A Frozen Requiem

I look down at the trail. I can’t make heads or tails of it, but I trust Viniir.

“Can you tell how many, and which way they went?”

I look around at the faces of our merry band again. They may not be ready to fight goblins, but they’re not ready to be left alone in the wilderness, either.

None of the party look very guilty. They all willingly meet your eyes. In fact they all are taking the situation rather seriously and are graciously standing off the trail in order to make Viniir’s tracking easier.

After several minutes, Viniir looks up at you grimly. “It’s hard to be sure but… I think we’ve got a goblin problem.”

(My Perception is G5. Let’s roll! *rolls dice* Grayshade saves the day! 

Results: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6: 3 successes.  Jerhna keeps her cool.)

(Ok I think I know how to play this, since Viniir has the Tracking skill and you don’t.

Intent: To divine whether or not a member of the party is responsible for the loss of foodstuffs.

Task: Perception.

Ob: 3 

Consequence: Jerhna gets incensed at your accusing looks and makes such a ruckus that Viniir can’t determine the true source of the incident.)

“From whose pack?” I snap. “We can’t afford to forage for all of us.”

I march back towards the center of our camp and eye the members of my troop. It could be someone is stealing - hell, one of them at least is a proven thief. Or it could be… something else. “Viniir?” I call.

I pace around the packs, looking for tracks not belonging to elves and any sign of tampering by an animal.

(I want to see if any of the party looks obviously guilty and if there are obvious signs a beast got into the packs. Perception, with help from Viniir?)

When you’re all done with your speech, you eye Viniir who is wearing a very Peregrine Took-like expression of foolish satisfaction. He winks at you as if to say “Good speech.” And it doesn’t appear to have been a bad one - the men aren’t cursing under their breath at you - but neither is it quite having the impact you were hoping for. The party looks at each other, shrugs, then looks at you and gives vague nods of approval; “Sure. What the hell.” Not what you wanted, but perhaps not a bad start.

The next morning you come back onto the road after relieving yourself to find Silvyn waiting for you, and wringing his hands. “Um, sire…” He pauses, looks back to make sure the others, some distance away, are not overhearing “I’m afraid we have a problem; there uh… seem to be some rations missing.”

(Well, you could always run the new failure consequence by me. If it makes a better story, I’m all for it.

Especially since I failed pretty badly. Two successes on eight dice. But I have one 6. I’m agonizing over this last Fate point I have. There’s almost no chance I can get two more sixes and a success… so I won’t spend it. So much for inspirational leadership!

For the record: 1, 1, 2, 3, 3, 3, 5, 6.)

(Heh, your speech made me think of a much better consequence, but I shan’t pull a switcheroo on you. Go ahead and roll.)

(Okay. I’m going to FoRK in Paean of Deeds B2 (Conspicuous) and Command B3, giving me a 7 dice for this test while keeping it a Difficult check. I’m also going to spend a Persona point for +1D. That’s 8 dice total, assuming you agree my roleplay justifies the FoRKs. I’ll wait before rolling until you judge that. I am declining Viniir’s help.)

The second day out I climb atop my steed Glory instead of leading him by the reins. I walk him out a touch ahead and farther up the hillock where we made camp the night before. I draw my sword.

“Comrades, we will not reach Glacier’s Edge overnight. I am glad of it! We need this time - time to learn each others’ ways, time to learn wilderness survival… time to become accustomed to command, and to obedience.

“We live and die by our unity. We must act as one. Each of us must contribute what we know to aid our survival. At each juncture, your knowledge and experience could be the difference between our success and failure, and I will ask for help. I will need you to show initiative and propose courses of action. But once I reach a decision, no matter how much you disagree, you will abide by it!

“Something you learn as a soldier is that a group acting together obeying a poor order has a better chance than one that disregards it and acts separately. Not all of you have had this experience, and there is not time to learn it through slow accumulation of wisdom. You must accept this lesson as truth, here and now.

“We all have places we’d rather be than here. But our road back to Rimenacht and to freedom lies ahead of us. And we will walk this road - together!”

I point my sword forward. It glints and shimmers as the dawn’s light catches its steel. I wheel about, still pointing my sword ahead of us but now standing next to the path Viniir has been leading us along.

“Forward, to liberty and glory!”

I set Glory to a walk, sheathe my sword, and don’t look back to see if they follow me. Confidence, nonchalance, and bravura are the name of the game.

But I am listening for their steps - very, very hard.

(So. Conspicuous and Commanding enough?)

(So, this test is really about you keeping this men together as you push on through the wilderness. The crux is on your leadership, also you mentioned way back when that you wanted to give a speech to the troops, so here’s your chance. 

Intent: To ensure smooth travels by giving a rousing speech to convince this rag-tag group of scoundrels that your orders are worth following.

Task: Oratory. You can probably work in some FoRKs to your speech, but remember you only get two. Viniir is available for a helping die.

Ob: Average Will of your audience, Ob 5. [What can I say, Elves are strong-willed folk.]

Consequence: The men don’t listen to you, but it’s not obvious at first. It only becomes obvious as they clearly are not working together. Further rolls will be necessary ensure survival of everyone in the troop.

You can, of course, choose to have the speech just be color, but there will likely be consequences to that decision as well.)

(Ooo, I like that one. That fits perfectly for what I have in mind for your linked test. I figure the guide character - I forget his name at the moment - will make a Song of Paths and Ways test and you’ll make some sort of “herding-the-sheep” test. Haven’t figured that one out yet but I’ll post soon.)

(How about “I will turn my ragtag band into a disciplined team I’m proud to lead”? I’ve changed it on the character sheet on the assumption you find the Belief sufficient. Let me know if it needs work.

Also it has the benefit that it appears completely impossible to accomplish!)

(I grant you a persona for successfully completing your 2nd Belief. Please change it and then I will supply you a linked test for your journey to Glacier’s Edge.)

“… I don’t know what we will meet, but we will carry ourselves as proper elves of Rimenacht. This trip will remind the humans of our race’s dignity and greatness. But we can only do that if we act as one. This journey will be the first taste of military discipline for some of you. It can be a heavy burden, but it may also save your life.

“Keep your weapons in good repair. We will likely need them before our journey is through. Remember your duty to Rimenacht. I intend to see all of us return to the Citadel and will reward those who serve with distinction.”

It is dawn. I dismount from my warhorse and take to foot to lead my companions away from Rimenacht’s coral walls. Lacking horses as they do, I would outpace them otherwise.

Throughout my speech, with its promises of a glorious return, I remember the smaller dream Miriel asked of me at our farewell last night: “Stay alive.”

“I will keep us alive,” I promised. Vagabonds this troupe of fools may be, but they are now my vagabonds.

I gesture to Viniir to scout ahead, though we are well within the Etharchy’s territory.

Returning to the wilds, we must return to discipline, our sword and shield against the darkness and lesser races. I hope the others will learn before the cold terrain teaches them in its harsh way - adapt or perish.

(Onward!)