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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnzxXgs1hAL
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR5yflNngxX
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Greyland397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPsL9UqbVq1
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Economy Military People397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdfspJhqjk
Currently building: granary level 2397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1bNJ7xBlol
Monthly trade income: 0397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfdkeYD2mV1
Monthly tax income: 54 gold397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLppETgBVOf
Daily food consumption: 13 units397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjpKPZGUo8
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Grain yield: 0 due in 17 days397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8zpf7FhtsU
Vegetable yield: 35 food units due in 21 days397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvVmTCi3gZL
Wool yield: 3 bales due in 34 days397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs7apNS9JKC
Meat yield: 4 units daily397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhNZ1UwLhx7
Timber yield: 17 planks daily397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNABFQA405n
Iron yield: 2 ingots daily397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRe7CEGRIH
Quarry yield: 6 blocks daily397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ494NLubeaU
Smithy yield: no production set397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡneNo7e62F2
Weaving yield: 4 bolts daily397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXQHfSBVddc
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Research: steel pickaxes397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdj3loLQEN6
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Resources:397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1AZKT5IDsz
Wheat: 19 food units397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfgYScNcdOx
Vegetables: 32 food units397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAh3kObYKBg
Meat: 5 food units397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡadvfpdP6dW
Wool: 7 bales397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLBkxkq06HW
Timber: 134 planks397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwqQUZtsGv8
Iron: 11 ingots397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0j1J3HBCuN
Stone: 33 blocks397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡScAyI0BsYq
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 2.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrs9dvtoxhV
397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2NtPOAgA2u
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaYbpjOSCJc
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Military397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR2r8qQZz8N
Light infantry: 32397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZIPaqgTQeZ
Heavy infantry: 12397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmv1x5P4icG
Archers: 18397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaJVq5N8C4r
Light cavalry: 24397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV19OywV5D5
Heavy cavalry: 3397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrin4fxAxMV
Ballista: 1397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5B4rdesvrC
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Hospital: 17397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTTQsimUZNq
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Military upkeep cost: 42 gold, 5 silver397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsino734tk9
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Currently training: 2 heavy cavalry397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nnsVQHzQd
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Buildings: keep level 2; curtain walls level 1; towers level 1; town walls level 1397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNmIf16nTiT
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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?397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPCjf9bNmXv
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhLo4KJDfo
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People397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGHNzg2lWWU
Citizens: 485397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8nZqRcXYGk
Happiness: 14397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSB2n9qMAB7
Tax Level: High397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gfAJ6d9dg
Health: 89397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoR5NGIH6uw
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Specialist roles397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ7tMlPjTbf
General: Lord Arval, Paladin Level 7397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN2U8XVvIuc
Royal Wizard: Carlena, Sorceress Level 9397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbYcYgO8M0a
Steward: Chancellor Parrin, Scout Level 9397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrHmmU87sub
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?397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX7HJL4ZDOi
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ZcSlQjplr
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Lord Arval: Paladin Level 7397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNkAtjlF6pN
HP 64397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXisy8JGqAS
AC 18397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfktMsYZGRN
XP 19,663 (28,800)397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYujyWH0l3i
Str 17 (18), Dex 12, Con 15, Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 9.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ6g5ScEFp7
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3EzKyhDZZ
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Time to check the others.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOsEoKt90Z9
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Carlena, Sorceress Level 9397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNy5xFi87qV
HP 34397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsvznNa4vRW
AC 5397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTCpUXeBt8
XP 72,102 (86,400)397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCDiV179akw
Str 5, Dex 11, Con 9, Int 17, Wis 7, Cha 8.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrildMW94e
Broach of Protection from Magical Missiles; Wand of Channelling; Potion of Transformation.
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Chancellor Parrin, Scout Level 9397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZLU7fIFKeX
HP 53397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbqauAWDdBs
AC 12397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBJEufhFX5G
XP 71,043 (86,400)397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡovmyO4OGLQ
Str 9, Dex 16, Con 12, Int 14, Wis 6, Cha 9397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdinJJATmU
Dagger +1; Leather Jerkin +1; Ring of Silent Movement.
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Figus, Bard Level 3397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9G3FeHYzy
HP 17397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡctD1jefIdH
AC 14397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiTokqUSvPZ
XP 684 (800)397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡooJz3wuYDB
Str 13, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 15397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG9MsuxZnn7
Scroll of Charm397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuukVwZ0nMy
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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhc1Fp9ql6x
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwjuR4Px1yW
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiEFRQBn6Lo
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ZwFHFibsI
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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?397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNa4CD43Bq3
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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.397Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCGHTqp8kBF
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My head filling again with images of the town planning interface, I was asleep before I knew it.
