Sure, no problem. Usually, my game style is to keep as many as possible behind the screen, as it were, because the mechanics-savvy player can get a lot of information his character isn't privy to by reading the die rolls, so it has an effect on the story, but I'll share for your benefit.
Right now you're riding a good GE roll and a decent simple animal magnetism check; I didn't record the numbers when I rolled, just incorporated them into what was going to happen.
§
She responds, "Aye, temporary, to be sure; still, a temporary solution is better than none at all."
I try and relax my focus for a moment, and even close my eyes just to check something. I try and sense for vectors. She seems to have either very liberal thoughts for the time, or she's not from this place.
Whether or not there's a vector, I reply, "You have open and liberal views on the issue. I wander what invested interest an Irish woman has in Saxon-Norman affairs?"
OOC: In that case, if you want to keep them behind the screens, I'll just keep trying to track down an actual book for playing.
Nono, it's fine.
20 GE roll. Her boss is starting to get annoyed that she's wasting her time talking to you; bad but not terrible.
§
You sense no other versers at this time.
She responds to you, "Your accent says you aren't from around here, either."
She glances over at the bar, then turns back to you and asks, "Buy a lady a drink, sir?"
I smile and say, "I'm not from around here." I hand her the price for another drink, and then give her the rest of my day's pay. "Keep what's left from that."
As I get up to leave the bar that night, I turn to ask her one more question, "Oh, and my lady, may I inquire your name? I'm Kurt."
Once I have her name, if there's no further request for me to stay, then I leave and head back to the castle before it gets too late.
I intend to observe the behavior at the castle for the next month, and also continue to go to the same bar. There, I will always buy one drink, stay for the duration of that one, and then leave back to the castle. If the barmaid wishes to join me for conversation, I give her enough for one drink, emphasizing that she need not spend it on a drink if she doesn't wish to.
I also want to try to have casual conversation with the two other men I keep the books with, to determine their personalities better. Are they generally nice? How do they consider Saxons? Normans? Me?
I'll save up for that month. How much do drinks at this bar cost? That way, I can calculate my left over money at the end of the month.
She explains to you that the necessity of the drink is that if she's sitting with a patron having a drink, she has an excuse to not be working. She declines your money, saying, "That's very nice of you, but I don't accept charity."
Finally, after an eternity of small talk, she says to you, "You seem very much like the man I'm looking out for; sorry for the secrecy, but I can't just come out and tell you. Foreign accent, works in the castle. How's it been?"
"And I would like to formally apologize, madam, for being so difficult, but I wanted to be certain that I wasn't being baited by someone from within the castle in order to discover my intentions while working there.
I've managed to gain entry into the castle and currently am working there. I need more time to explore and gather information."
She tells you, "Don't madam me. I'm still young. I'll be sure to let them know when I see them.
"You live in the castle, then? It must be much nicer than the simple life. What's it like there?"
"It's nice to have a consistant shelter, but there are some things about being in camp that are better, mostly the freedom of living outdoors. Still, I haven't really explored the castle enough yet to get an honest opinion, but so far it is impressive, though my room is rather spartan.
Do you regularly work in the city? Also, what may I call you?"
She says, "Yea, I work here in the bar. It's nice meeting all the people, though I have to put up with patrons who sometimes get a touch overzealous with their hands.
§
You'd ask a lady her name without introducing yourself first? I see you had said you would introduce yourself before leaving, but that effectively didn't happen. Still, with all the small talk, I find it hard to believe you haven't exchanged names, so hers is Reina.
OOC: Sorry for jumping the gun about getting back to the castle earlier. I just wanted to jot it down here what I planned on doing later, so I could reference it when I actually leave the bar.
I totally would not ask a lady her name without introducing myself first. I thought that I already had introduced myself, my mistake. "Well, the best that you can do is consider it a compliment, I suppose."
I check around myself to see if anyone is listening. Then, if it seems, like no one is listening in, I ask Reina, "What is your connection to the Sherwood Forest?"
She responds to you with a smile, "Robin is a most charming man. Whenever he's about I look forward to seeing him. I know him personally, and he asked me if I'd do him a favor by meeting you when you're here, as I'm generally here anyway. If you need to meet with one of the men, I can help you set it up, but it's less suspicious for you to buy a drink for a dame lass in a bar."
"Indeed, and it is a bit more pleasant as well, if it is not too bold to say so, Lady Reina." I speak in a high tone, a complimenting one.
"I need not see any of the men yet, but I will still come here regularly. It's good to have at least one honest friend in the city. Besides, I'm sure that your boss will find it good; he might even praise you for drawing in another regular patron."
If there are any games going on in the bar, like dice, cards, or darts, I'm going to ask Reina if she could kindly explain them to me, and how to play.
She giggles at your compliment, and tells you, "I'm no Lady, m'lord. Just a common bar wench."
She explains to you the rules for basic darts and the basic card combinations in five-card draw; people don't play for fun or sport alone but only for money.
The poker games are generally one copper to join the hand, then deal, then check, raise, match, or fold, then discard and draw, then check, raise, match, or fold, then reveal the cards if there are two or more people left in the game with a stake for the pot. There is no double down, blind, or all-in, as you can even bet your freedom if you choose.
Darts is whatever you bet the person that you can beat them and that they can beat you; odds are not always equal, depending on the skill of the matchup, with the challenger generally taking the worse odds, as they're generally the more skilled.
"A lady is as a lady does, Reina. None should be defined by their circumstances in life."
I calmly rise from my stool, and let her know, "I plan on returning tomorrow as well, if you shall be here, Reina. But for now, I bid you good night." I give her a light bow, and leave the bar, returning in the direction of the castle.
Last an mag check before heading back to the castle: 10. Yeah, she's feeling you.
GE roll for the stroll back to the castle: 7+9+1, 17. Yeah, not much happening.
§
Reina bids you a fond farewell and tells you she'll be looking forward to seeing you tomorrow. You return to the castle for the evening.
Norman the Norman seems a very maladjusted sort. He's friendly enough, but you suspect he may be torturing kittens in his free time. He just seems the type.
Your boss is unfriendly and brooding most of the time. He believes that education is everything; thus, he despises most Saxons, but not you.
My boss seems like a strict guy, but I think about it and decide to work that angle with him. I decide, when I see him at work, to approach him when things aren't as busy.
"You know a lot about a few subjects it seems, and I value education as well. I may be able to do my work more efficiently if I diversify under your tutelage. Could you possibly help me get a grasp on the written word here?"
I want a basic instruction in speaking and writing properly. I know that my letters and spellings might be different, and those will be my focuses if he accepts.
When it comes to Norman the Norman, I choose to keep talking to him every day casually, and I try to build a friendship there. I don't want to be the one who he decides to kill if he snaps under his emotional strain.
Your boss agrees that it will be more efficient for you to learn to write. The spelling of the age is not yet standardized, and the written language of the day is French. Do you have prior experience with this language?
As a player, very little.
As a character, ZERO, but with an avid interest in learning it.
Okie dokie. Have you got your psi bias and bra handy?
I actually don't have those. My sheet that was completed thus far was on page 2 of Character Generation Thread. These are my stats:
Persuasion 1.7
Charisma
Animal Magnetism 2.1
Strength 1.7
Stamina 1.4
Resistance
Density
Flexibility
Agility 1.8
Hand/Eye 1.10
Intellect 2.2
Intuition 1.9
Education Level 2.1
Will Power 1.10
I have no idea about res, density, flexibility, or charisma. It wasn't done. And I'm not sure how to decide what the BRA is for anything or what my personal bias is. Can you help me out with that information as well?
I certainly can. Do you have any abilities that you would consider psionic or magical?
Well, this is my answer going off of what I so far know of the multiverser system.
Assuming that Prayer is Magic, that's the only one that I actually believe I possess. I believe that God answers all prayers.
As far as psionics are concerned, I have 1@8 Control Emotions 5@0, and 1@1 Meditate. I have another one, but I forgot and don't have my sheet on my person right now, but it definately isn't as high as 1@8. I don't believe that I have any psionic abilities or powers. At that point in my life, I was just budding in posibilities of oration, but I wasn't nearly as skilled as I am now, so we can go with me being average at that.
Good?
Is there anything specific you pray for often?
5@0 doesn't qualify as your ABL, if memory serves correctly. What's the bias level and intensity of the Meditate skill?
MJ put it down as 1@1 Meditation P1@0.
I pray most often for protection, while I sleep. Also, I still remember the Lord's Prayer by heart.
Our Father, who is in Heaven, etc. Yeah, I know that one very well.
Alright, looks like it's time to roll for the language learning.
The roll is 1. I don't have to crunch to know that that's in there. Go ahead and mark yourself at a 1@1 SAL for French, believe that's a P1@0.
§
You pick up the basics of Old French; it will take some time to get to the point where you're fluent, but it works for now for your purposes in bookkeeping. You couldn't read a book or an instruction manual, but you can make it through the day writing.
Well, I know the Our Father, who art in Heaven, Hallowed be thy name, etc. It's a little more archaic, but I personally like it more (it's the one I was raised on).
Is there any chance that we could possibly look into my other BRAs and biases? What's ABL stand for? Sorry for all the questions.
Would I write the Old French skill as 1@1 Old French P1@0?
***
Sweet, diversification! I'm going to ask the boss if it's okay if I only try to talk in French to him, and him back to me, so that I might learn it quicker.
Then, I'll try and converse with Norman through the day. "Well, it looks like we will be working together for a while, Norman." I integrate into our conversation the questions: "How long have you been working here?" and "What do you do for fun in the city?"
Sure. I'll look into all your BRAs in a later post. ABL stands for Area Bias Level.
I don't mean to offend, but it certainly is archaic. The reason it is archaic is because at that time, that pattern of speech (thy, thou, thine) was specifically used for speaking informally, to your family or close friends. Now it is used solely for speaking to God, which is pretty much the exact opposite of what was meant; God should be spoken to as One closer to you than anyone else in the universe; He knows what you mean before you even say it, so why take time trying to speak to Him with fancy words?
I digress.
§
Your boss would rather speak in French to you.
Norman's responses:
"Hopefully. I enjoy working with you.
"I've been here for eight months.
"I generally laugh at people when they're in the stockade for fun. There're few things better."
Well, when I pray regularly day-to-day, I do so in my own common way of speaking. I was just saying that I learned the Lord's Prayer that way. I take no offense, though, so all is well.
***
When the boss is away, I try to talk to Norman more, to really get into what his thoughts are on things.
"So, Norman, I heard a rumor the other day about bandits in some forest, who rob the King's men. What's your take on that?"
Is the workload relatively easy for my knowledge of mathematics? Also, do I have a skill with Math, or is that entirely Education Level?
Well, you know generally how complex it is; pretty much just counting money. That abacus is a thing to be feared, though.
Norman answers you, "Give me 5 minutes in a room alone with their leader. Just 5 minutes, that's all I need."
I laugh aloud.
"I hear he's pretty powerful, strong. I wouldn't want to go up against him alone. What have you heard about the bandits?"
"Ha, maybe for a novice, or an amateur. I'm neither. I could take this robbing hoodlum."
He's clearly bragging beyond what he's capable of.
"They steal the King's money and give it to the peasants. They're foul, stupid ruffians. What more is there to know?"
"Well, you must be one fit to have in a fight beyond compare, friend."
At his second statement and question, I respond, "Point taken." I decide against inviting him out to the bar later that night.
For the rest of the day, I try to work hard on counting the money and maybe even finishing early. In the process, I still try to practice my French whenever I get the opportunity with the boss.
GE roll of 14; that's not good as it could have been.
§
The boss announces before a couple hours before quitting time that the three of you have done enough for the day, and lets the two of you go early for the night.
I thank the boss in French and I'm on my way out.
I'd like to try and speak in Old English like the others around me are. What would it take to learn that skill from listening and talking in my environment, surrounded by people who speak it?
When I get back to my room, I do a set of fifty push ups and fifty sit ups. Then, I decide to keep only a few bronze on me, leaving the rest in my room. (I'm up now to 1 silver and how many bronze?)
After food, I head out and try to explore the city, getting to know it more intimately. I begin with areas near the castle.
Apparently I never covered how much drinks are at the bar. Every patron has a running tab they pay when they leave (sometimes regulars keep their tab running over several nights). Drinks of the nature you had are a half copper each, so at night's end you spent one copper for two drinks.
Of course, you get paid one silver coin each day, and you have access to the funds you'd need to split that into ten coppers or one gold piece every ten days (or one platinum every one hundred days).
Your boss asks you not to mention how much you make to Norman, as he doesn't get paid half of what you do.
Old English comes easier than Old French to you.
I'm not sure if your character would know what this means, but after a few scant weeks Reina starts speaking to you in that form of speech referred to as second person informal. Thou art her confidante, as it were. On the one hand it makes it harder for you to understand her initially; on the other hand, it gives you front row seats to see exactly what the patterns of speech of the natives are in that foreign grammar form.
Are we doing a time jump here?
I'm just curious, because if we're going to jump a few weeks, I have some priorities that I'd like to try and accomplish in the process of these few weeks.
Certainly, let me know.
1. Explore the castle, everywhere I'm actually allowed to go.
2. Meet Reina, buying one drink for each of us of the same quality as before.
3. Keep practicing Old French with the boss and Old English with Norman (I try to mimic the new speech pattern.
4. Explore outside of the castle, to get to know the city better.
Other than that, I'll save my money. I never take more than 3 copper out with me every night, intent on only spending 1 copper.
How many weeks will we go? With the current spending pattern and income, I should make 6 silver and 3 copper every week, barring any thefts.
How many weeks of uneventful days would you like?
Getting a frame of reference for the general effects roll.
I would like to do this for two months, and can we include my exercise regimin as well?
Just a simple fifty push ups and fifty sit ups every day, to stay in decent shape.