Written By Shard
Jan. 9, 2019, 10:35 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Sparte
"Brought death and injustice to the Compact."
I was going to write more. But that line about fucking says it all, doesn't it? Fuck you. And if we end up invaded in turn by a powerful empire or two, since we seem about on the brink, just remember how much you praised this 'beautiful' dream, and check your outrage. You wouldn't want to insult other people's dreams, after all.
I was going to write more. But that line about fucking says it all, doesn't it? Fuck you. And if we end up invaded in turn by a powerful empire or two, since we seem about on the brink, just remember how much you praised this 'beautiful' dream, and check your outrage. You wouldn't want to insult other people's dreams, after all.
Written By Sophie
Jan. 9, 2019, 10:17 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Sometimes we must make a choice. We must do what is safe, or we must do what is right.
We lost so many young Mercies, and yet I find myself faced with the choice of holding them near to my heart and keeping them here safely in Arx or sending them into the world to protect and heal, which is our sacred duty.
This is the choice I make today.
If any group travelling outside of the city of Arx is in need, and they have adequate swords to protect them, a petition may be given to myself or Mercy Estelle and we will see to it that they are attended by a number of Mercies that are appropriate to their needs.
Any great endeavor holds the potential for failure. We are fallible, and human, and it is impossible to foresee every possibility. May we continue to dream big, and find ways to make those dreams a reality. Only through failure do we grow.
Our hearts and prayers are with those affected by the senseless loss of life all across our lands.
Marquis Ruslan Volkov has made a sizable donation to start a fund for a memorial for those young Mercies whose lives were lost on the pilgrimage to Blancbier. If anyone else would like to be involved in the fundraising efforts please contact myself or Mercy Estelle Blackram, Voice of Mercy.
Princess Sophie Valardin, Mother Mercy of Arx
We lost so many young Mercies, and yet I find myself faced with the choice of holding them near to my heart and keeping them here safely in Arx or sending them into the world to protect and heal, which is our sacred duty.
This is the choice I make today.
If any group travelling outside of the city of Arx is in need, and they have adequate swords to protect them, a petition may be given to myself or Mercy Estelle and we will see to it that they are attended by a number of Mercies that are appropriate to their needs.
Any great endeavor holds the potential for failure. We are fallible, and human, and it is impossible to foresee every possibility. May we continue to dream big, and find ways to make those dreams a reality. Only through failure do we grow.
Our hearts and prayers are with those affected by the senseless loss of life all across our lands.
Marquis Ruslan Volkov has made a sizable donation to start a fund for a memorial for those young Mercies whose lives were lost on the pilgrimage to Blancbier. If anyone else would like to be involved in the fundraising efforts please contact myself or Mercy Estelle Blackram, Voice of Mercy.
Princess Sophie Valardin, Mother Mercy of Arx
Written By Aureth
Jan. 9, 2019, 10:10 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Unity is not a virtue recognized by the Faith of the Pantheon. Other priests have written about this before me, and more eloquently than my pen, but it's important to think about why. Unity _may_ be admirable, but the pursuit of unity as a goal in and of itself rather than as _part_ of something else leads to homogeneity of purpose, of identity, or understanding. And that, in itself, is antithetical to the virtue of Choice.
Call not for unity. Call for compassion, for understanding, for communication and creativity and common sense in a world sorely lacking in that. But not unity.
Standing together is great when you're standing together _for_ something. But don't just stand because someone else is standing.
Call not for unity. Call for compassion, for understanding, for communication and creativity and common sense in a world sorely lacking in that. But not unity.
Standing together is great when you're standing together _for_ something. But don't just stand because someone else is standing.
Written By Cirroch
Jan. 9, 2019, 8:13 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
I'm sure when everyone got on board with making this road, the last thing they thought would happen was it would bring so much conflict. Talk about a double edged sword.
Written By Sina
Jan. 9, 2019, 6:16 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Arik
White journals are meant for all to read, and remember. Whether this road project ends in a stronger Compact or not, it is now chronicled for all to see, as it should be.
Written By Shard
Jan. 9, 2019, 5:39 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Gaston
Disaster didn't 'fall' on you. People reacted. People made choices. People killed other people. There are thousands of dead men, women, and children out there, they didn't just happen to die, and they'll be largely unmourned because, after all, this was 'progress'. There are hundreds of dead would-be Godsworn because someone couldn't be bothered to even tell the fucking difference between Prodigals and Abandoned before they started murdering them, even with a damned templar there to protect them. There are multiple new wars being fought because people are fucking idiots.
This was predictable. This is what happens when you claim and invade territory that others have been living on for generations. It always happens. A large chunk of the Compact is very happy when it does, because, after all, they're the enemy and their lives have no worth. There will never be any justice for this. But I guess you have your road.
This was predictable. This is what happens when you claim and invade territory that others have been living on for generations. It always happens. A large chunk of the Compact is very happy when it does, because, after all, they're the enemy and their lives have no worth. There will never be any justice for this. But I guess you have your road.
Written By Thena
Jan. 9, 2019, 4:28 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Sometimes we succeed.
Sometimes we fail.
Sometimes we fail hard.
Sometimes we fail hard at the expense of the lives of others.
That is the curse of being a leader. I can only hope that my Knights understand why I asked them to do what they did. That each death weighs on me. The deaths from the road, and the deaths from the Lodge, and the deaths from Stormwall and the deaths before that and the deaths before that and the-
And now we try to make things right. It's all there is to do.
Sometimes we fail.
Sometimes we fail hard.
Sometimes we fail hard at the expense of the lives of others.
That is the curse of being a leader. I can only hope that my Knights understand why I asked them to do what they did. That each death weighs on me. The deaths from the road, and the deaths from the Lodge, and the deaths from Stormwall and the deaths before that and the deaths before that and the-
And now we try to make things right. It's all there is to do.
Written By Tikva
Jan. 9, 2019, 4:14 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
I had no special gift of prescience that told me what the hazards were of this project; it was merely the application of common sense. Still, I lent my aid to it. It was my hope to mitigate the damage that would be done.
I don't regret that attempt. I cannot, for it was done in service of my House and my vassals and their lands.
I do wish that I had been more persuasive when I begged others to understand the ramifications of these efforts. Every missive that arrives describing these new fronts is one of cringing horror for me. I find that the taste of being proven correct is ... deeply unpleasant. I wish I had been wrong. I wish you all had proven me wrong.
It is to Gild I will pray tonight.
I don't regret that attempt. I cannot, for it was done in service of my House and my vassals and their lands.
I do wish that I had been more persuasive when I begged others to understand the ramifications of these efforts. Every missive that arrives describing these new fronts is one of cringing horror for me. I find that the taste of being proven correct is ... deeply unpleasant. I wish I had been wrong. I wish you all had proven me wrong.
It is to Gild I will pray tonight.
Written By Perronne
Jan. 9, 2019, 4:02 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
As an aside, for anyone who might consider reading this in the future:
After a war, or a series of wars, or other unpleasantness that kills a lot of people and turns some good farmland into churned up battlefields, and perfectly decent villages into ashy heaps, consider hiring someone with economic expertise to help you get back on your feet! Why, certainly, it is an investment, but an investment in your lands pays back dividends a hundred fold in security, tax revenue, and merchants not being afraid to come by and see what you might have to buy and sell!
If you are reading this while I am still alive, consider hiring me! If I am dead, do not hire me. I fear that I would not do a very good job under those circumstances.
After a war, or a series of wars, or other unpleasantness that kills a lot of people and turns some good farmland into churned up battlefields, and perfectly decent villages into ashy heaps, consider hiring someone with economic expertise to help you get back on your feet! Why, certainly, it is an investment, but an investment in your lands pays back dividends a hundred fold in security, tax revenue, and merchants not being afraid to come by and see what you might have to buy and sell!
If you are reading this while I am still alive, consider hiring me! If I am dead, do not hire me. I fear that I would not do a very good job under those circumstances.
Written By Sparte
Jan. 9, 2019, 3:57 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
To those who are offering their services to broker peace, thank you.
To those who are calling for unity, thank you.
To those who are rallying to face those who have brought death and injustice to the compact in these difficult times, thank you.
I hope peace will come through unity, and unity will come through justice.
Yet to those who have brought down insult and injury to those who attempted to realize a beautiful dream because of their failure, all I can say is that sometimes we come short of our goals. Sometimes the cost for that is terrible. Yet they tried, and now we have the opportunity to help them. All of us can impact what happens next, what the ultimate legacy of this becomes.
I had no hand in this grand road, but I am willing to help those who did against these new challenges. I don't yet know how I can, but that is the message I choose to send.
We do not need to let such a grand vision end in tragedy. We can come together and right this. I pray we will.
To those who are calling for unity, thank you.
To those who are rallying to face those who have brought death and injustice to the compact in these difficult times, thank you.
I hope peace will come through unity, and unity will come through justice.
Yet to those who have brought down insult and injury to those who attempted to realize a beautiful dream because of their failure, all I can say is that sometimes we come short of our goals. Sometimes the cost for that is terrible. Yet they tried, and now we have the opportunity to help them. All of us can impact what happens next, what the ultimate legacy of this becomes.
I had no hand in this grand road, but I am willing to help those who did against these new challenges. I don't yet know how I can, but that is the message I choose to send.
We do not need to let such a grand vision end in tragedy. We can come together and right this. I pray we will.
Written By Perronne
Jan. 9, 2019, 3:30 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Border wars are always exciting - where 'exciting' can usually be translated into both sides thinking that you are shifty and filled with spying (even though I like to think that I do not have the face of a spy! Or the skills of a spy. Or the training of a spy. Or the inclination to BE A SPY, but did anyone listen? Nooooo...worst trip ever.), but also both (or all) sides being willing to buy necessities from you at fabulous profits. The trick with a border war is, first, to be aware of three things for each power involved: the size of their army, how many of those were recently raised, and the time of year.
Early spring wars like these are very good for selling food products. Supplies and winter stockholds are strained, and grain stores SHOULD be being used for spring planting, when people aren't trampling your fields, trying to stab all your farmers. So, many commanders and nobility are looking for a fast source of food that won't turn your troops against you - and because it's a /border/ war, you can guarantee trade is cut off from at least one direction! So, you make an end run around the contested area, and ply your wares on the other side. Iron, leather, steel, and other war-adjacent goods move well...but be careful, because sometimes you'll just have your goods confiscated, instead. Raw material is often better than actual weapons and armor - a patrol is less likely to make use of that stuff, and doesn't have quite the same incentive to decide you are an enemy agent or spy! On the other hand, food that requires minimal cookery and stores well will sell fastest. Keep something preserved but fancy for the officers and nobles (I favor fruits preserved in a spice and honey syrup, but chocolate is also quite popular), but the bulk should be things that any quartermaster craves: rendered and concentrated fat, dried or otherwise reserved meat, pickles, bulk grains (better than flour, because it's more versatile in the cook pots), olive oil if you've been in the Lyceum recently, coffee. Of these, the fat and the oil have the best weight to profit ratio, but require some planning in advance, while arrangements can be made for most of the other goods while on your way to the warring lands. Size of the army both helps you plan how much you're likely to be able to move, AND how likely the army is to seize your goods without paying. Armies that are bigger than their lands can support are going to be hungry and angry, which is not a good combination for a merchant!
Another piece of advice - don't linger, don't pick a side. Sell what you need to sell, and then move on out of the territory. If you're not a local, the longer you stay, the more likely that you'll eventually get on someone's bad side - it might not even be about the war itself, but when your friends and family are fighting and dying, people get nervous and upset more easily! Also, when I say don't pick a side, I do mean don't pick a side. Don't smile and nod in a way that makes people THINK you're picking a side! That's one of the mistakes a new merchant often makes - they start being agreeable, which makes them partisan, and then they get sucked into the whole mess, and before they know it, they've become a quartermaster for a ragtag group of desperate soldiers in a skirmish against an overwhelming force. Then they either die or have songs written about them. Neither path is profitable! Simply express a wish for a swift and just end to the conflict, then change the subject - preferably to something that will make you actual money.
Merchanting in a war can get you a tidy windfall - or it can ruin you completely. Play at your own risk!
Early spring wars like these are very good for selling food products. Supplies and winter stockholds are strained, and grain stores SHOULD be being used for spring planting, when people aren't trampling your fields, trying to stab all your farmers. So, many commanders and nobility are looking for a fast source of food that won't turn your troops against you - and because it's a /border/ war, you can guarantee trade is cut off from at least one direction! So, you make an end run around the contested area, and ply your wares on the other side. Iron, leather, steel, and other war-adjacent goods move well...but be careful, because sometimes you'll just have your goods confiscated, instead. Raw material is often better than actual weapons and armor - a patrol is less likely to make use of that stuff, and doesn't have quite the same incentive to decide you are an enemy agent or spy! On the other hand, food that requires minimal cookery and stores well will sell fastest. Keep something preserved but fancy for the officers and nobles (I favor fruits preserved in a spice and honey syrup, but chocolate is also quite popular), but the bulk should be things that any quartermaster craves: rendered and concentrated fat, dried or otherwise reserved meat, pickles, bulk grains (better than flour, because it's more versatile in the cook pots), olive oil if you've been in the Lyceum recently, coffee. Of these, the fat and the oil have the best weight to profit ratio, but require some planning in advance, while arrangements can be made for most of the other goods while on your way to the warring lands. Size of the army both helps you plan how much you're likely to be able to move, AND how likely the army is to seize your goods without paying. Armies that are bigger than their lands can support are going to be hungry and angry, which is not a good combination for a merchant!
Another piece of advice - don't linger, don't pick a side. Sell what you need to sell, and then move on out of the territory. If you're not a local, the longer you stay, the more likely that you'll eventually get on someone's bad side - it might not even be about the war itself, but when your friends and family are fighting and dying, people get nervous and upset more easily! Also, when I say don't pick a side, I do mean don't pick a side. Don't smile and nod in a way that makes people THINK you're picking a side! That's one of the mistakes a new merchant often makes - they start being agreeable, which makes them partisan, and then they get sucked into the whole mess, and before they know it, they've become a quartermaster for a ragtag group of desperate soldiers in a skirmish against an overwhelming force. Then they either die or have songs written about them. Neither path is profitable! Simply express a wish for a swift and just end to the conflict, then change the subject - preferably to something that will make you actual money.
Merchanting in a war can get you a tidy windfall - or it can ruin you completely. Play at your own risk!
Written By Juniper
Jan. 9, 2019, 3:10 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
Due to the latest outbreak of hostilities within Arvum, and the timing of said outbreaks, I offer my services as Whisper's Peacemaker to any liege or vassal House interested in resolving these hostilities. I will charge only half my accustomed fee and will ask for payment only after treaties are signed.
If you wish to end this without further loss of life, please send a messenger to Whisper House, care of Juniper Whisper and the Radiants.
If you wish to end this without further loss of life, please send a messenger to Whisper House, care of Juniper Whisper and the Radiants.
Written By Grady
Jan. 9, 2019, 1:19 p.m.(5/1/1010 AR)
The forward course of progress is rarely smooth. There have been too many lives lost because any innocent life lost is one too many. But we cannot turn back time, so here we are now with a Great Road and a great many diplomatic issues to settle and deal with. The perpetrators of evil must be caught and brought to justice. Concerns must be alleviated. Sure, the Abandoned tribes sometimes choose to raid Compact travelers, but this road was never meant as an aggressive action. So now it is hopefully time for diplomacy. At least it's never dull.
Written By Domonico
Jan. 9, 2019, 12:22 p.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
At a time that the Compact needs to work together more than ever before comes those who would tear it apart for their own petty squabbles. Although perhaps to them these are not such petty things. Even so, it is still disheartening.
Written By Arik
Jan. 9, 2019, 11 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
Lord Arik Halfshav's treatise on the Great Road
On the date of 4/28/1010 AR there was an abundance of news regarding the consequences of the ambitious project known now as the Great Road. I write this brief treatise on the topic in the hopes future readers that care about my thoughts might avoid such issues. If I am still alive, then this white is not meant for you. Thus we begin.
First let us establish my own position. When Lord Kaldur reached out to House Halfshav I was immediately interested in the project. We are currently expanding a Mangata shrine town named Cascade Springs and the aid in roads, especially in such a hostile northern environment, can be invaluable. I encouraged my cousin Lord Mirk Halfshav to consider the project and he likewise saw the value in it. House Halfshav was a sponsor of the road.
Second let us acknowledge the consequences. Although the borders of Whitehold might be drawn in a complete line on a map that is a pretty notion. House Halfshav may have rights to the land within our domain but there are pockets of shavs either in the form of nomadic tribes which come down from Everwinter or actually settled tribes of abandoned. All of Avrum is likewise filled with the pretty maps that show the edges and borders of our noble domains and not the pockets of 'wilds' that exist within them.
So it is we have the Great Road, ambitious that it would connect as many domains on the map of Avrum as it could while daring the pockets of 'wilds' that do not exist on those maps but most certainly exist when one travels. For what it is worth the road itself was built, the deed was done, but now shav tribes and Compact Houses alike react to the new state of things. There have been skirmishes, religious conflicts, and more. In no less than a month from Copper's sacrifice we see that the world is not new and reborn with some special call to action. The world is still the world, the dream is still the dream, and as the Pantheon might say humanity still must guard against their own reflection. Nothing has changed, but we still try to improve things while our time still turns. The Great Road is a symbol of that drive to improve and do good. No matter what may come of it.
In the future when you read these white journals and see opinions both great and small I beseech you readers of this opinion. Good things do not come without cost. Gain does not come without risk. Though history might judge the Great Road for folly or current opinion at court might call into question the wisdom. Remember that when knowledge was lost we sought it. When the art of the world was tainted we pursued it. These endeavours were no less fraught with risk than the Great Road, no less ambitious, and in the end they are the same. Remember that while patience and caution are laudable traits inaction is still the enemy of progress and a better tomorrow. At least we hope for better.
On the date of 4/28/1010 AR there was an abundance of news regarding the consequences of the ambitious project known now as the Great Road. I write this brief treatise on the topic in the hopes future readers that care about my thoughts might avoid such issues. If I am still alive, then this white is not meant for you. Thus we begin.
First let us establish my own position. When Lord Kaldur reached out to House Halfshav I was immediately interested in the project. We are currently expanding a Mangata shrine town named Cascade Springs and the aid in roads, especially in such a hostile northern environment, can be invaluable. I encouraged my cousin Lord Mirk Halfshav to consider the project and he likewise saw the value in it. House Halfshav was a sponsor of the road.
Second let us acknowledge the consequences. Although the borders of Whitehold might be drawn in a complete line on a map that is a pretty notion. House Halfshav may have rights to the land within our domain but there are pockets of shavs either in the form of nomadic tribes which come down from Everwinter or actually settled tribes of abandoned. All of Avrum is likewise filled with the pretty maps that show the edges and borders of our noble domains and not the pockets of 'wilds' that exist within them.
So it is we have the Great Road, ambitious that it would connect as many domains on the map of Avrum as it could while daring the pockets of 'wilds' that do not exist on those maps but most certainly exist when one travels. For what it is worth the road itself was built, the deed was done, but now shav tribes and Compact Houses alike react to the new state of things. There have been skirmishes, religious conflicts, and more. In no less than a month from Copper's sacrifice we see that the world is not new and reborn with some special call to action. The world is still the world, the dream is still the dream, and as the Pantheon might say humanity still must guard against their own reflection. Nothing has changed, but we still try to improve things while our time still turns. The Great Road is a symbol of that drive to improve and do good. No matter what may come of it.
In the future when you read these white journals and see opinions both great and small I beseech you readers of this opinion. Good things do not come without cost. Gain does not come without risk. Though history might judge the Great Road for folly or current opinion at court might call into question the wisdom. Remember that when knowledge was lost we sought it. When the art of the world was tainted we pursued it. These endeavours were no less fraught with risk than the Great Road, no less ambitious, and in the end they are the same. Remember that while patience and caution are laudable traits inaction is still the enemy of progress and a better tomorrow. At least we hope for better.
Written By Lora
Jan. 9, 2019, 10:05 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
We undertook a great work because roads are a hallmark of a civilized world. This great work has led to chaos, strife, and death, all things that are antithetical to civilization.
It is almost like this has happened before.
It is almost as if there is some force in equal opposition to progress.
It is almost like this has happened before.
It is almost as if there is some force in equal opposition to progress.
Written By Gaston
Jan. 9, 2019, 9:14 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
It's interesting to see how quickly those who lacked our ambition, our dedication, and our devotion are to leap for the jugular, now that disaster has fallen on us.
Did we expect nothing to happen? Did we expect an easy, quiet change to our land on such a massive scale? Oh, right, we must not have been thinking.
Despite the tragedy, I know for a fact that there are among us those whose wills are not broken, and who will do everything we can to make this right.
And in the end, our children and our children's children will thank us for such a combined effort to make Arx stronger.
Did we expect nothing to happen? Did we expect an easy, quiet change to our land on such a massive scale? Oh, right, we must not have been thinking.
Despite the tragedy, I know for a fact that there are among us those whose wills are not broken, and who will do everything we can to make this right.
And in the end, our children and our children's children will thank us for such a combined effort to make Arx stronger.
Written By Jasher
Jan. 9, 2019, 8:41 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
It seems that the more matters change, the more they remain the same.
Written By Shae
Jan. 9, 2019, 3:47 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
A Prayer for Spring Planting
Thyme, for Courage and Strength
Sage, for Wisdom
Rosemary, for Remembrance
Lavender, for Devotion
And last Daisy, for Hope
May each of them grow strong and spread the joyful smiles each one holds, and inspire those that see them, to remember that within each of us resides, a bit of Thyme, Sage, Rosemary, Lavender, and last, but certainly not least Daisy. And may we each carry them from here, like the wind, and birds, and the bees carry them, to share with the rest of Arx, and Arvum.
In dark times remember that together we are stronger, and our hope is one of our greatest strengths. When you see a daisy, remember you are not alone, hope grows in the least expected of places. Strong and Determined.
Thyme, for Courage and Strength
Sage, for Wisdom
Rosemary, for Remembrance
Lavender, for Devotion
And last Daisy, for Hope
May each of them grow strong and spread the joyful smiles each one holds, and inspire those that see them, to remember that within each of us resides, a bit of Thyme, Sage, Rosemary, Lavender, and last, but certainly not least Daisy. And may we each carry them from here, like the wind, and birds, and the bees carry them, to share with the rest of Arx, and Arvum.
In dark times remember that together we are stronger, and our hope is one of our greatest strengths. When you see a daisy, remember you are not alone, hope grows in the least expected of places. Strong and Determined.
Written By Shae
Jan. 9, 2019, 3:38 a.m.(4/28/1010 AR)
Relationship Note on Petal
Thank you for hosting the Lodge Spring Planting party, may it help to bring a touch of hope to everyone. As well as grow that hope, so it may flourish and inspire others.
Please note that the scholars may take some time preparing your journal for others to read.