>>22155558
F#ck yeah! Missed this.
Oversee the Wizard as he teaches the elves magic and learn all you can.

>>22155647
I concur

>>22155647
I agree. Should the wizard hold his part of the deal we should hold ours, if we are reasonably certain mom isn't about to burn the city he is travelling to. We really need to start planting spys, keeping in contact with him while he stays in a human city might be worthwhile.

>>22155714
Or even better, we bring him into the city and then warn him before mom attacks it, so he owes us his life!

Observe how humans do magic.
Help the wizard grow a bit; just give a few samples of power. If he desires more, you could help, in exchange of loyalty and servitute. Of course, magical contracts and other measures are to be taken to make sure he will be yours forever, with him kowing of it or not.

Hunt the responsibles for hkilling dear little brother.
Take over little brother's hoard, territories and etc. That, if Mother leaves anything for you. Little sister can keep any leftover junk.

Explore and search for suitables areas you could take for yourself.
Grow stronger (combat, magic, talky arts, etc) to start looking for mates.


From what I remember, these are the suggestions I can make.

>>22155744
I am wondering if we can help the wizard at all. I mean, our magic is of sorcerous nature.

Learning magic would be a long term goal (a few tears at least) and quite time consuming. Any specific actions for the short term?

Get our sister in line behind us. Also begin considering our adult name. I propose Ozymandias.

>tears

Make that years

>>22155791
Tethyrcanyx was the one proposed in the first thread. I like it, it has a nice red dragony ring to it.

My own priority would be to acquire as many of the stuff that belonged to brother as possible and stay out of mothers way when she goes into berserk rage against those humans.

whatever happened to the first red dragon quest

Set the elves to scouting and digging up dirt on the merchants, these merchants could not have acted without their being a plot

>>22155853
Also, make sure we don't forget hunting and flying over all this learning magic. Our body needs to stay healthy so we may keep our sister down.

I am delighted to see you have returned

How is our magical skills coming along? have we gotten the ability to charm or change form yet?

>>22155853
Vetoed. Red dragons have a supernatural ability to know if any item is missing from a horde.
>>22155857
Writer dude left unfortunatly

>>22155791
Ozymandias is overused. If we were in Blue dragon Quest I would suggest Dauhktormannatan.

Seconding getting our sister in line. I wrote something to tell her in last thread.

>>22155905
What about our sexy pharaoh fantasy? We should add -hotep suffix to our name.

Lets go for something assyrian, Asharid perhaps?

So suggestions are:
Continue to learn magic.
See if you can sweeten the deal with the wizard offering him something useful, or by pointing out dragons are powerful spellcasters themselves and he might be able to learn something.
Try and persuade/press-gang your sister into working for you, or at least parallel to you.
See what you can find out about your brother's killer and try to hunt them down yourself.

>>22155899
What? Our borther is dead, i want some stuff from his hoard. If we can get to it before mom does noone will ever notice.

Or can red dragons notice if stuff is missin gfrom another dragons hoard?

Short term goals...

Scout for areas we could possibly make our own lair, with juicy civilizations to rule over.

Also, search for our brother's killer. Mother should reward us very well for bringing them to her.

>>22155915
I'm quite sportive of us going the Dragon Emperor route similar to how the original dragon quest did.
Although personally I prefer subtle emotional manipulation over viscous physiological torture.

Red dragons have a knack for remembering treasure and it's exact value. If something went missing from his hoard, she'd know.

>>22155957
So, the same as the last dragon quest?

>Go talk with sis about the death of our brother. Tell her that though our brother was a weakling and a fool, he was still a dragon, and that dying like this just won't do. For us.
>So starting now, we'll enforce and expect cooperation and mutual help between the two of us. We'll use her strength and ressources, and protect and help her too.
>It's not negociable.

We shouldn't choose a name too soon. Let's see what kind of life we're heading for before.

>>22155941
Yes.

>>22155934
>>22155943
sounds good, we should as well see to making our elves more service ready; squads of scouts, rangers, outposts and listening points

>>22155977
forget his hoard, mother has almost certainly been over it and has it claimed

>>22155934
>See what you can find out about your brother's killer and try to hunt them down yourself.
Offer our help to mom on this point. Let's see how she does things. We'll make her a little indebted for getting our help to uphold her reputation, and we might gain some contacts or stuff.

>>22155941
>Or can red dragons notice if stuff is missin gfrom another dragons hoard?
Mom probably never considered that the hoards of her children were not her own.

>>22156019
Well. How do we want to start on this? Use the elves?

>>22155984

No way. I don't want to get tied to her like that.

It's also one damned show of weakness.

So it's try and win the wizard over, convince your sister to be at least somewhat friendly and avenge brother's death. While this is going on, start looking for a lair.

Roll 3d10, low is good.

>>22156036
Well, i thought he would be clever enough to at least attempt to hide his treasures from mom. If he wanted to keep them after getting thrown out.

>>22156045
Elves are good scouts, they can dig up some tracks or left behind items, its really a matter of how long it has been, but they could no doubt turn something up

Rolled 5, 1, 8 = 14

>>22156059
Rollan!

>>22155979
Nah, subtle emotional manipulation would have been subverting (or founding, I'm not picky) a cult of the binder and then having them kidnap Cygni. Then of course we come to "rescue" her and in the process we would be "forced" to reveal our true form. Then Cygni would have "lost her head" (thanks to some enchantments we place on her shackles) we have to subdue her, giving us justification for keeping her prisoner, because we can't trust her. Then use her trust and love (and desire for redemption after her "failure") for us to turn her into our minion, rather than playing on feelings of inadequacy and letting our Erynies do the heavy lifting.
I prefer to reenforce and manipulate positive emotions rather than enhance negative ones through physical and mental abuse.

>>22156136
I saw that

Rolled 3, 3, 7 = 13

Rollan

>>22156053
Show of weakness ? Because we'll try to take control for our own benefit ?

>>22156168
and that

>>22156136

We all saw it

>>22156093
We didn' abuse Cygnis at all until the day of the reveal. What we did at first was pretty subtle, emotional manipulation.

But i think i should better let this topic lie, the quest is over and dead anyways.

>>22156190
>>22156188
>>22156177
Now I'm gonna have to check what it was on foolz.

>>22156187

Teaming up with her is a show of weakness.

>>22156257
Not anymore than teaming up with elves, kobolds or wizards. As long as we are the one in command it's fine.

Also, young dragons shouldn't act like they're immortal.

>>22156036
Well, if that's the case, then taking it for ourself won't change the fact that it's in "her" hoard, now will it?

>>22156330
Sure. But we're still touching her stuff without permission, and she won't approve.

>>22156299

It's different. The elves and kobolds are slaves. THe wizard is an investment, the coming of our "prophet" to spread the word of our might, or something like that. So no, we're not 'teaming up' with them.

Our sister, however, will become a rival once we're adults, and there will probably be disputes with her over treasure and territory. Unless we make her our mate~

I propose that until we have built up a sufficient powerbase, that we work on having subordinates that are fewer in number, but highly trained and loyal. Similar to what we did with the elves, this way there are less... openings to infiltration. Call it paranoia but once we do put ourselves on the grand stage we will have a rather well created core to build off of powerbase wise. I am not suggesting RedWater Security Services, no sir not at all.

>>22156456
Are you suggesting becoming the king of murderhobos? And just murderhobo our enemies to death on our ascent?

>>22156399
>Our sister, however, will become a rival once we're adults, and there will probably be disputes with her over treasure and territory
Certainly. But we'll fight, physically or otherwise, and we'll win.
It's not essentially different from cowing a slave. We'll just do it with a more powerful and useful creature.

>>22156456
we have the human, suppose whats his back-story? any family? Friends? if so we may have a new angle

File: 1356128069834.jpg-(36 KB, 346x482, tom-cruise-top-gun.jpg)

>>22156456
I'd be up for that, as long as we make our human form look like Tom Cruise in Top Gun.

>>22156483
Way I see it, we'll have to range a damn long ways to get out of the domain of Green, Bronze, and mother dearest. A smaller core will let us get up and go a lot easier to find such and area. A traveling band of mercenaries have such a justification for having such mobility.
>>22156529
I'm totally not attempting to take a murderhobo spin on a Incognito Silver Dragon Wandering artisan I had as an NPC in a campaign once that never came up.

File: 1356128236146.jpg-(91 KB, 1024x772, jack-nicholson-shining-10(...).jpg)

>>22156529
>Not doing Jack Nicholson

Also are we capable of shapchanging yet?

>>22156575
Red dragons don't get naturally the ability to shapechange.

>>22156575
>>22156529

Let's compromise with Kevin Bacon

>>22156628
Lets compromise on FUCK YOU NO ONE WANTS TO BE KEVIN BACON

>>22156624
Shut Up! OP apparently doesn't know that.

>>22156624
I thought all dragons did?

>>22156573
As fun as that sounds, perhaps we're better off just staying small and starting with research as to possible locations rather than wandering off and playing mercenaries. Besides, it's difficult to build your powerbase when you're on the move all the time.

How would people feel about Dolph Lundgren?

>>22156655
Nope, only golds, silvers and i think coppers. And i'm not sure about the silvers. Its a moot point though, if we get powerful enough we can just cast polymorph.

>>22156666
Boom, We have a winner

>>22156656
Didn't say we would do it now, I just suggested we stay small and unobtrusive for the moment. A deathly loyal elite guard that has us to thank for its wellbeing and instills that in its progeny is something worth striving for while we are this young

>>22156573
>A smaller core will let us get up and go a lot easier to find such and area. A traveling band of mercenaries have such a justification for having such mobility
Karban Quest : Red Dragon edition ?

We should get started on our lair as soon as possible, as soon as we have our base built the better

File: 1356129051268.jpg-(208 KB, 965x788, alternateformdragons.jpg)

There's a feat in one of the Eberron books that lets true dragons with a sorcerer level of 5 or more assume alternate forms like the bronzes, silvers and golds.

Update is around half done.

>>22156810
well what level are we?

>>22156679
Silvers are the biggest on shapeshifting if I recall correctly.
>>22156781
Prolly will have to wait until young adult phase. Shapeshifting will allow us to relocate away from this three way cold war.

>>22156826
First level. We reach 5th at age 50. I vote we run this guy as strait smart evil/ affably evil.

>>22156948
Drakenlocke Vetinari. You know you want to.

>>22156948
Sounds good to me. We can still be loud and angry when someone pisses us off, but it loses its impact if we do it all the time.

>>22156948

>>22156995

I'm okay with this, calculated evil is always enjoyable.

>>22156948
We want to become a wizard. We can take a few levels in ultimate magus to get the 5th caster level earlier.

Alternatively, we max out bluff and make people believe we're humanoid.

>>22157006
>Our kingdom's wealth is based on how good our hoard is. A Hoard standard if we will.

>>22157043
>Wall Street Dragon

I admit it has a certain kind of appeal.

And i think i am the only one who would appreciate going more neutral than evil? Sigh.

>>22157078
Alignment is subjective, lets call what we are intelligent self-interest

>>22157078
>post-Mayan Apocalypse
>non evil aligment

>>22157078
I'm okay with that. I'm mostly concerned about effective and unburdened by too many scruples, especially ones concerned with forcible annexation. If someone wants a metallic waifu or something, I'm down with that.

>>22157098
So, chaotic neutral with a bent towards evil or the other way round? Fuck the law, achieve treasures, but don't step on too many toes doing that?

>>22157152
>Fuck the law
We are the law.

>>22157170
Comes out the same, really. Our will be done.

>>22157152
...Not to start an alignment debate, but a conquering king would usually be lawful.

I prefer anything Evil, though Chaotic Neutral with Evil tendencies is fine.

No True/Lawful Neutral bullshit, though.

>>22157152
We are Neutral Capitalism. Mercenaries, proper investment. Etc etc

>>22157204

Yes, if we had a kingdom we could be lawful. But since we're aimming at enslaving the conquering kings, we're hardly Lawful.

If something happens, we will simply ignore/change the laws or rules and do as we please.

We should also pull a Darth Vader and change our deals as necessary.

>>22157204
Only if he has a code of society he adheres to. We are a dragon, we are above such petty things. The others are bound by rules.

>>22157236

No. Don't repeat the joke too much, or it will lose its fun.

>>22157078
Why not.
>>22157152
I'd say : let's toy with people without going out of our way to hurt them - and actually going out of our way to make their lives better as our toys.
I'm not sure that's neutral, though.

>>22157263
>>22157236
>>22157228
>>22157265
>>22157204
i say we forget about Alignments and just go with " amoral & arbitrary"

>>22157228

Chaotic Neutral/ neutral evil, whichever our mood swings to when we wake up on our pile of treasure.

Also, we need to, at some point, get a fern.

>>22157285
We can make their lives better as long as that does not hurt our interests too much.

So, alignment labeling aside. We seem to have reached a consensus on our character being a conquering king, who is surprisingly reasonable for a red dragon. Interested in providing genuinely effective government and protecting his people, but also interested in power for powers sake, and the expansion of that power to new territory. Willing to have virtually anyone work for him as long as they are effective and loyal.

>>22157300
plus they pay more when they are happy

>>22155647
>>22155714

Is it a good idea to teach magic to slaves? Especially elves.

>>22157341
we're only giving them a few minor spells, besides we would never allow them anywhere near our level of power

>>22157328
>Interested in providing genuinely effective government and protecting his people,

No. We will only protect people if they're loyal and increase our hoard/fight other people for us.

At the first sight of not following our instructions to the letter, we're on a city burning spree.

>>22157285
>Why not.

Not as fun.

>>22157341
I agree. We should, at the very least, restrict what they learn. Red dragons have an immunity to fire right? Let's teach them fire related things.

>>22157328
>Interested in providing genuinely effective government and protecting his people, but also interested in power for powers sake
I'm more interested in power for fun's sake.
Nothing sadder than a bored king.

>>22157381
I thought we wanted to be somewhat reasonable and able to accept criticism as a way to better ourselves and always stay on top?

>>22157328

When the fuck did we ever reach a consensus? Specially one like that?

It's like we're not playing a goddamn red dragon.

>>22157445
This. Seriously. Let's be self-serving and manipulative.

>ofeutst was

yeah, let's be like ofeutst

>>22157445
See
>>22156948
>>22156995
>>22157004
>>22157043
>>22157078
>>22157098
>>22157132

>>22157492
Then what better way to do it? you cannot skin a cow then milk it

>>22157387
I don't think so. Being neutral, or close, means being able to take advantage of every occasion. Just playing out the red dragon stereotype will cut down on our fun.
I don't want to be good and work for the people all the time. I don't want to be evil and work against the people all the time either. Even though both have their own rewards, the middle ground has the best.

>>22157511
>>22157502
>>22157492
>>22157445

I think we're all taking the same thing, only calling it different things.

>>22157429
What we should do is follow the evil overlord list properly, with some amendments given we are a dragon and not an overlord.
>>22157445
>>22157492
Not necessarily agreeing with captain altruism here, but some foresight into making things self serving in its eventuality is the essence of manipulation. If it so happens to make those under us have better conditions than not under us it is a happy accident.
>>22157525
What this guy said, but with more plotting. Funnier if later the plotting is uncovered and is not outright harmful. Really would put a spanner in the works of anyone who would oppose us

>>22157492
>Let's be self-serving and manipulative.
I wouldn't have it any other way.
But we can be that and yet not systematically cruel.

>>22157445
>>22157492
I more meant that we have an actual effective kingdom, with a real government army and the like, rather than constantly destroying its economic potential for shitty short term gain like our mother does. Sort of a roman emperor vs Mugabe type deal.

>>22157525
This man speaks my mind.

File: 1356132097938.jpg-(14 KB, 151x246, dragon203.jpg)

You deposit several of your most presentable elves around the two towns. The rest are either too scarred, mentally or physically, to be of any use on such a deployment. From what you can gather, your mother's agents in the region are primarliy directed against the city of Temur and either lack the contacts for finding those responsible, or lack the talent to do so. While they are left to their mission you see to some of the other plans you have in mind.

---

You approach Thorom after his usual lessons with the elves. You've observed a few a these sessions and while it has made a few of the details clearer, you still get the impression there is a lot more material to cover before you full understand the processes behind even the most basic spells.

"You have been doing well, it has been only a few days and my servants have already started casting basic spells," you say, having learned that opening with a compliment is apparently helpful when dealing with humanoids. Being as pathetic as they are you can see why they need the reassurance.

He seems rather surprised at this. "Oh, uh, thank you sir." Not being sufficiently familiar with spoken draconic he instead uses the trade tongue term for a human superior. It annoys you slightly, but for now you've decided keeping him reasonably happy if preferable to bitter sycophancy. "Though I must warn you, this is only the most basic aspects of magic. The more complex principles can take years to master. I've been studying for four years now and I still haven't managed to full grasp first circle magics." He says, fully aware that his life may depend on teaching your elves magic.

"For which I may have a solution. Dragons are potent sorcerers, my own kind among the most powerful of them all. I may be able to further your studies with my own understanding. The principles are different, but I possess an instinctive talent for magecraft." You try to remain as neutral sounding as possible while telling him this. Your first attempts at replicating human body language seemed be more scary than reassuring.

"Um, it - well, it might help, I suppose. The two systems are quite different - though, considering your natural talent at such things, if anyone could do it, it would be you." Even with your spotty grasp of human body language, it's clear he is far from certain this would be of any use. Though you won't know until you've tried.

File: 1356132160780.jpg-(202 KB, 1000x1358, D1-filter.jpg)

I don't want to be ungrateful, but OP is too slow. One update every two hours is far from enough.

Later that day you approach your sister's favorite lurking spot in the southern hills. She has effectively claimed a portion of them, much like you have done the east forest. You know what's coming next; she tries the same thing every time you go after her. There is a brief flicker of a shadow from the direction of the sun and you give the single hardest flap you are capable of, minimising your silhouette from above and throwing you higher into the air. A fraction of a second later, your sister dives through the air where your wing had been a moment ago. It's one of the simplest tactics for aerial combat; Dive out of the sun and try to cripple one of your opponents wings. You hear her scream some curses as she misses her target. You both level off and start circling each other nearly two kilometers above the foothills.

"What do you want?" she demands, slightly surprised by your lack of immediate retaliation. She was clearly expecting a fight.

"Only to talk. I've been thinking about Duskin's death. No doubt he became careless about his raids, but he should have fallen to something more...worthy than a bunch of human mercenaries."

She snorts at this. "He probably got run over by the cart he was trying to steal from. The runt was going to die anyway, why care about who did it?"

You roll your eyes at her typically dismissive attitude towards your brother. "That 'runt' fought you to a standstill on a least one occasion. You were stronger than him, yes, but not by so much that you can be certain you would have survived had you been in his place. I'm not sure I would have survived either." You are being entirely truthful about this. It's hard to judge an opponent you know nothing about, after all.

She glares at you for a second. "Where are you going with this?"

Good, now she's more curious than angry. "The world is a dangerous place, and right now, we are too young to fully defend ourselves. Mother's protection mitigates this, but it only extends so far. Soon, we will have to leave and face the world alone. When that happens, we will have to travel to unknown lands, with unknown dangers. Do you want to risk ending up like Duskin, just because you misjudged some humanoid's ability with a spear?"

She grins at this. "So in other words, you're afraid and you want my help?"

You chuckle at this, though you have to force it given the insult. "You think fear brought me here sister? I haven't finished and you haven't thought through the implications of working together. How many traders carry wealth worth bothering with? A small fraction, all of them defended. The more treasure, the better the guards. Would you rather take a few silver coins and a small gold trinket from an insignificant peddler, or bags of treasure being taken as tax? The latter will be well guarded and with two pairs of eyes, easier to find."

>>22157634
Kind of sort of agree, but I'm an MHQ veteran so I can handle the wait. Just not used to the natives getting restless like this

She considers this for a moment. "And how do you suggest we split the spoils? In order of who does most of the work?" Good, she isn't trying to take the lead on this. She will eventually, but by then you should have a good track record. The prospect of more gold has her distracted for now.

"If we tried to do it that way we'd end up killing each other before the first week. Shall we say an even split for all those raids that involve both of us? We'll probably have to refine the agreement as we go, but it should do as a rough basis."

She looks away, clearly thinking hard about this. After a minute she finally responds. "For now, I think I might be willing to work with you against the better targets. You had better pull your weight though, or I'll be taking all of the loot."

Given how stubborn she usually is, that went rather well.

>>22157634
lol

>>22157525

But the fun is in playing the red dragon stereotype.

I like conquering stuff and burn stuff down.

I don't mind miximizing gains, but I don't the dragon to end up as a hired guardian.

File: 1356132429046.png-(415 KB, 1024x768, temurianmap.png)

Your hunt for a lair progresses slowly, due to the distances involved, but you have three potential sites scouted out. The first is isolated from most significant population centres. It has a region that might be suitable for setting up a moderate sized town in, though it would still be far from any trade routes. No other dragons are confirmed in the immediate area, but there are indications of a black about 200-300km to the south-east. Orcs live in the mountains westward.

The second is on one of the southern islands. You've interrogated passing travellers and heard rumors of a bronze living nearby. Your best guess based on it's description puts it at a juvenile age, though it doesn't seem interested in human activities. The centre of the island is isolated, and there is little interest in it from the outside world. Most of it's economy is based on fishing, trading and piracy.

The third has a very young copper dragon living near to the base of the mountains directly north. It's parent(s) are almost certainly nearby, but if they living within the mountain itself, they are sufficiently far away that they are unlikely to bother you. It has an excellent view of the surrounding plains (it's primary attraction) and the local nomads often have interesting stuff to trade (or steal). The plains have very little in the way of civilisation.

Unfortunately, a bunch of disfigured elves with no local knowledge do no better than your mother's agents. They can tell you nothing about who might have killed him, beyond the fact that it was probably one of the groups of mercenaries hired to defend against the recent dragon attacks.

A few days after returning them to the forest, you learn that Thorom's old master, Olmir, spent much of his own apprenticeship in one of the towns in quest. Some quick questioning reveals that Thorom is familiar with the area through the stories Olmir told him. He says might be able to look up some of the individuals Olmir told him about.

>>22157634
But when something comes its quality at least.

>The first is isolated from most significant population centres. It has a region that might be suitable for setting up a moderate sized town in, though it would still be far from any trade routes. No other dragons are confirmed in the immediate area, but there are indications of a black about 200-300km to the south-east. Orcs live in the mountains westward.

good this gives us some breathing room and lets us build in a virgin area, lots of room for expansion

>>22157634

I probably should try break stuff up a bit so updates come faster, yes. That did take longer than expected

>>22157715
First one seems the most attractive. Though the black gives me a bit of pause. The Islands are really tempting though.

>>22157736
Plus Orcs can be turned into conscripts and mercenaries fairly quickly

>>22157715

Build a pirate trade network from a dragon-run Tortuga ? Doesn't sound all that bad.

>>22157767
Do we have to worry about dealing with orcs AND elves? I don't think they'd get along

>It's distinctly possible that I don't know what I'm talking about.

File: 1356132869021.jpg-(44 KB, 446x400, Laughing girls.jpg)

>>22157736

>Black Dragons

Who wants to go bully our neighbors?

>>22157736
The problem is that there is literally nothing. We would either need to enslave those orcs or bring people from far away, possible through dragon lands.

3 could be the best if we manage to strike some deal with the young copper. They aren't really known to be deceitful, after all. Starting a fight with its parents so close would be foolish, though.

2 Sounds the best for now... Though it has no mountains, which sucks, for as a red we require a mountain lair.

>>22157715

Hmm, all of them are insteresting

First one has virgin territory, and we could conquer the orcs, raise an army and pillage entire kingdoms.

Second one has a somewhat safe location, piracy could net us good profit, and any city with a harbor has the potential to grow economically.

Third are has nomads, which we could use to pillage smaller towns. Also an interesting spot for our elves to develop a civilization of their own...

>>22157789
only if we quarter them together, keep em separate they should be fine, but we should still look into getting kobolds, they grease the wheels

>>22157804
We don't know how old it is. Might be a wyrm and the father of the mature adult in the south, for all we know.

>>22157784
Sounds damn good, ousting the bronze would be better given it is closer in age range to us. We have no idea how old the black is, but if it has a lot of power on us we would be backed into a deadlock like our mother is along with trying to build up from nothing.
I am not advocating this for brown island elves. No sir.

>>22157831
Also, fuck, the big city has a gold. That might become trouble for mum if she goes city razing.

While I remember (I should have posted this mid-update, but forgot), here's a brief history of the area I write earlier.

The Temurian Empire was a successful mageocracy that lasted from 900 years ago until around 200 years before the present day. It was ruled by a Sorcerer-King (a position which still exists in the city-state of Temur, and a few others, today) and was overseen by various nobles - all sorcerers. The king made most of the major decisions and the sorcerer council dealt with day to day affairs, but the king could be over-ruled by the council. Around 230 years ago the merchant families (a title that originally applied to free merchants, but came to mean wealthy non magicals) that ran much of the economy began to see a significant increase in wealth. This was the result of a major economic boom in their traditional spheres of interest. The king, seeing a chance to increase his power, started to play them off against the nobility. Initially, he was quite successful at keeping them both on his side, claiming to be preventing the nobles from unfairly seizing the merchant families businesses, and promising the nobles that they wouldn't be overshadowed by a bunch of new-money mundanes. This quickly began to spiral out of control as tensions increased, and ended up starting a civil war between the magical nobility and the wealthy mundanes. Realising who was responsible for much of the tensions, the nobility executed the king, but it was too late to stop the war. At first the sorcerers were clearly winning - they had estabilshed armies and considerable arcane power to back them up. The merchant families were caught by surprise by the onset of hosilities, but after a few months started pouring their fortunes into mercenaries from the growing kingdoms to the north. Their money quickly ran out as the economy was ruined, but they were able to keep the mercenaries on board by promising them ever larger portions of the defeated nobles assets.

This dragged on for nearly eleven years, with both sides using increasingly ruthless tactics. Eventually, the mercenary armies finally withdrew, having realised they would never get enough payment to make the effort worth it. The merchant families were crushed, but the tactics used meant Empire was ruined by the war - nearly two thirds of the peasant population were dead. With such widespread devastation, bitterness from the slaughter and most its administrative institutions gone, it quickly fragmented. It has remained a bunch of infighting city states ever since. Most of the more powerful individuals prefer to gain wealth by scavenging the remains of the old empire - the fact there is still enough pre-war leftovers to do this is a testament to how successful the old empire was. They consider this quicker and easier to do than navigating the city politics, riddled as it is with infighting and sectarian politics.

Recently, King Nuxiv of the city of Temur has attempted to reclaim the cities to the south, but his hold is tenuous and he's struggling to keep his armies paid.

>>22157811
Coppers are our natural opposite though, right? What would make him trust us?

>>22157871
Hmm... I suppose the remaining people would be happy to see a new order, especially one without shall we say? "Human Frailties"

>>22157898
Why wouldn't he? I think coppers were the curious ones, a red dragon willing to negotiate and coexist might interest him.

>>22157811
>>22157812
>>22157847

My vote also goes for site 2. Go full out tropico style, get some ships and pirates, abduct some workers and craftsmen, start a settlement, grow to a decent port, watch the dough roll in as we cut a deal with the Bronze.

>>22157569
Pretty much. It's a question of whether we want to own 20% of a thriving city or 90% of a shitty village.

>>22157952
not to mention rule the sea routs, little bits of floating wood should be fairly weary of fire

Looking at the options, the Islands seem to be a damn good choice, especially if just starting out. If we manage to secure them, we could give the elves a place to build up and expand possibly creating a decent civilization that would be beholden to us. Not only that, the age of the bronze would be good for taking it down compared to the Copper or the Black which we don't have enough intel on to move against.

So, about the plains. It doesn't seem to be the best place for a Red Dragon. It lacks proper civilization, and nomads can't conquer much, besides pillagin some small towns.

The catch, however, is that it's empty space. If we manage to increase the elves numbers, they could start a whole new civilization there.

Now, imagine a civilization, born and developed under the watch of a dragon. With nothing to fear, they could prosper nicely, and potentially become a trade route, so merchants could stop there on the way to other places. The newer generations could also come to worship the dragon. We would have nothing to fear from them, and given some time, maybe a few centuries, we could own a proper kingdom by simply letting them grow.

Of course, we're still going on long journeys to hunt for treasure. We have a hoard to grow, and making other places undesireable would attract profitable attention to our elves.

The gold in Temur is unconfirmed. Single question marks means it's age is unknown, double means you don't know if it actually exists.

The black to the north is probably quite old, as the main sign of it's presence is a swamp with a neatly cut road running through it. It's not a natural road, but seems to be where the ground has simply risen out of the swamp. It would take a fairly powerful dragon to do this. You did interrogate several travellers heading towards the swamp, they say there is one stop in the middle of it, run by lizardfolk. No-one who has tried robbing it has ever been heard from again. They've never heard of any dragon attacks in the area, but supposedly bandits tend to meet an exceptionally gruesome end.

The road itself leads to one of the few viable passages through the mountains and is a significant trade route.

>>22157953
We're red dragons. We want 100% of everything.

>>22158005
lets leave old blackie alone then, I say islands

the obvious choice is the islands I vote the islands

>>22158005
>Black dragon possibly doing the same thing as us.
Yeah islands for now. Blacks going to be an issue to take on another day.

The problem with the islands, is the limited growth potential. Either we turn the towns into trade empires, or we make a pirate army. Doing both is unlikely to succeed.

For a trade empire, the mortals need attractive resources to make a profit on. The pirate army, however, requires population, which might dwindle fast and take decades to recover.

Otherwise, it would be the best place for us. No mortal would be able to assautl an island with a motherfucking dragon burning their ships to ashes.

>>22158089
we can take more territory later as needed, for now it offers a solid defense and starting point

I don't like the island idea much. There's too much water, it seems unfit for a red dragon. There won't be much land to conquer from there either.

I think a mountainous home would be better.
The northenmost one is too empty. Orcs are probably not the best option to build a civilized kingdom, though I think we should go take a closer look.

Site 3 is too dangerous, I don't want the parents to find us after we killed the child.

I want to kill that isolated Silver. In 20 years or so, with the help of our sister, that might be doable. We'll have passed a couple age categories but he won't.
Also, there might be lizardmen in the blacks' swamps.
We could use them to build a kingdom. And we could create a trade route accross the mountains for riches.
Of course that's speculation. We'll have to make sure of the age of the second black first.

>>22158089
i agree, it only the best based on the short-term goals. im more in favor of the first or third spots to be honest. the first one is a relatively safe option, but we won't be getting much wealth for a while, while the third location is more of a gamble, which could pay off loads if we succeed.

>>22158127
>>22158138
>>22158089

We could just wait and bid our time. We might find a better location yet. Its not like mum will throw us out tomorrow.

>>22158152
true enough.

You don't have to choose now, you've still got several years before you're likely to be kicked out.

You might even find a better potential lair in the meantime (though this isn't guaranteed).

>>22158089

We can work out which way we want to go when the time comes. I'd say we first get a small settlement going, spend a few decades plundering the high seas, then use our booty to invest in our port and set up some mighty fine trade routes. Convert our pirate ships into trade vessels and torch any other competition who dare oppose us.

And get us ferns, lots and lots of ferns.

Any short term actions then? Continue trying to avenge your brother, further your alliance with your sister, etc?

File: 1356134624200.jpg-(53 KB, 419x700, 1352117965000.jpg)

>>22158169

>>22158168
Then for now I suggest we start a search for new servants, shouldn't put all of our eggs into one basket with the elves

File: 1356134644478.jpg-(21 KB, 400x399, 1326980840507.jpg)

Why don't we just go to a town and start a banking business?

Everyone knows Dragons guard treasure well, and the sheer novelty will bring tons of customers in. Medieval peasants live even more boring lives then we do.

Work that high charisma.

>>22158174
Fuck you and your ferns, you killed one dragon quest already with a joke i don't even understand.

Possible plan: We get sis to raid some caravans and stay close by, but don't attack with her and hide closeby. The merchants will surely hire the same mercs that killed our brother to protect them again, since they are "Dragon Killers". If they show up, reveal that there were two dragons all along and punish them harshly.

>>22158189
lets grill the human wizard on everything he knows about the humanoids where he come from, and also human in general, get some useful information

>>22158205
Being emperor is one thing, but do we really want to become an accountant?

>>22157996

I kinda like this plan. But starting a kingdom from scratch is iffy. We would need to intervene a lot in other places, I think.

On the other hand, it seems to has the biggest payoff. An entire kingdom of worshippers sounds so fucking awesome.

>>22158189
Collaborate with mom to solve the dead bro problem. Get sis to help. Loot a few merchants on the way.

>>22158209
Clever Girl.

>>22158198

This, until another drastic event occurs I think we're on the right course.

File: 1356134844896.jpg-(174 KB, 890x890, 1336315878176.jpg)

>>22158219

Nigga, who do you think is actually pulling the strings?

Pro tip: it's not Lord "too-fat-to-sit-on-his-horse".

>>22158189

Nah, forget about the killers.

Instead, try to acquire magical tomes so we and the magician can learn some more magic.
Also get more elves, as many as possible; we want them to grow. Maybe we should offer them an incentive for them to breed more/faster?

>>22158209
Men have a tendency to brag, sooner or later they will be boasting of a slain red dragon, keep our agents ears open

So is it work with your sister to try and draw the mercs out? Do you want to bring your mother in on it?

Stuff like 'find more servants' would be longer term, as you don't have any immediate leads, unless you want to timeskip.

>>22158247
I like more elves instead of more random races, keeping with the keeping our subordinates relatively smaller and first rate to assist with picking up and moving when we have too.

>>22158247
I support most of this, though i think we shouldn't intervene in the elves private lives. Leave them be as long as they pay their taxes.

We also may want to generally spend more time amongst humans and elves. We need to become really good at manipulating htem.

I vote team up with mom (and hopefully not sis) to find the killers. Mom will be grateful, which is something we could use, especially if we eventually want to take down sis

>>22158243
Point, but in that case I'd rather be an industrialist than a banker. Maybe we could put those elves to work in a textile mill.

>>22158224
The whole region doesn't look very profitable to me. A ruined empire on one side, nothing on the other, and good old dragons to the north.

I think we should emigrate at some point.

But first we need human agents to be able to act in the eastern towns.
How can we gather them ?
And to what use could we put our elves ? They're twiddling their thumbs and getting us nothing of value.

>>22158266
I suggest we offer what ever help is requested by mother, direct involvement seems unnecessary, they will come forward soon enough themselves if we give them time to brag around the tavern. lets time-skip a few years

>>22158266
I think working together with mother on this might be a good idea. Using ourselves as bait, and then out of the woods there comes this angry giant dragon... Might work.

>>22158297

Long-term, developing some kind of culture is important if we want to form an working community, and producing actually goods is a good way to help with this.

So maybe.

I still prefer the idea of setting up banks and Elf-slave brothels.

>>22158273
>>22158247
Elves are just an experience. They're too few, and too damaged to be a long-term investment.
We can't make them grow faster, and we can't move them.
Let's try some new things. Then we'll decide which is best.

>>22158322
>Elf-slave brothels

It begins.

>>22158322
too early, their still tweaked from greenie

>>22158322
>Elf-slave brothels.

I like this idea.

>>22158247
The killers are a chance for training ourself and finding out more about the world. We can't just have long-term goals.

>>22158311
Seconding this.

>>22158322
Let me tell you that i will try to work against this.

Human agents are tricky. You could just try bullying some humans into working for you, but you have no idea how they would behave once they're away from you.

Your elves are currently trading off things they make in exchange for a small amount of treasure, which they give to you (and you get taxed for).

---
>>22158303
>>22158311
>>22158291
>>22158232
>>22158228
>>22158209

So it's try and draw out the killers with sis and get your mother to help.

roll 3d10.

Nah, no working with mom. If we get the mercenaries ourselves, she should reward us.

If she participates, though, we won't win anything, as she will "have done the importnt parts".

Rolled 1, 3, 9 = 13

rollan

>>22158420

Well.

Shit.

Rolled 6, 1, 9 = 16

>>22158420
whoops.

File: 1356135739285.png-(28 KB, 565x552, 1331776392785.png)

>>22158322

>Elf Slave Brothels

Yes.

>>22158447
>>22158322

Get out.

>>22157723
>Thorom is familiar with the area through the stories Olmir told him. He says might be able to look up some of the individuals Olmir told him about.
It doesn't seem like he could do much. No sense in giving him a chance to escape our grip either.
I think we should use find a gang of bandits on the other side of the mountains, make them shape up, then use them to step into human territory.
I think we could try to settle an alliance with a (would-be) human leader. It could be accomplished in a short time and give us some good opportunities.
Maybe we could bet on a rebellion in the cities conquered by Temur ?

>>22158432
>>22158438
Please try to remember that low is good in this quest. Thank you.

>>22158397
Do you take the lowest roll or what?

>>22158511
I'm not sure if that's a good idea. Bandits have no discipline and cohesion, no loyality to each other, i'm sure they would just split up and try to slink away as soon as we take our eye of them. After all, what do they care if they former comrades have to suffer the wrath of a dragon from their departure?

>>22158605

All three get used.

Low is good, as is usually the case.

>>22158646

Which post you use? The first roll, or the ebst roll?

File: 1356136805378.png-(39 KB, 645x773, 1341939442576.png)

>>22158711

We said roll LOW!

>>22158711
Jesus man, don't delete rolls, thats just poor style.

>>22158711
Hey man, not cool. Don't delete bad rolls.

He rolled an 8, 6, and a 10 in that order.

>>22158420
I'm using this one.

>>22158642
You're assuming a lot about bandits.

And even if you're right, they at least have loyalty for gold. Besides, if they try to hide from us, what are they gonna do ? They have to make a living like anyone, and they already chose their dangerous profession instead of working honestly (possibly because the opportunity isn't open to them). They don't have any other way to live, and if they stay as bandits we can find them again. They'll submit.

As long as we don't kill them, we'll be the same as the old boss for them.

>>22158816
You are not implying to actually give them gold, do you? If i were a bandit i'd high-tail it out of the area of the dragon that hijacked my gang as soon as possible. What is he going to do, search for every single one of us when everyone is going somewhere else?

File: 1356137402398.jpg-(8 KB, 236x214, okay face.jpg)

>>22158765
What are you talking about? I didn't delete any rolls.

>>22158883

>>>/reddit/

>>22158853
What are YOU gonna do, alone and away from the trade routes ?
As for the gold we might give some. We could also improve their own yield.

And if we actually clear the area of bandits... we can always use that to approach important local men.

>>22159038
Temeraire series? I liked those novels.

update coming?

File: 1356139122321.jpg-(189 KB, 1000x703, Dragon_attack.jpg)

You approach your mother with the idea of using you and your sister as bait for the mercenaries.

She ponders this for a moment before responding. "And how are you going to tell those particular humans apart from the other troops that will likely end up plaguing the area? What makes you think they will even be willing to risk showing themselves, considering they know I'm looking for them and this will no doubt be a highly suspicious coincidence. Unless..." She pauses for several seconds before giving a feral grin. "Tell your sister to see me tomorrow. I will tell you both what you will do then."

You mother's plan - it's fairly clear neither you nor your sister will be getting much say in how this is going to go - is quite simple. You will both start raiding along a specific route, making sure only one of you is seen and ensuring that at least a few survivors make it out to tell their story. This should cause enough upset at the troops who supposedly killed the marauding dragon that her agents might be able to bribe a few disgruntled merchants into finding out their names. They will claiming they too lost wealth to a raid and would like to know who falsely claimed the roads were safe.

The raids start well enough, the merchants have been quick to discard the expensive soldiers. They have returned to the usual, less well armed guards to ward off the usual bandits. Three weeks in and nearly fifty slaughtered caravans later, there is still little word from your mother's agents. On the plus side, you hoard has grown considerably. You have been able to take far bigger risks, knowing your sister can back you up if things get out of hand (you have been sure to try and take on as many groups as possible , while she hangs back, for practice). The fact your mother would be quite annoyed if your sister left you to die, despite her still having plans involving you has no doubt helped prevent any backstabbing from occurring.

>>22159169

Probably. He likes to write, and it's high enough quality to be worth the wait. Just do something else for a bit then refresh.

You watch the caravan progress down the road. "A large one this time." You note.

Your sister snorts. "Scared?"

"Only that there might be too much to carry," you reply.

She turns to you. "You've taken the last two, this one's mine."

You try and stare her down. "It's larger than most, we can hit it simultaneously. Just make sure no-one survives."

She stares back for a moment giving a noncommital shrug. "why not. I don't think I've ever tried teaming up for a slaughter."

The attack begins well as you swoop down out of the sun, setting the column of guards at the front and back ablaze. The caravan decends into mayhem as the remaining guards try to rally a defence and the merchants try to hide. You line up for a second run when a series of transparent objects shoot from behind one of the carts. The ice storm spell, you realise. The small blocks of ice slam into your chest at immense speed and you can feel several scales crack. Ice manages to work its way into you wounds and you shudder in agony for a second before regaining control of your flightpath. Your sister sees the source and diverts her own run to strafe the mage responsible. Her breath does nothing to the robed individual you see diving away from the cart. Their actions save the cart they were next to. By this point you've circled around, ignoring the pain in your chest and are ready for another run.

Actions?

>>22159311
Knock the cart over. Crush the wizard.

>>22159311
Blast the cart with fire, and stay in the air, keep moving though so they can't get an aim

>>22159311
pick the wizard up and tear him in two with our claws

>>22159311
Geek the mage first. Go in and try to snatch him with the claws. Give the other guards a few firebreaths.

>>22159311
Should we be rolling for any of this?

Decide on something first, so far attack with claws is in the lead.

>>22159311
destroy the cart

Let sister aggro. As the humans focus on her, get in and burn everyone.

>>22159403
burn the cart, then attack the mage

>>22159414
Mage seems to be unaffected by fire, we need to try something else. Does anyone know what caster level the ice storm spell is?

>>22159455
4th level, these are our dragon hunters

>>22159455
we could pick the cart up and drop it on the mage, that might do something

Agreement is to go for the mage. Do you want to use claws, or try something else?

>>22159342
>>22159419
Burning the cart could destroy the loot.

>>22159478
-4th is worrying, i mean, even the king of that city only had 3rd circle spells. That mage really needs to die right the fuck now.

We are still in the Young Age Category and that dude is a level 8+ PC. I'm pretty sure that's bad. Hopefully there aren't any other PCs around.

Just a thought.....

Break off attack, get sis or yourself to follow out of range while sis (or you) fetches mum then, once the fiery trinity is assembled let nothing escape but ashes in the wind-- provided mums not days away.....

>>22159528
Knock him on his ass with our tail, then rip out his throat with teeth or claws.

>>22159530
so we can't burn him? lets drop something heavy as shit on his head, I bet his bones are soft

>>22159528
I'd say claws. Maybe sling an attack spell at him while we are flying in.

Claws it is then.

Roll a d10.

Rolled 6

>>22159572

Let's do this

>>22159544
lets not get to close to him, he probably has something up his sleeve, lets throw something at him and while he is scrambling away we get him

>>22159550
I vote for a straight flying tackle- sure, we will get hit, but he certainly wont kill us before we smash into him and end his pathetic existence- get sis to cover us while grounded


Basically attack like a raptor- screaming dive from the sky

Rolled 4

>>22159572

>>22159585
I'm terrified of anything over 4

>>22159478
>>22159530
King is level 6 or 7 (Sorcerers learn 3rd level spells at 6th level and 4th at 8th) on the other hand, the caster appears to be a wizard, which means he could be at 3+ level (wizards learn spells 1 level faster than sorcerers). Of course, we aren't actually using D&D, but this should give you an idea.

Most of the more powerful people become adventurers, rather than trying to rule the local mess.
----

>>22159585

You begin your run at the mage, casting true strike as you close in. You get close enough to see the caster is a human woman who looks to be in her early twenties. She fires off a second ice storm at your sister. Faceing away from the mage, she doesn't see it in time to close her wings and the spell slashes through the soft membranes. Though painful, the damage is relatively minor and your sister only wobbles slightly before regaining control. You continue to close, the mage still hasn't seen you. When you are only a few metres away - so close you can almost taste her flesh - she disappears with a faint snap.

A dimension door spell.

You hear the same sound coming from a couple of hundred metres away. The mage appears, stumbling slightly before looking around to get her bearings. She seems slightly surpised by her sudden relocation but glances at what had been a saphire embedded in a thin bracelet. The sapphire has turned black. She grimaces as she examines it.

You can see a large man with a bow and an axe strapped to his back standing on top of one of the carts. He's drawing an arrow and looking in your direction.

>>22159864
Do a corkscrew or other fancy flying to dodge the arrow, then fly by the bowman, lighting him on fire as you do so, and keep after the wizard. Don't kill the wizard with fire, she could have scrolls that would be useful for learning magic.

>>22159864
Fire breath, at best it will hurt the guy, at least it will provide a screen.

>>22159864
Dodge the man, pick something up and drop it on the little mage bitch

So it's set the guy on fire, then go after the mage.

roll 2d10.

Rolled 9

>>22159864
Burn him first. Let yourself fall down a bit at the same time to avoid the arrow.

Rolled 2, 5 = 7

>>22160027
Burn, baby!

Rolled 2

>>22160045
Shit.

Rolled 8, 8 = 16

>>22160055
oh, d10. Oops.

>>22160078
No, no, d20 was fine, OP just has to divide by two. That's what he'll do.

...

>>22160134
Obviously.

>>Mage is only 29- seem a lil young to anyone? Sounds like that bracelet was the source of her power, it going black, her emergency escape plan, and her grimace at it seems to show that shes out o gas- i say lets try to capture the chick if this is the case, whether to enslave of offer to mom idc but be sure to get that bracelet no matter what

>>22160197
grab the mage bitch and make sure sis can get away, mum will be pissed if she dies

>>22159864

Grab something heavy and do a bombing run on the wizard.

The mage does seem pretty young to have that sort of power innately. Perhaps now she's out of gas.

Inb4 we lose an eye to an arrow....

>>22160222
I'm sure our sis can take care of herself. We were hit by magic too you know. If you want to take the wizard knocking her out with our tail could work.

>>22160197
Could try. She could be useful as a prisonner. Not really the fair maiden we secretly dream of, but it'll do.

But the bracelet is probably a regular magic item with a contingency spell. It got black because its power was expended and she won't escape death like that next time. She should still have her own power though.

Could we get a pic showing about how big we are compared to a human?

>>22160282
do a bombing run on her, knock her ass out and drag her back to mumsie

>>22160282
Still, shes younger than our personal wizard and shes wayyy more powerful- i sense nonnatural magical abilities via bracelet

I say we roll for it after bownaxe guy is n pieces, after a scouting strafe run of course to see if she is indeed out

>>22160312
Why does mom want the wizard? I thought the idea is we keep her for our own use.

>>22160365
you know why

>>22160403
You think the mage could be one of the mercs that killed our brother?

>>22160442
No I think she's madonna

>>22160442
Troll

>>22160134

I'll allow it this time (mainly as I'd written the first half before I noticed).

---

You flap hard, pulling yourself around and jinking wildly. The man on the cart pauses as your flight becomes to erratic to predict, but quickly realises what you have in mind. He shifts slightly, obviously intending to leap behind cover at the last second. You puff your chest slightly, feinting a breath of fire. He falls for it, diving back to take cover behind the cart to his left. You release your breath while he's still in mid-air and he is engulfed by the flames. He screams as he hits the floor, writhing in pain as bits of his skin slough off. The string of his bow has been burned through and he has severe burns across most of his body. He's not quite dead, but he will be shortly if he isn't helped.

You head towards the woman, she's staring angrily at you having seen what happened to her partner. She focuses for a moment, collecting her thoughts before starting to cast a spell. You ready yourself to dodge, but at the climax the the spell, she disappears. Cursing, you try and figure out where she headed, knowing any mage capable of casting invisibility won't be stupid enough to remain in the same spot afterwards. You sense the spell before you see it and throw yourself to the side as a lightning bolt passes through the air where you had just been. Using your momentum to turn your dodge into a dive, you race towards her. Fear is obvious on her face by now. She hastily tries to cast a third ice storm, but you are on her before she can complete it. You get the backlash of the failed spell to the face as she jumps out of the way at the last second, it's painful, but nothing more. As she rolls to her feet, you let your momentum carry you forward a slam your tail into her. She's knocked sprawling. You could probably subdue her if you're quick and reasonably lucky, though you could easily kill her right now.

Actions?

>>22160506
drag the bitch off and lets get out of here, check to see sis is with us

>>22160506
Subdue her. Worst case, we'll have to kill her later.

>>22160506
kill her

File: 1356143739075.jpg-(11 KB, 300x170, gladiatordown.jpg)

>>22160506

>>22160506

Subdue her. If she's isn't the one who took out or brother, she probably knows who does.

Rolled 5

>>22160589

Rolling for this.

>>22160617

Subdue her it is then. This roll.

>>22160506
Subdue. Even if she has nothing to do with the attack on our brother she'll be useful to us.

>>22160636
Break her arms so she can't cast.

>>22160458
Not even, I'm just stupid.

>>22160506
Take her captive.

>>22160506
Ask her to marry you.

>>22160506
with our luck the guy we just roasted will be her brother or cousin or some shit

>>22160793
Isn't a friend enough?

>>22160817
whatever just someone who probably had his dick in her