Luxuriating in a – necessarily large – wooden bath, I got a good view of my enormous body. Well, at least as far as the vast stomach. From there, my lower half was completely out of view. Maybe Carlos felt at home like this and I wasn't judging him from the point of beauty or shame. My dismay at the body I was in was a practical one. As it was, I couldn't possibly help these people in battle. And I was so used to my own, fairly fit shape that for me, this was like being an imprisoning shell. I had an idea of who I was that was at odds with this person. It would take some serious work but I was determined to get in shape, not least for the sake of the battles to come. At least he was tall, taller than me, at about 6' 4" I'd guess. That was promising for the long term, if I could get the body into fighting condition.197Please respect copyright.PENANAimU23hK4q2
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While I didn't want to make any important decisions about my character sheet until I had tested if I could improve my stats, I took some time to properly study the kingdom menus.197Please respect copyright.PENANASFcO4dfiRj
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Greyland197Please respect copyright.PENANA3JqcYkRKIW
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Economy Military People197Please respect copyright.PENANAxHYjBjul0n
Currently building: granary level 2197Please respect copyright.PENANASwG2OkZInQ
Monthly trade income: 0197Please respect copyright.PENANAJGj5PnJNXi
Monthly tax income: 54 gold197Please respect copyright.PENANATuGyi0ekXo
Daily food consumption: 13 units197Please respect copyright.PENANAc8kdGoZKiZ
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Grain yield: 0 due in 17 days197Please respect copyright.PENANAe4AGz5e5gr
Vegetable yield: 35 food units due in 21 days197Please respect copyright.PENANAsyOM30oqSJ
Wool yield: 3 bales due in 34 days197Please respect copyright.PENANAZxJDmpfgH3
Meat yield: 4 units daily197Please respect copyright.PENANAz6XjeE1lpB
Timber yield: 17 planks daily197Please respect copyright.PENANAtj5qpkC3Tx
Iron yield: 2 ingots daily197Please respect copyright.PENANAcWdHs2YyZO
Quarry yield: 6 blocks daily197Please respect copyright.PENANAAHUuY3v7Hu
Smithy yield: no production set197Please respect copyright.PENANA19iJMgJlys
Weaving yield: 4 bolts daily197Please respect copyright.PENANAoaEZz4Nz8A
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Research: steel pickaxes197Please respect copyright.PENANAH02eraeTej
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Resources:197Please respect copyright.PENANADYf4CbLY21
Wheat: 19 food units197Please respect copyright.PENANAl3Uopfg5Uo
Vegetables: 32 food units197Please respect copyright.PENANA6vs3P8ZsIb
Meat: 5 food units197Please respect copyright.PENANAWbT9EVw1QS
Wool: 7 bales197Please respect copyright.PENANAxTcWh4Db98
Timber: 134 planks197Please respect copyright.PENANAwNlLIRUsWj
Iron: 11 ingots197Please respect copyright.PENANAQscxpAQBKC
Stone: 33 blocks197Please respect copyright.PENANAhh8o2K9qGW
Cloth: 0 bolts
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All of these points of information could be opened for more detail, so I focused on the 'currently building' tab. There, I could see a graphic of a partly constructed wooden tower. The granary, presumably. In a timer that was counting down, there were two days and several hours left on a bar that was about half filled with green. I had other options, currently greyed out: farm buildings, level 2; hunting lodge, level 2; sawmill level 2; watermill; mine level 3; quarry level 2; smithy level 2; library level 2.197Please respect copyright.PENANAJQRbWCK5V6
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There was an obvious contradiction between the fact the kingdom was working on a new granary and there was no grain yield. Presumably, this was a legacy of losing the recent battle and the farmland. I should almost certainly swap the construction project to something else. Long term, it was often a good idea in strategy games to invest in research, which might be what the library was good for. But I had a real worry about the food situation. So without making any changes, and after shifting my hulky figure to swirl some warm water around, I looked at the Military sub-menu.197Please respect copyright.PENANAvUU1kDuF3k
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Military197Please respect copyright.PENANA8Fj5gek8vm
Light infantry: 32197Please respect copyright.PENANABUCirJ0Pca
Heavy infantry: 12197Please respect copyright.PENANAYATVED6sXz
Archers: 18197Please respect copyright.PENANAETlu4gUuTC
Light cavalry: 24197Please respect copyright.PENANAI86BNHT02c
Heavy cavalry: 3197Please respect copyright.PENANAbtUvcuHXmQ
Ballista: 1197Please respect copyright.PENANAxAMtp72ZHa
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Hospital: 17197Please respect copyright.PENANAAgfxmFt97o
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Military upkeep cost: 42 gold, 5 silver197Please respect copyright.PENANAe03kkR30Zz
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Currently training: 2 heavy cavalry197Please respect copyright.PENANAYTvf97ayqZ
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Buildings: keep level 2; curtain walls level 1; towers level 1; town walls level 1197Please respect copyright.PENANA2fMZgGopbw
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Currently building: tower machicolations, 3 days
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I had no idea how big the armies in this world were, but with just a hundred troops the situation here was certainly dire. I suddenly had a dark thought. What if we were overrun? Slaughtered. What would happen to me? Would I get home? Respawn? Or just die, forever?197Please respect copyright.PENANAForJtwLA5I
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Although they were fundamentally important questions, there was nothing I could do to find answers to them, so I returned my focus to the menus. Each of these entries had options to drill down into more specific information, such as about the stats on the troops, but I just skimmed through them, wanting to understand the big picture items first.197Please respect copyright.PENANAPilDGknxI0
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People197Please respect copyright.PENANAI6uovdbRYS
Citizens: 485197Please respect copyright.PENANAnFOaucxUTh
Happiness: 14197Please respect copyright.PENANAt0TQDp3rXn
Tax Level: High197Please respect copyright.PENANAdEmOkTLrDv
Health: 89197Please respect copyright.PENANAj6btLwDh9X
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Specialist roles197Please respect copyright.PENANA4ny8XfoRyd
General: Lord Arval, Paladin Level 7197Please respect copyright.PENANAfXLGyTyanA
Royal Wizard: Carlena, Sorceress Level 9197Please respect copyright.PENANAGgxZthtODj
Steward: Chancellor Parrin, Scout Level 9197Please respect copyright.PENANArz0A1UTb57
Ambassador: Figus, Bard Level 3
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Looking at the Citizens menu I saw a more detailed breakdown: Soldiers 110; Farmers 38; Builders 40; Shepherds 34; Hunters 48; Miners 84; Clothmakers 23; Bakers 23; Brewers 16; Carpenters 21; Stonemasons 14; Smiths 4; Researchers 4; Idle 26. It was strange how few were the numbers here. Was this because I had found myself at an early stage of whatever game-like system this world was based on? Or was there some other explanation?197Please respect copyright.PENANALn5pV2EX3k
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This was interesting. For a start, the king had been lying to Chancellor Parrin for some reason. Far from being a Level 5 Scout, the thin man was 9. Then I found I could open up their character sheets and I did so for Lord Arval.197Please respect copyright.PENANA2Lz5SNBvt8
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Lord Arval: Paladin Level 7197Please respect copyright.PENANAPf38dJ57ZR
HP 64197Please respect copyright.PENANA9yJXC3sfUA
AC 18197Please respect copyright.PENANAwA08C3Xe6a
XP 19,663 (28,800)197Please respect copyright.PENANAaylUL9Hssw
Str 17 (18), Dex 12, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 9.197Please respect copyright.PENANAbnEwSxrDPy
Shield of Defence +1, Trueblade +2, Ring of Strength +1, Potion of Haste, Potion of Healing.
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Very interesting. I had to close my eyes for a moment, ducking down to soak my hair, but the character sheet was still there when I came back up out of the water. Firstly, I noted that Lord Arval had an XP bar. He could level up. That was encouraging for me, because it suggested that stats might evolve too. Secondly: magic items. Everybody loves magic items, but again I was particularly excited to see they could be used to change stats, as in Lord Arval's Strength.197Please respect copyright.PENANAVxRDDnGtka
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Time to check the others.197Please respect copyright.PENANApBggqJWi36
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Carlena, Sorceress Level 9197Please respect copyright.PENANAyIzbRN3Ppk
HP 34197Please respect copyright.PENANA8BlIhZj1A1
AC 5197Please respect copyright.PENANAd3EqOu8JAy
XP 72,102 (86,400)197Please respect copyright.PENANAdAqYz1gAI9
Str 5, Dex 11, Con 9, Int 17, Wis 7, Cha 8.197Please respect copyright.PENANArWnmmWEyVN
Broach of Protection from Magical Missiles; Wand of Channelling; Potion of Transformation.
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Chancellor Parrin, Scout Level 9197Please respect copyright.PENANAGz5YH53FMz
HP 53197Please respect copyright.PENANAkjtQrioBIA
AC 12197Please respect copyright.PENANAibqD8udSwV
XP 71,043 (86,400)197Please respect copyright.PENANAjgGdSstTk7
Str 9, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 6, Cha 9197Please respect copyright.PENANA2ZTIFggXUG
Dagger +1; Leather Jerkin +1; Ring of Silent Movement.
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Figus, Bard Level 3197Please respect copyright.PENANAiBB1nHdOld
HP 17197Please respect copyright.PENANA8jMlXPwhpN
AC 14197Please respect copyright.PENANAW6kKTOFbAZ
XP 684 (800)197Please respect copyright.PENANAnrXXuXEdny
Str 13, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 15197Please respect copyright.PENANACNsYkbJ0kA
Scroll of Charm197Please respect copyright.PENANAEKbxsaeO7q
Ambassador feats: Speak Language; Swift Travel
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Pretty decent, or so it seemed. But everything was relative. What special roles did our opponents have? Maybe Chancellor Parrin would know.197Please respect copyright.PENANACDZt2AZX8R
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By this time my bath was only lukewarm and so, with some difficulty, I stood up. Water dripping from me, I took a towel and when as dry as I could manage, a robe that a servant had brought me that looked clean enough. Outside the door of the bathroom was a young servant, who ducked his head when I left rather than make eye contact. After I was past him, he ran into the bathroom, to tidy up perhaps.197Please respect copyright.PENANAQ4RwR8scZN
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Lying in a comfortable four-poster bed, in clean sheets, I considered that I was blessed. Almost certainly, there were gods in this world. And if one of them had played a role in bringing me here, well, fair dues to him, her, or it. I sent a silent prayer of gratitude. This is what I needed. Not the trappings of being a king but the challenge. A kingdom under threat and an RPG system to wield to the best of my ability. I really wanted to get stuck into my own character sheet, but most of my decisions would have to wait until I had more information. And I was too tired to explore the menus much further.197Please respect copyright.PENANA9coriM2QZu
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There were two tasks, however, that shouldn't wait until morning. I called up Greyland/Economy/Currently Building. There I switched the granary out and from the other options, dragged in hunting lodge, level 2. We were losing about 7 food units a day, with reserves of just 56. Obviously, I needed to resolve that, before planning on building something more strategic.197Please respect copyright.PENANA8SAoCPh349
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The other assignment I wanted to make was for the Smithy, which was not producing anything. The sub-menu, however, was complex, full of possible items like horse shoes, swords, shields and arrow heads that all looked extremely useful. There were tools I could create too, including hoes, which I was tempted by, as these would surely help my food output. Or were they limited to use in the kind of fields we had recently lost?197Please respect copyright.PENANAGbxaH2MREx
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Wondering why my predecessor had left such an important building idle, I had a thought and checked the research queue. There was only four hours left on the countdown for steel pickaxes. Maybe he had planned on completing that research and then getting the smith to work on producing them. If so, it wasn't a bad idea, all we really had going for us were the mountains around the town. If we could use sources of iron to build up tradeable reserves of iron and steel, that might be another way to solve the food crisis. So that decision could also wait until morning.197Please respect copyright.PENANAZVXEp3IDTg
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My head filling again with images of the town planning interface, I was asleep before I knew it.