War for the Crown Gameplay Part 1

"Ah can't tell ya how many 'best swordsmen in mah village's Ah knocked flat on their backside without them ever touchin' me," Corey chuckles. "There was this one fella though, just came at me with his fists, got inside mah guard 'fore Ah knew what was happenin'. Nearly knocked may head clean off and Ah couldn't do much about it."

"Aye, more agile and savvy fighters could probably slip your guard first. My best bet in my time was just to try and rush through and hope that I could hold my footing against the leg sweep, I've never been the most dextrous man," he gestures down at his bear-like figure. "Ever considered a military career, Mr. Crawford?"

"Can't say as much Ah have," Corey rubs his chin. "Ah never really thought 'bout it before."

Having learned all that seemed reasonable about Lady Clement for the moment, Adelaide decides to go meet her. The lady is standing off to the side, eating some dinner and sipping some wine. Adelaide approaches and gives her a polite curtsey. "Good evening, Lady Clement," she greets her, smiling. "I am Dame Adelaide Morilla. How has your evening been thus far?"

"Well, it's worth considering. Strong young man like you, it is certainly a viable career choice," Baron Okerra offers. "I could recommend you to a good commander, if you'd like."

"It has been just fine, thank you Dame Adelaide," Lady Clement returns the curtsy with a small one of her own. "Though the potentially unpleasant part is still yet to come."

"Are you referring to the vote later?" Adelaide asks, daintily taking a bite of her food.

Corey's eyes go wide. "That's, uh, that's a mighty fine compliment from a man like you, sir, and an awful big favor fer someone ya just met."

"I am," Lady Clement confirms. "I have both the blessing and the curse of having one of the final votes to cast."

"It's nothing, honestly. Costs me no more than ink and the price of sending a courier to a friend," Baron Okerra shakes his head. "He's always looking for capable young Taldans to serve with him."

"Well, Ah'd really appreciate it, sir," Corey nods vigorously. "It'd be a big step fer me, Ah think."

Adelaide considers that. "That sounds like a bit of a frustrating position, should everyone in front of you vote largely the same, but I suppose it's remarkably potent if they don't."

"Not entirely. If everyone before me votes largely the same, while my decision will hardly matter, I can change course if my vote would do nothing but ostracize me. If they don't, while it does put me in a deciding position, it also puts me in a much more dangerous position. Every rose has its thorn," Lady Clement explains.

"But of course. You would be going in as a private, but if you are already capable enough to win tournaments, I suspect you won't stay there for long," Baron Okerra nods. "Might I ask who sponsored you for the tournament?"

"Count Varima, sir," Corey answers. "He doesn't have any sons, and his daughter an' Ah are friendly. She mentioned Ah could fight and ride ta him, so he sponsored me."

The young woman nods as she takes that in. "How do you see tonight's vote going, if I may ask?"

"Good on him," Baron Okerra smiles approvingly. "So you ride as well?"

"It's too early to say," Lady Clement hums, rubbing her temple. "Stavian has a larger group of core supporters than Eutropia, but she has done more work to convince the undecided senators."

"Grew up around horses," Corey nods. "It's good ta have 'em out in the country, easier ta get where ya need ta go if ya don't hafta walk five miles ta get there."

"Being able to ride is a useful skill," Baron Okerra nods along. "In any case, it's been a pleasure speaking to you, Mr. Crawford, but I ought to spread myself around a bit." With that, he gives Corey a short bow then heads back down the stairs out of the gallery.

Adelaide nods, and takes note of the temple rub. ”Well, I suppose at this point, the stage is set. I hope it plays out favorably. But perhaps a change of subject is in order?” Smiling, she adds, ”What do you think of the new public education program? It’s in the early stages, of course, but I think it has the potential to be quite exciting.”

"In principle, I think it's a good idea. A more educated people will be better at whatever task they approach, making the country more prosperous by extension. Further, it should also help reduce crime in the city by keeping youth occupied and by showing them more productive ways to spend their energy," Lady Clement replies. "I intend to watch the results with some interest - there are many things that are good ideas in theory, but fall flat in practice."

"I'm quite looking forward to the results, since I agree the principle is good," Adelaide answers with a smile. "And I certainly hope the structure established for the trial period turns out well. A more educated population can only lead to more skill, as you alluded to, and if the idea is sound yet the implementation is flat, it could create undue caution over trying again in the future."

"Of course, a program like this will require either more revenue or moving spending from somewhere else once expanded," Lady Clement points out, her expression neutral. "While that itself is not inherently disqualifying or even bad, it is a challenge that needs to be addressed. Do you have any ideas for how to approach that?"

"Hm." Adelaide considers for a moment, keeping her hands neatly in front of her. "Well, in theory, a successful trial would show how useful the program would be, and only more so if expanded. It's possible some members of the nobility would then become interested in upfront investment, perhaps to have their own areas prioritized with the ultimate expansion, but counting on nobility investment would probably be unstable in the long-term, since the next generation could simply change their mind. If enough support is garnered based on the success of the trial, a new tax becomes a feasible option to push for, or adjusting the current budget to divert small portions from different areas. In the long-term, educated citizens result in a wealthier people, which would result in higher tax revenue. That train of thought is probably a decade or two out, though."

"A reasoned answer," Lady Clement notes with a small smile. "I suspect some combination of budgetary adjustments and a small tax increase would be the best approach. There isn't enough money to be diverted from other programs to pay for a full expansion in its entirety, but increasing taxes alone would prove unpopular, dangerously so. Of course, I have heard an interesting third option: make a single, one-time investment in aggressively expanding and reconquering part of our traditional territory and use the new revenue from that territory to fund programs like education."

Adelaide tilts her head, thinking, then corrects herself. "Well, that certainly is an interesting option, and I'm sure one that would garner a lot of support from the more military-oriented nobility. I wonder how much of the new revenue would actually be available to fund education, though. If we don't treat new territories well, we're liable to doom ourselves to a repeat of history with seizing territories, being prosperous for a time, and losing territories through rebellion. The main difference being this time, Cheliax would be prepared to seize the lost lands. Treating the citizens of the new territories as proper equals would require a great deal of that new revenue gained... I suppose it's possible one could have a plan to transition the territories into full statehood and citizenship and use some of the upfront revenue to make initial investments in the program?" She frowns, thinking. "It would be a difficult balance, I think."

"It will be difficult no matter what the approach is, that's what makes it a bold policy proposal," Lady Clement muses. "That might be the most controversial approach though. Just proposing conquest itself is difficult, and requires months or years of planning in advance, not to mention the logistics of that level of troop movement and then governance of the new territory. Nonetheless, it does go to show that there are a great many ways to approach implementing a program like this. The important part is having leadership that is thoughtful and competent enough to execute it properly."

”Yes, and having leadership that initiated the trial to prove the benefits of such a program is a strong sign in that direction, in my opinion,” Adelaide acknowledges with a smile. ”Being completely truthful, even if there weren’t so many clear benefits from furthering education for all, I would probably still be pleased to hear about such a program. I really enjoyed school, and everyone should have their chance to enjoy many things.”