Petals in the snow
The naga took the bottle and raised it to her nose. She stifled a coughing fit into a single wheeze, but couldn't hide the tears that began to stream from her eyes. "What IS that?"
Elfrith took the bottle back and rolled it between her hands. "It's only wine. Or it used to be. Just watch." She straightened up as a briar swayed towards the bar and pushed a couple of rings into her hand.
"Hard day in the fields?" Elfrith smiled warmly. "Well, I've got just the reward for a long day in the Sun, but I'm afraid it's not my usual. 4 more rings for a glass - since you're a regular and all."
With some suspicion, the briar counted out a handful more coins and let them drop to the bar. Elfrith scooped them up and gracefully poured a glass of the scummy dark liquid.
The naga picked up the mop bucket in silent readiness.
The briar drank deeply. For a couple of seconds they stood entirely still, eyes closed. Then, in one fluid movement, they grabbed the glass and downed the rest of it in one clean gulp. "Elfrith! This is the finest stuff - how did you get something like this all the way out here?"
"Oh, I have my sources. Genuine Sarvosi vintage. 312YE," Elfrith slipped her hand round the bottle to cover the label and slid it back across the bar. "Let me get you another."
6 more rings clattered onto the bar and the briar staggered back to a crowd of farmhands laughing raucously in the corner. Even from the other side of the pub, Elfrith and naga caught occasional ravings about the flavour of the special vintage as the glass was passed round.
"Now that, Tata," Elfrith took the bucket from the naga and placed it firmly back behind the bar, "is why we give those nice people with the pink powder a discount on drinks."
Overview
- Both the Kraft Brothers and the Zuredruiven vintners have invested in the farms of Hahnmark
- The rival merchants visited Anvil during the Winter Solstice
- Thanks to careful manoeuvring they were prevented from coming into conflict
- Opportunities to deepen relations with one or potentially both merchants have been presented
Fields of pink flowers bobbing in the fresh breezes of Hahnmark have become an unremarkable sight these past seasons. The Sarcophan Kraft Brothers who spearheaded the project to cultivate plants in alpine Wintermark use them to brew a rare Sarcophan narcotic known as Viezesmaak. It is perhaps the worst-kept secret among such farmers that, as well as dealing with the Brothers, there have been agreements with their direct competitor who brews his own strange concoction from the unusual flowers which infiltrate the Kraft Brothers' crop from time to time.
Business has been booming. Despite the entirety of Wintermark seeming to be aware of this situation, there has been no indication that the Kraft Brothers realise a competitor is snatching business from under their noses (not least thanks to some clever manoeuvring during the Winter Solstice in which both sides visited Anvil without becoming aware of the other). The Zuredruiven vintners have cracked the puzzle of cultivating draaikolkbloem on a large scale, and now there are choices to be made by the farmers of Wintermark. Large-scale cultivation of draaikolkbloem would not be possible without the Kraft Brothers becoming aware - and Sarcophan traders are not known for their tolerance of their rivals slipping into their patch.
Making the Choice
| Farm owners of Hahnmark |
| Aleksi Son Of Otto |
| Baedurof Trunk of Whiteoak Heolstor |
| Beornraed Cenricsson |
| Bruin Dunning |
| Caelan Dunning |
| Conrald Mystrim |
| Cynekendra Open Handed |
| Darius Andersen |
| Drekki the unyielding |
| Eira Liinasdottir |
| Emmer Drum-Heart |
| Eodric |
| Erad steel-fang |
| Eydis Tuuling |
| Freydis |
| Gaerwulf |
| Garmr |
| Ioseph Cthescaep |
| Jayne Larton |
| Jörgen Aatoson |
| KarttaUlfsson |
| Kendra Tuuling |
| Lazlo |
| Lilith Derw |
| Lysa |
| Mae Aldwynsdottir |
| Ordwig Oddasson |
| Oskar Gundersen |
| Sage Felman |
| Siferth |
| Snave Dunridda |
| Tact "Wellspring" Landstander |
| Ugla Vardovich |
| Ulrich Andersen |
| Vama Derw |
| Woe |
| Zathariel |
- There will be a vote of Hahnmark farmers at the Tree of Names in the Wintermark Camp at 18:00 on the Saturday of the Spring Equinox.
- Farmers will decide whether to continue growing Vlinderbloem in their fields, or whether to end their deal with the Kraft Brothers.
The Civil Service will facilitate a vote of Hahnmark farmers at 18:00 on the Saturday of the Spring Equinox, by the Tree of Names in the Wintermark camp. It will be a vote between either continuing to grow vlinderbloem for the Kraft Brothers, or to end their association with the brothers. It should, of course, be considered that were the farmers to vote to continue their relationship with the Kraft Brothers whilst the senate commissioned a Zuredruiven project, both parties would likely be offended enough to pull out of Hahnmark altogether.
The Status Quo
- Hahnmark farmers could reject the Zuredruivens and continue growing vlinderbloem for viezesmaak
Vlinderbloem - the plant that viezesmaak is distilled from - continues to grow reasonably well in Hahnmark. It's an open secret that the reason the Brothers approached Wintermark in the first place is that the climate where vlinderbloem grows is not easily accessible in the Delves. The Kraft Brothers are doing very well out of the arrangement, able to dominate the trade in viezesmaak and enrich both themselves and the Hahnmark farmers. It may be better not to "upset the apple cart" as the Marchers might have it, and keep things as they are. The situation with vlinderbloem and viezesmaak would not change.
If this decision is made, however, the Zuredruiven vintners would seek alternative cultivation for their draaikolkbloem. They would no longer focus their efforts on the farmers of Hahnmark, but seek a partnership elsewhere so that their crop may prosper.
The Vintners Option
| Zuredruiven Benefice |
| Commission Type: Great work |
| Location: Kalpamark, Hahnmark |
| Cost: 60 wains of weirwood, 180 crowns, six months |
| Availability: One year - or until another great work increasing investment in herb gardens is commissioned in the territory |
Effect:
|
| Zuredruiven Cultivator |
| Type: Wintermark National |
| Appointment: Tally of the Votes |
Powers:
|
| Responsibilities: To serve as a go-between, maintaining relations between the Zuredruiven Vintners and the farmers of Hahnmark |
| Woven Fortune | |
| 12 draaikolkbloem | 3 Woven Fortune |
| 24 draaikolkbloem | 6 Woven Fortune |
| 36 draaikolkbloem | 9 Woven Fortune |
- Draaikolkbloem is a much more fragile crop than vlinderbloem, and it cannot survive sustainably in a farm environment.
- A great work could be built that saw herb gardens in Hahnmark produce 2 draaikolkbloem per season.
- This would cause the Kraft Brothers to pull out of Hahnmark. No more viezesmaak.
Draaikolkbloem is a much more fragile crop than vlinderbloem, and it does not survive sustainably in a farm environment. It requires much more thorough care and careful cultivation. The Zuredruiven vintners propose that something similar to Brenna's Gift would provide them the opportunity to work directly with Hahmark's herb gardeners. After looking over their proposals, some of these folk note that if the deal falls through, they'd still be left with a perfectly acceptable great work representing investment in herb gardens - it would instead provide a benefit to imperial roseweald production across the entire territory.
As well as the benefits of the great work, the Zuredruiven Benefice creates an Imperial title - Zuredruiven Cultivator - who would serve as a go-between representing the Vintners and the farmers of Hahnmark to each other. They would be able to directly trade draaikolkbloem for its refined form, the Woven Fortune preparation that (among other things) enhances the magical senses of magicians.
The drawback is that as soon as this Zuredruiven Benefice were commissioned, the Kraft Brothers would dissolve their relationship with Hahnmark rather than be in competition with the Zuredruiven vintners. Brenna's Gift would revert to its previous production following the Summer Solstice, but there would be no extra production for farms after the Spring Equinox.
The Third Option
- The farmers could mutually agree to end their association with the Sarcophan entrepreneurs
The third obvious option is to thank both sets of Sarcophan entrepreneurs for their interest in Hahnmark but bring the current experiment to an end. In this case, the Kraft Brothers and the Zuredruiven vintners would wind up their interest in the territory. They might theoretically look for opportunities to resume production elsewhere, but it's not unlikely that one or both of them might cut their losses and withdraw from the Empire. This would end the association with the Delves' traders but wouldn't create any particular bad feeling - business is business after all. In fact, there are those who suggest that ending on good terms could be more beneficial for the Empire's future relationship with Sarcophan traders than waiting for any potential future disaster that might cause either group of foreign traders to abandon their deal with the territory and spread word of the dangers of Imperial imports.
In this scenario, Brenna's Gift would revert to its previous production following the Summer Solstice, but there would be no extra production for farms after the Spring Equinox. Farms growing vlinderbloem would return to the work they handled prior to the Kraft Brothers' offer, and viezesmaak production in Hahnmark would cease.
Have Cake, Eat it
- There is an alternative where herb garden owners might produce smaller crops of draaikolkbloem
- Herb garden owners from Hahnmark can choose to gain two drams of draaikolkbloem in place of three drams of true vervain and one dram of each other herb
Is there a world where Hahnmark can continue to enjoy both crops? Perhaps. The Zuredruiven vintners have discovered methods of draaikolkbloem cultivation which can be practised at scale within a herb garden, and they are happy to share the technique for a cut of the harvest. Following Bramme van Zuredruiven's visit to Anvil last summit, there seems to have been some discussion within the winery about the complex politics of the Hahnmark situation, and another option has been quietly made available.
As long as the public deals offered by the Zuredruivens are not accepted, they offer a subtler deal to the herb garden owners of Hahnmark. The Zuredruiven vineyards in the Sarcophan Delves invite them to holiday among the vines. There will be an opportunity to sample the finest wines of the Delves (rumour has it these are in fact not particularly fine when compared to Astolat, Sarvos, or even Seguran vintages), walk among the vines and learn some of the arts of the vintners. Which is to say, they will teach herb garden owners from Hahnmark to grow draaikolkbloem in return for a cut of their harvest. Any herb garden owner who takes up this offer will see their garden produce two drams of draaikolkbloem per season, but lose production of three drams of true vervain, and one dram of each of the other herbs. The option will be available for a year, at which point there would need to be further training in crop rotation and soil rejuvenation if the deal were to continue.
There is, however, a catch. If too many herb gardens were to begin growing draaikolkbloem, the Kraft Brothers would surely make the link between the Zuredruivens' new business venture and the familiar flowers growing across the territory. If more than 20 herb gardens take up the offer, the Kraft Brothers are sure to discover their competitor sneaking in on their patch and will pull out of Hahnmark altogether.