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`Apr. 25, 2025` · [[Horseapple]] · #Fragment #Characters #Warband
> [!custom-callout]- All mentions, including keyword *“npc4”*
> *Pulled from* [[2-strings-(Warband)]]
> - “Excuse me, captain. I hate to trouble you with such things, but I just wanted to let you know that I can't abide that fellow Rolf, the one who calls himself a baron.”
> - “He's just a simple brigand, as far as I can tell. House of Rolf, my arse. Genuine blue-bloods are bad enough, but those who pretend to be blue-bloods are bloody intolerable. Anyway, I might have said something a bit sharp to him a minute ago. He seemed to take offense, anyway. I just thought you should know.”
> - “I understand that you have dispatched Rolf to fabricate a claim of royal descent. I have to tell you, {sir/madame} -- I do not think that the heavens will smile on such an attempt to take the throne by fraud.”
> - “Greetings. I am Rolf, son of Rolf, of the most ancient and puissant House of Rolf.”
> - “Really? Well, perhaps your ignorance can be forgiven. Our ancestral lands are far away, over the mountains.”
> - “Like all the men of my family, I have come to a foreign land to make a name for myself in the profession of arms before returning home to take over custodianship of my estates. Unfortunately, the authorities in these lands have little understanding of the warrior code, and have chosen to call me a bandit and brigand, and put a price on my head -- a most unfair libel to throw at a gentleman adventurer, you will surely agree.”
> - “But I am anxious to avoid any further trouble, so if you knew of any company of fighting men where I might enlist, I would be most grateful.”
> - “I went back to my ancestral barony, to inspect my lands. But we had locusts, you see, and bad rains, and other things, so here I am again, looking for work.”
> - “Good! I look forward to vanquishing your enemies.”
> - “Note however that as a gentleman and the holder of a barony, I expect to be in a position of command, and not be treated as one of the common soldiers.”
> - “Excellent. Before we depart, would you be so kind to lend me {reg3} denars? I had to pawn a family heirloom at a pawnbroker here in {s20}, and I would like to retrieve it before we leave.”
> - “Your pardon -- just so you know, the men of the House of Rolf do not care to {s21}. I will not be pleased if you continue to take this course.”
> - “Your pardon -- whatever anyone else says, I think nothing of it that you {s21}. You should adopt whatever ruse you need to survive in these troubled times.”
> - “{Sir/Madame}. The House of Rolf is one of the most ancient and respected families in this part of the world, with a provenance dating back to the Old Calradic Empire. Yet {s11} openly shows me disrespect, and casts doubt on the provenance of my house.”
> - “{Sir/madame}, these are indeed sorry days if common folk are allowed to mock their betters. That is all.”
> - “{Sir/Madame}. I happened to exchange a few words with {s11} as we were dividing up the spoils of battle. Please inform her that when she speaks to me, she should call me 'Baron' or perhaps 'Baron Rolf,' or 'Your Grace,' but certainly not just 'Rolf.'”
> - “I am of noble blood, and she is of the basest birth. She must remember her place.”
> - “Excuse me, {sir/madame}. I just wanted to say a word in praise of {s11}. He did well in that last battle.”
> - “You chose well to enlist him in our company. He knows a thing or two about a fight, and also knows the importance of respecting his comrades-in-arms, unlike some others I might mention.”
> - “I have fought with you honourably, as befits a son of the House of Rolf, but I am not altogether satisfied with your leadership. I will go home to my ancestral estates, which are much in need of my services.”
> - “Why hello, captain. It's been a while. You've done well for yourself, I hear. For my part, I've been having some difficulties coaxing a living from my estates -- locusts, bad rains, unruly serfs, that sort of thing. I thought I might take up the sword once more. I know there's been some bad blood between us, but I'd be honoured to fight in your ranks once again.”
> - “The Woods of Ehlerdah. Bah. This place is thick with bandits and outlaws.”
> - “Well, you see, the King of Swadia declared this to be his personal hunting preserve, and said he'd kill any man who as much as strung his bow here. So what happens? Some family goes hungry, and succumbs to the temptation to poach, and the king's sheriff comes along and strings him up and takes his land. His sons, rather than starve, go bandit. And so naturally anyone in the whole valley who feels the need to run away from a debt or a nagging wife or a vengeful noble comes up here to join them, living on wild pigs and berries and the purses of unwary travellers.”
> - “How do I know this, you ask? Well... I was taken by them, and held for ransom, but I got away. That's really all there is to tell.”
> - “Our ancestral barony is over the mountains, across the Culdarr pass.”
> - “Well, captain, I think that you would be the kind of {king/queen} that well-born gentlemen such as myself would be proud to follow into battle...”
> - “Of course, {captain/my lady}. The trick is now to get others to follow you. As you know, one's lineage is a great determinant of one's worthiness. Perhaps you have a long-lost ancestor of whom you have not told me?”
> - “Yes -- I think I have heard of that line, In fact, I can envision {his/her} entire genealogy. If you give me leave, 'Majesty', I shall travel about the villages and castles of this realm over the next several weeks, spreading word of your royal birth. Of course, I would hope that you would remember your faithful subject, when it comes to distributing lands...”
> - “Captain. Artimenner has set off on a journey, telling the burghers that you claim the throne because you know how to balance your accounts. That's nonsense. Nobles and kings fight and rule. If they had to haggle over wages and overruns with every passing vagabond who ever did a scrap of work on their estates, then there would be nothing but disorder and chaos.”
> - “Captain, if you could spare me for a few days, I would like to look up an old comrade-in-arms in {s17}, who has from time to time led a small company in the pay of the {s18}. He is a good man, the kind who speaks little and listens much. I'm sure over a drink or two he might let us know which way the political winds are blowing in those parts.”
> - “It is good of you to grant me {s17} as a fief -- and most appropriate. Proud indeed is the king who has a baron of the House of Rolf as {his/her} vassal.”
> - “Aye, well.... I'm not sure what to say. If we must fight, let's get it over with.”
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>*“A massive `Mount & Blade` wikipedia.”*<br>About [Encyclopædia Calradica](About-the-Encyclopædia.md)<br>About the [Project](Project-(Pillar).md)<br>About the [Author](Horseapple.md) <br>