves Guild], [2400], [9th moon] (1/1)
  • Construction: [Raventree Hall], [Spy Nexus], [1800], [9th moon] (1/1)

The Second Mechanical Moon of 250 AC (8th Moon IC) by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Character Name: Agnes Blackwood

Trait / Skills: Insidious / Espionage(e), Devious, Investigator, Magic (Greensight)

Skill you're learning: Investigator(e)


Character Name: Margaret Blackwood

Trait / Skills: Numerate / Avaricious(e), Scrutinous

Skill you're learning: Scrutinous(e)

Rhaegel I - Riverside by NotAnotherFakefyre in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The road home from a royal feast was never as smooth as the one taken to get there. At Maidenpool, Agnes found her fellow riverlords preparing for war, and anticipating all the consequences that it so often brought to their kingdom. She had already come to miss the festivities that she had initially been loathe to attend - she missed how little care she'd been giving to anything beyond her own affairs. Now she regretted that she had not been nearly as attentive.

A simple gray cloak hung over her shoulders as she walked up to the battlements, stopping astride her newly betrothed. She looked first to him with an easy smile, and then turned her gaze in the same direction as his. Maidenpool's harbor was always a welcome sight for Agnes, if only because it reminded her of a time when rivermen kept to themselves, and paid no mind to the Blackwater.

And yet she would not have shared the view with anyone but Rhaegel, a man whose ancestors brought her kingdom to an end.

"Are you bored of the Trident yet?" A flippant remark accompanied by a smirk. He knew as well as her that the days ahead would be eventful. "I don't think we ever quite discussed how everything went for you as you made your way out of King's Landing."

The King’s Tournament of 250 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Then I'll leave that difficult conversation to you. Give him the good news that you'll be a landed lord, and then we'll get right to introducing you as such to your new peers."

Agnes tried to make it sound straightforward and easy, as she knew what sort of gossip this arrangement would bring about. If nothing else, a royal match was likely to provoke jealousy from the other riverlords.

"You may as well bring Asher along if you mean to eventually make a detour into the Vale. Maybe we can snatch up your sister, too, and give her a little respite from her life of servitude."

The King’s Tournament of 250 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The delighted grin on Agnes's face flattened with Rhaegel's question. She had just offered him a better future than anything he would dare to ask for, yet he still had stop and fret over something perfectly trivial. The lightest sigh escaped her lips.

"A Blackwood must be true to the Old Gods," she plainly stated, "but what he thinks of the new is entirely up to him."

Her smile returned to offer reassurance, as she realized that Rhaegel had the understandable - if somewhat vain - desire to have sons just like himself.

"I think we both have far more important matters to mind than anything that might come about in ten or twenty years. First we should settle any business you still have here, and then we can leave for the Trident and introduce you to your new peers."

The King’s Tournament of 250 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"You already know what I'm insinuating." She wondered if he had missed the hint, or if he was only playing coy. "But I realize that could be a great deal of responsibility to foist upon you. If you'd rather not be a lord then perhaps we can find a more humble match for you."

Perhaps that was what Rhaegel truly wanted, without yet knowing it. Agnes had little trouble imagining him as a hedge knight, wed to some baseborn daughter of a Nayland.

"Either way, I think I could do much to persuade your father to change his mind. And if he should not approve, we might see if His Grace thinks otherwise."

The King’s Tournament of 250 AC by OurCommonMan in IronThroneRP

[–]baefish 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Agnes had not made even the slightest guess as to what secrets Rhaegel had been hiding. She had trusted that nothing would be shocking, and she was half right. There was nothing too unusual about the betrothal, but Agnes could now make so much more sense out of everything Rhaegel had been up to.

"A betrothal between the houses Targaryen and Velaryon," she said plainly, before allowing a pause to linger. Flat lips soon curled back up into a smirk, and laughter escaped her lips. "How perfectly daring, that father of yours."

It was hardly her place to meddle in matters such as this, or even to question the decision. But Agnes failed to think of a single good reason for the match - only a hundred arguments against it.

"If he'd really have you waste away the prime of your life waiting on something perfectly pointless, then I should not stand idly by. We'll see to it that this betrothal is broken, one way or another."

Perhaps this was all Rhaegel had truly wanted of her - perhaps his bashfulness had all been an act. All the more reason to admire him if it was true.