Covenant Financial Situation

Current Situation: :arrow:

We currently have ninetyseven members of the Covenant.

The membership is broken down as follows:

One Hundred twelve members of Clan Mackellen. (One death occurred)
Thirty Irish Refugees
Eleven Clanless Sots have been taken in.
Six enterprising 'merchants'.
Four Companions
Four Magi
One Magi Spouse.
One Magi son

Possible update for the last year is possible...

The financial situation is decent. We have enough cash to feel comfortable purchasing additional supplies for magical items and additional luxuries.

We have created several magical devices to assist the Grogs in their work, and are planning on a Magi enhancing project as well.

Vis:
Our supplies have expanded quite well. We have begun trading for various things that both the mundanes and the Magi need...

Gents,

I had an insight when talking with Mike yesterday.

We made a lot of mistakes this first year as we set up our new covenant. But that's OK, we're young and inexperienced with this kind of thing. We're expected to make these kinds of mistakes.

I'll bet most of us were trained in continental European covenants, and almost certainly summer/autumn ones at that. It's natural that we would take for granted that there is enough food on the table, a roof over our head that doesn't leak onto the library books, and enough grogs to keep watch and protect us.

We're magi - of course setting up our labs, and the library, are the most important things we need to do. It's obvious, right?

Let's just accept we've learned our lesson. Let's get our priorities straight. Let's make sure there's enough food on the table, a dry roof over our heads, and enough guards so that we can study & sleep in peace.

Let's put off this "one season of work to the covenant" per year until we're established. I propose FOUR seasons of work per year to the covenanant for the next few years.

The poor status quo is not good enough!

Do we want to have hovels made of sod as labs for our whole lives? What kind of shame would that bring in the eyes of other magi that will inevitably come to visit?

Do we want to eat (well-spiced) grass soup every day for the rest of our lives?

GM Warning:
Mike says that the healing/aging roll modifier will not be +0, it will be -1, unless we do things to increase our standard of living.

Copying books can wait!
Let's get to the imporant things first!

Some of the suggestions made aren't bad ones, but most require labor that isn't available--you can pull people to do those things, but that means less labor is available for things like ensuring you have enough to eat so you don't starve---seems basic, but that is not something you have enough extra people to screw with at the moment.

Obviously, acquiring more people to do the basic work is what is needed. Those can come from a variety of sources.

Here is where you stand:
Forest: Most of the acreage goes unused; this isn't necessarily bad, as it also tends to be the least productive per acre. The exception is clearing the forest; right now you have to clear about 3 acres or so per year to maintain your cleared areas, and that brings down a nice sum. You can clear more, but labor will have to be pulled to do that.

Crops: 40% of your land is used for food to keep you alive; this will remain constant, but the yields can improve if the land itself is improved.

Pastures: 60% of your land goes to pasturage, but only 1/3 of that is currently being utilized because of lack of labor.

Maintenance: Work has to be done to maintain the fields and pastures; if more labor is available, they can be improved. If less is allocated, they will decline. Right now labor to hold steady has been allocated.

Magi can contribute. Probably maintenance/improvements is their best area. Types of magic that can be used to effect: CrHe, ReHe, PeHe, CrTe, ReTe, MuTe, and PeTe. The mechanic for this is that an amount of labor is generated based on the best sustainable effect (in magnitude); this can be genrated by a spontaneous spell, or an appropriate formulaic spell or item.

Ideas and thoughts

Open an inn. The Autocrates wife can run the Inn. Proceeds to the Covenant.

Get a fishing crew. The fish will provide us with food, and extra to sell. Perhaps I could make cages or nets to facilitate this...but we need to buy them (the cages/nets) to start. I haven't any craft for that.

I have no problem making items for the Clan...Problem: Enchanting a wooden wagon will require 10 pawns of Vim to invest-min. It will then require the Vis for the effects. I can help build the thing, but I would need the blacksmith to make the wheels and do the heavy work. Another problem- do you really want a "Devil wagon" rolling around the countryside? Another problem: Will the Fairy folk get bent if we make (magic) items that tear up the crops or ground at a ferocious rate???

I can also make jewelry to sell to the various nobles about...just provide the materials...

Mike: Both my characters have Area Lore (for this area)- Is there any burial mounds or such around here that we can raid/dig up? We can have Ian dowse over them before tearing them up...

We can also distill Vim. I think everyone can do at least one...that would be at least 12-14 pawns for one season...if we ALL did it. We could then trade that.

Go out, find homeless people and bring them back. Put them to work, and give them a place to stay. Free labor.

If we don't do something with the Mercs, our money has been wasted..Use 'em or lose 'em...while we have money left.

Cut some lumber for sale. We can all go out and knock down some trees.
Clean them up and find a buyer. Float them down the Loc if we need to.
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Jason, Magi don't need to use Vis help out in the countryside.

A spontaneous Rego Terram can move a rock out of the way so the plow can come through. When the spell ends, the rock doesn't "move back", it sits where you put it. You just can't move it any more.

Rego Terram can also flatten bumpy land, so it's better for tilling/plowing.

Perdo Herbam to destroy weeds and plants/bushes/trees that are in the way of the plow.

A good enough Rego Terram might even move the tree to a better spot without killing it.

Remember that the rules for making things permanent have changed somewhat from the 3rd edition we're used to. You cannot normally say "I'm using Vis to make my normal spell permanent." You generally need to design the spell as a ritual that has a permanent effect.

New idea:

If our main source of poverty is lack of manpower, we need to do more work with less people. Like with automation, or in this case, better tools.

Better tools = Magic Items:

* A Rego Terram plow that lets a man plow 10x faster
* A bunch of Perdo (Rego?) Herbam sickles that let the women harvest crops at 10x speed.

* A Perdo Herbam poker that not only kills a plant, it makes it shrivel up and disintegrate, so there's no litter to clear away.

* A Perdo (Rego?) Herbam axe that drops trees with one blow
* A Rego Herbam set of gloves that lets a man lift a whole cut log into a wagon by himself
* A Rego (Perdo?) Herbam knife that cuts wood like butter, so making boards out of logs is much easier

* A Perdo (Rego?) Terram pick that lets a man cut stone from the quarry 10x faster
* A Rego Terram set of gloves that lets a man lift a huge stone into a wagon by himself

* An extra-large wagon that doesn't need oxen to pull it. A man needs to pull it along, but the wagon does all the "work". He just needs to steer.

We have incredible amounts of Vis. Let's spend it now and get some of these items made.

These are pretty minor effects. Many of us could make these items in one season. Urien the Enchanter could save himself for the toughest of them, like maybe the wagon.

What other ideas do you guys have?

ok what is the clan good at? herding, farming, stealing, killing, cooking?
i just figure it would be smart to stick to what they are good at. we need to make money and gain wealth. when the clan prospers so will we. wont we need vis to really change the land? maybe a spring raid is what we need. put the captives to work over spring and summer. i can mind scan and hunt down the support they got.

You think we have it bad...

I refer you to page 68 of the rulebook. Read about the sample Spring covenant, "Vernus".

"... the covenant consists of tents pitched around a standing stone in the middle of a faerie forest... They don't even have a regular supply of food... The covenant's only vis source is contested..."

Well, at least our drafty hovels won't blow over in a strong wind.

Small comforts.

The value of the spices is a one-time addition to the covenant; it allows food to last longer (through salting, etc., as well as making some of the less palatable bits taste better long after they have started to go rancid This is what the value added represents, not coin.

Mike, regarding the spices that were "found by the side of the road"...

I don't think it's appropriate to add their value to our income, except in the most broad way. We don't intend to turn around and sell them.

My understanding of the situation is some of those nice foreign men gave a gift to Mrs MacKellen, in appreciation of the good food she's been putting on the dinner table.

Unless the menfolk come and take the spices from out of her kitchen, she intends to use them for our food.

So, we can at least take comfort in this:
Even though we're so poor that we eat grass soup every day, it tastes wonderfully different each meal because of Mrs MacKellen's exceptional skill at adding just the right spices.

-DC

Jason, I didn't answer your question: "What is the Autocrat good at?"

The Autocrat is good at leading his clan.

He does not have the one or two perfect skills to generate lots of income to make our financial problems go away.

He is good at Leadership, and has the Profession: Steward skill, so we can be confident that he is not making the situation worse. If we can figure out some good solutions, he is good at making sure the grogs follow-through and implement the plan.

I've just fully read what Mike wrote.

New idea:

If the "Land Preparation" is a big issue, then maybe we need to refocus our Magi's efforts in the short term.

Forget about copying books this year. Magi who have relevant Arts could spend a whole season helping the grogs work the land. Spend every day spontaneousing relevant spells to move earth (Terram), trees (Herbam), water (Aquam); whatever.

If helping prepare the land will double the yield from that land, then that sounds like a no-brainer.

It looks like Mike & I were typing at the same time.

Combine both replies and you've got the whole picture, as best as I can tell.

-DC

ok im happy with that though i know my gifted character thinks its odd to need mney my companion is used to ruffer conditions.

Good questions.

The #1 factor contributing to our poverty is "not enough pairs of hands to do work". We've got a lot of land, and resources, but not enough labor to make it useful.

Mike already made two suggestions:
* Recruit people from southern England who want to start a new life
* Take in clanless Scots.

Ian MacKellen suggests another:
* Raid the MacGruders in force. They took many MacKellen women, and maybe a few men, as captives. Lets get those loyal clansmen back, and take a bunch of MacGruders captive in return.

Perhaps it's not too late for one of you to change your character to a Necromancer? You could create a whole gang of zombies that work 24 hours per day without needing food!

Brainstorming money ideas:

* Sell Vis. Selling all 30 pawns could get us about 65% of what we need to be comfortable. It would also require a trade mission to Italy or Germany. I'm not suggesting this, but just laying it out to show the relative value of Vis.

* Research legends of buried treasure, or dragons sitting on a hoard.

* Steal it.

* Create it with Creo Terram.

* Sell magic items to noblility or wealthy merchants.

French Mercenaries
They are very expensive. Unless incredible things happen, we cannot afford to keep them as mercs for more than another year.

Mike says they could be considered elite warriors up here in the Highlands, due to their training and heavy armor. If we can only afford to keep them a little while longer, maybe we need to get some real good use out of them before they go? Who do we attack? Who has rich plunder for us?

OR, Mike says we can give them land grants to induce them to stay without pay. However, we are not nobles with formal title to the land. If the real nobles got wind of this, we could be in trouble. Unless, of course, we've already zombified said nobleman-sitting-there-in-his-fort...

If the Mercs leave, we will have 2 grogs capable of fighting (not counting the Monks). I don't think any of us consider this a good situation.

-DC

The situation is poor for a number of reasons; they can be summarised in the short version as lack of manpower.

A major drain on resources are the magi themselves: they consume but produce nothing of value to the covenant as a whole, other than protection. They also don't tend to consume what Joe Peasant consumes--a typical mage's upkeep is equal to what about 30 people might consume in a year. This, as Dave noted, has been decreased for the near future.

Another major problem from the productivity standpoint is that the land needs to be "prepared", if you will; it hadn't been farmed or grazed in recent memory. The yields from your land are currently about half of what they might be. Improvement is possible but it takes....you guessed it!....manpower.

This is a problem for Scotland as a whole....plenty of land, but a lack of people and animals to take advantage of it. If you had more people and the animals to exploit it, you have nearly 1/3 of the land you have claimed as pasturage to fill up.

The brigandry of the Mendicants has actually brought in a bit of extra income; I haven't given this a value, but spices are valuable as preservatives in this period so it is likely to be decent.

I do have the numbers for this, but I intend to give the autocrat the most information, as they deal with it on a day-to-day basis. Even Dave doesn't have the exact numbers--he knows what I have told him, chiefly that lack of manpower is inhibiting not only growth but your ability to stand still. I also gave him a number of suggestions for improvement and he made some of his own--I will let him relay that information to you.

why is our situation so poor? what did the covanants we were in before do for money? if we attempt to steal or other raid for cattle what is the capacity we have for caring for and protecting them? what is the possibillity for produceing enough goods for sale? we could brew beer/ale or distill whiskey/scotch but we need the right skills and goods to produce them. what is the autocrat good at?