>>5631327I think...
All in all, we did <span class="mu-s">Well</span>. I didn't count on the Luperni being as dogged as they were. There were no civilian casualties, and despite a surplus of blood-thirst on your end, we didn't leave a dock full of corpses. Taking <span class="mu-s">Two</span> Pursuit Knights is an impressive feat. Sir Psoglav will be weeks in recovering. With the horror Hart inflicted on the unnamed Knight, I doubt he'll live. Although, sometimes the Knights Questing surprise you. They don't quit easy.
Aggravating the Rikovol merchants will make acquiring their wares harder going forward. We may fool ourselves into thinking no one noticed it was us that destroyed their wine shipment. But the Rikovians cut precise, in combat and in commerce. They'll find out, and then they'll be Upset.
It was good thinking on your end that you did not seek them out in town afterwards. That could have gotten ugly.
Overall, I prepared the caches I did because I was expecting trouble. As I said, we're maybe the first people in fifty years to steal from the Lords Luperni and make a get-away. You understand now why. Their reputation is built on this, extreme response to such slights. It's maybe a little much (two ballistas? Really??) but it deters a thousand mongrels from biting at their heels.
Still, I didnt expect this much trouble. And I fear that with multiple fires, corpses and collapsed buildings our future encounters with the Luperni may be more fraught.
Still, we gave them plenty chance to break-away and give up, surrender, slink or scurry. This is actually in our favour: the ones who did will tell a tale of us, and others will know that if we meet in a dark alley, it's not a foregone conclusion that this is a meeting that Death watches.
That sort of reputation <span class="mu-s">matters</span> in the Leviathan Sea. If they know they might not die, they'll be more willing to retreat or flee. And likewise. I'm not one for surrendering, but it's always good to have the option.
Finally, I'd be worried about how flagrantly our Scourges are disregarding the Strictures sigildry is meant to be bound by. We haven't suffered a truly back Backfire yet, but... It's only a matter of time. It's easy to think you can do everything when the Universe bends to your shouted demands. But the Universe always - <span class="mu-i">always</span> - snaps back at some point.
I would, in preference, see less collateral damage in the work ahead. But sometimes, it's not us. I mean... Two ballistas? <span class="mu-s">Really</span>?
Overall, I believe the world currently rates us as:
<span class="mu-s">+1 Merciful
+2 Mercenary
-1 Dangerous
+2 Lawbreakers</span>
Which is... Acceptable. It's better to err on the side of being considered more merciful, in the long-run. We will incur the full weight of the Pytherii State if we keep violating their laws though.
