This is for discussing covenant business as the game progresses- which books to buy or anything else that needs discussion.
Actually, double-checking, primers would be a bit of a waste for anyone with Book Learner, and Camilla has that. They already get 18 out of a season with the books we have already, which is pretty close to 21. Also, for anyone with an Affinity the primers would be a waste since they would get 21 instead of the 23 from the books we have already.
Autocrat’s report and recommendations:
In 1100 we had a combined income of 425 lbs of silver and expenses of 149 3/8 pounds of silver, as detailed here:
buildings : 0
consumables : 0
labratories : 4 1/3
provisions : 0
wages : 37 3/5
weapons and armor : 1 1/5
writing materials : 0
taxes : 106 1/4
There is sufficient excess production to allow one craftsperson in each of the following fields to be redirected towards a non-maintenance project next year: cooks, mason, weaver, vintner, blacksmith, Potter, Glassblower, Carpenter, furniture maker, Percamenarius
Or this extra production may be saved towards improving their workspaces, or we may consider investing cash in improving any of these.
Currently there are apprentices for hunting, carpentry, and furniture making, with an assistant chef of Aegis. We could place one or two more apprentices into the crafts with negligible impact on covenant resources. Our oldest craftsman is Dante the Percamenarius, who produced a savings of 4 pounds of silver this year. There are 2 cooks at age 32, suggesting this profession as well is at risk of a loss in abilities in the near future. I would like the council to also consider commissioning artwork from one or more of our craftsmen in a freed season. Such work would cost us but a pound of silver and provide a lasting monument of their ability which future craftspeople in the same trades could learn from. While the glassblower would be important in terms of being able to get a potentially abandoned apprentice or one with little skill up to a higher ability quickly, it would seem to me that Evangalos Potter would produce the highest quality artwork amongst our craftspeople.
The scribe diverted one season of work to publication of a summae written by one of our cooks, Nicola, entitled “Recipies of the Roman Tribunal”, which has been added to our library. While this did increase our base writing costs it was an expense easily absorbed by the support of our ink maker and Dante. He is currently most of the way through copying “Authority and control” from the tribunal library, and can finish this and start work on a new text in another season next year.
I have ordered books 4 and 11 of Metaphysics by Aristotle through the redcap network and added these to the library as well. I would suggest that if our library continues to expand we may need to hire, or train, a full time librarian. I can inquire if there are any books on the subject that we might purchase or if anyone might be available for the position from outside the covenant. (ooc: this would need to be a companion character with profession: librarian at 5 or better as an ability)
If we increase the wages as you have been rumored to be considering we should begin training our workmen, of which we have 47, towards becoming craftsmen as the savings in food costs will rapidly become negligible. It is doubtfull at current capacity that such a large number of craftsmen would continue to produce savings for the covenant, and I would recommend that we approach such a training plan by targeting the youngest of the workmen to develop craft abilities, especially where we do not have people or books to guide such training. Since our food costs will go up as we reduce the number of workmen I would suggest we begin with food related crafts such as butchery, food preservation, baking, gardening, or so forth.
Turb Captain recommendations:
Our turb is thoroughly professional, but we are at historically low levels for staffing our castle. Our numbers are adequate for defense against raiding parties, but not any serious siege campaign (aside from what aid the magi might provide) and it is certainly inadequate for projecting our military might to any surrounding areas, or defending ourselves should our political alliances weaken.
I would advise that we find the people from within our covenant to expand our men to a minimum of 6 troops of archers, an extra troop of footmen, and at least two troops of cavalry, as well as training men who can direct the use of siege engines should such become necessary. Obviously such plans will require the use of silver and time for training, but without the parent covenant draining our resources this would seem to me the ideal time to begin rebuilding our military force.
"Sodales, we have recent started to receive a poor reputation", says Aurthor.
"Should we look at spending some of our resources to try and smooth the situation over the next time this happens? Perhaps we could send in our grogs to try and help?"
(Out of character - so for the last couple of covenant adventures we've taken negative reputation xp as losses. Would people prefer if we took loss of build points (spending money or vis) instead? We could also take a hit to covenant loyalty instead, but I'm reluctant to do this
Also, what covenant rewards should we go for? Do we want to aim to buy off any hooks?)
Taurus snorts, sounding more than a little angry, and wags his head. "Who has run the name of this covenant through the muck? We would surely cry foul on an outsider casting aspersions on our reputation. Why do we let those within our ranks bring ruin upon us? I say we start smoothing the track rather than raise furrows that will later cause us to trip."
OOC: I agree with darkwing. Use up some resources rather than damage our reputation further or take a hit on covenant loyalty. If we can find some successes, it might be worthwhile trying to eliminate the Infamous hook.
A quick note- there is only one adventure so far which has potentially cast aspersions on the good name of the covenant as opposed to just an individual, and in that case the losses were mishandled where they were assigned to both the individual and the covenant instead of one or the other, and which still needs to be clarified/resolved (quite possibly a cat, hexed woman adventure- which has in fact been clarified...)
Autocrat's report:
In 1101 both of our sources on income had an increase in profits of 20%, giving us a total income of 510 pounds of silver. There was a rise in costs associated with bringing in the two apprentices over the last couple of years, such that our total outlay of funds was equal to 149 7/9 pounds of silver, placing our treasury at 1135 6/7 lbs of silver. Expenses are broken down as follows:
buildings : 0
consumables : 0
labratories : 4 1/3
provisions : 0
wages : 38
weapons and armor : 1 1/5
writing materials : 0
taxes : 106 ¼
The scribe this year was too busy working on books written within the covenant to travel to Harco, and I have implemented rules to reduce the number of vanity books being produced by literate craftsmen. He has requested an apprentice ad it seems that if the literacy of the covenant is something we are going to pursue this will be a necessity, and probably of great benefit even if widespread literacy is not a goal, though I see few other ways to ensure Latin is the common tongue of the covenant. However the apprentice will need to be literate, and it appears the demands on our teacher is also likely to increase. I have thus ordered a second, well educated, covenant member to spend one of her seasons this year providing instruction to more junior members of the covenant.
Again I do believe that commissioning some artwork from our crafts persons will be of benefit for instructing future generations, but I would require your authorization to use funds for these ends.
Similarly while the idea of raising wages for the covenfolk has been discussed I will need this to be a council decision.
Aegis introduction of what is being called the cookfire wand into the kitchens, where it is being borrowed for other forms of food production as well, has eased the costs of food to where training new food production crafts people is less of a priority.
Turb Commander recommendations:
As before I would recommend an increase in Turb numbers and armaments. A manual has now been written on siege engines, so this knowledge will not be lost though it will clearly not be readily available should we not maintain training in this. If magi wish to casually remove units for personal use I would suggest we need to have a higher number of units available. Please let me know your decision and at what rate you would like for the Turb to increase.
Taurus is in favor of commissioning some artwork and increasing the size of the turb, as he sees both as clear signs of the covenant's success and stature.
Aegis will ask if she can use books from the library's mundane section at night. She points out if she learns how to do something you don't need to worry about old age leaving her unable to do it. She also thanks you for the wax slate you've let her use.
Addendum to autocrat's report- Pelegrino the huntswoman has, in her own time brewed an herbal concoction which is claimed to be able to restore the lightly winded to their full senses in a draught, and she is requesting that she be able to devote her future attentions as an herbalist instead of a huntswoman. I am uncertain of the relative value of such concoctions to the covenant so I am uncertain which direction you would wish me to take on this.
Andros is going to request the redcaps find a book on Order of Hermes Lore.
1102 saw an increase in our cotton income, with no change to our income from salt, for a combined revenue of 627 2/7 pounds of silver. Expenses totaled 149 7/9 pounds of silver, plus 2 pounds for commissioning artwork, and 30 pounds lost to adventure leaving our cash reserve at 1581 3/8 pounds of silver. Expenses are:
buildings : 0
consumables : 0
labratories : 4 1/3
provisions : 0
wages : 38
weapons and armor : 1 1/5
writing materials : 0
taxes : 106 ¼
2 apprentice craftsmen, Joseph the Carpenter and Benedito the furniture maker finished their apprenticeships this year and will be considered full fledged craftsmen next year. Meanwhile Byron, with 2 seasons of education has advanced to where he can already copy mundane tractatus, and I have assigned him as an apprentice scribe. Prosperina has demonstrated a talent as a linguist, we could try to train her for translation or similar station, if the magi believe it would be of value to their studies, otherwise she will be apprenticed to a craft position, probably with Dante.
Once again the scribe was kept busy with local projects and was unable to return to Harco to finish copying Authority and Control, though he hopes that with the reduction in books by non magi and his new apprentice he will be able to resume and finish the project soon.
Do any of my esteemed colleagues know the spell Seven-League Stride? I would appreciate a lab text for the spell, if you would supply the text. Taurus offers to write another tractatus for the Library in return.
Evan responds I know that spell. I could spend a season in... 1104 adding some lab texts to the library and include that one. Could you make the tractatus on Creo? Or Corpus?
"I would be happy to write either one, Sodales. Perhaps this time, I will write a Corpus tractatus, as I have already submitted one on Creo to the Library.
Autocrat's report:
This has been a good year. Our income from cotton grew this year by 20%, while our salt based income remained even, and we pulled in an extra 6 pounds of silver from the redcaps selling some of our excess production capability in carpentry, masonry, and furniture making as they are establishing their presence. Some additional labor was diverted towards expanding our housing for our newest craftsmen who completed their training last year. In all our income was 697 5/9 pounds of silver and our expenses were 151 1/6 pounds of silver, giving us a cash reserve of 2127 ¾ pounds of silver. Expenses are broken down as follows:
buildings : 0
consumables : 0
labratories : 4 1/3
provisions : 0
wages : 38 2/5
weapons and armor : 1 1/5
writing materials : 0
taxes : 106 ¼
Marcus has decided to take Prosperina on as an apprentice scholar so the option can be preserved for using her linguistic talents in the future for translations or diplomacy should the covenant discover such a need.
Byron, our apprentice scribe has produced 2 copies of the tractatus “Platonic ideals” which have been sold via the redcap network, we have an option of requesting two tractatus of equivalent quality or 4 vis of account, which may be used to pay for scribal visits to Harco or other trade items. My understanding is that a trade for equivalent tractatus will depend on what arts are available for trade at the time, and there is also a question the council will need to resolve as to whether the proceeds from this transaction belong to the covenant, Aurthor, or some form of sharing between the two.
Authority and control has been copied and added to our library, with arte of manipulation being started in the absence of further instruction as to which works should be copied following Authority and Control. I have since instructed Hermagoras to succeed this work with Workings of the Human Body and Changes. Further guidance from the council would be appreciated.
We have located a book on Order of Hermes Lore, it is a level 3 summae with quality of 11. I have made arrangements to purchase this book, but am awaiting news on a more advanced or higher quality book on the subject.
Harrumph. Master Julian, you are doing a find job administering our resources. Very wise to looks for better quality book on the Lore of the Order. May I also request that we acquire a copy of Beneath the Feet? Taurus looks around to see if anyone has additional requests.
((OOC: The basic charter in Covenants states that all books written by members belong to the covenant if they are paid for or gifted to the covenant. Since we don't have a formal charter, I suggest we follow this convention, and share the proceeds, thus paying Aurthor for the work.))
Andros Would like to move that an order for the roots of the arts for arts that we do not have Primers for be obtained through a purchase of vis from the Tribunal library.