This is a rough (very rough) outline of my plan for the remainder of book/volume 2. There are probably many typos and grammatical mistakes but it is my thought for how the rest of the book will go. Its focused more on plot than game aspects so sorry for that. For the most part ever paragraph represents a chapter but that like everything else is subject to change/taken away/ reduced/expanded. I don’t know when I’ll get back into writing full chapters but I though so of you might want (and deserve) to know what I have planned. For some this may take away from when I ever write out the real chapters but I think that when I actually get to it there will be a lot of details added that this is more to give you peace of mind. Thanks again and as always you guys are the greatest.
Jason joins the wool guild. He finds out that the guild is controlled by representatives of the three major banks, Wilhelm, and a few minor master merchants, however, for the most part it seems that Wilhelm and the banks control the guild. Jason pays the guild fees and is granted the rank of Temporary Journeyman with a conditional quest to a fully inducted journeyman. His quest is to establish a guild outpost in Finchead that will allow any guildmember to store or spot wool in the village and once build Jason will receive half of the holding fees the outpost earns. Jason wants to protest saying if he has to pay for outpost then he should get more than half, but Wilhelm takes him aside and tells Jason that all guildmembers have similar situations and is how the guild collects tax and it avoids him having to pay guild fees. Jason agrees and accepts role and quest.
Jason meets Ronan in the morning and they return to Finchead. They return to find a lumber camp build on the edge of the Charbur forest and supplies starting to stockpile in Finchead. Jason returns to Vanna and Eliza and finds them both in improved moods, they introduce him to the two new employees a married couple, one a hunter who will be the new guard and the other familiar with animals who can drive the cart new cart. They have their own home so don’t need to stay with them. Jason visits Byron who is also happy because many of the displaced villagers have found construction work in Annabel and Trent’s projects. Jason asks where Finnan is and Byron takes him to him. Jason makes a deal with Finnan to lease the ruined inn with the option to buy it (Finnan doesn’t charge a lot and seems more interested in opening back up the brewery in the inn but Jason plans on turning it into the outpost he needs for his guild quest). Next Jason meets Annabel who already has Ronan laying the foundation to her new townhouse. They renegotiate his supply deals so that he is paid in milled lumber until he fully builds the outpost. Jason runs into Trent who is planning out a gatehouse and town wall. Learns that Trent’s plan is to build the Sheriffs barracks right onto the wall, and all Jason can imagine that it will be like the town’s keep/castle when finally complete until Annabel inevitably builds her own castle. He returns to his home and goes to sleep.
Next morning very cold but he can feel the ground rumbling softly. He has Vanna go get the new workers while he checks out the rumbling. He finds Trent, Byron, and Annabel all woken up at the town hall. The rumbling gets louder and they figure out its coming from the west. They head towards the western road out of town with a few early rising villagers tagging along. They get to the edge of town and see a column of travelers coming from the west which everyone finds strange as that’s the direction of Fallows. The column gets closer and they realize it’s soldiers and the villagers panic. Annabel recognizes the banner of Lord of Fallows/Exton (Lord Bruise), but there are only about 50 soldiers, not enough for a war party Annabel guesses. Bruise’s halts in front of village and Annabel confronts them trying to get why they are there and to get them to leave. Bruise brushes her off and says he has a right to go to the capital and protest to the king. Annabel can’t do anything and lets them through. Jason recognizes a few of Malcolm’s thugs in the war party but most of them look like well trained soldiers from Bruise’s personal guard (Jason is reminded that Bruise is the second most powerful lord in the kingdom after the king). Annabel wants to go to the capital but is dissuade by the risk that Bruise could ambush her on the road. Instead she sends a message with Jason’s party to give to the King.
They travel to Laxtar and along the way Jason learns about new workers and Vanna tells him about her meeting with Eliza. They get to the capital and there is chaos. The city guards won’t let Bruise’s army in and he sets up a camp outside of the gates for his army. Jason has Vanna and the workers go set up there lodging while he goes to the castle. Things only get more hectic the closer he gets to the castle and he finds the place to be in high alert when he finally gets there. He tries to get a guard to allow him in to see the king but he’s denied. He recognizes the guard that had given him the Chameleon stone and convinces him that he needs to see Rae, Miranda’s apprentice. The guard takes him into the palace and he is taken to Miranda’s workspace. He is left alone with a younger girl, Rae, and they talk. Miranda eventually comes and is mad that Jason isn’t there but then is interested when she hears that he has a letter from Annabel. She wants it and Jason knows she will read it. He doesn’t want to give it to her but know that it’s the only way the letter an get to the king so he hands it over. Jason want to see the king but Miranda tells him to go. He doesn’t leave but Miranda walks out instructing Rae to get rid of him. Rae takes pity and gives him a stone. She tells him to go somewhere safe and channel it and to leave quickly.
Jason finds the closest inn and rents a room. He locks the door and channels the stone. His vision blackens for a moment then goes spotty. He can start to hear muffled voices then after a moment all of a sudden he is looking at the throne room from a hidden angle. The vision turns and Jason can see Rae. She looks at him through the stone then turns him back around so that he can the throne room. Present are the King, Bruise, and Miranda. Miranda is standing to the side silently. Bruise and the King fight. Bruise wants reparations but the king denies. Bruise starts making threats and King accuses him of sedition. Bruise doesn’t deny it and hints that the King isn’t as strong as he thinks he is. Miranda freezes Bruise with magic for a moment threating him to remember who he is talking to then lets him go. Jason’s view vanishes and he’s back in the inn. The stone in his hand vanishes.
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Jason returns to his party. They sell the wool then go buy new pack animals. Next morning they get the building materials and head back to Finchead. When they leave they see that Bruise’s camp is gone. Back in Finchead Jason goes to the inn and sees that wood is starting to be delivered on his way to find Annabel. He tells her what he found out avoiding his relationship with Rae and Miranda and pretending that he snuck into the palace. Annabel comments that Bruise had not passed back through and she worries. They find Trent and Byron and everyone agrees to triple the guard around town and Jax goes out with a few scouts.
Jason tries to talk to Ronan about helping him build the inn. At first Ronan rudely shrugs it off then see the building Jason is talking about and obsesses over it. He says he draw up plans and show him in a few days and they can work on a price.
Next day Jason and crew return to Laxtar and trade wool, the city is still buzzing but less so then a few days ago. Jason finds Wilhelm at the exchange and asks what his thoughts are. Wilhelm is unconcerned. Bruise could never siege Laxtar as he lacks a navy to blockade the port and the walls are to strong. However, he could forces the king into surrender if war broke out and the King lost too much territory too early in the civil war and a lot of the other lords supported Bruise. He then says the latter isn’t likely as the Cullen’s were certain to support the King however Bruise was not the wisest and may still start a war out of pride. Wilhelm isn’t worried as the wool trade revolved more around the coast and any lost profits would be made in the supplies needed during the war. Jason isn’t comforted as he knows Finchead would be the center of the warzone.
Jason returns to Finchead and finds Ronan already working on the inn. He shows Jason the blueprints and see that there will be a large stable, a warehouse, a brewing room, and lodging for Jason’s crew and any visiting guildmembers. Jason approves but sees that Ronan already was starting on the warehouse portion. Ronan says they can store the animals in the warehouse until the stable is built but not the wool in the stables until the warehouse is built. Ronan shows Jason the price and it is large (100 gold) but Ronan says it will take him at least three weeks to build the warehouse and he’ll take 30 gold until then. Jason works out paying 5 gold first then says he will pay him 10 gold every time he comes back from Laxtar. Ronan agrees. Jason see work on the guard house and Annabel’s house are coming along. Also more militiamen are walking around armed and armored as well as training.
Next day Jason returns to Laxtar. Goes to bank and manages to get a small extension enough to pay Ronan. He buys more pack animals so now that his capacity is over 50 bags of wool a trip. Returns to Finchead. Finnan finds Jason and expresses happiness with inn but pressures for Ronan to prioritizes the brewing building. Then tells Jason about the equipment he would need for brewing. Jason at first thinks to push it off but then realizes that it might be important to get the brewing start so that his building has a cashflow. He ask Ronan if he thinks the warehouse could be temporary used as a brewhouse until the real building is finished. Ronan doesn’t like the idea but says it possible but he would be risking a fire. Jason asks around but there is no news.
Jason wakes up to a strange feeling of de ja vu. He comes to his sense and realizes that there are screams from outside. Vanna and him go out and see the village is a chaos of fleeing villagers. Vanna stops one and asks what’s going on and finds out that Bruise is attacking the village.
Jason and Vanna make it to the village center where Byron and a few militiamen are gathered. Find out Bruise used his few mounted fighters to launch a lightning raid. Enough guards were up to push them out but they lost a few soldiers. Annabel arrives and is angry she wants to send for more soldiers from Cullen castle. Trent comes back reporting that all of the raiders are gone. He hears what Annabel says but then says that it’s too late for that. Bruise most likely has a larger army in waiting and will return to Finchead before reinforcements can be brought in. The raid was a tactic to scare and disorient them and so Bruise’s part could get back to the west. Byron decides they must evacuated the noncombatants to the forest but says they can send someone to the castle just incase this was only a raid. He recommends Annabel but she refuses saying she want to defend the town.
Jason is determined to stay to at least ensure his interest were kept safe and he knew if he abandoned Finchead now he would lose any good faith he built up with the villagers. He helps with the evacuation effort while Vanna helps the militia build ramshackle barricades. The villagers in the forest draw out the village inhabitants and some hunters go to Finchead to join the militia. Once all the villagers are gone Jason returns to the village. Vanna tries to convince him to go to the forest but he refuses. He knows his place is not on the front lines but will stay back with Byron and some of the older militia members in the rearguard and to help bring supplies to the front. All together they have less than 200 fighters, most barely train, but Trent doesn’t reveal how he thinks things will turn out. Annabel and Ronan also stay in the village both armored with bows. The leadership go into the townhall and form a strategy.
A few hours later they can hear the army before it gets there. Bruise is confident and leads his army straight towards the town. Finchead is outnumbered at least 2-1. Finchead has their army set up for urban fighting with all bowman at front to fire volleys as long as it takes Bruise’s army to get to the village. Bruise does offer a meeting and launches the battle without any notice. The archers take out a good amount but are overwhelmed and have to retreat. Urban warfare breaks out. The militia barricade the side streets to funnel Bruise’s army to the center of town with archers hidden on roof tops. Finchead militia fights well but they are out number and out trained. Only thing in there favor is that the less trained members of Bruise’s army break off and loot rather then fight. The battle lead to a standoff in the town center for a long time and then all of a sudden Bruise’s army retreat. Finchead villagers look around and find a column of cavalry charging in from the east.